Re-Introduction and Present Status of the Lynx (Lynx Lynx) in Switzerland

HJvrix,(n.s.) 10 (1) (1998): 17-30 RE-INTRODUCTION AND PRESENT STATUS OF THE LYNX (LYNX LYNX) IN SWITZERLAND URS BREITENMOSER, CHRISTINEBREITENMOSER -WURSTEN AND SIMONCAPT SwYS Lyzs Project, ~Tllettengiissli4, CH-3074 Muri, Switzerland ABSTRACT - A lynx recovery programme started in Switzerland in 1970. From 1970-76. at least 14 lynx were translocated from the Carpathian Mountains into the Swiss Alps. Another re-introduction took place in the Jura Mountains, but no corridors exist as a connection between these two populations in Switzerland. The devclopmcnt of the populations was not monitored at first. In 1980 systematic research was initiated. which gradually cvolved into the'SM,iss Lynx Projwl. Not all releases were successful, but the re-introduction in the northcm and western Alps founded a population that covered an area of some 4000 kin' in 1981. In the wcstem Swiss Alps. lynx moved into Italian and French territory. Towards the eastern Swiss Alps. the expansion was slower and ceased about ten years ago. During the last five years. there even has been a reduction of the arca occupied. Today, the population covers an area ol about 10000 kin2 in the Swiss Alps, of which 50% is suitablc lynx habitat. Based on sizc and overlap of average home ranges of radio-tagged lynx. the population was cstimat- ed to include soinc SO adult residents. At present, the growth rate of the population appears to bc too low to allow a further expansion in range. It is uncertain whether recruitment is sufficient to com- pensate for the high losses among resident adults induced by traffic accidents and illegal killing Kq-Mwds: Lym lyn.~,re -introduction, status. monitoring, depredation, mortality, Switzerland, Alps INTRODUCTION west (Hell 196l)-and rumours about lynx migrating through the Alps (Schrnidt 1960) The lynx population of Switzerland was ex- directed wider attention to this large felinc. terminated during the 18th and 19th cen- In 1962. lynx and brown bear were given le- turies. This was a period when Switzerland gal protection in Switzerland. As a result, faced ecological disaster: Many of the plans of re-introducing the lynx were seri- forests wcrc destroyed or in an alarming ously discussed. and studies on the decline state, the wild ungulate species were eradi- of the species in Switzerland creatcd further cated (CPI.I,USelaplius. Caprvolrrs mapeo- support (Schauenberg 1969, Eiberle 1972). lus, Cqwa ihe.r, and S14s so-ofu) or heavily A resolution of the Swiss federal govern- reduced (Ricpicupra rupiqv-U).Along with ment approved the return of this large cat in the lynx, predators such as the wolf (Canis 1967, and Switzerland was the first country 1Lrpus). the brown bear (Ursus mctos), and to officially re-introducc the lynx into the even the scavenging bearded vulture (Gy- Alps in the early 1970s. This re-introduction petus harhntus) disappeared. Since the end was started as a contribution to the First Eu- of the 19th century. forests have rcgcncral- ropean Nature Conservation Year in 1970 efl, and during thc firs1 half of the 20th cen- (Lienert 1980). tury, the ungulate populations recovered The lynx population in the Swiss Alps is, quickly. This improvement inspired the idea apart from the Slovenian one. the most es- of also bringing back large predators. In the tablished of the re-founded populations, and late 1950s, reports of the expansion of the is often cited as a rare example of a suc- Carpathian lynx population towards the cessful re-introduction of a large predator 18 U. Breitenmoser et a1 (Yalden 1993). In recent years? however, Swiss Alps. A similar study was carried out the expansion of the population has halted, for the Jura Mountains (350 lynx observa- and a decrease in the number of observations from 1972-87; Breitenmoser and Baet- tions in the former centre of the population tig 1992). Capt (1995) resumed this survey indicates that the population may not be as in 1992 by distributing lynx-observation viable as generally assumed. In fact, there forms to potential observers (mainly game are two lynx populations in Switzerland, wardens) in all lynx areas of Switzerland. one in the Alps and one in the Jura Moun- Fifty-thrcc direct or indirect observations tains in north-western Switzerland. In this (kills, tracks) were reported for the year report, we will focus on the Alpine popula- 1992 alone. As this method did not allow tion. The data presented and the maps discrimination between ;no report’ and ‘no shown will, however, include both popula- observation’, simplified annual question- tions, because they may have merged in naires have been sent out to all state game France (Stahl and Vandel 1998). Further- wardens and hunters’ associations since more, some of our more general conclu- 1993, in order to obtain a systematic moni- sions are based on observations from the toring of the Swiss lynx populations (Capt Jura population, as in recent years field 1995). work has only been carried out in the Jura Thrcc more