Canadian Lynx
 Canada lynx are easily recognizable cats with their black ear tufts, flared facial ruff, and very short tail. They can only be
confused with the closely related bobcat Lynx rufus in the southern part of their range, however, a close look reveals a number of
differences. The lynx has longer legs and broader footpads for walking in deep snow. Their ear tufts are longer, and the facial ruff is more
developed. Their tail has a black tip, while the bobcat’s is more striped and white underneath. These two cat species seem to have divided
the continent up between them, with the lynx in the northern forests and the bobcat being limited by snow depth to southern Canada, and
through to Central Mexico.The usual ground colour of the fur is a silvery grey or grey brown, but can vary to yellowish-grey and rusty or reddish-brown. The fur is usually white tipped, giving the animal a frosted appearance. Their thick, soft pelt can be variably marked with more or less distinct dark spots, and sometimes small stripes. A rare pallid colour phase suggesting partial albinism is known as the ‘blue lynx’. There is a distinct ruff of long hairs framing the face; the ears are large and pointed with long, erect tufts of dark hairs, and backsides black towards the tip. Their irises are a yellow brown to a light yellowish-green in colour. The legs are long, with the rear limbs longer than the front ones, giving the body a tilted forward or slightly stooped appearance. The footpads are broad and well furred, and the tail is very short and black tipped. Canada lynx live mainly in boreal forests or in mixed deciduous/boreal woodlands, but can live in farmlands if they are interspersed with wooded areas. Their total range in North America is 7.7 million square km, and their historic range is largely intact, although it has shrunk in the south due to human settlement and forest clearance.  The word lynx comes from the Greek word ‘to shine’. This may refer to the reflective cells that assist cats to see at night by
re-using light that has already passed through the eye chamber by reflecting it back a second time. They are mainly terrestrial and
nocturnal, although they may also hunt during the day if prey is scarce. Lynx are thought to hunt mainly by sight and hearing, relying on
smell to a lesser extent. They usually stalk their prey to within a few bounds before pouncing, but they are also known to wait in ambush
for hours. Adult females and kittens have been observed to hunt co-operatively. Their main prey in all areas of their range is the snowshoe
hare. Over two hundred years worth of records from the Hudson’s Bay fur company show that the lynx population fluctuates in an eight to 11
year cycle, in response to fluctuations in the numbers of the snowshoe hare. A radio telemetry study of an unharvested population in the NWT
has found that lynx densities peaked at 30 animals per 100 square km, and declined to about three per 100 square km during the hare crash.
Other prey items taken include a variety of rodents (squirrels, mice, beaver, muskrats, porcupines), young deer fawns, and some birds such
as ducks, grouse and pheasants. Occasionally domestic sheep are also taken. Lynx have been recorded travelling long distances, up to 1,200
km, seeking out patches of hare abundance.Mating occurs in late winter to early spring in most areas (March -April in Alaska, April -May in Alberta). The female is monestrous and the receptive period can last from one to ten days. Mating usually takes place at night, and the males are especially vocal at this time. Dens can be made in hollow logs, at the base of trees, in rocky areas or in dense vegetation. One to six kittens are born after a gestation period of 63 - 70 days. In years of low prey availability, females may not conceive at all, or may spontaneously abort in response to the body’s poor nutritional condition. Lynx kittens average 197 - 211 grams at birth. Their eyes open between ten and 17 days, and they begin to walk at 24 - 30 days. The kittens nurse for between three to five months, but begin to eat some solid food at one month of age. The young remain with the adult female until the following winter mating season. Young lynx may remain together for some weeks or months after separating from the female, travelling and hunting co-operatively. Sexual maturity is reached around 23 months, although in periods of prey abundance, sexual maturity at ten months has been recorded. Captive Canada lynx have lived up to 21 years, and life expectancy for wild animals has been recorded at 15 years. In the USA, lynx distribution represents the southern fringe of the population. Due to the lack of favourable habitats, they are not commonly found, and there is some evidence that their presence corresponds to cyclic dispersals from Canada. They are protected in the seven states where they are found. During the winters of 1988 - 1990, 83 Canada lynx were relocated from the Yukon to Adirondack State Park in New York. The released animals utilized very large tracts of land, and there has been evidence of breeding. In the winter of 1999, 41 Canada lynx were released in Colorado. Subsequent radio tracking revealed that most of them died from starvation, hunting and being hit by automobiles. Further reintroductions in this area will be done in the spring, when prey species are more abundant. In Canada, the lynx can be legally trapped in all provinces, with the exception of Nova Scotia. There the lynx have been forced onto one remaining stronghold on Cape Breton Island, and the population is protected. They are not found on Prince Edward Island. The remaining provinces monitor the lynx population through fur trade trapping figures, and quotas vary yearly, depending on the snowshoe hare cycle. In the future, trapping methods may change as a result of pressure from the European Union for countries to ban the use of the leghold trap, and adopt internationally accepted humane trapping standards. The future of the Canada lynx looks more promising than for many other felids. There is, however, still cause for concern, as harvests of lynx during the cyclic low periods have progressively fallen since the mid-1970's, and hare numbers have similarly been lower as well. The Canada lynx is still able to roam over stretches of relatively undisturbed forest habitat in the northern part of its range, but are considered endangered in the USA. They are placed on Appendix II of CITES. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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