STA, 31 March 2020 - Following the successful integration of lynx Goru, another wild cat brought to Slovenia from Romania was released into the wild on Tuesday after a 3-week quarantine. Lynx Katalin spent those weeks in a temporary enclosure to get used to the new environment, said the Forestry Service.
The release was coordinated as part of the Life Lynx international project. The initiative strives to restore the regional lynx population, which is facing extinction due to inbreeding.
Quarantine measures are imposed to ensure that once the animals are released, they stay in the area and mingle with other local lynx.
So far, the project has brought four lynx to Slovenia and Croatia, namely Goru, Doru, Alojzija and Katalin. The target is to introduce 14 animals in total to diversify the population's gene pool in the Dinaric Alps and south-eastern Alps.
All the animals have been given telemetric collars and are thus tracked and monitored in their natural habitat.
The project has already led to the first case of a successful breeding with the local population - the first lynx to be introduced to Slovenia under the project, Goru, mated with Teja, a female from Slovenia's declining population of the wild cats, soon after he was released in May last year.
A female kitten named Mala was determined to be their descendant by genetic tests in January.
Meanwhile, Katalin is the second lynx of at least ten to be released in Slovenia in the next four years.
