The cherry farmers of Catalunya want Litio the wandering Iberian lynx back, the male lynx famous for his long-distance trek from eastern Portugal all the way to Barcelona is fondly called the ‘Cherry Guardian’ by the farmers who are convinced he will return. When Miguel and Carles first saw Litio nobody believed it could be an Iberian lynx, they reported it to the rural agency.

There haven’t been lynx in this part of Spain for over 100 years, but if he does come back, the farmers say they won’t tell anyone. They believe this cat has a good memory and will return, a hazardous and long journey if he does.

Maybe he is determined to reclaim old lynx territory, he was previously detected near Portimao, Portugal’s Algarve in 2017, thought to be where the last of Portugal’s lynxes held out until the late 90’s. And Barcelona is the site of the most ancient Iberian lynx remains yet found (some 1.6 million years old).

Litio was re-released back into Portugal’s Vale do Guadiana region for the third time on 2nd July after being captured in Barcelona on 6th June.

Let us hope his interesting life will now be as sweet as a bowl of cherries because settling down will be much safer for him. Though one thing is for sure, if he does make the trip back to Spain he will be welcomed – he certainly has friends amongst the cherry farmers.