Everybody has their own way to keep themselves entertained during Michigan’s long, cold winters.
Some people enjoy ice fishing. Some people ride snowmobiles. Some folks hit the ski slopes.
Oxford resident Bob Collins beat the winter blues by heading into the woods and shooting a bobcat on his hunting property near Hubbard Lake.
‘I was really pleased,? he said. ‘Just tickled to death.?
Collins bagged it Jan. 31 around 9:30 a.m. using a 12-gauge shotgun loaded with No. 4 shot. He’s having it made into a rug for his northern hunting lodge.
This was his first bobcat.
He started hunting them last year.
‘I enjoy hunting and I wanted something to do during the winter besides going to Florida,? Collins said.
Collins estimated it weighed approximately 22 pounds.
According to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR), bobcats are 2 to 3? feet long and weigh 10 to 40 pounds. They create tracks that are typically 1? inches long and 1 3/8 inches wide.
Bobcat coloration ranges from plain yellowish to red-brown. They have black coloring on the end of their tails and tips of their ears. Their ears are pointed with small tufts of fur.
A battery-operated rabbit decoy and remote control electronic call were used by Collins to lure the bobcat in.
The rabbit decoy, which moves in a circular path, was affixed to ground. The electronic call, which mimics the sound of a wounded rabbit, was placed in a tree about 3 feet away from the decoy. Collins positioned himself in a permanent blind about 25 to 30 yards away.
All that was left to do was wait for the moment of truth.
A base hunting license and a fur harvester license are required to hunt or trap bobcats in Michigan. Hunters and trappers also need to obtain a kill tag from the DNR and register any bobcats they harvest during the season.
In 2012, the DNR determined Michigan hunters bagged 351 bobcats, while trappers took 377 bobcats. Bobcats are found in both the Upper and Lower peninsulas. The population is higher in the Upper Peninsula.