An endangered Caucasian lynx was recently seen hunting during the day in the snow-covered land of Sarıkamış district in eastern Kars.
The Caucasian lynx, which is a rare sight and called the "ghost of the forest" because it hunts at night and rests during the day, was spotted hunting in the snow-covered scot pine forests by an Anadolu Agency (AA) team.
Sarıkamış, which offers a natural habitat for many wild animals, especially brown bears, lynxes, wolves and foxes, also hosts endangered Caucasian and Eurasian lynxes, and is described as "the home of wildlife in eastern Anatolia."
Lynxes are also tracked with satellite transmitters within the scope of the "Eastern Anatolia Wildlife Research and Protection" project carried out by KuzeyDoğa Association with the permission of the General Directorate of Nature Conservation and National Parks under the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
KuzeyDoğa Association Science Coordinator Emrah Çoban told AA: "The images of the Caucasian lynx taken by the AA team clearly show how they listen to the sounds under the snow and focus on prey. It is noted that lynxes feed mostly on rodents and rabbits in the east of Sivas and Ankara due to the low population of roe deer."
"The Caucasian lynx seen in the video is actually the best daytime video of its kind ever recorded. In this species, the Eurasian lynx is larger than the Caucasian lynx. As scientists, we have not been able to capture such an image in our studies so far. We extend our gratitude to the media team for such efforts."
