Canada lynx look similar to bobcats. Distinguishing features – bobcats have shorter tufts on ears, tip of tail is black on top, white underneath. Bobcats have shorter legs, smaller feet than lynx.
Found in moist, boreal forests with cold, snowy winters, high density of favourite prey – snowshoe hare! Require a mixed habitat of younger forests with thick vegetation for hunting small prey and older forests with a full canopy cover for denning.
Lynx mostly occur in northern states along Canadian, Alaska border or in mountainous regions while bobcats range across entire Lower 48 states. Lynx are forest hunters, play an important ecological role. As a mid-size carnivore, lynx target smaller prey species that reproduce quickly.
Lynx’s most important requirements — snow, space, hares, habitat connectivity. A threatened species due to climate change, human activities. Citizen monitoring programs can help vulnerable meso-carnivores.