Species comparison
Canada Lynx vs Eurasian Lynx
A side-by-side look at Lynx canadensis and Lynx lynx across body measurements, habitat, diet, behaviour and conservation status.
At a glance
- The eurasian lynx averages about 2 times the body mass of the canada lynx.
- Both species use boreal forest and temperate forest.
- Their ranges do not overlap: Canada Lynx lives in North America, Eurasian Lynx in Europe and Asia.
- Both are currently listed as Least Concern on the Red List.
Identification
How each species is named and classified.
Canada Lynx
Lynx canadensis
Eurasian Lynx
Lynx lynx
Canada Lynx
Lynx
Eurasian Lynx
Lynx
Canada Lynx
Lynx lineage
Eurasian Lynx
Lynx lineage
Canada Lynx
Medium-sized cats
Eurasian Lynx
Medium-sized cats
Canada Lynx
North American lynx
Eurasian Lynx
Northern lynx, Siberian lynx
Body and movement
Published field measurements for adults. Ranges cover both sexes unless noted.
Canada Lynx
2 ft 6 in – 3 ft 6 in (76–107 cm)
Eurasian Lynx
2 ft 6 in – 4 ft 3 in (76–130 cm) Longer
Canada Lynx
2 in – 5 in (5–13 cm)
Eurasian Lynx
4 in – 10 in (11–25 cm) Longer
Canada Lynx
19 in – 22 in (48–56 cm)
Eurasian Lynx
24 in – 2 ft 6 in (60–75 cm) Taller
Canada Lynx
11–37 lb (5–17 kg)
Most adults weigh 8–11 kg; males average about a quarter heavier than females.
Eurasian Lynx
29–66 lb (13–30 kg) Heavier
Siberian animals are the largest; a few males exceed 30 kg.
Canada Lynx
Not reliably measured
Not reliably measured; the species relies on ambush in deep snow rather than speed.
Eurasian Lynx
Not reliably measured
Not reliably measured; the species hunts by stalking, not pursuit.
Life span
Typical adult longevity. Figures for managed care come from zoo and sanctuary records.
Canada Lynx
10–14 years
Eurasian Lynx
10–17 years Longer
Canada Lynx
16–20 years
Eurasian Lynx
20–24 years Longer
Habitat and range
Where each species lives and the conditions it tolerates.
Canada Lynx
boreal forest, temperate forest, montane forest
Dense spruce and fir forest with thick understorey that supports hares, plus deep, persistent winter snow that gives the lynx its competitive advantage.
Eurasian Lynx
temperate forest, boreal forest, montane forest, rocky alpine
Forested landscapes with dense understorey and low human disturbance, from lowland woodland to alpine forest edge above 12,000 feet in Central Asia.
Canada Lynx
North America
Across Canada and Alaska, extending south into the northern Rockies, the Great Lakes states, northern New England and Washington State.
Eurasian Lynx
Europe, Asia
Scandinavia, the Baltic states, the Carpathians, the Balkans, the Alps, and across Russia, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Mongolia, China and the Himalaya.
Diet and behaviour
Feeding ecology, social organisation and hunting technique.
Canada Lynx
hares, small mammals, birds
Snowshoe hare dominates and can exceed three-quarters of the diet; red squirrels, grouse, voles and carrion fill the gap during hare lows.
Eurasian Lynx
medium ungulates, hares, small mammals, birds
Roe deer and chamois dominate in Europe; hares, marmots, musk deer and gamebirds are more important in Asia.
Canada Lynx
Solitary
Adults maintain separate ranges that expand dramatically when hare numbers crash, when animals may disperse hundreds of miles.
Eurasian Lynx
Solitary and territorial
Home ranges are very large, and males overlap several females. Adults are exceptionally difficult to observe even where they are common.
Canada Lynx
Nocturnal and crepuscular
Hunting concentrates at night and around dusk, matching the activity of snowshoe hares.
Eurasian Lynx
Nocturnal and crepuscular
Chiefly active from dusk to dawn, resting by day in rock crevices, root plates or dense thickets.
Canada Lynx
Ambush along hare runways
The lynx waits beside well-used trails in dense cover, or makes a short stalk followed by a rush of a few bounds.
Eurasian Lynx
Patient stalk followed by a short charge
The lynx tracks or waits near deer trails and closes to within a few bounds before attacking the throat; large kills are cached and revisited.
Canada Lynx
Strong
Climbs readily to rest and to escape larger carnivores, though it hunts on the ground.
Eurasian Lynx
Strong
A confident climber that uses trees for resting and for escape from wolves.
Canada Lynx
Capable
Swims across lakes and rivers during dispersal.
Eurasian Lynx
Capable
Crosses rivers when necessary but shows no preference for water.
Conservation
Red List category, population direction and the pressures documented for each species.
Canada Lynx
LC — Least Concern
Assessed 2016
Eurasian Lynx
LC — Least Concern
Assessed 2015
Canada Lynx
Stable
Eurasian Lynx
Stable
Canada Lynx
Loss of boreal forest connectivity, Shorter and shallower snow seasons, Competition from bobcats moving north, Incidental trapping, Road development
Secure across the boreal core of its range. Southern populations in the contiguous United States are far more fragile and are federally protected there.
Eurasian Lynx
Illegal killing, Habitat fragmentation by infrastructure, Prey depletion in parts of Asia, Conflict with livestock and game interests, Isolation of reintroduced nuclei
Widespread and recovering in parts of Europe thanks to reintroduction and legal protection, but the Balkan lynx survives as a tiny isolated population and remains critically threatened.
Notable traits
Details that do not fit neatly into a measurement table.
Canada Lynx
- Paw loading — body weight divided by foot area — is among the lowest of any cat, which is what allows travel on soft snow.
- The population cycle of lynx and snowshoe hare is one of the classic examples of predator-prey dynamics in ecology.
- Ear tufts are thought to improve hearing sensitivity as well as serving as visual signals.
Eurasian Lynx
- Reintroduction projects re-established the species in Switzerland, Slovenia, Austria and France after regional extinction.
- It is the only lynx for which deer form the main prey base across much of the range.
- Winter tracking in snow remains one of the standard monitoring methods across northern Europe.
Sources used for this comparison
- IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Global assessment categories, population trends and documented threats.
- IUCN SSC Cat Specialist Group Species accounts, distribution notes and Cat News reporting for every wild felid.
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Federal listing status and recovery planning for cats occurring in the United States.
- U.S. National Park Service Long-running monitoring of North American carnivores inside protected areas.
- Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology Reviewed species accounts with morphometric ranges and reproductive data.
- World Wildlife Fund Range descriptions, threat summaries and conservation programme reporting.
- National Geographic — Animals General natural-history reference for behaviour, range and ecology.