Rare lynx captured on video in Michigan’s Thumb region

LEXINGTON, MI — A family in Michigan’s Thumb region captured a rare lynx on video as it traveled through their property.

Monique Touchette-Soper said the video was taken about 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 16, on her family’s 25-acre wooded property in Lexington, located in eastern Sanilac County along Lake Huron.

“We were shocked to see the lynx, because we’ve never seen one around before,” Soper said, adding that her family mostly sees deer on the property.

Adam Bump, a furbearer specialist with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, reviewed the video and determined that the cat was a lynx.

Bump hopes to discuss the video with Soper to officially verify the location of where it was shot.

“It is uncommon in Michigan and very uncommon in the Lower Peninsula,” Bump said. “To have one down in that portion of the state is pretty rare.”

Bump said that there is a small population of bobcats in Lower Michigan, but he has not heard of any lynx sightings before.

“The difference between the species is pretty subtle,” Bump said.

Lynx tend to have longer legs and larger feet. While both have ear tufts, those tufts are longer on a lynx, Bump said. Both also have short black tails. However, bobcats have white markings on the underside of the tail.

Lynx are a protected species in Michigan, Bump said.

Bump said that he is not aware of any dangerous interactions that the cats have had with humans.

“The risk to people is almost zero,” Bump said.

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