Important information about lynx. Lynx - a predatory northern cat

The common lynx (Lynx lynx) is an animal belonging to the species of mammals and the genus of lynx, which includes four species. Common lynx belongs to the fairly widespread order Carnivora and the Feline family.

Description and appearance

Today, our planet is inhabited by several species of lynx, which differ somewhat in size, skin color and distribution area. Currently the lynx is the most northern view of all members of the cat family.

This is interesting! The image of a lynx found enough wide application in heraldry, therefore such a symbol is often found on the flags and coats of arms of various cities, including Gomel and Ust-Kubinsk in the Vologda region.

Appearance

A short and dense body is characteristic of all lynxes, regardless of the species. The ears have long and well-defined tufts of hair. The tail is quite short, with a very characteristic, “chopped off” part. The head is small in size and has a pronounced round shape. Long hair in large quantities located on the sides of the muzzle, and forms very peculiar “whiskers”. The muzzle is shortened, with wide eyes and round pupils. Paws of large sizes, in winter period with good pubescence.

This is interesting! With the onset of winter, the lower part of the lynx's paws becomes long and quite thick hair, thanks to which the animal can move even through very deep and relatively loose snow, like on skis.

Lynx sizes

The average body length of an adult lynx can vary between 80-130cm. The height of the animal at the withers reaches 65-70cm. As a rule, an adult and well-formed lynx is similar in size to a fairly large, massive dog. The weight of an adult male lynx varies between 18-25 kg, but some males are capable of reaching a weight of 28-30 kg, and females most often weigh no more than 18-20 kg.

Skin color

The coloring of lynx fur today is very variable, and can be represented by many types of colors and shades, which directly depend on the geography of the habitat of the individuals. The color can vary from reddish-brown to fawn-smoky tones, with less or more pronounced spotting on the back and paws, as well as on the sides of the animal.

On the belly of the lynx, the hair is quite long and soft, silky, but not thick, and almost always pure white with sparse, relatively noticeable specks. In the southern regions, individuals have a more pronounced red coloration, and also have relatively short and dense hair. The predatory animal sheds in spring and autumn.

Lifespan

The average lifespan of a common lynx in natural conditions is about fifteen or seventeen years. In Europe and in the Siberian taiga, the main enemies that significantly reduce the lynx population are wolves.

In captivity, including zoos and nurseries, such predatory individuals can live for a quarter of a century or a little more.

Lifestyle of the common lynx

Along with most other species of predatory animals, the common lynx prefers to be nocturnal or so-called twilight image life. This is a solitary predator, but the female and her cubs live together for several months.

This is interesting! Lynxes go out in search of their prey after it begins to get dark. The tassels located on the ears of the predator serve as a kind of device that makes it easier to detect prey.

In addition to hunting with the so-called stealth, lynxes are able to wait for their prey in ambush. This predatory animal often lies in wait for its prey near hare trails, as well as near the main watering hole for ungulates.

Where does the lynx live, its range

Lynxes prefer to inhabit dense dark coniferous forests and taiga, but sometimes they can enter forest-steppe or forest-tundra. The animal can easily climb not only trees, but also rocks, and can also swim very well.

Thanks to its abundant fur, the lynx has perfectly adapted to life in the snow in the Arctic Circle. The spots on the fur make the lynx almost invisible in the daytime among the glare of the sun that falls on the ground, and also camouflage the animal very well among trees and bushes.

Food and prey

Common lynxes hunt, in most cases, hares. If possible, the animal is capable of attacking medium-sized ungulates, including roe deer, musk deer and wapiti, as well as young wild boars. Lynxes often catch squirrels and martens, and also eat hazel grouse, wood grouse and black grouse.

In search of food, lynxes are able to walk about thirty kilometers within a day, and in very hungry years, the predator often approaches a person’s home, where domestic or stray cats and dogs, and small livestock become its prey. Uneaten prey is buried in the snow or ground.

This is interesting! This one is well known unusual fact, like the unmotivated aggression of lynxes towards foxes. The predator tries to kill the fox at the first opportunity, but the lynx never eats this meat.

Reproduction and offspring

The common lynx is a predator leading a solitary lifestyle. The lynx rut begins in March. During this period, predators emit very characteristic loud screams, and also purr or meow loudly. At the rutting stage, each female is accompanied by several males, fiercely fighting with each other. Educated married couples perform a kind of greeting ritual, and affection is expressed by licking each other's fur.

