iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) iguana 11.4 cyclura rileyi rileyi, san salvador rock iguana (see article on p. 212). photograph by john binns. iguana journal of the international iguana societ y www.iguanasociet y.org volume 11, number 4 december 2004 us$6.00 adult male marine iguana (amblyrhynchus cristatus) from santa fe island, galápagos islands (article on p. 190). photograph by martin wikelski. an adult male banded iguana (brachylophus fasciatus) from ovalau island (article on p. 198). photograph by peter harlow. adult male ctenosaura defensor from yucatán, méxico (article on p. 206). photograph by gunther köhler. adult male san salvador iguana (cyclura rileyi rileyi)(article on p. 212). photograph by glenn gerber. wild jamaican iguana (cyclura collei) in the vicinity of a nesting site (article on p. 224). photograph by rick van veen. “billy,” the largest male in the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) captive population (article on p. 232). photograph by john binns. cuban iguanas (cyclura nubila) are featured in this issue’s historical perspectives (p. 250). photograph by david blair. adult female saban iguana (iguana iguana) (article on p. 238). photograph by robert powell. iguana_11.2_text.ps godzilla (1935–2004). photograph by john binns. the herpetology and veterinary staff of the gladys porter zoo sadly report the passing of the longest living member of the genus cyclura on record. at an estimated age of 69 years, “godzilla,” a male grand cayman blue iguana died on 26 may 2004 of apparent chronic hepatic insufficiency. he was ill for about two weeks prior to his death, although, at his advanced age, godzilla required extraordinary maintenance for the seven years he resided at the zoo. totally blind in one eye and almost blind in the other, this animal routinely brought out the “hero” in the gladys porter zoo’s veterinarians. captured as a full-grown adult on grand cayman in 1950 by naturalist ira thompson, godzilla weighed over 15 pounds and was estimated to be at least 15 years of age at the time of capture. he was imported to the u.s. in 1985 by ramon noegel and was placed on loan to the gladys porter zoo in 1997. though gaunt and aged in appearance, godzilla retained the characteristics of a territorial, dominant c. lewisi until the time of his final illness. he was a favorite of the zoo’s keeper staff and volunteers; he will truly be missed. a dult m ale san salvador iguana (c yclura rileyi rileyi) on g reen c ay, san salvador, baham as. photograph by john binns. iguana 12.1 blue iguana recovery program grand cayman, cayman islands conservation action for the grand cayman blue iguana began in 1990 and accelerated in late 2001, after the cayman islands hosted a meeting of the world conservation union’s iguana specialist group. at that landmark meeting, the world’s top experts on iguana conservation worked with local scientists and managers to conceive an action plan to save the blue iguana. shortly thereafter, news came in from field surveys that wild blue iguanas were truly on the verge of functional extinction, and the blue iguana recovery program was founded in its present form. the original program began with captive breeding, combined with long-term field studies of the remnant wild blue iguana population. this yielded essential scientific data to guide early conservation planning. by 1994, enough information was on hand to enable the cayman islands national trust’s small team to test a key strategy: release of captive-bred subadults back to the wild. captive breeding success led to stepwise expansion of the captive facilities, which were relocated in 1995 to the qe ii botanic park, and by 2004 reached the capacity to rear and release up to 100 subadult blue iguanas annually. captive-bred blue iguanas released into the qe ii botanic park were breeding in the wild by 2000: but, as this restored population gradually expanded, the original wild population was in catastrophic decline, falling to between 10 and 25 individuals by 2002. today, the park is near its limit, with about 30 free-ranging blue iguanas, and a second restored population has recently been founded in the national trust’s salina reserve. the program owes much of its current success to expanding volunteerism and financial support from many sectors. both are as critical now as they have ever been, now that the work moves toward large-scale population restoration, giving the grand cayman blue iguana a future once more. www.blueiguana.ky f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) iguana 10.1 23iguanamarch 2003 i.i.s. t-shirts! b. cyclura nubila nubila a. mona island iguana internationaligu ana society iguana iguana the c. iguana iguana each, plus $3 for postage & handling ($1 p&h for each additional shirt) sizes available: medium, large, and x-large. specify design a, b, or c. send check or money order to: international iguana society, inc. 133 steele road west hartford, ct 06119 $13 dr. timothy durkins, d.p.m. 1953–2002 of all the wonderful friends i have made through the international iguana society, i will always remember the remarkable dr. timothy durkins (“that’s dpm, not dvm! i’m a podiatrist, not a veterinarian!”). many who attended the iis barbecue at the ct iguana sanctuary some years back will fondly remember “dr. tim,” who sat serenely on my back porch and regaled visitors with tales of his many eccentric extended family members and the love of his life, the irascible miss sukieman bardudi. sukie was a six-year-old female rhinoceros iguana, who tim regarded as part goddess, part spiritual familiar, and part demanding roommate. when sukie died of a pervasive liver infection, tim was devastated. with chronic health problems that had left him unable to work for many years and a diagnosis of cancer, tim needed another animal to fill his life. that animal was dash, a four-year-old male rhinoceros iguana that i had raised. dash was never able to actually live with tim as endless chemotherapy sessions left him weaker and repeatedly hospitalized. to the very end, tim believed that his disease would simply go into remission at some point and he and dash would go home together. a copy of the iguana times was always in tim’s hospital room and iguana photos at his bedside. he would occupy himself with ideas to raise funds for the iis and iguana conservation, and with producing handwritten manuals for me on how to care for the various rescued reptiles that end up in my house. the animals and i will all miss dr. tim dearly. a donation to the blue iguana fund has been made in his honor. aj gutman o b i t u a r y iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 23 iguana 11.3 b&w text iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 137table of contents table of contents f e a t u r e s revisiting st. eustatius: estimating the population size of lesser antillean iguanas, iguana delicatissima . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .sean p. fogarty, victoria h. zero, and robert powell 139 species profile: red-bellied racer (alsophis rufiventris) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . abigail j. maley 147 color and pattern in grand cayman blue iguanas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . fred burton 148 species profile: ground boas (tropidophis) of the cayman islands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a.c. echternacht 151 species profile: saw-scaled curlytail (leiocephalus carinatus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 153 colonization success by green iguanas in florida . . . . . . . walter e. meshaka, jr., richard d. bartlett, and henry t. smith 154 species profile: the knight anole, anolis equestris, in southern florida . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . walter e. meshaka, jr. 162 both friend and food: the conservation of iguanas in panama’s market economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . darrin duford 164 species profile: the mangrove treeboa (corallus ruschenbergerii) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert w. henderson 167 requiem for godzilla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . colette adams 168 h u s b a n d r y iguana restraint and handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jeff lemm 172 p r o f i l e rick van veen: a feral mammal’s worst nightmare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . byron wilson 176 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e the iguana iguana iguana iguana (l) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . paul l. swanson 179 b o o k r e v i e w lizards: windows to the evolution of diversity by eric r. pianka and laurie j. vitt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . aaron z. savit 183 iguana newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187 letter from the president . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188 sister isles rock iguana (cyclura nubila caymanensis), little water, cayman islands. photograph by john binns. iguana 10.2 58 iguana volume 10, number 2 i g u a n a n e w s b r i e f s the iis contributes to conservation contributions from international iguana society members have made it possible for the iis to provide assistance to several ongoing projects. within the past year, the society has made contributions to: (1) the blue iguana recovery program on grand cayman island (with special thanks to the pacific northwest herpetological society for their generous donation), (2) graduate student rachel goodman to support her blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) research, (3) new cages for headstarting ctenosaura bakeri at the iguana research and breeding station on utila, honduras, and (4) shipping mongoose traps to jamaica, where they will be used to trap mongooses that prey on jamaican iguanas, cyclura collei. the iis plans to continue support for the implementation of the blue iguana recovery plan (see www.cyclura.com) and is actively engaged in fundraising to help purchase critical ctenosaura bakeri nesting habitat on utila (see letter from the president, p. 59). your membership dues and contributions help the iis make a difference for endangered iguanas in the wild. we appreciate your continuing support. a new fossil iguana from fiji gregory k. pregill and trevor h. worthy (2003. herpetologica 59:57–67) described lapitiguana impensa based on fossil remains found in late quaternary sediments on viti levu, the main island of fiji. the differences between this spectacularly large (svl ca. 500 mm) iguana and extant fiji iguanas in the genus brachylophus were sufficiently substantive that the authors placed this new discovery in a separate genus. like brachylophus, however, this iguana appears to be basal among the iguanidae, although exact relationships cannot be resolved with the available evidence. this giant form probably became extinct soon after humans first colonized the islands about 3000 years ago. the new generic name derives from lapita, a proper name given to the distinctive pottery associated with the first human settlers of fiji, who disappeared from the archaeological record soon thereafter, and iguana, an aboriginal amerindian name apparently designating a kind of lizard. the species name is from the latin impensa (= ample or large), in reference to the large body size of this lizard. although the data are sparse, they do not seem to support a sister-taxon relationship between lapitiguana and brachylophus, suggesting that fiji might have been colonized twice by iguanid lizards. the authors also suggest that brachylophus was able to coexist with humans primarily due to its cryptic, arboreal lifestyle. in contrast, lapitiguana, which was most certainly a conspicuous, terrestrial form, became extinct as a direct result of human agency soon after the lapita people arrived in fiji. iis member wins science fair iis member nicholas jones of little rock, arkansas recently won first place in zoology at his school science fair for research on the use of color vision in food selection by green iguanas. in further competition, nicholas’s research paper again placed first at both the central arkansas regional science fair and the arkansas junior academy of sciences. in an earlier experiment, in which the same foods were presented to a green iguana on different colored plates, nicholas’s iguana, frank, had selected food presented on a red plate four times as frequently as that presented on a black plate. in the current experiment, frank was presented with hibiscus flowers in two different colors. both a red blossom and a pale yellow or white blossom were offered to the iguana 23 separate times and records kept of which blossom he chose to eat first. at each feeding, the placement of the blossoms was switched to eliminate the possibility that the iguana was just eating on the same side of the cage. frank chose to eat the red blossoms first in 18 of the 23 trials, leading nicholas to conclude that his iguana was indeed using color vision in selecting food. nicholas now goes on to compete in the national discovery channel science challenge. we wish him the best of luck and hope he continues his scientific pursuits! chs works to help iguanas the chicago herpetological society conservation booth at the annual chs reptile fest (april 5–6) was a huge success. iis members lori king and betsy davis were on hand to educate people about grand cayman blue iguanas and utila iguanas, as well as massassauga rattlesnakes. lori’s juvenile ctenosaura bakeri, nagual, made his first public appearance and proved to be the star of the show. a variety of general merchandise such as utila iguana t-shirts, christmas ornaments, bookplates, and stuffed animals worked like magnets to draw every child to the table — with parent in tow, begging for a stuffed animal. altogether, the effort raised $1,505 for the utila iguana nesting property fund. of incalculable value, however, was the opportunity to explain the plight of these exquisite animals to every visitor to the table.the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) is functionally extinct in the wild. the iis is promoting and supporting the blue iguana recovery program (see profile, p. 53). iguana 10.1 i.i.s. 2002 board of directors joseph wasilewski president homestead, fl robert w. ehrig founder and vice president big pine key, fl a. c. echternacht, phd treasurer knoxville, tn aj gutman secretary and membership coordinator west hartford, ct robert powell, phd director kansas city, mo john binns director san jose, ca iguana and i.i.s. website staff robert powell, phd editor department of biology avila university kansas city, mo aj gutman editorial and fulfillment coordinator west hartford, ct michael ripca production manager and design coordinator leaping lizards graphic design atco, nj john binns internet administrator san jose, ca john bendon illustrator / photographer bath, england pirolli printing printer bellmawr, nj i.i.s. 2002 editorial board allison c. alberts, phd zoological society of san diego san diego, ca gordon m. burghardt, phd university of tennessee knoxville, tn keith christian, phd northern territory university darwin, nt, australia john b. iverson, phd earlham college richmond, in gordon h. rodda, phd us fish and wildlife service ft. collins, co i.i.s. 2002 advisory board john bendon liason bath, england gordon m. burghardt, phd university of tennessee knoxville, tn chuck knapp gainesville, fl richard montanucci, phd clemson university clemson, sc richard moyroud mesozoic landscapes west palm beach, fl michael e. ripca atco, nj statement of purpose the international iguana society, inc. is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to preserving the biological diversity of iguanas. we believe that the best way to protect iguanas and other native plants and animals is to preserve natural habitats and to encourage development of sustainable economies compatible with the maintenance of biodiversity. to this end, we will: (1) engage in active conservation, initiating, assisting, and funding conservation efforts in cooperation with u.s. and international governmental and private agencies; (2) promote educational efforts related to the preservation of biodiversity; (3) build connections between individuals and the academic, zoo, and conservation communities, providing conduits for education and for involving the general public in efforts to preserve endangered species; and (4) encourage the dissemination and exchange of information on the ecology, population biology, behavior, captive husbandry, taxonomy, and evolution of iguanas. membership information iguana, the journal of the international iguana society, is distributed quarterly to members and member organizations. annual dues: individual u.s. and canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual foreign membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 u.s. and canadian organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 foreign organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $45.00 (*receives double copies of iguana) additional copies are available at a cost of $6.00 including postage. write to: the international iguana society, inc. 133 steele road west hartford, ct 06119 membership questions? call aj at 860-236-8203. or visit our web site at: www.iguanasociety.org solicitations members of the i.i.s. are encouraged to contribute articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of iguana biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts based on original research are solicited to communicate recent findings not only to other scientists but to the general. we wish to instill in our readers a greater appreciation for scientific research and a better understanding of how it can contribute to the conservation of threatened iguana populations or the well-being of captive specimens. research articles will be subjected to peer review, and should be fairly general in scope (i.e., manuscripts having extremely detailed theoretical or statistical bases should be submitted to more appropriate journals). manuscripts of any length will be considered, and must be accompanied by an abstract of corresponding length. authors can expect rapid turnaround time for the reviews and quick publication of acceptable material. research articles will be cited as appearing in the journal of the international iguana society, and will be forwarded to the major citation and abstract journals. research updates should be comparatively brief and written in non-technical language. they will not be subjected to peer review. submission of photographs to accompany research reports is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to ctenosaura@cyclura.com). for any contribution, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. authors of one page or more of print are entitled to five copies of the issue in which their article appears. advertising policy of iguana we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). all products have been examined and been found to be high quality and fairly priced. contact i.i.s., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119, for more information. editors’ remarks as you may have noticed, the title of the journal of the international iguana society has changed from the iguana times to iguana. the editorial staff and the board agreed that the journal has long since surpassed what would be expected of a newsletter, a status implied by the former title. we felt that iguana would be a more fitting title for the journal that represents the diverse interests of the iis membership. you also will see in this issue the second “species profile” (the first appeared in the last issue). these will become a regular feature of iguana, with each focusing on a non-iguanid species that shares its habitat with an iguana featured in one of the articles. we hope that you will enjoy these little forays into the broader world of herpetology. bob powell and aj gutman iguana copyright ©2003 by the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international iguana society. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:10 am page 2 iguana 11.3 b&w text iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 185iguana newsbriefs iguana specialist group awarded grant for anegada iguana conservation the isg received one of two $15,000 grants from the sir peter scott fund for conservation action. this is the first year these grants have been offered and the isg was extremely fortunate in having the anegada iguana project selected. the project is titled: “species recovery plan implementation and local conservation awareness for the critically endangered anegada iguana.” the award letter from david brackett, chair, iucn species survival commission, noted that his office and the iucn species programme “were impressed with the proposed activities outlined in [this] project proposal. we believe the project will make a marked difference to conservation efforts for this species. we also hope that, as one of the first projects to be awarded funding under this new initiative, [it] will generate interest and support for our ongoing efforts to replenish the fund.” grand cayman headstart facility upgrade 30 july – 13 august 2004 as the first of this year’s record number of blue iguanas began to hatch, “team blue,” a group of international volunteers, arrived on grand cayman to ensure that animals would have new housing prepared for them at the captive breeding facility in queen elizabeth ii botanic park (see also the article on p. 148). assembled by john binns of the international reptile conservation foundation, the team included participants from the uk and the us, some of the latter representing us zoos as well as the iis. several members of the team brought along equipment and donations, as did a number of enthusiastic caymanian volunteers. from an initial prototype of four attached 4 x 4 ft cages, the group organized an assembly line, sawing lumber, notching and screwing precut pieces together, and covering each completed unit with screen mesh. others were charged with the seemingly endless task of cutting cage doors and attaching hinges and bolts to the 102 units that were produced within a new compound. even as the saws and power drills hummed, contractors were busy mixing and pouring cement for the construction of larger enclosures for a number of breeding pairs. meanwhile, in the current iguana housing area, other team members cleaned, repaired, and refurbished existing cages, making creative use of natural elements from the surrounding botanic park to enrich the cage environments. within the larger breeding pens that had already been constructed, shovels and wheelbarrows were used to move rock, soil, and vegetation to improve the physical layout. even as new cages were completed, some were quickly furnished and their new tenants moved in, mostly two yearolds due for release in september into the neighboring salina reserve. some members of the team undertook a quick survey of this rather rocky and forbidding i g u a n a n e w s b r i e f s anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis). photograph by john binns. 186 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 iguana newsbriefs territory, followed later by a helicopter flyover, during which several soil deposits were identified as possible nesting areas. iis members survive daytona hurricane even hurricane charley didn’t dampen the spirits of dedicated reptile lovers at this year’s daytona beach reptile expo on 14–15 august. the international iguana society was on hand to share conservation information and tips on iguana care. several new members signed on and a lot of people dropped by to renew existing memberships, chat, and hang out with our spokeslizards. jane billette from the mid-michigan reptile rescue brought along scrub, a rhinoceros iguana, azul, a blue iguana hybrid, as well as emma, marilyn, and picasso, three rescued green iguanas. also delighting our visitors was chuck, iis president joe wasilewski’s cuban iguana, who many long-time members will remember from cover photos in the iguana times. attendance at the expo was down somewhat due to the weather this year. hopefully everyone who couldn’t make it this year will make it in 2005, when the auction will be run by the iis in order to raise funds for iguana conservation. we’re already making plans and collecting donated items to be auctioned. if you’d like more information about the auction or have items you’d like to donate, please contact aj gutman at ctenosaura@cyclura.com. many thanks to all our wonderful volunteers who made this year’s show so much fun! we hope to see you all again next year. early hatch for jamaican iguanas 2004 was a record early hatch, with 59 hatchlings emerging before september. fortunately, edwin duffus had erected barriers surrounding the known communal nesting sites by the third week of august, so all of those hatchlings were collected. rick van veen, who is leading the field effort in the hellshire hills, brought 19 individuals to the hope zoo for “headstarting,” attached small radio transmitters to another 18, and released the remainder in the vicinity of their hatch location. preliminary results from radio tracking indicate that hatchling iguanas disperse away from nesting sites in random directions, and some individuals immediately disperse considerable distances (up to several hundred meters). while not on the move, hatchlings appear to spend nearly all their time in trees and, after one week post-release, several individuals appear to be restricting their activity to small areas — suggesting that they may be establishing territories or home ranges. unfortunately, the imminent arrival of hurricane ivan has interrupted data collection, as safety concerns have dictated that rick leave hellshire and return to kingston. radio telemetry work and monitoring of the remaining iguana nests will commence once the hurricane passes and he can return to the field. cyclura lewisi elevated to full species fred burton (2004), based on mtdna evidence reported in malone et al. (2000) plus existing and new observations on scale characters, color, geographic and reproductive isolation, and phyly, formally recognized cyclura lewisi (formerly c. nubila lewisi) as a full species (see also article on p. 148). cyclura nubila caymanensis retained its subspecific status. references burton, f.j. 2004. revision to species of cyclura nubila lewisi, the grand cayman blue iguana. caribbean journal of science 40:198–203 (pdf file available at http://www.caribjsci.org/). malone, c.l., t. wheeler, j.f. taylor, and s.k. davis. 2000. phylogeography of the caribbean rock iguana (cyclura): implications for conservation and insights on the biogeographic history of the west indies. molecular phylogeny and evolution 17:269–279. aerial photo taken after completion of team blue’s efforts. photograph by john binns. dorsal view of head scalation typical of cyclura lewisi. letters identify scales used in comparisons with c. nubila and c. cychlura. illustration by john binns. iguana 10.4 b&w text a s for so many of us with an interest in iguanas, an early educational experience sparked allison alberts to pursue a career in science. she grew up in the san francisco bay area of northern california, an urban center in close proximity to some of the most diverse and beautiful landscapes in the united states. when she entered the university of california–berkeley, she was undecided in her studies, exploring both english and science. not until she enrolled in a two-semester course entitled natural history of the vertebrates, which included once-a-week field trips, did her enthusiasm for a career in science solidify. after graduating with high honors in biology, she moved to the university of california–san diego to begin a post-doctoral program. after her first year, she enrolled in the tropical ecology course with the organization for tropical studies in costa rica. this was the first time allison had traveled to the tropics and the experience was very influential in developing her career interests. allison’s original thesis topic had been chemical communication strategies among neotropical bats. however, after a few years (and some crazy adventures in mexico), she realized that bat research in the tropics was logistically nightmarish and far too costly for a graduate student. she switched her thesis to chemical communication in desert iguanas (dipsosaurus dorsalis), a project that could be accomplished in the deserts just east and north of san diego. in many ways, allison is thankful that she switched her thesis in mid-stride, as she has indeed fallen in love with lizard ecology! as a post-doctoral fellow, allison expanded upon her graduate work by examining communication in a species closely related to dipsosaurus, but which experienced radically different habitat parameters. wanting to return to the tropics, she began studying green iguana (iguana iguana) chemical communication. this research was conducted partly in the field at dagmar werner’s iguana ranch in costa rica, partly in the laboratory at texas a&m university in college station, and culminated at the zoological society of san diego’s center for reproduction of endangered species. at cres, allison was exposed to a broader scope of research that included conservation as well as academic goals. after becoming an associate scientist at the san diego zoo, she began studying the ecology and reproductive biology of a relatively stable population of cuban iguanas (cyclura nubila nubila) at the u.s. naval station at guantanamo bay, cuba. as a group, the caribbean iguanas are the most endangered lizards p r o f i l e 142 iguana volume 10, number 4 allison alberts: a consumate conservationist tandora grant center for reproduction of endangered species, zoological society of san diego allison and cuban iguana, “sunny,” at the san diego zoo. on earth, primarily due to habitat alteration and predation by introduced domestic and feral mammals. many populations consist solely of adult iguanas with virtually no juvenile recruitment. a large and pioneering part of the cuban iguana research, supported by the national science foundation, included testing the viability of headstarting as a conservation strategy for depleted populations of large lizards. to quickly rebuild such a population, determining if hatchling iguanas could be raised in captivity until they obtain a size less vulnerable to predators and successfully persist in the wild was essential. in 1991, the jamaican iguana (cyclura collei) was rediscovered in a remnant patch of forest near kingston. a year later, the conservation breeding specialist group hosted a conservation assessment and management plan workshop for iguanids and varanids, which was soon followed by a population habitat viability assessment workshop for the jamaican iguana. as a participant in these two workshops, allison met many key people concerned with the conservation of caribbean iguanas. among these new colleagues was rick hudson of the fort worth zoo in texas, with whom she began incubating the idea of forming a specialist group for caribbean iguanas. together they organized the first informal meeting in miami in 1996, which was attended by 25 people from six countries. official sanction from iucn (the world conservation union) in 1997 formally established the west indian iguana specialist group. since that first meeting, the group has met every year to discuss on-going research, develop recovery strategies, and strengthen collaborations. the partnerships formed have been instrumental in the remarkable population recovery milestones for caribbean rock iguanas seen in the last decade. headstarting is now being success143iguanadecember 2003 young iguana conservationists in training: allison’s children jonathan (age 4) and connor (age 6). allison was instrumental in erecting these iguana-warning signs at the u.s. naval station at guantanamo bay, cuba. allison with iguana specialist group members, rick hudson, fort worth zoo, and miguel garcía, puerto rico department of natural resources, leads the 2002 iguana specialist group meeting in the dominican republic. fully applied to wild populations in jamaica, grand cayman (cyclura lewisi), mona island (cyclura cornuta stejnegeri), and anegada (cyclura pinguis). dr. alberts’ team has also been investigating how quickly iguana populations can recover after severe habitat disturbance in cuba and using translocation to restore iguana populations to formerly inhabited cays in the turks and caicos islands. these days allison spends less time in the field than in the past. as head of the applied conservation division at the san diego zoo, she oversees a staff of seventeen, with projects that focus on the reintroduction of ecologically important species, sustainable use of natural resources, and southern california species and habitat conservation. conservation of iguanas remains a principal focus for her and many of the division’s staff members, but the group also is actively involved in reintroduction programs for the california condor, san clemente island loggerhead shrike, and giant chacoan peccaries in paraguay. additionally, because conservation nearly always requires modifications of human behavior, the division’s projects in madagascar and mexico work with indigenous communities to develop butterfly-based programs that provide significant income, while at the same time promoting habitat preservation and restoration. finally, because san diego is located in one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots, the division’s research continues to support conservation of southern california ecosystems, through a seed banking effort and ongoing studies of local birds, mammals, reptiles, and their habitats. summaries of some of these projects can be viewed on the san diego zoo’s website (http://www.sandiegozoo.org/conservation/field_projects_list.html). allison is the author of over forty journal articles, two books, ten book chapters, and scores of technical reports and popular articles. she has served on numerous editorial review boards and is a key contributor to several professional societies. today, the west indian iguana specialist group has expanded its mandate to become a global iguana specialist group that includes members concerned with all iguanids. allison has been elected co-chair since the group’s inception, which attests to her skills in diplomacy and communication, and to her science-based approach to conservation. outside of work, allison enjoys spending time with her husband mike and two sons, connor and jonathan, as well as swimming, softball, reading, hiking, gardening, and travel. she is distinguished among scientists by her strong conservation ethic and compassion for the animals she studies. 144 iguana volume 10, number 4 allison and iguana friends (cyclura cychlura inornata) on the allen cays, bahamas. allison alberts and glenn gerber release turks and caicos iguanas (cyclura carinata carinata) on bay cay as part of a long-term restoration program for the species. iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) i.i.s. board of directors joseph wasilewski, president homestead, fl joseph burgess, vice-president jacksonville, fl a.c. echternacht, ph.d., treasurer university of tennesee, knoxville, tn aj gutman, executive secretary and associate editor of iguana west harford, ct john & sandy binns, directors, associate editor of iguana and internet operations international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca gunther köhler, ph.d. and elke köhler, directors forschungsinstitut und naturmuseum senckenberg & herpeton, frankfurt, germany robert powell, ph.d., director and editor of iguana avila university, kansas city, mo i.i.s. editorial/advisory board allison c. alberts, ph.d. iucn/ssc iguana specialist group and zoological society of san diego, san diego, ca john bendon, illustrator for iguana bath, england gordon m. burghardt, ph.d. university of tennessee, knoxville, tn frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program, grand cayman, cayman islands jorge ferrari organización de rescate y protección de reptiles y anfibios, tegucigalpa, honduras matthias goetz, dipl.-biol. durrell wildlife conservation trust, jersey, british isles alexander gutsche, dipl.-biol. humboldt universität, berlin, germany richard hudson international iguana foundation and fort worth zoo, fort worth, tx john b. iverson, ph.d. earlham college, richmond, in chuck knapp university of florida, gainesville, fl michael ripca, managing editor of iguana leaping lizards graphic design, atco, nj thomas wiewandt, ph.d. wild horizons, tucson, az founder robert w. ehrig big pine key, fl statement of purpose the international iguana society, inc. is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to preserving the biological diversity of iguanas. we believe that the best way to protect iguanas and other native plants and animals is to preserve natural habitats and to encourage development of sustainable economies compatible with the maintenance of biodiversity. to this end, we will: (1) engage in active conservation, initiating, assisting, and funding conservation efforts in cooperation with u.s. and international governmental and private agencies; (2) promote educational efforts related to the preservation of biodiversity; (3) build connections between individuals and the academic, zoo, and conservation communities, providing conduits for education and for involving the general public in efforts to preserve endangered species; and (4) encourage the dissemination and exchange of information on the ecology, population biology, behavior, captive husbandry, taxonomy, and evolution of iguanas. membership information iguana, the journal of the international iguana society, is distributed quarterly to members and member organizations. annual dues: individual u.s. and canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual foreign membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 u.s. and canadian organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 foreign organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $45.00 (*receives double copies of iguana) additional copies are available at a cost of $6.00 including postage. join on-line at: www.iguanasociety.org membership questions? call aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 solicitations members of the i.i.s. are encouraged to contribute articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of iguana biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to ctenosaura@cyclura.com). for any contribution, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. authors of one page or more of print are entitled to five copies of the issue in which their article appears. advertising policy of iguana we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). all products have been examined and been found to be high quality and fairly priced. contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sandy@cyclura.com or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2003 by the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international iguana society. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editors’ remarks iguana has undergone substantive changes within the past year. the name has changed, the cover went to black and white, new features have been added, and now the color covers are back and the page count increased — yet the message remains the same: iguanas of all kinds are fascinating animals, whether we experience them in their natural habitat or keep them in our homes — and they deserve our attention. many wild populations are threatened or endangered and nearly all are declining. our emphasis on conservation remains unchanged and we will continue to focus on populations in need of our assistance, bringing news of setbacks and advances, and profiling projects and persons that endeavor to help these magnificent animals. however, because many of us came to appreciate these reptiles by caring for them in captivity, we also will strive to provide information that will enhance our ability to care for them in the most humane and efficient manner. in this issue, we present some shocking images of iguanas and other reptiles exploited primarily for food in their native tropical habitats. although some might argue that this differs little from the exploitation of cattle, swine, or poultry in temperate regions, one major distinction exists: iguanas are wild animals and continued exploitation threatens their very existence. as iguana enthusiasts, regardless of whether we relate best to a pet we have named and with which we share our home or to the fleeting glance of a wild lizard fleeing through the tropical thorn scrub, we must set high standards in our support of conservation efforts and in responsible ownership of even a single animal. this means following the guidelines set out at the end of the article on the exploitation of reptiles in the west indies (those “rules” apply everywhere), avoiding impulsive purchases of animals (see the letter from the president), being a responsible pet owner (see, for example, the consequences of escaped iguanas in newsbriefs), supporting animal rescuers, and, above all, seeking to educate the public and other pet owners by taking every opportunity to inform them of conservation needs and appropriate husbandry concerns. the iis did just that at this year’s national reptile breeder’s expo in daytona beach, florida. representatives of the society enjoyed speaking to many current iis members and welcomed 32 new members! in the course of the weekend, hobbyists, breeders, rescuers, veterinary professionals, and conservationists shared a high level of concern for the well-being of an extraordinary group of animals. bob powell, aj gutman, and john binns the iis in daytona (left to right): joe wasilewski, john binns, liza greenberg, sandy binns, aj gutman, and joe burgess. visit our website (www.iguanasociety.com) for more photos from daytona. photograph by john binns. iguana_11.1_bw_text 72 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 iguana newsbriefs the iis at the isg meeting in the turks & caicos islands joe burgess, iis vice-president, represented the society at the 2003 isg meeting in the turks & caicos islands (see also the article on p. 27). he gave a short powerpoint presentation highlighting iis activities and projects over the past year and passed around the current issue of iguana. both the presentation and the journal were well-received, with many commenting on improvements in the appearance and content of the journal. the presentation featured the iis participation in shows in daytona (see editors’ remarks, iguana 10(3), p. 96) and seattle (see iguana newsbriefs, iguana 10(4), p. 155), where members promoted education and increased awareness regarding conservation and conservation specifically of iguanas, announced that the iis would host the auction in daytona in 2005, and reported fund raising efforts to support conservation through the sale of posters, t-shirts, mouse pads, and other products. a recent iis donation to the hope zoo (jamaica) renovation of the captive breeding and headstart facility for jamaican iguanas (cyclura collei) is an example of the work supported. the report on the iis meeting on utila and the problems facing ctenosaura bakeri (see iguana times 9(3)) led to c. bakeri being added to the list of isg funding priorities; with nesting beach acquisition and education as the main areas of concern. introduced ctenosaurs on florida island damaging ecosystem? u.s. fish & wildlife service biologist dennis giardina has been collecting spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura similis) for investigations that will determine whether this non-native species has been impinging on native wildlife on keewaydin island, off the eastern coast of florida. recently captured and killed iguanas, along with other frozen specimens, are being sent to a laboratory at the university of florida, gainesville, where herpetologist kenneth krysko will be studying their stomach contents. at issue is whether these large lizards are eating the eggs or young of protected species of shore birds, sea turtles, and gopher tortoises. the origin of the keewaydin island iguana population is probably either a deliberate or accidental release. releasing non-native species into the wild in florida is a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a $1000 fine. source: naples daily news activists call for a reptile museum to close1 patrick healy new york times — 27 november 2003 hicksville, n.y., nov. 26 — animal activists said on wednesday that they were outraged by a history of problems at the long island reptile museum and called for the gallery of snakes, lizards, and turtles to be shut down. the activists, who have visited the museum and taken some of its animals for rehabilitation, called conditions there the most deplorable they had ever seen. during a visit by the activists in the spring, they said, the reptiles were emaciated and dehydrated, some were covered with red and black mites, and some dead animals remained on display. in addition, they said snakes and large lizards had escaped from their cages and were crawling around the rafters, a potential threat to visitors. the museum’s director, steven kates, while acknowledging that the museum had its flaws, said conditions had improved markedly in the last few months. but the reptile rescuers, who collected dozens of ailing animals from the museum (with mr. kates’s permission), insisted the animals there were still at risk. “i don’t know what the place is still doing open,” said rusty gilman, a reptile rescuer who said she had taken 18 animals from the museum for rehabilitation. the nassau county society for the prevention of cruelty to animals has heard the complaints and is investigating the museum, which houses more than 200 snakes, lizards, and other reptiles. “that has been a major problem for some time,” said harry babb, deputy chief of the nassau spca’s division of law enforcement. “we’ve had vets up there and experts from the animal world. they’ve been trying to meet the requirements that we’ve set for them, and it’s been slow going.” this is not the first time the museum and mr. kates have run afoul of advocacy groups and the law. in april 2002, mr. kates and another man were charged with cruelty to animals after officials received a complaint that a lizard at the museum had had its jaw wired shut. in 1998, the town of oyster bay took the museum to court, saying it was operating without the proper licenses. mr. kates, who wrote the encyclopedia of cockatoos and calls his adversaries haters, opened the reptile i g u a n a n e w s b r i e f s iis vice-president joe burgess making a powerpoint presentation at the 2003 isg meeting in the turks & caicos islands. ctenosaura similis is well-established and widely distributed in florida (see iguana 10(4):111-118). photograph by josiah h. townsend. 1 reprinted with permission. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 73iguana newsbriefs museum in july 1995. the museum has slightly fewer than 300 spaces for animals, and soon after mr. kates began accepting donated animals from the public, he found himself overwhelmed. people would drive by the museum and hurl their sick and unwanted pets — ranging from reptiles to guinea pigs to rabbits — from their cars and onto mr. kates’s doorstep, he said in an interview wednesday afternoon. he said he found himself with 60 boa constrictors and 50 iguanas, though he only had room for a few of each. “i thought i could handle it, and i really couldn’t,” he said. mr. kates said he had hired one of his fiercest critics to improve conditions at the museum. that critic, lori green, said she had set up a rehabilitation program for the animals and spent time training the staff, which she described as dedicated and caring. on wednesday, the snakes, turtles, and lizards seemed content enough with their heat lamps and plexiglass-encased lives at the museum. they could be seen snapping at goldfish, eyeing each other for mating, and doing what reptiles do best, which is to say, not much. “i maintain order there,” ms. green said. “the place is what it is, but it’s a major improvement.” educational signs for st. eustatius in light of the precarious status of the lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) on st. eustatius (see iguana times 6(3):51–56 and 8(1):3–6 and abstracts of reports at this year’s isg meeting, p. 37), the iis, in cooperation with the st. eustatius national parks foundation (stenapa), has produced educational signs that are to be posted at stenapa headquarters, the botanical garden, trail heads, the airport, the tourist bureau, and local hotels and dive shops. the iguana graphic was adapted from a john binns photograph by joel friesch. donations assist with conservation work the iis has received a donation of $3000 from mr. donald tuttle and the tuttle charitable trust of beaux arts, washington. this generous gift will assist in our efforts to support cyclura cychlura figginsi in the exuma islands, cyclura lewisi on grand cayman island, and ctenosaura bakeri on utila, honduras, among others. at the urging of 16-year old iguana advocate, jayna fowler, the pacific northwest herpetological society has donated $500 towards the utila iguana nesting property fund. erratum: on p. 150, iguana 10(4), the caption to the photo of franz werner erroneously stated that he was holding a boa constrictor, when, in fact, he was holding a reticulated python (python reticulatus). iguana cages & supplies for zoos or private keepers kw cages advanced design free brochure 1.800.447.2243 www.kwcages.com walk-in cages sunning cages stephen kates of the beleaguered long island reptile museum holds digger, a cuban iguana. an example of our cage products is illustrated in the husbandry article, which begins on p. 39. 74 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 iguana newsbriefs iguana_11.2_text.ps “our knowledge of iguanid diversity will likely increase as different philosophical approaches to species are applied and further insights into relationships revealed” (hollingsworth 2004). why should we care? not too long ago, i wrote an article about animal classification (powell 2002), in which i suggested that even the experts, systematic biologists who study the evolutionary relationships among animals, differ in their views of species and higher categories. if the experts cannot agree, why should those of us who merely want an accurate name to attach to a particular type of animal seek an inevitably elusive answer or merely put up with what seems like a constant litany of taxonomic changes that accrue when the systematists use new data to change a name that seemed to serve our purposes just fine? i suggest that we should care and that we also should tolerate — and even welcome — the inevitable confusion that comes with new knowledge, for reasons both philosophical and practical. as an educator, i strongly believe that knowledge for its own sake is valuable, not just because it conceivably could lead to practical applications (pretty far-fetched when discussing lizard phylogenies), but because a knowledge of real relationships reflected in an accurate taxonomy is, in effect, a search for truth. both in the scientific and human realms, this is a worthy goal, even if no cure for cancer is forthcoming. the practical aspect reflects our commitment to conserving biodiversity. “species in peril rightly receive more attention than subspecies [or populations] in peril” (malone and davis 2004). even though any population of an endangered animal is worthy species and subspecies: what do they mean and why should we care? robert powell avila university, kansas city, missouri 108 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 powell � the three traditionally recognized subspecies of cyclura rileyi , c. r. rileyi (above), c. r. cristata, and c. r. nuchalis, show essentially no genetic differentiation (malone and davis 2004) and probably should not be recognized taxonomically. investing sparse resources to manage them as distinct entities may not be appropriate. photograph by john binns. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 109species and subspecies of conservation, especially the very tiny, fragmented populations that characterize the distributions of so many island-dwelling iguanas, that statement reflects the unfortunate reality that resources allocated to conservation are limited and “some form of triage is necessary in any conservation plan” (malone and davis 2004). i have heard even professional natural resource managers say that “it’s only a subspecies,” as if that rendered the entity in question of no value. so, where should the lines be drawn? species concepts range from wanting to designate as “full species” every isolated population with its own “evolutionary fate” to a rigid application of the “biological species concept,” in which reproductive isolation (an inability to successfully reproduce under natural conditions) is the defining criterion. the former would create an unmanageable morass of new names, many of them applied to populations indistinguishable from one another, whereas the latter leads inevitably to highly subjective conclusions when parthenogenetic groups, asexually reproducing organisms, or geographically isolated populations are considered. if species are difficult to delineate, what about subspecies? this concept has been variously applied to everything from “incipient species” (itself an undefined entity) to localized pattern variants and geographic isolates of uncertain status (powell and henderson 2003a). because of the ambiguity of subspecies, the entire concept has fallen into disfavor in recent years. for example, only four new subspecies of west indian amphibians and reptiles have been formally described in the last decade, in stark contrast to the convention that reigned throughout much of the 1950s and 1960s, when hundreds of subspecies were described, many of them placed in the same “species” for reasons no more substantive than an overall similarity in appearance. if species and subspecies are difficult, if not impossible, to define accurately, how can we distinguish between them? in most instances, the criteria used for this purpose involve “degrees of difference.” if two groups of obviously related animals can be distinguished consistently by means of one or several unambiguous characters, most experts would agree that we’re dealing with two species. if, however, the diagnostic features are few or don’t apply in all cases, especially if we have evidence that hybridization occurs regularly, a dilemma exists. are we dealing with species cyclura cychlura has long been considered to have three subspecies, c. c. cychlura (above), c. c. inornata, and c. c. figginsi, but recent studies suggest that only the latter two genetically and geographically defined units exist (malone et al. 2003). photograph by chuck knapp. cyclura carinata bartschi is not genetically distinct from the nominate subspecies (malone and davis 2004) and probably should not be recognized taxonomically. photograph by john bendon. that have yet to evolve the differences that allow us to accurately distinguish them, are we dealing with something best defined as a subspecies, or are we really only dealing with slight geographic variations unworthy of any taxonomic recognition? what makes this decision even more difficult is the realization that the evolution of new species usually is not a sudden occurrence, but takes time measured in many generations, sometimes extending over millennia or even periods of time best defined by geological means. consequently, at any time, such as the present, for example, we are likely to encounter populations in various stages of that process, with the almost infinite number of possible variations represented by at least some groups. does a solution exist? not really. in spite of inevitable gaps and errors that will have to be “fixed” down the road, we have to strive to evaluate all of the available and pertinent evidence in an effort to construct a taxonomy that most accurately reflects reality as it currently exists — and we should never recognize a species based on anything other than evolutionary relationships. for example, using the need to protect a population to justify its designation as a full species would be wrong. similarly inappropriate would be letting a desire to draw hard lines where none are possible or blind allegiance to a traditionally accepted name or concept stand in the way of objectively evaluating new information or interpretations. so, if we want to conserve imperiled iguanas and we accept the unfortunate reality that populations recognized as species are going to be given more consideration than those that are not, what do we do? we could designate every isolated population a species, but that would not reflect reality nor would it be legitimate or even really helpful. if faced with a large number of 110 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 powell cyclura stejnegeri (top), from isla mona (see article on p. 98), and c. onchiopsis (above left), from navassa island and extinct since the late 19th century, were considered subspecies of c. cornuta (above right) until the application of modern species concepts resulted in a reevaluation of distinctive characters (powell 1999, 2000). cyclura stejnegeri is less distinctively different from c. cornuta morphologically than is c. onchiopsis, but biological differences may provide sufficient justification for recognition as a full species (e.g., wiewandt 1977, powell and glor 2000). photographs by robert powell. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 111species and subspecies “species” and still-limited resources, the criteria used in the inevitable triage would simply be adjusted. consequently, the only realistic solution is to evaluate each situation independently, endeavoring to apply the relevant criteria as consistently and accurately as possible, given the uneven states of knowledge and the inevitable disagreements regarding taxonomic ranks. references burton, f.j. 2004. taxonomic status of the grand cayman blue iguana. caribbean journal of science 40: in press. de queiroz, k. 1987. a new spiny-tailed iguana from honduras, with comments on relationships within ctenosaura (squamata: iguania). copeia 1987:892–902. grismer, l.l. 1999. an evolutionary classification of reptiles on islands in the gulf of california, méxico. herpetologica 55:446–469. grismer, l.l. 2002. spiny-tailed iguanas, insular evolution, and seri indians: how long does it take to make a new species and does it matter who makes it? iguana times (journal of the international iguana society) 9(1–2):3–8. hollingsworth, b.d. 2004. the evolution of iguanas: an overview of relationships and a checklist of species, pp. 19–44. in: a.c. alberts, r.l. carter, w.k. hayes, and e.p. martins (eds.), iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. köhler, g. 2002. schwarzleguane: lebensweise, pflege, zucht. herpeton verlag elke köhler, offenbach, germany. iguana iguana, as traditionally defined, is actually a complex of closely related species (malone 2000), and all translocations of green iguanas between south america, central america, and the lesser antilles should cease in order to prevent the loss of unique genetic variation and disruption of locally adaptive gene complexes (malone and davis 2004). photograph by thomas wiewandt. until about 10 years ago, some authorities thought that the variable morphology and lack of definitive characters used to distinguish ctenosaura acanthura (top), c. pectinata (center), and c. similis (bottom) would result in these three species being subsumed into a single species that ranged from sinaloa, méxico to panamá (köhler 2002). recent, detailed studies have since revealed several consistently diagnostic characters, and these have been confirmed using modern molecular techniques. top and center photographs by gunther köhler, bottom photograph by john binns. 112 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 powell cyclura lewisi (below) was until recently treated as a subspecies of c. nubila (above) (burton 2004, malone et al. 2000, powell and henderson 2003b). although considerable effort had been made to conserve what may be the world’s most endangered lizard when it was generally considered to be “only” a subspecies, its elevation to full species status is a much more accurate reflection of real relationships within the genus cyclura. top photograph by john binns, bottom photograph by fred burton. ctenosaura oedirhina (above) from isla roatán, honduran bay islands, was considered a second population of c. bakeri (below), known only from isla utila, until the distinctiveness of the two populations was recognized (de queiroz 1987). top photograph by randy mccranie, bottom photograph by gunther köhler. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 113species and subspecies malone, c.l. 2000. phylogenetic systematics and conservation genetics of caribbean iguanas. unpubl. ph.d. dissertation. texas a&m university, college station. malone, c.l. and s.k. davis. 2004. genetic contributions to caribbean iguana conservation, pp. 45–57. in: a.c. alberts, r.l. carter, w.k. hayes, and e.p. martins (eds.), iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. malone, c.l., c.r. knapp, j.f. taylor, and s.k. davis. 2003. genetic consequences of pleistocene fragmentation: isolation, drift, and loss of diversity in rock iguanas (cyclura). conservation genetics 27:1–15. malone, c.l., t. wheeler, j.f. taylor, and s.k. davis. 2000. phylogeography of the caribbean rock iguana (cyclura): implications for conservation and insights on the biogeographic history of the west indies. molecular phylogenetics and evolution 17:269–279. powell, r. 1999. herpetology of navassa island, west indies. caribbean journal of science 35:1–13. powell, r. 2000. cyclura onchiopsis. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (710):1–3. powell, r. 2002. understanding animal classification. iguana times (journal of the international iguana society) 9:18–26. powell, r. and r.e. glor. 2000. cyclura stejnegeri. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (711):1–4. powell, r. and r.w. henderson. 2003a. the taxonomic and conservation status of giant hispaniolan celestus (anguidae). caribbean journal of science 39:237–240. powell, r. and r.w. henderson. 2003b. a second set of addenda to the checklist of west indian amphibians and reptiles. herpetological review 34: 341–345. wiewandt, t.a. 1977. ecology, behavior, and management of the mona island ground iguana, cyclura stejnegeri. unpublished ph.d. dissertation, cornell university, ithaca, new york. ctenosaura conspicuosa, c. hemilopha, c. macrolopha, and c. nolascensis (above), from the circum-gulf of california region of northwestern méxico, were considered subspecifically related until reevaluated in light of modern species concepts (grismer 1999). of particular interest is the suggestion that c. conspicuosa evolved from ancestors whose original populations on islas cholludo and san esteban may have had a human facilitated origin (grismer 2002). photograph by john binns. populations of iguana delicatissima show very little genetic differentiation (malone 2000). however, because of the ongoing threats that endanger all of the species’ fragmented populations and their vulnerability to stochastic events, each should be afforded the highest level of protection possible. photograph by glenn gerber. iguana 12.2 b&w text 138 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 conservation news for those who don’t understand why, in these days of extinction everywhere, the resurrection of some “bird thing” is so noteworthy, i offer this: the ivorybill is not just a swamp bird — it is *the* swamp bird. even more than ’gators and bald cypress, it is the very embodiment of antiquity, wildness, remoteness, the primeval mystery of the deep dark woods and waters. the very name carried magical, spiritual significance, like dragons or centaurs. like the other magical creatures, they vanished when civilization entered their realm. the ivorybill became metaphor for everything that technology and settlement had driven away, into the farthest recesses of the wilderness or even entirely from the face of the planet. a swamp “deep enough for ivorybills” was one that was entirely beyond human influence. they became a phantom, a rumor, something in which no rational people were supposed to believe. by the 1970s, searching for ivorybills was viewed with nearly the same eye as searching for bigfoot. someone who claimed a sighting of one was likely to be treated worse than someone who reported seeing a ufo. the ivorybill’s status became almost godlike — and rational scientists aren’t supposed to believe in gods. but the stories persisted. hunters, mostly, and the occasional boater told mysterious and intriguing tales; but no one could confirm, no one could produce a photograph, a recording, a feather, even a flake of wood that was unequivocal. just a few years ago, what seemed to be a very promising lead in extreme southwestern mississippi was finally taken seriously and pursued actively — but it was more of the same: hints, tantalizing signs, unusual noises, but in the end ... nothing. the failure of the pearl river expedition after such promising signs was a serious blow to us few hopeful holdouts. and so comes along mr. sparling in his kayak and the huge red-crested woodpecker with the big white spot on its back that landed on a tree in front of him some 14 months ago. a year of follow-up and amazingly well-kept secrecy — and then the announcement. a dragon is perched on top of the empire state building, elvis calls a press conference to apologize for having been away so long, a flock of thunderbirds circles mount rushmore and they are pecking george washington’s eyes out, and the lord god woodpecker is happily cruising the swamps of arkansas. anything can happen. c o n s e r v a t i o n n e w s the phantom of the swamp i v o r y b i l l e d w o o d p e c k e r , c a m p e p h i l u s p r i n c i p a l i s by william marshall pulliam iguana_11.1_bw_text iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 272003 isg meeting report the seventh annual meeting of the iguana specialist group was held in november 2003 in providenciales (“provo” to the locals) in the sunny turks and caicos islands. twenty-two representatives from the group met with officials from the tci national trust and the department of environment and coastal resources (decr). michelle fulford-gardiner, decr, welcomed the group and stressed the importance of iguanas in the context of both biology and ecotourism. allison alberts, san diego zoo center for reproduction of endangered species (cres), and rick hudson, conservation biologist, fort worth zoo, served as moderators. glenn gerber, san diego zoo cres, who currently is working with the endemic turks & caicos iguana (cyclura carinata carinata), was responsible for the venue and for organizing the development of a conservation and management plan for c. c. carinata. fred burton, blue iguana recovery programme, and quentin bloxam, durrell wildlife conservation trust, facilitated the conservation planning workshop held immediately following the isg annual meeting. taxon updates reports (see “abstracts” on p. 29) on current projects were given by john iverson (earlham college) on cyclura cychlura inornata from the exuma islands, fred burton on cyclura lewisi on grand cayman island, rick hudson (for peter vogel, university of the west indies) on cyclura collei in jamaica, miguel garcia (puerto rico department of natural and environmental resources) and nestor pérez (university of puerto rico–río piedras) on cyclura cornuta stejnegeri on isla mona, chuck knapp (university of florida and the john g. shedd aquarium) on cyclura cychlura and andros island, glenn gerber and kelly bradley (dallas zoo) on cyclura pinguis on anegada, lee pagni (san diego zoo) on attitudes and perceptions regarding the conservation of the anegada iguana, jan ramer (indianapolis zoo) on cyclura ricordii in the dominican republic, victor hugo reynoso (the technical consulting subcommittee for the conservation, management, and sustained exploitation of iguanas in mexico) on mexican iguanas, peter harlow (taronga zoo) on fijian iguanas (brachylophus fasciatus and b. vitiensis), glenn gerber and allison alberts on cyclura carinata carinata in the turks & caicos islands, rick hudson (for robert powell, avila university) on lesser antillean iguanas, and quentin bloxam and karen graham (for matthew morton, durrell wildlife conservation trust) on st. lucian iguana iguana. conservation management strategies reports on ongoing management strategies included: (1) jeff lemm is making headway on a husbandry manual for west indian iguanas. the group decided that the manual should be translated into spanish upon completion. (2) the morris animal foundation grant for cyclura baseline health profiles was reviewed. five taxa have been sampled and training provided for veterinarians in the dominican republic, grand cayman, and jamaica. extended funding is being sought to continue testing in perpetuity. (3) updated iucn red list assessments are continuing. (4) chuck knapp and rachel a report on the iucn/ssc iguana specialist group 2003 meeting providenciales, turks & caicos islands john bendon bath, england participants in the 2003 iucn/ssc iguana specialist group meeting in the turks & caicos islands. top: rick hudson, sandra buckner, fred burton, quentin bloxam, john iverson, catherine malone, jan ramer, allison alberts, bonnie raphael, miguel garcia, karen graham. middle: john bendon, chuck knapp, peter harlow, victor reynoso, rick van veen, joe burgess. bottom: glenn gerber, lee pagni. � 28 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 bendon goodman are submitting reports on transmitter attachments to herpetological review. (5) for the purpose of assessing progress on the ssc strategic plan, a report of isg contributions is being prepared for the iucn. (6) the international iguana foundation (iif) is resubmitting its proposal to the national fish and wildlife foundation (nfwf) for a navassa habitat assessment grant. iif grants for 2003 included support for work in st. lucia, anegada, jamaica, grand cayman, and the dominican republic. (7) the newly developed isg mission statement reads: the iguana specialist group prioritizes and facilitates conservation, science, and awareness programs that help ensure the survival of wild iguanas and their habitats. management plan workshop quentin bloxam and fred burton facilitated the development of a conservation and management plan (cmp) for cyclura carinata carinata. ethlyn gibbs-williams, head of the tci national trust, introduced discussion and the following goal was established: conserve and restore populations and the geographic distribution of the turks and caicos rock iguana, and perpetuate it as a symbol of national pride and sound environmental management.. some of the steps necessary to achieve this goal: (1) maximize genetic diversity, (2) control exotics (dogs, cats, rats, cattle, goats, donkeys, plants), (3) enact formal legislation to protect iguanas, (4) establish a system of protected areas, (5) control touristrelated development and tourist access to critical habitats, (6) achieve protection for additional habitats, (7) continue to monitor populations and translocations as necessary, (8) acquire better genetic data, (9) establish and maintain dialogue with developers, and (10) develop the necessary political will. future meetings in 2004, the isg will meet in fiji to develop species recovery plans for fijian iguanas, brachylophus fasciatus and b. vitiensis. tentative plans for future years include andros island in 2005 and the galápagos islands in 2006. a male cyclura c. carinata habituated to human activity looking for handouts near the tourist boardwalk on little water cay. photograph by rick hudson. glenn gerber and workshop facilitator fred burton discuss options for controlling the movement of cats between water and little water cay. photograph by rick hudson. this boardwalk on little water cay (lwc) provides access for tourists to experience iguanas in their native habitat and is the primary source of income for the tci national parks trust. unfortunately, cats have reached this tiny island and are beginning to affect the iguana population. photograph by rick hudson. isg field trip to little water cay, a popular tourist destination for viewing iguanas in the turks & caicos islands. photograph by rick hudson. iguana_11.2_text.ps iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 87species profile s p e c i e s p r o f i l e islands in the gulf of california support a variety of endemic species that have differentiated from their mainland ancestors after various periods of isolation. some have become distinct as a consequence of adapting to local conditions on their new island homes, whereas others differ from their continental relatives as a consequence of the “founder’s effect.” this is basically a random process that can cause populations that have descended from a tiny number of founding individuals to vary considerably from the stem population solely because the small sample of founders represents but a tiny fraction of the diverse gene pool present in the larger aggregate of individuals from which they have become separated. when that tiny fraction of the gene pool is atypical of the populational “norms,” the descendant populations may begin their isolated existence already quite different in appearance or behavior than their ancestors — and, if they remain separated for a sufficient number of generations, they are quite capable of achieving full-species status. the tortuga island rattlesnake (crotalus tortugensis) is endemic to isla tortuga in the gulf of california. it is a mediumsized rattlesnake, smaller than its nearest relative, the widely distributed western diamondback rattlesnake (c. atrox), with large males reaching only about one meter in total length. the head size is relatively small when compared to c. atrox, a characteristic that may indicate dwarfing. although insular forms sometimes become giants, larger species and especially predatory forms often become smaller when isolated on small, resource-deficient islands. crotalus tortugensis is not well differentiated from c. atrox, although our current understanding of their relationships is “tenuous.” differences in the dorsal blotches (diamonds) are the most noticeable divergence, with those of c. tortugensis less pronounced and less distinctly bordered than those of c. atrox. in addition, nearly all specimens of c. tortugensis lack an upper (second) loreal scale between the nostrils and eyes and most have at least one intergenial scale on both sides of their jaws. also, the squamosal bone of c. tortugensis is relatively shorter than that of c. atrox. references beaman, k.r. and c.l. spencer. 2004. crotalus tortugensis. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (798): 1–5. campbell, j.a. and w.w. lamar. 2004. the venomous reptiles of the western hemisphere. 2 volumes. comstock publishing associates, cornell university press, ithaca, new york. case, t.j. 2002. reptiles: ecology, pp. 221–270. in: t.j. case, m.j. cody and e. ezcurra (eds.), a new island biogeography of the sea of cortés. oxford university press, oxford, england. grismer, l.l. 1994. geographical origins for the reptiles on islands in the gulf of california, mexico. herpetological natural history 2(2): 17–40. grismer, l.l. 1999. an evolutionary classification of reptiles on islands in the gulf of california, méxico. herpetologica 55: 446–469. grismer, l.l. 2002. the amphibians and reptiles of baja california, its pacific islands, and the islands in the sea of cortés, méxico: natural history, distribution and identification. university of california press, berkeley. klauber, l.m. 1972. rattlesnakes: their habits, life histories, and influence on mankind. 2nd ed. 2 volumes. university of california press, berkeley. murphy, r.w. 1983a. paleobiogeography and genetic differentiation of the baja california herpetofauna. occasional papers of the california academy of sciences (137): 1–48. murphy, r.w. 1983b. the reptiles: origin and evolution, pp. 130–158. in: t.j. case and m.l. cody (eds.), island biogeography in the sea of cortez. university of california press, berkeley. murphy, r.w. and g. aguirre léon. 2002. nonavian reptiles: origin and evolution, pp. 181–220. in: t.j. case, m.j. cody, and e. ezcurra (eds.), a new island biogeography of the sea of cortés. oxford university press, oxford, england. murphy, r.w., j. fu, a. lathrop, j.v. feltham, and v. kovac. 2002. phylogeny of the rattlesnakes (crotalus and sistrurus) inferred from sequences of five mitochondrial dna genes, pp. 69–92. in: g.w. schuett, m. höggren, m.e. douglas, and h.w. greene (eds.), biology of the vipers. eagle mountain publishing, lc, eagle mountain, utah. the tortuga island rattlesnake (crotalus tortugensis) kent r. beaman section of herpetology, natural history museum of los angeles county and carol l. spencer museum of vertebrate zoology university of california–berkeley crotalus tortugensis from isla tortuga, baja california sur, méxico. photograph by l. lee grismer. iguana_11.2_text.ps 88 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 ramer isla cabritos lies in lago enriquillo, which is in the valley formed by the former marine channel that separated the north and south paleoislands that joined to form hispaniola. illustration by john binns. a very thin cyclura ricordii on the southern slope. photograph by joe ehrenberger. day’s end on isla cabritos. photograph by jennifer niederlander. rhinoceros iguana (cyclura cornuta). photograph by joe ehrenberger. introduction west indian rock iguanas of the genus cyclura are the largest living land vertebrates endemic to the caribbean islands. as a group, they are considered to be among the most endangered lizards in the world. hispaniola is the only west indian island on which two species of cyclura are sympatric. ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) are critically endangered according to the international union for the conservation of nature (iucn) red list. only two or three populations, which inhabit xeric lowlands a survey of ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) and rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta cornuta) in isla cabritos national park, dominican republic 2003: a preliminary report jan ramer indianapolis zoo iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 89cyclura ricordii � isla cabritos, terrain along the northern slope. photograph by kacie ehrenberger. slope approaching the central limestone plateau. photograph by joe ehrenberger. on the limestone plateau. photograph by joe ehrenberger. of the southwestern dominican republic, remain. rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta cornuta) have a much larger range throughout the dominican republic than ricord’s iguanas, and are listed as threatened on the iucn red list.1,3,4 isla cabritos national park is situated on an island in lago enriquillo, a hypersaline lake that represents a remnant of the marine channel that once separated the north and south paleoislands that joined to form hispaniola. the park is home to one of the two or three known populations of wild ricord’s iguanas in the dominican republic. rhinoceros iguanas are sympatric with ricord’s iguanas throughout their range on isla cabritos. the island is roughly 4 km wide and 12 km long, with dry, sandy shores and a central plateau of fossilized coralline limestone.3 technically, the island has been protected as a national park since 1974. it also is somewhat protected by virtue of the fact that it is an island. unfortunately, in approximately 10-year cycles, the water level of the lake falls enough for the formation of a land bridge on the western end of the island, allowing feral cows, horses, donkeys, and cats to cross to the national park. these introduced domestic animals compete with the iguanas for resources or, in the case of cats, prey on young iguanas. collectively, they constitute a direct threat to the survival of these endangered animals. the island also is home to several native raptors (e.g., american kestrels, burrowing owls) that prey on hatchling iguanas. the iguanas of isla cabritos were well-studied in the 1980s by josé ottenwalder, and sixto incháustegui, and, in 2000, gloria santana surveyed the west end of the island. in late 2002, the iucn iguana specialist group held a workshop in santo domingo, dominican republic to develop a species recovery plan for ricord’s iguanas. in fulfillment of one the objectives of this plan, the indianapolis zoo (izs) and parque zoológico nacional (zoodom) conducted a census of ricord’s iguanas and rhinoceros iguanas on isla cabritos. this preliminary report is a summary of that work. methods research groups visited isla cabritos on three different occasions in 2003, corresponding roughly to ricord’s iguana breeding, nesting, and hatching seasons. the first group worked on isla cabritos in late april through early may 2003 and was composed of personnel from zoodom and izs, along with isla cabritos national park rangers. using global positioning service units, 15 transects were set with an average length of 2 km and a sightline width of roughly 40 m in either direction, depending on density of vegetation. each transect ran the width of the island every 500 m. each transect was walked once, and the position of every ricord’s and rhinoceros iguana was recorded, including gender and age, if these could be determined. if species could not be positively identified visually, the sighting was marked simply 90 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 ramer american crocodile (crocodylus acutus) along the southern shore of isla cabritos. photograph by joe ehrenberger. seeking shade after working a transect; from left to right: francisco alberto paredes, leandro delacruz, kacie ehrenberger. photograph by joe ehrenberger. the “landbridge” exposed during periods of low water level connects the west end of isla cabritos to the main island shore. photograph by joe ehrenberger. feral donkeys along the southern shore. photograph by joe ehrenberger. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 91cyclura ricordii isla cabritos showing the transects marked during the iguana surveys (bottom) and locations where iguanas were sighted during the june survey (top). as “iguana.” iguana dens and scat also were recorded. three adult ricord’s iguanas were captured, affixed with microchips, given complete physical examinations, and released. all domestic animals (burros, cattle, horses, and cats) were recorded, as were any other significant observations. the second group consisted of personnel from zoodom, izs, and the fort worth zoo, and isla cabritos national park rangers. this group worked on isla cabritos in late june through early july 2004. this group set five additional transects and walked each transect once using the methods established in april. a horticulturist from the indianapolis zoo began cataloging plant species during this visit. the last group worked on isla cabritos just after the hatching season, in late september 2004. zoodom and izs personnel, along with isla cabritos national park rangers walked each transect using the same methods as the first two groups. unsuccessful attempts were made at capturing hatchling ricord’s iguanas for collection of biological data. three adult ricord’s iguanas were captured, affixed with microchips, and released. results in april, researchers sighted a total of 31 ricord’s iguanas, including 11 males, 12 females, five adults of unknown gender, and three juveniles of unknown gender. in contrast, only seven rhinoceros iguanas were seen, including one male, five females, and one adult of unknown gender. rhinoceros iguanas were seen on transects nearest the tourist trail and at the far eastern end of the island, but the majority of sightings on the interior of the island were ricord’s iguanas. six donkeys and one horse were sighted while walking transects in april, but herds of up to 12 horses were noted at other times. a total of 32 active dens were found while walking transects; one known to be inhabited by a rhinoceros iguana and five known to be inhabited by ricord’s iguanas. these dens were found primarily on either slope of the island throughout its length. few den or iguana sightings occurred on the rocky plateau. 92 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 ramer vegetation around the opening of a cyclura ricordii burrow. photograph by joe ehrenberger. typical cyclura cornuta cornuta burrow, large and in an open area. photograph by joe ehrenberger. a common cactus (harrisia nashii) bears yellow fruits eaten by iguanas. photograph by kacie ehrenberger. typical cyclura ricordii burrow in a dense cactus stand. photograph by joe ehrenberger. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 93cyclura ricordii in june, the team arrived just after the nesting season because the rains came early and nesting had occurred earlier than expected. a total of 16 ricord’s iguanas (10.6) and three rhinoceros iguanas (2.1) were sighted on transects. the pattern of sightings was consistent with the april trip. many active dens were noted, including those of 34 rhinoceros iguanas and 39 ricord’s iguanas. dens were designated as being inhabited by ricord’s or rhinoceros iguanas either by sighting an animal entering the den, or by the shape and location of the den. ricord’s iguana dens tend to have openings with a greater soil spread of a finer size and are commonly associated with areas of thorny vegetation consisting mainly of cylindropuntia caribaea. in contrast, rhinoceros iguana dens often have openings with larger size soil particles that fan out less widely and tend to be in more open areas. ernst rupp reported in his survey of the barahona peninsula (see iguana 11(1): 8–14) that ricord’s iguana tail drags are much smoother in fine sand, and therefore notably different than rhinoceros iguana tail drags.2 however, this was not the case on isla cabritos, possibly due to differences in substrate consistency. one nest was seen, but the species was unknown. far more domestic animals were seen in june; these included eight donkeys, four cows, two horses, and two sets of cat tracks. plant communities found on the island during the june trip varied according to the different microclimates and substrates. certain plants such as calotropis procera were widespread, but tended to be most common in the sandier soils found near the beaches. the limestone plateau supported less plant life. however, melocactus sp., the fruits of which are known to be eaten by iguanas, was only found growing in the limestone and nowhere else on the island. many other cacti, including cylindropuntia caribaea, harrisia nashii, and pilosocereus polygonus, were fairly widespread, although they were absent from the limestone plateau. the most prevalent cactus found near the limestone was consolea moniliformis. scrubby vegetation, such as guiacum officinale, guapira brevipetiolata, prosopsis sp., and ziziphus rignonii, was found throughout the island as well, but seemed to be in higher concentrations near the limestone outcroppings. fewer iguanas were seen in september, but the areas in which they were seen corresponded well to the first two trips. ten ricord’s iguanas (3.5.2) were seen and only two female rhinoceros iguanas were seen on transects. recent scat and tail drags were evident in many areas. forty-two active ricord’s iguana dens and 27 active rhinoceros iguana dens were noted. donkeys (4) and cows (1) were seen while walking transects. horses, cows, and donkeys also were observed around camp, and larger numbers of these animals were reported by park rangers. two hatchling ricord’s iguanas were seen on this trip, but could not be caught for measuring and microchip placement. discussion and recommendations using the april data of 31 ricord’s iguana sightings on the 15 transects walked, crude population estimates are calculated at 0.13 ricord’s iguanas and 0.03 rhinoceros iguanas per hectare surveyed. curiously, rhinoceros iguanas were found only along the edges of the island on the central and eastern end, and near the tourist trail on the west end of the island. the sighting of 43 active ricord’s iguana dens on the 20 transects walked in june also is encouraging, and, if one assumes one adult animal/den, a crude estimate of population density remains around 0.13 ricord’s iguanas per hectare surveyed. these estimates are considerably lower than densities calculated by incháustegui, who reported 8 iguanas/hectare on isla cabritos in 1985.5 in her survey of the west end of isla cabritos in 2000, gloria santana estimated the density of ricord’s iguanas to be 1.8 individuals/hectare and rhinoceros iguanas to be 1.75 individuals/hectare.5 population densities quite possibly are lower now than in 2000, but another explanation is that the current survey covered the whole island, including habitat that is not necessarily suitable iguana habitat. the nearly 1:1 ratio of ricord’s:rhinoceros iguanas in santana’s work is consistent with current observations of larger numbers of rhinoceros iguanas near the tourist trail and west end than in the central region and the eastern end of the island. the only other ricord’s iguana habitat that has been actively surveyed on hispaniola in recent years is the work of ernst rupp et al. in 2003. he estimated roughly 32 iguanas per hectare in the los alivares area of pedernales province based on number of active dens sited along one transect.2 while these data appear to suggest that populations on isla cabritos may be very depleted, the estimates in los alivares were based on work in areas known to support iguanas. also, population estimates based on the very low number of sightings made in the current survey are extremely crude and are almost guaranteed to provide low estimates. more detailed analyses of the data are in progress, and continued annual surveys and more detailed behavioral observations are needed to better understand the biology of these animals. the large number of domestic livestock noted on all three trips is troublesome. not only do they directly compete with iguanas for forage, they also cave in dens and trample nests. the water level was considerably lower in september than in april, making the land bridge very wide and easily crossed by livestock and predators. ideally, the land bridge should be fenced, and livestock should be driven off the island. very few signs of feral cats were noted during this survey; however, no attempts were made to survey for cats at dusk or night. the fact that cat sign was seen at all indicates that a program to reduce the number of cats is needed, and this could include night trapping or shooting of animals. these data will be presented at a meeting of the ricord’s iguana recovery group in santo domingo this summer, and, based on this work and the work of rupp et al., the nature of future conservation efforts for ricord’s iguanas will be determined at that meeting. the isla cabritos population remains very important to the conservation of this critically endangered species, and further work there could include the following: • continued annual surveys (easily accomplished by park rangers if proper equipment and training were available). • additional transponder and telemetry studies (also by park rangers in many instances). • perform mark/recapture studies to more clearly establish population densities in different parts of the island. • track hatchlings (longer-term studies to identify relationships between animals of all ages and vegetation and substrate patterns on the island). participants april: roberto maria, senior veterinarian, zoodom; melvin d’oleo, isla cabritos national park ranger; adriano menier, senior keeper, zoodom; jan ramer, associate veterinarian, indianapolis zoo; john wyatt, deserts senior keeper, indianapolis zoo. june: francisco alberto paredes, senior keeper, zoodom; jennifer niederlander, veterinary technician, indianapolis zoo; leandro delacruz, veterinary student, zoodom; lori johnsonroedell curator of horticulture, indianapolis zoo; meg bommarito, conservation department, fort worth zoo; melvin d’oleo, isla cabritos national park ranger; adriano menier, 94 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 ramer vegetation of isla cabritos: 1–3. caloptropis procera leaves, fruits, and flowers, all of which are eaten by iguanas; 4–5. consolea moniliformis stand and close-up of the trunk; 6–7. cylindropuntia caribaea forms impenetrable forests; 8. guaiacum officinale bark; 9. harrisia nashii grow very large and often provide shelter for c. ricordii burrows; 10. melocactus sp. are scattered across most areas of the island; 11. c. ricordii burrows are frequently associated with pilosocereus polygonus, another abundant cactus; 12. ziziphus rignonii seeds germinate more rapidly after passing through the digestive tracts of iguanas. photographs by lori johnson-roedell. 1 2 5 6 9 10 3 4 7 8 11 12 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 95cyclura ricordii senior keeper, zoodom; richard searcy, deserts keeper, indianapolis zoo. september: francisco alberto paredes, senior keeper, zoodom; leandro delacruz, veterinary student, zoodom; joe ehrenberger, deserts keeper, indianapolis zoo; kacie ehrenberger, wildlife biologist and indianapolis zoo volunteer; emily hansen, educator, indianapolis zoo; melvin d’oleo, isla cabritos national park ranger; adriano menier, senior keeper, zoodom; jan ramer, associate veterinarian, indianapolis zoo, alice wright, veterinary student, edinburgh, scotland. acknowledgements this work was supported by the indianapolis zoo conservation and research department, the miami metrozoo, cleveland zoo, parque zoologico nacional (zoodom), and the american association of zoo keepers, indianapolis zoo chapter. many thanks to richard searcy for compiling gps data and making maps. john binns can never be thanked enough for his many contributions to iguana conservation, this project being no exception; thank you, john. and finally thanks go to all of the survey participants for their hard work under considerably less than comfortable conditions. references 1. alberts, a.c., r.l. carter, w.k. hayse, and e.p. martins (eds.). 2004. iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. 2. arias, y., s.j. incháustegui, and e. rupp. 2004. cyclura ricordii on the barahona peninsula: a preliminary report. iguana 11: 9–14. 3. ottenwalder, j.a. 1999. ricord’s iguana, cyclura ricordi, pp. 51–55. in: a. alberts (ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn/ssc west indian iguana specialist group. iucn, gland, switzerland and cambridge, uk. 4. powell, r., j.a. ottenwalder, and s.j. incháustegui. 1999. the hispaniolan herpetofauna: diversity, endemism, and historical perspectives, with comments on navassa island, pp. 93–168. in: b.i. crother (ed.), caribbean amphibians and reptiles. academic press, san diego, california. 5. santana zorrilla, g.m. 2001. introduccion al estudio de las problaciones de cyclura en la isla cabritos, lago enriquillo, república dominicana. thesis para optar por el titulo de licenciatura en biologia, universidad autonoma de santo domingo, facultad de ciencias. the september surveying team (from left to right): melvin d’oleo, the author, alice wright, adriano menier, francisco alberto paredes, joe ehrenberger, leandro delacruz, kacie ehrenberger, and emily hansen. male ricord's iguana on isla cabritos (november 2002). photograph by john binns. seeking shade after working a transect; from left to right: leandro delacruz, emily hanson, kacie ehrenberger, jan ramer, alice wright. photograph by joe ehrenberger. iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) at fairchild tropical garden, iguanas feast on the filet mignons and caviars of the plant world — rare and expensive plants sometimes brought from the other side of the world — much to the frustration of the horticulturists. “they like the prettiest and rarest flowers, so they’re obviously creatures of some discriminating taste,” said mike maunder, fairchild’s director of horticulture. park groundskeepers have tried many tactics to drive off the lizards, including spraying the plants with a chemical deer repellent, but the reptiles, who at crandon happily gobble up toxic philodendron leaves, were not deterred. the lizards have only been nibbling on broward county, with small populations at flamingo gardens, snyder park, the bonnet house, and easterlin park in oakland park. “right now we’re ok,” said ross dovey, director of easterlin park. “but it’s a potential problem i’m afraid will only get worse.” — daphne duret, miami herald, 31 july 2003 anegada iguana population assessment 2003 the iucn iguana specialist group (isg) conducted a population assessment of cyclura pinguis (stout iguana) on anegada island, british virgin islands from 14–29 june (see also iguana 10(2), june 2003). the international iguana foundation (iif), institute of museum and library services (imls), and private contributions by john binns, joe burgess, and george waters funded the survey. anegada is approximately 16 km long and 2–3.5 km wide (about 39 km2). although not a large island, it presented a significant challenge to the small team’s ability to properly survey the island in a limited amount of time. the strategy was to focus on the western half of the island. any remaining time would be devoted to surveying the area between the central ponds and the southern, developed coast and some areas east of the settlement. results of east end surveys conducted by glenn gerber, binns, and others in 2001 would round out the data needed to estimate the total population size. formal results of the survey will be presented at the annual isg meeting in the turks and caicos islands this november. however, the status of c. pinguis on anegada remains critical and population numbers appear to be in a continuing decline. the core iguana area, bone and windlass bights, contained bulldozed access cuts, which have destroyed a number of known iguana burrows. citron bush, the site of michael carey’s research in 1968, in which he described healthy populations of c. pinguis, consisted solely of heavily disturbed habitat, with most of the damage caused by feral cattle and goats. neither iguanas nor signs thereof were found. overall, iguana sightings were few, especially disappointing to those team members who had never seen stout iguanas and who had traveled far and worked hard for no more than a fleeting glance of a disappearing shadow. current plans call for a limited release of headstarted c. pinguis, presently held at the anegada headstarting facility, on fallen jerusalem, a small island in the british virgin islands. if successful, this would provide a further hedge against the extinction of this species. as a part of that relocation plan, gerber, kelly bradley, and lee pagni conducted a habitat survey on fallen jerusalem after completing the survey on anegada. they found no feral mammals and the island appears to be an ideal location for release. i g u a n a n e w s b r i e f s 95iguanaseptember 2003 one of the few photographs of cyclura pinguis taken during the survey. photograph by joe burgess. the 2003 survey team: (back row, left to right) george waters (iis), dr. glenn gerber (sdz/cres/isg), and john binns (ircf/isg/iis); (front row) roberto maria (zoodom/isg), kelly bradley (dallas zoo/isg), tarren wagener (ft. worth zoo), and joe burgess (iis). lee pagni (sdz/isg/iis; not shown) periodically assisted in the survey, but his primary agenda was to interview local residents regarding stout iguanas in order to develop public awareness and school educational programs. lee vanterpool (national parks trust, bvi/head head-starting keeper) and sallie davis, a member of an archeological team conducting research on the east end, also assisted the team. photograph by tarren wagener. each morning, the team members surveyed designated transect areas, battling dense brush and cacti in 100° heat. the habitat shown in this photograph is typical of what team members encountered during the survey. left: joe burgess, center: sallie davis, right: roberto maria. photograph by john binns. iguana 10.4 b&w text t he galápagos islands are a world unto themselves. the majority of the plants and animals there are found nowhere else. among the animals, the reptiles play a very important role, ecologically replacing the mammals that are absent from the islands, especially the herbivores. only a few species are native, but each is (or was only a few decades ago) exceedingly abundant. of particular interest are the iguanian squamates and, of those, two exceptionally unusual species stand out. these are easily distinguished from related iguanas by examining their dentition, the shape and scalation of their heads, the strength of the head skeleton, and the lack of a dewlap. both species agree in general body form and they also demonstrate some behavioral similarities; neither of the two is particularly mobile and both are vegetarian, although they consume very different plants. in fact, one lives on land and the other is completely dependent upon water. unique among squamates, the latter, which can accurately be called a marine animal, feeds exclusively on aquatic plants. the sea-lizard, as we are wont to call it, amblyrhynchus cristatus bell [translator’s note: thomas bell was an englishman who named many amphibians and reptiles in the 19th century], is the only representative of its genus. it is a very large iguana. of the total length of 135 cm, 80 cm is tail. weight can reach 12 kg. the short, broad head slopes steeply to each side, tapers toward the front, and the profile arches rapidly and sharply from the forehead to the blunt snout. to best characterize the beast, i have taken the following information from steindachner [franz steindachner was an austrian ichthyologist and herpetologist associated with the vienna museum of natural history from 1860 until his death in 1919], who wrote a treatise on the squamates of the galápagos islands [published in 1876]: the entire top of the head is covered in mosaic fashion by h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s 145iguanadecember 2003 iguanas of the galápagos islands1 franz werner, with extensive quotations from charles darwin sea-lizard, amblyrhynchus cristatus bell. 1/6 natural size. 1 excerpted and translated from franz werner (1913. die lurche und kriechtiere von alfred brehm. zweiter band: kriechtiere (schuppenkriechtiere), pp. 86–92 + table “lizards v,” no. 3. in o. z. strassen (ed.), brehms tierleben. allgemeine kunde des tierreichs. 4th ed. bibliographisches institut, leipzig and wien. translated by r. powell. quotes from darwin were not translated from werner’s text, but instead were taken directly from c. darwin (1845. the voyage of the beagle. 2nd ed.). some excerpts omitted by werner are included here. many quadrangular (usually) or six-sided scales of varying sizes; the largest are conical or even pointed and lie primarily toward the front of the head, whereas the smallest form the supraocular shields. the lateral but relatively highly situated, egg-shaped nares are angled from low in front to high in back, and are surrounded by an elevated leathery rim, which in turn is surrounded by small scales. nine to ten five-sided plates form the upper lip and 12–13 four-sided plates make up the lower lip. an arc-like band of keeled scales extends from the region under the eye to the temple, whereas the underside of the head is covered by small rounded scales. the egg-shaped tympanum is embedded in a raised border of tubercular scales. the skin of the throat and neck is more or less loosely attached and forms a distinct gular fold. the body is generally robust, and the dorsal crest is continuous from the neck to the tip of the tail, although indentations mark the transitions from neck to body and body to tail. the scales of the body are distinguished by size and location. dorsal scales are all keeled, lateral scales are tuberculate, whereas the ventral scales are completely smooth. the long tail has a thick base but becomes distinctly compressed laterally toward the tip, in essence forming a paddle or fin. the tail is covered with keeled scales, like those on the back, arranged in distinct rings. the limbs are short and stocky. the third and fourth toes are of equal length and are longer than the others. all are connected by a small web and equipped with powerful, sharp, and slightly arched claws. the thick tongue is as wide as the mouth. the long, large teeth are serrated and attached to the outer fold of the deeply grooved jaws. each upper jaw bears 22–25 teeth, each lower jaw 20–24, of which 6–8 are similar to the lateral teeth and are on the intermaxilla. the small and not particularly numerous teeth on the pterygoid and sphenoid are easily displaced. color and pattern vary by age. young sealizards have numerous light gray flecks on both sides of the head, the chin, and on the sides of the body. these may reduce the black ground color to net-like reticulum. on the back, alternating dirty gray and black bands of flecks produce a more or less regular pattern of crossbands. the upper and lateral sides of the limbs are either punctuated with small gray flecks or larger gray spots. the chin is a dark dirty gray, the throat is black, and the belly a dirty yellow-brown. the digits, the axilla and groin, and the distal half of the tail are black. the dorsal crest is variably yellow or gray with black bands. occasional individuals are entirely black. sea-lizards are phenomenally abundant on the galápagos islands. darwin found them on all of the islands he visited; steindachner found them on albemarle, charles, james, and jervis islands, with those on the latter in particularly large numbers and including some individuals of imposing size; w.e. cookson [an english explorer] also found them on abingdon island. corresponding to their habits, these lizards restrict themselves to the rocky shorelines and, according to darwin’s observations, are not to be found more than 10 paces from the water’s edge. darwin noted: “they are occasionally seen some hundred yards from the shore, swimming about; and captain collnet, in his voyage, says, 146 iguana volume 10, number 4 granular-head, conolophus subcristatus gray. 1/5 natural size. ‘they go to sea in herds a-fishing, and sun themselves on the rocks; and may be called alligators in miniature.’ it must not, however, be supposed that they live on fish. when in the water this lizard swims with perfect ease and quickness, by a serpentine movement of its body and flattened tail — the legs being motionless and closely collapsed on its sides. a seaman on board sank one, with a heavy weight attached to it, thinking thus to kill it directly; but when, an hour afterwards, he drew up the line, it was quite active. their limbs and strong claws are admirably adapted for crawling over the rugged and fissured masses of lava, which everywhere form the coast. in such situations, a group of six or seven of these hideous reptiles may oftentimes be seen on the black rocks, a few feet above the surf, basking in the sun with outstretched legs. “i opened the stomachs of several, and found them largely distended with minced sea-weed (ulæ), which grows in thin foliacious expansions of a bright green or a dull red colour. i do not recollect having observed this sea-weed in any quantity on the tidal rocks; and i have reason to believe it grows at the bottom of the sea, at some little distance from the coast. if such be the case, the object of these animals occasionally going out to sea is explained. the stomach contained nothing but the sea-weed. mr. bynoe, however, found a piece of a crab in one; but this might have got in accidentally, in the same manner as i have seen a caterpillar, in the midst of some lichen, in the paunch of a tortoise. the intestines were large, as in other herbivorous animals. the nature of this lizard’s food, as well as the structure of its tail and feet, and the fact of its having been seen voluntarily swimming out to sea, absolutely prove its aquatic habits; yet there is in this respect one strange anomaly, namely, that when frightened it will not enter the water. hence it is easy to drive these lizards down to any little point overhanging the sea, where they will sooner allow a person to catch hold of their tails than jump in the water. they do not seem to have any notion of biting; but when much frightened they squirt a drop of fluid from each nostril. i threw one several times as far as i could, into a deep pool left by the retiring tide; but it invariably returned in a direct line to the spot where i stood. it swam near the bottom, with a very graceful and rapid movement, and occasionally aided itself over the uneven ground with its feet. as soon as it arrived near the edge, but still being under water, it tried to conceal itself in the tufts of sea-weed, or it entered some crevice. as soon as it thought the danger was past, it crawled out on the dry rocks, and shuffled away as quickly as it could. i several times caught this same lizard, by driving it down to a point, and though possessed of such perfect powers of diving and swimming, nothing would induce it to enter the water; and as often as i threw it in, it returned in the manner above described. perhaps this singular piece of apparent stupidity may be accounted for by the circumstance, that this reptile has no enemy whatsoever on shore, whereas at sea it must often fall prey to the numerous sharks. hence, probably, urged by a fixed and hereditary instinct that the shore is its place of safety, whatever the emergency may be, it there takes refuge.” darwin was unable to address reproduction in these animals. steindachner visited the galápagos islands in 1872 and, like dampier and darwin before him, saw thousands of sea-lizards. “when my fellow traveler, pitkins, saw a large number of these hideous animals, he ran into the midst of the densely packed mass. when i visited the same site shortly thereafter and again after about an hour, it was completely void of lizards. they had all fled into the sea and probably had sought out another, more distant refuge. my experience, also on james and jervis islands, indicated that the sea-lizards, although sluggish and awkward in their movements and easily captured without resistance, do these days seek the sea to escape 147iguanadecember 2003 granular-head, conolophus subcristatus gray. 1/8 natural size. photograph by w.p. dando, f.z.s. – london. potential threats when they notice enemies in the vicinity — instead of, as earlier, returning stubbornly to the same site on shore. on calm days, one frequently encounters these lizards long distances from shore swimming and diving with ease and surprising speed. their movements in water resemble those of a snake. only the head is emergent while swimming, and the limbs are adpressed. on jervis island, i found them only in the immediate vicinity of the sea, usually in herd-like masses of 100–150 packed into small spaces on the rough and rugged lava. on james island, i encountered only a few individuals considerably above the shore along the edges of small, overgrown cavities in the rocks that might serve as nesting sites. the stomach and intestine, as darwin already mentioned, are without exception stuffed with foliacious green or dull-red algae.” the second lizard of the galápagos islands, which we will call the granular-head, differs distinctly from the sea-lizard in overall stature and in the absence of pterygoid teeth in adults. overall, these are even more plump and ponderous. restricted to dry land, they lack webbing between the short toes that terminate the stout limbs. the tail also is shorter and only slightly compressed, oval in cross-section and almost without a crest. in contrast, the neck is considerably longer and bears longitudinal folds of skin on its underside. the head also is more elongate, consequently less distinctly arched in profile and sloping less steeply to the sides. for all of these reasons, steindachner agreed with those researchers who considered the granular-head, conolophus subcristatus gray [john edward gray was a 19th century english naturalist and is widely regarded as the founder of the herpetological collections at the british museum], to be a representative of a unique genus (conolophus fitz. [“fitz. refers to leopold fitzinger, a prolific austrian zoologist who wrote neue classification der reptilien in 1826 and systema reptilium in 1843]). in terms of color, the granular-head differs considerably from the sea-lizard. the head is a more or less lively yellow, the back near the crest is brickor rust-red, and, in rare cases, the body sports faint, alternating yellowish and reddishbrown crossbands. down the sides, the reddishbrown color gives way to a dirty, dark brown. here and there, one may notice dots or small black flecks with indistinct edges. the belly is dark yellow with a tinge of reddish-brown. the upper and outer surfaces of the forelimbs are reddish, the hindlimbs are brownish yellow, but the claws and toes are black. these lizards reach a length of 107 cm, of which 54 cm is tail. darwin observed granular-heads in the central islands of the galápagos archipelago, albemarle, james, barrington, and indefatigable, where they occupy both the higher, moister areas 148 iguana volume 10, number 4 illustration by john binns. and the lower, infertile regions, where they actually are more common. darwin noted: “i cannot give a more forcible proof of their numbers, than by stating that when we were left at james island, we could not for some time find a spot free from their burrows on which to pitch our single tent. like their brothers the sea-kind, they are ugly animals, of a yellowish orange beneath, and of a brownish red colour above: from their low facial angle they have a singularly stupid appearance. they are, perhaps, of a rather less size than the marine species; but several of them weighed between ten and fifteen pounds. in their movements they are lazy and half torpid. when not frightened, they slowly crawl along with their tails and bellies dragging on the ground. they often stop, and doze for a minute or two, with closed eyes and hind legs spread out on the parched soil. they inhabit burrows, which they sometimes make between fragments of lava, but more generally on level patches of the soft sandstone-like tuff. the holes do not appear to be very deep, and they enter the ground at a small angle; so that when walking over these lizard-warrens, the soil is constantly giving way, much to the annoyance of the tired walker. this animal, when making its burrow, works alternately the opposite sides of its body. one front leg for a short time scratches up the soil, and throws it towards the hind foot, which is well placed so as to heave it beyond the mouth of the hole. that side of the body being tired, the other takes up the task, and so on alternately. i watched one for a long time, till half its body was buried; i then walked up and pulled it by the tail; at this it was greatly astonished, and soon shuffled up to see what was the matter; and then stared me in the face, as much as to say, ‘what made you pull my tail?’ “they feed by day, and do not wander far from their burrows; if frightened, they rush to them with a most awkward gait. except when running down hill, they cannot move very fast, apparently from the lateral position of their legs. they are not at all timorous: when attentively watching any one, they curl their tails, and, raising themselves on their front legs, nod their heads vertically, with a quick movement, and try to look very fierce: but in reality they are not at all so; if one just stamps on the ground, down go their tails, and off they shuffle as quickly as they can. i have frequently observed small fly-eating lizards, when watching anything, nod their heads in precisely the same manner; but i do not at all know for what purpose. if this amblyrhynchus [in darwin’s day, both galápagos iguanas were placed in the genus amblyrhynchus] is held and plagued with a stick, it will bite it very severely; but i caught many by the tail, and they never tried to bite me. if two are placed on the ground and held together, they will fight, and bite each other till blood is drawn. “the individuals, and they are the greater number, which inhabit the lower country, can scarcely taste a drop of water throughout the year; but they consume much of the succulent cactus, the branches of which are occasionally broken off by the wind. i several times threw a piece to two or three of them when together; and it was amusing enough to see them trying to seize and carry it away in their mouths, like so many hungry dogs with a bone. they eat very deliberately, but do not chew their food. the little birds are aware how harmless these creatures are: i have seen one of the thick-billed finches picking at one end of a piece of cactus (which is much relished by all the animals of the lower region), whilst a lizard was eating at the other end; and afterwards the little bird with the utmost indifference hopped on the back of the reptile. i opened the stomach of several, and found them full of vegetable fibres and leaves of different trees, especially of an acacia. in the upper region they live chiefly on the acid and astringent berries of the guayavita, under which trees i have seen these lizards and huge tortoises feeding together. to obtain the acacia-leaves they crawl up the low stunted trees; and it is not uncommon to see a pair quietly browsing, whilst seated on a branch several feet above the ground. these lizards, when cooked, yield a white meat, which is liked by those whose stomachs soar above all prejudices. humboldt [alexander von humboldt, a famous german naturalist whose explorations of south america thrilled europe and inspired darwin] has remarked that in intertropical south america, all lizards which inhabit dry regions are esteemed delicacies for the table. the inhabitants state that those which inhabit the upper damp parts drink water, but that the others do not, like the tortoises, travel up for it from the lower sterile country. at the time of our visit, the females had within their bodies numerous large, elongated eggs, which they lay in their burrows: the inhabitants seek them for food.” 149iguanadecember 2003 iguana_11.2_text.ps chuckwallas (sauromalus spp.) are iguanid lizards inhabiting the southwestern portion of north america. approximately seven species have been described and generally accepted, and additional subspecies or full species can be added to the count, depending on how one defines those terms. the common chuckwalla (sauromalus ater duméril 1856) is the most widely distributed species, occurring from southwestern utah and southern nevada, south through the eastern portion of southern california and western arizona, down into the baja peninsula and the sonoran desert of méxico. until recently, u.s. populations often were referred to as s. obesus (see article on p. 78). one of the largest native lizards in the united states, chuckwallas range in size from 13 to over 20 cm in snout–vent length (svl) (stebbins 1985). adult males are larger than adult females. the head is distinct from the body and the heads of males are much broader than those of females. scales at the back of the head form small spikes, which are most prominent in adult males. these lizards have stout bodies and, when relaxed, have multiple folds of skin along their sides. coloration varies considerably over the range of s. ater. some animals have 3–5 dark dorsal bands on a light background. others have solid black heads and bodies with either white, bright orange, or red tails. numerous variations on these patterns occur. juveniles tend to have the dorsal bands with black freckling in the interspaces. most young animals also have bands on the tail, and these may be retained into adulthood in some populations. the transition to adult coloration generally occurs within the first two years of life. these lizards inhabit arid regions with moderate shrub cover and usually are found on or near rocky outcrops with plenty of crevices in which they take refuge from predators and at night. primarily diurnal, they actively forage for plant material and can regularly be found climbing low foliage to retrieve leaves from overhead branches. when threatened, they retreat into rocky crevices and fill their lungs with air, expanding the torso and compressing their body into the crack, preventing extraction by potential predators and even most collectors (a pry-bar is standard collecting gear when hunting chuckwallas). although they look somewhat cumbersome with their relatively short legs and stout bodies, they are agile runners and can move with surprising speed when threatened. chuckwallas in captivity because they are diurnally active and tend to have calm dispositions, chuckwallas can make excellent pets. they can be housed in small groups, if enough cage space is provided. their moderate size (compared to most other iguanids) also means that an enclosure does not need to fill an entire room to house a breeding group. taking into consideration their requirements in captivity, they are an easy and rewarding species with which to work. 114 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 aucone h u s b a n d r y adult male sauromalus ater, joshua tree national monument, porcupine wash, california. photograph by brad hollingsworth. captive husbandry of the chuckwalla (sauromalus ater) brian aucone curator of reptiles, amphibians, & aquatics oklahoma city zoo iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 115sauromalus ater enclosure the type of enclosure one should select for chuckwallas depends on the number of animals to be housed and how natural and aesthetically pleasing the display is to be. at a minimum, for adult animals, a 40-gallon breeder-size tank can suitably house an adult pair. this setup provides approximately 4.5 ft2 of floor space. in general, another 2–2.5 ft2 of floor space is necessary for each additional animal in order to provide adequate individual space for each lizard. cages can be built out of wood or other materials (as long as they are constructed in a fashion that permits thorough cleaning), but floor space should be a primary consideration. vertical height is much less important. also, any cage, whether purchased or constructed, should have good ventilation. chuckwallas like hot basking spots and these must be provided. if ventilation is inadequate, temperatures in the enclosure can quickly rise to dangerous levels. props and substrate for the cage should be selected based on functionality as well as aesthetics; more elaborate designs often require considerably more maintenance. an effective substrate can be made up of playground sand and dirt in approximately a 2:1 ratio. gravel should not be used as it can be inadvertently ingested and cause intestinal impaction. wood shavings or other substrates, such as ground coconut shells, are not recommended because they retain moisture that can lead to bacterial or fungal growth, which can adversely affect the health of the animals. the substrate should be at least 2–3 in deep to allow for digging. individual fecal pellets should be removed frequently, and the entire substrate should be replaced at least twice each year to ensure adequate cleanliness. props in the cage should consist minimally of piled rocks, leaving crevices and openings into which the animals can retreat for security. this mimics their natural habitat and is much more suited behaviorally than a hide-box. when piling rocks, be sure that they are stable; if they shift they could injure or kill the lizards. artificial rock outcroppings may be constructed (see article in iguana 11:39–51). these often are more stable and easier to clean than piles of real rocks, and are readily accepted by chuckwallas. regardless of whether natural or artificial rocks are used, if multiple specimens are being housed, retreats should be sufficiently abundant so that each lizard has access to a separate area. in addition to rocks, props such as branches or plants can be added to the enclosure. when using live plants, however, keep in mind that chuckwallas are herbivorous and any plants selected should be resistant to consumption (such as cacti) and non-toxic. artificial plants with large leaves may be preferable; avoid those with small leaves, which may be ingested and result in intestinal impaction. the effective use of props in a cage will not only improve the appearance of the enclosure, but may well enhance the psychological well-being of its inhabitants, and produce behavior much like that which they exhibit in the wild. selecting an animal although sauromalus ater can be collected with permits across most of its range, this species is of special concern in many areas, and i do not recommend obtaining wild-caught specimens. fortunately, these lizards are commonly bred in captivity. captive-bred individuals are ideal, because wild populations are not adversely affected and captive-bred animals should be relatively free of diseases and parasites. when selecting specimens, choose animals that appear healthy. the base of the tail should be full and rounded. a drawn appearance is indicative of deficient fat stores or improper nutrition. legs should be solid and muscular. individuals should be bright-eyed, alert, and attentive to activity around them. when handled, they should not be placid, but rather wiggling around. a chuckwalla habitat should be well-structured to provide climbing space, basking areas, and crevices into which the lizard can wedge itself. the crevices in the habitat have been created by stacking various types of cinder blocks to provide spaces of varying size. photograph by carole saucier. this captive sauromalus ater prefers to bask atop the cinder block structure and sleep in the tightest crevices in the lower block. photograph by carole saucier. juveniles and most adults will usually inflate their torso to some degree when handled, as wild animals would in rock crevices. if these behaviors are not observed, something is probably wrong, and another animal should be selected. when considering the acquisition of more than one specimen to be housed in a single enclosure, purchase only one male. males are territorial and will defend their territories to the detriment of other males in the enclosure. several females can be housed with a single male, as long as the caging provides adequate space for the number of animals. sexing individuals, however, can be difficult when purchasing very young specimens. although adult s. ater are sexually dimorphic, with males much larger than females, this doesn’t help when dealing with hatchlings of the same size. unfortunately, at this age, no effective way exists for determining the differences between the sexes, and probing is not recommended for hatchlings due to the likelihood of injury. once lizards reach 6–12 months of age, an accurate determination of sex is possible. the base of the head in males is wider than that of females. also, as males mature, the femoral pores, located on the undersides of the thighs, become prominent and can be used to reliably ascertain sex. if animals are too young to use these features and comparing multiple specimens to one another does not help identify the subtle differences, the buyer inevitably will be unsure of establishing the proper sex ratio. if the purchase cannot be delayed until the animals are older, extra males will need to be removed to a separate enclosure before they reach sexual maturity. lighting ultraviolet radiation, specifically ultraviolet b (uvb), must be provided via either natural sunlight or uvb-emitting bulbs. reptiles use uvb to produce vitamin d3 that, in turn, is used to metabolize calcium (aucone et al. 2003, ferguson et al. 2003, laing and fraser 1999, lian et al. 1999). without vitamin d3, bone density can be compromised and this potentially can lead to metabolic bone disease. vitamin d3 supplements can be added to the food, but the amount required is not known, so animals can easily be overor undersupplemented. adequate lighting is always preferable. short of natural sunlight, artificial lights that produce wavelengths in the uvb spectrum are the best means for providing adequate uvb for chuckwallas in captivity. chuckwallas can bask naturally to regulate their vitamin d3 blood levels and body temperatures. two bulbs in particular have been shown to provide enough uvb for proper growth and maintenance: the westron active uv heat lamp (oceanside, new york; aucone et al. 2003) and the zoo-med repti-sun 5.0 fluorescent bulb (san luis obispo, california; w.h. gehrmann, pers. comm.). the active uv heat lamp is an incandescent bulb that emits heat as well as uvb. the uvb will penetrate to 36 in, which is ideal in larger enclosures. the repti-sun 5.0 is a fluorescent bulb, meaning that additional heat sources will be required. also, if the repti-sun 5.0 is used, lizards must be able to bask within 8 in of the bulb in order to assure adequate uvb exposure. finally, fluorescent bulbs should be replaced every six months, as uvb emission declines dramatically beyond that time. regardless of the type of uvb source used, an artificial light cycle should be set to vary seasonally. in the summer, a 16d:8n (day:night) cycle is ideal; in the winter, the cycle should be adjusted to 12d:12n, with appropriate incremental adjustments during fall and spring. temperature and humidity chuckwallas are native to desert regions. in captivity, temperatures should mimic those that they would encounter in their natural habitat. daytime temperatures should average 80–82 °f throughout the cage. in addition, a heat lamp should provide a basking spot of 110–120 °f during the day. this can be either an active uv heat lamp or an incandescent spot lamp. if an incandescent spot lamp is used, also be sure to provide a fluorescent uvb-emitting bulb (repti-sun 5.0). in a large enclosure and if multiple animals are housed together, more than one basking site must be provided. otherwise, dominant individuals will prevent cagemates from adequately thermoregulating. temperatures should drop at night. to follow a reasonably natural cycle during 116 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 aucone a healthy male captive sauromalus hispidus. note the broad head and the scales at the back of the head that form small spikes, which are most prominent in adult males. photograph by john binns. this female sauromalus ater was recently received by a rescuer in michigan. its age and history are unknown. although this individual is thin, the folds of skin along its sides are normal. also note the relatively narrow head and that the “spikes” at the back of the head are barely noticeable. photograph by carole saucier. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 117sauromalus ater the summer, nighttime lows should be in the low to mid-70s (°f); in the winter, temperatures can drop to the low to mid-60s (°f). chuckwallas will “hibernate” during the winter if temperatures are allowed to drop to the low to mid 60s (°f) with daytime temperatures increasing into the 80s (°f) and basking spot(s) removed. humidity in natural chuckwalla habitat is very low. these lizards, however, do not seem to be adversely affected by higher humidity levels. no humidity control should be necessary, even in naturally humid areas. residents of arid regions obviously need not worry about humidity levels. diet chuckwallas are primarily herbivorous, but may consume live prey at times. a varied diet consisting primarily of dark greens should be provided to captive animals on a daily basis (see also the sidebar on p. 43). escarole, chicory, dandelions, collards, and turnip and mustard greens can provide an adequate level of nutrition. this diet can be supplemented sparingly with other leafy greens, such as romaine lettuce, as well as fruits like apples, pears, or bananas. when dandelions (or other, but especially yellow flowers) are blooming, chuckwallas will happily munch on as many of them as you can gather. just be cautious and make sure that they are collected from areas where pesticides and herbicides have not been applied. occasional individuals may take crickets, wax worms, mealworms, and even pinkie mice, but these should constitute a very minimal part of the overall diet. calcium carbonate (caco3) should be supplemented to the diet once each week. this is readily available in powdered form and should be sprinkled over the food to help ensure that enough calcium is being provided in the diet. even with adequate uvb lighting, sufficient dietary calcium is necessary for proper bone growth and maintenance. a stable water bowl that cannot be overturned should be provided. water should be replaced daily. as a rule, chuckwallas get the majority of their water from food, but they will drink occasionally from a bowl. adequate water is critical, and a bowl will provide assurance that an animal can supplement its water intake as needed. reproduction in captivity, reproduction should coincide with natural seasonal variations in temperature. a cooling period (or “hibernation”) during the winter is usually necessary to induce reproductive activity. after emergence in the spring, males will undertake a courtship display consisting of a variety of head bobs and pushups in an effort to induce the females to breed. following successful mating, females will deposit eggs approximately 30 days later. in the wild, chuckwallas lay 5–16 eggs per clutch (stebbins 1985). a nest box containing vermiculite, moist sphagnum, or perlite can be provided, but females also may choose to lay their eggs under a rock in the enclosure. any digging activity should be closely monitored. eggs can be artificially incubated in a sealed container of vermiculite mixed with water at a ratio of adult male sauromalus ater, cataviña, baja california. photograph by brad hollingsworth. 118 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 aucone 0.75:1. the container should be opened twice each week to allow fresh air to circulate. eggs should be incubated at 80–82 °f and will hatch about 90 days after laying. juveniles can be housed and fed similarly to the adults. multiple males can usually be maintained together until they are 6–12 months of age. at that point, males must be separated, as aggressive behavior inevitably will increase. if keeping groups of juveniles together, individuals should be weighed weekly to ensure that all animals are gaining weight normally. if an individual is found to be significantly smaller than companions of equal age, too many animals may be in the enclosure, resulting in competition for food and ideal basking spots. smaller groupings may be necessary and undersized individuals must be maintained separately. conclusion chuckwallas are a fascinating species and they can be very rewarding captives. private collectors appreciate their relatively large size and docile personalities. parameters for keeping this species are straightforward and, if followed, chuckwallas can thrive for many years in a captive environment. with captive breeding becoming increasingly more commonplace, healthy individuals are readily available for the home terrarium. however, as for all reptiles, prospective owners should prepare thoroughly before acquiring animals. thought must be given to adequate housing, because certain conditions must be met before one can properly care for these unique lizards. bibliography and selected references aucone, b., w.h. gehrmann, g.w. ferguson, t.c. chen, and m.f. holick. 2003. comparison of two artificial ultraviolet light sources used for chuckwalla, sauromalus obesus, husbandry. journal of herpetological medicine and surgery 13: 14–17. ferguson, g.w., w.h. gehrmann, k.b. karsten, s.h. hammack, m. mcrae, t.c. chen, n.p. lung, and m.f. holick. 2003. do panther chameleons bask to regulate endogenous vitamin d3 production? physiology and biochemical zoology 76: 52–59. laing, c.j. and d.r. fraser. 1999. the vitamin d system in iguanian lizards. comparative biochemistry and physiology, part b 123: 373–379. lian, j.b., a. staal, a. van wijnen, j.l. stein, and g.s. stein. 1999. biologic and molecular effects of vitamin d on bone, pp. 175–193. in: m.f. holick (ed.), vitamin d-molecular biology, physiology, and clinical applications. humana press, totowa, new jersey. stebbins, r.c. 2003. western reptiles and amphibians. 3rd ed. houghton mifflin co., new york. in addition, the following webpage is quite informative: http://www.reptilesofaz.com/ sauromalus ater, isla tiburón, sonora. when threatened, chuckwallas retreat into rocky crevices and fill their lungs with air, expanding the torso and compressing their body into the crack, preventing extraction by potential predators. photograph by brad hollingsworth. iguana 10.2 i.i.s. board of directors joseph wasilewski, president homestead, fl joseph burgess, vice-president jacksonville, fl a.c. echternacht, ph.d., treasurer university of tennesee, knoxville, tn aj gutman, executive secretary and associate editor of iguana west harford, ct john & sandy binns, directors, associate editor of iguana and internet operations international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca gunther köhler, ph.d. and elke köhler, directors forschungsinstitut und naturmuseum senckenberg & herpeton, frankfurt, germany robert powell, ph.d., director and editor of iguana avila university, kansas city, mo i.i.s. editorial/advisory board allison c. alberts, ph.d. iucn/ssc iguana specialist group and zoological society of san diego, san diego, ca john bendon, illustrator for iguana bath, england gordon m. burghardt, ph.d. university of tennessee, knoxville, tn frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program, grand cayman, cayman islands jorge ferrari organización de rescate y protección de reptiles y anfibios, tegucigalpa, honduras matthias goetz, dipl.-biol. durrell wildlife conservation trust, jersey, british isles alexander gutsche, dipl.-biol. humboldt universität, berlin, germany richard hudson international iguana foundation and fort worth zoo, fort worth, tx john b. iverson, ph.d. earlham college, richmond, in chuck knapp university of florida, gainesville, fl michael ripca, managing editor of iguana leaping lizards graphic design, atco, nj thomas wiewandt, ph.d. wild horizons, tucson, az founding directors robert w. and marcie ehrig big pine key, fl statement of purpose the international iguana society, inc. is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to preserving the biological diversity of iguanas. we believe that the best way to protect iguanas and other native plants and animals is to preserve natural habitats and to encourage development of sustainable economies compatible with the maintenance of biodiversity. to this end, we will: (1) engage in active conservation, initiating, assisting, and funding conservation efforts in cooperation with u.s. and international governmental and private agencies; (2) promote educational efforts related to the preservation of biodiversity; (3) build connections between individuals and the academic, zoo, and conservation communities, providing conduits for education and for involving the general public in efforts to preserve endangered species; and (4) encourage the dissemination and exchange of information on the ecology, population biology, behavior, captive husbandry, taxonomy, and evolution of iguanas. membership information iguana, the journal of the international iguana society, is distributed quarterly to members and member organizations. annual dues: individual u.s. and canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual foreign membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 u.s. and canadian organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 foreign organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $45.00 (*receives double copies of iguana) additional copies are available at a cost of $6.00 including postage. write to: the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 membership questions? call aj at 860-236-8203. or visit our web site at: www.iguanasociety.org solicitations members of the i.i.s. are encouraged to contribute articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of iguana biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to ctenosaura@cyclura.com). for any contribution, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. authors of one page or more of print are entitled to five copies of the issue in which their article appears. advertising policy of iguana we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). all products have been examined and been found to be high quality and fairly priced. contact i.i.s., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119, for more information. iguana copyright ©2003 by the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international iguana society. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. feature: iis conference on utila utila: home to three native iguanas...................27 utila island swampers............28 brief history of the iguana station ...................30 the zen of swamping — adventures on utila...........32 species profile: utila’s reptiles....................36 feature: stout iguanas stout iguanas: historical perspectives and status report.....................39 guana and necker island population assessments 2002 .................................49 husbandry: green iguana communication.................50 profile: fred burton: the man behind the blue iguana recovery plan.........53 historical perspectives: the black iguana ...............56 iguana newsbriefs............58 letter from the president.........................59 editors’ remarks this is a special issue of iguana. one reason is that it is half again as long as a regular issue. we owe this to a generous donation by henry and gloria jarecki, who subsidized the extra pages in order to accommodate the feature on stout iguanas (p. 39). they already have made tremendous contributions to the species’ chances for survival by providing it with a second home on guana. this issue also includes for the first time several new regular features created in response to discussions by the board of directors during the iis conference on utila (p. 27). each issue from now on will include at least one article focusing on some aspect of iguana husbandry. the first of these, on green iguana communication (p. 50), was excerpted from the excellent book by gunther köhler, which, unfortunately for most u.s. iguana enthusiasts, is currently available only in german. in addition, each issue will profile an individual who has made significant contributions to our understanding of iguanas. the inaugural profile (p. 53) features fred burton, the man behind the blue iguana recovery programme. also appearing for the first time is an historical perspective. these features will appear from time to time in order to lend some insights into the changing perceptions of iguanas over the years. this issue’s perspective (p. 56) addresses black iguanas (ctenosaura), which is particularly appropriate in light of the ctenosaurs of utila that so delighted the conference participants. we also provide a species profile (p. 36) that presents a suite of species instead of only one. we do not necessarily intend for this to become the normal mode for these features, but decided that it was appropriate, at least this one time, because of the unusual reptilian diversity on utila and because it emphasizes how iguana conservation can benefit an entire biotic community. bob powell, aj gutman, and john binns in this issue... iguana 10.4 b&w text a feral green iguana (iguana iguana) in florida (story on p. 111). photograph by joe wasilewski. iguana_11.1_bw_text alberts, a. c., r. l. carter, w. k. hayes and e. p. martins (eds.). 