By Jordan Schaul
Special to the Turnagain Times
As we prepare to welcome back our two female Canadian lynx to the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, I thought I would take a moment to introduce these medium-sized felids, which include the common and fairly wide ranging bobcat and the critically endangered Iberian lynx.
In total there are four extant or living species of lynx and three subspecies of Canadian lynx-- the species found throughout Alaska and Canada and northern parts of the contiguous lower 48.
The bobcat and the Canadian lynx are the smallest of the lynx species and sometimes confused for one and other in areas where they overlap in range.
The Eurasian lynx—the largest of these wildcats—like the Canada lynx inhabit forested regions of northern latitudes. Eurasian or European lynxes are also known as the Northern lynx, but they can be found throughout parts of South Asia.
The bobcat does not occur in Alaska, but all 12 of the bobcat subspecies can be found in southern Canada, most of the lower 48 and Mexico. Unlike the Canadian or Eurasian lynx the bobcat is not nearly as dependent on forested habitat to survive. The bobcat can be found in deserts, wetlands, and areas diverse in topography and elevation. Like the Canada lynx, which coevolved with its main prey base—the snowshoe hare—,the bobcat is highly dependent on the availability of its prey (i.e., rabbits and hare).
The Iberian lynx is not only the most endangered species of lynx, it is the most endangered cat in the world. Native to the Iberian Peninsula in Southern Europe, the Iberian lynx overlaps in range with the Eurasian lynx and was once classified as a subspecies of the Eurasian species.
We hope that when you come to visit our lynx at the AWCC that you keep in mind that although Canadian lynx have been successfully reintroduced to places like Colorado, and continue to thrive in Alaska, some of their close cousins in Europe are on the verge of extinction.
The Canadian lynx is more adept at walking on snow than the typically smaller bobcat. It has to be well adapted to chasing prey over snow whether in forested habitat or on the tundra. The largest subspecies of bobcat may outsize the lynx, but lynx are still formidable predators—typically reaching twice the size of a house cat and capable of taking down caribou calves.
Lynx swim and climb quite well, but they pursue prey on the ground--walking first in search of small mammals and then accelerating into great bursts of speed before capturing and immobilizing prey.
Please come out and visit our two female lynx. These sisters were rescued by some fire fighters during a wildfire and were brought to the AWCC to heal. They have been away on loan for several years, but will back soon and placed on exhibit in a new habitat.
Related: Lynx Return to AWCC
Jordan Schaul is the curator and conservation biologist for the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center in Portage.
