Second pair of lynx caught in Cairngorms

Second pair of lynx  caught in Cairngorms
Camera trap captures  images of two more  lynxes roaming the Highlands.
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A second pair of  lynxes have been  caught after being found near Kingussie in the Cairngorms National  Park.
Two more lynxes, released illegally, were caught in the same area on  Thursday.
Staff from the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland  captured all the animals by  setting a series of  human traps in the area to  lure them in.
The RZSS confirmed the latest pair  were caught at  around 6.30pm near the  Killiehuntly Dell, where the  other two  lynxes were also successfully  captured.
The latest lynx, believed to be larger than the other two cats,  was first  seen at  around 7.10am on  Friday. "In good  health"
Dr Helen Senn,  RZSS Conservation Officer, said: "I'm sure everyone in the community will be  delighted and relieved to know that the second pair of lynx have been safely  captured.
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"Initial reports  indicate that they appear to be in good health, which is the most important  thing."
"It has been a  tense 48 hours, with people working day and  night in extremely  difficult conditions, but  I have been  very impressed by the efforts of our  staff, as well as  our partners and members of the local community to ensure that the outcome is  positive. ." »
He added that the lynx would be taken to the Highland Wildlife Park before being  transferred to Edinburgh Zoo  for quarantine for 30 days - as  was the case with the first pair found on  Thursday.
"While we  do not believe there are any more  lynxes, we will continue to monitor the release site under the  guidance of Police Scotland,"  he added.
Two other spotted  lynxes were found wandering in the  wild in  the Highlands
Lynx  caught after illegal release in  the Highlands
The RZSS condemned the illegal release of wild  animals. David Field, chief executive of the RZSS, told BBC News he was "relieved" the animals had been  captured.
He said their relationship with humans meant they were "looking for food on a plate" and  perhaps wanted to be  rescued.
But Mr Field said it was "irresponsible and wrong" for people to attempt  the "wildcat bust".
He said: "These  lynxes probably  pose a minimal  risk but the community  was concerned about the  safety."
"Is that the reasoning behind  people releasing these  animals into the wild or is it  simply that they  kept them as pets and just abandoned them because they couldn't  care for them?" "We don't  know and  are still speculating about the origin of these  animals."
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"Whatever it was, it was crazy, it was irresponsible and it should  never have been  done."
RZSS A lynx in a cage.  It's dark and a spotlight  illuminates the  animals RZSS
The first two  lynxes were trapped on Thursday
Police Scotland said  investigations were continuing to establish the full circumstances of how the four  lynxes ended up in the  area.
A spokesman said: "We continue to ask people not to travel to the area, particularly in the current weather  conditions."
"Further investigations will  continue in the  forest, involving officers and specialist animal  experts."
Police previously said  investigations suggested  the two lynx releases were  linked. The two animals  captured on Thursday have been confirmed  to be Eurasian  lynxes, but their sex has  not yet been confirmed.
Several conservation groups have  campaigned for the feral cats to  be reintroduced to  Scotland.
Among those backing the  idea, the Mammal  Society has suggested  that wildlife could be behind the  comeback.
The organisation said it would  like to see a  healthy and  sustainable population of wild lynx thriving in the  UK and that  reintroducing the species could "redress ecosystem  imbalances and restore biodiversity to our depleted landscapes".
The  company said it understood the  "disappointment" that the illegal re-introduction could lead  to, but there  was "no  shortcut" to achieving its  goal. "Illegal release is irresponsible and not  a solution," he said.
What are  lynxes? Getty Images A lynx  yawns. Its mouth is wide  open, showing its teeth. It  was photographed against a snowy  background. Getty Images
There are four  species of lynx. The Eurasian lynx  is the largest of the lynxes.
Adults are  about the size of a  Labrador.
The lynx disappeared from Britain 500 to 1,000 years ago, but similar species still  exist in continental Europe, Russia and  Asia.
In the  wild, it hunts roe deer, young red  deer, and also  rabbits and  hares.
A license under the Dangerous Animals Act  is required to  own a lynx. Highland  Local Council said no  facilities in the area had applied  for or were operating under a Dangerous  Wildlife Act (DWA)  licence.
Are lynxes dangerous? The International Fund for Animal Welfare says  lynxes are mostly active at night and  generally avoid  people.
However, they warn that  lynxes, like other wild animals,  can attack in self-defence if  provoked.
The WWF says attacks on livestock, such as sheep, are "much  less common than  previously thought". Where were they  spotted? Getty Images  A frozen body of water is  covered in forests and  snow-capped mountains. Getty Images
Insh Marshes near Kingussie
It is a landscape of  rolling hills, commercial  forests and native  woodlands on the edge of some of the highest mountains in the  Cairngorms.
Insh Marshes, near Kingussie, is an RSPB Scotland reserve where beavers  have recently  been released under  licence.
Kingussie and the nearby village of Newtonmore are home to a  combined population of  around 1,500  people.
The region has  suffered heavy snowfall in recent  days. The Cairngorms National Park is  the largest in the UK. It is twice the size of  the Lake District National  Park.
Other animals  that were once native to Scotland have been released  illegally.
These include wild  boars and beavers.

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