[Closed] SNH and beavers

Is there a difference between the Lynx Project and Lynx UK?

The one being referred to is the Lynx UK Trust. I am not aware of any formally named "Lynx Project" in the UK.

Mind you, if lynx were reintroduced on the sly

Which is what I suspect will happen in the same way people got frustrated about the roadblocks put in the way of reintroducing beavers. Since despite TJAgain claims the risk to sheep is minimal since they are woodland animals and sheep, at least in this county, dont tend to be. If the sheep are kept away from woodland the numbers lost are low. The only country which reports high losses is Norway which is unusual since the sheep do move into the woodland. Of course there is also a good financial reason to claim predation.

Mind you, if lynx were reintroduced on the sly, how would anyone know given how secretive they’re meant to be?

The forests would begin to smell like a school disco.

@stevious 😀 I’m fairly sure lynxes don’t smell of Lynx Africa though…

TJAgain claims the risk to sheep is minimal since they are woodland animals and sheep, at least in this county,

Any risk needs to be mitigated and the sheep farmers I know have many of their fields adjacent to woodland and breed rare breeds small scale. Losing one ewe would be very damaging to them.

I find it hard to believe that Lynx would go after roe deer in preference to sheep

@tjagain I thought they’d be more likely to go after lambs than a full-grown sheep?

I find it hard to believe that Lynx would go after roe deer in preference to sheep

That's what all the research from Norway shows. In areas with high numbers of roe deer, hardly any sheep are predated.
There are way more roe deer throughout Scotland than in Norway.
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0079261

They were trying cattle in a section of Abernethy Forest last year. That's the sort of environment they would have fed in before we got into high-density meat production. I don't know how that went. I must contact them.

@scotroutes I read a suggestions somewhere (possibly in the Knepp book) that cattle and horses were less damaging than sheep, not sure why that should be though? As I understand it the usual livestock in the Highlands were small black cows pre-clearances.