2004. iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. xvi + 356 pp. cloth, $65.00. since its publication in 1982, iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology and conservation (g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand, eds. noyes, publ. park ridge, new jersey) has served as a primary reference for anyone interested in iguanas. the 31 authors represented in that volume summarized what was known about the biology of most genera in the subfamily iguaninae of the family iguanidae as it was then understood. intended primarily for the professional biologist, the book predated the explosion of interest in iguanas brought about by the relatively recent rise in the popularity of green iguanas in the pet trade, and of breeder interest in some of the highly endangered west indian rock iguanas (cyclura). it also predated the discovery of the amazing shrinking marine iguanas of the galápagos islands, the rediscovery of the “extinct” jamaican rock iguana (cyclura collei), and extensive research in the field and on captive colonies of many other iguanines. consequently, i opened the literary heir-apparent to burghardt and rand’s landmark volume with considerable anticipation. the new book evolved from a symposium sponsored by the herpetologists’ league in 1997. with the exception of gordon burghardt, none of the authors who were represented in the burghardt and rand volume contributed to this one, but the general themes are essentially the same: evolutionary diversity, behavior and ecology, and conservation of iguanas. following an introductory and largely autobiographical chapter by burghardt, a section of the book is devoted to each of these themes. the five chapters of part i are devoted to diversity. the first provides a useful discussion of the evolution and relationships of iguanas, and includes a checklist of species. the taxonomy of lizards in the family iguanidae has been controversial. pending resolution of that controversy, the author adopts a concept of iguanidae attributable to frost and etheridge (1989. university of kansas museum of natural history miscellaneous publication no. 81). that concept recognizes the following living genera: amblyrhynchus (galapagos marine iguana, 1 species), brachylophus (fijian iguanas, 2 species), conolophus (galapagos land iguanas, 2 species), ctenosaura (neotropical spiny-tailed iguanas, 17 species), cyclura (west indian rock iguanas, 7 species), dipsosaurus (desert iguanas, 2 species), iguana (green iguanas, 2 species), and sauromalus (chuckwallas, 5 species). two malagasy genera, oplurus and chalarodon, are excluded, although, interestingly, the editors include them in the preface, but make no mention of them in the introductions to each of the three main sections of the book. following the chapter on evolution and relationships, the next three chapters are based on genetic data: the contributions of genetic research to the conservation of caribbean iguanas, the genetic structure of the turks and caicos rock iguana (c. carinata) and its importance to the conservation of the species, and the evolution of galapagos iguanas as revealed by molecular data. the last chapter in the section concerns sodium and potassium secretion by means of salt glands. more comparative than other chapters, it makes comparisons with species in other families of lizards, and specifically addresses the function and importance of salt glands and their association with herbivory and marine diets. the titles of the first two chapters in the section on behavior and ecology suggest that they will be broadly comparative, but they actually discuss only the results of research on c. carinata in the turks & caicos islands. the first documents the occurrence of appeasement displays and the second compares the display behavior and morphology among populations and relates these to island area and to vegetation heights and densities. the next five chapters discuss laboratory and field studies of sexually dimorphic antipredator behavior in green iguanas, determinants of mating success by male galapagos marine iguanas (amblyrhynchus cristatus) in leks (defined as “clusters of territorial males”), environmental determinants of body size in marine iguanas (the “shrinking iguanas” mentioned above), chuckwallas (sauromalus obesus), and desert iguanas (dipsosaurus dorsalis), and factors affecting the long-term growth of the allen’s cays rock iguana (c. cychlura inornata). the latter chapter also considers the effects of human visitation. the final section consists of seven chapters devoted to conservation. topics include translocation strategies, headstarting, habitat restoration, the role of zoos, and the potential impact of ecotourism. all of these chapters are based on studies conducted in the west indies. despite this limitation, this section of the 60 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 book reviews b o o k r e v i e w s iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 61book reviews book should attract the broadest readership because all of the topics included are applicable to reptiles and animals other than iguanid lizards. the book is well-produced, with a solid binding, tight editing, and a general absence of typographical errors. the tables and graphical illustrations are uniformly unambiguous and informative, and the black and white photographs are clearly reproduced. a small complaint: reproducing some of the latter in color would have been nice. although the volume had its origins in a symposium held over six years prior to publication, the chapters are remarkably up-to-date, and this distinguishes it from many other symposium volumes that have seen long delays between the oral presentations and publication. of the 906 references in the literature cited, 218 (24%) were published in 1998 or later, the most recent in 2003. in fact, for students of iguanid biology, the literature cited section will be a treasure. i have only one major complaint about the book: the title, iguanas: biology and conservation, is misleading. the bulk of the book (and the entire section on conservation) concerns west indian iguanas, primarily a few species of cyclura. fijian iguanas are barely mentioned, only one (of five) species of chuckwallas is discussed in detail, and none of the 17 species of spiny-tailed iguanas are addressed beyond their inclusion in the checklist. this may reflect the origins of the book in a symposium held in 1997, when mexican biologists were just beginning to study various aspects of the biology of spiny-tailed iguanas, or it may reflect the interests of the editors, all of whom have emphasized west indian rock iguanas in their own research, or both. regardless, the book would have benefited from contributions on, at least, the conservation status of a broader range of iguanid genera and species. as it stands, subtitling the book “biology and conservation with emphasis on the west indies and the galápagos” might have been appropriate. in this one respect, the new book does not match its predecessor. like the burghardt and rand volume, this book is intended primarily for the professional biologist who studies lizards, but it will be of interest to others as well. private breeders of iguanas will find much useful information in the chapters on ecology and behavior. conservation biologists and, indeed, anyone with an interest in these fascinating lizards will find the chapters on conservation interesting and informative. hopefully, in a decade or so, a third volume in this budding series will more fully acknowledge the diversity within the family iguanidae. arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee johnston, tony. 1995. the iguana brothers: a tale of two lizards. illustrated by mark teague. blue sky press, new york, new york. 30 pp. cloth, $15.95. laden, nina. 1995. private i. guana: the case of the missing chameleon. illustrated by the author. chronicle books, san francisco, california. 26 pp. softcover, $5.95. krailing, tessa. 1998. the pet sitter’s club 8: where’s iggy. illustrated by jan lewis. barron’s educational series, inc., hauppauge, new york. 94 pp. softcover, $3.95. snicket, lemony. 1999. a series of unfortunate events, book 2: the reptile room. illustrated by brett helquist. harpercollins publishers inc., new york, new york. 191 pp. cloth, $10.99. wiebe, trina. 2000. abby and tess pet sitters: lizards don’t wear lip gloss. illustrated by marisol sarrazin. lobster press, montreal, quebec. 91 pp. softcover, $5.95. as both a student and a fan of children’s literature, i have long been fascinated by its ability to shape the imagination of readers young and old. i recently had the opportunity to spend some time in the children’s book section of a well-stocked bookstore, where i came across a number of reptile-related works of fiction, which provide some very different representations of their animal subjects. two of these books were quite similar, featuring groups of children who are “pet-sitting” reptiles that escape from their enclosures. in where’s iggy?, published in the uk, the iguana named in the title seems well cared for, housed in a large terrarium in a greenhouse and outfitted with a heat lamp, a climbing branch, and a water tray. however, the owner of the lizard instructs the children that iggy “doesn’t eat a lot, mainly cabbage leaves and bananas … and crickets.” so, where’s iggy? his locaiguanas in wonderland: the depiction of reptiles in children’s literature � iguana 11.4 224 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 wilson, robinson, and vogel adult female jamaican iguana (cyclura collei) covered with red dirt acquired while digging a nesting burrow. photograph by john binns. introduction thought extinct for much of the last century, the jamaican iguana (cyclura collei) was rediscovered by a pig hunter in the remote interior of the hellshire hills in 1990 (vogel et al. 1996). field surveys in the latter half of 1990 revealed a remnant iguana population persisting in the central portion of the hellshire range, and also resulted in the identification of two active nesting sites (vogel 1994). the adult population was estimated at 50–200 individuals, and low recruitment potential was inferred from the virtual absence of observations of young iguanas and the rarity of new females appearing at the known nesting sites (vogel 1992, 2000). considered at the time to be the status of the jamaican iguana (cyclura collei): assessing 15 years of conservation effort byron s. wilson1,2, orlando f. robinson1,3, and peter vogel1,2 1jamaican iguana research and conservation group, 2department of life sciences, university of the west indies, mona kingston 7, jamaica, 3hope zoo, hope gardens, kingston 6, jamaica (byron.wilson@uwimona.edu.jm) abstract.—following its rediscovery in 1990 in the remote hellshire hills, the jamaican iguana (cyclura collei) has been the focus of a sustained conservation effort aimed at securing the species’ shortand long-term survival. major threats to the iguana’s persistence include habitat destruction by humans and predation by introduced mammals such as dogs, cats, and the indian mongoose. beginning in 1990 with field surveys of the remnant c. collei population and the formation of the jamaican iguana research and conservation group (jircg), a variety of conservation measures have been implemented. protection and monitoring of known nesting areas have facilitated the collection of founder stock for captive breeding and “headstart” programs, and have resulted in the collection, mark, and release of hundreds of c. collei hatchlings. as hedges against extinction in the wild, breeding nuclei of c. collei have been established at the hope zoo in kingston and also at six u. s. zoos (central florida, fort worth, gladys porter in brownsville, texas, indianapolis, san diego, and sedgwick county in wichita, kansas). the first captive-bred hatchlings were produced in september 2004 at the hope zoo. adult-sized, headstarted c. collei reared at the hope zoo have been successfully repatriated into the hellshire hills, and we have now verified post-release survival of up to eight years. egg-laying has been observed in repatriated females, suggesting that this zoo-based augmentation effort is having a positive effect on the remaining wild population. ongoing exotic predator removal efforts seek to maintain a conservation zone that is largely devoid of nonnative mammalian predators such as cats and mongooses. to date, hundreds of these invasive predators have been trapped and removed from the core c. collei area, and preliminary data suggest that the iguana may be benefiting from this predator control program. more recently (2003–2004), efforts to control feral dog and pig populations have been intensified. overall, the biological interventions directed at c. collei appear to have been highly successful. unfortunately, c. collei’s dry forest habitat is at risk of ecological destruction. the remaining primary forest in hellshire is under constant assault from the activities of illegal tree cutters, primarily charcoal burners. the jircg has protected a small portion of the forest in the vicinity of the known nesting areas and major iguana concentration, and attempts to discourage charcoal burners from penetrating farther into the undisturbed forest. if implemented, tabled government plans from the 1960s for large-scale commercial and residential development would likely cause the extinction of c. collei. encouragingly, increased national and international appreciation of hellshire’s stature as one of the finest remaining examples of caribbean dry forest, together with considerable interest in the iguana’s plight, give hope that this unique ecosystem and its endangered occupants will receive adequate protection. indeed, the jamaican government’s declaration of the portland bight protected area (pbpa) in 1999 (including the hellshire hills and the goat islands) and the recent (2004) delegation of management authority to the urban development corporation (udc) is a positive step in that direction. key words: cyclura collei, dry forest herpetofauna, endangered species, headstarting, jamaica, predator control, conservation iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 225the jamaican iguana � “most endangered lizard in the world,” c. collei appeared to be at the brink of extinction (alberts 1993). the 1990 rediscovery of c. collei led to a sustained recovery effort that began with the formation of the jamaican iguana research and conservation group (jircg), a local organization comprising members from the university of the west indies, the hope zoo, the national environment and planning agency, and the institute of jamaica. working with a variety of international conservation and funding agencies over the last 15 years, the jircg has endeavored to protect the remnant c. collei population and continues to lobby on behalf of both the iguana and its threatened dry forest habitat. threats to iguanas because the small iguana population was persisting in a relatively large tract of undisturbed primary forest, predation by nonnative mammalian predators was considered to be the primary cause for the species’ apparent low recruitment potential and low population density (alberts 1993, vogel et al. 1996). subsequent research and field observations have validated this early assessment. we now have definitive evidence that dogs, cats, and mongooses prey on c. collei. dogs pose an obvious threat even to adult iguanas (woodley 1980, vogel 1992, vogel et al. 1996), and feral cats have recently been identified as a serious threat to young c. collei (wilson et al. 2004). predation on young iguanas by the indian mongoose (herpestes auropunctatus) is regarded as the single most important source of mortality (vogel 1992, 2000; alberts 1993, 2000; wilson et al. 2004). other important threats to the c. collei population are social rather than biological, and present the most formidable challenges to the species’ existence. at present, degradation of the forest by charcoal burners is reducing the remaining primary forest habitat to the point where the hellshire hills could be incapable of supporting a viable iguana population within the next several decades. in addition, previously tabled government plans for large-scale development in undisturbed sections of the peninsula have not been officially abandoned. in response to these various threats, the jircg instituted an emergency conservation strategy to preserve the species. an immediate objective sought to divert traditional forest users away from the core iguana area and to protect the known nesting sites during the reproductive season. by 1992, the jircg formulated a management plan outlining a strategy both for reducing the risk of short-term extinction and for securing the iguana’s long-term persistence in a protected conservation zone (vogel 1992). the original recovery plan outlined three general management priorities: (1) establishment of captive breeding and satellite populations as safeguards against extinction, (2) research and conservation efforts aimed at protecting the remnant wild pop226 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 wilson, robinson, and vogel nesting female jamaican iguana at one of the two known communal nesting areas in the central hellshire hills. photograph by glenn gerber. byron wilson processing a mongoose captured in the core iguana conservation area. photograph by peter vogel. one of the two known communal nesting sites of the jamaican iguana. photograph by peter vogel. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 227the jamaican iguana ulation, and (3) long-term preservation of the iguana’s habitat. significant progress has been made; for example, we now possess a comprehensive set of biological management tools that have proven successful in the field. unfortunately, social and political issues have so far prevented the implementation of a management system for the conservation of the dry forest habitat, despite the inclusion of the hellshire hills in the recently (1999) declared portland bight protected area (pbpa). as a consequence, in spite of some notable successes in recovering and protecting the species, the status of the wild c. collei population remains precarious. below we summarize the progress of the c. collei recovery effort and comment on prospects for the species’ long-term survival. captive populations as hedges against catastrophic loss in the wild and potential reservoirs of genetic diversity, the maintenance of captive populations can be a valuable tool in efforts to prevent extinctions. for c. collei, genetically managed captive-breeding programs have now been established at the hope zoo in kingston and at six u. s. zoos. mating or egg-laying has been observed at several institutions, and, in 2004, the first successful captive breeding of c. collei was confirmed at the hope zoo. specifically, three healthy hatchlings were retrieved from one of the headstart enclosures. we anticipate accelerated production from these breeding nuclei as the captive cohorts mature into full reproductive stature and as improvements to breeding facilities are completed. satellite populations: the goat islands iguana reserve small offshore islands either lack invasive species or can be rendered completely pest-free (tolson 2000), and human encroachment is constrained by access. moreover, the biological interventions necessary to rehabilitate small islets are comparatively simple and correspondingly cost effective. not surprisingly, such satellite islands have become valuable centers for biodiversity conservation in the caribbean and elsewhere. an important component of the original (1992) recovery strategy for c. collei was the establishment of a satellite c. collei population on great goat island, off the western edge of the hellshire peninsula. great goat island contained an iguana population at least until the 1940s, and has long been recognized as an ideal site for the creation of a biodiversity reserve featuring a repatriated c. collei population. both great and little goat island form part of the portland bight protected area, and great goat island is posted as a no (bird) shooting reserve. however, semi-feral goat populations overrun both islands. the goats are owned by private individuals based on the nearby mainland, who bring water to and occasionally harvest the animals. other exotic species include rats, mice, and mongooses. the mongoose was apparently introduced to the goat islands by fishermen in the 1920s, in a misguided effort to reduce the jamaican boa (epicrates subflavus) population (lewis 1944). a wild female jamaican iguana constructing a nesting chamber. photograph by glenn gerber. mongoose trapped in the core iguana conservation zone. photograph by byron wilson. view of the hellshire hills, one of the last remaining stands of pristine dry tropical forest in the insular caribbean. photograph by peter vogel. due to proximity to a major city and area of coastal commerce (old harbor and old harbor bay), the goat islands are readily accessible by boat, so security risks to equipment and field personnel are significant concerns. in addition, the removal of the goats will require the presence of a permanent and locally well-recognized management entity. therefore, initiation of a conservation program for the goat islands will not be feasible until permanent security and enforcement capacities are operational. importantly, the eradication of invasive species from the goat islands is a high priority objective of the jamaican government’s “national strategy and action plan on biological diversity in jamaica” (nepa 2003). the portland ridge peninsula to the west of the hellshire hills represents another option for establishing a satellite iguana population. narrowly connected to the mainland, the essentially unpopulated peninsula has retained significant stands of natural dry forest, and c. collei subfossils are known from several cave systems. portland ridge has benefited from the presence of bird shooting clubs that have actively prevented or minimized deforestation in various portions of the peninsula. furthermore, portland ridge forms the western section of the portland bight protected area, so its remaining natural areas might benefit from future management policies. headstarting the hope zoo in kingston is coordinating an active headstart program, whereby hatchling iguanas collected in hellshire are raised at the zoo to a size at which they are less vulnerable to introduced predators such as the mongoose. at this point, they are reintroduced into the wild. we have now released 51 headstarted individuals back into hellshire, and post-release monitoring has demonstrated that captive-reared iguanas easily adjust to wild conditions and post-release survival rates have been unexpectedly high (hudson 2000, wilson et al. 2004). movement patterns, behavior, and short-term survival have been monitored with the use of radio telemetry, and long-term survival has been assessed through live trapping and observations of individually marked animals. we have documented survival of up to eight years following release back into the wild. of the original 20 iguanas repatriated between 1996 and 1998, at least eight (40%) are known to have survived for over two years postrelease (wilson et al. 2004). many of these captures were incidental to our mammal trapping program, so actual survival rates of repatriated c. collei are undoubtedly higher than these already encouraging figures. perhaps more significantly, we have also observed successful egg-laying among repatriated females. together with observations of released males engaging in seemingly normal social interactions, these results suggest that repatriated iguanas have been successfully integrated into the reproductive population. given the existing low levels of natural recruitment, this augmentation effort appears to be having a positive influence on the remnant population (alberts 2000, vogel 2000, wilson et al. 2004). control of non-native mammalian predators aside from habitat loss, the negative impact of introduced species is now regarded as the most significant threat to the maintenance of global biodiversity. on islands in the caribbean, the impact of introduced mammalian predators has been devastating to indigenous faunas (schwartz and henderson 1991; case et al. 1992). for c. collei, non-native mammalian predators are clearly the single most important factor preventing recruitment of new iguanas into the breeding population (vogel et al. 1996, vogel 2000, wilson et al. 2004). we have been conducting an extensive trap and removal program aimed at these pest species. to date, we have removed 228 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 wilson, robinson, and vogel view of the hellshire forest and caribbean sea from a ridge in the core iguana area. photograph by glenn gerber. profile of wild jamaican iguana (cyclura collei). photograph by peter vogel. great goat island, off the western edge of the hellshire hills, site of a planned re-establishment of a satellite iguana population. photograph by glenn gerber. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 229the jamaican iguana over 500 mongooses, several hundred introduced rodents, approximately 40 feral cats, and a growing number of feral dogs (three in 2004) and wild pigs (26 and counting in 2004). encouragingly, field observations of juvenile iguanas have increased since initiation of this removal trapping effort, suggesting that exotic predator control enhances survival of young iguanas. future monitoring efforts should confirm that predator control has enhanced survival and recruitment into the breeding population. additional research in progress seeks to elucidate the long-term demographic responses of several other rare reptilian species to the removal of non-native mammalian predators such as the mongoose. these efforts use a combination of pitfall traps and mark-recapture studies to investigate long-term trends in ground reptile abundance on predatorinfested versus predator-controlled plots. threats to iguana habitat the biological components of the recovery effort appear to have been demonstrably effective. the rediscovery and rapid assessment of the iguana population in 1990 have led to the subsequent implementation of successful captive and field-based conservation measures (vogel 2000, wilson et al. 2004). unfortunately, the most serious threats to the iguana’s persistence are social and socioeconomic, and are considerably less tractable than the biological issues. the remnant c. collei population and its remaining dry forest habitat are both at high risk of extinction due to anthropogenic influences (vogel et al. 1996, wilson and vogel 2000). the most immediate threat to the iguana’s remaining habitat is illegal tree cutting, primarily for charcoal production (wilson and vogel 2000). whereas traditional charcoal burners used machetes to fell trees, today’s charcoal burners often use chainsaws, thereby accelerating the rate of forest destruction. since the iguana’s rediscovery in 1990, members of the jircg have attempted to divert tree harvesting away from the core iguana area, and these efforts have met with some significant successes (vogel et al. 1996, vogel 2000). in particular, the jircg’s efforts undoubtedly have resulted in protecting the core c. collei nesting areas from otherwise likely destruction by charcoal burners. that said, diversion of tree-cutting activities away from the known nesting areas in no way signifies that the rate of iguana habitat loss has lessened in the species’ remaining primary forest habitat. several factors render charcoal burning an unsustainable and damaging enterprise. limited soil deposits and scanty rainfall severely limit the ability of dry forests to regenerate, and repatriated, “head-started” jamaican iguana perched on a bench at the field camp in the central hellshire hills. photograph by byron wilson. free-ranging, repatriated jamaican iguana wearing a radio-transmitter vest produced and donated by nike. photograph by joe wasilewski. increased solar penetration in clear-cut areas may also inhibit seedling germination and survival by reducing soil moisture (mclaren 2001). as a result, severely degraded areas may never recover to their original condition. with virtually no potential for a sustained yield harvest, charcoal burners necessarily focus their efforts on the remaining uncut, primary forest. in addition to the charcoal industry, other ominous threats to the iguana’s habitat exist. for example, government plans dating from the 1960s to develop a large residential complex across the eastern half of the peninsula, if pursued, would surely doom the iguana to extinction (vogel et al. 1996). although now unlikely to be implemented due to the iguana’s rediscovery and the considerable local and international interest the species’ plight has generated, these development plans have not yet been officially abandoned. the declaration of the pbpa and the recent delegation of management authority (see below) are positive signs that the area may ultimately receive the protection it so desperately needs. lessons from a conservation effort: the fate of cyclura collei after a 15-year commitment to save the iguana, can we say that the species has been rescued from the brink of extinction? the answer to this question is maybe. a successful captive program has been established, and the wild population is showing some tentative signs of recovery. however, the iguana’s imperiled habitat still does not enjoy any effective protection, and is very much at risk of ecological annihilation within the next half century. portions of the remaining pristine forest are disappearing daily. nevertheless, we must remain optimistic that the enforcement necessary to halt this destruction will come before it is too late. clearly, the charcoal burning industry threatens the iguana’s persistence in a very immediate and pressing fashion. predator control efforts and other biological interventions will be superfluous if the hellshire forest ceases to exist. however, efforts to address critical conservation issues cannot await the initiation of optimal habitat management practices. indeed, such efforts can provide the necessary foundation for the growth of more comprehensive and enduring conservation programs aimed at securing the persistence of both the iguana and its relictual habitat. active management and enforcement of tree-harvesting laws are urgently needed. one promising development was the declaration of the portland bight protected area (pbpa) on earth day 1999. this government-declared conservation zone includes all of the hellshire hills and therefore appears to provide a potential mechanism for protecting the iguana’s remaining habitat. unfortunately, the government lacks the resources to manage the pbpa. now, fully five years after the celebrated and much publicized declaration of this new protected area, no tangible progress has been made toward habitat protection. however, the government has recently (2004) delegated the management authority for the area to the urban development corporation (udc) — the organization that owns most of the hellshire hills and all of the goat islands. one can only hope that the udc acts quickly and decisively to stem the current wave of deforestation; otherwise, the pbpa will remain little more than a paper park, and the hellshire hills will soon become little more than a biological wasteland harboring a highly degraded forest containing greatly diminished biological diversity. encouragingly, the udc appears keen to preserve the remaining natural habitat and to rehabilitate the goat islands for the establishment of a repatriated iguana population. beyond doom and gloom: does hope exist for the hellshire hills? in large part due to the connection between environmental quality and basic living standards, conservation issues are attracting increased attention in jamaica. because jamaica has long been recognized as a globally important biodiversity hotspot, the impetus for environmental action is now clear at both the national and international levels. the next two decades will be critical. the requisite political will, coupled with the cooperation of relevant conservation and funding agencies, might yet rescue this outstanding example of west indian dry forest and its unique endemic fauna. the future roles of the udc and relevant government agencies will ultimately determine whether this outstanding wild area retains its intrinsic biological value for future generations to appreciate. acknowledgments we thank the many individuals and institutions that have contributed to the ongoing conservation effort directed at the 230 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 wilson, robinson, and vogel byron wilson contemplating the problem of invasive species [introduced predators]; note the palm-shaded mongoose trap in the lower right-hand corner. photograph by glenn gerber. an introduced mongoose, shortly after a crash course on invasive predator control. photograph by joe wasilewski. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 231the jamaican iguana jamaican iguana and its threatened habitat. for financial support we are especially grateful to the world wildlife fund, the durrell wildlife conservation trust, the environmental foundation of jamaica, the american zoo and aquarium association, and over 20 u. s. zoos. for critical funding for the 2002–2004 period, we are grateful to the international iguana foundation, the international iguana society, the audubon zoo, the miami metrozoo, the houston zoo, and conservation international. a big thank you is due to rick hudson of the fort worth zoo and allison alberts of the zoological society of san diego; they have proven to be important sources of inspiration, expertise, and funding. edwin duffus, who rediscovered the iguana in 1990, is acknowledged for his indispensable assistance in the bush. finally, we thank the other members of the jamaican iguana research and conservation group, the national environment and planning agency (nepa), and the institute of jamaica for their continued support and involvement. references alberts, a. c. 1993. the most endangered lizard in the world: the jamaican iguana, cyclura collei. vivarium 5:12-14. alberts, a. c. 2000. west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn — the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. case, t. j., d. t. bolger, and a. d. richman. 1992. reptilian extinctions: the last ten thousand years, pp. 91-125. in: p. l. fiedler and s. k. jain (eds.), conservation biology: the theory and practice of nature conservation, preservation, and management. chapman and hall, london. hudson, r. 2000. reintroduction guidelines, pp. 70-75. in: a. c. alberts (ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn — the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. lewis, c. b. 1944. notes on cyclura. herpetologica 2:93-98. mclaren, k. p. 2001. the regeneration of a jamaican dry limestone forest after different intensities of human disturbance. unpubl. ph.d. dissertation, university of wales, bangor. nepa (national environment and planning agency). 2003. national strategy and action plan on biological diversity in jamaica. national environment and planning agency, kingston, jamaica. schwartz, a. and r. w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville, florida. tolson, p. j. 2000. control of introduced species, pp. 86-89. in: a. c. alberts (ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn — the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. vogel, p. 1992. conservation strategy for the jamaican iguana and its habitat. unpublished report, jamaican iguana research and conservation group, kingston, jamaica. vogel, p. 1994. evidence of reproduction in a remnant population of the endangered jamaican iguana, cyclura collei (lacertilia, iguanidae). caribbean journal of science 30:234-241. vogel, p. 2000. jamaican iguana: cyclura collei, pp. 19-22. in: a. c. alberts (ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn — the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. vogel, p., r. nelson, and r. kerr. 1996. conservation strategy for the jamaican iguana, cyclura collei, pp. 395-406. in: r. powell and r. w. henderson (eds.), contributions to west indian herpetology: a tribute to albert schwartz. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles contributions to herpetology, vol. 12. ithaca, new york. wilson, b. s. and p. vogel, p. 2000. a survey of the herpetofauna of the hellshire hills, jamaica, including the rediscovery of the blue-tailed galliwasp (celestus duquesneyi grant). caribbean journal of science 36:244-249. wilson, b. s., a. c. alberts, k. graham, r. hudson, r. kerr, d. lewis, n. lung, r. nelson, n. thompson, j. l. kunna, and p. vogel. 2004. survival and reproduction of repatriated jamaican iguanas: headstarting as a viable conservation strategy, pp. 220–231. in: a. c. alberts, r. l. carter, w. k. hayes, and e. p. martins (eds.), iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. woodley, j. d. 1980. survival of the jamaican iguana, cyclura collei. journal of herpetology 14:45-49. author biography byron wilson is a lecturer in the department of life sciences, university of the west indies, mona, in kingston, jamaica. his early research focused on the ecology and physiology of desert lizards in north america; subsequent work and research has related to the ecology and management of endangered vertebrates. current research includes a longterm field experiment that seeks to document trends in faunal abundance (especially ground inhabiting reptiles) associated with an invasive predator removal program. other projects include the ecology and conservation implications of introduced species in jamaica, and various inventory efforts aimed at characterizing the extent, habitat quality, and biodiversity of the island’s remaining natural forests. view of the dry tropical forest in the central hellshire hills. one of the two known nesting areas is located in the bottom of the depression; the other major nesting area is located on the western rim of the depression (to the right). photograph by peter vogel. iguana_11.1_bw_text 76 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 burgess greetings, friends! our president normally handles this column, but he’s currently in the field. since i was given this opportunity (as vice-president), i thought i would tell you a little about myself and about how i became involved with (iguana) conservation. even as a youngster, i was interested in herpetology, especially lizards, and i have run the gamut of keeping all the various types of herps. as i got older, i started concentrating on specific lizard families: geckos, chameleons, and iguanids, with anolis and true iguanas as favorites. i began traveling regularly to the caribbean and, to a lesser extent, central and south america in search of the 350+ species of anoles. although most hobbyists consider anoles to be a beginner’s lizard or, even worse, snake food, they are usually not aware of the specialization and evolution of this varied group. anoles as a group are the most intensely studied reptiles in the world, and they have served as models for a number of ecological and evolutionary studies. in my travels in search of anoles, i inevitably encountered some of the species of cyclura, iguana, and ctenosaura. my first encounter, and one of the most memorable, was on the naval base at guantanamo bay, cuba. i was walking along the edge of a scrub thicket looking (of course) for anoles and curlytail lizards (leiocephalus). at the time, i was a young man (19–20) and wasn’t fully aware of the status or abundance of cuban iguanas on the base. i knew that they were protected and rare, so i didn’t expect to see any in the limited time available to me. however, as i made my way along the path, out of the corner of my eye, i noticed movement, large movement. i turned to see a huge male cyclura nubila three meters away bobbing his head at me. my emotions were a mix of excitement, veneration, amazement, and surprisingly, for just a moment, fear, as i observed this remarkable creature, who seemed larger than life. the experience was profoundly affecting. needless to say, i was hooked. fifteen years later, seeing an iguana in its natural habitat still evokes the same emotions (except fear). after that encounter, i felt i needed to learn more about these magnificent lizards, and to find out what i personally could do to help reverse the rapid decline in their numbers. since then, i have met many wonderful people dedicated to iguanas, and have been privileged to participate in several conservation projects, most recently a population survey of cyclura pinguis on anegada. this spring, i will assist in the turks & caicos islands with c. carinata translocation and research. i hope that, in some small way, my work will help assure that these beautiful creatures will continue to inspire awe and reverence for many years to come. joe burgess l e t t e r f r o m t h e v i c e p r e s i d e n t joe burgess with an anolis luteogularis. photograph by dorothy burgess. the iis contingent in seattle: izzy, john binns, joe wasilewski, and joe burgess (left to right). surveys on anegada were hot work: joe burgess (left), sallie davie (center), and roberto maria (right) take a short break. photograph by john binns. iguana 11.3 b&w text iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 151iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 151grand cayman blue iguanas speckled with isolated pale cream scales and the flanks between chevrons are still marked with diffuse pale cream spots. the blue base color is progressively obscured by dark gray on the tail, where the banding becomes less distinct with age. the alternating cream and black pattern on the dorsal crest is reduced but still evident. the juvenile pattern changes to the adult form gradually, by further replacement of cream spots and speckling with the blue base color and the variable loss of the dark chevrons (some adults lose them entirely). limbs also become blue, apart from the toes, which lose all banding and darken to black. the nuchal and dorsal crest scales all become bright blue, with no trace of the juvenile pattern. the lower half of the tail becomes darker, with banding either totally obscured or very indistinct. the sclera of the eye becomes redder and more exposed as the animal grows. having said all of that, a blue iguana is only blue when it wants to be blue. all that blue is masked in dark gray when an iguana is cold, sleeping, or just trying to remain inconspicuous. the gray color closely matches the surrounding carbonate karst rock, on which iguanas seem to vanish into the landscape. watching these iguanas in the wild, they appear to use their color selectively and carefully, as signals to each other. in the greens and earth tones of grand cayman’s dry shrublands, the bright blue of c. lewisi shines out like a beacon. references burton, f.j. 2000. grand cayman iguana, pp. 45–47. in a. alberts (comp. & ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and action plan. iucn, gland, switzerland. burton, f.j. 2004. taxonomic status of the grand cayman blue iguana. caribbean journal of science 40:198–203. grant, c. 1940. the herpetology of the cayman islands. bulletin of the institute of jamaica, science series (2):1–55. malone, c.l., t. wheeler, j.f. taylor, and s.k. davis. 2000. phylogeography of the caribbean rock iguana (cyclura): implications for conservation and insights on the biogeographic history of the west indies. molecular phylogenetics and evolution 17:269–279. schwartz, a. and m. carey 1977. systematics and evolution in the west indian iguanid genus cyclura. studies on the fauna of curaçao and other caribbean islands 173:15–97. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e compared to their relatives in the families boiidae and pythonidae, the ground boas of the genus tropidophis (family tropidophiidae) are relatively small and are sometimes referred to as “dwarf boas.” the largest species reaches a total length of barely over a meter and the smallest less than a third of that length. unlike most boas and pythons, ground boas lack infrared sensors in interlabial pits, but, like their larger relatives, they possess vestiges of hind limbs, which are visible externally as a pair of cloacal spurs. all are live-bearers. they are grounddwelling or semiarboreal and feed primarily on small vertebrates, mainly frogs and lizards. when disturbed, these snakes may exhibit autohemorrhaging from the eyes and mouth as well as cloacal discharge. on loose substrates, at least one species is known to employ sidewinding locomotion. many (maybe all) species also are capable of physiological color changes, a phenomenon that is rare in snakes. ground boas apparently are unique among those snakes that can change colors in that they do so on a 24-hour cycle: they are lighter in color at night and darker during the day. all members of the genus are listed in cites appendix ii and are rarely seen in the pet trade. species of tropidophis are relatively broadly distributed in the west indies and south america, but they are secretive. consequently, many are not well-represented in museum collections and their taxonomy has been poorly understood. previous ground boas (tropidophis) of the cayman islands a.c. echternacht department of ecology & evolutionary biology university of tennessee, knoxville photographs by the author. adult grand cayman ground boa, tropidophis caymanensis. 152 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 species profile classifications recognized 13–16 species, but a recent taxonomic study conducted by s. blair hedges elevated several subspecies to species rank and recognized 29 species. three of these occur only in south america (ecuador, brazil, and perú) and one is known only from a single specimen. the remaining 26 species occur in the west indies, where most are restricted to single islands. fifteen species are found in cuba, and only in cuba are the geographic ranges of multiple species (4–6 species, depending on the locality) known to overlap. three species occur in jamaica, two in the bahamas, and one each on hispaniola, navassa, the turks & caicos islands, grand cayman, little cayman, and cayman brac. the local common name for the ground boas of the cayman islands is “lazy snake.” the name is derived from their habit of balling up when first captured rather than trying to escape. this behavior is widespread within the genus and is most likely to be exhibited by juveniles. the three caymanian species were, until recently, considered to be subspecies of t. caymanensis, each endemic (restricted) to a single island. each is now considered a full species: t. caymanensis (grand cayman), t. parkeri (cayman brac), and t. schwartzi (little cayman). all three are relatively small snakes, usually less than 50 cm in total length. in the cayman islands, ground boas are primarily active at night and, on grand cayman, grant found them to be especially active late in the summer following periods of rain. ground boas may occur throughout grand cayman and little cayman, but on cayman brac they appear to be limited in distribution to the northern and western coastal areas. most are found on the ground, but exceptions exist: they have been found in the leaf bases of epiphytes and richard thomas found one 2.4 m above the ground in the roof of an outhouse! they have been found in habitats ranging from beach to dry forest and in leaf litter, rotten tree stumps, cracks in the walls of houses, and under palm fronds, rocks, slabs of limestone, logs, and boards. the diet seems to consist mainly of lizards of the genus anolis and cuban tree frogs, osteopilus septentrionalis. the ends of the tails of caymanian ground boas are white to yellow in color, in stark contrast to the darker coloration of the rest of the snake. this pattern is usually seen in sit-in-wait (ambush) predators. as a snake lies quietly in wait, it wiggles the tip of its tail. this may attract the attention of a sight predator, like an anole or tree frog, that mistakes it for something to eat and ends up being eaten by the snake. references grant, c. 1941 (“1940”). the herpetology of the cayman islands. bulletin of the institute of jamaica, sciences series 2: iv + 65 pp. hedges, s.b. 2002. morphological variation and the definition of species in the snake genus tropidophis (serpentes, tropidophiidae). bulletin of the natural history museum, london (zoology) 68: 83–90. hedges, s.b., c.a. haas, and t.k. maugel. 1989. physiological color change in snakes. journal of herpetology 23: 450–455. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. seidel, m.e. and r. franz. 1994. amphibians and reptiles (exclusive of marine turtles) of the cayman islands, pp. 407–433. in: m.a. brunt and j.e. davies (eds.), the cayman islands: natural history and biogeography. monographiae biologicae. volume 71. kluwer academic publishers, nordrecht, the netherlands. smith, d.d., j.s. parmerlee, jr., r. powell, l.r. white, and a. lathrop. 1991. tropidophis haetianus. locomotion. herpetological review 22: 132–133. smith, d.d., d.j. pflanz, and r. powell. 1993. observations of autohemorrhaging in tropidophis haetianus, rhinocheilus lecontei, heterodon platyrhinos, and nerodia erythrogaster. herpetological review 24: 130–131. thomas, r. 1963. cayman islands tropidophis (reptilia, serpentes). breviora (195): 1–8. tolson, p.j. and r.w. henderson. 1993. the natural history of west indian boas. r&a publishing, ltd., taunton, u.k. zug, g.r., l.j. vitt, and j.p. caldwell. 2001. herpetology: an introductory biology of amphibians and reptiles. academic press, new york. subadult little cayman ground boa, tropidophis parkeri. iguana_11.2_text.ps sauromalus klauberi, isla santa catalina, baja california sur (see article on p. 78). photograph by brad hollingsworth. iguana journal of the international iguana societ y www.iguanasociet y.org volume 11, number 2 june 2004 us$6.00 ricord’s iguana, cyclura ricordii, on isla cabritos, dominican republic (see report on recent survey, p. 88). photograph by kacie ehrenberger. cyclura lewisi (species and subspecies: what do they mean and why should we care?, p. 108). photograph by john binns. mona island rhinoceros iguana, cyclura cornuta stejnegeri (see article on p. 98). photograph by robert powell. sauromalus varius, isla roca lobos, baja california. this population is located on a small islet in the san lorenzo group off baja california. it is believed to be introduced (see article on p. 78). photograph by brad hollingsworth. iguana_11.2_text.ps 78 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 hollingsworth distribution of chuckwallas. illustration by john binns. sauromalus ater, rancho los tepetates, sierra la libertad, baja california. sauromalus ater, mountain springs, san diego county, california. this population and all of those in the united states were previously assigned to s. obesus. chuckwallas typically inhabit arid regions with moderate low-lying shrub cover and usually are found on or near rocky outcrops with plenty of crevices for use as retreats. among iguanid lizards, members in the genus sauromalus represent some of the most divergent forms in the family. among the 45 species in the family iguanidae, chuckwallas represent a modest radiation of five currently recognized species (hollingsworth 2004, pregill 2004). sauromalus ater is found in the southwestern united states, adjacent regions in méxico, much of the baja california peninsula, and on islas willard, tiburón, san marcos, el coyote, danzante, san cosme, santa cruz, san diego, san josé, san francisco, ballena, gallo, partida sur, and espíritu santo in the gulf of california. the other four species are restricted to islands in the gulf of california. sauromalus hispidus occurs on islas ángel de la guarda, granito, mejía, pond, san lorenzo norte, san lorenzo sur, cabeza de caballo, la ventana, piojo, flecha, mitlán, and smith; s. varius on islas san esteban and roca lobos; s. klauberi only on isla santa catalina; and s. slevini on islas carmen, los coronados, and monserrate. over the past few years, a sometimes heated nomenclatural debate has raged regarding the best way in which to represent the species-level diversity within the genus (montanucci et al. 2001, mcdiarmid et al. 2002; see also iguana times 9(1–2):18–26, understanding the diversity of chuckwallas (genus sauromalus) and a debate over names bradford d. hollingsworth department of herpetology, san diego natural history museum san diego, ca 92112 all photographs by the author. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 79understanding the diversity of chuckwallas � sauromalus varius, isla san esteban, sonora. this large species is commonly found in both the arroyo bottoms and on the rocky hillsides. which includes the text of the montanucci et al. petition). the debate has focused on the choice of names for the widespread populations that inhabit the deserts of the southwestern united states, northwestern méxico, peninsular baja california, and numerous islands in the gulf of california. the root cause of this controversy was the synonymy of three species found to intergrade with one another and which lacked diagnosable characters (hollingsworth 1998). the recent ruling by the international commission of zoological nomenclature (iczn) brought this specific matter to a close (iczn 2004; see also p. 10) — but for 80 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 hollingsworth sauromalus ater, sierra vizcaíno, baja california sur. this population was previously assigned to s. australis. a speckled juvenile sauromalus hispidus, isla la ventana, baja california. note the faint cross-barring remnant of the juvenile pattern. sauromalus klauberi, isla santa catalina, baja california sur. adult male sauromalus slevini, isla monserrate, baja california sur. sauromalus varius, isla san esteban, sonora. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 81understanding the diversity of chuckwallas biologists studying these lizards, understanding this nomenclatural debate, the process of nomenclatural decision-making, and the species diversity within sauromalus is important. as many as ten different species of chuckwallas have been recognized since duméril (1856) first described sauromalus ater, but today, only half are considered valid. evaluating how best to represent biodiversity is the primary motivation of systematic biologists. since species are regarded as hypotheses to be continually tested, taxonomies inevitably and naturally will change as new information is evaluated. unfortunately, when systematists modify taxonomies, confusion often develops. among the users of these taxonomies, the first concern usually centers on the adoption of the new naming system and how to recover information from previously published works that may have used one or more different names. secondary to these immediate responses is how the new naming system changes previous ideas on diversity, distributional limits, and levels of variance in ecological preferences. prior to the synonymy of the three formerly recognized species of chuckwallas, the name sauromalus obesus was used to describe populations from arizona, california, nevada, and utah. sauromalus obesus also was applied to populations found in western sonora, northern baja california, and some islands in the gulf of california. in the more remote regions of baja california, the name s. australis was used to describe populations inhabiting the southern portion of the peninsula, and the name s. ater described populations on islands off its southern peninsular coastline in the gulf of california. each of these names had sauromalus ater, sierra vizcaíno, baja california sur. this population was previously assigned to s. australis. adult male sauromalus ater, south mountain, maricopa county, arizona. some isolated populations of s. ater may yet reveal specieslevel diversity within the genus. 82 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 hollingsworth sauromalus hispidus, isla san lorenzo norte, baja california. a gravid adult female excavating a burrow. an adult sauromalus hispidus basking outside a burrow on isla ángel de la guardia, baja california. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 83understanding the diversity of chuckwallas been in use since charles shaw revised the genus in 1945, and his taxonomy had provided stability for nearly a half century. the synonymy of sauromalus obesus and s. australis with s. ater was based on an analysis of additional specimens and previously used diagnostic characters, as well as a search for new characters that could help delimit the species boundaries within the genus (hollingsworth 1998). with evidence of intergrades and the overlap of diagnostic characters, the species limits between the three could not be determined. consequently, the familiar name of s. obesus was subsumed into s. ater, because the former now was considered a junior synonym of the latter. decisions regarding the application of zoological names are governed by the iczn and the rules established in the code (iczn 1999). here, the decision to select sauromalus ater to represent the combined species was based on the principle of priority (article 23). since s. ater was the oldest of the three names, the principle of priority gives it precedence over the others. without the overseeing body of the iczn and the code, the authority of researchers who first describe taxa could be undermined at the will of subsequent authors. in extreme cases, a new name could be applied to the same population every year, which would result in taxonomic instability. petitions to the iczn can be submitted when clarification is needed on the validity of names or exceptions to the code are requested. montanucci et al. (2001) petitioned the iczn and requested that the long-used and well-known name, sauromalus obesus, be given precedence over the little-used and older name, s. ater. for two years, the iczn received and published comments on the petition. one of the greatest concerns was the taxonomic stability of sauromalus obesus and its abundant use in the scientific literature. in opposition to the petition, mcdiarmid et al. (2002) commented that the discrepancy in usage between s. obesus and s. ater reflected the large number of papers published on s. obesus in the united states, which could not have been expected to mention s. ater. in addition, the name s. ater has been used regularly for the last 145 years and should not be regarded as a name infrequently used. in its recent decision (opinion 2072), the iczn ruled that the priority of the name sauromalus ater should be maintained (iczn 2004). in their comments, commissioners stated that publication capacity should not be given precedence over the principle of priority and reversing priority does not achieve stability. during the intervening period, when petitions, comments, and opinions are published, confusion often develops as to which nomenclature to follow. many invoke a section of the code (article 82.1) that requires that the prevailing usage of names be maintained while a case is under consideration. in this instance, authors have chosen to use either sauromalus obesus or s. ater. because different interpretations of prevailing usage can result, sauromalus ater, isla espirítu santo, baja california sur. this population served as the type locality for many years. sauromalus ater, bahía kino, sonora. this population and all of those in mainland sonora were previously assigned to s. obesus. adult male sauromalus hispidus, isla san lorenzo sur, baja california. 84 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 hollingsworth adult male sauromalus hispidus, isla san lorenzo sur, baja california. sauromalus varius, isla san esteban, sonora. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 85understanding the diversity of chuckwallas both names have appeared in the literature. deciding which name best reflected the populations under consideration was subjective, because the petition did not question the synonymy of the three species. however, now that opinion 2072 has been issued, sauromalus ater should be used. before the time of formal taxonomies, the understanding of biodiversity was based on common names. the inherent instability of common names provides insights into the importance of the iczn and the code. stability is relative and our judgment on acceptable levels of change should be gauged against informal versus formal taxonomies. for example, the indian origin for the name chuckwalla appears to be derived from as many as four different variants used by tribes in the southwestern united states. merriam (1979) recorded chah´ch wahl from the cahuilla, chah-kwar´-rah from the southern paiute, chuk-war´-rah from the mono paiute, and cha-gwar´-rah from the kawaiisu. english-speaking peoples most likely adopted the word “chuckwalla” from one or more of these variations. other names for chuckwallas recorded by merriam (1979) include humsooth´ (kamia), hum-sool´ (yuma), um thool´ya (mohave), tsah-wahr´ (southern paiute), sow-wahr´(chemehuevi), sowwar´-rah (panamint shoshone), sah-gwar´-rah (southern nevada shoshone), sahk-war´-rah (shivwits), and chakt´-tch (serrano). without the use of scientific names and the guidance of the iczn rules, names describing the same animals could be as diverse as regional differences in dialects and languages. now that this specific nomenclatural debate has come to a close, we can move on to evaluating the consequences of lumping the three species into one. chuckwalla diversity and their overall biology should be reevaluated in light of our new interpretation of their relationships. the widespread sauromalus ater is found across an extensive range of arid habitats with different plant communities and climatic cycles. well-known populations should be compared to populations in more remote regions. many populations are continuously distributed, whereas others are isolated in mountain ranges or on islands. of the five recognized species of chuckwallas, four are insular endemics in the gulf of california. sauromalus varius, s. hispidus, s. slevini, and s. klauberi were each described as a distinct insular species and little controversy has surrounded their recognition (see grismer 2003 for a review). since the greatest diversity of chuckwallas occurs in relatively small, isolated islands or groups of islands, further diversity may be found in isolated populations of sauromalus ater. this wide-ranging species will likely be the source of many more fascinating discoveries. literature cited duméril, a. 1856. descriptions des reptiles nouveaux et imparfaitement connus de la collection du museum d’histoire naturelle et remarques sur la classification et les caracteres des reptiles. arch. mus. hist. nat. 8:437–589. grismer, l.l. 2003. amphibians and reptiles of baja california, including its pacific islands and the islands in the sea of cortés. university of california press, berkeley and los angeles, california. hollingsworth, b.d. 1998. the systematics of chuckwallas (sauromalus) with a phylogenetic analysis of other iguanid lizards. herpetol. monogr. 12:38–191. hollingsworth, b.d. 2004. the evolution of iguanas: an overview of relationships and a checklist of species, pp. 19–44. in: a.c. alberts et al. (eds.), iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley and los angeles, california. international commission of zoological nomenclature. 1999. international code of zoological nomenclature. 4th ed. the international trust for zoological nomenclature, london. international commission of zoological nomenclature. 2004. opinion 2072. euphryne obesa baird, 1858 (currently sauromalus obesus reptilia, squamata): proposal to give the specific name precedence over that of sauromalus ater duméril, 1856 not approved. bull. zool. nomencl. 61:74–75. mcdiarmid r.w., k. de queiroz, k. beaman, b. crother, r. etheridge, o. flores-villela, d. frost, l.l. grismer, b.d. hollingsworth, m. kearney, j.a. mcguire, j. wright, g. zug. 2002. comment on the proposed precedence of the specific name of euphryne obesus baird 1859 over that of sauromalus ater duméril, 1856 (reptilia, squamata). bull. zool. nomencl. 59:45–48. merriam, c.h. 1979. indian names for plants and animals among californian and other western north american tribes. ballena press, socorro, new mexico. montanucci r.r., h.m. smith, k. adler, d.l. auth, r.w. axtell, t.j. case, d. chiszar, j.t. collins, r. conant, r. murphy, k. petren, r.c. stebbins. 2001. case 3143. euphryne obesus baird, 1858 (reptilia, squamata): proposed precedence of the specific name over that of sauromalus ater duméril, 1856. bull. zool. nomencl. 58:37–40. pregill, g.k. and d.w. steadman. 2004. south pacific iguanas: human impacts and a new species. j. herpetol. 38:15–21. shaw, c. e. 1945. the chuckwallas, genus sauromalus. trans. san diego soc. nat. hist. 10:269–306. chuckwallas from isla acatraz, sonora represent hybrids among two or even three species, all or some of which are probably introduced. euphryne obesa baird, 1858 (currently sauromalus obesus reptilia, squamata): proposal to give the specific name precedence over that of sauromalus ater duméril, 1856 not approved abstract. the commission has ruled that the priority of the name sauromalus ater duméril, 1856 should be maintained. sauromalus ater is the senior name for the chuckwalla (family iguanidae) from the southwest of north america. a proposal had been made to give precedence to a junior subjective synonym s. obesus (baird, 1858). keywords. nomenclature; taxonomy; reptilia; squamata; iguanidae; sauromalus ater; sauromalus obesus; chuckwallas; southwestern north america. ruling (1) the name obesa baird, 1858 (specific name corrected under article 34.2 of the code), as published in the binomen euphryne obesus, is not to be given priority over sauromalus ater duméril, 1856, as published in the binomen sauromalus ater, whenever the two names are considered to be synonyms. the principle of priority is upheld and s. ater duméril, 1856 has priority over euphryne obesa baird, 1858 whenever the two names are considered to be synonyms. (2) the name sauromalus duméril, 1856 (gender: masculine), type species by monotypy sauromalus ater duméril, 1856, is hereby placed on the official list of generic names in zoology. (3) the following names are hereby placed on the official list of specific names in zoology: (a) ater duméril, 1856, as published in the binomen sauromalus ater (specific name of the type species of sauromalus duméril, 1856); (b) obesa baird, 1858, as published in the binomen euphryne obesus. history of case 3143 an application to conserve the specific name of euphryne obesa baird, 1858 (specific name corrected to agree in gender with the feminine generic name under article 34.2 of the code) for the chuckwalla (family iguanidae) from the southwest of north america by giving it precedence over its junior subjective synonym sauromalus ater duméril, 1856 was received from richard r. montanucci (clemson university, south carolina), hobart m. smith and david chiszar (university of colorado), kraig adler (cornell university, ithaca, new york), david l. auth (university of florida, gainesville), ralph w. axtell (southern illinois university, edwardsville), ted j. case (university of california at san diego), joseph t. collins (the center for north american amphibians and reptiles, lawrence, kansas), roger conant (albuquerque, new mexico), robert murphy (royal ontario museum, ontario, canada), kenneth petren (university of cincinnati, ohio) & robert c. stebbins (kensington, california) on 10 september 1999. after correspondence the case was published in bzn 58: 37-40 (march 2001). the title, abstract and keywords of the case were published on the commission’s website. comments opposing the application were published in bzn 58: 307-308; bzn 59: 4548 and 205. comments in support of the application were published in bzn 58: 229; 307-308. decision of the commission on 1 december 2002 the members of the commission were invited to vote on the proposals published in bzn 58: 39. at the close of the voting period on 1 march 2003 the votes were as follows: 12 commissioners voted for the proposals, 12 commissioners (alonso-zarazaga, bouchet, brothers, calder, halliday, kraus, lamas, macpherson, minelli, patterson, rosenberg and van tol) voted against, no votes were received from cogger, dupuis and mahnert. ng was on leave of absence. voting against, alonso-zarazaga commented that stability is not better achieved by reversing priority. a junior name should not be given precedence because of preference by a particular school, or as a result of the publication capacity by a given set of researchers. also voting against, halliday commented that the case rests on two arguments. first, that there is uncertainty surrounding the type locality of s. ater. this is irrelevant to the nomenclatural issue. second, it is argued that s. obesus should be preferred because it is used in a greater number of papers than s. ater. there is no article in the code that invites the use of this argument, nor do the authors invoke any particular article to support their case. the nearest relevant article would be 23.9.3, however, both s. ater and s. obesus have been in continuous use for over 100 years. therefore, the principle of priority should be upheld and the proposals should be rejected. original references the following are the original references to the names placed on official lists by the ruling given in the present opinion: ater, sauromalus, duméril, 1856, archives du muséum d’histoire naturelle, paris, 8: 536. obesa, euphryne, baird, 1858, proceedings of the academy of natural sciences of philadelphia, 10: 253. sauromalus duméril, 1856, archives du muséum d’histoire naturelle, paris, 8: 536. 86 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 opinion 2072 (case 3143) opinion 2072 (case 3143) iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) a bundant remains of sea turtles, tortoises, iguanas, and even snakes in archaeological excavations throughout the west indies testify eloquently to the fact that amerindians frequently and successfully exploited reptiles. at least some biogeographers have suggested that the first human inhabitants of the region carried with them favored species, such as red-footed tortoises (geochelone carbonaria), establishing populations on islands as they migrated north from south america to serve as a ready source of food during subsequent visits1. aboriginal inhabitants have been implicated in the introduction of iguanas on islands in the gulf of california (see iguana times, june 2002) and also may have established some west indian populations. furthermore, the earliest americans have been blamed for the extinction or extirpation of exploitation of reptiles in the west indies: a long history robert powell department of biology, avila university, kansas city, missouri 67iguanaseptember 2003 a mongoose (herpestes javanicus) from savane-à-mulets, soufrière, guadeloupe. these efficient predators have been implicated in the extirpation of populations and even the extinction of diurnally active snakes and ground-dwelling lizards (photograph by alain fossé). today, the american crocodile (crocodylus acutus) is endangered, but in the early 20th century, exploiting the species for hides and meat was widespread and “officically” sanctioned. here, convicts skin a crocodile in the dominican republic in 1922 (photograph by g. k. noble; courtesy of the department of library services, american museum of natural history). 1 some authorities, noting the abundance of tortoises on oceanic islands, their ability to float, and their resistance to exposure to salt water, disagree and argue that red-footed tortoises arrived naturally in the islands by means of overwater dispersal from south america. native tortoises and some populations of iguanas (along with a number of large, endemic mammals) that are known only from fossil or archaeological evidence. if true, exploitation of at least some species was not sustainable — and the popular image of native americans living in harmony with nature clashes with reality. the west indies have been exposed continuously to europeans longer than any other region of the western hemisphere. columbus spoke of abundant turtles and iguanas, and, beyond any doubt, he, his men, and those that followed considered them resplendent table fare. with the advent of the slave trade, africans, most of whom were products of cultures that exploited wildlife in their native lands, continued to do so in the new world. like the amerindians before them, west indians of european and african descent are blamed for translocations, extirpations, and extinctions. although many of the latter are attributable to habitat alteration and destruction or competition with and predation by feral mammals, exploitation levels were undoubtedly high — and often have exceeded sustainable levels into recent decades. food undoubtedly has been the primary motivating factor. most large reptiles, especially those that evolved on islands in the absence of large predators, were at least initially abundant — and are easy to catch, nutritious, and tasty (note the obvious reference in the name iguana delicatissima, for example). even easier to acquire are the eggs of turtles, iguanas, and crocodilians. in addition, however, turtle shells and bones of many large species were used as tools. shells and hides were used for the construction of shelters or for decorative purposes, and some animals or their parts became important in ceremonial functions. snakes still play a significant role, for example, in voodoo rituals. crocodilian penises and some 68 iguana volume 10, number 3 in 1922, iguana hunters on isla beata, dominican republic, used dogs to catch hispaniolan rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta) (photographs by g. k. noble; courtesy of the department of library services, american museum of natural history). internal organs were thought to possess aphrodisiacal properties. exacerbating the impact of exploitation for useful purposes were efforts at extirpation motivated by fear or dislike. on martinique and st. lucia, the only west indian islands with native populations of pitvipers, these are hunted actively, and bounties have been offered intermittently by the authorities until recent years. on many islands where no species are dangerous to humans, snakes nevertheless are killed whenever encountered. crocodilians are widely feared and killed, often without any effort to salvage the meat or other useful parts. even on the few islands on which humans have not traditionally eaten iguanas, they (and other species of large lizards) are frequently persecuted solely because they are perceived as being ugly and strange. although presented in a historical context, many of these practices continue largely unabated today, despite the protected status of many species. shells of sea turtles are piled high in many ports, and freshwater turtles and iguanas show up regularly in small towns or even city markets. especially people living in rural areas routinely supplement their diets with reptilian meat and eggs. fear of snakes, large lizards, and crocodilians remains responsible for the deaths of many reptiles throughout the region. however, in addition to the traditional reasons for exploiting reptiles, one of the most pervasive causes of local extirpations today is unregulated collection for the burgeoning pet trade. authorities in essentially every island nation can cite example after example of unscrupulous collectors catching, buying, and smuggling enormous numbers of reptiles of all sizes and species — and these commercial collectors are, of course, only those that have been caught. strangely enough, scientific collectors in the 19th and early 20th centuries initially developed a common practice employed today by these criminals2. offering bounties to locals eager to supplement their meager incomes and often very familiar with the habits of the local species, scientists historically and, now, suppliers to the pet trade harvest huge numbers of animals. the fact that rarities demand the highest prices imposes particularly intense pressure on populations of threatened or endangered species. to their credit, today’s scientists have largely abandoned this practice. what, if anything, is being done? legislation now protects many of the most vulnerable species and some habitats, but enforcement is lax or nonexistent in many cases. educational efforts on many islands have had some positive impact, par69iguanaseptember 2003 2 scientific collecting has not been implicated in any extirpations or extinctions of west indian reptiles and the knowledge acquired by scientists who take specimens for academic purposes often has been invaluable in developing conservation strategies for specific species or entire biotic communities. a green turtle (chelonia mydas) awaits slaughter on the beach of isla saona, dominican republic (photograph by robert w. henderson). this snake hunter was photographed on st. lucia in 1888. the snake is bothrops caribbaeus and it may have been killed for a bounty, or merely because it was a snake and potentially dangerous (photograph courtesy of philip walwyn). ticularly when coupled with successful efforts at developing ecotourism. animals become more valuable as means of attracting free-spending tourists than they would be in the market. unfortunately, education takes time and, in many cases, is directed at children. by the time they are in a position to develop, implement, and enforce enlightened policies, many additional populations and even species of reptiles will have disappeared. even ecotourism has its drawbacks, since many travelers supposedly enamoured with wildlife buy curios made from exploited reptiles and demand accommodations and amenities that are incompatible with sustaining viable natural habitats. what can any one individual do? one should abide by all legislated efforts to conserve nature, avoid all actions that might in any way encourage the exploitation of wildlife, support educational efforts by governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations, if a pet reptile is to be purchased, select only captive-bred animals from known sources, and travel lightly on the land when in the islands. acknowledgements robert henderson’s comments on an early draft improved this article immensely. references note that the references listed below are surveys that, in turn, provide citations to many additional pertinent resources, as do the volumes in which they appear. hedges, s.b. 1999. distribution patterns of amphibians in the west indies, pp. 211–254. in: w.e. duellman (ed.), patterns of distributions of amphibians: a global perspective. johns hopkins univ. press, baltimore, maryland. hedges, s.b. and r. thomas. 1991. the importance of systematic research in the conservation of amphibian and reptile populations, pp. 56–61. in: j.a. moreno (ed.), status y distribución de los reptiles y anfibios de la región de puerto rico. depto. recursos naturales de puerto rico, publ. cient. misc. 1:1–67. henderson, r.w. and r. powell. in press. thomas barbour and the utowana expeditions (1929–1934) in the west indies. bonner zool. beiträge. powell, r. and r.w. henderson. 1996. a brief history of west indian herpetology, pp. 29–50. in: r. powell and r.w. henderson (eds.), contributions to west indian herpetology: a tribute to albert schwartz. soc. study amphib. rept. contrib. herpetol., vol. 12. ithaca, new york. powell, r. and r.w. henderson. 2003. some historical perspectives, pp. 9–20. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), islands and the sea: essays on herpetological exploration in the west indies. soc. study amphib. rept. contrib. herpetol., vol. 20. ithaca, new york. williams, e.e. 1999. over 300 years of collecting in the caribbean, pp. 1–30. in: b.i. crother (ed.), caribbean amphibians and reptiles. academic press, san diego, california. wing, e.s. 1989. human exploitation of animal resources in the caribbean, pp. 137–152. in: c.a. woods (ed.), biogeography of the west indies: past, present, and future. sandhill crane press, gainesville, florida. wing, e.s. 2001. native american use of animals in the caribbean, pp. 481–518. in: c.a. woods and f.e. sergile (eds.), biogeography of the west indies: patterns and perspectives. 2nd ed. crc press, boca raton, florida. woods, c.a. 2001. introduction and historical overview of patterns in west indian biogeography, pp. 1–14. in: c.a. woods and f.e. sergile (eds.), biogeography of the west indies: patterns and perspectives. 2nd ed. crc press, boca raton, florida. 70 iguana volume 10, number 3 a roadside vendor selling “jicotecas” (trachemys stejnegeri) collected in the laguna de saladillo, parque nacional montecristi, dominican republic (photograph by robert powell). hatchling american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus) offered for sale to tourists in a shop in santo domingo, dominican republic (photograph by donald d. smith). iguana 10.4 b&w text t he banded iguana, brachylophus fasciatus, was described to science in 1800, but has been in collections of united states zoos for only the past four decades. one of the most geographically isolated of all iguana species, b. fasciatus occurs naturally on the fijian island group and has been introduced into vanuatu and tonga. these animals are difficult to find in the wild, and little had been written about them, other than where they were alleged to be and some very basic natural history, until late in the 20th century. early captives did not fare well and no captive reproduction took place until the mid-1970s. because they are beautiful and geographically unique, banded iguanas are highly desirable display animals. the national zoo in washington, d.c., and zoos in jacksonville, sacramento, knoxville, dallas, and san diego have displayed this species since the early 1970s. importations were rare, although the species was not listed as endangered by the usfws or cites until 1980 and 1981, respectively. although some good behavioral and basic husbandry information had been obtained, longevity was relatively short and reproduction unheard of — until the knoxville zoo produced hatchlings in 1977. fijian iguanas, especially neonates, seem to require a great deal of ultraviolet (uv) light exposure, more than most other iguanid species. modern artificial lighting systems and uv-transmitting plastics undoubtedly have facilitated the husbandry of this species. the history of banded iguanas in united states collections john kinkaid animal care manager/herpetology, zoological society of san diego (all photographs are by the author except where noted) 108 iguana volume 10, number 4 an adult male banded iguana (brachylophus fasciatus) at the san diego zoo. the san diego zoo’s long history of working with the species began in 1965, when a member of the zoo’s board of trustees, howard chernoff, was planning a trip to american samoa. he asked the curator of herpetology, charles shaw, if any reptiles from the area were of interest. mr. shaw replied that it was too bad that mr. chernoff was not going anywhere near fiji or tonga, as it would be nice to get iguanas from there. mr. chernoff coincidentally met his royal highness, prince tupouto’ a-tungi of tonga, at a business meeting in samoa. the prince was pleased to donate six iguanas to the zoo. these arrived with great ceremony, as they were among the first (or the very first) banded iguanas in the country. five more animals were acquired from importers in 1975–1976, and the zoo’s first hatchlings arrived on 5 november 1981. eager to start a viable long109iguanadecember 2003 the 1965 ceremony during which his royal highness, prince tupouto’ a-tungi of tonga (right), presented the first banded iguanas to the san diego zoo. howard chernoff, a member of the zoo’s board of trustees (left), was instrumental in the acquisition of these animals. photograph courtesy of the san diego zoo. a hatchling male banded iguana at the san diego zoo. term breeding program for this species, the zoo needed additional founders. the orchid island cultural centre in suva, fiji, and the fijian government generously approved our plan and donated two pairs of iguanas in 1987 and an additional three pairs in 1989. no other iguanas have been imported into the united states since those animals arrived. with the additional founders, more experience, and better knowledge of how to manage brachylophus, the u.s. population continues to double every decade. almost eighty animals are now in u.s. institutions. over 130 hatchlings have been produced at the san diego zoo, which is now into its fourth captive generation. an aza studbook and population management plan are maintained at san diego. these exist to assist in recommending movements, pairings, and breedings now and in the future. several other u.s. zoos have also bred banded iguanas, and this success provides a hopeful future for these beautiful lizards. however, needs remain. first, we will contact the fijian government in an effort to implement population surveys, habitat analyses, predator control programs, and perhaps even reintroduction into suitable areas within the historical range of the species. similar programs are already in place for the more critically endangered crested iguana, brachylophus vitiensis. also, because the u.s. population of banded iguanas was established with only twelve founders, a desperate need exists for additional animals in order to maintain genetic diversity. consequently, future importations are recommended. finally, i would love to apply everything we’ve learned about banded iguanas to a breeding program for crested iguanas, possibly working in conjunction with existing programs in fiji and australia. 110 iguana volume 10, number 4 an adult female banded iguana on reserve at the san diego zoo. reserve housing cages for banded iguanas at the san diego zoo. banded iguana at the toledo zoo. photograph by stephanie beiser. iguana 11.4 198 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 harlow adult fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis) from yadua taba island, fiji. photograph by joe burgess. introduction of the eight living genera of lizards in the family iguanidae, only brachylophus occurs in the south pacific. the pacific banded iguana (brachylophus fasciatus brongniart 1800) and the fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis gibbons 1981) have long been seen as biogeographical oddities, existing so far away from the seven iguanid genera of the western hemisphere. the family iguanidae is regarded as a monophyletic group (all have descended from a common ancestor) and for many years were assumed to have evolved in the new world (estes and price 1973, frost and etheridge 1989). phylogenetic work based on morphology (etheridge and de queiroz 1988) and a combination of morphological and molecular characters (sites et al. 1996) both suggest that brachylophus is a sister taxon to all other living iguanids. how brachylophus arrived in the south pacific has been the subject of hot debate for decades. all other terrestrial vertebrates in the south pacific are clearly derived from indo-malay and gondwanan ancestors that arrived via over-water dispersal along the island chains of new guinea and the solomon islands (gibbons 1985a). cogger (1974) and gibbons (1981, 1985a) both suggested that long-distance rafting from the new world across the pacific by ancestral brachylophus was the most probable mechanism of colonization. they pointed out a series of biological and geographical traits that preadapted brachylophus for this journey, including nasal salt glands for the excretion of excess salt, an extremely long egg incubation period, and the fortuitous direction of the south equatorial current. no one suggests that brachylophus traveled the 8000 km from the americas to the south pacific in a single trip. more likely, the ancestors of brachylophus island-hopped by occasional rafting events and colonized a series of islands along the way, many or all of which are submerged today or have been submerged at some time since the initial colonization of brachylophus. more recent paleontological findings now question the romantic vision of the half-starved, gravid iguana being washed ashore on a south pacific beach, surviving months at sea clinging to a water-logged tree. the oldest known fossil iguanids (and the closely related agamids) are more than 63 million years old and have been found in the gobi desert of inner mongolia, china (gao and hou 1995). these predate estes and price’s (1973) south american iguanid fossils by some 11–13 million years. thus, the current dichotomous world distribution of the iguanidae may be due to a new world invasion (and subsequent adaptive radiation) by the ancestral mongolian iguanids, while the pacific iguanas may represent the sole surviving descendants of a true stay-at-home asian lineage. nevertheless, ancestors of brachylophus still had to cross wide ocean barriers to arrive at their current locations in the south pacific. extant pacific iguanas are both small when compared to most other iguanas and strongly arboreal. the banded iguana has a maximum snout-vent length (svl) of 193 mm and a maximum weight of 207 g, whereas the crested iguana grows to 223 mm svl and weighs as much as 404 g (gibbons and lost in the south pacific: the fijian iguanas (genus brachylophus) peter s. harlow herpetofauna division, taronga zoo, p.o. box 20, mosman, nsw 2088, australia (pharlow@zoo.nsw.gov.au) photographs by the author except where indicated. abstract.—two species of iguanas occur in the south pacific: the widely distributed banded iguana and the larger crested iguana, which is more restricted in its distribution. abundance data are available only for the crested iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba in fiji, and suggest that in optimal forest habitat densities may approach 200 iguanas per hectare. no other island in the pacific is known to possess such a dense population of brachylophus and, on most islands where iguanas occur, sightings are rare or extremely uncommon. as the pacific iguanas are not hunted, eaten, or traded, their rarity is most likely due to the combination of habitat loss and degradation from forest clearing, burning, and goat grazing, and the introduction of exotic predators such as cats, mongooses, and perhaps rodents. key words: crested iguana, banded iguana, brachylophus, island conservation, habitat loss, fiji islands “though the beautiful banded iguana was not uncommon as recently as 1915, it must now be considered rare, if not extinct, on many of the islands.” arthur loveridge reptiles of the pacific world, 1945 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 199fijian iguanas � watkins 1982). the two species do not co-occur on any island. larger, probably more terrestrial species did occur in the recent past, but were eaten and exterminated by early human inhabitants in both fiji (lapitiguana impensa; pregill and worthy 2003) and tonga (brachylophus gibbonsi; pregill and steadman 2004). the two extant species of brachylophus are morphologically distinct. based on allozyme genotypes, they show little genetic distance compared to other squamate species, but not when compared to other iguanians (colgan and da costa 1997). zug (1991) suggested that these two species might be the result of a pleistocene speciation event in fiji, possibly resulting from the ancestors of the crested iguana being isolated on the high, dry western islands of the yasawas during an interglacial rise in sea levels. when sea levels later fell, the divergence was retained and reinforced, owing to the crested iguana’s adaptation to drier island environments. the fiji islands about 360 islands with areas greater than 0.5 km2 occur in fiji, of which about a hundred are permanently inhabited. the two largest islands, viti levu and vanua levu, encompass 88% of the total land area of fiji, and over 90% of the total fijian population lives on these islands. the climate is tropical, with cyclonic storms and heavy rain occurring in the wet season (december–march) and the southeast trade winds influencing the dry season (may–october). high islands on the windward side of the fiji island group invariably receive more rain than those on the leeward, western side. as in many countries in the pacific, most of the land in fiji today is communally owned by clans of indigenous people. the large, high islands of fiji reach over 1000 m above sea level, were emergent during the late oligocene to middle miocene and have been continuously above sea level for at least the last 16 million years (chase 1971, rodda 1994). fiji has never been connected to a continental land mass. in the absence of any terrestrial mammals, several large flightless birds, giant amphibians, and an endemic crocodilian evolved. with the arrival of humans and commensal rodents about 3,500 years ago, many of these large endemic vertebrates disappeared (worthy et al. 1999, molnar et al. 2002). the pacific banded iguana the pacific banded iguana (brachylophus fasciatus) is widely distributed in fiji, occurs on four islands in tonga (gibbons and watkins 1982), and a recently introduced population exists on the island of efate in vanuatu (bauer 1988). the tongan population appears to have been a late prehistoric human introduction from fiji (<500 years ago), based on its total absence in the fossil record, where only the larger, extinct brachylophus gibbonsi is found (pregill and steadman 2004). the banded iguana is listed by the world conservation union as endangered (iucn 2003). cahill (1970) reported that banded iguanas occurred on ten islands in fiji, whereas gibbons’s 1981 distribution map suggests its presence on 24 fijian islands, which increased to 31 islands on his most recent map (gibbons 1985b). many of these distribution records were based on verbal reports from students at the university of the south pacific in suva where gibbons lectured, as well as from villagers and previous inhabitants from many of these islands. gibbons suspected that many of these reports were based on old records or village folklore, and that the banded iguana might no longer exist on some of these islands (personal communication, 1985). zug (1991) reported records for the banded iguana from 34 fijian islands. banded iguanas are slender and often brilliant emerald green in color. adult males have two broad, pale transverse bands across the body and several more on the tail, whereas in females these bands are usually entirely missing or only barely visible. today, the banded iguana appears restricted to islands with coastal and lowland forests, but historical evidence suggests 200 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 harlow a crested iguana on yadua taba island. a gravid female banded iguana from the large inhabited island of kadavu, where occasional sightings still occur. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 201fijian iguanas that they once were also found throughout the highland rainforests on fiji’s largest islands (gibbons 1984a, williams 1858). the biological information available for this species is very scant, and is mostly inferred from captive studies. these lizards undoubtedly are mostly herbivorous, eating a selection of young leaves, flowers, and fruits from a wide range of plant species. in captivity, they also will eat insects, and some authorities have suggested that this species may be more insectivorous than the larger crested iguana (gibbons and watkins 1982). captive studies in fiji suggest that banded iguanas lay eggs in the mid-wet season, from january to march (gibbons and watkins 1982). however, a wild-caught female that i examined on the island of kadavu in mid-september 1989 was heavily gravid with shelled eggs. more likely, multiple clutches are produced in years of abundant food (as in captivity), and egg laying may occur at any time during the warmer months of october to march. in captivity, two to eight eggs have been recorded in a clutch. the incubation period is between 125 and 184 days, depending on temperature (cogger 1974, arnett 1979). only one population of banded iguanas has been surveyed to date. two small, uninhabited limestone islands in the lau group of eastern fiji, close to the large island of lakeba, support a total population of 6000–8000 iguanas (harlow 2003). the survival of this population may be because the remote and mostly inaccessible aiwa islands have remained free of introduced predators, invasive plants, and forest fires. the fijian crested iguana the fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis) was first brought to the attention of the herpetological world in 1981, when john gibbons recognized this species as being very different from the smaller pacific banded iguana (gibbons 1981). its presence had long been known to the local fijians, and the saumuri (crested iguana) is well represented in legends, stories, and village folklore on the islands where it occurs (a. biciloa, personal communication). despite its relatively recent scientific discovery, today we know far more about the abundance, distribution, and biology of the crested iguana than we do about the banded iguana. crested iguanas are more robust than banded iguanas and are easily distinguished by a high crest of enlarged middorsal scales from the nape to the base of the tail. ground color in both males and females is green, with black-edged, narrow white transverse bands along the body and tail. like the banded iguana, the crested iguana can change its background color from various shades of green to almost black in a matter of minutes. in captivity, the crested iguana can produce multiple clutches in a single season (boylan 1989). clutch size varies from two to seven eggs, with an average of four (bach 1998). on the crested iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba (pronounced yandua tamba in fijian), lizards apparently lay only a single clutch each year in the mid-wet season (february to march), with the first hatchlings appearing at the end of october (personal observation). this suggests an incubation period of seven to eight months in the field, exceptionally long for any lizard. in captivity, incubation periods have ranged from 4 1/2 months (boylan 1989) to 9 1/2 months (bach 1998). at the time of its discovery by gibbons on the island of yadua taba in january 1979, most biologists doubted that the species existed anywhere else. yadua taba is a remote, uninhabited, 70-hectare island lying 120 m off the larger inhabited island of yadua (1360 ha). yadua taba is rocky, mostly forested, about 1.2 km long, 500 m wide at its widest point, and reaches over 100 m in elevation. a party searching for an idyllic island on which to film the original 1949 blue lagoon movie (staring jean simmons) briefly visited yadua taba in 1947. although the island was not chosen for the film, fijian resident mr. a. c. read collected an iguana on yadua taba. that individual appeared to be different than the banded iguana with which he was familiar, and he presented it to the fiji museum in suva (boylan, personal communication). the specimen was presumably preserved and added to the museum’s reptile collection, but no locality data were recorded. this was 32 years before john gibbons visited yadua taba and recognized the crested iguana as a distinct species. in her 1970 fiji museum booklet on the banded iguana (the only fijian species known at that time), cynthia cahill a monuriki crested iguana with a temporary marking to avoid double-counting during a population census. yadua taba island photographed from yadua island in 1979. the patches of grassland seen in this photo are now mostly covered by regenerating forest. photograph by john gibbons. referred to this specimen: “an old preserved specimen in the fiji museum certainly appears to be much more solidly built with a much larger crest than any of the present day specimens collected.” the 1947 crested iguana is undoubtedly the paratype in the description of the species by gibbons (1981), and referred to as “fiji museum (no number), one adult male, but no collection data.” although only known from the island of yadua taba at the time, in august 1979, a crested iguana made a brief cameo appearance in the remake of the movie blue lagoon (starring brooke shields), which was filmed on the tourist resort island of nanuya levu in the yasawa group, an arc of islands northwest of the largest fijian island, viti levu, and about 90 km west of yadua taba. on becoming aware of this, john gibbons traveled to the yasawas and also visited the more southerly mamanuca group of islands in search of crested iguanas — and confirmed that the species did occur on several islands within these groups (gibbons 1984a, 1984b, 1985a, 1985b). he reported that the crested iguana was found on at least eight islands, but most of these records seemingly were based on verbal reports from villagers. he saw iguanas only on two islands: matacawa levu in the yasawas and monuriki in the mamanucas. tragically, john gibbons, his wife lily, and their two children drowned in a boating accident in fiji in november 1986, and his notebooks and unpublished records were later destroyed. in september 2000, i set out with a team of volunteers, staff, and students from the university of the south pacific in suva to verify these earlier distribution records of gibbons and to investigate other potential islands where crested iguanas may still occur in the yasawa and mamanuca island groups. we surveyed eleven uninhabited and six inhabited islands for crested iguanas. all of these islands have large numbers of free-ranging domestic goats, and forest fires have occurred repeatedly on most of them over the last few decades. our iguana survey transects were purposely placed through areas within beach forest remnants that had the maximum number and diversity of tree species known to be used by iguanas for food. night searches for sleeping iguanas along a total of 11.2 km of beach forest transects were biased toward maximizing our chances of locating iguanas and were not designed to estimate average abundance. groups of team members intensively searched the forest along each transect and collectively searched for over 123 hours at an average search rate of six meters per minute. our results suggest that crested iguanas are extremely rare or extinct on all of these islands. we found iguanas on only four of the 17 islands surveyed: three small, uninhabited islands (devuilau, 0.23 km2; monu. 0.73 km2; and monuriki, 0.40 km2) and a single large inhabited island (waya, 22.0 km2). we saw a total of six live iguanas on these four islands, plus one juvenile iguana that had been killed and partly eaten on devuilau island. although the introduced mongoose does not occur on any island in the yasawas and mamanucas, feral cats are found on all inhabited islands, were seen on one uninhabited island, and probably exist on many of the other uninhabited islands we surveyed. on many of the islands that we surveyed, beach forest remnants are restricted to steep valleys and along rocky ephemeral watercourses. the major part of these islands is covered by open grasslands or impenetrable thickets of vai vai (leucaena leucocephala), a small exotic tree introduced for goat food, but not eaten by iguanas. we selected ten islands for forest vegetation surveys, and found great inter-island differences in the density and diversity of crested iguana food trees. all of the islands that we surveyed had goats, and islands with evidence of regular forest fires were typically dominated by only three or four non-edible (to goats and iguanas) tree species. other islands, which showed little or no evidence of forest fires, show greater tree species diversity, and several support abundant iguana food trees (e.g., tavewa and devuilau). on these islands, crested iguanas either were not recorded or were found in very low numbers, even though food does not appear to be a limiting factor. we suspect feral cats to be the major reason for the small number of iguanas seen on these islands. the september 2000 iguana surveys found that the crested iguana sanctuary of yadua taba held larger crested iguana population densities than any other surveyed island. even considering that our transects were placed in optimal habitats and were thus biased toward finding iguanas, none of the four islands where we recorded iguanas had population densities greater than about two iguanas per hectare in the best available forest habitat (i.e., along watercourses). average population densities over the entire forest remnant were much lower. 202 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 harlow pita biciloa with a crested iguana captured on monuriki island. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 203fijian iguanas although fijian villagers in the yasawa and mamanuca islands told us that crested iguanas are still occasionally encountered on several inhabited islands where large beach forest remnants remain (nacula, matacawa levu, and naviti), these populations are unlikely to survive in the long term because of the presence of feral cats and continuing forest habitat degradation. most of the smaller inhabited islands in these groups have little or no remaining beach forests, and the inhabitants have no living memory of crested iguanas being present (e.g., yanuca, tavua, and tokoriki). the importance of the crested iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba for the long-term conservation of the fijian crested iguana is obvious, and the resources of the international conservation fund for the fijian crested iguana are increasingly being directed to the upkeep of the crested iguana sanctuary (see below). in 1980, yadua taba was declared a wildlife sanctuary, an attempt was made to remove the free-ranging domestic goats (which belonged to the villagers on yadua), and an honorary ranger was appointed. initially, gibbons (1984a) estimated the size of the total population of crested iguanas on yadua taba at 100–200 adults. mark-recapture and mark-resighting surveys subsequently provided more accurate populations estimates for yadua taba. cogger and sadlier (1986) estimated a total population of 2,000–5,000, whereas laurie et al. (1987) estimated a population size of 4,000–8,300. more recently, harlow and biciloa (2001) used line-transect surveys and estimated a total population size of 4,800–7,900 iguanas. about 25 ha of yadua taba are covered by beach forest habitat, in which crested iguanas occur in remarkable densities approaching 200/ha. nighttime surveys of sleeping iguanas in this forest recorded an average of one iguana every five meters of transect searched (harlow and biciloa 2001). the future of fijian iguanas since european contact, fiji has undergone massive environmental degradation, which has accelerated in the last few decades. the indian mongoose (herpestes auropunctatus) was introduced in 1883 to the two largest islands, and the disappearance or extreme rarity of ground-nesting birds, large diurnal skinks, and banded iguanas was noted almost immediately (pernetta and watling 1978). cats were introduced even earlier and are assumed to be responsible for the extinction or rarity of these same species on mongoose-free islands (gibbons 1984). all inhabited islands have feral cats and, as fijians occasionally dump unwanted kittens onto uninhabited islands to “keep the rats down,” probably many uninhabited islands also have cats (personal observation). in the 1970s and 1980s, a rapid increase in the value of goats meant that grazing uninhabited islands became a simple and lucrative farming technique. the typical regime of overstocking, often combined with regular dry season burning, has destroyed much of the native vegetation and caused catastrophic soil erosion on many islands. selective grazing by goats on the seedlings of palatable tree species has resulted in the proliferation of unpalatable native species, as well as of invasive exotic species inedible to iguanas (harlow and biciloa 2001). in fiji, both species of pacific iguanas can only be seen in captivity at kula eco park near sigatoka, on the south coast of the main island of viti levu. although apparently widely distributed, even adventurous visitors to fiji are unlikely to see an iguana of either species in the wild today, except on the sanctuary island of yadua taba. more likely, the visitor to an outer island who asks about iguanas will be told that one was seen a few months ago, or may be taken to a house where a pet iguana is tethered by string to a bush, or is living (temporarily) in a village hibiscus or tahitian chestnut (inocarpus fagifer) tree. iguanas are rarely seen, often killed on sight, or occasionally captured and taken home as pets. on most inhabited islands where iguanas are found, encounters are such unusual occurrences that people will long remember the incident and its location, although not necessarily the year. eighty-year-old men will tell a story about an unlikely incident with a vokai or saumuri (iguana), but after many bowls of kava (the popular and slightly analgesic pacific drink) may admit it actually happened to their father or grandfather. the fact that occasional sightings of iguanas still occur on many islands is reassuring. both species of brachylophus are arboreal and superbly camouflaged. as fijians rarely venture into the forest at night (by far the best time to find iguanas), the rarity of encounters is not surprising. arthur loveridge’s (1945; see introduction) suggestion that banded iguanas were rare and heading toward extinction in 1945 has seemingly not yet occurred. whether the occasional sightings of brachylophus today are indicative of low but stable population densities or represent populations that are slowly declining towards extinction is an unanswered question. if the latter is true, then the long-term conservation of fijian iguanas will ultimately depend on having several well-protected populations of each species on small, uninhabited islands free of introduced predators and goats. international conservation fund for the fijian crested iguana (icffci) (www.icffci.com) the fijian crested iguana is listed by the iucn as critically endangered (iucn 2003). because recent surveys have confirmed that only one viable population of this species remains, international support is necessary to maintain the crested iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba. yadua taba was declared fiji’s first wildlife reserve in 1980, but legal protection for the island was not assured until recently, when a 33-year lease was signed with the traditional owners. a pair of crested iguanas on yadua taba island sleeping in a diospyros phlebodes tree, a favorite food species. icffci was established in 1999 by a memorandum of agreement between the government department in charge of protection and conservation of fiji’s natural resources, the national trust of the fiji islands, and the two recognized centers for the captive breeding of the fijian crested iguana (kula eco park in sigatoka, fiji, and taronga zoo in sydney, australia). the urgent need for this international conservation fund was perceived and its creation accomplished primarily by carol bach (taronga zoo) and philip felsted (kula eco park). the objectives of the fund are to: develop through education and public awareness programs a better understanding and appreciation of the fijian crested iguana and its habitat; assist in the conservation of existing wild fijian crested iguana populations and their natural habitat; and create, manage, fund, and maintain one or more new crested iguana sanctuaries in the republic of fiji. in the five years since its creation, icffci has organized and funded two major projects. an endangered species education program in fiji featured the crested iguana and was delivered in areas where critical habitat exists. all parties to the agreement developed programs directed at school children and successfully brought the crested iguana conservation message to many people via television, radio, magazine, and newspaper coverage within and outside fiji. probably the most important result was the awareness that this program created among government officials in fiji, who became instrumental in negotiating and funding the lease for yadua taba, despite politically difficult times. because the proceeds of the lease for yadua taba do not benefit the nearby villagers on yadua (who are not the traditional owners), a goodwill payment was made to the village school. a series of gifts to the village recognized the important role it plays in supporting the sanctuary. since 2001, the yadua school children have had an annual educational fieldtrip to the yadua taba crested iguana sanctuary with a guided tour by the ranger. for many of these children, this was their first visit to the sanctuary island and their first view of a crested iguana, despite the fact that the village is only four kilometers away. conservation efforts continue to concentrate on the needs of the crested iguana sanctuary on yadua taba. the sanctuary ranger, pita biciloa, fiji’s only wildlife ranger, visited sydney in november 2000 for a two-week training program with local national parks and wildlife service staff and vegetation regeneration specialists. in a joint funding arrangement with the national trust of fiji islands, the fund paid for half of a new 28foot sanctuary patrol boat and outboard motor. funding for these projects came from a variety of sources. special recognition should go to the major sponsors, bradley trevor greive and the taronga foundation, john binns, yamaha motors of australia, randombase consulting, and the australian society of zoo keepers. the sale of crested iguana t-shirts, individual cash donations, and public donations of equipment and supplies all helped significantly. the immense time and effort contributed by volunteers and the staff of the parties to this agreement are priceless. much more work needs to be done to guarantee the future of the spectacular and unique fijian crested iguana, including the establishment of additional sanctuaries. the web page at www.icffci.com will contain further information and updates. acknowledgments i thank the people of denimanu village on yadua for their support, friendship, and assistance during my visits, especially pita biciloa and his family. philip felsted and the staff at kula eco park in sigatoka provided me with unlimited support and encouragement during my trips to fiji, while carol bach, elizabeth erasito, viane amato, jone niukula, and all the staff at the national trust of the fiji islands were invaluable in their support. the bp conservation programme provided funding for the september 2000 crested iguana surveys of the yasawa and mamanuca islands. this paper is dedicated to john gibbons and ivy watkins, in recognition of their passion for fiji and its wildlife, especially the fijian iguanas. references arnett, j. r. 1979. breeding the fiji banded iguana brachylophus fasciatus at knoxville zoo. international zoological yearbook 19:78–79. bach, c. 1998. egg data study of fijian crested iguana, brachylophus vitiensis. thylacinus 22:12–13. bauer, a. m. 1988. a geological basis for some herpetofaunal disjunctions in the southwest pacific, with special reference to vanuatu. herpetological journal 1:259–263. 204 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 harlow the author on yadua taba with crested iguanas bagged for fecal collection as part of a dietary study. photograph by pita biciloa. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 205fijian iguanas boylan, t. 1989. reproduction of the fijian crested iguana, brachylophus vitiensis, at taronga zoo. international zoological yearbook. 28:126–130. brongniart, a. 1800. essai d’une classification naturelle des reptiles. bulletin de la société philomathique 2:89–91. cahill, c. 1970. the banded iguana of fiji. fiji museum educational series, fiji museum, suva. chase, c. g. 1971. tectonic history of the fiji plateau. geological society of america bulletin 82:3087–3110. cogger, h. g. 1974. voyage of the banded iguana. australian natural history 18:144–149. cogger, h. g. and r. a. sadlier. 1986. population size and structure in the fijian crested iguana, pp. 507–512. in: z. rocek (ed.), studies in herpetology, prague. colgan, d. j. and p. da costa. 1997. genetic discrimination between the iguanas brachylophus vitiensis and brachylophus fasciatus. journal of herpetology 31:589–591. estes, r. and l. i. price. 1973. iguanid lizard from the upper cretaceous of brazil. science 180:748–751. etheridge, r. and k. de queiroz. 1988. a phylogeny of iguanidae, pp. 283–367. in: r. estes and g. k. pregill (eds.), phylogenetic relationships of the lizard families. stanford university press, stanford, california. frost, d. r. and r. etheridge. 1989. a phylogenetic analysis and taxonomy of iguanian lizards (reptilia: squamata). miscellaneous publications of the museum of natural history, university of kansas (81):1–65. gao, k. and l. hou. 1995. iguanians from the upper cretaceous djadochta formation, gobi desert, china. journal of vertebrate paleontology 15:57–78. gibbons, j. r. h. 1981. the biogeography of brachylophus (iguanidae), including the description of a new species, b. vitiensis, from fiji. journal of herpetology 15:255–273. gibbons, j. r. h. 1984a. iguanas of the south pacific. oryx 18:82–91. gibbons, j. r. h. 1984b. discovery of a brand-new millionyear-old iguana. animal kingdom 87:23–30. gibbons, j. r. h. 1985a. the biogeography and evolution of pacific island reptiles and amphibians, pp. 125–143. in: g. grigg, r. shine, and h. ehmann (eds.), biology of australasian frogs and reptiles. surrey beatty and sons, sydney, australia. gibbons, j. r. h. 1985b. on the trail of the crested iguana. animal kingdom 6:40–45. gibbons, j. r. h. and i. f. watkins. 1982. behavior, ecology, and conservation of south pacific iguanas, brachylophus, including a newly discovered species, pp. 419–441. in: g. m. burghardt and a. s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. william andrew publishing, noyes, new jersey. harlow, p. s. 2003. searching for banded iguanas in the lau islands, eastern fiji. iguana (journal of the international iguana society) 10:103–107. harlow, p. s. and p. n. biciloa. 2001. abundance of the fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis) on two islands. biological conservation 98:223–231. iucn. 2003. red list of threatened animals. world conservation monitoring centre, cambridge, united kingdom. laurie, w. a., h. uryu, and d. watling. 1987. a faunal survey of yaduataba island reserve with particular reference to the crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis gibbons 1981). domodomo 5:16–28. loveridge, a. 1945. reptiles of the pacific world. the macmillan company, new york. molnar, r. e., t. h. worthy, and p. m. a. willis. 2002. an extinct endemic crocodilian from fiji. journal of vertebrate paleontology 22:612–628. pernetta, j. c. and d. watling. 1978. the introduced and native terrestrial vertebrates of fiji. pacific science 32:223–244. pregill, g. k. and d. w. steadman. 2004. south pacific iguanas: human impacts and a new species. journal of herpetology 38:15–21. pregill, g. k. and t. h. worthy. 2003. a new iguanid lizard (squamata, iguanidae) from the late quaternary of fiji, southwest pacific. herpetologica 59:57–67. rodda, p. 1994. geology of fiji, pp. 131–151. in: a. j. stevenson, r. h. herzer, and p. f. balance (eds.), geology and submarine resources of the tonga-lau-fiji region. south pacific applied geosciences commission (sopac) technical bulletin, suva, fiji islands. sites, j. w., s. k. davis, t. guerra, j. b. iverson, and h. l. snell. 1996. character congruence and phylogenetic signal in molecular and morphological data sets: a case study in the living iguanas (squamata, iguanidae). molecular biology and evolution 13:1087–1105. williams, t. 1858. in: g. s. rowe (ed.). 1982. fiji and the fijians. vol. 1. the islands and their inhabitants. fiji museum, suva. worthy, t. h., a. j. anderson, and r. e. molnar. 1999. megafaunal expressions in a land without mammals — the first fossil faunas from terrestrial deposits in fiji. senckenbergiana biologica 79:237–242. zug, g. 1991. the lizards of fiji: natural history and systematics. bishop museum bulletin in zoology (2). bishop museum press, honolulu. author biography peter harlow has worked as a researcher on the ecology and biology of a wide range of reptiles, including crocodilians, lizards, snakes, and turtles, for over 20 years. while the majority of this work has been concentrated on australian species, other projects have included the biology of reptiles used in the commercial skin industry in indonesia, the ecology of southern african snakes, and population surveys and conservation biology of pacific iguanas. he completed his ph.d. on the ecology of sex-determining mechanisms in australian agamid lizards, investigating why egg incubation temperatures determine hatchling sex in some agamid species, when other, often closely related species, use genetic sex determination. at present, he is the manager of the herpetofauna division at the taronga zoo in sydney, australia. iguana 11.3 b&w text 154 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 meshaka, bartlett, and smith green iguanas (iguana iguana) have become a common sight in the human-altered habitats of southern florida. photograph by joe wasilewski. a young green iguana from miami, miami-dade county. the southern florida peninsula. illustration by john binns. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 155 if the business of biology is detective work, then answering the following questions is an attractive endeavor: why is the green iguana (iguana iguana) suddenly so ubiquitous in southern florida? what can we expect of it in the future? why? from an academic perspective, the green iguana and its relatives, the spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura spp., see iguana 10:111–118), are the only exclusively herbivorous components of florida’s exotic terrestrial herpetofauna. as a matter of aesthetics, the sight of an adult green iguana is an eyestopper. also, these lizards are popular pets that can grow to large size, are behaviorally complicated, can be docile, and are attractive. not surprisingly, pet trade-related releases and escapes are responsible for the mostly spotty geographic distribution of green iguanas in southern mainland florida and the florida keys. first reported from several sites during the 1960s, breeding populations were not confirmed until sometime later. where are green iguanas now? presently, green iguanas are a largely coastal species in southern florida. they occur somewhat continuously along the coast of colonization success by green iguanas in florida walter e. meshaka, jr.1, richard d. bartlett2, and henry t. smith3 1state museum of pennsylvania, section of zoology and botany, harrisburg, pa 17120-0024 23101 sw 1st way, gainesville, fl 32601 3florida department of environmental protection, florida park service, florida 33455 photographs by richard d. bartlett unless otherwise indicated. green iguanas in florida � an adult green iguana basking on a palm with the miami suburbs in the background. photograph by joe wasilewski. 156 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 palm beach, broward, and miami-dade counties and on key largo in monroe county. populations also are established on the lower florida keys. to the west, green iguanas are established in parts of collier county and have been reported from lee county. with some regularity, the species is seen in vero beach (indian river county) and tampa bay (hillsborough county). although not part of breeding populations in the much colder interior of florida, an individual was reported from alachua county and another was seen in highlands county. apart from those in southern florida, adults and hatchlings are known to occur in cameron county in southern texas. green iguana populations reach their highest densities along the warm coast, where frost-free conditions prevail through most of palm beach county. almost without exception, these lizards are associated with water, such as bays, canals, ponds, and ditches — and they are especially attracted to areas with trees that extend over water and where tender edible vegetation is abundant. population densities can be high. for example, annual reports from the florida department of environmental protection revealed that, at cape florida in miami-dade county, an astonishing 397 individuals were removed during the five-year period 1 july 1998–30 june 2003 (0, 0, 1, 12, and 384, respectively). during this same period, 27 individuals (5, 0, 0, 18, and 4, respectively) were removed from hugh taylor birch state park in broward county. at oleta river state park in north miami (miami-dade county), park service specialist laura l. kruger began seeing iguanas within a few years of her arrival at the park in 1998 and meshaka, bartlett, and smith an adult male green iguana at crandon park, miami-dade county. an adult green iguana basking at the kampong, miami-dade county. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 157green iguanas in florida has noticed a sizeable increase in population numbers. in the past three years, she has personally captured 16 individuals. she usually sees lizards in areas surrounded by saltwater habitat and in the park’s mangrove stands. at fairchild tropical garden, also in miami-dade county, population densities are such that skip snow, national park service, has indicated that the hibiscus garden can no longer be maintained. although not sampled in similar fashion, these examples and our own combined observations at these sites and at others over time corroborate the notion of sharply increasing iguana population sizes at the few sites where anyone is monitoring the situation. temporal and spatial colonization patterns why have green iguanas so suddenly become ubiquitous in an otherwise unremarkable florida range? efforts to separate the phenomena of increased interest in finding the species and increased dispersal rates (natural or otherwise) complicate the matter of dating newer populations. acquiring a full accounting of which colonies are actually new and which were simply overlooked for some period verges on the impossible. if one examines the literature concerning this species in florida, verifiable populations tend to be found far more frequently in a few southernmost counties than in new counties. with the exception of palm beach county, much of what green iguanas appear to be doing is filling gaps in their current distribution. what can be said with certainty, however, is that population growth in previously known sites dramatically increases the opportunities for natural dispersal, especially along the seemingly innumerable waterways that crisscross the state. why, however, do increases in population sizes continue and how can one explain the sudden and seemingly endless supply of green iguanas from sites that had never supported large numbers during the 10 or so years during which we have been conducting searches? more directly and ironically, how has this species become so numerous that these former discards from the pet trade are now collected from south-florida populations for sale by pet dealers? the answers to these questions potentially can serve to predict the nature of future trends. green iguanas, like many other colonizing species, often occupy a few localized sites for very long periods while slowly building up population sizes or until conditions are ripe for an explosion of numbers, with the latter scenario ranging from nearly instantaneous to a period of many years. why populations persist initially requires a favorable combination of characteristics, all of which are present in southern florida (in no particular order): (1) amenable climate exists. (2) disturbances in association with water are common in florida, occur in many forms, and are often accompanied by prolific growth of ornamental or native edible foliage. perhaps these habitat characteristics mimic the secondary growth along rivers so favored by green iguanas in native ranges throughout the neotropics? (3) competitors for food, except other green iguanas, are largely absent. (4) adults are safe from most predators, and potential predators of hatchlings and juveniles are uncommon in human-disturbed situations. (5) green iguanas an adult green iguana very comfortable in brush in broward county. are either protected by humans who like them or are hard to detect by residents who do not. (6) these lizards can persist for long periods until conditions are favorable for recruitment; although attaining maturity may take three to four years, females then can produce large clutches for many years. to illustrate the resilience of iguanas, in 1999, one of us received an adult female that had been collected in downtown austin, texas. according to the collector, she had been living for at least three years in a burrow (possibly of her own construction) in an extensive area of rubble from a demolished building and highway construction. low, weedy shrubs of unknown species grew thickly around the perimeter. on many occasions, this iguana had been seen eating foliage and blossoms from the shrubs. when crews began removing the rubble, they decided to catch the iguana. except for having her elongated vertebral scales worn completely off, this 3-foot long iguana was in excellent condition and acclimated immediately to captive conditions. today, five years after being captured, her vertebral scales have regrown only moderately. back to florida, on virginia key, biscayne key, cutler bay, and in hugh taylor birch state park, green iguanas were not nearly as abundant before hurricane andrew in 1992. with the exception of hugh taylor birch, they had been present for many years at these sites — but in no appreciable numbers. within a decade subsequent to hurricane andrew, the green iguana bucket, so to speak, began to overflow. common to these sites (with the exception of hugh taylor birch) was aggressive replanting with a smorgasbord of plants, shrubs, and trees bearing edible and apparently delectable parts. abundant resources in a rich habitat resulted in successful reproduction and a large crop of now 8+ year old adult females that are in turn producing large numbers of hatchlings each year. this surplus is now large enough to disperse actively to previously vacant areas that also were heavily planted after the storm. however startling the population densities, as both herbivores and ectotherms (which require far less energy for maintenance and reproduction than endothermic birds or mammals), large body size is no barrier to 158 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 meshaka, bartlett, and smith a young green iguana from miami, miami-dade county. a sick green iguana on a lawn in miami, miami-dade county. although no cause is known for the condition of this individual, feral iguanas may be vulnerable to toxins used to control pests or weeds. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 159green iguanas in florida enormous population densities, despite what might superficially seem like a mediocre food supply. further accelerating geographic expansion attributable to explosions in population sizes is the ever-increasing potential for pet escapes or releases. within the past decade, farming of iguanas for import into this country from several latin american countries, especially colombia and belize, has reached levels such that tens of thousands of baby green iguanas are introduced via the pet trade each year — and continuously rather than seasonally as in the past. this has resulted in close to single-digit retail prices. with this explosion in availability has come a concurrent spike in orphan iguanas, enhancing opportunities for escapes or deliberate releases of unwanted pets that have become too large, too aggressive, or too sick to keep. the test so, green iguanas are thriving in their disturbed southern florida range. yet, the exception tests the rule. everglades national park, a large expanse of relatively natural wetland and upland communities, provides the test. the park also was damaged by hurricane andrew, but was then left to revegetate on its own. since 1970, the park has reported only 20 sightings of green iguanas, with observations occurring in 1970–1977 (n = 11) and again in 1995–2004 (n = 9). reports occurred on or very near heavily traversed trails, along canals, or in campgrounds. in all cases, animals were near or very near water. mean estimated total length of these individuals was 94.3 ± 19.4 cm (61.0–121.9 cm, n = 16), with size estimates not available in four instances. could the second wave of reports corroborate the notion of a human-mediated boom in the green iguana population after hurricane andrew, now spilling into the park? of the nine reports during 1995–2004, all but two came from the north end of the park or in association with adjoining canals. the exceptions were a single individual found along the road just north of the west lake boat ramp and boardwalk and a single individual found in the flamingo campground; both likely locations for vehicle-related dispersal from other locations. reasons for the first pulse of sightings in the 1970s and the subsequent hiatus in the 1980s are unknown, but the opportunity for green iguanas to disperse into the park appears to have increased since the nearly 20 year hiatus in sightings. this phenomenon is most easily explained by connections to the park via canals that pass through florida city and homestead, both of which most certainly sustain populations, and by the post-hurricane andrew boom in quality habitat. yet, despite the increased opportunities for dispersal into the park, both pulses of sightings represent failed colonization attempts with no evidence of successful reproduction. we suggest that the reason for this failure is because the park is, in many ways, what urban and suburban southern florida is not — namely natural habitat occupied by a suite of well-adapted native predators and potential competitors. in sharp contrast to the nearly ideal conditions experienced by green iguanas in the developed areas of miami-dade county, the park has an abundance of predators (including the american crocodile, a known predator of iguanas), a dearth of suitable fully-insolated nesting sites in areas of open-canopy and welldrained soils, and a food supply that is less than ideal for iguanas, which prefer the more palatable ornamentals so beloved by south floridians. as long as human intervention with the park’s watershed does not alter any of these three factors in any substantive south floridians often encounter feral green iguanas basking in open areas. photograph by joe wasilewski. an accumulation curve of sightings of green iguanas in everglades national park from 1970–2004. 160 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 meshaka, bartlett, and smith geographic distribution of green iguanas (iguana iguana) in florida. only those counties with established colonies are indicated; highlands and alachua counties are not shaded because those records appear to represent waifs. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 161green iguanas in florida fashion, the southern everglades should continue to resist colonization by iguanas. the future? urban and suburban areas of southern florida effectively provide a glimpse of the not-too-distant future, when continued growth of the human population and the inevitable alterations of the few remaining natural areas will assure that green iguanas will mimic the exceedingly successful brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus), which has already become an ubiquitous inhabitant of waterside properties, but is held in check solely by penetrating frosts in regions to the north. for green iguanas, this translates into a secure coastal existence north to martin county along the eastern coast and to near sarasota, sarasota county, on the west. why? because human-mediated changes will increase opportunities for lizards to disperse, the number of wayward pets will increase. also, the climate is largely amenable and further habitat modifications to their liking are likely. iguanas are innately highly fecund, and, with few exceptions, human attitudes regarding their presence range largely from indifference to enjoyment. only in the ever-shrinking natural areas of the state does the green iguana seem ill-suited. as for every other of the 40 exotic species of amphibians and reptiles that are successfully reproducing in florida, humans are the cause of the green iguana’s very existence in florida and their subsequent success. the evident prosperity of this large herbivore effectively underscores the huge role humans can, even if inadvertently, play in the good life enjoyed by so many exotic species in the hospitable climes of southern florida. references bartlett, r.d. 1980. non-native reptiles and amphibians in florida. indigo, news bulletin of the florida herpetological society 1:52–54. bradley, j.t. 1977. freeze probabilities in florida. bulletin 777. institute of food and agricultural sciences, university of florida, gainesville. greene, h.w., g.m. burghardt, b.a. dugan, and a.s. rand. 1978. predation and the defensive behavior of green iguanas (reptilia, lacertilia, iguanidae). journal of herpetology 12:169–176. king, f.w. and t. krakauer. 1966. the exotic herpetofauna of southeast florida. quarterly journal of the florida academy of sciences 29:144–154. meshaka, w.e., jr., b.p. butterfield, and j.b. hauge. 2004. the exotic amphibians and reptiles of florida. krieger publ. co. malabar, florida. wilson, l.d. and l. porras. 1983. the ecological impact of man on the south florida herpetofauna. university of kansas museum of natural history, special publication (9):1–89. green iguanas using arboreal perches may be difficult to see, explaining why few area citizens are aware of their growing numbers, especially in urban and suburban yards and parks. photograph by joe wasilewski. iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) i had not spoken with henry fitch in quite some time, and not since his wife, virginia, had passed away in december 2002 — but bob powell had requested that we do something for iguana, and i wanted to say “hello” and to see if he was interested in collaborating on something for that publication. i called in the morning. henry answered the phone right away and actually sounded pleased to hear from me. we reminisced briefly, and the subsequent conversation went something like this: rwh: you’re 92 now, right? hsf (chuckling): no, 93. rwh: so, how’re you feeling? hsf: i’m pretty crippled-up and don’t get around much. rwh: sorry to hear that. i guess you’re not getting into the field then? hsf: well, i’m just starting a radio telemetry project with timber rattlesnakes. we put the transmitters in the snakes this morning. rwh: (silent incredulity). and that pretty much tells you what henry fitch is all about. ——— when i first arrived at the university of kansas as an incredibly naive undergraduate in 1967, i didn’t know henry fitch existed, much less that he was doing exactly the kind of research i dreamed of doing myself. the attraction for me at kansas was bill duellman and his amazingly active program of herpetology in the american tropics. but now i had access to a remarkable library (duellman’s), and i somehow found some of p r o f i l e 86 iguana volume 10, number 3 henry s. fitch: a legendary passion for natural history robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum, milwaukee, wisconsin henry fitch with a boa constrictor in chiapas, mexico (february, 1972). photograph by r.w. henderson. fitch’s publications. it was a real epiphany to realize that someone was doing (and had been doing for many years) exactly what i wanted to do. i devoured his classic autecology of the copperhead (not knowing what “autecology” meant when i started to read it) and anything else snake-related. dr. fitch had been on sabbatical with his family in costa rica, and he returned to kansas in the fall of 1968. i enrolled in his vertebrate natural history course and, although i don’t recall the details, i’m sure i forced myself upon him very early on. i became a frequent visitor to the natural history reservation that now bears his name, often arriving unannounced on a weekend afternoon when he was trying to relax and spend time with his family. often he allowed me to make runs, either with him or on my own, to check the tins under which congregated handfulls of diadophis punctatus (ringneck snakes). i think he quickly realized that what i lacked in iq points i easily compensated for in enthusiasm. he encouraged me to initiate research as an undergrad, and eventually became my advisor when i entered graduate school at kansas. while still at kansas, and long after i had moved on to the milwaukee public museum, we spent time in the field. we worked on anolis in mexico, great corn island off the coast of nicaragua, and the dominican republic, and on iguana (ctenosaura and iguana) ecology, behavior, and conservation in belize and nicaragua. we described new species of anoles, presented details on the social behavior of anoles and iguanids, and documented the exploitation of iguanas in central america (see article on p. 63). cumulatively, we’ve spent months together in the field. one of my most vivid memories was spending six weeks traveling in southern mexico in his truck and camper. every dinner for those six weeks consisted of boiled potatoes and fried spam. i still like spam, but i cannot stomach a boiled potato. while in mexico, we ate cold cereal with powdered milk for breakfast each morning. one morning we were out of milk and i suggested we have sandwiches. dr. fitch looked incredulous and replied: “for breakfast?” he opted to have his cereal with plain water and admitted that it wasn’t very good. henry is a creature of habit. long before i knew him, henry fitch was already a living legend. his long-term field studies of snake populations at the university of kansas field station are data-rich and amazingly thorough. he brought mark and recapture studies of snakes into the forefront of herpetology, and he was a true pioneer in the use of radio-telemetry to study movement ecology and habitat use by a variety of snake species. in 1999, he published his landmark book, a kansas snake community: composition and changes over 50 years (krieger publ. co.). 87iguanaseptember 2003 henry fitch and bob henderson measuring a haitian boa (epicrates striatus) at paraiso, barahona, dominican republic (march 1985). photographs by n.e. kraucunas. the likelihood of another researcher being in a professional situation to conduct a similar study, much less to have the drive, enthusiasm, and good health to do it, are virtually nil. it wasn’t until 1965 at the age of 55 that dr. fitch finally made it to the tropics. once there, however, tropical fieldwork became his passion. he eventually spent a solid year in costa rica with his family in order to study the population ecology of a wide variety of lizards. after that, any year (especially during the long kansas winters) that did not include at least one trip to somewhere (anywhere!) in central or south america or the west indies was considered disappointing. he was especially interested in anolis ecology and behavior, and has published on a wide range of topics related to their biology, including taxonomy, behavior, and ecology. in 1976, we were awarded a small grant to study iguana exploitation in central america. we worked together in nicaragua for about six weeks before i returned to the u.s. at about 65 years of age, when other folks are thinking about retirement and taking it easy, henry set-off on his own to visit markets all over central america in order to document the extent of exploitation of ctenosaura similis and iguana iguana. by interviewing vendors and hunters, he was able to map a network of iguana black marketeers, with truckloads of the lizards going across borders from one country to another. the next year, we spent several weeks in the belize city cemetery watching the interactions of a healthy population of c. similis (known locally as wish-willies) using tombstones for basking sites, look-outs for territorial males, and for retreats. during all of the time i spent with the man, whether on the natural history reservation in kansas or somewhere in the tropics, i never saw his enthusiasm wane. he was always ready for a new adventure, to collect the next lizard, or record more data. although i’m 35 years younger than henry, i would welcome an occasional break in the day to put my feet up and have a cold drink. dr. fitch could do that too, but only for about 11 minutes. then it was: “bob. let’s go to such and such a place and see what we can find. it’s the locality for such and such a critter.” — and, of course i would go because i knew that if i didn’t i was going to miss seeing something worthwhile and an opportunity to learn something from someone who has forgotten more about lizards and snakes than i’ll ever know. i’m proud to have been henry fitch’s student and frequent collaborator, and i can’t tell you how much it pleases me that a 93-year-old man who (supposedly) can barely get around is excited about initiating a new project with timber rattlesnakes. decades after it no longer mattered to his professional “status,” dr. fitch has continued to conduct natural history studies in kansas and the american tropics and to publish in scientific journals. he continues to do it because his desire to add to our knowledge of squamate ecology has never waned. his life is testimony to passion and doing what you can to satisfy that passion. 88 iguana volume 10, number 3 henry fitch weighing a ctenosaura similis in nicaragua (february 1976). photograph by r.w. henderson. iguana 10.4 b&w text i.i.s. board of directors joseph wasilewski, president homestead, fl joseph burgess, vice-president jacksonville, fl a.c. echternacht, ph.d., treasurer university of tennesee, knoxville, tn aj gutman, executive secretary and associate editor of iguana west harford, ct john & sandy binns, directors, associate editors of iguana and internet operations international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca gunther köhler, ph.d. and elke köhler, directors forschungsinstitut und naturmuseum senckenberg & herpeton, frankfurt, germany robert powell, ph.d., director and editor of iguana avila university, kansas city, mo i.i.s. editorial/advisory board allison c. alberts, ph.d. iucn/ssc iguana specialist group and zoological society of san diego, san diego, ca john bendon, illustrator for iguana bath, england gordon m. burghardt, ph.d. university of tennessee, knoxville, tn frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program, grand cayman, cayman islands jorge ferrari organización de rescate y protección de reptiles y anfibios, tegucigalpa, honduras matthias goetz, dipl.-biol. durrell wildlife conservation trust, jersey, british isles alexander gutsche, dipl.