Presentation
Michel ANDRIEUX
France
Photographs
Michel ANDRIEUX, amateur wildlife photographer.
Having been passionate about wildlife all my life, but unable to devote myself to it due to my heavy workload as a sports coach, I decided shortly after retiring to turn my attention to another pursuit—photography—in order to capture the beauty of the animal world. Another goal is also close to my heart: to show what we stand to lose if we continue to treat the planet and living creatures as we have done for far too many years. I retired 12 years ago. I then began my apprenticeship by photographing the garden birds that visited the feeders my wife regularly filled in winter.
I have been a member of the ASCPF for 6 years.
Exposition
At the beginning of the last century, with more than 100,000 individuals in the wild, the species was widespread across the Iberian Peninsula. Unfortunately, poaching, intensive farming, rapid urbanisation and, of course, collisions with cars have led to its decline. But the most serious factor has been the dwindling numbers of its favourite prey: wild rabbits. These have been decimated by deadly diseases, including myxomatosis, and have lost 90% of their population.
By the early 2000s, the Spanish lynx was considered the most endangered feline in the world. It had completely disappeared from Portugal, and only 94 remained across the entire Iberian Peninsula.
In October 2002, it was classified as critically endangered, on the IUCN Red List.
Galerie
