Extra-territorial excursions of Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) during the mating season across Europe

Liang, Yutong (author), Kramer-Schadt, Stephanie (author), Mattisson, Jenny (author), Belotti, Elisa (author), Bufka, Luděk (author), Melovski, Dime (author), Slana, Darja (author), Anders, Ole (author), Middelhoff, Tomma Lilli (author), Andrén, Henrik (author), Černe, Rok (author), Fležar, Urša (author), Hočevar, Lan (author), Krofel, Miha (author), Oliveira, Teresa (author)

Extra-territorial mating excursions (i.e. short-term movements beyond established home ranges to seek mating opportunities) represent an underexplored reproductive strategy in felids. Using telemetry data from 125 Eurasian lynx (172 lynx-years, 1995–2023) across Europe, we investigated sex-specific spatio-temporal patterns and drivers of these excursions during the mating season. Overall, 33% of males and 11% of females undertook excursions, with males having higher rates than females. Male excursions mostly occurred in March, coinciding with the peak of the conception period, while females tended to undertake excursions either before or after this peak. The median Euclidean distance travelled beyond the home range was 6.8 km for males and 2.6 km for females, with corresponding median durations of 119 h and 85 h, respectively. Translocated individuals exhibited higher excursion rates than those in established populations, suggesting mate-searching in novel environments. We found no evidence that human influences affected excursion rates or distances. Our findings highlight a mating tactic that is often overlooked and provide new insight into sex-specific and context-dependent movement strategies in Eurasian lynx. By linking extra-territorial excursions to reproduction patterns, our study informs future research on mate-searching behaviour in felids and offers implications for conservation planning, particularly in isolated or reintroduced populations.

• Language: English
• Keywords: extra-home range movement, mating tactics, reproductive strategies, Lynx lynx
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: BF - Biotechnical Faculty
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2026
• Number of pages: 12 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 293, issue 2063, art. 20252235
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-178845
• UDC: 599.742.734:591.166.1
• ISSN on article: 1471-2954
• DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2025.2235
• COBISS.SI-ID: 266842115

Note

V članku je navedenih še več virov financiranja.

• Publication date in RUL: 30.01.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Proceedings of the Royal Society : Biological sciences
• Shortened title: Proc. - Royal Soc., Biol. sci.
• Publisher: Royal Society
• ISSN: 1471-2954
• COBISS.SI-ID: 34214498

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: izventeritorialno gibanje, paritvene strategije, razmnoževalne strategije, evrazijski ris