Critically Endangered Iguana Gets Population Boost
September 28, 2007
Grand Cayman blue iguana hatchlings.
The Grand Cayman blue iguana is one of the world's most endangered species, considered functionally extinct, with as few as ten individuals left in the wild only a few years ago. But the population got a boost when three of the iguanas hatched September 18, 2007. The births are part of an intensive managed breeding program with the center for Conservation and Research for Endangered Species (CRES), the Blue Iguana Recovery Program, and other agencies and zoos trying to save the iguana from disappearing forever.
The numbers of free-roaming Grand Cayman blue iguanas is low, but numbers are rising as a result of about 200 animals being released into the Salina reserve, owned by the National Trust for the Cayman Islands, as well as a smaller number of animals released into the Queen Elizabeth II Botanic Park on Grand Cayman. The goal of CRES and other participating institutions in the U.S. is to develop a self-sustaining zoo-managed population that mirrors the genetic diversity of the founding population and provides a hedge against catastrophic loss in Grand Cayman.
"The idea that the wild population has declined so precipitously is alarming," says Allison Alberts, Ph.D., director of Conservation and Research for the San Diego Zoo. "Any disaster, whether it be disease, a massive hurricane, or unchecked habitat loss may wipe out wild Grand Cayman blue iguanas. The recent birth of three Grand Cayman iguanas at CRES represents an important contribution to the long-term conservation of this critically endangered species."
The iguanas are at risk from a variety of sources including severe habitat loss and fragmentation, road traffic, and intense predation from nonnative feral and domesticated animals. The two male and one female iguana are being raised in an off-exhibit area at the San Diego Zoo. This was the first hatching of the species for the San Diego Zoo.
