María Díez León PHOTO: Manuel Castells

"At present, the lynx and the European mink are the most endangered carnivore species in Spain," María Díez León, a specialist in animal behavior and welfare and researcher at the University of Guelph (Canada), recalled today at the University of Navarra. The expert is participating in the summer course "Introduction to animal behavior: instructions, methodologies and applications", which is being held until tomorrow at campus in Pamplona.

The Navarre specialist, a graduate in Biology from the academic center, is currently researching the behavior of European minks through their American congeners, with whom she is trying to discover the main problems suffered by the species in captivity. "The two big problems are reproduction and the failure of their subsequent survival. In the case of the former, it seems that there are behavioral alterations that prevent reproduction, which is fundamental to reintroduce them into their natural habitat", explains the researcher.

She also adds that in the case of the lynx, for example, alterations in its behavior in captivity can cause released specimens to have too much mobility and that is why many of them are run over and killed. In this sense, the biologist emphasizes that there is a new trend that tries to manage the reintroduction of endangered animals according to their character and behavior: "If a specimen is very active or restless, we try to release it in a place where it can have more mobility. Or if it is a young male, avoid places with nearby roads, since we know that it is not going to stay in the same space for a long time".

Environmental enrichment
Another novelty in the management of endangered animals in Spain is the environmental enrichment that, according to the expert, consists of reproducing in a relevant way the natural conditions in which the species lived: "The results show that the stress of the individuals is considerably reduced, they have a higher brain development , etc. Feeding a carnivore is not the same as motivating it in some way so that it has to get its own food".

This subject of techniques is already being applied in conservation centers and some zoos. "For example, the San Diego Zoo, in California, has managed to reproduce the panda in captivity, a fundamental step for its survival," says María Díez.

For the speaker of the course organized by the department of Zoology and Ecology of the University of Navarra, the maintenance of endangered species must combine both captive breeding and habitat restoration and maintenance: "The purpose of conservation techniques is always that the animal can live in freedom, not permanently in a zoo, and for that we have to be aware that their habitat is essential".

The summer course, held at the School of Sciences of the academic center, has 16 participants who have also made a internship in the Sturnus center, dedicated to the management of vertebrate pests and falconry, located in Calahorra (La Rioja).