June 20, 2024 – 6:29 pm
Photo: Emile Barbelette/Beussgarden/Beuses Photo via AFP
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced in a statement that the extremely rare Iberian lynx is no longer considered an endangered species. BBC According to Thursday. Until now, the so-called lynx subspecies was on the red list, but as the population began to grow, the Iberian lynx is now only in the vulnerable category.
The number of specimens has increased tenfold in more than two decades: while only 62 mature Iberian lynx were counted in 2001, there will be 648 in 2022. With smaller specimens, the number may have risen to about 2,000 in Spain and Portugal, according to the International Federation To preserve nature. There are currently 14 locations where lynx populations are stable and breeding, including one in Portugal and thirteen in Spain.
The Iberian lynx was once widespread throughout the peninsula that gave it its name, but since the 1960s, habitat loss, poaching and accidents have decimated it. However, species conservation work has been successful. This was a complex task, for example, the inhabitants also had to recover their favorite food, the European hare. Forests and jungles have been replanted in the meantime.
This is the biggest improvement ever achieved in the number of individuals of the cat species, but the work is not finished yet, said Francisco Javier Salcido Ortiz, coordinator of the lynx project. They want to reintroduce the lynx to several locations in northern and central Spain. The progress is impressive: in 2005, there were only 449 cats, and today there are already 3,320 square kilometers of cats. Of course, risks that have been present since 1960, as well as epidemics that can spread from domestic cats, could jeopardize efforts.
