Saturday, February 26, 2011

Bobcat among the branches, Tennessee Valley

Bobcat in stride, Tennessee Valley - Pat Ulrich Wildlife Photography

When this bobcat decided to go off trail for a bit, it made the photography a little more challenging, since it was wandering through an area with a lot of dead vegetation. But I stayed patient and waiting for the moments that its head was in a clearing to try to get an unobstructed view of its eyes. It's amazing how much of the clutter in an image your mind will ignore if you can get contact with a clean set of eyes.

Lynx rufus among the branches - Pat Ulrich Wildlife Photography

It was cruising along when it heard something in the undergrowth. It just happened to stop right in a clear line of sight for me, and even gave me a glance before continuing its walk.

Focused bobcat - Pat Ulrich Wildlife Photography

8 comments:

  1. Awesome! The only bobcat I see is my 18 pound gray shorthair that loves to attack people. His chart at the vet is "red-tagged".

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  2. Thanks, Mike! And lol about your cat being red-tagged!

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  3. Pat, congratulations on getting so close to two of them recently. How far away were you from this one?

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  4. Thanks, Jim. This is actually the same cat as I've posted previously. I did see a second one on Point Reyes last weekend as well, but I only had time to get a few blurry pictures of it as it crossed the road in front of me. We had a really nice encounter with this cat in Tennessee Valley that probably lasted 20-30 minutes, and at times it came within maybe 7-10 yards of us.

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  5. Great images, Pat! Where I live they are so shy that in 20 years I have only seen it once, and that right in our backyard. Too bad, I didn't have my camera handy.

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  6. An extraordinary meeting and breathtaking images. Congratulations !

    Jean-Michel
    http://leblogdugeai.canalblog.com

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  7. What a great encounter. Congrats!

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  8. Thanks, Hilke! It's always a pleasure to see these guys, even when you don't have a camera with you. They are so sleek and secretive that when you have a chance to watch one, you know it's special.

    Thanks, Jean-Michel!

    Thanks, Mark! It was really awesome to get to spend some time with this lovely cat!

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