Yes, bobcats are protected in California. State law bans hunting, trapping, and taking a bobcat in nearly all circumstances, prohibits selling or exporting any bobcat or bobcat part taken in the state, and limits legal take to narrow permit-based exceptions. Bobcats are not endangered — the species is listed as “Least Concern” globally — but California has chosen protections that go well beyond what federal law requires.1California Legislative Information. AB 1254 Bobcats Take Prohibition Hunting Season Management Plan
What the Law Bans
Two laws do most of the work. AB 1213 took effect in 2014 and banned bobcat trapping near Joshua Tree National Park, national and state parks, monuments, and wildlife refuges, and made it illegal to trap bobcats on anyone else’s private land without written permission from the owner.2California Legislative Information. California Fish and Game Code FGC 4155 AB 1254, signed on October 12, 2019, added Section 4156 to the Fish and Game Code and flatly prohibits any person from hunting, trapping, or otherwise taking a bobcat.1California Legislative Information. AB 1254 Bobcats Take Prohibition Hunting Season Management Plan Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations reinforces the ban and separately makes it unlawful to sell or export any bobcat or bobcat part taken in the state.3New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. 14 California Code of Regulations 478 – Bobcat
One point catches landowners off guard. The general Fish and Game Code provision that lets property owners take nongame mammals injuring crops or property does not apply to bobcats. Section 4152(c) says so in plain terms. You cannot legally shoot a bobcat on your property just because it is causing problems. If damage is happening, you need a depredation permit first.
Depredation Permits for Property Damage
The only realistic way for a property owner to legally take a bobcat is a depredation permit under Fish and Game Code Section 4181. An owner or tenant of land that is being damaged, or is in immediate danger of damage, may apply to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) for a revocable permit to kill the animal.4California Legislative Information. California Code Fish and Game Code FGC 4181
CDFW will issue a permit only after receiving satisfactory evidence of actual or immediately threatened damage. The permit itself must document why it was needed, what non-lethal steps were tried, and what corrective actions should be put in place to prevent the problem from recurring.
Several conditions ride with the permit. Metal-jawed traps of any kind are prohibited for taking bobcats under a depredation permit. A bobcat taken under the permit cannot be sold or removed from the property except under CDFW instructions. The permit carries a written statement of the penalties for violating its conditions, and violating those conditions is itself a crime.4California Legislative Information. California Code Fish and Game Code FGC 4181
How to Report a Bobcat Problem
CDFW runs an online Wildlife Incident Reporting System where property owners can report conflicts, property damage, or livestock losses caused by bobcats and other wildlife. The system routes each report to a CDFW authorized investigator based on the location of the incident.5California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Wildlife Incident Reporting System Filing a report is the first step toward getting a depredation permit evaluated. Document dates, locations, and the nature of the damage thoroughly; the stronger your evidence, the faster the process tends to move.
Scientific and Educational Permits
Researchers and educational institutions can legally possess bobcat specimens under a Scientific Collecting Permit issued by CDFW. Fish and Game Code Sections 1002, 1002.5, and 1003 authorize the department to grant permits for the take or possession of wildlife for scientific, educational, and propagation purposes, and the trapping restrictions in Section 4155 carve out an exception for permit holders acting within their permit conditions.6California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Scientific Collecting Permits Applicants apply through CDFW’s Scientific Collecting Permit Portal and must submit mandatory wildlife reports and chain-of-custody documentation when transferring specimens.2California Legislative Information. California Fish and Game Code FGC 4155
Selling or Exporting Bobcat Parts
Even if you lawfully possess a bobcat specimen, trade is tightly controlled. Bobcats are listed under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), so exporting any bobcat part — a pelt, skull, or taxidermy mount — from the United States requires an export permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which can issue it only if the export will not be detrimental to the species and the specimen was legally acquired.7U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. CITES Permits and Certificates Because California bans selling or exporting bobcat parts taken in the state, legally sourcing a California specimen for international trade is essentially impossible.
Penalties
Any violation of the Fish and Game Code, including illegally killing, trapping, or possessing a bobcat, is a misdemeanor unless the code specifies otherwise.8California Legislative Information. California Fish and Game Code FGC 12000 A misdemeanor conviction can mean up to one year in county jail, a fine, or both. Anyone convicted of violating bobcat regulations also forfeits their hunting tags and cannot obtain new ones for the remainder of the license year.9New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. 14 California Code of Regulations 478.1 Bobcat Hunting Tags
CDFW can also suspend or permanently revoke hunting and sport fishing license privileges after a conviction.10California Legislative Information. California Code Fish and Game Code FGC 12154 Revocation is discretionary rather than automatic, but the department does pursue it in serious cases. For anyone who hunts other game, that is where a bobcat violation can get truly expensive.
Help With Livestock Losses
Two federal programs are worth knowing about if bobcats are affecting livestock. The USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) runs a Wildlife Services program that provides direct assistance for predation problems, including research and guidance on non-lethal protection methods.11USDA-APHIS. Wildlife Services That guidance is also the kind of documentation that strengthens a depredation permit application.
The USDA Farm Service Agency administers the Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP), which compensates livestock owners for losses exceeding normal mortality from attacks by animals protected by federal law or reintroduced into the wild by the federal government.12Farm Service Agency. Livestock Indemnity Program LIP Whether a bobcat loss qualifies depends on specific federal eligibility criteria, so contact your local FSA office before assuming coverage applies.