ANOTHER VERY FINE REPORT ON 3RD GENERATION LYNX REPRODUCING SUCCESSFULLY IN COLORADO..................WITH EACH PASSING YEAR, OPTIMISM THAT THIS REINTRODUCED POPULATION CAN PERSIST INTO THE LONG TERM

10/11/2010 8:55:00 AM  Division of Wildlife reports lynx doing well in Colorado Audrey Gilpin - Mail Staff Writer After finding 14 lynx kittens in five separate dens within Colorado last spring, state Division of Wildlife officials recently announced the lynx reintroduction plan established a successful breeding population in the Southern Rockies. Division of Wildlife officials began reintroducing lynx in 1999, releasing lynx captured in Alaska and Canada into the remote San Juan Mountains. Tom Remington, Division director, said from 1999 to 2006, wildlife officials introduced 218 lynx and monitored radio and satellite collared lynx as they colonized the core area and expanded their range into other parts of the Colorado high country. "The mid-sized lynx has proved adept at adjusting to Colorado's rugged mountains, finding food and habitat necessary for successful reproduction in at least six of the past eight years," he said. Jim Aragon, Division of Wildlife area wildlife manager, said the most common local area to spot lynx is west of Salida along the Continental Divide in higher elevations. "Lynx have dispersed from the original site (where they were introduced), which verifies they are doing well and finding new territory," he said. Observational data indicates the reproduction rate of the cats has outpaced mortality in the 11 years since the reintroduction program was launched, "which is the hallmark of a self-sustaining population," Remington said. All the benchmarks for successful lynx reintroduction have been met, and wildlife officials believe the program could be helpful in reintroducing wolverine to Colorado. Remington said lynx reproductive rates have varied greatly since kittens were first documented after den visits in 2003. Then, 16 kittens were identified; in 2004, 39 kittens; 2005, 50 kittens; 2006, 11 kittens; last year there were 11 kittens and now, 14. During the 2006, 2009 and 2010 seasons, wildlife field crews documented state-born lynx successfully produced third-generation kittens. Remington said in 2010, researchers estimated 30 to 40 percent of female lynx bore litters. Primary winter food source for lynx is snowshoe hares. Remington said, "Numerous studies in Alaska and Canada document lynx reproductive success oscillates with snowshoe hare numbers." Researchers report 2007 and 2008 represented low years in snowshoe hare abundance in the state. Colorado lynx, however, targeted their traditional secondary food source, red squirrels, in times of snowshoe hare scarcity. Researchers said in last year, scat analysis suggested squirrels made up 66 percent of lynx diets. Tanya Shenk, retired wildlife biologist and lead researcher on the state lynx project from 1999 to 2010, said, "What we've seen from lynx in Colorado is exactly what we'd expect to see from lynx in their northern habitat. "This supports our strong belief the habitat in Colorado will sustain lynx over the long term." Scott Wait, division southwest region senior biologist, cautioned that climate change, wildfires, bark beetle epidemics and future development could alter potential lynx habitat in unforeseen ways. To track lynx population, he said, biologists will use a site occupancy monitoring strategy, which employs "minimally invasive" techniques such as trail cameras, snow-tracking and genetic sampling to monitor presence or absence of lynx in established and potential habitats. Wildlife officials will work with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to define federal benchmarks for continued recovery in Colorado, including creation of a recovery team and plan for lynx in the state and nationwide.