Travels in Spain

One of the if not the most famous species that is native to Spain is the Iberian Lynx. This incredible animal heads up however the list of the world’s most endangered big cats and few remain in the wild today. It is believed there are only around 160 remaining.

The Iberian Lynx

Whilst it was once common throughout Spain and Portugal and even parts of Southern France, today it stands on the edge of extinction which would make it the first species of cat to die out since the sabre-toothed tiger which happened over 10,000 years ago. It was the very first wild cat species to be listed as critically endangered on the IUCN (World Conservation Union) Red List of threatened species.

Spain’s richest literary prize has just been awarded to writer and philosopher Fernando Savater. Himself a Spaniard, Savater was absolutely thrilled to win the Premio Planeta literary prize which, along with immense respect comes a monetary award of 601,000 euros.

There were more than 500 writers who entered the competition this year, but it was Savater with his novel La Hermandad de la Buena Suerte, which means “The Brotherhood of Good Luck” that shone above all of the rest. The novel is about a rich man who hires mercenaries to find a jockey who has disappeared the night before a big horse race in which he was supposed to ride the favoured mount.

Barcelona was the setting for the latest IUCN’s World Conservation Congress. It is one of the most important environmental meetings in the calendar as the IUCN is the oldest conservation organization that exists today. The message that came out of the meeting was clear. Biodiversity is crucial to the well being of humans and society in general and losses of biodiversity amount to far more than even this severe financial crisis that the world is currently consumed by.

Antonio Banderas has announced recently that he would like to return to his home country of Spain having spent enough time in Hollywood over the years. The move would be in order for the successful actor to move away from starring roles and be able to concentrate more on directing, in particular movies that as he puts it are “often suffocated by Hollywood.”