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Introduction
There are four species of large carnivores that live in Macedonia: brown bear, wolf, jackal and lynx. Lynx is our national symbol and treasure. They are 80-105 cm long, 80 cm high and weigh 14-36 kg. Lynx fur is generally black-spotted, but there are also spotless representatives. The most characteristic detail are the ruffs of hair, which can be 4 cm long.
Morphometric investigations on 29 lynx specimens from the Balkan Peninsula proved that several characteristics distinguish the Balkan population from nominal and Carpathian forms. Thus, a separate lynx subspecies was described – Lynx lynx martinoi – Balkan lynx (Miric 1981). Compared to other representatives of the species, the Balkan lynx is smaller; their fur is more intensive colored than the fur of Scandinavian lynx, but less colored then the fur of Carpathian lynx and with higher numbers of spotless representatives.
Balkan lynx is distributed through the eastern and northern parts of Albania, western part of Macedonia, southern part of Kosovo and Monte Negro. The main distribution area is along the mountain ranges shared by Macedonia and Albania. The most recent data indicates that the Balkan lynx population consists of less than 100 mature individuals in the whole distribution area in the south-western Balkans, and that they are the most threatened population of Lynx lynx in their entire Euro-Asiatic range.
 

Distribution, population size and population trend

In the past, lynx was distributed in the whole territory of the western and southern parts of Macedonia, as well as some eastern mountains.

picture 1. Distribution of lynx population in Macedonia in the past

With worsening living conditions, lynx totally disappeared from the eastern parts of Macedonia. Currently, the population can be only found in the dense forests and unreached areas in western Macedonia. The last records of lynx in eastern Macedonia are from 1924 (Miric 1977) on Plackovica mountain. Regarding population size, there are numerous data which do not provide any consistent conclusion. According to Miric (1974), there were 120 specimens in the territory of the Macedonia. Micevski (1997) claims that 54 specimens can be found, but only in the Radika gorge. Hristovski and Angelovski confirm that a total of 35 specimens can be found within the whole territory. In 2002, Grubac estimated that 35-40 specimens are living in our territory in Macedonia.

picture 2. Present distribution of lynx population in Macedonia

According to Miric (1981), in the period from 1917 up to 1977, lynx expanded its distribution area. It is obvious that in the last 30 years the population size has been decreasing, but recent literature and data do not identify to what extent the decrease is occurring.

Lynx biology

Lynx, like most cats, are solitary animals. Individuals occupy certain home ranges of which the boundaries are marked with urine, feces and excretions from glands in their paws and face. In Macedonia, 20-40 km2 is the average territory that one specimen requires. The only time when these cats can be seen in groups is during the mating season, lasting from January to February. Pregnancy lasts 9-10 weeks and 1-3 cubs are usually born.
Lynx are mainly active at night. Lynx's prey depends on the season. In summer, their main food consists of rodents and other small pray, while in winter large prey is more commonly consumed, such as roe deer, deer, etc.
Other food resources for lynx includes domestic animals. There are several cases in which lynx slaughtered a few sheep or in some cases attacked horses and cattle, but there are only a few of these cases to mention.
 

Threats

The Lynx population faces various threats, most of which are due to human activities. Some of the main threats that are recognized in Macedonia are:
• Small population size and small reproductive potential
• Poaching as one of the most serious threats
• Reduction in number of prey animals due to poaching and habitat degradation
• Habitat degradation in which lynx is living and illegal wood deforestation
• Habitat fragmentation and discontinuations of biocorridors with different infrastructural elements
• Disturbances (recreations, forestry activities etc.)
• Direct and indirect competition with wolf that is living in the same habitats
 

Public opinion

Generally, people living in lynx regions have a positive opinion about the lynx, and don't consider them as pests (based on questionnaires conducted in field surveys by MES for the purposes of a brown bear project). However, some of the interviewed hunters would still kill a lynx.

