PROJECT

Lynxes in the project

Female lynx Frieda

The female lynx Frieda was born alongside her brother Juno on May 22, 2022, in the BUND Wildcat Village Hütscheroda.

In the autumn of 2023, she became the first lynx to move into the newly built coordination enclosure of the Wildcat Village, where lynxes are isolated and prepared for life in the wild with minimal human contact.

On May 15, Frieda became the first lynx of the project to be reintroduced and has since been roaming the Thuringian Forest.

Male lynx Viorel

In March 2024, our colleagues from ACDB captured the Romanian wild-born lynx Viorel in the Neamt region. The young male lynx, estimated to be about 3 to 5 years old, was named after the hunter in whose territory he was caught and who played a crucial role in tracking Viorel.

At the time of his capture, Viorel weighed an impressive 21.8 kg. After being transported to Thuringia, he spent several weeks in the acclimatization enclosure, like Frieda, before being released into the Thuringian Forest together with Frieda on May 15, 2024.

The Lynxes of the Wild Cat Village Hütscheroda

The lynx pair Kaja and Looki, living in the BUND Wildcat Village, have regularly had offspring in recent years. Since young lynxes leave their mothers and seek their territories in the wild at around 9-10 months of age, the Hütscheroda young are also separated from their parents.

Various lynx projects have reintroduced Many of these animals into the wild. The first was the male lynx Norik, released in 2022 in the Kalkalpen National Park in Austria. His sister Finja was released as part of the Baden-Württemberg lynx project in the Black Forest, while Frey now lives in the Chemnitz Zoo.

The 2022 litter consisted of two animals: Frieda now roams the Thuringian Forest, and Juno was released in the Ore Mountains in Saxony. The location for the 2023 offspring will be determined soon.