Every year the lions usually walk through my line a few times. I've gone to smaller cubby entrances for my bobcats to prevent non-target catches. I'm still trying to find that happy medium where smaller/younger lions stay out and the bobcats are still willing to enter the cubby.

Another trapper, who has been at this game much longer than me, always mentions that bobcats follow the lions around the country side. He takes it as a good sign that the bobbies will be along any day now, after a lion comes through.

I have never heard this before and I can't necessarily confirm this from my experience. I'm just curious what the broader experience base on T-man has observed regarding bobcats following lions. Thoughts or opinions? Thanks.

Most predators rely on lions here, especially in deep snow years. A lion killed deer will barely last 36 hours. Bobcats follow the lions closely here, free deer beats chasing rabbits.

Hmmm never have thought that deeply into it but it would make sense. Somewhere I have a picture of some tracks in the snow I came across of a bobcat that was walking down a set of lion tracks stepping right in the paw prints. I’ve also watched a lion killed deer and a bob started feeding on it and the lion killed the bobcat (judging by the size of the canine marks in the neck)

Hmmmmmmm. My two cents is they don't "follow" them. Lions typically have home ranges several times larger than bobcats so I don't see a bobcat hitching his wagon to a lion and crossing other bobcat territories just to tag along with his larger cousin. And following a lion around could really spell disaster for a bobcat. However, I suspect bobcats are aware of lions in their territory and when a lion makes a kill, they are probably keen to it pretty quick, as some have said.

Can't speak for lions, but a couple asides about tracks I can report. Was following a bcat track one time, and after following for about a quarter mile, it suddenly turned into three tracks. Another time on a fresh snow some deer crossed where I was driving, and one track turned into two, but could tell it wasn't a deer track. Got out and looked, yup a cat, walking in the deer track. They can use other tracks to their advantage quite a lot.

To be quite honest , in all my days, I've never seen a set of bobcat tracks following a set of lions tracks.... but now that I think of it I've never seen any lion tracks in my life. Lol

Bobcats had better pay attention pretty closely,
Lion kill or eat tear up bobcat in a trap, pretty darn regular if bobcat is caught ahead of lion coming thru.
Now about the topic at hand lol
Pretty sure lions do make kills and Bobcats feed on it in there own territory just not sure they will wander out of it to follow a lion.
But as Tom's said in big snow years where they get pushed to there lower ranges. There could be a case made imo.
I do know wolves will run lions off there kill and that opens it up for for Bobcats and coyotes,fox..
Interesting subject.

Every place I’ve had regular lion movement, I have little to no bobcats.

A good bobcat spot is a good lion spot.

Cats are cats and they both seem to favor the same travel routes, which is I’m guessing what’s going on.

Every time I have a lion come through my line I can just about count on no bobcat action for a week. A lion can eat 20 to 30 pounds of deer meat awfully quickly. A bobcat is just a snack if they can catch them.

I trapped AZ and NM for 19 years, not a pro by any means but took my share while out there, but I caught 3 lions in NM (all got away). One in Mule Creek pass near Hana MTN, one in the Brushy MTN range and one on the Black Mtn Range near Cliff NM). All were caught in bobcat flat sets in a saddle using cat urine and droppings. These ranges are the same ranges Ben Lilly hunted bear and lion in the old days. I have had lion kill, eat and cover up gray fox in the same areas. I do not believe I was in the lions core areas due to elevation and believe they had come down in elevation for multiple reasons (water food breeding). My methods were from Slims book on cat trapping with added knowledge from Rickets book ref to cat telemetry, Wileys lion book was very helpful as a cat is a cat along with Mel Hersberg Cat book. Al Perry would catch 2 or 3 lions each year in the FEB when they dropped in elevation. I believe Tom Cats follow each other on the higher ground thru saddles, I avoided female cats by staying above the heads washes and sticking with saddles and high wall faces where the natural angle of repose created sluff offs and trails against the wall face. I believe that when the lions disperse they follow the same patterns as a cat is a cat. Bears follow the same pattern. I believe they keep track of each other by checking out the age of the droppings. Traveling Toms are different than core area female cats. I have caught Toms on lion urine. The cats on the Gila and Frisco River drainage's were younger with a higher percentage of female. Hope this helps some.

Wasn't sure if a kitten in the background? Or another predator, thought I'd share since y'all were on the subject. On one of my cameras in october

Around here, when a puma shows up, everything else makes themselves scarce.