What we know about lynx sightings in Scotland
Police are searching for answers after four of the animals were captured, amid speculation 'rogue rewilding' could be to blame for their release.
One of the illegally-released lynx captured in the Highlands has died, those caring for the animals have said.
The big cat was one of a second pair to be captured near the Dell of Killiehuntly on Friday.
Police are searching for answers after the four animals were captured in the area in recent days, amid speculation “rogue rewilding” could be to blame for their release.
The lynx were baited into humane traps before being taken to the Highland Wildlife Park.
But Dr Helen Senn, head of conservation at the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS), said on Saturday: “After extensive efforts to capture these animals safely and humanely, we were very sad to discover that one of them has died overnight."
She added it "serves to further demonstrate the folly of abandoning these amazing animals in the wild".
The surviving lynx from the latest pair is now being taken to Edinburgh Zoo to join the others for a period of quarantine.
On Saturday, The Scotsman reported some conservationists believe a “frustrated activist” who wants to see the lynx returned to Scotland may be responsible for the release.
And RZSS chief executive David Field told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Sadly there are rogue rewilders out there who bypass all the established international best practice and bypass all professional organisations which are discussing lynx coming back to Scotland.
“They are impatient and then proceed in a way which is this rebellious rogue rewilding. That’s really sad and that’s a real, real risk.”
But he stressed it could also simply be the abandonment of animals which someone no longer wished to look after.
Willie Anderson, deputy team leader of the Cairngorm Mountain Rescue Team, came within 60 yards of the first pair of lynx earlier this week and told the Daily Record: "They had definitely been illegally released because they were 100 yards from a pile of straw bedding that contained dead chicks and interestingly porcupine quills - the bedding was peppered with porcupine quills."
Are lynx dangerous?
No, Lynx to Scotland says. People are "much more likely to be attacked by a dog, a cow, or even a deer".
The group explains: "When lynx detect people, their first instinct is to move away. The very few cases where lynx have injured humans have all been incidents with wounded, captive or rabid lynx."
How big are they?
According to the Scottish Wildlife Trust, lynx are the third largest predator in Europe, after the brown bear and the wolf.
Their length is about one metre and they can weigh up to 27kg.
Are they native to Scotland?
They were native to Britain but driven to extinction 500 to 1,000 years ago by hunting and habitat loss.
Like many wild species, lynx are returning across Europe following changes to hunting laws and attitudes to predators. But because Britain is an island, they would have to be reintroduced here.
Supporters of its reintroduction say it would have ecological benefits such as reducing deer numbers, but farmers are nervous it could prey on sheep. Efforts to reintroduce it have so far faltered.
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