The last lynx that was translocated in 2020 was named after a legendary Slovenian hunter Maks Konečnik. After spending 20 days in a quarantine enclosure in Snežnik, Maks was released into nature at the end of June. We are monitoring his movements with a telemetry collar and for now he still didn’t establish his own territory.
After the release he was moving in the Javorniki area on the territory of lynx Doru. After a few months he moved north towards Menišija where he was staying on the territory of lynx Catalin. In this time he was also able to cross the Ljubljana- Koper highway, which is exceptional, since it represents a big obstacle for lynx in this area. About three weeks ago Maks decided to stay on the other side of the highway and move toward Gorenjska. His last locations are from the area of Southern Bohinj Mountains.
His path is really something special, since he is the first of seven translocated lynx that managed to cross the Ljubljana-Koper highway and arrived to Gorenjska, even before the planed lynx translocations in this area. In the next years at least five more lynxes will join Maks in this area to help connect the Dinaric and Alpine lynx populations and with this ensure the long-term lynx conservation in the Dinarides and SE Alps.
After the release, the path took lynx Maks (blue) through the territories of Doru (green) and Catalin (purple) and further north towards the Alps. Photo: Aleš Pičulin, LIFE Lynx