What the sources say
Iberian LynxLynx pardinus
Every figure, record and mechanism on the Iberian Lynx profile was written from a source, and this is the working table behind it: 44 claims checked word for word against these sources. The left column is what the page says. The right column is the source's own words, copied, not paraphrased; a ... marks a cut and[brackets] an insertion. Open any source and check it yourself.
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Source
01
Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan
Lynx pardinus (Spanish lynx). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.
- The page saystufted-eared
- The source says
black tufts on the ears and jowls
- The page saysMediterranean scrubland below 1,300 m, in a mosaic with open grassland patches and often marsh edges
- The source says
Iberian lynx require variable terrain below 1300 m, containing a mosaic of closed Mediterranean scrubland interspersed with open patches of grassland, often with marsh ecotones
Note: stats.habitat - The page saysEuropean rabbits make up 80 to 100% of its diet by weight
- The source says
their primary prey is European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), which makes up between 80 and 100% of their daily biomass consumption
Note: stats.diet - The page saysA single kill bite that punctures the back of the prey's neck and severs the spinal cord
- The source says
allow Iberian lynx to deliver a single kill bite that punctures the back of the neck, thus severing the spinal cord
Note: stats.superpower, first clause - The page sayson a diet that is 80 to 100 percent European rabbit
- The source says
which makes up between 80 and 100% of their daily biomass consumption
Note: stats.superpower, second clause - The page saysa spotted wild cat
- The source says
They have tawny pelage, which is mottled with dark spots
- The page saysabout half the size of its close relative, the Eurasian lynx
- The source says
Iberian lynx are similar in appearance to their close relative, Eurasian lynx, but are about half the size.
- The page saysIt weighs 11 to 15 kilograms, averaging 12.8 kilograms
- The source says
Range mass 11 to 15 kg ... Average mass 12.8 kg
- The page saysmeasures 80 to 130 centimetres long
- The source says
Range length 80 to 130 cm
- The page saysmales larger than females
- The source says
males are larger than females
- The page saysThe oldest wild Iberian lynx on record was 13 years old when it died
- The source says
The oldest wild Iberian lynx was 13 years old at time of death.
- The page saysAs a small-prey specialist, it has a foreshortened skull that maximizes the bite force of its canines
- The source says
As small prey specialists, Iberian lynx have a foreshortened skull that maximizes the bite force of the canines.
- The page saysCompared with cats that specialize on larger prey, it has a narrower muzzle, longer jaws and smaller canines, and a smaller canine contact area results in more bite force per unit of that area
- The source says
they have more narrow muzzles, longer jaws, and smaller canines than felines that specialize on larger prey ... Small-prey felids have smaller canines that result in a smaller contact area ... a smaller contact area results in increased bite force per unit contact area
- The page saysThat lets it deliver a single kill bite that punctures the back of the prey's neck and severs the spinal cord
- The source says
These adaptations provide an advantage when catching small, fast prey and allow Iberian lynx to deliver a single kill bite that punctures the back of the neck, thus severing the spinal cord
- The page saysEuropean rabbits make up 80 to 100 percent of what it eats by weight
- The source says
their primary prey is European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), which makes up between 80 and 100% of their daily biomass consumption
- The page saysa single adult needs 600 to 1,000 kilocalories a day, about the energy contained in one rabbit
- The source says
A single adult lynx requires between 600 and 1000 kcal per day, which is approximately the amount of energy contained within a single rabbit.
- The page saysWhen rabbits are scarce, it turns to rodents, hares and birds
- The source says
When European rabbits are scarce, alternative prey items consist of small vertebrates including rodents ( Rodentia ) and European hare ( Lepus granatensis ). They also consume birds
Note: ADW labels Lepus granatensis "European hare"; the page says only "hares" - The page saysIts activity peaks around sunset, when its prey is most active
- The source says
with activity peaking around sunset, when prey is most active
- The page saysA lynx's home range spans 4 to 20 square kilometres, depending on prey density and habitat quality, and it travels about 7 kilometres a day within it, mostly searching for prey
- The source says
Prey density and habitat quality significantly influence Iberian lynx home-range size, which ranges from 4 to 20 km^2. They travel about 7 km per day within their home range, primarily searching for prey.
