Rare Black Canada Lynx Captured on Video for the First Time

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Seeing a Canada lynx in the wild can be exciting as these solitary animals are stealthy and often elusive. Their dense fur coats not only keep them warm but also blend seamlessly into snowy environments, making them even harder to spot. However, this video shows something quite unusual: a shockingly rare and never-before-seen black Canada lynx!

Where Do Canada Lynx Live?

Lynx are a type of wild cat consisting of four different species that live in North America and Eurasia. The Canada (or Canadian) lynx, in particular, has a medium-sized body. It grows 19 to 22 inches tall and weighs 11 to 37 pounds. These unique wild cats have very dense fur and large paws that act like built-in snowshoes, distributing their weight and keeping them aloft on top of the snow. However, the easiest way to recognize a lynx is by the long black tufts on the tips of their pointy, triangular ears.

Like their name, Canada lynx primarily lives in Canada’s boreal forest region and most of Alaska. Occasionally, they are also spotted in the northern parts of states like Washington, Montana, Minnesota, and Maine. Canada lynx mainly eat snowshoe hares and are found where hare populations are plentiful.

How Rare Is a Black Canada Lynx?

Canada lynx typically have solid coloring with occasional grizzled patterns or dark spots. Most are yellowish- or reddish-brown in summer and silverish-gray in winter. However, a completely black lynx is unheard of. Additionally, there is not much color variation in Canada lynx coats, making this discovery even more remarkable.

Thomas Jung, a researcher from the University of Alberta, Canada, was the first to spot and record such a rare creature. Jung reported his findings in 2022, explaining that the cat’s coat was black with white-gray hairs interspersed throughout, especially around the face, nose, and back. While we might suspect it was simply a trick of the light or even mud, several lynx experts have reviewed the footage and confirmed that this was indeed a genuine black lynx.

Why Is This Canada Lynx Black?

The video was recorded in a rural area near Whitehorse, Yukon. A lynx prowling through an area like this isn’t super rare, but a black lynx is a completely different story.

The lynx’s black coat in the video above is due to melanism. This genetic abnormality causes the body to produce too much melanin, a natural dark pigment. Excess melanin causes darker coloring in skin, hair, feathers, or fur.

While melanism is rare in Canada lynxes, there have been occasional reports, though they are not well-documented. The Canada lynx’s typical coat colors help it to blend into its snowy environment. So, a solid black coat would likely be “maladaptive” and make it harder for one of these wild cats to hide.