The

Eurasian lynx The Eurasian lynx (''Lynx lynx'') is one of the four wikt:extant, extant species within the medium-sized wild Felidae, cat genus ''Lynx''. It is widely distributed from Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe to Cent ...

is the target of ongoing

species reintroduction Species reintroduction is the deliberate release of a species into the wild, from captivity or other areas where the organism is capable of survival. The goal of species reintroduction is to establish a healthy, Genetic diversity, genetically div ...

proposals in

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

. Proposed locations include the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands (; , ) is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Scottish Lowlands, Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Scots language, Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gae ...

and

Kielder Forest Kielder Forest is a large forestry plantation in Northumberland, England, surrounding Kielder village and the Kielder Water reservoir. It is the largest man-made woodland in England with three-quarters of its covered by forest. The majority o ...

Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Background

Lynx are currently extinct in Great Britain, although the date of their extinction is not known with certainty. The youngest physical remains of Lynx, from Kinsey Cave in Craven, have been carbon-dated to between 150 CE and 600 CE. A literary reference to what are probably lynx in Cumbria, dating to between the seventh and the tenth centuries, occurs in the Welsh poem

Dinogad's Smock "Dinogad's Smock" or "Dinogad's Cloak" (; ) is an Old Welsh lullaby recounting the hunting prowess of the dead father of an infant named Dinogad, who is wrapped in a smock made of Pine Marten, marten skins. This garment gives the poem its moder ...

, suggesting they may not have been extirpated from the island of

until the Middle Ages. A written record indicating the presence of a large cat in southern Scotland in the mid 18th century is noted by scholar Lee Raye, who tentatively argues that it may refer to a late-surviving population of lynx. Since the extinction of the

grey wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...

from Britain in 1680 (see

Wolves in Great Britain Wolves were once present in Great Britain. Early writing from Roman and later Saxon chronicles indicate that wolves appear to have been extraordinarily numerous on the island. Unlike other British animals, wolves were unaffected by island dwarfism ...

), the island contains no terrestrial

apex predator An apex predator, also known as a top predator or superpredator, is a predator at the top of a food chain, without natural predators of its own. Apex predators are usually defined in terms of trophic dynamics, meaning that they occupy the hig ...

s. In the post-Apex predator period,

red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–750 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a seconda ...

and roe deer populations have increased dramatically due to having no natural predators; with excessive deer foraging leading to prevention of forest regeneration, the stripping of tree vegetation, and removing of the shrub layer in forests, which provides a habitat for birds such as

nightingale The common nightingale, rufous nightingale or simply nightingale (''Luscinia megarhynchos''), is a small passerine bird which is best known for its powerful and beautiful song. It was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, ...

s and

willow warbler The willow warbler (''Phylloscopus trochilus'') is a very common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe and the Palearctic, from Ireland east to the Anadyr River basin in eastern Siberia. It is strongl ...

s. Reintroducing large predators such as the lynx are seen by

rewilding Rewilding is a form of ecological restoration aimed at increasing biodiversity and restoring natural processes. It differs from other forms of ecological restoration in that rewilding aspires to reduce human influence on ecosystems. It is also d ...

experts as a means of restoring balance in the

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...

and keeping deer numbers under control.

Proposals

England

Lynx Trust UK are a registered charity campaigning for the reintroduction of lynx to the Kielder Forest in

. In 2018, a proposal to release six animals was turned down by then- Environment Secretary

Michael Gove Michael Andrew Gove, Baron Gove (; born Graeme Andrew Logan, 26 August 1967) is a British politician and journalist who served in various Cabinet of the United Kingdom, Cabinet positions under David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson and Rish ...

, due to findings that the proposal did not "meet the necessary standards set out in the IUCN (

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the stat ...

) guidelines and fails to give confidence that the project could be completed in practical terms or that the outputs would meet the stated aims". In 2020 the Trust began preparing a second proposal to be submitted, with three animals proposed. The Wild East Project has proposed lynx reintroduction to areas of

East Anglia East Anglia is an area of the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, with parts of Essex sometimes also included. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, ...

Scotland

Lynx reintroduction into the

has been proposed since 2008, and a study by Lynx Trust UK and the

University of Lancaster Lancaster University (officially The University of Lancaster) is a collegiate public university, public research university in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The university was established in 1964 by royal charter, as one of several new univer ...

found that the Scottish countryside would be able to support a population of up to 250 animals. In 2020, Lynx Trust UK began a consultation into releasing lynx into the

Queen Elizabeth Forest Park Queen Elizabeth Forest Park is a forest park in the Scottish Highlands which extends from the eastern shores of Loch Lomond to the mountains of Strathyre. The forest park is one of six such parks in Scotland, and was established in 1953, the y ...

north of

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

. In January 2025, two lynx were illegally released near

Kingussie Kingussie ( ; ) is a small town in the Badenoch and Strathspey ward of the Highland council area of Scotland. Counties of Scotland, Historically in Inverness-shire, it lies beside the A9 road (Great Britain), A9 road, although the old route of ...

, roaming for several hours before capture overnight by the

Royal Zoological Society of Scotland The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland is a learned society and registered charity based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was founded by Thomas Haining Gillespie in 1909. In 1913, Edinburgh Town Council bought a large plot of land on Corstorphine ...

. The release was condemned by the charity as "highly irresponsible" and their survival in the wild was viewed as "very unlikely". Two further lynx - believed to be from the same family group - were later spotted in the area and then subsequently captured. It was reported that the animals appeared to want to be rescued and were "looking for their food on a plate". One of the lynx later died after being captured.

Support

The proposals have met opposition from

sheep farmers Sheep farming or sheep husbandry is the raising and breeding of domestic sheep. It is a branch of animal husbandry. Sheep are raised principally for their meat (lamb and mutton), milk (sheep's milk), and fiber (wool). They also yield sheepskin an ...

, citing threats the lynx would pose to their flocks; despite research indicating that because lynx also predate on foxes, the number of lambs killed would reduce.

Tony Juniper Anthony Juniper (born 24 September 1960) is a British campaigner, writer, sustainability adviser and environmentalist who served as Executive Director of Friends of the Earth, England, Wales and Northern Ireland. He was Vice Chair of Friends ...

, chairman of

Natural England Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, ...

, voiced his support for the "inspiring" proposal in 2020, stating that it could help to cut deer numbers. Scottish rewilding charity Trees for Life supports lynx reintroduction, claiming it would "restore ecological processes that have been missing for centuries, and provide a free and efficient deer management service".

References

{{reflist

External links

Eurasian Lynx - Lynx Trust UK
Animal reintroduction Conservation in the United Kingdom Wildlife of the United Kingdom Rewilding in the United Kingdom Lynx