Lexi Lynx

Today was the last winter Nature Story Time up at our local state park, and there was a special visitor to end the season on an exciting note! 

Visiting today was a Canada Lynx named Lexie. 

Lynx roam from the treeline in the Arctic, south through the boreal forests of Alaska and Canada, and into the northern United States. We would not normally see Lynx in our area, but we do have bobcats.  Bobcats are smaller than lynx, and have slightly different coats colors and markings.

Lynx have black ear tufts which is one feature that sets them apart from Bobcats in terms of identification. Lexie's are sort of blending in with the twigs here, so look carefully!

Lexie is one-year old and was a bit shy around all the kids, but did fine as long as she stayed close to her caretaker Terri. Her current house-mate, a friendly yellow lab, also made Lexie feel a bit more calm.

 She played like a domestic kitten with pine branches that were wiggled in front of her, and after chilling out for a bit, even let me pet her incredibly soft and fine fur.

Notice her HUGE snowshoe-like feet! This gives the paws an increased surface area and enhances her ability to maneuver on soft snow.

The lynx's tail also differs from the bobcat. A lynx's tail is gray with a black tip, while a bobcat has narrow black bands and a black tip.  Notice Lexie's rear legs are also longer than her front.  This helps her "spring" to catch prey.

For comparison, here is a mature lynx.  Yikes! Beautiful, yet intimidating!

I am told that it would be unusual to see a lynx in the wild as they are uncommon here in Wisconsin, and they are also very secretive.  They are solitary and travel at night to avoid people.  Fine by me.  Though I am glad to have had the chance to meet Lexie and learn about the Canada Lynx in such a beautiful setting!