DNA study offers some hints of cat domestication history

September 23, 2016 

by Bob Yirka

Ginger tabby cat. Credit: Public domain

(Phys.org)—A trio of researchers has presented their preliminary findings regarding a mitochondrial DNA study they have undertaken as part of an effort to learn more about the domestication history of the modern house cat. Evolutionary geneticist Eva-Maria Geigl gave the presentation at this year's International Symposium on Biomolecular Archaeology at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History.

To learn more about the ancestry of the common house cat, the researchers (which also included colleagues Thierry Grange and Claudio Ottoni) obtained mitochondrial DNA samples of 209 cats from multiple archaeological sites around the world—the ages of the remains ranged from approximately 15,000 years ago to just 300 years ago. After sequencing the samples, the researchers made some interesting discoveries surrounding the history of cats partnering with humans. The first was that there appeared to be two big migration waves—the first occurred not long after the development of agriculture by humans and the second shortly after the domestication of cats in ancient Egypt.

The researchers suggest that the first wave was likely the result of small cats coming into contact with humans due to hunting the increased populations of rodents consuming the grains they grew—the researchers found a link between cats in the Fertile Crescent and other parts of the Mediterranean. The second wave occurred several thousand years later and appeared to be driven by human migrations out of Egypt—the researchers found links between cats there and throughout Eurasia and parts of Africa—likely due, the team suggests, to farmers and seafaring travelers taking cats with them to reduce rat and mouse populations.

There were a couple of other surprises as well—one was that the fierce Vikings apparently had a soft spot for little kitties—one of them was found buried alongside its master in a common grave site that was dated back 1000 years. The other was that tabby cats did not evolve until Mediaeval times.
The researchers noted during their talk that little research has been conducted regarding the domestication of cats, unlike dogs, which means that little is known about their history. They hope their research will be the beginning of a much larger effort.

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From Viking cats to felines of the ancient mariner: DNA analysis from 30 archaeological sites reveals how cats spread around the world

• The DNA samples date between 15,000 years ago, up to the 18th century
• Researchers found that one lineage in the Middle East grew with farmers
• Another lineage commonly seen in Egypt spread to Bulgaria and Turkey 
• And, they also found remains of the same lineage at an ancient Viking site 
• Study suggests cats  helped to control rodents and were thus tamed

By Cheyenne Macdonald For Dailymail.com

Published:  20 September 2016

It would be difficult to imagine the world today without the presence of cats – from internet memes to Instagram stars, they’ve just about taken over the world.

But, it wasn’t always that way.

In a new study, researchers analyzed the DNA of over 200 ancient cats, from as far back as 15,000 years ago and up to the 18th century CE, to shed light on the little-known history of cat domestication.

This revealed two distinct waves of cat population growth in Eurasia and Africa, suggesting they may have expanded with farming and seafaring communities who turned to them for rodent control.

In a new study, researchers analyzed the DNA of over 200 ancient cats, from as far back as 15,000 years ago and up to the 18th century CE, to shed light on the little-known history of cat domestication. Bronze figurines of the Egyptian cat goddess Bastet are pictured

WHAT THE STUDY FOUND 

According to the researchers, cats may have lived among ancient farmers, mariners, and even Vikings.

In the Middle East, the researchers found wild cats of a particular mitochondrial lineage grew with early farming communities, stretching to the eastern Mediterranean.  

The researchers also found a mitochondrial lineage common among Egyptian cat mummies eventually spread to reach Bulgaria, Turkey, and sub-Saharan Africa.

And, they found remains of this lineage at a Viking site from roughly the 8th – 11th century in northern Germany.

The team suggests ancient communities may have realized cats' ability to control rodents, and tamed them to reap the benefits.  

The relationship between cats and humans is one that stretches back thousands of years – but, the origin of the house cat largely remains a mystery, and it’s still unclear if these animals are truly distinct from their wild relatives.

