The return of the Iberian lynx to Portugal: local voices

Abstract

BackgroundEthnographic research can help to establish dialog between conservationists and local people in reintroduction areas. Considering that predator reintroductions may cause local resistance, we assessed attitudes of different key actor profiles to the return of the Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) to Portugal before reintroduction started in 2015. We aimed to characterize a social context from an ethnoecological perspective, including factors such as local knowledge, perceptions, emotions, and opinions.MethodsWe conducted semi-structured interviews (n = 131) in three different protected areas and observed practices and public meetings in order to describe reintroduction contestation, emotional involvement with the species, and local perceptions about conservation. Detailed content data analysis was undertaken and an open-ended codification of citations was performed with the support of ATLAS.ti. Besides the qualitative analyses, we further explored statistic associations between knowledge and opinions and compared different geographical areas and hunters with non-hunters among key actors.ResultsLocal ecological knowledge encompassed the lynx but was not shared by the whole community. Both similarities and differences between local and scientific knowledge about the lynx were found. The discrepancies with scientific findings were not necessarily a predictor of negative attitudes towards reintroduction. Contestation issues around reintroduction differ between geographical areas but did not hinder an emotional attachment to the species and its identification as a territory emblem. Among local voices, financial compensation was significantly associated to hunters and nature tourism was cited the most frequent advantage of lynx presence. Materialistic discourses existed in parallel with non-economic factors and the existence of moral agreement with its protection.The considerable criticism and reference to restrictions by local actors concerning protected areas and conservation projects indicated the experience of an imposed model of nature conservation. Opinions about participation in the reintroduction process highlighted the need for a closer dialog between all actors and administration.ConclusionsLocal voices analyzed through an ethnoecological perspective provide several views on reintroduction and nature conservation. They follow two main global trends of environmental discourse: (1) nature becomes a commodified object to exploit while contestation about wildlife is centered on financial return and (2) emblematic wild species create an emotional attachment, become symbolic, and gather moral agreement for nature protection.Lynx reintroduction has been not only just a nature protection theme but also a negotiation process with administration. Western rural communities are not the “noble savages” and nature protectors as are other traditional groups, and actors tend to claim for benefits in a situation of reintroduction. Both parties comprehend a similar version of appropriated nature.Understanding complexity an...

Support to Iberian lynx reintroduction and perceived impacts: Assessments before and after reintroduction

“…A possible reason explaining positive attitudes toward the return of the Iberian lynx is that cats are species with particular public appeal (Macdonald et al, 2015), although this is something that could be investigated in further research. In addition, the Iberian lynx is likely seen as an emblem by local people in the Iberian peninsula, as it was noticed in Portugal (Lopes‐Fernandez et al, 2018) and also in our study area (authors' unpublished data). Indeed, most participants in our study pointed at the need to preserve the last lynx populations for future generations (Figure 3), suggesting that people may see the conservation of emblematic wildlife species bearers of intrinsic value and representative of common identity and cultural heritage as an obligation (Rode et al, 2021; Smith, 2016).…”

“…Since then, lynx numbers have increased to more than 1000 individuals in 8 populations across central‐southern Iberia (https://www.wwf.es/nuestro_trabajo/especies_y_habitats/lince_iberico/; Figure 1). Between 2012 and 2014, a study conducted following an ethnographic approach showed that key actors were mostly positive about lynx presence in two pre‐selected areas for lynx reintroduction in Portugal (e.g., Lopes‐Fernandez et al, 2018). The primary goal of our research was to compare support toward lynx reintroduction before and after the release of the lynxes in an area of southern Spain where first reintroductions took place.…”

Citizen Scientists Showed a Four-Fold Increase of Lynx Numbers in Lithuania

“…Negative attitudes towards further population growth among hunters may increase over concern for the effects of lynx on game populations. This has happened in other European countries (see [5,67]). Further increases in lynx abundance may also cause losses to sheep farms (the number of sheep kept in the country was over 150,000 in 2017-2020, [68]).…”

Fishermen’s knowledge and conservation attitudes: focus on the great cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo (Linnaeus, 1758) in the Minho River, Portugal

“…In Portugal, several ethnobiology studies were published in the past 10 years, ranging from ethnobotany (Carvalho and Fraza ˜o-Moreira, 2011), to ethnoherpetology (Cerı ´aco, 2012), to ethno-ichthyology (Braga et al 2019(Braga et al , 2020, to ethno-malacology (Braga et al 2022), to ethnomammalogy (Lopes-Fernandes et al 2018), even to ethnobiological studies related to ecosystem services (Sousa et al 2013) supporting a growing interest in this area. Stakeholders often participate and contribute to these works, namely fishermen, whose knowledge and perception cover not only commercial fish, but also sharks ecology and coastal management regulations (Barbosa-Filho et al 2014;Liao et al 2019;Morado et al 2021).…”