Eurasian Lynx (Lynx lynx): Facts, Habitat and Return to Europe

Appearance

A Eurasian lynx looks like a large, long-legged house cat with a short “bobbed” tail. Its most famous features are the stiff black tufts of hair on the tips of its pointed ears and the flared ruff of long gray-and-white fur on each cheek, which frames the face like sideburns.

The coat is reddish brown to gray, with whitish fur on the chin, neck and belly. Most animals have black spots, but the number, size and shape of the spots vary enormously. Some lynx are heavily spotted, some have rosettes or stripes, and some look almost plain. In winter the fur becomes thicker, longer and grayer. The tail always ends in a solid black tip, which helps tell a lynx from a wildcat or a large domestic cat.

The legs are long and powerful, and the hind legs are slightly longer than the front ones. The paws are large and covered with dense fur in winter, spreading the cat’s weight on snow like snowshoes.

How big is a Eurasian lynx?

The Eurasian lynx is much larger than other lynx. It is roughly twice the weight of a bobcat or Canada lynx and about the size of a medium to large dog.

Males are larger and heavier than females. Size also varies with region. Lynx in Siberia and the Carpathian Mountains tend to be the largest, while those in Scandinavia and western Europe are often smaller. Reports of lynx above 30 kg (66 lb) are rare, and some old records may be exaggerated.

Habitat and range

The Eurasian lynx has one of the largest ranges of any wild cat. It lives across northern and eastern Europe, through Russia and Siberia to the Pacific coast, and south into Central Asia, the Caucasus, Turkey, the Tibetan Plateau and the Himalayas, where it has been recorded at about 5,000 m (16,400 ft) or more.

In Europe the lynx is a forest animal. It prefers large, connected woodlands with plenty of cover, rocky outcrops and good numbers of deer. In Central Asia it also lives in more open, thinly wooded hills and rocky mountain slopes. It avoids open farmland, and deep, soft snow over about 1 m (3 ft) makes life difficult even for this snow-adapted cat.

The lynx was once found across almost all of Europe, including Britain. Hunting, forest clearance and the loss of wild deer wiped it out from most of western and central Europe by the early 20th century. Today it survives naturally in Scandinavia, Finland, the Baltic states, the Carpathians and the Balkans, and has been brought back to the Alps, the Jura, Germany and other areas. For a country-by-country guide, see where do lynx live in Europe?

What does the Eurasian lynx eat?

The Eurasian lynx is a carnivore and the only lynx species that regularly hunts hoofed animals (ungulates). In most of Europe its main prey is the roe deer. In the Alps it also takes many chamois, and in parts of Poland and Austria it hunts red deer, mostly calves and hinds. In northern Scandinavia, semi-domestic reindeer are an important prey.

When deer are scarce, lynx switch to smaller animals, including hares, rabbits, squirrels, marmots, rodents, grouse and other birds, and red foxes. In parts of Turkey and Central Asia, hares make up most of the diet. Lynx sometimes kill sheep, especially where flocks graze unguarded in forests, which is the main source of conflict with farmers.

An adult lynx needs about 1–2 kg (2.2–4.4 lb) of meat a day. A large kill such as a roe deer is covered with snow or leaves and revisited over several nights. Studies in Europe suggest an adult lynx kills roughly 50–60 roe deer a year where deer are its main prey.

How does a lynx hunt?

The lynx is a stalk-and-ambush hunter. It moves slowly and quietly through the forest, using its sharp eyesight and hearing, then creeps close and finishes with a short, explosive rush or pounce. It does not chase prey over long distances. If the first rush fails, the lynx usually gives up and looks for another chance.

Lynx often climb onto rocks or fallen trees to scan the area below. They kill small prey with a bite to the neck and larger animals such as deer with a bite to the throat. A Eurasian lynx can kill deer several times its own weight, though most of its prey is smaller.

