By Dan Weisz
I had not seen a bobcat in my backyard since June, and before that not at all this year. Imagine my thrill last week when I was about to leave the house and walk out the garage door and saw a kitten drinking from the water dish in the back! I ran to get my camera, opened my kitchen window and began shooting just as a second bobcat arrived.
I was in the house where my presence would not disturb the wildcats, but the noise of the window opening and the click of the camera shutter kept the animals on alert. The second kitten approached the water but then decided not to get a drink afterall.
It paused at the water and then walked back up into the desert. This shot is through the trellis I have up for a vine. The cat never appeared panicked, remaining cool as a cat.
Meanwhile its sibling continued drinking but looked at me the entire time.
In processing, I played with one of my shots, taking most of the color out but leaving the cat’s eyes alone. I love the droplets of water falling out of the sides of the kitten’s mouth.
It seemed like the longest time but the details in the camera tells me the bobcat was drinking for just one minute. When it finished, it disappeared into the desert following its sibling.
A neighbor let me know he had seen the mother bobcat in his yard at the same time but he did not see the twins and never has. He sees the mother bobcat very often. They are secretive animals but we share their living space.