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Reuters
A Canada lynx is seen in an undated file handout photo from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Idaho wildlife officials on Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2012.
Reuters reports SALMON, Idaho —"It's a very rare occurrence," Tom Keegan, regional manager with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, said about the incidental capture last week of the high-elevation, forest-dwelling cat.
He said a man walking his dogs spotted the lynx on Thursday in the rugged mountains of east central Idaho in a legal trap set for bobcat and notified state wildlife officials. They released the animal unharmed.
Fewer than 100 lynx are believed to roam the mid- and high-elevation forests of Idaho, where they are classified as a "species of greatest conservation need."
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why is it still legal to trap any animal anymore? this illustrates what a problem it really is. the traps are cruel and indiscriminate. if that man had not been walking nearby, the lynx would probably be dead. way to go heartless trapper.
Did you see the "released the animal unharmed" part? It was probably a double door trap or similar which allows the trapper to release any unintended species that were to enter. Worst case is the cat was delayed a few hours and then let go to be on its way.
They don't kill them. They trap them then usually tranquilize them, give them a quick over view to make sure they are healthy, tag them, then release them. NOTHING GETS KILLED. Trappers check their traps everyday. Traps are not cruel. They do not harm the animal. The man? He may have been the one to lay the trap. Think before you type. Also, use proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Maybe people will listen to you more.
Trappers can be very specific and are needed to control numbers so you Peta whiners can look at healthy species when you drive to the mountains in your prius
What a lucky guy to get to see a lynx. They're so beautiful. But it's horrible that he had to find it in a trap. Trapping is cruel, because, as irrert says, it's indiscriminate. It's not sporting at all and to imagine the terror of the trapped animal makes me want to cry.
We have dwindling populations of predators but a burgeoning human population... why is it okay for one to be "managed" but not okay for the other species?
Canadian Lynx? Is it here legally does it have a green card? Call INS get them on the case.
Love it. Laughing out loud right now.
I hate to think that bobcats are legally trappable in Idaho, and it's a shame that non-native anacondas and pythons (released exotic pets, escapees, and their progeny) are decimating bobcats and other species in Florida now. - Sir William the Cat from the humorous book "In Defense of Cats!"
Interesting an animal that is very elusive is caught and released. Just wondering if the population is increasing?
Now they want to know how long it'll take before they can go out and kill them. Human nature ftw.