Movement patterns of female Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) during the denning season across Europe

Movement and reproductive behavior play an important role in ecological and evolutionary processes involving large carnivores. During the initial period after birth, the behavior of breeding females changes in order to adapt to the cubs needs, and their energetic expenses increase due to lactation. This is a critical period for the offspring’s survival, as they are dependent on their mother for thermoregulation, protection and food provision. The Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) is a species of conservation concern in Europe, with several fragmented populations, which often require active interventions, including translocations to reintroduce or reinforce target populations. Although there were local studies focusing on movement patterns of female lynx during the denning season, they were limited by small sample sizes and restricted geographical extents. Therefore, it was not possible to conduct comparisons among populations or test the influence of large-scale environmental factors, such as human disturbance and prey availability, on female denning behavior. The present study aims at, first, investigating how movement patterns of female Eurasian lynx change during the denning season across a large latitudinal range in Europe and, second, exploring the influence of large gradients of human disturbance and prey availability on lynx maternal behavior. The analysis was done using GPS data from 56 collared female lynx from five different populations: Alpine, Baltic, Dinaric, South Scandinavian and North Scandinavian. These data included at total of 56 lynx-seasons where the females gave birth to kittens and 26 lynx-seasons where the females did not have kittens. The results show that movement patterns varied significantly between breeding and non-breeding females. Specifically, breeding females considerably reduced their movement (shorter daily distances, shorter distances from the den, and smaller seasonal home ranges) at the beginning of the denning season and gradually increased it as kittens grew. The proportion of time females spent at the dens was higher at the beginning of the denning season and gradually decreased. Overall, during the use of each den, females were mostly at the den during diurnal hours. Human disturbance influenced the movement of female lynx, but this effect did not vary significantly between populations. Higher levels of human disturbance resulted in shorter distances from the den, shorter distances between consecutive dens and longer duration of den use. Lower prey availability also influenced movements of female lynx, resulting in both longer distances from the den and shorter duration of den use, which could be connected with prey depletion around the dens. Understanding the influence of key ecological factors, such as human disturbance and prey availability, on lynx movement and behavior during critical periods such as the denning season, while considering multiple populations, provides new insights into lynx ecology, with implications for lynx conservation.