This is interesting! The female's gestation period varies between 64-70 days. One litter usually consists of a pair of kittens, but sometimes their number can reach five. The born lynx cubs are blind and deaf, so the female initially hides them in a den, which is located under the roots of fallen trees, in deep holes or earthen caves. Also, some females sometimes make a den in low-lying hollows or in large rocky crevices.

The average weight of a newborn kitten, as a rule, does not exceed 250-300 grams. The baby lynx's eyes open only on the twelfth day. Until about a month, the female feeds her cubs exclusively with milk, after which gradual feeding of solid protein foods begins. The upbringing of born kittens is carried out by both parents, who not only protect their offspring, but also teach them how to get food for themselves and hide from enemies. Puberty in females it occurs closer to two years, and in males several months later.

In order to preserve endangered species of plants and animals, the Red Book was created. To the animals that are included in it relate and . This representative of the cat family is considered the largest of the lynx genus. It can reach length more than a meter, with a short thin tail. Weight about 20 kg. The peculiarity of these animals is that they have tufts on the tips of their ears and wide sideburns on the sides of the head, which visually enlarges it.

Tassels on the ears perform important function. With their help, the predator picks up even the quietest sounds, which is very helpful during the hunt. In addition to well-developed hearing, it has a good sense of smell and vision. He can climb trees, rocks and swim very well.

Lynx has very beautiful fur, especially in the cold season. The fur becomes very thick and soft. The color is ashen and reddish on the upper part of the body, and the belly white. The entire body is covered with small spots. Due to this appearance, common lynxes have good camouflage abilities.

Habitat of the common lynx

Mainly lives in dense forests with thickets of windbreaks and rocky outcrops. In open forests it is almost impossible to find this animal. The common lynx can be found in Carpathian forests. Such areas with dense vegetation create ideal conditions for the habitat of these cats. In search of food, they can go to the meadows, but remain there for a long time.

The predator does not like to migrate. And if there is enough game for food, it can spend its entire life in one territory.

What does the common lynx eat?

The main food of the lynx are hares, roe deer, rodents, and various birds.
For unknown reasons, he has a terrible dislike for foxes. She does not eat them, but does not miss the opportunity to kill them.
During the snowy season, the animal can attack larger animals. Thanks to its long legs and furry paw pads, the cat can move through the snow without difficulty.

The common lynx goes out in search of prey at nightfall. There is an opinion that it attacks prey from a tree, but this is not so. The predator prefers to wait patiently or sneak up with careful steps and attack sharply.

The animal tries to avoid people. It hears them approaching several meters away and tries not to catch their eye. When they come Hard times and the lynx does not have enough food in the forest, it can enter the nearest settlements to profit from a cat or dog. This predator can overcome an adult shepherd dog. But cases when they appear among people are very rare; they can mainly be found in dense coniferous forests.

Reproduction of the common lynx

The mating season for lynx falls in February and March. At this time, the animals behave very noisily. Several males follow the female and try to prove their superiority over others by starting a fight. The winner becomes the chosen one of the female. Pregnancy lasts 10 weeks. Usually the mother takes care of the offspring. She prefers to give birth to kittens between the roots of old trees or makes a nest in a hollow. The female lines this place with wool, leaves and feathers.

Children are born blind. Basically, the lynx brings two or three babies. Vision begins two weeks after birth, and kittens live off their mother’s milk for up to three months.

After this, adults begin to introduce meat into the babies’ diet. They bring captured animals to the lair. Gradually, the mother teaches the young to hunt. Until next autumn, small lynxes live under the care of their parents, after which they leave them.
Previously, these animals were considered harmful and tried in every possible way to exterminate them. But in fact, lynx plays an important role in forest biocenoses. Its presence is undesirable only on farms where they breed birds, roe deer, and deer.

The number of lynxes is rapidly decreasing. This mainly happens due to high level mortality in childhood and decrease in forest area. Although hunting for them, especially during the breeding season, is strictly prohibited, illegal extermination of predators still occurs, primarily because of their valuable fur. These factors significantly worsen the living conditions of animals and can lead to their complete disappearance.

If you liked our site, tell your friends about us!

Lynx belongs to the cat family. This is the most close relative cats though appearance the lynx is very different.

The lynx genus has four species:

Common lynx or Eurasian lynx;
Red Lynx;
Iberian lynx or Spanish lynx;
Canadian lynx.

