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Minimum number of Iberian lynx in the last 2 populations in Doñana and Sierra Morena (Andalusia, Spain) photographed during camera-trap monitoring in 2002–2010 (DNP, Doñana National Park). Sampling effort in Doñana was constant among years, except in 2003 and 2005, for which information from inside DNP is lacking. Sampling effort in Sierra Morena was constant from 2004 to 2010; however, in 2002 and 2003 about 10% of the occupied area was not surveyed.
Contexts in source publication
Context 1
... 2002 and 2010, the minimum number of camera-trapped individuals increased from 93 to 252 (Fig. 2) and the occupied area (estimated from camera- trapping data and systematic surveys for lynx scats [GilSánchez et al. 2010]) increased from 29,300 to 70,300 ha (Fig. 1). The Doñana population increased from 34 to 73 individuals (Fig. 2) and the area they occupied in- creased from 17,400 to 44,300 ha (Fig. 1). Abundance was stable in ...
Context 2
... 2002 and 2010, the minimum number of camera-trapped individuals increased from 93 to 252 (Fig. 2) and the occupied area (estimated from camera- trapping data and systematic surveys for lynx scats [GilSánchez et al. 2010]) increased from 29,300 to 70,300 ha (Fig. 1). The Doñana population increased from 34 to 73 individuals (Fig. 2) and the area they occupied in- creased from 17,400 to 44,300 ha (Fig. 1). Abundance was stable in 1980-2007, but almost doubled in 2007-2010 (Fig. 2). Lynx abundance inside DNP did not increase during this period, likely because of disease ( López et al. 2009;Meli et al. 2010) and the fact that it is dif- ficult to increase the ...
Context 3
... from camera- trapping data and systematic surveys for lynx scats [GilSánchez et al. 2010]) increased from 29,300 to 70,300 ha (Fig. 1). The Doñana population increased from 34 to 73 individuals (Fig. 2) and the area they occupied in- creased from 17,400 to 44,300 ha (Fig. 1). Abundance was stable in 1980-2007, but almost doubled in 2007-2010 (Fig. 2). Lynx abundance inside DNP did not increase during this period, likely because of disease ( López et al. 2009;Meli et al. 2010) and the fact that it is dif- ficult to increase the abundance of rabbits in areas where habitat quality has not been increased (Delibes-Mateos et al. 2009). Palomares et al. (2011) stress establishing 10 ...
Context 4
... in abun- dance, genetic diversity, and area occupied by the entire Doñana population currently represents the best demo- graphic situation in the last 25 years (see Palomares et al. 1991;Ferreras 2001;Garrote et al. 2011). The larger Iberian lynx population in Sierra Morena has increased the most in terms of individuals (59-179 individuals) (Fig. 2) and area occupied (11,900-26,000 ha) (Fig. 1). Moreover, the 2 newly reintroduced populations further strengthen the Sierra Morena population because they have begun to exchange individuals and lynx are now distributed over a much larger area than in previous ...
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Two wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus, L. 1758) populations were studied in order to determine weight and body length differences. In the other hand, it was calculated a body condition index. These populations were respectively from the North of Valladolid County and the South of Badajoz County
Citations
... Key factors for success in these American reintroductions have included releasing carnivores into large, contiguous patches of suitable habitat that provide sufficient prey populations, managing human threats to carnivores, securing a sufficient source stock of individuals for the reintroduction, and conducting post-release monitoring to inform adaptive management of reintroduction. Internationally, efforts for captive breeding and reintroduction of Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) have demonstrated that captive breeding and reintroduction programs can support recovery of endangered felids when conducted in coordination with abatement of historic threats to the species, genetic management of the source stock, habitat and prey management and protection, and public outreach promoting human-carnivore coexistence (Sim on et al., 2012). ...
... While many carnivore reintroductions have been found to fail or have not been evaluated at all (Jule et al., 2008), historically successful reintroductions have helped identify lessons learned for future reintroduction programs. Many carnivore reintroduction case studies point to the importance of conducting reintroductions in areas that are ecologically and socially suitable for reintroduction, meaning the areas provide for animals' ecological needs while also minimizing natural or human risks (Diefenbach et al., 2013;Happe et al., 2020;Sim on et al., 2012). Other studies highlight the importance of identifying and managing ecological threats to reintroduced populations, such as predation (Maran, 2013), disease, or hybridization (Bartel & Rabon, 2013), before the reintroduction happens, if possible, or in an adaptive management process as those threats arise. ...
