The Eurasian lynx

Although, originally, this species could be found in all European forests, both in lowlands and in mountains, during the mid-20th century, it was only present in Scandinavian countries and in Central Europe. The lynx was reintroduced during the early 1970s in Switzerland and later in the Vosges in 1983. It progressively recolonised the French parts of the Jura and is now also starting to appear in the Alps. However, due to a high mortality rate amongst young lynxes (50%), its progress is slow. In the French Jura Massif, it is estimated that there are between 100 and 140 lynxes, and that there is somewhere between 130 and 180 of them in the whole of France.