‘We don’t know the history of ancient cats,’ Eva-Maria Geigl, an evolutionary geneticist at the Institut Jacques Monod in Paris, told Nature.

‘We do not know their origin, we don’t know how their dispersal occurred.’

To understand more about their history, researchers examined mitochondrial DNA from the remains of 209 cats found at more than 30 archaeological sites in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

With some samples up to 15,000 years old, this provides a glimpse at life as far back as the Mesolithic, just before the onset of agriculture.

The most recent samples were from the eighteenth century.

The findings, presented at the 7th International Symposium on Biomolecular Archaeology in Oxford on Sept 15, revealed cats may have lived among ancient farmers, mariners, and even Vikings.

In the Middle East, the researchers found wild cats of a particular mitochondrial lineage grew with early farming communities, stretching to the eastern Mediterranean.

According to the researchers, this may have been the result of grain stockpiles which attracted rodents, and consequently, wild cats, Nature reports.

And once the humans realized the cats’ ability to control pests, they may have begun to tame them.

A similar scenario may have played out thousands of years later in Eurasia and Africa.

The population growth in early farming communities may have been the result of grain stockpiles which attracted rodents, and consequently, wild cats. Once the humans realized the cats’ ability to control pests, they may have begun to tame them. A stock image is pictured

The researchers found a mitochondrial lineage common among Egyptian cat mummies eventually spread to reach Bulgaria, Turkey, and sub-Saharan Africa.

And, they found remains of this lineage at a Viking site from roughly the 8th – 11th century in northern Germany.

These observations suggest sea-faring people may also have used cats to curb rodents, according to Nature.

The history of cat domestication still remains understudied, especially compared to that of dogs.

But in the future, the researchers say analyzing nuclear DNA rather than just mitochondrial could help to answer more questions on how they spread, and how they differ from their wild relatives.

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The Psychology of Killing Wolves, Cats, and other Animals

By Marc Bekoff Ph.D.

 

How can people say they love animals and then kill or advocate killing them?

Posted Sep 16, 2016

One would have to be significantly out of touch not to realize that there are a number of on-going and unrelenting wars on a wide variety of nonhuman animals (animals; other sources can be seen here). In a recent essay, I highlighted what's happening to wolves in Washington state and a recent book concerned with free-ranging cats (please see "The Wars on Wolves, Cats, and Other Animals: It’s Time to Forever Close Down the Killing Fields").

Killing wolves for eating steaks left at their door like room service

Here are some excerpts from, and brief summary of, the above essay, in which there are numerous current links for information about the topics at hand. Basically, during the past few weeks, along with many other dedicated people, I’ve been working hard to stop the killing of wolves in Washington state and to call attention to a call for removing all free-ranging cats “by any means necessary (please see "'Cat Wars' Calls For Killing Free-Ranging Cats”). These are but two real life examples of widespread wars on the lives of nonhuman animals, including direct or indirect endorsements of various groups that claim to be on the side of the animals. It’s sickening, and even if these brutal assaults worked, they are ethically repugnant and absolutely and unquestionably unnecessary. And, they don’t work.

Updated information, including media coverage, about the slaughter of the Profanity Peak wolf pack in Washington, can be found on the website of the organization Predator Defense. The details of slaughtering these animals basically comes down to killing the wolves for eating steaks left at their door like room service. You can keep abreast of the on-going situation with Predator Defense’s updates.
Removing free-ranging cats “by any means necessary:” Turning garbage into gospel

"From a conservation ecology perspective, the most desirable solution seems clear—remove all free-ranging cats from the landscape by any means necessary." (Cat Wars, pp. 152-153)

It’s not surprising that the call for an all out assault on the lives of free-ranging cats is far more well-known than the slaying of members of Washington’s Profanity Peak wolf pack. Indeed, in the case of free-ranging cats, the publishers and authors of the book at hand, Cat Wars: The Devastating Consequences of a Cuddly Killer, have both issued disclaimers saying they are against the inhumane treatment of any animal. Nonetheless, the call to remove all free-ranging cats “by any means necessary” (p. 152-153) somehow slipped by the authors, editors, and other pre-publication readers.

