The Lynx went EXTINCT - here’s how it could return
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- Опубліковано 10 чер 2024
- Lynx have long been absent from Scottish landscapes, but with the rise of rewilding, momentum is growing for their return. But is there enough space, enough habitat and prey? What would it mean for Scotlands ecology and for its people? In this video we explore these ideas, interviewing key stakeholders to find how the Lynx can return to Scotland.
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⏱️TIMESTAMPS⏱️
0:00 Intro
0:55 History in Scotland
1:59 Habitat Suitability
2:47 Impact to Deer
04:03 Ecological Impacts
05:44 Lynx & People
10:11 Benefits
🌲 If you would like to support our rewilding projects by becoming a member you can learn all about them here: www.mossy.earth Every single member is essential and it is ultimately what makes our work possible. - Cheers, Rob
Is there a reason as to why there's little talk about reintroduction of the Iberian Lynx?
The lynx would also go after baby dear dropping the population.
pretty sure the main problem is the sheep. Eating every damn thing that grows.
@Rewild The World Come on hon. The planet is one, any action to remedy any one of the infinite number of harms we have done is equally important. These people are pioneers. I contribute to them, look at the awareness to situations they bring, and most important, the remedies they implement. How about if the youth of today, inheriting a raped Eden, take the focus of their life away from their genitals, look around, and understand what we have done, and place their energies in this kind of endeavor? These are the only people I am aware of that are actually doing and publishing their activities, I can only hope that others take up similar efforts. You want the US to generate groups like these in our land? Contribute to those that set the example.
Thank you for being a good ecologist! Most ecologists are useless people with ideas of:
"Let's kill poor people to save that snail so important to the ecosystem that she does exactly what a thousand others species already does!"
We have Lynx in the back forest here in Germany and never heard of them being a problem there. It seems logical for them to have a positive impact in Scotland, there need to be predators for a balanced nature ☯️
Yes, theres more and more evidence that the Lynx can thrive and live peacefully within even quite urban and densely populated areas. Cheers, Rob
Aaahhh im Swarzwald ! Super. Hier in die Niederlanden sind Wolfe ! Alles komt gut ( gruss aus Maastricht)
Ich hoffe ich werde mal einen sehn
In Germany saxony there were also visited a lynx last year. Amazing if u ask me.
@@MossyEarth that's really interesting, I'd love to see a video on lynx living in more populated areas, I've always assumed it wouldn't work at all
In Finland we have an estimated 2065-2170 over 1 year old Lynx. They live all over the country you can run into one anywhere in Finland. But running into one is almost a once in a lifetime kinda legendary/mythical thing. They really don’t want anything to do with humans and very rarely let a human see them.
Same in Sweden. Not sure what that exact number is but big enough that the county board set the hunting quota for this year higher than 200 lynx, which is noteworthy. Sadly we cannot instead move those 200+ lynx to Scotland.
@@k.j.hulander2204 hunting quota is around 300 here to keep the population approx the same size. You are right though could’ve just shipped them over to Scotland.
Wolves are rather new here in the netherlands, we know they are there, but they are very good at hiding. Lets see if things are going to change if their numbers go up, but i think people are getting used to it as long as they do not eat our children.
I know you'll likely be sceptical but I actually saw a lynx on the moor near Leeds in Northern England back in about 2020, it crossed the road about 10 metres in-front of my car as I was just setting off, looked right at me, unmistakable with the tufts on its ears, dappled coat and the size of it, size of a fox perhaps but too big for a house cat, that was also miles away from any houses.
Knowing that and reading your comments it does leave me wondering how we can be so sure they are not here. In the North of England and Scotland there are very large areas of moorland covered in heather or grasses that a cat like this would be almost invisible in as it's not tall enough to stand above them - unless it jumped out right in front of you, as happened with me, I very much doubt it would be noticed. ...And how many people here would recognise it or credit what they saw...? Being as we don't think they are here.
Of course, perhaps I just saw one that had escaped a fur farm, zoo or something but, I struggle to see how we could really prove that there aren't any out there without having camera traps covering every place where there are rabbits (everywhere) across the moors, mountains, heath and woodlands of Great Britain.
@@JesseP.Watson with modern gene technology you can check for any animals in an area just through sampling. I have no idea if that's been done for lynxes in Britain, but I'd say it probably was a very fat cat or a zoo escapee (probably not a lynx but something else, possibly a genetta)
Anyway, lynxes are so inconspicuous that people routinely report them here in central Italy even if they probably went extinct around 500 years ago, and we get only some trespasser from Croatia in the northeast (sadly they're genetically far from the lynxes we used to have in Italy, they were far more akin to the endangered iberic lynx)
I'm Scottish and from your channel I have learned so much so far, I am very grateful for people like yourself helping the environment out and restoring nature to Scotland!
