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Show !A.. ! : : ' -t-' 1 !; ! ; A J I' ! I : I I ; i A ! I -.r ; I ' i 1 --3 : i A I ' ' . ' "4 . 1 Tyler McLemore holds the bobcat in one hand and, in the other, the pitchfork with which he defended himself against the animal's attack as he entered the family bam on Sunday afternoon. The normally reclusive bobcat had been feasting on the family's cats and chickens . lately and may have had his appetite prepared for Tyler. Teen Defends Himself Against Bobcat Attack ESCALANTE The barn held a real surprise for 15-year-old Tyler McLemore on Sunday afternoon when he opened the door to get some hay for the 20 pheasants he has been raising for the past three years. As the door creaked open, he heard an ominous growl, as, crouched in the corner, ready to leap, a five-foot bobcat bared its teeth. Tyler grabbed a pitchfork leaning near the door and launched it just as the big cat lunged at him, catching the wild animal in its head. Tyler jerked the fork out, threw it down and ran yelling into the house. Mom SusAnne didn't get too excited when he told her he'd just killed a big bobcat, although she had recently missed her three favorite cats, so he tried dad, Marc. Dad, who also urged , him to calm down, then walked ; with his son to the barn to see for ! himself. I "Oh my gosh. Now I know : why ... !" Dad said. They finished off the big cat ; with a .22 rifle and soon the , neighbors began arriving. The big tomcat stretched a full ! five feet as Tyler held it up for a photo. The McLemores assumed , the bobcat had gained entrance to : the barn via a milking station. : The bobcat had been feasting recently on neighborhood cats and chickens. Division of Wildife Resources Conservation Officer Brian Shearer Shear-er would arrive later to do several tests on the animal. Shearer, who has been stationed sta-tioned in Escalante for the past two and one-half years, said bobcats bob-cats have a strong population in the county. The female predator bears a litter each year. A trapping license is required to hunt them, but fewer are doing so, said Shearer. They are hunted for their fur between November and February when their coats are at their thickest. Licensees are permitted seven each season. Generally they are trapped or hunted with dogs. Shearer said that bobcats generally stay in the foothills and on ledges outside the city, and he had heard of no previous reports of bobcats in Escalante. Cougars have been spotted on several occasions and shot only as they became more threatening to the city's residents. Bobcats, though very reclusive nocturnal animals, prefer a riparian ripar-ian area when available, said Shearer. They feed mainly on squirrels and rabbits. Like all cats, they have retracting claws, so their print shows only the pads even in deep moist sand or mud, contrary to a dog whose claw prints will always be visible. Prints of the bobcat and cougar are quite similar, he said, and are wide rather than elongated like those of a dog. Shearer said he would remove the lower jaw of the bobcat for transport to Salt Lake City where it will be carefully examined, its age determined and other important impor-tant research relative to management man-agement of the predator conducted. |