Rodeo Lagoon Bobcat

I was on my way to see the River Otters and got sidetracked by a beautiful pair of Northern Harriers that led me to the top of the surrounding hills. By the time I got back down to the lagoon there was a single otter making very brief appearances but the landscape had slipped into a lazy afternoon, warming light, gentle calm. I found my secret otter watching spot and scanned the water's edge carefully.

Suddenly, from the clump of reeds between me and the water, a Bobcat exploded into view. Determined to find cover in the taller brush, it bounded through the grass in a series of thundering leaps. Curious as to whether I'd disturbed it during a meal, I investigated the matted grass where it had been hiding and found nothing. The otter poked its head out of the water a few feet away, then rolled over and slid below the surface.

A Wrentit on alert.

Black-tailed Deer passes as I watch the Harriers.

A large Bobcat heads for the shadows.