Reintroduction of captive-bred individuals into the wild is an important conservation activity. However, environmental conditions can influence developmental programming, potentially causing metabolic disorders in adults. These effects are investigated here for the first time in an endangered species. Using body weight and feed intake data for Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) (n = 22), we compared the growth of captive versus wild born and/or reared individuals. Captive-born individuals gained weight as a function of calorie intake, unlike wild-born individuals. When compared with females reared in the wild, captive-reared females achieved a larger body size, without evidence of obesity. Captivity-associated changes to metabolic programming may compromise survival in the wild if an increased body size incurs a greater energy requirement. Large body size may also confer a competitive advantage over smaller, wild-born individuals, disrupting the social organisation of existing wild populations, and inferring long-term implications for the phenotypic composition of wild populations.

Department of Ecology and Vertebrate Zoology University of Łódź 12 16 Banacha Street 90 237 Łódź Poland

Ellen S Dierenfeld LLC St Louis MO United States of America

Iberian Lynx Captive Breeding Centre El Acebuche Parque Nacional de Doñana Matalascañas 21760 Huelva Spain

Institute of Vertebrate Biology Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic Květná 8 603 65 Brno Czech Republic

School of Animal Rural and Environmental Sciences Nottingham Trent University Southwell NG25 0QF Nottinghamshire United Kingdom

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