They arrived in the surroundings of the Puentes reservoir, in the Lorca district of Zarcilla de Ramos, with the inexperience typical of first-year cubs, but after four weeks in their acclimatization enclosures, where they have rabbits at their disposal, the lynx’ Tiko’, ‘Tahúlla’, ‘Tejo’ and ‘Torrealvilla’ already hunt with skill and are “in stupendous physical shape”, the Ministry of the Environment, Mar Menor, Universities and Research informs LA VERDAD.
When one month has passed since their arrival in the Region, the cats progress smoothly towards their release, predictably at the end of April, thus culminating an expected return after ten years of previous work within the framework of the national recovery strategy. of the Iberian lynx, which is coordinated by the Junta de Andalucía and in which Castilla-La Mancha, Extremadura and the Portuguese region of the Algarve also participate.
«In the first days they hunted with difficulties: out of every ten sets, only one ended in capture. But they managed to manage on their own,” José Martínez Moreno, a technician from Natural Environment Engineering (Iden), a company contracted by the Autonomous Community to monitor lynx during this crucial stage of reintroduction, explains to this newspaper, in this case using the technique soft loose.
However, a month later, the two pairs of lynxes – which remain separated, each one in an enclosure – are already catching their prey without difficulty. They have gone from unsuccessful attempts, impatiently and on the run, to perfecting the stalking technique: spotting the rabbit, staying motionless and slowly approaching until they choose the right moment to jump on it.
The patience of ‘Yew’
But they have also developed the strategy of waiting. And they know how to be patient. Like ‘Tejo’, the male that arrived from Portugal four days after his companions. Early one morning, it was not yet seven, he noticed that a rabbit had gotten into the hole. He then positioned himself near the entrance hole and remained patiently and practically motionless for two and a half hours until his prey emerged from the shelter and was easily captured by the lynx.
Along with ‘Tejo’, his partner, ‘Torrealvilla’, was waiting, “showing an imitative behavior habitual in these carnivores when they hunt in pairs”, explains José Martínez Moreno. Another pattern of behavior identified during these first weeks of the ‘Lynx pardinus’ in Lorca is that the one that hunts the rabbit eats first – prey that accounts for 90% of its food – while the other lynx waits its turn.
In the early days they tried to catch their prey on the run and only succeeded in one out of ten attempts.
These movements are observed from a distance, with binoculars and from observatories protected by reflective glass, so as not to be seen by the animals at any time. It is important to avoid human imprinting on cats. The guards, four people who take turns to cover 24 hours a day, also have access on mobile devices to images of the interior of the compound captured by video surveillance cameras.
The security device is complemented by the permanent presence of environmental agents in the so-called Casa del Buitre, near the acclimatization fences, each one a hectare in area.
Hidden, without smoking and in silence
All the personnel involved in the protection and surveillance of the lynxes have clear basic precautions such as not wearing cologne, not smoking, not talking and silencing mobile phones, with the aim of not disturbing the tranquility of the lynxes with odors or noises foreign to them. nature.
The behavior of the animals is “sociable and non-fighting”, with increased activity in the early morning and evening hours, especially during the last few days when it was hotter than usual. «In the central hours they are lying in the shade or even inside the shelters. If at those times we observe some activity it is simply to go walking in a very calm way to the drinking fountains or to the pond to cool off”, details the technician of the surveillance device.
The two pairs of lynx are usually together, except in the first days of living together, “when ‘Tejo’ showed a more individualistic behavior, perhaps because he arrived a few days later and was still adapting to the new situation.”
The behavior of the two couples is “sociable and without fights”, with more activity in the first and last hours of the day
There is still no definite date for these four lynxes to be released into the wild. For the soft release, the estimated time they stay in the enclosures is between a month and a half or two months, so it is most likely that they will leave semi-captivity at the end of this month. The liberation will simply consist of the door being opened for them to leave the enclosures on their own.
Once free, it is normal for the lynx to return from time to time to the safety of their fences to feed until they decide to venture into the vast territory at their disposal: 22,500 hectares in the Sierras del Gigante and Pericay, Lomas del Buitre-Río Luchena and Sierra de la Torrecilla, between the Lorca districts of Zarcilla de Ramos, La Paca, Zarzadilla de Totana, Torrealvilla, Río, La Tova, Ortillo, Parrilla and Jarales, on the border with the Sierra María-Los Vélez Natural Park ( Almería) and the municipalities of Caravaca de la Cruz, Cehegín and Bullas.
Alfalfa planting and water points
When ‘Tiko’, ‘Tahúlla’, ‘Tejo’ and ‘Torrealvilla’ are released, two other pairs will take their place in the enclosures to repeat the process. “It is unpredictable to know what they will do once they are free, but there are a lot of rabbits in the area, between 6 and 7 per hectare,” says José Martínez, “and if the forest smells of lynx it is easier for them to stay here.” To facilitate the permanence of the lynx, more rabbits are being released in the release territory, alfalfa is being planted and water points are being set up.
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