Linea Directa 200 LEFT COL CAR INSURANCE

PROPERTY SEARCH

ARCHIVED - WATCH: Andalucia breeding centre welcomes two litters of Iberian lynx

ARCHIVED ARTICLE

El Acebuche captive breeding centre in Doñana Natural Park has four tiny new additions

<span style='color:#780948'>ARCHIVED</span> - WATCH: Andalucia breeding centre welcomes two litters of Iberian lynx

Doñana National Park in Andalucía, a protected natural area located in the provinces of Huelva, Sevilla and Cádiz, has welcomed four Iberian lynx kits, the first newborns so far this year.

Females Juromenha and Madroña have given birth to two kits each at El Acebuche captive breeding centre where staff are eagerly anticipating further arrivals in the coming weeks.

The first to give birth, as reported by the centre's Lynx Ex-situ, was Juromenha at 11pm on Saturday March 12 after selecting one of the shelters in her enclosure to deliver her little ones, where she and her babies remain. The new mum herself was born in 2012 at the Silves breeding centre in Portugal, and was transferred to Doñana as part of the genetic flow that takes place between breeding centres to maintain the genetic diversity of the species.

A few hours after the first arrivals, the female Madroña went into labour having dug her own birthing hole in the sand in a corner of her enclosure.

But whilst the births went smoothly, there were concerns amongst staff at the centre due to the heavy rain that hit the povince last weekend, and so the births were monitored closely via the centre's video-surveillance system.

You may be interested in: Five popular animals prohibited as pets in Spain

Lynx newborns are helpless and need external heat to maintain an optimal body temperature as they do not thermoregulate well in the first few days, so all four arrivals will be staying very close to their mums for the foreseeable future.

Image: Lynx Ex-situ

Linea Directa Bottom Article A-L CAR INSURANCE

staff.inc.and

Sign up for the Spanish News Today Editors Roundup Weekly Bulletin and get an email with all the week’s news straight to your inbox

Special offer: Subscribe now for 25% off (36.95 euros for 48 Bulletins)