‘Babe’ has her babies

It appears that the bobcat known as “Babe,” who was believed to be pregnant and who had been seen roaming Newport Beach’s Dover Shores neighborhood in recent weeks, has given birth.

This photograph of a bobcat presumed to be Babe with her cubs in tow was snapped Tuesday morning on Santiago Drive by John Yasko, who lives on the street.

“Those little cubs are so cute,” Yasko said.

The real estate agent, who carries a small camera for his job, was leaving his home to go to his office in Newport Center when he spotted the bobcat and its three cubs.

He reeled off some pictures with the intention of showing them to his 14-year-old son and his 8- and 12-year-old daughters, who had already left for school. But Yasko decided to share the photos with the community by sending them to the Daily Pilot. Yasko’s wife, during her morning jogs, had previously seen Babe wandering around the neighborhood.

“Our kids go down to the Back Bay all the time to catch lizards,” Yasko said. “The bobcat doesn’t worry me. It’s just part of the environment that comes with living here. They were here first. You just need to let them go about their business and we’ll go about ours.”

Yasko also expressed the hope that motorists use caution while driving through the neighborhood use so as not to run over the bobcats. He noted that some cars passing along Santiago and Galaxy drives had driven close to the bobcats.

On Tuesday, local wildlife expert Dick Newell declined to comment.

Readers interested in finding out more about bobcats can visit Newell’s website at https://www.octrackers.com/ — Sarah Peters