A Wild Cat in the Numbers: teacher key

Bobcats, grade 10 edition, written for 10th grade. Population estimates, home ranges and conservation listings show how bobcats are doing across North America.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. What did biologists estimate for the U.S. bobcat population in 2010?
   • 23 to 36 thousand
   • 2.3 to 3.6 million (answer)
   • 230 to 360 million
2. In which state are bobcat populations declining?
   • Texas
   • Minnesota
   • Florida (answer)
3. What does endangered mean in this book?
   • Close to vanishing (answer)
   • Very large
   • Very noisy
4. The bobcat is Least Concern, yet the Mexican subspecies is endangered. What does this show?
   • All bobcats are endangered
   • A species can be doing well while one local kind is not (answer)
   • Bobcats live only in Mexico
5. Where is the Mexican bobcat subspecies found?
   • Canada
   • Florida
   • Central Mexico (answer)
6. How do male and female home ranges compare?
   • Male ranges are generally two to three times larger (answer)
   • Female ranges are larger
   • They are equal

Words

• carnivore: meat eater
• subspecies: local kind
• endangered: close to vanishing
• collared: wearing trackers
• generalists: uses many habitats