-biol. humboldt universität, berlin, germany richard hudson international iguana foundation and fort worth zoo, fort worth, tx john b. iverson, ph.d. earlham college, richmond, in chuck knapp university of florida, gainesville, fl michael ripca, managing editor of iguana leaping lizards graphic design, atco, nj thomas wiewandt, ph.d. wild horizons, tucson, az founder robert w. ehrig big pine key, fl statement of purpose the international iguana society, inc. is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to preserving the biological diversity of iguanas. we believe that the best way to protect iguanas and other native plants and animals is to preserve natural habitats and to encourage development of sustainable economies compatible with the maintenance of biodiversity. to this end, we will: (1) engage in active conservation, initiating, assisting, and funding conservation efforts in cooperation with u.s. and international governmental and private agencies; (2) promote educational efforts related to the preservation of biodiversity; (3) build connections between individuals and the academic, zoo, and conservation communities, providing conduits for education and for involving the general public in efforts to preserve endangered species; and (4) encourage the dissemination and exchange of information on the ecology, population biology, behavior, captive husbandry, taxonomy, and evolution of iguanas. membership information iguana, the journal of the international iguana society, is distributed quarterly to members and member organizations. annual dues: individual u.s. and canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual foreign membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 u.s. and canadian organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 foreign organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $45.00 (*receives double copies of iguana) additional copies are available at a cost of $6.00 including postage. join on-line at: www.iguanasociety.org membership questions? call aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 solicitations members of the i.i.s. are encouraged to contribute articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of iguana biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to ctenosaura@cyclura.com). for any contribution, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. authors of one page or more of print are entitled to five copies of the issue in which their article appears. advertising policy of iguana we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). all products have been examined and been found to be high quality and fairly priced. contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sandy@cyclura.com or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2003 by the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international iguana society. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editors’ remarks conservation of iguanas and their habitats is the principal component of the iis statement of purpose (printed in full just below this note). that also has been a recurring theme in every issue of the iguana times and will continue to be the predominant message in iguana. however, conservation is not merely something about which to write and read. conservation requires action in the form of education, financial support, and sometimes even getting one’s hands dirty. the iis is actively engaged in all of those endeavors. in the past few months, representatives of the society have carried an educational message from coast to coast: from jacksonville, florida to seattle, washington and east palo alto, california (see newsbriefs in this and the previous issue of iguana). the society has provided financial assistance to aid in developing a captive breeding program for jamaican iguanas at the hope zoo in kingston (see newsbriefs). we are monitoring and working closely with conservation agencies and organizations concerned with iguanas. most recently, iis representatives participated in the iucn/ssc iguana specialist group (isg) meeting in the turks and caicos islands, which included a conservation & management workshop for cyclura carinata (a full report will be featured in the march issue of iguana). and iis members prove again and again that they’re willing to dirty their hands for worthy causes; see, for example, the newsbriefs and the letter from the president. although every individual involved pays his or her own way or is supported by their home institution, the iis message they spread is possible only through the support of the society’s members. even if you have never stood in front of an audience and talked about iguanas, written a check to support an iguana conservation program, or traveled to the tropics to study or monitor a population of iguanas, you are a vital link in these efforts. bob powell, aj gutman, and john binns iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) a dult m ale spiny-tailed iguana (c tenosaura sim ilis) from u tila, bay islands, h onduras (stories on pp. 63 & 79). photograph by john binns. iguana 11.3 b&w text iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 167 the neotropical treeboa genus corallus is currently comprised of six species with mainland distributions from guatemala to southeastern brazil, including insular populations off brazil, venezuela, and panama. two additional species occur in the west indies on the st. vincent and grenada banks. the two largest of the eight species are the emerald treeboa (corallus caninus) and the mangrove (or caribbean coastal) treeboa (corallus ruschenbergerii). corallus caninus has a broad distribution in the amazon basin and the guianas. corallus ruschenbergerii has a more limited range from southern costa rica, through panama, and into northern colombia, northern venezuela (including isla margarita), and trinidad and tobago. these snakes probably do not occur sympatrically (or syntopically) with c. caninus. this species is probably the longest of the treeboas with a total length reaching or surpassing 2.5 m. corallus ruschenbergerii exhibits a wide range of dorsal coloration, including dingy yellow, subdued shades of red, gray, and a variety of shades of brown. the dorsal pattern usually is composed of rhomboidal shapes, although this pattern is not always discernible. mangrove treeboas are nocturnal and forage in trees and bushes. the boas forage actively by moving slowly through the vegetation with frequent tongue-flicks on leaf and branch surfaces, or they use a sit-and-wait (= ambush) strategy, wherein they assume a head-down posture and wait for prey to come to them. younger (smaller) snakes use the active foraging mode and older (larger) individuals exhibit the ambush strategy. this coincides with an ontogenetic shift in diet from predominantly birds in smaller boas to one primarily of rodents (murids, including introduced mus and rattus) in large snakes. bats are consumed occasionally, and c. ruschenbergerii from costa rica and panama are known to eat basilisk lizards (basiliscus spp.). although the mangrove treeboa lives up to its common name and occurs in mangrove habitat in every country throughout its geographic range, it also lives in a variety of other habitats, including rainforest, gallery forest, and deciduous forest. it often is associated with water, and is particularly abundant along the shores of lakes, rivers, reservoirs, and marine coastal situations (caribbean sea). like other members of the corallus hortulanus complex (c. cookii, c. grenadensis, and c. hortulanus), all of which are typically inhabitants of edge habitat, mangrove treeboas are frequently encountered in highly disturbed situations such as road cuts and even around (and occasionally in) people’s homes. reference henderson, r.w. 2002. neotropical treeboas: natural history of the corallus hortulanus complex. krieger publ. co., malabar, fl. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e the mangrove treeboa (corallus ruschenbergerii) robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum a mangrove treeboa (corallus ruschenbergerii). photograph by richard a. sajdak. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 167species profile iguana 11.4 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 189table of contents special iguana conservation issue table of contents f e a t u r e s conservation of galápagos marine iguanas (amblyrhynchus cristatus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . martin wikelski and karin nelson 190 lost in the south pacific: the fijian iguanas (genus brachylophus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . peter s. harlow 198 conservation status of spiny-tailed iguanas (genus ctenosaura), with special emphasis on the utila iguana (c. bakeri) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . gunther köhler 206 conservation strategies for west indian rock iguanas (genus cyclura): current efforts and future directions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . allison c. alberts 212 status of the jamaican iguana (cyclura collei): assessing 15 years of conservation effort . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . byron s. wilson, orlando f. robinson, and peter vogel 224 battling extinction: a view forward for the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) . . . . . . . . . . . frederic j. burton 232 conservation of iguanas (iguana delicatissima and i. iguana) in the lesser antilles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 238 h u s b a n d r y reptile quarantine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . tim reichard 247 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s observation on habits of the cuban iguana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . mario s. buide 250 notes on the cuban iguana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jerry d. hardy, jr. 251 iguana newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .252 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .255 letter from the president . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .256 “jessica,” a grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) seeking shelter from the peak midday heat in a clay drain pipe provided as a retreat at the captive breeding facility at queen elizabeth ii botanic park. photograph by john binns. iguana 11.3 b&w text 138 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 fogarty, zero, powell sint eustatius, showing localities mentioned in the text. illustration by john binns (modified from an original by john s. parmerlee, jr.). although some females were quite large, they usually retained some green color along their lower sides. photograph by robert powell. adult female in a private garden on the lower leeward slope of the quill. iguanas were abundant in this area, with each lushly planted plot supporting at least 1–3 individuals. animals were not bothered by the sharp-edged leaves of the “razor plant.” photograph by robert powell. the lesser antillean iguana, iguana delicatissima, is in trouble. the species is listed in cites appendix i and as “vulnerable” in the most current iucn redlist. as for all island species, especially those on small islands, populations are at constant risk of extirpation. islands of the lesser antilles, although they can provide suitable habitat, are less than ideal for a large animal on the brink of extinction. most islands are small, which inevitably leads to small population sizes and an increased risk of extirpation due to natural or human-mediated, stochastic or nonrandom events. human population growth with accompanying habitat destruction and alteration, introduction of alien predators and competitors, and ongoing hunting pressure all contribute to the iguana’s plight. the species’ original range, from martinique in the south to anguilla in the north, is shrinking. populations have been extirpated on barbuda, saint kitts, nevis, antigua, les îles des saintes, marie galante, and st.-martin/st. maarten. michel breuil recently listed the populations on dominica, îles de la petite terre, and la désirade as vulnerable; those on basse-terre, îlet chancel (martinique), and st.-barthélemy as endangered; and those on antigua, anguilla, barbuda, île fourchue and satelrevisiting st. eustatius: estimating the population size of lesser antillean iguanas, iguana delicatissima sean p. fogarty department of biology, harvey mudd college, claremont, california victoria h. zero department of biology, reed college, portland, oregon robert powell department of biology, avila university, kansas city, missouri iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 139revisiting st. eustatius � iguanas basking or resting in trees blended in well and were often difficult to see. although large adults are relatively immune from predation, juveniles may be taken by large snakes (alsophis rufiventris) or birds-of-prey, such as red-tailed hawks (buteo jamaicensis) or american kestrels (falco sparvarius). photograph by john s. parmerlee, jr. view of statia from boven hill: the rugged northern hills are in the foreground, a portion of the cultuurvlakte, the central plain, is visible, and the quill is in the background. photograph by sean p. fogarty. 140 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 fogarty, zero, powell an adult male in the northern hills, where iguanas were locally abundant, especially along forested ridges and in densely vegetated guts in this relatively xeric area. photograph by sean p. fogarty. an adult female regularly spent the night in this tamarind tree. here she awaits the early morning sun. tamarind leaves were commonly eaten. photograph by robert powell. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 141revisiting st. eustatius lites (st.-barthélemy), grande-terre, martinique, st.-martin, and st. eustatius as critically endangered — and those on antigua, barbuda, and st.-martin/st. maarten have already disappeared. sint eustatius, commonly known as statia, is the northernmost island on the st. christopher (st. kitts) bank, which also includes st. kitts and nevis. within its 19.9 km2 live 2900 people and about 8000 goats. the most noticeable feature of the statian landscape is the quill, a 600-m tall dormant volcano in the southeastern corner of the egg-shaped island. the northern hills lie in the smaller end of the “egg” at the northwestern corner of the island. although not especially tall, with boven hill rising the highest at 289 m, these hills are characterized by steep slopes and deep guts (gullies). between the quill and the northern hills lies the cultuurvlakte, the island’s central plain. vegetation on the island ranges from extremely dry scrub and woodland in the northern hills to lush evergreen seasonal forest inside the crater of the quill. in 2000, steven reichling published a report stating that fewer than 300 iguanas remained on statia when he visited in november 1999. this followed a 1992 population estimate by mark day and brian leysner stating that approximately 300 animals were on the island. we have no further information regarding the methods used in the latter study. however, the apparent population decline is similar to what has been seen on islands elsewhere in the lesser antilles, where once abundant iguanas have suffered from habitat encroachment, overhunting, competition for food with feral livestock (goats, cattle, and burros), and predation by mongooses, rats, dogs, and cats. in addition, on at least some islands, introduced green iguanas (iguana iguana) compete for habitat and food and, in some instances, have hybridized with native i. delicatissima. the 2004 survey in june 2004, we attempted to update the current status of the species on statia. while a density estimate was not the main objective of our trip, it developed naturally from the behavioral work in which we were already engaged. that research required searching for both wild and human-habituated iguanas over much of the island. most of our work focused on three areas, gilboa hill, the estates on the northwestern slope of the quill, and the cliffs above smoke alley beach. in each of these areas, we saw and recorded most of the iguanas present. we also saw animals on boven hill and on the western slope of the quill. overall, we saw 33–37 different individuals on the island, with about 22 of these in habitats not frequented by humans. we spent 28–30 hours searching in the northern hills and approximately 85 hours looking for snakes on the quill. we also spent approximately four hours looking for animals in landscaped gardens around private residences (numbers of search hours are rough estimates, since most of our time was spent observing rather than searching for iguanas). we estimated relative densities, as reichling did, by calculating the hours searched per iguana seen. we also used the same seven habitat zones described in his paper: quill crater, outer slopes of the quill, foothill scrub around the base of the quill, island estates development, cultuurvlakte (central plain), foothills and guts bordering the northern hills, and the northern hills themselves (boven, gilboa, little mountain, signal). the only time spent in the foothill scrub at the base of the quill and in the foothills and guts bordering the northern hills was in transit to other areas. we saw no iguanas in either area. hours searched per iguana seen in other areas were: northern hills — 1.8 (0.7 on gilboa and 3.3 on boven; reichling 2.75), island estates — 0.2 (reichling 1.8), outer slopes of the quill — 8.3 (this is relatively high, but observers in this area were not looking primarily for iguanas; reichling found none), and cultuurvlakte — 0.4 (all along the cliffs above smoke alley beach; reichling found none). reichling found one iguana per 7.3 search hours in the northern foothills and guts, where we did not search. note that all of our data are in hours searched per individual iguana seen, not per sighting, as multiple sightings of the same individual would have inflated our numbers (when in doubt regarding the identity of a given individual, i.e., whether previously seen or not, we erred on the side of caution). however, our cultuurvlakte and island estates encounter rates are undoubtedly high, since we searched only in areas where we knew that iguanas occurred. our sighting rates were much higher than we had anticipated from the data that reichling had presented. therefore, we believed that an adjusted whole-island population estimate was justified. in order to do this, we used the same habitat zones as before. our observations on gilboa hill were made in what we designated “optimal” and “good” habitats. based on similarities in topography and vegetation, we identified “optimal” and “good” and “other” habitats in the entire northern hills, for which we calculated areas. we then extrapolated from our encounter rates on gilboa hill to the entire northern hills, resulting in a population estimate of 174–404 for that region of the island. during our visits to the grounds of three private residences in the island estates area, we found three iguanas in each. by conservatively estimating that comparable numbers of individuals lived in at least oneto two-thirds of the 63 estates in the area, we estimated that approximately 63–126 animals occur in this area. we had to employ different techniques to estimate the population sizes in other areas, such as the outer slopes of the quill, the smoke alley cliffs, and sites at which locals indicated iguanas were present. we assumed that population densities were lower than in the northern hills because (1) reichling saw no animals on the quill, (2) our encounter rates were relatively low (predicated, at least in part, by the fact that most person-hours on the quill were by observers looking for terrestrial snakes along wellestablished trails, rather than largely arboreal iguanas that may well have been more common in areas far from the trails), and (3) the degraded state of much of the understory vegetation, attributable largely to the ubiquitous feral goats. however, the area is extensive, includes considerable suitable habitat, and the fact that individuals using a very different search image found iguanas collectively suggest that a substantial population exists. based largely on our encounter rates and the proportion of the total area of the slopes surveyed, we estimate that 30–60 iguanas occupy the slopes of the quill. the smoke alley cliffs, above which the king’s well hotel is located, are home to several individuals. at least five to seven animals live on that portion of the slope behind the hotel, in 142 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 fogarty, zero, powell this adult male was foraging for fallen fruit on the smoke alley cliffs. unlike females, large males lose all traces of the green coloration typical of juveniles. photograph by john s. parmerlee, jr. even before exposure to direct sunlight, thermal images revealed that iguanas were considerably warmer than their environment. photograph by john s. parmerlee, jr. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 143revisiting st. eustatius what may be the highest density on the entire island. as many as 14 individuals were known to occur in that limited area until very recently (within the past two years) and evidence of reproduction exists in the form of juveniles observed at several locations as far along the cliffs as the office of the st. eustatius national parks foundation (stenapa) near the harbor. based on actual observations and a crude assessment of habitat quality, a conservative estimate of population size in this area is 10–50 individuals. other areas in which locals indicated that iguanas were present and which had been cited in the literature as good iguana habitat include the english quarter, the nearby foothill scrub habitat, and comparable habitat extending around the quill to the north and east. because we did not search there and the habitat is severely degraded, much of it overgrown with mexican creeper (antigonon sp.), we were uncomfortable counting any iguanas in those areas, although isolated pockets of suitable habitat probably support a few individuals. when we combined all of our population estimates from the areas listed, the worstand best-case scenarios were 275 and 650, respectively. very subjectively evaluating our assessments of the island’s habitats and the current status of threats to the population, we believe that the most likely population size is about 425. because we assumed that no iguanas occupied areas where we were unable to confirm any individuals (notably those portions of the northern hills we did not visit, the quill crater, and the lower slopes of the quill, which include the english quarter), our numbers should be considered highly conservative. that this estimate is nevertheless considerably higher than reichling’s estimate of fewer than 300 animals in 1999 is not surprising. we saw half again as many animals while expending less time and effort. our estimate also exceeds day and leysner’s 1992 estimate of 300 individuals. this is good news, but could it be an illusion? growing population or artifact? the circumstantial evidence suggests that the apparent upturn in the iguana population is real. first, locals in the island estates area indicated to us that the number of sightings of iguanas crossing roads has been growing in recent years. these areas are relatively immune from iguana hunting, because much of the area consists of large, gated properties. also, animals that live on the grounds of protected private residences are undoubtedly reproducing, resulting in the repopulating of the adjacent quill slopes. second, we found animals on the slopes of the quill, where reichling saw none in either 1992 or 1999. third, while he was unable to find animals on the smoke alley cliffs in 1999, they are now relatively abundant. the king’s well hotel, which had been holding and breeding animals at the time, released 14 animals sometime after reichling’s visit. these animals and their offspring seem to be thriving. fourth, when two of us initially went scouting for iguanas in the northern hills, having never seen iguanas in a natural setting, we found three iguanas in the first four hours of searching! this was a far higher density than any of us had expected, especially for inexperienced spotters. finally, two other acclimated to humans, this female responded to the photographer’s presence only after a very close approach. photograph by robert powell. variables strongly suggest support for the higher numbers, the incidence of hurricanes and an apparent decline in hunting pressure. several long-time statian residents independently commented that iguanas become very difficult to find for periods of up to several months after major hurricanes. they attributed this to disruptions of habitats and defoliation of most plants that would usually provide cover and food. the 1992 population estimate was probably not affected by hurricanes, as three years had passed since hugo in 1989. however, hurricanes may have dramatically affected the 1999 estimate. when reichling made his observations in november 1999, josé, a category one hurricane, had passed within 15 nautical miles in october and lenny, a category four, had passed within 29 nautical miles just days earlier. in addition, georges, a category 3 hurricane, had passed within 14 nautical miles of statia the year prior. the combined effects of these hurricanes on the iguana population is difficult to assess, but may well have been responsible for the decline in numbers between 1992 and 1999, and may account, at least in part, for the apparent increase in the numbers of iguanas during the hurricane-free years subsequent to reichling’s visit. iguanas have been a source of food to islanders since amerindians first arrived on statia. even today, some men on the island, particularly non-resident workers from other caribbean islands, apparently believe that eating iguana will enhance their sexual energy. also, nicole esteban, director of stenapa, still receives occasional reports of iguana barbecues. however, based on equally anecdotal evidence, the problem appears to be less pervasive than during the 1990s. at that time, long-term residents reported that they routinely saw kids carrying iguanas to town in an effort to acquire some spending money. whether educational efforts (see below) are paying off, more statians are beginning to understand the value of having iguanas on the island, or merely because the availability of goods is better now, the potential benefits of poaching iguanas seem to be diminishing. ongoing conservation concerns the principal threat to statia’s iguanas remains habitat alteration and degradation. although the human population is not growing rapidly, improvements in infrastructure and any new construction, especially if they impinge on either the northern hills or the slopes of the quill, have the potential to reduce available habitat. of greater concern is the ongoing degradation of natural vegetation attributable to the spread of invasive alien species, most notably the mexican creeper (antigonon sp.), and to the largely unchecked impact of feral herbivores. goats, burros, and even cattle are abundant, and range freely in even the most “natural” areas. aggravating the problem is the fact that goats will eat the creeper only in the absence of other forage (iguanas are presumably just as discriminating). ongoing efforts at the botanical 144 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 fogarty, zero, powell iguanas were locally abundant along the smoke alley cliffs, where at least some individuals were formerly held captive at the king’s well hotel. photograph by robert powell. shaded by the quill and the cliffs, iguanas sleeping in trees often remained in place until the mid-morning sun provided ample heat. photograph by robert powell. garden, situated on the windward eastern slope of the quill, dramatically illustrate the problem. fences exclude goats but not the creeper, and, as the latter grows over the fences, its dense growth provides access to the goats. continually removing the invasives is labor-intensive and unproductive in the long term. unless biological agents can be employed to reduce the incidence of the creeper and the goat population is either contained or dramatically reduced in size, iguanas will survive only in localized pockets extremely vulnerable to exploitation or stochastic events. the quill and the northern hills have been designated parts of statia’s national park system, and consequently are afforded some protection against development, if not against goats and invasive plants. because the promotion of ecotourism to complement excellent offshore diving opportunities is the most likely means of enhancing the nation’s economic growth, reasonable hope exists that current disputes over ownership of the northern hills and the problems created by too many goats will eventually be resolved in favor of nature — and therefore the iguanas, which themselves could serve as a tourist attraction. in the immediate future, we can only hope that the situation does not deteriorate so quickly that more enlightened policies can be instituted and effectively enforced in time. predation by both humans and animals also remains a concern. although mongooses are not present on statia, dogs and cats are abundant. both have been shown to cause declines in iguana populations throughout the west indies. even if pets remain, efforts to control feral predators should be employed. human predation appears to be declining, and ongoing educational efforts, largely by stenapa, should have an increasingly greater impact, as today’s students become involved in developing and implementing policies. although iguana hunting is already illegal and fines have been legislated, enforcement is essentially nonexistent. consequently, a complete cessation of huntiguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 145revisiting st. eustatius goats are abundant and ubiquitous in even the most remote locations, such as this hillside in the northern hills. they have dramatically degraded the natural vegetation and often compete directly with iguanas for food. photograph by sean p. fogarty. this iguana (indicated by the arrow) seems to be seeking protection from the sign that had just been posted on the lower slopes of the smoke alley cliffs. fourteen of these signs were provided to the st. eustatius national parks foundation by the iis. photograph by victoria h. zero. ing activities will depend on widespread public support that should increase, as students, who now benefit from environmental programs in the schools, become actively engaged citizens. problems with guest workers from other islands, many of whom see iguanas only as a resource to be exploited, will continue — but should be more readily addressed if locals cease hunting animals and begin to view them as an economic asset. acknowledgements nicole esteban and the staff, interns, and volunteers at stenapa were immensely helpful during our stay on statia. heather heinz (north carolina state university), trevor joyce (university of alaska southeast), abigail maley (ohio wesleyan university), aaron savit (st. john’s college), and robert henderson (milwaukee public museum) all contributed field observations. fieldwork was funded by grant no. dbi-0242589 awarded by the national science foundation to robert powell. references breuil, m. 2002. histoire naturelle des amphibiens et reptiles terrestres de l’archipel guadeloupéen. guadaloupe, saint-martin, saint-barthélemy. patrimoines naturels 54:1–339. reichling, s. 2000. the status of the lesser antillean iguana on sint eustatius. iguana times (j. intl. iguana soc.) 8(1):3–6. 146 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 fogarty, zero, powell this bright green juvenile basking in a palm tree above the smoke alley cliffs is testament to successful recruitment. photograph by robert powell. although primarily arboreal along the smoke alley cliffs, iguanas were not adverse to crossing open ground, even pausing to bask for short periods. photograph by robert powell. iguana 10.2 49iguanajune 2003 only rarely is a population so thoroughly known that every member is individually recognized and a full census possible. because of this, a variety of statistical methods, some of them extremely sophisticated, are normally employed to estimate population sizes. as with all statistical methods, population estimates have limitations. the amount of available data is one crucial factor: the more, the better. in addition, certain assumptions, some of them unique to one set of estimators or another, apply. unfortunately, studies on critically endangered species tend to run afoul of one or both issues, making reliable population estimates difficult. this is the case with stout iguanas. not only are the populations small, they are unreliable subjects (a captured adult iguana may retreat into its burrow for up to three weeks in response to the stress), hard to spot in the field (the terrain is rough and the animals are cryptically colored), and often not accessible (work on guana normally can be conducted only during the month of october). these limitations render any estimate of population size less reliable than one would like and therefore much less satisfying to a wildlife manager. nonetheless, work with endangered species requires that their population sizes be estimated, so that one can determine if the population is stable, growing, or — in a worst-case scenario — declining. a preliminary estimate, known to be imperfect, is better than none, as long as the limitations of the estimate are kept firmly in mind when management decisions are being made. several attempts to monitor the guana iguana population were made over the years. combined with the evidently growing numbers of hatchlings every year, they suggested that the population was doing well and growing at a steady pace. in october 2002, a more concerted effort was made by marking several individuals with water-based, white, exterior latex paint (which quickly dries and is waterproof) squirted from a two-ounce (60 cc) syringe barrel. marking began on 4 october and continued until 13 october. twenty-three individuals were marked, but on most days some sighted iguanas escaped unmarked. beginning on 15 october, we did six “round-up” counts of marked and unmarked individuals, finishing on 29 october. these provided six population estimates, based on the petersen index: 69, 115, 138, 138, 138, and 207. the numbers are relatively close to one another, suggesting that they probably represent a fairly robust estimate. a calculated mean (134) is probably not too far from the real number. a calculated standard deviation (45 in this case) allows us to say that we are 95% confident that the true population size is between 44 and 224: two standard deviations from the mean in each direction. unfortunately, this method does not meet all of the assumptions of the test, which renders the numbers uncertain. a second method for calculating population sizes was proposed by z.e. schnabel in 1938. using this method, we can add to the six petersen index tallies the data from 4–13 october. this method generates remarkably similar numbers, estimating the population size at 95 individuals and the 95% confidence interval at 58–185. once again, not all of the assumptions are met, but the fact that two very different methods with different assumptions led to similar estimates gives us more confidence that the population size really is about 100 individuals. we arrived on necker island on the afternoon of 14 october 2002 and quickly marked five stout iguanas. the next day before our departure, we saw six iguanas, only one of which was marked. the implication is that one-sixth of the population was marked; so five times six is 30. no statistics can be done on a single estimate, but this observation conforms remarkably well with the opinion of resident naturalist and caretaker, brian andrews, who believes that about 20 individuals are present, not counting the current year’s hatchlings. references ricker, w.e. 1975. computation and interpretation of biological statistics of fish populations. fisheries research board of canada bulletin no. 191. schnabel, z.e. 1938. the estimation of the total fish population of a lake. american mathematical monthly 45:348–352. guana and necker island population assessments 2002 gad perry and numi mitchell the conservation agency iguana 10.4 b&w text 127iguanadecember 2003 i saw, in web unbroken, its history outwrought not as the loud had spoken, but as the mute had thought. —thomas hardy someone once asked me why iguanas are mute. i skipped the whole vocal cords thing and gave him what i thought was a most appropriate answer. “iguanas,” i said, “are mute because, if god had given them a voice, we wouldn’t be able to hear ourselves think for their screaming and crying…” i was born and raised in athens, greece and my parents were considerate enough to introduce me to the wonders of animal life from an early age. growing up in an environment filled with cats, dogs, reptiles, and birds, i learned how to love life itself. in fact, i am quite certain that i learned how to love humans from my interactions with animals. when i was 15, one of my red-eared sliders (trachemys scripta) broke the right side of her shell in a fall from her terrarium. i was devastated. i took her to my dog vet, who apparently had no idea about reptiles and couldn’t do a single thing to help her. i began searching for a reptile vet in greece — but couldn’t find one. after a rigorous search, i came to a sad discovery. i was completely alone. not a single greek veterinarian worked on reptiles! the pet shops, although full of reptiles, didn’t know the first thing about herp care. the picture wasn’t right — but i wasn’t going give up on my turtle. i began purchasing foreign literature on pond turtles in order to if iguanas could speak andy gogakis athens, greece andy gogakis with his pet iguana, eric. photograph by lucas liaskos. 128 iguana volume 10, number 4 cure mine myself. that’s when it hit me. everything i had been doing in regard to turtle husbandry was utterly wrong. nobody in greece was interested in reptiles. when confronted with the question: “what am i to do with my sick pet?” everyone, including many vets and my parents, responded: “let it die and buy a new one; it’s not like you are dealing with a dog.” for crying out loud! we are talking about a living, breathing entity here. come on, show some compassion here, people. i was confronted by the same response from everyone i talked to about the blue iguana extinction issue. phrases like “who cares?” or mere grins were enough to make any considerate person angry. suffice it to say, i cured the poor creature myself. ten years after her accident she is doing well, although her shell never recovered completely (turtles have a very slow healing rate). more serious problems arise when it comes to iguanas. greece has to be the only country in the world that treats lizards as pests and not pets. until 2000, very few people owned iguanas — but featuring one in a television series changed the whole picture. the owner of the iguana was portrayed as a weirdo, a societal outcast, a freak with strange hair color, who, to be honest, was quite funny. and, suddenly, that was it. every kid in greece wanted an iguana. since the tv-series iguana ate only lettuce and spiders and lived in a 20-gallon tank, it was apparently easy to keep one. the fact that iguanas are very cheap in greece has only encouraged people to acquire one. as a result, according to one of the largest pet shops in athens, iguana sales have risen 500% in the past few years. on the opposite side of that coin, however, the mortality rate of these creatures is well over 95% — testament to throwaway attitudes toward reptiles and the lack of accurate information regarding proper husbandry. when i was confronted with my iguana’s health problems, i quickly reached my wits’ end. the only source of help was the internet. i even sent e-mails to the greek veterinary committee asking for assistance in finding a vet who would work on reptiles. the response was that no greek vets had any interest in reptiles and that reptiles weren’t even considered in university training programs. i also did some legal research and found out that animal care legislation in greece covers only cats and dogs. i finally decided to strike out on my own. after two years of hard work, intensive research, and many sleepless nights, i managed to cure my pet iguana, eric, who suffered from mites, skin and spike problems, dehydration, advanced tail rot, and feeding problems. he had carried these problems with him since the day i saved him from a terrible pet shop, where he had shared a five-gallon tank with another iguana. today he lives in a very large enclosure that resembles a tropical forest. i am not one to tell you that all people are inconsiderate and cruel. i believe that proper educational efforts regarding reptilian pets will eventually incur dramatic improvements. in the interim, i just hope that the iguanas in greece remain mute… photograph by andy gogakis. iguana_11.2_text.ps during april 1938 the writer collected twelve chuckwallas in order to make a study of the food habits of this species. specimens were collected in creosote bush and ocotillo associations at borego mountain, tubbs canyon, and palm canyon in san diego county, california. stomachs of the borego mountain specimens contained stems and leaves of phacelia sp. [the phacelias, which include the desert primrose, the wild heliotropes, and the desert bells]; leaves, stems and blossoms of franseria dumosa [= ambrosia dumosa, the burro bush, burro weed, or white bursage]; leaves of encelia farinosa [brittlebush]; leaves and a seedling of eriogonum sp. [buckwheat]; leaves of ditaxis lanceolata [narrowleaf silverbush]; blossoms and leaves of larrea divaricata [a creosote bush]; and the blossoms of fouquieria splendens [engelmann ocotillo] which the lizards had picked up around the bases of these plants. sand was also found in the stomachs which contained the fouquieria blossoms. specimens from borego mountain seemed to prefer the leaves and stems of franseria dumosa as their stomachs were filled largely with the leaves and stems of this plant. the stomachs of the 8 specimens from tubbs canyon contained leaves of encelia farinosa; leaves, seed-pods and stems of lotus sp. [the trefoils]; leaves of phacelia sp., seedling of festuca sp. [a fescue]; blossoms, leaves and stems of cryptantha sp. [the cryptanthas or white forget-me-nots]; and the blossoms, leaves and stems of lotus strigosus [strigose bird’s-foot trefoil]. these specimens showed equal taste for f. dumosa and e. farinosa. the single specimen collected at palm canyon contained several large blossoms, about 10 x 15 mm. when pressed, of chænactis sp. [the pincushions]; one blossom of cryptantha sp.; and the blossoms of tropidocarpum gracile [slender tropidocarpum, a mustard]. no animal remains were found in any of the stomachs. i am grateful to mr. frank f. gander of the san diego natural history museum for assistance in the identification of the plant material. 124 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 shaw h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s an adult sauromalus ater from the foothills of the sierra de las asemblea, northern baja california. encelia farinosa (brittlebush) and franseria dumosa (white bursage) are visible in the background; both are eaten by chuckwallas. photograph by l. lee grismer. food habits of the chuckwalla, sauromalus obesus1 charles e. shaw san diego reptile club, san diego, california 1 originally published in herpetologica 1:153 (1939). reprinted with permission. common names in brackets were not included in the original publication. also note that the species is now known as s. ater (see article on p. 78). iguana_11.1_bw_text 8 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 arias, incháustequi, and rupp map of the barahona peninsula: the outlined area indicates where we were able to confirm the presence of c. ricordii. illustration by john binns. an adult cyclura ricordii in a crevice in múcara east of “los olivares.” a two-year old juvenile cyclura ricordii from the lower barahona peninsula. introduction this report summarizes the preliminary results of the survey undertaken by grupo jaragua in the cabo rojo–pedernales region of the barahona peninsula in the dominican republic. the main purpose of the survey was to search for and locate cyclura ricordii habitats and populations in the region. we also assessed threats to the species and the extent of human impact on its populations. methods we initiated fieldwork in december 2002 by identifying key informants and interviewing them about their knowledge of c. ricordii. we used photographs of c. cornuta and c. ricordii to determine if the informant was able to discriminate between the two species. these informants were persons who were known to have spent considerable time in the field and to have an extensive knowledge of the local flora and fauna. “monteros,” hunters of wild pigs and goats, and park rangers from jaragua national park were the best sources of information. subsequently, we made field trips to the sites identified by the key informants, where the presence or absence of c. ricordii was verified by the following methods: (1) direct sighting with clear identification of an animal being c. ricordii. (2) dead animals, when identification of parts being those of c. ricordii. (3) tail drags: in the fine, reddish soil of the “fondos” (= level plains and depressions), the two species of iguanas leave distinctive tail drag marks. (4) retreats: individual c. ricordii spend considerable time in close proximity to refugia. if an animal is sighted and identified, its retreat often can be found in the vicinity and drag marks also can determine the owner of a specific burrow. (5) nesting sites: nesting activities of c. ricordii began in early april this year and females were active through may. during that period, no nesting activity of c. cornuta was verified. consequently, all nesting attempts and finished nests found during those two months were attributed to c. ricordii. we also assumed that nests with signs of emerging hatchlings in july were those of c. ricordii. using gps (utm, map datum: nad 27 of the caribbean), we recorded all localities where the presence of c. ricordii was verified. in april 2003, we made a reconnaissance flight over the area via a helicopter generously provided by the dominican air force. with experience gained during the fieldwork, we were looking especially for “fondos” that could serve as nesting sites of c. ricordii. we supplemented these efforts by using 1999 landsat satellite images for the same purpose. results general.—we verified the presence of c. ricordii in a small area (ca. 2 km2) east of the town of pedernales and in a larger area (ca. 32 km2) north and east of the “los olivares” location. this area extends northeast to the cabo rojo–aceitillar road. we have also revisited the following areas: (1) all larger fondos and their surroundings east of the cabo rojo-aceitillar road to an elevation of about 200 m asl (above sea level), (2) fondos and vicinities north and south of the pedernales-oviedo road between the 8 and 25 km markers, (3) the bahía de las águilas, (4) the sabana de las iguanas southeast of cabo rojo, (5) the cyclura ricordii on the barahona peninsula: a preliminary report yvonne arias, sixto incháustequi, and ernst rupp grupo jaragua inc., santo domingo, dominican republic photographs by ernst rupp. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 9cyclura ricordii � tail drag of cyclura cornuta (top, note the parallel lines) and tail drag of c. ricordii (bottom, note the lack of lines). area “ti conserva” west of tru nicolá, (6) the area southeast of el cerro, (7) “cayo de las iguanas” y “cayo del pey” in the laguna de oviedo, and (8) the western coast of the laguna, directly opposite to the mentioned keys. we found signs of c. cornuta in all of these areas, but we were not able to verify the presence of c. ricordii. habitat.—the area limited to the southwest by the pedernalesoviedo road and to the east by the cabo rojo-aceitillar road consists of flat plains punctuated by marine limestone terraces. inside this area we found c. ricordii in a mosaic of habitats, which can be classified broadly into three categories: (1) fondo: flat plains and depressions in the ground covered by fine argillic soil of reddish color. the vegetation is open canopy and certainly disturbed. the dominant species are: cayuco (cephalocereus polygonus), alpargata (opuntia moniliformis), bayahonda (prosopis juliflora), and guasábara (cylindropuntia caribea). during most of the year the ground was barren, but rains in september and october triggered rapid growth of herbs, grasses, and vines. ricord’s iguanas excavate their burrows in the fondos, which also serve as major nesting sites. (2) múcara: limestone rock outcrops (fig. 7), in which c. ricordii seems to show preference for less rugged areas, where holes and cracks serve as retreats. the extent to which ricord’s iguanas are moving into the more rugged “dogtooth” limestone is unclear. the vegetation has an open canopy, but it is more diversified than in the fondos and the above mentioned species are less dominant. bayahonda is scarce. (3) cascajo: areas covered by gravel and small boulders. the vegetation seems to be a mixture of the elements that characterize múcara and fondos. after heavy rains, the ground is covered by herbs, grasses, and climbers. ricord’s iguanas excavate nesting sites and burrows in cascajo. at about 100 m asl toward the north, the vegetation becomes more dense, the canopy more closed, and the number of tree species more numerous. however, surface conditions can still be classified according to the three previously mentioned categories. cyclura ricordii is present in these areas, and the sites where we found animals approach the limit of 150 m asl proposed by ottenwalder (1999). distribution, age structure, and population densities.—the smaller subpopulation east of pedernales includes animals of all age classes. retreats are in múcara and cascajo. the area is characterized by having been used for slash and burn agriculture (conucism) in the past. secondary vegetation, with strong presence of guasábara, is dominant. we did not estimate c. ricordii population density because tracing transects in places heavily infested by guasábara was impossible. cyclura cornuta is present in the area. “los olivares,” an area subjected to intensive agriculture and apparently unsuitable for c. ricordii, separates the subpopulations. this area is a flat plain characterized by argillic reddish soil. informants noted that los olivares supported a large population of c. ricordii before being converted into agricultural land. aerial photos taken in 1983 showed that the eastern part of the area was still covered by natural vegetation. an irrigation channel built in 1984 also impedes the free movement of animals between the two subpopulations. 10 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 arias, incháustequi, and rupp an active cyclura ricordii burrow in the fondo de la malagueta (april 2003). vegetation in the fondo de la malagueta (october 2003). nesting attempts of a female cyclura ricordii in a recently cleared and fenced terrain on the fringes of los olivares. a gravid female cyclura ricordii on múcara (limestone outcrops). iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 11cyclura ricordii the larger subpopulation occupies an area that includes the outer fringes of los olivares towards the northeast, the marine limestone terraces that surround los olivares, and the plain above these limestone terraces. on the plain, one fondo of about 47 ha showed signs of very high ricord’s iguana activity. this fondo, known locally as “fondo de la malagueta,” is surrounded by patches of múcara, cascajo, and some smaller fondos. on an approximately 500 m-long transect (40 m wide) through the fondo de la malagueta, we counted 63 active burrows in may. assuming that every active burrow is home to an adult animal, we calculated a density of 31.5 individuals per ha. the methods are certainly very crude and a more detailed investigation is appropriate, but the number gives an idea of the high density of adults in the fondo. we also noted the presence of juveniles and hatchlings. the incidence of c. cornuta seems to be low, with signs of activity limited to the southeastern corner of the fondo. estimates of population densities outside the fondo de la malagueta are more difficult. based on the availability of suitable cracks and holes in the múcara, we assumed that population density was much lower than in the fondo. retreats are not as easily detected in múcara and cascajo as in the fondos. also, both iguana species are present in this area, and no tail drag marks provided clues to the owners of specific retreats, forcing a reliance on direct observations. reports by a key informant indicated that some retreats, which have been known over a period of years, had changed in ownership from one species to the other. the idea that suitable retreats in múcara might constitute a limited resource for both species is worth pursuing further. a second fondo of about 25 ha is known locally as “fondo de robinson.” in contrast to the fondo de la malagueta, we found no burrows. however, indications that the fondo may be an important nesting ground for both species were present. various retreats of c. ricordii in múcara surrounding the fondo could be identified and several juveniles were sighted. the northern fringes of the flat plain of los olivares, which lie adjacent to a limestone terrace, included various smaller localities with active burrows of c. ricordii. part of the land is being cleared for agricultural use, so suitable habitat may soon be lost. nesting and reproduction.—female c. ricordii initiated nesting activities in early april 2003, possibly triggered by rain that fell in the area on 31 march and 1 april. on 8 may, we counted 28 finished nests along the 500-m transect in the fondo de la malagueta. we also confirmed nesting activities in the outer a “finished” cyclura ricordii nest. a “finished” cyclura ricordii nest in small fondo of about 1.5 x 1.5 m. aerial view of part of the outer fringes of “los olivares.” note the recent clearing of land in the upper center of the photo and the clearing, which is taking place in the lower right corner. aerial view of part of the northeastern fringes of “los olivares” showing the pedernales–las mercedes road. note the waste dump in the center of the photo and recent clearing of land close to the dump. fringes of los olivares and in many other smaller fondos. in fact, almost any suitable spot seemed to serve as a nesting site. small fondos of only 1 m2 contained finished nests. we even found evidence of nesting attempts and a few finished nests in some patches of cascajo. on 10 july, we found the first nests with signs that hatchlings had emerged. on 20 july along the 500-m transect in the fondo de la malagueta, we counted 20 nests from which hatchlings had escaped during previous nights. a rough calculation of ten hatchlings per nest results in a density estimate of 100 hatchlings per ha. that same day, we captured two hatchlings that were hiding inside hollow tree logs on the ground. considering the number of hollow logs and trees present in the fondo, the availability of suitable retreats may be a limiting resource for emerging hatchlings. the role of adjacent múcara in providing shelter to hatchlings in cracks and holes may be worth investigating. we encountered nesting female c. cornuta in early july. they may have started nesting activities somewhat earlier, but no field trips were possible in june, so definitive data are lacking. female c. cornuta nest in places which also are used by c. ricordii, and they start excavating nests before hatchling c. ricordii emerge. the impact of this behavior on the reproductive success of c. ricordii should be examined. we only encountered two c. cornuta nests in the southeastern corner of the fondo de la malagueta. in the major part of the fondo, we found no evidence of nesting c. cornuta. cyclura ricordii may have a competitive advantage for reproduction in this fondo. threats.—exotic mammalian predators (e.g., mongooses and cats) are present in the area. we were unable to evaluate the magnitude of their presence and any resulting impact on populations of c. ricordii. we noted five free-ranging cattle in the area east of los olivares. trampling of burrows or nests might be occurring. in a relatively small area like the fondo de la malagueta, even a minimal number of cattle could cause major damage. however, habitat alteration and destruction by humans may be of greater concern than the presence of exotics. the area of los olivares may well have been a major center of activity for c. ricordii in the past. all of this area, except for its outermost fringes, has been converted into intensely used agricultural land. these outer fringes presently are also under pressure, and part of the terrain has been recently cleared of its vegetation. the areas where the two present subpopulations are found may already constitute only small remnants of the total distribution of the species once found in the area. trapping of iguanas and excavation of their burrows appear to be quite common in the outskirts of pedernales. the northeastern fringes of los olivares also are affected by these activities. people in pedernales eat iguanas, although the extent of the problem is unknown. we have submitted a proposal to study this phenomenon and its impact on iguanas to the pittsburgh zoo fund. 12 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 arias, incháustequi, and rupp successful hatching is indicated by the hole in this nest. hatchling cyclura ricordii hiding inside a hollow log. effects of nest trampling by cattle. hatchling cyclura ricordii. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 13cyclura ricordii the immediate surroundings of pedernales, where iguanas still can be found, also are threatened by land clearings for housing development projects and a portion of the area is used as a waste dump. even an extension of the boundaries of the jaragua national park, which was proposed in 2002 under the “proyecto de la ley sectorial de áreas protegidas” by the secretaría de estado de medio ambiente y recursos naturales, would protect only part of the area where we confirmed the presence of c. ricordii. the marine terrace, “los brujos,” part of the outer fringes of los olivares, and the fondo de robinson would be excluded. recommendations in light of the results cited above and fully aware of the critical situation faced by cyclura ricordii in the pedernales area, we propose the following: (1) the area of “los brujos,” including fondo robinson and the outer fringes of los olivares, should be included in the system of protected areas. (2) because the legal procedures necessary for the protection of c. ricordii will take time and final results are uncertain, direct measures should be implemented immediately. (3) the type of landownership and the actual owners of the land that is most threatened by habitat destruction (i.e., the immediate surroundings of pedernales and fringes of los olivares) should be determined. the acquisition of this land would serve to guarantee direct protection of the remaining habitat and facilitate restoration of degraded terrain. waste dump in the outskirts of pedernales; cyclura ricordii is known to occur in the area in the background. remains of a dead iguana that was killed for meat. a snare trap used by local inhabitants to catch iguanas. 14 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 gifford and powell the lower barahona peninsula is that portion of the peninsula south of the sierra de baoruco. because the region lies in the rainshadow of the mountain range, the lower elevations get little rain and are characterized by dry tropical forest. until recently, four species of ameiva were thought to occur in the region: ameiva chrysolaema, a. leberi, a. lineolata, and a. taeniura. of the four, a. lineolata is the smallest (maximum known snout-vent length = 59 mm) and the most xerophilic (tolerant of harsh, dry conditions). this species, featuring a bright blue tail and feet, has a disjunct range in similar habitats across the island of hispaniola. ameiva taeniura is intermediate in size (svl to 103 mm), the least drought tolerant, and is restricted largely to the relatively few and scattered moist microhabitats. although, at some sites, one can stand in one place and see individuals of different species, closer observation reveals that a. taeniura only rarely leaves the cooler, shaded areas where canopy cover is relatively dense. in the same study that revealed the habitat association of a. taeniura, the authors found no significant differences in microhabitat use by a. chrysolaema and a. leberi, which are comparable in size (svl to 160 mm in some populations). the former species is widely distributed across hispaniola, whereas the latter is known only from the peninsula. they are distinguished in that the back and sides of a. chrysolaema ficta, the subspecies found in the area, is distinctly patterned, whereas a. leberi is unicolored. because other populations of a. chrysolaema are known to have unicolored pattern variants and because no ecological differences were evident, the authors suggested that a. chrysolaema and a. leberi were, in fact, pattern variations of a single species. more recent genetic studies have verified that contention. one of those studies also determined that a. chrysolaema from the peninsula was distinctive relative to populations elsewhere on hispaniola. this is not surprising, because the island actually is a composite of two paleoiss p e c i e s p r o f i l e the ground lizards (ameiva) of the lower barahona peninsula matthew e. gifford1 and robert powell2 1washington university, st. louis, missouri 2avila university, kansas city, missouri photographs by robert powell. (4) two persons should be employed to monitor the area where c. ricordii is present. these persons should be from the local community and should have an excellent knowledge of the terrain and the target species. they should control the persecution of iguanas and stop illegal habitat destruction by surveying the area, advising people regarding harmful practices, and reporting to the appropriate authorities, as necessary. (5) the socioeconomic aspect of iguana hunting and consumption in pedernales should be investigated. (6) educational programs must be developed that not only address the general public, but will serve to open a dialogue with the target group of persons in pedernales involved in iguana persecution. reference ottenwalder, j.a. 1999. ricord’s iguana, cyclura ricordii, pp. 51–55. in: a. alberts (comp. & ed), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn/ssc west indian iguana specialist group. iucn, gland, switzerland and cambridge, uk. acknowledgments we thank john binns and robert powell for improvements on an early draft. we express gratitude to máximo aquino, subsecretario de recursos forestales, secretaría de medio, ambiente y recursos naturales, for logistical support and the dominican armed forces for the helicopter flight. special thanks go to salvador p. mella from pedernales, who accompanied us in the field and whose knowledge of iguanas was invaluable. iguana_11.2_text.ps dominican protected areas are threatened by congressional action 23 april 2004 — santo domingo, dominican republic the dominican republic, with its 48,700 km2 of land, is home to some of the most diverse habitat in the caribbean islands, and to extremely rich, largely endemic, and highly threatened biotic communities. these factors are very significant in placing the caribbean islands among the five most important global biodiversity hotspots. in 1974, an important process was initiated to establish a comprehensive system of protected areas. today, these areas encompass 16.2 % of the land area of the country and include nearly all of the most critical ecosystems. throughout this period, the dominican institutional and legal framework has evolved to the point where a general framework environmental law (law 64-00) was passed in 2000. this law reformed and modernized the environmental sector, created the ministry for environment and natural resources, and mandated the development of other environmentally relevant laws, including a new protected areas law. the ministry of environment developed a proposed sectorial protected areas law and submitted it to the national congress in august 2002. this proposed law included certain changes and revisions in the dominican protected areas system, within the general framework of the existing system. on 13 april 2004, the dominican senate read and approved the proposed protected areas law with significant changes that drastically reduce and render unsustainable the dominican system of protected areas, which were created through the hard work of many individuals and institutions over the past 30 years. the proposal still must be approved by the deputies and signed by the president of the republic in order to become law. the drastic reduction, almost destruction, of the protected areas system is supposedly based on the need to fight poverty by allowing local development in formerly protected habitats. in fact, all restrictions are removed in areas considered of potential interest for intensive beach/costal tourism and/or mining development. besides destroying the protected areas, strong evidence exists that the so-called “developmental initiatives” sought by this proposal do not have strong popular support, nor do they include provisions for adequate inclusion of locals in development projects. among other things, the proposed law removes protection from all the costal areas of jaragua and parque del este national parks. jaragua, included in the first biosphere reserve of the dominican republic, was just approved at the end of 2002 by the present administration. regional, insular, and national resources are at risk with this initiative. globally important sites for endangered and critically endangered ecosystems and species would disappear. these include coastal wetlands, areas important for migratory, resident, and marine birds, and globally significant sites for the critically endangered species such as the hawksbill sea turtle (eretmochelys imbricata), west indian manatee (trichechus manatus), and rock iguanas (cyclura ricordii and cyclura cornuta). rushing to sell park beaches 6 may 2004 — santo domingo, dominican republic four of today’s dominican newspapers, la informacion from santiago, diario libre, listin diario, and el caribe, all from sto. domingo, featured the hurried passage of the much-debated bill that would reduce from 30 to 15% the extent of protected areas in the national parks of the dominican republic. by a vote of 93 to 14, the prd majority, together with some members of the prsc, rolled over some very heated opposition. if ratified in a second reading, the action would grant access for tourist development of beaches located within the national park of the east and jaragua national park (in the southwest), as well as areas in the southwestern bani dunes and along the costa azul panoramic highway in macao in the east. the bill’s provisions also authorize mining exploitation of the pomier caves in san cristobal. the bill, first passed in the senate, supposedly in the name of pragmatism, removed from the national parks bill practically any area that could be developed for tourism or mining. the bill also diminishes the role of the ministry of environment in environmental matters. in what the listin diario calls a “huge uproar,” the session attempted to debate the merits of the changes to the national parks. as soon as the prd deputy from pedernales, rafael torres, took the floor in support of the bill, the pld deputies and their allies from the fnp (national progressive force) actively challenged the proposal. they accused the presdient of the chamber of deputies, alfredo pacheco (prd-national district), of being “arbitrary and abusing his powers” as he tried to push the legislation through without review by the appropriate legislative commission. things got so interesting that pacheco ordered the military security detail to remove the environmental editor of hoy newspaper, domingo abreu collado, from the chamber because he was filming the session. although pld deputies alfredo cruz, abel martinez, clodomiro chavez, and minu tavarez mirabal opposed the steamrolling tactics and requested that the final vote be taken after the 16 may elections, the overwhelming prd majority seconded by prsc deputies voted down their motion and passed the proposal. while the deputies were in session, a small group of picketers protested outside the building. the santiago newspaper, la informacion, reported that a large public protest outside of the municipal palace started in the evening and featured speeches by ecologists and environmental groups as well as the politicians who fought to have the bill stopped. a candlelight vigil was held into the early morning hours. no public hearings were held, nor were the different ecological groups allowed to present their case before the chamber of deputies. according to el caribe, the foundation for institutionalism and justice (finjus) warned deputy pacheco that the style of his term as president of the chamber of deputies should not be stained by the hurried approval and no consensus of the modifications to the law that has protected the national park system. in what has to be seen as an ironic coincidence, even the “la vida” section of the government-operated listin diario featured a long article on the bay of eagles losing its “virginity.” the writer lamented that this would be the last time that she would see the “bahia de las aguilas” intact and pristine. the new bill also would violate an agreement signed with unesco that had declared the area a unesco biosphere reserve (see http:// www2.unesco.org/mab/br/brdir/directory/ biores.asp?code=dom+01&mode=all). meanwhile, well-respected investigative journalist ana mitila lora wondered in her column in listin diario, “what’s the rush?” 96 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 ramer threat to dominican protected areas iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 97cyclura ricordii nine species of hispaniolan curly-tailed lizards (genus leiocephalus) are currently recognized. of these, l. semilineatus is the smallest, with a maximum known snout-vent length of 53 mm. in addition to its small size, this species is distinguished by the light-bordered, dark brown lateral stripes that begin as a mask and extend onto the body before fading near the hindlimbs. these fading lateral stripes are responsible for the species’ scientific name. the species is known from the llanos de azua and also from the valle de neiba of the dominican republic through the culde-sac plain of haiti. the latter area is largely below sea level and is a remnant of the marine channel that once separated the north and south paleoislands that joined to form hispaniola. an apparent hiatus in the range separates those two areas. these little lizards are found in extremely dry habitats and may be among the most drought-tolerant of hispaniolan lizards. they frequently occur in sympatry with ameiva lineolata, a very small member of its genus and equally xerophilic (from the greek meaning “dry-loving”). although both species feed primarily on small arthropods, they apparently avoid most competition with one another by employing different foraging strategies. leiocephalus semilineatus, like all of its congeners, is a sit-and-wait forager. using an elevated perch on a rock or log, these lizards respond to movement by ambushing their prey. in contrast, ameiva lineolata, is an active forager, constantly on the move and rooting in surface litter, while searching for anything edible. although their diets overlap, a large proportion of that taken by l. semilineatus is composed of insects, such as ants and beetles, that move and attract the attention of lizards, whereas that of a. lineolata includes many prey items, such as pupae and larvae, that rest immobile under surface debris and would escape the notice of a sit-and-wait forager. like other curlytails, l. semilineatus coils its tail. unlike some members of the genus, however, the tail is never curled vertically over the lizard’s body. the reasons for this behavior are unknown, although luring insect prey, communication, and confusing predators have been mentioned as possibilities. references nelson, s.e., b.l. banbury, r.a. sosa, and r. powell. 2001. natural history of leiocephalus semilineatus in association with sympatric leiocephalus schreibersii and ameiva lineolata. contemporary herpetology 2001(1): 1–6 + 4 figs. + 2 tables (http://www.cnah.org/ ch/ch/2001/1/index.htm). nelson, s.e. and r. powell. 2002. leiocephalus semilineatus. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (751): 1–2. powell, r. 2002. species profile: leiocephalus personatus. iguana times 9: 80. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e leiocephalus semilineatus robert powell avila university, kansas city, missouri an adult male leiocephalus semilineatus from near hatillo, azua province, dominican republic. photograph by robert powell. president mejia has been a strong supporter of the development of national parks for tourism or mining, and has issued several decrees authorizing private companies to begin development. the only obstacle, however, has been that, at the onset of this administration, mejia had signed environmental law 64-00, which established guidelines for the conservation of natural resources. the new bill that is moving ahead in congress would resolve this impasse and enable unchecked development of the new areas by companies chosen by the mejia government. dominican legislature passes the revised protected areas law 13 may 2004 — santo domingo, dominican republic today, the dominican congress approved the protected areas law with significant changes that drastically reduce and render unsustainable the dominican system of protected areas the two areas that have suffered the most are parque nacional jaragua and parque nacional del este. the struggle by dominican and international environmentalists continues, but is becoming more and more difficult. the bill will now pass to the president for approval — but he has stated publicly on several occasions that he favors it. iguana 10.1 the more than 200 species in the genus anolis differ in size but share a similar body plan variously modified to take advantage of specific habitats. with the exception of a. carolinensis, which ranges far into temperate parts of the southeastern united states, anoles are subtropical or tropical and are widely distributed throughout the neotropics. anoles occur on virtually all islands in the west indies. small islands may have just one species but large islands may have many: cuba has over 50 and hispaniola over 40. all anoles are arboreal to some degree and possess expanded subdigital lamellae (toe pads) that assist in climbing and variously colored dewlaps (throat fans) used in behavioral displays. the grand cayman blue anole, anolis conspersus, is restricted to grand cayman island, where it is the only native anole. inhabiting all but the most open habitats (including the walls of buildings), it is the island’s most abundant and visible reptile. adult males reach a maximum body length over 75 mm and exhibit at least three distinct color patterns, although some individuals have intermediate or mixed patterns. those in most populations on the west end of the island are predominantly blue with white spots but, in some populations, they are green, and in some of the latter, the head is yellow. males from the eastern half of the island are brown with black or dark brown vermiculations. in the dark phase, all color varieties become nearly black. in all populations, the dewlap is blue. females are strikingly different in appearance; they are much smaller (maximum body length about 50 mm) and are, in all populations, light brown with a white middorsal stripe that is punctuated by black chevrons. the brown (or cuban) anole, a. sagrei, has recently been introduced on grand cayman, probably with foliage plants imported from florida, and may pose a threat to native a. conspersus where the species co-exist. adult a. sagrei will eat hatchling a. conspersus. both species use many of the same habitats, but a. sagrei also will inhabit more open areas, whereas a. conspersus actively excludes a. sagrei from more shaded regions. pertinent literature avery, r.a. 1988. observations on habitat utilization by the lizard anolis conspersus on the island of grand cayman, west indies. amphibia-reptilia 9:417–420. gerber, g.p. 2000. interactions between introduced and native anolis lizards in florida and grand cayman island. ph.d. dissertation, university of tennessee, knoxville. gerber, g.p. and a.c. echternacht. 2000. evidence for asymmetrical intraguild predation between native and introduced anolis lizards. oecologia 124:599–607. grant, c. 1940. the herpetology of the cayman islands. science series 2:1–65. losos, j.b., j.c. marks, and t.w. schoener. 1993. habitat use and ecological interactions of an introduced and a native species of anolis lizard on grand cayman, with a review of the outcomes of anole introductions. oecologia 95:525–532. schoener, t. w. 1967. the ecological significance of sexual dimorphism in size in the lizard anolis conspersus. science 155:474–477. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. seidel, m.e. and r. franz. 1994. amphibians and reptiles (exclusive of marine turtles) of the cayman islands, pp. 407–433. in: m.a. brunt and j.e. davies (eds.), the cayman islands natural history and biogeography. kluwer academic publishers, dordrecht, the netherlands. species profile: grand cayman blue anole: anolis conspersus adult male anolis conspersus from georgetown, grand cayman island. photograph by a.c. echternacht adult female anolis conspersus from near east end, grand cayman island. photograph by a.c. echternacht 21iguanamarch 2003 iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 21 iguana 10.4 b&w text a ccording to the humane society of the united states (2001), more than 3.9 million households in the u.s. keep one or more reptiles or amphibians as pets. approximately 18% of these are green iguanas (720,000). data collected between 1989 and 1997 indicate that an average of 381,000 green iguanas are imported each year, 566,000 in 1997 alone. based solely on anecdotal evidence, many rescuers have long believed that as many as 90% of pet green iguanas die within a year. if more than half of the total pet iguana population is replaced each year, this tragic assumption is probably wellgrounded in truth. properly tended, a green iguana can live for 20–30 years, but, undoubtedly, few reach such a venerable age. again, based on anecdotal evidence, i believe that only a tiny fraction of those green iguanas that manage to survive their first year in captivity actually live out their potential life spans in the hands of a single caretaker. what becomes of the rest of them? on a bad day, when i am inundated with phone calls and e-mail messages, i feel as if every last one of those survivors comes past my door. why do people give up iguanas? aside from the “my iguana has gotten too big” and the “i can’t provide my iguana with enough attention,” calls, most of the other inquiries i receive asking for help with green iguana rescues begin with, “i have an awkward the iguana rescue dilemma aj gutman west hartford, ct all photographs by carole saucier except where indicated. 121iguanadecember 2003 bronte (formerly emily) has been at the iguana sanctuary for the last five of his approximately 16 years. and very unusual situation ...” while the situation may indeed be awkward for the person on the other end of the line, after many years of rescuing all manner of reptiles, the stories are all too predictable for me. in fact, if you list the principal characters involved, i can generally fill in the scenario with great accuracy. we’re getting divorced and we need a home for the iguana. i’m newly married and my spouse feels we need — (and the classic variation) i’ve been married for a year and my spouse feels we need … my son/daughter is leaving for college and we need … i’m moving and my new landlord insists that we find … those that are my least favorites require immediate attention: my tenant just moved out and left behind his iguana. there’s an animal in the plum tree in my front yard. can you come and get it? occasionally, i encounter a novel variation (i’ve just been evicted, my spouse has been incarcerated, i found this on the railroad tracks), but, ultimately, everyone wants help and they want it immediately. if i can’t take their animal right away, the iguana is likely to be released. a fortunate few are brought to me by animal control. boy or a girl? “the iguana is in good health — but i don’t know if it’s a boy or a girl.” not surprisingly, those who cannot tell the difference between a male and a female iguana lack the wherewithal to judge the animal’s state of health. no, a hot rock and bowl of lettuce don’t cut it. anyone with a truly healthy iguana knows that proper iguana nutrition is a fourletter word: w-o-r-k. proper care requires a complex orchestration of planning, shopping, and preparation — and there aren’t any shortcuts. most of the iguanas that come to me (including those in “good health”) are in fact quite ill. i see all degrees of stunting, emaciation, deformity, and disease, most of them resulting from improper lighting or nutrition and the attendant stress. those that are unadoptable and stay with me permanently are generally the most physically handicapped and ill-tempered, the “flks” and the “grumps.” “flk” or “funny-looking-kid” is a technical term that my husband learned in medical school to denote individuals with genetic aberrations leading to physical abnormalities. i also apply it to my animals with nutrition-related and congenital deformities. 122 iguana volume 10, number 4 “it’s in pretty good shape.” mina was actually all right — for an abandoned, stunted animal with only one dorsal spine that hadn’t rotted off, four digits that hadn’t been amputated by persistent constriction bands, an oozing infection in her upper chest and dewlap, and a couple of vertebral fractures. tatiana is the quintessential “funny-looking kid.” abandoned at a pet shop, she was purchased by another rescuer and eventually brought to me for further rehabilitation. despite all the twists in her back and tail, she has no problem walking or climbing. the “grumps” are another fairly uniform group — they tend to be larger, older females that are a bit snappish and just won’t tolerate handling. these animals often are returned to me after an initial placement because they have been aggressive toward another iguana or people find themselves unable to relate to such an animal. from experience, i know that these “girls” will acclimate with time, but it’s a process that requires patience — sometimes years rather than months, and few people have the stamina to outlast their grumpiness. the aggressive male iguana any reasonable program of behavior modification should begin with an assessment of how the world must appear from the subject’s perspective. my work rehabilitating iguanas began with this principle and the assumption that the problems of every aggressive iguana could be addressed. i have been privileged to gain a wealth of insight into iguana behavior from animals with which i have worked over the years, but none challenged my initial beliefs until i met kurosawa. kurosawa was a 13-year-old male that had been raised by an adoring and attentive owner. he had been neutered at the age of seven when he began to be quite aggressive, and this seemed to calm him for a time. but, after he left 42 stitches in his owner’s arm, she was considerably relieved that i was willing to take on her beloved “bad boy.” large but comparatively thin upon arrival, kurosawa immediately challenged one of my other male green iguanas, lost the scrap and then settled in peacefully and began to eat — and eat and eat. several months and several pounds later, kurosawa was no longer peaceful. he was terrorizing every other iguana that crossed his path. then he started to challenge me. initially, his challenges were merely aggressive posturing and gaping, but this quickly progressed to a stage in which he began leaping across the room to try and attack me. my great experiment had failed and, in consultation with kurosawa’s previous owner, we decided that the only reasonable choice was euthanasia. in retrospect, i am tempted to believe that he had simply been biding his time until he had become big enough to once again assert himself. “my iguana needs a better home than i can provide.” what are the options for placement? very few. zoos, nature centers, and animal welfare groups (hsus, spca) constantly receive calls regarding unwanted pet iguanas, and they inevitably refer these callers to me or others among a handful of 123iguanadecember 2003 odessa fits the profile of the large, aggressive female. kept with other iguanas that match her in size, she has adapted well socially. odessa was left behind when her owners moved out of their apartment; she was mistaken as a male by several other rescuers before she came to the sanctuary. kurosawa during a visit from his previous owner, he had plumped up but had not yet become unmanageably aggressive. photograph by ron miyashiro. individuals willing to deal with reptiles. all of us tend to be constantly overwhelmed and underfunded. quite simply, no formal organization in this country is willing and able to cope with the ever-increasing number of unwanted pet reptiles. “i’m going on vacation to puerto rico; couldn’t i just release my iguana there?” no!!! over the years, hundreds, likely thousands, of green iguanas have been released into the wild in the state of florida and, in most instances, they are considered pests. an article in the miami herald once addressed the feral iguana problem in florida, and my telephone number was listed as a contact for the international iguana society. although i live in connecticut, i was deluged with calls from irate miami residents demanding that i come immediately to fetch green iguanas from their ornamental shrubbery (see also the article on p. 111). green iguanas are not native to florida and, in places like the keys, they compete directly with native animals for a limited supply of vegetation. in the lesser antilles, green iguanas not only outreproduce, but are known to have hybridized with native iguana delicatissima. puerto rico is a different case still; native cyclura pinguis was extirpated from the island long ago, and an introduced green iguana population has become firmly established. could a captive-raised green iguana survive in the wild? yes, obviously better than we might have imagined. nevertheless, the argument remains that captive-held animals are likely to have an intestinal flora, other bacteria, and external or internal parasites that do not occur in the wild — and which may adversely affect wild populations of native animals with which they come into contact. a frightening alternative for a brief time, i was almost able to delude myself that the iguana rescue traffic was slowing a little. an occasional caller who, when told that i was unable to take an iguana immediately, would ask me if had heard anything about a place that i’ll call the “alternative reptile institution” (ari), which would supposedly accept any healthy, unwanted reptile for a fee. i really hadn’t heard anything at all about the ari, until another rescuer asked me for assistance with an extensive rescue effort. i discovered that this was where the remainder of the rescue traffic from my area had been diverted. countless green iguanas had been taken in by the ari. some of the healthy ones were immediately resold, but countless others had died. those that i was able to rescue had been housed together in a fairly large enclosure heated with a single inaccessible bulb, no functional ultraviolet light, dirty water, and no food. the largest iguana was perched in the only available basking spot and would not allow any of the others to approach the food on those rare occasions when any was available. all of the animals were emaciated, dehydrated, covered with mites, and in various states of further disrepair. some had open wounds and broken bones from recent injuries, others had burns and secondary infections. among the animals i was able to rescue from the ari was a small rhinoceros iguana that had been there for about a year. she had been housed 124 iguana volume 10, number 4 this rescued green iguana had extensive burns across her pelvis and rear limbs. she was able to heal once her mite infestation had been cleared. with two large males and another small female of her species. i was immediately drawn to her because she came over to the glass and looked me straight in the eye — a prototypical flk. she had a spinal scoliosis that left her looking like a reptilian version of a water buffalo. her emaciated pelvis was jutting out prominently and, even through the glass, i could see the top off her head crawling with red mites. she also had the most awkward method of locomotion, with her legs sprawling uncontrollably in every direction. i was later informed that this type of movement is called “hypertonus,” and is comparable to the human condition called cerebral palsy. the rhino enclosure was large and had clearly been quite impressive when new, but it had not been maintained. the pool was empty and the substrate filthy. the temperature gradient was appropriate and even a bit of uv light intruded — but not in a location accessible to the animals. a platter of dandelions, which a volunteer had just picked outside, was available, but the two small females were consistently kept from feeding by the two larger males. i was permitted to take both females. the crooked one (dolly) was considered too unattractive for display, while the other (loretta) bore clear signs of a developing infection. both animals, at eight years of age, were barely half the size of the six-year old rhino female that has been with me since she was a hatchling. dolly, who had apparently been left at the ari only a year earlier, blossomed quickly once she had her own exclusive basking spot and a “bottomless” bowl of nutritious food. although her movements remain awkward, she is able to climb “handicap ramps” and has been accepted by my other rhinos. loretta’s recovery proved to be much more challenging. blistering that had been present on her legs and trunk when i took her had erupted 125iguanadecember 2003 this animal had a broken rear limb with an open wound, likely caused by a bite from a cagemate. in the absence of any medical treatment, the wound developed a huge abscess. into extensive lesions, which took a very long time to heal and left extensive scarring. her growth and socialization have been much slower, but i suspect she also will integrate comfortably into the rhino “family” in time. the dilemma so what’s the dilemma? i truly love the work that i do and i find it enormously fulfilling, but it’s also exhausting and unceasing. i’ve finally dragged myself through the endless process of becoming a not-for-profit organization and have been offered web space by a number of people. yet, my greatest fear in creating a greater visibility for reptile rescue is that i will be completely inundated with even more unwanted animals without being able to obtain any help or funding. in september, i was invited to attend an exposition for various animal rescue groups. i was eager to see how people working with other types of animals functioned. unfortunately, i was obliged to back out of the engagement at the last minute when i discovered that i was required to pay a fee for a table as well as provide volunteers to assist in setting up. a fee? most people giving up iguanas have little interest in providing for their care. those who adopt animals will sometimes make a donation, but just as often need their resources to purchase equipment and food for their new charges. volunteers? the occasional person has threatened to volunteer, but a closer look at the work reveals its generally unglamorous nature and i’ve never had anyone show up and actually do any work. i thought it absurd to be asked to pay for the privilege of facing my usual dilemma. so, how can the problem of unwanted green iguanas be properly addressed? do we really need to ban the sale of these animals in pet shops? require licensing? ban ownership? or perhaps insist that publicly supported animal welfare organizations take on the problem? among the hsus’s stated charter purposes is to “protect all living things, especially animals.” i was appalled to read their extensive documentation on the reptile pet trade and related “humane concerns,” knowing that so little is being done by that organization. even less impressive is the total lack of interest from a very large portion of the reptile pet industry, which directly benefits from the sale of these animals. a glimmer of light another recent rescue involved two green iguanas abandoned on the doorstep of a cat shelter. the stunted and battered little animals were in no way unusual, but the response of the shelter manager was encouraging. she knew that she lacked the knowledge to care for the iguanas, yet she recognized that they deserved her attention, and she undertook the process of tracking down someone who did. between the time that she called me in the morning and when we met at a parking lot that same afternoon, she had clearly done some research. as i was transferring the animals from her car to mine, she was answering questions for a curious passerby: “no, they don’t make good pets. they’ll burn themselves on a hot rock and they need a wide variety of vegetables and fruits.” i don’t know what the long-term solution will be — but i invest a considerable portion of the time and effort left after taking care of animals to promote education on proper iguana husbandry. and at least some of the most critical information seems to be filtering through. reference franke, j. and t.m. telecky. 2001. reptiles as pets: an examination of the trade in live reptiles in the united states. the humane society of the united states, washington, dc. 126 iguana volume 10, number 4 despite a crooked spine and extremely awkward locomotion, dolly has been well-received by the other members of the rhino “family.” iguana 10.2 the spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura wgm. [translator’s note: “wgm.” refers to a.f.a. wiegmann, a german zoologist who described many saurian genera in herpetologia mexicana, which was published in 1834]) are restricted to middle america. they can be distinguished from cyclura by the short rows of femoral pores. they are imposing animals that are primarily terrestrial or, at the most, seek shelter in the hollow trunks of trees. they have laterally compressed bodies, a relatively low middorsal crest, and tails equipped with whorls of spiny scales. the best known species is the mexican black iguana, ctenosaura acanthura shaw [an english naturalist who applied proper latin names to many “amphibians,” which, around the turn of the 19th century, included reptiles]. this proud creature can reach a total length of over 1.20 m and is either uniformly graphite-black in color or bears black crossbands h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s 56 iguana volume 10, number 2 black iguana, ctenosaura acanthura shaw 1/6 natural size. the black iguana* franz werner * excerpted and translated from franz werner (1913. die lurche und kriechtiere von alfred brehm. zweiter band: kriechtiere (schuppenkriechtiere). in: o. z. strassen (ed.), brehms tierleben. allgemeine kunde des tierreichs. 4th ed. bibliographisches institut, leipzig and wien). translated by r. powell. on its rump and decorative black rings around its tail, both over a light ground color (light olivebrown, yellow-gray, or green). in captivity, these lizards readily consume both plant and animal matter. according to sumichrast [françois sumichrast, a 19th century swiss naturalist], several female spiny-tailed iguanas, like common iguanas, lay their eggs in a communal chamber; however, females do not appear as a rule to gather in large numbers during the nesting season, as one rarely finds more than 6–7 dozen eggs in a single nest. ruthven [alexander g. ruthven, a famous american herpetologist] observed the subspecies completa boc. [completa is now considered to be a synonym of ctenosaura similis; “boc.” refers to m.-f. bocourt, a french naturalist, who collected extensively in middle america during the second half of the 19th century] primarily in the savannas of mexico where trees form isolated clusters. in fact, each individual is true to the tree which it has staked out as its own, so that ruthven almost always saw these animals on the trunks of their trees as he approached a given clump, often remaining in one place for hours at a time. their diet consists largely of leaves. the black iguana is considered especially tasty and, as a consequence, according to sumichrast, is commonly hunted, particularly prior to festivals. hunters seek these animals in burrows or split tree trunks, particularly those that are in the vicinity of temporary pools that hold water only during the rainy season. should a lizard be caught, it is secured in the typical fashion. even more favored than the meat, which is considered a delicacy, are the eggs. quatrefages [an unknown source] tells a relevant tale of the traveler sallé. as the latter entered a humble hut one evening in middle america, he found only soup to quench his considerable appetite. to his surprise, however, his host, who had already apologized for the sparse meal, knew just how to spice it up in a most peculiar fashion. at the host’s command, several small boys ran off to the woods and returned shortly thereafter with a large lizard that seemed destined for the traveler’s plate. instead of killing and broiling the animal, the host merely made a small incision in its side, reached in with his fingers, and carefully pulled out two strings of eggs. subsequently, the host cleanly stitched the cut, rubbed a few hot ashes on the edges of the wound, and released the lizard. the eggs were placed in front of sallé, who queried his host and was told that it was common practice to treat these animals in such a fashion, since one could therefore count on harvesting another batch of eggs in the following year. h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s 57iguanajune 2003 black iguana, ctenosaura acanthura shaw. 1/9 natural size. photograph by w.s. berridge, f.z.s. – london. distribution of the genus ctenosaura. the question mark indicates uncertainty regarding the presence of iguanas in southern baja california and the arrow denotes the introduction of spiny-tailed iguanas into southern florida. modified from gunther köhler (2002. schwarzleguane. herpeton verlag elke köhler, offenbach, germany). iguana 10.4 b&w text a lthough the banded iguana (brachylophus fasciatus) is the most familiar of the two species of brachylophus found in the south pacific, its status in the wild is virtually unknown. based on published and verbal distribution records, the species is known to occur on 34 islands in fiji. in addition, it is found on four islands in tonga and an introduced population is established on efate island in vanuatu. currently, this iguana is the only brachylophus species kept in zoos outside of australia and fiji. banded iguanas are still regularly reported from many islands within fiji, even inhabited islands where cats are common and forest remnants are few. popular wisdom has always declared that banded iguanas are easiest to find on the large and heavily forested islands of kadavu and ovalau. however, after many weeks spent on these two islands over many years, i have yet to find a wild banded iguana on either. they are certainly there; a boy with a pet banded iguana can be found in many villages. fijians still occasionally find them on forest paths, when they are clearing bush for new gardens, or when high up in an ivi or bau tree picking ripe, edible fruit. in november 2000, a portuguese bat biologist on sabbatical in fiji, jorge palmeirim, contacted me to say that he had seen three banded iguanas is just a few hours while searching for bat caves on a tiny limestone island in eastern fiji. jorge had visited over 20 islands while working in fiji, and these were the only banded iguanas he had seen. i was immediately excited by the possibility of an island where banded iguanas are common, and, as i had worked with jorge surveying for crested iguanas in the yasawa islands earlier that year, i knew his information was accurate. many fijians and expatriates who have never seen an iguana often refer to the common arboreal green skink, emoia concolour, as an “iguana.” in september 2002, national trust crested iguana sanctuary ranger, pita biciloa, and i flew to the large inhabited island of lakeba, 300 km east 103iguanadecember 2003 searching for banded iguanas in the lau islands, eastern fiji peter harlow taronga zoo, sydney a male banded iguana from the island of ovalau. 104 iguana volume 10, number 4 of fiji’s capital, suva. jorge had seen the iguanas on one of the two aiwa islands; these are small, uninhabited islands (total size 121 ha) separated by 50 m of deep water, that lie about 12 km southeast of lakeba. like most islands in fiji, they are owned by a traditional fijian clan (mataqali), and any request to visit must first be approved by the local regional governmental administrator, and then permission obtained from the head of the mataqali. from lakeba, the aiwa islands are only a short trip by outboard motor boat. we landed first on the tiny beach at aiwa levu, the island where jorge had seen the banded iguanas. we spent only two hours there, while we waited for midtide, so we could land on the adjacent, beachless island of aiwa lailai. our local fijian guide, cakacaka, assured us that aiwa lailai had even more banded iguanas than aiwa levu, so we had decided to base our three-day survey there. a walk around the rocky limestone island revealed some scattered and dried iguana egg shells and many distinctive iguana scats. i soon spotted a female banded iguana in a low and bushy cevua tree (vavaea amicorunm) overhanging a cliff of razor sharp limestone blades, with crashing waves below. cevua leaves are a favorite food for crested iguanas, so it seemed a likely place to find a banded iguana. the boatman soon returned from his reconnaissance of aiwa lailai and was shouting at us to hurry to the boat. as we waded out to the waiting boat, he assured us that the tides, wave conditions, and currents were now suitable for us to attempt a landing on aiwa lailai. if we did not land within half an hour, we would miss our chance and would have to try again tomorrow. at the landing site a few meters from the shore of aiwa lailai, we all jumped overboard on the orders of our boatman. two of us held the bucking and tossing boat in chest deep, choppy water, while the other two quickly carried our gear ashore and tossed it on top of the undercut, twoto three-meter high limestone cliff that encircles the island. this included a large plastic barrel of fresh water, as both aiwa islands lack fresh surface water. as the last bag of camping gear was removed, the boatman jumped back in, started the motor and disappeared towards the fringing reef. a gravid female banded iguana from the large inhabited island of kadavu, where occasional sightings still occur. he promised to return in three days — if the ocean was calm. if not, he smiled as he left, we could survive by eating the plentiful vokai (iguanas) and goats. pita and i undoubtedly looked puzzled, standing in waist-deep water under the two-meter high, undercut cliff of razor sharp limestone that confronted us. the thought of having to climb over the limestone blades that encircle the entire island was worrying. however, cakacaka walked to a nearby cut in the cliff, reached high, and pulled down a sturdy tree trunk with convenient foot holds cut into it. it was kept there for just this purpose. happily, we clambered up this three-meter “ladder” and began the task of carrying our supplies to a flat area at the top of the island, where we set up camp. both aiwa islands have been heavily grazed by goats for three or four decades and, although the tall forest appeared mature and diverse, the forest floor was completely open, with only an occasional sign of undergrowth or forest regeneration. besides the goats, we noticed no other signs of human interference; no indications of forest fires, and certainly no cats or introduced rats (although the pacific rat, rattus exulans, is present). this is an island of birds. hours of searching that first day revealed five species of pigeons and fruit-doves, including the rare (and tame) west polynesian ground dove (gallicolumba stairi), pacific harriers, and barn owls, plus over a dozen other bird species and just two banded iguanas. our night surveys, however, revealed a different story. in the beam of our powerful spotlights the bright yellow-green belly color of banded iguanas causes the sleeping lizards to stand out from the dark background vegetation. in the first few minutes of surveying that night, we spotted over a dozen banded iguanas; some as high as 18 m in the forest canopy. in three nights on aiwa lailai, we counted over 200 banded iguanas along our 2 km of transect lines. a wonderful result for the first systematic survey ever. although not as abundant as crested iguanas are in optimal forest habitat on the crested iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba, aiwa lailai appears to support a very healthy population of banded iguanas. if aiwa levu has a similar number of banded iguanas per hectare (which seems possible, due to the similarity in vegetation and goat grazing pressure), then these two small islands may have a total population of 6000–8000 iguanas. small, remote and virtually inaccessible islands are abundant around fiji. their remoteness 105iguanadecember 2003 the limestone island of aiwa levu, seen from the neighboring island of aiwa lailai. may be their greatest asset, and hopefully will continue to keep feral animals, invasive plants, and destructive agricultural practices away. references bauer, a.m. 1988. a geological basis for some herpetofaunal disjunctions in the southwest pacific, with special reference to vanuatu. herpetological journal 1:259–263. gibbons, j.r.h. and i.f. watkins. 1982. behavior, ecology, and conservation of south pacific iguanas, brachylophus, including a newly discovered species, p. 419–441. in: g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes, new jersey. harlow, p.s. and p.n. biciloa. 2001. abundance of the fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis) on two islands. biological conservation 98:223–231. zug, g. 1991. the lizards of fiji: natural history and systematics. bishop museum press, honolulu. 106 iguana volume 10, number 4 our local guide, cakacaka, on aiwa lailai with a female banded iguana easily captured with the aid of a very long stick. the author with a pair of banded iguanas captured during night transects on aiwa lailai. 107iguanadecember 2003 illustration by john binns. iguana 10.4 b&w text in this issue... features: searching for banded iguanas in the lau islands, eastern fiji peter harlow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103 the history of banded iguanas in united states collections john kinkaid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .108 introduced iguanas in southern florida: a history of more than 35 years josiah h. townsend, kenneth l. krysko, and kevin m. enge . . . . .111 species profile: nile monitors (varanus niloticus) in florida todd campbell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119 the iguana rescue dilemma aj gutman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .121 if iguanas could speak andy gogakis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127 husbandry: green iguana management and husbandry stephen l. barten, dvm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .129 profile: allison alberts: a consumate conservationist tandora grant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .142 historical perspectives: iguanas of the galápagos islands franz werner, with extensive quotations from charles darwin . . .145 biographical sketch: franz werner (1867–1939) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150 book review: islands and the sea: essays on herpetological exploration in the west indies rick hudson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .151 iguana newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .153 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .157 letter from the president . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .158 fijian banded iguana (brachylopus fasciatus). see monitors, green iguanas, and spiny-tailed iguanas, such as ctenosaura similis (above), have taken up residence in florida. see articles on pages 111 and visit and join: www.iguanasociety.org iguana management and husbandry. see article on page 129. iguana_11.1_bw_text 16 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 powell distribution of iguanas in costa rica: iguana iguana (gray circles), ctenosaura similis (white circles), and c. quinquecarinata (squares). the latter is restricted to the northern part of guanacaste province in extreme northwestern costa rica. this map was adapted by john binns from distribution maps provided in savage (2002. the amphibians and reptiles of costa rica: a herpetofauna between two continents, between two seas. university of chicago press, chicago, illinois). black iguanas (ctenosaura similis), such as this subadult, are exceedingly arboreal in the guanacaste region of northwestern costa rica. this may be attributable to the relative scarcity of green iguanas (iguana iguana) in the area. black iguanas (ctenosaura similis) are much less arboreal throughout most of their range in costa rica, where they coexist with green iguanas (iguana iguana). this adult female is basking on a fallen log at parque nacional manuel antonio. three species of iguanas are native to costa rica: the common or green iguana (iguana iguana), the black iguana (ctenosaura similis), and the five-keeled black iguana (ctenosaura quinquecarinata). green iguanas may exceed 2 m in total length, and larger adults in particular are almost exclusively arboreal. these lizards occupy neotropical lowlands from sinaloa and veracruz, méxico through central america to ecuador on the pacific versant and to bolivia, paraguay, and south-central brasil on the atlantic slopes. other populations occur on some lesser antillean islands (see iguana 10(3), p. 71). the species also has become established in areas as geographically diverse as puerto rico, florida, and hawaii, primarily as a consequence of human agency (see iguana 10(4), p. 111). in costa rica, the species remains relatively common to elevations up to 500 m in lowland rainforests and gallery forests of both the caribbean and pacific versants. in drier areas, such as much of the guanacaste region, however, this species is largely restricted to riparian situations. black iguanas reach total lengths of about 1.3 m. these lizards are found in lowlands and lower premontane areas from the isthmus of tehuantepec eastward and southward on the pacific versant to central panamá and on the atlantic versant to eastern honduras, with scattered records in costa rica and central panamá. ctenosaura similis also has become firmly established in southern florida (see iguana 10(4), p. 111). in costa rica, the species is locally abundant at elevations to 765 m in the pacific lowlands. a single record in the atlantic lowlands suggests that the species occurs there or may have formerly ranged up the valley of the río grande de tárcoles. ctenosaurs often adapt well to habitats altered, sometimes substantially, by humans. they occur in vacant city lots, gardens, cemeteries, junk piles, and rock walls or fence rows along cultivated fields. in more natural settings, they generally seem to prefer relatively open locations with rocky outcrops, fallen logs, or standing hollow snags. black iguanas are the most commonly observed iguanas in costa rica. black iguanas (ctenosaura similis) in guanacaste, costa rica robert powell avila university, kansas city, missouri photographs by the author except as indicated. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 17ctenosaura similis � three species of iguanas occur in costa rica: iguana iguana (left), ctenosaura similis (center), and c. quiquecarinata (right). photographs by r. wayne van devender. juveniles of the three species of iguanas that occur in costa rica: iguana iguana (left), ctenosaura similis (center), and c. quiquecarinata (right). photographs by r. wayne van devender. five-keeled black iguanas are relatively small, reaching a maximum total length of less than 500 mm. the species has a disjunct distribution in semiarid and subhumid areas in lowland forests of pacific slopes. populations are known from southern oaxaca, méxico, west-central nicaragua, and northwestern costa rica. although nicaraguan animals reach elevations of 600 m, no costa rican population is known to occur above 145 m. in costa rica, this species is restricted to lowland dry forests in the extreme northwestern corner of the country. the guanacaste region is situated in northwestern costa rica. most of the area consists of a relatively dry, undulating plain. because of prolonged dry periods, rivers exhibit marked seasonal differences in volume and silt load. the dry forests tolerate five or six months with less than 100 mm of precipitation. mean monthly temperature highs are over 30°c throughout the year and approach 35°c during the height of the dry season. mean monthly temperature minima only rarely drop below 20°c. although severely impacted by human activities, the remaining dry tropical forests have only two strata, with the higher canopy trees reaching 20–30 m. these tend to have short, stout trunks and large, spreading crowns, which often fail to contact each other. understory trees are 10–20 m tall and have slender, crooked trunks and open crowns. canopy trees are deciduous, whereas some understory species are evergreen. shrubs are stunted and most species are notable for their thorns or spines. woody, but not herbaceous, vines are common. epiphytes are occasional, with bromeliads most abundant. at least some of the guanacaste populations of c. similis, particularly in non-riparian situations, utilize habitat resources in strikingly different ways than conspecifics elsewhere in costa rica. presumably because of the prevailing dry conditions, green iguanas are largely restricted to areas along streams and are rare or entirely absent from much of the region. consequently, the arboreal niche utilized by that species in other parts of the country is available — and it is extensively and effectively exploited by c. similis. during a recent visit to the guanacaste region (november–december 2003), i saw only one juvenile on a pile of logs and one adult female foraging on the ground for fallen yellow blossoms. in contrast, literally dozens of lizards of all age 18 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 powell black iguanas throughout most of the costa rican lowlands tend to perch low to the ground. for example, this female ctenosaura similis at parque nacional manuel antonio is basking less than one meter above the ground. one of the very few ctenosaura similis observed on or near the ground in guanacaste was this juvenile at parque nacional santa rosa. when disturbed, it hid in low vegetation instead of climbing a nearby tree. photograph by michael powell. individuals like this very dark ctenosaura similis from near playa hermosa, guanacaste province, provide meaning for the common name, black iguana. i observed this very large male ctenosaura similis from near playa hermosa defend his territory against another male and court a female while never descending to within 15 m of the ground. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 19ctenosaura similis classes were high in trees, where they were quite effectively mimicking behaviors i normally associate with green iguanas. i observed territorial defense, courtship, mating behavior, and competition for prime basking sites. also, the locals with whom i spoke about iguanas indicated that “iguanas negras” were found in trees. my contention that the populations of c. similis in this area are much more arboreally inclined than others i have encountered was reinforced when the female that had been foraging on the ground was disturbed and immediately ran to and climbed the nearest tree. this stands in stark contrast to escape behavior i have observed in populations of c. similis elsewhere in costa rica or in other parts of the species’ range, where individuals almost invariably seek shelter in excavated burrows or in hollow logs and snags. the concept of “ecological release” is used to describe situations in which a population of plants or animals becomes capable of exploiting a resource not usually available due to competition, often with closely related and ecologically similar forms. however, ecological release does not typically entail an almost complete shift from one resource to another, such as that which i observed in c. similis in at least some parts of the guanacaste region. because i was unable to assess habitat associations throughout the year or even in weather other than the unusually cool, damp conditions i encountered at the very end of the rainy season of 2003, i am unable to state with any authority whether ecological release is evident or some other, possibly transitional factors were operative. nevertheless, my observations suggest that interactions between c. similis and i. iguana might be far more complex than has generally been assumed, and that the habitat partitioning that is usually evident may reflect an effort to avoid competition as much as any preferences on the parts of the species involved. references köhler, g. 2002. schwarzleguane: lebensweise, pflege, zucht. herpeton, verlag elke köhler, offenbach, germany. savage, j.m. 2002. the amphibians and reptiles of costa rica: a herpetofauna between two continents, between two seas. university of chicago press, chicago, illinois. this subadult ctenosaura similis from near playa hermosa was on the ground feeding on fallen flowers, but immediately sought shelter in a nearby tree when disturbed. ctenosaurs basking high in trees were a common sight. in the course of the day, individuals would adjust their positions to exploit patches of sun penetrating through the upper canopy. opportunities for thermoregulation abound in arboreal habitats; this adult female ctenosaura similis from near playa hermosa sought deep shade during the heat of the day. at least some individuals adapt readily to habitats provided by humans; however, i saw no iguanas on roofs or other man-made structures that were not accessible from adjacent trees. iguana_11.1_bw_text iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 39spiny-tailed iguanas: captive care acquisition and acclimation a number of factors must be considered before acquiring a spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura spp.), the most important of which is making the long term commitment involved in caring for a lizard that can survive 20 years or more. since the survival and health of the iguana is completely dependent on the quality of care provided by the owner, he or she must consider future changes in his or her own life and the necessary accommodations that must be made to properly maintain these animals. some species grow very large (over 1 m in total length), although others remain small (less than 25 cm in total length). potential owners must recognize that a hatchling of one of the larger species can grow to a meter in length within 2–3 years and will require very roomy quarters. a qualified reptile veterinarian experienced in iguana care should be located to provide general health checks as well as emergency services, should those be required. provision also must be made for an alternate caretaker should the owner be away or unable to provide care. accurate records should be kept h u s b a n d r y ctenosaura nolascensis is long-lived and can become large. prospective owners must give consideration to providing an enclosure of sufficient size and care for an extended period of time. photograph by john binns. spiny-tailed iguanas: captive care1 gunther köhler1, aj gutman2, and john binns3 1forschungsinstitut senckenberg, frankfurt a/m, germany; 2west hartford, connecticut, usa; 3san jose, california, usa 1 adapted and expanded from köhler, g. 2002. schwarzleguane. lebensweise, pflege, zucht. herpeton verlag elke köhler, offenbach, germany. most changes reflect the different realities of european and north american ctenosaur husbandry. different products necessary for proper care are available and, although several species are commonly kept in europe, most americans keep only ctenosaura similis, a large and frequently aggressive form. for each animal, including weights, measures, diet, and emergency telephone numbers. spiny-tailed iguanas and green iguanas (iguana iguana) differ in their captive care requirements. ctenosaurs have a very different disposition than green iguanas, although this is a generalization and temperament will vary from one individual to another. one of the reasons for the popularity of green iguanas is their predominantly friendly and sociable nature; most animals will become quite tame over time with proper handling and care, and (with reasonable precautions) are easily handled, much like any “normal” house pet. in contrast, certain species of spiny-tailed iguanas can be quite wild and difficult to manage. tremendous patience and effort may be required in order to modify the behavior of such an animal. some of the smaller species may be easier to work with, but only rare individuals will become sufficiently tame that they can be taken out of their enclosures. the chances for successfully taming an individual are much better when dealing with juveniles than with subadults or adults. spiny-tailed iguanas produce relatively small, hard, dry fecal pellets, whereas green iguanas will excrete a far greater volume of solid waste, not to mention a considerable amount of fluid. for this reason, a green iguana habitat, out of necessity, must be easy to clean, and its aesthetic appeal can be no more than a secondary consideration. in contrast, an attractive natural environment can be created for a spiny-tailed iguana with less concern for hygienic problems or overpowering odors. still, the enclosure should be designed to facilitate regular maintenance, especially when keeping larger spiny-tailed iguanas, which are prone to rearranging their cage furnishings. changes in fecal consistency from a relatively dry to moist/runny deposits suggest a dietary imbalance or improper thermal gradient within the enclosure. the time commitment for one male and one or two females will be a minimum of 30–60 minutes a day (food preparation, cleaning food and water dishes, and general maintenance). if problems arise (incompatibility or illness) or if the animals are breeding (egg laying, incubation, hatching), the time commitment increases accordingly, particularly if any of these situations require the setup and maintenance of extra enclosures. 40 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 köhler, gutman, and binns an outside view of an enclosure’s uv-transmittable window and one happy iguana. a “room with a view” and sunlight does wonders for captive animals. photograph by john binns. terry-cloth towels are useful in handling less manageable animals by reducing the need to tightly clutch the animal. this reduces the stress of handling and the towel provides protection from the spiny-tailed iguana’s sharp spines and barbed tail. photograph by john binns. this simple display uses beach wood, artificial plants, fake cement stone, and corrugated tubing (hidden). the beach wood was arranged to provide multiple basking spots and careful stacking of parts ensured that they would not collapse. the feeding dish and water bowl are to the left of this photograph. photograph by john binns. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 41spiny-tailed iguanas: captive care a number of ctenosaur species have been bred successfully in captivity, some with regularity and others less frequently. in any case, acquiring captive-bred animals is always preferable. acquiring wild-caught animals only encourages the importation and exploitation of iguanas and limits the chances of the species’ long-term survival in their natural habitats. wild-caught animals are highly stressed, frightened, often ill (particularly due to heavy parasite loads), and their chances for survival are minimal. this is compounded by their fearful and flighty nature, resulting in a reluctance to eat and a host of other problems. of those that do survive, all will remain wild and their life expectancy will be greatly shortened. although captive-bred animals are not always parasite-free, they are considerably more stable, primarily due to having had fewer negative encounters with humans. their behavior likely will be calmer and more trusting. nevertheless, juveniles inevitably will acclimate more quickly than adults. the territorial nature of spiny-tailed iguanas needs to be considered when deciding the number of animals to place in a single enclosure. sex is not easily determined in very young ctenosaurs and, although a male and a female or a pair of young females are more likely to be compatible, and two males will definitely fight, no combination of numbers or sexes will assure that the animals will co-exist without some altercations. the size of the enclosure (generally “bigger is better”) may be the deciding factor in providing sufficient territory for more than one animal. introduction of animals into their new enclosure requires close observation to ensure compatibility. dominance develops at a very young age, and can range from establishing a natural pecking order to violent biting and life-threatening aggression. a second enclosure must be available should the dominant animal create an unhealthy, irresolvable situation with its mate or other female animals in the enclosure. on the positive side, competition for food may encourage others in the group to eat more than they would if they were held alone. a bolder and more curious individual may prompt others in the group to behave likewise, thus creating a healthy environment. continuous monitoring of the behavior of either an individual or a group of animals is a key element of good husbandry. several tips may facilitate acclimation: (1) the habitat should be elevated so that the animals are at eye level with their caretakers. (2) enclosures that open only at the top, such as refurbished aquaria, are ill-suited for iguanas. many natural predators of young iguanas’ (raptors!) attack from overhead, thus they instinctively fear anything coming from above. (3) the habitat should ultimately be set up in a high-traffic area as this helps to acclimate the animals to the presence of humans, making interaction with their caretakers less stressful. however, allowing 2–3 weeks after quarantine for the animals to first acclimate to their new habitat and/or new companions in order to reduce the high stress of translocation may be beneficial before they are moved to a more active area. children should be cautioned not to handle or irritate the iguanas (e.g., by banging on the glass). (4) owners should take time daily to tend to the animals while both animals and owner are calm and relaxed. sit by the habitat and just observe them. the animals, in turn, will be able to observe their caretaker while at a safe distance. after a few days, when you feel that the iguanas have become somewhat accustomed to your presence, you can carefully slide open the enclosure and determine if further interaction is feasible. some animals can be handfed without any difficulty, but others will be just as prone to attempt an escape or bite an intrusive finger. even if the new owner is experienced in iguana husbandry, newly acquired iguanas should be thoroughly examined by a qualified reptile veterinarian and quarantined until results of the examination are known and any required treatments have been successfully completed. this must precede any introduction into an enclosure with other animals. this examination typically entails a blood test, a fecal sample to determine if parasites are present, and a check for mites and ticks, injuries, swellings, and skin lesions. the results of the series of tests will determine the overall health of the animal and, should treatment for illness or parasites be required, the veterinarian will either suggest regular visits to administer the medication and treatment, or provide you with detailed instructions for treatment at home. some types of parasites are fairly easy to eliminate, but for others, treatment can be expensive and lengthy, and the medications are not always well-tolerated by the animal. to determine if the parasite treatment was successful, the veterinarian must rerun the parasite test (fecal sampling). the veterinarian can provide guidance regarding the necessary quarantine period. a small auxiliary enclosure that provides all the environmental needs for the animal is preferable for quarantine. treatment often requires elevating the ambient temperature and humidity within the enclosure, and a smaller enclosure permits easier maintenance of a constant temperature and a larger water bowl can be used to increase humidity through evaporation in the heated environment. the use of an auxiliary enclosure also prevents internal and external parasites and bacteria from contaminating the main enclosure, and it is best constructed of a material that is easy to clean and disinfect. disinfecting agents containing peroxide or alcohol should be used to clean habitats and equipment. under no circumstances should products containing phenols or other toxic agents be used. the enclosure should be void of all non-essentials items, containing only food and water bowls and an absorbent material for waste management. bowls should be washed with antibacterial soap and thoroughly rinsed these paired ctenosaura acanthura often share the same basking spot and are rarely apart. photograph by john binns. with fresh water after each use. waste from the animal should be removed immediately and clean substrate provided. healthy spiny-tailed iguanas typically exhibit lively and inquisitive behaviors. during the active phase (daytime), the animals eat, threaten, court, or patrol their territory with alternating periods of basking or sleeping. sick animals, on the other hand, will have sunken eyes and protruding pelvic bones due to loss of weight, and lack muscle on the legs and tail. they tend to lie apathetically at the bottom of the enclosure and do not react to their surroundings. any movements tend to be halting and insecure and the lower abdomen often rests on the ground. the importance of regular observation cannot be overemphasized. behavioral changes could indicate illness or other problems for which treatment should be sought and administered immediately. animals in the wild will instinctively conceal signs of illness to avoid attracting predators, reinforcing the need for careful observation. distinguishing the sexes in fully-grown males of most ctenosaur species, the dorsal crest is substantially more developed than in females. exceptions are c. alfredschmidti, c. clarki, c. defensor, and c. flavidorsalis, in which neither males nor females have particularly well-developed dorsal crests. adult males also usually have clearly visible hemipenial bulges under the base of the tail. another important character for determining gender is the size of the femoral pores, which are always larger in males than in females. in adult male c. similis, the femoral pores can attain diameters of 2.5 mm, whereas they are rarely more than 1 mm in diameter in females. housing the size of the enclosure will determine the degree of flexibility in design and setup. planning must include provisions for animal barrier isolation and for developing lighting and temperature zoning for thermoregulation. in order to adequately provide for a complete behavioral repertoire, a ctenosaur enclosure must be large and sturdy. for an adult pair of any of the medium-sized or large species (subgenera ctenosaura and loganiosaura; see köhler et al., iguana 10(3):79–81), a habitat should be at least 200 x 150 x 130 cm. for the smaller species (subgenus enyaliosaurus), the minimum size would be 80 x 60 x 90 cm. as is the case with all medium-sized to large iguanas, space planning for adult sized animals is critical when initially considering the enclosure design. if the animals have been previously paired and are able to comfortably co-exist, the recommended enclosure size should be sufficient. however, if a male and female are purchased individually and are subadults or older, a second enclosure should be available in cases of incompatibility. hatchling spiny-tailed iguanas are best housed in groups of three or four in at least a medium-sized terrarium about 60 x 40 x 60 cm in size. certain juveniles in captivity, like their counterparts in the wild, can be distinct loners and may be incompatible with other individuals. a well-structured terrarium with multiple basking spots and hiding places is required for raising juveniles together. sometimes, however, despite all these measures, combatants must be separated to avoid injuries. setup because spiny-tailed iguanas are territorial, the habitat should be structured to permit animals to avoid one another, particularly if individuals vary in size. visual barriers and hiding places can be created using rocks, tree roots, corrugated-drain tubing, cork tubes, or whole pieces of cork bark attached to walls. all structures and components need to be sufficiently secured and stable to prevent damage to the component or injury to the iguanas. isolation barriers may necessitate the provision of individual basking areas, and this should be considered when developing the enclosure design. basking locations should be designed to incorporate a declining temperature zone for proper thermoregulation. this entails creating a surface that allows the animal to adjust its position relative to the central “hotspot” (high temperature areas) in order to maintain the correct body tem42 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 köhler, gutman, and binns sandblasted wood branches and some artificial plants keep a display from looking bare. this enclosure uses commercial plastic paneling that facilitates cleaning and adds a level of thermal insulation. all seams are sealed to minimize problems with ants and other insects. the window is uv-transmittable glass, providing a substantial amount of natural sunlight during the day. the vent at the top extracts air from the enclosure with a fan to help minimize odor and draw fresh air into the enclosure through vents at the bottom. an additional heat-lamp that was installed for the winter months is barely visible at the top of the window. photograph by john binns. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 43spiny-tailed iguanas: captive care perature. in the wild, animals can maintain body temperature within a few degrees by repositioning themselves between bright sun and shade or retreating into cooler burrows. providing temperature zones is a mandatory habitat design element to ensure good health. since iguanas require heat to effectively digest food, inadequate thermal design of the enclosure will limit the benefits of providing a healthy nutritional diet, even with the presence of sufficient ultraviolet (uv or uva/b) light. in areas other than hotspots, the use of artificial rock can appear very natural and has the advantage of being light and relatively easy to clean. artificial rock or structures can be purchased from most large pet suppliers. as an alternative for those who prefer a more “natural” setting, artificial props such as rock can be constructed. the base material of an artificial rock or prop can be made from styrofoam blocks, which are easily carved into shape with a hot knife or carving tool. the entire surface can then be covered with plaster mixed with a naturally colored powder and then modeled appropriately with a wet brush. sharp edges should always be avoided. while still damp, the plaster can be covered with sifted sand to give the appearance of sandstone or left bare to represent some other natural rock. covering the structure with sand helps reduce sharp edges, but it also makes cleaning more laborious and should be used only in areas unlikely to become soiled. the use of any potentially toxic or petroleum-based materials in the construction of props must be avoided. each component used in the enclosure should be cleaned or washed prior to use or assembly. additionally, if the enclosure is located where insects, ants, parasites, and other undesirables might invade, some provision for preventative maintenance should be considered. elaborate, natural-appearing habitats can be extremely difficult to rid of pests, often requiring complete disassembly to solve the problem. a preventative measure to consider during the design phase, especially if ants are a recurring problem, is construction of the enclosure so that it is elevated off the ground and the structure’s waterproofed support beams fitted into a water reservoir to create an isolation barrier. ants are of particular concern during the egg-laying season. sanitized driftwood or tree-limb sections obtained commercially combined with artificial plants are excellent enclosure components for providing physical isolation, and will allow animals to move from one level to another while making effective use of the three-dimensional space. combined with artificial or natural rocks, these can produce a very naturalistic environment and simultaneously provide for the needs of the iguanas. an inexpensive alternative to burrow construction is black plastic corrugated drain tubing, which is available in various diameters. the corrugated tubing also is useful when handling more intransigent animals. if this tubing is employed as the primary “burrow” or “hiding chamber,” the animal will readily accept it and use the tube as a secure hiding location or as a sleep chamber. once the animal is in the tube, both ends can be covered by a gloved hand, and the animal can be easily and safely transported to another location or holding pen. this method is extremely useful in transporting excitable or unruly animals from the main enclosure to an outside cage for sunlight exposure. once the sun goes down, the animal retreats naturally to this female ctenosaura acanthura will climb on her log to bask under uv lamps and comfortably wedge herself inside it to sleep at night. photograph by carole saucier. gradient temperature zoning is necessary for proper thermoregulation. the iguana under the basking lamp enjoys a temperature ranging from 45–36 °c, whereas the iguana on the left is exposed to a temperature ranging from 36 °c to ambient enclosure temperatures of 28–33 °c. the thermal-spread from the basking lamp to the enclosure’s floor (indicated by the light gray triangle) is controlled by adjusting the height and/or wattage of the lamp. basking lamps should have reflectors and protective screens. illustration by john binns. its “tube,” and it can then be transported back to the main enclosure with minimal disturbance and stress. cork tubes also make good habitat furnishings. they provide iguanas with traction for climbing and are readily accepted as sleeping places. for smaller species, the enclosure can be attractively decorated with yucca and other robust plants. enclosures for juveniles also should include plants, as these help retain humidity. for adults of the larger species (e.g., c. similis, c. melanosterna), plants only make sense if the habitat is large enough to ensure that they are out of the iguanas’ reach. otherwise, the plants will be either eaten or trampled in very short order. artificial plants are a hardier and still attractive alternative. a food bowl can simply be placed on the bottom of the enclosure. the use of commercially available garden cement tiles or walkway liners that keep the bowls from being upset will aid in housekeeping. some animals, however, will not readily descend from an elevated perch, and are much more likely to eat if their food is placed higher. driftwood structures can be used to construct a secondary platform higher in the enclosure. although adult spiny-tailed iguanas normally meet all of their fluid requirements from the food that they eat, a water bowl should always be provided — and cleaned daily. in cases where territorial disputes occur, assuming the disputes do not result in injury, separate food bowls and water dishes can be used to minimize conflict. a mixture of sanitized soil, sand, and cypress bark mulch comprises an appropriate substrate when simulating a natural environment. the use of unprocessed soil, sand, and bark mulch is not recommended due to the potential of introducing insects, bacteria, or other undesirable elements. for those concerned about maintenance, the use of artificial turf can be employed with minimal impact on the natural appearance of the enclosure. in essence, once the enclosure props are established, artificial turf floor inserts can be constructed and used as substrate pads. these can be secured using snaps, velcro©, or quickrelease locking devices. the artificial turf pads can be duplicated and replaced for ease of cleaning and maintenance. wood shavings, corn based substrates, and newspaper are not recom44 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 köhler, gutman, and binns inexpensive corrugated drain tubing comes in various sizes and can be used for burrows and retreats. tubing helps reduce territorial disputes by providing ample hiding places and allowing each individual to take ownership of a tube. photograph by john binns. a well-secured spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura nolascensis), safely buried in his “burrow,” makes for easy transportation. photograph by john binns. corrugated drain tubing can be used to transport aggressive spinytailed iguanas. the tube provides a sense of security, minimizing stress for the iguana, and, most importantly, reducing the chances of getting bit (note the use of heavy gloves). photograph by john binns. corrugated drain tubing distributed around the enclosure provides protection from a dominant animal and serves to visually isolate individuals. the tubing can be placed under or behind an enclosure’s artificial props to enhance the aesthetics of a “natural” setting. photograph by john binns. