WildEarth Guardians

Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Conservation Groups Join State Agency to Offer $4,800 Reward for Information on Killing of Canada Lynx

Lynx Found Shot with Arrow Near Silverton, CO
Contact: Nicole Rosmarino (505) 699-7404

DENVER ? In response to news that the Colorado Division of Wildlife has found a Canada lynx killed near Silverton, Colorado, a coalition of conservation groups announced today that they are offering a $4,800 reward for information leading to the arrest of the persons responsible for illegally killing the endangered wildcat. Hoping to raise the stakes and expose the lynx poachers, the seven conservation groups committed to contribute $4,800 in addition to the reward currently offered by the Colorado Division of Wildlife's Operation Game Thief program. The Canada lynx is listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, and killing wild lynx is prohibited by federal law.

“The lynx is still fighting for survival in Colorado,” said Josh Pollock, Conservation Director at Center for Native Ecosystems. “Every lynx that is killed sets back the recovery of this rare wild cat." Pollock pointed out that lynx had to be reintroduced to Colorado after trapping and habitat destruction drove the rare cat out of the state.

"These secretive cats are already imperiled by ski area expansion, logging and road building in their forest homes, and numerous other threats," said Ryan Bidwell, Executive Director of Colorado Wild. "The last thing they need is to be shot down by criminals."

“The snowy habitat these cats have adapted to hunt and raise their families in is being severely impacted by global warming,” said Caitlin Balch-Burnett, Colorado Outreach Representative for Defenders of Wildlife. “The last thing the lynx needs is to face yet another threat in the form of illegal shootings.”

“Our world is enriched when lynx again roam the wild and are free from persecution,” said Nicole Rosmarino, Wildlife Program Director for WildEarth Guardians. “Coloradoans are proud of the reintroduction effort that has restored lynx to our mountains.”

"The poaching of animals is callous and irresponsible," said Holly Tarry, Colorado state director for The HSUS. "The HSUS applauds the Colorado Division of Wildlife for strongly enforcing anti-poaching laws."

Local conservation groups including Center for Native Ecosystems, San Juan Citizens Alliance, Wilderness Workshop, Colorado Wild, WildEarth Guardians, Defenders of Wildlife, The Humane Society of the United States and Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust collaborated to offer this substantial incentive to anyone with information regarding the lynx killing. Defenders of Wildlife’s contribution comes from its Endangered Species Reward Fund established in 1997 to bring illegal predator killers to justice.

Tips on the lynx killing can be made anonymously through the Operation Game Thief hotline at 1-877-265-6648.

For further information on the recent lynx killing, please visit the Colorado Division of Wildlife website.