It is rare to get good news on the conservation front recently, but a new unknown population of Iberian Lynx has been found in private estates in Spain. The Iberian Lynx is the rarest species of cat in the world. Previously only two populations were known.
The discovery increases the possibility that the heavily spotted cats can be rescued from the brink of extinction.Photo of non-Iberian lynx by Flickr user Andreas Solberg used under a Creative Commons license.
The newfound population appears to roam private estates in the Castile la Mancha Province of central Spain, according to the international conservation group WWF.
The two other known populations occupy isolated portions of Andalusia in southern Spain.
WWF announced the discovery on Tuesday after local newspapers corroborated evidence of the cats' existence. The animals have been caught on film.
"We are excited and amazed by this discovery," Luis Suárez, head of the organization's species program in Madrid, said in a statement.
Information on the discovery comes from the local government, Suárez said in a telephone interview. But the cats may have originally been seen by private landowners who wish to remain out of the spotlight.
Only between 100 and 150 Iberian lynx remain, including the new population, Suárez said. The World Conservation Union lists the species as "critically endangered," meaning it faces "an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild."
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