California Bans Bobcat Trapping

California became the first U.S. state to ban all commercial and regulated trapping of bobcats after the state’s Fish and Game Commission approved the measure in a 3-2 vote last Wednesday. This policy and a 2013 state law that ended bobcat trapping adjacent to national and state parks grew out of instances of illegal trapping in areas around Joshua Tree National Park. The new measure does not impact other forms of trapping, and commissioners have stated their willingness to revisit the decision if new population surveys of bobcats are conducted. California bobcat population estimates have not been gathered since 1979.

Read more at The Los Angeles Times.

The Wildlife Society has released a Position Statement on Traps, Trapping, and Furbearer Management.