Sunday 10 May 2009

Northen lynx


A lynx (plural lynx or lynxes) is any of four medium-sized wild cats. All are members of the genus Lynx, but there is considerable confusion about the best way to classify felids at present, and some authorities classify them as part of the genus Felis. The Caracal, despite sometimes being called Persian Lynx or African Lynx, does not belong to this genus.

Did you know?
The lynx has the status of a national animal in the Republic of Macedonia and is also displayed on the reverse of the Macedonian 5 denar coin.

Lynx are usually solitary, although a small group of lynx may travel and hunt together occasionally. Mating takes place in the late winter and they give birth to two to six kittens once a year. The gestation time of lynx is about 70 days. The young stay with the mother for one more winter, a total of around nine months, before they move out to live on their own as young adults. Adult lynx will give their young the prey to play with it before they eat it, thus honing their hunting skills. Lynx will have their dens in crevices or under ledges. They feed on a wide range of animals from white-tailed deer, reindeer, roe deer, small red deer, and chamois, to smaller, more usual prey — birds, and small mammals, like snowshoe hares, fish, sheep, pets, squirrels, mice, turkeys, and goats.

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