Reintroductions are often needed to recover carnivore populations and restore ecological processes. Felids are common subjects of reintroduction efforts, but published population models informing felid reintroduction plans are uncommon, and poor planning has sometimes caused issues in felid reintroduction programs. In the United States, ocelots (Leopardus pardalis pardalis) are classified as endangered, and recovery requires population expansion into historic habitat. A multi‐organization effort is underway to establish a new ocelot population in Texas by releasing ocelots into an area of 478 km² of suitable habitat in ocelots' historic but now unoccupied range. In this study, we used population viability analyses to compare different ocelot reintroduction strategies for the identified reintroduction area. Based on a potential ocelot breeding program's limitations, we modeled reintroduction using a founding population of no more than six ocelots and no more than four ocelots released per year for no more than 15 subsequent years. Within these limitations, we assessed projected population abundances and extinction risks after 30 years for 20 different reintroduction strategies. We found that long‐term releases are necessary to establish a viable population; under conservative model assumptions, releasing six ocelots in the initial year and then releasing four individuals annually for an additional 10–15 years is necessary for attaining a projected population greater than 36.62 ocelots (baseline) with <6% extinction risk. We also found that ocelot population abundance is about equally sensitive to post‐release mortality and inbreeding depression. This highlights the importance of not only supporting reintroduced ocelots' survival but also managing for high genetic diversity in the reintroduction program. Further, we found that realistic but more liberal assumptions on the carrying capacity of the reintroduction area and the age of first reproduction for ocelots increase projected population abundances (53.95 individuals and 61.26 individuals, respectively), and thus reintroduction success. The model's sensitivity to carrying capacity suggests that long‐term habitat protection and expansion are among the most important management actions to support ocelot reintroduction. Our study establishes the first population viability model for an ocelot reintroduction plan anywhere across the species' wide geographic range, and it reinforces several key considerations for wildlife reintroduction efforts worldwide.
... In addition, threatened species featured in the studies could be biased towards positive trends because of conservation measures aimed at species recovery. For example, the Iberian lynx, Lynx pardinus, has shown positive trends in Spain after the application of several conservation measures (Simon et al., 2012;Garrote et al., 2020). We show that local population time-series databases improve the capacity to detect signals of population change. ...
... Accordingly, it was classified as Critically Endangered (Arx et al., 2008), prompting various conservation efforts to prevent the species from its imminent extinction. These measures included mitigating major mortality causes like wildlife-vehicle collisions, disease, and poaching; enhancing carrying capacity by actively managing the habitat to aid rabbit recovery; and increasing population size or re-establishing populations by an intense reintroduction and translocation programme (Rodriguez and Calzada, 2015;Simón et al., 2012). Most translocated individuals originated from an ambitious ex-situ breeding programme based on four breeding centres. ...
... Moreover, we recommend monitoring the movements of reintroduced captive-born individuals also years after their release to evaluate their long-term adaptation. When genetic reinforcements are needed in stable populations where competition is high (Kleinman-Ruiz et al., 2019;Simón et al., 2012), we recommend prioritizing the translocation of wild individuals as they may compete more successfully to establish territories than their more cautious captive-born counterparts. ...
An ambitious conservation programme to save the Iberian lynx from extinction conducted several reintro-ductions aiming to restore its historical range. The urgency due to the delicate conservation status prompted translocating captive-born and wild individuals, while preventing an early assessment of how both groups combined their space-use and differed in post-release movements. To address this issue, we conducted a comprehensive movement ecology analysis using GPS data of 161 Iberian lynxes from 9 populations. First, we classified five movement phases within individuals' trajectories: residence areas (stable and transient), excursions , post-release dispersals, and transitions between residences. Second, we used continuous-time movement models to estimate range size and daily speeds and measured the distance travelled during extraterritorial movements. Finally, we conducted comparative analyses to evaluate differences between captive-born, wild translocated, and wild non-translocated individuals across phases, sex, age-class and populations. Most individuals in all groups established home ranges, supporting the reintroduction main goal. Yet, contrary to the species' natural pattern, captive-born subadults did not show intersexual home range size differences, which emerged after experiencing free-ranging, when becoming adults. More differences emerged for non-residential behaviours. Captive-born lynxes were more prone to post-release dispersal, to slower post-release movements and to having smaller transient residences, indicating cautious behaviour. Our study supports using captive-born individuals for reintroductions, while prioritizing wild individuals for reinforcements in highly competitive populations. Further, we suggest relevant metrics for planning translocations and connectivity management, and we demonstrate how an integrated ex-situ and reintroduction initiative can substantially contribute to restoring an endangered species' distribution range.
