Female lynx Leonie now at home in the wildlife enclosure
The new arrival arrived at the Chemnitz game reserve today. The journey from the Bavarian Forest National Park went without a hitch. The female lynx Leonie is very alert and curious and immediately explored her entire enclosure.
The female from a litter in 2015 will initially be kept in the quarantine enclosure for at least six weeks. The animals (male and female) need this time to get to know each other. They have visual contact and gradually get used to each other. In addition, the animal's health can be monitored in a manageable individual enclosure. Food intake can also be better controlled.
"At our request, the kitten was already vaccinated and wormed under anaesthetic during loading. We also requested a blood sample so that we, as a scientific institution, have new values for our blood database for zoo animals," says Dr Peggy Riedel, vet and curator at Chemnitz Zoo.
The male lynx Simon, who has been living in the wildlife enclosure since 2007, is 13 years old. With his previous partner, who died in August 2016 at the age of 16, there were offspring almost every year, each of which was placed in other zoos. There will also be offspring with the new female in the future. She will then also be placed with other institutions via a studbook keeper.
Dr Peggy Riedel: "However, it may take until next year before Leonie gives birth, as lynx females only become sexually mature at 21 months."
There are four species of lynx worldwide. The Carpathian lynx - one of eleven subspecies of the Eurasian lynx - is kept at the Oberrabenstein game reserve. Around 100 years ago, it was almost completely wiped out by hunting. Today, thanks to various reintroduction projects, there are small populations of lynx in Germany again.
