New born lynx dies suddenly in Jerez zoo

AN Iberian lynx cub born in the Jerez de la Frontera zoo last Friday has died suddenly.

After being rejected shortly after birth by their mother, ‘Artemisa’ – who has lived in the zoo since March 2009 – the litter of two cubs were being hand reared under the 24 hour care of a vet.

The animals had been in perfect health.

But in the early hours of Monday morning one of the cubs appeared very lethargic and couldn’t be roused.

It died shortly afterwards and an autopsy is now underway in the Centro de Análisis y Diagnóstico to determine the cause of death.

The zoo has confirmed the other cub is still in a healthy condition, but precautions have been stepped up to maintain its health.

The mother, Artemisa, was captured in the Sierra Andújar natural park in Jaén in 2004 to join the captive programme for this endangered species.

The programme saw its first success in 2005 and since then 38 lynx cubs have been born in captivity – 26 of which are still alive today.