Injured 11-Month-Old Bobcat Has New Home To Roam

PLANT CITY, FL — Alpha wasted little time. After a quick look around, the 11-month-old female bobcat bolted from her portable carrier to the edge of heavy woods at Lower Green Swamp Nature Preserve.

The 12,800-acre spread is the largest property in Hillsborough County's Jan K. Platt Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program. ELAPP comprises about 63,000 acres throughout the County.

Lower Green Swamp Nature Preserve, off Knights Griffin Road near Plant City, is the sprawling new home of the young cat, found injured in a road median a few months ago and nursed back to health at Big Cat Rescue.

Alpha's release on June 20 was a celebration of sorts for the crew that set two broken bones in the cat's jaw and cared for her until she was ready to hunt, find shelter and establish territory for herself. The rescuers think a vehicle struck the animal before she was discovered.

Bobcats and other wild creatures thrive in the preserve, much of which is leased by cattle ranchers. Pine flatwoods and oak hammocks cover the landscape, and the location where Alpha was released is far from residences and roadways.

The release was a rare moment for Katheryn Stapleton, operations manager at Big Cat Rescue. Many of the large felines rehabilitated by the nonprofit group are not species that can be turned loose.

"I always tear up when we release a bobcat," she said.

Lower Green Swamp is an ideal place for Alpha. There's prey, a nearby creek, and lots of cover - "all the things a bobcat needs to live in the wild," Stapleton said.