The lynx is a relatively small representative of its family. The body length of an adult male is 76-130 cm, females are several centimeters shorter, about 73-124 cm. The weight of a lynx is 18-25 kg, sometimes very large specimens weighing 30 kg are also found. The body is short and tightly knit. A small, rounded head with elongated ears and characteristic tassels at the end. The lynx's muzzle is short with wide eyes, and on its cheeks there is elongated hair similar to whiskers. At the end of the body is a short tail with a blunt end, 20-35 cm long. The lynx's fur is very thick and soft, and has a dense undercoat. The fur is longest on the belly, but not very thick. Lynxes shed twice a year in spring and autumn. The fur that changes in the fall is fluffier and thicker. The summer pile is short, dense and not as thick with a more contrasting color than the winter one.

The color of lynxes is quite different, it all depends on their habitat and the species to which they belong. Most often, lynxes are found with a reddish-grayish or grayish-brown tint with pronounced large dark spots on the back and sides. Smaller spots cover the animal's legs and chest.

The hind legs of a lynx differ in structure from the legs of other cats; they are longer than the front ones. The lynx has 4 toes on its hind paws, and 5 on its front paws. In winter, the soles of its paws are covered with especially thick fur, which allows the lynx to easily move through the snow and not fall into snowdrifts. When a lynx walks, its hind paws follow the tracks of its front paws. Lynx tracks resemble those of a cat with large paws.

Where does the lynx live?

Lynxes live in the forests of Eurasia and North America. Sometimes this animal is found even beyond the Arctic Circle.

The lynx once inhabited almost the entire territory of Western and Central Europe. But due to the popularity of lynx fur on the world market and deforestation, already in the middle of the 20th century the lynx was exterminated in many European countries.

Now the lynx lives in the following countries: Sweden, Norway, Finland, Czech Republic, Poland, Belarus, Russia, Romania, Hungary, Ukraine, Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia, Georgia, Estonia, Lithuania, Albania, Greece, Azerbaijan, China, Kazakhstan, Mongolia. It has been reintroduced to some of these countries.

On the American continent, the lynx spread from southern Canada to Mexico. The largest population lives in the southeastern United States.

Lynxes settled in Kamchatka relatively recently, around the beginning of the 20th century.

The favorite habitats of Eurasian lynxes are taiga, mountain, coniferous and funny forests. Although lynxes are sometimes found in the forest-tundra and other areas with low-growing vegetation, such as bushes or reeds. Most often, for living it chooses dense forests or thickets of young animals, where it is easy to make its den.

What does a lynx eat and its way of life?

The lynx is a predator, and like all predators, its diet consists of meat. The usual prey of the lynx are mouse-like rodents (voles, lemmings), hares, and birds (grouse or hazel grouse). In addition to small rodents and birds, it hunts larger prey: roe deer, sika and reindeer, musk deer, serenas. If possible, you won’t mind feasting on young elk, wild boars and red deer. Sometimes the lynx's catch can even be fish. In places where the lynx lives near humans, it often preys on domestic animals and livestock.

The lynx goes hunting mainly from 3 to 6 in the morning under the cover of darkness. The only exception is the Canadian lynx, which hunts during the day. She carefully tracks her prey, sneaks up and suddenly attacks on the sly, making several long jumps, each from 2 to 3 meters. If it fails to catch the prey the first time, it chases it for 60-80 meters and then retreats.

There is an opinion that lynx attacks prey by jumping from trees, but this is not so. Sitting on a tree, the animal is just looking for her.

To get enough food, a lynx must eat from 1 to 3 kg of meat per day; a hungry predator can eat 5-6 kg per day. Uneaten large prey or its remains are always hidden by burying it in the snow or covering it with earth. She does this so sloppily that other predators easily find and steal all the supplies. A well-fed lynx does not hunt; it prefers not to waste energy.

Wolverine and fox often follow on the heels of the lynx to feast on the achievements of its successful hunt. Wolverine often takes prey and drives away the lynx. With a fox, the opposite is true: if a lynx sees it on its territory, it will certainly kill it, but will not eat it. This aggressiveness towards foxes is due to food competition.

As a rule, the lynx leads sedentary image life and only in case of shortage of food resources migrates to places with sufficient food.

The animal's domain ranges from 70 to 250 sq. km. To get around its territory, a lynx needs from 5 to 10 days.

Reproduction

The mating season for lynxes begins in February and lasts until the end of March. At this time, the female is accompanied by several males, constantly fighting among themselves. At the same time, they make different sounds all the time, growl, meow deeply, and scream. Such battles can be heard over very long distances.