Behavior and social life

Adult Eurasian lynx live alone, except for mothers with kittens. They are mainly active at dusk and at night, spending the day resting in dense cover or on rocky ledges. They are so secretive that people may live near lynx for years without seeing one; tracks in snow or the remains of a kill are often the only sign.

Each lynx has a large home range. In central Europe, ranges usually cover about 100–500 km² (40–190 sq mi), and in northern Scandinavia, where prey is thinner on the ground, they can exceed 1,000 km² (390 sq mi). Males use much larger areas than females. A lynx may travel up to about 20 km (12 mi) in a night. Lynx mark their ranges with urine, droppings and scratch marks, and they are usually silent outside the breeding season. During the mating season, males make deep growls and females give loud, drawn-out calls.

Reproduction and life cycle

Lynx mate from about February to April. After a pregnancy of 67–74 days, the female gives birth in May or June in a hidden den among rocks, fallen trees or tree roots. A litter usually has two kittens, sometimes one to four.

Kittens weigh about 240–430 g (8.5–15 oz) at birth and open their eyes after about 10–12 days. They start eating meat at around six to seven weeks and follow their mother on hunts as they grow. Young lynx stay with her for about 10 months, then leave in spring, just before she mates again. Females usually breed for the first time at about two years old and males at about three.

Lifespan

In the wild, many lynx die young, especially young animals looking for their own territory, which often cross roads. Adults that survive commonly live 10 years or more, and the oldest wild lynx recorded have reached about 17 years. In captivity, Eurasian lynx have lived up to 21 years.

Predators and threats

Healthy adult lynx have few natural enemies. Gray wolves and, in the far north, wolverines sometimes kill lynx, and tigers have been recorded killing lynx in the Russian Far East. Lynx often escape larger predators by climbing trees.

The main threats today come from people:

• Illegal killing, often linked to conflict with hunters or sheep farmers, is a major cause of death in several reintroduced populations.
• Traffic: roads and railways kill many dispersing young lynx and cut forests into small pieces.
• Small, isolated populations: several reintroduced groups started from only a few animals and now show signs of inbreeding.
• Habitat loss and falling prey numbers affect parts of the Asian range.

Conservation status

The IUCN Red List classifies the Eurasian lynx as Least Concern because of its huge range and stable overall population, most of it in Russia. That global picture hides big regional differences. The Balkan lynx, a subspecies in Albania and North Macedonia, numbers only a few dozen animals and is considered Critically Endangered on its own. Several small populations in central and western Europe also remain at risk.

The species is protected under the Bern Convention and the EU Habitats Directive. A few countries, including Sweden, Norway, Finland, Estonia and Latvia, allow regulated, quota-based culling; in most others the lynx is fully protected.

Return of the lynx to Europe

The Eurasian lynx is one of Europe’s big rewilding stories. Reintroductions began in Switzerland in 1971 with lynx from the Carpathians. Others followed in Slovenia (1973), the Vosges in France, the Bohemian Forest on the Czech-German border, the Harz Mountains of Germany and, more recently, the Palatinate Forest. Lynx from these releases have spread into the Italian Alps, Austria and eastern France.

Not every project has worked well. Some populations stay small and isolated, and illegal killing still limits their growth. In Britain, where the lynx disappeared many centuries ago, the idea of bringing it back is still being debated. Read more in are there lynx in the UK?

Myths and facts

Myth: lynx are a danger to people. There are no reliable records of a healthy wild lynx killing a person in Europe. Lynx flee from people and are rarely seen.

Myth: lynx wipe out deer. A lynx kills a lot of deer, but lynx live at very low densities, often around one to three animals per 100 km² (39 sq mi). Studies show they can lower roe deer numbers locally and change deer behavior, but they do not eliminate deer.

Fact: lynx and wolves can share forests. Wolves sometimes kill lynx, and lynx may become scarcer where gray wolves are abundant, but the two coexist in many forests of eastern Europe and Russia.