The first report came from Shrewsbury, in mid-August. A skinny, young male Canada lynx, far south from its usual habitat, was walking along a dirt road.
In the weeks since, the cat has slowly traveled north. It’s been spotted in Mendon, North Chittenden, Salisbury and Lincoln, eating mice and traipsing along roads.
Lynx rely on a diet of snowshoe hare, which exist in low numbers in Vermont.
“We're just barely at the brink of being able to support a lynx population,” said Brehan Furfey, a state wildlife biologist.
Of anywhere in the state, the Northeast Kingdom, with its early successional forests and greater snowfall, has the best habitat for hare, and lynx.
“So moving in the right direction,” Furfey said.
Video from L. Shelvey of Rutland County / Vermont Fish and Wildlife
Lynx will travel hundreds of miles from their territories after the snowshoe hare population dips — a cycle that happens every 10 to 12 years.
“We’re coming up on about the 10-year mark for the last lynx sightings in Vermont,” Furfey said. “It could be that the next couple of years we start to see more juveniles dispersing from other areas.”
More from Vermont Public: Rare Canada lynx spotted in Vermont for the first time since 2018
But most of the state is not the right habitat for lynx. Besides a lack of prey, there are too many bobcats — a main competitor. Even though lynx are larger, bobcats weigh more.
“Bobcats would probably beat up a lynx,” Furfey said.
The fact this animal has been able to travel north shouldn’t be taken for granted, she added. “It demonstrates just the excellent habitat corridors that we have here that's resulted from long-term conservation efforts.”
She hopes its wayward journey continues to bring it north, towards areas better suited for lynx.
“This cat’s kind of wandering," she said. "It’s a little confused.”
Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message.
