In 2001, only 62 adult Iberian lynx survived in the Mediterranean forests, but today the total population exceeds 2,000 individuals, a rare success in efforts to protect the endangered species.
The Iberian lynx case is “the largest recovery of a cat to date,” he said. Reuters Francisco Javier Salcedo Ortiz, coordinator of the LIFE Lynx-Connect program.
A close relative of the Eurasian lynx (lynx lynx) Iberian lynxes that once lived in Greece (lynx pardinus) is larger than a domestic cat and has furry ears, a short tail, and yellow eyes.
After its population boomed, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the organization that publishes the Red List of Threatened Species, upgraded the Iberian lynx from “endangered” to “vulnerable”.
Efforts are focused on increasing existing game, mainly the endangered European hare.Oryctolagus cuniculus), restoration of scrubland and forests, and the breeding and release of hundreds of lynx.
However, the IUCN warned that the positive trend could be reversed by threats such as domestic cat diseases, poaching and road accidents.