Farmers and other residents of central and southern Illinois complain that bobcats are a danger to livestock, pets, deer and even people. So much so, they sought relief from the legislature. Photo by Terry Spivy, USDA Forest Service

Gov. Bruce Rauner and Illinois legislators have found something on which they can agree: Bobcats are a menace.

On July 14, the governor signed into law a bill that would allow the trapping and hunting of “bobcats with gun, dog, dog and gun or bow and arrow.”  The northeast part of the state, including Chicago and surrounding area, is exempt.

Killing bobcats has been illegal in Illinois since 1972 for fear the animal would be hunted to extinction. The bobcat population has since grown until it is estimated there now are approximately 5,000 bobcats in Illinois.

Farmers and other residents of central and southern Illinois complain that bobcats are a danger to livestock, pets, deer and even people and sought relief from the legislature.

Speaking about those who oppose the new law, State Rep. Patrick Verschoure (D-Milan), one of the legislation’s sponsors, said, “They think these are nice, cute little kittens. Well, these nice, cute little kittens grow up to be killers of livestock and small game and companion animals.”

The Humane Society of the United States disputes this characterization.

“To get this bill passed lawmakers relied on outlandish and absurd exaggerations about bobcats who are shy and elusive creatures and weigh only slightly more than an average house cat,” said Wayne Pacelle, humane society president and CEO. “And it’s unfortunate that the governor apparently fell for this fear mongering.”

Catherine Kelly, a spokesperson for Rauner, said in a prepared statement, “Hunters and trappers play an important role in managing resources and paying for conservation services. Illinois homeowners should be given the ability to manage wildlife that are causing problems on their property.”

Few statistics are available on alleged bobcat attacks on farm animals, deer, pets, etc.

Bobcats’ diet is thought to be primarily mice, rats, voles, rabbits and squirrels, and thus, the humane society contends, are a help to farmers.

And researchers at Southern Illinois University who examined the stomach contents of 91 dead bobcats found that only three had stomachs containing deer meat. And there was no way to tell whether the deer had been prey, or whether the bobcats had come upon deer already dead.

Resuming killing bobcats has not been particularly popular in Illinois. In January, then-Gov. Pat Quinn vetoed a bill to permit bobcat killing. And in June, Mason-Dixon Polling Research Inc. polled 625 statewide Illinois residents. Seventy-five percent of those polled opposed killing bobcats; 17 percent supported the killings.

— Governor signs law legalizing hunting bobcats —