Bobcat prowls Florida subdivision

MELBOURNE, Fla., July 7 (UPI) -- A 16-year-old Melbourne, Fla., girl photographed a large bobcat that has moved into a subdivision west of Interstate 95, officials said.

Residents of the Fawn Cove subdivision reported seeing a feline as big as a German shepherd in broad daylight and said it may have killed a duck and two cats. Cierra Praga got a photo of the animal, Florida Today reported.

Her mother, Lori Praga, reported the cat to Brevard County Animal Services and Enforcement and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Praga also hired a trapper, but the cat has avoided trapping, the newspaper said

The FWC Web site says Lynx rufus can grow up to 30 pounds and 3 feet long. Their territory is about 5- to 6-square-miles. The site refers to their "razor-sharp claws and needle-like teeth."

Capt. Bob Brown of the county animal enforcement said they are opportunistic feeders and there are no records of a bobcat attacking a human.