A Canadian scientist has captured the first images of a black-furred Canadian lynx (‘Lynx canadensis’).
The sighting happened in August 2020 when wildlife biologist Thomas Jung encountered the unusual creature in rural Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, and was reported in a Mammalia magazine article published last week. .
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The Canada lynx usually has silver or grayish fur in winter, which can change to reddish brown speckled with black spots in summer. So the black coat of this species, known as melanism, is not very common.
It is not known whether the dark color promotes the animal’s survival, although Jung believes it could be a disadvantage when hunting hares in the winter, RT indicates.
In the 30-second video, the cat was seen from a distance of 50 meters and was unaffected by humans and a dog until it left the area, possibly due to the dog’s barking.