Pregnancy in females lasts for 1.5-2 months. To produce offspring, lynxes set up a den and look for it 4-5 hours before giving birth. More often, tree hollows at a height of 14-15 meters or splits in rocks serve as such lairs. In April or May, lynx cubs are born. A litter often produces 2-3 babies, rarely 4-5. Newborn kittens are blind and helpless, weighing about 300 grams. Babies open their eyes only at 12-14 days of life.

The female raises her offspring herself without the participation of the father. For the first month, the mother feeds the cubs with milk, and at two months of age she begins to feed them with prey. To teach her offspring to hunt, the female brings them live mice and hares. At three months of age, lynx cubs leave their den and begin to follow their mother. The female teaches kittens to hunt only after reaching the age of five months.

Lynx kittens begin independent life at the age of 1 year, when the mother drives them away to acquire new offspring. Female lynxes become sexually mature at the age of 1.5 years, and males at 2.5 years.

Lynxes live in wildlife 15-20 years, in captivity life expectancy can be more than 25 years.

Titles: European lynx.

Area: Europe (Scandinavia, Finland, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Yugoslavia, Albania, Greece, Ukrainian Carpathians, Russia).

Description: Lynx is a typical cat the size of a large dog. The body is short, dense, the tail is cut off. The ears are triangular, pointed, with tufts growing at the ends. The legs are long and strong. The head is small, rounded, with sideburns growing on the sides. The muzzle is short, the eyes are wide, the pupils are vertical. She sheds twice a year: in spring and autumn. The fur is long, soft, thick. Especially long hair on the belly.

Color: grayish-red with a bluish-silver or reddish tint, brown speckling on the back and sides. The belly is pure white with sparse speckling. Summer fur is coarser and shorter, and more brightly colored than winter fur. The winter coat is very thick, ranging from pale-smoky to rusty-reddish.

Size: body length 82-105 cm, tail 20-31 cm.

Weight: 8-15 kg.

Lifespan: in nature 15-20 years.

High, loud and harsh voice. When the digger is angry, she growls; when she is happy or well-fed, she purrs like a large domestic cat. During the breeding season, animals meow loudly, purr, and sometimes scream furiously.

Habitat: diverse habitats - mixed forests. Prefers dense, heavily cluttered forests.

Enemies: the main enemy is man; in winter, lynx are attacked by packs of wolves and wolverines.
Having encountered foxes, raccoon dogs, martens, feral domestic cats and the European cat, the lynx mercilessly destroys them.

Food: the basis of the diet is white hares, the rest consists of birds (grouse, partridges), rodents (mice, squirrels), small ungulates (roe deer, musk deer, sika and reindeer).

Behavior: The European lynx is an excellent hunter; during the day it lies in its den, and at dusk it becomes active. It climbs trees and rocks well and swims well. It hunts from ambush - it chooses a place from which everything is clearly visible and waits for the prey to appear. So she can lie for hours without moving. The lynx has very fine hearing and sharp vision.
The lynx walks completely silently, merging with the background of the area. Having discovered a fresh trail or seen prey, the lynx very patiently sneaks up on it.
An excellent jumper, capable of jumping up to 4 meters in length or more. It runs worse, pursues the victim at a distance of no more than 60-80 m, after which it runs out of steam. For ungulates, the lynx becomes dangerous in winter time when they get stuck in deep and loose snow.
The lynx is so careful that rarely anyone has been able to see it in the wild. It leads a sedentary lifestyle, but during severe frosts and lack of food, it goes on trips and often climbs into the forest-steppe and tundra. During the night the animal travels up to 6-10 km. An individual site is covered in 5-10 days.
A male (whose weight is 18-20 kg) in winter eats 2.5-3 kg of meat per day, and if the animal is hungry, up to 5-6.
The lynx, like most predators, crushes more animals than it needs. Despite all the caution, the lynx is not very afraid of people. In hungry years, it enters villages and large cities.

Social structure: Outside the breeding season, the lynx leads a solitary lifestyle. Males mark the boundaries of their territories with their excrement. Favorites hunting trails also abound in marks that they make with urine.

Reproduction: the female is followed by several males who fight fiercely among themselves.
When meeting, a mating lynx pair performs a greeting ritual - after sniffing each other’s noses, they stand opposite and begin to butt heads. Friendly affection among lynxes is expressed in mutual licking of fur.
To raise offspring, the female makes a den under the upturned roots of fallen trees, in pits, earthen caves, rock crevices, and abandoned badger burrows. The den is pre-lined with wool, grass and feathers. Both parents participate in raising their offspring.