Nice one Jason, pleased you're enjoying the videos :), Rob
Im from morayshire ✌️
@@MossyEarth hey don’t know if I’m going crazy but I have seen them in Scotland a few times nd so have a few people I know , plus found many paw prints around where my girlfriend lives but never lucky enough to see them , but this is in Stirlingshire
Seen them further north
There is a theory that they died out in Scotland in the 16th century. If I remember correctly Conrad Gessner received a letter from Bonarus of Balice, in which it says "the finest Lynx skins come from Sweden and Scotland". I personally would love to see them back, my sister lives near Trondheim and they get them up there and the farmers don't seem to object
Cool bit of history there, thanks for sharing, Rob :)
Sadly here farmers are way to concerned with wealth over my countries health. English rule of Scotland has destroyed our ecosystem
I seen a lynx in scotland about 10 years ago. I couldn't believe it but it was definitely a lynx.
@@johnwilliams5838 i believe you john i seen a massive black leopard in scotland last year couldnt believe my eyes
@@bmc6822Lynx hunt mostly rabbits, and other rodents they do occasionally catch grouse and other ground birds...so they do occasionally take ducks, geese and chickens
I'd love to see these animals back, majestic creature and important ecosystem component, but one of the very definitions of community involvement needed
Yes, they offer a lot of benefits but they wont make it back without careful planning with Scotlands people. Cheers, Rob
Not just Scotland rewinding needs to happen in England and wales as well.
The Welsh poem actually dates from about the 6-7th century but was written down in the middle ages. The poem, Pais Dinogad, is part of a nursery rhyme a mother sang to her child about the child's father going out hunting in what is today northern England (Yorkshire/Cumbria) at what was, at the time, Welsh speaking territory and is called in Welsh, Yr Hen Ogledd (The Old North). This was Welsh-speaking (or rather Brythonic speaking, ancient Welsh, as Latin is to Italian) until the Welsh were pushed west (or succumbed) to the English (Anglo-Saxons) into Wales, Cumbria for a short while (hence the word Cumbria is cognate with the Welsh word for Wales, Cymru, which means 'com-patriots') and Cornwall. But great to see ancient Welsh poetry used to verify the nature of Britain. Diolch!
This is interesting, thanks for adding this :)
Yes thanks for adding this. Cheers, Rob
That's really interesting, where could I read more about it
@@Solstice261 decent article on Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinogad%27s_Smock As an aside, many rivers in England have Brythonic/Welsh names for this reason and there are many place names in souther Scotland which are Welsh - Perth (bush/hedge in Welsh), Partick (perthog - bushy in Welsh), Penicuick (Pen y Cog = head (hill) of the cuckoo in Welsh, Penrith in Cumbria is Pen Rhudd (Red Head i.e. Red Hill) etc.
Neither Perth nor partick are in southern Scotland.
A really informative and balanced video. I would love to see lynx back in my lifetime.
With the right approach I'm sure that we will Matt! Cheers, Rob
they live in other places
I'd be interested to see public opinion polls in Scotland over time to see if interest in the reintroduction of lynx (and other species) has increased
I think generally peoples interest in a lynx reintroduction has increased over time. Theres a good social study you can read up on this. Cheers, Rob
Yep Scottish and want them back.
We almost lost the Iberian lynx in Portugal but Portuguese and Spanish people working together managed to save them ❤️
In the region where I live (Harz Nationalpark Germany) they reintroduced lynx into the the nature and it worked pretty well. The ecosystem got more diverse, cause also there is no human intervention in the park. Also they pay you money if a lynx kills your animals.
The prospect of a Lynx reintroduction to Scotland is very exciting, but one that needs a balance appraoch. Great work from everyone invovled to create this video, even myself ;) looking forward to a solid year of creating rewilding videos!
Will we see more from Leave Curious as well? I love getting my double-dose of rewilding content but of course I recognize that Mossy Earth is a big commitment :)
@@IbexWatcher yeah dude for sure! Gotta hustle a bit, but I’m working on it🙏
@@LeaveCurious Awesome, looking forward to it 😍
It would be my absolute dream to spot one of these in the wild.
Hope they make a return in many places and stay around for long. The benefits of a more healthy and diverse ecosystem is much bigger as a whole than the potential loss of sheep could ever be
Yep I've love to see one too! Although we'd might be looking for a long while. Cheers, Rob
As a whole, yes, but when someone's livelihood could be put at risk, it's understandable that they'd be concerned. I think it's reasonable for them to want some protections in place
It's not just about the sheep, that's the issue people have a blinkered view. I would love to see them reintroduced but it is not just the sheep which has to be taken into consideration.
Watched this video an hour ago, then took my dog into the woods for a long walk. Suddenly there is an actual lynx (I saw the ears and tail clearly) five metres away. They are extremely rare where I live as well. I've never seen one before.
No way! Thats awesome :) Cheers, Rob
Where are u from?
@@brandonletzco1433 i got one... this is what 4D spacetime actually is.
be carefull calling simple tricks simulation, cus its not a computer at the end of the tunnel.
Love the synchronicity
Where was this?