 And, I cannot find any public statement amending their suggestion about how to remove all free-ranging cats. Clearly, the authors are not advocating removing free-ranging cats softly. Rather, they are advocating outright and unregulated removal “by any means necessary.” When I asked some people what this meant to them, answers ranged from trapping, snaring, poisoning, bludgeoning, and shooting. A number of people feared we would see violence “in the name of science.”

The publishing business also can be an interesting enterprise and the publication of Cat Wars show how this is so. To wit, I was asked by a representative of the publisher to delay my review of Cat Wars until the end of September after the book became available. However, there already was one review on Amazon and the book actually became available in the beginning of September, despite what the publication date was supposed to be. After learning about the book and what it offered, I turned down a free copy from the publisher. It didn’t feel right to get a copy and then criticize its numerous flaws and misguided call for potential violence against all free-ranging cats.

There are numerous problems with Cat Wars. You can read about them in a number of references in "The Wars on Wolves, Cats, and Other Animals: It’s Time to Forever Close Down the Killing Fields" and in the predominantly strongly negative reviews on Amazon. The reviews on Amazon offer a panoply of opinions, and, as of this writing, are around 90% one star and 10% five-star reviews. There are no intermediate two, three, or four-star reviews that would indicate reviewers sort of liking and not liking the book. The scientist in me got me to look at 50 other books in the same general area, and there is not a single one that has such polarized reviews. Clearly, Cat Wars lays out a “them — cat lovers” versus “us — bird lovers” agenda.

One of the most thorough reviews that takes “the science” behind Cat Wars to task is called “By Any Means Necessary”: War is Declared on U.S. Cats,” and, if you read only one essay, this is the one to go to. A summary of this piece reads as follows:

Cat Wars is, to anybody familiar with the topic, an obviously desperate attempt to fuel the ongoing witch-hunt against outdoor cats “by any means necessary,” including the endorsement of discredited junk science, an oceanful of red herrings, and B-movie-style scaremongering. The book’s central thesis—that outdoor cats must be eradicated in the name of biodiversity and public health—is, like the authors’ credibility, undermined to the point of collapse by weak—often contradictory—evidence, and a reckless arrogance that will be hard to ignore even for their fellow fring-ervationsists.

How many birds are actually killed by free-ranging cats? Of course, one point of contention centers on the actual number of birds who are killed by free-ranging cats. In this essay, we also read about a paper published by the senior author of Cat Wars called “The impact of free-ranging domestic cats on wildlife of the United States,” published in January 2013. The author of “By Any Means Necessary” writes, “With its ‘estimate that free-ranging domestic cats kill 1.3–4.0 billion birds annually in the contiguous U.S.’—which the authors describe more than once as ‘conservative’—the paper attracted immediate media attention. Unfortunately, the underlying science was only rarely called into question. To this end, he cites an excellent essay by Barbara King, Chancellor Professor of Anthropology at the College of William and Mary, called “Do We Really Know That Cats Kill By The Billions? Not So Fast.”

Cat Wars contains rhetorical slights of hand and abuses reader's trust

In another review of Cat Wars by Colin Dickey we read, “Cat Wars is one of those strange books, reading which one can feel generally comfortable with the authors’ conclusions while growing increasingly frustrated with their bad faith arguments, rhetorical sleights-of-hand, and other abuses of the reader’s trust. A chapter that focuses on cats as disease vectors is the worst offender." Mr. Dickey also writes, “Cat Wars also bends over backward to paint cat owners, particularly those who advocate for outdoor lifestyles, as unstable and poorly educated.” Furthermore, “This point-counterpoint continues for much of a page, never getting any more thoughtful than this. Such language — including the gallingly general ‘science says’ — enlightens no one, and serves only to quell dissension and shut down meaningful debate.”

