# Eurasian lynx (*Lynx lynx*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/eurasian-lynx  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), also called the European lynx or Eurasiatic lynx, is a mammal in the family Felidae and the order Carnivora. It is a medium-sized, terrestrial and nocturnal carnivore of forest and shrubland, with an adult body mass of 17.95 kg and up to 21.15 kg. Its main foods include roe deer, red deer, chamois, mountain hare, rangifer tarandus, lepus europaeus, wild boar and carrion. The IUCN Red List classes it as Least Concern, which is not a threatened category, and it has 1 litter per year with a litter size of 2.25 after a gestation period of 66.5 days.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 18 kg – 21.2 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 23.7 years |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 26.8 years |
| Main food | beaver, capra ibex, carrion, cat, cattle, chamois and 46 more |
| Habitat | forest, shrubland |
| Gestation | 66.5 days – 73 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2.25 |
| Age at maturity | 21 months – 2.75 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Active | At night (nocturnal) |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Carnivora
- family: Felidae
- genus: Lynx
- species: *Lynx lynx* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Felis borealis*, *Felis cervaria*, *Felis kattlo*, *Felis lupulinus*, *Felis lyncula*, *Felis lynx*, *Felis lynx stroganovi*, *Felis virgate*, *Felis vulgaris*, *Felis vulpinus*, *Felix lynx*, *Lissodelphis borealis*, *Lynx cervaria*, *Lynx lynx borealis*, *Lynx lynx cervaria*, *Lynx lynx kozlovi*, *Lynx lynx lynx*, *Lynx lynx neglectus*, *Lynx lynx sardiniae*, *Lynx lynx stroganovi*, *Lynx stroganovi*, *Lynx vulgaris*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the Eurasian lynx?

The Eurasian lynx is a mammal in the family Felidae, subfamily Felinae, within the order Carnivora.

### How heavy is the Eurasian lynx?

The Eurasian lynx has an adult body mass of 17.95 kg, with values up to 21.15 kg reported, placing it in the medium size class.

### What does the Eurasian lynx eat?

The Eurasian lynx is a carnivore. Its main foods include roe deer, red deer, chamois, mountain hare, rangifer tarandus, lepus europaeus, wild boar, red fox and carrion.

### What habitat does the Eurasian lynx live in?

The Eurasian lynx lives in forest and shrubland, where it is terrestrial and nocturnal.

### Is the Eurasian lynx endangered?

No. The Eurasian lynx is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does the Eurasian lynx live?

The Eurasian lynx has a lifespan of 23.7 years, with values up to 26.8 years reported.

### When does the Eurasian lynx reach sexual maturity?

The Eurasian lynx reaches sexual maturity at 2.2 years, with reported values from 1.7 to 2.7 years.

### Who named the Eurasian lynx?

The scientific name Lynx lynx is credited to (Linnaeus, 1758).

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/eurasian-lynx