iStockphoto / Banu R
A field biologist in S. Florida operating a trail camera to monitor Florida panthers captured a rare sight when a bobcat walked by holding an alligator in its mouth. It is unclear whether we chalk this up to ‘just another day in Florida’ but as a born-and-raised Floridian I can tell you I’ve never seen a bobcat walk by holding a gator in its teeth.
While it seems obvious from the video that the alligator wasn’t very big it isn’t crystal clear just show small (or large) it was. Bobcats in Florida have been known to grow up to 35 pounds according to Florida Fish & Wildlife and it’s not readily apparent if this bobcat is an absolute unit or not.
What is clear is seeing a bobcat saunter through the woods with an alligator in its mouth is not something you see every day. While this is just another example of how ‘Nature Is Metal,’ it is always wild to see the food chain in action like this with two of Florida’s top predators crossing paths.
Florida Bobcat Eats Alligator
According to the WC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, this video was actually taken months ago. It was filmed in the Summer of 2024 and just now released.
The trail camera that capture the bobcat vs alligator footage was set up to monitor feline leukomyelopathy (FLM), a neurological disorder that has been documented impacting bobcats and panthers here in Florida. Visible symptoms of FLM include difficulty walking due to rear leg weakness in these large cats but the bobcat in the video above sure looked healthy walking by with the juvenile alligator in its mouth.
Although rare here in Florida, it is not unheard of for alligators and bobcats to cross paths. Bobcats typically eat small game like rabbits and squirrel. But if a juvenile alligator finds itself in the wrong place at the wrong time a bobcat won’t hesitate to make a snack out of it. Chances are some of you have seen this viral video that makes the rounds on social media every few months:
Running into a bobcat in the wild is always a rare treat in Florida. It’s been a few years since I last saw one here in Sarasota and I’m beginning to wonder if they’ve all moved deep inland due to rapid expansion of neighborhoods. When I first moved into my house years back I used to see at least one a month and it’s probably been 2+ years since the lats time I saw one.