After 10 years of litigation and delays, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has finally listed the Canadian lynx as a threatened species in the lower 48 states under the federal Endangered Species Act. The elusive cats are found in 14 states across the continental U.S., predominately on federal forest lands. Wildlife officials hope they can restore the population to viable numbers by altering management of national forests, which could mean curtailing logging, road-building, and snowmobiling. Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho): “Absent the listing of salmon, the listing of the lynx may have broader consequences than any of the other endangered species issues we have faced in the Northwest.”
