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Blynx
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Suborder: Feliformia
Family: Felidae
Subfamily: Felinae
Genus: Lynx
Species:
L. rufus × L. canadensis

A blynx is the hybrid offspring of a bobcat and a Canada lynx, two closely related species in the genus Lynx.

Reported bobcat/lynx hybrids

The first evidence of a blynx, based on genetic analysis, was reported from Minnesota.[1]

In August 2003, biologists in Maine captured a blynx and deemed it a sterile fluke of nature.[2] They released it with a tracking collar to observe its behavior; the collar was placed too tightly, however, and the blynx died of starvation.[2]

Soon after, another reported blynx was seen in Michigan, this one a female with a litter of kittens.[2] This disproved the theory that the blynx was a sterile hybrid like the mule.[2] Another female blynx gave birth in summer 2003 in Maine after being trapped that winter.[1]

Appearance

A blynx is a medium-sized cat, larger than a domestic cat, with ears that lean back and are black at the feathery tips (like its Canada lynx parent). The face more closely resembles that of its bobcat parent, and it may or may not have spots. Like both parents, it has a very short tail, if it has one at all.

References

  1. ^ a b "Lynx-bobcat hybridization". Canada Lynx of the Great Lakes Region. University of Minnesota Duluth. 2005. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d Jung, Jim (2003). "Blynx, the animal". WHTC Nature Almanac. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
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