Canada Lynx - Reproduction and Life Cycle

Reproduction and Life Cycle

The breeding season in Canada lynx lasts only for a month, ranging from March to May, depending on the local climate. Females come into oestrus only once during this period, lasting for three to five days. The female attracts a mate by leaving some of her urine where the male has marked his territory, and by repeated calling. Mating can occur six times in one hour. The female lynx will only mate with one male each season, but the male may mate with multiple females.

Gestation lasts around 64 days, so that the young are born in May or early June. Before birth, the female prepares a maternal den, usually in very thick brush, and typically inside thickets of shrubs or trees or woody debris. The dens are generally situated mid-slope and face south or southwest.

Litters contain from one to eight cubs, and tend to be much larger when prey is abundant. This suggests a greater degree of reproductive flexibility than in other cats, and females often do not mate at all when prey is scarce. When cubs are born in lean years, however, infant mortality may be as high as 95%.

Canada lynx cubs weigh from 175 to 235 g (6.2 to 8.3 oz) at birth, and initially have greyish buff fur with black markings. They are blind and helpless for the first fourteen days, and weaned at twelve weeks. When their eyes open, they are a bright blue color, but as they mature, the eyes become a brown-hazel color. The mother brings the food to her cubs and allows them to play with it before eating it, thus training their hunting skills.

Cubs leave the den after about five weeks, and begin hunting at between seven and nine months of age. They leave the mother at around ten months, as the next breeding season begins, but do not reach the full adult size until around two years old. Female reach sexual maturity at ten months, although they often delay breeding for another year, while males reach maturity at two or three years. Canada lynx have been reported to live for up to fourteen years in captivity, although the lifespan is likely much shorter in the wild.