There were several attempts in the past aiming to raise public opinion concerning lynx. Therefore, data for the distribution and protection of lynx can be found in the hunter′s magazine "Lovec", which is published by the Hunters Association of Macedonia. This magazine was first published in 1948 and the last edition came out in 2001. Although there are few data concerning lynx, it is important to raise awareness among hunters. Lynx is considered as one of the national symbols of Macedonia and is on the back of the 5-denar coin as well as a national stamp.

Legislation

Lynx is an animal protected by law in Macedonia. The Law on Hunting (Official Gazette of RM 20/96) defines Lynx as a game animal and categorizes it as protected game (Article 12), and permanently prohibiting hunting (Article 15). Another important law that concerns wildlife protection is the Law on Nature, which was implemented in June 2005. Additionally, lynx is protected by several international conventions which were ratified by the R. of Macedonia, including the Bern Convention, CITES, EU Habitats & Species Directive.

Project: Balkan Lynx Recovery Programme

Beginning in July 2006, the Macedonian Ecological Society (MES) started a project for the conservation of the autochthonous Balkan lynx population in Macedonia under the title of “Balkan Lynx Recovery Programme”. The project is ongoing in cooperation with the Albanian NGOs PPNEA (Society for Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment in Albania) and ASPBM (Society for Protection of Birds and Mammals in Albania), German NGO EURONATUR (European Nature Heritage Fund), Swiss organisation KORA (Coordinated Research Project for Protection and Management of Large Carnivores in Switzerland) and Norwegian organisation NINA (Norwegian Institute for Natural Research). The project is supported by IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group, and is financed by Swiss foundation MAVA and Norwegian Government.

Project goals and activities

The following goals and activities are foreseen within the project: 

§         Research and monitoring through establishing a lynx monitoring centre, basic research on lynx distribution and population size in Macedonia, education of experts, establishment of a database and production of digitals maps.

§        Gaining basic scientific data to define taxonomic status, ecology and biology of Balkan lynx through the conduction of questionnaires in potential areas of lynx distribution, methods for identification of animal tracks and snow tracking, method of camera-traps and radio-telemetry.

§         Defining the human attitude towards large carnivores, as well as the threats and human influence on large carnivores by conducting questionnaires among people living in large carnivore distribution areas.

§      Preparation of Recovery Strategy for the lynx population through the preparation of recovery programmes and the development of a National Strategy and Action Plan in cooperation with the Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning and other relevant governmental and non-governmental organisations in Macedonia.

§       Creating partnerships for conservation activities through the establishment of a National Monitoring Network, including people from different profiles and raising public awareness.

Activities before the official start of the project

§         Initial workshop in Mavrovo, Macedonia, 21–23 April 2005, financially supported by the Mava Foundation. During the workshop, participants from GOs, NGOs and universities from Macedonia summarized the present knowledge on the lynx in each country and the conditions for its conservation.

§         In August 2005, MES and BIOEKO started a project on the topic ”Balkan Green Belt as a bio-corridor for bear, wolf and lynx”. The project was realized in cooperation with the German non-governmental organisation EURONATUR.

§         Workshop on the Monitoring of Balkan Lynx in fall 2005 (Mavrovo, Macedonia, 15-17 November 2005). The Workshop consisted of two parts. On 15 November, a seminar with some 60 participants representing all relevant authorities from Albania and Macedonia, national and international NGOs and institutions and scientists attended the seminar, which was financially supported by the Zoological Society Frankfurt. Subsequently, on 16–17 November 2005, a workshop on monitoring (financially supported by the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation) took place. This workshop was dedicated to the survey and monitoring of the Balkan lynx, its habitats, and prey base. For the purposes of this workshop, two documents were produced: (1) the Lynx Monitoring Guidelines and (2) a Lynx Field Handbook, both available in English, Macedonian and Albanian.

§         In January 2006, MES members working on lynx conservation, Aleksandar Stojanov, Dime Melovski and Gjorgi Ivanov, attend a two-week training session in Switzerland. During the training, they learned about the monitoring methods performed in Switzerland of lynx and its prey.