Here in Switzerland the Lynx is a touchy subject because of the attacks on herds, especially sheep. They’re considered a pest, even though we also have a massive deer overpopulation issue in some areas where lynx and wolf populations are low (usually farming areas). The question of how to help farmers live side by side with these predators (ex: compensate losses, subsidise fencing equipement or something) is central. Usually the competition between farmers and lynx is the reason why they went extinct in the first place.
And in the canton of Valais in Switzerland, the people there will shoot any wild animal. Even poaching going on. The part that should be kicked out of Switzerland!!!
I'm Scottish and live in aargue we have lynx here and I have farmer Freinds who don't have a problem it's also great news that wolves have been spotted in canton Zurich and aargue
the problem is that the compensation losses are everywhere too low and so farmers are on their own.
I'm in Southern California where we have significant issues with coyotes and cougars. My friend had a small hobby farm with sheep & goats and got a 9 month old Kuvasz puppy to guard the flock. The puppy was killed the second night it was left out with the sheep by a cougar that didn't want it interfering with it's dinner. She next tried Guard Donkeys which have worked a little better since they make so much noise it scares off the cougar, and might be an option against smaller Lynx.
Farmers are usually demonised and dismissed from a manecheistic point of view - disney like evil vs good. Farmers also are responsible for the welfare of the cattle, so compensation is a very stupid concept. There shouldn't be animal suffering just so we can have big wild cats.
Restoring the "landscape of fear" to keep deer from overgrazing along stream beds could potentially help the Scottish salmon populations, too.
People always like to use places such as the US, Canada or mainland Europe when talking about people living alongside animals. I'm going to give my own point of view, as someone who's from a part of the world that's very often neglected in any sort discussion: South America.
In my country of Brazil, we also have predators, and quite a lot of them. Jaguars, pumas, maned wolves, jaguarundi, bush dogs, amazonian dogs, giant otters, tayras, ocelots, margays, tons of venomous snakes, caiman, piranha, pirarucu, river dolphins, harpy eagles, caracaras, falcons, etc. Despite the idea that Brazil is a jungle where nobody lives except indigenous tribes, we are a very urbanised nation. The opportunities for human-wildlife interaction is huge, and is very common.
The vast majority of Brazilians have a profound respect for our wildlife and biodiversity, which means the fear of wildlife is at a minimum. It is a big source of pride that we are the most biodiverse nation on earth.
Anyway, even in big cities such as Sao Paulo, Recife, Salvador, Brasilia and Manaus you can easily stumble across larger animals. It's not nearly as bad as everyone thinks it is. Most of the time, if you leave them alone then they'll leave you alone. Even in rural areas where farmers regularly have conflicts with big cats, most farmers are learning to better manage their livestock in order to prevent losses.
We looked at Europe since the topic of the video was the Eurasian Lynx, but its true. Many regions, South America included, are able to live with bio-diversity for the most part, peacefully. Cheers, Rob
I do agree that south-america is usually overlooked as an example of humans living with wildlife, however it's mainly because of the people more than because of the government which usually seem to struggle protecting wildlife, at least thats how it seems from the other side of the world, mainly when we see the deforestation of the Amazon permitted by the earlier Brazilian government and admittedly most of the destruction is done by european and American corporations. What is Brazil doing to protect wildlife? it would be interesting to learn from someone who knows first-hand
And the Us and central Europe are horrible examples, we don't co-exist with wildlife, we just make places for humans and places for wildlife and kill any wildlife that moves from said place( look at wolves in Montana or norway or Spain which despite a large population we have them restricted the north-northwest increasing the pressure in farming communities over there when it would be better to have a higher less-dense population.
We essentially build very natural looking zoos
there is, africa, australia, new zealand, etc. the topic is about lynx
Excited about the prospect of the return of this charismatic species but I think the whole process needs to be very well planed and very inclusive of those who are concerned about the consequences.
Exactly Duarte, its not something to be rushed. Cheers, Rob
Yes indeed...please see the comment I've just left.
The big issue with rewilding here in Germany still seem to be the small areas of forests not being conntected to each other. Too many streets, too less corridors. That’s why most of the lynx are kind of stuck in the „Harz“ - bigger forest in the center of Germany.
Never been to Scotland - but are there 1. enough forests and 2. enough interconnected ones so that this whole thing makes sense and not ends up like in Germany where most of the lynx are killed by cars?
Yes studies have been done to identify the suitability of Scotlands habitat (including barriers to dispersal) they confirm that the landscape could support a minimum viable population. Cheers, Rob
There's not that much forested area, primarily because the overgrazing from deer means any new trees are destroyed before they can grow to maturity. There are though vast areas of very low human population density, with very little road traffic because of that, so in these sparsely populated areas where the lynx would initially be I imagine road accidents would not be a significant factor. A lynx introduction would more help to restore the forests missing from Scotland from the sparse forests they do have left, by creating an ecology of fear & reducing the damage done by deer.
I'm not a biologist or professionally involved in any of this, just very interested in it, these are just retellings of what I've heard from those more knowledgeable than I :)
There are only patches of small woodlands in Scotland, almost nothing I could call a Forest.
But the more significant problem is: (simplified) 90% of the land belongs to 10 families/organizations (TEN entities, not 10% of the population.)