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 45spiny-tailed iguanas: captive care mended; they are impractical and lack aesthetic appeal. wood shavings can be accidentally ingested and can result in lifethreatening intestinal impaction. hatchling terraria should be furnished with branches, a plant, small roots, several tubes of cork or corrugated plastic, a water dish (10–15 cm in diameter, water temperature 25–30 °c), and a heat emitter (80 w) and fluorescent tube for heat and light. a heating mat may be used to warm the water bowl from below. hatchlings have a much higher fluid requirement than adult iguanas and should be provided with sufficient drinking water. water bowls should be cleaned and filled daily and the terrarium misted regularly. heat and light requirements spiny-tailed iguanas will be fully active and can display their intense coloration only with proper illumination. the daily photoperiod (light time) will vary by season and according to the geographic origin of the species. regulating a consistent photoperiod as well as appropriate daily temperature fluctuations in the enclosures is recommended. to simulate the 24-hour cycle, the method of controlling light and heat should be considered prior to setting up the enclosure. many commercially available “timers” can individually control lights and thermostats used to control the heat source, or more sophisticated electronic controllers are capable of simulating a complete 24-hour cycle (light and heat) from sunrise to sunset. whichever method is used, installation will require careful planning. specifics are variable, depending on the type of light and heat sources, power requirements, reliability, costs, and aesthetic considerations. light can be broken down into three basic categories: (1) ultraviolet or uva/b light is required for iguanas to produce vitamin d3 (see also bogoslavsky, iguana times 9(1–2):32–34 and maccargar, iguana 10(3):82–85), (2) visible light reflects the combined color spectrum that collectively produces white or full-spectrum light, and (3) infrared light, which is essentially heat and is invisible to the human eye. a current trend is to combine the uva/b and visible light spectra, and this has been successful to some degree. the types of artificial lighting available for purchase vary depending on location, and the charts provided in this article feature some of the products available in the united states. although many products are readily available, ctenosaura (and other iguanas) require higher levels of uva/b than most other reptiles; therefore, the products selected should include lamps that produce sufficient quantities of light in the uv range. regular ultraviolet (uv) light is critical for proper calcium metabolism and breeding. the selection of lighting itself is complex and often confusing. aside from determining which type of bulb to use, questions regarding fixture types, location, and mounting must be addressed. with effective planning, the various requirements (lamp types) for proper illumination can be minimized. factors to consider in planning for proper illumination include locating the uva/b lamp within its effective range relative to where the animal is likely to spend the greatest amount of time, the location of full spectrum lighting to best provide overall illumination of the enclosure, and basking spot lamp location or locations that facilitate the temperature zone concept mentioned previously. cement garden tiles or walkway borders, which are useful for securing food dishes, also may serve decorative purposes. these cement pieces are lighter than natural stone and allow considerable flexibility when designing an aesthetically pleasing enclosure. photograph by john binns. this male ctenosaura flavidorsalis was much more inclined to feed regularly when the food dish was secured in an elevated position. photograph by gunther köhler. a young ctenosaura similis peeking out of a cork tube. cork tubes provide iguanas with traction for climbing and are readily accepted as hiding and sleeping places. photograph by gunther köhler. mounting of lamps is not restricted to the ceiling of the enclosure, which in very large enclosures would require lamps of very high wattage in order to be effective at floor level. to reduce the overall power requirements (wattage) of each lamp, suspension is an effective method. suspension also enables height adjustments to fine-tune heat and uv delivery. naturally, precautions must be taken to prevent animals from coming into contact with suspended fixtures and to ensure that all heat-producing sources have protective screening. essentially, lower wattage uv and basking lamps can be located closer to the floor, whereas general full-spectrum illumination is mounted high in the enclosure. in some cases, the use of a single, high-power fullspectrum lamp such as sodium, mercury or metal-halide lamps in the 250-watt range is less costly than employing four 100watt full-spectrum lamps dispersed around the ceiling of the enclosure. precisely calculating the proper lamp wattage can be difficult, especially if the enclosure has a complex layout. one alternative is to first select lamps of various wattages and, through testing, discover the right combination to produce the desired effect. changing the wattage of lamps may be required to compensate for changes in ambient temperature or seasonal variations. for most types of lamps, wattage effectively translates into the ability to produce heat. however, in uva/b lamps, wattage 46 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 köhler, gutman, and binns this custom light fixture employs uv, full spectrum, and heat lamps (including a “moon” light). custom fixtures help reduce unsightly wiring, adjustable reflectors, and screened protection for the animal. this fixture uses electrical conduit to eliminate exposed wiring. photograph by john binns. this elaborate electronic habitat control system automatically controls 32 enclosures; two of those electronic control units are shown in the photograph. this system controls the lighting to simulate sunrise by slowly increasing to full intensity. then, at a selected time, simulates sunset by slowly decreasing intensity until dark, at which time simulated moonlight is activated. the system also controls ambient temperatures that correspond to day and evening settings. should any of the presettings fail or exceed limits, an audible alarm is activated and an auto-dialer sends a message to a beeper. a muffin-fan is activated if the enclosure overheats. all the lamps are turned off until the ambient temperature reaches safe levels. photograph by john binns. large outside cages on rollers are an excellent means of providing “natural” basking sites. cages can be repositioned easily in sun or shade and the relatively large size allows an animal to reposition itself for the most effective thermoregulation. the black foam floor mat that takes up about half the shelf collects heat to provide a hot spot. the other half of the shelf is wire-mesh and is much cooler. during the summer months, a portion of the top of the cage is covered to provide shade. photograph by john binns. can be misleading relative to their ability to produce heat, which is significantly less than a comparable visible spectrum lamp of the same wattage. selection of lamp type should be based on performance, longevity, and aspects of enclosure design such as size, shape, and materials (hard-walls, wire-screen, etc.) used. in general, as the size of the enclosure increases, so does the requirement for light and heat (wattage). for small indoor enclosures, in which ambient temperatures remain relatively constant, the amount of heat produced in lamps must be checked and allowances made for adequate air-ventilation to prevent the enclosure from overheating. conversely, maintaining temperatures within allowable limits within a screened enclosure located in an area that is subject to large ambient temperature fluctuations can prove to be a challenge. this situation often leads to the use of additional heat sources and controllers to compensate for temperature variations. as a final word on illumination, no light supplement for captive animals is better than natural sunlight. regular periods of exposure, when possible, should be employed. in designing enclosures, any access to natural sunlight (window, porch, skylight, etc.) should be optimized. to utilize the sun’s uv, glass and plastics need to be replaced with uv-transmittable substitutes. ambient temperatures in an enclosure should range from 28–33 °c during the day and be reduced to 18–24 °c at night. heat can be generated by the lamps illuminating the enclosure as well as by specific heat producing lamps or ceramic heaters. during the peak summer season, the total illumination wattage may need to be reduced in order to keep the enclosure within iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 47spiny-tailed iguanas: captive care ultraviolet options mercury vapor bulbs and fluorescent tubes mercury vapor lamps emit a higher intensity of uvb with added benefits of uva and full-spectrum light that help the animal produce vitamin d3 to aid in balanced calcium metabolism. all lamps are rated for use at distances from 30 cm to about 2 m. the optimum distance is about 1 m from the bulb lens. these bulbs do emit a fair amount of heat, but less heat than an incandescent bulb of comparable wattage. manufacturer brand 100 watt 160 watt 250–275watt 100 watt 160 watt name flood flood flood spot spot zoo med powersun uv puv-11 puv-10 — — — t-rex active uv 82404 82406 82408 (275w) 82414 82416 full spectrum r40 frosted fsuv100 fsuv160 fsuv250 — — solutions premium life mercury vapor pi12000 pi12001 — — — globe fluorescent tubes emit uvb with added benefits of uva and full-spectrum light with very little heat. about 5–8% of the total energy output is in the uvb wavelengths, which helps to prevent metabolic bone diseases. fluorescent tubes should be used with an incandescent (day or night) supplement to create an acceptable thermal gradient. all lamps are rated for use at distances from 25–30 cm. the optimum distance is 15–25 cm from the tube. manufacturer brand 14 watt, 15 watt, 20 watt, 30 watt, 40 watt, 40 watt, name 15” tube 18” tube 24” tube 36” tube 42” tube 48” tube zoo med iguana light 5.0 fi-15 fi-18 fi-24 fi-36 — fi-48 hagen exo terra pt-2159 pt-2160 pt-2161 pt-2163 pt-2164 pt-2165 repti-glo 5.0 hagen exo terra pt-2169 pt-2170 pt-2170 pt-2173 pt-2174 pt-2175 reptiglo 8.0 esu reptile desert — rp393 rp390 rp391 — rp392 7% uvb esu super uv rp454 rp453 rp450 rp451 — rp452 (3%uvb + 7%uva) vita-lite — — vl-06402 vl-3028 vl-1064 — vl-06418 (also has 75w, 96” tubes) allowable temperature limits. if using lower wattage bulbs, providing increased ventilation, and eliminating other sources of heat proves ineffective, air-conditioning may be necessary. the central zone of the main basking area should have a hotspot reaching 45 °c. this can be produced using a single lamp source or combination of lamps such as spotlights, infrared lights, ceramic heaters, and uv lights, depending again on the particular design of the available lamps and the nature of the enclosure. further considerations must include a declining temperature zone on an approximately level plane from the central hotspot to the ambient enclosure temperature of about 28–33 °c. although possibly restricted by limited space, the more gradual the decline in temperature, the more latitude the iguana will have in selecting the proper temperature zone. the temperature gradient can be established by adjusting the height of the basking spot lamp or lamps. raising and lowering the basking lamps may require a change in wattage to produce the desired temperature. the use of other basking spots can be incorporated at higher levels of the enclosure, but these do not need to be as finely tuned as the main basking spot. for most species, the relative humidity during the day should be about 50–60%, climbing to 70–80% at night. for particularly low humidity locations, a plastic tub filled with water can be used to increase humidity by evaporation. during the rainy season (may to november), depending on the ambient humidity where you live, the entire habitat should be thor48 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 köhler, gutman, and binns visible light options (incandescent daylight) daylight blue and basking spot bulbs incandescent bulbs emit full-spectrum light, limited uva, and an abundance of heat. flood lamps create a larger heated area and spot bulbs create a more concentrated heated area. flood bulbs manufacturer brand name 40 watt 60 watt 100 watt 150 watt zoo med daylight blue db-40 db-60 db-100 db-150 t-rex day blue tr82322 tr82330 tr82332 tr82334 hagen day-glo pt-2104 pt-2110 pt-2112 pt-2114 hagen exo terra sun glo pt-2111 esu brightlight rp409 rp410 rp411 rp150 spot bulbs manufacturer brand name 50–60 watt 75 watt 100 watt 150 watt zoo med repti basking sl-50 sl-75 sl-100 sl-150 zoo med repti halogen hb-50 hb-75 hb-100 hb-150 t-rex basking clear tr82390 tr82394 tr82396 t-rex daylight blue tr82360 tr82362 tr82364 tr82366 hagen exo terra sun glo basking pt-2131 pt-2132 pt-2133 pt-2134 hagen day-glo basking pt-2135 pt-2136 pt-2138 pt-2140 esu reptile brightlight spot rp413 rp414 rp415 vita-lite basking spot dl4644 dl4647 air conditioning was necessary in this vivarium to solve the problem of overheating during the summer months. this particular vivarium houses a variety of species, each with specific ambient temperature requirements that could not be solved by lowering lamp wattage. the skylight above the compact air conditioner brightly illuminates the inside of the vivarium during daylight hours. photograph by john binns. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 49spiny-tailed iguanas: captive care oughly misted at least once a day to simulate rainfall. enclosure components should be able to withstand misting and electrical components should be avoided. during the dry season, misting two or three times each month is sufficient. ctenosaura bakeri is an exception and has some very specialized care requirements, as their natural habitat is wet mangrove swamp (see, for example, gutsche, iguana 10(2):28–29). population density and socialization adult males cannot be kept together. they are territorial and are likely to injure each other. a single male with one or two females can be housed together. incompatibility and biting is sometimes observed even between females, and separating them into individual enclosures may be unavoidable. juveniles of the larger species tend to be particularly quarrelsome. usually, one individual will quickly assume the dominant position and begin to oppress the other lizards. in order to ensure that all animals thrive, any that are repeatedly chased away from food and basking spots must be separated. juveniles should never be held with adults, as they may be regarded as prey. the larger species of ctenosaurs can be kept with green iguanas or tegus (tupinambis teguixin). the smaller species, such as c. clarki or c. defensor, can be kept with chuckwallas (sauromalus) or the larger species of spiny lizards (sceloporus). infrared (incandescent light and heat) emitters incandescent night bulbs emit low levels of visible light in both flood and spot lamps (red and black glass). infrared bulbs and ceramic heat emitters are appropriate for nighttime use, as they generate radiant heat and little or no light. flood bulbs manufacturer brand name 40 watt 50–60 watt 75 watt 100watt 150 watt zoo med nightlight red nr-40 nr-60 — nr-100 — t-rex nocturnal black tr82326 — tr82340 tr82342 tr82344 hagen night-glo — pt-2141 pt-2142 pt-2144 pt-2146 esu nightlight bulb rp419 — rp 420 rp 421 rp 422 esu red basking night — rp 402 (50 watt) rp 403 rp 404 spot, infrared, and ceramic bulbs manufacturer brand name 50 watt 60 watt 75 watt 100 watt 150 watt zoo med infrared rs-50 — rs-75 rs-100 rs-150 t-rex day/night red tr82380 — tr82382 tr82384 tr82386 t-rex nocturnal black tr82370 — tr82372 — — esu nightlight spot — rp 423 — rp 424 rp 425 ceramic heat emitters manufacturer brand name 40 watt 60 watt 80 watt 100 watt 150–165 215 watt 250–265 watt watt zoo med repticare ce-60 ce-100 ce-150 ce-250 esu bask n’ heat rp480 rp481 rp482 rp483 rp484 rp485 rp486 hagen exo terra heat pt-2040 pt-2045 pt-2046 pt-2047 this large rhinoceros iguana (cyclura cornuta) takes full advantage of the uv and heat lamps overhead. the “lizard hut” is used to facilitate basking close to the lamps and also provides a sleeping site. photograph by john binns. generally, however, species with different habitat needs or those that may be viewed as potential prey (e.g., smaller lizards) should not be housed with ctenosaurs. keeping ctenosaurs together with turtles is not recommended, since turtles often pass amoebas (e.g., entamoeba invadens), and an amoebic infection is often difficult to treat in herbivorous lizards. closely related species from the same subgenus should not be kept together for breeding purposes, because this may result in unwanted hybridization. accurately identifying the species one acquires for breeding is vitally important, especially in cases where animals are acquired from different sources. since ctenosaura is not commonly kept in the private sector, a specialist should be consulted for identification. this can be done through the use of photographs and other transmittable data. the keeper must preclude any chance of hybridization. ctenosaura oaxacana and c. quinquecarinata have hybridized in captivity. even under natural conditions, hybridization is known to occur between individuals from different subgenera, such as ctenosaura bakeri and c. similis. however, if hybrid animals resulting from irresponsible breeding enter the pet trade or are passed to other breeders and not identified as hybrids, this would quickly contaminate the species’ captive gene pool. nutrition spiny-tailed iguanas are omnivorous. juveniles, however, prefer animal-based foods. between 40 and 80% of the food consumed by young c. similis (svl around 10 cm) consists of insects. in contrast, adult spiny-tailed iguanas are predominantly vegetarian. vegetables, such as sweet potatoes, squash, and green beans, as well as leafy greens, such as dandelions, collard greens, mustard greens, escarole, and chicory are readily accepted. various seeds and sprouts (linseed, sunflower, soy beans), flowers (dandelions and hibiscus), and fruit (nectarines, peaches, pears, apples, melon, berries, plums) are good supplements. the colors red and yellow are particularly attractive to spiny-tailed iguanas (as they are for many other reptiles), so hibiscus flowers, grated carrots, tomatoes, strawberries, dandelion flowers, and other red or yellow foods are usually consumed greedily and often may be used to convince reluctant eaters to feed. 50 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 köhler, gutman, and binns ctenosaura bakeri exhibit at the frankfurt zoological garden illustrates the complexity necessary to house a breeding group of spiny-tailed iguanas in a single enclosure. note also the large “pond,” necessary for maintaining the high humidity critical to these mangrove swampdwelling lizards. photograph by gunther köhler. this juvenile ctenosaura similis is eating an hibiscus flower. like many other iguanid lizards, spiny-tailed iguanas respond positively to brightly colored blossoms. these are sometimes effective in inducing an otherwise reluctant eater to feed. photograph by gunther köhler. unlike green iguanas, spiny-tailed iguanas are omnivorous. this female ctenosaura bakeri is eating a cricket in the wild on utila island, honduras. photograph by gunther köhler. this captive-bred ctenosaura similis readily accepts a dandelion flower. supplementing purchased foods with items collected in the yard or garden helps to ensure a varied diet. note, however, that plants sprayed with pesticides or other lawn chemicals are not suitable for use as food. photograph by gunther köhler. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 51spiny-tailed iguanas: captive care food should be offered daily and should always include as much variety as possible (see dietary recommendations for green iguanas in barten, iguana 10(4):129–141; these generally apply to adult ctenosaurs as well). all food items should be washed, chopped into small pieces, and well mixed. during the summer, leafy garden plants (dandelions, clover, mulberry leaves, raspberry leaves) can comprise a large portion of the diet. during the winter, various leafy cooking greens and sprouts can be substituted. food remnants should be removed daily and food bowls cleaned thoroughly. some foods contain harmful substances and should be fed only in very limited amounts. these include oxalates (in rhubarb, sorrel, and spinach), nitrates and saponin (particularly in spinach and comfrey), and goitrogens (in cabbage). animal protein should be provided 1–3 times per week. this can include all types of commercially available insects such as crickets, grasshoppers, wax moths and their larvae, meal worms, superworms, and giant cockroaches. mineral supplements should be added to food daily. all insects should be dusted with mineral powder before they are offered. in addition, a regular vitamin supplement must be provided. many vitamin supplements are available commercially, but caution is advised. overdosing or excessive use of these supplements can result in a number of nutritional disorders. owners should consult their iguana veterinarian to establish a dietary supplement program. this is especially true when considering fat-soluble vitamins, such as a and d, where overdosing is particularly dangerous. first foods offered to hatchlings should be wax moths and small crickets. finely chopped and well-mixed vegetables also should be offered daily, although the little lizards will most likely prefer the insects. hatchlings should receive a mineral supplement containing calcium. with a poor diet, fast-growing juveniles can develop bone disease such as rickets and fibrous osteodystrophy, which are difficult to treat (see also gutman, iguana times 9(1–2):35–37). references braun, d. 1993. erfahrungen bei der pflege und zucht von ctenosaura palearis. iguana rundschreiben 12:13–18. köhler, g. 1992a. artgerechte ernährung und ernährungsbedingte erkrankungen des grünen leguans, iguana iguana (linnaeus 1758). sauria 14:3–8. köhler, g. 1992b. die bedeutung von entamoeba invadens bei der vergesellschaftung von echsen oder schlangen mit schildkröten. sauria 14:31–34. köhler, g. 1993. schwarze leguane. freiland beobachtungen, pflege und zucht. herpeton verlag, offenbach. köhler, g. and e. blinn 2000. natürliche bastardierung zwischen ctenosaura bakeri und ctenosaura similis auf utila, honduras. salamandra 36:77–79. van den heuvel, w. 1997. de zwarte leguaanctenosaura palearis in zijn natuurlijke omgeving en de voortplanting in het terrarium. lacerta 55:155–159. van devender, r.w. 1982. growth and ecology of spiny-tailed and green iguanas in costa rica , with comments on the evolution of herbivory and large body size, pp. 162–163. in: g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology and conservation. noyes publications, park ridge, new jersey. the professionals choicethe professionals choice the best uvb/uva linear fluorescent lamps for iguanas. made with uvb transmitting hard quartz glass on the best german lighting machinery. available in: 15"/375mm 18"/450mm 24"/600mm 36"/900mm 48"/1200mm powersun 100watt self-ballasted mercury vapor flood lamp powersun 160watt all natural iguana food. no artificial colors, flavors, scents or preservatives. naturally fortified with spirulina and beta carotene. softmoist pellet formula — no need to add water! sun dried alfalfa based (naturally calcium/phosphorus balanced 2:1) instead of corn (unbalanced calcium/phosphorus 1:13). available in juvenile and adult formulas. 10oz. jars to 25lb. bags. zoo med laboratories, inc. 3100 mcmillan ave., san luis obispo, ca 93401 tel: (805) 542-9988 • fax: (805) 542-9295 e-mail: zoomed@zoomed.com www.zoomed.com iguana_11.1_bw_text of two to six individuals feeding communally on the fallen fruits of cardón cacti (pachycereus pringlei) is a common occurrence. this is most obvious where the cacti occur in stands. i once found a carcass of an individual with an intestinal tract filled to capacity with cardón cactus seeds. the seeds were mixed with several small rocks of the same approximate size. these appeared to be chipping away at the seeds’ hard outer covering, serving much the same function as pebbles stored in the gizzards of seed-eating birds or the much larger gastroliths that have been found with fossilized remains of herbivorous dinosaurs. in the large intestine, essentially only the shells were left, as the fleshy pulps had been digested. i also have seen iguanas as high as one meter above the ground in pitahaya ágria (stenocercus gummosus) feeding on ripened fruits. dipsosaurus catalinensis serves as a good example of how insular situations can produce sometimes substantive changes in organisms over even relatively short periods of time. faced with unique selection pressures, different suites of predators and competitors, and reduced genetic variation, populations will do whatever they are genetically capable of doing to continue the lineage. in the case of dipsosaurus, nature has taken a common, docile species and sculpted its descendants into wary and aggressive lizards. what selective forces were responsible for this change? are they still operative today? are similar pressures molding populations of other insular lizards? if so, are they eliciting results comparable to those observed in the santa catalina desert iguana or are they having profoundly different effects on populations of lizards with different genetic compositions and lifestyles? these are some of the interesting questions that evolutionary biologists could be asking about d. catalinensis. a modicum of fieldwork leading to even tentative answers might teach us a great deal about the evolution of insular systems in general. reference grismer, l.l. 2002. amphibians and reptiles of baja california, including its pacific islands and the islands in the sea of cortés. university of california press, berkeley. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 7santa catalina island desert iguanas sand snakes in the genus chilomeniscus have a circum-gulf of california distribution very similar to that of desert iguanas (dipsosaurus). similar also is the association with sandy areas in open deserts, washes, and arroyos. two species of sand snakes occur in the region: c. stramineus is most widely distributed and occurs on most of the baja california peninsula, in desert regions to the north and east of the gulf, and on several gulf islands, whereas c. savagei occurs only on isla cerralvo. considerable confusion has clouded taxonomic relationships within the genus, most caused by the extremely variable patterns that range from distinctly banded to totally unicolored. not until studies demonstrated that pattern variants coexisted at many localities was the clarification of relationships within the genus possible. sand snakes are common in areas of loose soil and are an important component of many dune ecosystems. they are specialized for burrowing. a countersunk lower jaw and valved nostrils exclude small particles as these snakes “swim” through sand. very smooth scales reduce friction both above and below the surface. sand snakes are nocturnal, but their abundance is obvious in some areas as a consequence of numerous tracks left in the sand by snakes that were actively foraging during the previous night. sand snakes apparently feed exclusively on small arthropods. references grismer, l.l. 2002. amphibians and reptiles of baja california, including its pacific islands and the islands in the sea of cortés. university of california press, berkeley. grismer, l.l., h. wong, and p. galina-tessaro. 2002. geographic variation and taxonomy in the sand snakes, chilomeniscus (squamata: colubridae). herpetologica 58:18–31. banded sand snakes (chilomeniscus stramineus) robert powell avila university, kansas city, missouri chilomeniscus stramineus from near loreto, baja california sur, méxico. photograph by robert powell. iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) “i’m optimistic that the st. lucian iguana will be saved, and that we will be able to protect them in such a way that they will be able to expand into new areas. my dream is to see the iguana repopulate a much wider area of the island…” — donald anthony, wildlife officer, st. lucia s t. lucia is one of the windward isles in the lesser antillean chain, which extends from just southeast of the puerto rico bank almost to south america. with an area of 610 km2, the island is topographically and biotically diverse. montane uplands are covered by rainforest, whereas coastal areas are characterized by dry woodlands. human influence is evident in the abundant agricultural areas and numerous communities. green iguanas (iguana iguana) are widely distributed through central and much of south america, and have been introduced and become established in many tropical and subtropical areas throughout the world. st. lucia is the northernmost of the antilles on which these animals occur naturally. introduced green iguanas are all too common and indeed, have become pests in parts of florida (see newsbriefs, p. 94). on some of the more the st. lucian green iguana — a special case? john s. bendon bath, england 71iguanaseptember 2003 large adult male st. lucian green iguana. note the pale ground color and the length of the dorsal crest scales. northerly isles of the lesser antilles, they pose a threat to populations of their endangered relative, iguana delicatissima, through competition for food and habitat and by reproducing at a higher rate. in some areas, they also have threatened the integrity of the unique i. delicatissima gene pool by hybridizing with the native animals. unlike the introduced populations, which have become established only in recent years, st. lucian iguanas may have been isolated from other green iguana populations for as long as hundreds of thousands of years — and consequently appear to be a bit different. most obviously, st. lucian iguanas have “horns,” dramatically enlarged scales that project conspicuously from their snouts. these vary considerably in size and seem to be more prominent in older animals. although relatively rigid and firm (much more so than the middorsal crest spines, for example), they do “bend” from side to side. they also are thicker in diameter than dorsal crest scales, although, in cross-section, they are somewhat flattened laterally. the coloration and shape of some large scales on the lower jaw also differ from those of other green 72 iguana volume 10, number 3 an adult male st. lucian green iguana (a) and a young adult female st. lucian green iguana (b) compared to male (c) and female (d) green iguanas from elsewhere in the species’ range. note the horns and differing shapes of scales on the jaws. drawings by the author. a b c d iguanas. catherine malone, purdue university, has examined the dna of many iguanids, and recently has been concentrating on st. lucian iguanas. her work is yet to be published, but preliminary results show distinct genetic differences between st. lucian and other green iguana populations. although based on a relatively small sample of a few dozen adults and recognizing considerable variation among individuals, st. lucian iguanas appear to undergo ontogenetic changes in color and pattern. hatchlings are bright or yellowish green with cloudy gray or black bands. these bands seem to fade in the first year or two of life, when the iguanas are a very intense green. as the animals continue to age, the green (usually) loses its intensity and the bands appear to darken. in the oldest (or, at least, the largest) individuals, the green fades to a pale gray and the black bands are quite prominent. until recently, no research has been conducted on these iguanas. now, with support from the durrell wildlife conservation trust, matthew morton of bristol, england and local assistants are implementing a project in cooperation with the forestry department (part of the ministry of agriculture) of the st. lucian government. the forestry department has provided field assistance and technical expertise, as well as vehicles and office facilities. head of department brian james and deputy michael andrews have taken a keen interest, and donald anthony and alwin dornelly from the department’s wildlife section are working closely with morton. karen graham of the sedgwick county zoo (kansas), bill toone of the san diego zoo, and catherine malone also have contributed greatly by assisting with the union zoo’s (st. lucia) exhibit, education and community outreach planning, and blood sampling from wild and captive iguanas for dna analysis. labor and travel expenses for graham and toone were covered by their respective institutions, and malone received funding through the international iguana foundation and the miami metro zoo to cover material costs for improvements to the zoo exhibit and educational posters. the goals of the project are to: (1) determine the population size and distribution of st. lucian iguanas, (2) establish the population’s taxonomic status, and (3) protect and conserve current populations. blood is drawn for dna analysis and pit tags (transponders) are inserted in each individual. the latter can be read using a type of barcode reader, and a unique number permanently identifies the animal, even if the tag turns up in the belly of a predator. some iguanas have been equipped with transmitters and radiotracked. 73iguanaseptember 2003 a female iguana in the limiere area. over 1000 hatchlings were observed on the main nesting beach this year, but survival rate is very low due to predators. the largest st. lucian iguana processed to date weighed over 5 kg and had a snout-vent length of 45 cm. current estimates of adult population size range in the hundreds, certainly less than 1000. over 1000 hatchlings have been observed on the main nesting beach, but very few of that number survive to maturity. st. lucian iguanas are restricted to the northeastern part of the island, including the beaches. several unsubstantiated reports also place at least a few animals in the southeast. sightings or recent reports of iguanas are absent for the entire interior of the island (moist forest) and the entire western coast. the small number of older reports that are available are difficult to interpret. at least some of these areas should be suitable for iguanas, so why aren’t they there? any number of factors might be responsible. “dogs kill adult iguanas, either in hunts with people (a few people still eat them for food) or, more commonly, it seems, because they are allowed to run around unattended, killing whatever they can. hunting (by people) was reportedly more common in the past, and many local people attribute perceived declines in iguana numbers at one site in particular to 74 iguana volume 10, number 3 an adult male st. lucian green iguana that was recaptured on several occasions. illustration by john binns. over-hunting. the dreaded mongoose takes eggs and hatchlings; this year (unlike last) a cat was found, killing hatchlings, at the main nest site. natural predators of hatchlings seem to be predominantly various species of herons and the american kestrel. manicou (opossums) and rats may theoretically take hatchlings, though there is no direct evidence of this. there is a single observation of a boa constrictor in the act of swallowing an adult, though generally boas are small here and i think this is likely to be uncommon. “traditionally there has been heavy sand mining at both the beaches where iguanas nest. these sites are also used by leatherback turtles and it is known that their nests have been destroyed in this way. so, it seems likely that iguana nests would likewise be at risk, although sand mining is now less intense than in the past at these sites. at one of these beaches ‘semi-feral’ pigs are reported to open turtle nests, though there is no evidence of the opening of iguana nests as yet. “clearance of large areas of land for banana growing in the last few decades may have had an effect (during a habitat-use study using radiotracking last year, all nine tracked iguanas ‘pointedly’ avoided banana plantations).” — matt morton “the main things that are killing iguanas are dogs – especially dogs – cats and people.” “when i see them, i’m feeling happy. they see me, they give me a lot of signs – they’re shaking their heads [head bobbing]. they’re fine with people … let it be, in the wild, like anyone else.” — ‘seko’, a st. lucian field assistant on the project 75iguanaseptember 2003 sign funded by the international iguana foundation and the durrell wildlife conservation trust; one of many posters made by parents and teachers for pre-school age local children, and an iguana lacing trainer, also made by an adult for children. the international iguana foundation and the durrell wildlife conservation trust have funded signs asking people to keep dogs on leashes in the main areas occupied by iguanas. “roots farm is a cooperative farm, run by rastas in one of the areas on st. lucia where iguanas are still found. they practice organic farming and grow a wide range of mixed crops, in contrast, for example, to monocultures of bananas, which are commonplace in many areas. what drew our attention to this place is that, unlike most places on the island, this was one where you had a fairly good chance of seeing an iguana. and that’s because of the rastas’ gentle and sympathetic attitude toward iguanas and all wildlife. hunting and unleashed dogs are not tolerated on their land.” — matt morton “i think, in this culture people, not knowing too much about wildlife, do not have an understanding of their importance and, as a result, do not appreciate those animals as people who are wildlife-sensitive do. we’ve had, in the past, to do extensive work in terms of education with the st. lucia parrot, and we can see the successes of that. we know that even schoolchildren know some of the basic facts about the parrot and appreciate it. we would like to create that sort of attitude in people toward the iguana, but we know that, right now, some people just look at the iguana as a lizard, that it’s not good looking, and it might not be friendly.” — alwin dornelly, wildlife officer, st. lucia clearly, this mirrors an attitude that unfortunately is common throughout tropical regions of the world. people fail to appreciate their wildlife resources and are likely to dislike, misunderstand, or merely exploit them. the only effective means of changing attitudes is education. posters designed as part of a local school’s activity program and other activities such as games, coloring books, and children’s lacing trainers made by parents and teachers are methods that are being used 76 iguana volume 10, number 3 an iguana burrow on st. lucia. young adult st lucian iguana. 77iguanaseptember 2003 as part of the effort to protect and conserve the current population of st. lucian green iguanas, matthew morton of the durrell wildlife conservation trust has been regularly checking hatchlings on the nesting beach at louvet. among this year’s hatchlings, morton observed a number of anomalies. multiple “nest sites” are located at louvet, at most of which multiple females have nested. four of the main sites and five of the less heavily patronized ones have been fenced. thus, certain effects can be described as “per nest-site” and others as “per clutch,” and have a higher probability of being due to nesting conditions or to circumstances originating with the parents, respectively. however, causative agents remain in all cases speculative. some individuals appeared grubby and unhealthy with patches of gray scales in various locations on their bodies. some clutches seem to have many individuals with this condition, whereas most have no affected animals. this condition also was observed in a few of last year’s hatchlings. this does not appear to be normal shedding and preliminary observations suggest that the affected hatchlings also tend to have hatching weights toward the low end of the scale. one suggested cause for the grey patches was a bacterial infection acquired in the nest. this would account for some clutches being affected more than others. the mother could pass a bacterial infection to the developing embryos. bacteria will incubate in the developing eggs and can produce systemic infections in the hatchlings. secondary opportunistic organisms can localize topically and result in the skin discoloration. fungal infections also may be responsible, particularly given the damp nesting environment. a different potential cause is poor nutritional status of the mother. the absence of necessary trace minerals such as selenium or vitamins such as b1 may singly or in combination result in problems such as malabsorbed yolk sacks or too little yolk to support a hatchling in the last hours before hatching and the first days thereafter. morton also observed some overt birth defects, mainly tails that were kinked very slightly in the terminal few millimeters and occasionally a more pronounced kink higher up. again this seemed to affect several individuals in some clutches and none in others. this is most likely attributable to extreme incubation temperatures, although the possibility of inbreeding within a small population exists as well. a single individual displayed what appeared to be hydrocephaly, a condition that, in humans at least, anomalous hatchlings all photographs by matthew morton. these hatchling st. lucian iguanas emerged from a single nest; the missing portions of their tails probably fell victim to a rat or land crab invading their nest. hatchling st. lucian iguanas: the individual on the left suffers from patches of gray scales that most likely were caused or exacerbated by bacterial or fungal agents, the hatchling on the upper right suffers from possible hydrocephaly or an abscess, whereas the youngster on the bottom right is quite healthy. to get the message to adults and children at the same time. on some islands people are brought up eating iguana as a delicacy. this is not sustainable. “actually, we’ve always recognized that the st. lucian iguana was in dire straits in terms of its numbers and its chance of survival because we’ve had a history of hunting iguanas in st. lucia. even [though] we had the wildlife laws passed in 1980 with a fine of 5,000 [eastern caribbean] dollars for anyone convicted of catching or killing an iguana [st. lucian law also allows for fines and imprisonment for possession of an iguana], it is very difficult to catch somebody ‘in the act,’ because the areas are very remote and [representatives of the forestry department] are stretched in terms of numbers: we don’t have the forestry officers to police everywhere. when you go to investigate an area, people are tight-lipped — they won’t speak out. it’s hard to get any firm evidence. we have been trying to source funding for a long time to get extra help. in the wildlife section, i am the only person working there until recently. now alwin dornelly is my assistant. with aid from durrell wildlife [and funding grants from the iguana specialist group and the international iguana foundation], we’re now able to do the things we always wanted to do … doing surveys, finding out where the population is, finding the threats where they are nesting, and other things. “i can say right now that we have a pretty good handle on where the iguanas are located and a pretty good idea as to where they are nesting, and i’m sure that we will get a pretty good idea of the size of the population.” — donald anthony, wildlife officer, st. lucia much work remains. this is only the second year of research and plans are in place to conduct extensive observations of hatchlings on the main nesting beach this year. with time, a much better picture regarding the status of these lizards will emerge. species are disappearing at an alarming rate and we now know that we must act immediately when warning signs are seen. the california giant condor (gymnogyps californianus) and spix’s macaw (cyanopsitta spixii) are two high-profile species that have disappeared in the wild. the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) also is on the brink of extinction. on st. lucia, hope prevails. enough iguanas survive at the moment and the means by which their numbers are being depleted are now well known. the right people are in place to deal with the situation. this beautiful and distinctive green iguana is one of the jewels of the caribbean — and it deserves a future. acknowledgments i am very grateful to matthew morton for providing interviews, valuable information, and photographs. brian james, michael andrew, donald anthony, alwin dornelly, catherine malone, karen graham, bill toone, and john hartley have read and commented on various drafts of this article. all illustrations © j.s. bendon & lizardwizard 2003. all photographs © matthew morton/durrell wildlife 2003. 78 iguana volume 10, number 3 can be congenital. however, one observer suggested that this might simply have been an abscess. yet another unusual observation was made initially in nine hatchlings, all of which emerged from a single, closely watched nest with various portions of their tails missing. without a stabilizing tail, these animals were a lot slower and clumsier, fishtailing from side to side as they attempted to run. consequently, they were much easier to catch (and photograph). the most likely culprit in this instance is a rat or a land crab that burrowed into the nest, a conjecture supported by the fact that more hatchlings with missing tail portions were subsequently observed emerging from other nests. acknowledgments jenny daltry (ffi), matthias goetz (durrell wildlife conservation trust), karen graham (sedgwick county zoo), rick hudson (fort worth zoo), jeff lemm (san diego zoo), and juliann sweet responded to inquiries regarding the possible causes for the various anomalies. iguana 10.1 cyclura ricordii, ricord’s iguana. photographed in the dominican republic by john binns. iguana journal of the international iguana society www.iguanasociety.org vo l u m e 1 0 , n u m b e r 1 m a r c h 2 0 0 3 u s $ 6 . 0 0 iguana 12.2 b&w text we had nearly made it to the top of the massive pyramid at ek balam (how the mayans climbed these suckers is a mystery to me; they were short little guys and the steps were tall and steep). i happened to glance over to a small shelf adjacent to the reconstructed steps, only to see an iguana staring back at me. iguanas (ctenosaura similis) are common on and around the ruins, which provide ample retreats and basking sites while offering protection officially afforded the ruins, but obviously extending to their reptilian residents as well. having traveled with my father my entire life, i have learned to expect that some portion of any given trip will involve time spent with the local fauna. i therefore had no illusions going into our holiday trip to the yucatán peninsula. truth be told, i didn’t really mind. it would have been hard growing up with someone like my dad and not developing an appreciation for that sort of thing. we encountered animals with some degree of regularity, although the weather wasn’t necessarily ideal, particularly for herps — or the locals, who complained bitterly about the cold. we, in stark contrast, were glad to be wearing shorts and t-shirts, while news of snow and ice storms back home dominated the weather channel. our first animal encounter was a collared toucan (pteroglossus torquatus) that welcomed us to méxico as we emerged from the airport. unfortunately, this was the only toucan sighting of the trip. the next day, however, we found something more up our alley. while wandering around the mayan ruins at chichen itzá and ek balam, we found the iguanas that had taken up residence there. on one of the smaller structures at chichen itzá, we counted sixteen lizards while standing on one spot. although the cool conditions were not what one could call prime iguana weather, we found more than enough to make a destination selected for its historical interest more than a little interesting from a biological perspective. in addition to encounters at the ruins, we regularly saw iguanas on the grounds of our resort, where several had taken up residence in rock piles at one 112 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell t r a v e l o g u e mayan reptiles michael a. powell truman state university, kirksville, missouri all photographs by michael or robert powell. near the top of the pyramid at ek balam, i glanced to the side and saw an iguana staring back. a juvenile ameiva undulata takes advantage of refuges provided by the crumbling ruins and of the protection afforded this screened stand supporting an ancient mayan tablet. ctenosaurs (ctenosaura similis) are abundant on the mayan ruins at chichen itzá. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 113travelogue end of a large pond with signs that warned us not to feed the crocodiles. unfortunately, we never did see the crocs there. we did, however, see crocs near the archaeological site at cobá. my dad was attempting to photograph a motmot (a bird with a pair of bizarre tail feathers that appear to be missing portions of their vanes) when a gardener warned him about the crocs in the lake. of course, a warning for ordinary folks is a call to action for us. we quickly crawled through the carefully trimmed hedges near the shoreline and immediately came upon a 12-foot-long croc lazily basking in the shallows. morelet’s crocodiles (crocodylus moreleti) are an endangered species that once ranged widely through middle america. years of exploitation have left only a few occupying isolated enclaves such as the lakes at cobá. here the crocs are relatively common and often congregate near shore, where locals sometimes feed them scraps to entertain the tourists. the individuals we encountered were either well-fed or we didn’t look or smell too tasty, since they were content to bask as we photographed them to our heart’s content from only a couple of meters away. a turquoise-browed motmot (eumomota superciliosa) near the lakes at the cobá archaeological site. these morelet’s crocodiles (crocodylus moreleti) in the lake at cobá were not at all disturbed by our presence. it’s hard not to feel some sense of adventure when you’re standing on top of a pyramid built by a long dead civilization, looking out over a thick, green jungle — even though the person standing next to you appears to have been getting his senior citizen discount for a good 15 years, ropes and guard rails everywhere try to keep the less coordinated from plummeting to their deaths, and souvenir shops are visible back where you parked. nevertheless, i felt as though i should have donned my fedora and grabbed my trusty bullwhip before setting out on such an expedition — but i’m getting somewhat ahead of myself. the day after arriving in méxico, we visited chichen itzá, one of the best known of the mayan ruins that dot the yucatán peninsula and adjacent regions of central america. i knew something about the ruins already; my dad had been here 25 years ago, and had given me a bit of a briefing. we paid for our tickets and entered the park. a short walk from the entrance, we emerged from the forest into a clearing dominated by a towering pyramid, every architectural feature of which seemingly represented some aspect of mayan astronomy. we set out to climb the massive structure. we had arrived early in order to avoid the a yucatecan adventure perhaps the most interesting encounters involved the highway. when traveling, we always stop from time to time to examine roadkills. generally, that’s what we find — roadkill. twice on this trip, however, we encountered something much more interesting. we were driving the back roads from chichen itzá to ek balam when we saw a fairly large snake in the middle of the road. dad immediately said: “boa!” and hit the brakes. after a quick u-turn, we were once again approaching the snake and my dad was turning to pull off to the side of the road. as he leaned out the window to see if the snake was alive or not, he failed to see an oncoming car — at least not until my mom brought him back to reality. fortunately, dad continued off the road and the other driver adroitly avoided hitting us. dad immediately jumped out of the car and picked up the snake — a fairly good-sized boa constrictor. the driver of the other car also pulled over and got out. to dad’s dismay, he was wearing the uniform of the local policia. dad immediately apologized in his broken spanish (i caught the words “estoy idiota”). fortunately for us, the policeman seemed a bit taken aback by a gringo who picks snakes up off the road. he stopped well short of us, asked if the snake was alive. as dad responded in the affirmative, the cop smiled nervously, shrugged, got back in his car, and drove away. we took several photos, which didn’t seem to please the snake at all — i kind of felt like i was playing paparazzi to the boa’s sean penn as it struck repeatedly at me and the camera. later the same day, after touring the archaeological zone of ek balam, we saw another snake crawling across the road. this time we stopped without incident. dad immediately recognized it as a barba amarilla (bothrops asper), one of the more common snakes in the region and also one of the most dangerous. having already experienced the hostility of local reptiles toward photographers, i opted not to get involved with this one; instead i merely watched from the car as dad rescued the snake, photographed it, and then encouraged it to crawl off into the brush alongside the road. as our trips to the tropics go, we spent relatively little time in the yucatán hunting critters. that said, the time we did spend was exciting enough (read: had enough near-death experiences) to keep me satisfied. 114 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell rescuing a boa (boa constrictor) from the highway nearly resulted in a collision with oncoming traffic. the barba amarilla (bothrops asper) is a common and deadly snake. iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) hodge, karim v. d., ellen j. censky, and robert powell. 2003. the reptiles and amphibians of anguilla, british west indies. anguilla national trust, the valley. softcover, $15. 72 pp., over 90 illustrations, nearly all in color. this delightful volume is the second in a series of guides published by the anguilla national trust on their native flora and fauna. the nation of anguilla is composed of one main and several small islands, which collectively form the northern end of the lesser antilles (the island chain that extends from the puerto rico bank to south america). unlike most other lesser antillean islands, which are mountainous, much of anguilla is low-lying and dry. rather than accumulating on the surface, rainfall tends to seep through the karst limestone from which the islands are formed. thus the native forest must be both drought and hurricane resistant. what remains, after extensive foraging by the ubiquitous goats, is mostly degraded scrub forest, yet the islands still host over 500 varieties of plants and, surprisingly, over 20 species of reptiles. the guidebook features species accounts of anguilla’s three frogs or toads (all introduced), four sea turtles, one terrestrial turtle (possibly introduced), three snakes (two introduced), and 13 lizards. the lizard accounts address two iguanas (one native and one introduced), three ameivas (all native and two endemic), two anoles (one native and one introduced), a skink (native), and five geckos (one endemic species has not been formally described and one species is probably introduced). these subjects range in size from massive leatherback sea turtles to tiny dwarf geckos. my personal favorite is the lesser antillean iguana, iguana delicatissima, of which an excellent photograph by glenn gerber graces the cover. of particular interest is the conservation status of this animal. although threatened throughout its range, the anguillian population is critically endangered. the usual factors (habitat destruction and competition with feral animals) are responsible, but these may be exacerbated by potential competition and hybridization with green iguanas, introduced as pets or on a raft of floating debris that arrived on anguilla shortly after hurricane luis in 1995. this book is an excellent resource for both herp enthusiasts and newcomers. a brief description of the nature of reptiles and amphibians and an excellent glossary of terms provide help for the uninitiated. each species account includes colorful photographs and illustrations along with notes on the distribution, origin, biology, and conservation status of each animal. i particularly liked the sections on the origins of the various species. aside from mentioning the usual methods of introduction (e.g., rafting, land bridges, or human mediation), one notation suggested that some geckos may have been “purposely introduced by sorcerers to some islands in order to terrify their subjects.” most significantly, a section on conservation describes the reasons why many species have become threatened and suggests measures for improving the situation. among other things, the authors suggest sustainable land use and the conservation and enhancement of animal habitat. perhaps the most important measure suggested, however, is increasing public awareness, and, in this, the book itself provides an excellent resource. in fact, the trust intends to utilize it in anguillian schools to enhance an awareness and appreciation of the nation’s natural resources. because printing costs were covered by a grant from the united kingdom’s foreign and commonwealth office environmental fund for overseas territories, all proceeds from the sale of the book will support the efforts of the anguilla national trust to preserve that nation’s natural and cultural heritage. copies may be ordered directly from the trust (anguilla national trust, p.o. box 1234, the valley, anguilla, b.w.i.; axanat@anguillanet.com) or from bibliomania! (http://www.herplit.com/) for us $15 (ec $40) plus shipping and handling. aj gutman b o o k r e v i e w 93iguanaseptember 2003 iguana_11.2_text.ps iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 77table of contents table of contents f e a t u r e s understanding the diversity of chuckwallas (genus sauromalus) and a debate over names . . .bradford d. hollingsworth 78 species profile: the tortuga island rattlesnake (crotalus tortugensis) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . kent r. beaman and carol l. spencer 87 a survey of ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) and rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta cornuta) in isla cabritos national park, dominican republic, 2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jan ramer 88 sidebar: a threat to national parks in the dominican republic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . sixto incháustegui 96 species profile: leiocephalus semilineatus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 97 magnificent iguanas of isla mona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . john bendon 98 species profile: the ground lizards of isla mona: ameiva alboguttata . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 107 species and subspecies: what do they mean and why should we care? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 108 h u s b a n d r y captive husbandry of the chuckwalla (sauromalus ater) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . brian aucone 114 sidebar: feeding frequency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . aj gutman 119 p r o f i l e james “skip” lazell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . numi mitchell 120 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s food habits of the chuckwalla, sauromalus obesus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . charles e. shaw 124 biographical sketch: johann baptist von spix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 125 b o o k r e v i e w s cuban herpetology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .robert powell 126 iguana newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .129 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .135 letter from the president . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .136 a mexican family prepares an iguana for dinner. iguana farms that provide meat for locals in el salvador are seeking to break into the u.s. market (see newsbriefs, p. 129). photograph by robert f. wilkinson. iguana_11.2_text.ps iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 125biographical sketch although prince maximilian zu wied-neuwied had previously explored the coastal regions of brazil, zoologist j.b. von spix and botanist c.f.p. von martius were the first biologists to visit the interior. johann baptist von spix was born in bavaria in 1781. planning a career in theology, he spent several years in seminaries, but, in 1804, decided to pursue medicine at the university of würzburg, where he also studied natural history. after graduating in 1806, he practiced medicine in würzburg and bamberg, but, in 1811, became the first curator of zoology at the bavarian academy of science in munich. correspondence with alexander von humboldt triggered plans for a south american expedition. in 1817, spix and martius began at rio de janeiro, moved inland, crossed the coastal mountains, proceeded north through the dry caatingas, and eventually traveled up the amazon river. the dangers, including violent encounters with native tribes, were very real. in addition, spix became quite ill. nevertheless, he continued to collect specimens and record observations, primarily on animals, but also on the native tribes he had encountered. the two germans departed from belém, at the mouth of the amazon, for europe in 1820. spix died in 1826 of complications from a disease contracted during his trip to brazil. however, in the period between the trip and his untimely death, either alone or with collaborators, he produced eight books on all of the vertebrate classes plus molluscs and arthropods. three of the volumes addressed herpetological topics: serpentum (on snakes, but also including caecilians and amphisbaenians) was written by spix’s assistant, j.b. wagler, from spix’s notes and published in 1824; testudinum et ranarum (on turtles and frogs) was written by spix and published in 1824; and lacertarum (on lizards and crocodiles) also was written by spix and was published in 1825. these volumes, profusely illustrated with hand-colored prints, together with wied-neuwied’s works, provided the foundation for the study of the rich brazilian herpetofauna. sources adler, k. 1989. herpetologists of the past, pp. 5–141. in: k. adler (ed.), contributions to the history of herpetology. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, contributions to herpetology, vol. 5. ithaca, new york. haines, s. 2000. slithy toves. illustrated classic herpetological books at the university of kansas in pictures and conversations. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles in cooperation with the kenneth spencer research library at the university of kansas, contributions to herpetology, vol. 5. ithaca, new york. b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h johann baptist von spix lithograph of “iguana squamosa” (= iguana iguana) by philip schmid. this lithograph is in lacertarum by j.b. spix. an original of this volume and the other herpetogical volumes based on spix’s travels to brazil are in the kenneth spencer research library at the university of kansas. this lithograph was previously reproduced (in color) in slithy toves. johann baptist von spix. illustration courtesy of kraig adler. iguana 11.3 b&w text i.i.s. board of directors joseph wasilewski, president homestead, fl joseph burgess, vice-president jacksonville, fl a.c. echternacht, ph.d., treasurer university of tennessee, knoxville, tn aj gutman, executive secretary and associate editor of iguana west hartford, ct john & sandy binns, directors, associate editors of iguana and internet operations international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca gunther köhler, ph.d. and elke köhler, directors forschungsinstitut und naturmuseum senckenberg & herpeton, frankfurt, germany robert powell, ph.d., director and editor of iguana avila university, kansas city, mo i.i.s. editorial/advisory board allison c. alberts, ph.d. iucn/ssc iguana specialist group and zoological society of san diego, san diego, ca john bendon, illustrator for iguana bath, england gordon m. burghardt, ph.d. university of tennessee, knoxville, tn frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program, grand cayman, cayman islands jorge ferrari organización de rescate y protección de reptiles y anfibios, tegucigalpa, honduras matthias goetz, dipl.-biol. durrell wildlife conservation trust, jersey, british isles alexander gutsche, dipl.-biol. humboldt universität, berlin, germany richard hudson international iguana foundation and fort worth zoo, fort worth, tx john b. iverson, ph.d. earlham college, richmond, in chuck knapp university of florida, gainesville, fl michael ripca, managing editor of iguana leaping lizards graphic design, atco, nj thomas wiewandt, ph.d. wild horizons, tucson, az founder robert w. ehrig big pine key, fl statement of purpose the international iguana society, inc. is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to preserving the biological diversity of iguanas. we believe that the best way to protect iguanas and other native plants and animals is to preserve natural habitats and to encourage development of sustainable economies compatible with the maintenance of biodiversity. to this end, we will: (1) engage in active conservation, initiating, assisting, and funding conservation efforts in cooperation with u.s. and international governmental and private agencies; (2) promote educational efforts related to the preservation of biodiversity; (3) build connections between individuals and the academic, zoo, and conservation communities, providing conduits for education and for involving the general public in efforts to preserve endangered species; and (4) encourage the dissemination and exchange of information on the ecology, population biology, behavior, captive husbandry, taxonomy, and evolution of iguanas. membership information iguana, the journal of the international iguana society, is distributed quarterly to members and member organizations. annual dues: individual u.s. and canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual foreign membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 u.s. and canadian organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 foreign organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $45.00 (*receives double copies of iguana) additional copies are available at a cost of $6.00 including postage. join on-line at: www.iguanasociety.org membership questions? call aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 solicitations members of the i.i.s. are encouraged to contribute articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of iguana biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to ctenosaura@cyclura.com). for any contribution, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. advertising policy of iguana we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). all products have been examined and been found to be high quality and fairly priced. contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sandy@cyclura.com or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2004 by the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international iguana society. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editors’ remarks although the editorial board has traditionally used this space to comment collectively, two of us are making an exception on this occasion in order to acknowledge all that aj gutman, the third member of the board, does for the iis. in addition to her uncanny aptitude for finding errors large and small in articles submitted to iguana, aj often serves as the personification of the iis. when prospective or current members correspond with the iis, aj is the person with whom they communicate. both the iis board and the editorial board often speak of aj as the “glue that holds us together.” aj also brings considerable expertise to the myriad tasks we set before her. she is a one-person rescue operation for iguanas and other reptiles (see her profile in the iguana times 9(4):87–90 and her comments on iguana rescue in iguana 10(4):121–126). having acquired her knowledge and skills through trial and error and by accumulating very carefully the selected advice of so-called “experts,” aj often contributes insightful perspectives on issues relevant to husbandry — some of which even experienced fanciers often overlook. as both an ardent iguanaphile and perspicacious editor, she brings to the society and to the journal an attention to detail without which we would be much less able to effectively address the society’s goals or produce a journal of increasingly higher quality. thank you, aj. bob powell and john binns editorial note.—the husbandry feature in the previous issue (iguana 11(2):114–118) included a parenthetical phrase suggesting that “a pry-bar is standard collecting gear when hunting chuckwallas.” that phrase, added during review, was meant to say that “a pry-bar once was standard collecting gear …” the author of the article, brian aucone, noted that he would never advocate the destruction of habitat by breaking apart rocks with a pry bar in order to collect a chuckwalla from the wild. the editors concur. iguana_11.2_text.ps iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 129iguana newsbriefs stout iguana conservation facing near extinction in the 1980s, the stout iguana (cyclura pinguis), the only remaining natural population of which is found on anegada in the british virgin islands, has been championed by two groups of scientists with different strategies to preserve the species. human population growth and introduced animals such as cats, dogs, and goats had decimated populations which once roamed throughout the species’ historical range that included puerto rico and all of the virgin islands. a group led by skip lazell and numi mitchell chose to relocate animals to other predator-free islands. with the cooperation of the bvi ministry of natural resources, an initial group of eight animals was translocated to guana in 1984. it has since expanded to more than 300 individuals. with abundant vegetation and freed of competition, the animals are able to flourish. further translocations to necker and norman islands have also proven successful. other scientists are seeking to restore the stout iguana to reasonable numbers on anegada itself. since 1997, the bvi national parks trust has operated a headstart facility. iguanas could be raised until they were large enough to be safe from most predators. to date, 24 adult iguanas have been released back to the wild and another 66 remain at the facility. rick hudson, co-chair of the iucn/ssc iguana specialist group, points out that headstarting has been successfully used in both cuba and jamaica to help preserve iguana species. however, the underlying problems on anegada remain to be addressed. feral cats still prey on hatchling iguanas, while wild goats and other livestock compete for the limited available vegetation. long-term survival for the stout iguana can only be ensured by the creation of a national park. however, the long-standing legal quagmire of land ownership on anegada must first be resolved. historically, people on the island survived by farming, fishing, and raising livestock. land ownership was well-defined by a series of stone walls, which contained the livestock and kept the iguanas safe from predators. in 1961, the crown assumed ownership of almost all of the land and leased it to a development company, which began by tearing down the stone walls. public outcry put an end to development, but the damage had been done. with livestock roaming free, devouring any available vegetation, the iguana population rapidly plummeted. although creation of a national park was approved by the executive council as early as 1981, the land disputes have yet to be resolved. most anegadians support such a move, yet wish to retain the right to use resources such as wood, salt, and fish within the park. condensed from an article that appeared in the standpoint (bvi), 18 november 2003 iguana farms produce meat a recent article appearing in the christian science monitor described the sale of frozen iguana meat to central american immigrants living in the united states. importer frank rodriguez, an american businessman who owns distribuidora cuscatlan, imports the meat from iguana farms in el salvador and supplies it to 60 markets in the washington, d.c. area at $14 a pound. iguana meat has long been a staple in central america, where it has a reputation “as a cure-all for everything from colds to poor sexual performance.” iguana hunting is prohibited in el salvador, where populations have been decimated by overhunting. farming iguanas, argue proponents of the practice, provides much-needed jobs, helps keep the tropical rain forests intact, and even rebuilds wild populations as farmers release part of their stock. businesses are eager to create increased demand for their products, not i g u a n a n e w s b r i e f s skip lazell on guana with cyclura pinguis. photograph by gad perry. anegada headstart facility. photograph by john binns. just among immigrants in the united states, but in asian markets, where an interest in exotic foods is a strong tradition. some entrepreneurs, going beyond supplying frozen meat, are seeking to perfect a recipe for canned iguana soup. the food and drug administration has yet to issue a license for the sale of this product. iguanas on boca grande a report by wendy fullerton (newspress.com, 26 april 2004) noted the abundance of iguanas and described some of the resultant problems faced by residents of boca grande, florida. a community growth and development plan being developed for the 7-mile long resort island seeks to address iguana population control. the report claims that the approximately 1,000 year-round residents are outnumbered by more than 2 to 1 by the non-native spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura similis). the iguanas cause damage to both ornamental and native vegetation and concerns have been raised regarding their impact on native endangered gopher tortoises, with which iguanas may compete for food and whose burrows they share during winter cold spells. the article described how these fearless climbers find their way into attics, air conditioning ducts and dryer vents, and are even known to plod through the plumbing and emerge through toilets. residents have armed themselves with pellet guns for protection and are ready to stomp out these invasive pests, which were described as being as thick as palmetto bugs but a lot more difficult to kill. joe wasilewski, president of the international iguana society, agreed that some intervention is necessary. however, sensationalizing the presence of introduced animals is hardly an appropriate response, as their very presence is due to human agency. overstating the threat also does little more than inflame emotions, which can lead to actions that will serve neither humans nor reptiles. a rational control plan must be humane as well as effective, and all responsible parties should invest the time and energy to implement a program that meets both of those criteria. iis draws attention to statian iguanas the lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) is found only on a very few west indian islands. although some populations are doing better than others, evidence suggests that all populations are in decline. the principal causes include encroachment by humans on already small ranges and limited nesting areas, habitat degradation by introduced herbivores (e.g., goats and cattle) with which the iguanas compete, often unsuccessfully, for limited forage, predation by introduced carnivores (e.g., dogs, cats, mongooses), active hunting, and, on at least a few islands, hybridization with introduced green iguanas (iguana iguana). st. eustatius (= statia) supports one of the remaining populations of i. delicatissima. despite relatively little development, compared, for example, to st. maarten, where the population has been extirpated, and a much smaller human population than other islands of comparable size, iguanas are not faring well (see iguana times 8(1): 3–6). although many of the factors listed above are operative (although i. iguana is not present on statia), ongoing hunting pressure may be responsible for the inability of the population to grow. although some animals persist in the rugged and largely inaccessible boven hills and a few remain on the slopes of the quill, an inactive volcano, a number of individuals survive within privately held properties solely at the pleasure of the landowners. in an effort to increase awareness of the precarious status of statia’s largest native land animal, the iis, in cooperation with the st. eustatius national parks foundation (stenapa), has funded educational signs that will be posted at stenapa headquarters, the botanical garden, all trail heads, the tourist bureau, airport, hotels, and dive shops. in combination with educational programs planned for june of this year, the hope is that statians will develop a greater pride in their natural heritage (symbolized by the iguana) and succeed in preserving this unique population. jamaican iguanas get a lift from down under beginning with its “re-discovery” in 1990, the jamaican iguana has been the subject of a recovery effort that is now in its 15th year. despite some notable achievements — particularly the continued protection of known nesting sites, the control of exotic predators, and the establishment of a successful headstartand-release program — much work remains to be done. a chronic problem plaguing the recovery effort in jamaica remains the availability of biologists willing to devote the large blocks of field time needed to 130 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 iguana newsbriefs traditional method of preparing iguana in southern mexico. photograph by robert f. wilkinson. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 131iguana newsbriefs accomplish research objectives. here, two issues are of relevance. first, accessing the remote field site in the central hellshire hills is time consuming (over half a day round-trip); hence, day trips and “weekend warrior” research efforts do not provide the opportunity to conduct intensive investigations. second, the remoteness and the ruggedness of the hellshire environment has made it difficult to recruit personnel willing to camp out and work for extended periods, often alone. fortunately, the project has recently obtained the services of rick van veen — an enthusiastic, if not maniacal, iguana biologist. by way of australia, rick passed through the fort worth zoo, where rick hudson nudged him south toward jamaica. with funding from the audubon zoo and the miami metrozoo, rick joined the iguana project in late january 2004, and within weeks was residing in central hellshire for a nearly 40-day stint. with significant help and training from john kunna (who returned for a 3rd consecutive field season), rick coordinated the completion of an 8th year of pitfall trapping, part of a long-term assessment of the relative abundance of ground reptiles on mongoosefree versus mongoose-infested plots. the best news for the iguana is that rick has proved to be especially adept at dealing with the threat posed by introduced mammals. indeed, rick has made few friends among the local rats, pigs, and mongooses. perhaps most significantly, rick has rendered central hellshire a decidedly less pleasant and more risky environment for feral cats — unquestionably the most insidious threat to the iguana’s persistence. byron s. wilson jamaican iguana project international iguana foundation announces 2004 grants the board of directors of the international iguana foundation (iif) held their annual meeting at the miami metrozoo in florida on 3 april 2004. the board evaluated a total of seven proposals and awarded grants totaling $48,550 for the following five projects: (1) establishing a second subpopulation of released grand cayman blue iguanas, cyclura lewisi. fred burton (blue iguana recovery program), $11,000. (2) conservation of the critically endangered jamaican iguana, cyclura collei. peter vogel and byron wilson (jamaican iguana research and conservation group), $11,300. (3) maintaining and optimizing the headstart release program for the anegada iguana, cyclura pinguis. glenn gerber (san diego zoo cres) and kelly bradley (dallas zoo and uta), $11,250. (4) translocation, population surveys, and habitat restoration for the bahamian iguanas, cyclura r. rileyi and cyclura r. cristata. william hayes (loma linda university), $7,500. (5) conservation biology and management of the saint lucian iguana, iguana iguana. matt morton (durrell wildlife conservation trust) and karen graham (sedgwick county zoo), $7,500. rick hudson iif program officer new international iguana foundation logo. south camp in the hellshire hills is the command center and living shelter for byron wilson (shown) and rick van veen. sheltered deep in the upper region, conditions are blazingly hot, rugged, and an acid test of the researchers’ stamina. photograph by john binns. help is desperately needed to secure equipment for byron wilson's and rick van veen's efforts in hellshire hills, jamaica. please visit: http://cyclura.com/jamaica.php species recovery plan workshop held for anegada iguana in response to the need for a unified conservation strategy for the critically endangered anegada iguana, cyclura pinguis, a species recovery plan (srp) workshop was recently conducted at the miami metrozoo on 1–2 april 2004. workshop participants represented the iucn iguana specialist group (isg) and the national parks trust of the british virgin islands (bvinpt) and included joseph smith-abbott (bvinpt director), allison alberts (isg co-chair, san diego zoo), john binns (international reptile conservation foundation), quentin bloxam (durrell wildlife conservation trust), kelly bradley (dallas zoo), fred burton (blue iguana recovery program), steve conners (miami metrozoo), rick hudson (isg co-chair, fort worth zoo), and lee pagni (san diego zoo). to insure consistency in the isg species recovery planning process, fred and quentin were brought in as facilitators. this team previously ran successful srp workshops in grand cayman (2001), the dominican republic (2002), and the turks & caicos islands (2003). an srp workshop had been conducted in july 2001 in tortola, but that plan was never finalized or formally ratified, and was largely out of date. also, although significant progress has been made toward saving cyclura pinguis on anegada, a number of “big picture” issues were not being addressed. a coor132 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 iguana newsbriefs species recovery plan workshop participants from the left: kelly bradley, allison alberts, quentin bloxam, lee pagni, john binns, rick hudson, steve conners, joseph smith-abbott, and fred burton. barking dogs announce your arrival at my brother’s house. then there are the cats, birds, spiders, turtles, tortoises, terrapins and a pot-bellied pig. but even after meeting these critters, you still haven’t met the gentle, scaly, fascinating creatures that were his passion. in cages he built himself in a large, lush yard in jacksonville, fla., six green iguanas and three rock iguanas, lounge in huge cages filled with branches to climb, greens to eat and shade to sleep in. my brother, rob dorson, died suddenly on may 16 of coronary artery disease. he was 34. besides his family my mother, marilyn, my father, lee, my husband, sam, his life partner lee hanks, and me rob left a family of critters, as he called them. his passion, though, was the iguanas, which had fascinated him since he was a kid. when rob and i were growing up, he had some tiny pet lizards, which created quite a ruckus in our childhood home, particularly when one got out of its cage and we spent days looking through the kitchen, the bathrooms, the bedrooms, and the laundry room before it was rescued. little did we know that that little lizard had started a love affair. rob took in animals of all kinds, from stray dogs and cats to a pig that lived at an animal farm he had worked at to exotic birds. he was also an avid fisherman, who enjoyed his time on the water much more than his time on land. but in all the years he fished, my brother never ate a fish, always catch and release. he had a soft spot for all the earth’s creatures and gave them more love and attention than many people give their own families. in 2000, rob and lee decided to turn their passion into a business and creature features, an exotic pet store in jacksonville, was born. they started on a shoestring and built a successful business that was also a meeting place for friends and acquaintances that shared that special enthusiasm for fourlegged creatures. in the more than two years that rob and lee owned the store, it grew from a business to a community, a place they used to educate as well as place animals. rob took every opportunity to teach customers and friends about his animal kingdom and he always welcomed customers with a smile. since closing the store, rob and lee dedicated their efforts to their animal family at home. rob worked for my husband and i this last year and not a day passed by that he didn’t regale us with a story of one of his pets. and he was always looking for ways to make them more comfortable in fact, a large branch that he had hoped to use in an iguana cage still sits in my backyard. since rob’s death, my family has been working with the international iguana society, which has started a trust fund in his name. we know that he would have loved the idea of helping to save the reptiles that brought him so much joy. please help us keep rob’s memory alive by making a donation to the international iguana society’s rob dorson trust fund. proceeds will benefit the blue iguana recovery program on grand cayman. rob dorson (1970 – 2004) by jill r. dorson iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 133 dinated plan of action, specifically dealing with local public awareness and perceptions, land development plans and protected areas, and invasive species control, was lacking. thus, the purpose of this workshop was to review the 2001 report and condense it into prioritized action components. crucially important to this process was that each actionable component have a time line, a potential funding source if needed, and a point person who would be responsible for implementation. the next step is for bvinpt staff member nancy woodfield to compile the document for review and publication; it will then go to john binns for layout and creative design (envisioned as resembling the ricord’s iguana srp). funds to publish a high-quality document have been identified and a late 2004 publication date is anticipated. this document will prove useful on a number of fronts, including guiding the recovery plan process, providing accountability, heightening local and international awareness for the plight of the iguana, and highlighting critical funding needs for granting agencies. however, the most important immediate goal for this document is that it be accepted and publicly ratified by the appropriate governmental agencies in the british virgin islands. this action is vital to saving the anegada iguana on anegada, and is essential to this species’ long-term survival. rick hudson isg co-chair, fort worth zoo triangle iguana rescue started over four years ago, this group of over 70 volunteers is scattered throughout north carolina and has affiliates in surrounding states. our main foci are on husbandry education and striving to prevent neglect and abuse. over 20 iguanas are currently available for adoption within our limited network of foster/ rehabilitation homes. since we are self-funded at this point, individual foster homes carry the burden of veterinary costs, food, added utility bills, etc. we have a hard time finding good adoptive homes and sometimes end up keeping foster animals for over a year. we have decided that rather than taking in more iguanas and placing them less selectively, we will only take as many animals as we can provide with proper care and place in truly good homes. we do require a home visit before leaving an iguana in a new adoptive home, and we have an adoption contract, which new owners must sign, agreeing to keep us updated on the iguana’s progress and health. we can be found online at triangleiguanarescue.com. locate an affiliate in your area in the “tir iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 133iguana newsbriefs triangle iguana rescue actively promotes responsible iguana husbandry; from left to right: mark boudreaux, al johnson, sherry johnson, darry conner, dominick giorgianni. 134 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 john bendon, long-time iis member, actively supports iguana conservation. a regular contributor to iguana, he frequently assists with efforts to conserve threatened populations, most recently on isla mona (see p. 98). in addition, john's beautiful and anatomically accurate renderings of iguanas have contributed greatly to many feature articles. sales of individual prints have helped fund iguana work by john and others, and his drawings have been used as chapter headers in recently published books edited by alberts et al. (2004. iguanas: biology and conservation. reviewed in iguana 11(1):60-61) and henderson and powell (2003. islands and the sea: essays on herpetological exploration in the west indies. reviewed in iguana 10(4):151-152). john bendon at the isg annual meeting on grand cayman (november 2001). photograph by john binns. brachylophus fasciatus cyclura nubila nubila cyclura cychlura cychlura brachylophus vitiensis iguana_11.1_bw_text 64 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 indices iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 65indices index to topics alberts, allison: 10(4):142–144 (profile). behavior: 1(3):17 (cyclura nubila nesting), 2(2):2–16 (mating behavior of iguana iguana), 2(3):2–20 (mating behavior of iguana iguana), 3(4):2–9 (ctenosaura palearis), 5(1):8–9 (green iguana social behavior), 5(1):14 (abstract: iguana iguana feeding behavior), 5(1):15 (abstract: cyclura social behavior), 5(1):15 (abstract: sex-specific behavior and predation in iguana iguana), 6(1):19–20 (green iguanas), 10(2):50–52 (green iguanas). blue iguana recovery programme: 5(4):75–81 (cyclura lewisi status), 7(4):62 (financial support), 9(3):51–58, 10(1):15–20. booby cay: 7(2):29–30 (update), 9(1–2):43 (update). book and video reviews: 3(3):14–18 (iguanas: a guide to their biology and captive care), 5(1):19 (iguana iguana: a guide for successful captive care), 5(1):19–20 (“it’s alive!” iguana owner’s manual: iguana understanding, care and service), 5(1):20 (your easy guide to care, training and breeding of the common green iguana), 6(1):14–15 (captive care of the green iguana and green iguanas: the video guide to care and breeding), 9(4):92 (the flight of the iguana: a sidelong view of science and nature), 10(3):93 (the reptiles and amphibians of anguilla, west indies), 10(4):151–152 (islands and the sea: essays on herpetological exploration in the west indies). breeding: 1(1):8 (captive breeding of cyclura), 1(1):8 (blue iguanas hatched in california), 2(1):10–13 (breeding cyclura nubila), 2(1):14 (cyclura cornuta hatching), 2(1):18 (cyclura n. nubila x c. n. caymanensis), 2(3):22–23 (raising hatchling cyclura nubila), 2(3):24–25 (breeding cyclura cornuta at the national zoo), 3(4):22 (iguana iguana reproduction), 4(1):19 (reproduction of iguana iguana and cyclura cornuta), 4(3):58 (twin cyclura cornuta), 4(4):79 (cyclura lewisi breeding in zoos), 5(1):21 (treatment of fungal infected eggs), 5(2):46 (green iguanas in the uk), 5(3):57 (cyclura collei genetics), 6(2):38–39 (green iguanas in belize), 6(2):42 (green iguanas), 6(2):44 (brachylophus vitiensis at the taronga zoo), 6(2):46 (cyclura cornuta in the uk), 6(3):66 (cyclura eggs), 8(3):9–14 (egg care), 8(4):11 (iguana delicatissima), 10(3):94 (cyclura n. nubila, c. n. caymanensis x c. lewisi in the uk). burton, fred: 10(2):53–55 (profile). calcium metabolism: 9(1–2):32–34, 9(1–2):35–37 (pathologies). captive care = see husbandry. chemical communication: 5(2):35–37. classification = see systematics. conservation: 1(1):9–11 (feral mammals and cyclura carinata), 1(2):9–12 (feral mammals and cyclura carinata), 1(2):13 (jamaican initiative), 1(6):2–3 (status of cyclura lewisi), 3(1):2–6 (herpetoculture and conservation), 3(3):12–13 (ctenosaura bakeri), 3(4):16 (reflections on mona island), 4(1):1–8 (marine iguanas), 4(2):21–30 (cyclura rileyi rileyi), 4(2):37–38 (problems in the galápagos), 5(1):15 (abstract: cyclura r. rileyi status and conservation), 5(2):40–42 (swamper conservation), 5(2):42–43 (swamper conservation), 5(2):46 (new threats to cyclura rileyi cristata), 6(4):88 (goat corral on booby cay), 7(3):27–30 (cyclura cychlura figginsi), 8(2):14–17 (cyclura collei), 8(3):17–18 (cyclura), 9(3): 71 (cyclura), 9(4):93–94 (cyclura lewisi), 10(1):22 (cyclura ricordii), 10(1):10–14 (turks and caicos rock iguana). conservation project utila iguana: 5(2):40–42 (swamper conservation), 5(2):42–43 (swamper conservation), 6(1):10–13 (conservation project utila iguana), 6(2):46 (iis help), 8(1):17 (utila island conservation), 8(1):18 (utila island conservation), 8(2):18–20, 9(3):59–64, 10(2):30–32. diet: 1(5):8–9 (cyclura nubila), 1(6):15, 1(6):15, 1(6):16, 3(3):2–10 (adaptations to herbivory), 4(3):48–49 (iguana iguana diet in the wild), 4(4):78 (monkey biscuits as iguana food), 5(1):14 (abstract: iguana iguana feeding behavior), 6(4):89 (of iguana delicatissima), 7(1):11–17 (morphology and herbivory), 7(1):18–21 (iguana iguana in the florida keys), 8(4):17–20 (nutrition), 10(4):129–141 (green iguanas). ditmars, raymond l.: 10(3):92 (biographical sketch). duffus, edwin: 5(4):89–90 (iis conservation award), durkins, timothy: 10(1):23 (obituary). durrell wildlife conservation trust: 6(3):67 (iguana delicatissima hatchling care), 8(4):11 (iguana delicatissima captive breeding). education: 1(2):6–8 (iis programs), 1(3):13 (allan’s cay signs), 1(4):14 (iis in san diego), 1(5):14–15 (allan’s cay signs), 1(6):18 (iis in tampa), 3(1):21 (cyclura collei poster), 5(2):40–42 (swamper conservation), 5(2):42–43 (swamper conservation), 6(3):67 (poster), 9(1–2):38–39 (west hartford), 10(4):155 (iis in seattle), 10(4):156 (iis in california). ehrig, robert: 1(3):18 (shot). evolution (see also systematics): 1(4):12–13 (galápagos island iguanas), 2(4):2–19 (evolution of nesting patterns), 9(1–2):3–8 (insular evolution in ctenosaura). exploitation: 5(1):11–13 (illegal trade in central america), 6(1):16–18 (iguana importation), 7(2):41 (commercial collecting in nevada), 7(4):62 (iguana markets in guatemala), 10(3):63–66 (ctenosaura similis and iguana iguana); 10(3):67–70 (cyclura cornuta and other species). farming = see iguana farming. fitch, henry s.: 10(3):86–88 (profile). galápagos islands: 1(4):12–13. gutman, aj: 9(4):87–90. habitat: 1(1):1–7 (hellshire hills), 1(5):10–12 (allan’s cay vegetation), 3(2):13–16 (vegetation studies), 3(4):2–9 (ctenosaura palearis), 5(3):58–62 (cyclura habitat), 5(3):63–67 (cyclura habitat classification). harrod, captain ron: 7(2):37 (obituary). headstarting: 7(2):45 (jamaican iguana release), 8(2):14–17 (jamaican iguana recovery program), 9(3):65–69 (anegada iguana headstart facility), 10(1):15–20 (cyclura lewisi), 10(4):154–155 (cyclura pinguis release), 10(4):158 (letter from the president). indices to the iguana times (1990–2002) and iguana (2003): volumes 1–10 compiled by robert powell avila university, kansas city, missouri because the iguana times and iguana have provided valuable information regarding iguana conservation, husbandry, natural history, and systematics over the years, and because a ready reference to those resources has been lacking, the editors are pleased to include these indices to topics covered, species addressed, and authors who have contributed to the first ten volumes of the journal of the international iguana society. each entry is listed by volume, number, and pagination. 66 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 indices herpetoculture = see husbandry. historical perspectives: 10(3):89–92 (whorltailed iguanas = cyclura), 10(4):145–149 (galápagos iguanas). husbandry: 1(3):10–11 (sex determination), 1(3):14–17 (cyclura nubila captive environment), 1(4):6–8 (green iguana growth), 1(4):16 (cyclura nubila), 1(4):18 (cyclura nubila), 1(5):8–9 (cyclura nubila diet), 2(1):10–13 (breeding cyclura nubila), 2(3):22–23 (raising hatchling cyclura nubila), 3(1):2–6 (herpetoculture and conservation), 3(1):9 (cesarean section in a cyclura nubila), 3(1):11 (full-spectrum uv lighting at the arizona-sonora desert museum), 3(1):14 (respiratory diseases), 3(1):18–19 (living with an iguana), 3(2):8 (ctenosaura husbandry), 3(3):11, 13 (herpetoculture), 3(4):2–9 (ctenosaura palearis), 4(1):9–12 (living with a rhinoceros iguana), 4(1):17 (sexing iguanas), 4(1):19 (treatment of metabolic bone disease), 4(2):31–36 (chuckwallas), 4(3):41–47 (iguana iguana husbandry), 4(3):57 (recovery of petshop iguanas), 5(1):3–7 (of green iguanas), 5(1):21 (treatment of fungal infected eggs), 5(2):33–34 (cyclura cornuta in outdoor enclosures), 5(2):38–39 (iguanas and salmonella), 5(2):44 (allergic reaction to commercial diet), 6(2):32–35 (iguana iguana care), 6(3):67 (iguana delicatissima hatchling care), 8(1):21 (bark as substrate), 8(3):15–16 (ctenosaurs in captivity), 10(3):82–85 (ultraviolet light), 10(4):129–141 (green iguanas). hybridization: 1(6):13 (most u.s. c. lewisi are hybrids), 2(1):18 (cyclura n. nubila x c. n. caymanensis), 6(4):90 (hybrid galápagos iguanas), 9(1–2):40–41 (ctenosaura bakeri x c. similis). iguana farming: 5(1):16–18. iguana rescue = see rescue. iguana signs = see signs. iguana specialist group (isg): 10(1):3–9 (2002 isg meeting). iguana times = see international iguana society (iis). iguanas as pets (and the iguana trade): 2(4):20, 2(4):22 (commerce in green iguanas), 3(1):18–19 (living with an iguana), 4(3):57 (recovery of petshop iguanas), 5(1):8–9 (green iguana social behavior), 5(1):15 (abstract: iguana trade), 5(2):38–39 (iguanas and salmonella), 5(4):87–88 (iguana trade in japan), 5(4):91 (pet trade), 5(4):91 (impulse buying), 10(3):98 (letter from the president), 10(4):127–128 (in greece). insular evolution = see evolution. international iguana foundation (iif): 9(1–2):42–43 (established). international iguana society (iis): 1(2):5 (iis purpose), 1(2):6–8 (iis programs), 1(2):13 (jamaican initiative), 1(2):16 (iguana times first issue), 1(2):18 (formation of the society), 1(3):9 (iis in orlando), 1(3):13 (allan’s cay signs), 1(4):14 (west coast animal exhibits), 1(4):14 (iis in san diego), 1(6):18 (iis in tampa), 1(6):18 (iis at the breeder’s expo), 2(1):16–17 (focus of the iguana times), 2(1):18 (iis at the breeder’s expo), 2(1):18 (iis in san diego), 2(2):18–19 (bahamian study), 2(2):22 (iis at the breeder’s expo), 2(3):26 (iis conference), 2(3):26 (allan’s cays signs survive hurricane), 2(4):22 (iis conference), 3(3):22 (iis accomplishments), 3(3):22 (iis at breeder’s expo), 3(4):22 (iis conference), 4(1):19 (iis in the news), 4(3):58 (research reports in iguana times), 4(4):70–77 (iis meeting in san salvador), 4(4):78 (petco donation), 5(1):14–15 (abstracts of presentations at the iis meeting), 5(4):89–90 (iis conservation award), 6(2):46 (help for conservation project utila iguana), 7(2):35–36 (meet the board), 7(2):40 (webpage), 7(3):31–36 (iis in belize), 7(4):63–65 (iis in belize), 9(3):70 (business), 9(4):82–86 (history). introduced populations: 1(6):13 (cyclura nubila on isla magueyes, puerto rico), 1(6):18 (green iguanas in puerto rico), 2(4):22 (iguana iguana in the florida keys), 3(2):18 (ctenosaurs in florida), 3(3):22 (iguana iguana in hawaii), 3(4):22 (iguana iguana in puerto rico), 5(1):22 (cold-related iguana deaths in florida), 7(1):18–21 (iguana iguana diet in the florida keys), 8(1):20–21 (florida iguanas), 8(2):21 (mexican iguanas in florida), 10(3):94 (iguana iguana in anguilla), 10(3):94–95 (iguanas in florida), 10(4):111–118 (iguanas in florida), 10(4):119–120 (nile monitors in florida). isla cabritos national park (dominican republic): 8(2):3–7 (cyclura of isla cabritos). jersey wildlife preservation trust = see durrell wildlife conservation trust. legend, stevie: 6(1):18 (iguana face productions). letters: 1(2):16 (iguana times first issue), 1(2):17–18 (north andros iguanas), 1(2):18 (formation of the iis), 1(6):15 (iguana nutrition), 1(6):15 (iguana nutrition), 1(6):16 (iguana nutrition), 2(1):16 (color variation in iguana iguana), 2(1):16–17 (focus of the iguana times), 3(1):18–19 (living with an iguana), 3(1):18–19 (iguanas in alaska), 3(1):19 (iguana information), 3(1):20 (cyclura reintroductions), 3(4):22 (iguana iguana in puerto rico), 3(4):22 (scientists and nonscientists), 4(1):17 (veterinary research at texas a&m), 4(1):17 (sexing iguanas), 4(1):17 (dear doctor column), 4(3):57 (unusual iguana iguana), 4(3):57 (recovery of petshop iguanas), 4(3):58 (research reports in iguana times), 4(3):58 (twin cyclura cornuta), 4(4):78 (monkey biscuits as iguana food), 4(4):78 (petco donation to iis), 5(1):21 (treatment of fungal infected eggs), 5(2):44 (allergic reaction), 5(2):44 (egg care), 5(4):91 (pet trade), 5(4):91 (impulse buying), 5(4):91–92 (compassion for iguanas), 6(2):42 (green iguana breeding), 6(2):43 (cyclura carinata bartschi), 6(3):67 (iguana delicatissima hatchling care), 6(4):88 (goat corral on booby cay), 6(4):89 (classification and diet of iguana delicatissima), 6(4):89 (signs on green cay, san salvador, bahamas), 7(2):41 (commercial collecting in nevada), 7(2):42 (comments on iguana times), 7(3):43–44 (large iguanas), 7(3):45 (overwater dispersal), 7(4):63–65 (iis in belize), 8(1):16 (iguana size), 8(1):17 (utila island conservation), 8(1):18 (utila island conservation), 8(1):18 (donation to iis). literature review: 9(1–2):31. morphology: 3(3):2–10 (adaptations to herbivory), 7(1):11–17 (herbivory). nesting ecology: 2(4):2–19 (evolution of nesting patterns), 4(4):61–71 (cyclura cornuta stejnegeri nesting sites), 5(1):14 (abstract: cyclura cornuta stejnegeri). newsbriefs: 1(1):8 (captive breeding of cyclura), 1(1):8 (dna studies on cyclura), 1(1):8 (blue iguanas hatched in california), 1(1):8 (survey on san salvador, bahamas), 1(2):14 (grand cayman island visit), 1(2):14 (bahamian iguanas “not for the pot”), 1(3):9 (iis in orlando), 1(3):9 (jamaica update), 1(3):9 (research on molecular systematics), 1(4):14 (west coast animal exhibits), 1(4):14 (iis in san diego), 1(4):14 (cyclura collei update), 1(4):14 (salmonella warnings), 1(6):18 (color variation in iguana iguana), 1(6):18 (effects of hurricane andrew), 1(6):18 (fiji iguana smuggling), 1(6):18 (iis in tampa), 1(6):18 (iis at the breeder’s expo), 1(6):18 (green iguanas in puerto rico), 2(1):18 (fiji iguana smuggling), 2(1):18 (cyclura n. nubila x c. n. caymanensis), 2(1):18 (cyclura pinguis on guana), 2(1):18 (iis at the breeder’s expo), 2(1):18 (iis in san diego), 2(2):22 (allan’s cays adventure), 2(2):22 (albino green iguanas), 2(2):22 (lost pet found), 2(2):22 (iis at the breeder’s expo), 2(2):22 (central florida zoo hosted aazpa conference), 2(3):26 (iis conference), 2(3):26 (“mao” dies), 2(3):26 (allan’s cays signs survive hurricane), 2(4):22 (iis conference), 2(4):22 (commerce in green iguanas), 2(4):22 (iguana iguana in the florida keys), 3(1):22 (on pine cay), 3(1):22 (on iguana cay), 3(2):18 (ctenosaurs in florida), 3(2):18 (galápagos fire), 3(2):18 (turtle hospital and research), 3(3):22 (iis accomplishments), 3(3):22 (salmonellosis on rise), 3(3):22 (iguana iguana in hawaii), 3(3):22 (description of ctenosaura flavidorsalis announced), 3(3):22 (iis at breeder’s expo), 3(4):22 (iguana iguana reproduction), 3(4):22 (pet iguana saves life), 3(4):22 (iis conference), 4(1):19 (honduran environmentalist killed), 4(1):19 (resuscitation of a pet iguana), 4(1):19 (reproduction of iguana iguana and cyclura cornuta), 4(1):19 (treatment of iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 67indices metabolic bone disease), 4(1):19 (iis in the news), 4(2):39 (lost iguana), 4(2):39 (rescue), 4(3):59 (iguana smuggling), 4(3):59 (description of ctenosaura alfredschmidti announced), 4(3):59 (marine iguanas “explode” on hot volcanic rocks), 4(3):59 (cyclura rileyi rileyi on high cay), 4(4):79 (cyclura lewisi breeding in zoos), 5(1):22 (cold-related iguana deaths), 5(1):22 (iguana transmitted salmonella causes death), 5(1):22 (“iguana channel” on the internet), 5(1):22 (reptile dealer raided), 5(2):46 (salmonella in komodo dragons), 5(2):46 (iguana causes house fire), 5(2):46 (new threats to cyclura rileyi cristata), 5(2):46 (breeding green iguanas in the uk), 5(3):68 (veterinary care), 5(3):68 (legal challenge), 5(3):69 (smuggler charged), 5(3):69 (turtles stolen from madagascar), 6(1):21 (conditions in the galápagos), 6(1):21–22 (smuggler sentenced), 6(1):22 (smuggler indicted), 6(2):44 (breeding brachylophus vitiensis at the taronga zoo), 6(2):44 (smuggling indictment), 6(2):44–45 (bronx reptiles conviction), 6(2):45 (iguana surgery), 6(2):45 (driving iguana), 6(4):90 (hybrid galápagos iguanas), 6(4):90–91 (smuggling conviction), 7(2):42 (iguana delicatissima stamps), 7(2):43 (smuggling indictments), 7(2):43–44 (overwater dispersal of green iguanas), 7(2):44–45 (reptile smugglers caught), 7(2):45 (jamaican iguana release), 7(2):45 (navassa island iguana not found), 7(4):62 (iguana markets in guatemala), 7(4):62 (blue iguana support), 7(4):62 (iguanas banned in new york), 8(1):19–20 (illegal trade), 8(1):20–21 (florida iguanas), 8(1):21 (bark as substrate), 8(1):21 (booby cay update), 8(2):21 (marine iguanas and el niño), 8(2):21 (mexican iguanas in florida), 8(2):21 (iguana and primate association), 8(3):19 (usfws action), 8(3):19–20 (turks & caicos update), 8(3):20 (allen’s cays update), 8(3):20 (necker island update), 8(3):20 (iguana delicatissima status), 8(3):20–21 (cyclura nubila nubila recolonization), 8(3):21 (educational sign in belize), 8(4):21 (red creek biological reserve), 8(4):21 (green iguana clutch size), 9(1–2):42 (wildlife smugglers caught), 9(1–2):42 (cyclura cornuta and c. ricordii), 9(1–2):42–43 (iif), 9(1–2):43 (morris animal foundation grant), 9(1–2):43 (cyclura rileyi rileyi), 9(1–2):43 (iguana delicatissima status), 9(1–2):43 (booby cay update), 10(2):58 (chicago herpetological society support of iguana conservation), 10(2):58 (iis member wins science fair), 10(2):58 (new fossil iguana from fiji), 10(2):58 (iis support of conservation efforts), 10(3):94 (breeding: cyclura n. nubila, c. n. caymanensis x c. lewisi), 10(3):94 (iguana iguana in anguilla), 10(3):94–95 (iguanas in florida), 10(3):95 (cyclura pinguis population survey), 10(4):153–154 (rhinoceros iguanas in the bristol zoo), 10(4):154 (support for the hope zoo), 10(4):154–155 (cyclura pinguis release), 10(4):155 (iis in seattle), 10(4):155 (mexican iguana conservation group), 10(4):156 (iis in california), 10(4):156 (blue iguana sponsorship). nutrition = see diet, see also calcium metabolism. obituary: 2(2):20–21 (albert schwartz), 7(2):37 (captain ron harrod), 10(1):23 (timothy durkins). overwater dispersal: 7(2):43–44 (green iguanas), 7(3):45 (iguana delicatissima and i. iguana). pet trade = see iguanas as pets. phylogeny = see systematics. poetry: 3(2):8 (“the iguana widow”). population genetics: 5(1):14 (abstract: cyclura r. rileyi). population status, studies, and surveys: 1(1):1–7 (cyclura collei in the hellshire hills), 1(1):8 (survey on san salvador, bahamas), 1(2):1–3 (cyclura rileyi rileyi), 1(2):17–18 (north andros iguanas), 1(3):4–7 (north andros expedition), 1(3):12 (cayman update), 1(3):19–20 (iguanas on cays west of long island, bahamas?), 1(4):2–5 (cyclura nubila caymanensis), 1(5):2–7 (cyclura rileyi nuchalis), 1(5):14–15 (allan’s cay expedition), 1(6):2–3 (status of cyclura lewisi), 1(6):4–9 (booby cay iguana), 3(1):22 (on pine cay), 3(1):22 (on iguana cay), 3(3):12–13 (ctenosaura bakeri), 3(4):10–12 (reintroductions at guantanamo bay), 3(4):16 (reflections on mona island), 4(2):21–30 (cyclura rileyi rileyi), 4(3):59 (cyclura rileyi rileyi on high cay), 4(4):70–77 (iis meeting in san salvador), 5(1):14 (abstract: cyclura c. carinata status), 5(1):15 (abstract: cyclura r. rileyi status and conservation), 5(3):51–56 (cyclura collei), 5(4):75–81 (cyclura lewisi status), 6(1):3–9 (booby cay), 6(2):27–30 (cyclura rileyi cristata), 6(2):31 (cyclura rileyi cristata population decline), 6(4):81–87 (booby cay), 7(2):27–28 (cyclura rileyi cristata), 7(2):29–30 (booby cay update), 7(3):27–30 (cyclura cychlura figginsi), 7(3):37–42 (cyclura carinata bartschi), 8(1):3–6 (iguana delicatissima on st. eustatius), 8(1):7–15 (andros expedition), 8(2):14–17 (jamaican iguana recovery program), 8(3):3–8 (cyclura cychlura cychlura), 8(3):19–20 (cyclura carinata carinata), 8(3):20 (cyclura cychlura inornata, allen’s cays update), 8(3):20 (cyclura pinguis, necker island update), 8(3):20 (iguana delicatissima), 8(4):8–10 (cyclura cychlura cychlura), 8(4):12–16 (cyclura cychlura cychlura), 9(1–2):12–17 (cyclura cychlura inornata), 9(1–2):42 (cyclura cornuta and c. ricordii), 9(1–2):43 (cyclura rileyi rileyi), 9(1–2):43 (iguana delicatissima), 9(3):53 (cyclura lewisi), 9(4):78 (cyclura cornuta), 9(4):93–94 (cyclura lewisi), 10(1):15–20 (cyclura lewisi), 10(1):4 (cyclura ricordii), 10(2):39–49 (cyclura pinguis on guana and necker, bvi), 10(3):95 (cyclura pinguis on anegada), 10(4):103–107 (brachylophus fasciatus), 10(4):154–155 (cyclura pinguis release on anegada). postage stamps = see stamps. recolonization (human-mediated or natural): 3(1):20 (cyclura reintroductions), 3(4):10–12 (reintroductions at guantanamo bay), 4(3):51–53 (cyclura cychlura figginsi), 6(4):75–80 (cyclura pinguis in the bvi), 8(3):20–21 (cyclura nubila nubila). red creek biological reserve: 7(3):31–36 (iis in belize), 8(4):21. rescue: 1(6):11 (iguana rescue group update), 2(1):15 (iguana rescue group update), 2(2):16 (iguana rescue group update), 4(2):39 (rescue), 4(3):50 (iguana rescue of central florida), 7(2):31–34, 9(4):87–90, 10(4):121–126. salmonella and reptiles: 1(4):14 (warnings), 1(5):16–17 (salmonellosis), 1(6):14–15 (salmonellosis), 2(1):8–9 (salmonellosis), 3(3):22 (salmonellosis on rise), 4(1):13–16 (salmonella), 4(3):54–56, 5(1):22 (iguana transmitted salmonella causes death), 5(2):38–39 (iguanas and salmonella), 5(2):46 (salmonella in komodo dragons). schwartz, albert: 2(2):20–21 (obituary). signs: 1(3):13 (allan’s cay signs), 1(4):19 (allan’s cay signs), 1(5):14–15 (allan’s cay signs), 2(3):26 (allan’s cays signs survive hurricane), 5(4):93 (on green cay, san salvador, bahamas and guanacaste national park, costa rica), 6(4):89 (on green cay, san salvador, bahamas), 8(3):21 (educational sign in belize), 9(4):91. size: 7(3):43–44 (large iguanas), 8(1):16 (green iguana). smuggling (illegal activities): 1(6):18 (fiji iguanas), 2(1):18 (fiji iguanas), 3(1):7–8 (threat to bahamian cyclura), 3(2):17 (iguana smuggling), 4(3):59 (iguana smuggling), 5(1):10–11 (international sweep of smugglers), 5(1):11–13 (illegal trade in central america), 5(1):22 (reptile dealer raided), 5(3):69 (smuggler charged), 5(3):69 (turtles stolen from madagascar), 6(1):21–22 (smuggler sentenced), 6(1):22 (smuggler indicted), 6(2):44 (smuggling indictment), 6(2):44–45 (bronx reptiles conviction), 6(4):90–91 (smuggling conviction), 7(2):43 (smuggling indictments), 7(2):44–45 (reptile smugglers caught), 8(1):19–20 (illegal trade), 8(3):19 (usfws action), 9(1–2):42 (wildlife smugglers caught). species profiles: 9(4): 80 (leiocephalus personatus), 10(1):21 (anolis conspersus), 10(2):36–38 (utila’s reptiles), 10(4):119–120 (nile monitors in florida). species recovery plan: 9(3):51–58 (cyclura lewisi), 10(1):9 (cyclura ricordii). stamps: 7(2):42 (iguana delicatissima). storm impact: 1(6):12, 1(6):18 (effects of hurricane andrew), 8(2):8–13 (cyclura behavior during a storm), 9(1–2):43 (cyclura rileyi rileyi). 68 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 indices systematics: 4(2):31–36 (chuckwallas), 5(4):81–86 (galápagos iguana phylogeny), 6(3):57–65 (iguanid phylogeny), 6(4):89 (iguanid phylogeny), 9(1–2):3–8 (insular populations of ctenosaura), 9(1–2):9–11 (iguanid and cyclura phylogeny), 9(1–2):18–26 (animals), 10(3):79–81 (ctenosaura). taxonomy = see systematics. threats = see conservation. trade = see iguanas as pets. ultraviolet light: 3(1):11 (full-spectrum lighting at the arizona-sonora desert museum), 10(3):82–85. utila: 10(2):32–35 (iis meeting). utila iguana research & breeding station = see conservation project utila iguana. utila iguanas: 10(2):27–30. utila’s reptiles: 10(2):36–38. vegetation = see habitat. veterinary care = see husbandry. werner, franz: 10(4):150 (biographical sketch). wildlife smuggling (illegal activities) = see smuggling. zoos and aquaria: 2(3):24–25 (breeding cyclura cornuta at the national zoo), 3(1):11 (full-spectrum uv lighting at the arizona-sonora desert museum), 3(2):9–11 (cyclura at the indianapolis zoo), 3(4):17–19 (zoos and the private sector), 4(3):51–53 (cyclura and the john g. shedd aquarium), 4(4):79 (cyclura lewisi breeding in zoos), 5(2):46 (salmonella in komodo dragons at the denver zoo), 5(3):51–56 (cyclura collei in the hope zoo, kingston, jamaica), 6(2):36–37 (iguana delicatissima at the jersey wildlife preservation trust), 6(2):44 (breeding brachylophus vitiensis at the taronga zoo), 6(2):46 (breeding cyclura cornuta in the uk), 6(3):67 (iguana delicatissima hatchling care), 8(2):21 (iguana and primate association at the metro zoo, miami), 8(4):3–7 (fijian banded iguanas in the san diego zoo), 8(4):11 (durrell wildlife conservation trust), 9(1–2):27–30 (san diego), 9(3):63 (ctenosaura bakeri hatchlings), 9(4):75–81 (cyclura cornuta), 10(4):108–110 (fiji banded iguanas), 10(4):153–154 (rhinoceros iguanas). index to species acklins island rock iguana = see cyclura rileyi nuchalis. allen’s cays iguana = see cyclura cychlura inornata. amblyrhynchus cristatus: 1(4):9–11, 1(4):12–13, 4(1):1–8, 4(3):59 (“explode” on hot volcanic rocks), 5(4):81–86 (galápagos iguana phylogeny), 6(4):90 (hybrid galápagos iguanas), 7(4):51–60, 8(2):21 (response to el niño), 10(4):145–149 (historical perspective). andros island iguana = see cyclura cychlura cychlura. anegada iguana = see cyclura pinguis. anolis conspersus: 10(1):21 (species profile). banded iguana = fiji banded iguana = see brachylophus fasciatus. bartsch’s iguana = see cyclura carinata bartschi. black iguana = see ctenosaura. black iguana = see ctenosaura pectinata. black iguana = see ctenosaura similis. blue iguana = see cyclura lewisi. booby cay iguana = see cyclura carinata bartschi. brachylophus fasciatus: 1(6):18 (smuggling), 2(1):2–6, 2(1):18 (smuggling), 8(4):3–7 (in the san diego zoo), 10(4):103–107 (lau islands), 10(4):108–110 (in u.s. zoos). brachylophus vitiensis: 6(2):44 (breeding at the taronga zoo). caicos iguana = see cyclura carinata carinata. chuckwalla = see sauromalus obesus. chuckwallas = see sauromalus. common iguana = see iguana iguana. conolophus subcristatus: 1(4):9–11, 1(4):12–13, 5(2):27–32, 5(4):81–86 (galápagos iguana phylogeny), 6(4):90 (hybrid galápagos iguanas), 7(1):3–10, 10(4):145–149 (historical perspective). crested iguana = see brachylophus vitiensis. ctenosaura (all or several species): 3(2):2–8, 3(2):8 (husbandry), 8(3):15–16 (in captivity), 9(1–2):3–8 (insular evolution), 10(2):56–57 (historical perspective), 10(3):79–81 (systematics), 10(3):94–95 (in florida). ctenosaura alfredschmidti: 4(3):59 (announcement of description). ctenosaura bakeri: 3(3):12–13 (status and conservation), 5(2):40–42 (conservation), 5(2):42–43 (conservation), 6(1):10–13 (conservation project utila iguana), 8(1):17–18 (lizard letters), 9(1–2):40–41 (hybridization with ctenosaura similis), 9(3):59–64 (utila iguana research & breeding station), 9(3):63 (hatchlings), 10(2):58 (conservation), 10(2):27–30 (on utila). ctenosaura flavidorsalis: 3(3):22 (announcement of description). ctenosaura oedirhina: 2(1):7. ctenosaura palearis: 3(4):2–9. ctenosaura pectinata: 3(2):18 (in florida), 10(4):111–118 (in florida). ctenosaura similis: 7(4):61 (escaped in los angeles)8(4):21 (in the red creek biological reserve), 9(1–2):40–41 (hybridization with ctenosaura bakeri), 10(2):27–30 (on utila), 10(3):63–66 (exploitation), 10(4):111–118 (in florida). cuban iguana = see cyclura nubila nubila. cyclura (all or several species): 1(1):8 (captive breeding), 1(1):8 (dna studies), 3(1):7–8 (smuggling threat to bahamian cyclura), 3(2):9–11 (at the indianapolis zoo), 5(1):15 (abstract: social behavior), 5(3):58–62 (habitat), 5(3):63–67 (habitat classification), 8(2):8–13 (behavior during a storm), 8(3):17–18 (conservation), 9(1–2):9–11 (phylogeny), 9(3): 71 (conservation), 10(3):89–92 (historical perspective). cyclura carinata bartschi: 1(6):4–9, 6(1):3–9, 6(2):43, 6(4):81–87, 6(4):88 (goat corral on booby cay), 7(2):29–30 (booby cay update), 7(3):37–42 (booby cay), 8(1):21 (booby cay update), 9(1–2):43 (booby cay update). cyclura carinata carinata: 1(1):9–11 (impact of feral mammals), 1(2):9–12 (impact of feral mammals), 3(1):22 (on pine cay), 3(1):22 (on iguana cay), 5(1):14 (abstract: status), 8(3):19–20 (update), 10(1):10–14 (conservation). cyclura collei: 1(1):1–7 (in the hellshire hills), 1(2):13 (jamaican initiative), 1(3):9 (update), 1(4):14 (update), 1(6):13 (update), 3(1):21 (poster), 5(3):51–56, 5(3):57 (genetics), 7(2):45 (release), 8(2):14–17 (recovery program). cyclura cornuta: 1(1):8 (captive breeding), 1(3):13 (hatching), 2(1):14 (cyclura cornuta hatching), 2(2):17 (visit with “mao”), 2(3):24–25 (breeding at the national zoo), 2(3):26 (“mao” dies), 3(2):17 (smuggling), 4(1):9–12 (living with a rhinoceros iguana), 4(1):19 (reproduction), 4(3):58 (twins), 5(2):33–34 (in outdoor enclosures), 6(2):46 (breeding in the uk), 6(3):66 (eggs), 8(2):3–7 (on isla cabritos), 8(3):9–14 (egg care), 9(1–2):42 (status), 9(4):75–81 (at manatí park), 9(4):78 (status), 10(3):67–70 (exploitation), 10(4):153–154 (in the bristol zoo). cyclura cornuta cornuta = see cyclura cornuta. cyclura cornuta onchiopsis = see cyclura onchiopsis. cyclura cornuta stejnegeri = see cyclura stejnegeri. cyclura cychlura cychlura: 1(2):17–18, 1(3):4–7 (north andros expedition), 1(6):10 (size), 8(1):7–15 (andros expedition), 8(3):3–8 (andros island report), 8(4):8–10 (andros island update), 8(4):12–16 (population survey). cyclura cychlura figginsi: 4(3):51–53 (research at the john g. shedd aquarium), 7(3):27–30 (status and conservation). cyclura cychlura inornata: 1(5):10–12 (allan’s cay vegetation), 1(5):14–15 (allan’s cay expedition), 8(3):20 (allen’s cays update), 9(1–2):12–17 (research). cyclura lewisi: 1(2):14 (grand cayman island visit), 1(3):12 (cayman update), 1(6):2–3 (status), 1(6):13 (most u.s. “c. lewisi” are hybrids), 1(1):8 (captive breeding), 1(1):8 (hatched in california), 4(4):79 (breeding in zoos), 5(4):75–81 (status), 9(3):51–58 (conservation), 9(4):93–94 (survey and conservation), 10(1):15–20 (research), 10(3):94 (breeding), 10(4):156 (sponsorship). cyclura nubila caymanensis: 1(4):2–5. cyclura nubila caymanensis x c. lewisi: 1(6):13 (most u.s. specimens of “c. lewisi”), 10(3):94 (breeding). iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 69indices cyclura nubila caymanensis x c. n. nubila: 2(1):18. cyclura nubila nubila: 1(3):14–17 (captive environment), 1(3):17 (nesting), 1(4):16 (captive maintenance), 1(1):8 (captive breeding and twins), 1(4):18 (captive environment), 1(5):8–9 (diet), 1(6):13 (on isla magueyes, puerto rico), 2(1):10–13 (breeding), 2(3):22–23 (raising hatchlings), 3(1):9 (cesarean section), 3(4):10–12 (reintroductions at guantanamo bay), 5(1):21 (treatment of fungal infected eggs), 6(3):66 (eggs), 8(3):9–14 (egg care), 8(3):20–21 (recolonization), 10(3):94 (breeding). cyclura nubila lewisi = see cyclura lewisi. cyclura onchiopsis: 7(2):45 (navassa island iguana not found). cyclura pinguis: 2(1):18 (on guana), 6(4):75–80, 8(3):20 (necker island update), 9(3):65–69 (anegada headstart facility), 10(2):49 (on guana and necker, bvi), 10(2):39–48 (on guana and necker, bvi), 10(4):154–155 (anegada release), 10(4):158 (anegada release). cyclura ricordii: 8(2):3–7 (on isla cabritos), 9(1–2):42 (status), 10(1):22 (conservation), 10(1):4 (status). cyclura rileyi cristata: 5(2):46 (new threats), 6(2):27–30 (on sandy cay), 6(2):31 (population decline), 7(2):27–28 (status). cyclura rileyi nuchalis: 1(5):2–7. cyclura rileyi rileyi: 1(1):8 (survey on san salvador, bahamas), 1(2):1–3, 3(2):17 (smuggling), 4(2):21–30 (status and conservation), 4(3):59 (cyclura rileyi rileyi on high cay), 4(4):70–77 (iis meeting in san salvador), 5(1):14 (abstract: population genetics), 5(1):15 (abstract: status and conservation), 6(4):89 (signs on green cay, san salvador, bahamas). cyclura stejnegeri: 1(3):2–3 (killed by vandals), 3(4):13–15 (mona island), 3(4):16 (reflections on mona island), 4(4):61–71 (nesting sites), 5(1):14 (abstract: nesting ecology). desert iguana = see dipsosaurus dorsalis. dipsosaurus dorsalis: 5(2):35–37 (chemical communication), 7(2):41 (commercial collecting in nevada). exuma islands iguana = see cyclura cychlura figginsi. fijian banded iguana = see brachylophus fasciatus. fijian crested iguana = see brachylophus vitiensis. galápagos land iguana = see conolophus subcristatus. galápagos marine iguana = see amblyrhynchus cristatus. grand cayman blue anole = see anolis conspersus. grand cayman blue iguana = see cyclura lewisi. green iguana = see iguana iguana. iguana delicatissima: 6(2):36–37 (iguana delicatissima at the jersey wildlife preservation trust), 6(3):51–56 (in the dutch windward islands), 6(3):67 (hatchling care), 6(4):89 (classification and diet), 7(2):42 (stamps), 7(3):45 (overwater dispersal), 8(1):3–6 (on st. eustatius), 8(3):20 (status), 8(4):11 (captive breeding), 9(1–2):43 (status). iguana iguana: 1(4):6–8 (growth), 1(6):18 (color variation), 1(6):18 (in puerto rico), 2(1):16 (color variation), 2(2):2–16 (mating behavior), 2(2):22 (albinos), 2(3):2–20 (mating behavior), 2(4):22 (international trade), 2(4):22 (in the florida keys), 3(3):22 (in hawaii), 3(4):22 (in puerto rico), 3(4):22 (reproduction), 4(1):19 (reproduction), 4(3):41–47 (husbandry), 4(3):48–49 (iguana iguana diet in the wild), 4(3):57 (unusual individual), 5(1):3–7 (husbandry), 5(1):8–9 (social behavior), 5(1):14 (abstract: feeding behavior), 5(1):15 (abstract: sex-specific behavior and predation), 5(1):16–18 (farming), 5(2):35–37 (chemical communication), 5(2):44 (allergic reaction), 5(2):46 (breeding in the uk), 5(4):87–88 (trade in japan), 6(1):19–20 (behavior), 6(2):32–35 (care), 6(2):38–39 (breeding in belize), 6(2):42 (breeding), 6(3):51–56 (in the dutch windward islands), 7(1):18–21 (diet in the florida keys), 7(2):31–34 (rescue), 7(2):43–44 (overwater dispersal), 7(3):45 (overwater dispersal), 8(1):16 (size), 8(2):21 (primate association), 8(3):9–14 (egg care), 8(4):21 (green iguana clutch size), 9(1–2):35–37 (calcium-related pathologies), 9(1–2):38–39 (education), 10(2):50–52 (communication), 10(2):27–30 (on utila), 10(3):63–66 (exploitation), 10(3):71–78 (st. lucia), 10(3):94 (anguilla), 10(4):111–118 (in florida), 10(4):121–126 (rescue), 10(4):127–128 (as pets in greece), 10(4):129–141 (husbandry). iguanidae: 2(4):2–19 (evolution of nesting patterns), 6(3):57–65 (phylogeny), 9(1–2):9–11 (phylogeny). jamaican iguana = see cyclura collei. land iguana = see conolophus subcristatus. lapitiguana impensa: 10(2):58 (newsbrief). leiocephalus personatus: 9(4):80 (species profile). lesser antillean iguana = see iguana delicatissima. marine iguana = see amblyrhynchus cristatus. mona island iguana = cyclura stejnegeri. navassa island iguana = see cyclura onchiopsis. nile monitor = see varanus niloticus. paleate spiny-tailed iguana = see ctenosaura palearis. rhinoceros iguana = hispaniolan rhinoceros iguana = see cyclura cornuta. ricord’s iguana = see cyclura ricordii. roatán island spiny-tailed iguana = see ctenosaura oedirhina. rock iguana = see cyclura. san salvador rock iguana = see cyclura rileyi rileyi. sandy cay iguana = cyclura rileyi cristata. sauromalus: 4(2):31–36 (classification and husbandry). sauromalus obesus: 7(2):41 (commercial collecting in nevada). sister island rock iguana = see cyclura nubila caymanensis. spiny-tailed iguana = see ctenosaura. stout iguana = see cyclura pinguis. swamper = see ctenosaura bakeri. turks and caicos rock iguana = see cyclura carinata carinata. utila spiny-tailed iguana = see ctenosaura bakeri. varanus niloticus: 10(4):119–120 (in florida). white cay iguana = cyclura rileyi cristata. whorl-tailed iguana = see cyclura. index to authors alberts, allison: 3(4):10–12 (reintroductions at guantanamo bay), 5(2):35–37 (chemical communication), 8(3):20–21 (cyclura nubila nubila recolonization). aristei, john: 7(4):61 (ctenosaura similis escaped in los angeles). aumiller, sheila: 3(2):8 (poem: “the iguana widow”). baldwin, robert f.: 1(2):17–18 (north andros iguanas). banbury, barb l.: 8(2):3–7 (cyclura of isla cabritos). barbaro, g.l.: 1(4):16 (cyclura nubila captive maintenance). barten, stephen l.: 10(4):129–141 (green iguana husbandry). bartholomew, breck: 3(1):2–6 (herpetoculture and conservation), 4(1):13–16 (salmonella), 5(1):19 (book review). bendon, john s.: 3(1):18–19 (living with an iguana), 4(4):70–77 (iis meeting in san salvador), 6(1):3–9 (booby cay), 6(2):36–37 (iguana delicatissima at the jersey wildlife preservation trust), 6(4):81–87 (booby cay), 7(3):37–42 (booby cay), 8(1):7–15 (andros expedition), 8(1):21 (booby cay update), 8(4):8–10 (andros island update), 9(1–2):43 (booby cay update), 9(3):51–58 (cyclura lewisi conservation), 10(1):3–9 (2002 isg meeting), 10(3):71–78 (st. lucian green iguanas), 10(4):153–154 (rhinoceros iguanas). benton, helen: 5(1):20 (book review). binns, john: 9(3):51–58 (cyclura lewisi conservation), 9(3):59–64 (utila iguana research & breeding station), 9(3):65–69 (anegada iguana headstart facility), 70 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 indices 10(1):3–9 (2002 isg meeting), 10(2):39–48 (cyclura pinguis on guana and necker, bvi). binns, sandy: 10(4):156 (iis in california). blair, david: 1(2):1–3 (cyclura rileyi rileyi), 1(3):10–11 (sex determination), 1(3):19–20 (iguanas on cays west of long island, bahamas?), 1(4):2–5 (cyclura nubila caymanensis), 1(5):2–7 (acklins island rock iguana), 1(6):4–9 (booby cay iguana), 2(1):2–6 (fiji banded iguanas), 4(2):31–36 (chuckwallas), 4(3):41–47 (iguana iguana). blinn, elke: 9(1–2):40–41 (hybridization of ctenosaura bakeri and c. similis). bogoslavsky, bruce: 8(4):17–20 (nutrition), 9(1–2):32–34 (calcium metabolism). boismier, deina: 5(1):19–20 (book review). brown, luther p.: 1(2):17–18 (north andros iguanas). burton, fred: 5(4):75–81 (cyclura lewisi). breuil, michel: 7(3):45 (overwater dispersal), 8(3):20 (iguana delicatissima status), 9(1–2):43 (iguana delicatissima status). brouhard, david: 4(2):21–30 (cyclura rileyi rileyi status and conservation). buckner, sandra: 4(3):59 (cyclura rileyi rileyi on high cay). byrd, dan: 3(4):13–15 (mona island). byrd, sylvia: 3(4):13–15 (mona island). cagle, jane: 6(1):19–20 (green iguana behavior). campbell, todd: 10(4):119–120 (nile monitors in florida). capron, marty: 2(1):16 (color variation in iguana iguana). card, winston: 3(4):17–19 (zoos and the private sector). carter, ronald l.: 4(2):21–30 (cyclura rileyi rileyi status and conservation), 5(1):14 (abstract: cyclura r. rileyi population genetics), 5(1):15 (abstract: cyclura r. rileyi status and conservation), 9(1–2):43 (effect of storm on cyclura rileyi rileyi). centers for disease control: 4(3):54–56 (reptiles and salmonella). christie, bill: 3(2):9–11 (cyclura at the indianapolis zoo). clerveaux, wesley: 8(3):19–20 (turks & caicos update). cole, jerry: 8(1):18 (donation to iis). connors, steve: 8(2):21 (iguana and primate association). davis, scott: 5(3):57 (cyclura collei genetics). delay, g. scott: 6(1):14–15 (video reviews). derr, mark: 8(3):17–18 (cyclura conservation). dickert, catherine: 4(3):57 (recovery of petshop iguanas), 5(1):14 (abstract: iguana iguana feeding behavior). donoghue, susan: 1(6):16 (iguana nutrition). downer, sorrel: 5(1):16–18 (iguana farming). downhower, jerry f.: 1(2):17–18 (north andros iguanas). draper, stan: 3(3):11, 13 (herpetoculture). durkins, timothy: 2(1):16–17 (focus of the iguana times), 8(1):21 (bark as substrate). echternacht, sandy: 10(1):21 (anolis conspersus), 10(2):53–55 (profile of fred burton). edwards, mary lang: 1(4):9–11 (galápagos island iguanas). ehrig, robert: 1(1):1–7 (cyclura collei in the hellshire hills), 1(3):4–7 (north andros expedition), 1(3):14–17 (cyclura nubila captive environment), 1(4):18 (cyclura nubila captive environment), 1(5):8–9 (cyclura nubila diet), 1(5):10–12 (allan’s cay vegetation), 1(5):14–15 (allan’s cay expedition), 1(6):2–3 (status of cyclura lewisi), 2(1):10–13 (breeding cyclura nubila), 2(3):22–23 (raising hatchling cyclura nubila), 3(2):13–16 (vegetation studies), 5(3):58–62 (cyclura habitat), 5(3):63–67 (cyclura habitat classification), 5(4):89–90 (iis conservation award), 6(2):43 (cyclura carinata bartschi), 6(4):88 (goat corral on booby cay), 7(1):18–21 (iguana iguana diet in the florida keys), 7(2):27–28 (cyclura rileyi cristata), 7(2):37 (obituary: captain ron harrod), 8(2):8–13 (cyclura behavior during a storm), 8(3):3–8 (andros island report), 9(4):82–86 (iis history). elfström, bruce: 3(2):2–8 (ctenosaurs), 3(4):2–9 (ctenosaura palearis). enge, kevin m.: 10(4):111–118 (iguanas in florida). fitch, henry s.: 10(3):63–66 (iguana exploitation). fontenot, brian e.: 9(4):75–81 (rhinoceros iguanas at manatí park). fry, shawn k.: 6(1):14–15 (video reviews). fuhri, carl: 5(1):21 (treatment of fungal infected eggs), 6(2):27–30 (cyclura rileyi cristata), 8(3):9–14 (iguana egg care). fuhri, janet: 6(3):51–56 (iguana in the dutch windward islands), 8(3):9–14 (iguana egg care). fulford, michelle: 8(3):19–20 (turks & caicos update). gallagher, scott: 3(4):22 (iguana iguana in puerto rico). gallagher, shirley: 3(4):22 (iguana iguana in puerto rico). gees, karsten: 10(2):30–32 (utila iguana research & breeding station). gerace, kathy d.: 6(4):89 (signs on green cay, san salvador, bahamas). gerber, glenn p.: 5(1):14 (abstract: cyclura c. carinata status). gibbs, w. wayt: 5(1):22 (“iguana channel” on the internet). gibson, richard c.: 6(3):67 (iguana delicatissima hatchling care), 8(4):11 (iguana delicatissima captive breeding). gifford, matthew e.: 9(4):75–81 (rhinoceros iguanas at manatí park). gogakis, andy: 10(4):127–128 (iguanas as pets in greece). goodge, brent: 4(2):21–30 (cyclura rileyi rileyi status and conservation). goodman, rachel m.: 10(1):15–20 (cyclura lewisi). grant, tandora: 5(3):51–56 (cyclura collei), 10(4):142–144 (profile of allison alberts). griffin, wendy: 5(2):42–43 (swamper conservation). grismer, l. lee: 9(1–2):3–8 (insular evolution in ctenosaura). grove, jack: 4(2):37–38 (problems in the galápagos). gutman, aj: 7(3):43–44 (large iguanas), 8(3):15–16 (ctenosaurs in captivity), 8(4):3–7 (fijian banded iguanas in the san diego zoo), 8(4):12–16 (iis meeting), 9(1–2):27–30 (san diego zoo), 9(1–2):35–37 (calcium-related pathologies), 9(1–2):38–39 (green iguana education), 9(3):51–58 (cyclura lewisi conservation), 9(3):63 (cyclura bakeri hatchlings), 10(1):23 (obituary: timothy durkins), 10(2):32–35 (iis meeting), 10(3):79–81 (black iguana systematics), 10(3):93 (book review), 10(4):121–126 (rescue). gutman, michael b.: 9(4):87–90 (profile of aj gutman). gutsche, alex: 10(2):28–29 (swampers). haeffner, rick: 8(3):19–20 (turks & caicos update). hamilton, michelle: 4(1):9–12 (living with a rhinoceros iguana). haneke, bernd: 4(4):61–71 (cyclura cornuta stejnegeri nesting sites), 5(1):14 (abstract: cyclura cornuta stejnegeri nesting ecology). harlow, peter: 10(4):103–107 (fiji banded iguanas). harris, lester e., jr.: 5(2):27–32 (galápagos land iguanas). harrod, ron: 3(2):18 (ctenosaurs in florida). hatfield, james w., iii: 6(2):32–35 (iguana iguana care). hayes, danette m.: 4(2):21–30 (cyclura rileyi rileyi status and conservation). hayes, william k.: 4(2):21–30 (cyclura rileyi rileyi status and conservation), 4(3):48–49 (iguana iguana diet in the wild), 5(1):14 (abstract: cyclura r. rileyi population genetics), 5(1):15 (abstract: cyclura r. rileyi status and conservation), 5(2):38–39 (iguanas and salmonella), 6(1):14–15 (video reviews), 6(2):31 (cyclura rileyi cristata population decline), 6(2):43 (cyclura carinata bartschi), 9(1–2):43 (effect of storm on cyclura rileyi rileyi). henderson, robert w.: 2(2):20–21 (obituary: albert schwartz), 10(3):63–66 (iguana exploitation), 10(3):86–88 (profile of henry s. fitch). hudson, rick: 7(2):45 (jamaican iguana release), 8(2):14–17 (jamaican iguana recovery program), 9(1–2):43 (morris animal foundation grant), 10(4):1512–152 (book review), 10(4):154–155 (cyclura pinguis release). huey, r.t.: 1(4):16 (cyclura nubila captive maintenance). hummel, stephen: 1(2):16 (iguana times first issue). incháustegui, sixto: 10(1):4 (status of cyclura ricordii). iverson, john: 1(1):9–11 (feral mammals and iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 71indices cyclura carinata), 1(2):9–12 (feral mammals and cyclura carinata), 3(3):2–10 (adaptations to herbivory), 8(3):20 (allen’s cays update). jarchow, james l.: 3(1):20 (cyclura reintroductions). johnson, james h.: 4(1):17 (veterinary research at texas a&m). kaplan, melissa: 5(1):3–7 (green iguana husbandry), 6(1):16–18 (iguana importation). king, lori: 8(1):18 (utila island conservation). king-sharp, karen: 6(2):46 (breeding cyclura cornuta in the uk). kinkaid, john: 10(4):108–110 (fiji banded iguanas in u.s. zoos). knapp, chuck: 4(3):51–53 (cyclura and the john g. shedd aquarium), 7(1):11–17 (morphology and herbivory), 7(2):37 (obituary: captain ron harrod), 7(3):27–30 (cyclura cychlura figginsi). köhler, gunther: 1(4):6–8 (green iguana growth), 1(6):14–15 (salmonellosis), 3(3):12–13 (ctenosaura bakeri status and conservation), 6(1):10–13 (conservation project utila iguana), 8(2):18–20 (conservation project utila iguana), 9(1–2):40–41 (hybridization of ctenosaura bakeri and c. similis), 10(2):50–52 (green iguana communication), 10(3):79–81 (black iguana systematics). krasovec, simon: 5(2):44 (egg care). krysko, kenneth l.: 10(4):111–118 (iguanas in florida). lainhart, angela a.: 4(1):17 (sexing iguanas). lamb, roger: 6(2):42 (green iguana breeding). larimer, samantha c.: 9(1–2):12–17 (allen’s cays iguana research). lazell, james: 6(4):75–80 (cyclura pinguis in the bvi), 6(4):89 (classification and diet of iguana delicatissima), 8(3):20 (necker island update). lemm, jeff: 5(3):51–56 (cyclura collei). levin, l. e.: 5(1):15 (abstract: sex-specific behavior and predation in iguana iguana). maccargar, bob: 10(3):82–85 (ultraviolet light). mader, douglas r.: 2(1):8–9 (salmonellosis). malfatti, mark: 5(2):33–34 (cyclura cornuta in outdoor enclosures). malone, catherine l.: 9(1–2):9–11 (iguanid and cyclura phylogeny). martins, emilia p.: 5(1):15 (abstract: cyclura social behavior). mitchell, glenn: 8(3):19–20 (turks & caicos update). mitchell, numi: 8(3):19–20 (turks & caicos update), 10(1):10–14 (turks and caicos rock iguana), 10(2):39–48 (cyclura pinguis on guana and necker, bvi). montanucci, richard r.: 4(3):58 (research reports in iguana times), 7(2):41 (commercial collecting in nevada). morris, david r.: 4(4):78 (monkey biscuits as iguana food). moyroud, richard: 1(2):18 (formation of the iis), 1(5):10–12 (allan’s cay vegetation), 1(5):14–15 (allan’s cay expedition), 3(2):13–16 (vegetation studies), 5(3):63–67 (cyclura habitat classification). nieves, david m.: 9(4):75–81 (rhinoceros iguanas at manatí park), 10(4):154 (support for the hope zoo). ottenwalder, josé a.: 9(4):78 (cyclura cornuta status). parmerlee, john s., jr.: 8(2):3–7 (cyclura of isla cabritos). parsons, bill: 3(1):9 (cesarean section in a cyclura nubila). pasachnik, stesha a.: 9(1–2):12–17 (allen’s cays iguana research). perry, gad: 10(2):39–48 (cyclura pinguis on guana and necker, bvi). powell, robert: 8(2):3–7 (cyclura of isla cabritos), 9(1–2):9–11 (iguanid and cyclura phylogeny), 9(1–2):18–26 (animal classification), 9(4):75–81 (rhinoceros iguanas at manatí park), 9(4):78 (cyclura cornuta status), 9(4):80 (leiocephalus personatus), 9(4):92 (book review), 10(2):36–38 (utila’s reptiles), 10(3):67–70 (reptile exploitation), 10(3):79–81 (black iguana systematics). ramos, yanerys m.: 8(2):3–7 (cyclura of isla cabritos). rassmann, kornelia: 5(4):81–86 (galápagos iguana phylogeny). reed, donna j.: 5(4):91–92 (compassion for iguanas). reichling, steven b.: 8(1):3–6 (iguana delicatissima on st. eustatius). reilly, linda: 5(3):68 (veterinary care and legal challenge). reynoso, victor hugo: 10(4):155 (mexican iguana conservation group). rivas, jesus a.: 5(1):15 (abstract: sex-specific behavior and predation in iguana iguana). rodda, gordon: 2(2):2–16 (mating behavior of iguana iguana), 2(3):2–20 (mating behavior of iguana iguana), 3(3):14–18 (book review), 8(1):16 (iguana size). ryan, thomas: 1(6):15 (iguana nutrition). salzberg, allan: 5(3):69 (turtles stolen from madagascar). saunders, angela g.: 7(4):63–65 (iis in belize). schmidt, jürgen: 4(3):58 (twin cyclura cornuta). scott, gegory z.: 1(5):16–17 (salmonellosis). shipley, bryon k.: 2(3):24–25 (breeding cyclura cornuta at the national zoo). snaddon, cara: 6(2):38–39 (green iguana breeding in belize). staten, bo: 6(3):66 (cyclura eggs). staten, anita: 6(3):66 (cyclura eggs). steiner, jane m.: 4(3):57 (unusual iguana iguana). switak, karl h.: 7(1):3–10 (galápagos land iguanas), 7(4):51–60 (marine iguanas). todt, geoff: 5(4):91 (impulse buying). townsend, josiah h.: 10(4):111–118 (iguanas in florida). townsend, wendy: 2(2):17 (visit with “mao”), 2(4):20 (iguanas as pets), 3(4):22 (scientists and non-scientists), 5(1):8–9 (green iguana social behavior), 7(2):31–34 (iguana rescue), 7(2):42 (comments on iguana times). tracy, c. richard: 1(6):15 (iguana nutrition). urban, charlotte: 3(1):19 (iguana information). ventura, joseph: 5(1):15 (abstract: iguana trade). vosjoli, philippe de: 5(4):91 (pet trade). warner, daniel a.: 6(3):57–65 (iguanid phylogeny). wasilewski, joe: 7(2):29–30 (booby cay update), 9(3): 71 (cyclura conservation), 9(4):93–94 (blue iguana survey and conservation), 10(1):22 (cyclura ricordii), 10(2):58 (swamper conservation), 10(3):98 (iguanas as pets), 10(4):158 (releasing headstarted iguanas). weissgold, bruce j.: 7(2):44–45 (reptile smugglers caught). welsh, david k.: 5(2):44 (allergic reaction). werner, franz: 10(2):56–57 (black iguanas = ctenosaura), 10(3):89–92 (whorl-tailed iguanas = cyclura), 10(4):145–149 (galápagos iguanas). wiewandt, tom: 2(4):2–19 (evolution of nesting patterns), 3(4):16 (reflections on mona island). wikelski, martin: 4(1):1–8 (marine iguanas). williams, terry allen: 8(1):20–21 (florida iguanas). wissman, margaret: 3(1):9 (cesarean section in a cyclura nubila). yamanouchi, akira: 5(4):87–88 (iguana trade in japan). yamanouchi, takako: 5(4):87–88 (iguana trade in japan). ziring, julie: 4(1):17 (dear doctor column). iguana 10.1 2002 iguana specialist group conference john bendon and john binns international iguana society and iguana specialist group the iucn/ssc iguana specialist group (isg) held its annual meeting in november 2002 in santo domingo, dominican republic (dr). the dr occupies about two-thirds of the island of hispaniola whereas the republic of haïti occupies the remainder. hispaniola is the only island on which two species of rock iguanas (cyclura) are sympatric: c. cornuta, the rhinoceros iguana, and c. ricordii, ricord’s iguana. the conference was hosted jointly by the parque zoológico nacional (zoodom) in santo domingo, grupo jaragua, a non-governmental organization (ngo) devoted to the conservation of dominican natural resources, and the coral resorts. although the agenda was typically broad, the focus of the meeting and a subsequent workshop was the status of cyclura ricordii (p. 4). the international union for the conservation of nature and natural resources (iucn) has established the species survival commission (ssc), within which about 70 specialist groups (including the isg) address threats to the continuing existence of particular plants and animals. information from each group is used to classify threatened species by categories ranging from “vulnerable” to “critically endangered.” in all, about 7000 people work directly to enhance the chances for the survival of plants and animals. zoologists, many of whom are zoo curators or university lecturers, government officials, representative of ngos, or individuals from the private sector all give freely of their time. following the opening welcome message, the meeting agenda continued with presentations by each of the endangered or threatened species project representatives. each of their reports highlighted project successes and disappointments, and all contained a common thread of deep concern for the species’ recovery. this year’s bittersweet presentations included a report on the successful implementation of the blue iguana species 3iguanamarch 2003 cyclura ricordii at zoodom. photograph by john bendon. allison alberts, josé ottenwalder, quentin bloxam, sixto incháustegui, and fred burton (from left to right) at the isg meeting. photograph by john bendon. iguana specialist group 2002 annual meeting, santo domingo, dominican repiblic november 14-18 iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:10 am page 3 4 iguana volume 10, number 1 cyclura ricordii, classified as critically endangered on the iucn red list, is known only from the dominican republic. populations occur on isla cabritos in lago enriquillo, two sites near lago enriquillo, two locations at loma del guano near the southern tip of the barahona peninsula in jaragua national park in pedernales province, and another near cabo rojo on the western side of the peninsula. the total area of all sites combined is less than 100 km2. all populations appear to be declining. for example, a 1985 survey on isla cabritos resulted in an estimated iguana density of 8/ha, but the population had dropped to an estimated 1.33/ha by 2000. recent total population estimates range from 2–4000 individuals at the six locations. however, in light of the 2000 survey work, those estimates may have to be reduced to fewer than 1500 animals. past efforts at captive breeding have met with little success. however, in 2002, zoodom (parque zoológico nacional in santo domingo) successfully produced a clutch of c. ricordii from their very small captive population. (left) adult cyclura ricordii at zoodom. photograph by john binns. (above) a pair of cyclura ricordii hatchlings at zoodom. the dark areas on the sides of each animals are individual identification numbers. photograph by john binns. current status of cyclura ricordii adapted from a report by sixto incháustegui, grupo jaragua iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:10 am page 4 recovery plan headed by fred burton. an element of that plan, the population assessment on grand cayman, revealed that the blue iguana has reached a point of functional extinction, with only 10–25 animals remaining in the wild. rachel goodman highlighted her work on grand cayman tracking free-ranging blue iguanas within the botanic park (see article on p. 15). ron carter, from loma linda university, brought alarming news of cyclura rileyi rileyi, the san salvador rock iguana. the devastation of remaining populations has been dramatically accelerated by hurricanes, rats, and poaching, the results of which have left this species in a critical situation and complicated recovery measures. in a twist of fate, the poached iguanas were relocated to the local club med, where they are reportedly breeding and appear to be larger and healthier than those in their natural habitat. chuck knapp, of the shedd aquarium, discussed the plight of the andros island iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura). the increased presence of hunters using guns and dogs has almost wiped out the entire population of iguanas in his research area. on the bright side, he described the successful translocation of exuma island iguanas (cyclura cychlura figginsi) to establish a second population, increasing the chances of survival of the species in case of natural disasters. the anegada or stout iguana (cyclura pinguis) received considerable attention. issues included recovery, limited head-start releases, and relocation. glenn gerber detailed the current situation on anegada and the need to augment the declining and aged population of wild cyclura pinguis with a limited release of headstarted captives. in addition, a new population assessment was proposed for mid-2003 to properly configure elements of the cyclura pinguis species recovery plan currently being drafted. both of these measures were approved by the isg steering committee. john binns reported on the population assessment of cyclura pinguis conducted with james lazell and numi mitchell on guana and necker islands, bvi. some 120–140 animals constitute the second population on guana, and another 30 animals the third population on necker. additional reports included karen graham’s account of the saint lucian iguana (iguana iguana), which may represent a distinct species. alberto alvarez reported successes in managing the mona island iguana (c. cornuta stejnegeri). miguel garcia discussed overpopulation of the cuban iguana (c. nubila nubila) on isla magueyes. rick hudson reported on the jamaican iguana (c. collei), glenn gerber described the successful relocation of turks and caicos iguanas (c. carinata carinata) to various cays within the archipelago, and joe wasilewski and john bendon provided an update of iis efforts on behalf of bartschi’s iguana (c. carinata bartschi). next year’s meeting will be held in the turks and caicos islands, site of an ongoing translocation effort to enhance the survival of the turks and caicos iguana (cyclura carinata carinata). a field trip to isla cabritos national park some members of the isg participated in a zoodom-sponsored field trip to parque nacional isla cabritos. this island lies in lago enriquillo, a below-sea level, hypersaline lake that was once part of the marine channel separating the hispaniolan north and south paleoislands. populations of both endemic species of cyclura occur on the island. 