Illinois Person Suddenly Realizes a Bobcat is Staring at Them

Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur is the children's song that was playing in my head as I watched a video of a Jersey County, Illinois person who suddenly realized a young bobcat was staring at them.

I saw this fun moment shared on the Illinois sub-Reddit a few days ago. They said (and I quote) "I seen it earlier this morning run out of our ditch into the cornfield, was just sitting outside and looked over my shoulder and it was looking at me."

bobcat in the backyard
byu/Front_Application_73 inillinois

I do not claim to be a bobcat expert, but I do know that seeing them during the daytime isn't exactly common in Illinois. They tend to be solitary creatures and avoid humans if at all possible. This little kitty looks to be young to me based on the size, but bobcats don't normally get that large, so I'm just guessing.

This Jersey County, Illinois person later specified deeper in the comments that this happened not that far from Grafton, Illinois. If you're familiar with that part of the Land of Lincoln, you know that there are many heavily-wooded areas around Grafton. The fact that a bobcat would make a habitat there is not exactly breaking news. They are definitely not uncommon in southern Illinois, but it's not common you see them like this person did which is why I'm sharing.