Iberian Lynx Spotted in Basque Country After Over a Century

A farmer’s camera trap in Campezo, Álava, Spain, captured an Iberian lynx, the first confirmed sighting in the Basque Country in more than a century. Hontza Natura Elkartea identified the animal as Lynx pardinus, distinct from the more common Eurasian lynx.

The lynx was wearing a radio-tracking collar, indicating it likely originated from a reintroduction program in the south of the Iberian Peninsula. The sighting occurred in December and demonstrates the species’ capacity for long-distance travel, lynx can cover over 25 kilometers in a single day.

While previous lynx sightings in Álava were of the boreal variety and occurred in the early 20th century, this is the first documented presence of the Iberian lynx in the region for over 100 years. The Iberian lynx population is recovering due to captive breeding and reintroduction programs, though no such projects are currently underway in the Basque Country. Its survival, however, remains heavily reliant on the availability of rabbits, which comprise around 90% of its diet.