Lynx Kittens Born For First Time In 40+ Years On Colville Res.

The Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation are marking a major milestone in their shared efforts to re-establish the Canada lynx within their territory.

Colville officials have confirmed the discovery of two lynx kittens in the Kettle Range of mountains on reservation lands within Ferry County.

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The Tribes are calling the find a "momentous" culmination of years of work by a group of biologists who've been dedicated to help reintroduce the wild feline, known as "wápupxn" in the Salishan dialect, to the area.

The Canada lynx is recognized as "endangered" by the federal government, and the Tribes first released a breeding pair of the animals onto reservation lands in November, 2021.

Since then, biologists have been tracking the lynx using GPS-equipped collars to document their patterns of dispersal, habitat selection, range establishment, mortality, and denning.

A recent tracking mission by biologists led them to the discovery of the newborn wápupxn, which are the first confirmed pair of lynx kittens in the Kettle Range in over 40 years.

LOOK: Washington State's 33 Endangered Species

There are endangered species everywhere in the world, but it can be hard to remember that some of them are close to home. Here are Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW)'s list of endangered species in the state, as last revised in February 2022.

Gallery Credit: Jaime Skelton

Categories: KPQ News

First Canada Lynx Kittens In Over 40 Years Born On Colville Reservation

LOOK: Washington State's 33 Endangered Species