Monitoring Maternal Attendance in an Urban Bobcat Den
Animal Science- Grade:
- 10
- Teacher:
- Elyse Wexler
In urban environments, understanding changes in the behavior of bobcats is essential for how these species adapt to fragmented habitats while raising kittens. However, there is still a lack of data regarding how maternal presence at den sites actually fluctuates as kittens age in these human-dominated landscapes. While general feline behavior is well-documented, Bobcats in Tucson (BIT) informs that there are no studies on the precise timing of maternal detachment in these bobcat dens. This project investigated the behavioral dynamics of a mother bobcat and her kittens to determine how presence/absence shifts over time within an urban ecosystem. By analyzing 304 trail camera videos at a single bobcat den collected over a two-month period in 2025, the scientist tracked the precise duration the mother spent present at the den versus the time she spent away. The hypothesis was that the maternal attendance of the mother bobcat with her kittens would go down overtime based on the assumption that the kittens would need less attention with their mother as they start to mature. The collected data confirmed this hypothesis in the case of this one bobcat. Additional data collection could help make this conclusion stronger.