- The page saysIberian lynxes were once widespread throughout the Iberian Peninsula, but their geographic range has contracted at an alarming rate over the last century and a half
- The source says
Although they were once widespread throughout the region, their geographic range has contracted at an alarming rate over the last century and a half.
Note: "the region" is the Iberian Peninsula named in the sentence before - The page saysIt shrank by nearly 80 percent between 1960 and 1990 alone
- The source says
The most significant period of decline was between 1960 and 1990, during which their range contracted by nearly 80%.
- The page saysA 1988 survey estimated about 880 to 1,150 adults, living in nine populations across a very fragmented range
- The source says
In 1988, a survey estimated that there were about 880 to 1150 adult Iberian lynx living in nine populations across a very fragmented range.
- The page saysOne adult needs roughly one rabbit's worth of energy a day, while a female with young needs up to three rabbits a day
- The source says
A single adult lynx requires between 600 and 1000 kcal per day, which is approximately the amount of energy contained within a single rabbit. An adult female with young requires up to three rabbits per day.
Note: FAQ 3 - The page saysdangerLevel: Medium
- The source says
Like most felids, Iberian lynx frequently hunt alone and kill prey with a single bite to the neck.
Note: capability: an 11 to 15 kg cat with a killing bite can injure; ADW also says "no violent attacks against humans have been recorded", so not High - The page saysweightKg: 12.8
- The source says
Average mass 12.8 kg
- The page saysa cat whose small canines put more bite force on less contact area
- The source says
Small-prey felids have smaller canines that result in a smaller contact area. When compared to the large, rounded canines found in large-prey cats, a smaller contact area results in increased bite force per unit contact area.
- The page saysso a single kill bite punctures the back of the neck and severs the spinal cord
- The source says
allow Iberian lynx to deliver a single kill bite that punctures the back of the neck, thus severing the spinal cord
Source
02
Rodríguez 2024
Rodríguez (2024). Lynx pardinus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T12520A218695618.
- The page saysVulnerable
- The source says
IUCN Red List category: Vulnerable (VU).
Note: stats.conservationStatus, read through GBIF's copy of the Red List; the assessment DOI (2024) cites the category - The page saysthe IUCN's 2024 assessment lists the species as Vulnerable
- The source says
IUCN Red List category: Vulnerable (VU).
Note: the reference is the 2024 assessment (DOI 2024-1); the category is read through GBIF's copy
Source
03
Abascal et al. 2016
Abascal et al. (2016). Extreme genomic erosion after recurrent demographic bottlenecks in the highly endangered Iberian lynx. Genome Biology.