Of course, governments/agencies sit in their pockets, and they have no interest in rewilding, but rather hunting.
@@hotbit7327 yeah, that is very much the only reason why Scotland has an enormous area of sparsely populated, hard to farm highland and most of it is used to shoot at invasive species which are routinely introduced, the government allows the near constant introduction of non-native birds but is worried about the effects of reintroducing any animal
The only benefit for lynx in Scotland compared to Germany is that the highlands are very empty. In any other way Germany is more wildlife friendly although it could still improve
I put all my pocket money into a project trying to reintroduce lynx when I was 9 (now nearing 18). Since then I have heard nothing until recently when there was a newsletter sent out thanking everyone for their contributions and that further talks have finally started. Glad to see someone who may actually get the job done is looking at the same thing!
We NEED them back
It would be very interesting to see their impacts to Scotland! Cheers, Rob
@@MossyEarth who cares about the impacts.
It'll just be nice.
Why , why would you need this predator?
@@MrBoliao98 to keep deer population in check. To keep the ecosystem healthy, and allowing trees to grow, and other animals to thrive. The lynx along with wolves were an iconic predator that roamed the lands of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales, and they were hunted to extinction by kings. It's our moral obligation to return these predators to their natural habitat
@@jancyvargheese5351 wouldn't it be better if humans take the role of predator and we get the deers :) more venison.
The people at Mossy Earth are living one of the most fulfilling lives one can have! I love what they are doing
I had a lynx sitting on my fence this year. I live in northern BC, Canada, they are fairly rare to see but they're definitely around. They are beautiful and the only threat they really pose to my livestock is the chickens. Pretty easy to fence them out of the chicken coop and you have to do that anyways for coyotes and raccoons. They could take a calf but they're never far from mom and it'd be one brave/stupid/desperate lynx to try that. There is plenty of better prey for them than livestock.
Hi Rob. So glad you got a job with Mossy Earth. I've been following you since your second or third video on leave curious. You're doing wonders at bringing attention to different ecological issues.
Hey Craig! Yeah its always good seeing you in the comments, very much appreciate your support! Rob
In the Iberian peninsula lynx was almost disappeared 30 years ago, but breeding them in captivity has saved them, and today it's recovering it's ancestral territories.
Iberian lynx is a different subspecies that predates almost only on rabbits. The boreal lynx in Iberia only inhabited Pirynnees and northern areas of Atlantic climate.
Are used to live in central Portugal, where lynx nks were part of the local diversity, and in seven years, I’ve never heard of a case where a sheep or goat was taken. In fact, they were so reclusive I only saw one in seven years..
Yep this seems to the case for lots of places living with Lynx... Cheers, Rob
We have them here in BC and the live just outside of town. Bears and Lynx are regular visitors in my family's backyard. You just need to understand they are wild and have a place.
Your backyard? ... Do these animals not want to have a little peak inside in an attempt to access such a food abundance
Here I Sweden we have Lynx but honestly they stay so far away from humans that you barely know they exist here.
If you ever see one in the wild that is like seeing a unicorn or something, maybe not that extreme. But seeing one is extremely rare because they tend to stay so far away from human settlement, like even one lone cabin in the middle of nowhere level of settlement.
and if you go out deep into the forest and their territory, they are shy so they tend to run away way before you have any chance at seeing them.
Overall very rare to hear farmers or really anyone have any issues with Lynx. They just tend to stay away. Way way way more common to hear problems with fox.
Problems from Wolf tend to be rare, but still more common then people have lynx giving them problems
Yes they are native where I live in California and I've never seen one in my life.
Same in Carpathians...
I think lynx and other predators at least skim urban areas regularly even if they don't enter them. Just yesterday I saw old lynx tracks going through a woodlet between suburbs and a water purification plant in Jyväskylä, Finland, and the same individual (perhaps) had passed close by about two months ago. There's plenty of roe deer around so it makes sense for them to adjust to human proximity. Never seen one though.
You have hunting quota aka you kill 'excess'. That's why they are 'rare'.
It’s not humans that people worry about. It’s sheep. A healthy sheep can generate £10grand in revenue for a farmer. That’s a big loss. And lynx would most likely target them than deer
If farmers loose livestock to Lynx in my country, they just report it to the government agency dealing with this and collect compensation. It is few cases every year and virtually a nonissue. It is because our farmers graze them with help of dogs, lynx avoid large dogs around sheep because it is both dangerous and they are stalking predator and stalking is something you simply cannot do around dogs.
Loved this video and would be keen to see a species like the Lynx returning to the UK! Keep up the great work
Insightful to hear from those closely tied to this subject. It's clear that there's still some ground to be covered before a reintroduction is on the cards but great that there is a conservation around it involving a mix of stakeholders.
Great video Rob! You explained this issue really well :) I would like to see more about where a lynx reintroduction is at right now, I know the Lynx UK Trust’s original proposal got rejected and that Therese Coffey recently said she’s against lynx and wolf reintroductions completely which doesn’t bode well… but aside from that, there doesn’t seem to be much information out there on recent updates for lynx reintroductions!