Breeding season/period: end of February - March.

Puberty: females - at 21 months, males - at 33 months.

Pregnancy: lasts 63-70 days.

Offspring: the female gives birth to 2-3 blind and deaf kittens. The weight of newborns is 250-300 g.
Eyes open on day 12. At one month, the mother begins to feed the kittens solid food. Lactation lasts up to 4 months. The young hunt with the adults until the next breeding season.

Benefit/harm for humans: The European lynx has a beautiful and valuable fur. In the Middle Ages, lynx meat was considered a delicacy.
Lynx attacks on domestic animals and humans are extremely rare.
Young lynx cubs quickly become tamed and are easy to train.
In past european lynx considered a harmful animal, but in fact, it plays an important role in forest biocenoses.

Population/Conservation Status: The lynx is a widespread species.
Currently there are 7 subspecies Felis lynx: L.l. carpathicus- Carpathians, Greece, L.l. dinniki- Caucasus, Iran, Türkiye, L.l. Isabellinus- Kashmir, Mongolia, L.l. kozlovi- Central Siberia, L.l. lynx- North and East of Europe, L.l. neglectus - Far East, China, L.l. wrangeli- Eastern Siberia.

Lynx - ours for you with a brush!

Copyright holder: Zooclub portal
When reprinting this article, an active link to the source is MANDATORY, otherwise, use of the article will be considered a violation of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights.

Etymology

The name is most likely related to the Proto-Slavic root lysь, in which under the influence of another Proto-Slavic root rysь(meaning “red, spotted”)

Appearance

The body length of the lynx is 82-105 cm and 70 cm at the withers. Typically, a lynx is the size of a large dog. Males often weigh between 20 and 30 kg, while females weigh an average of 20 kg, which is slightly larger than an ocelot. The body, like that of all lynxes, is short and dense. The paws are large and well furred in winter, which allows the lynx to walk on the snow without falling through. There are long tassels on the ears. The tail is short, as if chopped off.

There are many color variations of the lynx, depending on the geographical area - from reddish-brown to fawn-smoky, with more or less pronounced spotting on the back, sides and paws. On the belly, the hair is especially long and soft, but not thick and almost always pure white with sparse speckling. Southern forms usually more red, their hair is shorter, and their paws are smaller.

The lynx's footprint is typically cat-like, without claw marks; the hind paws step exactly in the footprint of the front paws.

Spreading

The lynx is the northernmost of the cat species; in Scandinavia it is found even beyond the Arctic Circle. It was once quite common throughout Europe, but by the mid-20th century it was exterminated in most countries of Central and Western Europe. Successful attempts have now been made to revive the lynx population.

Lifestyle and nutrition

Lynx prefers dense dark coniferous forests, taiga, although it is found in a wide variety of plantations, including mountain forests; sometimes enters the forest-steppe and forest-tundra. She climbs trees and rocks very well and swims well. She also survives well in the snow (in the Arctic Circle), catching fur-bearing animals.

When there is an abundance of food, the lynx lives sedentary; when there is a shortage, it wanders. It can travel up to 30 kilometers per day. The basis of its diet is hares. She also constantly hunts grouse birds, small rodents, and less often small ungulates, such as roe deer, musk deer, sika and reindeer, and occasionally attacks domestic cats and dogs, in addition to foxes, raccoon dogs and other small animals.

Lynx hunts at dusk. Contrary to popular belief, she never jumps onto its prey from a tree, but prefers to watch for game in ambush or stealth, and then attack with large, up to 4 m, jumps. The victim is pursued at a distance of no more than 60-80 m, after which it runs out of steam. It is also known that the lynx kills foxes and martens, even if there is no need for food.

Despite all the caution, the lynx is not very afraid of people. She lives in secondary forests created by them, young forests, in old cutting areas and burnt areas; and in times of adversity it enters villages and even big cities.

According to Russian zoologist Mikhail Kretschmar, there is not a single confirmed case of a lynx attacking a person. “To some extent it’s even surprising. A leopard weighing thirty-five kilograms easily kills people. An adult male lynx can easily deal with trained shepherd dogs twice his weight. However, cases where a lynx deliberately concealed and killed a person are still unknown to us. Pseudo-taiga fabulists have devoted dozens of pages to cases of lynx attacks on a geological party, a commercial hunter, a lone prospector, a Komsomol shock member, etc. Reasoning impartially, it is difficult to reproach them: according to all physical indicators, a lynx seems to be able to attack a person. Maybe, but it doesn't attack. Moreover, the lynx is known as one of the most easily tamed animals. In particular, even adult lynxes caught in traps can be tamed. Sometimes they get used to a person to such an extent that they allow themselves to be picked up, and the purring of this huge cat resembles the hum of a powerful electric motor.”

