DNR agrees to do more to protect Canada lynx

Two animal-protection groups will drop a lawsuit against the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources after the agency said it would do more to keep Canada lynx safe from traps.

The Humane Society of the United States and Help Our Wolves Live filed the suit in federal court in Minneapolis last summer, arguing that a trapping program authorized by the DNR for animals such as red fox, bobcats and martens was allowing too many lynx to get caught, injured and killed.

The Canada lynx is a threatened species in the lower 48 states, and is protected by the federal Endangered Species Act.

Jonathan Lovvorn, an attorney for the Humane Society, said the lawsuit will be dropped because the DNR has agreed to work with federal officials to reduce the chances that lynx will be harmed.

"This settlement is an important first step in protecting lynx from cruel and indiscriminate fur traps in Minnesota," Lovvorn said.

Mike DonCarlos, DNR wildlife research and policy manager, said that 13 lynx have been accidentally caught by private trappers during the past five years, and that five of the cats died. DonCarlos said the agreement requires DNR to file a conservation plan with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which enforces the Endangered Species Act.

"We need to show in this plan that we're doing everything we can to avoid any incidental take" of lynx, he said.

The agreement has been submitted to a judge, said DonCarlos, but is not final until it has been reviewed and accepted.

Scientists estimate that 80 to 200 lynx live in the state, and that some of them migrate between Minnesota and Canada.

Tom Meersman • 612 673-7388 • meersman@s tartribune.com