By Chuck Fergus Tawny, tireless, smooth-moving and shy, bobcats are truly beautiful animals. Despite the bobcat's elusiveness, many Pennsylvanians are intrigued by this predator. It's scientific name is Lynx rufus , and the bobcat is closely related to the Canada lynx, which is not found in Pennsylvania.
Bobcats are efficient, wary predators equipped with sharp senses of sight, smell and hearing.
Five retractable, hooked claws on each front foot and four on the rear add to the armament. Though it's a fierce fighter, a bobcat isn't a large animal. A mature bobcat averages 36 inches in length, including a stubby, six-inch tail. This bobbed tail gives the bobcat its name. Pennsylvania bobcats weigh 15-20 pounds, with large individuals as heavy as 35 pounds.