Bobcat records in Maryland span a wide range of habitat, from the tidal marsh edges of Blackwater and Eastern Neck national wildlife refuges to the barrier-island thickets of Assateague Island, reflecting a generalist predator equally at home in wetland edge and coastal scrub. The state’s 20 logged sightings are a modest count for a secretive, mostly nocturnal cat that leaves few direct encounters.
Reports peak in April, with a smaller rise in July, likely tracking spring dispersal of young bobcats moving into new territory. NatureServe ranks the species S3, Vulnerable, in Maryland, reflecting the state’s limited remaining forest and wetland-edge habitat.
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