Bobcats Caught On Game Camera In Kankakee Sands Preserve

WILL COUNTY, IL — A Forest Preserve District of Will County game camera recently photographed bobcats — possibly a mother and her kittens — walking in a small open area at Kankakee Sands Preserve in Custer Township.

In a news release sent to Patch, the Forest Preserve District of Will County added that the game cameras, which are triggered by motion, detected bobcats in only three other preserves in recent years.

According to the news release, Becky Blankenship, the Forest Preserve's wildlife biologist, said photos of bobcats in the preserves are rare, therefore capturing photos of them was noteworthy because it only happens every couple of years.

According to the news release, the cameras are used in the preserves to document animal numbers and movements. This information then helps guide the Forest Preserve District's land management strategies.

“The cameras are set up to take a three-photo burst when they detect motion,” Blankenship explained, in the news release. “Then they have a 10-15 second delay before taking another burst if there is still movement in front of the camera.”

According to the news release, Blankenship said the photos captured what looks like a mother and at least two kittens. Females can reach sexual maturity a year after birth, so the mother is at least a year old, and the kittens were likely born this spring, she added.

Bobcats, which are twice the size of a common house cat, have been detected in the Forest Preserve’s Braidwood Dunes and Savanna Nature Preserve, Evans-Judge Preserve, Sugar Creek Preserve and now Kankakee Sands Preserve, the news release stated.

Blankenship added that bobcats are a rare sight due being typically only active at twilight or just before sunrise, and are well camouflaged and avoid people, according to the news release

“I have only seen a wild bobcat once, and the black-and-white photos do not do them justice,” she stated, in the news release.

According to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources habitat changes and over harvesting of bobcats caused populations to decline severely enough to be listed as threatened in Illinois from 1977-1999, the Forest Preserve District reported. Since then, bobcat populations have responded so well to protection and habitat management that a very restricted hunting and trapping season has been in place since 2016 (hunting is not allowed in the Forest Preserve District of Will County preserves). IDNR estimates that there may be up to 5,000 bobcats in Illinois now, and their numbers are still on the rise, according to the news release.

Don't miss updates about precautions in the Manhattan area as they are announced. Sign up for Patch news alerts and newsletters.

The Forest Preserve District uses game cameras to observe species without needing to be present, Blankenship explained, in the news release. It's important to know what kinds of animals live in a preserve to better manage the environment to help them, she added.

“The history of the bobcat in Illinois shows us the importance of managing habitat for the species that depend on it,” Blankenship stated, in the news release. “Knowing what species occupy our preserves helps guide our habitat management practices.”

More information: ReconnectWithNature.org.