A species is classified as ‘endangered’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) when the number of adult individuals in its population is between 250 and 2,500 specimens. Another requirement is that the total population of this animal has decreased between 70% and 80% in recent years. HE Iberian lynx (lynx pardinus) meets both requirements and has therefore been protected since the 1990s. Thanks to the work of projects fighting for the conservation of this species, there are currently more than 1,365 proprietary examples on the Peninsula, a record-breaking figure.
This species began to be listed as a ‘critically endangered species’ in 1986. In that case, lynx population reduced to 100 individuals divided into two isolated nucleiwas in the Sierra Morena and Doñana. “A major wildfire could have caused the extinction of the species,” says Ramón Pérez de Ayala, head of WWF Spain Species Program Projects.
Success of EU Life projects
Habitat destruction, road deaths, poaching and depopulation hares were the main threats to the decline of this species. This triggered all the alarms and led to the rescue of the first project in 2002 to prevent the complete extinction of this species.
The first Life project, called ‘Restoring Iberian lynx populations in Andalusia’, was a milestone in conservation. this type and the first step towards achieving ‘safe out of danger’ categorization. This program is a The budget exceeding 9 million Euros, 42% of which is provided by the European UnionPérez de Ayala explains that its main aim is to “connect populations that already exist in Andalusia” and “to ensure that there is an exchange of individuals between populations”. Thanks to these first steps, genetic diversity will increase and the problem of inbreeding will be left behind. May cause physical defects in animals.
The first positive results of this program, the four-year period was a 49% increase in the number of Iberian lynxes and the distribution area of this species increased to 73%. Therefore, other different areas emerged that were suitable for the propagation of the species and met the ideal conditions.
Pérez de Ayala says organizations like WWF-Spain are involved in the development of these programs, which are currently working on the Life Lynx Connect project and are “the largest available.” It is the fourth LIFE project approved by the European Commission for the conservation of this species and will run for five years from 2020 to 2025.
They explain on their website that the main goal is to “increase both the overall size of the population and the connectivity between cores of the Iberian lynx to provide a self-sensing and viable functional metapopulation.”
How to monitor growth
“We have a core job that we started, and which is very important, monitoring the population of this species,” the WWF explains. The procedure for assessing the number of individuals is ‘photo capture’.works through several cameras distributed over areas of habitat captured as these animals pass. Also, each is identified because of patches on their skin, which are genetic fingerprints. In this way, “to prevent or at least prevent the causes of death; possible dispersal movements and observe which individuals settle,” adds the expert.
Because of the fieldwork of such programs, While the cores of this species were two in Andalusia, it reached fifteen, of which fourteen were in Spain. and one in Portugal.
continuous increases
The latest data officially collected by the Ministry of Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge (Miteco) shows that these projects have worked since they were successful. Record numbers in 2021 with a total of 1,365 samples including adults, sub-adults and puppies. “We spent two or three years growing 30% of the population,” WWF explains.
Of the total number of samples, 1,156 are in Spain and 209 in Portugal. The most populated community is Andalusia with 519 people, followed by Castilla-La Mancha with 473 people and Extremadura with 164 people. However, the autonomous community that gave birth to the largest number of offspring last season was Castilla-La Mancha, with 208 pups born and 88 breeding females. In the rest of the communities, 174 puppies were born in Andalusia and 48 in Extremadura.
The growth of the lynx has shown an increasing trend in recent years due to the emergence of new population areas. Experts point out “work very well done” in these recent populations introduced from 2014because they learned from mistakes made in previous promotions, of which they had less knowledge.
Therefore, since then the growth has been much faster than in previous studies, stabilizing until they reached a point where they “reached their maximum carrying capacity and no more individuals entered”. Due to this situation, Two new cores were created, one in the Sierra Arana in Granada and the other in Altos de Lorca in Murcia.and population areas are expected to increase in the coming years.
