Project update

Press release from the Ministry for Rural Affairs, Agriculture and Home Affairs, Baden-Württemberg, 22 June 2026:

“Lynx monitoring provides us with important insights into the distribution and population size of lynx in the state and forms a vital foundation and basis for decision-making regarding lynx management. There are currently at least eleven known lynx in Baden-Württemberg. I am delighted that the monitoring team at the FVA Wildlife Institute succeeded last week in confirming the first lynx cubs in the state. Using telemetry data, the den of the lynx ‘Elisabeth’ – who was released into the wild at the end of September – was located. This marks an important milestone in the population support project, and for the first time in 200 years we can welcome lynx cubs in the state. This is a tremendous success for species conservation and the ‘Lynx Baden-Württemberg’ population support project, which aims to establish a sustainable lynx population in the state. “This success demonstrates the great importance of continuous lynx monitoring and population support, which the Baden-Württemberg Forestry Research Institute (FVA) carries out very carefully and reliably on behalf of the Ministry,” said Marion Gentges MdL, Minister for Rural Affairs, Agriculture and Home Affairs, on Monday (22 June) in Stuttgart.

An important milestone has been reached

“This is a major success for the FVA, which our experts have been working towards with great dedication, together with our partners, for many years,” said Prof. Dr Ulrich Schraml, Director of the Forestry Research Institute (FVA) in Freiburg. “Our team was able to examine the young animal. It is healthy and lively,” said Schraml. Genetic samples are expected to provide clarity on paternity soon.

Further news from the lynx monitoring programme:

Female lynx Verena encounters male lynx Reinhold

Just recently, the FVA’s lynx experts were informed of a special lynx sighting: photographs taken in the municipality of Forbach (Rastatt district) showed both the female lynx Verena and the male lynx Reinhold together in a series of images. Both lynx were released into the wild at the end of 2024 as part of the ‘Lynx Baden-Württemberg’ project to bolster the population in the northern Black Forest.

Lynx are solitary animals and only come together to mate during the so-called rutting season, which lasts from February to April. Only further evidence will reveal whether this potential mating will result in offspring. 

Two more animals have settled in the Black Forest

Elisabeth, the lynx that was released into the wild in the northern Black Forest in autumn 2025, has only recently been considered territorial or settled: after initially remaining for two months in the area where she was released, east of the Murg, she crossed the Murg Valley and settled west of the B500. The telemetry data from her tracking collar shows that she has remained in this area ever since. A lynx is considered resident if it has been detected in an area for at least half a year.

Camera trap images from Ühlingen-Birkendorf and from Höchenschwand (Waldshut district) have also confirmed the presence of another territorial lynx: B3015, whose origin and sex are as yet unknown, has made the southern Black Forest its home. Its sightings to date span the area between Schluchsee, Ühlingen-Birkendorf and Todtmoos.

At least one new lynx has migrated to the Black Forest

Genetic analysis of bite swabs taken from a prey animal in the municipality of Bühlertal (Rastatt district) in early April revealed a new lynx: the previously unknown male BW_LL025m. Further details, such as the male’s coat pattern or origin, are not yet known.

A camera trap report from early June in the municipality of Löffingen (Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald district) also showed a lynx with a previously unknown coat pattern. The FVA is now in contact with its Swiss colleagues to clarify whether this individual may already be known there. It cannot be confirmed with certainty at this stage whether the genetic evidence and the camera trap image represent two different lynx.

Identification of lynx

Lynx have an individual spot pattern which, much like a human fingerprint, is unique. If the spot patterns on both sides of the body are known, these lynx are given a serial number, such as B3015. When lynx are captured and fitted with transmitters as part of the lynx monitoring programme, they are traditionally given an additional nickname. If an individual is known only genetically via the Senckenberg database, it is given a country-specific identifier comprising a sequential number and a gender abbreviation: BW_LL025m (LL stands for the scientific name Lynx lynx).

Background information

The ‘Luchs Baden-Württemberg’ project

In order to boost the lynx population in the state, the project ‘Luchs Baden-Württemberg – Supporting the lynx population in Baden-Württemberg and neighbouring regions’ was launched in 2023. The aim is to establish a sustainable lynx population in Baden-Württemberg through the targeted reintroduction of genetically suitable lynx. Fitting lynx with radio collars and monitoring them are key elements in scientifically tracking the return of the lynx.

A further aim is to link the population in Baden-Württemberg with lynx populations in the Palatinate Forest, the Vosges and the Jura Mountains – thereby creating a connected population that contributes to the conservation of the lynx species throughout Central Europe.

The FVA is leading the project and is working in close cooperation with the Baden-Württemberg State Hunting Association, WWF Germany, the Karlsruhe Zoological City Garden and the Baden-Württemberg Lynx Initiative. The project is supported by the alosa Foundation. The client is the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Rural Affairs, Agriculture and Home Affairs.

The lynx released into the wild in Baden-Württemberg originate from the European Conservation Breeding Programme for Carpathian lynx, which is coordinated by the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA).

The ‘Luchs Baden-Württemberg’ project is supported by the external network of experts, Linking Lynx (opens in a new window), which focuses on the conservation, monitoring and management of the Carpathian lynx.