ALBANY (AP) -- The state Department of Environmental Conservation is seeking public comment on its five-year plan that would expand hunting and trapping seasons for bobcats.
The agency estimates the state has about 5,000 bobcats and the population has been growing. Most bobcats live in the Adirondacks, Catskills and Taconics. They're twice the size of a domestic cat, with bushy jowls and a stub tail.
Trappers and hunters have killed about 400 to 500 bobcats a year in recent years. Some bobcats are stuffed by taxidermists, but most are killed for their pelts, which sell for $50 to $200.
DEC estimates that fewer than 100 additional bobcats a year will be killed if its plan takes effect.
The plan is on the DEC website. Comments will be taken through Feb. 10.
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