I take comfort from the likely result of the next general election!!
Thanks Alana appreciate it. Yeah as for updates, I know as much as you! Cheers, Rob
@@carlpeberdy9086 fingers crossed
This is what I was going to comment about, I can't helping thinking she probably hasn't spent much time reading the research etc and the decision was as much to do with her getting farmers (traditionally Conservative voters) on her side than genuine concerns about the proposals
@@camillastacey4674 Surely you can't possibly be suggesting that our politicians - elected to serve the country - are simply using their position to further their political career, and neither understand nor care about good governance and their ultimate responsibility to their country and its population - I'm shocked I tell you, shocked!!
I'm Danish myself, but I would personally love to see Lynx here. Wolves are controversial here, especially after some wandered into Jylland on their own, which resulted in people going out of their way to kill them. One even shot one out of the window of his car! But I feel like at least with the lynx, people wouldn't see it as much of a threat compared to wolves, especially due to their smaller size and more shy nature. I'd like to think the ecosystem would benefit in much the same way as Scotland, with less accidents with deers while also potentially having some trickle down effect on foxes and hares. Granted I'm in no way as educated on this as people that do it for a living, but I feel like the lynx would be a good first step in the right direction for Denmark, especially since we're also experimenting with bisions in enclosures on Bornholm. We aren't a big country by any means, but I'd like to think we could have a decent impact on rewilding the planet as a whole, if we just properly looked into doing it, and doing it properly based on science rather than based on feelings of fear and hate as was the case of the wolf.
It’s so disheartening to see this when the UK’s environment minister completely oppose the lynx reintroduction 😢
Give it time and stay positive, theres still many great rewilding projects unfolding :) Cheers, Rob
Don't worry she will be sacked eventually, not even farmers are fond of her, she managed to anger both sides by taking a food production is more important than the environment approach whilst simultaneously forgetting people make that food
Its all down to politics and votes.
Many say that Scotlands treeless landscape is very beautiful. I dont agree, I think it would be much more beautiful with trees, it would look like Norway or Pacific Canada.
Scotlands landscape is not treeless.
Much of it is planted with blocks of non native Sitka spruce witch is a scar on the landscape and does little for wildlife.
That's actually insane how crazy the deer population density has gotten so out of control. That really is a sign that the ecosystem is not functioning properly. (Please come to Oregon & help rewild Beaver's here around my hometown of Corvallis, Oregon) I really hope you succeed in all your rewilding projects because whether some people realize it or not, the more our surroundings flourish, the more we all flourish. (Really if it's farmers time & time again that are too nervous to agree. Then they should reimburse a farmer for any lost livestock. We need to rewild everywhere so if it takes a creative way to meet in the middle then we gotta do that.)
Great video, any potential impacts on other key species such as capercaillie? I think that on balance it has to be a positive step. Key is to work with farmers and keepers as key stakeholders.
Thank-you for this channel! 💙💚💙❕️
Fantastic video, well done Rob and Mossy Earth team! Would love to see the lynx reintroduced to Scotland in the near future, I'm sure it will be a success if we're able to plan it accordingly and involve all parties! 💪
Fight for Nature ! 💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽🌟🌟🌟
Yesss 💪
We have Bobcat and Lynx here in British Columbia. You almost never see them. I've seen a handful in my whole life in the bush. They're not a danger to people in any way. They can be a problem for small loose pets. Farmers should be allowed to remove problem predators to their livestock or compensated for them. Beautiful creatures. I hope Scottish Lynx can make a comeback. Good luck
Great video. I live in Montana USA and our lynx are nearly entirely dependent on snowshoe hares. Never prey on livestock. Interesting to learn about lynx in other parts of the world.
Fantastic video! Didn't realise how badly I wanted wild Lynx's back in the UK until now but I hope you guys can help make it happen.
This was so interesting and informative! I love your videos and the whole project :)
Thank you, really appreciate that :), Rob
It would be amazing to be walking or mountain biking and then seeing a lynx in the uk. Also it's really cool how you reply and acknowledge peoples comments, I don't think that there are many youtubers that actually care about what they are doing as much as you do :)
I think that there should be a mature conversation about rewilding, I think humans can live peacefully with all wild animals but people are worried about the loss of property such as livestock and land but I think that if it was implemented with the government actually listening to people it would be more popular.
Some lynxes have moved into the northern mountains of Hungary in recent years. Wolves also came back (after being extinct here for quite long). Both are under strict protection.
Thanks for making this, Mossy Earth! Great video!
To create a balanced rewilding scheme one has to include some predators and the lynx in certain areas would seem ideal
It does seem that way, I'm sure if careful planning it can work. Cheers, Rob
Nice video! Hope they will be introduced to more places.
Especially in the beginning of the video, there was a big difference in volume between the narrating voice-over and you speaking in the forest (the latter being much louder)
Thank you Carlo, and yes thanks we're aware of this, had some issue with the mic. We'll get it sorted for next time. Cheers, Rob
here in Connecticut, we don't have lynx, but we do have bobcats. we've never had issues with them and they're beautiful to see in the wild, on occasion!