- The page saysfound only on the Iberian Peninsula
- The source says
being restricted to the Mediterranean region in the Iberian Peninsula
Note: a 2016 statement of the species' range, replacing ADW's "historical range" - The page saysA steep decline in the second half of the 20th century left fewer than 100 lynxes, fewer than 62 of them mature, in two isolated populations in Andalusia: Doñana and Andújar, in the Sierra Morena
- The source says
a steep decline during the second half of the 20th century left less than 100 lynx (less than 62 mature) distributed in the two isolated populations of Doñana and Andújar (Sierra Morena) in Andalusia, southern Spain
- The page saysThe IUCN listed the species as Critically Endangered in 2002, 2006 and 2008
- The source says
its classification as “critically endangered” in the 2002, 2006, and 2008 IUCN red lists
- The page saysFewer than 100 lynxes were left
- The source says
a steep decline during the second half of the 20th century left less than 100 lynx
Note: blockquote lead-in - The page saysManagement of habitat, prey and non-natural deaths, plus captive breeding, translocation and reintroduction, lifted that to over 300 by 2012, 156 of them mature
- The source says
Active conservation in the last 14 years, including in situ management of habitat, prey, and non-natural mortality, captive breeding, translocation, and reintroduction programs, has recovered lynx numbers to over 300 (156 mature) individuals in 2012
- The page saysThat 2012 figure led to a downlisting to Endangered in 2015
- The source says
has recovered lynx numbers to over 300 (156 mature) individuals in 2012, leading to its downlisting to “endangered” in the 2015 IUCN red list
Source
04
Kleinman-Ruiz et al. 2022
Kleinman-Ruiz et al. (2022). Purging of deleterious burden in the endangered Iberian lynx. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
- The page saysclawed its way back from fewer than 100 cats
- The source says
its global population dwindled to less than 100 individuals
Note: "fewer than" paraphrases "less than"; "clawed its way back" rests on the same passage's "remarkable recovery" - The page saysFewer Than 100 Cats, Then a Recovery
- The source says
its global population dwindled to less than 100 individuals. Nonetheless, active conservation efforts, which include in situ, ex situ, and reintroduction programs ( 33 , 34 ), have since kick-started a remarkable recovery
Note: heading - The page saysBy 2020 there were 1,100 free-living lynxes
- The source says
have propelled its population to 1,100 free-living lynxes in 2020
Source
05
Fedriani, Palomares & Delibes 1999
Fedriani, Palomares & Delibes (1999). Niche relations among three sympatric Mediterranean carnivores. Oecologia.
- The page saysIn one area of Doñana where the lynx, the red fox and the Eurasian badger live side by side
- The source says
red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) were killed by Iberian lynxes (Lynx pardinus), whereas similar-sized Eurasian badgers (Meles meles) were not ... we compared their diet, activity patterns, and habitat use in an area of Doñana where the three carnivores are sympatric
- The page saysa study of their diets found lynxes preying almost uniquely on rabbits, while the omnivorous foxes and badgers also took rabbits as a major prey
- The source says
Lynxes preyed almost uniquely on European rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), and though badgers and foxes were omnivorous, rabbits also were a major prey
Source
06
Meli et al. 2009
Meli et al. (2009). Feline Leukemia Virus and Other Pathogens as Important Threats to the Survival of the Critically Endangered Iberian Lynx (Lynx pardinus). PLoS ONE.
- The page saysBetween 2003 and 2007, researchers tested 77 of the roughly 200 free-ranging lynxes left in the Doñana and Sierra Morena areas and found fourteen carrying feline leukemia virus
- The source says
infections in 77 of approximately 200 remaining free-ranging Iberian lynxes of the Doñana and Sierra Morena areas, in Southern Spain, between 2003 and 2007 ... Fourteen lynxes were feline leukemia virus (FeLV) provirus-positive
Note: FAQ 2; "roughly" carries the source's "approximately" - The page saysSix of them died during a six-month period in 2007
- The source says
During a six-month period in 2007, six of the provirus-positive antigenemic lynxes died.
Note: FAQ 2 - The page saysthe study concluded the infection most likely came from domestic cats straying into lynx habitat
- The source says
It was concluded that the FeLV infection most likely originated from domestic cats invading the lynx's habitats.
Note: FAQ 2
Source
07
Lopes-Fernandes, Espírito-Santo & Frazão-Moreira 2018
Lopes-Fernandes, Espírito-Santo & Frazão-Moreira (2018). The return of the Iberian lynx to Portugal: local voices. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine.
- The page saysIn Portugal, where breeding lynx populations were no longer thought to be present, 27 lynxes were released in the southern Guadiana area between 2015 and 2017, under a reintroduction plan supported by a captive breeding program
- The source says
breeding populations were no longer thought to be present ... In Portugal, 27 animals were released between 2015 and 2017 in the southern Guadiana area (ICNF data). Supported by a captive breeding program, the reintroduction plan
Note: FAQ 1
How the table was made: a writer drafted the profile from these sources and logged each claim with its quote, a reviewer with nothing but this table checked every sentence said no more than its quote, and a script confirmed each quote appears word for word in the source. The method is in the site'sAbout page.