The Iberian lynx is a feline mamal from the Iberic peninsula. A few of them still live in the wild, in the mountains of Toledo, but the vast majority are living in captivity in the National Park of Doñana, in the south of Spain. It is the most endangered cat species in the world.
The iberian lynx is fully covered in grey or light brownish fur and has distinctive, leopard-like black spots all over its body. Its lenght is 85 to 110 centimeters. The male is larger and heavier than the female, with the average weight of 20 kilograms for males and 10 kilograms for females.
The iberic lynx lives lonely in the wild, and only has fisical contact with other lynxes during the reproduction period. He only eats rabbits, and it is very good at hunting them, he aproches quietly to the prade and jumps on it quickly.
When temperatures increase, they spend the time resting on the shadows of trees, unlike in cold or rain periods.
The most dangerous threaten for these lynxes are human. We have been building roads and infrastructures that has divided the species and makes it difficult for them to reproduce. Whatsmore, human have also killed some Lynxes by running over them accidentally with cars and other vehicles.
There is a programme of captive breeding which wants to save Iberian lynxes from extintion and reintroduce them into the wild. This project is working for now because the population has already encreased in the last years.
Gabriele Ballero