sources of information on the Mountains. presence of lynx are available: (1) records of livestock killed by lynx (Appendix I), (2) reports on lynx killed or found dead MONITORINGAND DATA AVAILABLE (Appendix 11). and (3) lynx trapped alive The releases of lynx in Switzerland were not for the purpose of equipping them with ra- coordinated, and there was no research or dio-collars. All domestic animals clearly monitoring programme accompanying the killed by lynx are compensated for. Up to re-introduction. None of the lynx set free in 1988, this reimbursement was paid by the Switzerland were radio-tagged. On the con- Swiss Leugue for the Protection of Nature trary, the releases were kept secret and some (SBN), and subscqucntly by the federal and official actions were even denied in public the cantonal governments. As a loss will for somc time. Consequently, there was no only be compensated for if approved by a systematic collection of observations in the qualified state game warden. these records earliest phase of re-colonization, with the are mostly an objective proof of lynx pres- exception of the examination of presumed ence, though both errors and even decep- lynx kills (Klingler and Breitenmoser 1983). tion have occurred. To instruct game war- A scientific prograinme started only in dens how to recognize lynx kills, special 1980, when problems of predation on live- courses were organized, and a brochure stock arose. Since then. an on-going rc- (Breitenmoser and Denzler 1989) and an search and monitoring prograinine has educational video (Breitenmoser et al. evolved into what we now call the Svtiss 1989) were produced. Data of lynx preda- Lyiix Project. tion on livestock have been compiled by The first study reconstructed the expansion Breitenmoser (1988), Blankenhorn et al. of the lynx population in the northern Swiss (1990), and Capt et al. (1993). The best cv- Alps, using 535 observations from the years idencc of lynx presence is a lynx found 1971-81 that were gathered from annual re- dead. The Svtiss Ljns Project maintains a ports of state game wardens as well as from data base of all known carcasses of lynx questionnaires (Breitenmoscr 1983). Haller from the two Swiss populations. Until au- ( 1992) completed the review for the central tumn 199.5. this file contained 103 records. Status of the lynx in Swikerland 19 A total of 37 lynx were caught and fitted is some uncertainty about the exact num- with radio-collars for the research projects bers and origin of the lynx set free in carried out in the northern Alps from 1983- Switzerland, because all releases were 88 (Haller and Breitenmoser 1986. Breit- made clandestinely and private actions took enmoser and Haller 1993), in the central place apart from the officially authorized Alps from 1986-89 (Haller 1992) and in operations. There was some legal uncer- the Jura Mts from 1988 to the present (Bre- tainty about the translocation of wildlife in itenmoser et al. 1993). These field studies those years. The lynx for the official. and are the main source ol' information on the probably for most of the unauthorized, land tenure system and the population dy- translocations came from the autochthonous namics of the lynx in Switzerland. population of the Slovakian Carpathian Mountains. The animals were provided by the Ostrava Zoo, who got them from hunters who captured the lynx in the wild. ORIGIN OF THE POPULKI'IONS There is, however, no proof that all the lynx The information available on the re-intro- released in Switzerland wcre really wild- duction in Switzerland has been reviewed born animals, becausc the source of some by Brcitenmoser (1983) and Haller (1992) of thc unofficially released animals is not for the Alps, by Breitenmoser and Baettig known. All lynx for the official transloca- ( 1992) for the Jura Mountains, and summa- tions were transferred to Switzerland rized by Breitenmoser and Breitenmoser- through the Base1 Zoo. where they spent Wursten (1990). At least 14 lynx were re- one month in quarantine. The animals were leased in five different places in the Swiss then brought to the site of release and were Alps, 8-10 lynx in the Jura Mts, and 3 lynx set free immediately. None of thc animals in the Swiss Plains (Table I, Fig. 1). There released was fitted with a radio-collar, and Table 1. Releascs of lynx in Switzerland. Cantons: BE: Berne: GR: Grisons: IlJ: Lucerne; NE: Neu- chLel; OW: Obwald; VD: Vaud; VS: Valais. # Lynx M/F: Number of lynx (males / females) released. Fig. I: sites of relcascs as shown in Figure 1. Notes in italic indicate unconfirmed releases. Ye'ir Site Cant on Rcgioii Fig1 # Lynx Origin Type uf re- M/F introduction 1971 Grosscs Mclchtal ow Alps 1 1/1 Ostrava official 1972 Klcinschlierental ow .4lpa 2 1/1 Ostrava official 1972 !Morrtirr- BE Jiiia b I'I 2 itriolfic.ia1 I Y72 Pilatus LU Alps 2 lil Ostrava unofficial 1972 Engadin GR Alps 3 l/l Omava unofficial 1973 Pilatus LU Alps 2 iii Ostrava unofficial I974 Crew-du-Van NE Jura 6 lil O\trava official 1974 \'alldr dr.

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