Skip to main content

Lesser Antillean Iguana

Iguana delicatissima
Meet the Lesser Antillean Iguana, one of the two members of the Iguana genus, and a resident of the Carribbean Lesser Antilles Islands.

Males of the species have a very interesting anatomical trait- they change color when it comes time to breed! They are typically more green in color, but when the time comes to mate their bodies goes gray, their jaws go pink, and the tops of their heads turn blue!

During the breeding season the dominant males will defends territories that contain up to half a dozen females. Reproduction coincides with the growth of vegetation during the wet season. This allows the new little hatchlings to have plenty of food right off the bat.

The Lesser Antillean Iguana was once found throughout the island chain, but they are now confined to only a few locations. Habitat loss, fragmentation, and hunting by both humans and introduced predators all played big parts in the population decline. Another factor was inbreeding; non-native Green Iguanas were introduced to the area and began to reproduce with the endemic species. The Lesser Antillean Iguanas are now illegal to hunt, but feral predators and hybridization still pose threats. There have been efforts to breed the species in captivity, but success has been extremely limited. The Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust is the only location to produce fertile eggs.
IUCN Status : Endangered
Location : Lesser Antilles
Size : Body Length up to 16in (40cm)
Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Sauropsida -- Order : Squamata
Family : Iguanidae -- Genus : Iguana -- Species : I. delicatissima
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Burmese Peacock

Polyplectron bicalcaratum Burmese Peacocks are also referred to as Grey Peacock-Pheasants, which is probably a more apt name, as they are not actually Peacocks... though they do belong to the same family. At any rate, they share some physical resemblances to Peacocks- most notably the eyes on their tail feathers. Burmese Peacocks are the national birds of Myanmar, which was called Burma until 1989, though some still refer to it as such. The birds live in several other Southeast Asian countries as well, and are divided into four subspecies. The species as a whole is listed as being of Least Concern , because they have a large range and population size. It unfortunately appears that they may be declining in number, but it is a slow descent that does not yet meet the vulnerability thresholds. The birds are listed under CITES Appendix II, because they can be kept in captivity and grabbing individuals from the wild could become problematic for the species. IUCN Stat...
3 comments
Read more

Bornean Orangutan

The Bornean Orangutan is one of two extant Orangutan species in the world. It is the third largest primate (after Gorillas) and is the largest primarily tree-dwelling animal in the world. Males are substantially larger than females, and average at around 165lbs. Bornean Orangutans are largely solitary. A handful might live within a small range but they will seldom interact with one another. Males and females only meet up to breed, which happens only once every several years. A young Orangutan will stay with it's mother for about five years, and the females tend to go about eight years between births. That is the longest interim period of any animal! Sadly, the Bornean Orangutans are in a lot of trouble. They need large forests in order to thrive, and deforestation and habitat degradation has left many homeless. They are also hunted for meat and for traditional medicines. Conservation areas are being established to help these guys in the wild, and it is believed that there are a...
59 comments
Read more

Four!

For anyone who was counting, yesterday was our birthday-- four years! Four years filled with animals from A to Z, more than 1,100 of them! I can't thank my readers enough, it's been wonderful! And in celebration of that milestone... I'm taking a break. Hopefully not forever, but for a little bit at least. In the mean time I plan on getting a new layout out, along with some updates to some of the older articles. I'll post updates here and on the Facebook page, I'm also brainstorming some new animal-related projects, so keep an eye out! Thanks again for four awesome years!
18 comments
Read more