Image: from Ecóloga de gato X@ruzzibarbara
By José Carlos Palma
The Iberian lynx, once considered the world’s most endangered feline, has experienced a spectacular recovery over the past two decades. Yet despite record population numbers, conservationists caution that the species remains threatened and still requires intensive protection efforts.
Javier Salcedo, coordinator of the EU-funded LIFE Lynx Connect program, delivered both optimism and warning at the opening of the International Iberian Lynx Congress in Seville. The event brings together scientists, conservation groups and government agencies to evaluate progress made in recent years and to outline the next steps for ensuring the long-term survival of the species.
Salcedo highlighted the remarkable rise in numbers. The 2024 census recorded a 19 percent increase in the lynx population across the Iberian Peninsula, reaching 2,401 individuals. Among them were 1,557 adults, including 470 breeding females, a gain of 64 compared with the previous year. These results confirm the lynx as one of Europe’s greatest conservation success stories.
Even so, Salcedo stressed that the species is far from secure. Scientists estimate that a stable and truly resilient population would require between 4,500 and 6,000 individuals, supported by at least 1,100 breeding females. Achieving these numbers remains an essential long-term objective for conservation teams in Portugal and Spain.
LIFE projects have been central to the recovery effort for more than twenty years. In 2002 the species was on the brink of extinction with fewer than 100 individuals remaining in the wild. Captive breeding, habitat restoration, prey recovery programs and the release of 403 captive-born lynx between 2011 and 2014 helped reverse that decline. In 2024 the species was reclassified from endangered to vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, a positive milestone that nevertheless confirms its continued fragility.
Genetic diversity remains one of the greatest concerns. The Iberian lynx has the lowest known genetic diversity of any species with a sequenced genome. According to Salcedo, this silent threat leaves the lynx extremely exposed to disease and environmental pressures. Although population numbers have grown dramatically, genetic diversity has not improved.
Future conservation efforts must also address the unexpected preference of many lynx for human-dominated landscapes, where they face higher risks. Sixty percent of the population lives outside protected areas, increasing exposure to vehicle collisions, illegal hunting and habitat degradation. These non-natural causes remain major contributors to mortality.
Despite the challenges, the recovery of the Iberian lynx has been possible thanks to a broad alliance. Conservation organizations, regional governments in Spain, Portuguese authorities, local communities, farmers, hunting associations and private landowners have cooperated in an unprecedented way. Salcedo emphasized that this unity has been essential to every success achieved so far.
Looking ahead, the next proposed LIFE program focuses on building resilience, including climate resilience, territorial resilience, genetic resilience and resilience to human activity. Strengthening and connecting lynx populations across different regions of the Iberian Peninsula remains a priority, creating a stable and functional metapopulation.
In Portugal the program is coordinated by the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests (ICNF), working closely with Spanish partners to maintain a single shared conservation strategy.
The Iberian lynx stands today as a global model of wildlife recovery. Its future, however, depends on sustained cooperation, scientific commitment and the continued protection of a species that, despite its spectacular comeback, remains vulnerable.