Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Lynx sighting

On Christmas eve, at about 5 pm, we were sitting in our living room with friends. I looked out the window and saw the lynx that we think lives under a vacant house across the street. Last summer we saw it briefly, stalking across the yard. About a month ago, the kids and I came home at dusk and as we turned into the driveway, I saw it on the road. It ran away from the house and toward some trees and brush so our look at it was quick. But this time, it came from the right side of the house and walked slowly all the way along the back of the house, almost up to the neighbors front porch, and then continued on to the left until we couldn't see it anymore.

Sorry, no photos. I couldn't tear myself away from the window. We've debated whether it's a lynx or a bobcat because they're look very similar with only a few distinctive markings that can be hard to see unless you're quite close. Yesterday I picked up the current issue of National
Geographic Kids magazine. On the cover is a photo of a lynx with the title this title--Lynx: The Comeback Cat. The article begins: These wild cats are back on the prowl in Colorado.

According to the article, the lynx was wiped out in this area of its range in the 1970s. A decade later, about 200 lynx were reintroduced. It looks like the reintroduction is working!

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