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Should NH bring back a bobcat hunt?

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According to UNH researcher John Litvaitis, the bobcat population in New Hampshire has rebounded significantly from its low in the 1980s.

Litvaitis has worked with the state Fish and Game Department to study bobcats and understand why the population has increased.

One factor is the ban on hunting bobcats, which passed in 1989.

Given the success of bobcats, some argue that New Hampshire should reconsider a hunting season for bobcats.

“Complaints about bobcats preying on domestic chickens have increased, requests from the public to trap and relocate bobcats have risen, and instances of road-killed bobcats have become common throughout the state,” said Patrick Tate, a wildlife biologist with the Fish and Game Department. 

Some supporters of allowing limited hunting of bobcats worry that increasing numbers might push bobcats into more populated areas, where they could be a greater threat to pets or livestock. Others argue that it makes sense to use hunting to control the bobcat population in order to limit their impact on smaller wild game.

The Fish and Game Department proposed a bobcat hunting season last year, then withdrew the proposal. 

Opponents of a bobcat hunting season argue that the bobcat population is still too small to justify hunting. A 2013 study estimated the statewide population around 1,400.

Other opponents dislike bobcat hunting because it is essentially a blood sport; hunters typically do not eat the bobcats they kill.

Lastly, there is some concern that hunters or trappers would mistakenly kill the somewhat similar Canada lynx, which is still under federal protection.

Do you think New Hampshire should allow bobcat hunting again? Share your opinion in the comments below.

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Kevin

Predators should not be hunted. Their numbers will be controlled just fine by the population of their prey. Humans *always* overhunt.

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