Spain's endangered Iberian lynx brought back from brink of extinction

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2013/jul/14/spain-iberian-lynx-extinction


A lynx born in captivity is released into the wild in Despeñaperros natural park, Andalusia, Spain. Photograph: Agencia EFE/Rex Features

Ten years ago the Iberian lynx was nearing extinction but today, thanks to an imaginative conservation programme that has brought hunters, farmers and the tourist industry under its wing, its numbers have tripled from 94 to 312.

"We can't claim victory yet but now there is hope," said Miguel Ángel Simón, the director of the programme for the recovery of the lynx in Andalusia, southern Spain. Only five years ago the animal was classified as critically endangered.

The project, which is jointly funded by the Andalusian government and the European Union, has been singled out for the second time by the EU as an exemplary conservation programme. Brussels is funding 40% of the €26m (£22m) needed to extend the project into the neighbouring regions of Extremadura, Castile-La Mancha and Murcia, as well as Portugal.

According to Simón, when they first carried out a census in the lynx's key habitats in the Sierra Morena and the Doñana national park, not only were there few lynxes but the rabbit population had also been severely depleted by disease. Rabbits are the lynx's main source of food.