Bobcats are a lynx species!
So cool that Leave Curious is now working with Mossy Earth.
A well researched and informative video. Interesting and enjoyable to watch. Well done. !
Thanks Ian, appreciate the kind words. Cheers, Rob
We have them here in Washington State and it's a hell of an animal to deal with. I could get having them in the wild but this is a cat that's as tall as your hip, the size of a dog, and it gives no shifts if you are a human. It looks at you as competition for a fight for food. I have had them in my yard when my kids are playing and come to attack my livestock on a near daily basis when they come up the mountain in spring and summer. They are cool but only when they are in the wild not in your neighborhood or on your farm, same with bears. Majestic at a distance, a far distance.
We have a sizeable population here in Croatia, much bigger than the official numbers are. I base this of experiences my forestry friends have. They’re nothing but beneficial here. Sure, they take a few sheep here and there but they mainly feed on roe deer, wild birds and rabbits.
one of my favorite channels on all of UA-cam
Lynx are one of my favourite animals and have been since I was around five years old. It was firmly cemented as one of my two nr 1 animal in Sweden (the second nr 1 animal is the wolverine) when I as an eight year old was amazingly lucky to meet one. It was winter with quite a bit of snow and I was walking home from a friend's house. I grew up in a really small town surrounded by forest and by that, I mean that where people's backyards end the forest begins or it is house-front yard-road-forest. I was walking home at six-seven at night and it was really dark because Sweden and winter and I had the forest edge to my right. All of a sudden what I first thought was a big cat walked out from the forest, froze in its tracks and locked eyes with me. I quickly realised that what I was looking at was a lynx, I was so happy, adrenaline pumped through me, my heart raced because I was so excited and we just stood there looking at each other. It felt like we stood there for many minutes but was more like ten seconds and that is so long. I feel so lucky for those seconds though. It took a while for me to start walking again after the lynx turned back to the forest but I walked home slowly while replaying everything in my mind. I yelled as I opened the front door "I just saw a lynx!". My dad didn't believe me but also knew I was too big a nature nerd to be wrong about a lynx so mum fetched a nature book and the three of us went back to look at the tracks. It was really fun and they've never doubted my wildlife spotting since which was a nice added bonus to the experience. Would love to see the lynx be reintroduced to the places where it ought to be flourishing.
YES❕️💙
The Lynx should return home to the Scottish Forrests! 💙
Thank-you for this channel! 💙🤍💙
Sounds like a great idea! Thanks for your work.
I work for an environmental and ecological consultancy that has a social value and stakeholder engagement team, doing the kind of engagement that would help facilitate a project like this would be a dream!
I love this channel so much. My clients from work will have to wait. I’m watching mossy earth
Haha we appreciate the dedication Cameron! Cheers, Rob
I love how you back up your arguments and stories with peer reviewed scientific literature. Keep up the good work!
Just out of curiosity...how would such an introduction impact the recovery of the scottish wildcat?
From what i've read Scottish wildcats and lynxes are both very shy and since they hunt different prey, it's highly likely they would never interact but given the delicate position of both species any reintroduction should be studied very profoundly to choose the area where there were the least chances of them fighting over territory
They do not share the same prey. Wildcats go for much smaller rodents/rabbits, where as lynx go for smaller deer. So no competition in that regard. As for direct predation, this is unlikely. All this information can be found in David Hetheringtons book, the Lynx and Us. Cheers, Rob
The research I've seen suggests that the wildcat would actually benefit from lynx introduction, as lynx prey on foxes which are a major predator and competitor of wildcats. The wildcat and lynx are much less likely to interact directly.
@@MossyEarth Would the Lynx not prey on the wildcat? They prey on foxes where they share the same habitat as far as I understand
@@MossyEarth As a lynx researcher, I may disagree with this. We've seen in Finland that lynx kill and predate on smaller carnivores such as foxes, raccoon dogs and pine martens (which also is endangered in Scotland, am I right?) and domestic cats quite a lot when they come across one. They're very opportunistic! In half of Finland, rabbits are their main prey (no roe deer), but even in areas with roe deer they still prey a lot on rabbits as well. It's just not as easy to see with research techniques that concentrate checking kill sites that can be seen as an accumulation of a stack of GPS points. Especially young lynx seem to eat a lot of rodents on their dispersal too, as they're still learning to hunt and don't know the area. I don't think they would compete for prey with the wild cat, but the lynx might not know that, they kill smaller predators because they are competitors but here they usually also eat them. And we have plentiful of prey so that is not the issue. It is another issue whether they come across wild cats or not, so if both are rather rare, the chances are better for the cat of course. My concerns are with the wild cat, the pine martens and the capercailies in Scotland, all in low numbers and the lynx preys on all of them. Maybe this can be avoided by using lynx from areas where they mostly prey on deer. I don't know if other countries let wild individuals to be caught and moved for these purposes. Finland does not allow it, and the captive lynx haven't been taught what and how to hunt by their mothers, but not sure this is an issue. While this Scottish project seems at least rather well researched, the history of (re)introductions of lynx isn't all that glorious and sometimes I do wonder whether it actually is ethical from the lynx point of view to do that. I'd hate to see the population kept alive with just adding more reintroduced individuals (as done in certain places), if the population doesn't start increasing by or maintaining itself. I think there should be a plan for when to stop trying as well, if things don't turn out the way you hoped. Good luck!