I'm sure debates about Cat Wars and the polarizing messages it contains will continue for a very long time. And, indeed, it's essential to emphasize that people who choose to share their lives with cats bear the responsibility of giving their cat(s) the best life possible while being sure they don't harass, harm, or kill potential prey.

How can people say they love animals and then kill or advocate killing them? Can psychologists and anthrozoologists help answer this question? 

The above is an up-to-date summary of what's happening in the wars on wolves and cats. Many people who have never been involved in "animal issues" have spoken out strongly against the killing of the wolves and suggestions that all free-ranging cats should be removed "by any means necessary." Surely, we must hope that suggestions that there should be an open war on all free-ranging cats will not be gospel.

Loving and killing. Perhaps especially in the case of cats -- but there are people who say they love wolves but have not yet unequivocally called for an end to the killing -- I'm often asked something like, "How can people say they love animals and then kill or advocate killing them?" I honestly don't know how to answer these sorts of questions. After all, the senior author of Cat Wars claims he actually likes cats. I found this utterly surprising because of his and his co-author's call to remove all free-ranging cats "by any means necessary." And, some conservation groups support the current killing of the Washington wolves, hoping that this will end future killing.

I'm glad they don't love me. In an earlier essay, I wrote, "The 'I love them but we gotta kill them' attitude baffles me. It’s hard to imagine that people who favor removing free-ranging cats 'by any means necessary' truly love them. When I hear this I always say, 'I'm glad they don't love me.'"
There's a very serious side to questions about claims of loving and killing, and I hope psychologists and anthrozoologists and others will study them closely. We really need to know more about the dissonance, if any, that people feel when they say they love but are willing to kill, other beings, in this case, nonhumans.

This is an incredibly important topic for serious study, and learning about how these individuals come to terms with these conflicting views will yield important information that could be used on behalf of other animals.


Marc Bekoff's latest books are Jasper's Story: Saving Moon Bears (with Jill Robinson), Ignoring Nature No More: The Case for Compassionate Conservation, Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed: The Fascinating Science of Animal Intelligence, Emotions, Friendship, and Conservation, Rewilding Our Hearts: Building Pathways of Compassion and Coexistence, and The Jane Effect: Celebrating Jane Goodall (edited with Dale Peterson). The Animals' Agenda: Freedom, Compassion, and Coexistence in the Human Age (with Jessica Pierce) will be published in early 2017.

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Research looks at importance of women's attitudes toward tigers in Nepal

Date:

September 8, 2016

Source:

Boise State University

Summary:

New research looks at how human perceptions of tigers affect how willing human communities are to coexist with these large predators, and particularly at how women's attitudes toward tigers differ from men's.

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Women carry resources from the forest in Nepal.

Credit: Neil Carter

 

The lion may be "king of the forest," but tigers are bigger, smarter, deadlier and can be found across an impressive range that includes India, Southeast Asia and Russia. And like lions, tiger populations are dwindling.

New research by Boise State's Neil Carter published in the journal Biological Conservation titled "Gendered perceptions of tigers in Chitwan National Park, Nepal," looks at how human perceptions of tigers affect how willing human communities are to coexist with these large predators, and particularly at how women's attitudes toward tigers differ from men's.

"Recently the field of wildlife conservation has focused on human dimensions, but has been lagging other disciplines in terms of understanding gendered differences in attitudes and behaviors," he said. "We know that women and men behave differently, and behaviors have conservation relevance. We wanted to find out what is driving that difference to help us understand ways to develop better conservation interventions."

The research was motivated by three basic challenges:

1. Because they spend more time in the forest gathering resources, women are at a greater risk then men of a tiger encounter. 2. Women tend to have more fears in general and more fear of wildlife in particular. 3. Compared to men, women tend to have less information and knowledge about conservation and wildlife.

Carter and his co-author Teri Allendorf of University of Wisconsin-Madison identified a number of ways that men and women view tigers differently and how these differences might affect tiger populations in Nepal. Identifying ways to address these challenges is vital because women have so much influence inside and outside of their families.

