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Where We Left Off:
Oliver and Gus guided the human, Amber, to preserve a unique reptilian specimen.
New Jersey Geographic:
We’ve been trapped inside so much this winter that investigations haven’t been coming in much. Oliver and Gus have shown signs of boredom. February is also a tough time to get anything done because the three other human staff members have their birthdays this month, plus several friends! Gus and I have been working on birthday presents (the one for The Cook is not going well).
We have had steady creature observations through the trailcams. One night, there were nine Jersey Devil-Deer having a feast in the backyard! It was impressive to see glimpses of that.
I believe it’s now mating season for some of the creatures; birthing season for others. The bears should be having babies in their dens right about now. This week, we’re going to focus on the investigation that Gus and I have been conducting while Oliver has dedicated his time to his important research. It’s prime mating season for bobcats!
January 3, 2025
There were four separate sightings of bobcats between the two best cameras set in the primary location of the invisible wildlife pathway. This is a “path” that doesn’t actually exist in the sense that it’s not bordered on both sides to keep a traveller on it. There’s only the border of the Forbidden Forest on one side. The two best cameras are pointed towards it; and the camera at Fort Winchester sometimes picks up good images too which gives a third perspective.
Why was the Winchester-Nabu Detective Agency blessed by multiple bobcat sightings on this day in particular?
Research showed that the Quadrantid meteor shower peaked that morning. If you were in Illinois, Indiana, or Missouri at the time, you may have seen interesting celestial objects:
The crescent Moon sits to the upper right of blazing magnitude –4.4 Venus, creating a stunning scene that will last for hours. The pair will dominate the early-evening sky long after sunset, finally disappearing beneath the western horizon some four hours after the Sun goes down. —Astronomy.com
Venus is, after all, a Goddess of Love. According to Ollie, it makes perfect sense that an interesting observation for the planet Venus would have an effect on creatures in our hemisphere even if we are not near Longitude 90°W (New Jersey is 74°W). All this love might explain why there are an exceptional number of bobcat sightings in January alone.
January 7, 2025
January 19, 2025
January 24, 2025
January 30, 2025
In the past, one or more of the bobcats has stopped to spray their mark directly on the Fort Winchester camera which is why I think it only works some of the time now. Fortunately, the Fort Winchester cam was not harmed on this night because there’s adorable bobcat butt footage.
Case Findings:
Oliver and Gus confirmed that the scents and tracks belong to Eastern bobcats (Lynx rufus rufus).
What’s with all the bobcat action? Based on the scent markings and more frequent strolls to get from one neighborhood to the next, it seems to be peak mating season. This path—lined only on one side with trees and brambles—gives the creatures the most direct access. We don’t know what will happen to the bobcats as the neighbors continue to deforest and put up buildings. That part of the bobcat dossier can’t be solved yet, but we know why there’s an uptick in visits.
We’re also noting this as a pattern now. Last year, February also had a lot of bobcat visits which we covered in Case File No. 43-355.
Case Status: Closed