Bobcat hanging out in South Lake Tahoe backyard

The sleek, graceful beauty of bobcats isn't always easy to see in Lake Tahoe as they are crepuscular, meaning they are active a few hours before sunset until a few hours into the dark, and then before dawn to a few hours after sunrise.

While our schedules don't always mesh with theirs, it is a treat when we get to catch them running across the snow or hanging out in trees.

Bobcats are adaptable predators who normally favor a rabbit or hare but have been also known to eat small rodents, deer and a variety of birds, including geese. The bobcat population is directly dependent on the number of their favorite food in an area.

Not only do they prey on small animals, they also become prey to coyotes who seem to be in abundance in Lake Tahoe. Coyotes hunt in groups and have an advantage over the bobcat who is a solo hunter.

South Lake Tahoe resident Cass McKellar took the photos above on Sunday, January 13. Her husband heard a noise outside his office window and they looked outside. At first all Cass saw was the coyote at the bottom of a tree. She then spotted the bobcat in the branches above. She said the bobcat came down the Aspen on his own about five minutes later and sauntered off. The coyote just sniffed the ground around the tree and left on his own.

She said it was only the second time she'd spotted a bobcat in the twenty years of living in the home.