Yes, there's a hunting season for bobcats in Missouri.
But one person appears to have ignored it. Alert Conservation agents in the northern Missouri border county of Worth heard a gunshot near them before deer firearms season opened last weekend.
According to a Missouri Department of Conservation news release, the agents found a man who had driven down the road, saw a bobcat, and shot it illegally with a rifle.
Bobcat season was not open at the time. Missouri's bobcat hunting season is Nov. 15-Jan. 31.
The man was also driving with a suspended license and the license plates on his vehicle were not valid, according to MDC. Charges are pending. The agents were assisted by the Worth County Sheriff's Department and a Protection Division volunteer.
MDC asks Missourians to report suspected poaching and other illegal activity regarding wildlife to Operation Game Thief at 1-800-392-1111.
