Missing lynx no more: Researchers learn of Yukon animals' epic journey

AlyssonMenzies and Emily Studd, two researchers from McGillUniversity, are a bit sad about Trump. He met his demisein a coyote snare.

Trump is a lynx, and one of a few that Menzies and Studd managed to fit with GPS tracking collars last winter in Yukon. The collar allowed the researchers to track the animals' movements and behaviours.

But at a certain point, Trump and another lynx, Max fell off the radar.

"We had kind of lost track of them, in terms ofwe couldn't hear their collars anymore," said Studd. "We were hoping that they would come back to us."

Menzies and Studdhadn't considered that Trump and Max would travel far, because "normally, the story is [lynx]have a small home range."

Trump and Max must not have heard that story, because they both had a mind to wander a bit further. About 400 kilometres further, into Alaska.

Menzies and Studdjust recently discovered their fate, when the animals and their high-tech collars werefound.

"It was kind of exciting to hear," Studd said.

"Every collar is so valuable and worth a lot of money, and a lot of our timeand a lot of our efforts."

Cornered in a chicken coop

Trump may have met an untimely end, but his collar found by an ex-biologist will likely yield valuable data.

Max fared better. He was found harassing some livestock, whose owner then cornered him in a chicken coop and called wildlife officials.

Max's collar was removed and sent back to Menzies and Studd. The Alaskans thenfitted the animalwith a new collar, for researchers there.

"It was a nice exchange of work and data," Menzies said.

As to why the two lynx would travel so far, the two researchers are still stumped.

"It was the end, or around, mating seasonso we're not sure if that anything to do with it, or if they were just, 'see you later,Canada, we're going to a better place,' or a different place we're not sure," Menzies said.

Or, she said, Trump "had to go back to start his presidency."