Lynx Extinction

As we all know, lynxes are endangered species. One of the main threats that cause this is habitat fragmentation. Habitat fragmentation occurs when a habitat is made into smaller habitats. This is all because of humans. By building infrastructures like roads, dams, railways and other human activities, we contribute to the loss and fragmentation of the Iberian lynx distribution area, creating barriers between the different populations and therefore, not letting them reproduce, get the food, water or shelter they need. The worst thing is that many people aren't very much aware of this. For example, the Spanish Government has included in the National Hydrological Plan (SNHP) many plans that will harm this species, such as the construction of dams and other water infrastructures in Galicia where many of the world's lynxes live.

What can science do to solve this problem? Corridor ecology or connectivity conservation would probably be the best solution for this. This method or solution consists of designing and implementing corridors. Corridors are physical connections between disconnected fragments of plant and animal habitat. In other words, a way of connecting two significant habitat areas. A corridor can be as big as a swath of a river and forest miles wide that links two national parks, or as small as a tunnel under a highway. However, corridors aren't always that effective and they cannot be built whenever. There are several things, which need to be taken into account before building a corridor, such as:

* How likely will the animal encounter the entrance to the corridor, enter it, and follow it to the end.

* The sufficient amount of cover, food and water within the corridor for the animal to reach the full length of the corridor

* Specific obstacles within the corridor must be assessed (e.g. topography, roads, fences, noise and other human impacts)

All of these things amongst others contribute to assessing the efficacy of the corridor. All in all, wildlife corridors can help reduce habitat fragmentation by allowing the lynxes to move around the different habitats to find all necessary things they need to live: shelter, food, water, mating choices.

The problem with this solution is that it has a very big economical impact. Corridors as well as needing to put them in action, they also need to be planned out and this is quite expensive. For example, Daniel Simberloff states that " a bridge that would maintain ariparian corridor costs about 13 times as much as per lane-mile as would a road that would sever the corridor". However, the price does depend on the type, location, and size, of the corridor. Still, corridors will always be very expensive to implement. In addition to this, the maintenance of a corridor would be much more costly than refuges for endangered