"Women have a lot of influence on a household as well as on each other," Carter said, noting their traditional role as nurturers as well as their more social natures. "They control what information their children access and this strongly impacts human behavior."

While fear helps shape many women's attitudes toward tigers, Carter notes that the bigger challenge is in helping women overcome a lack of knowledge about the importance of tigers in the larger ecosystem and culture. Women surveyed were less likely than men to believe that their village would benefit from tourism if there were tigers in the forest, that tigers contributed to a healthy forest or that they are an important part of their culture.

In Nepal, many women receive minimal education and often know very little about the long-term effects of conservation efforts.

Carter and Allendorf hypothesized that if women had as much access to information about tigers and protected areas as men they would develop a more positive attitude and greater tolerance toward them. This could include formal education as well as interactions with protected area staff. Even more importantly, given women's influence in Nepalese social life, outreach programs targeted toward women could affect whole communities as well.

"Developing an awareness program targeted at women could lead to a generation growing up that better understands the importance of tigers to their culture, economy, and ecosystem and therefore is more likely to support tiger conservation," Carter said.

Carter also noted that understanding differences in gender perceptions of wildlife can have far-reaching effects, including helping to shape attitudes in Idaho and other western states about grizzlies, wolves and other large predators.

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Story Source:
The above post is reprinted from materials provided by Boise State University. The original item was written by Kathleen Tuck. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.

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Journal Reference:

1. Neil H. Carter, Teri D. Allendorf. Gendered perceptions of tigers in Chitwan National Park, Nepal. Biological Conservation, 2016; 202: 69 DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2016.08.002

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Boise State University. "Research looks at importance of women's attitudes toward tigers in Nepal." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 8 September 2016. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/09/160908084325.htm>.

 

 

Esso Advert Tiger 'Tango' Dies At Lincolnshire Wildlife Park

Almost 1,000 people post messages of sympathy on the park's Facebook page, saying the "magnificent" Tango will be "sadly missed".

14:52, UK, Monday 12 September 2016

Image Caption: Tango was one of several tigers to appear in the 1990s Esso ad

A tiger who starred in the famous Esso "Put A Tiger In Your Tank" adverts has died of old age.

Tango, thought to be Britain's oldest tiger, was one of several big cats to appear in the 1990s advertisement.
He passed away at the Woodside Wildlife Park in Lincolnshire.
Almost 1,000 people have posted messages of sympathy on its Facebook page since his death was announced, with former visitors saying the "magnificent" and "beautiful great big cat" would be "sadly missed".
Park director, Neil Mumby, who orchestrated a £250,000 project to rehome Tango in 2014 after he was rescued from a European circus, said he had "an extremely good innings".

Image Caption: Tango was rescued from a European circus in 2014

"A normal age for a tiger to reach would be approximately 15 - so at 22 he was over 100 years old in human terms," he said.
"He had a mixed life in his circus time on the continent.
"We were happy to give him a good, peaceful retirement for two-and-a-half years - we have seen him chasing butterflies, swimming and behaving like a tiger deserves to."
He added: "From my point of view, we are extremely proud to have given him his retirement."
Esso first used an image of a tiger in its ads following the end of rationing after the Second World War.
The campaign is considered to be one of the most successful in advertising history.

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Pet cat named Pietro rescued in Italy's quake zone after 16 days trapped under rubble

9 September 2016 

 

In a remarkable tale of survival, a cat has been rescued from under the rubble of Italy’s earthquake zone after being trapped for 16 days.

The cat, named Pietro, is thought to have survived on drops of rainwater – the area hit by the quake last month has seen several storms in the past few days.

Firefighters were excavating the remains of a collapsed house in the hill-top town of Amatrice, one of the communities worst hit by the August 24 quake, when they heard faint mews coming from under the rubble.

They carefully lifted out the cat, which was severely dehydrated. Firefighters immediately gave it a drink of water and then dispatched the animal to a vet’s surgery in the nearby town of Rieti.