... negative donations for biodiversity conservation are impossible). In addition, to reduce problems of low credibility, respondents were informed that previous conservation efforts by the Spanish and Portuguese governments (Simón et al. 2012) have contributed a situation whereby "[…] the Iberian lynx has gone from the world's most endangered feline to the greatest triumph in cat conservation" (Dell'Amore 2022). ...
Environmental policy outcomes are often uncertain, and choosing the socially-preferred policy requires an understanding of how people value such policies. Uncertainty is increasingly incorporated in choice experiments. However, this research often assumes behaviour in line with expected utility theory despite evidence that respondents care about the direction and magnitude of risk. Here, we
assess preferences for uncertain environmental policies that differ in terms of the direction and magnitude of risk for the case of conserving the Iberian lynx. We assess respondents’ risk aversion, loss aversion and probability sensitivity using lottery questions and use this to classify respondents in a latent class model (LCM). In addition, we examine whether a simpler LCM based only on risk aversion
yields similar conclusions. We find that lottery choices are largely in line with prospect theory. The LCM based on the full set of risk parameters classifies respondents based on their focus on upside and downside uncertainty. Conversely, the simpler LCM leads to very different results. In conclusion, with careful survey design, we find evidence that respondents are able to make choices regarding complex and uncertain policies, and ignoring aspects of respondents’ risk preferences may limit our understanding of the utility received from uncertain policies.
... It is listed as "endangered" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species [42]. Since the second half of the twentieth century, a sharp decrease in the number of Iberian lynxes brought the species to the brink of extinction due to habitat loss/transformation, illegal hunting, road kills, reduction in the density of its primary prey, the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), and infectious diseases [43,44]. Among the latter, clinical cases and mortality reported during the last two decades have been associated to bacterial (e.g., Mycobacterium bovis, Streptococcus canis) [45,46], viral (e.g., feline leukaemia virus, feline herpes virus, feline calicivirus, pseudorabies virus) [47,48], and parasitic (e.g., Neospora caninum, Toxoplasma gondii, Cystoisospora spp.) [49][50][51][52] pathogens. ...
Cryptosporidium spp. and Giardia duodenalis are the main non-viral causes of diarrhoea in humans and domestic animals globally. Comparatively, much less information is currently available in free-ranging carnivore species in general and in the endangered Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) inparticular. Cryptosporidium spp. and G. duodenalis were investigated with molecular (PCR and Sanger sequencing) methods in individual faecal DNA samples of free-ranging and captive Iberian lynxes
from the main population nuclei in Spain. Overall, Cryptosporidium spp. and G. duodenalis were detected in 2.4% (6/251) and 27.9% (70/251) of the animals examined, respectively. Positive animals to at least one of them were detected in each of the analysed population nuclei. The analysis of partial ssu rRNA gene sequences revealed the presence of rodent-adapted C. alticolis (n = 1) and C. occultus (n = 1), leporid-adapted C. cuniculus (n = 2), and zoonotic C. parvum (n = 2) within Cryptosporidium, and zoonotic assemblages A (n = 5) and B (n = 3) within G. duodenalis. Subgenotyping analyses allowed for the identification of genotype VaA19 in C. cuniculus (gp60 locus) and sub-assemblages AI and BIII/BIV in G. duodenalis (gdh, bg, and tpi loci). This study represents the first molecular description of Cryptosporidium spp. and G. duodenalis in the Iberian lynx in Spain. The presence of rodent/leporidadapted Cryptosporidium species in the surveyed animals suggests spurious infections associated to the Iberian lynx’s diet. The Iberian lynx seems a suitable host for zoonotic genetic variants of Cryptosporidium (C. parvum) and G. duodenalis (assemblages A and B), although the potential risk of
human transmission is regarded as limited due to light parasite burdens and suspected low excretion of infective (oo)cysts to the environment by infected animals. More research should be conducted to ascertain the true impact of these protozoan parasites in the health status of the endangered Iberian lynx.
... Some species once regarded as pests are now conservation flagship species, with substantial investment targeting population recovery (e.g. Iberian lynx Lynx pardinus, Delibes-Mateos et al., 2022;Simón et al., 2012). ...
The modification of landscapes is increasing the interface between humans and wildlife, while conflicts concerning predator impacts on human activities persist. Some previously persecuted but now protected predator species are experiencing recovery and range expansion.