Amazing work
lovely documentary... thank you for sharing!!
Pleased you enjoyed it. Cheers, Rob
Super cool video!
What a great insight and brilliant video! After many years of debate on rewilding lynx in Scotland, I have always thought it would be a good idea. But then again it's easy for me to say that being a poorly educated man tucked away in a suburban town in Essex!
We need people like you in the Netherlands. We don't have enough skilled people.
Great video and well presented. And yes there needs to be a lynx introduction into Scotland.
Great video Rob! I found it amusing in the intro when you stated you’d be interviewing the people it would affect and you cut to a shot of a sheep. Clever! Apparently the sheep didn’t respond to requests for comment 😉😂
Excellent video this is unique chance to try and introduce a positive change
I saw a Lynx on Ilkley moor near Leeds back in about 2000. I'd been flying my kite, was just pulling away from the lay-by I'd been parked in on the moortop and it passed across the road about 10 yards in front of me, stopped and looked my way then carried on. It was unmistakeable, size of a fox, tufts on its ears, that 'overly whiskered', striped face, dappled coat, long feline tail. I looked it up when I got home and it matched the picture perfectly. I'm a farm lad with 20/20 eyesight who's familiar with all common animals and so there was no confusing it for a tom cat [we actually had a family of feral cats in some woods on my old man's farm so I was used to identifying them in a hedge-back], they're so distinctive and striking that it instantly shocked me when it looked my way.
Aye, so... have to say, are they really extinct, or are they just very hard to spot - had that one not crossed the road right in front of me, no way I would have spotted it in the heather, or rather, it would have been able to hide itself very easily and walk unseen anywhere where the heather was over 40 or 50cm tall, which it is over large tracts of moorland. ...And in woodland, forget it. So, aye, I am of the mind that a small wild cat is one animal that could and would go undetected in all but exceptional circumstances.
@@gregoryford2532 Yes, have looked at Scottish wild cats, no comparison, it had the long tufted ears, bearded cheek thing going on, colouring was as per lynx - I can't remember it in detail today, just that tufty face looking at me as it was 20 years ago but I looked up a lynx when I returned home after seeing it and it was a clear match. [Scottish wild cats look pretty much like a dark domestic tabby, I'd not have differentiated one from a house cat had I saw one then as I didn't know they existed then... probably struggle to identify one of those today - lynx however stand out like a sore thumb.]
They are already here. Saw two in Wales on seperate occasions during the nineties and another feeding on a deer carcass in the West Midlands about five years ago.
Nice work
wow very informative content subbed 👍
Hope they could possibly return to the rural countryside of Wales too.
Be interesting to see some studies into the suitability of Welsh landscapes and other places in the UK too. Cheers, Rob
@@MossyEarth in the poem it said they took refuge upon a hill. They really wouldn't have much a problem in navigating up to one here
We are reintroducind the Lynx here is North-East Italy more precisely in the forest of Tarvisio. They just impruve the population with 5 more Lynx just 1week ago
They’re quite cute looking!
Infographics on diversity increases were on point in this video. So well done, explained the dilemma well.
🥺 Beautiful animals
They are majestic, I love the short stubby tails. Cheers, Rob
@@MossyEarth Agreed 😼 Would love to see them back!
The current Defra minister has said that to support our farmers no species will be introduced. It will prey on grouse and other game birds. No place for it in Scotland.
Amazing video! I live in the fens ans there's been sightings for years possibly from the pet dump in the 70s. Would be amazing for them to have an actual effort to introduce them
I've seen 8 in my 44 years of life. Seen 3 in Leighton buzzard Bedfordshire uk. Then another in Surrey sat at a road side waiting to cross . We was driving through a woodland area. Another was in Epping forest.See another in Woburn and the last 2, one in swallow falls Wales and Nottingham forest.
You can add an Alpaca, donkey or llama to the heard to protect it, they will drop the lose rate. They could easily handle a lynx. to quote wiki on the guard llamas:
"Most research on the effectiveness of guard llamas has been done with sheep. A 1990 study reported that 80% of sheep producers with guard llamas rated them as effective or very effective. The study found average rates of loss to predators fell from 21% to 7% after the introduction of a guard llama. In other studies, over half of guard llamas completely eliminated losses due to predators."
Lynx are such fascinating animals! They're present in my area but regrettably I've jet got to see them. I problem that is not mentioned in the video is about the lynx themselves. Many countries trying to reestablish their lynx populations struggle with inbreeding, how would the UK tackle that problem?
Good idea!
