Canada lynx:

Promoting Canada lynx conservation through the 2004 Forest Plan for the SNF

The Canada lynx, Lynx canadensis, is listed as threatened in the contiguous U.S. through the ESA. Therefore, the Forest Service’s forest plans had to create recovery strategies for the lynx while in dialogue with the Fish and Wildlife Service. The 2004 SNF Forest Plan met the Forest Service’s objective and intent of promoting an effective approach to the conservation and recovery of Canada lynx in national forests. The plan addressed risk factors affecting lynx: productivity; mortality; movement; and other large landscape scale factors such as habitat degradation. The plan addressed lynx conservation and these risk factors on several levels. Additionally, project-specific analysis would be completed for all actions that had the potential to result in adverse effects on lynx.

Appendix E is dedicated to lynx conservation and discusses each of the identified risk factors and what procedural guides could be developed according to the best available scientific knowledge.

Addressing mortality risk factors:

Trapping, shooting and other methods of predator control are mortality risks for the lynx. Therefore, steps should be taken to reduce the accidental take of lynx in shooting or predator control. Trapping is particularly important and because lynx may be more vulnerable to trapping near open roads, trapping in that area should be limited. (Bailey et al. 1986)

Direct mortality from vehicular collisions during highway crossings is also a significant mortality factor for lynx. Mortality levels can increase dramatically with relatively small increases in traffic volumes and speeds. Therefore, within lynx habitat, areas with potential highway crossing areas and linkages need to be identified and physical structures may be used to guide them safely across roadways.

Movement and dispersal risk factors:

Landscape connectivity is essential due to declining habitat levels and the necessity to occupy all or most of the available habitat. Lynx habitats should be connected in order to allow movement and dispersal while searching for food, cover and mates. Highways and a mixture of forest owners contribute to habitat fragmentation. Therefore, it is necessary to identify and protect habitat corridors to the greatest extent possible. Highways impact lynx and other carnivores by fragmenting their habitat and impeding movements. When roadways are expanded or changed, highway crossing structures should be considered and crossings should generally be spaced around ½ mile intervals. Land ownership is another important factor restricting lynx movement due to the different uses and habitat availability in each land parcel. Contiguous tracts of coniferous forest provide the best habitat and habitat connectivity (Hoving et al. 2005). Thus, large-scale public or private lands are best for the lynx. When land is divided into smaller parcels, work with individual landowners must be done to move toward unified, landscape-level ecosystem management. Work with landowners may include habitat conservation plans, conservation easements and land acquisition.

Lynx habitat:

Lynx habitat is primarily mesic coniferous forests that have cold, snowy winters and high populations of snowshoe hare. Lynx occurrence was highly correlated with two factors – the amount of snowfall (higher is better) and the amount of deciduous forest in the landscape (Hoving et al. 2005). These two factors do not likely have a direct effect on lynx survival but are related to habitat for their primary prey species and competition with other forest carnivores.