01/30/09

01/30/09
A Bobcat was sighted for the second time tonight behind the girl’s dorms at Bob Jones University. Rumors suggest that the bobcat escaped from a zoo, wandered in from the mountains, or simply escaped from being the mascot of some unknown team.

One Korean girl in the popular University Snack Shop asked, “What is a bobcat?” When this question was posed, one girl wickedly responded that a bobcat was, ‘a large lion that would only attack if it was hungry, and – don’t worry – bobcats are only hungry 60% of the time’. The Korean who had asked the question was then heard quoting the information to someone else who was equally curious about the bobcat sighting on campus. The information given was, of course, bogus.

Bobcats are, in fact, about the size of a large house cat or a small dog. This species of cat is nocturnal, which means humans rarely see bobcats in areas that are heavily populated with them. An average male bobcat weighs about 25-30 pounds, with the female’s weight close behind. Estimates put Bobcats at around 1 million in the US alone.

Bobcats, when hunting prey, can jump 10 feet and inflict a killer pounce. But generally, bobcats are appreciated for their good fur and are known for being solitary animals.

So, no, bobcats are not large lions, and the bobcat reported to be on campus will probably not be seen by very many students, much less attack one of them.

If a bobcat is sighted, the University has requested that the sighting be reported to the Safety Patrol (864) 251-5100, ex. 1111.