Source: Mysterious Wildcats by Joel Sartore
I’ve been watching Rare: Creatures of the Photo Ark on PBS the past two weeks. There’s one more episode next week. Joel Sartore, a National Geographic photographer, is on a mission to capture studio portraits of more than 12,000 species and to date has photographed about 6,000. It’s a project he calls the Photo Ark. He says his goal is simply “to get the public to care and save species from extinction.“
So after tonight’s episode I checked my email and found a notification from Flow Art Station featuring Mysterious Wildcats by Joel Sartore. One of the cats featured is the Iberian Lynx, which he photographed on tonight’s episode. It’s the world’s most endangered feline. In 2002 there were fewer than 100 Iberian Lynx, but conservation efforts have increased those numbers considerably and successfully released cats into the wild on the Iberian Peninsula. That’s Spain and Portugal in case it’s been awhile since you had a geography class.
So while there’s nothing mysterious about my cat Domino, I hope you’ll check out Mysterious Wildcats by Joel Sartore. It’s absolutely worth a few minutes of your time.
My favorites are the lynxes, specifically the Iberian and Eurasian. How about you? Do you have a favorite? Let me know in the comments below.
Jan
Cottonmouth Creek 
Domino is beautiful!! I love cat’s eyes they are so captivating!! Wow I didn’t realize there were so many rare cats – obviously there are, but I never think too much beyond the big cats and the domestic cats. I couldn’t stop looking at the Clouded Leopard – the fur pattern is so unique. 😀
Tami, it’s easy to see how the Clouded Leopard got his name when you see his coat like that. It’s interesting how some of the cats look like wild animals, and others just look like house cats.
Jan