Good news on Lynx Day

11.06.2025

On Lynx Day on 11 June, there is good news for species conservation: the lynx looks forward to a promising future in Thuringia. Various developments show that the shy forest dweller is increasingly gaining a foothold in the state – thanks to successful reintroductions as part of the ‘Lynx Thuringia – Networking Europe’s Lynx’ project and immigration from Bavaria and Lower Saxony.

However, this return of the lynx is not an automatic effect of improved habitats, but the result of many years of coordinated reintroduction measures. Without projects such as those in the Harz Mountains or now in the Thuringian Forest, the lynx would be extinct in Germany today.

Our observations indicate that some animals have already established permanent territories – an encouraging sign for the establishment of a new population.

A further release is planned for late summer 2025.

Eichsfeld: Breeding success and detection record
A hopeful propagation trend can also be observed in other parts of Thuringia – for example in Eichsfeld. Between December 2024 and March 2025, photo traps provided 65 lynx records there. According to current estimates, there are currently at least four adult lynx living in the area bordering Lower Saxony. It is particularly pleasing that two females reproduced in Eichsfeld for the first time last year – this is crucial for the long-term establishment of a stable population.

Southern Thuringia: Small lynx population
A small lynx population is also establishing itself in southern Thuringia in the Thuringian-Bavarian border region – a success of Bavarian reintroductions, especially of orphaned young animals, as well as immigration from the Harz Mountains. Our joint photo trap monitoring with forest owners and hunters currently documents at least four different lynxes. In summer 2024, a female lynx with cubs was observed for the first time in the Thuringian Forest.

Thuringia is becoming a bridge for the lynx
The latest developments clearly show that Thuringia is becoming an important link for a networked Central European lynx population. Whether through targeted reintroduction, natural reproduction or immigration. On Lynx Day 2025, there is therefore every reason to be confident.