Tasha

Felis lynx – CANADIAN LYNX

Tasha is a Canadian Lynx and was born in 1990. She had a roommate

named Kahn until he passed away in 2004.

They were born at a fur farm in British Columbia and were being raised for their pelts.

Lynx are cousins to the bobcat. They have the same ear tufts

and cheek ruffs as the bobcats, only longer. Lynx are a shy cat and can puff out their cheek ruffs

to look larger in their defense. Their long ear tufts work as antenna

to help bring sound to their ears. Their large feet, hooked claws and long legs

provide sure-footed travel through the snow. Lynx were once found through out the northern World

from Scandinavia to Siberia, Canada, and the northern United States.

It is the largest of the European cats. Like many of the smaller wild cats that utilize

jumping as part of their hunting skills, it has a very short tail.

They climb well and are good swimmers. They have acute vision and will stalk prey over long distances.

They are usually solitary animals and nocturnal hunters, but cooperative hunting

has occasionally been observed, with rabbits being driven towards a waiting ambush

or a pair of lynxes stalking from both sides of joint prey.

The Snowshoe Hare is the favorite food, but lynx will also take small rodents,

ducks and ground dwelling birds, young deer, and fish.

The young stay with the mother up to two years to develop their skills.

In 1993 the lynx, which numbered close to 200 in Washington, were listed in this state,

as threatened. In 1997 the Lynx was placed on the Endangered Species List.

Cat Tales is also active in the In-Situ (in the wild) research programs ongoing

regarding both the Lynx and Bobcat in North America.

This includes DNA studies of both captive & wild animals.