5iguanamarch 2003 2002 isg annual meeting in the dominican republic. participants included: quentin bloxam, fred burton, josé ottenwalder, rick hudson, alberto alvarez, peter tolson, edwin vargas, jan ramer, dale mcginnity, allison alberts, glenn gerber, rachel goodman, tandora grant, jeff lemm, chuck knapp, tom wiewandt, andy verhey. photograph by john binns. iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:10 am page 5 the valley in which the lake is situated, protected to both the north and south by high mountain ranges, acts as a heat sink. as a result, the temperatures frequently exceed 40°c. the island is characterized by white sandy soil, low topography with a central incline, and patchy dry forest composed of succulents, such as aged neobottia tree cactus and shrub-like cylindropuntia caribea, a few palms and epiphytes, and scattered deciduous trees capable of withstanding the harsh, dry conditions. the trip was strenuous, involving four hours each way in a bus and an hour each way in a boat, which sadly limited time on the island to a short period in the middle of the day, not an ideal time for viewing iguanas, most of which were escaping the heat by retreating into their burrows. cyclura cornuta was common, but c. ricordii was scarce. on the main island opposite isla cabritos, a number of cyclura cornuta have become habituated to humans. they were commonly encountered on the paths through the scrub woodland that characterized the shoreline and the area around the visitors’ center. iguanas of all sizes provided ample evidence that they were breeding successfully every year. 6 iguana volume 10, number 1 cyclura ricordii on isla cabritos, the top individual was seeking shelter from the mid-day heat near the opening of its burrow. photographs by john bendon and joe wasilewski. the boat ride to isla cabritos. photograph by joe wasilewski. the isg group was greeted on arrival by rhinoceros iguanas habituated to humans. photograph by joe wasilewski. large adult male cyclura ricordii in natural habitat on isla cabritos. note the dry-climate-adapted vegetation. photograph by john binns. iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:10 am page 6 a trip to zoodom a trip on the final day of the meeting to zoodom included a delicious buffet lunch and a short speech by the director, dr. alfonso ferreira, who thanked the isg for coming and contributing valuable advice and assistance. zoodom is well known in the reptile world as the principal breeding center for rhinoceros iguanas. offspring are not sold to the public — cyclura cornuta, like all rock iguanas, is protected under provisions of the convention for international trade in endangered species (cites). however, many approved institutions throughout the world have been the recipients of animals bred at the zoo. the public display in which iguanas live is a large, oval habitat surrounded, like most other exhibits at the zoo, by a deep trench. the terrain within the enclosure was dotted with rocks and cacti and other naturally occurring vegetation. the iguanas had plenty of space and appeared to behave as they would in the 7iguanamarch 2003 rhinoceros iguanas on exhibit at zoodom appear to behave naturally. photograph by joe wasilewski. a rhinoceros iguana (cyclura cornuta) crossing the road near the visitor’s center at lago enriquillo. photograph by joe wasilewski. after the island visit, the zoodom veterinary staff treated the isg group to a typical dominican meal at the “iguana hotel.” photograph by john bendon. zoodom director dr.alfonso ferreira holding two recently hatched cyclura ricordii. photograph by john bendon. iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:10 am page 7 wild. the off-exhibit holding pens similarly housed many iguanas, some of which were destined for export. newly-hatched cyclura ricordii, quarantined in the zoodom veterinary facility, are quite rare in captivity. these young ricord’s iguanas are continually monitored and afforded every opportunity to increase their chance of survival. the attending zoo veterinarian mentioned that the currently offered food was not being consumed as readily as they had expected. isg members viewing these young animals suggested including in the diet crickets dusted with vitamins and calcium and hibiscus flowers that were abundant on the zoo grounds. the latter are a favorite with most iguanas. between the rows of clinic buildings, fencing has been installed to provide enclosure space for literally hundreds of young rhinoceros iguanas. in an ingenious use of space, the close proximity to the surrounding facilities affords continual monitoring of these young iguanas. acknowledgements the following persons (listed in alphabetical order) were instrumental in assuring the success of the 2002 isg meeting. their hospitality was endless and their contributions to the meeting inestimable. we thank them all. yvonne arias, grupo jaragua josefa castro, zoodom angelica espinal, zoodom cladio vladimir eusebio, acuario nacional alfonso ferreira, zoodom sixto j. incháustegui, grupo jaragua josé a. ottenwalder, aerodom roberto maria, zoodom enrique pugibet, acuario nacional deyanira rubio, zoodom ernst rupp, grupo jaragua gloria santana, depto. vida silvestre andreas schubert, programa mediambiental transforesterio haiti-rd elizabeth maria skeet garcia, zoodom 8 iguana volume 10, number 1 cyclura ricordii hatchling at zoodom. photograph by john binns cyclura cornuta on exhibit at zoodom. photograph by john bendon. iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:10 am page 8 9iguanamarch 2003 the 2002 annual meeting of the iucn/ssc iguana specialist group and the recovery planning workshop for ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) was hosted by dr. alphonso ferreira, director, parque zoológico nacional (zoodom) and the coral resorts in the dominican republic. the intense two-day recovery planning workshop was facilitated by frederic j. burton using his template for the blue iguana species recovery plan. summarized, the ricord’s iguana species recovery plan includes the following components: (1) rapid surveys will be conducted in order to map all areas in which ricord’s iguanas still occur along with a more detailed survey of the protected population on isla cabritos in lago enriquillo. the results of these surveys will provide information necessary to propose protection of all areas critical to the survival of this species, including an extension of parque nacional jaragua in the cabo rojo area, already under consideration. (2) major public awareness and education efforts in areas where ricord’s iguanas still occur will be implemented primarily by grupo jaragua in order to develop local community support. in santo domingo, the role of zoodom in enhancing public awareness will be expanded. (3) once initial studies are complete, a planning workshop will review results to define terms of reference for a future management plan in protected areas supporting ricord’s iguana populations. (4) threats posed by predation and habitat degradation will be prioritized and then progressively managed to reduce or eliminate the causative agents in protected areas. restoration of endemic vegetation in degraded areas also will be attempted. (5) in order to effectively address the many issues likely to influence conservation management, additional research on distribution, abundance, and ecology will be conducted. (6) a feasibility study of captive husbandry and propagation will be implemented using the two adult pairs currently at zoodom. if the animals successfully reproduce, offspring may be used in other locations in santo domingo and parque nacional jaragua area to educate and enhance public awareness. (7) funding for the ricord’s iguana species recovery plan will be obtained from local and international grants. in addition, the sale of retail products in the dominican republic and internationally may supplement funds acquired from other sources. when approved, the ricord’s iguana species recovery plan will be administered by the newly formed ricord’s iguana recovery group in the dominican republic, with support from the iucn-ssc iguana specialist group and the international iguana foundation (iif). summary of the proposed cyclura ricordii species recovery plan (left) grazing donkeys pose ongoing problems for the recovery of natural vegetation on isla cabritos. the mountains in the background shelter the valley and the island from prevailing winds and contribute to the very hot, dry climate. photograph by john binns. (above) cyclura ricordii at zoodom. photograph by john bendon. iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:10 am page 9 iguana 11.3 b&w text iguana_11.1_bw_text once again, juvenile utila spiny-tailed iguanas, known as swampers (ctenosaura bakeri), are ready to be released into the wild on the honduran island of utila. an expedition is prepared to iron bound, where the gravid females first surrendered their eggs. barely 20 months ago, the tiny swampers squirmed and wriggled their way out of paper-thin eggshells that were becoming too snug. an eggtooth is a handy tool for that kind of job. after hatching, everything was wonderfully warm — after all, the incubators were set for 30 °c. the vermiculite was soft and pleasantly moist — but something wasn’t right. naturally, the little swampers couldn’t know that their very first impulse upon hatching involved a genetic fixation on scrabbling up out of a nest hole that could be as much as 40 cm deep in the sand. barely had the little iguanas calmed down (since nothing was really amiss), when two large hands reached for the delicate little creatures to weigh, measure, and mark them. they then were placed in cages, from which half of the hatchlings were abruptly carried off to iron bound to be released. a year later, a large number of the remaining iguanas were released to the wild, and only 12 remained at the iguana research and breeding station, which is supported largely by the zoologische gesellschaft frankfurt and the senckenbergische naturforschende gesellschaft. these 12 swampers originally were to be equipped with microchips. however, the equipment was unavailable and the decision was made to release the final dozen from the 2002 hatch. of course, the 12 iguanas were weighed and measured again, had toe-codes read, and femoral pores counted. then they were packed into cloth bags, resisting in vain with tooth and claw. iron bound is an unspectacular stretch of coast made up of volcanic and coral rock. the small bay with a patch of sandy beach is shrugged off by humans as being too dangerous for swimming due to the sharp-edged rocks. the swampers, however, care the last dozen lutz dirksen, director iguana research and breeding station, utila iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 21the last dozen � this healthy young male, photographed moments after release, is testament to the quality husbandry and care provided during the short captive period. photograph by lutz dirksen. only for what lies beyond the craggy water’s edge – the sand, critical for their survival, and the mangroves that begin 100 m from the sea. in the mangroves, fiddler crabs scurry underfoot trying to reach their holes in the sand before they are flattened. this spot is ideal for leaving the little swampers to fend for themselves. they have been fed regularly on mangrove leaves and fiddler crabs, as these make up the bulk of their diet in the wild. the cloth bags are untied one after another, and little heads are followed by the bodies of the rather confused juveniles. some immediately dart off, but most just look around, not initially comprehending that they are free at last — or that they now have to find food on their own. slowly they move off in all directions. a particularly intrepid young swamper scales a tree, where he seems startled at being driven away by one of his wild relatives. clearly the rules are different here than in the cages at the station. here, bitter battles are fought for every scrap of good territory and every available tree hole. no wire mesh keeps the juvenile swampers safe from predators. nevertheless, they are not as small and vulnerable as their brothers and sisters released before them. in no time at all, the final 12 will adapt to their lives in the mangroves. 22 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 dirksen excited utila iguana station volunteers release the iguanas where the swamp meets sandy beach of iron bound.volunteers are not funded and pay their own expenses to participate in saving these iguanas. photograph by lutz dirksen. the enclosures are in a natural setting and provide ample space for the growing iguanas until they are large enough to be released into the wild. photograph by john binns. iron bound’s coast is lined with palm trees, sandy pockets, and rugged volcanic and coral rock. photograph by lutz dirksen. hatched and raised in captivity until he reached the size at which predation pressure is minimal, this young adult male utila iguana views his natural home in the swamps of utila for the first time. photograph by lutz dirksen. if you would like to be part of this story, the station is continually seeking new volunteers, so that the same drama can be repeated again next year. this release included a very special utila iguana named "buddy," who was adopted under the utila iguana adoption program in december 2003 by john and sue porubek. iguana_11.2_text.ps i.i.s. board of directors joseph wasilewski, president homestead, fl joseph burgess, vice-president jacksonville, fl a.c. echternacht, ph.d., treasurer university of tennessee, knoxville, tn aj gutman, executive secretary and associate editor of iguana west hartford, ct john & sandy binns, directors, associate editors of iguana and internet operations international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca gunther köhler, ph.d. and elke köhler, directors forschungsinstitut und naturmuseum senckenberg & herpeton, frankfurt, germany robert powell, ph.d., director and editor of iguana avila university, kansas city, mo i.i.s. editorial/advisory board allison c. alberts, ph.d. iucn/ssc iguana specialist group and zoological society of san diego, san diego, ca john bendon, illustrator for iguana bath, england gordon m. burghardt, ph.d. university of tennessee, knoxville, tn frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program, grand cayman, cayman islands jorge ferrari organización de rescate y protección de reptiles y anfibios, tegucigalpa, honduras matthias goetz, dipl.-biol. durrell wildlife conservation trust, jersey, british isles alexander gutsche, dipl.-biol. humboldt universität, berlin, germany richard hudson international iguana foundation and fort worth zoo, fort worth, tx john b. iverson, ph.d. earlham college, richmond, in chuck knapp university of florida, gainesville, fl michael ripca, managing editor of iguana leaping lizards graphic design, atco, nj thomas wiewandt, ph.d. wild horizons, tucson, az founder robert w. ehrig big pine key, fl statement of purpose the international iguana society, inc. is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to preserving the biological diversity of iguanas. we believe that the best way to protect iguanas and other native plants and animals is to preserve natural habitats and to encourage development of sustainable economies compatible with the maintenance of biodiversity. to this end, we will: (1) engage in active conservation, initiating, assisting, and funding conservation efforts in cooperation with u.s. and international governmental and private agencies; (2) promote educational efforts related to the preservation of biodiversity; (3) build connections between individuals and the academic, zoo, and conservation communities, providing conduits for education and for involving the general public in efforts to preserve endangered species; and (4) encourage the dissemination and exchange of information on the ecology, population biology, behavior, captive husbandry, taxonomy, and evolution of iguanas. membership information iguana, the journal of the international iguana society, is distributed quarterly to members and member organizations. annual dues: individual u.s. and canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual foreign membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 u.s. and canadian organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 foreign organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $45.00 (*receives double copies of iguana) additional copies are available at a cost of $6.00 including postage. join on-line at: www.iguanasociety.org membership questions? call aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 solicitations members of the i.i.s. are encouraged to contribute articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of iguana biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to ctenosaura@cyclura.com). for any contribution, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. authors of one page or more of print are entitled to five copies of the issue in which their article appears. advertising policy of iguana we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). all products have been examined and been found to be high quality and fairly priced. contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sandy@cyclura.com or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2004 by the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international iguana society. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editors’ remarks as promised in this space in the previous issue, we want to explain our reasoning for including profiles of “iguana people” and of species that coexist with the iguanas that are and will continue to be the focus of every issue. “iguana people” fall into several categories. most of the individuals we’ve profiled to date and probably most of those we’ll feature in future issues have been heavily involved in conservation of iguanas. however, we have and will continue to feature researchers whose work has provided new insights into the evolutionary relationships, behavior, or ecology of iguanas. we also intend to profile individuals whose expertise is in husbandry. regardless, however, of an individual’s specialties, these are folks who have made an impact in the arena of iguana biology. why do we think this is important? three main reasons apply: (1) these are people who can and should serve as role models for aspiring conservationists, academics, researchers, or advanced herpetoculturists. (2) we would like to think that reading about these persons will inspire readers to emulate them, even if that requires an expansion of one’s “comfort zone” by tackling issues that seem beyond one’s ability. (3) these are neat folks and reading about their exploits can be fun as well as inspiring and educational. “species profiles” are not intended to be inspirational — but they are intended to be educational. because we believe that most persons interested in iguanas also have an interest in their habitats and in the other animals with which those are shared, providing brief glimpses into the lives of reptiles that live in areas that are featured in the iguana-centered articles should serve to enlighten and entertain. these regular features, along with those that focus on husbandry and historical perspectives, reflect our efforts to meet the needs and special interests of our readers. we remain open, however, to the inclusion of more and different sorts of information. if you have ideas about articles that you would like to see in iguana, please feel free to contact any member of the editorial board. we’d enjoy hearing from you. bob powell, aj gutman, and john binns iguana_11.1_bw_text in august 1979, scientists who were studying the systematics, behavior, ecology, physiology, and conservation of iguanas met to compare notes and take part in a symposium held at the university of tennessee, knoxville. the symposium was organized by gordon m. burghardt of the university of tennessee and a. stanley rand of the smithsonian tropical research institute (stri) in panama. it led to the iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology and conservation (1982. noyes publications, park ridge, new jersey). edited by burghardt and rand, the volume quickly became something of a bible for those of us interested in the biology of iguanas. in 1997, a similar symposium, held at the university of washington in seattle, resulted in the second in what will hopefully become a continuing series devoted to these fascinating lizards (alberts et al., eds. 2004. iguanas: biology and conservation. univ. california press, berkeley; see review on p. 60). forty-two biologists contributed to the latest volume and it was dedicated to gordon burghardt and stan rand. gordon was the only individual to contribute to both the 1982 and 2004 volumes. gordon was born in milwaukee, wisconsin and remembers being drawn to reptiles at the age of about eight. although he initially majored in chemistry as an undergraduate at the university of chicago, he soon became aware of the program in biopsychology and changed majors. his adviser was eckhard h. hess. hess knew that the behavior of reptiles had received little attention from ethologists (scientists who study the natural behavior of animals) and encouraged gordon, while still an undergraduate, to become involved in research. a problem, however, arose. gordon’s primary interest was in snakes, and hess’s wife hated snakes. she had extracted a promise from her husband that none would be allowed in his laboratory. as a result, the man who would later conduct research on giant iguanas began small, by studying the feeding behavior of green anoles (anolis carolinensis) and five-lined skinks (eumeces fasciatus). this work led, in 1964, to the first of over 150 research papers, books, and book chapters that gordon has published to date. despite the subjects of that first study, gordon was still determined to study snakes and the opportunity arose when he was given a pregnant garter snake. unable to keep it in hess’s lab, he set it up in his studio apartment and, before long, he had an entire litter of snakes, each housed in its own small cage and all squeezed into his small apartment — and that was where he began the research on the feeding behavior of snakes that has been a hallmark of his career. this research became the basis for his doctoral research and, fortunately, by the time he entered graduate school, hess had found a way for him to house snakes in his laboratory. after receiving his ph.d. in biopsychology, gordon taught biology at the university of chicago for about a year and a half before joining the faculty of the department of psychology at the university of tennessee, knoxville. he presently holds a 52 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 echternacht p r o f i l e gordon burghardt: forty years of studying reptilian behavior arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee a recent photograph of gordon burghardt (and friend) in his office at the university of tennessee. photograph courtesy of the university of tennessee photography services. � iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 53gordon burghardt joint appointment in that department and in the department of ecology & evolutionary biology (eeb). until it was merged into eeb, he directed the graduate program in ethology, which he had founded. he directs the research of undergraduate and graduate students in both psychology and biology and teaches, among other courses, the popular comparative animal behavior laboratory course (the “cab lab”). very active in several professional societies, he is past-president of the animal behavior society, a member of the editorial/advisory board of the international iguana society, the iucn species survival commission iguana specialist group, and the aza komodo dragon species survival plan management group grant panel. virtually all of his research has involved living animals, and he is a very active advocate for the ethical treatment of all animals used in research. he has been a strong proponent of collaboration between university-based biologists and their zoo-based counterparts, and several of his graduate students have conducted research in zoos. he served for many years on an advisory board for the knoxville zoological park and once provided a foster home for a young lion in his basement, which became an effective security device when the need arose. having broken the glass in a basement door, the would-be burglar apparently encountered the lion, which was no longer a small cub and had the run of the house. one has to guess what happened but, whatever ensued, the burglar left in an apparent rush. not only was nothing stolen, not even the camera equipment in plain view, but the hammer used to gain entry was left behind on the floor. gordon also fostered two orphaned bear cubs, which led to a long involvement with studies of black bear behavior, including bear-human interactions. in 1973, gordon attended a meeting of herpetologists in costa rica and, afterward, visited the stri facility on barro colorado island (bci) in panama. although he was there to study snakes, his attention was drawn to the large numbers of baby green iguanas (iguana iguana) that were basking and feeding in the shrubs around his cabin. at the time, stan rand was studying the nesting behavior of adult iguanas, but no one was studying the hatchlings. gordon soon returned to bci and initiated what was to be a long series of studies on the nesting behavior of female iguanas, the emergence and dispersal of hatchlings, and various aspects of adult behavior. he was joined in these studies by an army of undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral students from the united states and latin america. many of these studies were carried out on slothia, a small (0.3 ha) islet in gatun lake near bci. aside from its proximity to the stri facility on bci, slothia was ideal for these studies because, working from a blind, the iguanas could easily be observed. stan rand had found that over 100 female iguanas migrated to slothia yearly to nest communally in a small (8 x 6 m) clearing. in this crowded environment, each female aggressively defended her nest against others who were intent on appropriating a partially completed nest or who might, in the process of digging their own nests, uncover and scatter her eggs. they all shared space with american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus). this was an uncomfortable arrangement, at least for the iguanas and the biologists: the crocodiles occasionally ate an iguana and gordon has very dramatic film footage, taken in the course of observing iguanas, of a huge crocodile quite unexa blind used by gordon burghardt and his students to study the nesting behavior of green iguanas on slothia, an islet adjacent to barro colorado island, panama. photograph by gordon burghardt. gordon burghardt in full field mode demonstrating the proper use of a “stump-ripper” to students prior to a safari around his cabin in the wilds of eastern tennessee. photograph by paul t. andreadis. pectedly launching itself out of the water and coming to rest directly in front of the blind. among the results of that research, we now know that hatchling iguanas, like hatchling green sea turtles (chelonia mydas), emerge synchronously from the nest chamber. they remain on slothia for a few days before rapidly dispersing in groups by swimming to the adjacent mainland. for up to a year following emergence from the nest, most baby iguanas remain in groups, and gordon and rand have shown that, on bci, the growth rates of iguanas in these groups is higher than those that adopt a solitary existence. a partial, but substantial, list of publications on iguanas by gordon and his collaborators can be found in his chapter in iguanas: biology and conservation. all the while gordon was conducting research on iguanas, he also was building on his earlier studies of snake behavior and ecology. the chemical senses, especially those associated with the vomeronasal or jacobson’s organ (vomerolfaction), are very important to snakes and are especially critical in, among other things, prey identification. in his early research, gordon established what have become the standard methods for studying the chemical cues that elicit predatory responses in snakes. he has been especially interested in whether the attraction to a particular type of prey (or, more accurately, prey chemical) is inherited, implying an evolutionary basis, modifiable by experience, and whether preferences change ontogenetically, that is, as a snake ages. these interests also have led him to study geographic variation in prey preferences within a single species and among closely related species. much of this work has involved north american garter snakes (thamnophis spp.) and water snakes (nerodia spp.), and his lab is typically full of converted plastic shoe boxes, each housing an individual new-born snake. recently, he has been involved in an effort to save an important piece of the habitat of butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri), which had been threatened by land development in milwaukee, wisconsin. a group of developers had asked the state to remove the snake from the state’s official list of endangered and threatened species. as of this writing, gordon’s efforts, and those of others of like mind, have won, at least temporarily. in january, a state legislative panel directed the wisconsin department of natural resources to formulate a plan for protecting the species from developers. gordon’s snake research has occupied most of his time lately, but he has broadened the scope of his studies to include consideration of the enrichment and psychological well-being of reptiles, the behavior of monitor lizards (varanus spp.), and play behavior, cognition, and visual perception in reptiles and fish. his book on animal play will soon be published. in a rather radical departure from his research on reptiles, he soon will leave tennessee temporarily to study amphibians at the national amphibian conservation center at the detroit zoo. iguanas, however, are never far from his mind, and he continues to be a valuable source of information, advice, and assistance to anyone studying these lizards. one gets the impression that it wouldn’t take much to lure him back into the fold on a more active basis. if you would like to learn more about gordon’s activities, you can visit his web site: http://web.utk.edu/~gburghar. 54 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 echternacht hatchling green iguanas emerging synchronously from their nest chamber on slothia. photograph by gordon burghardt. stan rand (left) and gordon burghardt relaxing aboard a research vessel on the return trip from the archipélago de las perlas in the bahía de panamá, where they had been studying the nesting behavior of green iguanas. photograph courtesy of gordon h. rodda, photographer unknown. what goes around comes around when allison alberts, who was featured in the profile in iguana 10(4), decided to change her major from english to biology, the decision was based, at least in part, on her experiences during the herpetology unit of a two-semester course on the “natural history of vertebrates.” that unit was taught by harry greene, who had been one of gordon burghardt’s students at the university of tennessee. yet another of gordon’s students, paul j. weldon, had earned his doctorate working on snake behavior. later, when paul was on the faculty at texas a&m university, one of his post-doctoral students was none other than allison alberts. iguana 11.3 b&w text the knight anole, anolis equestris, is a most fascinating lizard. endemic to cuba, where it is widely distributed, the species has been in florida for half a century. there, it has become an ubiquitous member of southern florida’s exotic herpetofaunal community. ecologically, this species stands out as a very unanole-like anole. it is very large, the largest species in the genus, reaching nearly 60 cm in total length. it is omnivorous. it sits and waits for prey or actively forages for invertebrates, small vertebrates, and the tender foliage and fruits of various plants. the texture of its skin is far more similar to a chameleon-like suede than the typical dry and sandy feel of most other anoles. likewise, its eyes, casqued head, and careful movements are more like those of the true chameleons (chameleo spp.) or its ancient cuban relatives (anoles formerly placed in the genus chameleolis) than those of the more evolutionarily derived anoles with which it shares its home in southern florida. these lizards’ odd outlines, exacerbated by the prominent head casques, the broken and variable color patterns dominated by greens of various hues, and their often deliberate style of movement causes them to be easily overlooked by friends and foes alike. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e species profile: the knight anole, anolis equestris, in southern florida walter e. meshaka, jr. state museum of pennsylvania, section of zoology and botany, harrisburg, pa 17120-0024 a rather odd profile, exacerbated by a prominent head casque, plus the broken and variable color patterns dominated by greens of various hues render these lizards very cryptic despite their large size. photograph by joe burgess. 162 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 species profile iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 163species profile because of its role as a large, successful predator and the fact that it utilizes arboreal habitats that overlap with those used by the anoles it often eats, knight anoles are likely to be a major force in shaping the anoline assemblage of southern florida, much of which consists of introduced species, mostly from caribbean islands. orlando garrido, an eminent cuban herpetologist, once predicted, for example, that cuban green anoles (anolis porcatus) would never successfully colonize southern florida, mainly because knight anoles, which routinely eat their smaller relatives, were so abundant. that the cuban green anoles have apparently succeeded attests more to the abundance of cover in the dense groves of ornamental plants that characterize most urban and suburban communities in southern florida than to any deficiency of knight anoles as predators. from the standpoint of a colonizing species, much remains to be studied, but knight anoles appear to follow closely the pattern seen in florida’s green iguanas and they many other species of introduced amphibians and reptiles: they are abundant human commensals with enviable reproductive potential and which are eminently capable of taking full advantage of the artificially lush habitats of southern and especially coastal florida. references meshaka, jr., w.e. 1999. research and thoughts on the knight anole, anolis equestris, in southern florida. the anolis newsletter (4):86–88. meshaka, jr., w.e., b.p. butterfield, and j.b. hauge. 2004. exotic amphibians and reptiles of florida. krieger publ. co., malabar, fl. meshaka, jr., w.e. and k.g. rice. 2004. the knight anole (anolis equestris): ecology of a successful colonizing species in extreme southern mainland florida. in: w.e. meshaka, jr. and k.j. babbitt (eds.), status and conservation of florida amphibians and reptiles. krieger publ, co., malabar, fl. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. univ. florida press, gainesville. these lizards are striking and cryptic at the same time. photograph by walter e. meshaka, jr. these large anoles are most frequently seen when they bask on trunks of trees. photograph by joe burgess. iguana 11.3 b&w text 172 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 lemm in order to reduce the risk of injury to both animal and keeper, proper restraint techniques are necessary whenever iguanas are handled. handling and restraint impose a tremendous amount of stress on an animal, and iguanas should be handled only when necessary (vet checks, weighing and measuring, etc.). in addition, keepers should do everything possible to reduce stress on cagemates that are not being captured. for instance, iguanas hiding in tubes or other hide areas should not be disturbed. instead, the whole hide area should be moved when in pursuit of the desired animal. these same methods should be used with everyday cage maintenance. captive animals may show signs of stress immediately following capture and these signs, which may last a few days, generally include appetite loss, constant hiding, and flight behavior. h u s b a n d r y iguana restraint and handling jeff lemm center for reproduction of endangered species (cres), zoological society of san diego photographs by the author unless otherwise indicated. juvenile iguanas, such as this anegada iguana (cylcura pinguis), can be held in similar fashion to hatchlings. older juveniles may need to be held with two hands. hatchling animals such as this rhinoceros iguana (cyclura cornuta) can be handled by gently grasping the entire body. in some cases, the head can be held with two fingers to avoid potential bites. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 173iguana restraint and handling because iguanas have both strong jaws and large, powerful claws, minor injuries to keepers are common. even juvenile iguanas can inflict nasty bite wounds that often require stitches, and a bite from an adult iguana can be serious. iguana scratches are common, especially from the long rear toes of an iguana’s back legs. in addition, hatchling and juvenile iguanas may have their tails broken due to improper handling techniques. perhaps the easiest, least-stressful way to capture an animal from an enclosure is with a net. large fishing nets, with the net replaced by a cloth bag, work well for this purpose. netting rips easily and iguanas have the ability to break through the net and escape or they may become wrapped in the netting itself. hand-grabbing or manually capturing iguanas works well with younger animals or larger, non-aggressive adults. keep in mind that when cornered, some iguanas may become very agitated and some species may rush or jump toward the keeper with mouth agape. hatchling iguanas and smaller species (brachylophus, dipsosaurus, oplurus, and sauromalus) should be restrained in the middle of the body with the head secure between the thumb and forefinger. often, some species (brachylophus and sometimes dipsosaurus) can be held on the palm of the hand, eliminating body or head restraint altogether. larger juvenile, subadult, and adult iguanas should be restrained with two hands. one hand should lightly, yet firmly grasp the animal behind the head, either in the neck or shoulder region to prevent the animal from turning and biting. the second hand should be placed over the pelvic region, keeping a firm grasp on the rear legs that are often brought forward to scratch the hand or arm that is restraining the head. the tail of the iguana is also a powerful weapon and can be restrained under the arm of the rear hand. in many cases, restraining the tail and one of the rear legs in a single grip is easier and more efficient. when possible, large iguanas should be restrained by two people with one person holding the head and a second indismaller iguanas, especially individuals that are accustomed to handling, such as fiji iguanas (brachylophus spp.) and desert iguanas (dipsosaurus spp.) often sit in the hands of keepers. animals that are more flighty can be grasped like juvenile cyclura. in this photograph, the author is holding a fijian banded iguana (brachylophus fasciatus) and a fijian crested iguana (b. vitiensis). photographs by mike swan. chuckwallas (sauromalus spp.) are best held with a firm grip around the body and may need to have the head restrained. pictured here is a san esteban island chuckwalla (sauromalus varius). tandora grant illustrates that large iguanas (in this case a lesser antillean iguana, iguana delicatissima) are best handled by grasping the head or neck with one hand and the tail and one rear leg with the other hand. 174 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 lemm “tame” iguanas can be supported on one arm, while the tail and rear end of the animal are gently grasped or supported with the other hand. if the animal becomes agitated or tries to flee, the supporting front hand can easily restrain the head or the animal can be set down. here allison alberts handles “gitmo,” a large cuban iguana (cyclura nubila nubila). large iguanas are best restrained by two people, with one person holding the head and a second person holding the tail and rear legs. this is an adult anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis). iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 175iguana restraint and handling vidual holding the hindquarters of the animal. during measurements of larger iguanas, some keepers and field researchers have found that blindfolds such as elastic knee bands placed over the entire head of the animal work well to calm the animal and keep it from attempting to bite. this technique also will help protect the person taking measurements, as many species of iguana will keep the mouth agape during restraint, and any hand movement near the mouth may result in a bite. in some cases, large, tame iguanas can be handled without restraint for purposes of education. the easiest way to handle these individuals is by resting them on the forearm with the hand gently supporting the chest of the animal. the handler’s second hand is used to support the rear of the body. if the animal should become agitated, the forward hand can easily be shifted to restrain the head of the animal while the handler’s other hand can restrain the tail and/or rear legs. so-called “tame” animals can quickly become nervous or irritated outside of their normal quarters, and handlers should always be aware of their surroundings, in case an animal needs to be restrained. reference lemm, j. in prep. husbandry manual for west indian iguanas. american zoo and aquarium association. tandora grant is holding “gitmo,” a large cuban iguana (cyclura nubila nubila) that resides at the san diego zoo. iguanas such as this lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) are easily captured without harm by using large, cloth nets. iguana 10.4 b&w text 158 iguana volume 10, number 4 l e t t e r f r o m t h e p r e s i d e n t i’ve had the pleasure of some enriching moments during my 25-year career in wildlife conservation, working with a variety of reptiles, as well as bald eagles (haliaeetus leucocephalus) and ospreys (pandion haliaetus). over the years, i have captured, marked, and released well over three thousand american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus). being able to release these endangered animals is extremely fulfilling, despite knowing that only 5–10% of them will survive the first year. of the crocodiles that do survive, some will undoubtedly expand their range and, in some cases, encroach on populated areas. the available natural habitat of the crocodile is shrinking daily. future interactions between humans and crocodiles are inevitable and educating people before such interactions take place is crucial. many of the same factors that cause eagles and ospreys and crocodiles to be endangered affect the various species of cyclura throughout their respective ranges. in february 2001, i traveled to jamaica with rick hudson of the fort worth zoo to assist in the release of 13 jamaican iguanas (cyclura collei). we accompanied byron wilson into the hellshire hills, the remaining natural range of the species. this particular event brought the number of head-started and released animals to 39. while the news may be encouraging for the jamaican iguana, the obstacles they face have not really changed: shrinking habitat, feral predators, and limited resources. much work is still necessary to assist the iguanas and increase their population in the hellshire hills. that story, however, brings me to another “happy ending” — the historic release of 24 head-started stout iguanas (cyclura pinguis). in october 2003, i accompanied rick hudson, jeff lemm of the san diego zoo, and kelly bradley of the dallas zoo to the island of anegada in the british virgin islands. the 24 oldest iguanas from the head-start program were selected, health screened, processed, and readied for release. even with 24 new adult and sub-adult iguanas in the population, the threats, like those in jamaica, remain the same. this time, however, the people of anegada are making plans to eliminate the feral cat problem, and actually want to focus on preserving some of the core habitat. time will tell if these measures will bring about positive results. the emotions that come into play while releasing endangered animals are difficult to describe. i try to include people from all walks of life to assist in the releases and share in the experience. you actually have a sense of giving back and getting closer to nature. in some small way, you are helping to preserve a species for posterity. for just a few moments, you watch in amazement and forget all the obstacles these animals will face. the iguanas don’t just bolt away; they walk a bit, taste the ground, look up at you, maybe give a head bob or two. they seem at home and take their time walking away. even though we are now returning some of these animals to the wild, our work is not finished — instead, it has only just begun. all of the threats that brought these species to their current states still exist, and conservation organizations around the world must work together to preserve these animals for future generations. the international iguana society is working with many organizations to make this a better world. if you know people who should join the society and help in this worthwhile endeavor, sign them up!!! joe wasilewski joe wasilewski, iis president, participating in the release on middle cay. photograph by rick hudson. iguana 11.3 b&w text green iguanas wear many hats. these unassuming reptiles play roles as tourist attractions, pets, and endangered species. however, their role as the main course for dinner ironically is providing panama with a vehicle for the species’ conservation. iguanas have appeared on menus in central america for thousands of years, but the species’ existence only began to be threatened over the last century as a consequence of excessive hunting and destruction of its habitat to make room for cattle and other agricultural cogs in a cash economy. however, scarcity hasn’t quelled the panamanian’s traditional practice of entering the forest with a slingshot and leaving with a “free-range” iguana. with high protein and low fat content, iguanas, which are herbivores, have provided many a family with a fresh, healthy, natural meal. iguana eggs, a rich, creamy treat, allegedly cure various ailments, once one finds a way through the tough, leathery shells. balancing the conservation of a species, a regular supply of a customary meal, and income for farmers has never been a simple task. in the 1980s, biologist dagmar werner tackled the complex challenge by launching a project in panama to evaluate the viability of raising iguanas in captivity for food and profit. she both friend and food: the conservation of iguanas in panama’s market economy darrin duford new york, new york 164 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 duford � after hatching in a secure pen, baby green iguanas at the río cabuya iguana farming project are transferred to an elevated cage (shown here), where they will remain, safe from predators, until they reach six months of age. the fabrication of the cage has an intentionally improvised appearance to mimic the availability of whatever building supplies may be lying around any farm in panama. photograph by the author. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 165iguana conservation in panama soon moved her operation to nearby costa rica in order to take advantage of a more nurturing political and economic climate. despite initial successes, however, the costa rican project, including a restaurant serving iguana burgers to promote its cause, recently and unexpectedly closed its doors. today, panama is giving the idea a second chance. nestled in a park in the watershed of the panama canal, scientists at the 60-hectare rio cabuya agroforestry farm have been spearheading a program to teach campesinos how to raise their own iguanas as a sustainable food source. while profits are understandably on the minds of the participating farmers, the primary goal of the project, at least at first, is to keep the campesinos from hunting the threatened creature in the wild. while poaching wild iguanas is illegal in panama, little government-funded monitoring actually occurs — and conservationists in panama have frequently encountered impediments. this lack of oversight triggered a recent decision by the convention on international trade in endangered species (cites) that recommends sanctions on all of panama’s citeslisted exports of both flora and fauna, explicitly due to the government’s failure to adopt legislation protecting the country’s species in danger of extinction. even at the agroforestry site itself, setbacks occur. “poachers sometimes raid the park and steal a few of our iguanas,” explained ancon expedition’s rick morales, as we followed the life cycle of iguanas hatched and raised in the ground’s caged housing. the facilities appeared modest and improvised — intentionally — to mimic the availability of whatever building supplies may be lying around any farm in panama: scrap sheet metal, chicken wire, and spare lumber. the idea is simple. the project lends campesinos a pair of adult iguanas at no cost, and provides tutelage on housing, guarding, and feeding them. in protective captivity, around 95% of the 35 or so eggs per clutch will survive. this stands in stark contrast to the about 5% success rate in the wild, where eggs helplessly succumb to the hunger of ants, snakes, and other natural predators. at six months, adolescent iguanas, virtually predator-free, are either released into the campesinos’ trees for future easy-access meals, or they are kept in a larger shelter. after 18 months, the campesinos can swap their breeding iguanas for another pair. to uphold their end of the deal, the campesinos must return twenty percent of the iguanas to the wild. they can sell or eat the rest. the mathematics, in principle, tell us that the forest gains more of a threatened species, the campesinos gain the opportunity to legally eat a traditional meal without hunting in the wild; and only the snakes lose (but don’t worry; snakes still have plenty to eat). so, how successful has the project been? our search for answers led rick and me to the office of ancon biologist augusto gonzalez, who, for the past twelve years, has been managing the iguana-farming project. according to gonzalez, the accomplishments of the project varied with the diverse panamanian geography. “so far, in the canal watershed area, the participating farms have achieved little,” he conceded. whereas iguanas are threatened throughout panama, populations in various provinces have been unevenly affected, following uneven patterns of hunting and deforestation. in the watershed of the panama canal, the iguana population has suffered less than in other parts of the country, hence the watershed’s campesinos do not want to pay for feeding and raising something that they can readily — albeit illegally — catch for free in the wild. some iguana farms backfired. a few would-be iguana ranchers, in the course of protecting and raising the creatures, found the iguana’s curtain-like dewlaps and distinguished stares too endearing to eat them, even extending the attachment by giving the creatures names. those campesinos could not bear releasing the reptiles into a bordering tree, lest “paquito” end up on a skewer over a neighbor’s barbecue pit. the arboreal behavior of green iguanas has been both a blessing and a curse to the program. an iguana likes to stake out one tree and claim it as its home and territory, where it basks and feeds, so campesinos do not have to worry about their investment scampering off deep into the forest. also, although iguanas grow faster if released into trees, the practice leads to a few other problems. if the trees are too near crops — a typical scenario if the trees are used as buffers in between crops to prevent erosion — iguanas may not be able to resist feasting on the readily available buffet. worse yet, if the trees border a neighbor’s farm, the iguanas might just eat the neighbor’s profits. why not keep them in large pens? food, then, becomes an expense, as opposed to iguanas released into fruit trees, which require no feeding, since they take care of themselves by munching on treetop leaves, mangoes, and papayas at their leisure. the the author inspects a juvenile green iguana that, in two years’ time, will be lent, along with husbandry technology and an iguana of the opposite sex, to a panamanian farmer so the farmer can establish his own legal iguana ranch. the farmer must return twenty percent of the adolescent hatchlings to the wild, and can eat or sell the rest. photograph by rick morales. tree-dwelling iguanas still leave fruit for the campesino, although for heavy stocking of trees, some supplemental feeding is required. caged iguanas also take longer to reach “harvesting” weight — to five years for a five-pound iguana that is able to feed a family of four or five. many campesinos concerned with making ends meet week to week simply cannot wait that long to spoon up that iguana stew. the culinary climate is completely different in the central provinces of panama. since the campesinos of coclé and southern veraguas have virtually wiped iguanas out of the region, they were much more willing to participate in the project. gonzalez nodded with satisfaction as he informed me that 100 iguana farmers in the central provinces have been enjoying the project for years. well-run iguana farms can yield 300 kg of meat per year per hectare — that’s five to ten times as productive as raising cattle on the same land — with the added benefit that, with a “herd” of iguanas, the erosion-fighting trees remain standing. some farmers utilize a mixed system, in which they still raise other livestock and grow other crops while keeping iguanas in a caged shelter, providing a diverse yield. other farmers have even profitably sold some iguana meat to their neighbors (presently, technological and political barriers preclude the realization of large profits from iguana farming, preventing the practice from becoming more popular). still others enjoy raising them for fun. the species itself has shared in the program’s rewards as well; thus far, over 10,000 iguanas have been returned to the wilds of panama. as an added benefit, iguanas also can provide a reason to keep trees on one’s property and help preserve the remaining tropical forests. in 1850, 92% of panama was covered by forest. by 1986, the percentage had been reduced to 37%, almost entirely due to the voracious needs of short-term profit farming. when farmers clear a plot of tropical land using the slash and burn technique — still a common sight (and smell) in many parts of panama — the poor tropical soil provides a bountiful crop for one or two years, owing to the nutrients in the burned material. soon after, however, the plot becomes a desiccated wasteland that often requires twenty years before it is reclaimed by forest. long before then, the farmer has moved on to another plot. if large swatches of land were cleared using this technique, the area may risk becoming a desert. since the forest is not only the habitat of the iguana, but thousands of other plants and animals, the action of preserving tropical forest, in effect, preserves the entire ecosystem. of course, believing that the green iguana can provide the lizardly linchpin capable of holding together the western hemisphere’s tropical ecosystems would be naïve. after all, humans must make the choice to balance their needs and those of the environment. however, thanks to the green iguana, conservation has never been so delectable. references berrocal, r.e. 2004. prohíben comercio de animales con panamá. la prensa, 18 may 2004 (http://mensual.prensa.com/mensual/contenido/2004/05/18/ hoy/portada/1689408.html). cobb, c.e. 1986. panama: ever at the crossroads. national geographic 169(4): 467–493. convention on international trade in endangered species. 2004. djibouti, equatorial guinea, guinea-bissau, liberia, mozambique, panama, rwanda and sierra leone — recommendation to suspend trade. cites notification no. 2004/024 of 30 april 2004. (http://www.cites.org/ eng/notifs/2004/024.pdf). downer, s. 1996. iguana: survival of the tastiest. iguana times 5: 16–18 (reprinted from costa rica today, 21 october 1993). eilers, k., w. koops, h. udo, h. van keulen, and j. noordhuizen. 2002. analysis of iguana iguana farming systems in nicaragua, costa rica, and panama. interciencia 27: 599–606. national research council. 1991. green iguana, pp. 347–353. in: microlivestock: little-known small animals with a promising economic future. national academy press, washington, d.c. rand, a.s., b.a. dugan, h. monteza, and d. vianda. 1990. the diet of a generalized folivore: iguana iguana in panama. journal of herpetology 24: 211–214. the following webpage also may be helpful: melissa kaplan’s green iguana care collection (http://www.anapsid.org/iguana/ index.html). diner or dinner? a curious green iguana looks up from foraging in a panamanian forest. due to overhunting and the ongoing destruction of habitat from extensive farming, green iguanas are a protected species in panama. photograph courtesy of ancon. 166 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 duford disappearing treasures: national association for the conservation of nature (ancon) biologist augusto gonzalez (right) examines adult iguanas captured from their panamanian habitat. gonzalez manages a project encouraging farmers who eat green iguanas to raise the iguanas in captivity and semi-captivity instead of hunting them in the wild, as the creature’s numbers in the wild are decreasing. photograph courtesy of ancon. iguana_11.1_bw_text iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 61book reviews book should attract the broadest readership because all of the topics included are applicable to reptiles and animals other than iguanid lizards. the book is well-produced, with a solid binding, tight editing, and a general absence of typographical errors. the tables and graphical illustrations are uniformly unambiguous and informative, and the black and white photographs are clearly reproduced. a small complaint: reproducing some of the latter in color would have been nice. although the volume had its origins in a symposium held over six years prior to publication, the chapters are remarkably up-to-date, and this distinguishes it from many other symposium volumes that have seen long delays between the oral presentations and publication. of the 906 references in the literature cited, 218 (24%) were published in 1998 or later, the most recent in 2003. in fact, for students of iguanid biology, the literature cited section will be a treasure. i have only one major complaint about the book: the title, iguanas: biology and conservation, is misleading. the bulk of the book (and the entire section on conservation) concerns west indian iguanas, primarily a few species of cyclura. fijian iguanas are barely mentioned, only one (of five) species of chuckwallas is discussed in detail, and none of the 17 species of spiny-tailed iguanas are addressed beyond their inclusion in the checklist. this may reflect the origins of the book in a symposium held in 1997, when mexican biologists were just beginning to study various aspects of the biology of spiny-tailed iguanas, or it may reflect the interests of the editors, all of whom have emphasized west indian rock iguanas in their own research, or both. regardless, the book would have benefited from contributions on, at least, the conservation status of a broader range of iguanid genera and species. as it stands, subtitling the book “biology and conservation with emphasis on the west indies and the galápagos” might have been appropriate. in this one respect, the new book does not match its predecessor. like the burghardt and rand volume, this book is intended primarily for the professional biologist who studies lizards, but it will be of interest to others as well. private breeders of iguanas will find much useful information in the chapters on ecology and behavior. conservation biologists and, indeed, anyone with an interest in these fascinating lizards will find the chapters on conservation interesting and informative. hopefully, in a decade or so, a third volume in this budding series will more fully acknowledge the diversity within the family iguanidae. arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee johnston, tony. 1995. the iguana brothers: a tale of two lizards. illustrated by mark teague. blue sky press, new york, new york. 30 pp. cloth, $15.95. laden, nina. 1995. private i. guana: the case of the missing chameleon. illustrated by the author. chronicle books, san francisco, california. 26 pp. softcover, $5.95. krailing, tessa. 1998. the pet sitter’s club 8: where’s iggy. illustrated by jan lewis. barron’s educational series, inc., hauppauge, new york. 94 pp. softcover, $3.95. snicket, lemony. 1999. a series of unfortunate events, book 2: the reptile room. illustrated by brett helquist. harpercollins publishers inc., new york, new york. 191 pp. cloth, $10.99. wiebe, trina. 2000. abby and tess pet sitters: lizards don’t wear lip gloss. illustrated by marisol sarrazin. lobster press, montreal, quebec. 91 pp. softcover, $5.95. as both a student and a fan of children’s literature, i have long been fascinated by its ability to shape the imagination of readers young and old. i recently had the opportunity to spend some time in the children’s book section of a well-stocked bookstore, where i came across a number of reptile-related works of fiction, which provide some very different representations of their animal subjects. two of these books were quite similar, featuring groups of children who are “pet-sitting” reptiles that escape from their enclosures. in where’s iggy?, published in the uk, the iguana named in the title seems well cared for, housed in a large terrarium in a greenhouse and outfitted with a heat lamp, a climbing branch, and a water tray. however, the owner of the lizard instructs the children that iggy “doesn’t eat a lot, mainly cabbage leaves and bananas … and crickets.” so, where’s iggy? his locaiguanas in wonderland: the depiction of reptiles in children’s literature � tion seems irrelevant, since the thyroid problems, calcium-phosphorus imbalance, and liver and kidney diseases caused by his poor diet and lack of uv light are sure to lead to an early demise. the reptile featured in lizards don’t wear lip gloss, a canadian publication, is a green anole, whose husbandry is much more appropriate. angus, the anole, lives in a wellappointed vivarium, with a heat lamp and a fluorescent uv tube, and the children are clearly informed that “angus needs the vitamins the uv rays provide.” the statement, “all lizards eat a diet that consists mainly of live insects,” neglects herbivores, but at least the setup and diet described for angus’s crickets is suitable. the plots of these books center on lizards escaping from their enclosures while the children struggle with crickets. in both cases, subsequent to the involvement of assorted rescue professionals, the animals are found perched on objects close to their habitats. given the frequency with which pet owners need to be retrained in proper reptile care, i was disappointed at the incorrect and incomplete animal care information provided in these realistic stories. another pair of books features iguanas as primary characters. private i. guana: the case of the missing chameleon, is a tongue-in-cheek tale of a hard-boiled detective hired by lizzy, a chameleon, to find her missing husband, leon. after searching “over fields, under rocks and up trees,” mr. guana ends up at the lizard lounge, “a slimy place where only the most coldblooded reptiles hang out.” as it turns out, leon has been working in drag at the lizard lounge, singing as “camille” with the “gila girls,” because he needed to express his “wild side.” the illustrations by the author are hilarious and worth the price of the book. my personal favorite is of i. guana at the lizard lounge with sally(mander) the waitress, who, naturally, is asked, “what’s a nice amphibian like you doing in a place like this?” the iguana brothers: a tale of two lizards features brothers dom and tom as they contemplate the philosophy of life. dom is convinced by tom to give up eating bugs because they will make him thin and pale and cause his tail to drop off. they further reject pigs and snakes and finally settle on a diet of flowers. dom and tom convince themselves that they are as mighty as dinosaurs, but end up rejecting rule of the stars for their own earthly kingdom and each other’s friendship. a simple but positive story line, brought to life by mark teague’s delightful illustrations, i was pleased to learn that the iguana brother’s tale is to be made into an animated film. although no iguanas appear in the story, my favorite among the books in this review is a series of unfortunate events, book 2: the reptile room, in which a very endearing herpetologist is a major character. the ten books that have so far been published in the series involve three orphan children, who are sent to live with assorted guardians in increasingly more appalling situations while they try to solve the mystery surrounding their parents’ untimely deaths. the redundantly named dr. montgomery montgomery is a famous herpetologist, who loves to make coconut cream cake. the reptile room itself contains a fantastic collection of animals, including the alaskan cow lizard, a long green creature that produces delicious milk, the dissonant toad, the irascible python, and the virginian wolfsnake, which must “never under any circumstances [be allowed] near a typewriter.” despite his warning to the children that “no harm will come to them” in the reptile room, “if [they] take the time to learn the facts,” the unfortunate scientist is murdered by arch-villain, count olaf, who injects him with venom from the mamba du mal. 62 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 book reviews iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 63book reviews the series is quite clever and features humorous wordplay and some very adult literary references as well as an intriguing mystery. the latter actually involves the true identity of the author, lemony snicket, and his relationship to the children in the novels. starting with “the reptile room,” i found myself charmed by the characters and their misfortunes, and proceeded through the other nine volumes in the series, all of which are appealingly illustrated by brett helquist. the mystery of what became of uncle monty’s reptile collection has yet to be solved, and i eagerly await the next installment. like any of the best children’s literature, i can certainly recommend this series to readers of any age. private i. guana orders a plate of fried grasshoppers at the lizard lounge, however, he wears a trench coat and two-toned patent leather shoes, and is clearly not a real iguana. i feel much more inclined to forgive ms. laden for her portrayal than i do ms. krailing, whose “iggy” is depicted as a real pet. sadly, supposedly legitimate iguana care manuals are still advocating dog food and monkey chow for pet iguanas, but no legitimate excuse exists for perpetuating harmful information. bugs, as dom tells tom, will indeed leave an iguana “thin and pale.” my highest recommendation goes to the mysterious mr. snicket. although snicket’s reptiles are fairly preposterous, his herpetologist character embodies noble virtues: a good education, good manners, humor, and fondness and respect for animals. aj gutman iguana_11.1_bw_text iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 55the iguana characteristics of the genus iguana laur. [translator’s note: “laur.” refers to josephus nicolaus laurenti, who first formally described the common or green iguana] include the elongate, laterally compressed body, a large, quadrangular head, a short neck, powerful limbs, exceedingly elongate toes, and an extremely long tail with keeled scales throughout, a distinct dewlap with an anterior border of spike-like scales, a middorsal row of enlarged spines that extend from the nape to the tip of the tail, multi-sided head scales of various sizes with alternately arched, tuberculate, or keeled surfaces, smooth or slightly keeled ventral scales, triple-keeled scales on the undersides of toes, distinct femoral pores, a large, round tympanum, wide nares, and dentition with the anterior-most teeth peg-like, sharp, and with a slight inward tilt, and others three-edged and, distinct from most related genera, serrated along the edge. in addition to the jaws, the sphenoid and pterygoid bones also bear a double row of small teeth, the numbers of which, like those on the jaws, vary by age. the iguana, iguana tuberculata laur. [an alternative name for iguana iguana that was widely used well into the 20th century], reaches 1.4–1.6 m in length, of which 1 m or more consists of tail. ground color is an attractive leaf green. very young individuals lack markings, but the rump and tail of larger animals bear distinct dark, often light-outlined crossbands. the underside is white or yellowish. all iguanas are found in tropical south america, the nations surrounding the gulf of mexico, and several of the lesser antilles. all live in trees, particularly those along the banks of streams or lakes. there they move about with considh i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s iguana, iguana tuberculata laur. 1/7 natural size. photograph from the zoological garden in frankfurt a/main by a. fahr-darmstadt. the iguana1 franz werner 1 excerpted and translated from franz werner (1913. die lurche und kriechtiere von alfred brehm. zweiter band: kriechtiere (schuppenkriechtiere), pp. 92–98 + table “lizards iv,” no. 3. in: o. z. strassen (ed.), brehms tierleben. allgemeine kunde des tierreichs. 4th ed. bibliographisches institut, leipzig and wien. translated by r. powell. erable dexterity, climbing or jumping from limb to limb. they also are quite adept at retreating into the foliage, rendering themselves invisible to the untrained eye. toward evening, they frequently descend to the ground in order to forage — but, if threatened, they rapidly seek the highest branches whenever possible, or, as we already know, the depths of any nearby water. in the latter, they are as much at home as monitors [these are generally large lizards in the family varanidae; all are found in the eastern hemisphere; some are quite aquatic in their habits]. the powerful tail is used as a combination oar and rudder and is capable of propelling them with surprising speed. they swim, as do all lizards, with all four limbs securely adpressed along their bodies, relying exclusively on their tails for propulsion and steering. in such a fashion, they are fully masters of the water. in addition, they are equally as adept at diving as at swimming, and are capable of spending considerable periods of time submerged in the depths. they do not tire while under water and, as a consequence of their skill, effectively evade any dangerous enemies unable to follow them into what is essentially a foreign element. they seem not the least concerned about crocodiles or caimans, many of which are found in the waters into which these lizards unhesitatingly venture. duméril [andré-marie-constant duméril, the foremost taxonomic herpetologist of his era] noted that he found only plant materials in all of the iguana stomachs he had examined, and others have agreed. sumichrast [a naturalist] indicated that soft berries had been consumed in such quantities by the specimens that he had dissected that their intestines were extraordinarily distended. tyler [another naturalist] indicated that, among the half-digested leaves he had found in the digestive tracts of iguanas, were innumerable quantities of small worms that, he assumed, had been on the leaves consumed by the lizards and inadvertently swallowed. the main dietary component surely consists of plant materials such as fruits and leaves, but we also know beyond any doubt that younger animals gladly take insects and, as testified by tyler, earthworms and snails. typically, adults flee at the first sight of humans, mainly because they have learned to view them as their most dangerous enemy. in contrast, young animals sit quietly and are consequently easy to catch. however, if iguanas are forced into a corner, they defend themselves valiantly, initially inflating their bodies, extending their dewlaps, and hissing, then jumping at their opponent while attempting to bite. once their jaws have a firm grip, they are quite unwilling to let go. because the overlapping molars are very sharp, they leave a bite that bleeds freely, much like a wound caused by a knife. at the same time, the tail is used to inflict powerful, painful, and even dangerous blows. during the breeding season, iguanas are said to be even more excitable and considerably more aggressive than usual, never leaving a chosen female while furiously attacking any animal that ventures too near. even battles among males for possession of females are grim and frenzied. well after the breeding season, females appear in the vicinity of sandbanks, in which they intend to lay their eggs. during this period, one can most readily see these animals, which typically spend the rest of their lives making every effort to remain invisible. on st. lucia, egg deposition occurs during the months of february, march, and april. the eggs are about the size of those laid by pigeons, white or light straw-yellow in color, and have soft shells, the latter reminiscent of fine glove leather. like those of most reptiles, the eggs are composed almost entirely of yolk. the females lay the eggs in holes dug in the sand, which they then carefully cover. beyond that, they show no concern for the brood. however, göldi [emílio august goeldi, a swiss-born brazilian naturalist for whom the famous goeldi museum in pará at the mouth of the amazon river was named] noted that a captive female attacked him vigorously as he attempted to examine her recently deposited eggs. reports indicate that older females lay considerably more eggs than younger individuals. a female held in captivity by göldi, for example, laid five eggs on one day and 32 more five days later. in a series of dissected specimens, 8, 14, and 17 eggs were found in increasingly larger females. eggs were arranged in distinct rows on each side of the body cavity and were all about equal in size. sumichrast noted that, in his experience, several females commonly laid eggs in a communal nest, so that one could on occasion find as many as ten dozen eggs in a single cavity. many eggs are destroyed not only by ants but also by small mammals, especially the so-called muskrat found on st. lucia [not the better known muskrat of north america]. consequently, female iguanas may purposely seek out the seacoast, the sand of which is considerably less accessible to its enemies than the banks of rivers. hatchlings appear to stay together for extended periods, as a[lexander]. v[on]. humboldt [another famous german naturalist whose explorations of south america thrilled europe and inspired darwin] mentioned that his guide showed him a nest filled with 10 cmlong iguanas. “these animals were hardly distinguishable from a common lizard; the prominent dorsal crest scales, the large, erectile scales, and all of the dangling appendages that provide the iguana, when he is 1–1.5 m long, with such a fierce countenance, were barely present in these beginners.” in the west indies, the idea that iguana meat is unhealthy is prevalent throughout the region. nevertheless, no one pays much attention to that opinion, searching instead, almost with the same zeal as the members of schomburg’s party [reference unknown], for such tasty table fare. catesby [mark catesby, an english naturalist] said that iguanas were common and profitable trade goods, caught by hand and passed along, until, in the end, they were bought as delicacies by rich mainlanders. the meat is considered to be easily digestible, nourishing, and tasty; it is fried or, more frequently, stewed. the eggs, which do not harden with cooking, are almost devoid of eggwhite; they are typically used in the preparation of broth. talented collectors specialize in the search for this rather wonderful fare and use several different methods to capture animals. one of schomburg’s reports describes a rather unusual technique that some have disputed but several other writers have mentioned. because the lizards are reputed to be quite curious, they extend their heads when approached, allow themselves to be stroked with a belt until it is tightened sufficiently to allow the animal to be effectively noosed. once firmly in place, the tether is used to forcefully tear them from their arboreal perches. the iguanas obviously fight like crazy to free themselves, opening their powerful jaws, snarling and hissing — but, of course, are easily overwhelmed. the snout is secured with a loop of string and the body and limbs are tightly strapped. in this helpless position, the 56 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 werner iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 57the iguana iguanas are then taken to the market. i am loath to decide just how much if any of this tale is true. i do consider it possible that these curious creatures allow the collector to approach closely, at least in areas where they are seldom hunted. more commonly, trained dogs are used, particularly since, without their help, finding the lizards, artfully hidden amongst the foliage, is almost impossible. liebmann [yet another naturalist] reported that, along the west coast of central america, lizards are ambushed and cornered by dogs when they descend from their trees in the evening, tyler expanded on this by noting that dogs were trained specifically for this task. experienced dogs probably use their sense of smell to locate iguanas and then bark to draw the hunters to the tree in which the lizard is roosting or, if encountered on the ground, hold it until their masters arrive. some dogs undoubtedly do not hesitate to grab the iguana by its back and shake it until it dies. for all that, a few dogs, those that have learned from experience and those that aren’t particularly bright, fear the tail and teeth of a frenzied and frightened iguana. if the lizard does manage to flee, it almost invariably turns first to a tree; if, however, unable to find one quickly, it will just as readily seek shelter in a cave or crevice — in either case, it is probably lost. an iguana, seemingly secure in the foliage, is relatively easily shaken from a perch or the branch on which it rests can be cut. if in a cave, an iguana will often think itself secure if only its head is hidden. once successfully in hand, in order to prevent being bitten, the hunter will run a tough stalk through the skin under the chin and out a nostril; tying the ends to render the mouth secure. then, using the long tendons of the middle toes, the limbs are secured behind the back. thus trussed, the tortured captive is taken to market the next morning. because mexicans are very familiar with the tenacity of iguanas, that often escape even after being shot in the body, such securely tied individuals may be held for months until eventually sold. this often occurs prior to festivals, during which iguanas are particularly prized when baked in corn tortillas and eaten as delicacies. they also may serve as special gifts. occasionally, one might find among the entrails what appears to be half an egg. in earlier times, these were considered to be powerful drugs with great healing properties, and may, from place to place, still be viewed as such today. initially, captive iguanas are wild and may be particularly vicious, biting their masters and threatening any animal that ventures too near. they may even kill weaker pets that enter their domains, including fellow captives. over time, their frenzies calm and, in the course of several weeks, they become so tame that anyone can touch them. emílio goeldi on iguanas of recent observers, goeldi in particular has contributed greatly to expanding the horizons of our knowledge about the lifestyles of iguanas. “the iguana, commonly called ‘camelaão’ by brasilians, is encountered with increasing frequency as one progresses from bahia to the north. sightings in the vicinity of the amazon river and along the coast of guahana are daily occuriguana, iguana tuberculata laur. 1/6 natural size. rences, with an understanding that, within such larger regions, specific sites with proper topographical and vegetative features will be preferentially occupied. conversely, iguanas avoid localities that fail to provide the resources necessary for survival. this is particularly evident, for example, here in pará [the brasilian state at the mouth of the amazon]. single iguanas are encountered only from time to time in the vicinity of the city and on adjacent islands. in contrast, during a short rowboat ride along marajó island, especially its southeastern part, one can see hundreds of individuals. i’ve also found them to be astonishingly common at cape maguarí and along the atlantic coast. such numbers of iguanas inhabit several smaller islands, located from the immediate vicinity of cape maguarí to several hours away, that they are rightly considered to be their most abundant inhabitants and, further, over time they have proven themselves capable of dramatically altering the vegetation. i am quite familiar with two of these little islands, ‘ilha camaleão’ and ‘ilha machados,’ the latter of which i visited in early september 1896. our gracious host, the owner of the island (and, coincidentally, the discoverer of lepidosiren paradoxa on marajó), blamed the untold numbers of iguanas living on the island for the extirpation of the native mangrove forest. “the iguana is a vegetarian of the purest sort, a fact that, to my surprise, i fail to see reflected in the herpetological literature. just in the immediate vicinity, iguanas make a major impression on the constitution of the plant communities; for example, on (1) mangrove trees (avicennia), (2) thorny aturia bushes (drepanocarpus), and (3) quick-growing anhinga stands (montrichardia). these three plants obviously serve as the main foods for iguanas. “during most of each year, the iguanas, as is characteristic of the species, live a happy and worry-free life in this hot, moist climate — as long as something to eat is available. a paucity of food is not likely in most cases, unless one is dealing with an isolated island, such as the examples cited earlier, combined with an overpopulation of lizards. in such cases, largely as a consequence of their own actions, iguanas may experience hard times during the dry seasons in these deserts of their own design. animals may be severely emaciated and so feeble that they are hardly able to move. such instances arouse our pity, particularly in contrast with their brethren who thrive along riverbanks where an abundance of fare prevails. “if one glides slowly and quietly along in a rowboat, one can see iguanas left and right, so to speak, at every step. some are perched on the highest branches of the airy mangroves, whereas others rest among the colorful garlands of the arribidaea bushes. the inexperienced novice first notices the older, larger individuals whose boldly patterned bodies are quite evident. in contrast, a more practiced eye is necessary to see juveniles or lizards that have recently shed. while basking motionless on their perches in the hot sun, their beautiful green dresses blend seamlessly with the juicy leaves of the vines that often garnish the tops of the anhinga bushes. as a rule, they hold their positions until one approaches all too near — but once the decision is made to flee, one is astounded by their unexpected adroitness. iguanas are masterful swimmers and divers, and an individual that falls in the water must be considered lost unless bearing deadly wounds. killing an iguana is not easy. they are unbelievably tough, and only a shot through the head or vertebral column will guarantee a catch. “by the end of august, one begins to find gravid females about ready to lay their eggs. yellow ovarian follicles collectively resemble a voluminous cluster of grapes that take up considerable space in the body cavity. my impression, for example, near cape maguarí, is that females are definitely in the minority. at least, we found on the average of up to four or five males for every female. this comment should be accepted with reservations, however, because i cannot be sure how much of a role chance has played in these encounters, or if humans have not affected the gender ratios. i had the opportunity to convince myself that the latter possibility could occur, mainly by local inhabitants focusing their efforts on catching females. if one slits the belly of a gravid female, the egg mass is immediately evident and often ‘boils’ out of the wound. a tightly patterned shotgun wound has a similar effect. the locals eagerly and greedily collect the egg masses, which are considered with some justification to be special delicacies. the french traveler, thébaur, during his upcountry tour, made similar observations — and little has changed today in southern guahana or on marajó. “from september on, the females begin to leave the banks of the large rivers, following the feeder creeks in order to penetrate farther into the lowlands. there they seek sandy places and old dunes where they will hide their eggs in self-constructed burrows, over which they are quite adept at smoothing the surface sands and rendering the nest nearly invisible. a good eye and considerable experience are necessary to find such places, and the locals have developed astounding skills along these lines. once the females have completed their business, they return to the banks of the rivers. “the brood consists of 1–1 1/2, at most two dozen eggs, figures that correspond with the numbers of follicles found in the ovaries of females collected in august. i shall use as representative examples, typical in size and shape, two well-developed eggs acquired from the atlantic coast of marajó on 22 september 1886: 1. length 43 mm, breadth 26 1/2 mm, 2. length 43 mm, breadth 26 mm. in form they are broadly elliptical; the white shell is soft, and gives way to the slightest touch. nevertheless, it is tough, and penetration with a single cut is possible only with a carefully sharpened knife. “iguana eggs are, as mentioned previously, delicacies. the extensive, granular yolk is tasty. it never hardens completely when boiled and can be spread like butter. like those of the amazon river turtle (podocnemis expansa), they are somewhat hard to digest. iguana meat also is quite tasty, and it reminds me of that of the local armadillos. it serves as a nice change of pace for river dwellers, and our museum personnel invariably voice their approval if iguana, boiled or grilled, is served. here in pará, one sees iguana meat offered for sale by the kilogram in the market or along the streets. “i don’t want to avoid reporting that finding food in our gardens for our wild-caught captive iguanas was, at first, a difficult task, primarily due to the fact that the above-mentioned plants have been displaced by civilizations throughout most of the city and its immediate environs. after considerable searching and experimentation, we were thrilled to find an excellent surrogate in a weed, locally known as ‘malvarisco,’ which thrives 58 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 werner iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 59biographical sketch emílio goeldi was a swiss-born brasilian naturalist. he studied at the university of naples before earning his doctorate in 1883 at the university of jena, where he studied under the famous evolutionary biologist, ernst haeckel. goeldi emigrated to brasil in 1884 to become assistant head of zoology at the museu nacional in rio de janeiro. he lost that position as a consequence of political changes, but, in 1894, accepted an invitation by the governor of pará, the large northern state at the mouth of the amazon river, to become director of the museu paraense. goeldi served in that capacity until 1904, when he resigned for reasons of health and returned to switzerland. the museum was subsequently renamed the museu paraense emílio goeldi in his honor. in 1908, he became professor of zoology at the university of bern, a position he held until his death. goeldi published in many areas. his most widely recognized work was as aves do brasil (the birds of brasil), published in 1894–1900, followed by an atlas in 1900–1906. most of his herpetological work dealt with classification and distribution, but he also had a special interest in reproductive biology. goeldi discovered hyla (now flectonotus) goeldii (named by george a. boulenger in 1895), a frog in which the female carries the eggs attached to her back. goeldi’s major work in herpetology, repteis do brasil, was completed in 1892–1894, but was never published as a single volume. much of the content consisted of compilations from the literature, but many of goeldi’s field notes (such as those quoted here by werner) also were included. b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h emílio augusto goeldi (1859–1917) emílio goeldi (photograph courtesy of kraig adler). in fallow fields and orchards. iguanas readily accepted its leaves, which are similar in size to those of the coltsfoot. since we have been feeding heckeria peltata, we’ve not lost a single iguana; just the opposite, as a matter of fact, they are thriving and are, in many instances, downright fat. they also have begun to exhibit signs of becoming tame, moving toward the keeper when he brings them food. we have in a small way endeavored to cultivate this plant, specifically for our iguanas. this is in every way simple, and i am convinced that it would serve well as a crop raised in greenhouses by zoological gardens. it grows rapidly and is easily propagated from seeds. this weed requires no special care, requiring little investment of effort or money. “iguana tuberculata [= iguana iguana], called ‘cameleão’ by natives, occurs in great numbers on mexiana island, but it is not easy to find because its green color blends well with the tangled bankside vines on which it prefers to perch. these iguanas are shy and, once they take flight, literally shoot across the crowns of trees and bushes with such alacrity that they disappear almost immediately from the view of the hunter and can be traced only by following the tell-tale crackling of small branches broken during their effort to escape. they will ascend the highest forest trees, and i recall one individual i shot down from an astounding height. “the nest cavities are typically dug at an angle, with an approximately two-foot long passage leading to a slightly enlarged cavity that serves as the egg depository. because the sand dunes are repeatedly watered during the rainy season, sufficient moisture is retained to keep the sandy burrow from collapsing. consequently, these sites lend themselves to easy excavation through loose sand, but retain the moisture necessary to sustain the eggs. although the nest cavities are carefully filled by the females, fresh nests are easy to find, as no effort is made to wipe out the telltale tracks. because, however, the direction of the sloped passage is not always evident, natives probe the sand and identify the passage or even the egg chamber by the lack of resistance to their efforts.” source: adler, k. 1989. herpetologists of the past, pp. 5–141. in k. adler (ed.), contributions to the history of herpetology. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, contributions to herpetology, number 5. ithaca, new york. iguana 12.3 b&w text 210 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 newsbriefs sand skinks are elusive creatures they leave s-shaped designs in the sand. federal and state wildlife officials classify them as threatened. they live on the sand ridges of central florida. that sums up what most people know about sand skinks (neoseps reynoldsi), if they’ve heard of them at all. sand skinks are among the creatures that live on the lake wales ridge, a chain of prehistoric islands that comprised all of the dry real estate in what once was peninsular florida. like better-known species such as gopher tortoises (gopherus polyphemus), their habitat is often bulldozed to make way for new development. this is the time of year when biologists try to learn more about these elusive reptiles because the skinks become more active and easier to detect as temperatures rise. the survey method is fairly low-tech. it involves placing a 2 x 2 piece of plywood on bare ground and going back every week or so and looking for tracks. sand skinks forage in the sand beneath the board, leaving trails in the sand that can look like anything from a winding riverbed to a plateful of macaroni. data collection is simple. either tracks are there or they aren’t. in fact, it’s good to stop here and mention that one of the important aspects in wildlife surveys is the ability to collect information along fixed routes, which are marked with flags, metal poles, wooden stakes or some other method. if you see these markers or the boards, that’s what they’re for. don’t disturb them or you could screw up someone’s research project. as wild creatures go, sand skinks are a relatively recent addition to the scientific list of creatures. the sand skink was officially described in the scientific literature as a separate species in 1910 by leonard stejneger (1851–1943), who was head curator of reptiles and amphibians at the smithsonian institution. sand skinks look like small snakes — they’re only about 5 inches long — with tiny legs. they belong to a group of reptiles known as “sand-swimmers.” that means they move around just under the ground’s surface looking for something to eat. termites make up a major part of their diet. mole skinks (eumeces egregius) and some species of snakes, such as southeastern crowned snakes (tantilla coronata), also are in this category. because of their secretive habits, sand skinks are rarely seen and scientists are still trying to learn more about what they need to survive. surveys at various wildlife preserves are part of that research because they provide a baseline, a basis for comparison to spot population trends (used here in a generic sense, population estimates for sand skinks don’t exist). what do exist are lists that give the number of locations where sand skinks are found, but it’s unclear how big a territory each sand skink occupies or where the young go after they hatch. one small step in sand skink research occurred when a university of florida student named byrum cooper set out on a quest to figure out how to capture these elusive creatures. this short 1953 account, published in the florida academy of sciences quarterly journal, concluded that a potato rake and quick hands were the best tools for collecting specimens. some of you may know this young student as buck cooper, the retired b-52 navigator who served as naturalist at the street nature center in winter haven for several years. by the way, nowadays it is illegal to collect sand skinks or any other protected species without a permit from state and federal wildlife officials. one interesting side benefit of sand skink surveys is learning about other creatures that inhabit the scrub. researchers have reported finding millipedes, centipedes, ants, termites, spiders, and various other even smaller beetles and other invertebrates. sometimes other reptiles are using the board as a temporary shelter. they include scrub lizards (sceloporus woodi), a type of lizard called a six-lined racerunner (aspidoscelis sexlineatus), and various species of snakes. one researcher even found a baby rattlesnake. i guess it’s a good idea to lift the boards carefully. the ledger lakeland, florida; 11 may 2005 snake sanctuary: rattlesnakes roost in rocky stretch of western iowa just north of here, prairie rattlesnakes (crotalus viridis) slither among rocks and yucca plants in a stretch of loess hills that is iowa’s little slice of the west. across the missouri river, the prairie rattlesnake is common in nebraska, but these 15 acres in plymouth county are thought to be the species’ only home in iowa. the nature conservancy, a private, nonprofit preservation group hoping to protect the species in iowa, recently added the snake’s hibernating area to its 3,050-acre broken kettle grasslands, which is an important bird sanctuary. this rocky stretch of the silty-soil loess hills offers hiding places the snakes need for hibernation. the conservancy bought the land to prevent housing development, traffic, mowing, and, eventually, farming in the area, all of which could harm the snake, said susanne hickey, the group’s loess hills project director. the area is open to the public. “it’s a western species that gets into the loess hills because it’s a drier habitat,” hickey said. the broken kettle area has an estimated 110 adult rattlesnakes, said conservancy herpetologist dan fogell. fifty of the snakes have been tagged with microchips, which are injected under their skin with a syringe. the $6.50 chips n e w s b r i e f s florida sand skinks (neoseps reynoldsi) are among a select group of lizards known as “sand-swimmers,” most of which have reduced or missing limbs. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 211newsbriefs carry a 10-digit code that can be read by passing the scanner over the snake. they are similar to the microchips that veterinarians use in pets. on a recent day, fogell and crew bet they could find a rattler within five minutes along a ridge a quarter-mile from iowa highway 12. they scored. fogell, who lives in omaha and teaches at southeast community college in lincoln, nebraska, passed an electronic reader over the snake, and immediately saw an identification number in the display. a repeat customer, this snake. fogell’s colleague grabbed the snake with a gizmo similar to those some people use to pick things off the floor. pulling a trigger operates a clamping device on the end. fogell then grabbed a long plastic tube — picture a bigger and sturdier version of the ones they put on single roses at the floral shops — and pushed the snake’s head inside. with the snake unable to bite, fogell passed the rattler to a colleague, who weighed and measured it. the first of five rattlers found was a female, 31 inches long. these snakes mate in spring and late summer but often keep the sperm for a year before they become pregnant. they give birth to live snakes, often a dozen or more at a time, and hope the blue racers (coluber constrictor), another snake species, don’t eat them. fogell is tracking the snake population for the nature conservancy. earlier, he used radio transmitters to track the snakes’ movements for the iowa department of natural resources. during that study, he discovered that the snakes slither up to two miles from their rocky homes. later, fogell mentioned that the snakes roam the countryside for two reasons: sex and food. one of the apparently nervous visitors asked fogell if there is a time that the venomous snakes are aggressive. “every day,” fogell replied. especially if they’ve just given birth. judging by the varying volume and frequency of the snakes’ rattle-shaking, these snakes were in various stages of agitation. but the snakes aren’t normally aggressive toward humans. there is no record of anyone being bit by a rattlesnake on this land, fogell said. most people will find a way to get away from the snake when they hear its warning rattle. landowners nearby, however, have reported that the snakes have bitten their dogs and cattle. in iowa’s slice of the west, the rattlers rule. perry beeman des moines register endangered bog turtle holding up highway project a turtle is slowing down a route 7 highway bypass project in brookfield (connecticut), despite a push by gov. m. jodi rell to speed things up. the state department of environmental protection is withholding permits for work until a report is done on whether bog turtles (glyptemys muhlenbergii) might live in the area of the bypass. in november, rell had said there would be no holdup to planned construction on the bypass. the $98-million project was scheduled to go out to bid this month. chris cooper, a spokesman with the department of transportation, said that, without permits from the dep, the project cannot go out to bid. but cooper said, even if the bog turtle is present, the road could still be built. “we will work with environmental experts because it is an endangered species,” cooper said. “the state is committed to the project as part of its regional transportation improvement plan.” tom harley, manager of the consulting design unit for the dot, said a report on whether bog turtles are living in the area is expected in june and will be turned over to the dep. julie victoria, a wildlife biologist with the dep, said the proposed bypass area might be a historic habitat for the bog turtle, which was listed as federally threatened in november 1997. the turtle grows to about 3 inches in length and has orange splotches on either side of its neck. boston globe (massachusetts), 18 may 2005 european wall lizards in british columbia lizard invasion: scientists ponder the implications, as a species native to europe appears to be thriving on south vancouver island. they’re sunning themselves at the saanich fairground and scampering on the walls of wilkinson road jail. they’re scurrying past stelly’s cross road and scaling triangle mountain. thousands of european wall lizards (podarcis muralis), a non-native species, are making this part of the world their home. biologists are wondering what effects they are having on bc’s native alligator lizard (elgaria coerulea). “we have great and grave concerns over exotic species,” said richard hebda, curator of botany and earth history at the royal bc museum. “exotic species are poised to take over the niche abandoned by native species.” european wall lizards were introduced into greater victoria in the late 1970s, when rudy’s pet park zoo on durrance road closed. a few wall lizards either escaped or were released into the wilds of central saanich. the reptiles survived, living in rock walls, and slowly spreading through the gardens and forests of the saanich peninsula. hebda remembers spotting a few tiny green and black-flecked creatures in a broken concrete wall on his property about 1988. a few years later, they were quite abundant. “they’re delightful creatures, but there were never as many as we see now. their numbers have gone way up. at first they prairie rattlesnakes (crotalus viridis) range widely across the great plains and barely into extreme western iowa. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h bog turtles (glyptemys muhlenbergii) are listed as “threatened” under the endangered species act and as “endangered” by agencies in states with extant populations. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h were a curiosity, now they’re just everywhere,” he said. the lizards — which are about 10 cm long, not including their tail — no longer inhabit just the warm cracks in rock walls at his home, they also dash around the garden. university of victoria biology professor pat gregory first heard about the european wall lizards in 1990 and immediately went to see them. “i was impressed by their numbers,” said the herpetologist. “i don’t know how many we saw that day.” he thought about the possibilities they offered for future research studies. “any introduced species is interesting and you have to take them quite seriously,” said gregory. “it’s interesting to see how they fit into an entirely different system from their native one. it’s interesting to know whether they pose a threat to native species.” a study by a master’s student on the interaction between the european wall lizard and alligator lizard shows they didn’t get along too badly, said gregory. “the student found the alligator lizards were reluctant to go under the same cover as the wall lizards. but she didn’t find any aggressive behavior.” however, more research needs to be done on the population ecology of alligator lizards in places where wall lizards have been introduced, said gregory. “just because we haven’t observed a depressing effect on the population of the alligator lizard doesn’t mean it isn’t happening. there’s nothing really obvious in terms of their negative effects, but there might be some less obvious effects.” hebda has already heard tales of people who grew up in central saanich capturing wall lizards and releasing them in their suburban neighborhoods — a practice he frowns on. “i think biologically we have enough challenges already.” getting rid of them would be impossible because there are far too many of them, said gregory, and gardeners would probably object. “they’re small and numerous and people seem to like them,” he said. louise dickson times colonist, victoria, british columbia european wall lizards in ohio river park state wildlife staffers are putting out traps at the falls of the ohio state park in an effort to exterminate an exotic lizard that has been found there. the common wall lizard (podarcis muralis) is native to parts of europe and can grow to more than eight inches. it has no known predators in north america and can survive midwestern winters. how the lizards got to the park just north of louisville, kentucky is not known. they were introduced to the midwest in 1951, when a cincinnati resident brought some back from italy and released them. indiana department of natural resources (dnr) herpetologist zack walker has designed special traps to capture wall lizards, while sparing native species. “i’ve constructed the traps to target wall lizards and to exclude other species of wildlife. if a non-target species is caught, it will be released without harm,” he said. once the wall lizards are caught, they will be exterminated. wkyt, lexington, kentucky the island snake lady not many young women would take pride in being called “the island snake lady,” but kristin stanford does. based at ohio state university’s stone laboratory on gibraltar island in lake erie, stanford acquired the nickname shortly after beginning a research project on the endangered lake erie water snake (nerodia sipedon insularum). it lives only on the rocky shores of western lake erie islands, and, until stanford arrived five years ago, it enjoyed a lousy reputation among island residents and visitors. water snakes make poor neighbors. they bask innocently near docks, jetties, and piers, and curious travelers, especially children, try to catch them. that’s a big mistake because, though they’re harmless, they’re mean, ill-tempered, and quick to bite. combine their nasty personality with most people’s innate fear of snakes and you’ve got a conservation education nightmare. enter stanford. five years ago, after completing her master’s degree at northern illinois university, where she studied the plains garter snake (thamnophis radix), stanford jumped at the chance to do her doctoral research on the lake erie water snake. she understood that a key to the unpopular species’ survival was convincing the islands’ human population that, if left alone, water snakes are harmless and even ecologically beneficial. over the course of four years, stanford captured water snakes on south bass, gibraltar, middle bass, north bass, and kelley’s islands. her work included surgically implanting radio transmitters into 61 snakes so she could track their movements and locate their winter dens. the fieldwork is complete, and stanford is writing her dissertation — but that was the easy part. convincing people to appreciate water snakes was the greater challenge. having just spent a week at stone lab teaching an ornithology class, i observed firsthand that stanford’s people skills are among her greatest assets. 212 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 newsbriefs european wall lizards (podarcis muralis) have been repeatedly introduced into north american cities, where they frequently thrive in habitats dramatically altered by humans. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 213newsbriefs last year, she taught a popular and successful one-week herpetology class. she obviously excelled because she was recognized last week as one of 2004’s outstanding summer instructors at the stone lab. this year she’s co-teaching a five-week herpetology class. although the class covers all types of reptiles and amphibians, snakes are her passion. one day she turned her class loose on six-acre gibraltar island. the assignment was to catch snakes. ninety minutes later the students returned, each with a pillowcase filled with three or four writhing snakes. on a break, i wandered into the herp lab and found stanford holding an absolutely beautiful fox snake (elaphe vulpina). “fox snakes live in wetlands along lake erie in northwestern ohio, and i’m studying their abundance and habitat requirements,” she said. she’s hoping to determine the effects of habitat fragmentation on these boldly patterned constrictors. with her background, it’s only natural that stanford has acquired the “island snake lady” nickname. but her reputation is largely due to the outreach programs she does throughout a multicounty area. she provides educational programs to schools and other groups and writes a monthly newspaper column in which she answers reader questions about snakes and other herps. in fact, if you have any snake questions, contact her at “theislandsnakelady@yahoo.com.” during my week at stone lab, i discovered two additional tangible indications of stanford’s influence. many driveways on the islands now sport signs provided by the u.s. fish and wildlife service and the ohio dnr that read, “water snakes welcome here.” i doubt there were any of those before kristin arrived. and finally, there’s arthur wolf, stanford’s 9-year old protégé, who lives on middle bass island. “i call him ‘my little snake man,’” she said. “he’s caught many water snakes for me on middle bass.” his father, who captains one of stone lab’s research boats, told me he’s now catching fox snakes for stanford. wolf ’s extraordinary exploits are featured in the current issue of “wild ohio for kids magazine.” kristin stanford does it all — researcher, teacher, mentor, community relations expert. not a bad resume for the “island snake lady.” scott shalaway pittsburgh post-gazette spiny softshell scoped thirteen-year-old steve glen thought he was battling a big catfish in river canard until he reeled in one strange looking turtle. a bit of research on the internet confirmed that he’d landed a threatened species, an eastern spiny softshell (apalone spinifera). the turtle had swallowed the worm and hook and needed medical attention. a spiny softshell is a rare sight, said tammy dobbie, point pelee national park’s ecosystem management coordinator. “we usually have on average one valid sighting a year in and around point pelee national park,” she said, adding that 2002 was the last time live ones were spotted at the park. “you don’t get many sightings. they are around but they’re a shy and secretive turtle.” dobbie said the spiny softshell, the only turtle like it in the country, is found in southern ontario and southern quebec. they’re hard to spot because they’re rare and the speedy swimmers spend most of their time underwater in lakes. sometimes only their nostrils stick out of the water. erie wildlife rescue drove the turtle to a windsor veterinarian who planned to anesthetize it and put a scope down its neck to find the hook wednesday. the scope will help the vet see what damage has been done and, if all goes well, the turtle will be put on antibiotics and later released back in river canard, she said. the turtle is a female that is estimated by its size to be more than twenty years old, she said. the 2.4-kg turtle is 32 cm long and 26.5 cm wide. males are usually up to 23 cm long. dobbie said the glens did the right thing and the turtle is worth saving because females don’t reproduce until they’re more than twelve years old. she said losing even one female of the threatened species would hurt the population. sharon hill windsor (ontario) star turtle saved from soup they’re calling him “the lucky royal turtle” — an endangered reptile that was saved from a likely fate in a chinese soup pot by keen-eyed wildlife officials and a microchip. poachers snatched the animal, a species called the royal turtle in cambodia because the eggs were once fed to kings, from a cambodian river two months ago and toted it across the vietnamese border with a stash of more common turtles. conservationists said that at 33 pounds, the animal was sure to have fetched a good price when it reached the smuggler’s destination — the food markets of china, where turtle meat is a delicacy often made into soup. a raid on the smuggler’s house in southern vietnam’s tay ninh province was the turtle’s first stroke of good luck. about 30 turtles were confiscated and transported to a wildlife inspection center. endangered lake erie water snakes (nerodia sipedon insularum) have become the subject of research for the island snake lady. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h a giant river terrapin (batagur baska) was saved from the soup pot by a keen-eyed wildlife official and a microchip. c h r is t a b a k a , d v m spiny softshell turtles (apalone spinifera) range widely across eastern north america and as far north as southern ontario and quebec. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h “my staff said they had never seen a turtle that big,” said ta van dao, head of the forest control bureau in tay ninh. “its head and eyes were also different from the regular turtles.” the vietnamese wildlife officials consulted an endangered species book and then called doug hendrie, an asian turtle specialist based in hanoi for the new york-based world conservation society. they confirmed that it was a batagur baska, or asian river terrapin. officials then found a microchip implanted under its wrinkly skin, pinpointing its exact home on the sre ambel river in southern cambodia. hendrie said there were only about two to eight females remaining there, making the return of this adult male even more vital. it had been tagged in cambodia for research two years ago but not seen again until its discovery in vietnam. the turtle was shipped back to cambodia last week. the associated press save rattlesnakes in new york park the ponytailed environmentalist hiked down the ridge, over the gray rocks and matted brown leaves, stopped among the hardwoods, and said, “right down the side, it’s prime country here.” the warm, southeast-facing rock cliffs overlooking lake champlain mark the northern limit of the timber rattlesnake’s habitat. jaime ethier, in boots and jeans, was bushwhacking from champlain palisades down to the pebbled shores of the lake — through terrain where he wouldn’t see a coiled dark snake unless he nearly stepped on it. the adirondack council conservation director appeared unconcerned. he kept going off the trail to peer into crevices likely to hold a den of poisonous reptiles, whose spiky tails make the telltale rattle or buzzing sound when disturbed. he’d met a rattlesnake almost two years earlier in this forest 110 miles north of albany and wanted to see another. ethier was out of luck on a day of overcast skies and temperatures in the mid-50s, probably still too cool for the snakes. ethier’s group wants to undo state conservation plans to allow mountain bikes in this neck of the 6-million-acre adirondack park, afraid cyclists will kill rattlers. protected by state law, rattlers are considered a threatened species in new york, where bounties that led to their widespread killing were outlawed in 1971. state wildlife officials estimate new york has 3,000 to 6,000 rattlesnakes left, mostly around the hudson highlands and a dozen adirondack dens. but the u.s. fish & wildlife service has declined to list them under the federal endangered species act. “there are so few statewide, we feel that losing one or two to a mountain bike would be a tragedy,” explained john sheehan, the council’s spokesman. with more than 1,000 miles of trails and primitive roads already open to mountain bikes in the park, the group sees no need to add “recreational conflicts” to the rattlesnake’s diminishing range. cyclists counter that riding on 5 miles of trails in the split rock mountain wild forest will do little harm. “it’s a low probability that a biker’s going to run a snake over,” said paul capone, trail coordinator for the adirondack park mountain biking initiative. “i’m sure there are rattlesnakes in that area, but for the most part i would say they prefer the habitat on the rocky open areas where bikes will not be riding.” bikes are allowed in 1.3 million acres of adirondack wild forest and excluded from 1 million acres of more primitive wilderness areas. but as state officials issue new forest conservation plans, cyclists are losing ground. at split rock mountain, they’re being kept off trails down to the shoreline. “the reason people like to go there is access to lake champlain,” capone said. “it’s kind of a critical time for mountain biking.” wildlife biologists say it’s also a critical time for timber rattlesnakes, whose bite is seldom fatal to humans (they don’t always inject venom). fear, misunderstanding, development sprawl and their attraction as dead curios or live pets have shrunk numbers, habitat and prospects. timber rattlesnakes are found in rugged terrain and hardwood forests from east texas to southern wisconsin, and from north florida to a spot in new hampshire. believed gone entirely from maine and rhode island, they are considered threatened or endangered in the northeast except pennsylvania, which has licensed hunting. rattlers hibernate in winter and are active from about may through september. in new york, females start reproducing at age 8 or 9, giving birth to litters of five to 12 every few years. they mate in late august. “given their low reproductive rate along with a high mortality rate of young, as well as being killed or captured by humans, the timber rattlesnake is in serious trouble in the northeast,” james beemer, a civilian defense department biologist, wrote in a 2001 study. with no reports of snake-cyclist incidents in the tongue mountain range above lake george, where mountain biking is allowed on certain trails away from the dens, the state department of environmental conservation says it expects none above lake champlain either but will monitor it. rattlers have not been responsible for any fatalities in new york for decades. unless you try to pick up or harass one, you stand a better chance of being struck by lightning than bitten, beemer said. after studying timber rattlesnakes for more than a decade on the u.s. military academy’s reserve in the hudson highlands, he notes that the ambush hunters are deadly to mice, chipmunks and squirrels but are “extremely shy” of humans and will hide or try to leave unnoticed. red nova (dallas, texas) arizona roadkill: huge toll on park-area highways more than 50,000 wild animals are run over on roads in and around saguaro 214 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 newsbriefs populations of timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus) near the species’ northern-most limits remain vulnerable to human contact. a new york conservation group wants to undo state conservation plans to allow mountain bikes into portions of the 6-million-acre adirondack park, afraid cyclists will kill rattlers. r ic h a r d s a jd a k iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 215newsbriefs national park each year. taking a fresh look at old data, researchers have concluded that an earlier survey of park-area roadkills understated by roughly seven times the true casualty figures for toads, snakes, rabbits, lizards, javelina, and other critters. after five years of weekly surveys of 50 miles of roads that ended in 1999, national park service officials determined that about 7,100 animals were killed annually in and around the east and west units of the park. however, researchers decided the original count was too low after reanalyzing the data to account for surveyor error, for animals that get taken off the road after they’re killed, and for the limitations of hunting for roadkills by car. “we weren’t seeing everything,” said natasha kline, who has worked as a saguaro park biologist nearly 13 years. while more animals are apparently dying on park roads than originally had been thought, some changes in road design are slowly occurring to make these and other thoroughfares more wildlifefriendly. the changes will be aimed not just at preventing roadkills, but also at preserving connections for wild animals crossing roads from one large block of desert to another. as much as $10 million would be spent over the next 20 years on making roads safer for wildlife under a plan that appears to be headed to the may 2006 ballot. the regional transportation authority’s 20-year plan would require voter approval of a halfcent sales tax increase to raise $1.9 billion for a host of other transportation improvements, including widened roads, transit, sidewalks, and bike paths. pima county and state highway planners are looking for other ways to better design roads for wildlife, and the park service and county last year collaborated on a large $78,000 culvert project to provide more space for javelina and other animals crossing sandario road in saguaro national park west. a major concern stemming from the roadkill study is the effect of the kills on populations of toads and larger animals, including desert tortoises, gila monsters, badgers, and rattlesnakes, said kline, who worked on the roadkill study. the park is experiencing “massive” roadkill of three amphibian species — the red-spotted toad (bufo punctatus), sonoran green toad (b. debilis), and couch’s spadefoot (scaphiopus couchii), she said. researchers have, for instance, found that sonoran green toads taken from east speedway north of the park were significantly smaller than those taken from loop roads within the park that close after dark. “this is very suggestive” that the toads’ populations are affected by roadkill — not just individual toads, kline said. although no statistics exist directly linking roadkills to declines of larger animals, biologists are concerned about them because they have both low reproductive rates and low adult mortality rates. because they have low adult mortality rates, those creatures tend to live long lives, but because their birthrates are low, “once you start taking adults out of the population, you’ll affect it very quickly,” said kline, who has emerged as saguaro park’s spokeswoman for a study that involves many researchers and volunteers. the operator of a wildlife rescue and rehabilitation center just north of saguaro national park east said that she’s not surprised by the park service study’s conclusions, because she regularly sees live wild animals in her center that were brought in after somebody found them lying on the road. “it’s our no. 1 problem with animals that come in — that they’re hit by cars,” said lisa bates, who gets 300–350 injured animals each year at her tucson wildlife center, just north of saguaro park east. “i would guess that a majority of animals admitted here were hit by cars.” when center volunteers go out to rescue wild animals, they’re all over the highways every day. volunteers see a huge amount of roadkill, bates said. the sight of wild animals sprawled dead along roads or shoulders makes rincon valley farmers market executive director molly eglin truly sad, she said last week. but while she sees roadkill regularly on the roads, the 50,000-a-year figure shocked her, she said. “i go to town practically every day, and i usually see something practically every day off to the side of the road. but i never imagined it was that many,” said eglin, whose market lies about one mile south of the park’s southern border. “what’s worse is the people who drive down old spanish trail like a maniac,” eglin said. “they drive really fast around the curves, the double lines. it’s really, really dangerous.” one morning last week, as she drove down freeman road and then speedway abutting saguaro park east, kline said that she had already seen six dead animals along park-area roads: a longnose snake (rhinocheilus lecontei) and a coachwhip (masticophis flagellum), two ground squirrels, a curved-bill thrasher, and a rabbit. then she stopped at a large wash along speedway, about 16 miles east of downtown tucson, where she said she hopes to get grant money for a series of culverts to accommodate the toads and other animals so they can cross under speedway instead of into the path of cars. two years ago, the park service and the pima county department of transportation applied for a $500,000 state grant to install two large box culverts and several smaller ones that would accommodate toads. the application failed, but kline said she expects to seek the grant again. the area along speedway where the culvert system would go had heavy concentrations of roadkills, ranging 85 to 1,000 in a small area, during the five-year study period ending in 1999, according to a park service map of the area. a county transportation department official said he has not heard yet from the service about any effort to try roadkills have a huge impact on populations of arizona amphibians and reptiles. species affected include particularly vulnerable species like desert tortoises (gopherus agassizii) and gila monsters (heloderma suspectum). to m w ie w a n d t 216 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 newsbriefs again for the grant. but the department now has a written policy calling for more environmentally sensitive roads in areas known for their wildlife populations, said rick ellis, the department’s engineering division manager. the county has had the policy since december 2003 and has used it twice. one project, connected with the county’s thornydale road widening, was to build a higher, wider shoulder with taller trees along thornydale to accommodate endangered cactus ferruginous pigmy owls (glaucidium brasilianum cactorum) trying to cross the road. the second project was the sandario road culvert. four major state highways in southern arizona could also be in line for new, wildlife-friendly design in the next few years because of a grant just obtained by a flagstaff researcher. that study will focus on how to make those and other roads in the state more hospitable to birds and mammals. the tally — estimated annual wildlife roadkills in and around saguaro national park east and west (source: national park service): reptiles, 27,000; amphibians, 17,000; mammals, 6,000; and birds, 1,000. a. e. araiza arizona daily star (tucson) 16 may 2005 diversity in darwin’s tortoises the giant tortoises of the galápagos islands inspired charles darwin to formulate his theory of natural selection to describe the evolutionary diversity of species. now those tortoises have been found to be even more diverse than darwin knew. nearly 150 years after darwin’s most important work, scientists have found the tortoise geochelone nigra, found on the galápagos island of santa cruz, is not one species but three. the discovery, announced today, was led by yale university scientists michael russello, adalgisa caccone, and jeffrey powell and is reported in the royal society of london’s journal biology letters. darwin and others identified the single taxon, or species, based on visible characteristics such as shell shape. the new research employed dna analysis. altogether, 11 taxa of tortoises are on the islands. between 2000 and 4000 individual tortoises remain on santa cruz, and as few as 100 individuals in each of the new taxa may exist, the scientists said in arguing for conservation of the habitat. “it is ironic that, while santa cruz has the largest population of tortoises, it also has the largest human population — projected to double in the next eight years — which is their greatest source of endangerment,” russello said. “since accurate taxonomy is crucial for effective conservation policy, these results have fundamental importance for preserving the genetic and taxonomic diversity of these historically significant reptiles.” robert roy britt livescience, 27 july 2005 sale of red-eared sliders skids to a stop small turtles were being sold at kiosks in tallahassee’s two shopping malls on monday despite a federal ban against their sale. federal law prohibits the sale of turtles under four inches as pets. their sale has been banned since 1970 because of concerns that they transmit salmonella, a potentially deadly bacterium. a governor’s square mall spokeswoman said the lease for the turtle world kiosk, where the little red-eared sliders (trachemys scripta elegans) were being sold monday, was being terminated this week. she declined to name the owner of the kiosk because of the mall’s privacy policies. “i cannot stress enough that our main concern was the customers,” said eileen walsh, marketing manager for governor’s square. “had we known this in advance, we would not have leased to him. and when we found out, we took action.” a worker at the turtle world kiosk at governor’s square mall referred questions to the kiosk owner at tallahassee mall. a worker at the tallahassee mall kiosk told the democrat that he wasn’t authorized to comment and he hung up. the u.s. food and drug administration is sending out notices to malls, schools, and the news media about the ban, said stewart watson, public affairs specialist in the fda’s florida district office in maitland. “for a long time when the law went into effect people weren’t selling the turtles as much,” watson said. “it seems in the past year it has exploded a lot.” salmonella can be found on the outer skin and shell surfaces of many turtles. turtles under four inches are considered more of a risk because they’re small enough for children to put them in their mouths, according to the fda. watson and a florida department of health spokesman said they were not aware of any contaminations in florida caused by turtle sales. however, six cases of illnesses in wisconsin and wyoming last year were traced to the sale of turtles. the illegal sale of small turtles carries a possible fine of up to $1,000 and up to a year in prison, according to the fda. federal law allows the sale of small turtles for “bona fide scientific, educational, or exhibitional purposes, other than use as pets.” both kiosks at malls in tallahassee had signs saying the turtles were being sold for educational purposes only. watson said he couldn’t comment on whether the signs mean the sales are allowed because he said it’s a legal question. at governor’s square mall, the lease for the turtle world kiosk was being terminated because of the apparent violation, walsh said. “having a vendor say, ‘this is a good learning experience’ is not the same thing as having them sold through an educational institution,” she said. steven darby, interim general manager of tallahassee mall, said he had spoken with fda officials about the ban as well as turtle experts. “we have spoken with several people and are trying to make an informed decision with regard to the turtles,” darby said. galápagos tortoises in the genus geochelone may be considerably more diverse than once thought. application of sophisticated modern technologies revealed three distinct species on santa cruz, where only one (g. nigra) was previously thought to occur. to m w ie w a n d t iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 217newsbriefs turtle biologist dale jackson of tallahassee said monday he had contacted mall managers about the turtle sales. he’s concerned that the red-eared sliders have been released into the wild and will harm native turtles. jackson said he and biologist matt aresco are filing a petition with the state to ban the sale of any red-eared sliders, which live primarily in the mississippi river valley and as close to florida as alabama. they are related to the yellowbelly slider (trachemys scripta scripta), which lives in florida. once released in florida, they can breed with the yellowbelly slider to create a hybrid subspecies, jackson said. red-eared sliders also grow larger than the yellowbelly slider and can out-compete them for food and basking areas on logs, he said. “i think there is some value in people raising little turtles if it gets them interested in reptiles,” jackson said. “but we don’t need them raising redeared sliders if they are subsequently released in nature.” bruce ritchie democrat (florida) red-eared sliders quietly become a threat red-eared sliders for generations have been the most popular turtles sold in pet stores, and they also have been frequently dumped into the wild — so much so they have become common in some hawaiian watersheds. that’s both illegal and a potential threat to native stream animals, but people who have brought the turtles home as pets have few options as the animals outgrow their aquariums. “they don’t get sweeter as they get older. they can get snappy,” said christy martin, public information officer for the coordinating group on alien pest species. martin recommended that unwanted turtles be taken to a humane society, where they have at least a chance of being adopted. “there’s really nothing else you can do with them. that’s the most responsible thing to do,” she said. in years past, the animals were sold as juveniles not much bigger than a silver dollar, but after the turtles were linked to the bacterial disease salmonella, the u.s. food and drug administration in 1975 banned the sale of red-eared sliders less than 4 inches across. officials thought the bigger size would make them less appealing to buyers and prevent children from putting the baby reptiles in their mouths, reducing the occurrence of salmonella. pet stores in hawai‘i and elsewhere still legally sell the sliders, which can reach nearly a foot in shell length. since that’s more turtle than most folks can handle, and since there is little demand for the larger animals, many have been released into the hawaiian environment. “that’s not a good idea because of the impacts they could have on native species,” said philip thomas of hawaiian ecosystems at risk, a governmentfunded organization that supports alien pest control efforts. the state has listed them an “injurious species” because young turtles could feed on ‘o‘opu, native freshwater gobies that live in hawaiian streams. the turtles, whose scientific name is trachemys scripta elegans, have a green to brown shell, and their green heads have a characteristic red stripe behind the eye from which they get their name. they are known to be in kawa‘i nui marsh and surrounding streams on o‘ahu, have been found in at least two parts of maui, and are in the hanalei and wailua river basins on kaua‘i. but they’re probably in many other waterways as well. “i’ve had reports from all over the island,” said don heacock, aquatic biologist with the state division of aquatic resources on kaua‘i. horticulturist keith robinson recently found a 7-inch turtle walking on a road in wainiha valley this week, suggesting they also may be in that valley’s stream on kaua‘i’s north shore. he said people who saw that turtle recalled having seen others in the hule‘ia river near lihu‘e and in a drainage ditch near kekaha. red-eared sliders are primarily meat-eaters when young and eat a mixture of meat and vegetation as adults, according to sean mckeown’s book, reptiles and amphibians in the hawaiian islands. young red-eared sliders can become carriers of salmonella if they eat tainted meat. humans can contract the disease from handling the turtles. these turtles can live for up to 25 years. they require fresh water, a place to get out of the water to bask, and proper food. as they grow older, they need considerably more room than the average home aquarium provides. when the fda banned the sale of the smallest turtles, it found that 14 percent of all cases of salmonella poisoning in the united states were associated with the handling of pet turtles. most of the victims were young children. the organization tortoise trust urges people not to buy them in the first place, since little thought generally is given to providing care into their adulthood, if they survive. “there is a massive surplus of unwanted adult turtles looking for good homes, yet thousands of tiny hatchlings continue to be bred each year, making an already desperate humanitarian situation even worse,” the organization said on its web site (http://tortoisetrust.org). jan tenbruggencate honolulu advertiser (hawaii) because of their popularity in the pet trade, red-eared sliders (trachemys scripta elegans) have been introduced in many areas where they are not native, often with dire implications for native species. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . iguana 11.4 206 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 köhler adult male utila iguana (ctenosaura bakeri) relying on crypsis against a dead tree trunk in the mangrove swamps of utila. photograph by john binns. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 207 introduction ctenosaura, commonly known as spiny-tailed iguanas, is a genus of neotropical lizards in the family iguanidae (frost and etheridge 1989), which corresponds to the iguanines of etheridge and de queiroz (1988). ctenosaura includes 17 valid species that are distributed from southeastern baja california and sonora in western méxico and from tamaulipas in eastern méxico southward along both the pacific and caribbean versants through most of central america to central panamá (buckley and axtell 1997, grismer 1999, köhler et al. 2000): ctenosaura acanthura (shaw), c. alfredschmidti köhler, c. bakeri stejneger, c. clarki bailey, c. conspicuosa dickerson, c. defensor (cope), c. flavidorsalis köhler and klemmer, c. hemilopha (cope), c. macrolopha smith, c. melanosterna buckley and axtell, c. nolascensis smith, c. oaxacana köhler and hasbun, c. oedirhina de queiroz, c. palearis stejneger, c. pectinata (wiegmann), c. quinquecarinata (gray), and c. similis (gray), as well as at least one undescribed species in the c. quinquecarinata-flavidorsalis complex (köhler and hasbun 2001; hasbun and köhler, unpublished data). most ctenosaurs inhabit arid and subhumid areas in open habitats such as dry forests and savannas. in the humid caribbean lowlands, ctenosaura is relatively scarce and localized in dry and open habitats. one species, the honduran endemic, c. bakeri, is exceptional because it lives exclusively in humid mangrove forests (köhler 1995). ctenosaurs feed mostly on plant matter, including leaves, flowers, and fruits. however, juveniles and, to varying degrees, adults also consume a variety of invertebrates (mostly insects, crabs, and spiders) and vertebrates (e.g., smaller lizards). all species reproduce oviparously with a single clutch per year (wiewandt 1982). however, ctenosaurs in captivity have been observed producing two clutches 2–3 months apart (personal observation for c. bakeri). whether multiple clutches per season ever occur in the wild remains unknown. clutch size differs significantly between species: 2–4 eggs in c. defensor; 5–15 in c. bakeri, c. clarki, c. flavidorsalis, and c. quinquecarinata; 11–33 in c. melanosterna; and usually 30–50, exceptionally to 88 eggs, in large species such as c. pectinata and c. similis (köhler 1996, 1997, 1998a). duration of egg incubation varies little across species, usually taking around 90 days at a temperature of 29–31 °c (köhler 1997, 1998a). conservation status of ctenosaura no species in the genus ctenosaura is currently listed under the convention on international trade of endangered species of wild fauna and flora (cites). in méxico, only four species (c. acanthura, c. hemilopha, c. pectinata, and c. similis) are listed in the nom-ecol-059-94, first published in the diario oficial de la federacion on 16 may 1994. in this document, c. similis and c. pectinata are listed as “amenazada” (threatened), conservation status of spiny-tailed iguanas (genus ctenosaura), with special emphasis on the utila iguana (c. bakeri) gunther köhler forschungsinstitut und naturmuseum senckenberg, sektion herpetologie, senckenberganlage 25, d-60325 frankfurt a. m., germany (gkoehler@senckenberg.de) photographs by the author. abstract.—none of the species in the genus ctenosaura are currently listed under the convention on international trade of endangered species of wild fauna and flora (cites). despite their protected status by national law in méxico and most central american countries, living specimens and eggs of the large species (e.g., c. acanthura, c. pectinata, and c. similis) can be found in markets or offered for sale along major roads by local people. an increasing threat to some of the smaller species is the international pet trade. species of ctenosaura with small geographic distributions are particularly vulnerable to these pressures, considerably more than their widely distributed congeners. the utila iguana (ctenosaura bakeri), for example, is an endangered species endemic to isla de utila, which is located off the caribbean coast of honduras. to preserve the utila iguana in its natural environment, the “conservation project utila iguana” was founded in 1994. the main activities of the project include a broad education and information program for the local community, investigations into the biology of the species, a headstart program, and the protection of iguana habitat. key words: spiny-tailed iguanas, ctenosaura bakeri, méxico, central america, utila island, conservation spiny-tailed iguanas � 208 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 whereas c. acanthura and c. hemilopha are listed as “sujeta a proteccion especial” (with special protection) (victor hugo reynoso, personal communication). none of the other mexican species of ctenosaura are listed. meat and eggs of most ctenosaura are consumed by local people throughout the mesoamerican range of the genus (fitch and henderson 1977, 1978). despite being protected by national law in most central american countries, living specimens and eggs of the large species (c. acanthura, c. pectinata, and c. similis) can still be found in markets or offered by local people for sale along major roads (unpublished observations for nicaragua, honduras, el salvador, and méxico, 1994–2001). iguana hunters still commonly sew the animals’ mouths closed and pull out tendons to tie the legs together. some of the smaller species, such as c. quinquecarinata and c. defensor, are considered to have medicinal properties if consumed. in northern nicaragua, local people believe c. quinquecarinata to be venomous. as a result, they try to eliminate this lizard whenever it is encountered. for example, they use small rocks to block the entrance to c. quinquecarinata retreats in hollow fence posts, making it impossible for the animal to leave. this usually leads to the death of the trapped iguana, evidenced by piles of bones in blocked hollow posts (hasbun and köhler, personal observations). an increasing threat to some of the smaller species (especially c. quinquecarinata) is the international pet trade. we found evidence of commercial hunting of this species in nicaragua. even protected species endemic to countries that do not allow ctenosaurs to be exported for the pet trade (e.g., c. defensor from the yucatán peninsula, méxico) show up in international trade due to smuggling. in august 2000, ten living c. defensor were confiscated at the frankfurt airport by german customs agents. a mexican citizen had illegally shipped the animals hidden in a wooden pyramid addressed to a german citizen. according to a written document found within the pyramid, similar illegal transactions had occurred before this shipment was confiscated (r. simon, german custom investigation service, frankfurt branch, wildlife prime unit, personal communication). species of ctenosaura with small geographic distributions are more vulnerable to the pressures mentioned above than their more widely distributed congeners. in light of this, the insular forms deserve special attention. off the northern coast of honduras in the caribbean sea is an island chain known as the bay islands. the smallest and most westerly of these islands is utila, with an area of 41 km2. despite its small size, utila supports an impressive endemic ctenosaur, c. bakeri. although four juveniles of c. bakeri were collected in the late 1960s, the adults were unknown to science until the early 1990s (de queiroz 1990). in 1994, c. bakeri was rediscovered during an expedition to utila by the senckenberg museum (köhler 1995). subsequent research revealed that this species is threatened with extinction as a result of intensive hunting pressure by the local community. the utila iguana (ctenosaura bakeri) ctenosaura bakeri inhabits mangrove swamps on utila, which cover approximately 6 km2 (14%) of the island. temperatures during the day range from 30–35 °c and nighttime temperatures vary from 25–27 °c. relative humidity ranges from 70–80% during the day to 95–100% at night. males reach a total length of 80 cm (maximum recorded snout-vent length = 31 cm; maximum recorded weight = 900 g); females are about 30% smaller. given that c. bakeri prefers hollow branches and trees as retreats, the few remaining old mangrove stands on utila with hollow branches and dead upstanding trunks provide the most important habitat for iguanas on the island. the diet of c. bakeri consists primarily of mangrove leaves, buds, and flowers (black mangrove preferred), but also includes insects and crabs (mostly fiddler crabs). köhler adult female ctenosaura pectinata from oaxaca, méxico. adult male ctenosaura pectinata from oaxaca, méxico. