After a rare Canada lynx was confirmed in Vermont last August for the first time in years, biologists with the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department have continued to receive verifiable photos and videos of what they believe is the same individual wild cat.
Reports indicate that the lynx has moved about 60 miles north of where it was first sighted in Rutland County into Addison County, traveling around a dozen miles at a time and then staying in the same general area for several days before moving on. Juvenile lynx will often travel long distances searching for new territory, a behavior called “dispersal” by biologists.
“We’ve had 15 confirmed lynx sightings since August and signs point to these all being the same dispersing juvenile male,” said Brehan Furfey, furbearer biologist with the department. “The lynx has moved steadily north from Rutland County into Addison County. That’s a conservation success in its own right because Vermont’s network of protected lands is what makes this journey possible. We’re rooting for this lynx to keep heading north where it will find more young forest habitat and plenty of snowshoe hares to eat.”
Because Canada lynx are a federally threatened species, the department says it is important for anyone who sees a lynx to give the cat a respectful amount of space. The individual lynx currently being seen by Vermonters appears skinny but healthy and is not a threat to people. However, it is probably stressed by being in unfamiliar habitat and needs to be allowed to continue its dispersal without disturbance.
“The rule of thumb is always to keep a respectful distance from any wildlife you’re observing. If they are changing their behavior in response to you, then you’re too close,” said Furfey. “Keeping a respectful distance is especially important for threatened or endangered species like Canada lynx which are protected by state and federal law. That said, we do want your photos or videos if you think you have crossed paths with a lynx and are able to get a clear view on your phone or camera without disturbing it.”
Vermonters who think they have a photo or video of a lynx are encouraged to take two steps. First, learn how to tell Canada lynx from the closely related bobcat, which is much more common in Vermont. Second, if confident your photo or video is a lynx, email it to the department at fwinformation@vermont.gov.
“The chance to use citizen science observations to follow this juvenile lynx on its search for new territory is really unusual and really exciting,” said Furfey. “Vermonters can be proud that decades of land protection and management for connected habitats have allowed this rare wild cat to make its way through our state. It’s a sign that conservation is working.”