National Geographic Kids USA - November 2017

PRISMA BY DUKAS PRESSEAGENTUR GMBH / ALAMY (BIG PICTURE); DANIEL J. COX / GETTY IMAGES (KITTENS); FRANK PALI / GETTY IMAGES (RUNNING); KITCHIN & HURST / AGE FOTOSTOCK (HARE)

Scientists search for clues about

the hard-to-spot Can

A Canada lynx weaves around the trees of a forest in
Suddenly the wild cat comes to a halt, spotting an un
guest on its turf. It’s a scientist who studies this felin
which is about twice the size of a house cat.
John Squires, a research biologist with the U.S. For
Service, is excited by the encounter. “Here, these ani
very elusive, or rare,” Squires says. “Tracks are usuall
only sign that a lynx is around.” It’s so uncommon for
to see them in the wild that the felines have been nic
“ghost cats.” The lynx stares at the scientist before s
slinking away.
In Alaska and Canada, these cats are plentiful. But
Colorado and the rest of the lower 48 U.S. states, they
found in fewer numbers. To help keep them safe,
conservationists have been investigating the cats’
haunts—their woodland habitats—and figuring out
what they need to thrive.

HARE IT GOES
One thing conservationists hope to do is fill
a lynx’s forest home with food. Lynx are
picky eaters that eat mainly one thing:
snowshoe hares. “These mammals, which are
related to rabbits, make up about 90 to 95
percent of the cat’s diet,” says biologist
Mark McCollough, who works in Maine.
Lynx are so dependent on the hares that
when the hare population goes down, the
lynx population goes down as well. And when
it rises, lynx numbers bounce back. For
Canada lynx to survive, snowshoe hare

populations can’t drop too low. That’s why

wildlife officials and scientists are teaming

up with forest workers to make sure the

lynx’s habitat is hopping with hares.

Researchers in Maine found that snow-

shoe hares here prefer forests with dense

undergrowth, which makes for great hiding

spots. “You want a forest floor so thick that

it’s difficult for people to walk through it,”

McCollough says. So forest workers in the

cat’s range cut down old trees to allow for

new ones to grow. That lets more sunlight

hit the floor and creates this ideal habitat.

Conservationists not only want to turn

certain forests in the lower 48 states into

an all-you-can-eat snowshoe hare buffet;

they also hope to make it safer for the lynx

to hunt their prey.

CAT CROSSING

Squires and his team set up a three-by-

four-foot wire cage in the forested moun-

tains of southwest Colorado. They then

place a chunk of snowshoe hare meat inside.

Scientists searchfor clues about

BY JAMIE KIFFEL-ALCHEH

12 NOVEMBER 2017

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