Saliega

Saliega is a female Iberian lynx born free in March 2002 in Sierra Morena (Spain).

When she was one month old and with little chance of survival in the wild, she was taken by the Andalusian authority to the zoo of Jerez. There she was raised together with Aura, a born in Doñana female of the same age, until January 2003, when both were transferred to El Acebuche Breeding Center, in Doñana (Huelva).

On March 28 2005 Saliega became the first Iberian lynx to breed in captivity, when she gave birth to three healthy cubs. The prior attempts had failed because the female lynxes ate her cubs right after birth.

The Spanish lynx is critically endangered and with only 160 individuals it is the world's most threatened feline species.

The father of the creatures is Garfio, a three-year-old male from Sierra Morena, who was taken to El Acebuche in February 2004 for the breeding program. Brezo and Brisa are the surviving cubs. The third one, Brecina, died as a consequence of a fight with her brother Brezo despite the constant vigilance of the breeding program team.

External links

* [http://www.lynxexsitu.es/ Programa de Conservación Ex-Situ] Official page Spanish government.