However, it should be noted that not all scientists adhere to the point of view expressed by Mikhail Kretschmar. For example, one of the most famous and respected Russian zoologists, S.I. Ognev, wrote: “Cases of active lynx attacks on humans are rare, but still undeniable.” Similar views are held by other authorities in zoology, not to mention hunters and foresters, not “pseudo-taiga” at all, but real, real experts forest predators. For example, Altai scientist and writer Alexander Stennikov claims that there have been and still are cases of lynx attacks on humans in his region. And these are not only those cases when a wounded or mad lynx attacks. Stennikov is well acquainted with a man whose father was killed by a lynx with the clear intention of using him as prey. When a man was walking along the path, the animal jumped from a tree onto his back and gnawed his carotid artery. That lynx was neither wounded nor rabid - rabid animals bite randomly and not at all with the intention of killing, but only obeying the blind call of the disease. Canadian zoologists Michael Standale and Steven Daryl also know cases of lynx attacks on humans. As for the issue of taming lynxes, everything here is also not at all clear. In fact, there are cases when tame lynxes live in houses and apartments all their lives and do not show the slightest aggressiveness towards their owners, however, trainers in circuses prefer to deal with tigers and lions, but performances with lynxes are very rare. Trainers say that the lynx is unpredictable in to a greater extent than large representatives of the cat family, it easily becomes angry and then poses a greater danger to people. [ style!]

Social structure and reproduction

Young lynx

Lynx kitten

The lynx's rut is in March, and at this time lynxes, usually silent, emit loud screams, purrs and meows. Pregnancy in females lasts 63-70 days. There are usually 2-3 little lynxes in a litter; their refuge is a lair under the upturned roots of a fallen tree, a hole, an earthen cave or a rock crevice. Both parents participate in raising kittens. The brood hunts with the adults until the next breeding season. Females reach sexual maturity at 21 months, males at 33 months. Life expectancy is apparently 15-20 years.

Population status and protection

Status of the lynx population in different countries:

Balkan Peninsula: Several dozen lynxes in Serbia, Macedonia, Albania and Greece.
Germany: Exterminated in the 1990s. repopulated in the Bavarian Forest and Harz.
Carpathians: 2,200 lynxes from the Czech Republic to Romania; the largest population besides the Russian one.
Poland: About 1000 lynxes in Belovezhskaya Pushcha and the Tatra Mountains.
Russia: 90% of the lynx population lives in Siberia. Although lynxes are found from the western borders of the Russian Federation to Sakhalin.
Scandinavia: Approx. 2,500 lynxes in Norway, Sweden and Finland.
France: Exterminated approx. d. Inhabited in the Vosges and Pyrenees.
Switzerland: Exterminated by the city, repopulated in the city. From here they migrated to Austria and Slovenia.
Central Asia: China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
Transcaucasia: Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia.

The commercial value of the lynx is small (fur is used). Like many predators, it plays an important selection role in forest biocenoses. Only in hunting farms where roe deer, sika deer, and pheasants are bred, its presence is undesirable. Lynx fur is excellent: thick, silky and tall. The length of the guard hairs on the back reaches 5 centimeters, and on the stomach - 7 centimeters, under which there is abundant soft underfur. The color of the skin varies from reddish to bluish tones with a spotted pattern. Lynx fur has always been highly valued. Since the 1950s, prices for it on the international market began to increase at an unprecedented speed. Thus, at the Leningrad fur auction in 1958, the best lynx skins fetched $73, in 1973 - $660, and in 1977 - $1,300. This is explained by the fashion that has persisted for decades (a fact in itself very rare) for long-haired fur, among which lynx fur took first place.

Subspecies

In art

The lynx is widely used in heraldry, symbolizing completeness and sharpness of vision. Her image can be seen on the coats of arms or flags of cities such as Rezh or Gomel. According to some versions, it is the lynx, and not the lion, that is depicted on the coat of arms of Finland. The Ust-Kubinsky district of the Vologda region also has a lynx on the coat of arms.

Due to its visual acuity, the constellation was named after the lynx by John Hevelius in 1690. Hevelius commented on the choice of name: “ In this part of the sky there are only small stars, and you need to have lynx eyes to distinguish and recognize them».