The national animal of Romania is the lynx. This is any of four species of cat within the genus Lynx, and the species found in Romania is the Eurasian lynx. This medium sized cat is found widely in Northern, Central, and Eastern Europe, as well as in Central Asia and Siberia. It is an important symbol of beauty and pride in Romania.
So, the lynx may not have the strength of a lion or the tree climbing grace of a leopard, but it is nonetheless a majestic and haunting animal that has become a vital symbol for Romanian culture.
Let’s find out more.
What is the national animal of Romania?
The national animal of Romania is the Eurasian lynx.
The broader term lynx encompasses four different species of lynx, from Canada, Iberia, Eurasia and the bobcat.
We, of course, when talking about the Romanian national animal, are talking about the Eurasian lynx.
They are very widely distributed across Eurasia, found from north and east Europe to as far as the Himalayas and Tibetan Plateau.
They were first taxonomically distinguished in 1758 and were further distinguished as subspecies in the 19th and 20th Centuries.
The Eurasian lynx sports a shorter, reddish or brown coat.
It is marked with black spots and the patterns of these spots is highly variable between individuals.
They have whitish markings on the undersides of their chin, and their coats will get a great deal thicker over the winter.
Their legs are very long for their bodies and very powerful, with webbed paws essentially acting as snowshoes.
The Eurasian lynx is the largest of the lynx species, being about 30-42 inches long in males and usually around 22-23 inches high.
They inhabit rugged, densely forested areas that provide opportunities to nest and to stalk prey.
They may live on steppes of rock or forest, boreal forest, or montane ecosystems.
They tend to descend to the lowlands during the winter to avoid the deepest snow and follow the prey.
Their range was once a lot broader in Europe, though they were hunted to extinction in western and southern Europe.
The population has slowly recovered in other areas but they are still very much under threat from the destruction of their habitat and hunting.
Though they live over a very wide range, they are struggling to find living space as more and more of their natural habitats are destroyed or taken over by humans.
Why is the lynx the national animal of Romania?
The lynx is the national animal of Romania for a variety of reasons.
They are seen as symbols of beauty, grace, and at the same time strength and courage.
They are, like most big cats, seen as spirits of the natural landscape and are inextricably bound to the places they inhabit.
In Romania they have remained strong in terms of their local population where in other places they have died out or been hunted to extinction, so they have been living alongside Romanians for a very long time.
Romania is renowned for its natural beauty of mountains and forests so it makes sense that their national animal would be one so tied up with this particular kind of landscape.
The interesting thing is that you may get a very different answer from any given Romanian about why specifically the lynx is the national animal; there’s no one specific reason the lynx is the national animal.
Lynxes are metaphorically associated with many different desirable traits in people, as mentioned the notions of grace and beauty but also bravery and power.
In all, though, most people tend to think that the lynx is purely a symbol of the rugged natural beauty of Romania.
Is a lynx a safe pet?
The short answer is no; a lynx is a wild animal and you will not domesticate an individual out of the wild.
They should be left alone to live in their natural habitat and you should not entertain thoughts of keeping one as a pet.
Domestication is a process which took thousands of years; taming a lynx is not impossible, but you can’t have it in the house and again, you shouldn’t want to either.
If you want to see a lynx there are plenty of ways to do so, your efforts would be better used conserving the wild populations!
Are lynx and bobcat the same?
They are the same in that all bobcats are lynxes—but not all lynxes are bobcats.
The bobcat is one of the four subspecies of lynx, another medium sized cat that is only found in North America.
They are also found in Mexico.
They share many similarities with other speices of lynx but they tend to live in drier regions rather than in colder mountains and forests.
Bobcats are also known as red lynx, which may be the more helpful name in understanding the difference between a bobcat and a lynx: a bobcat is just a subgroup of the wider lynx genus.
So, while the term “lynx” encompasses a few different species, the national animal of Romania is the Eurasian lynx.
This animal is very important to Romania for a variety of cultural reasons, but preservation is often a good reason that animals are chosen as a country’s national animal.
The lynx is highly threatened by the loss of their habitat as well as hunting and depletion of their prey, and so Romania hopes to bring attention to this and conservation efforts.