“It’s really true that cats have nine lives, look at that,” said one of the firefighters at the scene.

Amatrice was one of the mountain towns worst-hit by last month's devastating earthquake in central Italy. Credit: Andrea Solaro/AFP

Dozens of cats, dogs and other pets have been rescued in the earthquake zone, a remote area on the borders of four regions – Lazio, Umbria, Abruzzo and Marche.

A cat named Gioia – Joy in English – was rescued after spending six days trapped in the rubble of a collapsed house, but Pietro has comfortably beaten that record.

A cat named Gioia - Joy in Italian - was rescued after six days under the rubble Credit: TGCom 24

Nearly 300 people were killed by the 6.0 magnitude quake, including three British tourists staying in a restored farmhouse – William Henniker-Gotley, 55, his wife Maria, 51, and Marcos Burnett, 14, the son of friends. They were asleep in the farmhouse in the mountain hamlet of Sommati when its roof and walls came crashing down.

Thousands of people are sleeping in tent villages set up by the emergency services, while others have been transferred to hotels in the region.

The government hopes to build temporary villages made up of pre-fabricated chalet-style buildings within the next six months, prior to the long-term rebuilding of devastated towns and villages. More than 5,000 aftershocks have shaken the region since the quake hit last month.

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Rare Footage of Pallas’s Cat Cubs

September 1, 2016

Press release, September 1, 2016, Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, Nordens Ark, Snow Leopard Trust

The Pallas’s cat is a small, little known wild cat species living in the steppes and mountains of Central Asia. Through a new research initiative “PICA” (Pallas’s Cat International Conservation Alliance) launched earlier this year, we’re hoping to better understand this feline. The project is still in its early stages, but it has already produced some outstanding, rare footage of Pallas’s cats, including video of wild cubs.

The footage was taken by a set of remote-sensor research cameras stationed in the Zoolon Mountains, in Mongolia’s Gobi Gurvan Saikhan National Park. One sequence, shot during the night, shows three Pallas’ cat cubs curiously examining the camera, while another snippet features an adult cat in broad daylight looking for signs of other animals.



“This is the first footage of Pallas’s cat cubs taken in this part of Mongolia as far as we know and is a valuable discovery from our project partners Snow leopard Trust”, says David Barclay, Cat Conservation Officer at the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS).

The cameras are part of the newly launched international Pallas’s cat conservation project, PICA, founded by the RZSS, Nordens Ark, a Swedish breeding center and zoo Nordens Ark and US-based conservation organization Snow Leopard Trust that aims to gather more information on the Pallas’s cat, one of the world’s least-studied felines.

“We still don’t know much about the Pallas’s cat’s behavior, or even it’s true range”, says Emma Nygren, a conservation biologist at Nordens Ark who coordinates the research project. “If we’re hoping to conserve this mysterious cat, we need to first understand it, and we’re hoping this study will bring valuable new insights.”

A Pallas’s cat is posing for a research camera in Zoolon Mountains, Mongolia.

The Snow Leopard Trust, who has been working in this part of Mongolia for more than a decade, is a technical and logistical partner in the project. “In partnership with our local partner, the Snow Leopard Conservation Foundation Mongolia and the park rangers of Gurvan Saikhan National Park, we’re surveying these mountains for snow leopards anyway. The Pallas’s cat shares the same habitat and is equally elusive, so it’s a logical extension of our work to also look at them”, says Gustaf Samelius, Assistant Director of Science at the Snow Leopard Trust.

The study, which was made possible by the generous support of Fondation Segré, will continue for at least three years.

