January 2023, Spain 

I had been waiting in complete stillness for hours inside a remote photo hide in rural Spain. The sun was beginning to dip and with it, my hope. Then, without a sound, from the edge of the forest, a young Iberian lynx appeared. Silent, alert and breathtaking.

For a few suspended seconds, it stood just meters away, eyes fixed on a rabbit beyond the hide. But what struck me wasn’t the hunt, it was the stillness in its stare. A quiet strength. A kind of innocence wrapped in instinct. I pressed the shutter, barely breathing, knowing this moment would vanish as suddenly as it came. Seconds later, it vanished back into the trees, as if it had never existed.

This image is all that remains - a fleeting encounter with one of Europe’s rarest creatures, reborn from the edge of extinction. To me, this young lynx is more than a predator. It’s a symbol of resilience. Of wild beauty returning. Of everything we still have a chance to protect and save.