This calendar is a product of hundreds of hours of hiking, scouting, and discovering small areas in Boulder where Bobcats roam frequently. Most of the images are taken in person, but some have been taken with camera traps. These camera traps are set up for weeks at a time, sometimes months, to capture some rarer looks at the lives of these amazing cats. I’m unsure of how many days in the field I spent to check on these cameras, to change batteries, or clear away snow, or check that no one has stolen them (which has happened). Most of the trips I end up empty handed, with either no animals passing by, or having to accept technical failures that may have cost me a shot. But on the rare occasion where I capture an image all the effort is worth it.
Where I have found small family groups and individuals, they have come to accept my presence as long as I don’t scare the prairie dogs away. When they’ve caught a meal, they’ve brought it right by me to make sure I get a picture of it to. Then they have simply sat and eaten it within a few feet of me, knowing that I’m not competition nor a threat, and perhaps happy to have a bodyguard around. I’ve spared you these images in the calendar, but you can see some on my Instagram.
