Iberian lynx
Iberian lynx | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Carnivora |
Suborder: | Feliformia |
Family: | Felidae |
Subfamily: | Felinae |
Genus: | Lynx |
Species: | L. pardinus
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Binomial name | |
Lynx pardinus (Temminck, 1827)
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Distribution of Iberian lynx, 2015[needs update] |
The Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) is one of the four
By the turn of the 21st century, the Iberian lynx was on the verge of
It is a
Taxonomy
Felis pardina was the
Phylogeny
The Iberian lynx is thought to have evolved from Lynx issiodorensis.[12] The earliest fossil remains of the Iberian lynx date to the Early Pleistocene.[1]
The Iberian lynx genetically diverged as a unique species 1.98 to 0.7 million years ago. Its closest living relative is the Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) with which it coexisted to a certain degree until the 20th century.[13][14]
Characteristics
The Iberian lynx has a short bright yellowish to tawny coloured spotted fur. The spots vary in shape and size from small round to elongate. They are arranged in lines and decrease in size from the back towards the sides.[15] Its head is small with tufted ears and a ruff. Its body is short with long legs and a short tail. Head and body length of males is 74.7–82 cm (29.4–32.3 in) with a 12.5–16 cm (4.9–6.3 in) long tail and a weight of 7–15.9 kg (15–35 lb). Females are smaller with a head-to-body-length of approximately 68.2–77.5 cm (26.9–30.5 in) and a weight of 9.2–10 kg (20–22 lb).[16]
Distribution and habitat
The Iberian lynx was once present throughout the Iberian Peninsula. In the 1950s, the northern population extended from the
The Iberian lynx prefers
Behaviour and ecology
The Iberian lynx marks its territory with its urine, scratch marks on the barks of trees, and scat. The home ranges of adults are stable over many years.[16] Camera trapping surveys in the eastern Sierra Morena Mountains between 1999 and 2008 revealed that six females had home ranges of 5.2–6.6 km2 (2.0–2.5 sq mi). Four males in the area had home ranges of 11.8–12.2 km2 (4.6–4.7 sq mi).[23]
Diet and hunting
The Iberian lynx preys foremost on the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) for the bulk of its diet, supplemented by red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa), rodents and to a smaller degree also on wild ungulates.[24][25][26] It sometimes preys on young fallow deer (Dama dama), European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus), European mouflon (Ovis aries musimon), and ducks.[27] A male requires one rabbit per day, while a female raising kittens eats three per day.[28]
The Iberian lynx has low adaptability and continued to rely heavily on rabbits, with 75% of its food intake, despite the latter's repeated population crashes due to
It competes for prey with the Iberian wolf (Canis lupus signatus), red fox (Vulpes vulpes), the Egyptian mongoose (Herpestes ichneumon), and the European wildcat (Felis silvestris). Also, it often kills other smaller carnivores such as the aforementioned red fox, Egyptian mongoose and common genet (Genetta genetta).[31]
Reproduction
The kittens become independent at 7 to 10 months old, but remain with the mother until around 20 months old. Survival of the young depends heavily on the availability of prey species. In the wild, both males and females reach sexual maturity at the age of one year, though in practice they rarely breed until a territory becomes vacant; one female was known not to breed until five years old when its mother died. The maximum longevity in the wild is 13 years.[32][33]
Difficulty in finding mates has led to more inbreeding, which results in fewer kittens and a greater rate of non-traumatic death.[34] Inbreeding leads to lower semen quality and greater rates of infertility in males, hindering efforts to increase the species' fitness.[35]
Threats
The Iberian lynx is threatened by habitat loss, road accidents, and illegal hunting.
