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Bobcat in Hyde Park?

Karie Kirkpatrick asks:

Anyone seen a bobcat in the Hyde Park/Dedham area? My friend swears he saw one in his backyard on Child St.

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Comments

Perhaps a snarling nasty"cat"?

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That was my thought too - a fisher cat. My neighbors here in JP have seen one on our street.

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We saw one in our backyard (in Roslindale, near the Hyde Park border -- possibly roaming from the golf course)

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look nothing alike. Fishers are large-ish, dark brown/black weasels with big bushy tails, and bobcats are cats with light-brown fur, dark spots and bobbed tails. Perhaps he saw a Maine Coon with a stubby tail?

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There was a guy around the corner from me who kept bugging animal control over "a bear in his backyard!!!".

It was a farking beaver. Seriously!

So I don't doubt that a naive person looking at a fisher might think "cat - big cat - must be a bobcat!" and not have a clue.

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I knew the difference between a bear, beaver, bobcat and a fisher when I was in kindergarten.

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If you're talking about a big vaguely weaselish looking animal, then you might have seen a beaver. Fisher cats are pretty much unknown below central Maine and don't hang around where there are lots of humans. Otoh, there's a known population of beavers in the Stony Brook reservation and they are quite comfortable wandering around where big noisy apes live.

If you think fisher cat means feline, you probably saw a big Maine Coon cat - there's lots of them around here.

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Just google fisher cat and Massachusetts.

see also: http://www.mass.gov/eea/agencies/dfg/dfw/fish-wild...

The fisher (Martes pennanti), is relatively common in many areas despite the fact that it was once eliminated from Massachusetts.

Considered by many to be a strictly wilderness species, the fisher is now appearing in more populated areas. Alert, secretive, and solitary, there is no question the fisher has made an amazing comeback in the Commonwealth. As with other wildlife species, problems with fishers may sometimes arise.

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are alive and well in Massachusetts. But you are correct about them preferring large tracts of woods, and not fancying city-living.

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... and also a Maine Coon cat. This was relatively long and slender, with shortish legs -- and had a slinky mode of locomotion utterly unlike a cat -- and it basically walked up the chain link fence leading to the next yard (rather than jumping). It definitely looked like some sort of member of the weasel family.

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These cats are seen and heard regularly on the North Shore. A local trapper usually gets 8 or 9 each season.

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Saw a fisher in my nbhd 2 years ago. Crossed a major street on a cloudy Sunday afternoon.

So I'm not so sure about "pretty much unknown below central Maine."

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No but I once saw Bobcat Goldthwait in Brookline

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escaped from the Blue Hills Reservation! Also MA does have wild Bobcats, not so must around HP Ave.

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down by S. Station today!

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Haha, good one. I also saw some bobcats near a construction site today downtown!

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Nope. We're at Reservation and Child. Haven't seen anything but possums, raccoons, woodchucks, deer, turkeys, and skunks. I DID see a coyote in the middle of Roxbury some months ago - boy, was that a surprise!

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My dog has been freaked out by something this whole week. I walk her around 1am & she has not wanted to go anywhere near the Dedham line. Last night she forgot about it, but when we got to just about line (in front of the church) She stopped suddenly, ears & fur standing up, smelling the air like crazy & staring into the dark. I couldn't see a darn thing, but she was turning around & rushing home. BTW not a small dog, 65 plus lbs & usually a huntress.

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I can't help but think that a lot of the reported fisher sightings are actually mink sightings. Fishers are a rarity everywhere they live and very secretive, but mink are pretty common and they live where ever fresh water can be found. I spend a lot of time outdoors and have never yet seen a fisher though I see mink quite often, even when walking or biking along busy roads. As far as bobcat goes, I think it's possible. Last years easy winter has caused a lot of critter migration as territories fill up.
This article reminded me of the alien big cat sightings in the Bridgewater triangle that stirred up years ago. All this bobcat needs now is a name as good as "Hockomock Horror"

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pretty sure I saw one today in stonybrook reservation

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