Overview
- An amateur photographer near Jaén, Spain, captured clear images of a pale Iberian lynx that prompted official follow-up and wider public attention.
- The animal has been identified by the LIFE Lynx-Connect project as Satureja, a female born in 2021 who was normally colored at birth.
- Researchers report the whitening does not match albinism or leucism and say laboratory analysis is needed to determine the cause.
- Investigators are considering environmental exposure and a possible familial hypersensitivity after a similar temporary whitening was documented in a likely relative.
- Satureja appears healthy, continues to feed normally, and has successfully raised litters, as the species overall has rebounded enough to be reclassified as vulnerable in 2024.