 "A white Iberian Lynx. Image credit: Breaking911/X")
In a recent discovery of wildlife research, a Spanish Photographer captured a first-ever white Iberian Lynx. The image enthralled wildlife enthusiasts as the video of one of the rarest cat species appeared on social media.
The animal exhibits white pale colour with bright cat eyes, dark-ear tufts and rough facial fur. Experts who studied the image suggested that the cat exhibits a genetic disorder leucism, which causes a partial loss of pigmentation.
Most endangered felines
The white Iberian Lynx is said to be the world’s most endangered feline. The image was captured in the mountain region of Jaen in southern Spain.
According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the Iberian lynx is smaller and less-heavier than its Eurasian family, who usually possess long legs, tufted ears, and a short, black-tipped tail. Its usual coat is tawny with dark spots, making it a captivating sight for the audience.
Watch the video here:
On the brink of extinction
Nearing extinction, the Iberian lynx population fell suddenly to just two breeding populations by 2002. The vigorous conservation efforts, habitat restoration and relative prey recovery helped the species to make the most drastic comeback in wildlife history.
Locals in the region have long regarded white lynxes as exceptional mystical creatures, with legends describing ghostly cats that usually come across the hills.
The return of the lynx highlights genetic symbolism and inheritance after years of habitat conservation efforts and promising a surviving future.