The Canada lynx has been proposed for the federal list of threatened species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Washington is among just four or five states that continue to support resident populations of this rare cat. The Service believes lynx once were resident in 16 states. Lynx populations have suffered from historic overharvest, as well as past and present habitat loss and fragmentation. They forage for their primary prey, snowshoe hares, in relatively young forests with plenty of cover.
Lynx avoid large openings, such as clearcuts.
Lynx live in high-elevation forests in the northern part of the state. Generally solitary and cautious, they are difficult to survey and study. State biologists believe fewer than 200, and perhaps fewer than 100, remain in Washington. The Fish and Wildlife Service has set a September 30 deadline for comments on its proposal, which appeared in the July 8 Federal Register. The lynx was listed as State Threatened by the Washington Wildlife Commission in 1993.