BY TONY REHAGEN
First came the paw print stamped into the sand, a sign possibly never before seen on Jekyll. Then, stealthily, the bobcat appeared. It arrived around 2014, immediately jumping to the apex of an island food chain in need of a check. It was a welcome predator, bringing the population of some of the smaller mammals on island more into balance. That same stealth that enables the bobcat to stalk its prey so successfully also makes it quietly elusive to humans. It’s a shadow, hardly bigger than a housecat, a mere rustling in the bush. And as it’s hunted over the last decade, the bobcat population has grown. Today, around 15 bobcats patrol the island, including at least two new kittens. New tracks are staggered across the virgin sand.
