At the start of the 2000s, the feline was only a whisker away from extinction. Two decades later, the Iberian lynx has fought back – without a beak, but definitely with claws. On Thursday, the ICUN announced that the lynx species, also known as the panther lynx, had been removed from the global red list of endangered species. A lynx is released for the first time, in the south of Spain. February 2024. Cubs born into one of the breeding programs in Spain. A mother and her cubs, part of The Iberian Lynx Conservation Breeding Programme. The special lynx is mostly found in Spain, but also Portugal. According to the most recent census, the population has increased from 94 to 2021 between 2002 and 2023. That is an increase of over 2000 (!) percent. The number fell dramatically in the latter part of the 20th century due to reduced habitat, poaching and traffic accidents. At the same time, viruses and disease led to fewer wild rabbits, which are the lynx’s most important source of food. Photo: AP The increase in recent years is largely thanks to conservation efforts that have focused on increasing the number of wild rabbits and restoring forests and scrub. At the same time, hundreds of Iberian lynxes have been bred in captivity and released into the wild. – It is certainly good news. But this is the result of 20 years of effort with intensive measures. It hasn’t happened by itself, says Marte Conradi, head of the country team at the WWF World Wildlife Fund in Norway, to news. – But this shows that such measures are useful. Photo: Geir Barstein / WWF World Wildlife Fund The lynx has been downgraded to the “vulnerable” category. It is therefore not out of the danger zone – yet. Worldwide, 10,344 animals, fish, birds and insects are categorized as critically or highly endangered. In addition, 7072 are in the vulnerable category, while 5071 are in the process of becoming endangered. 780 species have already been eradicated from the earth’s surface, according to the overview. The last surviving Tasmanian tiger was filmed in captivity in 1933. The species is now considered extinct. The picture has been colored more recently. Photo: AFP In Norway, 21 percent of assessed species are on the red list, and 12 percent have the status of threatened. It includes all four large carnivores: brown bear, wolf, lynx and wolverine. Other mammals such as blue whales, porcupines, wild reindeer and polar bears are also listed with varying degrees of danger. Threatened species in Norway In Norway, 2,752 species of animals, plants, fungi and insects are listed as threatened on the red list (including Svalbard). Mammals: Critically endangered: Wolf, brush bat and long-eared bat. Highly endangered: Greenland whale, harpy (seal species), arctic fox, lynx, white whale, wolverine, big bat, brown bear Vulnerable: gray seal, ferret, polar bear, ringed seal, blue whale, narwhal, walrus, northern bat Near threatened: harbor seal, troll bat, taiga shrew, birch mouse, ibex , hare, porcupine, reindeer, long-eared bat Birds: Critically endangered: Little goose, vulture, hawksbill, common harrier, arctic tern, black-tailed godwit, plover, snowy owl, willow sparrow, hooded gull Highly endangered: Black-red-tailed grebe, lapwing, merganser, common duck, mallard, grebe, little grebe ) Amphibians and reptiles: Critically endangered: Pond frog Vulnerable: Pointed tree frog Source: Species data bank, red list 2021. Preserving an animal species requires planning, effort and cooperation. But it is not impossible. according to a study from 2020, conservation efforts have prevented the extinction of up to 48 bird and animal species between 1993 and 2020. In Norway, there is one success story in particular that is comparable to the Iberian lynx: Photo: Lars-Petter Kalkenberg The mountain fox was downgraded from critical in 2021 threatened to highly threatened. It is therefore still threatened with extinction – but not as much as before. In Norway, among other things, the ferret and the troll bat are also less threatened than before. Nina Elisabeth Eide is a senior researcher at the Norwegian Institute for Natural Sciences (NINA). She has worked with the Nordic mountain fox since 1998, and has written a PhD on the subject. She and colleagues have also followed closely the Spanish lynx project. Photo: Odd Arne Olderbakk / news – It is motivating to see that the measures there have worked. Breeding animals that are released can be seen as controversial. What they have achieved in Spain is also our goal with the mountain fox. Since 2006, Eide has worked with the conservation of arctic foxes in NINA. The breeding program for mountain foxes, where puppies are released in Norwegian mountain areas, is central to efforts to preserve the mountain fox in Norway. In addition, the arctic foxes get extra food throughout the year, also in the open. There are a total of 135 feeding machines for arctic foxes in Norway, the same in Sweden. Mountain foxes at the breeding station at Sæterfjellet in Oppdal Mountain foxes at the breeding station lake at Sæterfjellet in Oppdal She estimates that the population of mountain foxes in Fennoscandia has gone from around 50-60 to over 550 individuals. So far, 464 mountain foxes have been released from the breeding program. – Through the measures, we have stopped the species from total extinction. But now the species must be equipped to be viable without our help. Then the stock must be at least fourfold, says Eide. Several important factors contribute to threatening Norwegian animal, plant and insect species, says Marte Conradi in WWF. – Degradation of nature is certainly one of the biggest influencing factors. We know that 9 out of 10 species are affected by this. But habitat loss is not the only threat. Other human activities also threaten natural diversity. Excessive hunting, pollution, use of pesticides and out-competition from alien species also play a role. – Climate change is of course also a serious threat that will become greater in the coming years. The mountain fox’s history is very similar to that of the Iberian lynx – with hunting and changes in the population of small rodents such as lemmings and voles. At the same time, the arctic fox’s distribution is limited to certain mountain areas in Norway, Sweden and Finland, in addition to Svalbard. Photo: Lars-Petter Kalkenberg It is particularly threatened by red foxes, which are far more numerous and adaptable. On the Varanger Peninsula, a large proportion of red foxes have been shot to make way for the mountain fox. But there are a lot of them, and it is only replenished with new ones from the surrounding areas. The red fox also benefits from all human activity that makes food more readily available. An urban red fox poses outside the prime minister’s office. Photo: NTB – We humans unfortunately leave anything in the mountains. Then the animals that don’t belong there come after. Better sanitation along Norwegian roads and mountain passes is definitely a move that will be useful in limiting the spread of generalists. Next week, it is expected that the global red list will be updated. Then several species will fall away from the list – while others will be added. The giant panda was long threatened in China, but has now been downgraded to the vulnerable category. The Arabian oryx was close to extinction in the 1960s. In 2011, however, it dropped down on the red list, and the trend is now stable. On a global basis, the humpback whale is no longer threatened with extinction. In 2021, it was also removed from the red list in Australia. The kiwi bird went from endangered to vulnerable in 2017. Pronghorn is still critically endangered – but the population trend is increasing. But how long it will take before the arctic fox can continue its fox streaks on its own is an unanswered question. – There are long distances between the stocks, and low genetic variation is a challenge, says Nina Eide. – The job going forward will be to strengthen the arctic fox population genetically, through more targeted releases. It is also important to strengthen the connection between the stocks. Published 23.06.2024, at 17.24
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The animals that return – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
