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Very sleepy lynx

 

The severe winters a couple of years ago decimated the numbers of our roe deer. Due to the low level of their basic prey animals, the number of lynxes has decreased too and during the winter hunting season no lynx was hunted in mainland Estonia (hunting permits were not issued).  The number of roe deer is recovering, the animals have passed through a ”natural” selection process and the number of lynxes will surely take the same course.

 

Lynx matings are in full progress. In a territory controlled by one male lynx there are generally a couple of females. There is almost no snow in our forests, so the ”track book” is not readable –  we will leave the mating descriptions to the following years when the activity tracks of life in our forest will speak more expressively; but lynxes are imprudent at the moment.

 

The number of lynxes is currently estimated at 400 individuals. Presuming that out of these one third are young animals, and one third females that are in heat for more than a year, then this spring some more than 60 female lynxes may expect offspring. By this rough calculation we can get an idea of the order of the lynx population size.