Habitat loss, a multi-facetted issue
The species is threatened by the removal of its prey base and habitat destruction. Lynx may also suffer from illegal hunting, although there is no sufficient information to quantify the significance of this threat.
Habitat loss is a concern for the population in the Balkans, in Turkey and the Caucasus region, and in parts of Central Asia. This problem includes the loss of the prey base, which may be the most important factor. Reduction of forests, destruction of wild prey, and the increase of livestock (with resulting attacks on livestock by lynx, and increased persecution of the species) are so strongly interrelated that they are most often impossible to separate.Find out more about habitat loss