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 209spiny-tailed iguanas the breeding season for c. bakeri begins at the end of the rainy season. copulation has been observed between midjanuary and mid-march. during the nesting season (mid-march through late april), females migrate from mangrove to sandy coastal regions, covering distances up to a kilometer. the females spend several days digging before they complete their nest burrows. burrows are composed of a tunnel approximately 40–60 cm long, reaching a depth of 25–40 cm, and ending in a nest chamber with a diameter of 12–15 cm. females lay from 5–19 eggs before backfilling the hole and leaving an air space over the clutch. after egg deposition, females promptly return to the mangrove swamp. the eggs incubate at a temperature of 30–31 °c, and juveniles hatch after approximately three months. in contrast to the adults, young c. bakeri are usually observed on dead wood near the ground. with the onset of the rainy season, they start climbing higher in the vegetation. the uniform graybrown coloration of the juveniles is remarkable for the genus, as juveniles of other ctenosaura species exhibit either brown and green markings (c. palearis, c. quinquecarinata) or are almost entirely green (c. acanthura, c. hemilopha, c. pectinata, and c. similis). the absence of green coloration in juvenile c. bakeri is probably related to their preferred habitat. the young of this species are ground dwellers who inhabit the edges of mangrove swamps, where their gray-brown coloration provides excellent camouflage. together with fallen trees, the abundant aerial roots of mangroves provide important hiding places for the juveniles (köhler 1995). conservation project utila iguana to preserve c. bakeri in its natural environment on utila, i founded the “conservation project utila iguana” in 1994 in cooperation with the honduran nature conservation office (afecohdefor) and german and international organizations. since 1997, this project has been a joint project of the zoological society frankfurt (zgf) and the senckenberg nature research society (sng), frankfurt. the primary goals of the project are to: (1) develop a broad education and information program for the local community, (2) investigate the natural history and reproductive ecology of c. bakeri, (3) begin a headstart program, and (4) protect iguana habitat on utila. in addition, a survey of the herpetofauna of utila resulted in many new records for amphibians and reptiles on the island, as well as the discovery of two undescribed species of endemic anoles (köhler 1998b). with funding from the zgf, the project’s iguana research and breeding station was constructed and officially put into operation on 25 april 1998. the station makes effective and continuous work possible, serves as a base for scientists and conservationists, and has become an important center for environmental awareness and education on utila. in 1999, a headstart program was initiated with encouraging results. our strategy is to capture gravid females on nesting beaches and to move them to enclosures equipped for nesting where they can deposit their eggs in a safe environment. when egg laying is complete, the iguanas are released at their site of capture. the spent females swiftly return to the protection of the mangrove swamps, where, without their eggs, they are of little interest to poachers. using this strategy, we are able to improve the likelihood that these particular animals will survive the current nesting season and reproduce again the following year. the eggs are then artificially incubated in vermiculite at 28–32 °c. half of the hatchlings are released into the mangrove swamp immediately after hatching, while the remainder is raised for 12 months to help surpass the period of maximum vulnerability to predators. the visitor center on the ground floor of the station offers an attractive presentation of information about the utila iguana, as well as other aspects of utilan flora and fauna, to both utilians and tourists. informing the local people of the threats to their unique iguana is vital to the long-term success of the project. the people of utila must become aware that this creature will disappear forever unless protective measures are implemented. this presents a challenge, particularly given that the islanders widely believe that replacement iguanas can be brought in from the mainland if those on the island should die out. only through continuing education will local people become convinced that the utila iguana exists nowhere else in the world. raising environmental awareness in children is of particular importance to the project. since 1994, we have visited the schools of utila numerous times each year to work with teachers and pupils regarding nature and species conservation on utila. integrative tasks have been carried out with the students in addition to slide shows. an adult male ctenosaura similis is about to be caught with a noose; yoro, honduras. bound ctenosaura pectinata in a market in tehuantepec, oaxaca, méxico. once the station opened, groups of schoolchildren could visit and learn through public exhibits about the flora and fauna of utila and their endangered status. the problem of waste disposal on utila is also being addressed within the framework of the education program. given that hunting and habitat destruction still occur, a nature sanctuary will also be needed. although the activities of the project have been important and positive steps, iguana hunting has yet to be significantly reduced. while legislation exists to protect the utila iguana, hunters are not actively deterred and hunting continues daily. we commonly observed hunters with three to eight adult iguana carcasses in their bags. during the egg-laying season, hunters not only kill gravid females, but also plow through beach sand to find iguana eggs. most recently, the utila iguana has become threatened by destruction of its habitat. a large-scale international airport has been opened on utila, part of a rapid and extensive development program that neglects to take ecological considerations into account. several new resorts and hotels are being built, as well as a four-lane highway from the airport to the town. on the north side of the island, where the most important iguana nesting sites are located, beach areas have been “cleaned” by burning and divided into marketable lots. once the beach areas have been sold, the mangrove swamps will also be cleared and filled with coral debris and garbage, similar to past activity on the southern part of the island. pristine sections of beach are crucial egg-laying habitat for female utila iguanas. without these nesting areas, the utila iguana population will quickly decline as development eradicates their nesting sites. because these iguanas have no other suitable place to lay their eggs, they will inevitably begin their journey into extinction. if conservation areas of considerable size cannot be established in the face of this development, the future of utilan animals and plants is not optimistic. based on our field research and because of their outstanding ecological value, the regions of iron bound and eastern rock harbor would provide the most suitable core zone for a planned nature sanctuary. this core zone contains rocky coast, beach (behind the rocky belt), caribbean dry forest, seasonal rain forest, and mangrove swamps. in this area, we have been able to record all vertebrate species identified on utila to date (including the three endemic lizards), as well as the three species of mangroves. in no other location on the island are these five habitats found in such close proximity. the connecting corridor to the turtle harbor reserve would protect other ecologically valuable and beautiful habitat, including the oldest red mangrove forest, the mangrove area with the highest density of epiphytes on the island, and extensive areas of wet savanna. most of the total area comprising the planned nature sanctuary (the wetlands, mangrove, and wet savanna) is owned by the community of utila, and chances are good that protection of this area can be negotiated. on the other hand, all of the beach areas and the caribbean dry forest along the coast are privately owned and would need to be purchased to safeguard them from development. aside from its ecological and conservation benefits, the creation of a nature sanctuary on utila, if properly managed, would provide the island with another tourist attraction. through the use of nature trails and guided tours in protected areas, visitors could be given the opportunity to discover and observe a diversity of unique reptiles and other animals in their natural environment. most tourism on utila today is based on diving. by persuading tourists to spend more time on the island, the nature reserve would have a positive economic impact for the utilan community, as well as for honduras as a whole. simultaneously, it would significantly enhance the long-term prospects for conservation of the biodiversity of utila. acknowledgments i am grateful to all the individuals, institutions, and organizations that have supported the conservation project utila iguana in the past, especially to the zoological society of frankfurt of 1858 – help for the endangered animal world (zgf), 210 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 köhler adult male ctenosaura bakeri from utila, honduras. subadult male ctenosaura flavidorsalis from la paz, honduras. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 211spiny-tailed iguanas frankfurt a. m., and the senckenberg nature research society (sng), frankfurt a. m. thanks are especially due to the many volunteers who have done a wonderful job on utila over the years. i would particularly like to express my gratitude to john binns, lutz dirksen, karoline franz, karsten gees, sven knapinski, aj gutman, alexander gutsche, lori king, and sven zoerner for the important work they are doing on behalf of the utila iguana. without their help the conservation project utila iguana could never have taken place in its present form. references buckley, l. j. and r. w. axtell. 1997. evidence for specific status of the honduran lizards formerly referred to ctenosaura palearis (reptilia: squamata: iguanidae). copeia 1997:138–150. de queiroz, k. 1990. ctenosaura bakeri. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (465):1–2. etheridge, r. e. and k. de queiroz. 1988. a phylogeny of iguanidae, pp. 283–367. in: r. estes and g. pregill (eds.), phylogenetic relationships of the lizard families. stanford university press, stanford, california. fitch, h. s. and r. w. henderson. 1977. age and sex differences in the ctenosaur (ctenosaura similis). milwaukee public museum contributions in biology and geology (11):1–11. fitch, h. s. and r. w. henderson. 1978. ecology and exploitation of ctenosaura similis. the university of kansas science bulletin 51:483–500. frost, d. r. and r. etheridge. 1989. a phylogenetic analysis and taxonomy of iguanian lizards (reptilia: squamata). miscellaneous publication, university of kansas, natural history museum (81):1–65. grismer, l. l. 1999. an evolutionary classification of reptiles on islands in the gulf of california, méxico. herpetologica 55:446–469. köhler, g. 1995. freilanduntersuchungen zur morphologie und oekologie von ctenosaura bakeri und c. oedirhina auf den islas de la bahia, honduras, mit bemerkungen zur schutzproblematik. salamandra 31:93–106. köhler, g. 1996. freilanduntersuchungen zur morphologie, verbreitung und lebensweise des yucatan-schwarzleguans (ctenosaura defensor). salamandra 32:153–162. köhler, g. 1997. inkubation von reptilieneiern. herpeton, offenbach. köhler, g. 1998a. schutzund forschungsprojekt utilaschwarzleguan: die nachzucht von ctenosaura bakeri stejneger, 1901 im ex-situ-zuchtprogramm. salamandra 34:227–238. köhler, g. 1998b. further additions to the known herpetofauna of isla de utila (islas de la bahia, honduras) with notes on other amphibians and reptiles, and a key to herpetofauna of the island. senckenbergiana biologica 77:139–145. köhler, g. and c. r. hasbun. 2001. a new species of spinytailed iguana from méxico formerly referred to ctenosaura quinquecarinata (gray 1842) (reptilia, squamata, iguanidae). senckenbergiana biologica 81:257–267. köhler, g., w. schroth, and b. streit. 2000. systematics of the ctenosaura group of lizards (reptilia: sauria: iguanidae). amphibia-reptilia 21:177–191. wiewandt, t. a. 1982. evolution of nesting patterns in iguanine lizards, pp. 119–141. in: g. m. burghardt and a. s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. william andrew publishing, noyes, new jersey. author biography gunther köhler is curator of herpetology at the forschungsinstitut und naturmuseum senckenberg, frankfurt am main, germany. he has published several books and over 100 scientific articles. his research specialties are the taxonomy and biogeography of the amphibians and reptiles of central america, especially iguanid lizards. dr. köhler has had extensive field experience in central america and has published the first two volumes of a book series on the diverse reptilian fauna of central america, now available as a single volume in english. an english edition of spiny-tailed iguanas is in preparation. environmental education: school children participating in a workshop at the iguana station on utila. iguana 10.1 a mong the jagged limestone rock and dry forest vegetation, i spot one of the world’s most endangered lizards sprawled on a fallen palm frond and basking in the sun. this magnificent creature, with dramatic red eyes and nearly four feet of bright blue scales, is the endemic grand cayman blue iguana, cyclura nubila lewisi. hoping for a closer glance, i hold my breath and creep slowly forward until i am only a few feet away. no reaction yet... step by step, i stealthily approach until — how’s this? — i am only inches away from this apparently bored iguana?! though free to flee, old yeller, as one yellow bead in this iguana’s crest identifies him, calmly lies there like a log as numerous staff and visitors to his home pass by on a regular basis. old yellow is one of about twenty freeroaming blue iguanas at the queen elizabeth ii botanic park (qeiibp) on grand cayman. these animals were bred onsite and released at 2–3 years of age. the iguanas in this population are few, young (the oldest is eight years old), live in an studying the world’s most endangered rock iguana, cyclura nubila lewisi rachel m. goodman university of tennessee, knoxville 15iguanamarch 2003 female grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura nubila lewisi) named carley. this animal was hatched in the wild and captured by a local caymanian who kept her until he recently donated her to the breeding facility at queen elizabeth ii botanic park. photograph by fred burton iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 15 unnatural setting, and are, for the most part, highly habituated to humans. despite these oddities, the study of these iguanas is critical for the survival of c. n. lewisi. the released qeiibp iguanas are the only blue iguanas left living outside of captivity other than an estimated 7–25 iguanas remaining in the wild. while working on a master’s degree at the university of tennessee, knoxville, i collaborated with the national trust for the cayman islands (ntci) in studying the released population in qeiibp during the fall of 2001 and the summer and fall of 2002. at the iucn/ssc iguana specialist group meeting held on grand cayman in 2001, i participated in a workshop to develop a species survival plan for the blue iguana. one component of this plan, addressed by my current research, was a detailed field study of the released animals, including an analysis of spatial distribution, to estimate the carrying capacity of qeiibp and the required area for a proposed iguana reserve. additionally, i identified habitats and specific resources which are important to the iguanas in order to improve living and breeding conditions for the released and captive iguanas within the park and to assess potential sites for the proposed iguana reserve. my project focused on determining the spatial distribution and habitat utilization of the released iguanas by radiotracking and conducting focal animal observations of 12 individuals. because of the low density of iguanas, i followed each iguana continuously for one day at a time to conduct observations. while watching iguanas sleep motionless for hours on end and trying to remain similarly motionless but alert, i repeated to myself my mantra (borrowed from beverly dugan): “iguanas are not dull; they are just very subtle.” i often recorded tens of park visitors and staff passing or driving within three meters of an iguana without so much as a lift of the head from the happy blue basker. for iguana enthusiasts who have patience and luck with weather, up-close experiences and photographs of blue iguanas at 16 iguana volume 10, number 1 old yeller rests on a man-made pile of rocks next to a favorite food item, asystasia gangetica. photograph by rachel goodman an iguana’s head pokes out from the manicured lawn of the colour garden in the queen elizabeth ii botanic park. biter basks on top of a pile of discarded wooden beams which also serve as her usual retreat. these are decidedly unnatural habitats. in stark contrast is some of the natural shrubland which iguanas inhabit in the mostly undisturbed portion of the park. photographs by rachel goodman iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 16 the park are guaranteed. the habituation of the released iguanas also proved to be a real asset for my research, as i was able to follow iguanas at a very close range without interfering with their behavior. one exception to this was pink (also identified by a bead), who, accustomed to being fed by park staff, followed me and begged for food if i approached too closely. some limitations and quirks of the qeiibp population were frustrating for me as a researcher, but emphasize the critical need for research and monitoring of this population. for example, iguanas who were supplementally fed moved shorter distances to forage, leading to a confounding variable in my analysis of home range size which my small sample size cannot address. however, the suggestion that iguanas may center their home ranges around supplemental foods is strong enough for management plans to include a consideration of feeding sites as a tool for encouraging settlement of newly released iguanas, which otherwise might disperse into unprotected areas. the presence of feeding sites also may lead to a 17iguanamarch 2003 the author monitoring movement of iguanas with telemetry equipment. photograph by sandy echternacht slugger models his radio transmitter. photograph by rachel goodman slugger regularly sunbathes on the road near the staff office, refusing to budge even when cars pass at less than 3 m away. photograph by rachel goodman park staffer john lawrus laughs at the common sight of pink, a released iguana, begging for handouts on the porch of the staff office. iguanas have gone so far as to run into this office or attempt to jump into cars or onto people in the park. photograph by rachel goodman iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 17 18 iguana volume 10, number 1 decrease in the size of existing home ranges, thereby increasing the number of iguanas that can be packed into the park. another quirk of my study was the constant human disturbance of iguanas and researcher alike. i often interrupted my observation sessions, during which i strived to minimize disturbance, to jump in front of a car threatening to run over my subject or to prevent an iguana from eating a plastic bag or a tourist’s berry-colored toenails! also, convincing park visitors and staff to ignore and not talk with me while i conducted behavioral observations was a constant challenge. visitors were satisfied receiving a small informative pamphlet i wrote up, but some staff could never accept the fact that i was on duty while watching a motionless iguana and not interested in joining their smoking break. in addition to my study of spatial distribution and habitat use in the park, i collected data on the diet and demographics of the released iguanas. the first successful reproduction in the released population had been confirmed in 2000 by the appearance of yearlings the following spring. in fall 2001, fred burton, director of the blue iguana captive breeding and release program, and i built enclosures around five nests of released females to examine nest structure and success. two nests were successful and an evaluation of a third was inconclusive. these findings and the recensusing of the wild population in summer 2002 indicated a need for headstarting juveniles produced by the released qeiibp iguanas. in 2002, i monitored nesting of released females. fred subsequently excavated clutches for incubation, resulting in a total of 25 hatchlings for headstarting in the captive facility. fred and i collected and identified plants that blue iguanas were observed eating and examined a limited number of freshly collected scats. we found that the released iguanas eat the leaves, seedlings, fruits, and flowers of many species of exotic plants in the park’s colorful gardens in addition to native species in the park’s natural habitats. they also occasionally take some animal matter in the form of slugs and invertebrate larvae. one six-year old male, slugger, cagerat, who was released near the captive breeding compound in the spring of 2002, found a hole in an empty cage shortly thereafter, and has remained resident ever since. he rarely ventures far outside of the compound, but often climbs on top of the cages to bask and display at the captives. photograph by rachel goodman the author holds cagerat (three years old when this photo was taken), who has grown nearly twice as fast as the other released iguanas, presumably because of his double-life as both a well-fed pseudocaptive and a free-roaming forager and basker. photograph by fred burton iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 18 acquired his nickname by searching for and consuming at least six live slugs during one spree. i also often served as an informal monitor of the captive and released populations at qeiibp, alerting and aiding when a captive iguana escaped from its cage or when a released iguana’s favored retreat was in danger of being destroyed (potentially with the iguana in it). before my arrival at the park, the general assumption was that released iguanas were not fed heavily by humans, as park staff were explicitly instructed not to feed them. i discovered that nearly all of the released iguanas were supplementally fed, either directly or indirectly — and most commonly by the staff. in fact, several iguanas regularly traveled to the staff office just before lunch to wait on the front steps for their regular meal of fruits, fish, meats, and, most commonly, rice and beans. besides the obvious potential for nutritional problems, uncontrolled supplemental feeding has led to decreased wariness of and increased aggression toward people. if iguana attacks on park visitors, which currently occur, though infrequently, are to be eliminated, direct feeding by humans must be stopped and signs warning visitors not to approach or pet the iguanas must be erected. the latter will be accomplished this year, thanks to iis-member john bendon’s donations of two signs for the park. after wrapping up my last field season in december 2002, i found that i did not want to leave the botanic park, where the blue iguanas are still in need of much help and greater understanding. formerly, fred burton, park staff, and volunteers organized through the ntci fed and cared for the captive iguanas, and i was often the only daily monitor, particularly of the released population. this year, a part-time employee has been hired by the blue iguana conservation program to feed and care for the released and especially the captive iguanas at qeiibp. although i’m sure they are in good hands, i had a hard time saying goodbye to those funny blue lizards: cagerat, who was released but refused to leave the captive compound; biter, named for splitting open a finger; slugger, who thankfully survived vehicular crushing; and pink, infamous for his assaults on cars and women. each iguana has a unique personality, and all became my dear friends. i have hope that the grand cayman blue iguana will survive its current brush with near-extinction and flourish, so that future generations will have the chance to experience this iguana’s unique beauty and charms. 19iguanamarch 2003 biter, here five years old, rests for a moment after digging her nesting burrow in a pile of discarded potting soil. photograph by rachel goodman fred burton and the author built enclosures in 2001 to catch hatchlings as they emerged from nests of released female iguanas in qeiibp. photograph by sandy echternacht iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 19 acknowledgments my research has been supported by advisors sandy echternacht and fred burton. funding and housing were provided by the blumenthal and bumgarner families, national trust for the cayman islands, university of tennessee, including the department of ecology and evolutionary biology, chicago zoological society, chicago herpetological society, explorers club, the students of watkinson school in connecticut, and john and sandy binns. pertinent literature burton, f.j. 2002. grand cayman blue iguanas in the wild: a survey of the population status of cyclura nubila lewisi (working report). dugan, b. 1982. overview of section v, social organization, pp. 301–302. in g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes publications, park ridge, new jersey. 20 iguana volume 10, number 1 an iguana stands in front of one of the park’s golf carts and contemplates crawling under for some refuge from the hot midday sun. to date, two released iguanas have been run over after doing just that, though luckily one survived. photograph by rachel goodman billy, a member of the captive breeding program, opens wide for a big yawn. photograph by rachel goodman iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 20 iguana_11.2_text.ps 136 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 wasilewski the san salvador iguana (cyclura rileyi rileyi) on a recent trip to san salvador in the bahamas, iis board members joe burgess, john binns, and i had an opportunity to visit a very rare rock iguana, cyclura rileyi rileyi. once found on a number of cays in and around san salvador, these animals are presently restricted to several small cays near san salvador and a couple of cays in some salt ponds in the southern part of the island. with a total population estimated at no more than 500 individuals, c. r. rileyi is undergoing a rapid decline and has recently been extirpated from several cays. the population decline is due to the same stressors faced by all too many other species of cyclura, with predation by dogs and cats playing the major role in this instance. cyclura rileyi rileyi is a relatively small iguana with a maximum total length of no more than 700 mm. two other subspecies (c. r. cristata and c. r. nuchalis) are currently recognized and are similar in size. all are beautiful animals with a dull gray background accentuated with blotches of blue and yellow. some specimens are a bright orange. no more than 200 c. r. cristata remain on white cay in the southern exuma island chain. to gauge just how fragile certain populations are, a few years ago, these iguanas were nearly extirpated by a single raccoon released on the island by passing boaters. both of these populations also have suffered at the hands of wildlife poachers. cyclura rileyi nuchalis is found primarily in the acklins islands and has been successfully translocated to an island near the allen’s cays. largely due to their remote range, these populations seem to be holding their own and currently number around 13,000 individuals. drs. bill hayes and ron carter of loma linda university in california have studied all three subspecies for many years, and an action plan for the conservation of the san salvador iguana has been developed. most recently, hayes and carter have proposed a headstart facility. headstarting has proven to be a relatively successful strategy for other species, such as cyclura pinguis on anegada, cyclura collei in the hellshire hills of jamaica, and cyclura lewisi on grand cayman. the gerace research center on san salvador is an ideal site for a headstart facility. on-site staff could easily be trained in the husbandry of cyclura rileyi. once raised to a manageable size, iguanas could be translocated to suitable cays. to date, no such conservation project exists anywhere in the bahamas, despite the presence of three species and seven varieties of cyclura — all of which are endangered to varying degrees. a project like the proposed headstart facility may be all that it takes to trigger the development of a fully integrated wildlife conservation program in the bahamas. iguana awareness sign proudly displayed on green cay, san salvador, bahamas donated by the iis. photograph by john binns l e t t e r f r o m t h e p r e s i d e n t iguana 11.4 212 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 estimated population sizes of wild rock iguana (cyclura) populations. based on a graphic by john binns. alberts iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 213 introduction as a result of prolonged geographical isolation, native mammalian species in the west indies are few and consist mainly of bats and rodents. birds, reptiles, and amphibians have undergone significant radiations and comprise the majority of the vertebrate biodiversity in the region. most of the large islands are densely populated by people and suffer from the devastating effects of environmental degradation and introduced species (case and bolger 1991). as a result, a significant number of taxa, including many endemics, have disappeared or are on the brink of extinction. west indian rock iguanas (genus cyclura) are among the largest and most impressive members of the family iguanidae, yet they are also the rarest. all cyclura taxa are currently protected under the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora (cites). six of the nine species are considered to be critically endangered by the world conservation union (hilton-taylor 2000). although exploitation of west indian rock iguanas began long ago by native peoples, not until the arrival of europeans did rock iguana populations begin their precipitous decline. in addition to the habitat loss and degradation that inevitably result from large-scale human settlement, the commensal species that accompanied human immigrants to the islands have had a devastating impact on iguanas and their ecosystems. dogs, cats, pigs, and rats prey on iguanas and their eggs, while goats, sheep, cattle, and other livestock trample nest sites and degrade the unique plant communities on which iguanas and other native species depend. the introduction of the mongoose (herpestes javanicus) in a futile attempt to control rats has instead resulted in heavy predation on many native reptilian species, including juvenile iguanas (nellis and everard 1983, wilson et al. 2004). west indian rock iguanas inhabit dry subtropical thorn forest regions throughout the greater antilles and the bahamas. rock iguanas are primarily terrestrial, depending heavily on the presence of rocky crevices to serve as retreats, and require sandy areas with appropriate soil conditions in which to lay their eggs. most species live for multiple decades and may take several years to reach sexual maturity. social organization ranges from systems in which adult males are highly aggressive and territorial, to large groups that appear to coexist peacefully (martins and lamont conservation strategies for west indian rock iguanas (genus cyclura): current efforts and future directions allison c. alberts applied conservation division, zoological society of san diego, p.o. box 120551, san diego, ca 92112-0551, usa (aalberts@sandiegozoo.org) abstract.—as a result of habitat loss and the negative impact of introduced mammalian predators and competitors, west indian rock iguanas (genus cyclura) are among the most endangered lizards in the world. because they are important seed dispersers for native plants, their loss has serious ecological consequences for dry tropical forest and scrub habitats. six of the nine species of rock iguanas are considered critically endangered by the iucn (the world conservation union), with c. collei and c. pinguis numbering only a few hundred individuals in the wild and c. lewisi fewer than 25 individuals. conservation recommendations include further research to better understand population dynamics and ecological requirements, establishment of new protected areas and stronger enforcement within existing ones, control programs for introduced species, captive breeding and headstarting where appropriate, and public education at the local, national, and international levels. key words: cyclura, rock iguana, conservation, west indies, introduced species, habitat destruction � west indian rock iguanas radiotelemetry has proven critical to understanding movement patterns and nesting ecology of jamaican iguanas (cyclura collei) in the wild. photograph by rick hudson. 214 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • december 2004 alberts 1998). mating is seasonal, with a single clutch per year usually laid in may or june. raptors, cuckoos, herons, osprey, racers, and boas are the main natural predators of west indian iguanas, usually only of juveniles (alberts 2000a). west indian rock iguanas are almost exclusively herbivorous, consuming a wide variety of leaves, fruits, and flowers. the turks and caicos iguana (c. carinata carinata) is known to feed on at least 58 plant species (iverson 1979, auffenberg 1982), the cuban iguana (c. nubila nubila) on 25 species (perera 1985), the grand cayman blue iguana (c. lewisi) on 45 species (burton and gould, unpublished data), the sister isles rock iguana (c. nubila caymanensis) on over 40 species (g. gerber, unpublished data), and the mona island iguana (c. cornuta stejnegeri) on 71 species (wiewandt 1977). because digestion of plant foods is incomplete, seeds generally pass through the digestive tract intact (iverson 1985). hartley et al. (2000) dissected seeds from iguana scat collected in the dominican republic and compared their germination rates to seeds collected from beneath parent plants. they found that seeds that had passed through the digestive tracts of iguanas germinated more rapidly than seeds that had not, indicating that iguanas may provide significant benefits to native plants, particularly in xeric habitats with sporadic rainfall. to test whether iguanas otherwise enhance plant regeneration, we conducted an experiment at the san diego zoo using cuban iguana scat samples. half of each scat sample was dissected and all seeds removed, while the remaining half was left intact. both the dissected seeds and the seeds contained in intact scat were planted under identical conditions. while neither the time to germination nor the total number of seeds germinating differed between groups, growth rates of seedlings produced from seeds left in iguana scat were approximately twice those of seedlings originating from seeds dissected from iguana scat (alberts 2000b). in addition, the repetitive cropping of vegetation by iguanas may encourage additional shoot and foliage the turks & caicos iguana, cyclura carinata carinata, is one of six species of rock iguanas ranked as “critically endangered” on the iucn red list. as a result of the spread of invasive mammals, this species now occupies less than 10% of its historic range. photograph by glenn gerber. social organization of rock iguanas ranges from highly territorial systems to large groups, such as these exuma islands iguanas (cyclura cychlura figginsi), which appear to coexist peacefully. photograph by rick hudson. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • december 2004 215west indian rock iguanas development (knapp and hudson 2004) and that movement patterns may enhance dispersal of seeds into new microhabitats (iverson 1985). current status west indian rock iguanas are among the most endangered lizards in the world, in large part because of their exclusively insular distribution. as a result of their low metabolic rates and naturally high population densities, lizards in many mainland habitats are relatively resistant to extinction. however, the restricted ranges and small population sizes of lizards on islands render them highly susceptible to a variety of human-mediated threats. pressure to exploit undisturbed natural areas is particularly strong in the west indies, where leaving land unutilized is often perceived as economically undesirable (barzetti 1993). recolonization following local extinction on islands is likely to be rare because west indian rock iguanas, like most other terrestrial reptiles, are probably poor over-water dispersers (but see censky et al. 1998). according to the iucn (hilton-taylor 2000), three taxa of west indian rock iguanas are considered “vulnerable,” four “endangered,” and nine “critically endangered” (table 1). two taxa, the turks and caicos iguana (c. carinata carinata) and the cuban iguana (c. nubila nubila), are still fairly numerous in the wild. however, both have been nearly extirpated on the larger, more populous islands within their ranges, and today are restricted primarily to smaller, uninhabited islets or cays. although both still occur over a wide area, they are subject to a variety of human disturbances, including habitat loss and negative interactions with feral mammals. the turks and caicos iguana population has been reduced to 10% of its former range. the rhinoceros iguana (c. cornuta cornuta) and the andros island iguana (c. cychlura cychlura), both ranked as vulnerable, inhabit increasingly fragmented ranges and are threatened by invasive exotic species. the bahamas supports seven taxa of rock iguanas, more than any other nation. the majority of bahamian rock iguanas are restricted to a limited number of small islands or cays, often no more than a few hectares in area. while populations are generally stable, many of these islands are heavily visited by tourists and instances of illegal smuggling have been reported in recent years. although very small, the single population of bartsch’s the robust population of cuban iguanas (cyclura nubila) at guantanamo bay has been the subject of many years of field research by biologists in the san diego zoo’s applied conservation division. photograph by john a. phillips. like other rock iguanas, cuban iguanas (cyclura nubila) help maintain the health of native plant communities through enhanced seed dispersal, germination, and seedling growth. photograph by john a. phillips. 216 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • december 2004 alberts table 1. current conservation status of west indian rock iguana species and subspecies. taxon range countries estimated wild iucn threat population size classification turks and caicos iguana turks and caicos islands 50,000 critically endangered cyclura carinata carinata bartsch’s iguana bahamas 1,000 critically endangered cyclura carinata bartschi jamaican iguana jamaica 150 critically endangered cyclura collei rhinoceros iguana dominican republic & haiti 17,000 vulnerable cyclura cornuta cornuta mona island iguana puerto rico (isla mona) 1,500 endangered cyclura cornuta stejnegeri andros island iguana bahamas 3,500 vulnerable cyclura cychlura cychlura exuma island iguana bahamas 1,500 endangered cyclura cychlura figginsi allen’s cays iguana bahamas 1,000 endangered cyclura cychlura inornata cuban iguana cuba 40,000 vulnerable cyclura nubila nubila sister isles rock iguana cayman islands 1,500 critically endangered cyclura nubila caymanensis grand cayman blue iguana cayman islands 30 critically endangered cyclura lewisi anegada iguana british virgin islands 400 critically endangered cyclura pinguis (anegada island) ricord’s iguana dominican republic 1,300 critically endangered cyclura ricordii san salvador iguana bahamas 500 critically endangered cyclura rileyi rileyi white cay iguana bahamas 200 critically endangered cyclura rileyi cristata acklins iguana bahamas 13,000 endangered cyclura rileyi nuchalis iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 217west indian rock iguanas iguana (c. carinata bartschi) in the bahamas appears to be healthy and stable, supporting all age classes. however, this subspecies is restricted to one tiny cay with a high point of 6.2 m and most of its area less than 3 m above sea level. under these conditions, environmental catastrophes such as a heavy hurricane is a very real threat. the white cay iguana (c. rileyi cristata) has only one small population remaining from which illegal smuggling has been confirmed, and populations of the san salvador iguana (c. rileyi rileyi) have been declining at an alarming rate. currently, the jamaican iguana (c. collei), the mona island iguana (c. cornuta stejnegeri) the sister isles rock iguana (c. nubila caymanensis), the grand cayman blue iguana (c. lewisi), the anegada iguana (c. pinguis), and ricord’s iguana (c. ricordii) are far below natural carrying capacity on the islands where they occur. the jamaican iguana was believed to be extinct until the 1990 rediscovery of a tiny remnant population in the remote hellshire hills. since that time, a highly successful captive-rearing program involving over 100 juveniles has helped provide a hedge against extinction, but the wild population remains very much in peril. the mona island iguana (c. cornuta stejnegeri) occurs only on the remote island of mona, where it is scarce due to predation by feral pigs and cats, browsing by feral goats, and destruction of nest sites by feral pigs. the only remaining viable subpopulation of the sister isles rock iguana is on little cayman, and it is subject to a variety of threats including habitat loss and introduced predators. analysis of recent genetic data indicated that the grand cayman blue iguana has probably existed at an extremely small population size for an even longer period than the jamaican iguana. genetic variation among the remaining individuals examined thus far appears to be very low, and the remaining wild population may consist of as few as 30 individuals. the anegada iguana has undergone precipitous declines in recent years, primarily due to competition with feral livestock for food. the population of ricord’s iguana, historically small and disjunct, is declining as a result of habitat degradation and introduced species. the mona island iguana (cyclura cornuta stejnegeri) is the focus of a successful headstarting program managed by the puerto rico department of natural resources and the environment. photograph by glenn gerber. jamaican iguanas (cyclura collei) were believed extinct until the 1990 discovery of a small remnant population still clinging to existence in the hellshire hills. this nesting female is one of only about 150 individuals remaining in the wild. photograph by glenn gerber. threats the major threat to survival of virtually all west indian rock iguanas is habitat loss. this process takes a variety of forms, including conversion of dry forests for mining, agriculture, charcoal production, timber extraction, tourist resorts, housing developments, and other real estate ventures. an inevitable consequence of this disturbance is the arrival of human-commensal species, which can act as unnatural predators or competitors for native species. while feral cats and mongooses primarily threaten juvenile iguanas, dogs are capable of preying on adults. for some taxa, particularly the jamaican, grand cayman blue, and anegada iguanas, predation by introduced species appears severe enough that population recruitment is very low. wild populations of these species include few juveniles. similarly, predation by introduced rats on juveniles and feral cats on all age classes can lead to depressed population growth among the smaller species of rock iguanas in the bahamas and the turks and caicos islands. egg predation by feral pigs is a significant problem on mona, andros, parts of cuba, and possibly jamaica. because they trample nesting sites and decimate the native vegetation on which iguanas depend, feral livestock also poses a serious threat, particularly on anegada, mona, booby cay in the bahamas, and in parts of the turks and caicos and the dominican republic. on some of these islands, overgrazing has stunted vegetation and produced radical changes in species composition (mitchell 1999). hunting also is a threat for several taxa. the reasons for this exploitation vary; in haiti and the dominican republic, iguanas are hunted primarily for food, whereas in the bahamas and the turks and caicos, illegal poaching for international trade is becoming an increasing concern. in addition, road casualties are a significant cause of death for both adults and juveniles on islands undergoing rapid urbanization, particularly the cayman islands. current conservation measures all species of rock iguanas are protected internationally under appendix i of cites. although most also receive some degree of national legislative protection in the countries where they occur, local enforcement of regulations is sporadic. protected habitat, in the form of national parks, nature reserves, or sanctuaries, exists for approximately half of all west indian rock iguanas. however, in many cases, these areas are very small or represent only a tiny fraction of the species’ total range. even in countries with fairly extensive reserve systems, such as the turks and caicos islands, cuba, and the dominican republic, limited resources for protected area maintenance hamper enforcement capability. while some form of introduced species control is underway in the habitats of six west indian rock iguana species, these pilot programs are local and aimed at single species (feral cats on pine and water cays, turks and caicos islands; goats on booby cay, bahamas; mongooses in the hellshire hills, jamaica; feral cats on mona island, puerto rico; rats on low and white cays, bahamas). while the goal is complete eradication of feral cats and rats, other species such as mongooses will require continuous trapping to keep population numbers low in core iguana habitat (vogel et al. 1996, wilson et al. 2004). fencing has successfully excluded feral goats and pigs from iguana nest sites, particularly on mona island. because of the variety of threats posed 218 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 alberts table 2. summary of recommended conservation action for west indian rock iguanas. taxon surveys protected predator livestock field genetic education headareas control control research studies starting turks and caicos iguana • • • • • • • bartsch’s iguana • • • • • • • jamaican iguana • • • • • • rhinoceros iguana • • • • • mona island iguana • • • • • • andros island iguana • • • exuma islands iguana • • • • • allen’s cays iguana • • cuban iguana • • sister isles rock iguana • • • • • grand cayman blue iguana • • • • • • • anegada iguana • • • • • • • • ricord’s iguana • • • • • • san salvador iguana • • • • • • white cay iguana • • • • • • acklins iguana • • • • • iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 219west indian rock iguanas by invasive mammals to most species of west indian rock iguanas, control programs will need to be expanded in the future and implemented on islands where they do not yet exist. field research is making a significant contribution to the conservation of many species of west indian rock iguanas. current studies range from population censuses to ecological and systematic investigations. these should provide the scientific data necessary to begin developing species conservation plans for many taxa. to date, recovery plans have been drafted for five of the most critically endangered west indian rock iguanas: the jamaican, anegada, grand cayman blue, ricord’s, and turks and caicos iguanas. education programs are critical to the success of conservation efforts on behalf of west indian iguanas. each year, the national trust for the cayman islands holds a fair at which several thousand children have the opportunity to learn about iguanas and their habitat requirements. the national trust for the turks and caicos islands has produced a variety of educational materials, regularly provides information about iguanas to local schools, and has instituted a highly successful nature trail on little water cay. the jamaican iguana conservation program involves education of local forest habitat users, particularly charcoal burners and pig hunters. in the bahamas, signs informing tourists of the protected status and vulnerability of iguanas have been helpful, principally on small cays visited by private yachts. in 1997, the iucn iguana specialist group sponsored production of a color poster urging protection of west indian rock iguanas and distribution of the poster in as many range countries as possible. secondary populations have been established for the anegada iguana (goodyear and lazell 1994), the acklins iguana (hayes and montanucci 2000), the allen’s cays iguana (knapp 2000), and the turks and caicos iguana (mitchell et al. 2000; gerber and alberts 2000a, 2002). these satellite populations have the potential to serve as reservoirs should primary populations become extinct. similar programs are planned for the jamaican iguana and the white cay iguana, but have yet to be implemented. although habitat enhancement has the potential to contribute to conservation efforts for all west indian rock iguanas, it has only been carried out for a few taxa. clearing little water cay, a nature reserve managed by the national trust for the turks & caicos islands, supports a healthy population of approximately 2,000 turks & caicos iguanas (cyclura carinata carinata) that is visited by thousands of tourists each year. unfortunately, the island has been recently threatened by the invasion of feral cats from nearby water cay. photograph by glenn gerber. coastal limestone terrace habitat, such as that shown here at guantanamo bay, cuba, provides important refuges for cuban iguanas. photograph by allison alberts. the british virgin islands national parks trust is working closely with the iucn iguana specialist group and others to headstart juvenile anegada iguanas (cyclura pinguis) in captivity until they grow large enough to defend themselves from feral cats. to date, 48 headstarted animals have been repatriated to the wild, with a survival rate exceeding 90%. photograph by jeff lemm. patches of exotic forest has provided new nesting area on mona island, and removal of exotic vegetation to prepare a release site for head-started hatchlings is taking place on grand cayman. a dredging program has been proposed for green cay in the bahamas in order to replenish nest site sand lost as a result of hurricane lily in 1996 (hayes et al. 2004). ex situ captive programs currently exist for six populations of west indian iguanas. for jamaican and grand cayman blue iguanas, genetically managed populations are in place in u. s. zoos. these ultimately should provide a hedge against extinction in the wild. similar programs are in the initial stages for ricord’s and anegada iguanas. for cuban and rhinoceros iguanas, the american zoo and aquarium association has recommended a moratorium on further breeding due to space constraints, although these species are commonly used for display and educational purposes. in situ captive programs in jamaica, grand cayman, anegada, the dominican republic, and mona island in puerto rico are having immediate effects on population viability through the successful repatriation of headstarted juveniles. recommendations for the future for the majority of west indian rock iguanas, further survey work is required in order to design effective management and recovery plans (table 2). existing data for some taxa are outdated, whereas for others only a limited part of the range has been adequately documented. in other instances, populations are known to be declining, but quantitative data on rates of population change and their demographic effects are lacking. for all taxa, standardized annual or biannual population monitoring is critical for updating conservation priorities. detecting population declines before they have significant demographic impacts and while management intervention remains a viable option is increasingly important. many rock iguana populations remain without adequate protection because no habitat has officially been set aside for them or because existing legislation is only sporadically enforced. to ensure the survival of all taxa, enough suitable habitat to support minimum viable populations should be protected by national law in each country of origin. because the social structure, reproductive ecology, and carrying capacity of these iguanas varies considerably across taxa, the amount of habitat required for adequate protection will need to be determined on a taxon-by-taxon basis. control of introduced mammalian predators and livestock is crucial to the survival of west indian rock iguanas. because they are such devastating predators, feral dogs and cats should be eliminated from core iguana habitats whenever they are encountered. public outreach is essential to ensuring that new nonnative predators are not introduced to iguana-inhabited islands and cays. although they do not result in complete removal, trapping programs for mongooses seem to be effective in keeping population numbers sufficiently low to reduce their impact on iguanas (wilson et al. 2004). fencing in and around iguana nesting areas is a relatively inexpensive means for excluding free-ranging livestock, and should be implemented wherever feasible. basic research is critical to many if not all of the proposed conservation initiatives for west indian rock iguanas. in order to conserve and potentially augment wild populations, enough life history data from wild populations must be available in order to predict the long-term effects of alternate management strategies. such data can help to assess the carrying capacity of proposed reserve sites and determine if reintroduction or translocation is warranted and feasible. population modeling to estimate 220 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 alberts two adult male turks & caicos iguanas, cyclura carinata carinata, engaged in a display of dominance. recent studies suggest that the behavioral ecology of rock iguanas is more sophisticated and complex than previously believed. photograph by glenn gerber. sandy soils, such as those shown here in coastal cuba, are essential in order for west indian rock iguanas to nest successfully. photograph by allison alberts. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 221west indian rock iguanas minimum viable population sizes and to explore the effects of head-starting is crucial to designing successful and practical conservation. behavioral studies are needed to understand the conservation implications of variation across populations and to assess the influence of human impacts. a complete study of phylogenetic relationships among west indian rock iguanas, including both molecular genetic and morphological data, is a necessary beginning in order to adequately assign priorities to conservation initiatives (malone and davis 2004). the availability of such data will contribute toward a better understanding of adaptive trends within the group and will permit informed extrapolations from one taxon to another. as insurance against extinction in range countries, ex situ captive breeding programs are recommended for west indian rock iguanas that have experienced significant population reductions, documented low population size or a severely restricted range, or have an extinction probability of at least 20% within five generations. in order to retain the genetic diversity needed to support these populations over the long term, husbandry and breeding techniques must be improved and the support and participation of additional institutions enlisted. for taxa in which reduced juvenile recruitment threatens the survival of the wild population, headstarting programs and rigorous predator control are recommended as interim measures to allow for population recovery. finally, for the survival of virtually all taxa of west indian rock iguanas, public education is essential. without effective education at the local, national, and international levels, other conservation initiatives are likely to prove futile. educational needs range from discouraging people from feeding, hunting, and transporting iguanas between islands to inspiring local and national pride for these impressive lizards and their unique habitats. raising public awareness regarding the vulnerability of iguanas to dogs, cats, pigs, and livestock is critical to preventing their intentional introduction to new islands. iguanas represent a unique and irreplaceable component of the west indian natural heritage that must be preserved for future generations. only by working closely with local communities can we help foster the sense of pride and stewardship necessary to ensure the survival of west indian rock iguanas. educational poster highlighting the need for protection of west indian rock iguanas. courtesy of the iucn iguana specialist group. references alberts, a. c. 2000a. west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn — the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. alberts, a. c. 2000b. taxon report: cuban iguana (cyclura nubila nubila). newsletter of the iucn ssc west indian iguana specialist group 3:6–7. auffenberg, w. 1982. feeding strategy of the caicos ground iguana, cyclura carinata, pp. 84–116. in: g. m. burghardt and a. s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes, park ridge, new jersey. barzetti, v. 1993. parks and progress: protected areas and economic development in latin america and the caribbean. iucn — the world conservation union, washington, d. c. case, t. j. and d. t. bolger. 1991. the role of introduced species in shaping the distribution and abundance of island reptiles. evolutionary ecology 5:272–290. censky, e. j., k. hodge, and j. dudley. 1998. over-water dispersal of lizards due to hurricanes. nature 395:556. gerber, g. p. and a. c. alberts. 2000. taxon report: turks and caicos iguana (cyclura carinata carinata). newsletter of the iucn ssc iguana specialist group 3:10–12. gerber, g. p. and a. c. alberts. 2002. taxon report: turks and caicos iguana (cyclura carinata carinata). newsletter of the iucn ssc iguana specialist group 5:4–6. goodyear, n. c. and j. lazell. 1994. status of a relocated population of endangered iguana pinguis on guana island, british virgin islands. restoration ecology 2:43–50. hartley, l. m., r. e. glor, a. l. sproston, r. powell, and j. s. parmerlee, jr. 2000. germination rates of seeds consumed by two species of rock iguanas (cyclura spp.) in the dominican republic. caribbean journal of science 36:149–151. hayes, w. k. and r. montanucci. 2000. acklins iguana, cyclura rileyi nuchalis, pp. 60–62. in: a. c. alberts (ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn — the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. hayes, w. k., r. l. carter, s. cyril, jr., and b. thornton. 2003 (“2004”). conservation of an endangered bahamian rock iguana, i. population assessments, habitat restoration, and behavioral ecology, pp. 232–257. in: a. c. alberts, r. l. carter, w. k. hayes, and e. p. martins (eds.), iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. 222 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 alberts the preservation of quality habitat is essential to the survival of rock iguanas in the turks & caicos islands (shown here) and elsewhere in the greater antilles and the bahamas. photograph by glenn gerber. although cuban iguanas (cyclura nubila) are not recommended for breeding under the american zoo and aquarium association’s rock iguana species survival plan, they play a valuable educational role by serving as ambassadors for their more endangered cousins. photograph by allison alberts. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 223west indian rock iguanas hilton-taylor, c. 2000. 2000 iucn red list of threatened species. iucn — the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. iverson, j. b. 1979. behavior and ecology of the rock iguana, cyclura carinata. bulletin of the florida state museum, biological sciences 24:175–358. iverson, j. b. 1985. lizards as seed dispersers? journal of herpetology 19:292–293. knapp, c. r. 2000. home range and intraspecific interactions of a translocated iguana population (cyclura cychlura inornata barbour and noble). caribbean journal of science 36:250–257. knapp, c. r. and r. d. hudson. 2003 (“2004”). translocation strategies as a conservation tool for west indian iguanas: evaluations and recommendations, pp. 199–209. in: a. c. alberts, r. l. carter, w. k. hayes, and e. p. martins (eds.), iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. malone, c. l. and s. k. davis. 2003 (“2004”). genetic contributions to caribbean iguana conservation, pp. 45–57. in: a. c. alberts, r. l. carter, w. k. hayes, and e. p. martins (eds.), iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. martins, e. p. and j. lamont. 1998. estimating ancestral states of a communicative display: a comparative study of cyclura rock iguanas. animal behaviour 55:1685–1706. mitchell, n. c. 1999. effect of introduced ungulates on density, dietary preferences, home range, and physical condition of the iguana cyclura pinguis on anegada. herpetologica 55:7–17. mitchell, n., r. haeffner, v. veer, m. fulford-gardner, w. clerveaux, c. r. veitch, and g. mitchell. 2002. cat eradication and restoration of endangered iguanas (cyclura carinata) on long cay, caicos bank, turks and caicos islands, british west indies, pp. 206–212. in: c. r. veitch and m. n. clout (eds.), turning the tide: the eradication of invasive species. proceedings of the international conference on eradication of island invasives. iucn ssc invasive species specialist group. iucn, gland, switzerland, and cambridge, uk. nellis, d. w., and everard, c. o. r. 1983. the biology of the mongoose in the caribbean. studies on the fauna of curaçao and other caribbean islands 195:1–162. perera, a. 1985. datos sobre la dieta de cyclura nubila (sauria: iguanidae) en los alrededores de cayo largo del sur, cuba. poeyana 291:1–12. vogel, p., r. nelson, and r. kerr, r. 1996. conservation strategy for the jamaican iguana, cyclura collei, pp. 395–406. in: r. powell and r. w. henderson (eds.), contributions to west indian herpetology: a tribute to albert schwartz. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles contributions to herpetology, vol. 12. ithaca, new york. wiewandt, t. a. 1977. ecology, behavior, and management of the mona island ground iguana, cyclura stejnegeri. unpubl. ph.d. dissertation, cornell university, ithaca, new york. wilson, b. s., a. c. alberts, k. graham, r. hudson, r. kerr, d. lewis, n. lung, r. nelson, n. thompson, j. l. kunna, and p. vogel. 2003 (“2004”). survival and reproduction of repatriated jamaican iguanas: headstarting as a viable conservation strategy, pp. 220–231. in: a. c. alberts, r. l. carter, w. k. hayes, and e. p. martins (eds.), iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. author biography allison c. alberts is head of the applied conservation division at the san diego zoo’s center for reproduction of endangered species. she currently serves as co-chair of the iucn iguana specialist group and president of the international iguana foundation. she was co-editor of iguanas: biology and conservation, published by the university of california press. although her early research concentrated on social communication in desert and green iguanas, since 1993, she has been carrying out applied research on the critically endangered rock iguanas of the caribbean. her work includes studies on the behavior and reproductive ecology of wild iguana populations, experiments to determine optimal egg incubation parameters, population surveys, translocation programs, and educational outreach efforts. most recently, she has been exploring the utility of in-country headstarting programs as a conservation strategy for augmenting wild populations. iguana_11.2_text.ps cuban herpetology barbour, t. and c.t. ramsden. 2003. the herpetology of cuba (facsimile reprint of the original 1919 edition, with an introduction by r. ruibal). society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, ithaca, new york. vii + 142 pp. (numbered 71–213 + cover and 15 plates, as in the original publication). hardcover. $55.00. rodríguez schettino, l. (ed.). 1999. the iguanid lizards of cuba. university press of florida, gainesville. xx + 428 pp. hardcover. $85.00. rodríguez schettino, l. (ed.). 2003. anfibios y reptiles de cuba. photography by j. larramendi joa. instituto de ecología y sistemática, la habana, cuba. vi + 169 pp. hardcover. u.s. price not established (currently unavailable). about 200 species of amphibians and reptiles are known to occur in cuba, and more are being described each year as researchers more thoroughly investigate that island nation’s less-explored regions and implement modern methods to better understand relationships within this phenomenally diverse herpetofauna. our collective knowledge of the cuban biota is growing exponentially, and ecological and behavioral work on at least some species is beginning to catch up with systematic research, but the biodiversity remains one of the least well-documented in the americas. although geographically proximate to the united states, current political realities preclude most u.s. citizens (and researchers) from experiencing cuba’s many unique biotic communities. residents of other nations are free to travel to cuba, but most of the recent work on amphibians and reptiles is being conducted by cuban nationals, whose commitment and expertise is frequently impaired by scarce resources, both human and material — and both the quality and quantity of their work is testament to their dedication. in this brief review, i introduce the reader to three recently published volumes (one a reprint of an historically important work that appeared initially in 1919). they collectively serve as an effective introduction to cuba’s amphibians and reptiles. thomas barbour and charles ramsden’s synthesis of all that was known in 1919 about cuban herpetology was an update of juan gundlach’s 1880 erpetología cubana. in the foreword of the original edition, barbour noted that “… in the natural course of events many changes have taken place since that time [1880] which have affected the nomenclature and status of the species treated, while new forms have been discovered.” that statement would be just as relevant today. barbour and ramsden’s work listed 68 species and two more were added in a postscript. this stands in stark contrast to the approximately 200 cuban species recognized today. also, in addition to the many new taxa, much of the nomenclature has changed (a perpetual process that is as necessary as it is sometimes confusing; see, for example, the article on p. 78 of this issue) and we have certainly learned much about the distributions and ecological relationships of the various species. the question may arise why anyone other than the most ardent bibliophile would want to invest in a reprint of a very old book, much of the content of which is dramatically out-of-date. i would respond that the study of history is just as important in biology as in world affairs. we gain considerably by knowing where we’ve been; if nothing else, such knowledge provides us with insights on how we’ve gotten to where we are now and may also tease us with a glimpse of where we might go in the future. furthermore, barbour’s writing (he claimed responsibility for having written the text, noting that ramsden’s contributions consisted mostly of information gleaned during his many years of residency in eastern cuba) clearly demonstrated not only his knowledge but also his passion for the fauna and all things cuban. rudofo ruibal, in his introduction to the facsimile 126 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 book reviews b o o k r e v i e w s iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 127book reviews reprint, made a point of stating that barbour described himself as “aplatanado” (bananafied), a cuban term for a foreigner who has acquired cuban characteristics. that attitude is clearly evident, causing a perusal of the book to be pleasurable as well as educational. the iguanid lizards of cuba is a thorough review of the phenomenally diverse cuban species in the family iguanidae (sensu lato; for discussion of the familial status, see the article by köhler et al., iguana 10(3): 79–81). after an introduction, which includes an overview of the subject and a summary of studies on cuban species, chapters of varying length and detail cover morphology (with keys to the identification of cuban species), ecology and behavior, genetics, parasites, and biogeography. these are followed by systematic accounts of the cuban species. each account provides a list of synonyms, an overview of the species’ geographic range followed by a list of specific localities, coverage of subspecies (if applicable), a detailed description, a list of bibliographic sources arranged by topic, notations of morphological, geographic, sexual, and age variation, and extensive comments on natural history. as one might suspect, the accounts for the better known species are extensive and those for the species that have received less attention are often quite cursory. however, nowhere else can one find as much readily attainable information in one place. each account is accompanied by a detailed dot map. centrally located color plates provide illustrations of each species. these were painted from live models by lázaro gonzález pino. many are striking, although a few seem to be a bit too stylized for my taste; nevertheless, the illustrations, although live models were used, often are more effective than photographs in documenting the principal characteristics of each taxon. also included in the plates is a current vegetation map of cuba, which confirms the common plight of so many island nations and clearly shows that most of the land is devoted to cultivation or pastures. this book, like that by barbour and ramsden, was written for professional biologists, but the effectively edited text renders it fully accessible to the informed amateur. also, although illustrated, this is less a taxonomic handbook or guide than it is a phenomenally valuable reference and resource for those who are serious about the study of west indian reptiles. the third volume in this brief summary poses an unfortunate conundrum. although potentially of the greatest interest to the greatest number of readers, it is by far the least accessible of representations of cyclura nubila: “cyclura macleayi” from the valley of luis lazo, western cuba (from plate 11 in the herpetology of cuba) (upper left); adult male and juvenile (plates 7 & 8 in the iguanid lizards of cuba) (above); iguana (from anfibios y reptiles de cuba) (left). these three books. not only is it written in spanish, it is essentially unavailable in the united states at this time. if those hurdles are overcome, however, this volume provides a very effective introduction to the cuban herpetofauna. the science is solid enough to hold the interest of a professional, but the coverage is very user-friendly. lacking much of the often stultifying detail of iguanid lizards, this book concentrates on the bigger picture, addressing questions like: what species live where and why? what do they do to make a living? how do they interact with the nation’s human population? what are the principal conservation needs? furthermore, the book is profusely illustrated with photos of many species and habitats, some of them absolutely breath-taking. it’s a pleasure to merely flip the pages, even if one can’t read a single word. the initial chapter, by the editor and entitled “generalities,” introduces the reader to the herpetofauna, describes amphibians and reptiles in broad terms using cuban species as examples, and provides an overview of the island’s myriad habitats. subsequent chapters are organized by topics, some of them based on systematic relationships, others on habitat-dependent communities, and still others by particularly intriguing subjects. contributing authors addressed their own areas of expertise and interest, yet the composite flows nicely, a tribute to the editor and to decisions regarding the common format elements that provide continuity. individual chapters address treefrogs, cave dwellers, inhabitants of the leaf litter, aquatic frogs, frogs of the city, tiny anurans, toads, reptilian morphology and color, giants and dwarves, terrestrial lizards and snakes, anoles, aquatic reptiles, species that function as human commensals, popular myths, beliefs, and uses of amphibians and reptiles, and endangered species. that on myths, beliefs, and uses, albeit uniquely cuban in nature, reads surprisingly like comparable chapters detailing the many misperceptions north americans have about amphibians and reptiles, and the exploitation of many species is but a local chapter in a worldwide volume of abuses. similarly, the chapter on conservation needs, although focusing on cuban concerns, deals with situations equally applicable to those of any country, especially those of developing island nations. a checklist showing distribution by biotic provinces, a glossary, a short list of selected references, and information about the authors complete the volume. other than the expected discrepancies between the coverages of common, well-studied species and those about which almost nothing is known, the book provides a surprisingly complete coverage. i sometimes found myself wishing for references to source publications, but then i remembered that the intended audience wasn’t the professional biologist. i also wanted more detailed accounts of individual species, but had to remind myself that this volume was designed to serve as an overview and not as an intensive reference. its stated goals, however, to educate and entertain, are admirably achieved. my wanting more speaks eloquently to the quality of what is there. one can only hope for an english translation in the near future. so, should readers invest a considerable sum of money and possibly even more effort to acquire these books, none of which are likely to be found on the shelves of major retailers or in a neighborhood library? i can’t speak for everyone, but i did — and am eminently pleased that i did. i enjoyed each book the first time i opened its pages, and i not infrequently pull one or more of them from the shelf, often to look up a particular piece of information, but at least occasionally to merely experience, albeit vicariously, the cuban amphibians and reptiles i would dearly love to study firsthand, an opportunity so far denied, except for an all-too brief visit to the guantanamo naval base on a trip to navassa island — but that’s another story altogether. robert powell avila university kansas city, missouri 128 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 book reviews additional references readers who have an interest in the cuban herpetofauna, or that of the west indies in general, or merely enjoy the historical perspectives of herpetology might want to examine the following volumes: crother, b.i. (ed.). 1999. caribbean amphibians and reptiles. academic press, san diego, california. this edited volume includes an historical perspective, detailed reviews of the greater antillean islands and of the lesser antilles (that on cuba, by alberto estrada and rodolfo ruibal, is particularly pertinent to this review), plus chapters on ecology, evolutionary relationships, biogeography, and a comparison of the west indian and middle american faunas. henderson, r.w. and r. powell (eds.). 2003. islands and the sea: essays on herpetological exploration in the west indies. contributions to herpetology, volume 20. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, ithaca, new york (reviewed by rick hudson, iguana 10(4): 151–152). although written by many of the same scientists who contributed to some of the other volumes listed here, the essays contained in this book tell of experiences and events. although many of the chapters are informative, the delight comes from hearing the stories to which anyone who has participated in fieldwork can relate. an introduction and a chapter on historical perspectives provide some context, with the emphasis on people and their impressions rather than their research. powell, r. and r.w. henderson (eds.). 1996. contributions to west indian herpetology: a tribute to albert schwartz. contributions to herpetology, volume 12. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, ithaca, new york. still another edited volume, this book includes vignettes about albert schwartz, in whose memory it was published, an historical perspective, a checklist of west indian species (since updated on two occasions in herpetological review), and 27 research reports by various scientists working in the region. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. this volume provides detailed descriptions, dot maps, and extensive notes on the natural history of the region’s many species of amphibians and reptiles. note that this is not a guide, animals are not illustrated — but, for anyone with more than a casual interest in the topic, this volume is essential. the brief “envoi” testifies to the passion of the authors. iguana 10.4 b&w text i g u a n a n e w s b r i e f s 153iguanadecember 2003 new cyclura residence at the bristol zoo although green iguanas remain popular pets, interest in iguanas in england is minimal, and opportunities to see them are virtually non-existent. the genus cyclura is represented solely by cyclura cornuta, the hispaniolan rhinoceros iguana, and british zoo policy permits concentration on only that species. rhinoceros iguanas represent what the british refer to as “large iguanas.” the royal zoological society in london and chester zoo (north of england zoological society) both have colonies of “rhinos,” as does the bristol zoo in the southwest of england. the bristol zoological gardens were founded in 1835 by a group of local citizens and opened to the public in 1836. it is the fifth oldest zoo in the world and the oldest not in a capital city. over 200 shareholders contributed the capital that enabled the land purchase and zoo construction. some of the descendants of the original shareholders remain connected with the zoo, but their only benefit is free admission. buildings are scattered across pleasant gardens, a lake enhances the landscape, and winding pathways connect one animal area to another. principal attractions include okapis, gorillas, tapirs, seals, penguins, and flamingos. tim skelton, head of amphibians and reptiles, spent five years at the edinburgh zoo and has been at bristol for the same length of time. as recently as 2001, two large cyclura were housed in a large room and two smaller individuals were held in a separate, smaller cage. the larger animals were suffering from skin problems, likely due to insufficient access to direct sunlight and an inappropriate substrate. the pair of large rhinoceros iguanas both hatched in february 1980, the female at the taronga zoo in sydney, australia, and the male in the dominican republic (later sent to taronga). both were received from taronga in november 1986. the female has laid eggs, most recently three years ago; all were infertile. the sub-adults are both four-year old males that were hatched at the prague zoo. efforts to house all four together were not successful, as the older pair would not tolerate the younger individuals. a plan to build new outdoor and indoor enclosures for the large iguanas and three aldabra tortoises (dipsochelys dusummieri = geochelone gigantea) is now complete. the new house is approximately 30 m2 in size and is landscaped with tropical plants. it is thermostatically heated and has a cool fan for hotter days. windows are automatically controlled and the pool has a waterfall. water is kept at 25°c. the outdoor enclosure is roughly 130 m2. both adult iguanas and the giant tortoises have access to this area through wide “hospital” flaps of thick, transparent plastic; these keep the heat in when the animals come and go. the cost of this elaborate project was in excess of £50,000 ($82,000), a magnificent sum of money to spend on iguanas and tortoises, but the result is a fine new exhibit that greatly enhances the visibility of both species. the keepers have indicated that the iguanas’ skin problems are rapidly disappearing, and that outdoor access adult male cyclura cornuta in the new indoor pen. photograph by john bendon. the entire outdoor enclosure; the large male cyclura cornuta and an aldabra tortoise are visible. photograph by john bendon. i g u a n a n e w s b r i e f s 154 iguana volume 10, number 4 has led to dramatic behavioral changes — both animals are considerably more active and alert, and their appetite has increased sharply. hopefully, access to direct sunlight will also trigger successful breeding behavior. john s. bendon kansas city herpetological society supports jamaican iguana conservation shortly after the rediscovery of the jamaican iguana (cyclura collei) in 1991, the kansas city herpetological society (kchs) donated funds to the hope zoo to facilitate the creation of a captive breeding program for this critically endangered species. this year, the kchs donated $1500 in continued support of this species and this important project. the kchs would like to encourage other regional societies to get involved with important long-term conservation projects and continue to support them over time. david nieves, kchs anegada iguana releases on 5–12 october 2003, 24 stout iguanas (cyclura pinguis) headstarted at the anegada headstart facility, british virgin islands, were released into two very distinct habitat types. the first cohort of 12 (6.6) was released into dense forest over a reef limestone substrate on middle cay. the area supports a population of iguanas, including many large adults. the second group of 12 was released in the bones bight area near the faulkner house, a well-known landmark on anegada. this area supports a fairly robust (by anegada standards) population of iguanas with numerous burrows and nests. these releases and subsequent monitoring are being funded by the international iguana foundation (iif). principals involved with the releases were rick hudson (fort worth zoo), kelly bradley (dallas zoo), who, with glenn gerber (san diego zoo cres), is responsible for monitoring the iguanas post-release, lee pagni, an education specialist hired by the san diego zoo to canvas local opinions and develop a proactive education plan, jeff lemm (san diego zoo cres), and joe wasilewski (international iguana society), who filmed the event. a veterinary team from the fort worth zoo had previously implanted transmitters in the abdominal cavities of the 24 iguanas. the releases went well and seeing some local residents assist with the releases was gratifying. the national parks trust staff was there with the local media. coverage in the local newspapers was good, and international coverage included cnn news online. bradley and lemm remained onsite for several days after the releases and they reported visual sightings of the iguanas every other day. the iguanas appear to be settling in and not moving far (except for two). rondell smith (trust employee) will track the animals weekly while bradley is off-island. this event was significant in that the headstart program has now come an adult cyclura collei in the breeding facility at hope zoo in jamaica. successful breeding remains a challenge, but the proposed upgrade to these enclosures holds promise for the future. photograph by john binns. post-release cyclura pinguis surveying his surroundings from a dead loblolly tree on middle cay. photograph by rick hudson. i g u a n a n e w s b r i e f s 155iguanadecember 2003 full circle: one of the three iguanas initially placed in the headstart facility by hudson and lemm in 1997 was one of the first animals released. the plan is to establish a regular cycle in which iguanas are released each year to accommodate the new hatchlings collected in october. this year just over 20 hatchlings from marked nests were placed in the facility. the headstart facility is in excellent condition. the iguanas appear robust, healthy, and well-fed. the gardens are well-kept, with lots of iguana food being grown by the primary caretaker, lee vanterpool, who also collects native iguana food plants to supplement their diet. rick hudson, co-chair iguana specialist group the iis in seattle joe wasilewski, joe burgess, and john binns represented the iis this fall at the pacific science center in seattle for the northwest herpetological society’s “reptiles around the world.” the two-day educational event was attended by reptile enthusiasts, beginners, and the curious. the iis contingent promoted iguana conservation and responsible pet ownership. izzy, john’s large cuban iguana (cyclura nubila), became the star of the event, drawing admirers to learn more about this spectacular animal. joe w. conducted several reptile shows for museum guests and demonstrated how a cute little iguana or snake can grow to be a powerful animal that can rapidly outgrow its home. he also discussed what types of reptiles would or wouldn’t make good pets and graphically described the consequences of an impulse buy. mexican iguana group is online information about the activities of the subcomité técnico consultivo para la conservación, manejo y aprovechamiento sustentable de las iguanas in méxico (advisory technical subcommittee for the conservation, management, and utilization of iguanas in mexico) is available on the subcommittee’s new webpage (http:// www.subcomitedeiguanas.org/). victor hugo reynoso departamento de zoologia instituto de biologia, unam méxico, d.f. the iis table at the pacific science center. the iis contingent in seattle: izzy, john binns, joe wasilewski, and joe burgess (left to right). jeff lemm and kelly bradley are shown tracking newly released cyclura pinguis from the back of a truck for elevation in the bones bight area. photograph by rick hudson. i g u a n a n e w s b r i e f s 156 iguana volume 10, number 4 the iis and iguana education iis members john and sandy binns visited the boys & girls club of the peninsula in east palo alto, california and shared the iguana experience with over 140 children ranging in age from 6–14 years. topics included a general overview of reptiles, daily struggles specific lizards face both in the wild and captivity, human perceptions, and conservation efforts in the past, present, and future. the children were excited and full of questions, as many of them had never seen or even heard of these animals. each child had the opportunity for an up-close encounter with several different species including green, cuban, and rhino iguanas, spiny-tailed dwarf monitor, uromastyx, chuckwalla, and bluetongued skink. sandy binns first blue iguana sponsored in 2003 the john gray recyclers, a high school club on grand cayman island, became the first sponsor of a blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) hatched this year. the club, which promotes recycling, raised over us $900 to name and sponsor “quincy” for a year. the name comes from “quincentennial,” acknowledging the 500th anniversary of the “discovery” of the cayman islands, which is being celebrated in 2003. quincy, who will keep the name permanently, is a very special little iguana; he was born with an incomplete forelimb on one side. the money raised will help support quincy and his siblings as part of the blue iguana recovery program and help ensure the survival of the most endangered reptilian species on earth. for more information on the sponsorship program, see www.blueiguana.ky. the boys & girls club of east palo alto, california were delighted by a visit from john binns (front row, holding an iguana) and sandy binns (front row, right). quincy is one of a record 84 blue iguanas hatched this year at the captive breeding facility on grand cayman. photograph by fred burton. iguana_11.1_bw_text iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 29 allen’s cays iguanas, cyclura cychlura inornata: summary report for 2003 field work this year was confined to a single trip (14–21 may 2003), during which we captured 214 iguanas on leaf cay (95% of them recaptures!) and 102 on u cay (93% recaptures). we have made 4543 captures over the 24 years of this study. leaf cay probably supports at least 600 iguanas, and u cay perhaps 300. the pattern of most captures being made on the big west beach of leaf cay continued, with 58% being made there (154 of 350 or 44% last year). the profound attraction of the iguanas to the tourist feeding beach cannot be denied. a female u cay iguana (marked there first in 1992, now 18.7 years old, and last observed nesting on 7 july 2002) was discovered on the streets of nassau on 3 may 2003. we also captured seven iguanas on allen cay (57% recaptures), including a large male originally marked on leaf cay in 1998, and last caught on leaf cay last may. we also had captured a marked male from leaf cay on allen cay last year. excluding the two relocated males on allen cay, in the past three years we have captured a total of five females and six males there. the population may number between 15 and 20 based on our subjective walking censuses. in addition, a possible sighting of a juvenile suggests that, although upland sandy areas are absent, at least one female may have found a suitable nesting site. barn owl predation (and possible iguana predation) on shearwaters remains a concern. we also briefly visited flat rock reef cay, north of leaf cay, and confirmed that at least 15 iguanas are present on this newly colonized island. although extremely wary, we observed juveniles and captured three lizards, including a large male originally marked on leaf cay, and last captured there in march of 1996. because of the distance and local currents, this animal was certainly moved there by humans. of ten large (>40 cm svl) males captured last may on the big west beach of leaf cay, we captured only six this may. the disturbing, ongoing pattern of disappearing large males on leaf cay continues. we suspect that “tourists” may be relocating large, “aggressive,” nuisance male iguanas from the primary tourist feeding beach on leaf cay to other cays. iguanas in the allen’s cays clearly are being increasingly disturbed by humans through translocation, overfeeding, and likely poaching (for the food and/or pet trades). as we recommended in last year’s report, a desperate need exists for the construction of an “iguana information kiosk” on both leaf and u cays. not only could this provide general natural history information to interested tourists, but it could also explain the dangers of harassing, improperly feeding, and relocating the iguanas, as well as the potential threats presented by feral animals. we continue to implant pit tags as time and money permit, and have now pit-tagged a total of 506 lizards. we had three pit tag failures this year (i.e., the tags were palpable under the skin, but transmitted no signal) and one in which we could detect no signal but also could not palpate the transponder. we also noted that a few pit tags injected in previous years had migrated ventrally along the body wall from the site of injection. this mislead us in past years into thinking that the tag was missing/non-functional in a few individuals, when it was, in fact, still present. as a result, at least two iguanas now have two pit tags. in general, the failure rate of pit tags is quite low, as is the failure rate of toe clips due to natural toe loss. the combination of the two methods is optimal for our study populations. although we had intended to spend mid-june to mid-july again this year in the allen’s cays monitoring the iguana nesting season for a third year, family health issues prevented that. however, the results of our two-year nesting study are in press. we will return in may 2004 for another census, and we are planning long-term to repeat our nesting study in the summers of 2008–2010. john b. iverson department of biology, earlham college, richmond, indiana 2003 isg meeting abstracts 2003 isg meeting—providenciales, turks & caicos islands abstracts allen’s cays iguana (cyclura cychlura inornata). photograph by lynne pieper. � the blue iguana, cyclura lewisi, recovery programme, grand cayman: summary of progress for 2003 detailed quarterly updates on the blue iguana recovery programme have been circulated by email to isg members and the wider public, with back numbers available on request (email: fjburton@candw.ky). this document is a summary of the period from december 2002 to november 2003. protected habitat.—with the imminent release of approximately 25 subadult c. lewisi hatched in 2001 into the qe ii botanic park, that 65-acre property would be supporting its maximum carrying capacity. this means subsequent releases should be directed at restocking or reintroducing animals into a new area. discussions have been held with the cayman islands government, which in 2003 acquired a 295-acre land holding in east end interior, within the recent historic range of c. lewisi. the land, which is a working farm with areas of uncultivated shrubland and some wetland forest, was purchased as an extension to the local prison’s farm, and as the site of a future wilderness rehabilitation center for minor offenders and low risk long-term prisoners. the ministry responsible for the prison service has reacted positively to the suggestion that the land could also serve as a site to support a second wild, managed population of blue iguanas, involving the prison inmates in associated conservation work. realization of this possibility will depend mainly on accessing the substantial funds that will be needed to effectively protect this site from roaming dogs and feral cats, both of which are abundant in this area. an extensive predator exclusion fence will be required, followed by an intensive cat and dog eradication effort. programme staffing.—funds from iif and a local corporate source allowed the program to hire its only paid staff member, ms. desiree ebanks, in january 2003. ms. ebanks has been working 4 h/day, 6 days/week caring for the rapidly expanding captive population. as a result, for the first time in many years, we are able to feed the captives a diet dominated by wild food, collected daily from sites around the island. with the dramatic increase in the captive population in 2003, ms. ebanks’ working hours must be increased, with corresponding demands on project funding. f. burton has continued to direct the programme on a full-time voluntary basis throughout the year. craig pelke, area supervisor at the milwaukee county zoo, visited grand cayman for two weeks under a funding scheme from his zoo to assist in the field with the blue iguana recovery program. overseas, voluntary and professional support has continued to flow from many individuals in the isg and iif networks. volunteer assistance has surged, ranging from weekend work parties painting new breeding pens through service club assistance to major corporate participation. prison labor also has been used extensively. captive breeding and head-starting.—a total of 86 c. lewisi were successfully hatched from incubated eggs on grand cayman in 2003. of these, 32 are captive-bred; the remainder was hatched from eggs laid by the released, managed population living in the qe ii botanic park. the latter were collected for head-starting. survival is almost 100%. the resurgence in captive breeding success was attributed to improved diet (see above) and improved space. two new founders bred well, providing important genetic stock, some of which is destined for breeding loans to us facilities. the large boost in numbers from qeiibp wild nests reflects increased nesting surveillance, and the increased output from the park’s growing females. the age profile of the released population is still very young (max. 8 years old), so the output from this population is expected to continue to climb. the breeding facilities expanded by four large breeding pens (36 x 48 ft), into which the large adult breeders were moved (one pair per pen) in march. the iguanas’ physical condition improved visibly after the move and pairs that did not breed last year, resumed breeding. however, two key males (hal and billy) remained infertile, the former only beginning to recover from severe chronic malnutrition during a period of illegal captivity, the latter possibly lacking the stimulation of seeing other males during the breeding season. a second phase of expansion of the breeding facilities commenced in july, with construction of more hatchling cages, site preparation for small adult breeding and holding pens, and a contained area for hatchling and second year cages. when this work is complete, the facility will be able to manage 100 new hatchlings per year (which will be head-started for two years before release) and sufficient adult holding space for current and projected needs. two new potential founders were captured from the wild in 2003, both young animals (one hatched in 2002 and one in 2003) were found in situations where continued survival in the wild was unlikely. stephanie james (wildlife conservation society) visited during the year to health-screen animals destined for release as well as selected adults. preliminary results confirm that the releases are safe to go, and the health of the captive population is generally excellent. education and awareness.—“blue dragon,” a joint programme of the national trust for the cayman islands and the cayman islands national gallery, has been active throughout the year. this is an art-based project designed to attract interest from the entire local community. sixteen giant fiberglass sculptures of the blue iguana were commissioned from a studio in the usa, delivered unpainted, and offered to selected local artists as a medium for expressive art. a wide range of interpretations is appearing, varying from realism to the abstract. each iguana, once painted, will be permanently placed in a public area, with a sign providing core facts about the blue iguana and information about the artists and their inspiration. the project also involves school 30 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 2003 isg meeting abstracts grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi). photograph by fred burton. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 312003 isg meeting abstracts activities and a new “blue dragon” poster designed for young teenagers. the sculptures are expected to last at least 10–20 years. building on the surge of awareness about the blue iguana, a longer-term approach is also underway. an education module for the local national schools curriculum, centered on the blue iguana, is under development. local education specialist, juliet austin, is under contract to deliver modules through 2003–4. a short film, designed mainly for school use in association with the curriculum modules, was filmed gratis by dorothea schwab (wild wings vision, cologne, germany). postproduction awaits funding for studio rental, professional editing, and sound work. the programme has remained high profile in local news media, and a quarterly email newsletter “blue iguana tales” has been launched. the project web site (www.blueiguana.ky) continues to see incremental enhancements, thanks in large part to john and sandy binns. funding.—the phase 1 expansion of the captive breeding facility was paid for with grants from the disney wildlife conservation fund, maples finance (cayman), tulsa zoo, woodland park zoo, ircf, and iis, with assistance from fort worth zoo. a grant from iif has been directed to generating sustainable financing, with retail products and a sponsorship program. sale of mouse pads (designed and produced in collaboration with john and sandy binns) has yielded approx. $5,000 to date, and a “sponsor an iguana” programme was launched in october. funds from the disney wildlife conservation fund are covering the school curriculum work in part. a grant also has been secured from aza/conservation endowment fund to pay for materials needed in the phase 2 expansion of the captive breeding facility. a small grant from the st. louis herpetological society is paying for creation of nest mounds for the released iguanas in the qeiibp. research.—work on the taxonomic status of the blue iguana has progressed: fred burton, assisted by karen graham and trey harrison, photographed reference specimens at the university of kansas natural history museum for scale analysis, and additional images were provided by the san diego zoo. fred has since submitted a paper, “taxonomic status of the grand cayman blue iguana,” to the caribbean journal of science, which is now accepted subject to final revisions. the paper elevates the blue iguana to full species status, as cyclura lewisi. rachel goodman, university of tennessee, is currently writing the results of her fieldwork on grand cayman, and will be publishing a series of papers on the released c. lewisi population in the qeiibp. an additional paper (burton, goodman, & gould), covering the diet of wild c. lewisi in various environments, is in preparation. institutional.—the national trust for the cayman islands and the durrell wildlife conservation trust recently signed a memorandum of understanding that formally involves dwct in the blue iguana recovery programme. this is a general framework agreement, with details of joint project activities yet to be determined. the programme continues to operate under the auspices of the national trust for the cayman islands, with a wide range of local and international partners. frederic j. burton, director blue iguana recovery programme, grand cayman jamaican iguana field research and recovery project: 2003 summary forest use.—charcoal burning along the trail used by the iguana field team has greatly diminished. however, burners are encroaching deep into the forest along other trails. also, harvesting of sticks in coastal areas remains a problem and has created a security risk for conservation activities in the south. nesting season.—a total of 12 females showing indications of nesting were observed at the known nesting sites. excavation and closing of the nest was confirmed in seven females. nesting activities lasted from 1–20 june, and peaked 8–11 june. eight of the 12 females could be individually identified by pit tags and/or beads. two of these females were repatriated headstarters, including one that was observed nesting for the first time. from 2000–2003, a total of 15 tagged females nested at the known sites; six of these females were repatriated headstarters. blood of five animals (four nesting females and a male) was collected during the nesting season for analysis. hatching.—hatchlings emerged from 25 august to 14 september and were intercepted by fences around the nesting sites. nine batches of hatchlings could be distinguished, probably representing different clutches. overall, 71 hatchlings were recorded, of which 68 (sex ratio 31:37) were equipped with pit tags; 24 hatchlings were taken to the hope zoo. repatriations.—nine headstarted animals were repatriated on 28 september, increasing the total number of repatriations to 57. an additional 8–9 iguanas will be released later in the year. maximum confirmed period of survival in the field after repatriation was extended by 1–2 years for four previously released iguanas. predator control.—the system of 40 live traps continued to operate and produced similar results as in previous years, capturing mongooses, cats, and rats. experiments using “artificial nests” (chicken eggs) to assess the effectiveness of the predator control measures were expanded. pitfall trap survey.—the annual pitfall trap survey was conducted from 23 january to 22 april. it monitors possible positive population responses of rare species, particularly among the grounddwelling herpetofauna, to the reduced density of mongooses. portland bight protected area (pbpa).—jamaica’s conservation authority (nepa) has assigned major management responsibilities to an environmental ngo (ccam) for parts of the pbpa — but excluding the hellshire hills and goat islands. although ccam has some non-management functions for jamaican iguana (cyclura collei). photograph by john binns. these latter areas as well, actual management will be up to the landowner, the urban development company (udc). it remains to be seen how udc and ccam will split responsibilities for the areas that are most important to the iguanas. cooperation between the two organizations has failed so far. work on the establishment of a satellite population of iguanas on great goat island will have to await the clarification of these management issues. peter vogel department of life sciences, university of the west indies, kingston, jamaica � territorial and reproductive behavior of the mona rock iguana, cyclura cornuta stejnegeri in march 2003, the university of puerto rico (upr), in collaboration with the department of natural and environmental resources (dner), initiated a three-year project on the mona island iguana, cyclura cornuta stejnegeri. our final goal is to gather information about the biology of the mona island iguana to create a model establishing the actual status of the population, and to provide the conceptual framework for conservation efforts of this species. specifically we want: (1) to understand the pattern of habitat use and territoriality, (2) to determine the mating system and variance in reproductive success, and (3) to quantify the survival and recruitment of young iguanas into the adult breeding population. we are using radio telemetry of males, females, and immature individuals, mark-recapture, geographical information systems, and paternity analysis. to date, we have captured 40 animals of all sizes that were measured, photographed, and marked (i.e., pit-tags, colored beads, dorsal scale removal). tissue samples also were taken from each iguana. five marked animals were headstarted iguanas that were released into the wild more than a year ago. in addition, fourteen of the captured iguanas have been radio-marked, producing information about home range and habitat use before, during, and after the nesting season. during the hatching season, we collected and processed the offspring of ten radio-marked females for paternity analyses. some of these hatchlings are kept in captivity in the headstarting facilities and others were released into the wild. for the next year, we plan to include two new areas for documenting habitat use and territoriality of radio-marked iguanas in different environmental conditions (e.g., vegetation structure, availability of crevices) through seasons. in addition, we plan to start radio-marking mid-sized iguanas and conduct extensive capture-recapture sessions in the selected areas. nestor pérez and owen mcmillan university of puerto rico, río piedras alberto o. alvarez and miguel a. garcia puerto rico department of natural and environmental resources, san juan � 2003 research update for exuma (cyclura cychlura figginsi) and andros (c. c. cychlura) islands, bahamas research in the exuma islands, bahamas focused primarily on surveying the translocated iguana (cyclura cychlura figginsi) population on pasture cay in the exuma cays land and sea park and the natural populations on bitter guana and gaulin cays. in february 1992, 16 exuma island iguanas were translocated from leaf cay (nw of lee stocking island) to pasture cay, exuma cays land and sea park. during the 2003 field season, our primary objective was to initiate a live-trap rat study, check the status of the translocated iguanas, and search for evidence of first year iguana recruitment. a total of 137 trap nights was recorded on 26–27 may. eleven rats (including one recapture) were registered, marked by toe clipping, and released. thirteen iguanas were captured, including one first-year hatchling. the recaptured adult iguanas all appeared healthy. finding a healthy first-year hatchling was encouraging, and supports my supposition that rats do not pose a significant threat to iguana populations. more data obviously are needed to substantiate this hypothesis and the study will be expanded in future years. unfortunately, two large male iguanas died after translocation. on 24 december 2003, iguana #11 was discovered washed up on a compass cay beach. the carcass was recovered by volunteers from the exuma cays land and sea park and turned over to me. the other iguana (#12) was last seen by park volunteers in march 2003 and discovered dead on 25 april 2003. the carcass was left on the main southwest beach, but was not recovered by my team. objectives for the 2003 andros field season included: (1) estimating population density, (2) determining home range and habitat preferences for adults, (3) investigating reproductive ecology, (4) determining dispersal distances, habitat preference, and survival of hatchlings, (5) performing ethnographic interviews with local bahamians concerning historic and contemporary iguana exploitation, and (6) distributing tourist surveys relating to perceptions of iguanas and willingness to pay national park entrance fees. lack of space precludes covering all objectives here so the focus of this report will be reproductive ecology and hatchling survival. 32 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 2003 isg meeting abstracts mona island iguana (cyclura cornuta stejnegeri). photograph by robert powell. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 332003 isg meeting abstracts the reproductive ecology portion of the research was extremely successful. the andros iguana is the only iguana documented to nest in termite mounds, but i had only mild success finding nests in 2001 (n = 1) and 2002 (n = 3). however, 18 nests were discovered in 2003. clutch size ranged from 3–19 eggs and svl of ovipositing females ranged from 34.0–44.6 cm. a number of termite mound parameters (height and circumference, % vegetation cover, distance to < 50% canopy coverage, and average skirt depth) were recorded for used and unused mounds. significant differences were evident only in mound height and average skirt depth. temperature data loggers also were placed in and above five used mounds to record internal nest and surrounding ambient temperatures. temperatures inside mounds were significantly higher and more constant than in the ambient environment. radio transmitters were attached to 41 hatchlings from seven nests in five locations and they were subsequently tracked for up to eight weeks. hatchlings remained alive for an average of eight days, and only two hatchlings remained alive at the end of the study. one hatchling was presumed taken by a bird, another by a fish, and the remainder by snakes. we will return in 2004 to track additional hatchlings, but these results suggest that snake predation is significant on andros and possibly throughout the west indies. charles knapp conservation department, john g. shedd aquarium, chicago, illinois and department of wildlife ecology and conservation, university of florida, gainesville � anegada iguana, cyclura pinguis: 2003 update on field research and release project in july 2003, the remaining wild population of c. pinguis was surveyed by an eight-member team of volunteers. due to time constraints, the survey was confined to the western half of the island, which is believed to support the majority of the existing population. over 50 km of line transects were walked, during which all sightings of animals, retreats, tracks, and feces were recorded. nearly all of the sightings were confined to the known core iguana area on the northwestern coast of the island, and the boundaries of this area were more precisely delineated than ever before. all iguana sightings were of adult animals, indicating that the population’s age structure is still heavily skewed. iguana sightings were very few, making reliable estimates of population density or size difficult (but in progress). nevertheless, based on previous fieldwork, the population apparently has declined further in recent years. in an effort to offset this decline, 24 headstarted iguanas, believed to be large enough to survive in the wild with cats, were released in early october. this event was the first release to take place since the headstart project began in 1997. in april 2003, veterinary staff from the fort worth zoo conducted a thorough health screening of all the potential candidates for release. the veterinary staff returned to surgically implant temperature-sensitive radio transmitters in the animals selected for release during the last week of september. released iguanas had an even sex ratio and were equally divided between two size classes, averaging 1,005 g and 1,345 g, respectively (total range: 800–2000 g). twelve of the animals (six from each size class and sex) were released in the sandy scrub of eastern bones bight, whereas the other twelve were released in the interior rocky woodland of middle cay. both release sites are within the core area and contain some of the best habitat remaining on anegada. animal locations were recorded daily by direct observation for the first 24 days after the initial release. during this period, focal-animal observations on several individuals each day examined the behavior of the iguanas, with particular attention to foraging and intraspecific interactions. in addition, a remote data-logging telemetry station was used to continuously record body temperatures of the released animals to determine thermoregulatory patterns. to date, one loss has been experienced. the animal was found dead shortly after release; its surgical incision had reopened. all other animals are doing well. additional monitoring of the released animals will take place during fieldtrips in november/december, january, march, may, and july. the released animals will be captured periodically to assess growth and general health. glenn gerber zoological society of san diego cres, san diego, california kelly bradley department of herpetology, dallas zoo, dallas, texas anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis). photograph by john binns.exuma islands iguana (cyclura cychlura figginsi). photograph by john binns. public attitudes and perceptions regarding conservation of the anegada iguana, cyclura pinguis: the use and role of social surveys in conservation the public can have a major influence on the success of conservation programs, therefore, understanding and adequately addressing any concerns they might have is important. understanding public attitudes and perceptions about conservation strategies is an important first step toward this end. in an effort to develop educational programs that will increase public support for strategies to conserve the anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis), i carried out a survey of local attitudes and perceptions in july 2003. i interviewed 36 residents of anegada, british virgin islands (representing approximately 30% of the population) using a semi-structured format. respondents were asked whether they supported or did not support four different conservation strategies: headstarting, cat eradication, national park implementation, and translocation. respondents also were asked questions to assess their awareness regarding threats to and conservation strategies for the iguanas. the respondents highly supported three conservation measures: headstarting, cat eradication, and national park implementation. they were less supportive of translocation. in terms of awareness, respondents were generally aware of the threat that cats pose to the iguanas and the role that the headstart facility plays in counteracting this threat. this information is extremely useful for the implementation of conservation strategies. the non-structured interview format was essential for obtaining other information about the community: perceptions, questions, and concerns that are additionally important. collecting information on public attitudes raises the question of when and how public input should be used to guide management decisions. lee e. pagni conservation education consultant for the zoological society of san diego ricord’s iguana, cyclura ricordii: isla cabritos population census 2003 in 2003, three teams of people from the indianapolis zoo, zoodom, and the fort worth zoo conducted iguana population surveys on isla cabritos, dominican republic. the work was funded primarily by the indianapolis zoo, with support from zoodom, the miami metro zoo, and the cleveland metroparks zoo. on the first trip in april (which corresponded loosely with the breeding season), we used gps units to set 20 transects that ran the width of the island every 500 m to the east of the main trail. we also collected our first set of data, recording all iguana sightings (ricord’s and cyclura cornuta), as well as iguana sign such as dens, scat, etc. we also recorded sightings of cats, donkeys, horses, and cows. the island currently is connected to the mainland with a wide land bridge, and hoofed stock is much more numerous, especially on the west end of the island. we were pleased to find ricord’s iguanas in fairly good numbers at several sites. in fact, they seemed to be more numerous than c. cornuta in the center of the island. in june, which we hoped would correspond with the nesting season, another group set four more transects, and walked each of the 24 collecting data. several nests were marked during this trip, but the rangers believed that the animals had nested early this year due to early rains. in september, the last group walked all of the transects, and observed hatchling ricord’s iguanas in two areas. the data are in the process of being formally analyzed and a more detailed report will follow. many thanks to all the teams who suffered heat exhaustion, dehydration, scorpions in tents, geckos in the outhouse, and pony stampedes at night to collect these data! other cyclura ricordii news: • four hatchlings at zoodom are doing well. you might remember that seven hatched during the isg meeting last year; two died right away and one was accidentally crushed in the exhibit. animal information has been passed to tandora grant for the studbook. no eggs were laid this year. 1.3 animals are currently on exhibit. 34 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 2003 isg meeting abstracts ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii). photograph by robert powell. lee pagni interviews an anegadian about attitudes regarding iguana conservation. photograph by clinton “lee” vanterpool. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 352003 isg meeting abstracts • grupo jaragua and the indianapolis zoo submitted a grant proposal to the pittsburgh zoo to support a socioeconomic study of why people are hunting iguanas in the pedernales area. this is based on the preliminary survey work done by ernst rupp in this area. • indianapolis zoo, zoodom, and grupo jaragua submitted a major grant proposal to the u.s. fish & wildlife service to support teacher and community education programs in santo domingo and towns bordering iguana habitat. • a meeting date in 2004 needs to be set to discuss survey findings and determine next steps for a recovery plan based on these data. jan ramer, dvm indianapolis zoo, indianapolis, indiana � the technical consulting subcommittee for the conservation, management, and sustained exploitation of iguanas in méxico the technical consulting subcommittee for the conservation, management, and sustained exploitation of iguanas in méxico (stc-iguanas) is part of the national program for the recovery of priority species, which was created to promote working groups to develop conservation programs for selected species in méxico. so far, it joins 23 subcommittees, among which the marine turtle and crocodile working groups have been active for a long time. stc-iguanas was constituted on 16 may 2002 in villahermosa, tabasco, as the result of five national workshops on captive management of iguanas. the subcommittee now has 46 active members, including researchers in biology, ecology, veterinary medicine, and electronics, as well as private and communal producers of meat and pets, and a governmental counterpart. it is divided into six regional working groups (north pacific, west, south pacific, center, gulf, and yucatan peninsula) and four by specialty (research, education, diffusion, and training; exploitation, inspection, survey, and legislation; and finance). our main objective is to function as consultants for any activity related to the conservation and production of iguanas, to produce a document to regulate the protection and use of iguanas within umas (management units of wildlife), the unique legal entity that regulates wildlife species for trade. also, we promote discussion on problematic issues related to the conservation and management of these species among our members and create environmental education programs directed to rural communities associated with conservation and production programs. current activities include: (1) the organization of the vi national workshop on iguanas, including a full course on captive management; (2) the production of the first draft of the national program for the protection, conservation, research, and management of mexican iguanas; (3) creation of a web site that will be linked to main pages addressing the conservation of iguanas; (4) creation of a literature data base about mexican iguanas; and (5) promotion of a handbook for the captive management of iguanas. the long-term goal of the stc-iguanas is to generate management and conservation strategies for all species of iguanines. however, at this moment, we are focused primarily on what appear to be the most threatened species: the green iguana (iguana iguana), the black iguana (ctenosaura pectinata), the tilcampo (ctenosaura acanthura), and the banded iguana (ctenosaura similis). action has focused on providing alternative exploitation techniques to poor rural communities in mexico in order to stop the massive hunting of these species, and to diversify iguana usage to increase people’s income. captive management has been considered one of the best options to combine traditional use of the resource with conservation; however, sustained exploitation of wild populations is now being explored. víctor hugo reynoso stc-iguanas, méxico; instituto de biología, unam, méxico, d.f. � the pacific banded iguana: what we know about its conservation status although the banded iguana (brachylophus fasciatus) is the more familiar of the two species of brachylophus found in the south pacific, its status in the wild is virtually unknown. based on published and verbal distribution records, the species is known to occur on 34 islands in fiji. in addition, it is found on four islands in tonga and an introduced population is established on efate island in vanuatu. today, banded iguanas have been virtually extirpated on the large fijian islands where mongooses have been introduced, but they still are occasionally encountered on many other islands. regular reports of banded iguana sightings from large and heavily forested islands like kadavu and ovalau still occur, as well as from some small, inhabited islands where cats are common and forest remnants are few. a boy with a pet banded iguana can be found in many villages, and fijians still occasionally find them on forest paths, when they are clearing bush for new gardens, or when high in an ivi or bau tree picking ripe, edible fruit. san pedro nolasco spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura nolascensis). photograph by john binns. in september 2002, national trust crested iguana sanctuary ranger, pita biciloa, and i traveled to the large inhabited island of lakeba, 300 km east of fiji’s capital, suva. our aim was to undertake the first systematic survey for banded iguanas. we had been told that banded iguanas were common on both of the aiwa islands: aiwa levu and aiwa lailai. these are small, uninhabited limestone islands (total size: 121 ha), separated by 50 m of deep water, that lie about 12 km southeast of lakeba. both aiwa islands have been heavily grazed by goats for three or four decades and, although the tall forest appeared mature and diverse, the forest floor was completely open with only an occasional sign of undergrowth or forest regeneration. in three nights on aiwa lailai, we counted over 200 banded iguanas along our 2 km of transect lines. although these lizards are not as abundant as crested iguanas are in optimal forest habitat on the crested iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba, aiwa lailai appears to support a very healthy population of banded iguanas. if aiwa levu has a similar number of banded iguanas per hectare (which seems possible, based on the similarity in vegetation and goat grazing pressure), then these two small islands may have a total population of 6000–8000 iguanas. small, remote, and virtually inaccessible islands are abundant around fiji. their remoteness may be their greatest asset, and hopefully will continue to keep feral animals, invasive plants, and destructive agricultural practices away. peter s. harlow herpetofauna division, taronga zoo, mosman, nsw, australia � the fijian crested iguana: lost in the south pacific? described in 1981, the fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis) has been recorded on fewer than ten dry, rainshadow islands in western fiji. using line transect surveys, we estimated the iguana population on the small crested iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba (70 ha) at almost 200/ha in beach forest habitat; an average of one iguana per 5 m of transect and an estimated total population for this small islands of more than 6000. additional surveys of 12 uninhabited and five inhabited islands in the yasawa and mamanuca island groups in western fiji in september 2000 revealed very different results. all of these islands have free-ranging goats and forest fires have occurred repeatedly on most of them over the last few decades. iguana survey transects were purposely placed through areas within beach forest remnants that had the maximum number and diversity of iguana food tree species. night searches for sleeping iguanas along a total of 11.2 km of beach forest transects were thus biased towards maximizing our chances of locating this species, and were not designed to estimate average abundance. groups of 2–5 team members intensively searched the forest along each transect, and collectively searched a total of 44 km over 123 h. results suggest that crested iguanas are extremely rare or extinct on all of these islands. we found iguanas on only four of 17 islands surveyed: three small, uninhabited islands and a single large inhabited island. a total of six live iguanas were seen on these four islands, plus one dead juvenile iguana was found. it had been killed and partly eaten, presumably by a cat. feral cats occur on all inhabited islands, were seen on one uninhabited island, and probably exist on most of the other uninhabited islands we surveyed. on all of these islands, crested iguana abundance in optimal forest habitat was < 1 iguana per hectare. as crested iguanas are not hunted, eaten, or traded, their rarity on all islands except yadua taba appears to be due to the combination of habitat loss and degradation due to forest clearing, burning, and intensive goat grazing, and the introduction of invasive plant species and exotic predators such as cats and rodents. peter s. harlow herpetofauna division, taronga zoo, mosman, nsw, australia 36 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 2003 isg meeting abstracts fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis). photograph by peter harlow. fijian banded iguana (brachylophus fasciatus). photograph by john kinkaid. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 372003 isg meeting abstracts turks and caicos iguana, cyclura carinata carinata: 2003 project update in january 2003, we conducted our last planned translocation of iguanas in the turks and caicos. sixty adult iguanas (30 males, 30 females) were moved from big ambergris cay to six hills cay east, a 4-ha island located approximately 10 km north of big ambergris. with this move, we have founded a total of four new populations and moved 218 adult animals: 76 from little water cay, threatened by feral cats, to middle cay (n = 18) and bay cay (n = 58) in the five cays, and 142 from big ambergris cay, threatened by development, to french cay (n = 82) and six hills cay east (n = 60). to assess the success of these new populations, we have been comparing their biology (survival, growth, reproduction, diet, and endocrinology) to that of their respective source populations. with the help of over 20 volunteers, fieldtrips were made to all of the translocated and source populations in january/february, may/june, and august/september 2003. on each of the translocation cays, we found evidence of nesting in may/june, and captured and marked newly emerged hatchlings in august/september. although we have found no difference in hatchling size between translocated and source populations, yearlings on the translocation cays are averaging 2–4 times the mass of those on the source cays. translocated adults also are experiencing increased growth rates relative to adults on the source cays, although the difference is not as great. we attribute increased growth rates on the translocation cays to the relative lack of competition for food and space on these islands, and predict that growth rates will decrease as these populations begin to approach carrying capacity. survival of the translocated adults and their progeny appears to be very high. to date, only four of 218 iguanas translocated are known to have died, corresponding to a survival rate of 98% among adults. glenn gerber and allison alberts zoological society of san diego cres, san diego, california lesser antillean iguanas, iguana delicatissima and i. iguana apreliminary visit to st. eustatius in september 2003 suggested that the population there is in much worse condition than anticipated. in light of threats elsewhere, the “threatened” redlist status may no longer be warranted. bob powell will be doing some more extensive work on st. eustatius in june 2004, tying to establish the extent of the species’ range on the island, estimate current numbers, and initiate a program leading to greater awareness of the iguanas’ plight by statians. michel breuil and bob powell will be revisiting the species’ redlist status, looking both at the entire species and island-by-island populations. the september issue of iguana included a newsbrief on anguilla, in which karim hodge reported discovering evidence that green iguanas are breeding in an area near where they arrived a few years ago, but where they weren’t supposed to be anymore. the potential threat to i. delicatissima is obvious. during the summer of 2002 on grenada, we encountered so few green iguanas (iguana iguana) that we were unable to generate any meaningful data. anecdotal information from residents suggests that the animals are common nowhere and are most likely to be encountered in dry forests near developed areas where no hunting occurs. apparently, hunting has considerably reduced populations of these lizards in moist upland forests, although some reasonably healthy populations may still occur in areas that remain very difficult to access. note that, on grenada, green iguanas are considered game animals and a hunting season exists. this obviously makes it easier for poachers to ply their trade, especially since enforcement of existing regulations is lax to non-existent. robert powell department of biology, avila university, kansas city, missouri lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima). photograph by glenn gerber. turks and caicos iguana (cyclura carinata carinata). photograph by john binns. st. lucian iguana project: 2003 summary activities for the year included eight principal areas: (1) beach searches: goals were to collect distributional data across st lucia using the most efficient search method (nesting signs), prioritize search efforts (sites) for 2004, and identify methodological considerations for assessing habitat suitability. almost all beaches around st lucia were searched at least once, although this effort was insufficient, attributable primarily to earlier than anticipated onset of nesting and lack of manpower. (2) nesting indices: the principal goal was to generate an index or indices of nesting female iguana numbers from counts of nesting signs (to be used for future monitoring). some data for the main nesting beach will allow a preliminary examination of the feasibility of calibration (see 3, below); data for the only other known nesting area, are insufficient. data are pending analysis, but are likely to be insufficient to generate a reliable index, attributable primarily, as in 1 above, to earlier than anticipated onset of nesting and lack of manpower. (3) hatchling counts: the primary goal was to obtain a full count of hatchling numbers (and by extrapolation nesting female numbers), primarily to calibrate the easier-to-collect index of nesting (see 2, above). a reasonably full count was made (the onset of hatching was missed, but we can extrapolate back). also, data on hatchling sex ratios, emergence times, body condition, and health problems were collected. the onset of hatching was earlier than anticipated (even taking into account the earlier than anticipated onset of nesting). i believe all major nests at the main nesting beach were monitored. we were not able to monitor the other nesting beach. (4) hatchling predator counts: the principal goals were to quantify predator activity at the place and time of hatchling emergence and to confirm mongoose predation on hatchlings. i believe all the main predators at the nests are identified. stomach contents confirm predation by mongooses. cats were identified as a predator in 2003 (but not in 2002). quantitative data were collected, but not rigorously. standardized counts will require more manpower if attempted alongside hatchling counts (as in 2003). greater trapping effort is warranted next year, including areas away from nest sites (5) radiotracking females: the principal goal was to confirm a nesting migration distance of 2–3 km to the main nesting beach. to date, only one large adult female has been tagged in the zone 2–3 km from the beach, despite two months of effort. the tagged female initially behaved as expected, moving in a small home range, but in december began moving toward the nesting beach. tracking and searches for more females to tag are continuing, led by the forestry department, with gps location updates by email. (6) site management (main nesting beach): the primary goal is to utilize an agreement with the landowner to alert local people to, and enforce if necessary, changes in site management at this beach. four metal signs have been erected to advise locals to keep dogs leashed, road access to the nesting beach is blocked with chain (to hinder sand mining), weekly patrol routes have been mapped, and an agreement has been reached with the forestry department on patrols. the forestry department will continue to patrol weekly by van, at least through the vulnerable nesting period (roughly january–may). they will seek cooperation from the st. lucia police for accompaniment by an armed officer to shoot untied dogs. wellattended community-led beach clean up (post hatching) led to extensive media coverage. this effort was primarily educational in intent (rubbish leads to rats leads to mongooses). (7) ecotourism initiative: the principal goal was to assess the potential for community-based, small-scale ecotourism within key communities currently using known iguana sites. a feasibility study, covering primarily an assessment of the natural resource base (conducted by the forestry department) and a stakeholder analysis (conducted by heritage tourism) is in preparation. this is essential for developing a funding proposal. although heritage tourism has yet to conduct their stakeholder analysis workshop, i hope the funding proposal will be developed/submitted to seek funds for the financial year starting april 2004. (8) education proposal: the principal goal is to develop a community-based program of curricular activities addressing iguana conservation in northeastern st. lucia. a full proposal, with detailed activities, timeline, and budget, is to be submitted by the forestry department as the st. lucia lead and (tentatively) by k. graham (sedgwick co. zoo) as the overseas contact. matthew morton durrell wildlife conservation trust c/o forestry department, ministry of agriculture, castries., st. lucia 38 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 2003 isg meeting abstracts st. lucian iguana (iguana iguana). photograph by matthew morton. iguana_11.1_bw_text iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 59biographical sketch emílio goeldi was a swiss-born brasilian naturalist. he studied at the university of naples before earning his doctorate in 1883 at the university of jena, where he studied under the famous evolutionary biologist, ernst haeckel. goeldi emigrated to brasil in 1884 to become assistant head of zoology at the museu nacional in rio de janeiro. he lost that position as a consequence of political changes, but, in 1894, accepted an invitation by the governor of pará, the large northern state at the mouth of the amazon river, to become director of the museu paraense. goeldi served in that capacity until 1904, when he resigned for reasons of health and returned to switzerland. the museum was subsequently renamed the museu paraense emílio goeldi in his honor. in 1908, he became professor of zoology at the university of bern, a position he held until his death. goeldi published in many areas. his most widely recognized work was as aves do brasil (the birds of brasil), published in 1894–1900, followed by an atlas in 1900–1906. most of his herpetological work dealt with classification and distribution, but he also had a special interest in reproductive biology. goeldi discovered hyla (now flectonotus) goeldii (named by george a. boulenger in 1895), a frog in which the female carries the eggs attached to her back. goeldi’s major work in herpetology, repteis do brasil, was completed in 1892–1894, but was never published as a single volume. much of the content consisted of compilations from the literature, but many of goeldi’s field notes (such as those quoted here by werner) also were included. b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h emílio augusto goeldi (1859–1917) emílio goeldi (photograph courtesy of kraig adler). in fallow fields and orchards. iguanas readily accepted its leaves, which are similar in size to those of the coltsfoot. since we have been feeding heckeria peltata, we’ve not lost a single iguana; just the opposite, as a matter of fact, they are thriving and are, in many instances, downright fat. they also have begun to exhibit signs of becoming tame, moving toward the keeper when he brings them food. we have in a small way endeavored to cultivate this plant, specifically for our iguanas. this is in every way simple, and i am convinced that it would serve well as a crop raised in greenhouses by zoological gardens. it grows rapidly and is easily propagated from seeds. this weed requires no special care, requiring little investment of effort or money. “iguana tuberculata [= iguana iguana], called ‘cameleão’ by natives, occurs in great numbers on mexiana island, but it is not easy to find because its green color blends well with the tangled bankside vines on which it prefers to perch. these iguanas are shy and, once they take flight, literally shoot across the crowns of trees and bushes with such alacrity that they disappear almost immediately from the view of the hunter and can be traced only by following the tell-tale crackling of small branches broken during their effort to escape. they will ascend the highest forest trees, and i recall one individual i shot down from an astounding height. “the nest cavities are typically dug at an angle, with an approximately two-foot long passage leading to a slightly enlarged cavity that serves as the egg depository. because the sand dunes are repeatedly watered during the rainy season, sufficient moisture is retained to keep the sandy burrow from collapsing. consequently, these sites lend themselves to easy excavation through loose sand, but retain the moisture necessary to sustain the eggs. although the nest cavities are carefully filled by the females, fresh nests are easy to find, as no effort is made to wipe out the telltale tracks. because, however, the direction of the sloped passage is not always evident, natives probe the sand and identify the passage or even the egg chamber by the lack of resistance to their efforts.” source: adler, k. 1989. herpetologists of the past, pp. 5–141. in k. adler (ed.), contributions to the history of herpetology. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, contributions to herpetology, number 5. ithaca, new york. iguana_11.1_bw_text iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 1table of contents table of contents f e a t u r e s santa catalina island desert iguanas, dipsosaurus catalinensis: an evolutionary experiment in progress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . l. lee grismer 2 species profile: banded sand snakes (chilomeniscus stramineus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 7 cyclura ricordii on the barahona peninsula: a preliminary report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . yvonne arias, sixto incháustegui, and ernst rupp 8 species profile: the ground lizards (ameiva) of the lower barahona peninsula . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . matthew gifford and robert powell 14 black iguanas (ctenosaura similis) in guanacaste, costa rica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 16 species profile: hemidactylus frenatus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 20 the last dozen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lutz dirksen 21 an update on the ecology and conservation of cyclura pinguis on anegada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . glenn gerber 23 a report on the iucn/ssc iguana specialist group 2003 meeting, providenciales, turks & caicos islands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . john bendon 27 2003 isg meeting—providencialis, turks & caicos islands: abstracts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 allen’s cays iguanas, cyclura cychlura inornata: summary report for 2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . john b. iverson the blue iguana, cyclura lewisi, recovery programme, grand cayman: summary of progress for 2003 . . . . . . . . frederic j. burton jamaican iguana field research and recovery project: 2003 summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . peter vogel territorial and reproductive behavior of the mona rock iguana, cyclura cornuta stejnegeri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .nestor pérez, owen mcmillan, alberto o. alvarez, and miguel a. garcía 2003 research update for exuma (cyclura cychlura figginsi) and andros (c. c. cychlura) islands, bahamas . . . . . . . . charles knapp anegada iguana, cyclura pinguis: 2003 update on field research and release project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . glenn gerber public attitudes and perceptions regarding conservation of the anegada iguana, cyclura pinguis: the use and role of social surveys in conservation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lee e. pagni ricord’s iguana, cyclura ricordii: isla cabritos population census 2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jan ramer the technical consulting subcommittee for the conservation, management, and sustained exploitation of iguanas in méxico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . victor hugo reynoso the pacific banded iguana: what we know about its conservation status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . peter s. harlow the fijian crested iguana: lost in the south pacific? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . peter s. harlow turks and caicos iguana, cyclura carinata carinata: 2003 project update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . glenn gerber and allison alberts lesser antillean iguanas, iguana delicatissima and i. iguana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell st. lucian iguana project: 2003 summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . matthew morton h u s b a n d r y spiny-tailed iguanas: captive care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . gunther köhler, aj gutman, and john binns 39 p r o f i l e gordon burghardt: forty years of studying reptilian behavior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . arthur c. echternacht 52 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e the iguana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . franz werner 55 biographical sketch: emílio augusto goeldi (1859–1917) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 59 b o o k r e v i e w s iguanas: biology and conservation, a.c. alberts, r.l. carter, w.k. hayes, and e.p. martins (eds.) . . . . . . . . . . . . . arthur c. echternacht 60 iguanas in wonderland: the depiction of reptiles in children’s literature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . aj gutman 61 i n d i c e s indices to the iguana times (1990–2002) and iguana (2003): volumes 1–10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 64 iguana newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 letter from the vice-president . