Utila Island Iguana

ANIMAL:
Utila Island Iguana            Ctenosaura bakeri

Type of Animal:
Iguanid

Habitat:
Brackish mangroves & mangrove forest, lay eggs on beaches

Location(s):
Found only on Utila, off of Honduras

Appearance:
Grey-brown to black when young, becomes blue or light gray when older, males larger w/ small dewlap & dorsal crest

Food/Diet:
Flowers, leaves, stems, fruit, eggs, young green iguanas, geckos, invertebrates

Status in Wild:
Critically Endangered

Conservation:
Breeding in zoos, wildlife parks, & breeding centers. Iguana Research & Breeding Station built in April 1997 to save species. Gravid females brought to station & eggs artificially incubated. Young released back into mangroves at 2 years old. Frankfurt Zoo & Senckenberg Nature Research Society (also in Frankfurt) initiated conservation programs for this species.

Lifestyle:
Found in small groups of a male w/ 2-3 females. Other males solitary. Females nest in small groups on beaches.

Additional Info:

Called:
Male
Female
Young-Hatchling
Group-Leap

Weight:
Male-6.6 lbs
Female-2.2 lbs

Gestation:
2-2.5 months 

Life Span:
15-25 years

Body Length:
Male-2.5 ft
Female-1.8 ft
Young-0.5 ft

Tail Length:
Male-4.7 in
Female-4 in

Other Fact(s):
Main predators of adults are boa constrictors, hawks, dogs, cats, & rats. Grackles, herons, basilisk lizards, vine snakes, parrot snakes, & racers prey on young.

Range only covers 3-4 square miles.

Critically endangered due to habitat fragmentation, hunting for meat, invasive plants creating unsuitable egg-laying habitats, introduced predators, pollution, development, hurricanes, & egg collection.

Also known as Utila Spiny-Tailed Iguana, Utila Island Iguana, Baker’s Spiny-Tailed Iguana, swamper, & wishiwilly del suampo.

Adults arboreal while young/juveniles terrestrial.

Sexually mature at around 2 years old.

Females lay clutches of 6-24 eggs.

Due to rarity, very little else is known about this species.

Believed to be less than 1,000 of these iguanas left in wild.

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