from Wisconsin DNR

[Emily]

Anyone want to help them find bobcats at less expense to the taxpayers?!!!
http://dnr.wi.gov/news/DNRNews_Lookup.asp?id=298#art2

Rescued dogs helping determine Wisconsin bobcat population
UW Stevens Point partners in project involving Conservation Canines
MADISON -- Dogs rescued from shelters have been trained to detect the scent of the elusive bobcat in Wisconsin to help scientists determine how many of these North American mammals are at home in the Badger State’s central region.

Roughly two years remain on a three-year joint research project involving the Department of Natural Resources and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point that started because of increasing interest in this nocturnal, solitary, and secretive animal.

“We have very little information about the bobcat in areas south of Highway 64,” DNR Scientist David MacFarland says. “And the animal is attracting a lot of attention.”

Study fueled by bobcat’s popularity
Traditionally found in the northern third of Wisconsin, some individuals suggest bobcats have been expanding south in the past decade. At the same time, interest in harvesting them has also increased. In 2009, 13,087 hunters and trappers applied for 475 bobcat permits.

The DNR Furbearer Management Committee asked the department’s Bureau of Science Services to initiate research to estimate the number of bobcats south of Highway 64, the southern boundary of the current harvest area. Dr. Eric Anderson, wildlife professor at the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point, who has been studying bobcats for more than 20 years, was invited to work with DNR scientists to develop the ongoing joint project.

Funding for the project stems from two sources. One portion comes from a recent permit application fee increase from $3 to $6. This fee increase was proposed by the Wisconsin Trappers Association, and supported by the department, to generate funds for bobcat research. Additional funding comes from the Pittman-Robertson Fund, a federal wildlife program supported through the sale of firearms, ammunition and archery equipment.

Conservation canines follow the scent
“Most of the population estimating techniques we use rely upon data collected from harvested animals,” MacFarland said. “But, bobcats are not harvested south of Highway 64. So we had to think of another way.”

They turned to the Conservation Canines (exit DNR) at the Center for Conservation Biology at the University of Washington. Pioneered in 1997 by Dr. Samuel Wasser, the program uses rescued dogs trained to find the feces– also known as scat – of various animals. The dogs have been involved in research in this country and abroad. This time they were trained to find bobcat scat.

“Once we’ve collected the samples,” UW Stevens Point graduate student John Clare said, “we can extract the DNA which lets us identify individual animals.”

Clare hopes the samples will provide enough information to estimate bobcat density for some of the areas south of Hwy 64. This summer’s work, which covered about 100 square miles, was a pilot study to see if the technique would work in Wisconsin and if enough scat could be found to accurately estimate bobcat density.

A total of 91 samples were collected and are being analyzed by Clare at the Molecular Conservation Genetics Lab at the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point.

Trail cameras also feature in the research
In addition to using the scat-detecting dogs, the researchers are placing 16 trail cameras across 25 square mile areas to estimate the numbers of bobcats in an area.

“Individual bobcats can be identified by the unique patterns on their fur,” Anderson said. “If we get images of the same animal on multiple cameras, we can use mathematical models to estimate their density.”

So far, their cameras have yielded hundreds of images of bobcats.

Private citizens are encouraged to report their own trail camera photos of bobcats. The observations will provide important information on the extent of bobcat range in central and southern Wisconsin. Citizens can find the online form by going to the DNR website and searching for “Wisconsin Black Bear and Bobcat Observations.”

“We have completed one sampling season and we have one more year of field work,” MacFarland said. “We need to learn more about the bobcat in Wisconsin and this is an effective way to capture critical information.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: David MacFarland – (715) 365-8917 or Joanne Haas – (608) 267-0798

[Dan McDonough]

Waiting for the WI DNR to figure out what is happening with the bobcat population is like waiting for a 3 year old to count the number of cattle in a large herd. By the time he's finished the spring calves have hit the ground and all of the numbers are wrong.

Counting cats in a 100 square mile area isn't going to give them the data they want. I just don't know why they would not keep a real live bobcat hunter in their back pocket. They have the dogs to actually catch the cats and not just find thier poop. They usually know a fair bit about trapping as if cats were all that hard to trap in the first place. They know where most of the good cat hunting spots are for about 100 miles or more around their home...usually a lot more. I could go on and on but I'm just preaching to the chior here. You all get the point.

For those of you all who don't know, we have a lottery system here in WI and it takes about 7 years to get one kill tag right now. In MN, you can take 5 on a small game license every year. In MI (the UP) I think it's 2 every year. The trappers accidentally catch more cats every year than what is actually taken and taged. Of course the DNR can't use logic to factor that in because it doesn't fit into thier math models. Most of those cats are not reported despite quite of few getting reported as accidentally caught in coyote and fox sets.

[Dan McDonough]

While I'm on the issue of trappers, I'd like to mention also that bodygrip traps take more female cats every year than any other threat out there. Where cats are concerned, the trappers are their biggest enemy. Try telling that to the DNR though...they have gotten downright nasty with me. If you even mentioning something that they think the trappers won't like, you may get your conversation cut short.

I try and assit any person with a tag in my area in order to help them find a large male (which like to kill kittens in order to bring a female into heat). I will also help locate larger males for the guys who are guiding others. When those larger cats are thined out some there will be more cats overall and it will be noticable within three years.

Large males, fishers, and trappers. If everybody concentrated on these three things in their cat hunting areas, we would all be better off. The DNR is way behind the ball and will likely continue to be so.

Wait for the Gov. to take care of what you need and you'll likely never get it. Take care of your cats well enough and it's liekly there would be so many more of them that they wouldn't have any other choice but to let you take a few again.

[Nolte]

Dan,

I'm not really sure what they are trying to accomplish anyway. Yep there are cats there, why not open up the area to hunting or trapping. They only give out like 7 flipping tags statewide anyway so it probably won't wipe them out in the southern area. Besides any cat hunter with a clue isn't going to waste his time driving around in areas that only hold a cat or two. You only get a handfull of days with good conditions, so why waste them driving around looking at fox tracks.

Dogs finding cat crap is their solution and trail cameras, huh. Why not just bring in a few good cat hunters and/or trappers and count some tracks in snow. Guys who can actually tell what a cat track looks like, probably going to have to outside the DNR to find that.

Sounds like another good circle jerk by the DNR. I can see the results now. DNR estimates there are 246 cats in an area South of the Northern cat hunting area but you still can't hunt them. The study will extend for another 25 years and we stronly urge the hiriing of 3 more biologists to tell you info you already knew.