---
title: "What the sources say about the Iberian Lynx | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "44 claims from the Iberian Lynx profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
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# What the sources say about the Iberian Lynx (*Lynx pardinus*)

> 44 claims from the Iberian Lynx profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Iberian Lynx](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/iberian-lynx/)

## Lynx pardinus (Spanish lynx). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Lynx_pardinus/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| tufted-eared | black tufts on the ears and jowls |
| Mediterranean scrubland below 1,300 m, in a mosaic with open grassland patches and often marsh edges | 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) |
| European rabbits make up 80 to 100% of its diet by weight | their primary prey is European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), which makes up between 80 and 100% of their daily biomass consumption (note: stats.diet) |
| A single kill bite that punctures the back of the prey's neck and severs the spinal cord | 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) |
| on a diet that is 80 to 100 percent European rabbit | which makes up between 80 and 100% of their daily biomass consumption (note: stats.superpower, second clause) |
| a spotted wild cat | They have tawny pelage, which is mottled with dark spots |
| about half the size of its close relative, the Eurasian lynx | Iberian lynx are similar in appearance to their close relative, Eurasian lynx, but are about half the size. |
| It weighs 11 to 15 kilograms, averaging 12.8 kilograms | Range mass 11 to 15 kg ... Average mass 12.8 kg |
| measures 80 to 130 centimetres long | Range length 80 to 130 cm |
| males larger than females | males are larger than females |
| The oldest wild Iberian lynx on record was 13 years old when it died | The oldest wild Iberian lynx was 13 years old at time of death. |
| As a small-prey specialist, it has a foreshortened skull that maximizes the bite force of its canines | As small prey specialists, Iberian lynx have a foreshortened skull that maximizes the bite force of the canines. |
| Compared 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 | 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 |
| That lets it deliver a single kill bite that punctures the back of the prey's neck and severs the spinal cord | 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 |
| European rabbits make up 80 to 100 percent of what it eats by weight | their primary prey is European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), which makes up between 80 and 100% of their daily biomass consumption |
| a single adult needs 600 to 1,000 kilocalories a day, about the energy contained in one rabbit | A single adult lynx requires between 600 and 1000 kcal per day, which is approximately the amount of energy contained within a single rabbit. |
| When rabbits are scarce, it turns to rodents, hares and birds | 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") |
| Its activity peaks around sunset, when its prey is most active | with activity peaking around sunset, when prey is most active |
| A 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 | 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. |
| Iberian 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 | 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) |
| It shrank by nearly 80 percent between 1960 and 1990 alone | The most significant period of decline was between 1960 and 1990, during which their range contracted by nearly 80%. |
| A 1988 survey estimated about 880 to 1,150 adults, living in nine populations across a very fragmented range | In 1988, a survey estimated that there were about 880 to 1150 adult Iberian lynx living in nine populations across a very fragmented range. |
| One adult needs roughly one rabbit's worth of energy a day, while a female with young needs up to three rabbits a day | 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) |
| dangerLevel: Medium | 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) |
| weightKg: 12.8 | Average mass 12.8 kg |
| a cat whose small canines put more bite force on less contact area | 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. |
| so a single kill bite punctures the back of the neck and severs the spinal cord | allow Iberian lynx to deliver a single kill bite that punctures the back of the neck, thus severing the spinal cord |

## Rodríguez (2024). Lynx pardinus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T12520A218695618.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2024-1.rlts.t12520a218695618.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Vulnerable | 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 IUCN's 2024 assessment lists the species as Vulnerable | IUCN Red List category: Vulnerable (VU). (note: the reference is the 2024 assessment (DOI 2024-1); the category is read through GBIF's copy) |

## Abascal et al. (2016). Extreme genomic erosion after recurrent demographic bottlenecks in the highly endangered Iberian lynx. Genome Biology.

https://doi.org/10.1186/s13059-016-1090-1

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| found only on the Iberian Peninsula | being restricted to the Mediterranean region in the Iberian Peninsula (note: a 2016 statement of the species' range, replacing ADW's "historical range") |
| A 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 | 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 IUCN listed the species as Critically Endangered in 2002, 2006 and 2008 | its classification as “critically endangered” in the 2002, 2006, and 2008 IUCN red lists |
| Fewer than 100 lynxes were left | a steep decline during the second half of the 20th century left less than 100 lynx (note: blockquote lead-in) |
| Management of habitat, prey and non-natural deaths, plus captive breeding, translocation and reintroduction, lifted that to over 300 by 2012, 156 of them mature | 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 |
| That 2012 figure led to a downlisting to Endangered in 2015 | has recovered lynx numbers to over 300 (156 mature) individuals in 2012, leading to its downlisting to “endangered” in the 2015 IUCN red list |

## Kleinman-Ruiz et al. (2022). Purging of deleterious burden in the endangered Iberian lynx. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2110614119

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| clawed its way back from fewer than 100 cats | 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") |
| Fewer Than 100 Cats, Then a Recovery | 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) |
| By 2020 there were 1,100 free-living lynxes | have propelled its population to 1,100 free-living lynxes in 2020 |

## Fedriani, Palomares & Delibes (1999). Niche relations among three sympatric Mediterranean carnivores. Oecologia.

https://doi.org/10.1007/s004420050915

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| In one area of Doñana where the lynx, the red fox and the Eurasian badger live side by side | 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 |
| a study of their diets found lynxes preying almost uniquely on rabbits, while the omnivorous foxes and badgers also took rabbits as a major prey | Lynxes preyed almost uniquely on European rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), and though badgers and foxes were omnivorous, rabbits also were a major prey |

## 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.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0004744

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Between 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 | 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") |
| Six of them died during a six-month period in 2007 | During a six-month period in 2007, six of the provirus-positive antigenemic lynxes died. (note: FAQ 2) |
| the study concluded the infection most likely came from domestic cats straying into lynx habitat | It was concluded that the FeLV infection most likely originated from domestic cats invading the lynx's habitats. (note: FAQ 2) |

## Lopes-Fernandes, Espírito-Santo & Frazão-Moreira (2018). The return of the Iberian lynx to Portugal: local voices. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine.

https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-017-0200-9

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| In 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 | 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) |