Lynx population appears stable in Switzerland

The lynx was reintroduced to Switzerland more than 50 years ago. Keystone / David Zalubowski

Monitoring of lynx populations in Switzerland has shown the wild cat still thriving since its reintroduction to the Alpine state.

The KORA Carnivore Ecology and Wildlife Management organisation recorded 21 lynx inhabiting an area in the northwest canton of Jura.

In addition, five pups from at least four litters were identified using camera traps last winter.

KORA estimates that between 22 and 39 lynx are thriving in the region. This represents a slightly higher population density than 2016, but cameras covered a wider area during the last recording.

It is believed the last lynx in the original Swiss Alps population was killed in 1894 after it was hunted into extinction. A reintroduction programme was launched 50 years ago to bring the lynx back to Switzerland.

At least 14 lynx were transferred in the 1970s from the Carpathian Mountains in Eastern Europe to the Swiss Alps, making Switzerland one of the first European countries to endorse a re-introduction of the species, as well as grant it legal protection.

It’s estimated there are now about 250 of the wild cats in Switzerland, consisting of two main populations – one in the northwestern Swiss Alps and the other in the Jura mountains.

Speaking of big cats with tufted ears: at the 2022 World Biodiversity Conference in Davos, we heard about caracal conservation efforts from this South African ecologist and zoologist.