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Laramie, WY -- Wednesday March 3, 4:00-7:00 PM
at the Forest Supervisor's Office at 2468 Jackson St.

Steamboat, CO -- Thursday March 4, 4:00-7:00 PM
at the Ranger District Office at 925 Weiss Drive

As many have probably heard, four lynx were recently sighted in the Medicine Bow National Forest of southeastern Wyoming (see story online). The reports raise hopes that lynx will restore themselves in the Medicine Bow National Forest.

In the wake of these most recent reports, we have an incredible opportunity to make lynx restoration in the Medicine Bow a long-lasting reality. Both the Medicine Bow and Routt National Forests are changing their long-term forest management plans (forest plans) to protect and recover lynx throughout the Southern Rockies and have scheduled public meetings to invite public comments. Their final plan will determine how lynx habitat is protected and hopefully ensure lynx recovery. Please attend one of these meetings to help secure strong protection for the lynx and its habitat on our National Forests, and to ensure recovery of this majestic creature.

Talking Points for the Meetings

Please attend one of the scheduled public meetings, either in Steamboat or Laramie, and let the U.S. Forest Service know how important it is that the lynx be protected and recovered in the Medicine Bow and Routt National Forests. Although scheduled from 4:00-7:00 P.M., you can come at anytime and stay as long or as short as you need. You may also want to raise the following points, telling the Forest Service:

• To ensure that existing lynx habitat is protected from logging, road building, and other damaging impacts;
• To recover lost lynx habitat;
• To protect lynx prey, including snowshoe hare and other small mammals, and their habitats;
• To protect and restore forested migration corridors between the Routt and Medicine Bow National Forests to ensure lynx restoration in southeastern Wyoming;
• To ensure the new management direction is mandatory to ensure consistent protection of lynx habitat throughout the Southern Rockies.

Background

The lynx, a larger and rarer cousin of the bobcat, was listed under the Endangered Species Act as a threatened species in 2000, primarily a result of extensive overhunting and logging, but also because agencies like the U.S. Forest Service were failing to adequately protect the lynx and its habitat.

The lynx historically inhabited the Southern Rockies, including the Medicine Bow and Routt National Forests. Unfortunately, because of overhunting, logging, road building, urban development, among other activities, the species was pushed to near extinction. In the Southern Rockies, the lynx is closely tied to higher elevation old growth forest habitat and to areas with abundant prey, including snowshoe hare, usually in wetland areas. In recent years, the State of Colorado has taken measures to restore lynx in the Southern Rockies by releasing several (captured from Canada) in southwestern Colorado. The four lynx recently observed in the Medicine Bow were a part of the most recent release in 2002, and traveled all the way from southwestern Colorado.

As a result of Endangered Species Act listing, the U.S. Forest Service agreed to change its long-range forest management plans for National Forests in the Southern Rockies, including the Medicine Bow and Routt National Forests, to ensure long-term protection and recovery of the lynx and its habitat. The Forest Service is currently proposing four different management alternatives (for more information on the proposed alternatives, visit the Forest Service's website). It will be up to citizens to ensure the Forest Service implements a strong and effective habitat management plan.

Lynx are vital to the health of forests in the Southern Rockies and an important part of Wyoming and Colorado's natural heritage. They prey upon snowshoe hares and other small mammals and play a vital role in regulating prey populations. And, because of their association with relatively undisturbed forest habitat, lynx are important indicators of forest health. Ensuring long-term protection of the lynx will help ensrue long-term forest health.