Ongoing threats
When establishing an Iberian lynx population in a particular area, several factors must be considered that may pose a threat to the continued growth of this species. The most important factor is the number of rabbits in a place., because they are the main food of this species. “It’s not the cause of death, but its scarcity makes recovery difficult,” explains the expert.
But “in areas where there is good habitat for the lynx but not many rabbits, we have a very significant problem there.” In order for this species to settle in a place and breed and reproduce from there, the rabbit population must be at a minimum level. “A lynx starts breeding from one rabbit per hectare. From two, they can already have two or three puppies.. And from four, they already have very large offspring, plus in these populations it is very difficult for the rabbit to disappear even if it does get the disease,” he says.
However, the primary cause of death for the Iberian lynx is not the number of rabbits in a location, but rather the number of rabbits in a location. accidents on the roadsclosely followed by poaching.
Headlines such as ‘Two lynx crushed to death on two roads in Doñana’ still appear in the media. Ending this problem is something organizations like the WWF have been doing for a “long time”. Explain this to solve the most important thing is to clean the sides of the roads so that the “lynx sees the car” and most importantly “the driver sees the lynx first”. Another means of putting an end to this is signage, but it makes it more dynamic, because having a fixed signage “finally gets used to it and forgets,” Ayala says. The measure to avoid this is to place signs on the roads that “operate only when there are animals nearby, or that sense the proximity of wildlife to the roads.”
‘Train’ agents and prosecutors
Another of the causes of death of this species, which we continue to struggle with day by day, is poaching “It is a very complex issue because it is very difficult to detect”explains Ramón Pérez de Ayala, who thinks that the best tool to end this problem is “more teams working in the field and more vigilance to find possible spots” where this problem arises.
Despite all the previous work that can be done to end poaching, the expert explains that “there is an afterthought” because when an illegal death occurs, “Civil Guards and Forest Officers must be very well trained so they do the evidence identification process very well, also sensitize prosecutors to take these issues more seriously». Even today, hundreds of poaching cases continue to be reported, and only less than a dozen of them are subsequently prosecuted.
The goal of these organizations and programs fighting to protect the Iberian lynx is to triple the number of available specimens by 2040. in this way, this species is no longer considered ‘endangered’ and is classified as ‘not endangered’. The work is paying off, and Pérez de Ayala believes he is on the “right track” to achieve this goal.
NEW PROJECTS IN VIEW: VIALYNX
As the number of individuals increases, so do the possible populations in which this species should settle. This is where the work of researchers such as SAIGAS Group from CEU Cardenal Herrera University in Valencia, which developed the ViaLynx project with the support of MITECO’s Fundación Biodiversidad-Terrestrial Biodiversity, comes into play. The aim of this group of researchers is to research various areas to see if they meet the requirements to become future residents lynx herd.
According to Víctor Lizana, one of the veterinarians working on this project, the team began by examining eight areas where lynxes could potentially live because they met the “minimum requirements.” these regions “They must have at least 10,000 hectares of territorial integrity.not divided by roads and highways,” adds Lizana.
Based on these minimum requirements, these researchers examined threats that could affect future lynx populations, such as “secondary roads, irrigation ponds, where many drown,” and “walking black spots.” They should also ensure that the rabbit population is available as they are the main food of this species.
Of the total areas examined, “We have identified two promising areas” Victor tells us. The next step and one of the most important ones is “social awareness”. Ángel Gómez, another of the veterinarians working on this project, explains that this is “an issue that needs to be done years from now.” Therefore, they interviewed different groups such as political formations, Civil Guards or Environmental Agents, among others. Next step “going to schools to create awareness in new generationsthey are the ones who will eventually have to live with the species,” explains Víctor, who tells us that in some of the fieldwork, schoolchildren have collaborated.
“The lynx is a breed that causes little trouble and is well received.but you always need the approval of the locals”, so they feel that the best tool to achieve this goal is to provide information about this species and its importance.
The aim of this project is to “create a suitable climate” so that in the future when lynxes live in these areas they “are already socially accepted and groups are sensitized” so that they learn to live with them because “there is room for everyone”.
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