Tolerance is considered essential for achieving coexistence between humans and wildlife; however, its conceptualisation remains unresolved. Little is known about tolerance in the context of recovering predators, particularly which drivers are relevant to all or specific species and human interests.
Using an online questionnaire survey shared with members of organisations with interests in rural land‐based activities, we collected data on interests and beliefs, and attitudes, perceptions, experience and management preferences for six recovering vertebrate predators in the United Kingdom ( n = 819). We created a species tolerance score representing the management choices of the respondents in different conflict scenarios, which differed in the degree of impact on the predator population.
Our species tolerance score was characterised by a complex combination of the interests and beliefs of the respondents about wildlife management, perceptions and experience of that species (perceived benefits, population trend, positive and negative experience, indirect negative experience) and negative experience of other recovering predators.
We found a tolerance gradient between interest groups with notable overlap between groups with primary interests in wildlife conservation, shooting, farming and fishing. Although higher perceived benefits consistently corresponded to higher tolerance, having a negative experience of the species dampened the effect of perceived benefits on tolerance. When both negative personal and indirect experiences were reported, tolerance was dramatically reduced. The classification of species from least to most tolerated was consistent between interest groups.
The application of our species tolerance score as the normative dimension (i.e. acceptability) in Brenner and Metcalf's (2020) Social Tolerance of Wildlife Framework highlights that tolerance (negative attitude—high acceptability) is potentially rare and more positive attitudes must be achieved before acceptance of the impacts of species can increase.
Our findings highlight that considering only primary interests may hinder debates concerning recovering predators. Strategies to reduce negative experiences or change how they are perceived could significantly increase tolerance in combination with increasing positive experiences.
Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
... This species is likely one of most investigated carnivores, with studies conducted on its ecology and management [2][3][4][5], taxonomy [6], morphology [7,8], physiology, and diseases ([9,10] for a review). These investigations underpinned efforts to address the threat of extinction [10,11]. As a result, the Iberian lynx is probably a good example of how recovery efforts can reverse the rapid decline of an endangered species [12,13]. ...
... Moreover, references on the effect of climate change on the lynx's main prey, the European wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) [18], are also missing. Many of the conservation measures proposed by Van Hassel and Bovenkerk [1] are not original or new (e.g., providing supplementary food [19], assisting migration/colonization, and bringing animals into captive breeding programs [10,11]). Most of them were considered in the five successive LIFE projects funded in part by the European Union (EU) (Figure 2). ...
In their recent paper, Van Hassel and Bovenkerk [...]
... This first translocated animal was highly successful in the following years, whereas only a few of the other subsequent releases reproduced. These translocations have collectively resulted in an improvement of genetic and demographic parameters, becoming a potential example of a successful genetic rescue (López et al. 2015;Simón et al. 2012). ...
Guidelines for the Genetic Management of Iberian lynx populations
... For example, the highly endangered Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) and Spanish Imperial eagle (Aquila adalberti), both endemic to the Iberian Mediterranean ecosystem, are considered as rabbit-specialist predators, because both preferentially consume this prey (Ferrer and Negro 2004); that is, European rabbits constitute more than 85% of the lynx diet (Delibes-Mateos et al. 2008a). In southern Spain, conservation projects of the Iberian lynx and the Spanish Imperial eagle have attracted funding of more than €100 million over the past years, and a part of this funding has been allocated exclusively to the enhancement of European rabbit populations as the primary prey of these top predators (Simón et al. 2012). It is remarkable that European rabbits are also a key prey for predators of conservation concern in areas where this lagomorph has been introduced. ...
... Over time, wild individuals have been held in captivity [42] and reintroduced [43], and additional food has been provided via the translocation of rabbits [44]. Additionally, in areas recently extirpated of lynx, completely new populations were created via a reintroduction program [45]). Many individuals are there thanks to these measures; the population rose to 1111 individuals in 2021 [46]. ...
Climate change and related shifts in weather conditions result in massive biodiversity declines and severe animal suffering. This article explores the measures that can be taken to decrease animal suffering and prevent species from going extinct. Taking the Iberian lynx as a case study, we assess the extent to which it is beneficial for animal welfare and species conservation to do nothing or reduce other threats, provide food or shelter, relocate the species via assisted migration, or bring the population into captivity. We argue that, given the Iberian lynx’s non-invasive characteristics, assisted migration may be the best way to protect the species while ensuring animal welfare and protecting wildness and other ecosystem values.
