The Lynx went EXTINCT - here’s how it could return

Lynx have long been absent from Scottish landscapes, but with the rise of rewilding, momentum is growing for their return. But is there enough space, enough habitat and prey? What would it mean for Scotlands ecology and for its people? In this video we explore these ideas, interviewing key stakeholders to find how the Lynx can return to Scotland.

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⏱️TIMESTAMPS⏱️
0:00 Intro
0:55 History in Scotland
1:59 Habitat Suitability
2:47 Impact to Deer
04:03 Ecological Impacts
05:44 Lynx & People
10:11 Benefits

[MoeTavern]

We have Lynx in the back forest here in Germany and never heard of them being a problem there. It seems logical for them to have a positive impact in Scotland, there need to be predators for a balanced nature ☯️

[HoseTheBeast]

In Finland we have an estimated 2065-2170 over 1 year old Lynx. They live all over the country you can run into one anywhere in Finland. But running into one is almost a once in a lifetime kinda legendary/mythical thing. They really don’t want anything to do with humans and very rarely let a human see them.

[jason]

I'm Scottish and from your channel I have learned so much so far, I am very grateful for people like yourself helping the environment out and restoring nature to Scotland!

[AlexP-yg]

There is a theory that they died out in Scotland in the 16th century. If I remember correctly Conrad Gessner received a letter from Bonarus of Balice, in which it says "the finest Lynx skins come from Sweden and Scotland". I personally would love to see them back, my sister lives near Trondheim and they get them up there and the farmers don't seem to object

[ImRY]

Not just Scotland rewinding needs to happen in England and wales as well.

[BBD]

We almost lost the Iberian lynx in Portugal but Portuguese and Spanish people working together managed to save them ❤️

[PaulCoxC]

I'd love to see these animals back, majestic creature and important ecosystem component, but one of the very definitions of community involvement needed

[SionTJobbins]

The Welsh poem actually dates from about the 6-7th century but was written down in the middle ages. The poem, Pais Dinogad, is part of a nursery rhyme a mother sang to her child about the child's father going out hunting in what is today northern England (Yorkshire/Cumbria) at what was, at the time, Welsh speaking territory and is called in Welsh, Yr Hen Ogledd (The Old North). This was Welsh-speaking (or rather Brythonic speaking, ancient Welsh, as Latin is to Italian) until the Welsh were pushed west (or succumbed) to the English (Anglo-Saxons) into Wales, Cumbria for a short while (hence the word Cumbria is cognate with the Welsh word for Wales, Cymru, which means 'com-patriots') and Cornwall. But great to see ancient Welsh poetry used to verify the nature of Britain. Diolch!

[walatalalaw]

Here in Switzerland the Lynx is a touchy subject because of the attacks on herds, especially sheep. They’re considered a pest, even though we also have a massive deer overpopulation issue in some areas where lynx and wolf populations are low (usually farming areas). The question of how to help farmers live side by side with these predators (ex: compensate losses, subsidise fencing equipement or something) is central. Usually the competition between farmers and lynx is the reason why they went extinct in the first place.

[LeaveCurious]

The prospect of a Lynx reintroduction to Scotland is very exciting, but one that needs a balance appraoch. Great work from everyone invovled to create this video, even myself ;) looking forward to a solid year of creating rewilding videos!

[waldojpg]

It would be my absolute dream to spot one of these in the wild.

Hope they make a return in many places and stay around for long. The benefits of a more healthy and diverse ecosystem is much bigger as a whole than the potential loss of sheep could ever be

[matthewdavies]

A really informative and balanced video. I would love to see lynx back in my lifetime.

[almano]

In the region where I live (Harz Nationalpark Germany) they reintroduced lynx into the the nature and it worked pretty well. The ecosystem got more diverse, cause also there is no human intervention in the park. Also they pay you money if a lynx kills your animals.

[IbexWatcher]

I'd be interested to see public opinion polls in Scotland over time to see if interest in the reintroduction of lynx (and other species) has increased

[CollieMakes]

Watched this video an hour ago, then took my dog into the woods for a long walk. Suddenly there is an actual lynx (I saw the ears and tail clearly) five metres away. They are extremely rare where I live as well. I've never seen one before.

[TheSageThrasher]

Restoring the "landscape of fear" to keep deer from overgrazing along stream beds could potentially help the Scottish salmon populations, too.

[ME-hmtc]

People always like to use places such as the US, Canada or mainland Europe when talking about people living alongside animals. I'm going to give my own point of view, as someone who's from a part of the world that's very often neglected in any sort discussion: South America.

In my country of Brazil, we also have predators, and quite a lot of them. Jaguars, pumas, maned wolves, jaguarundi, bush dogs, amazonian dogs, giant otters, tayras, ocelots, margays, tons of venomous snakes, caiman, piranha, pirarucu, river dolphins, harpy eagles, caracaras, falcons, etc. Despite the idea that Brazil is a jungle where nobody lives except indigenous tribes, we are a very urbanised nation. The opportunities for human-wildlife interaction is huge, and is very common.

The vast majority of Brazilians have a profound respect for our wildlife and biodiversity, which means the fear of wildlife is at a minimum. It is a big source of pride that we are the most biodiverse nation on earth.

Anyway, even in big cities such as Sao Paulo, Recife, Salvador, Brasilia and Manaus you can easily stumble across larger animals. It's not nearly as bad as everyone thinks it is. Most of the time, if you leave them alone then they'll leave you alone. Even in rural areas where farmers regularly have conflicts with big cats, most farmers are learning to better manage their livestock in order to prevent losses.

[enricoschmidt]

The big issue with rewilding here in Germany still seem to be the small areas of forests not being conntected to each other. Too many streets, too less corridors. That’s why most of the lynx are kind of stuck in the „Harz“ - bigger forest in the center of Germany.

Never been to Scotland - but are there 1. enough forests and 2. enough interconnected ones so that this whole thing makes sense and not ends up like in Germany where most of the lynx are killed by cars?

[Wolven]

I put all my pocket money into a project trying to reintroduce lynx when I was 9 (now nearing 18). Since then I have heard nothing until recently when there was a newsletter sent out thanking everyone for their contributions and that further talks have finally started. Glad to see someone who may actually get the job done is looking at the same thing!

[DuartedeZ]

Excited about the prospect of the return of this charismatic species but I think the whole process needs to be very well planed and very inclusive of those who are concerned about the consequences.