In 2007, several individuals died of
Increasing interactions with humans and spread of antibiotic resistant genes between lynx populations could pose a significant threat not only to lynx but also to humans.[41]
Conservation
The Iberian lynx is fully protected. It is listed on
Conservation measures include restoring its native habitat, maintaining the wild rabbit population, reducing unnatural causes of death, and releasing captive bred individuals.[42] The Spanish National Commission for the Protection of Nature endorsed the Iberian Lynx Ex Situ Conservation Breeding Program to serve as a "safety net" by managing the captive population and also to "help establish new Iberian lynx free-ranging populations through reintroduction programmes." Before release of captive-bred cats, their natural habit may be simulated to prepare them for life in the wild.[42] A 2006 study used a non-intrusive monitoring system involving cameras to monitor the demographics of both lynxes and rabbits residing in Sierra Morena. Supplemental food sources could be provided if wild rabbits suffered a decline.[43]
Management efforts are being developed to conserve and restore the animal's native range.[44] Officials intending to release captive-bred lynx look for areas of appropriate habitat, rabbit abundance, and acceptance by the local human population.[45] About 90 million euros was spent on various conservation measures between 1994 and 2013.[46] The European Union contributes up to 61% of funding.[47][48]
Reintroduction programme
Beginning in 2009, the Iberian lynx was reintroduced into
On 26 November 2014, 3 Iberian lynxes were released in the Montes de Toledo; one of them later traveled near Aranjuez, in the Madrid region, the first time in 40 years.[55][56]
The presence of Iberian lynxes in Portugal, particularly in the south, has been verified.[57] In 2014, the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests signed contracts securing 2,000 hectares of land for Portugal's reintroduction project.[58][59][60] In 2015, 10 captive-bred Iberian lynxes were released into Guadiana Valley Natural Park and surrounding areas in southeastern Portugal's Guadiana Valley.[61] By the end of 2015, there were 400 lynx on the Iberian peninsula, the vast majority in Andalusia, in southern Spain, but with smaller new populations in the hills near Toledo, in Extremadura (south-western Spain) and in southern Portugal.[62]
The reintroduction of Iberian lynx in Portugal has been a success; from 17 animals that were reintroduced, 12 have already established territories.[63]
Since a 2007 outbreak of feline leukemia virus (FeLV), wild lynxes are tested periodically for possible disease. September–December 2013 samples were negative for FeLV but one male became the first of his species to test positive for feline immunodeficiency virus and was placed into quarantine.[64]
Captive breeding
In 2002, the Jerez Zoo confirmed it had three females and was developing a plan for a captive breeding program. One of those females was Saliega, captured as a kitten in April 2002.[65] She became the first Iberian lynx to breed in captivity, giving birth to three healthy kittens on 29 March 2005 at the El Acebuche Breeding Center, in the Doñana National Park in Huelva, Spain.[66] Over the following years, the number of births grew and additional breeding centers were opened. In March 2009, it was reported that 27 kittens had been born since the beginning of the program.[67] In 2009, the Spanish government planned to build a €5.5 million breeding center in Zarza de Granadilla.[67]
In Portugal, the Centro Nacional de Reprodução do Lince-Ibérico established a breeding center near Silves, Portugal,[68][69] and has since nurtured 122 individuals all born in the breeding center, of which 89 survived. 73 of them were reintroduced in the wild. Reintroduction takes place in Mértola and Serpa in the Guadiana Valley.[70] As of 2020, there are around 140 individuals in the wild in Portugal spread through an area of approximately 50,000 hectares, 50 of them are cubs.[71]
There were 14 surviving kittens in 2008 and 15 in 2009. In 2010, intense rain and health issues resulted in lower reproductive success, i.e. 14 born, eight surviving.[72] But the next year, breeding centers recorded 45 births with 26 surviving kittens.[73] In 2012, breeding centers in Portugal and Spain reported a total of 44 survivors from 59 births,[73] while 2013 saw a total of 44 survivors out of 53 born.[74] In 2017, the total population of Iberian lynx reached 475 specimens.[75] In February 2019, the total population was estimated to grow to around 650 individuals.[76]
In March 2013, it was reported that Iberian lynx embryos and oocytes had been collected and preserved for the first time. They were collected from Saliega and another female—both sterilized and retired from the breeding program—by Berlin's Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research and stored in liquid nitrogen at the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales in Madrid for possible future breeding.[77] In July 2014, the MNCN-CSIC announced they had produced sperm cells from the testicular tissue of sexually immature lynx.[78]
Iberian lynxes are kept at Jerez Zoo,
Genetic research
The genetic diversity of the Iberian lynx is lower than in any other genetically impoverished felid, which is a consequence of fragmentation, a population bottleneck, and isolation of population units.[82] Iberian lynxes in Doñana and Andujar differ genetically at microsatellite markers. Samples collected in Doñana exhibited a high degree of inbreeding as this unit was isolated for a long time.[82]
In popular culture
Portuguese street artist
See also
References
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External links
- Large Carnivore Initiative for Europe – Iberian lynx
- Programa de Conservación Ex-Situ Official Spanish government page (in Spanish)
- Species portrait Iberian lynx; IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group
- ARKive – Images and movies of the Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus)
- The natural history of the Iberian lynx
- Lynx in vertebradosibericos.org (in Spanish)
- WWF species profile: Iberian lynx
- Lynx pardinus in Naturdata (in Portuguese)