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 iguana_11.1_bw_text 14 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 gifford and powell the lower barahona peninsula is that portion of the peninsula south of the sierra de baoruco. because the region lies in the rainshadow of the mountain range, the lower elevations get little rain and are characterized by dry tropical forest. until recently, four species of ameiva were thought to occur in the region: ameiva chrysolaema, a. leberi, a. lineolata, and a. taeniura. of the four, a. lineolata is the smallest (maximum known snout-vent length = 59 mm) and the most xerophilic (tolerant of harsh, dry conditions). this species, featuring a bright blue tail and feet, has a disjunct range in similar habitats across the island of hispaniola. ameiva taeniura is intermediate in size (svl to 103 mm), the least drought tolerant, and is restricted largely to the relatively few and scattered moist microhabitats. although, at some sites, one can stand in one place and see individuals of different species, closer observation reveals that a. taeniura only rarely leaves the cooler, shaded areas where canopy cover is relatively dense. in the same study that revealed the habitat association of a. taeniura, the authors found no significant differences in microhabitat use by a. chrysolaema and a. leberi, which are comparable in size (svl to 160 mm in some populations). the former species is widely distributed across hispaniola, whereas the latter is known only from the peninsula. they are distinguished in that the back and sides of a. chrysolaema ficta, the subspecies found in the area, is distinctly patterned, whereas a. leberi is unicolored. because other populations of a. chrysolaema are known to have unicolored pattern variants and because no ecological differences were evident, the authors suggested that a. chrysolaema and a. leberi were, in fact, pattern variations of a single species. more recent genetic studies have verified that contention. one of those studies also determined that a. chrysolaema from the peninsula was distinctive relative to populations elsewhere on hispaniola. this is not surprising, because the island actually is a composite of two paleoiss p e c i e s p r o f i l e the ground lizards (ameiva) of the lower barahona peninsula matthew e. gifford1 and robert powell2 1washington university, st. louis, missouri 2avila university, kansas city, missouri photographs by robert powell. (4) two persons should be employed to monitor the area where c. ricordii is present. these persons should be from the local community and should have an excellent knowledge of the terrain and the target species. they should control the persecution of iguanas and stop illegal habitat destruction by surveying the area, advising people regarding harmful practices, and reporting to the appropriate authorities, as necessary. (5) the socioeconomic aspect of iguana hunting and consumption in pedernales should be investigated. (6) educational programs must be developed that not only address the general public, but will serve to open a dialogue with the target group of persons in pedernales involved in iguana persecution. reference ottenwalder, j.a. 1999. ricord’s iguana, cyclura ricordii, pp. 51–55. in: a. alberts (comp. & ed), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn/ssc west indian iguana specialist group. iucn, gland, switzerland and cambridge, uk. acknowledgments we thank john binns and robert powell for improvements on an early draft. we express gratitude to máximo aquino, subsecretario de recursos forestales, secretaría de medio, ambiente y recursos naturales, for logistical support and the dominican armed forces for the helicopter flight. special thanks go to salvador p. mella from pedernales, who accompanied us in the field and whose knowledge of iguanas was invaluable. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 15species profile lands that have become joined only recently, at least by geological standards. the barahona peninsula is part of the south island, whereas most of hispaniola is derived from the north island. this, however, raises the additional questions of where a. chrysolaema originated and how the ancestors of today’s lizards colonized the other paleoisland. only tentative answers are possible because genetic data from haitian populations are missing and currently unavailable (due to the difficulties and dangers of conducting fieldwork in haiti) and data from the dominican republic are inconclusive. presumably, a. chrysolaema stock originally became established in the north. descendants expanded their range into the lowlands to the south and east, and some of those migrating to the south apparently reached the south island during one of the periods when sea levels were low and the intervening channel was exposed. subsequently isolated by rising sea levels, the south island population became distinct from its relatives to the north. so, should a. chrysolaema ficta be considered a species separate from its north island counterparts? probably; but a definitive answer must await the analysis of haitian material. in the interim, however, a. chrysolaema, as currently defined, probably is best and most accurately referred to as a “species complex,” a group of closely related species in which the species boundaries often are poorly defined. since both a. lineolata and a. taeniura are found on both paleoislands, one has to wonder if further research will show a pattern similar to that which seems to best explain the situation in the a. chrysolaema complex. references gifford, m.e., r. powell, and r.l. gutberlet, jr. in review. geographic variation in mitochondrial dna haplotypes in a widespread teiid lizard (ameiva chrysolaema) on hispaniola. molecular phylogenetics and evolution. hower, l.m. and s.b. hedges. 2003. molecular phylogeny and biogeography of west indian teiid lizards of the genus ameiva. caribbean journal of science 39:298–306. schell, p.t., j.s. parmerlee, jr., and r. powell. 1993. ameiva chrysolaema. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (563):1–6. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. schwartz, a. and r.f. klinikowski. 1966. the ameiva (lacertilia: teiidae) of hispaniola. ii. geographic variation in ameiva chrysolaema cope. bulletin of the museum of comparative zoology 133:425–487. sproston, a.l., r.e. glor, l.m. hartley, e.j. censky, r. powell, and j.s. parmerlee, jr. 1999. niche differences among three sympatric species of ameiva (reptilia: teiidae) on hispaniola. journal of herpetology 33:131–136. ameiva taeniura is least drought tolerant and is restricted to relatively moist microhabitats on the peninsula. ameiva lineolata, with its distinct stripes and electric blue tail and feet, is the most drought-tolerant species. the unicolored phase of ameiva chrysolaema was until recently thought to be a distinct species, a. leberi. peninsular ameiva chrysolaema come in two pattern phases; this phase is characterized by distinct spots and bars. iguana 10.4 b&w text r esearchers have been aware of the presence of non-native reptiles and amphibians in florida for more than 140 years. cope (1863) reported the small, terrestrial greenhouse frog, eleutherodactylus planirostris (cope), from southern florida, and the report of anolis sagrei followed about 25 years later (garman 1887). since then, numerous papers have detailed the introduced herpetofauna of southern florida (e.g., carr 1940, duellman and schwartz 1958, king and krakauer 1966, wilson and porras 1983, butterfield et al. 1997), and more than 40 non-native species are presently reported. these reptiles and amphibians were initially introduced and their populations are supplemented via various routes. some of these exotics may find their way into the suitable climate of southern florida as stowaways in shipments of ornamental plants and other commerce, but many recent introductions can be attributed to individintroduced iguanas in southern florida: a history of more than 35 years josiah h. townsend1, kenneth l. krysko1, and kevin m. enge2 1division of herpetology, florida museum of natural history, university of florida, gainesville, florida 32611-7800 2florida fish and wildlife conservation commission, joe budd wildlife field office, 5300 high bridge road, quincy, florida 32351 all photographs are by the senior author except where noted. 111iguanadecember 2003 adult female ctenosaura similis on key biscayne using an old park bench as a basking site. photograph by joe burgess. uals being intentionally released by or escaping from reptile dealers or pet owners. as the trade in reptiles and amphibians has increased, so has the number of exotic species that have become established. some of the more notable, and noticeable, of these species are three large lizards in the family iguanidae (sensu frost et al. 2001): the mexican spiny-tailed iguana, ctenosaura pectinata (wiegmann), the black spiny-tailed iguana, c. similis (gray), and the green or common iguana, iguana iguana (linnaeus). lizards in the genus ctenosaura are commonly referred to as spiny-tailed iguanas or ctenosaurs. they are large iguanids that typically have tails ringed with rows of enlarged, spiny scales. presently, 17 species are recognized. ctenosaurs are found in southern baja california, its offshore islands, and on mainland central america from adjacent parts of mexico to panama (köhler 2002; see also iguana 10(2):56–57 and 10(3):79–81). two of these species, c. pectinata and c. similis, are known to be established in southern florida. ctenosaura pectinata is native to the pacific versant of southern mexico. this species was first reported in florida by eggert (1978), who described digging up eggs and observing adults near old cutler road in southeastern miamidade county. however, eggert (1978) erroneously identified this population as c. similis, which was later corrected by wilson and porras (1983). this case of mistaken identity was the first in a series of misidentifications involving introduced ctenosaurs in florida, as c. pectinata was subsequently reported from key biscayne (butterfield et al. 1997), gasparilla island (bartlett and bartlett 1999, mckercher 2001, mccoid 2002), and from “… the streets and trees of metropolitan miami” (bartlett and bartlett 1999). after examining all florida specimens of ctenosaura in systematic collections and collecting specimens from all known localities in southern florida, townsend et al. (2003) concluded that most populations (including those known from key biscayne and gasparilla island) are c. similis, and the only extant population of c. pectinata occurs near the original old cutler road site. we visited the old cutler road site at least six times from 2002–2003 and observed two adult males, six adult females, and one subadult of unknown sex living on and adjacent to a single private property east of old cutler road between sw 168th and sw 184th streets. no other c. pectinata was seen, and local residents with whom we talked were unfamiliar with the lizards and unaware of their presence. however, one resident of the florida keys related that she had observed ctenosaurs crossing old cutler road while driving through the area in 2002 and 2003 (h. kavney, pers. comm.). ctenosaura similis is native to central america, and is found from the isthmus of tehuantepec to northeastern nicaragua and west112 iguana volume 10, number 4 three species of iguanas have become established in southern florida: ctenosaura pectinata, from near old cutler road (top), southeastern miami-dade county, and adult male ctenosaura similis (middle), and iguana iguana from key biscayne (bottom). ern panama on the respective atlantic and pacific versants. the extent to which c. similis has become established in southern florida is only now becoming clear. one of the earliest known populations of c. similis in florida occurs on key biscayne. that population probably has persisted there since at least 1979, when the crandon park zoo was closed and most of the exhibit animals were relocated to the miami metrozoo (townsend et al. 2003). since its introduction on key biscayne, c. similis has become well-established in crandon park and is being found in increasing numbers in bill baggs cape florida state park at the southern end of key biscayne (e. donlan and e. golden, pers. comm.). this species also was introduced on gasparilla island, charlotte and lee counties, on florida’s southwestern gulf coast during the late 1970s or early 1980s, when an island resident released as few as three individuals brought back from mexico (krysko et al. 2003). ctenosaura similis now occurs on gasparilla island in large numbers and has expanded its range onto the adjacent mainland and onto cayo costa, a small island south of gasparilla island. large populations also occur on keewaydin and little marco islands and within the boundaries of the rookery bay estuarine research reserve, collier county. the latter population was established in 1995, when a keewaydin resident intentionally (and illegally) released 5–30 c. similis on his property (krysko et al. 2003). the deliberate introduction of nonnative reptiles is illegal according to florida statute 372.265, which specifically prohibits the release of exotic wildlife without a permit from the florida fish and wildlife conservation commission. confusion regarding the identities of southern florida’s ctenosaurs may be attributed partially to a general similarity in the appearance of the two species. as adults, both c. pectinata and c. similis are large, dark-colored terrestrial lizards that may 113iguanadecember 2003 map of south florida showing localities mentioned in the article. appear striped or banded. juveniles of both species are green at the time of hatching, gradually taking on the brown or black adult coloration as they mature. however, these two species may be distinguished easily by using a few morphological characters that were defined by köhler and streit (1996) and later applied by townsend et al. (2003) to florida ctenosaurs. adult c. similis usually have a gray or tan ground color with 4–12 well-defined dark dorsal bands that extend nearly to the ventral scales. male c. similis also may take on an orange color around the head and throat during the breeding season. in contrast, mature c. pectinata have a black to brown ground color marked with irregular whitish blotches, with additional white coloration usually apparent in the area of the neck and throat. these white markings may give c. pectinata a partially banded appearance. both c. similis and c. pectinata have tails that are ringed with rows of enlarged spiny scales, or whorls, that are separated by smaller smooth scales, or intercalaries — but differ in the number of intercalaries that separate the whorls. this is most apparent near the base of the tail. ctenosaura similis has whorls separated by two rows of intercalaries and c. pectinata has whorls separated by three rows of intercalaries. florida c. similis also tend to have very few (usually zero) small dorsal scales between the posterior end of the dorsal crest and the anterior end of the caudal crest, whereas florida c. pectinata usually has 7 or 8 (range 0–20) dorsal scales between crests (townsend et al. 2003). currently, c. pectinata appears to be restricted to a single small area around old cutler road, and occurs in low numbers there despite having been introduced at least 25 years ago. expansion of this population may have been limited by natural and man-made geographic barriers, including a canal to the north, construction in the early 1980s of a large corporate headquarters to the south, 114 iguana volume 10, number 4 adult female (right) and an adult male and female (below) ctenosaura pectinata near old cutler road, southeastern miami-dade county. (below) adult male ctenosaura similis, key biscayne. biscayne bay to the east, and old cutler road to the west. a large area directly to the south of the current population was developed since the time it was reported by wilson and porras (1983), a process which may have reduced the numbers of c. pectinata to the low numbers seen today. in contrast, c. similis has been an exceedingly successful invader, becoming well-established and expanding its range in a number of florida localities. site fidelity associated with ctenosaura utilization of holes or other refugia may slow the process of range expansion beyond the original site of introduction. nonetheless, neither species of ctenosaura has been nearly as successful as an invader as their familiar relative, the green or common iguana (iguana iguana). iguana iguana is one of the most popular reptiles in the pet trade, with over 1.14 million imported into the united states in 1995 alone, and represents about 45% of all reptilian imports (hoover 1998). iguana iguana has a wide native range and is found at low elevations on the mainland from sinaloa, mexico south to ecuador on the pacific versant and veracruz, mexico to southern brazil on the atlantic versant, as well as on some central and south american coastal islands 115iguanadecember 2003 juvenile ctenosaura similis, key biscayne. adult male iguana iguana, key biscayne. three green iguanas (iguana iguana) sit at canal’s edge, key biscayne. and throughout the lesser antilles. in the united states, i. iguana has been introduced in southern florida and hawaii (mckeown 1996). iguana iguana was first reported in southern florida by king and krakauer (1966), who indicated that iguanas could be found on key biscayne, hialeah, coral gables, and near the miami international airport. iguana iguana has since become established at least as far north as palm beach county on the atlantic coast and lee county on the gulf coast (bartlett 1980, bartlett and bartlett 1999, townsend et al. 2002, krysko et al. in press), and as far south as stock island in the florida keys, monroe county. in all likelihood, this species is much more abundant in southern florida than previously reported in the literature. the largest populations of i. iguana probably occur in eastern miami-dade county on key biscayne, in fairchild tropical garden, and matheson hammock park, but these lizards are now found at localities throughout the county and have been sighted numerous times in everglades national park (meshaka et al. 2000). in florida, i. iguana usually is found near water, often in trees or on embankments bordering canals and lakes, or even basking on lawns or pavement in urban and suburban areas. juveniles and adults are strictly herbivorous. in florida, iguanas eat a wide variety of both exotic ornamentals and native plants (see iguana 10(3):94–95). iguana iguana on key biscayne nests in sandy areas, often with multiple females utilizing a single small area. most hatchlings appear during july and august. relatively few predators of juveniles occur in the urban and suburban areas of southern florida, a factor that may lead to rapid growth in any introduced i. iguana population that contains multiple reproducing females. lack of predators and abundance of food are some of the primary explanations for the very high population densities of i. iguana found in southern florida. bill baggs cape florida state park (cfsp) occupies 174 ha at the southern end of key biscayne, almost all of it consisting of coastal strand habitat dominated by saw palmetto (serenoa repens) or coastal hammock dominated by buttonwood (conocarpus erectus) and sea grape (coccoloba uvifera). in 2003 alone, cfsp staff removed over 500 green iguanas (e. donlan, pers. comm.). however, thousands of iguanas live on key biscayne outside of cfsp, and, when an i. iguana is removed from the grounds of cfsp, other iguanas from outside the park simply move in and take up available space. low winter temperatures appear to be a major factor limiting the northern expansion of i. iguana in florida; however, a freeze in miami-dade county during the winter of 2002–2003 did little more than tem116 iguana volume 10, number 4 an obviously gravid female iguana iguana pauses while excavating her nest at key biscayne. photographs by esther m. langan. porarily reduce numbers (see iguana 10(3):98). interestingly, many i. iguana have learned to seek shelter in burrows or under buildings, and we have observed i. iguana taking refuge under water, exposing only their snouts for breathing, to escape extremely cold temperatures. another large iguanid, the hispaniolan rhinoceros iguana or cyclura cornuta (bonnaterre), was reported in very small numbers in the vicinity of the miami seaquarium on virginia key and also possibly on key biscayne (king and krakauer 1966). a few individuals of this species escaped from an exhibit at the seaquarium and are purported to have reproduced in small numbers (bartlett and bartlett 1995). however, we have not observed this species in the wild, and no specimens from florida are known to have been deposited in any systematic collections. with the ranges and population sizes of ctenosaura similis and iguana iguana continuing to grow and the population of c. pectinata persisting for over 25 years, these species obviously have become a permanent part of the dynamic herpetofauna of southern florida. these three lizard species are only a few of the growing number of introduced reptiles and amphibians that call southern florida home. this number seems to be increasing as quickly as researchers are able to investigate each new report of a possible introduced species. without importers and pet owners showing greater responsibility and stricter enforcement of florida state laws regarding the release of exotic animals, what remains of the native herpetofauna in southern florida stands a good chance of being displaced by exotic species in the near future. acknowledgements we thank kevin kirwin and ernest link of crandon park; elizabeth golden and ellen donlan of bill baggs cape florida state park; reggie norman, ken alvarez, chris angel, and patty middleton of gasparilla island state park; and steve bertone of rookery bay estuarine research reserve for facilitating field work at their respective parks and for providing much useful information. helen kavney provided additional information. 117iguanadecember 2003 a buttonwood tree (cornocarpus erectus) provides food and a place to bask for this green iguana (iguana iguana) on watson island in miami. photograph by joe wasilewski. a green iguana (iguana iguana) makes itself at home on a coconut palm (cocos nucifera) in downtown miami. photograph by joe wasilewski. literature cited bartlett, r.d. and p.p. bartlett. 1995. iguanas. barron’s educational series, hauppauge, new york. 88 pp. bartlett, r.d. and p.p. bartlett. 1999. a field guide to florida reptiles and amphibians. gulf publishing company, houston, texas. 280 pp. butterfield, b.p., w.e. meshaka, jr., and c. guyer. 1997. nonindigenous amphibians and reptiles, pp.123–138. in: d. simberloff, d. c. schmitz, and t. c. brown (eds.), strangers in paradise: impact and management of nonindigenous species in florida. island press, washington, d.c. carr, a.f., jr. 1940. a contribution to the herpetology of florida. university of florida publications, biological sciences 3:1–118. cope, e.d. 1863. on trachycephalus, scaphiopus, and other american batrachia. proceedings of the academy of natural sciences of philadelphia 15:43–54. duellman, w.e. and a. schwartz. 1958. amphibians and reptiles of southern florida. bulletin of the florida state museum, biological sciences 3:181–324. eggert, j. 1978. the invasion of the wish willy. florida wildlife 31(5):9–10. frost, d.r., r. etheridge, d. janies, and t.a. titus. 2001. total evidence, sequence alignment, evolution of polychrotid lizards, and a reclassification of the iguania (squamata: iguania). american museum novitates (3343):1–38. garman, s. 1887. on west indian reptiles. iguanidæ. bulletin of the essex institute 19:1–26. hoover, c. 1998. the u.s. role in the international live reptile trade: amazon tree boas to zululand dwarf chameleons. traffic north america, washington, d.c. 59 pp. king, f. w. and t. krakauer. 1966. the exotic herpetofauna of southeast florida. quarterly journal of the florida academy of sciences 29:144–154. köhler, g. 2002. schwarzleguane. lebensweise, pflege, zucht. herpeton, offenbach. 142 pp. köhler, g. and b. streit. 1996. notes on the systematic status of taxa acanthura, pectinata, and similis of the genus ctenosaura (reptilia: sauria: iguanidae). senckenbergiana biologica 75:33–43. krysko, k.l., k.m. enge, j.h. townsend, e.m. langan, s.a. johnson, and t.s. campbell. in press. new county records of amphibians and reptiles from florida. herpetological review. krysko, k.l., f.w. king, k.m. enge, and a.t. reppas. 2003. distribution of the introduced black spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura similis) on the southwestern coast of florida. florida scientist 66:74–79. mccoid, m.j. 2002. geographic distribution: ctenosaura pectinata. herpetological review 33:321. mckeown, s. 1996. a field guide to amphibians and reptiles in the hawaiian islands. diamond head publishing, los osos, california. 172 pp. mckercher, e. 2001. ctenosaura pectinata (iguanidae) on gasparilla island, florida: colonization, habitat use and interactions with gopherus polyphemus. m.s. thesis, university of florida, gainesville, florida. 117 pp. meshaka, w.e., jr., w.f. loftus, and t. steiner. 2000. the herpetofauna of everglades national park. florida scientist 63:84–103. townsend, j.h., k.l. krysko, and k.m. enge. 2003. the identity of spiny-tailed iguanas, ctenosaura, introduced to florida, usa. herpetozoa 16:67–72. townsend, j.h., k.l. krysko, a.t. reppas, and c.m. sheehy iii. 2002. noteworthy records of introduced reptiles and amphibians from florida, usa. herpetological review 33:75. wilson, l.d. and l. porras. 1983. the ecological impact of man on the south florida herpetofauna. university of kansas museum of natural history, special publication (9):vi + 89 pp. 118 iguana volume 10, number 4 a green iguana (iguana iguana) shares the shoreline with white ibises (eudocimus albus) in a miami park. photograph by joe burgess. green iguanas, such as this juvenile, are a common sight in and around the colobus monkey exhibit at the miami zoo. photograph by carole saucier. iguana 10.1 male cyclura carinata carinata,turks and cacios iguana. photograph taken in the turk and caicos islands 2002 by john binns. iguana_11.1_bw_text 2 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 l. lee grismer gulf of california showing the location of isla santa catalina. illustration by john binns. dipsosaurus catalinensis from isla santa catalina, baja california sur, méxico. dipsosaurus dorsalis has a circum-gulf of california distribution and is a popular symbol of southwestern desert ecosystems. the islands in the gulf of california, méxico are renowned for being among the most evolutionarily dynamic regions of north america. indeed, studies of the flora and fauna of these islands have contributed significantly to much of what we currently understand about the evolution of insular ecosystems and insular biogeography. reptiles have figured prominently in many of these studies, largely because they are represented in the gulf of california by a number of endemic forms and adaptive types. many of the iconoclastic species of north america’s sonoran desert have given rise to insular populations in the gulf of california that, for a variety of reasons, have attained full-species status subsequent to their isolation. the processes of sampling error, genetic drift, and the new selective pressures attendant with insular systems have driven many of these species to evolve into highly adapted, sometimes bizarre forms. one of the most conspicuous species of lizards with a geographic range that coincides with the circum-gulf distribution of the sonoran desert is the desert iguana, dipsosaurus dorsalis. santa catalina island desert iguanas, dipsosaurus catalinensis: an evolutionary experiment in progress l. lee grismer department of biology la sierra university riverside, ca 92515–8247 all photographs by the author. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 3santa catalina island desert iguanas � dipsosaurus dorsalis has a distribution that borders much of the gulf of california. this individual is from san diego county, california. its relatively large size, high density, docile behavior, and general lack of fear of humans has made this lizard a popular symbol of southwestern desert ecosystems and a relatively well-studied species — but, like many of its sympatric desert associates, the evolutionary history of d. dorsalis has been affected by the formation of the gulf of california, and an isolated population of dipsosaurus on isla santa catalina off the eastern coast of baja california sur just south of loreto, has attained species status. this species, dipsosaurus catalinensis, was named by john van denburgh in 1922 after the island on which it is found. in 1954, at a time when the concepts of species and subspecies were much different than they are today, this lizard was relegated to subspecific status within the d. dorsalis complex. only in recent years, with the advent of a more accurate understanding of species boundaries has its original status been reestablished. however, unlike its mainland and peninsular counterpart and despite a considerable amount of herpetological research in the region, virtually nothing is known about the life history and ecology of this endemic species, making it one of the least known of all iguanas. still, after only a few minutes on the island spent watching these lizards, the differences in morphology, color pattern, and behavior that separate them from d. dorsalis become quite evident. anyone familiar with d. dorsalis will be struck immediately by the distinctly shaped head of d. catalinensis. its snout is shorter and more blunt than that of its mainland counterpart. this gives its head a relatively more square and an almost “stubby” appearance. the reasons for this are unclear. these lizards may be feeding differently or constructing burrows in a manner that is facilitated by the blunt head. scientists lack any reasonable explanation, mainly because this species has never been studied. many santa catalina island desert iguanas have a noticeably constricted base of the tail. again, the reasons for this are unclear, and even the most reasonable attempts to explain it are highly speculative. constricted tails usually are associated with fracture planes that facilitate tail loss (autotomy) and regeneration after attacks by predators or violent intraspecific interactions. however, this does not seem to be the case in this instance, as tail breakage frequently does not correspond to the constriction. hatchlings and juvenile d. catalinensis have an orangish tail. brightly colored tails in lizards frequently serve to distract predators from the more vulnerable heads and bodies, 4 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 l. lee grismer dipsosaurus catalinensis is found only on isla santa catalina. dipsosaurus catalinensis: note the short, blunt head, the constriction near the base of the tail, the colored tail, and the dark throat. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 5santa catalina island desert iguanas but the bright tail color in these young iguanas often serves as a target for aggression by other iguanas. what selective advantage could be served by the latter? again, a question with no certain answer. maybe the orange color does distract predators effectively, maybe even to the extent that the apparently deleterious responses generated in conspecifics are negligible in comparison. certainly, colors in the red to orange portion of the spectrum are known to elicit strong reactions in many species of iguanas. one of the most curious differences of this species, however, is its solid, chocolate-brown throat. this is most noticeable in males and probably has some function in courtship or aggression. certainly, many other species of iguanas regularly use throat and dewlap colors to signal status or intent. behavioral differences are profound and very evident after even casual observations. unlike its docile cousin, d. dorsalis, d. catalinensis is difficult to approach and aggressive when cornered. this wariness is somewhat of an anomaly because insular lizards in the gulf of california generally exhibit much shorter flight distances than their adjacent peninsular counterparts — and the most common explanation for this phenomenon is that the island populations are subjected to less intense predation pressures. however, during early april 1992, i noted that, of approximately 90 lizards observed, 35–40% had freshly regenerated tails, suggesting that predation on this population may be quite high. that, of course, might account for their uncharacteristically long flight distances. as noted above, i also have observed a great deal of aggressive behavior among hatchlings and juveniles, which are commonly seen biting and chasing each other. the orange tail is the body part most frequently bitten, and the number of individuals in those age classes with broken or regenerated tails seems disproportionately high when compared to populations of many other lizards. although tail breakage is common in young animals too inexperienced to effectively evade predatory attempts, the percentage of broken tails in a population usually doesn’t reach the level seen in very young santa catalina desert iguanas until the lizards are much older. dipsosaurus catalinensis occurs both in the arroyo bottoms, where it takes refuge in the thornscrub, and on the rocky hillsides, where it usually retreats in crevices between or under rocks. these lizards generally are active throughout the year, but the least amount of activity occurs during fall and winter months, when most individuals seen are juveniles. smaller lizards heat up more quickly and they are presumably able to utilize the relatively limited environmental sources of heat more effectively than older, larger animals. as with most diurnal lizards, d. catalinensis emerges in the early morning to bask and then spends most of the remainder of the day going about other activities like courtship, territorial defense, and feeding. dipsosaurus catalinensis is omnivorous and probably exploits opportunistically the most abundant seasonally available foods. at certain times of the year, finding groups isla santa catalina, baja california sur. 6 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 l. lee grismer some populations of dipsosaurus dorsalis; are established on islands in the gulf of california. these individuals are from isla cerralvo, baja california sur. note the longer head, the lack of a constriction near the base of the tail, the tail colored as the body, and the light throat. of two to six individuals feeding communally on the fallen fruits of cardón cacti (pachycereus pringlei) is a common occurrence. this is most obvious where the cacti occur in stands. i once found a carcass of an individual with an intestinal tract filled to capacity with cardón cactus seeds. the seeds were mixed with several small rocks of the same approximate size. these appeared to be chipping away at the seeds’ hard outer covering, serving much the same function as pebbles stored in the gizzards of seed-eating birds or the much larger gastroliths that have been found with fossilized remains of herbivorous dinosaurs. in the large intestine, essentially only the shells were left, as the fleshy pulps had been digested. i also have seen iguanas as high as one meter above the ground in pitahaya ágria (stenocercus gummosus) feeding on ripened fruits. dipsosaurus catalinensis serves as a good example of how insular situations can produce sometimes substantive changes in organisms over even relatively short periods of time. faced with unique selection pressures, different suites of predators and competitors, and reduced genetic variation, populations will do whatever they are genetically capable of doing to continue the lineage. in the case of dipsosaurus, nature has taken a common, docile species and sculpted its descendants into wary and aggressive lizards. what selective forces were responsible for this change? are they still operative today? are similar pressures molding populations of other insular lizards? if so, are they eliciting results comparable to those observed in the santa catalina desert iguana or are they having profoundly different effects on populations of lizards with different genetic compositions and lifestyles? these are some of the interesting questions that evolutionary biologists could be asking about d. catalinensis. a modicum of fieldwork leading to even tentative answers might teach us a great deal about the evolution of insular systems in general. reference grismer, l.l. 2002. amphibians and reptiles of baja california, including its pacific islands and the islands in the sea of cortés. university of california press, berkeley. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 7santa catalina island desert iguanas sand snakes in the genus chilomeniscus have a circum-gulf of california distribution very similar to that of desert iguanas (dipsosaurus). similar also is the association with sandy areas in open deserts, washes, and arroyos. two species of sand snakes occur in the region: c. stramineus is most widely distributed and occurs on most of the baja california peninsula, in desert regions to the north and east of the gulf, and on several gulf islands, whereas c. savagei occurs only on isla cerralvo. considerable confusion has clouded taxonomic relationships within the genus, most caused by the extremely variable patterns that range from distinctly banded to totally unicolored. not until studies demonstrated that pattern variants coexisted at many localities was the clarification of relationships within the genus possible. sand snakes are common in areas of loose soil and are an important component of many dune ecosystems. they are specialized for burrowing. a countersunk lower jaw and valved nostrils exclude small particles as these snakes “swim” through sand. very smooth scales reduce friction both above and below the surface. sand snakes are nocturnal, but their abundance is obvious in some areas as a consequence of numerous tracks left in the sand by snakes that were actively foraging during the previous night. sand snakes apparently feed exclusively on small arthropods. references grismer, l.l. 2002. amphibians and reptiles of baja california, including its pacific islands and the islands in the sea of cortés. university of california press, berkeley. grismer, l.l., h. wong, and p. galina-tessaro. 2002. geographic variation and taxonomy in the sand snakes, chilomeniscus (squamata: colubridae). herpetologica 58:18–31. banded sand snakes (chilomeniscus stramineus) robert powell avila university, kansas city, missouri chilomeniscus stramineus from near loreto, baja california sur, méxico. photograph by robert powell. iguana 12.1 in 1917 dr. g. m. allen and lieut. james lee peters visited porto rico in the interest of the museum of comparative zoölogy. they explored with great success a large cave near ciales and found in the floor, under an opening in the high domed roof, a considerable number of both mammal and reptile bones. the latter have recently been sorted out and substantiate the statement which i made some time ago (proc. biol. soc. wash., 30, 1917, p. 98) when i said that i believed dr. allen had found jaws of cyclura. in 1918 miller (proc. u.s. nat. mus., 54, 1918, p. 509, pl. 81) named cyclura mattea2 from shell heaps in st. thomas, — a species which proves to be very closely related indeed to the form which i am about to name. it is perhaps not remarkable that the rock iguana evidently became extinct in porto rico at an early time. it was probably exterminated by the considerable population of porto rican indians before the conquest, because no tradition of its existence seems to remain amongst either living inhabitants or in the literature. the description of this species likewise fills the last considerable gap in the known distribution of the genus and confirms the surmise ventured by mr. noble and myself that rock iguanas had formerly been much more widely distributed than their present dispersal would indicate. the limits of the range of the genus coincided exactly with those of the greater antillean subregion, including the bahaman province and thus the distribution of the genus becomes at once more suggestive as it becomes more completely definable. this form may be known as cyclura portoricensis, sp. nov. type, m.c.z. no. 12,460, from the floor of the cave near ciales, porto rico, collected by allen and peters in february, 1917; being the extremities of a left humerus. paratypes: a femur; tibia; two ulnae; a sacral and several dorsal vertebrae; several incomplete mandibles; as well as a number of other bones less perfect. the extremities of a fully adult humerus are chosen for the type for comparison with the type of miller’s c. mattea, also a left humerus. the two species are evidently very closely related, more so with each other than with other neighboring species of cyclura, viz., pinguis of anegada or stejnegeri and cornuta. the species differs from mattea in being even larger and more massive. (cf. miller, l. c., pl. 81, fig. 4 and 5.) the bones figured herewith are life size as are those figured by miller. the greatest diameter of the expanded proximal extremity of the type humerus (fig. g) is 35 mm. in an adult cuban rock iguana (c. macleayi3) about three feet long (m.c.z. 6915 santiago de cuba; col. wirt robinson, coll.) the same dimension is 19 mm. u.s.n.m. 59,359, humerus, paratype of c. mattea, is before me and in this example the distal expansion is 30 mm. and the proximal extremity though broken appears to be correspondingly smaller and less massive. the bicipital depression or radial fossa in mattea is very conspicuously deeper and more extensive than in portoricensis; in this respect the latter is even more like stejnegeri or cornuta than is mattea. this is what one would expect from its geographic station. portoricensis was so far as known the largest member of the entire genus. i wish to thank dr. stejneger and mr. miller for permission to compare the paratype of mattea with the material in hand. there is no reason to believe that man has played any part in the dispersal of cyclura, as has beyond doubt been the case with the spreading of iguana through the antilles. the distribution of iguana is absolutely haphazard, while that of cyclura, as now definable, is typical of those forms which spread by non-fortuitous or natural means. cyclura undoubtedly occurred in comparatively recent times on every suitable island which has remained of the once more extensive greater antillean land. it is improbable that this list of species with their habitats could be the result of chance dispersal when it is considered that not one cylura is found elsewhere c. macleayi gray, cuba and surrounding cayos. c. caymanensis barbour and noble, cayman islands. c. baeolopha cope4, andros isl., bahamas. c. inornata barbour and noble5, exuma keys, bahamas (extinct?). c. rileyi stejneger, watlings isl., bahamas. c. nuchalis barbour & noble6, fortune isl., bahamas (extinct?). c. carinata harlan, turks and caicos isls., bahamas. c. collei gray, jamaica and surrounding cays (extinct?). c. cornuta (bonnaterre), haiti and neighboring islets. c. nigerrima cope7, navassa isl. (extinct?). c. stejnegeri barbour & noble, mona isl. c. portoricensis barbour, porto rico (extinct). c. mattea miller, st. thomas (extinct). c. pinguis barbour, anegada (extinct?). the existing place names and early literature and tradition prove that cyclura was previously found upon many other bahaman islands where it has completely disappeared. explanation of the plate. a. ventral view of left femur. b. ventral view of left tibia. c. dorsolateral view of left ulna. d. dorsolateral view of right ulna. e. posterior view of first sacral vertebra. f. dorsal view of distal extremity of left humerus. g. dorsal view of proximal extremity of left humerus. 44 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 historical perspectives a new rock iguana from porto rico1 thomas barbour 1 from the proceedings of the biological society of washington 32:145–148 (1919). 2 both cyclura mattea and c. portoricensis are now considered synonyms of c. pinguis. 3 now considered a synonym of c. nubila. 4 now considered a synonym of cyclura cychlura cychlura. 5 currently considered a subspecies of cyclura cychlura. 6 currently considered a subspecies of cyclura rileyi. 7 now considered a synonym of cyclura onchiopsis. iguana_11.1_bw_text adult anegada iguanas (cyclura pinguis) can grow to be more than 1.3 m in length and 7 kg in weight, making them among the world’s largest lizards. unfortunately, with only a few hundred animals remaining in the wild, anegada iguanas also are among the world’s most endangered lizards. although remains of the species are known from pleistocene cave deposits on puerto rico and native american middens on saint thomas, the only population remaining at the time of european colonization of the west indies was on the 39-square-kilometer island of anegada in the british virgin islands (bvi). since then, increasing pressures from people and their domestic animals have driven the iguana population on anegada to the edge of extinction. human developments destroy habitat, feral livestock (including cattle, donkeys, and goats) severely over-browse the native vegetation on which iguanas rely for food, and feral cats eat all but a few hatchlings each year. as a result, the iguana population on anegada has been declining for decades, if not centuries, and now occupies only a small fraction of the island and is composed almost entirely of aging adults. fortunately, those iguanas lucky enough to reach maturity stand a good chance of living a long life, perhaps 40–60 years. this longevity may explain why the species has persisted as long as it has in the face of all these threats. still, unless the number of juveniles that survive to produce young of their own can be dramatically increased, the iguana population on anegada is doomed to extinction. to prevent this, habitat will have to be protected and restored, and feral mammals, particularly cats, will have to be controlled. implementing such measures can be a difficult and lengthy process, even on a relatively small island. until these long-term goals can be met, we have embarked on a conservation strategy called headstarting to bolster the population in the short-term. headstarting involves collecting juveniles from the wild just after they hatch and raising them in a protected, captive environment until they are large enough to survive in the wild. the anegada headstarting program was initiated in 1997 as a collaborative effort between the british virgin islands national parks trust (bvinpt), the fort forth zoo, and the zoological society of san diego. in addition, ecological studies of the remaining wild population have been underway since 1998 to aid in the collection of juveniles for the headstarting program and to learn more about the population’s status, distribution, and reproduction. these studies have revealed that the population, although heavily skewed towards adults, has an even sex ratio and is still reproductively viable. out of 33 adults captured and marked in 1998 and 1999, 16 were male and 17 were female. nests have been found every june and july since 1998 and hatching success has been very high. once located, nests are fenced off to exclude feral mammals and to facilitate the collection of hatchlings for headstarting when they emerge in september or october. because of these efforts, over 80 juveniles are currently in the headstart facility, which has expanded over the years from a single cage to 13 enclosures. what follows is a summary of project activity for the past year. release of headstarted iguanas in 2003, many of the older juveniles in the headstart facility began reaching a size at which we felt they could survive in the wild with cats. as a result, the first release of headstarted iguanas on anegada took place in early october 2003, funded by a grant from the international iguana foundation. twenty-four iguanas were released: 12 males and 12 females ranging from 4–6 years in age, 0.8–2.5 kg in weight, and 235–300 mm in snout-vent length. the animals were released at two sites in the core iguana area that supports breeding adults. half of the animals were released in a coastal area with sandy scrub and half were released in an inland area with rocky woodland. prior to release, veterinary staff from the fort worth zoo examined all of the animals to ensure that they were healthy and surgically implanted radio transmitters so that they could be monitored after release. kelly bradley of the dallas zoo is tracking and studying the released animals for her m.s. thesis research at the university of texas–arlington. all animals were located daily for the first three weeks following release, again for two weeks in late november and early december 2003, and most recently for two weeks in mid-january 2004. two of the animals died of unknown causes soon after release: a medium sized female was found dead a few days after release with her incision reopened, and the transmitter belonging to a small male was found in late november near his last known location in october. the remaining 22 animals are all doing well, giving a 3-month post-release survival rate of 92 %. this is excellent considering that all of these animals would likely have been killed by cats shortly after hatching had they not been taken into the headstart program. in late an update on the ecology and conservation of cyclura pinguis on anegada glenn gerber center for reproduction of endangered species zoological society of san diego all photographs by john binns, unless otherwise indicated. iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 23cyclura pinguis � 24 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 gerber northwest road near cow wreck where iguanas were not found in 2003. glenn gerber in bones bight, the core iguana area. habitat north of east end appears suitable, but no iguanas were found in 2001. joe burgess and roberto maria during the 2003 survey east of cow wreck. sandy binns at table bay during the 2001 survey of the northeastern coast. the area southeast of cooper rock is replete with livestock but devoid of iguana signs. neptune’s treasure provides excellent accommodations for researchers while on anegada. lee vanterpool, roberto maria, joe burgess, george waters, and glenn gerber in 2003. the anegada iguana head-starting facility is located next to the fire and police stations. livestock is a common sight along all roads on anegada. joel friesch, alberto alvarez, juliann sweet, and sandy binns departing anegada in 2001. one of the older head-started cyclura pinguis prior to release in october 2003. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 25cyclura pinguis november, approximately six weeks after release, all 22 animals were briefly recaptured so that they could be weighed and measured. all of the animals were healthy and robust, with an average weight gain of 100 g. to date, animals have dispersed 13–390 m from their respective release sites. all of the iguanas have established small home ranges and are exhibiting retreat site fidelity. focal animal observations are being conducted to determine how the animals are behaving and adapting to living in the wild after spending the first 4–6 years of their lives in captivity. data are being collected on diet, habitat use, activity periods, and interactions with wild adults and other released iguanas. these data will be used to construct energy budgets for the released iguanas. future trips to anegada to continue monitoring the released animals are planned for march, may, and july 2004, and in october another 24 headstarted animals will be released and monitored. population survey a team consisting of john binns (ircf), kelly bradley (dallas zoo), joe burgess (iis), glenn gerber (san diego zoo), roberto maria (zoodom), tarren wagener (fort worth zoo), and george waters (iis) conducted a population survey of cyclura pinguis on anegada in 2003 in an effort to obtain an accurate population estimate for this critically endangered species. the survey was conducted in july to coincide with the nesting season, and thus also provided a chance to locate active nests, adding to the reproductive database and aiding in the collection of juveniles for the headstarting program. due to time constraints, efforts were concentrated on the western half of anegada, which is believed to support the majority of the existing population. the survey consisted of walking line transects in groups of 2–4 people. two types of line transects were conducted: simple transects, where meandering straight lines were walked and the number of iguana observations were recorded, and distance sampling transects, where straight lines were walked and the perpendicular distance of each iguana observation from the line was recorded. distance sampling transects are more difficult and time consuming than simple transects, but allow for the computation of density estimates if a large enough sample can be obtained. because time was limited, distance sampling transects were only walked in the core iguana area, which is located along the northcentral coast of western anegada, where iguana sightings were most likely. simple transects were walked in all areas of western anegada, including the core area. the intent behind this sampling strategy was to correlate relative abundance estimates obtained in the simple transects with density estimates from the distance sampling transects to arrive at an overall measure of iguana abundance for western anegada. the location, path, and length of all transects walked were mapped using gps, and all observations of iguanas and their retreats, tracks, and scat were this cyclura pinguis was returned to the wild in october 2003; he has been tracked by radio telemetry since his release. photograph by rick hudson. recorded. while walking simple transects, the team also recorded observations of feral mammals and their scat. unfortunately, only 13 observations of iguanas were made while walking distance sampling transects, too few to reliably estimate iguana density. thus observations from both transect types are combined here and presented as a measure of relative abundance. survey teams walked a total of 42.7 km of transects and observed a total of 24 iguanas, 63 iguana feces, 89 iguana retreats, and 172 iguana tail drags. with the exception of two iguana tail drags found near the southwestern shore, all of these observations were in the core area, which encompasses only 2.5–3 km2. on average, only one iguana was observed per km of transect walked. the density of iguanas is very low within the core area and approaches zero outside the core area. in comparison to iguanas, evidence of feral livestock was abundant in the core area and throughout western anegada. in 35.2 km of simple transects walked, the survey team recorded in excess of 1500 cattle feces, 700 donkey feces, and 150 goat feces. although eastern anegada was not included in this survey, prior work there turned up little evidence of iguanas and feral livestock appear to be even more abundant than in the west. these findings, combined with recent habitat destruction in the core area caused by land clearing, suggest that the iguana population on anegada is becoming increasingly restricted in area and size. nesting during the july survey, four recently closed iguana nests were located. all of these were in sandy areas of windlass bight and bones bight in the core iguana area. the nests were marked and later enclosed by bvinpt staff. twenty-eight healthy hatchlings from these nests were collected and transferred to the headstart facility in october. plans are underway to locate new nests in july 2004, so that the headstarting effort can be maintained as long as needed. this july, we also hope to observe nesting by some of the larger headstarted females released in 2003. education lee pagni, a conservation education specialist, facilitated the initiation of an education program on anegada in 2003. he surveyed approximately 30% of the adult residents of anegada to determine their perceptions of, and support for, several important iguana conservation measures. results of the survey are now being used to tailor a conservation education program for anegada’s citizens to increase public awareness and support for conservation initiatives. plans for the coming year include production of a biannual iguana conservation newsletter for local distribution, development of interpretive materials for the headstart facility, and an educational program for local school children. only with the long-term support and enthusiasm of the local community on anegada will this unique iguana’s future be secure. acknowledgments in the past year, this project has received funding from the chicago board of trade endangered species fund, chicago herpetological society, cleveland metroparks zoo, international iguana foundation, john ball zoo, morris animal foundation, pittsburgh zoo, and roger williams park zoo. the british virgin islands national parks trust, dallas zoo, fort worth zoo, and san diego zoo have provided substantive technical, logistical, and financial support. john binns, george brown, joe burgess, kim harding, rick hudson, jeff lemm, roberto maria, kerri mitchell, lee pagni, tarren wagener, joe wasilewski, and george waters provided field assistance. allison alberts, rick hudson, and the iucn/ssc iguana specialist group have been instrumental to this project from its inception. finally, kelly bradley deserves special recognition for her dedication to the recent tracking studies on anegada. 26 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 gerber glenn gerber collecting a scat sample during a distance sampling transect in july 2003. one of the very large adults observed on middle cay during the july 2003 survey. photograph by joe burgess. iguana 10.2 a male ctenosaura bakeri (swamper or utila iguana) on utila island, honduras, march 2003. photograph by john binns. iguana journal of the international iguana society www.iguanasociety.org vo l u m e 1 0 , n u m b e r 2 j u n e 2 0 0 3 u s $ 6 . 0 0 iguana_11.1_bw_text dipsosaurus catalinensis, isla santa catalina, baja california sur, méxico (see story on p. 2). photograph by l. lee grismer. iguana journal of the international iguana societ y www.iguanasociet y.org volume 11, number 1 march 2004 us$6.00 juvenile black iguana (ctenosaura similis) from parque nacional santa rosa, costa rica (see article on p. 16). photograph by robert powell. healthy adult san pedro nolasco black iguana (ctenosaura nolascensis) (see article on captive care of black iguanas on p. 16). photograph by john binns. ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) from parque nacional isla cabritos, dominican republic (see related story on p. 8). photograph by robert powell. santa catalina island desert iguana (dipsosaurus catalinensis): an evolutionary experiment in progress (see article on p. 2). photograph by l. lee grismer. iguana_11.2_text.ps iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 107iguanas of isla mona in addition to the mona island iguana, the island supports one endemic frog (eleutherodactylus monensis), four other lizards, and three snakes. of the lizards, one is a widely distributed exotic species (hemidactylus mabouia), a second also is widely distributed in the west indies, but probably native to the region (mabuya sloanii complex), and the other two are endemic to the island (sphaerodactylus monensis, ameiva alboguttata). of the snakes, one is an endemic species (typhlops monensis) and the other two are endemic subspecies (epicrates monensis monensis, alsophis portoricensis variegatus), although, as for the iguana, some authorities consider the isla mona populations to be full species (see also article on facing page). until recently, ameiva alboguttata was considered to be a subspecies of a. exsul, a species that is widely distributed on the puerto rico bank. however, the two species differ consistently in color and pattern and are precluded from any gene exchange by the insular distribution of the isla mona form. as for many of its relatives throughout the neotropics, surface activity of a. alboguttata often is restricted to the period from mid-morning to early afternoon, although some individuals may reappear during the late afternoon. this activity period allows these lizards to avoid cooler mornings and evenings and to avoid the very hot mid-afternoons when temperatures frequently exceed even the tolerance of these heat-loving animals. at first glance, mona ground lizards appear to move constantly, but closer observations will reveal short pauses in direct sunlight or shade. these allow the relatively precise thermoregulation designed to maintain optimal temperatures approaching 40 °c. also like other species of ameiva, a. alboguttata is an active forager. rather than sitting on an elevated perch looking for movement by potential prey (a “sit-and-wait” strategy), ground lizards actively search for food, often rooting vigorously in leaves and other debris. prey consists largely of small arthropods, and otherwise inactive life stages (pupae and larvae) are sometimes excavated during the search. although not documented on isla mona, larger individuals of other species of ameiva are known to consume vertebrates, including smaller lizards, and may occasionally eat carrion. ground lizards also may consume plant material, especially seasonally abundant fruits or flowers. as the common name implies, ground lizards are essentially terrestrial, foraging on the surface and retreating into selfexcavated burrows. however, one documented observation described a subadult a. alboguttata following a trail of ants high on the trunk of a large tree. although obviously capable of climbing, such arboreal activity has been observed only very rarely. references powell, r. and e.j. censky. 2002. ameiva alboguttata. arboreal activity. herpetological review 33:50. rivero, j.a. 1998. los anfibios y reptiles de puerto rico. the amphibians and reptiles of puerto rico. 2nd rev. ed. editorial de la universidad de puerto rico, san juan. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e the ground lizards of isla mona: ameiva alboguttata robert powell avila university, kansas city, missouri adult and juvenile (lower right) ameiva alboguttata foraging in leaf litter on isla mona. photographs by robert powell. iguana_11.2_text.ps iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 119sauromalus ater some iguanas, such as chuckwallas, inhabit arid climatic zones and are well-adapted to scarcity. feeding these animals only three times per week is probably adequate. however, as a reptile rescuer and rehabilitator, i am loathe to publish any iguana feeding schedule that suggests anything less than fresh food and water being provided on a daily basis. “three times a week” is far too easily misinterpreted by the all-too-many pet owners who devote less than the appropriate amount of attention to their animals’ needs. “three times a week” too easily segues into “twice a week” or “once a week” or “i fed it last week; i don’t have any food handy so i’ll feed it again next week.” as implausible as this may seem to those of us who strive to provide our captive animals with the best possible care, my experience has, unfortunately, taught me otherwise. a case in point: a male green iguana and a male spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura similis) were each kept for 12 years in a large (150 gal), tidy enclosure with cypress mulch substrate and branches for climbing. ceramic heat emitters were used to provide heat and reptisun 5.0 uvb fluorescent tubes provided light. both animals received the same diet: once a week they were fed an unknown amount of kale and organic spinach, with mango, melon, and occasionally other fruit. i was told they were always fed on sunday and would have polished off all their food by tuesday. once a month, they would receive an unknown quantity of kitten chow. the effect of this highly questionable diet proved to be very different for these two animals in different genera. “ctolstoy” is a large, impressive, spiny-tailed iguana that appears to be in good health. his body is a bit slim, even for a species known to be lanky, but, compared to two other male c. similis that have been with me for several years, his size seems reasonable and his temperament is remarkably calm. “schiller,” on the other hand, is smaller than healthy 12–18 month-old green iguanas. he has no obvious deformities and, superficially, has the appearance of a juvenile female (with the exception of hemipenial bulges). personality? this little guy has what is currently referred to as “attitude,” but, after a few short weeks of being provided with food on a daily basis, he is much calmer and quite easy to handle. i see far too many stunted green iguanas. however, most of them come to me with no history, making it impossible to tease out what factors might have led to that state. given their identical histories of long-term deprivation, i was curious as to why ctolstoy and schiller had fared so differently. i posed my query to dr. gunther köhler, who is both a trained veterinarian and a biologist whose research has focused primarily on ctenosaurs, and dr. john iverson, who has investigated the digestive physiology of various species of iguanas. both provided me with insightful responses, which served to raise further questions. dr. iverson pointed out that a sample size of 2 was insufficient for any definitive determination and that a host of reasons (unrelated to digestive physiology) might be responsible for why one animal might prosper and the other not. factors such as parasites, diet as a juvenile, stored fat at the beginning of study, and incubation temperature of the original eggs, among other things, might have come into play. he also suggested that schiller might have had a developmental problem since hatching (or even before). in my experience (with a limited sample size), iguanas with developmental disorders also tend to have anatomical anomalies that are visible externally (e.g., twisted vertebral columns, misshapen or malproportioned heads, extra or missing digits). in my experience with stunted iguanas, which, unfortunately, is much more extensive, i find that when they are provided with a nutritious diet on a regular basis, they grow to a variable extent. dr. köhler pointed out that ctenosaurs usually inhabit arid regions that experience a distinct (sometimes severe) dry season during which food is scarce. green iguanas usually live in the forest (at least gallery forest along rivers) that tend to provide food more regularly. therefore, ctenosaurs might be better adapted for irregular food-intake. fascinating information to ponder, but what does this prove? chuckwallas, like ctenosaurs, can probably survive (and even thrive) on an intermittent feeding schedule — if they are cared for by professional zoo personnel or responsible pet owners. even so, approximating the seasonal availability of foods in an animals’ natural environment remains difficult. also, given the sheer number of animals that come past my door that have been nutritionally deprived, i strenuously advocate daily feeding. although individuals may not always feed, if given the opportunity each day, they are much more likely to remain healthy and grow to their genetically determined potential. in any case, i am pleased to report that both schiller and ctolstoy have both been eating ravenously on a regular basis and both are gaining weight. f e e d i n g f r e q u e n c y aj gutman west hartford, connecticut “schiller,” a 12-year-old male green iguana, is smaller than healthy 12–18 month-old iguanas. he lacks obvious deformities, but has the superficial appearance of a juvenile female. photograph by carole saucier. iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) iguana 10.4 b&w text b o o k r e v i e w 151iguanadecember 2003 islands and the sea: essays on herpetological exploration in the west indies. robert w. henderson and robert powell (editors). 2003. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles (ssar), ithaca, new york. 312 p., 316 photographs, 14 maps, indices. clothbound, $48. available from: breck bartholomew, ssar publications secretary, p.o. box 58517, salt lake city, utah 84158–0517 (ssar@herplit.com). i will admit to having a few regrets in my career, and certainly my decision to decline bob powell’s invitation to contribute an essay to this volume ranks among the highest. for anyone who has dedicated part of their career to working in the caribbean, for those with a strong interest in the natural history and biogeography of islands, or if you simply enjoy stories of herpetological exploration and discovery, this is must-read material. the book is well organized, 300 pages divided into six sections corresponding to the major island groups in the caribbean: the greater antilles (cuba, jamaica, hispaniola, and puerto rico), the bahamas, and the lesser antilles. regrettably, some islands received short coverage, with only one essay on puerto rico and none on the turks & caicos. powell and henderson’s introduction and historical perspectives set the tone for the book and provide the reader with a scholarly overview of many of the early herpetologists and remarkable personalities that did much of the pioneering exploration in the west indies. herpetological research in the west indies is an intriguing pursuit for many reasons, the first and foremost being a remarkable degree of diversity. recognized as one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots, this is particularly evident with herps. an archipelago containing several hundred islands, ranging from huge landmasses to minute specs of land, the caribbean is a living laboratory of evolution and speciation. boasting over 600 species of reptiles and amphibians and a remarkably high rate of endemism, the caribbean ranks second only to mesoamerica in terms of reptilian diversity (438 species) and has the highest rate of endemism (84%) of any region in the world. amphibians, though not as diverse, have a comparable rate of endemism (86%). these impressive figures, combined with elevated numbers for vascular plants and birds, provide ample incentive for urgent conservation measures in these delicate ecosystems — but much of the caribbean is under intense pressure and, sadly, many of us now devote considerable time and energy trying to save the last vestiges of species ravaged by the effects of man. i often wonder, and i know my colleagues share this sentiment, what it would have been like to set foot on these islands 100–200 years ago when they were still largely pristine. the essays in this volume cover a broad expanse of time, dating from the 1950s to the present. those early stories of herpetological fieldwork and discovery (stan rand and sixto incháustegui in the dominican republic, skip lazell in the lesser antilles, meg stewart in jamaica, and orlando garrido in cuba) take us back to a simpler time when collecting was less complicated (except for travel) and the habitats less damaged. the essays on cuba, to me, are particularly compelling because they offer vignettes into a world that, due to narrow-minded political agened. note: this review by rick hudson will also appear in the bulletin of the chicago herpetological society. das, few of us have the opportunity to experience. perhaps the best read in this series is alberto estrada’s vivid description of collecting herps while on an expedition to find a remnant population of ivory-billed woodpeckers. this story is both poignant and haunting in that we are able to glimpse, through a narrow window in time, the last sightings of a species before it slipped quietly into extinction. the genus anolis has undergone a remarkable degree of speciation in the caribbean, where it reaches its apex of diversity, providing ample opportunities for fieldwork and research. nowhere is this more evident than richard glor’s “rediscovering the diversity of dominican anoles.” written in a fast-paced narrative, this lively essay recounts the ambitious attempt by him and his colleagues to collect all 40 species of dominican anoles, a determined mission that literally comes down to the last species on the last day of their trip. an engaging story, this is about as exciting as herpetological reading can get. of course, no coverage of the caribbean herpetofauna would be complete without featuring the prehistoric-looking rock iguanas of the genus cyclura for which the islands are so well known. undoubtedly the most conspicuous element of the region’s reptilian fauna (evidenced by the photograph gracing the dusk jacket), these charismatic lizards have become flagship species for conservation in the west indies. this book includes chapters describing cuban iguanas at guantanamo bay (allison alberts), andros iguanas (chuck knapp) and allen’s cay iguanas (jen valiulis et al.) in the bahamas, jamaican iguanas in the hellshire hills (byron wilson), and rhinoceros and ricord’s iguanas on isla cabritos, dominican republic (sixto incháustegui). of particular interest in sixto’s chapter is a rare photo of michael carey, a well-known and near legendary (in that he seemed to vanish, dropping out of sight in the 1980s) cyclura biologist, who published some seminal works on the genus through the florida state museum. for those of us obsessed with rock iguanas in the late 1970s and 80s, his was some of the most treasured reading material available. iguana delicatissima is discussed several times in the lesser antillean section, nowhere more vividly than in michel brueil’s account, “in the footsteps of french naturalists.” he examines the processes (man-made, most harmful and negative, as well as natural) dating back to european colonization that have accounted for some of the perplexing distribution patterns seen in the french west indies, including that of the genus iguana. his story provides compelling evidence of just how rapidly species’ distributions can change over a relatively short period of time, events which should cause us great concern given how this process has been accelerated today. this essay also provides cause for optimism in that it demonstrates the resiliency of many island populations (in this case a population of i. delicatissima reduced by half — from an estimated 10,000 to 5,000 — by a severe drought) and their ability to persist and rebound from horrendous natural disasters. this chapter also reinforces the reality that the primary threat to biodiversity in the region is introduced exotics. my complaints on this book are few and only one merits mention. photo credits are conspicuously absent from most of the book. they are provided inconsistently, some chapters have them but most do not. maybe this is just a quirk of mine, but i like to know who shot the images. as it turns out, uncredited photos are by the authors of the respective essays, but nowhere is this explained. i found very few grammatical errors, and the editing appears to be thorough, the exceptions being a disparity in the number of cuban anoles (59 by garrido’s count; “about 50” according to george gorman) and a statement in hinrich kaiser’s essay that eleutherodactylus amplinympha is dominica’s only endemic vertebrate (it is the island’s only endemic frog). all in all, this is a thoroughly enjoyable read and i highly recommend it. if you are already passionate about caribbean herpetology and working in the islands, this is required reading. if you have not experienced the sheer joy and exhilaration of exploring some of these remarkable destinations, this book should provide the spark that initiates your conversion. the allure of these islands is powerful, and once experienced, hard to shake off. but then who would want to? rick hudson co-chair, iucn iguana specialist group program officer, international iguana foundation conservation biologist, fort worth zoo b o o k r e v i e w 152 iguana volume 10, number 4 iguana 11.3 b&w text 168 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 grand cayman blue iguana “godzilla” (~1934–2004). adams iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 169 if you have ever had a family member that, against all odds, lived past their life expectancy, you may identify with the relationship the herpetological crew at the gladys porter zoo had with godzilla — the oldest living lizard on record. a giant of a grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi), he measured over 50 cm from snout to vent. when he came to the gladys porter zoo in 1997, he was estimated to be 62 years of age. he had a giant head, an enormous, yet gaunt body, and a senile cataract in one of his eyes. despite his incredible appetite and his ability to consume large volumes of food, he never seemed to be able to gain or carry much weight — just like grandpa. in march 2004, john binns asked me to write an article on godzilla, and i agreed. although we have known for years that godzilla’s days were numbered, i had no clue this article would be written in eulogy (see also the inside back cover of iguana 11(2)). at approximately 69 years of age, godzilla died in late may of this year from age-related liver failure. based on the appearance of his internal organs, he looked and acted amazingly well until a week or so before his death. blind in one eye and partially blind in the other, godzilla had gotten a bit wobbly, and would sometimes tumble, rather than climb off his favorite basking spots. as he grew more and more senile, we watched with great compassion and respect. godzilla had led a colorful and amazing life. his history tells volumes about the tenacity and resilience of both this individual animal and the world’s most critically endangered iguana species. west indian rock iguanas of the genus cyclura are, as a group, under severe threat throughout their range. as large island endemics with no adaptations to protect against mammalian predators and competitors, they are suffering catastrophic declines from dog, cat, and rat predation, hunting, habitat degradation by goats and cattle, and large scale habitat loss to human uses. the grand cayman blue iguana is the most endangered in the group, with an estimated 10–25 individuals surviving from the original wild population (see iguana times 9(3):51–58; 10(1):15–20; iguana 11(1):30–31). the gladys porter zoo is one of a handful of us facilities that have breeding programs for grand cayman blue iguanas. most of the captive blue iguanas in north america are related to one another, making it very important to preserve the genetic material of those individuals, like godzilla, that have not bred in captivity. us facilities work closely with officials on grand cayman to preserve what little habitat remains and support their efforts to build and maintain breeding facilities. without the dynamic efforts of the grand cayman national trust (see the profile of fred burton, iguana 10(2):53–55), the international iguana foundation, many supporting members of the american zoo and aquarium association, and dedicated iguana conservationists outside the zoo community, this species would already be past the point of no return. hopefully, the combination of habitat protection, habitat restoration, and the release of captive-hatched iguanas in protected areas on grand cayman will ensure their existence for many years to come. godzilla was captured as a full-grown adult on grand cayman in 1950 by naturalist ira thompson. godzilla weighed over 15 pounds and was estimated to be at least 15 years of age at that time. i was told that he was captured on grand cayman with a guava on a treble hook, and the hook split his upper lip. although the lip healed, godzilla was left with two fleshy protrusions on either side of his snout (these moustache-like protrusions, although surgically removable, were left alone, serving as permanent identifying marks). he was imported to the us in 1985 by ramon noegel of life fellowship in florida. although offered multiple opportunities to breed, according to greg moss, godzilla was already showing signs of aging and never sired a fertile clutch of eggs. ownership was transferred to tom crutchfield in the early 1990s. godzilla came to the gladys porter zoo during late winter in 1997, along with three other blue iguanas, two males and one female. when the group arrived, many of the adults needed medical treatment to help them recover from the trip. our first introduction to godzilla’s health problems came the day after his arrival. he was initially treated for a fungal infection in his gastrointestinal tract. surprisingly, he responded rapidly to antibiotics and a giant dose of south texas sunshine. despite the presence of another large adult male that was much more athletic, godzilla established the outside yard and night house facility as his territory, and never relinquished his dominant status. godzilla was one of only a few founding grand cayman blue iguanas in the us, and, having made no contribution to the captive gene pool, getting him to reproduce became a priority — well, right after keeping him alive. just like any geriatric creature, something always seemed to be going on with his health. he would tear off a toenail, revealing clotting factor problems that required vitamin supplementation and bandaging. he had an intermittent sinus problem that occasionally required antibiotic administration. for some strange reason, he had periodic bouts of tail problems that would require the surgical removal of sevrequiem for godzilla colette adams curator of herpetology gladys porter zoo brownsville, texas photographs by john binns. � requiem for godzilla 170 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 adams eral inches of his tail. we would beef him up with vitamins and medication for weeks prior to such a surgical procedure. we have a saying at our reptile department: with herps, real medical emergencies are rare. however, this saying never applied to godzilla and his injured toenails that refused to stop bleeding. indeed, godzilla routinely brought out the “hero” in our veterinary staff. he usually gratified us by bouncing back after his emergency treatments. unfortunately, the adult female that arrived with godzilla in 1997 died of coelomitis secondary to chronic egg retention just four months after her receipt. in june 2000, a suitable potential mate for godzilla was sent to us from the national zoo in washington. i knew our work was already cut out for us. she had been kept indoors and was cued to lay eggs in february. in february, the weather is still cold in brownsville, and most of our cyclura have historically laid eggs in june or july. i wondered how long godzilla and the new female would take to get their reproductive cycles in-sync. on a very warm day in april 2001, dave martin, head keeper of reptiles, decided that the time had come to give the pair a try at breeding. godzilla looked interested in the female, but she was much more nimble than he was, and always managed to scamper away from his advances. neither godzilla nor dave was willing to give up easily, and dave contrived an ingenious plan. he brought both of the animals into the confines of their barn and nighthouse in hopes that the female would not succeed in getting away. she didn’t get away, but dave said godzilla seemed unwilling to breed indoors. so, the three of them went outdoors. this time, dave held the female’s tail to keep her from running away. again, godzilla seemed interested, but possibly concerned about dave’s presence in his territory. finally, dave carried the female into the barn and crouched at the undersized door, constructed to allow the passage of iguanas — not humans. holding the female’s tail securely, he extended his arm and the female into the outdoor enclosure. success! dave had made himself “invisible” enough to keep godzilla from being intimidated. godzilla approached the female and grabbed the skin of her nape. figuring godzilla had it handled, dave let go of the female. however, when godzilla would godzilla’s species name changed three times during his estimated 69 years of life. he was captured as cyclura macleayi lewisi, later became cyclura nubila lewisi, and passed away as cyclura lewisi. this photograph shows his distinct telltale “moustache.” although handicapped by the ravages of age, godzilla remained as proud as any blue iguana many decades his junior. shown here in his display area, godzilla would pause frequently to rest while enjoying the warm texas sun. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 171requiem for godzilla try to readjust his grip, the female would scamper off. after several similar attempts, dave figured he had nothing to lose and he did not let go of the female. finally, with dave’s assistance, godzilla copulated with the female. this was repeated a week later, with the same results. no eggs were produced as the result of that breeding, and dave got creative once again in 2002. on 6 may, dave played matchmaker. this time, he learned that, if he maintained a low profile or remained partially hidden in the outdoor enclosure, godzilla would tolerate his presence. copulation this time was of much shorter duration. when the female laid infertile eggs in july 2002, we suspected that mating had taken place too early in the reproductive cycle of the female — or godzilla was infertile. in the two years that followed, the matchmaking scheme was repeated, but godzilla no longer showed any interest in breeding. the female continued to lay eggs each year in mid-july, but her eggs in 2003 and 2004 were infertile. as each breeding season passed for godzilla, we knew that he might not be around for the next. this was certainly so for the breeding season in 2004. increasingly wobbly and uncoordinated, we watched him closely, although he continued to feed well when he could figure out where the food was. i discovered that i could place his food in the bottom of a five-gallon bucket, lay the bucket on its side and let him walk headfirst into the bucket. this became the most energy efficient way to feed an old lizard that could not see very well and tired easily when fed by hand. in mid-may, we were treating godzilla for an eye injury he had sustained after running into a gunnite wall, when we noticed how jaundiced the inside of his mouth looked. blood work revealed an extremely low red blood cell count and our veterinarians suspected a failing liver. almost as though he knew that his secret was out, godzilla refused to eat from that day on. by the following day, he would not move in and out of the sun to thermoregulate and i brought him up to the reptile house. two days later, wrapped in my favorite flannel snake bag, godzilla died peacefully in his sleep. a quiet sadness fell over the herpetarium that day. still, we had to move quickly to ship his gonads and tissue samples to the san diego zoo’s center for reproduction of endangered species (cres). tandora grant helped make the arrangements for the priority shipment that would result in the preservation of his precious genetic material. two days after his passing, she informed us that he still had live sperm in his testes at the time of his death. histopathology reports confirmed severe age-related cirrhosis of the liver as the cause of death. the pathologist commented he had never been presented with such an old lizard. we were certain that was true. like the few remaining wild grand cayman blue iguanas, godzilla was a trooper that fought the odds every day. all iguanas are unique and spectacular in their own right, but godzilla was “perfect” — a favorite of zoo keepers and volunteers alike. he will truly be missed. as godzilla aged, he became increasingly unstable, often had difficulty reaching his favorite basking spot, and sometimes tumbled rather than climbed down. however, atop his basking spot, his proud stance seemed to say that age was irrelevant, and he remained a grand grand cayman blue until the end. iguana 10.4 b&w text 150 iguana volume 10, number 4 franz werner was born and raised in vienna. at the age of six, his father presented him with a little glass terrarium in which a green treefrog (hyla arborea) was supposed to forecast the weather by selecting perches on a miniature step ladder provided for that purpose. a common european sand lizard (lacerta agilis) soon joined the treefrog — and a lifelong interest in herpetology was established. werner studied zoology at the university of vienna, receiving his doctorate in 1890. he studied briefly in leipzig before moving back to vienna in 1895 to accept an appointment at the imperial zoological institute at the university. he rose to full professor in 1919, retired in 1933, and died in 1939. despite an inability to work with the herpetological collection at the naturhistoriches museum in vienna, due to the personal animosity of the director, franz steindachner, who may have perceived werner as a competitor, werner used material from other european museums and those in his personal collection to publish over 550 titles, most in herpetology. he described 24 genera and over 400 species and subspecies of amphibians and reptiles. although he occasionally erred in describing as new well-known species based on specimens with poor or erroneous locality data, most of his work was quite competent. werner’s major works included faunal surveys of austria-hungary (1897), the bismarck archipelago east of new guinea (1900), and greece (1938). taxonomic monographs included one on chameleons (1902), a three-part series on colubrid snakes (1923, 1924, 1929), several issues in das tierreich series, and the two herpetological volumes in the fourth edition of alfred brehm’s “tierleben” series (1912– 1913), from which the current and recent excerpts were taken. he also wrote the section on amphibians for the handbuch der zoologie (1930) and, with rodolpho kraus, the standard work on venoms and venomous snakes (1931). unlike many scientists, werner was not averse to popular or semi-popular writing. his efforts along those lines, particularly a little volume entitled “amphibien und reptilien” (1910), did much to develop an interest in herpetology among german-speaking people, to encourage amateurs, and to stimulate and inspire young zoologists. sources: adler, k. 1989. herpetologists of the past, pp. 5–141. in: k. adler (ed.), contributions to the history of herpetology. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, contributions to herpetology, number 5. ithaca, new york. mosauer, w. 1940. franz werner (1867–1939). herpetologica 1:178–183. b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h : franz werner (1867–1939) franz werner with a boa constrictor (photograph courtesy of kraig adler). franz werner at djebel zalagh, near fes, morocco in 1928 (photograph courtesty of kraig adler). iguana_11.2_text.ps 98 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 bendon the mona island rhinoceros iguana, cyclura cornuta stejnegeri. illustration by john bendon. juvenile rhinoceros iguana at the headstarting facility on mona. photograph by alberto alvarez. mona island lies between puerto rico and the dominican republic. illustration by john binns. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 99 isla mona is paradise! when god created eden, he probably thought of mona. if you go to mona — it will change your life! — rafael joglar, 2003 istepped off the plane exhausted and excited, about 7000 miles and 31 hours away from where my journey began. the time in puerto rico was 9:30 pm, but my body told me that it was really 2:30 am the next morning. this trip was very special; i had volunteered to be a field assistant on a research project currently underway on mona island, the home of cyclura cornuta stejnegeri, the mona island rhinoceros iguana. this magnificent creature has lived untouched on this island, separated from other large iguanines, for thousands of years, although an alternative school of thought suggests that the lack of substantial genetic differentiation from cyclura cornuta of hispaniola speaks to a recent, possibly even human-mediated, arrival on the island. magnificent iguanas of isla mona john bendon bath, england photographs by the author except where indicated. iguanas of isla mona � aerial view of isla mona. photograph by alberto alvarez. 100 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 alighting from the aircraft, i was immediately struck by the grand tropical aspect of the place, the cacti growing at the airstrip, unusual birds, and strange noises. that night, i was amazed by the innumerable stars bright against the black sky, and by an immense silence that covered us like a cloak and was interrupted only occasionally by the bark of a night heron. lying in bed, knowing i was on an island in the middle of nowhere, no one walking down the street, and hearing no cars or other sounds of a modern metropolis was a strange and wonderful sensation. mona island is a unique ecosystem, with considerable endemism. in addition to the iguana, the island hosts an endemic frog (eleutherodactylus monensis), three endemic lizards (anolis monensis, sphaerodactylus monensis, and ameiva alboguttata), three endemic snakes (typhlops monensis, epicrates monensis monensis, and alsophis portoricensis variegatus), and an endemic, albeit extinct, tortoise (geochelone monensis). non-endemic reptiles include widely distributed skinks in the mabuya sloanii complex, the introduced gecko, hemidactylus mabouia, and three species of sea turtles. in october, hundreds of careys (hawksbill turtles, eretmochelys imbricata) hatch on the beaches. they are gathered by the researchers, duly processed, and returned to the beach for their crawl to the sea. although clutches may contain as many as 120 eggs, the chance of survival to adulthood is only one in 10,000. their lives are fraught with danger; en route to the water they are eaten by hawks and herons; once in the water, they become prey for fish; and, if any survive, humans hunt them for the rest of their lives. a 200-lb. turtle takes fifty years to grow, one minute to kill, an hour to cook, and thirty minutes to eat. i am genuinely surprised that any are left. the climate on mona is hot. the island consists mainly of an elevated plateau. beaches are scarce and the only substantive one is on the southwestern shore. the unique vegetation includes 84% plateau forest, 8.7% shrub forest, 0.6% cliff forest, and 6.7% coastal plain. eleven varieties of cacti and 29 different species of euphorbia have been identified. two of these (e. petiolaris and e. mancinella) are poisonous to humans, although iguanas eat fruits of the latter. at any time, only about 12 persons, including two rangers, inhabit the island. facilities for the human population are limited to a few houses, a communal kitchen, a couple of workshops, a hurricane-destroyed theater/museum, and a new shower and toilet facility. two vehicles, plus a digger, several bikes, and a boat provide transportation. nine years ago, the only two cars on the island smashed into each other in a freak accident (don’t ask!). what i find most appealing about mona is that the iguanas don’t just frequent the wilder, more distant parts of the island. finding one right there on the doorstep was not unusual. mostly, they would ignore me completely, looking to the left and right, perhaps munching on a couple of fallen fruits or a leaf or two as they moved about. their lives seem quite tranquil — but, after all, they’ve been living here since long before the research station was built, walking the same routes, soaking up the sun’s rays, and just being iguanas. returning from the kitchen to the bunkhouse, coffee in hand, the early morning sun already hot, i see a big, calm, gray iguana. he seems to be staring at the trees, maybe wondering what’s for breakfast. two iguana-related projects are ongoing. alberto alvarez, department of natural and environmental resources (dner), heads an iguana headstarting program, and nestor pérez, a colombian post-graduate at the university of puerto rico–río piedras (upr), is conducting research on reproductive and territorial behavior. the latter project, funded by upr and dner, is currently in the third of a projected five years. the only substantive prior research on mona island iguanas was the basis of thomas wiewandt’s 1977 doctoral thesis. nestor’s study uses nest monitoring, radiotracking, and individual identity numbers in an effort to determine sex ratios, paternity information, size of home ranges and territories, movements, survival rates, and total population size. mona island covers about 65 km2 and much of it is very difficult terrain. nesting sites are scattered widely and some are almost inaccessible. twelve nests have been carefully monitored and surrounded by zinc fences. these are visited daily during the expected time of hatching. hatchlings are trapped inside the fences, collected, and taken to the research station for processing. each is measured and weighed, blood samples are taken, and transponders inserted. this year, 121 hatchlings were processed. at about 30 minutes per lizard, this entailed 60 hours of work for each of two people. bendon the entire human population of mona island taking a lunch break. twelve carefully monitored nests were surrounded by zinc fences. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 101iguanas of isla mona about half of the lizards are released in designated areas and the rest are held in headstarting cages. some of those remain for several years and attain sizes sufficient to enhance chances for survival after release. others may be released earlier, according to their progress, and the capacity of the headstarting facility. three different radio transmitters are used. one, for the larger animals, is enclosed in a pouch attached to a collar made out of plastic tubing, and hangs loosely around the neck. these present some risk of strangulation, and radios attached directly to iguanas without straps are generally preferred. the second type of radio is much smaller and is used for juveniles and even occasional hatchlings. because young animals grow quickly, these transmitters are tied around the lower part of the body above the pelvis, swing loosely, and usually fall off after some time. not only does this prevent the ties becoming too tight over time, but also the transmitters can be recovered and re-used. the third type of radio transmitters used for the larger animals are enclosed in a pouch attached to a collar made out of plastic tubing. hatchlings are collected from the nesting sites and processed at the field station. about half of them are returned to the wild at the release sites and the remainder are placed in headstarting cages. transmitter, about the size of an aa battery, is implanted in the body cavity of larger animals. although a longer recovery period might be preferable, animals are usually released after three days due to space and time constraints. once transmitters are fitted, animals are individually tracked using a vhf receiver. radio transmitters usually last three months to three years, depending on type. my own experiences tracking iguanas were mixtures of struggle and elation. one day, in the very dense, almost “junglelike” part of mona, i set out with the radio receiver to find iguana #22. the antenna was unwieldy and kept getting caught on branches. i kept getting tangled in vines, and had a difficult time determining in which direction i was going and where i had been. finding an iguana was not so easy. i would turn the antenna until the signal was stronger and then walk in that direction. then the signal would fade and i would turn, lose the signal, lose myself, trip a lot, but eventually catch the signal again. i followed it until i reached a sheer rock wall. shouldering the radio equipment, my tote bag, and a camera, i clambered up more easily than i had suspected i could — only to find, sitting on the top, a few feet away from the edge, staring at me, a beautiful female iguana with #22 painted in red latex on her side. the experience of stumbling through the jungle, scratched, badly bitten, and very dirty, was well worth the reward of seeing her nod “hello.” the sight of number twenty two at the end of all that will stay with me forever. adventures with iguanas ciudad lagarto.—a garbage dump near the headstarting facility has grown steadily over the years. i named it ciudad lagarto (“lizard city”) and erected a large sign to that effect. many of the released headstarters don’t stray very far and several of them have taken up residence, along with wild animals, in the dump, which supports a total population of about 20 lizards. if i approached slowly and stayed low, i could easily observe them, and i noted that each one had its own place. once i stood up, however, most of them quickly disappeared. a fairly large iguana lived near the front by a pile of old doors. she was beaded and tagged and had made a “nest” of dead grass under one of the doors. she was the largest and obviously the “alpha” animal in the area, even though a female. quite assertive and very much the “home-body”, she was close and easy to recapture, and had been weighed and measured more often than most of the other iguanas, providing us with important information on growth in large adults. other individuals, several of them similarly prone to recapture, lived inside refrigerators. resultant data demonstrate that, in 18 months, between the ages of about two to three years, weight gain ranged from a quite satisfactory 500 g to as much as one kilo. i visited ciudad lagarto and the inhabitants of the enclosure nearly every day that i was on the island. i very much enjoyed sitting inside the cages and watching them. if i was still and did not attempt to grab them, they would go on about their business and ignore me. i only did this at the beginning and end of the day, since the animals go “mad” when disturbed during the heat of the day and rush headlong into the wire mesh sides of the cages. but, in the evening, when the last rays of sunshine dip into the ocean, whole new hordes of life forms awaken, namely the mosquitoes and sand flies. that was my signal to get out as quickly as possible and slap on the repellent (one can’t wear it near the reptiles, as it may harm them). 102 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 bendon this large male was about to shed its skin. headstarted iguanas spend the first months of their lives in one of ten contiguous units. this occupant of ciudad lagarto monopolizes a prized basking site. photograph by alberto alvarez. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 103iguanas of isla mona bathroom hatchlings.—gravid iguanas enter the nesting burrows and emerge looking spent and emaciated. one nest site was in an open area where the station’s massive grass cutter would pass over it. fearing that the nest or emerging hatchlings might be damaged, the eggs were removed and reburied elsewhere. the reburied eggs were late in hatching; so, after some discussion, we dug them up and placed them in a container filled with soil from the site and set it under the house. although quite warm by temperate standards, october temperatures drop each day — and iguana eggs need temperatures of about 30 °c to hatch. nothing was happening. we peered into the container each day and checked the temperature, which was hovering around 26 °c. finally, we decided to bring them into the old wooden house and, more specifically, into the bathroom, which seemed to be the warmest place, especially when we added a light. a little water stabilized the humidity and the temperature settled at 31 °c under the sand and at 35 °c on the surface. now, all we had to do was continue waiting. the very next morning, i was in the bathroom brushing my teeth when, as an afterthought, i removed the light to see what was going on in our incubator. there, poking up like dark, wet pebbles on a beach, were four heads. the first hatchlings had started to come out of their eggs. this continued for four days. every so often, i would go into the bathroom and another head would have popped up like a crocus in spring. i kept them warm and watered them, just as one would with delicate flowers — and they responded by growing larger in front of my eyes (they really did grow, as they were absorbing their yolk sacs). thirteen little iguanas eventually sprang to life. it was like magic. even the seasoned researchers were excited and appeared from time to time with their cameras. hatching is typically a very private enterprise, as the eggs are normally underground. what we learned from this exercise is that we could not process these babies straight away. when hatchlings appear above ground for the first time, they may be anywhere from a few days to well over a week in age. at that age, they could be safely handled, if the yolk sac has shrunken and dried and the skin has healed. if we tried to handle them at a younger age, their moist and slippery skin wouldn’t take the paint with which we wrote their numbers, nor would it cut cleanly for the insertion of transmitters. so, the bathroom hatchlings taught us to use the umbilical scar as an indicator of when processing could begin. two for the price of one.—the fences placed around iguana nests sometimes did not work. in one instance, two fences next to each other were supposed to yield three sets and one set of hatchlings, respectively. instead, the former yielded only two and the latter two as well. we think that the third set from the first fence tunneled to the surface at an angle, only to emerge within the second fence — mystery solved. unfortunately, when the time came to collect the second set of hatchlings, the heat of the day was upon us. the little lizards running around the circular wall of their enclosure were far too fast to catch, and, if we came close to succeeding, they disappeared into their own hatching tunnel. as we needed to process them the next morning, i suggested that we go out at night with headlamps and grab them while they were sleeping. the result was a comic farce. most were hidden under some pipes that had been cut down the middle. i suggested that we hold a pillowcase at one end and scare them into it. it didn’t work — about nine iguanas ran out all at once, and the pillowcase caught only two. the rest ran round and round the circular fence as we turned on our heels trying to follow them, the bouncing lights on our heads only adding to the confusion. somehow, we discovered the rest of the hatchlings, all buried in the sand, jumbled together in a misshapen ball. neither of us had ever seen this kind of behavior, but we quickly took advantage of it and bagged some more of the lizards. eventually, we caught all fifteen, but we were pretty sure that we had played the fools while the little iguanas outsmarted us. we were laughing out loud, but silently pleased that no one had been watching. the legend of 98.—the day iguana #98 escaped, he just jumped out of my hand, ran up the mosquito screen, found a small hole, and was suddenly outside. i ran down the stairs and looked up at him perched on the window ledge. he jumped, landed beside me, and started looking around. however, as i bent to pick him up, he took off, running about 3 m. i just watched, knowing it would be futile to try to chase him. by then, he had spotted the outside world for the first time. the sun shone down on him and, when he looked up, he didn’t see me any more. stepping lightly across the grass, stopping and nodding, then running, he fled into the brush and was gone. unfortunately his number will have shed with his skin by the next time i visitthis individual is one of the largest iguanas on the island. mona; i will never know if he survived. if this was a novel, i would say that, “the legend of 98 lives on.” battles.—i had seen iguanas fighting in photographs only. it looked pretty vicious, but didn’t prepare me at all for what i saw on mona. these iguanas are among the largest and toughest species of cyclura. they scramble over sharp rocks and cactus, they lose tails and fingers, and they’re not fazed by harsh conditions — except possibly for cold weather, which forces them into a cozy hole somewhere. they are stocky and muscular, many have battle scars, and their horns and spikes often are worn or broken as a consequence of fighting or the mere wear and tear of living in a harsh environment. a couple of hardened old hands lived near the research station. one was iguana #21, who i called “tough guy 21,” and the other was just “tough guy.” both were aggressive. tough guy 21 had been around for a long time and was the uncrowned king of the area. he would swagger around and chase lesser males away. he always got the girl. one day during lunch, someone yelled: “hey, iguanas are fighting over here.” we dropped our rice and beans and dashed over, cameras at the ready, to find #21 fighting with tough guy. the new arrival was larger than our #21 and nestor told me he had never seen him before. he was identifiable by a white spot of detached skin just behind his right shoulder (which we duly noted and recorded). the fight appeared to be a stalemate, either that or both combatants lost interest. after several minutes, each went his own way, nodding furiously and gaping so widely that it seemed like one could park a car in the cavity. we didn’t think much more about that encounter until a few days later. female #27 seemed to be minding her own business under the watchful gaze of tough guy 21, when, out of nowhere, came the new tough guy. he sidled up to her and, from where we stood, appeared to be chatting to her amiably. tough guy 21 approached, the female backed off, and, like jousting knights, the two males rose up on their haunches, tipped 104 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 bendon many of the headstarted iguanas don’t stray very far after they are released. several have taken up residence, along with wild animals, in the dump, which supports a total population of about 20 lizards. photograph by alberto alverez. a young rhinoceros iguana peers out from the safety of a pvc pipe within the headstarting cages. photograph by alberto alverez. the fences placed around iguana nests sometimes did not work as intended. fights between adult males can be vicious. their heads and bodies slightly to the side, and began trotting around each other. all at once, #21 pounced forward and spat with a kind of hissing roar. this seemed to inflame the newcomer, who opened his mouth and went for 21. now, with both their mouths wide open, they scraped alongside each other’s faces, turning in a circle. they did not lock jaws, but continued turning and scraping and drawing blood all the while. this went on for about ten minutes, during which they ignored us as we approached rather closely to get photographs. suddenly, they stopped, seemingly taking a break — or was the battle over? apparently, the new tough guy had won. the next day we saw all three animals again. the new guy and the female wandered off together, while #21 skulked in the background. this behavior was quite unusual for that time of year. it was like mating behavior, but occurred during the hatching season. the third fight i saw was so vicious that i got a bucket of water and threw it over the two combatants like they were dogs, after which they dashed off in opposite directions. i was admonished by the biologists for “interfering with nature,” which i should have let take its course. i argued that the cat we caught had just killed and eaten three hatchling iguanas and also had interfered with nature, as it was not supposed to be on mona at all. i felt that i had merely tipped the balance a little by ensuring two big, healthy iguanas would survive. i can see the other side of the argument, but i still believe i did the right thing. i was not going to watch two endangered lizards kill each other.1 epilogue two nests, each surrounded by aluminum flashing, are on pajaros beach. although 9 km from the station, we check them daily. this day, nothing. perhaps, if it thunders again tonight, events will move along and tomorrow, early, the hatchlings may emerge. but now, i walk along the beach, watch the birds, move inland to a seagrape tree, and find a place to sit in the shade. alerted by a rustle in the leaves, i see an enormous iguana amble toward me. unbelievably, he sits and rests beside me, right beside me, nodding. i nod back. i stare at his big black eye, sunlight glinting off the blackness. all at once we are friends, sitting there together. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 105iguanas of isla mona 1 editors’ note: although male iguanas sometimes die as a consequence of complications from combat-related wounds, most conflicts in nature cease before fatal injuries are inflicted — as long as the “loser” has an opportunity to escape. mash is placed daily in split-bamboo feeding “stations” for young mona island iguanas (cyclura cornuta stejnegeri) at the headstarting facility. photograph by alberto alverez. the magic of mona was working again; the place weaves spells around those who visit, and i know i shall return again and again, if only i can. presently, the lizard rose, glanced at me, and walked away. as he did, he looked back one last time before disappearing into the brush. i’ve had many experiences during my travels, but this beat them all. from the back streets of cairo to the caves of kandahar, travel is enlightening, but sharing the shade of a tree on a blazing afternoon with my lizard companion is a memory that will remain with me always. acknowledgments i thank thomas wiewandt, nestor pérez, robert w. ehrig, m.p.c. lawton, alberto alvarez, and charles knapp for inspiration, information, and guidance. reference joglar, r.l. 2003. an island enchanted by frogs, pp. 203–211. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), islands and the sea: essays on herpetological exploration in the west indies. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles contributions in herpetology, vol. 20. ithaca, new york. 106 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 bendon the iguana headstarting program began in october 1999 with the construction of an enclosure on playa sardinera (in the west of mona island) where the dner facilities are located. the enclosure is composed of ten contiguous units, each 3 m x 3 m x 2.3 m. landscape arrays simulate a natural environment. rocks and logs provide perches, plants provide shade, hiding places, and water reservoirs, pvc pipes (4" diameter, 1 m long), approximately 6.5' above the ground, provide climbing opportunities and more hiding and basking places. several units contain smaller pipes (3") and bamboo sticks for hatchlings, an average of eight of which are kept in each unit, with the number of individuals in each enclosure depending on landscape characteristics, food resources, aggressiveness, and individual needs. in 1999–2000, 47 hatchlings were collected at sardinera and 4 at playa de pájaros; in 2000–2001, the numbers were 25 and 0; in 2001–2002, 1 and 5; and, in 2002–2003, 3 and 34, respectively. iguanas are fed daily or on alternate days with a mixture of moisturized prepared food (zeigler® iguana mash) and wild fruits, flowers, and, less abundantly, leaves. fruits and flowers have higher nutritional value. in general, about 30% of iguana food intake consists of collected natural food items. mash (5–10 g for hatchlings, 10–15 g for older animals) is placed daily in split bamboo feeding “stations,” whereas collected foods are spread randomly in each unit. late in the afternoon, food stations are removed and cleaned. regular cleaning is important to reduce infestation by fire ants, centipedes, scorpions, land crabs, and rodents. vegetation inside the enclosure is watered as needed. by the end of november 2002, all the signals from transmitters implanted in august 2002 were lost. two signals from transmitters implanted in april 2002 were still detectable, but one was lost in december and the other one in january 2003. we discount animal predation, and believe that a combination of out-of-range signals and transmitter malfunction may be responsible. collected data reveal that the fastest and farthest any one individual had moved was about 1 km in 3 days. the remaining animals were lost no more than 400 m from the release site. animals with transmitters implanted in april 2002 were less than 800 m from the release point when the signal was lost. in december 2002, seven juvenile iguanas hatched in 2000 and weighing more than 1 kg, were released in the sardinera and playa mujeres nesting sites. these were dominant individuals and responsible for considerable aggression in some enclosure units. six released iguanas have been recaptured in june and july 2003, including one with a disabled transmitter that had been implanted in april 2002. the remaining animals were from august 2002 and one from december 2002 releases. h e a d s t a r t i n g adapted from a report by alberto alvarez and used with permission. hatchling iguanas at the headstart facility in 2003. photograph by john bendon. iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) in this issue... features a backward glance at iguana exploitation henry s. fitch and robert w. henderson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 exploitation of reptiles in the west indies: a long history robert powell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 the st. lucian green iguana — a special case? john s. bendon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 black iguanas: name and systematics gunther köhler, aj gutman, and robert powell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 husbandry iguanas and artificial ultraviolet light: how and how much made simple — well, not exactly simple… bob maccargar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 profile henry s. fitch: a legendary passion for natural history robert w. henderson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 historical perspective whorl-tailed iguanas franz werner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 biographical sketch raymond l. ditmars (1876–1942) . . . . 92 book review the reptiles and amphibians of anguilla, british west indies aj gutman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 iguana newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 letter from the president . . . . . . . . . . . 98 (see page 71) international iguana society www.iguanasociety.org ph ot og ra ph s by m at t m or to n, d ur re ll w ild lif e c on se rv at io n tr us t. iguana 10.2 c yclu ra p in g u is (sto u t ig u an a o r a n eg ad a ig u an a) o n g u an a islan d , b v i, o cto b er 2002. ph o to g rap h b y jo h n b in n s. iguana_11.1_bw_text a dult m ale ricord's iguana (c yclura ricordii) from isla c abritos, d om inican republic (story on p. 9).photograph by d avid n ieves. iguana 10.4 b&w text g reen iguanas (iguana iguana) are inappropriate pets. like monkeys, raccoons, and skunks, they are cute and tractable as juveniles but become difficult to manage as they grow. most captives suffer one of two fates. either their needs are poorly met and they die at a young age, or they grow into large, active, aggressive adults for which few keepers can provide. reptile adoption and rescue agencies are overwhelmed with unwanted iguanas. successful iguana owners, those experienced in iguana care and behavior, are among the first to suggest that this species is a poor choice for all but the most dedicated keepers. in choosing a pet, people select reptiles in general, or iguanas specifically, for a variety of reasons. a small group of keepers has a strong, sincere interest in herpetology and iguanas in particular. these people make the best keepers, and are always reading, researching, and trying to improve their knowledge and level of care. a bigger group of keepers uses the reptile to satisfy the basic human need to be unique and stand out: “look at me, i have a weird pet.” many exotic pets are chosen for this reason, and these owners often take shortcuts in providing care because the animal itself is not as important as having it. still others choose a reptile because they are non-allergenic, low-maintenance pets that can be left unattended for days at a time, and convenience outweighs dedication. the final group of keepers incorporates the impulse buyers who see an interesting, inexpensive lizard in the pet store and buy it with little regard for its captive requirements. these people succumb to what dr. doug mader calls the iguana’s high “cool” factor. whatever the reason a reptile is chosen as a pet, iguanas are one of the more popular reptiles because they are inexpensive and readily available. moreover, they are vegetarian and, in this age of animal rights, many owners prefer not to deal with insect or rodent prey. the down side, of course, is that vegetarian diets are much more difficult to balance than are insectivorous or carnivorous diets. like pot-bellied pigs, hedgehogs, and imported adult ball pythons before them, the green iguana fad is on the down slope of its bell-shaped curve of popularity when compared to the 1990s. the word 129iguanadecember 2003 1 this feature was adapted from an article of the same title presented as part of the bayer exotics symposium in 2002 (suppl. compend. contin. educ. pract. vet. 24:13–22). portions of that and this manuscript are based on barten, s.l. in press. biology: lizards. in: d.r. mader (ed.), reptile medicine and surgery. 2nd ed. w.b. saunders, inc., philadelphia, pennsylvania. used with permission of the bayer corporation and bayer ag leverkusen. a healthy female green iguana (iguana iguana). photograph by tom wiewandt. green iguana management and husbandry1 stephen l. barten, dvm vernon hills animal hospital, mundelein, il 60060 h u s b a n d r y is seemingly getting around that these are difficult captives. nevertheless, a core of dedicated keepers will always be seeking veterinary advice. one of the biggest problems of keeping iguanas — or any reptile — in captivity is that no standard of care has been established for them. indeed, any internet search using the key words “iguanas, pets, and husbandry” (or “care in captivity”) will turn up an astonishing number of personal web pages for individual pet iguanas which are laden with advice, often conflicting, on captive care. recommendations for captive care are almost universally based on anecdotal or personal experience with a few specimens rather than scientific research. instead, captive care should be based on the biology and natural history of iguanas in the wild. the more their conditions mirror what they evolved to utilize in nature, the healthier captive iguanas will be. natural history few reptiles have been studied as extensively as have green iguanas. this very brief summary of their biology is an overview meant to illustrate applications to captive management. green iguanas inhabit the new world tropics and subtropics from northern mexico to paraguay and southeastern brazil, along with many caribbean islands. iguanas are diurnal and arboreal, preferring tree tops along rivers, lakes, and mangrove swamps. trees provide an abundance of sun and shade for thermoregulation and basking, as well as food and sleeping perches. iguanas sporadically descend to move to other trees, avoid threats or nest. an iguana may stay in one tree for anywhere from one day to several weeks. iguanas also utilize more open, arid habitats if sufficient food resources are available. the home range of a reptile is that area utilized for acquiring or accessing necessary resources such as food, shelter, basking sites, escape routes, mates, and nesting sites. home ranges are not defended against conspecifics and ranges of individuals typically overlap. territory is that subportion of the home range that is defended from conspecifics or other species, usually because it contains a critical resource. for iguanas living in trees, food is abundant and the main defendable resource is reproductive females. the measurement of home ranges for arboreal species is difficult because it is three-dimensional and contains gaps of unusable areas. nevertheless, one study reported mean home ranges for iguanas observed at least three times over a minimum of two months. large males occupied 800 m2, medium and small males covered 2,200 m2, and females ranged over 2,450 m2. another study showed mean daily movement totals of 111 m for male and 135 m for female iguanas. flight distances of iguanas in trees (the distance at which the approach of a threat caused the lizard to flee) was 50–60 m after basking and 90 m before basking. iguanas are one of few totally herbivorous lizards. they are joined by many of the other new world iguaninae, the spiny-tailed agamid uromastyx spp., sailfin dragons (hydrosaurus spp.), fiji island iguanas (brachylophus spp.), and the solomon island skink (corucia zebrata). suggestions that iguanas undergo an ontogenetic shift from insectivory to herbivory are based on observations of captives and anecdotal field observations and are incorrect. iguanas spend 90–96% of their time resting and only 1% eating. daily forage times last only 20–30 min. iguanas 130 iguana volume 10, number 4 tropical rain forest in costa rica. green iguanas were abundant and dozens and dozens of adult lizards were seen. generally eat the leaves of trees and vines. analysis of stomach contents from 31 iguanas in panama revealed only plant material comprising 26 plant species. twenty-four stomachs contained only leaves, four contained leaves and flowers, two only fruit, and one only flowers. iguana teeth work like pinking shears and cut out sections of leaves, but iguanas do not masticate before swallowing. all herbivorous lizards have an enlarged colon divided into compartments by circular and semilunar valves composed of infolded mucous membrane, submucosa, and the internal muscularis externa. the number of valves varies by species and green iguanas usually have 6 (5–7, but only four in populations from the northern lesser antilles). their function may be to slow gastrointestinal transit time, increase surface area, or provide habitat for commensal microbe and nematode populations. wild herbivorous lizards typically have huge oxyurid (intestinal roundworms) burdens of up to 15,000 worms per lizard. these are not found in other lizard species. the nematodes may serve to mechanically mix and break down plant material, produce useable cellulase, vitamins and fatty acids, or promote healthy populations of fermentative microbes in the colon. nevertheless, dewormed lizards had efficient digestion, so nematodes, although common, may be relatively unimportant. thirty to 40% of nutritional energy derives from microbial fermentation in the hindgut. this process requires high temperatures and slow passage times, averaging 6.9 days in wild iguanas in venezuela. wild neonate iguanas inoculate themselves with fermentative bacteria by ingesting the feces of adult iguanas after hatching. 131iguanadecember 2003 iguanas are arboreal and prefer trees along rivers, lakes and mangrove swamps (a). this river was in costa rica. the speck on the branch of this tree is a large green iguana (b). basking high in the top of a tree is typical iguana behavior, and serves as proof that most captive iguanas are kept in inadequately small cages. a b thermal ecology of reptiles is complex. the term “preferred optimum temperature zone” is common in the veterinary literature, but thermoregulation in ectotherms involves much more than that. the “preferred temperature” is the temperature selected by lizards in a thermal gradient when not distracted by other influences, like shelter. the “mean activity temperature” is the mean temperature of all active lizards. the “activity temperature range” is the range in which activity occurs. the “voluntary minimum and maximum” are the lowest and highest temperatures tolerated in laboratory conditions, and these define the endpoints of the activity temperature range. the “critical thermal minimum and maximum” are the extreme temperatures that result in immobility and death. voluntary minimum, maximum, and mean temperatures for iguanidae were reported as 18.0°, 46.4°, and 36.7° c (64.4°, 115.5°, and 98° f), respectively. circadian temperature fluctuations (low at night and high during the day) within the activity temperature range are very important, and lizards kept at uniform temperatures 24 hours a day fail to thrive. iguanas appear to have high requirements for ultraviolet light for vitamin d and calcium metabolism, although specific wavelengths, intensities, and photoperiods have not been quantified. nonbreeding iguanas in venezuela basked for approximately 4 h in the morning and another 2–3 h in the afternoon. basking provides for thermoregulatory as well as ultraviolet needs. 132 iguana volume 10, number 4 adaptations for herbivory in green iguanas. (a) iguanas have homodont (all the same shape), pleurodont (frequently shed and replaced) teeth designed for cutting large pieces of leaves, which are then swallowed relatively whole with little chewing. the points of the teeth interdigitate to cut leaves like pinking shears. (b) dorsoventral radiograph of an iguana. the colon is silhouetted by air density in the lung. the semilunar valves that divide the colon into compartments, which are typical of herbivorous lizards, are outlined and made visible by ingesta. a b iguanas communicate primarily through visual signals. dominant males exhibit physical characteristics that emphasize their size, such as large heads, opercular scales, crests, spines, and dewlaps, and sometimes orange skin coloration. likewise, head bobs, pushups, throat expansions, and dewlap erection are used to convey threat. threats may escalate to lunging, biting, and tail slapping, although, in the wild, displaying males tend to be well spaced so that displays outnumber actual fights. chemical and tactile signals are less important; however, femoral pores are well developed in males and produce secretions that provide both chemical and visual cues. the femoral pore secretions of desert iguanas (dipsosaurus dorsalis) reflect uv light in wavelengths that are visible to the lizards but not to humans. breeding is seasonal and associated with the dry season. males display on perches and defend territories from november through january, becoming very aggressive toward intruding males. this corresponds to a seasonal testicular recrudescence, during which the testicles undergo marked enlargement and testosterone production peaks. breeding behavior is characterized by dominant male hierarchies utilizing small mating territories, intense competition between males, and female mate selection determined by male fitness. females nest 3–7 weeks after breeding, produce clutches ranging from 14–76 eggs (average 35–43), and eggs hatch after 10–14 weeks of incubation at 28–32° c. iguanas often nest communally due to limited numbers of available sites, excavating nest sites at the bottom of burrows 1–2 m long and 0.25–0.5 m deep. females guard nests from other females. nonbreeding iguanas are more tolerant of the presence of other iguanas and do not defend territories. low-intensity antagonistic interactions occurred when two iguanas passed on a branch but ceased after they separated. nonbreeding females occupy prime basking and sleeping perches and chase away new females. husbandry the conditions iguanas require and utilize in the wild obviously cannot be provided in captivity. 133iguanadecember 2003 a very large, male, sedated green iguana. size and dominance are communicated through visual cues. note the large head, large opercular scale on the jowl, large dewlap, and tall dorsal spines. this iguana was caught as a feral animal in florida, where it was thriving outdoors. the right front foot and forearm are swollen as a result of a bite wound from another iguana. several iguanas including territorial males were housed together due to lack of space at an animal dealer’s facilities. no iguana husbandry can be described as “proper,” and captive conditions always have room for improvement. captive iguanas tolerate less than ideal conditions, nevertheless keepers must be aware of iguana natural history and make every effort to provide for their needs. these needs include large, three-dimensional home ranges, focal heat sources approaching 36.7° c (98° f), strong uv sources, a balanced vegetarian diet, and avoidance of the various levels of aggressive and antagonistic behavior between individuals. every captive iguana is under some degree of chronic stress just from being in captivity. conditions that are welltolerated by one lizard may cause serious problems in another, and keepers must be flexible in their techniques according to their results. captive management should be investigated and improved for any iguana presented to a veterinarian for any reason, without exception. iguana husbandry has been the subject of innumerable books and magazine articles. to cover the topic in depth here would be to reinvent the wheel, and such a complex subject cannot be discussed in detail in this limited space. veterinarians and owners alike should be thoroughly familiar with one or more of the three best books on iguana husbandry: kaplan’s iguanas for dummies, hatfield’s green iguana: the ultimate owner’s manual, and rosenthal’s the iguana: an owner’s guide to a happy healthy pet. melissa kaplan is considered a leading authority on captive iguana management and, in addition to her excellent book, she maintains the melissa kaplan’s herp care collection web site at www.anapsid.org. this is one of the finest web sites on herp care because it is comprehensive, current, accurate, well-referenced, and frequently updated. two main schools dominate captive reptile husbandry. traditionally, bare cages with newspaper substrate and a single branch and water bowl were recommended and popular. ease of maintenance was achieved at the cost of stimulation and enrichment for the iguana. lately, complex, naturalistic vivaria have become fashionable. such cages are aesthetically pleasing, but also labor-intensive to maintain, and few but the most dedicated and experienced hobbyists do an adequate job of sustaining hygiene in complex cages. if a keeper cannot properly maintain a complex vivarium, then a simpler setup would be a better choice. likewise, ingestion of substrate is common when gravel or bark is used, especially if the diet is unbalanced or inadequate in amount. in spite of the potential problems, cages should be enriched to reduce stress and allow normal behaviors among inhabitants. caging.—iguanas are arboreal lizards that require huge cages to accommodate their active behavior, and most keepers provide cages that are too small. one expert recommends a cage length equal 1.5–2 times the total length of the lizard housed within, and a cage width at least half that distance. another expert suggests even more space, 0.4 m3 cage space per 0.1 m total length for arboreal lizards. these are suggestions only and come nowhere near providing the space that wild iguanas utilize, with home ranges measuring over 2,000 m2 (a square measuring 146 ft per side) and daily movements exceeding 100 m (328 ft). with that in mind, iguanas should be provided the biggest possible cages with the goal for adult lizards of at least 10 x 3 by 6 ft high, although a room-sized enclosure would be better. anything smaller would be the equivalent of a human living in a telephone booth: possible, but hardly humane. aquaria sold for juvenile iguanas will be outgrown in a few months, and the need for custom cages should be anticipated from the beginning. outdoor aviary-style cages with shelters from the sun and inclement weather are strongly recommended in warm climates or during the summer months. cage sides should be smooth to prevent rostral abrasions. metal screening should be used with caution, since it doesn’t retain heat and can result in foot and rostral trauma. plastic mesh, polyethylene hardware cloth, and plastic-coated wire mesh are less abrasive. cages made of wood must be sealed with polyurethane, marine epoxy paint, or a similar waterproofing agent, and joints should be caulked to allow cleaning and disinfection. ventilation is crucial, as ample air exchange is necessary to prevent the harmful buildup of bacteria and fungi. lizards allowed to roam free in the house may suffer suboptimal temperatures from the lack of a heat source or exposure to cold outside walls and windows or drafty floors. trauma is common in free-roaming iguanas that may be trampled, closed in doors, fall from high shelves or curtains, or be attacked by dogs and cats. uncaged iguanas commonly escape. arboreal species require vertical space and climbing branches. dry climbing branches approximately the same diameter as the lizard’s body 134 iguana volume 10, number 4 should be placed diagonally in the cage and anchored to prevent toppling. live, non-toxic plants that lack spines and slippery surfaces and are big enough to bear the weight of the lizard are recommended. dracaena and ficus trees with trunks as thick as the lizard’s body work well for iguanas. these act as cage furniture, add humidity, shelter, and visual enhancement. they should be potted to facilitate cleaning. silk plants may be coated with toxic, water-soluble stiffeners and should not be used. substrate.—substrate can be flat newspaper, indoor/outdoor carpet, orchid or so-called “reptile” bark chips, alfalfa pellets, cyprus mulch, or commercial animal bedding made from recycled paper or wood pulp. newspaper is inexpensive, clean, and easy to use, but not aesthetically pleasing. carpet is labor-intensive, requiring washing. alfalfa pellets are digestible if ingested and look nice, but are dusty and foul smelling when they get wet. orchid or “reptile” bark products made from fir may be used, but never redwood or cedar. if bark chips are excessively dusty, they should be rinsed and dried before use. coarse-grade bark can irritate the feet of lizards that dig repeatedly and fine-grade bark can cause fatal gastrointestinal impaction if swallowed. with the current popularity of naturalistic vivaria, many keepers feel the advantages of bark outweigh these risks. a shallow feeding dish can be used to minimize the risk of accidental substrate ingestion, but the bark should be removed if a keeper sees the lizard eat some or finds it in droppings. recycled paper animal bedding currently is a popular substrate to use because it is more absorbent and less dusty than alfalfa pellets; it can be changed less frequently and it is more or less digestible if swallowed. cedar shavings contain aromatic resins that may be toxic to reptiles. other substrates to avoid include gravel, sand, crushed corn cob, clay kitty litter, and miscellaneous wood shavings. thermoregulation.—reptiles are ectothermic and require supplemental heat in captivity. temperatures within the activity temperature range are necessary to optimize metabolic processes including digestion, growth, healing, reproduction, and immune system function. the mean activity temperature (tb, body temperature) for iguanidae is reportedly 36.7° c (98° f); consequently, a focal hot spot reaching this level must be provided. iguanas also are heliothermic (gain heat by basking) and not thigmothermic (gain heat by conduction from lying on warm rocks), thus overhead heat sources are preferred to substrate heaters. so-called hot rocks are commonly sold by pet stores for use with pet reptiles, but are inappropriate for this species. substrate heaters under the tank may be used to provide background heat in cold climates, but not primary basking heat. reptiles in the wild control their core body temperature to within a few degrees of their mean activity temperature by thermoregulation — they move all or parts of their bodies into or out of 135iguanadecember 2003 a bahamian ground iguana (cyclura cychlura figginisi) in a huge outdoor enclosure. although not a green iguana, the principles are the same. about one eighth of the cage is visible here. it is located under a tree, providing both sun and shade. note the ramp behind the lizard which leads to a heated enclosure to provide shelter on cool nights. note, too, that the concrete walls are buried in the ground to prevent the lizards from burrowing underneath them. photograph by juliann sweet. direct sunlight. keepers should create a thermally complex environment for captive reptiles to allow them to adjust their body temperature behaviorally as they would in the wild. a thermal gradient on both a horizontal and vertical axis is ideal. this can be achieved by providing a focal hot spot on one side of the cage, covering less than 25% of the cage, using overhead lamps with reflectors, infrared ceramic heating elements, or radiant heat panels. these must be secured to prevent them from being tipped over or burning the lizard. heat sources should be attached to thermostats to prevent accidental overheating, and a number of commercial models are available specifically for use with captive reptile enclosures. fire safety precautions and smoke alarms should be used. however, maintaining the entire cage at a uniform temperature would be unnatural. diurnal temperature fluctuations between day and night occur in the wild, so heat lamps should not be left on 24 h/day. daily fluctuations in temperature seem to be important for lizards. nighttime temperatures can approach the voluntary minimum temperature for iguanas (18.0°c, 64.4°f), but should not reach it to avoid stress and immunosuppression. nighttime lows around 22°c (72°f) are well-tolerated as long as adequate daytime highs are provided. the temperatures at both the hottest and coldest parts of the enclosure must be measured daily. digital thermometer-hygrometers are useful. likewise, infrared thermometers that instantly measure the surface temperature of objects from a distance are highly recommended. both are available from electronics stores and reptile supply dealers. adhesive aquarium thermometers stuck to the side of the cage are not recommended, because the temperature of the basking site where the reptile rests should be measured rather than the temperature on the side of the cage. osmoregulation.—tap water usually is adequate, but bottled water might be used where the tap water quality is in question. aging the water or dechlorination is not necessary. pseudomonas spp. bacteria grow rapidly in water bowls, so bowls should be changed and disinfected or washed in hot soapy water every day. humidity is an important but often overlooked factor. in general, iguanas require more humidity than is typically present in our homes. from a practical standpoint, maintaining humidity levels of 50% is almost impossible, and such levels result in blooms of mildew. good ventilation is essential to prevent the rapid growth of bacteria and mold in the cage when humidity is added. humidity may be increased by using water bowls with large surface areas to increase evaporation, frequent spraying of the cage, or the use of humidifiers. different humidifier models produce hot or cold mist. the former must be kept far enough from the lizard to prevent burns. machines kept within the enclosure must be secured to prevent iguanas from tipping them over. ultraviolet requirements.—ultraviolet wavelengths (uv) are important for vitamin d synthesis and calcium metabolism in diurnal lizards that do not eat vertebrate prey. uv-a (nearwave, 320–400 nm) produces beneficial behavioral and psychologic effects, but does not activate vitamin d precursors in the skin. uv-b (middlewave, 290–320 nm) is necessary for vitamin d activation. reptiles benefit from both uv-a and uv-b light. nevertheless, scientific studies into the specific requirement for uv light in captive lizards are lacking, and specific requirements for uv wavelength, intensity, and length of exposure are largely unknown. iguanas are known to bask for many hours every day in the potent tropical sun, receiving levels of uv radiation that are difficult to duplicate in captivity. the sun is a more effective uv source than any bulb, but certain precautions must be taken before exposing captive lizards to direct sunlight. first, window glass filters out uv rays, thus sunlight through a window is of no benefit. a reptile in a glass cage should never be placed in direct sunlight or overheating and death may occur. reptiles should be in a screen or mesh cage to allow sunlight to enter but, at the same time, prevent the escape of the lizard. part of this enclosure must be shaded with an overhang or plants to allow the animal to get out of the sun. iguanas basking in the sun should be kept in an enclosure and not handheld, even with a leash, because direct sunlight can result in temporary changes in personality, and normally tame lizards can become agitated and very aggressive. these changes reverse readily when the lizard is brought back inside. lizards basking in sunlight should be monitored to prevent overheating, exposure to predators, or theft, or any other problem that might arise. basking outside should not be allowed if the ambient temperature is excessively high. even 15–30 min of direct sunlight a week can be quite beneficial. 136 iguana volume 10, number 4 a number of artificial uv-b light sources for reptiles are commercially available. obviously a bulb producing 5.0% of its emitted light as uv-b is more efficient than one producing 2.0% uv-b. moreover, a 48-inch tube produces more light than an 18-inch tube, and two tubes produce twice as much light as a single tube. traditionally, fluorescent tubes have been considered better uvb sources than incandescent bulbs, but new products are available that claim to provide uv-b and heat in a single incandescent bulb. new uv light sources are becoming available on a regular basis, and each should be evaluated based on the wavelengths of uv produced. caution should be taken to avoid human exposure or eye contact with the uv rays, as these have been associated with skin cancer and cataract formation. artificial uv light sources should mimic natural photoperiods and be turned off at night. artificial light sources cannot replace natural sunlight, and those reptiles with access to the sun in outdoor enclosures, even on a screen porch or patio, invariably have better growth, health, behavior, reproduction, and longevity than those kept indoors. visual security.—visual security is beneficial, especially for nervous specimens. a shelter or retreat should be provided for all cage inhabitants. hiding places can be made from a cardboard box, terra cotta pottery, plastic flower pots, cardboard tubes, sheets of cork bark, or driftwood. arboreal iguanas also should be provided with real or artificial plants in which to hide. some iguanas eat poorly and become stressed if they lack visual security. disinfection.