Rocky Canyons and Rabbit Country: teacher key

Bobcats, grade 11 edition, written for 11th grade. From an ancient ancestor to today's range expansions, this is how bobcats find ground, food and shelter across North America.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. How old is the oldest known bobcat fossil?
   • About 18 to 32 years
   • About 1.8 to 3.2 million years (answer)
   • About 180 to 320 million years
2. Which animal was the bobcat's ancestor?
   • Lynx canadensis
   • Canis lupus
   • Lynx issiodorensis (answer)
3. What does fossil mean in this book?
   • Ancient remains (answer)
   • A kind of fur
   • A hunting call
4. Why might bobcats need underground dens where winters are severe?
   • They cannot climb
   • Underground dens help them survive the cold (answer)
   • They only eat at night
5. How has Missouri's bobcat range changed in recent decades?
   • It has shrunk
   • It has not changed
   • It has expanded westward and northward (answer)
6. What is the bobcat's conservation status as of November 2026?
   • Least Concern (answer)
   • Extinct
   • Critically endangered

Words

• carnivore: meat eater
• subspecies: local kind
• endangered: close to vanishing
• collared: wearing trackers
• fossil: ancient remains