Video: 'Really Big' Bobcat Crosses Wayland Backyard

WAYLAND, MA — A family in Wayland was treated to a relatively rare sight on Monday when their home surveillance camera captured a big bobcat sauntering across their yard.

Mike Parseghian said the bobcat — the largest and only wild cat that calls New England home — came through his backyard just before 9 p.m. Monday. He captured the cat on what he called a "critter cam" — the family's Google Nest outdoor camera.

Parseghian lives just east of the Wayland town center between Route 20 and the Mass Central Rail Trail. His home backs up to conservation land, likely a fertile ground for creatures of all sorts.

In a Facebook post, Parseghian described the bobcat as "really large," and provided a photo of a coyote in the same spot for comparison. The largest male bobcats can reach 35 pounds and more than 3 feet in length.

Although the critter Parseghian captured on camera bears some resemblance to the larger and much more fearsome mountain lion, bobcats are indeed the only wild cats that live in Massachusetts. Bobcats stand out due to their stubby tails. They also molt at the end of winter, giving the Wayland cat a more smooth, mountain lion-like appearance.

According to MassWildlife, bobcats are most common in the Berkshires and parts of central Massachusetts, but their territory extends to northeastern parts of the state, and is expanding toward the southeast.

"Bobcats are adapting to suburban settings and may be seen in backyards and residential areas. Bobcats rarely cause conflicts with human activities," MassWildlife says.

Bobcats have been spotted in the Wayland area before, including multiple sightings in 2021 near the busy Route 27 and Route 20 intersection. Bobcats have also been seen in Sudbury, Bolton and Ashland in recent years.

Here's Parseghian's bobcat video from Monday: