OMG KITTENS! Colorado Biologists Discover Litter of Lynx Kittens

Once native to Colorado, the threatened tuft-eared cats were wiped out by the early 1970s by logging, trapping, poisoning, and urban development. More than 200 lynx from Alaska and Canada have been released in Colorado since 1999, but because the population of snowshoes hares—the cats' main food source—has diminished over time, biologists have found no kittens in the past two years.

A total of 126 lynx kittens are known to have been born in Colorado, according to the Colorado Division of Wildlife: 16 kittens in 2003; 39 kittens in 2004; 50 kittens in 2005; 11 kittens in 2006; and now 10 kittens in 2009.

Still unknown is the exact number of lynx currently dwelling in the state, although we can now conclusively add seven male and three female kittens to the count. And the cuteness, it burns.

More lynx kitten photos from past years

Photo credit: Colorado Division of Wildlife

Photo credit: Colorado Division of Wildlife

Photo credit: Colorado Division of Wildlife

Photo credit: Colorado Division of Wildlife

Photo credit: Colorado Division of Wildlife

More on the lynx
Threatened Iberian Lynx Mama Gives Birth to Three Kittens
Yes To Cork: Save Forests, Jobs and the Iberian Lynx
1.5% Decline in Endangered Iberian Lynx Population Seen in One Day

Thirsty for more? Check out these related articles:

• Focus Earth Episode: Man Vs. Nature
• Scientists Search for Loch Ness Monster, Find 100,000 Golf Balls
• Focus on Focus Earth: The Endangered American Prairie Makes Environmentalists Out of Ranchers
• What the Heck is Eco-Art? 10 Ways to Appreciate It
• How to Go Green: Pets
• Meet Ann Snook, The Nature Conservancy's Maya Forest Program Manager

Walking

Furniture

Drought

Transportation