§        A field survey in the Mavrovo National Park, Macedonia were conducted by the five trained researchers and a KORA staff member from 20-25 March 2006. The survey was supported by the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation. During the survey, the group found tracks from two different lynx individuals.

§      In February 2006, Janevski Robert held course for the members of the border police on the protection on Balkan Lynx in Ohrid. The representatives form the border police had a chance to learn about the lynx monitoring methods. In addition, questionnaires for lynx observation were conducted among the policemen.

On-going activities of the project

The project for conservation and recovery of the autochthonous population of the Balkan Lynx will be initiated in several phases. A basic survey, in terms of conducting questionnaires and snow tracking, is the first foreseen phase of the project (on-going).

Conduction of questionnaires. These surveys are held in the villages where a high probability of lynx presence should be expected (areas of interest). Target groups for the questionnaires are: hunters, game wardens, forest engineers, livestock breeders, veterinary doctors or inspectors, shop owners and at least two randomly selected people. The questionnaire form contains questions on the distribution of the wild animals in certain area, as well as conflict related questions that can occur in the villages with high abundance of domestic animals. Determination of the range of the large carnivores (brown bear, wolf and lynx), its potential prey and the main threats towards the populations is the overall aim of the questionnaire. Currently, 300 interviews have been conducted in 84 villages in the western and south-western parts of Macedonia.

Field activities for the identification of tracks and snow tracking. As a result of unpleasant weather conditions (lack of snow), few field trips have been organized for tracking and track identification in the Mavrovo National Park. Two filed trips were organized in the forest belt above the village Sence, one in the vicinity of the village Kichinica and village Volkovija (all on Bistra Mt.) and one in the region of the village Gorno Jelovce (Shar Planina Mt.). During the field trips, two lynx tracks were encountered in two different localities (in the vicinity of v. Sence and v. Volkovija). Other than lynx, tracks from brown bear, wolf, red fox, chamois, wild boar and hare have been recorded in the field.

Second training on monitoring methods in Switzerland

In March 2007, MES members engaged in lynx protection in Macedonian, including Aleksandar Stojanov, Dime Melovski and Gjorge Ivanov, attended the second training for monitoring methods for lynx in Switzerland. During the training, participants had the chance to refresh their knowledge on monitoring methods, as well as to learn how to find lynx kill by means of a GPS device. Meetings were held with the representatives from EURONATUR, KORA, NINA and PPNEA. Results on the activities accomplished to date within the frame of the basic survey were presented during the meetings. Future activities such as finalizing the questionnaire, writing a scientific paper, participating in the MES Congress in October 2007 and other activities related to the project were also discussed during the meeting.

Future activities

As future activities within the frame of the first phase of the project (basic survey), the following tasks are foreseen: finalization of the questionnaire, conducting filed trips for the identification of tracks and snow tracking, selecting good camera-trapping sites as well as planning the next phases of the project.

Cooperation

For the effective realization of the activities foreseen within the project for lynx conservation in Macedonia, MES cooperates with the following organizations:

● Governmental organizations:

   - Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning of Macedonia

   - Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management of Macedonia

   - National Parks: Mavrovo, Galichica and Pelister

   - Strict Protected Reserve “Jasen”

● Non-Governmental organizations:

   - EURONATUR - Germany

   - KORA - Switzerland

   - NINA - Norway

   - IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group

   - PPNEA – Albania

   - ASPBM – Albania

   - Hunter’s Federation of Macedonia

Other relevant links

- www.mzsv.gov.mk - Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water management, Republic of Macedonia
- www.moepp.gov.mk - Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning, Republic of Macedonia
- www.catsg.org - Cats Specialists Group
- www.carnivoreconservation.org
- www.kora.unibe.ch - KORA, Switzerland
- www.euronatur.org - EURONATUR, Germany

Copyright 2006 Македонско Еколошко Друштво