Make way for the super ferocious big cat!

Recently, a man found a black animal

This animal has long limbs and is quite large.

Can catch up with some medium-sized dogs

The man felt a little scared

He thought it might be a lynx.

So call the police immediately for help

Image source: Huanqiu.com

The staff at the protection station looked at it and said

"This is obviously a black Maine Coon cat!"

Image source: Huanqiu.com

Lynx is a national second-class protected animal.

But many people don't know him.

Image source: Baidu Encyclopedia. Lynx on the left and Maine Coon on the right.

How about it?

Can you tell which photo is of a lynx?

Let us get to know lynx today~

1

What does a lynx look like?

Lynx is a national second-class protected animal, also known as lynx manul, horse lynx, etc. It belongs to the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, subclass Eutheria, order Carnivora, family Felidae, and genus Lynx.

Lynx is a medium-sized cat, but it is much larger than domestic cats. It has a strong physique, a very short tail, 5 toes on its forelimbs and 4 toes on its hind limbs. It has tendonous meat and is flexible.

Image source: China Wildlife Conservation Association

Its ears are covered with black tufts of hair, like two antennae. Its cheeks have long hair drooping down. Its upper body is light brown, earthy brown, light gray brown or brownish brown, or grayish white with light brown tones. Its belly is light white, yellowish white or sandy yellow, somewhat like a leopard, and its belly is light white, yellowish white or sandy yellow. Its tail tip is black.

Image source: Wildlife Image Annual Competition

2

Where do lynx live?

The genus Lynx includes four species: the Eurasian lynx, the Spanish lynx, the Canadian lynx, and the bobcat. They are similar in appearance, but vary in size and range.

Image source: Beijing Animation World - 4 species of lynx and their distribution ranges

In general, these four species are only distributed in the Northern Hemisphere, including Asia, Europe and North America, and not in the Southern Hemisphere. Among them, the Eurasian lynx is mainly distributed in northern Asia and western Europe; the Canadian lynx is mainly distributed in Canada and some northern states of the United States, such as Alaska, Montana, Wyoming and Washington; the bobcat is mainly distributed in southern Canada, most of the United States and northern Mexico; the Spanish lynx is only distributed in Spain and Portugal. In addition, in China, lynx are distributed in Xinjiang, Tibet, Qinghai, Gansu, Inner Mongolia and other places.

3

What is life like for a lynx?

Lynx is a forest animal that often lives alone or in groups of several. It is usually active in the morning and evening, and because it is very good at running, its range of activities is very wide.

In the wild, lynxes mainly eat small animals such as hares, pikas, marmots, pheasants, ptarmigans, squirrels, etc., or prey on roe deer and other medium-sized animals. Artificially farmed lynxes mainly eat fresh beef, mutton, rabbit meat with bones, as well as fresh rats, mice, pheasants, and frogs.

Image source: Beijing Animation World - Lynx preying on hares

Lynx has well-developed vision and hearing, and is cunning and cautious by nature. It is agile, good at climbing trees and swimming. Its athletic nature gives it the ability to quickly escape or hide in trees when it encounters a natural enemy. Its cleverness also makes it choose to lie on the ground and pretend to be dead to deceive the enemy when it encounters a situation where it is difficult to escape.

According to scientific statistics, the lynx's reproduction cycle peaks in September and October, during which time there will be a food shortage due to the excessive increase in numbers. In this case, they will bury the leftover food in the snow so that they can fill their stomachs when hunting becomes difficult.

Image source: Beijing Animation World - Lynx mother and baby lynx

Lynxes build their nests in rock crevices or tree holes, mate from February to April each year, and gestate for about two months. Lynxes have a lifespan of 12 to 15 years, but captive lynxes can live up to 24 years.

4

You can’t pet this big cat!

Lynx is listed as endangered in the Red List of Chinese Species and is a Class II protected animal. In nature, lynx can defuse and create new ways to deal with attacks and threats from other species, but they are powerless against humans.

If it weren't for protected animals, the lynx might have a chance to become the most pettable cat. Among all cats, the lynx has the softest fur, thanks to its dense hair - there are 9,000 hairs per square centimeter on its back. Lynx skin is one of the traditional important fur resources and export species, however, this has also become an endangered factor for the lynx.

Image source: Wildlife Image Contest - Little Lynx

At the same time, due to human logging activities, forests and nature have been destroyed, the area of ​​forests has been fragmented and shrunk, and the intensification of urbanization has reduced their habitats and the food they can hunt. In order to survive, lynxes have to prey on livestock, which has led to humans killing lynxes in large numbers.

Although hunting has been banned since the enactment of the Wildlife Protection Law in 1989, illegal poaching remains the biggest threat to the survival of lynx.

END

Source: China National Geographic, Beijing Animation World

China Wildlife Conservation Association, Huanqiu.com, WWF

Compiled by: Dong Xiaoxian

Editor: Guru