Never clicked on a video so fast! Pleeeeease make it happen 😊✌️
What an adorable creature 😍😍
A huge yes from me. I know farmers are concerned about it, but there are methods that can protect livestock already used by European farmers. The tourism benefits may well outweigh the cost to farms as well.
Incredible
Return the Lynx! 🌝❕️
I know this isn't the Lynx YT channel but it'd be great to see a video on the Iberian lynx. I saw a comment on the lynx video from several months ago stating that you guys were looking at doing such a video.
For anyone reading, I highly reccommend the French documentary Lynx (2021) about the Jura mountains on the French-Swiss border. There's also a documentary about the Iberian lynx called Dehesa, which to be fair is mostly about the region it inhabits.
Brilliant work sir good research and fair investigation,,, let's release some frigging lynxs
I grew up on a Welsh hill farm (sheep and beef cattle) and am in favour of the return of the lynx. As a Japan resident, I am also acutely aware of the 'sika' deer which are an invasive species and are native to Japan. Indeed, 'sika' is the archaic romanisation of the Japanese word 'shika' (鹿) which simply means deer. They have no business being in the UK and I think any reintroduction of a predator should come after the elimination of an invasive species in order to stabilise the food chain. There is also a problem here in Japan with the 'shika' (deer) having grown to an non-sustainable population, primarily due to the extinction of the Japanese wolf in the first half of the 20th Century. There is also an invasive species called the 'kyon' (Reeves's muntjac or barking deer) which was introduced from China and I believe is also in the UK. We also have the 'kamo shika' (Japanese serrow) which despite having the name 'shika' (deer) is an antelope. This is native to Japan. The serrows were hunted almost to extinction and in order to protect them, they were made a natural monument and even touching one is illegal. This has resulted in not only saving them, but in their populations also increasing to being prolific. So, as in Scotland, with so many herbivores, there is a problem and they are encroaching into arable land as a consequence. Predators are clearly necessary, but eliminating invasive species first is in my view, a proper and necessary step in the process of the reintroduction of a predator. Japan has bears. However, despite being omnivores, their diets are primarily plant based. Especially the black bears on the islands of Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu. The island of Hokkaido has the larger brown bear (known as Grizzly bears in the USA and Kodiak bears in Alaska) and they are far more dangerous and are far more omnivorous than black bears. The island of Hokkaido is quite different to the rest of Japan and the flora and fauna found there is also different in many ways. The issues I noted above pertaining to deer excludes Hokkaido and primarily focuses on the largest island of Honshu.
The problem is that eliminating completely invasive species which have already dug themselves in is nigh impossible, predators will help by permanently reducing population while you finish what's left and even then its highly likely they'll stay unless you do something such as burning all their habitat which is counterproductive
Sika deer are deer that constitute genus Ocellelaphus, they are native only to Eastern Asia, there are four recognized species of sika deer, the Southeast Asian Sika Deer (Ocellelaphus pseudaxis), the Chinese Sika Deer (Ocellelaphus mandarinus), the Formosan Sika Deer (Ocellelaphus taiouanus), and the Japanese Sika Deer (Ocellelaphus nippon).
We do have one in Wiltshire, as I saw it alongside the M4.
Interesting, but… at 3:52 it’s MAGIC BULLET, not ‘silver bullet’. A silver bullet is what’s used to kill a werewolf. The term is ‘magic bullet’. It’s a concept based on “Dr. Ehrlich’s Magic Bullet” (see film of same name). This was a ‘miracle’ cure for syphilis and is applied to similar solutions to things since. People ALWAYS get this wrong.
As an expert in this subject matter, i must say that LYNX africa is personally my favourite one.
back in the 1980'a New York state started to release lynx in the Catskill's. Over the last 30 years after the program ended, I have seen a few in Northeast PA, but many more tracks. If I had my choice, lynx would be good. Here in Northeastern Pennsylvania, we had an increase in bears over the last 30 years, coyote's show up back in the 80's, Cornell reassessed a pack of "infertile" wolves and still have mountain lions. Also get a donkey to help guard the sheep, they keep even black bears away.
Spotted one up a tree in our garden in Norfolk at 12.30 at night it jumped up a ash tree and into a fur tree in two bounds i put a very bright head light on it and it sat there with big shiny eyes watching me brilliant experience. and heard another late at night crying very loud managed to get a recording of it i assumed it was a older kitten that was looking for it's mother having been left to fend for itself
Here in northern Michigan, USA we reintroduced moose in the 1980s and were told around the year 2000 we might have enough to have a season. Never happened. Wolfs moved in from Wisconsin and being so poorly managed by the government, the moose population has been stagnant. I love wild things and places but give government a chance to screw up, they will. I hope you get your lynx and I hope the government there does a better job than ours has with our wolfs.
Biggest predator in Scotland are red fox.
Too many deer here.
@@gregoryford2532 The wolf is not endangered in Michigan. The moose population, that would have grown to huntable numbers, did not because the wolf was allowed to exceed the numbers our DNR projected before a limited harvest would take place. So, yes, too many wolfs in the U.P. and not enough moose.