More information

About the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland

• The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland was founded by visionary lawyer Thomas Gillespie in 1909 ‘to promote, facilitate and encourage the study of zoology and kindred subjects and to foster and develop amongst the people an interest in and knowledge of animal life’. The Society still exists to connect people with nature and safeguard species from extinction.
• Please visit here for information on all our conservation projects.
• RZSS Edinburgh Zoo and RZSS Highland Wildlife Park are owned by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS), a registered charity, charity no SC004064.
• RZSS Edinburgh Zoo is set in 82 acres of sloping parkland, just a stone’s throw away from Edinburgh’s bustling city centre. In its 103-year history the Zoo has been home to many famous animal residents, more recently the UK’s only giant pandas, Tian Tian and Yang Guang, and the UK’s only koalas.
• RZSS Highland Wildlife Park specialises in Scottish species, past and present, and other cold weather adapted animals from around the world.
• The Park, which covers over 200 acres and is located within the Cairngorms National Park, is home to two male polar bears and the only female polar bear in the UK.
• RZSS Edinburgh Zoo and RZSS Highland Wildlife Park are members of the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA).

About Nordens Ark 

Nordens Ark is a Swedish non-profit foundation working to protect endangered species through conservation breeding and reintroduction programs as well as through research, field conservations programs and education. Nordens Ark was founded in 1989 and focus on applied conservation actions in Sweden as well as abroad. The foundation works with a wide range of species from snow leopards and Pallas’s cats to Lesser White-fronted Geese and Lemur-leaf frogs.

About the Snow Leopard Trust

The Snow Leopard Trust, based in Seattle, USA, is a world leader in conservation of the endangered snow leopard, conducting pioneering research and partnering with communities as well as authorities in snow leopard habitat to protect the cat.

Photos

The Pallas’s cat photos are available for download here

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Expanded US habitat protection ordered for rare lynx

LEONHARD FOEGER | REUTERS
A lynx climbs a hill after crossing the finish area during the first training run for the men's Downhill race of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics in Whistler, British Columbia, Feb. 10, 2010.

By Laura Zuckerman, Reuters

Posted Sept. 08, 2016
 

SALMON, Idaho — A federal judge ordered U.S. wildlife managers on Wednesday to enlarge habitat protections in Idaho, Montana and Colorado for the Canada lynx, a rare wild cat that roams the Rockies and mountain forests of several other states.

Chief U.S. District Judge Dana Christensen in Missoula, Montana, ruled that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service erred in 2014 when it revised its critical habitat designations for the lynx with little or no expansion beyond the original plan issued five years earlier.

The Canada lynx, whose large paws make it well adapted to hunting in deep, mountain snows, was listed in 2000 as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.

The lynx is not considered imperiled in Alaska or Canada, where it ranges widely in forest areas, but its population in the Lower 48 states is believed to be small, though actual numbers are unknown, according to government scientists.

But federal wildlife managers put off a plan to protect areas deemed critical to the survival and recovery of the elusive feline, which is slightly larger than a bobcat and about twice as big as a domestic house cat.

The Fish and Wildlife Service in 2009 set aside about 39,000 square miles where logging, mining, snowmobiling and other activities that could disturb the lynx would be restricted or banned in parts of six states.

Conservationists quickly sued, arguing the plan offered insufficient protections in Idaho, Montana and Colorado.

A federal judge in 2010 sided with conservationists and ordered the agency to reassess and potentially expand critical habitat acreage in those states.

In 2014, the Fish and Wildlife Service identified 38,954 square miles in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Washington state, Maine and Minnesota as critical habitat for the lynx, a decision that triggered yet another lawsuit by conservationists seeking greater protections.

In his ruling on Wednesday, Christensen ordered the agency once again to designate critical habitat for the lynx with an eye toward adding parts of certain national forests in Idaho and Montana and to include areas of Colorado inhabited by the lynx and its favored prey, the snowshoe hare.

However, the judge denied conservationists’ demands for additional critical habitat in Oregon and Washington state.

Michael Garrity, head of the Alliance for the Wild Rockies, hailed the ruling but accused the Fish and Wildlife Service of dragging its feet on lynx protections for years, spending time and money instead on legal wrangling.

“Lynx populations continue to decline while the agency responsible for ensuring their survival lets the places lynx live and reproduce be destroyed,” he said.

An agency representative could not immediately be reached for comment.


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