Owls looking

These two curious owls followed our every move when we visited Järvzoo, even though they are night owls. They are great grey owls of which Sweden's got between 400 and 3500 depending on time of year and how much food they've got. Their main dish is small rodents like mice, voles, hares and the like. In Sweden it's endangered mainly due to loss of areas to nest because of intensive logging.

White on white

The snowy owl is perfectly camouflaged in the winter. Even from a few meters away and the bird in the open it can be difficult to spot, as this one was. With around 100 pairs in Sweden this bird is also considered endangered.

Properly dressed

The musk ox is an animal properly dressed for the Swedish winter. It was re-introduced to Sweden in 1971 when 5 animals emigrated from Norway, and those have now turned into 12-15 animals. Not exactly a large population but protected and nursed as they are, they might in the future turn into something more.

The wolverine

The wolverine is the most endangered of the Swedish predators and is therefore seldom seen in the wild. Less than 200 animals are estimated in the wild in Sweden as it has been hunted by reindeer owners for centuries. A very aggressive predator it can bring down reindeer many times it's size, but only in winter when the snow favours it's large paws over the slender hooves of the reindeer. The reindeer is dismembered and hidden in trees so that the wolverine gets to eat for days without interference by others. These not very sharp photos of the wolverines in Järvzoo is testimony to the difficulties of photographing a dark animal against a white background while a steady sprinkle of snow is dropping. Furthermore it did it's best to get into shelter when we were spotted, so all in all I'm still pleased with the results. Btw Järvzoo is named after this animal as järv in Swedish means wolverine.

A lynx looking out

In Sweden you can find 1500 lynx in the wild after a decline for many years to a low of 200 animals30 years ago. It's called "the tiger of the Nordic" and is the largest (and only) wild cat here. The menu is hares and roebucks and even the occasional reindeer. The lynx from Järvzoo looking out from behind a tree is a nice symbol, I think, of this the last day of the year. Hopefully the coming year will not be as aggressive as the lynx jumping at my brother-in-law:-) Happy New Year to you all!

Wolfs in the snow

In Sweden the wolfs are still found in the wild in the northern areas. An estimated 220 lives in small packs but that number varies from day to day as these packs often wanders into Norway and Finland. The wolfs are still stigmatized even in Sweden as they take sheep and lambs from the farmers, but they are protected by law. Only those wolfs that repeatedly follow their nature and raid the local farmers are hunted, sparking heated debate among farmers and environmentalists every time. Many myths still exists here about the big bad wolf, but fact is they only hunt sick and old animals (and the occasional lamb too but most farmers got insurance, so what's the problem?). At Järvzoo, which is a zoo specialized in the wildlife of Sweden, 10-12 wolfs are on display for the visitors. These photos, and the photos in the next couple of days, are from this very nice place.