Recovery Plan Proposed For WA’s Endangered Canada Lynx Population
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing a plan to help Washington State's remaining population of endangered Canada lynx survive.
The $31 million recovery effort, announced on Dec. 1, details the perils the species is already facing due to its reliance on snowfall.
Recent data from the agency has shown the lynx will see a perpetual reduction in its livable habitat as annual temperatures continue to rise, making it more difficult for the wild feline to hunt its primary food source; the snowshoe hare.
The lynx is also being threatened by the persistent and growing threat of wildfires that destroy its habitat.
Fish and Wildlife officials launched a research project last year that aims to better understand how the effects of large wildfires have impacted the animal's habitat over the last twenty years.
Current estimates indicate there are less than fifty Canada lynx remaining in Washington, all of which occupy the high-elevation forests of the North Cascades in the western portions of Okanogan County.
The new recovery plan is now open for public comment through Jan. 30, 2024.
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