Today 12 December, International Day of the Iberian Lynx, we celebrate:

Altos de Lorca and Sierra Arana

Two new reintroduction areas, which join those already consolidated in Castilla Mancha, Portugal, Andalusia and Extremadura.

Census

It was on the verge of extinction. In 23 years, it has gone from 90 to more than 1700 specimens!

It changed its status from ‘Critically Endangered’ to ‘Endangered’. Although it still remains a threatened species.

In June 2015 the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) reclassified the Iberian Lynx (Lynx pardinus) from ‘Critically Endangered’ to ‘Endangered’. Defining its change of status as follows: “Saving the Iberian lynx from the brink of extinction while securing the livelihoods of local communities is a perfect example. It is excellent proof that conservation action really works. However, the work is far from over and we must continue our conservation efforts to ensure the future expansion and population growth of the species”.

At that time and after six decades of population and range decline, between 2002 and 2012 the Iberian lynx population size increased steadily to 156 mature individuals, from 27 breeding females in 2002 to 97 in 2012.

If LIFE LYNXCONNECT achieves its objectives, it will guarantee the survival of the Iberian Lynx and allow the degree of threat to be reduced, leading the species to reach the objective of favourable conservation status.

The LIFE Programmes that have been developed over the last 20 years to prevent the extinction of the Iberian Lynx have served as a model to protect, preserve and save other animal species.

Since 2002, three consecutive LIFE projects have supported the recovery of this species, achieving the consolidation of the remaining nuclei between 2002 and 2010. Between 2011 and 2018, two former core sites were recovered through reintroductions in Andalusia and the Andújar-Cardeña core sites were fully connected. Finally, in 2014, new cores were created in Portugal, Extremadura and Castilla-La Mancha.

The fourth LIFE project, called LYNXCONNECT, will complement the previous conservation plans and develop new strategic conservation actions focused on making the Iberian lynx population self-sustainable and genetically viable in the long term, by connecting the six existing core sites and creating two new sites: Altos de Lorca in Murcia and Sierra Arana in Granada.

Involvement of local populations.
The joint development of management and conservation strategies between the Administration, institutions, NGOs, landowners and managers, hunters and local businessmen, has served to bring the most endangered feline species in the world out of the critical danger it was in and to establish joint, exportable and demonstrative ways of working that guarantee future management of species and habitat. A management that includes everyone and in which everyone is a participant and guarantor.

This direct collaboration of all the agents involved, especially with the owners and managers of the land where the Iberian lynx lives, has been one of the cornerstones on which all the achievements have been built. The collaboration between administration and landowners to save the Iberian lynx won the European Citizenship Award at the Natura 2000 Awards in 2016.

To celebrate this collaboration, over the course of the LIFE LYNXCONNECT project, five awards will be presented, one per year, to people or entities whose collaboration, commitment and involvement with the project has been outstanding in any of its aspects (conservation, information, research, etc.). Of these, one will be made for each area of work (Portugal, Murcia, Castilla-La Mancha, Extremadura and Andalusia).

This year, on the 15th, the awards will be presented in Lorca, in the Region of Murcia.