The lynx is a species of wild feline that ranges across the northern hemisphere. It exists in Canada, the United States, northern Asia, the Middle East and the western portions of Europe. The lynx has black tufts of hair on the ends of its ears, a mane of longish fur in the neck/face area and back legs longer than the front.
Types
The largest lynx is the Siberian variety of the Eurasian lynx, which can weight as much as 80 lbs. The rarest is the Spanish lynx, of which perhaps 300 remain in the wild in Portugal and Spain.
North American Variety
The Canadian lynx averages between 18 and 24 lbs. and is about 20 inches in length. This lynx lives across Canada and through the northernmost United States, especially Alaska.
Adaptive Toes
The Canadian lynx has the ability to spread its toes apart and make its feet perform as if they were snowshoes, allowing the animal to traverse deep snow cover.
Differences From the Bobcat
The bobcat is another species of lynx, but it has much smaller feet and lacks furry soles on them, making it better equipped to live in warmer conditions in a number of ecosystems.
Diet
The diet of the Spanish lynx consists mainly of rabbits while the larger Eurasian lynx hunts deer and other similar hoofed mammals. The Canadian lynx prefers snowshoe hares to the point that their population correlates to that of its prey.
Threats
Hunting and trapping the lynx for its beautiful fur along with a loss of habitat have cut into the numbers of lynx across the globe.
Tags: Canadian lynx, Eurasian lynx, lynx which, Spanish lynx, United States