—cages and food and water bowls must be cleaned frequently. three-percent sodium hypochlorite solution is an effective and economical disinfectant. the cage and its furniture must be rinsed thoroughly before returning a lizard to the cage. keepers must wash their hands thoroughly after cleaning each cage and not transfer water bowls, uneaten food, or climbing branches between cages without disinfecting them first. quarantine.—reptiles new to a collection must be kept in a separate area from the main collection for a minimum of 3 months. new arrivals should have physical examinations, body weights recorded, fecal examinations, parasite treatment, and be monitored for appetite, normal behavior, and symptoms of illness. at the very least, the owner should inspect new arrivals. the main collection should be fed and cleaned first and the quarantined animals second, with no transfer of animals, cages, food and water bowls, uneaten food items, or cage furniture between the two. keepers must wash their hands and consider clothing changes after working with either collection to prevent the inadvertent transfer of pathogens. ideally, different keepers would care for the two collections. the farther apart the two collections are physically, the less likely an epizootic will occur. no transfer of air should occur between the two 137iguanadecember 2003 two rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta) in a large outdoor enclosure. the lizard on the right is threatening the other one with vigorous head bobs. note the erect posture and orientation directly towards the other lizard. the other iguana soon submitted by retreating to the far corner of the cage. groups. when multiple animals are being quarantined, they should enter and leave the quarantine area as a group. communal housing and handling.—pet stores often display iguanas for sale in crowded community tanks, suggesting that these are social animals. in the wild they may form loose aggregations if food is abundant, but they also have the opportunity to run away if they are being stressed or threatened by other iguanas. lizards locked in a cage or room cannot run away. male lizards are more territorial than females, and react more violently to other males than to females. hormone fluctuations, and thus territoriality, are seasonal and are manifested most acutely during the breeding season. iguanas gain little benefit from being housed together, but cannot stress or injure each other if housed separately. when two or more lizards are kept together, the more aggressive individual may physically attack the subordinate one, sometimes inflicting serious wounds. more often it dominates in more subtle ways by keeping the subordinate lizard away from food and heat sources. this allows the dominant one to digest its food more efficiently, grow faster, and have a more effective immune system than the subordinate lizard. the subordinate in a pair invariably suffers chronic stress, and thus fails to thrive. symptoms include slow growth, emaciation, poor muscle tone, poor color, lethargy, and susceptibility to infections and parasites. the solution is to separate the lizards. reflective surfaces and mirrors should be avoided, as lizards, especially males, will attack their own reflection. keepers might occasionally observe two lizards in a cage to lie in the same spot and overinterpret that they have a relationship. however, stress may still be present. two or more iguanas may be kept together only if certain requirements are met. first, the enclosure must be large enough, with 1.5–2 times the recommended area for the biggest iguana pro138 iguana volume 10, number 4 multiple bite wounds on the back of a subordinate male iguana, which also suffered a fractured ulna as the result of an additional bite. seventy-eight stitches were needed to close the wounds. the owner had purchased two iguanas thinking they were social and in need of companionship. as the lizards grew, they both turned out to be males and began to fight. the owner tried to separate them by confining them in separate (and inadequate) 55-gallon aquaria in the same room. he came home one day to find the larger male had broken out of his cage and into the cage of the smaller lizard, pinning him down and chewing on him until the owner separated them. vided for each iguana in the cage. second, separate feeding, basking, and hiding areas must be provided for each iguana. spatial complexity, so the iguanas can stay out of sight of each other behind logs, driftwood, and plants, is crucial. third, keepers must be observant of the iguanas’ behavior. a cage may appear suitable by the book, yet the individual iguanas may require more space or additional shelters or basking sites. different iguanas have different personalities and requirements. finally, the keeper must be aware that two iguanas simply may be incompatible. just because they are the same species does not mean that they will get along. females may dominate males, and smaller lizards may dominate larger ones, so the largest male is not always at the top of the social hierarchy. lizards that are initially compatible may begin to fight months or years later. keepers getting more than one iguana should be prepared to provide separate enclosures if the lizards become incompatible. separate enclosures are not always enough, and often cages must be kept in separate rooms. food and feeding.—wild green iguanas are specialized folivores, eating primarily leaves from trees. captive iguanas are exposed to, and accept, a number of food items they would never see in the wild. the owner must patiently work with his or her pet iguana and train it to eat a balanced diet. the lizard should never be allowed to choose what it eats, as taste and palatability do not necessarily equate to nutritional value. suboptimal temperatures and other husbandry conditions prevent adequate food intake and digestion. under poor captive conditions the best diet in the world will be inadequate. no captive iguana diet can be accurately described as “proper.” the exact nutritional requirements for green iguanas have never been scientifically determined, and precise nutritional requirements for this species are not known. wild iguanas eat leaves from trees that are not available in captivity. we can approximate a nutritious diet, but most formulations are based on anecdote, experience, and speculation rather than scientific feeding trials. in captivity, herbivorous lizard diets should be based on a variety of chopped, dark green, leafy vegetables. greens that contain oxalates, like spinach, or goitrogens, like kale, should be used sparingly. fruit should be minimized, not because it is toxic but because it dilutes the beneficial nutrients of the other ingredients. in one study, adding one cup of strawberries to one cup of romaine reduced the protein and calcium concentrations by two-thirds compared to romaine alone. a recommended diet including ingredients, amounts, schedules, and vitamin and mineral supplementation is described in the accompanying table. all plant material must be washed, chopped (a food processor is recommended), and thoroughly mixed. this will ensure a balanced diet in that all food items will be eaten, rather than just the favorites or the most tasty items. prepare enough for 4–7 days, store it in the refrigerator between feedings, and serve it at room temperature or slightly warmer. offer food after the iguana has had several hours to bask under its heat source in the morning, leave it in all day and remove uneaten food in the evening. grains such as bread, crackers, pasta, and seeds are recommended in some iguana diet recipes. this food group is low in the nutrients that iguanas need, especially fiber, protein, and calcium. grains should be limited to occasional treats if used at all. traditionally, animal protein sources have been recommended. however, these lizards are vegetarians from birth, even though they might occasionally accept unnatural foods (e.g., crickets or even mice) in captivity. although animal protein sources often are recommended for iguanas, their necessity has not been scientifically documented. any protein supplements should be plant-based. commercial iguana diets are available, but vary in quality and palatability. the advantage of these products is that they are easier to use than preparing a balanced salad several times a week. the disadvantage is that, in spite of claims that the commercial diets are complete and balanced, they may not be. commercial diets that have high levels of animal protein, fat, corn, soy, wheat, grains, goitrogenic vegetables, fruits, or flowers should be avoided. the main ingredient, which is always mentioned first on the ingredient list, should be alfalfa. nutrient levels on a dry matter (dm) basis should include plant-based protein > 20%, fiber > 15%, and calcium 1.4%. pelleted or powdered diets contain only 10% water compared to 85–90% in salads. consequently, these diets must be moistened with water prior to feeding. frozen diets can be deficient in thiamine. commercial iguana diets may have a role in iguana nutrition but should be limited to less than half of the total diet until more is known. 139iguanadecember 2003 140 iguana volume 10, number 4 hatchlings (to 14” in length) • feed twice a day or provide continuous availability • plant matter finely chopped or shredded • 1 small pinch of vitamin/mineral supplements per feeding. give vitamins 4–5 days a week and calcium 7 days a week. juveniles (to 2.5 years of age or to 3 ft in length) • feed once a day • plant matter fine to medium chopped or shredded • 1 small pinch of vitamine/mineral supplements per feeding. give vitamins 4–5 days a week and calcium 7 days a week. adults (over 2.5 years of age or over 3 ft in length) • feed daily or every other day (an iguana cannot be overfed when using the high fiber, vegetarian diet recommended here) • plant matter coarsely chopped • one full pinch of vitamine/mineral supplements per 2 lbs of body weight. give vitamins 2–3 times per week and calcium 4–5 times per week (unless gravid or sick, then 5–6 times a week). ingredients 1. calcium-rich leafy greens, 40–45% of the diet or more with three or more items per feeding: turnip greens, mustard greens, collards, pesticide-free dandelion greens and flowers, clover, escarole, carrot tops, parsley, nasturtium leaves and flowers, and hibiscus leaves and flowers. also offer endive, romaine, mint, and cilantro. spinach, chard and beet greens have high levels of oxalates which can tie up calcium, and kale, bok choy, and broccoli leaves have high levels of goitrogens. both groups can be used, but in moderation. iceberg, boston, butter, and head lettuces have little nutritional value compared to dark leafy greens. romaine is intermediate in value, and should be used only in combination with the dark leafy green mentioned above. 2. other vegetables, 40–45% of the diet with a variety weekly: raw green beans, snow and snap peas, squash, sweet potato, okra, bell pepper, mushrooms, and yams. thawed, frozen mixed vegetables can be used occasionally. grated carrot should be used only occasionally, as it also contains high levels of oxalates. vegetables with lower nutritional values include cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, olives, zucchini, and radishes. 3. alfalfa is a good source of fiber and protein. alfalfa is available as minibales or pellets for small mammals from pet and feed stores. read pellet ingredient labels to make sure alfalfa is the first ingredient listed. do not use mixes that contain seeds and other ingredients. alfalfa also is available as powder, tablets, or capsules from health food stores. pellets and powder should be softened by soaking them in water prior to feeding. be sure to use mature leaves and stems rather than sprouts. if an iguana refuses to eat alfalfa as offered, powder or crushed tablets can be added at low levels to the salad, gradually increasing the amount over several weeks. 4. fruits should be used only as occasional treats or supplements. fruits are low in most nutrients including protein and calcium, and have high levels of phosphorus. fruits dilute the good nutrients found in leafy greens and vegetables. the following may be offered: figs, papaya, melon, apple, peaches, plums, strawberries, banana (with skin), grapes, and kiwi. 5. vitamin and mineral supplementation is advised. vitamin and mineral deficiencies are common in iguanas. however, calcium and fat-soluble vitamins (a, d, e, and k) can be oversupplemented as well as undersupplemented. to avoid oversupplementation, natural sources from a varied diet are the best choice, with moderate vitamin/mineral use to balance the diet. to date, no documented studies address specific requirements for any lizard species. many commercial supplements are available for reptiles, but none of these products is required to prove potency or safety. products vary widely in levels of ingredients. look for a ratio of roughly 100 parts vitamin a to 10 parts vitamin d3 to 1 part vitamin e. human products with vitamin d3 (rather than d2) may also be used. for minerals, use powdered calcium carbonate (cuttlebone shavings is one source) or calcium gluconate. vitamin powder on top of the salad may make it unpalatable. the powder should be mixed in thoroughly. if you can see the powder, you probably used too much. recommended diet for captive green iguanas green iguanas, especially hatchlings, in retail outlets are often anorexic, underweight, and weak. they may weigh less than 10 g and have a sunken abdomen and a bony pelvic girdle. these lizards should be force-fed an appropriate vegetarian diet such as a commercial tube feed mixture for rabbits or a gruel of rabbit pellets, as opposed to a liquid diet for carnivorous dogs and cats, at 1–3% of their body weight every two days. at the same time, the juvenile lizards should be offered a finely chopped diet, as described in the accompanying table, until they are eating on their own. references alberts, a.c. 1989. ultraviolet visual sensitivity in desert iguanas: implications for pheromone detection. anim. behav. 38:129–137. barnett, s.l. 1997. think “up”: meeting the needs of arboreal lizards, pp. 41–56. in: m.w. frahm (ed.), proceedings of the association of reptilian and amphibian veterinarians. arav, houston, texas. barten, s.l. 1993. the medical care of iguanas and other common pet lizards. vet. clin. n. amer. sm. anim. pract. 23:1213–1249. boyer, t.h. 1991. green iguana care. bull. assoc. rept. amphib. vet. 1:12–14. boyer, t.h. 1991. common problems and treatment of the green iguana, iguana iguana. bull. assoc. rept. amphib. vet. 1:8–11. de vosjoli, p. 1992. the green iguana manual. advanced vivarium systems, lakeside, california. de vosjoli, p. 1999. designing environments for captive amphibians and reptiles. vet. clin. n. amer. exotic anim. pract. 2:43–68. distel, h. and j. veazey. 1982. the behavioral inventory of the green iguana, iguana iguana, pp. 252–270. in: g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes publications, park ridge, new jersey. divers, s.j. 1999. clinical evaluation of reptiles. vet. clin. n. amer. exotic anim. pract. 2:291–331. donoghue, s. 1996. nutrition of the green iguana (iguana iguana), pp. 99–106. in: m.w. frahm (ed.), proceedings of the association of reptilian and amphibian veterinarians. arav, tampa, florida. donoghue, s. 2001. making the most of diet histories: green iguanas. exotic dvm 3(2):36–37. dugan, b. 1982. the mating behavior of the green iguana, iguana iguana, pp. 320–341. in: g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes publications, park ridge, new jersey. frye, f.l. 1991. biomedical and surgical aspects of captive reptile husbandry. 2nd ed. krieger publ. co., malabar, florida. gehrmann, w.h. 1994. spectral characteristics of lamps commonly used in herpetoculture. vivarium 5(5):16–21, 29. hatfield, j.w. 1996. green iguana: the ultimate owner’s manual. dunthorpe press, portland, oregon. iverson, j.b. 1982. adaptions to herbivory in iguanine lizards, pp. 60–76. in: g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes publications, park ridge, new jersey. jacobson, e.r. 1988. evaluation of the reptile patient, pp. 1–18. in: e.r. jacobson and g.v. kollias (eds.), contemporary issues in small animal practice: exotic animals. churchill livingstone, new york. jarchow, j.l. 1988. hospital care of the reptile patient, pp. 19–34. in: e.r. jacobson and g.v. kollias (eds.), contemporary issues in small animal practice: exotic animals. churchill livingstone, new york. kaplan, m. 2000. iguanas for dummies. idg books worldwide, inc., foster city, california. rand, s.a., b.a. dugan, h. monteza, and d. vianda. 1990. the diet of a generalized folivore: iguana iguana in panama. j. herpetol. 24:211–214. rodda, g.h. 1992. the mating behavior of iguana iguana. smithson. contrib. zool. (534):1–40. rosenthal, k. 1996. the iguana: an owner’s guide to a happy healthy pet. howell book house, new york. wiewandt, t.a. 1982. evolution of nesting pattrns in iguanine lizards, pp. 119–149. in: g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes publications, park ridge, new jersey. zug, g.r., l.j. vitt, and j.p. caldwell. 2001. herpetology: an introductory biology of amphibians and reptiles. 2nd ed. academic press, san diego, california. 141iguanadecember 2003 an emaciated green iguana acquired by the mid-michigan reptile rescue. photograph by stephanie beiser. a healthy exuma islands iguana (cyclura cychlura figginsi) enjoys a properly prepared meal. photograph by juliann sweet. iguana 10.4 b&w text 119iguanadecember 2003 varanidae is a monotypic family of about 50 species of old-world lizards containing only the genus varanus. these generally large, intelligent, carnivorous lizards occur in africa, australia, and southeast asia in habitats ranging from deserts and savannahs to tropical rainforests and mangroves. at least one large species has gained a foothold in the western hemisphere and may represent a considerable threat to native wildlife populations. the nile monitor, varanus niloticus, ranges naturally throughout central and southern africa. two subspecies, the common (v. n. niloticus) and ornate (v. n. ornata) nile monitor were once recognized, but full species status was recently awarded them both. the former has a blue tongue and 6–9 gold dorsal bands and the latter has a pinkish tongue and 3–5 dorsal bands. the oft-used vernacular name “money monitor” refers to its coin-sized, gold dorsal spots. reaching a maximum total length of over two meters (usually about 1.5 m) and a maximum weight of over 10 kg (usually 5–8 kg), this is one of the largest lizard species on earth. they often live to be 10 or more years old, but reach sexual maturity in under three years, and larger, older females may lay 60–80 eggs in a clutch. in kenya, they reach densities of 40–60 lizards/km2. as a result of their large size, high reproductive rates, and abundance, this species is heavily exploited for meat and leather, and is considered valuable in its native lands — but this species is particularly unwelcome outside its native range. at least 13 years ago, this species became established in cape coral, a sprawling coastal residential area near ft. myers in southwestern florida. in the 1950s, the wetlands of this region were ‘reclaimed’ for development by using the spoils dug from an over 400-mile-long network of deep canals. additional aquatic and wetland habitats were created in the areas’ numerous golf courses. moreover, cape coral is fringed by extensive mangroves and remote barrier islands. these freshwater canals, lakes, and wetlands, combined with a low density of homes and remote coastal mangroves, provide ideal conditions for the establishment and spread of this species. the origin of the introduced lizards remains unknown, but the extent of the problem became apparent in 2000 due to the efforts of kraig hankins (city of cape coral), kenneth krysko (university of florida), and kevin enge (florida fish and wildlife conservation commission). this species currently occupies over 50 km2 of residential areas, canal banks, and surrounding pine flatwoods, mangroves, species profile: nile monitors (varanus niloticus) in florida todd campbell department of biology, university of tampa this 5-foot, 15-pound nile monitor was captured at a residence in cape coral. nile monitors construct burrows in the banks of over 400 miles of canals in cape coral. the remote pine flatwoods of the charlotte harbor buffer preserve provide valuable habitat for native species, but also may be a corridor for expansion of nile monitors. 120 iguana volume 10, number 4 barrier islands, and other natural habitats in and around cape coral. the impact of this species on native wildlife is largely anecdotal at this time, but in southwestern cape coral, pets have been disappearing, feral cats are relatively rare, and residents tell tales of monitors eating rabbits in their yards and goldfish in their ponds. in their native range, nile monitors are generalist carnivores that will take snails, spiders, crustaceans, insects, fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, bird eggs, and mammals. their diet changes with age from crabs and other invertebrates to vertebrates and carrion. they can dig their own burrows, but prefer to sequester an existing burrow after making a meal of the resident. these intelligent, stealthy predators are at home above and below ground, in water, and in trees. the potential for impact on native species is not yet known, but a few legally protected taxa may be particularly vulnerable. cape coral has a notoriously large population of burrowing owls, a small species of terrestrial owl that digs burrows in open habitats and canal banks. the eggs and hatchlings of the gopher tortoise, another burrowing species, may be vulnerable to adult monitors. nile monitors compete with and consume dwarf crocodiles in their native haunts, suggesting that american alligators could be at risk. nile monitors also harbor introduced parasites that could be transmitted to other vertebrates and even humans. in july 2003, i initiated a research program at the university of tampa with funding from the charlotte harbor national estuary program and the national fish and wildlife foundation. with the help of local residents, lizards are being located, trapped, and ethically euthanized to obtain information about their current geographic distribution, density, natural history, reproductive cycle, diet, and impact on native species — and to assess the potential for range expansion and the possibility of eradicating this species from the area. total eradication may prove unfeasible, but the knowledge gained will assist in managing populations of this and other introduced carnivorous lizards in florida and elsewhere. references bennett, d. 1995. little book of monitor lizards. viper press. burridge, m. j., l. a. simmons, and s. a. allan. 2000. introduction of potential heartwater vectors and other exotic ticks into florida on imported reptiles. journal of parasitology 86:700–704. de buffrénil, v. and g. hémery. 2002. variation in longevity, growth, and morphology in exploited nile monitors (varanus niloticus) from sahelian africa. journal of herpetology 36:419–426. de buffrénil, v., c. chabanet, and j. castanet. 1994. preliminary data on dimensions, growth and longevity of monitor lizard varanus niloticus in lake chad area. canadian journal of zoology 72:262–273. lenz, s. 1995. the biology and ecology of the nile monitor, varanus niloticus (linnaeus 1766) in gambia, west africa. mertensiella 5:1–256 (in german). losos, j. b. and h. w. greene. 1988. ecological and evolutionary implications of diet in monitor lizards. biological journal of the linnaean society 35:379–407. luiselli, l., g. c. akani, and d. capizzi. 1999. is there any interspecific competition between dwarf crocodiles (osteolaemus tetraspis) and nile monitors (varanus niloticus) in the swamps of central africa? journal of zoology, london 247:127–131. all photographs by the author. the author with the first nile monitor to trapped in his attempt to eradicate the species from cape coral. nile monitors patrol regular pathways and excavate burrows along artificial canal banks in cape coral, but also cross the canals and enter the surrounding natural mangrove habitats in the charlotte harbor buffer preserve. iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) 98 iguana volume 10, number 3 l e t t e r f r o m t h e p r e s i d e n t iguanas make great pets — for those who make a commitment before they purchase one. in fact, a commitment should precede the acquisition of any exotic or domestic pet. pets are completely dependent on their owners for all of their needs, including food, shelter, and veterinary care. domestic dogs have a life expectancy of 12–15 years, yet animal shelters take in thousands of dogs daily. iguanas, on the other hand, if properly maintained, will live into their mid-twenties. during the mid-1980s, hundreds of thousands of green iguanas were imported for the pet industry. most came from central and south american iguana “farms,” where gravid female iguanas were released into huge enclosures and their eggs were collected. initially, iguanas sold for $50 or more. once the market was saturated, however, the price of a baby iguana dropped to the point where some pet shops were offering free iguanas with the purchase of a tengallon aquarium. importers were selling large numbers of iguanas for as little as 75 cents apiece. this only served to cheapen the quality of care these animals received. iguanas belong to a group of animals classified as “impulse” pets. people may visit a pet shop, see an iguana at an inexpensive price, and the next thing they know — they’re pet owners. a quick-talking salesperson can outfit a customer with everything needed to raise an iguana. sadly, the novelty quickly wears off for most people, and the animals suffer from neglect. few will actually receive proper care and live long, healthy lives. contrary to popular belief, zoos and animal attractions cannot take those that survive, and they end up in the hands of the few wildlife rehabilitators who are willing to deal with them. consequently, many are dumped back on the pet shops or released. depending on the local climate, the latter may or may not thrive. in south florida, the climate is well-suited to exotic wildlife, and the green iguana population has exploded (see newsbriefs, p. 94). healthy populations of green iguanas range from southern palm beach into the florida keys. they have taken up residence in several tourist attractions, local parks, and botanical gardens. even southern florida is a bit too far north for green iguanas to occur naturally, because several days throughout the year are too cold. the past five to seven years in florida have been unusually warm, causing iguana numbers to grow at an alarming rate. despite the warm trend, the temperature dipped to under 40° for several nights this past january, and many floridians thought that many iguanas would perish. on one cold saturday morning, i visited a local tourist attraction with a healthy population of iguanas. the curator said he had found several dozen iguanas sprawled on the ground and that they had been collected and put into boxes. by the time i arrived, it was near noon, and there i stood, camera in hand, ready to document dozens of iguana carcasses. to my surprise, the staff walked out with several huge boxes and began putting them in my truck. much scratching came from the boxes, and, upon inspection, i discovered that the iguanas were alive! cold and slow, but alive. so, when you look at the accompanying photo, note that the only way to pose with 10–15 iguanas is for them to be half-frozen. remember, the next time you go to a pet shop, beware of impulse purchases. joe wasilewski ph ot og ra ph b y li za g re en be rg . iguana 12.1 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 43historical perspectives the rattle of the rattlesnake (all members of the genera crotalus, with small scales on the head, and sistrurus, with large plates on the head, are called rattlesnakes) is more or less familiar to every one. those who have not seen or heard it have surely heard about it. it seems at first thought to be one of the most difficult of developments to understand and explain. however, when we consider the habit, which a vast number of different species of snakes have, of vibrating the tip of the tail when they are excited, together with the fact that the outer horny layer of the skin is shed at frequent intervals, it is not difficult to look back over what have very probably been the steps which led to the formation of the rattle. many species of snakes, such, for instance, as the bushmaster and the copperhead, have a large horny spine at the end of the tail. it is only necessary to suppose that some ancestor of the rattlesnake in the distant past had such a spine, which perhaps swelled into a knob possessing a slight constriction about its circumference. now, since the outer covering of this terminal scale, whatever its form, is shed just as are the coverings of all other scales, the constriction allowed the shed layer to be left hanging as a dry shell upon the new layer which pushed it off. this is indicated on the diagram (fig. 38). the result is a string of shed castings of the terminal spinal button, forming in the aggregate the rattle (fig. 39). whenever this is agitated, it makes the familiar half metallic, half insect-like sound. thus, in a few words, a long and slow process may be recapitulated, but why, indeed, has the rattle been produced, or why do snakes vibrate their tails when they are frightened or disturbed? we know from experience that species living among dry leaves make a considerable noise in this way, but the rattlesnake, living in the open grassy plains, would not do so. surely, the rattle is not needed to warn away the snake’s prey. no such altruism need be considered. the rattler lies in wait, striking the rabbit or bird upon which it feeds, then withdraws without rattling, to wait for the prey to die. at first sight, man seems to be the snake’s only enemy, but the rattler is, of course, far older than man on this continent. what native animal, then, had the rattlesnake to fear on a wholesale scale, which coincided in its distribution with the area where these snakes may conceivably have been evolved? ancestors of the wide-ranging bison fulfill these conditions, and we know that there were earlier bisons, for their fossil remains have been found. they were probably widespread also, for the remains occur in michigan, kentucky, and many other states. the hoofs of these ponderous animals, traveling over the plains, must have been distinctly dangerous to snakes living in the open, while the snake’s bite would be distinctly unpleasant to the bison, although death would probably have rarely ensued. the bison would gladly keep out of the snake’s way if warned, and this warning the rattle gave. it has been suggested that the rattle served some purpose for signaling between the snakes, perhaps a mating call or an assembly call for group hibernation. this is not a fact. in the first place, abundant opportunity for observation has never shown it to serve such a function; and, again, recent experiments have shown that the rattlesnake’s hearing is confined to a range of sounds of wave length far different from that of the rattle. thus the snake is deaf to the noise of its rattle. h i s t o r i c a l p e r s e c t i v e s fig. 38. tips of the tails of snakes upper two, non-rattling vipers; lower four showing rattle during growth, lowest in cross section. fig. 39. the rattle of the rattlesnake in life a neotropical rattlesnake (crotalus durissus) from querétaro, méxico in defensive posture. photograph by louis porras. protective devices of snakes: rattlesnakes1 thomas barbour 1 excerpted from barbour, t. 1926. reptiles and amphibians. their habits and adaptations. houghton mifflin company, boston and new york. pages from vol12no1-12.pdf pages from vol12no1-11.pdf pages from vol12no1-10.pdf iguana 10.1 22 iguana volume 10, number 1 l e t t e r f r o m t h e p r e s i d e n t the 16th annual meeting of the iucn/ssc iguana specialist group (isg) was held in santo domingo, dominican republic (see the article on p. 3 of this issue). during the two-day meeting, presentations were made on the status of the 16 taxa in the genus cyclura found throughout the caribbean. many of the species are declining due to multiple factors. on the positive side, many species have people and institutions who have developed specific programs aimed at reversing those trends. immediately following the meeting, a two-day workshop was held to develop a species recovery plan for one of the two species endemic to hispaniola, ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii). combining the broad range of expertise from participating isg members with local knowledge of the species’ distribution and natural history, a recovery plan was formulated and will soon be published (see p. 9 for a draft of the recovery plan). implementation hopefully will lead to a resurgence in ricord’s iguana population numbers. the trip to the dominican republic wasn’t all work. prior to the meeting, some of us arranged to take a field trip to lago enriquillo. from the ranger station, a boat took the participants to isla cabritos, an island where ricord’s iguanas and rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta) live sympatrically. rhinoceros iguanas are quite common and habituated to people. several dozen individuals hang out at the ranger station and at the boat dock, where they patiently pose for photos. in contrast, cyclura ricordii is very flighty, rare, and rarely seen. one can only imagine the excitement and anticipation of encountering these animals in the wild. much of my work and lecturing activity centers around conservation techniques and, upon arrival on the island, we observed a very successful conservation technique — an armed guard patrolling the area. the dominican republic takes the concept of wildlife conservation very seriously. even though i was representing the iis and the organization is dedicated to iguana conservation, i must admit to feeling a little more anticipation at the thought of viewing american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus), a population of which survives in lago enriquillo. as a wildlife biologist working with endangered crocodiles in florida, seeing the species in a different country would be a special treat. i must admit that i asked the ranger to show us where the crocodiles were (even before the iguanas), and we soon were observing approximately 20 individuals. the group (people, not crocodiles) then split up to search for the elusive ricord’s iguana. after seeing many fresh drags and burrows, i came upon a huge male and snapped a few photos, but as i attempted to maneuver for a better shot, he retreated into his burrow. we saw two other ricord’s iguanas and heard several more crashing through the brush, apparently impervious to the cacti. in fact, the cacti on the island were so abundant that we renamed it the “isla de needles.” the subsequent conference was successful and memorable for all the participants. the hospitality and food were excellent — and i, for one, had to diet after returning home. rhinoceros iguanas are quite common and habituated to people. photograph by joe wasilewski ricord’s iguana on isla cabritos. photograph by joe wasilewski iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 22 iguana 12.2 b&w text 134 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 newsbriefs absence of lesser antillean iguanas on île forchue after an extensive search, karl questel, from st.-barthélemy, reports an absence of lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima) on the island of fourchue, despite the presence of appropriate food plants such as prickly pear (opuntia sp.) and young black wood. he was unable to search forchue’s tiny neighboring islands of petite islette and île-au-vent, where researcher michel breuil had reported the presence of iguanas during investigations in 2000 and 2001. dogs track burmese pythons in everglades national park wildlife biologists in everglades national park are training a beagle named “python pete” to assist in a targeted eradication of burmese pythons (python molurus). the pythons, dumped in the park by pet owners who can no longer manage the massive snakes, can reach 6 m in total length and are thriving in the park. authorities fear that the snakes will prey on endangered birds and other endemic wildlife. unlike many of the invasive plant and animal species in the park, scientists believe that the burmese python population is small enough that it can be eliminated with intensive intervention. a clear sense of urgency exists, however, given evidence that the snakes have been breeding. sixty-one pythons were caught and killed in 2004, and 15 have already been taken in january 2005. aside from the tracking skills of pete, who is being trained to follow scented trails, the targeted eradication program also makes use of a hotline for reporting sightings and a preventative education program aimed at pet stores and exotic reptile organizations with the slogan “don’t let it loose.” iguanas eat at airport landscapers at simon bolivar international airport in guayaquil, ecuador are faced with a problem: the grounds are being overrun by green iguanas. dr. josé luis silva, has appealed to the iucn iguana specialist group for ideas on how to keep the iguanas away from ornamental plants without harming the animals. ironically, the city of guayaquil is home to the aptly named “parque de las iguanas,” a public park that has become a favorite tourist destination. trees in the park are filled with green iguanas and visitors come to admire and feed them. lizards banish rats from rat island scientists from the durrell wildlife trust in jersey aim to create a rodent-free refuge on rat island, a small caribbean island off the western coast of st. lucia, in order to save one of the world’s rarest creatures: the st. lucia whiptail lizard (cnemidophorus vanzoi). the rat island project involves a team of conservation workers who, in early february, began laying down blocks of waxy poison in a grid across the little island off of st. lucia. they will return in march in order to conduct tests to make sure all of the rats are dead. only when all of rat island’s rats have been killed will breeding whiptails be introduced to colonize the island. for hundreds of years, european ships have carried rodent stowaways across the world, where they have estabn e w s b r i e f s this very large adult lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) lives in one of the more inaccessible and uninhabited uplands on st.-barthélemy. despite intense development, primarily for the tourist trade, the island supports a population of iguanas. unfortunately, those not protected by private land owners or by living in remote areas, are vulnerable to poaching, and feral and domestic cats kill many juveniles, precluding effective recruitment. k a r l q u es te l critically endangered st. lucia whiptail (cnemidophorus vanzoi). m a tt m o r to n green iguanas (iguana iguana) may wreak havoc with ornamental vegetation. jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 135newsbriefs lished thousands of strongholds. many efforts to deal with the problem have only made matters worse. when the sugarcane plantations of st. lucia and other caribbean islands became plagued with rats, landowners introduced the mongoose (herpestes javanicus) to kill them. unfortunately, the mongoose is active during the day and rats are nocturnal. contact between them is minimal and they happily coexist — only now the mongoose, in addition to the rats, is decimating native island populations of birds and reptiles. rat removal, such as that on rat island, is not a one-time solution. increasingly, conservationists are turning to small offshore sites in hopes of creating preserves in which threatened creatures might find sanctuaries. adapted from a story by robin mckie, science editor, the observer, originally published on 13 february 2005; http://observer.guardian.co.uk/ international/story/0,6903,1411804,00.html? gusrc=rss snake snares decapitate a company called snakesnare, llc, in iowa has designed a device that is intended to intentionally decapitate wild snakes. the company’s website promotes use of the snare in residential areas and on golf courses, “where gunfire is impractical or illegal,” citing the old adage that “a good snake is a dead snake.” concerned about the marketing pitch promoting the extermination of wild snakes, dean alessandrini, vicepresident of the greater cincinnati herpetological society, suggests checking their website (www.snakesnare.com) and voicing your concerns. giant garter snake habitat sought after years of improperly filling wetlands at the airport, federal wildlife regulators have ordered the sacramento international airport to purchase alternative wetland habitat for giant garter snakes (thamnophis gigas). the species is listed as threatened and protected by the u.s. endangered species act. in competition for the purchase of 300 undeveloped acres in northern sacramento and southern sutter counties, land that commercial developers also are seeking as mitigation for construction elsewhere, the airport may end up paying more than $11 million. sacramento business journal 2005 turtle survival alliance general meeting announcement the 2005 iucn/turtle survival alliance general meeting will be held 22–24 july 2005 at the mission valley resort hotel in san diego, california. don boyer, san diego zoo, is serving as the conference committee chairman. the meeting will run approximately from 8–5 on saturday and sunday with a lunch break. a trip to the san diego zoo is scheduled on saturday evening. following a buffet dinner, participants may visit the zoo grounds until 10 pm. stragglers will be fed to the tortoises. papers and posters will be presented in three general areas: (1) graduate research (brian horne, briandhorne@ hotmail.com, and patrick baker, bakerpj@ playing on the public’s fear of snakes, snakesnare intentionally promotes the killing of harmless and often useful snakes, such as this common garter snake (thamnophis sirtalis) from holt county, missouri. b r ia n s . e d m o n d threatened giant garter snakes (thamnophis gigas) may gain some wetland habitat courtesy of the sacramento international airport. r o b er t w . h a n se n muohio.edu, chairs), (2) captive husbandry (fred caporaso, caporaso@ chapman.edu, and chris hagen, hagen@srel.edu, chairs), (3) international conservation & field research (rick hudson, rhudson@fortworthzoo.org, and dwight lawson, dlawson@ zooatlanta.org, chairs). talks and posters focusing on captive breeding, nutrition, in situ conservation plans, range country education programs, population surveys, genetics, trade observations, legislative priorities, facility management and design, contagious diseases, and quarantine are encouraged. titles and brief descriptions of papers are due by 15 april, although submission of a title, abstract, or paper does not guarantee acceptance for presentation. presenters will be notified of the status of their proposal by 15 may. after contacting session chairs, submit papers or abstracts to chuck schaffer, conference program chair (904-220-0678, chelonian1@aol.com, 13811 tortuga point drive, jacksonville, fl 32225). national award for turtle studies the national wildlife federation’s conservation achievement award has been awarded to hawaiian noaa fisheries biologist george balazs for his work on the threatened hawaiian green sea turtle (chelonia mydas), which he helped place on the federal endangered species list in 1978. the population has recovered significantly since that time and balazs’s radio-tagging studies have shown that the turtles can take long open-ocean routes from their feeding sites to nesting areas and that they can navigate hundreds of miles from the main hawaiian islands to nesting beaches in the northwestern hawaiian islands without landmarks. honolulu advertiser rattlesnake roundup: spectator sport or animal cruelty? the taylor rodeo grounds, outside sweetwater, texas, are home to one of 28 annual rattlesnake roundups in the united states each year. this year’s gathering is billed as the 33rd annual national rattlesnake sacking championship, and the main event is a race against the clock to see which twoman team is the fastest to pitch 10 snakes into a burlap bag. about 80 diamondback rattlesnakes (crotalus atrox) squirm on a plexiglas stage, trying to hide underneath each other while handlers incite them to strike and rattle for onlookers. andrea cimino, wildlife campaign coordinator for the humane society of the united states says, “the roundups are extremely cruel, but people can ignore the cruelty because a reptile can’t scream.” some biologists suggest that the roundups could be depleting snake populations; however, the western diamondback rattlesnake seems to be plentiful in texas according to the texas parks and wildlife department. ken garrett, member of the winning team, which bagged ten snakes in 30.75 seconds, says, “i’m a hunter. i believe in man’s dominion over all animals. the snakes are there for the use of man.” after the roundup, the snakes are packed into plywood boxes and hauled off by a snake dealer who sells them for snake kebabs, coin purses, and cell phone cases. los angeles times search for a shy serpent he’s very shy; loves to eat small frogs, very small dead fish, and the occasional centipede; and has been known to hide under cow pies on warm summer days. the problem is, he has officially been seen only one time in wyoming, way back in 1985, and scientists aren’t sure if he’s even around anymore. so, wyoming game and fish department officials are asking for the public’s help in gathering more data about the possible numbers and distribution of the tiny but mildly venomous plains blackhead snake. “they’re very, very secretive ... but then again we haven’t had a whole lot of people looking for it,” said herpetologist bill turner, a game and fish reptile/amphibian biolo136 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 newsbriefs rattlesnake roundups have a long history, attract lots of people, set foolish examples of how to safely handle potentially dangerous animals, and typically provide highly misleading information about snakes in general and rattlesnakes in particular. photograph courtesy of apnm.org. the plains blackhead snake (tantilla nigriceps) may or may not be present or even widely distributed in wyoming. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h hawaiian green sea turtle (chelonia mydas) swimming off kauai. r o b er t po w el l gist. “we’re curious to know if it’s widespread, if they’re uncommon throughout the state or if they’re just peripheral to the state,” he said. “we’re trying to get the public to help us out, because this is an animal that we’ve had only one sighting of in the state so far.” game and fish officials say although there are about 40 reptile and amphibian species in the state, biologists have little or very limited information on most of the species. “one example of species we need to know more about ... is the plains blackhead snake,” turner said. he said the reptile’s population status is currently “unknown” in wyoming. turner has recently been working with scientists and other biologists to learn more about wyoming’s reptiles and amphibians. the effort is part of a larger department initiative to help preserve those nongame species with the greatest conservation needs. the plains blackhead snake was first found in wyoming in august 1985 – near glendo dam in east-central wyoming — by two eminent herpetologists, ellen censky and c. j. mccoy, during a “typical collecting run” through wyoming, turner said in a phone interview. the pair wrote an article about the discovery, which was the first official documentation of the species, he said. turner said while the article was being printed, another important book on wyoming herpetology — “amphibians and reptiles of wyoming,” by the late george baxter and mike stone — was also published. but the plains blackhead snake was omitted from the baxter/stone book, which later became the preferred reference for herpetology in the state. turner said since then, the snake has been largely overlooked by scientists. the snake has grooved teeth in the rear of its mouth. turner said some scientists think the fangs help inject toxic saliva into its prey. “when we say venomous, that’s just the venom in its saliva... it’s a tiny snake, and the primitive injection system poses little or no threat to humans,” he said. turner said if the plains blackhead snake is discovered again in the state, it would mean wyoming has two venomous snake species. the other is the western rattlesnake, with its subspecies — the midget faded rattler and the prairie rattler. turner was hired in 2003 by the game and fish department to be the agency’s first herpetologist, according to walt gasson, the agency’s special planning coordinator. he said the department used federal funding from the state wildlife grants program to hire turner. in 2001, congress established the program to provide funding for states to help conserve species of greatest conservation need. through september 2004, the state received almost $2 million in swg money. gasson said the department is in the process of writing a comprehensive wildlife conservation strategy to continue receiving the federal funding. he said while the department is charged with conserving all wildlife, limited funding has sometimes hampered efforts to manage nongame species such as the plains blackhead snake. jeff gearino (star-tribune, jackson hole, wyoming) 10 may 2005 proposed downlisting of american crocodiles the u.s. fish and wildlife service reports that annual monitoring of the american crocodile (crocodylus acutus) in florida indicate that the criteria for reclassification (the number of nests and nesting females) from endangered to threatened have been achieved. the service also proposes to initiate a fiveyear review of population data, ongoing conservation measures, and other factors affecting the species. since 1975, when the crocodile was protected under the endangered species act, its numbers in florida have grown from fewer than 300 individuals (with only an estimated 10 to 20 nesting females) to an estimated 500–1,000 individuals (and more than 61 nests), not including hatchlings. approximately 95% of remaining crocodile habitat in southern florida has been acquired by federal, state, and county agencies and is now protected from development. these protected areas should allow the crocodile population to expand and may provide additional nesting opportunities. if this proposal is finalized, the american crocodile in florida will continue to be federally protected as a threatened species. the american crocodile, a large greenish-gray reptile, ranges in size from a little more than 25 cm at hatching to a maximum length of about 3.8 m. it is one of two native crocodilians (the other, the american alligator, alligator mississippiensis) that occur in the continental united states. the american crocodile is distinguished from the american alligator by a relatively narrow, more pointed snout and by an indentation in the upper jaw that leaves the fourth tooth of the lower jaw exposed when the mouth is closed. the american crocodile is found in coastal regions of the atlantic and pacific coasts, southern méxico, central america, and northern south america, as well as some caribbean islands. in the united states, the crocodile is limited in distribution to the southern tip of mainland florida and the upper florida keys. the american crocodile remains endangered throughout the remainder of its range outside of the united states. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 137newsbriefs a pair of american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus) thermoregulating on a canal bank in south florida, the northernmost extent of the species’ range. jo e w a si le w sk i iguana 12.1 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 45historical perspectives ilanded one morning from the utowana2 on the island of saona, off the coast of haiti.3 it is a rather flat, uninteresting little island and i was not prepared for what i found. i knew that there was a high degree of endemicity on all these islands around the haitian coast. i knew, also, that saona had never been visited by anyone in search of reptiles, so i walked around the confines of a small open garden patch, knowing that this was the sort of terrain where one might expect to find ameiva lizards. lizards of this genus have a way of splitting up, so novelties may be expected. i hunted a long time before i heard a noise in the dead leaves. ameiva lizards are anteaters and scratch with their paws among the leaves, throwing them about in their search for the insects which may be below them. i approached the sound as stealthily as possible and could scarcely believe my eyes when i saw a perfectly typical ameiva, and by the same token one utterly unlike any which i had ever seen. i have collected countless numbers of lizards of this genus. i shot this lizard on april 8, 1934. it was lilac gray on the back, washed with fawn colour on the head and turning to pale blue on the tail. a black band, beginning with the eyes, ran along the side of the body and the tail, which was azure blue beneath, while the undersurfaces of the body were glaucous blue, suffused anteriorly with cream colour. the sides of the head were buff yellow. all in all, it was one of the most beautiful and strikingly coloured reptiles which i have ever seen. i sent the specimens to miss cochran of the national museum in washington, who was writing a herpetology of the island of hispaniola,4 although i fairly itched to describe it myself. i realized it was new the second i saw it, as i have said before, and i asked her if she would name it for my wife. she not only named this species ameiva rosamondae,5 but without my knowing it she named the ameiva from la gonave island for me. the haitian peasants are so poor that they will struggle hard to catch lizards, snakes, frogs, and toads — which they do not really like to do — if they can sell them for five cents each, and i mean five cents of a haitian gourde, which is only worth fifteen cents to start with. we often had as many as a hundred people collecting for us. in this way, on the islands that were populated of course, it was possible to secure in a few days as much material as a single person could have gotten during a long stay, so that while we stopped at innumerable different localities during these voyages on the utowana and never had very much time at one place, all around haiti and in the bahamas we got big collections. you can do this in jamaica, but not in cuba. we stopped on one occasion at isle tortue. i went ashore in the morning and passed word around that we would be back in the latter part of the afternoon prepared to purchase what might be forthcoming, explaining what we wanted. i had a sack of haitian five-cent pieces on board the yacht. we found that we got much better results from our collectors if we ourselves did not stay where they could watch us. it was so much more fun to stand and stare at strangers than it was to do anything else that the temptation was quite overwhelming. but if we went ashore in the morning and spread the news of what we were prepared to do, then disappeared on board and hauled up the gangway, by the middle of the afternoon we could go ashore and be overwhelmed by a rabble of men and women, boys and girls, with snakes and lizards dangling at the ends of dozens of little lassoes which they fashioned cunningly from shredded palm leaves. on one occasion a poor old man came up to us with a gourd full of fat white grubs. these he had dug out of a rotten palm trunk. i recognized them at once as the larvae of a big weevil which lives in decayed palm wood. of course he brought them feeling sure we would buy so succulent a dainty, for the haitians are extremely fond of these grubs fried. rosamond was utterly disgusted by their very appearance and i was not allowed to take them on board and eat them, which i should have greatly enjoyed doing. i have no right to complain, however, for the family did not relish the intimacy with a wide variety of reptiles which they patiently endured. ameiva taeniura is widely distributed across the relatively mesic lowlands of hispaniola. the population on isla saona (a. t. rosamondae) was named for thomas barbour’s wife by doris cochran of the national museum. photograph by father alejandro j. sánchez muñoz. collecting herpetological specimens in haiti1 thomas barbour 1 excerpted from barbour, t. 1950. naturalist at large. robert hale limited, london. 2 a 210-foot yacht owned by allison armour, on which barbour toured the west indies and adjacent areas of the american mainland in 1929, 1931, 1933, and 1934. see also the excerpt from barbour’s allison armour and the utowana, which follows this account. 3 actually part of the dominican republic; the island, hispaniola, was often referred to as “haiti” at that time. 4 cochran, d. 1941. the herpetology of hispaniola. bulletin of the u.s. national museum (177):1–398. 5 now considered a subspecies of ameiva taeniura. iguana 11.3 b&w text 188 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 wasilewski and gutman just when you thought that an ordinary iguanophile had few options for helping with conservation work … we’ve been working for blue iguanas for years and can recite all the details of their plight in our sleep — world’s most endangered reptile, only 20–30 left in the wild, captive breeding program, etc. — but the opportunity for some hands-on involvement came only this summer. although it remains one of the most endangered reptiles on earth, the blue iguana of grand cayman can be saved from extinction. the success of the captive breeding program headed by fred burton was apparent as the incubators started filling up with this year’s eggs. with the facility in qeii botanic park already stretched to capacity with last year’s record 84 hatchlings, clearly some help was needed — and help arrived from many quarters. enter john binns of the international reptile conservation foundation and his quickly assembled crew of volunteers from team blue! the team brought together the talents and enthusiasm of zoo professionals and iguana enthusiasts from around the world. financial help came from the international iguana society (in part from the rob dorson trust fund), the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf), the international iguana foundation (whose director, rick hudson, encouraged the participation of representative from several zoos, including indianapolis, tulsa, knoxville, and phoenix), and from several very generous local caymanian individuals and businesses. from 30 july to 13 august, team blue, with the assistance of a variety of local volunteers, swung hammers, wielded shovels, rakes, and assorted power tools, and managed to construct 102 new cages for blue iguanas. all of the existing cages got a thorough cleaning and refurbishing, plus repairs where needed. some of the two-year-old animals slated for september release were already moved into larger quarters and (with the assistance of the local football team!) massive quantities of rock, soil, and vegetation were moved around within the freshly poured cement of the new breeding enclosures in preparation for their future inhabitants. volunteers also had a chance to learn about the natural plant components of the blue iguana diet, which have led to much-improved breeding success. some team members also participated in a rather grueling hike into the rocky and forbidding salina reserve to view the site slated for the september releases. our final task (or so we thought!) was to give the power tools a thorough workout clearing an area for a new work and storage shed. about half the concrete floor was poured for the shed, just as the rains accompanying hurricane charley started pouring … all the excitement of working with the blue iguanas plus a close encounter with a hurricane (!) was almost too much. with quick instructions from fred burton, everyone pitched in to prepare the facility to best withstand the high winds and torrential rains. fortunately for the animals (and the island), little damage was done and, with a few cancelled outgoing flights, extra hands were available to set all the cages back up again. the work was tough, the heat and the sun grueling, but we made a difference! and we’re all already encouraging john to let us know about the next construction and repair field trip… joe wasilewski aj gutman illustration by joel friesch. l e t t e r f r o m t h e p r e s i d e n t a n d s e c r e t a r y iguana 12.1 andros island rock iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura) (see article on p. 8). photograph by charles r. knapp. iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 12, number 1 march 2005 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess the sweetwater preserve in the tucson mountain foothills supports a healthy population of mule deer (odocoileus hemionus). thanks to the deer, mountain lions still visit the area. this photograph graced the cover of the sweetwater preserve and the sonoran desert conservation plan (see article on p. 14). photograph by thomas wiewandt. adult female andros island rock iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura) on a termite nest in which she laid her eggs (see article on p. 8). photograph by charles r. knapp. tuatara (sphenodon punctatus) are restricted to a few small islands off new zealand. experience a visit to stephens island (see travelogue on p. 38). photograph by john binns. adult corallus caninus from 101 km s santarem, pará, brazil (see article on p. 2). photograph by laurie j. vitt. savanna racers (chironius carinatus) are quick, aggressive snakes (see article on p. 23). photograph by césar luis barrio amorós. iguana 12.2 b&w text the only true iguanas found outside the americas are the two species of pacific iguanas, which are restricted to the islands of fiji and tonga in the southwestern pacific. both are arboreal herbivores that feed on the leaves, flowers, and fruits of native trees and shrubs. the critically endangered fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis) is today secure on only one small, uninhabited island, the 70-hectare crested iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba, administered by the national trust of the fiji islands. populations on most other islands appear to be functionally extinct, with little or no juvenile recruitment. the threatening processes that have contributed to the species’ decline continue unchecked (native forest degradation from clearing, burning, proliferation of invasive plants, and over-grazing by goats, as well as the introduction of cats and mongooses). the world conservation union’s iguana specialist group met in fiji in november 2004 to address this species’ conservation requirements and produce a conservation and management plan. priorities include identifying islands suitable for the species’ long-term survival, collecting urgently required natural history data to aid conservation planning (especially on diet and reproduction, of which nothing is known), and initiating captive breeding with animals from populations other than yadua taba. the uninhabited island of monuriki was identified as the first choice for sourcing crested iguanas for a second captive breeding group. monuriki is a spectacular island, its crested iguanas are genetically distinct from yadua taba, and its location close to a major tourist area provides an excellent potential for future ecotourism. the native forest, however, has been severely degraded by fires, intensive goat grazing, and invasive plants. iguana surveys suggest that the population on monuriki has decreased from an estimated 80–120 iguanas in 1998 to 10–20 in 2003, with no evidence of juvenile recruitment during that time. kula eco park, fiji’s only center for captive breeding of endangered species, has volunteered to set up the monuriki captive breeding group, while zoos in australia will continue captive breeding of iguanas from yadua taba. the rationale is that monuriki crested iguanas will soon be (or perhaps already are) functionally extinct; but, if enough founders remain and can be brought into captivity, their progeny could be returned to monuriki when habitat restoration (or goat exclusion fencing) is completed. for more information on the fijian crested iguana see iguana 11(4), december 2004, “lost in the south pacific: the fijian iguanas (genus brachylophus)” by peter harlow. you also may visit the websites of kula eco park (www.fijiwild.com) and the international conservation fund for the fijian crested iguana (www.icffci.com). f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis) pe te r h a r lo w iguana 10.4 b&w text an adult fijian banded iguana (brachylophus fasciatus) (stories on pp. 103 and 108). photograph by thomas wiewandt. iguana journal of the international iguana society www.iguanasociety.org vo l u m e 1 0 , n u m b e r 4 d e c e m b e r 2 0 0 3 u s $ 6 . 0 0 iguana 12.3 b&w text 166 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 burton “sapphire” is one of the queen elizabeth ii botanic park’s most beautiful and most prolific female blue iguanas. jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 167 burton (2004) wrote of the blue iguana recovery program’s transition from successful pilot projects, to large-scale population recovery for the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi). since then, 21 young blue iguanas have become established in the salina reserve on grand cayman, and thanks to strategically targeted grants and a truly impressive roster of international volunteers, we now know a great deal about how they are doing. the salina reserve is a 625-acre protected area, owned and managed by the national trust for the cayman islands. it is a very wild, inaccessible place, and exceptionally rich in natural diversity, mainly because it encompasses a wide range of different environments. the reserve is named for a large sedge wetland in its southern environs, a habitat somewhat reminiscent of florida’s northern everglades. in the dry season, a cyanobacterial mat dries out to leave a pale crust that could be mistaken for salt. to the east and west, the sedge wetland transitions to seasonally flooded buttonwood shrubland. to the north, the land rises and an almost pristine semi-deciduous dry forest cloaks a low ridge of savage dolostone karst terrain. here are nesting parrots, bats roosting in caves, and rare trees thriving in a community that has been evolving together for millions of years. north of the dry forest is the area of the reserve that we believe once supported blue iguanas. here the lower terrain supports the characteristic xerophytic shrubland of grand cayman’s east end. this too is a highly diverse natural community that is in many ways quite distinct from the dry forest. for iguanas, it meets several critical needs. the shrubland canopy is low (often less than 10 ft) and open, allowing sun to reach the ground — vital for rock iguana thermoregulation. the karst offers a huge array of rock holes, providing potential retreats for iguanas of all sizes. the diverse vegetation provides a variety of food, sinkholes offer access to fresh groundwater, and here and there among the expanses of razor-sharp karst are soil basins where iguanas could nest. we already knew that the salina’s xerophytic shrubland could support iguanas. in the early 1990s, we tested this point1. three sterilized c. lewisi / c. nubila caymanensis were the “guinea pigs.” we released and radio-tracked them for about six months, during which time they set up territories, found retreats, fed, and grew. while we were watching these temporary pioneers, a wild, true blue hatchling migrated in from who knows where, settled a while, then disappeared. since then the blue iguana recovery program has been focusing on establishing a small wild population of blue iguanas in the qe ii botanic park. by 2004, that work had progressed so well that the park was close to its carrying capacity for blues and the time had come to embark on a larger-scale release in a new area. the salina reserve was the obvious choice. the release before we could monitor released iguanas in the salina, we needed some sort of access. this was no trivial issue — the only ‘trails’ were the reserve’s overgrown boundary cuts and the almost restoring a new wild population of blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi) in the salina reserve, grand cayman1 frederic j. burton director, blue iguana recovery program p.o. box 10308 apo, grand cayman, cayman islands (fjburton@blueiguana.ky) photographs by the author except where indicated. abstract.—twenty-three immature grand cayman blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi) were released into xerophytic shrubland in the salina reserve on grand cayman in december 2004. after seven months in the wild, at least 91% had survived, remained in the release areas, and grown. the iguanas are expected to reach sexual maturity by 2006. the females were occupying average usage areas of approximately 0.6 acres in summer 2005, very similar to the summer usage areas occupied by much older, mature females in the qe ii botanic park. the maximum viable population density for this age class in this habitat is estimated to be between 4 and 5 iguanas/acre. the existing release area is just sufficient to accept the next release of 60–70 two-year-old blue iguanas, scheduled for december 2005. one concern is that these iguanas may instinctively leave the reserve to seek historic nesting habitat on the adjacent coast, where vehicular traffic is now a severe threat. key words: cyclura lewisi, grand cayman, blue iguana recovery program, reintroduction, restocking, conservation blue iguanas � 1 national trust for the cayman islands, annual reports for 1993 and 1994. grand cayman, cayman islands. 168 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 vanished remnants of our 1993–4 study site paths. now, after careful examination of aerial photography, and an ircf-sponsored helicopter survey flight, we had three main soil areas from which to choose, and no trails to two of those. this turned into a marathon trail-cutting exercise, with then-volunteer and now blue iguana warden, chris carr, helping me through the summer of 2004. as we approached the target release date in september, student nick louis and the durrell wildlife conservation trust’s matt goetz joined the team, and we finished a trail network to the northern and central soil zones. at the same time we needed to build release retreats, wooden “iguana houses,” which had recently proven themselves to be extremely successful in anchoring young iguanas to their release sites in the botanic park. again with help from local volunteers, notably chris carr and penny clifford, 23 hefty release retreats were ready to be placed in the salina reserve. we planned to lift them there by helicopter. then hurricane ivan slammed the island, and suddenly all thought of work in the salina had to give way to coping with crisis. that somber story has been told elsewhere, but from those difficult times the program has found its feet again and, thanks to truly amazing support from all quarters, we were able to resume the release plan in december. the helicopter was ‘ivanized,” so we had to backpack the retreats in, one by one. by the beginning of december, everything was ready and our first team of trackers was standing by. late in the afternoon of 4 december, we carried the first 13 young iguanas into the north and central soil zones of the salina reserve and placed each one into its designated release retreat. these were the females, which we released first in order to allow them to set up territories before having to deal with males. initially nervous at the sight of the dark tunnel, each iguana hesitated, half in hand, half in the retreat, then scrambled deep inside. the daylight was fading, and we knew from experience that they would all remain in the retreats overnight. each iguana was fitted with a pit tag, a unique bead tag, and a tiny 2-gram radio transmitter glued to the back near the tail. starting on 6 december, the tracking team began their routine, which continued almost without interruption until 17 burton agave caymanensis, an endemic succulent, is a characteristic species of cayman’s dry shrubland environment. dry shrubland of the salina reserve, grand cayman, with the salina wetland in the background. jo h n b in n s blue iguanas january 2005. the males went out on 28 december, bringing the total release to 23. seven days a week, one tracker went to the north zone, another went to the south. each one used radio-tracking gear and an array of other sleuthing techniques, to locate every iguana about once per hour. we recorded their positions by estimating distance and compass bearing from previously mapped fixed points or new gps locations. by the time the tracking team went home, we had 6,399 separate observations of iguanas in specific places at specific times. we then took the radio iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 169 t e a m b l u e the program’s permanent staff was assisted throughout by a rotating team of volunteers and p r o f e s s i o n a l a s s i gnment s , primarily from overseas. the internat ional reptile conservation foundation took the lead role in recruiting and coordinating this essential human resource. the project teams were as follows: blue iguana recovery program staff: frederic burton samantha addinall chris carr habitat survey, summer 2004: john binns ircf salina release team, december 2004–january 2005: andrew grant craig pelke, milwaukee county zoo desiree wong, ircf janice blumenthal, cayman island department of environment john bothwell, cayman islands department of environment john kunna jude bryja, houston zoo robby addinall sarah doty, ircf tandora grant, san diego zoo / cres team blue 2005, fieldwork april–july 2005: ae nash, colorado reptile humane society amanda stenman barbara watkins brian carson coralie farren, reading university, uk desiree wong, ircf emily holfeldt erika delgado gaby besne janice gerritts, national zoo, washington dc janie coleman jeffreyackley joel kuhns jude bryja, houston zoo karin nelson lorraine scotson matthias goetz, durrell wildlife conservation trust nick louis paul watler tandora grant, san diego zoo / cres wooden iguana retreats stacked and ready to be backpacked into the salina reserve. two-year-old cyclura lewisi being introduced to an artificial retreat. 170 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 burton ae nash, coralie farren and lorraine scotson examine an iguana in the northern release zone. the salina reserve: xerophytic shrubland and artificial retreat. jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 171blue iguanas transmitters off, weighed and measured each iguana, and let them free to live their lives without observers. in may, we caught them again and, after another weighing and measuring session, we glued on the radio transmitters once more and tracked the iguanas from 13 may to 25 june. another 4,157 observations went into the huge database, another batch of boots was destroyed, and another team of scratched, bruised, and bitten volunteers headed triumphantly home. now the iguanas are living free and unmolested, and the time has come to assess the huge mass of information we gathered and to draw some conclusions. survival and growth the most conspicuous observation resulting from our winter tracking data was that the released iguanas were very slow to move away from their retreats. the vast majority of observations recorded iguanas in, on, or very near the retreat into which they were released. after many weeks, some individuals moved into new retreats; by the end of the winter tracking, six had abandoned artificial retreats in favor of rock holes or tree holes. the wild card was the male, bead-tagged orange-pale bluepale blue (opp). from the day he was released, opp was a loner and a wanderer. over the winter tracking period, he gradually drifted north and eventually left the salina reserve altogether. i caught him in late january, and re-released him in the central zone, where he was sure to encounter other iguanas. by summer, he had moved off again, and we have not seen him since. by summer, another male (green-red-green, grg) also had disappeared. we do not know if he migrated away or if he died. apart from those two, however, all of the iguanas we released were seen at least once in the summer, so we know we have at least a 91% survival rate in the seven months after release. the iguanas almost all lost weight in the two months after release, as they adjusted to life in the wild and faced the dry season. by may, the trend had reversed and the iguanas grew vigorously through the summer — so much so that they all shed their old skins — with radio transmitters attached! fortunately, blue iguana supporters honor roll three major grant sources made this challenging project possible. the blue iguana recovery program wishes to express appreciation for this financial support to: dennis curry charitable trust, via the durrell wildlife conservation trust international reptile conservation foundation international iguana foundation financial and other support for staff assignments were provided by the colorado reptile humane society, durrell wildlife conservation trust, houston zoo, milwaukee county zoo, national zoo, san diego zoo/ cres, and the cayman islands government (department of environment). accommodation for the teams was donated by roger and mary bumgarner and frederic burton. transport assistance was provided by nigel and penny clifford. the blue iguana recovery program operates under the auspices of the national trust for the cayman islands, with local and international partners. the trust provided hospitality and other support throughout. jude bryja (houston zoo) with radio tracking equipment. a pair of released two-year-old cyclura lewisi courting. ju d e b r y ja by this stage they were so used to their trackers that we managed to recapture them to re-glue the transmitters. the other big change from the winter was that the iguanas were now far more adventurous. their “usage area” (a measure of their home range over the periods during which we tracked them) was about sixteen times as large in the summer compared to the two months after release. this was as true of females as it was for males, so this was not just the typical expansion in usage area we normally see in males during the breeding season. examining the patterns of land use by the iguanas, we found that they had discovered one resource we had not realized was so important. scattered around the release areas in the rocky shrubland, the scrambler “yellow-root” (morinda royoc) sometimes grows into impressively large, tangled masses. these “yellow-root bushes” are all visited regularly by the iguanas, indeed the little male wow makes a journey every day from his retreat in the central zone to a yellow-root bush some 70 yards away. he is commuting for food. the iguanas eat the yellowroot leaves and also the fruits, which soften, turn translucent, and (to human noses) start to smell distinctly unpleasant as they ripen and fall. the dense tangle also is a safe place to hide, and it provides convenient shade in the heat of the day. they survived, discovered and claimed their surroundings, and grew, but this year, despite all the courting we saw, the released blues were not quite big enough to reproduce. everything looks to be on course for these iguanas to nest for the first time in 2006. land use one key question underlying this study is one we have been asking for years: how much protected, managed iguana habitat is going to be needed to support at least 1,000 wild blue iguanas? this question will have to be answered in stages. we started getting hard facts about blue iguana population density with rachel goodman’s research (goodman et al. 2005) on the released population in the qe ii botanic park. with this summer’s tracking data, we have another piece to fit into the puzzle. the pattern that seems to be emerging is that the females establish and maintain small, stable home ranges, which do not seem to get much bigger as they age and grow. they seem to defend even smaller, exclusive territories, and overlap with their neighbors in the rest of their range. in contrast, the males occupy larger and larger home ranges as they grow. because the sex ratio remains around 1:1, this means that mature male home ranges overlap much more than those of females. the immature females in the salina, the much older ones in the park, and even one totally wild female we monitored in the eastern interior this year are all occupying average summer usage areas of about 0.6 acres. in the salina, the centers of their core territories have settled down at an average closest-neighbor spacing of 112 ft. using these female core territories as a guide, we think we can roughly double the number of females in the salina release areas that are already somewhat occupied. to maintain the even sex ratio, that means doubling the number of males as well. the 172 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 burton aerial view of the salina’s northern release zone. the circle indicates the area of soil patches where the release took place. iguanas seem to be telling us that, in this habitat, they can accept between four and five two-year-old iguanas per acre. implications for the future in december 2005, we plan to release between 60 and 70 twoyear-old iguanas into the salina reserve. at that time, the first released group will be three years old and coming into sexual maturity. our results from this year suggest we can squeeze these — but no more — into and immediately around the northern and central soil zones, where we have been working this year. that will bring the total population in this area to 80–90 individuals. the following release, tentatively scheduled for december 2006, will have to involve a new area — probably the southernmost soil zones of the salina reserve, where we currently have no access. these areas are so far from the north coast road that we may need to set up a field camp where trackers can stay in the field for several days at a time. establishing a trail network and preparing release sites will require months of work. overall, the limited soil zones and modest area of xerophytic shrubland in the salina reserve looks capable of establishing at least 200 blue iguanas in the wild. however, in the enthusiasm of initial success, we should not lose sight of potential problems that may yet surprise us. one nagging question is to what extent these iguanas will seek access to the coast as they mature and grow. the coast immediately north of the salina reserve, across the queen’s highway with its fast vehicular traffic, is a historic nesting site iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 173blue iguanas view across the salina reserve toward buildings on the northern coast. a blanket of oxisol in the salina’s southern soil patches, a future release area. for blue iguanas. unfortunately, this large sandy coastal area is now slated for a major hotel development. before the highway was built, iguanas used to move freely between the sandy coast and the interior xerophytic shrubland. the coast, especially before it was claimed by humans, probably provided much richer food resources for iguanas than the xerophytic shrubland. the blue iguana recovery program’s staff deliberately focuses its attention on sandy coasts when collecting food for the captive-breeding and head-starting facility; large stands of scaevola plumieri, mats of ipomoea pes-caprae and canavalia rosea, and a range of other fast-growing coastal strand species make iguana food collection more efficient in this environment than in any other. the sand may also be an easier and more reliably moist nesting substrate, especially when compared to the compacted and seasonally desiccated oxisols in the salina soil basins. the possibility exists that the female blue iguanas now living in the salina reserve may instinctively head for the coast when they are older, ready to nest, or when unseasonable drought strikes and food resources in the salina reserve become scarce. any iguana that heads to the coast from the salina reserve faces the grave risk of being flattened by a 50-mph vehicle. even if successful in crossing the highway, it then will find all the trappings of modern human civilization developing in place of inkberries, beach morning-glory, and sea bean vines. this and other potential concerns, not to mention the need to manage forthcoming releases, means we need to be keeping a very close eye on happenings in the salina reserve over the next few years. any claims of success are premature at this time. references burton, f. j. 2004. battling extinction: a view forward for the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi). iguana 11:233–237. goodman, r. m., a. c. echternacht, and f. j. burton. 2005. spatial ecology of the endangered iguana, cyclura lewisi, in a disturbed setting on grand cayman. journal of herpetology 39:402–408. 174 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 burton cactus, thatch palm, and agave: shrubland plants adapted to the harsh dry climate of grand cayman’s east end. one outstanding question faced by researchers is whether the iguanas released in the salina will instinctively seek historic beach nesting habitat — on the far side of the busy coastal highway — especially as human population pressure increases. jo h n b in n s iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) o ver a quarter of a century has passed since we first investigated iguana exploitation in central america. a “friend” recently pointed out to us that we were a couple of “old-timers” when it comes to that particular subject (see also the profile on p. 86). prior to collaborating on ctenosaura and iguana research, we independently had done considerable field work with these lizards. fitch studied c. similis in costa rica in the late 1960s and henderson worked with juvenile i. iguana and with c. similis in belize in 1970–1. we were both well aware of the human-induced pressure imposed on these lizards, and we were interested in bringing their plight to the attention of our colleagues, conservation organizations, legislative bodies in the countries in which we were working, and to the general public (see the summary in fitch et al. 1982, full citation at the end of this article). in the united states, most folks familiar with iguanas associate them with the pet trade or consider them curios, and their importation for these purposes is a minor industry. however, within the iguanas’ ranges in tropical america, these lizards are hunted for food and, in some areas, may be the principal game animals. in order to determine the extent of iguana exploitation and learn the methods used to hunt and subdue them, we visited each of the central american countries, observed iguanas in their natural surroundings and in mercados, and we interviewed hunters and government officials. early records revealed that iguanas had been hunted since ancient times by many of the native cultures, but, thanks to their high reproductive potentials, they had been able to maintain their numbers over hundreds of years despite exploitation. however, the widespread use of insecticides to protect crops, habitat destruction resulting in large part from an increase in the number of people, and overhunting inevitably altered ecosystems. the result was that both green iguanas and ctenosaurs have experienced rapid reductions in numbers in recent years and have disappeared from many areas where they were formerly abundant. 63iguanaseptember 2003 a backward glance at iguana exploitation henry s. fitch1 and robert w. henderson2 1henry s. fitch natural history reservation, university of kansas, lawrence 2milwaukee public museum, milwaukee, wisconsin all photographs by rwh. ctenosaura similis in the belize city cemetery. a ctenosaur emerging from a belize city cemetery grave. 64 iguana volume 10, number 3 both green iguanas and ctenosaurs have been important protein sources for people locally. each kind is preferred in certain parts of the range. beyond its actual food value, the flesh is valued for its supposed mystical power, and consumers are prepared to pay much more than they would for a similar amount of beef or chicken. the catholic church has ruled that iguana flesh, like fish, is a permissible substitute for “meat” (flesh of mammals or birds) on fridays and during lent. over much of the range, ctenosaur flesh is highly valued as an aphrodisiac. in belize, however, it is considered unfit for human food. the belize city cemetery supports a colony of ctenosaura similis and many of the lizards have burrows in the grave mounds. this led to the belief that they feed on human corpses in their graves. in the mercados from the isthmus of tehuantepec along the pacific coast to lake nicaragua, at least 25 towns have mercados where iguanas were formerly sold. el salvador was a major importer. having depleted its own population of iguanas, it received them from honduras, guatemala, and nicaragua by boat and by bus. the neighboring countries passed legislation banning the trade, but pedestrians carrying sacks or baskets full of reptiles in many instances were allowed to cross the border into el salvador. cruel treatment of captured iguanas was routine. in the mercados, buyers often requested that vendors sell them unlaid eggs without the females. the vendors would slit the females’ abdomens and rip out the eggs. many commonly believed that such stripped females would survive and produce more eggs. females stripped of their eggs and dying from the crude surgery were a common sight where street vendors were plying their trade. also, because ctenosaurs were liable to bite a handler, their mouths were routinely sewn shut. in addition, pulling off the claw of the fourth (longest) hind toe with pliers and drawing out the tendon was common practice. the exposed tendon was then tied to that of the opposite side so that the animal was immobilized. iguanas were often stuffed in sacks, several layers deep, and might be kept there for long periods without food or water. tethered green iguanas at the chinandega, nicaragua market (february 1976). male and female ctenosaurs with their mouths sewn shut (nicaragua, february 1976). visiting the mercados, we would at times encounter many dozens of iguanas. approaching the vendors, we requested permission to examine the lizards and to take measurements and can recall being spurned only once; the rest were more than willing to let us handle their merchandise. we would often work for several hours at a stretch, standing in open markets and recording data, while curious onlookers watched. i’m sure our peculiar behavior was attributed to the fact that we were gringos, thereby making it perfectly acceptable. after handling several dozen adult green iguanas and, especially, ctenosaurs, our arms would be covered with scratches and cuts, sometimes from the lizards’ claws, but more often from their lashing tails. visting the hunters the iguana vendors provided us with the names of villages from which the lizards originated. based on this information, we worked backward from the mercados and were able to track down several hunters in order to learn how they captured their prey. in hunting iguanas for home consumption, a .22 rifle was often used, but some central american countries banned the use of firearms or even slingshots. professional hunters for the commercial market in el salvador captured their iguanas alive and unharmed. this was usually accomplished with a bamboo pole and noose. the hunter slowly approached the basking lizard and extended the pole with noose toward it, with a piece of calf’s liver dangling as bait. hunters often used trained dogs, and these were especially effective in hunting female green 65iguanaseptember 2003 a pile of iguanas: mostly ctenosaura similis, but some green iguanas, too (chinandega, nicaragua; february 1976). an iguana vendor at the chinandega, nicaragua mercado (february 1976). iguanas during the nesting season. the hunter would move stealthily along a stream, scanning the terrain ahead for signs of nesting activity. several females might be digging their nesting burrows in a sand bank, and some might have their forequarters in a hole so that they could not see danger approaching. at a signal from the hunter, the dog would race ahead and might catch a female before she could escape from the burrow or outrun her before she could reach the safety of a tree. females bearing a heavy burden of eggs were relatively slow runners. the dogs were trained not to injure the lizards. some hunters used shovels to dig iguanas from their burrows; excavation also could be accomplished with a pointed stick and their hands. females concentrating on nest excavation were especially vulnerable to capture. again, a female with her head and forebody in the burrow was less likely to be aware of an approaching hunter than a lizard involved in other activities. we also became aware that iguanas were sometimes used merely for target practice. they would be shot with a .22 rifle from a vehicle as they sat on roadside boulders or fence posts. if not killed outright, ctenosaurs that were shot often escaped into nearby burrows, whether or not their wounds were mortal. the “hunters” would make no attempt to retrieve the dead or wounded lizards. what’s happenend since? after our multi-year stint with iguanas, we moved on to new projects or resumed old interests. fitch continued his studies of anolis lizards and his long-term work with kansas snake ecology. henderson moved on to the west indies and its intriguing snake fauna. we assume that the mercados of central america no longer sell iguanas in the numbers that we observed in the mid-1970s. is it because of legislation protecting the tasty lizards, or because population densities have dramatically plummeted? we suspect the latter. the u.s. now harbors denser populations of ctenosaura similis and iguana iguana than do some areas where they occur naturally. on a brighter note, interest in iguana biology has never been greater, and exciting research is being conducted in many countries and with a diverse cadre of species. the long-term (20+ years) mark-and-recapture study of john iverson on cyclura cychlura inornata in the bahamas is especially exciting. also, efforts to protect species with dramatically declining numbers (e.g., ctenosaura bakeri, cyclura lewisi) are, on the one hand, disheartening because the numbers are so dangerously low, but, on the other, gratifying that people care enough about the iguanas to do something. iguanas of all species are fortunate to have the international iguana society in their corners. references fitch, h.s., r.w henderson, and d.m. hillis. 1982. exploitation of iguanas in central america, pp. 397–417. in: g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes publ., park ridge, new jersey. krysko, k.l., f.w. king, k.m. enge, and a.t. reppas. 2003. distribution of the introduced black spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaua similis) on the southwestern coast of florida. florida sci. 66:141–146. valiulis, j.m., k.n. hines, and j.b. iverson. 2003. adventures of the iguana patrol, pp. 39–48. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), islands and the sea: essays on herpetological exploration in the west indies. soc. study amphib. rept. contrib. herpetol., vol. 20, ithaca, new york. 66 iguana volume 10, number 3 a young iguana vendor and her merchandise (chinandega, nicaragua; february 1976). iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) adult male st. lucian iguana (iguana iguana) (story on p. 71). photograph by matt morton, durrell wildlife conservation trust. iguana journal of the international iguana society www.iguanasociety.org vo l u m e 1 0 , n u m b e r 3 s e p t e m b e r 2 0 0 3 u s $ 6 . 0 0 iguana 11.4 190 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 wikelski and nelson adult marine iguana (amblyrhynchus cristatus) from san cristobal island in the galápagos archipelago. photograph by colette adams. introduction when the galápagos’ most famous visitor, charles darwin, arrived on the rocky lava shores, he likened the islands to the entrance of hell. he found myriads of “dirty black” marine iguanas (darwin 1883). young charles found them “hideous in appearance, sluggish, stupid, and ugly.” nevertheless, like every modern visitor, he was fascinated by their sociality and their marine foraging style — marine iguanas are the only lizards known to feed exclusively on algae. marine iguanas live in dense clusters of up to 8,000 animals per kilometer of coastline. however, iguana colonies are distributed very patchily, and tend to occur only along the southwestern shores of the islands. amazingly, little has changed for marine iguanas on the uninhabited islands since darwin’s visit more than 170 years ago. however, although marine iguanas still occur in healthy population densities on the uninhabited islands, they face potentially serious threats on several inhabited islands. marine iguana natural history marine iguanas are endemic to the galápagos archipelago, which belongs to the republic of ecuador. they feed exclusively on marine algae in the rocky intertidal zone (darwin 1883, carpenter 1966, trillmich and trillmich 1986, wikelski et al. 1993, wikelski and hau 1995, drent et al. 1999). marine iguanas possess an internal biological clock that is synchronized to the tides. this clock cues them to walk to the intertidal zone every day at low tide, when the algae are exposed (wikelski and conservation of galápagos marine iguanas (amblyrhynchus cristatus) martin wikelski1 and karin nelson2 1department of ecology and evolutionary biology, guyot hall 303, princeton university, princeton, nj 08544-0001, usa (wikelski@princeton.edu) 2department of biology, triton college, 2000 fifth avenue, river grove, il 60171, usa (knnelsonn@yahoo.com) photographs by martin wikelski except where indicated. abstract.—galápagos marine iguanas are highly abundant along many of the archipelago’s shorelines. total estimated population size varies between 37,000 and 280,000 individuals. marine iguanas have evolved in the absence of major predators, and their populations are regulated by cyclically recurring famine (el niño) and feast (la niña) events. population declines are strongly density-dependent: the higher the population density, the higher the mortalities during el niños (from 10–90%). recovery after el niños is rapid, as females compensate by reproducing younger and laying more eggs. marine iguana morphology differs between islands. seven subspecies have been proposed, although only three major clades can be distinguished genetically. twelve populations (approximately 74% of all marine iguanas) still live in pristine environments, whereas five populations (26% of all marine iguanas) suffer from anthropogenic influences. major conservation problems arise from introduced predators (cats, dogs, rats, and pigs) and from combinations of natural events (el niño) and anthropogenic disasters such as oil spills. the most recent oil spill in 2001 killed 62% of all marine iguanas on santa fe island. management requirements for the future include: (i) investigating population trends in western isabela and san cristobal islands, (ii) investigating whether harbor areas are population sinks because of environmental contaminants, (iii) establishing a recovery program for oil-contaminated iguanas, especially their reinoculation with hindgut microsymbionts, and (iv) developing husbandry techniques and establishing a captive propagation program as a population backup plan (marine iguanas have not been bred in captivity). key words: marine iguanas, amblyrhynchus cristatus, south america, galápagos archipelago, conservation, oil spill, feral predators iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 191galápagos marine iguanas � male marine iguana on seymour norte island eating saltwort (batis maritima) on land. some individuals supplement their food with land plants. hau 1995). the largest iguanas of each island population also dive for algae (2–30 m depth; buttemer and dawson 1993). on genovesa, males with body mass >500 g are seen diving, whereas on fernandina usually only males >3500 g dive for food (wikelski and trillmich 1994). a few individuals supplement their food with land plants, in particular on seymour norte island. only highly salty land plants are ingested (primarily saltwort, batis maritima, but also other coastal succulents such as sesuvium portulacastrum), presumably because marine iguanas possess very specialized hindgut micro-symbionts that help them digest their food and effectively break up cell walls (mackie et al. 2003). marine iguanas reproduce once a year during a month-long mating season. the precise timing of the mating season coincides with the highest abundance and best quality of food (rubenstein and wikelski, in preparation). because the nutrient-rich upwelling from the cromwell current affects all islands in the archipelago differently, mating seasons occur at different times (e.g., december on santa fe and genovesa, january on santa cruz, february/march on española). during the mating season, males defend small territories that contain no resources other than the males themselves, which prompted the description of the mating system as a lek, or mating arena (trillmich 1983, wikelski et al. 1996). male marine iguanas use three different mating strategies. the largest males defend territories and court females using a slow, stereotyped head-bob courtship behavior. male mating success is highly skewed and depends on body size, condition, and display rate (wikelski et al. 1996, 2001). male territories are generally clustered, but single territories also occur. satellite males are smaller than territorial males and roam around territories, attempting to (forcibly) mate with females. “sneaker” males are the smallest males, physically indistinguishable from females. sneakers try to copulate with females “in secret” on territories of large males (wikelski and bäurle 1996). these three mating tactics appear to be partially regulated by plasma levels of testosterone, and can be manipulated by hormone administration (wikelski et al., submitted). receptive females generally copulate only once after they have selected a specific male, which they do after long periods of mate choice. mate choice is apparently costly for marine iguanas, as indicated by mass loss of females that visit many males, compared to those that visit only a few males or mate in low-density areas (wikelski et al. 2001). females leave the mating area shortly after copulation to lay one to six eggs in deep burrows in sandy areas. eggs incubate for three months (laurie 1990; laurie and brown 1990a, 1990b). some females guard their nests for a few days after egg-laying, mostly to defend against other females that try to dig at the same spot. the entire clutch amounts to about 20–28% of a female’s body mass. both males and females typically reproduce every other year, replenishing their energy reserves in the year they do not reproduce. however, during periods of food abundance, females may reproduce annually (laurie 1990). marine iguanas have only one natural predator, the galápagos hawk (buteo galapagoensis), which is generally unable to prey on healthy adults. however, hawks can capture weakened adult iguanas, such as starving individuals or females exhausted by nesting. they also can learn to capture juveniles or hatchlings close to the shoreline (boersma 1983; personal observation, santa fe island). natural population regulation via el niño events unpredictably recurring el niño events can dramatically reduce the abundance and diversity of marine algae — marine iguanas’ only food source — and can cause mass starvation (laurie and brown 1990b). during el niño events, the cold, nutrient-rich upwelling ceases and warm water from the gulf of panama flows toward the galápagos. the normal food algae (red gelidium and 192 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 wikelski and nelson marine iguanas in the intertidal zone on genovesa island during the low tide, grazing on green algae (mostly ulva sp.). this population is the smallest in body size and males with body mass as little as 500 g are seen diving. two sneaker male marine iguanas on genovesa island attempt to forcefully copulate with a female outside of a territory (on sand). the territorial male (right) left his territory and interrupted the copulation attempt. a satellite male marine iguana forcefully approaches a female to attempt copulation. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 193galápagos marine iguanas centroseras species or green ulva species) disappear when water temperatures become too high and are replaced by brown algae. however, brown algae are not as easily digested by the marine iguanas’ hindgut bacteria, and they may also be toxic. the result is widespread starvation of marine iguanas throughout the archipelago. individual animals are affected differently — the largest animals starve first (wikelski and trillmich 1997, wikelski et al. 1997), presumably because they have the highest absolute calorie requirements. therefore, natural selection favors smaller animals during food shortages. interestingly, marine iguanas can shrink their body size during el niño events and survive such conditions better (wikelski and thom 2000). how such shrinkage is achieved physiologically or whether and to what degree bone loss is involved is not clear. marine iguana populations can crash dramatically. during the el niño of 1997–1998, about 90% of all marine iguanas on seymour norte island disappeared, thus reducing population size on this island to less than 150 individuals (wikelski and wrege 2000, romero and wikelski 2001). a similar situation occurred on genovesa island in 1991–1994, reducing the total population size from about 15,000 to approximately 900 individuals. however, marine iguanas have survived such dramatic natural selection events throughout their evolutionary history and apparently adjust to such situations. as soon as nutritious red and green algae reappear after an el niño ceases, individuals face plentiful intertidal and subtidal foraging grounds. iguanas quickly replenish their fat reserves and return to good body condition. they reproduce more frequently (every year), at a younger age (mostly females), and lay larger clutches (e.g., three instead of two eggs). the “rules” by which marine iguanas determine whether to breed and how many eggs to lay are still unclear. these adaptations allow marine iguanas to increase their numbers after dramatic population declines, such that mortality rates of 30–50% after an el niño event can be compensated within four years. even after enormously strong population declines (90%), marine iguanas congregate along the shoreline in small groups to reproduce (wikelski et al. 1996). this gregariousness helps them to find each other after dramatic population declines that could otherwise cause individuals to scatter along the long lava shores of the islands. island populations and threats early naturalists discovered that not all marine iguana populations are alike (fig. 1). for example, iguanas on genovesa only grow up to a maximum of 900 g (subspecies: a. c. nanus, “the small ones”). animals on española are the most brilliant, at least during the mating season, when they display a bright red and green coloration (a. c. venustissimus). fernandina iguanas have especially elaborate spines (a. c. cristatus subspecies). although these populations differ very obviously on the phenotypic level, genetic distable 1. rough estimate of marine iguana population sizes on the galápagos archipelago. data are based on our own surveys, accounts by galápagos guides, and data by andrew laurie (unpublished report to the darwin foundation, 1981). minimum numbers indicate estimates for total island numbers after a strong el niño famine. maximum numbers indicate total numbers after several years of la niña (cold, nutrient-rich) conditions. maximum density estimates relate iguana numbers to the total size of the island. please note that these are only very rough estimates. island subspecies minimum maximum maximum threats number number density (n/km2) fernandina cristatus 15,000 120,000 187 oil spill isabela albemarlensis 5,000 40,000 9 oil spill, dogs, cats, rats, pigs santa fe 3,000 16,000 667 oil spill floreana 2,000 16,000 92 oil spill, cats, rats, pigs santa cruz hassi 2,000 13,000 13 oil spill, dogs, cats, rats, pigs española venustissimus 1,700 21,000 350 oil spill genovesa nanus 900 15,000 1071 oil spill marchena 1,000 10,000 77 oil spill pinta sielmanni 800 6,000 100 oil spill santiago mertensi 450 4,000 7 oil spill, cats, rats wolf 400 1,500 1154 oil spill darwin 200 800 727 oil spill pinzon 200 900 50 oil spill rabida 200 2,000 408 oil spill seymour norte 100 1,500 789 oil spill san cristobal 50 400 1 oil spill, cats, rats, pigs remaining islands 2,000 10,000 na oil spill total ~37,000 ~280,000 tinction of “subspecies” is less clear (fig. 1; rassmann 1997, rassmann et al. 1997). marine iguanas reached the galápagos archipelago as early as 10–15 million years ago. they presumably arrived by “leap-frogging” across now-sunken islands that are only detectable as sea mounts between the present-day galápagos islands and the south american mainland. from those early galápagos islands, marine iguanas dispersed to the present islands and split into northwestern, central, and southeastern clades. interestingly, the northwestern clade includes both the largest (on southwestern isabela) but also fairly small iguanas (on pinta), indicating that strong selection on body size is present, although not apparent in the genetic markers that were investigated (rassmann et al. 1997). these distinct inter-island differences obviously indicate that all island populations should be conserved, although no immediate threat exists to most island populations. however, even the most pristine populations may suffer immediately and heavily from environmental disasters such as an oil spill, even if the contamination levels are very minor (wikelski et al., in preparation; charles darwin research station, unpublished report on the january 2001 oil spill). on santa fe, approximately 60% of the entire marine iguana population disappeared as a consequence of low-level oiling when 194 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 wikelski and nelson schematic map of the galápagos archipelago and the different subspecies of marine iguanas as described by eibl-eibesfeldt (1962; inset subspecies names). superimposed (ovals) are the three genetically similar clades, based on nuclear and mitochondrial genetic analysis (rassmann et al. 1997). genetic and morphological information is not entirely compatible, indicated, for example, by the fact that the amblyrhynchus cristatus mertensi subspecies is found in two genetically distinct clades (on san cristobal and santiago islands). iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 195galápagos marine iguanas the oil tanker “jessica” ran ashore on nearby san cristobal island and spilled about 750,000 gallons of diesel and bunker oil. consequently, oil contamination could pose a serious threat to all populations of galápagos marine iguanas, even those that live far from human settlements and would otherwise be considered pristine. as to the specific mechanism of mortality, we suggest that hindgut endosymbionts are highly susceptible to oil in their digestive substrate. marine iguanas need these bacteria to digest algae fully, a process that can take up to two weeks. these specialized and highly effective gut bacteria probably suffered heavily due to the oil spill, which in turn caused failed digestion and widespread starvation among marine iguanas. on at least five islands, marine iguana populations also are heavily impacted by human-introduced predators (cayot et al. 1994). the most important predators are feral cats, dogs, rats, and pigs. we are currently uncertain whether those marine iguana populations already affected are jeopardized to an extent that their long-term survival is in question. some populations on certain parts of western isabela island appear to be in immediate danger of extinction. during several research expeditions, we only found adult iguanas and very few young or hatchlings, indicating almost no recruitment, at least not along the shoreline of the main island. nevertheless, some hatchlings and yearlings were seen on small offshore islets. a similar situation applies to marine iguanas on san cristobal island, where only several hundred iguanas survive. thus, we would classify these populations as highly endangered, and recommend that immediate action be taken. management needs for the future four major problems exist for marine iguana populations, and we recommend the following conservation-related research projects to determine the causes of the threats and to elaborate possible solutions: (i) we need to study population trends and identify threats to marine iguanas at sites where iguanas show no apparent recruitment. those sites include western isabela and san cristobal islands as mentioned above. we presently do not know where and when reproduction occurs, which predators are preventing recruitment of hatchlings, and to what degree big mammalian predators are responsible for the observed lack of recruitment. the most desirable conservation project would be to habituate feral cats to the presence of a researcher and follow them along their daily activities (h. snell, personal communication). such data would reveal the dangers that feral cats pose to marine iguanas and would allow us to study the impact of these fierce predators on other endangered coastal species. dog predation could be a problem on other islands like san cristobal, and this also needs further investigation (kruuk and snell 1981). (ii) the second important project is to study the impact of human habitation and low-level environmental contamination on marine iguanas. we are particularly concerned about oil residues from boats around human settlements (e.g., the towns of puerto ayora on santa cruz island and villamil on isabela island). we currently do not know if areas around human settlements should be considered population sinks for marine iguanas or whether such areas still produce sufficient recruits to be considered viable populations. based on the current information about the effects of a low-level oil spill in 2001, marine iguanas in oil-impacted areas conceivably will suffer long-term effects. furthermore, our own observations in and around puerto ayora (the main harbor town on santa cruz island) suggest that many of the hatchlings that pass through the town after hatching disappear from the harbor area, and may die due to human (or feral animal) actions. a long-term mark/recapture program could resolve such questions. (iii) a third area of high interest for the management of marine iguanas is the planning and establishment of a program for rehabilitation of marine iguanas. this would include indiadult female marine iguana from genovesa island; this single egg was laid about two hours prior to taking this picture. galápagos hawk killing a hatchling marine iguana on santa fe island. viduals that suffered low levels of environmental contamination. hindgut microbes probably die during anthropogenic disasters such as oil spills, and marine iguanas subsequently starve. such a situation is comparable to what happens to other vertebrates when endogenous gut symbionts are eliminated, for example, by chemical contamination or antibiotic medication. in such situations, the gut fauna can be reinoculated using pills containing spores of endogenous gut symbionts. the horizontal transfer of gut symbionts from unaffected to affected individuals also is possible in marine iguanas. thus, once we have established how many and what kind of hindgut endosymbionts marine iguanas possess, and how such symbionts work, researchers presumably could collect gut material from healthy individuals and treat suffering individuals. (iv) the fourth and potentially most difficult research activity for the conservation of marine iguanas would be to try to breed animals in captivity. astonishingly, this has never been attempted, and we are unsure whether it is even possible. the challenges for holding and breeding marine iguanas in captivity are manifold. first, marine iguanas have very specific dietary requirements. only certain types of seaweed are preferred and eaten — as soon as the natural algae composition changes, we find dramatic mortality rates in the wild. second, although early naturalists removed several marine iguanas from the galápagos islands and brought them into zoos, none of those iguanas ever tried to reproduce. nevertheless, several marine iguanas were maintained for more than ten years. marine iguanas have a different breeding system than most other iguanids, and a fairly large colony may be required in order to stimulate mating activities. at the same time, we do not know how hatchling marine iguanas survive their first months, how they acquire their endogenous hindgut microsymbionts, and how they become recruited into the population. marine iguanas are the only galápagos animal about which we are uncertain whether they can be kept and bred in captivity, should such a need arise. we would like to remind the reader critical of any effort to remove individuals from the wild that a combination of a strong el niño event and even small-scale anthropogenic disasters (like a lowlevel environmental contamination) could effectively wipe out an entire island population. if our aim is to conserve each island population of marine iguanas because of their distinctive differences, we should seriously consider developing the husbandry practices necessary to rear marine iguanas in a captive setting. acknowledgments we are grateful to all friends, scientists, and field assistants for their help. work in the galápagos is supported by the galápagos national park service and the charles darwin research station. this is contribution #392 to the charles darwin foundation. this work was supported by the national science foundation under grant ibn-0118069. references boersma, p. d. 1983. an ecological study of the galapagos marine iguana, pp. 157–176. in: r. i. bowman, m. berson, and a. e. leviton (eds.), patterns of evolution in galapagos organisms. american association for the advancement of science, san francisco, california, usa. buttemer, w. a. and w. r. dawson. 1993. temporal pattern of foraging and microhabitat use by galápagos marine iguanas, amblyrhynchus cristatus. oecologia 96:56–64. carpenter, c. 1966. the marine iguana of the galápagos islands, its behavior and ecology. proceedings of the california academy of sciences, fourth series 34:329–376. cayot, l. j., k. rassmann, and f. trillmich. 1994. are marine iguanas endangered on islands with introduced predators? noticias de galapagos 53:13–15. darwin, c. 1883. journal of researches. new edition. appleton, new york. 196 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 wikelski and nelson bachelor male marine iguanas from fernandina island. note the elaborate spines that are very prominent in this population of large individuals. on fernandina, diving males usually exceed 3500 g. comparing two marine iguanas on santa fe island showing how much individual iguanas can shrink. the iguana on the left could shrink in body length to the size of the individual on the right during an el niño. drent, j., w. van marken lichtenbelt, and m. wikelski. 1999. foraging mode and seasonality effects on the energetics of the marine iguana amblyrhynchus cristatus. functional ecology 13:493–499. eibl-eibesfeldt, i. 1962. neue unterarten der meerechse, amblyrhynchus cristatus, nebst weiteren angaben zur biologie der art. senckenbergia biologica 43:177–199. kruuk, h. and h. snell. 1981. prey selection by feral dogs from a population of marine iguanas (amblyrhynchus cristatus). journal of applied ecology 18:197–204. laurie, w. 1990. population biology of marine iguanas (amblyrhynchus cristatus). i. changes in fecundity related to a population crash. journal of animal ecology 59:515–528. laurie, w. and d. brown. 1990a. population biology of marine iguanas (amblyrhynchus cristatus). ii. changes in annual survival rates and the effects of size, sex, age, and fecundity in a population crash. journal of animal ecology 59:529–544. laurie, w. and d. brown. 1990b. population biology of marine iguanas (amblyrhynchus cristatus). iii. factors affecting survival. journal of animal ecology 59:545–568. mackie, r. i., m. rycyk, r. l. ruemmler, r. i. aminov, and m. wikelski. 2004. biochemical and microbiological evidence for fermentative digestion in free-living land iguanas (conolophus pallidus) and marine iguanas (amblyrhynchus cristatus) on the galapagos archipelago. physiological and biochemical zoology 77:127–138. rassmann, k. 1997. evolutionary age of the galapagos iguanas predates the age of the present galapagos islands. molecular phylogenetics and evolution 7:158–172. rassmann, k., d. tautz, f. trillmich, and c. gliddon. 1997. the microevolution of the galapagos marine iguana amblyrhynchus cristatus assessed by nuclear and mitochondrial genetic analyses. molecular ecology 6:437–452. romero, l. m. and m. wikelski, m. 2001. corticosterone levels predict survival rates in galápagos marine iguanas. proceedings of the national academy of sciences 98:7366–7370. trillmich, k. 1983. the mating system of the marine iguana, amblyrhynchus cristatus. zeitschrift für tierpsychologie 63:141–172. trillmich, k. and f. trillmich. 1986. foraging strategies of the marine iguana, amblyrhynchus cristatus. behavioural ecology and sociobiology 18:259–266. wikelski, m. 1999. influences of parasites and thermoregulation on grouping tendencies in marine iguanas. behavioral ecology 10:22–29. wikelski, m. and s. bäurle. 1996. pre-copulatory ejaculation solves time constraints during copulation in marine iguanas. proceedings of the royal society of london b 263:439–444. wikelski, m., c. carbone, p. a. bednekoff, c. choudhury, and s. tebbich. 2001. female choice in marine iguana leks: a wider selection of males obtained at a cost. ethology 107:623–638. wikelski, m., c. carbone, and f. trillmich. 1996. lekking in marine iguanas: female grouping and male reproductive strategies. animal behavior 52:581–596. wikelski, m., v. carillo, and p. trillmich. 1997. energy limits to body size in a grazing reptile, the galápagos marine iguana. ecology 78:2204–2217. wikelski, m., b. gall, and f. trillmich. 1993. ontogenetic changes in food intake and digestion rate of the herbivorous marine iguana amblyrhynchus cristatus (bell). oecologia 94:373–379. wikelski, m. and m. hau. 1995. is there an endogenous tidal foraging rhythm in marine iguanas? journal of biological rhythms 10:335–350. wikelski, m. and c. thom. 2000. marine iguanas shrink to survive el niño. nature 403:37–38. wikelski, m. and f. trillmich. 1994. foraging strategies of the galápagos marine iguana (amblyrhynchus cristatus): adapting behavioral rules to ontogenetic size change. behavior 128:255–279. wikelski, m. and f. trillmich. 1997. body size and sexual size dimorphism in marine iguanas fluctuate as a result of opposing natural and sexual selection: an island comparison. evolution 51:922–936. wikelski, m. and p. h. wrege. 2000. niche expansion, body size, and survival in galápagos marine iguanas. oecologia 124:107–115. author biographies martin c. wikelski is an assistant professor in the department of ecology and evolutionary biology at princeton university. he completed his masters and ph.d. at the german max planck institute and the university of bielefeld before he came to the united states as a postdoctoral researcher working at the smithsonian tropical research institute and the university of washington. martin then held an assistant professorship at the university of illinois at urbana-champaign for two years. his research interest is ecological physiology of lizards and birds. he has traveled extensively through south america, publishing a nature travel guide to venezuela and brazil. he continues work in panamá and the galápagos islands, ecuador. karin n. nelson completed her ph.d. in 2003 in the department of animal biology at the university of illinois at urbana-champaign. before returning to academia, she served as editor at chicago’s brookfield zoo for eight years. during her graduate studies, she investigated the hormonal mechanisms of alternative mating strategies in marine iguanas. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 197galápagos marine iguanas martin wikelski holding a large male marine iguana on western isabela island. dead marine iguana on fernandina island during the 1998–99 el niño period. the likely cause of death was starvation. iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) r eaders will recognize that, in order to stay healthy, iguanas require uv-b (ultraviolet radiation in the “b” range) as much as they need the complex salads we prepare for them daily. without uv-b, the allimportant mineral, calcium, cannot be effectively absorbed — and calcium is as critical as nutritious food, water, and heat. in responsible husbandry, we must replicate the uv spectrum required for the photochemical process involved in metabolizing vitamin d3 (which mediates calcium absorption) — while never forgetting that this will be of little importance if the diet, heat, etc. are less than optimal. also remember that this is a discussion on what is best for reptiles, not humans. since extensive research published in reputable scientific journals has yet to be performed, the recommendations that follow are based on logic, atomic physics, engineering principles, existing knowledge about the natural habitat of iguanas and their biology, and my own personal experience. uv-b is part of the electromagnetic spectrum. this spectrum includes everything from radio waves at one end to gamma rays on the other. visible light is somewhere in the middle. wavelengths are read in nanometers from 0.001 nm (x-rays) to 100 billion nm (radio waves). a reptile bulb can be subjected to testing by an ultraviolet radiometer and spectrographs in order to measure precisely the wavelengths that are being produced. the uv range is from 180–400 nm, the b range specifically from 280–320 nm. however, we are most concerned with readings from 290–300 nm. why? this is the d-uv range, which triggers the miracle of photo-biosynthesis and is responsible for creating pre-vitamin d3 (cholecalciferol). we think that about 80% of this photochemical reaction is triggered by ultraviolet waves in this range. ingested vitamin d (7-dehydrocholesterol or 7-dhc) in the reptile’s skin absorbs the uv-b protons, which allows the photochemical reaction that converts the 7-dhc to cholecalciferol. the latter is then converted in the liver to 25-hydroxycholecalciferol (25-hdcc). the final step toward becoming biologically active vitamin d3 (1,25dihydroxycholecalciferol or 1,25 dhcc) takes place in the kidneys through the process of thermal isomerization. biologically active vitamin d3 is stored in the liver and kidneys and its primary function is to regulate calcium metabolism. this gives you some idea of why reptiles suffering from metabolic bone disease (the lack of sufficient d3 to metabolize calcium) also suffer from forms of liver and kidney disease. having mentioned reptilian skin, let’s quickly consider the amount of exposure of an animal to h u s b a n d r y 82 iguana volume 10, number 3 iguanas and artificial ultraviolet light: how and how much made simple — well, not exactly simple…1 bob maccargar the greenhouse in new york all photographs by the author. proper placement of bulbs will provide an iguana access to heat and uv light and permit proper thermoregulation by allowing the animal to move toward or away from the heat source. 1 all references to brand names reflect the author’s personal experiences and should not be construed as an endorsement by the iis. natural sunlight that is necessary for this chemical reaction to take place. the assumption that a few minutes a day is sufficient is based entirely on studies with humans. keep in mind that the protons from the uv radiation have to penetrate the skin deep enough to reach the capillaries underneath the skin in order to produce this reaction. anyone with experience around iguanas can appreciate how tough and thick their hide is. several hours a day of natural sun exposure is much more appropriate for a large reptile. however, the ultraviolet we need to supply for our animals must be “useable” (in other words, in the d-uv range). how can we measure and be confident that we have supplied our creatures with ample amounts of d-uv? by far the most reliable method is to test specifically for blood levels of 25hdcc (wild iguanas have levels of 175–275 nmol/l of this form of d3 in their blood). this test can be performed by a qualified veterinarian and is the final say on whether we have provided optimum husbandry for our iguanas. this is much more reliable than using a standard blood panel test (which measures only calcium and phosphorus levels). even iguanas that have what appear to be good blood panels have been found to be on the low end of the active 25-hdcc level. this helps to explain why iguanas in the wild can drop 20 feet out of a tree and hit the ground running, whereas stories of captive green iguanas falling 5 feet and ending up with compound fractures are common. just what kind of ultraviolet levels are these creatures exposed to in their natural environment? the standard for measuring intensity of the uv spectrum is read in microwatts per square centimeter (µw/cm2). the usda recently did a study with an ultraviolet pyranometer and found readings of uv-b in florida on june 1st that reached 450 µw/cm2 (remember, however, that only a certain percentage of this falls into our “usable” d-uv). hobbyists have the ability to take their own uv-b readings with a simple handheld ultraviolet radiometer from solarmeter (model 6.2). the measurements taken by the usda are extremely close to the readings that i have been taking for the last two years in a study of reptile lamps and i have used this as a constant for meter calibration. although iguanas may not be exposed to as much as 450 µw/cm2 on a continuous basis, they will spend several hours a day exposed to relatively high numbers. my studies, as well as those of others, have found that, even in the shade, global uvb readings reach 30–50 µw/cm2. these numbers give us an idea of the minimum and maximum ultraviolet b exposure levels in nature. interestingly, another study has proven that d3 biosynthesis is a naturally self-limiting process. without getting too technical, this “safety valve” ensures that toxic levels of vitamin d3 are not created, and that the excess is broken back down into inert ingredients (but please see the references at the end of this article). basically this means that as long as we do not expose our iguanas to any more uv than that to which they are exposed in their natural environment, we will stay within safe perimeters. two styles of reptile uv-b bulbs are available. one is the fluorescent tube and the other is the mercury vapor (mv) reptile lamp. both style lamps use the heavy metal mercury as a catalyst for producing ultraviolet radiation. an electrical charge passing through liquid mercury excites the molecules until they vaporize (when the mercury cools, it resumes liquid form). in the fluorescent tube, the mercury must combine with high-grade phosphorus to achieve the ultraviolet results. over the past two years, i have studied failure and decay rates of mercury vapor lamps and conducted a general study of the major brand fluorescent tube reptile bulbs. i am constantly asked if i have tested a certain fluorescent brand bulb by individuals who have seen them listed inexpensively — in spite of the fact that, for many years, i have been telling people that quality uv is not cheap (unless we’re talking about the great and wondrous sun). in a recent conversation with 83iguanaseptember 2003 the low-cost hand-held ultraviolet radiometer from solarmeter (model 6.2) provides hobbyists with the ability to take their own uv-b readings. voltarc technologies, one of the largest manufacturers of reptile fluorescent bulbs in the nation, the engineers confirmed the fact that money buys uv. production costs rise with more exacting specifications (how much uv-b and where precisely it is to be delivered). in order to build a tube that will provide not only high uv-b readings, but one that will generate output in the useable 290–300 nm range, manufacturing tolerances have to be very precise. two different fluorescent tubes can emit equal amounts of total uv-b, yet one will do a much better job keeping your pet healthy than the other (even though both bulbs might have been manufactured by the same company, but for two different distributors’ specifications). the best fluorescent tubes tested emit 12–15 µw/cm2 at 12" after initial burning. a variety of good fluorescents (as well as some absolutely terrible ones) are on the market, but zoomed 5.0 is built to the most exacting tolerances according to all of the manufacturers with whom i have spoken. the other choice in artificial uv is the mercury vapor reptile lamp, which comes in a variety of styles and wattages. anyone who has done rehabilitation work has seen the effects of these bulbs compared to even the best fluorescent tubes. why is this the case? do they emit huge amounts of uv? are they reliable? is one brand better than another? self-ballasted mv lamps suffer from a 50% failure rate over the first six months and a 70% decay rate in total uv-b emitted. the best-selling style mv bulb, the 160 watt flood, emits much less uv-b than stated on their endorsements after decay. these bulbs settle in at about 12 µw/cm2 at 12". why, then, do we see such incredible results with mv lamps when compared to fluorescents? after all, two high-quality fluorescents will produce 25–30 µw/cm2 at 12". the answer is simple: mv lamps emit less total uv-b than fluorescents — but more “usable” uv. studies have shown that mv lamps produce the same percentages of d-uv (and uv-a, which is another subject) as a percent of total energy emitted as the sun. self-ballasted spot-style lamps produce much higher uv readings than any other reptile bulb on the market. they still are subject to the failure rates of all self-ballasted mv lamps. these lamps settle in at about 100–150 µw/cm2 (at 12"), but have a much narrower disbursements of uv-b. these are excellent rehabilitation bulbs for treating animals suffering from severe metabolic bone disease. regarding concerns that iguanas under this style of lamp will need “goggles” to prevent blindness from “excessive” uv exposure, remember the exposure levels in their natural environment. we have five iguanas that have spent two years exclusively under mercury vapor spot lamps with no negative impact on vision. however, the distance from any mv lamp to the basking area must be regulated in order to provide optimum temperatures, regardless of any distances stated by the distributor! 84 iguana volume 10, number 3 zoomed 5.0 fluorescent tubes are built to the most exacting tolerances. erving, a rescued green iguana, made a remarkable recovery following six months of therapy under uv lamps (top). note the severe spinal scoliosis (center) and evidence of severe metabolic bone disease (bottom) when he was initially rescued. at this time i recommend only 100and 160watt t-rex uv heat, 160-watt zoomed powersun, and the westron lighting 60-watt inline ballast mv lamps. others performed poorly in my tests. a new 60-watt in-line ballasted mv lamp from westron lighting produces excellent uv-b after decay, and without the problem of failure (no self-ballast to fail). its primary drawback is limited heat production, although this could be an asset for keepers of smaller reptiles kept in glass habitats. it also generates poor-quality visible light. according to the manufacturer, these limitations of the current bulb will not apply to models that will soon be available. so, what is best for iguanas? i recommend 30–50 µw/cm2 at 12" for 8–12 hours per day (comparable to minimal natural exposures in the wild). the best way to realize this number is to use an ultraviolet radiometer (such as the solar meter 6.2 hand-held version; see references) to measure the amount of uv-b available to your iguana. the zoomed 5.0 fluorescent lamps are at the top of the ladder in terms of meeting these specific requirements (i.e., the best “usable” uv-b). use at least two of these lamps to achieve the desired exposure levels. the 100or 160-watt t-rex flood lamps or the 160 watt zoomed flood lamp also may be used in conjunction with a zoomed 5.0 fluorescent tube. if you do not have a meter, you should rely on the security provided by the quality of the 5.0 bulbs. alternately, t-rex spot bulbs (100and 160-watt) will emit 50–150 µw/cm2 (at 12" after break-in) — as long as they burn. no other supplemental uv-b source is necessary with these lamps. finally, the westron lighting mv in-line ballast lamp can produce 30–50+ µw/cm2 after break-in. this lamp will need additional heat and full-spectrum complements, but should not fail as quickly or frequently as other mv lamps. references and resources (listed by topic) 25 hdcc blood level study with radiograph (and much more information on ultraviolet bulbs), http://www.myiguana.com 25 hdcc vitamin d test, university of michigan, animal health diagnostic laboratory, po box 30076, lansing, mi 48909 (517-353-0621) calcium physiology, bogoslavsky, b. 2002. calcium metabolism in iguanas. iguana times (journal of the international iguana society) 9(1&2):32–34. electromagnetic spectrum, http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr162/lect/light/spectrum.html photochemistry and biology, http://www.photobiology.com ultraviolet radiometers, www.solarmeter.com uv-b and d3, http://home.att.net/~chameleons/zoomeduv-b.html vitamin d discussion, “the merck manual,” 17th ed., p. 35 85iguanaseptember 2003 the westron lighting mv in-line ballast lamp requires complementary heat and full-spectrum lighting but outlasts other mv lighting. zoomed’s powersun 160-watt lamp is another lamp that performed well when tested. the t-rex uv heat 100and 160-watt lamps are among those recommended. iguana 10.2 59iguanajune 2003 l e t t e r f r o m t h e p r e s i d e n t what a great week we had at the iis conference on utila, honduras. seventeen iis members joined gunther and elke köhler, alex gutsche, karsten gees, and the rest of the staff and volunteers of the iguana research and breeding station. our schedule was quite full and included lectures and discussions almost every evening during the week. the iguana station staff arranged several daily field trips of varying degrees of difficulty. most of the trips involved efforts to find and see the elusive ctenosaura bakeri in its natural habitat. this iguana, unlike the other sixteen varieties of ctenosaura, justly deserves the nickname, “swamper.” on the first trip into the swamps, many of our group members sank past their knees in the mud as they ventured into the swampers’ home range. in a sense, these animals’ comfort with a swampy environment helps preserve the species. the mangrove wetlands that this animal calls home are unattractive to developers, and could well be the last vestige of property remaining on the rapidly developing island of utila. however, all is not well in the world of ctenosaura bakeri. although some local people still hunt iguanas for food, the work of gunther and his colleagues over the years has had a positive impact and the ban on hunting is commonly observed. signs throughout the island inform both locals and visitors of the protected status of this endemic species. by far the greatest threat to the continued survival of ctenosaur bakeri is the rapid loss of nesting habitat to tourist-related development. for example, the group was taken to a 31⁄2 acre beachfront property that has been a nesting site for up to 500 female iguanas. we were later informed that this was one of only two remaining beachfront properties not yet sold, and the other was not part of the swamper’s range! without a place for the females to lay their eggs, the species would rapidly dwindle and become extinct. as a conservation-minded group, we cannot allow this to happen. the iis is now concerned with raising part of the $165,000 for purchasing and preserving this remaining vestige of nesting habitat. this is a tangible goal. already, donations are approaching $5000 and fundraising is ongoing. if you are interested in donating or assisting in raising money for this notable cause, contact the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf c/o john or sandy binns, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135) for more information. all donations are tax-deductible. you should think about joining the group on our next adventure. joe wasilewski a large male swamper basks next to his tree hole in the vicinity of rock harbor. this animal had toe-clips indicating it had been released from the utila iguana research and breeding station a number of years ago. it was likely one of the original animals adopted through the utila iguana adoption program. photograph by john binns. iguana 12.4 b&w text editors robert powell exectutive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. or canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 international membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $50.00 u.s. institutional subscription, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international institutional subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. join on-line at: www.ircf.org membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2005 by the international reptile conservation foundation, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international reptile conservation foundation. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editor’s remarks in this issue (p. 240), we feature the utila anole (norops [anolis] utilensis), which may be the world’s most endangered anole — and a species about which we know very little. unfortunately, many of the reptilian species that are threatened by human activity are similarly unknown and consequently receive little or no protection. a few years ago, an intense effort to assess the conservation status of amphibians worldwide resulted in many species that had previously received little or no attention afforded at least an acknowledgement of their precarious state through inclusion on the iucn red list. although a comparable effort is being initiated for reptiles, an obvious inequity currently exists. for example, when considering amphibians and reptiles of the dominican republic, 32 of 37 native species of amphibians (86%) known to occur in the country are redlisted. in stark contrast, only 15 of 108 native reptilian species (14%) are included in the iucn list (and four of the listed species are sea turtles that are endangered throughout the region and the world). among species that are excluded is one snake that may already be extinct (alsophis melanichnus) and several others that are known to be very rare (a. anomalus and two species in the genus ialtris) — all are diurnally active and terrestrial. the principal threat is undoubtedly predation by introduced mongooses (herpestes javanicus), also implicated in the extirpation of a. antiguae from antigua proper and in the presumed extinction of a. ater from jamaica. although redlisting may come too late for some of these snakes, we hope that efforts to assess the conservation status of the world’s reptiles succeeds in shedding light on the plight of species for which hope may still exist. robert powell ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 12.1 g ila m on st er s ( h elo de rm a su sp ec tu m ) a re r ar e re sid en ts o f t he s w ee tw at er p re se rv e (s ee a rt ic le o n p. 1 4) . p ho to gr ap h by t ho m as w ie w an dt . juvenile c oralluscaninusfrom 101 km s santarem ,pará,b razil(see article on p.2).photograph by laurie j.v itt. iguana 10.2 u tila, site of the 2003 iis conference (see related stories, p. 32 and 59), is the smallest of the principal honduran bay islands (41 km2). this relatively tiny body of land, however, supports a phenomenal reptilian diversity (see species profile, p. 36) that includes three native species of iguanas (ctenosaura bakeri, c. similis, and iguana iguana) — the only island so blessed anywhere in the world. 27iguanajune 2003 utila: home to three native iguanas continued on page 30 adult male iguana iguana at the utila iguana research and breeding station. photograph by john binns. adult male ctenosaura similis; note the aggressive reaction to the photographer in the photo to the left. photographs by sandy echternacht. adult female ctenosaura bakeri on a mangrove branch. photograph by robert powell. “why do humans have an apparently insatiable desire to take something natural and beautiful, chop it down or kill it, cover it over with cement, and then proceed immediately to the local lumber, nursery, and pet stores to purchase poor copies of what they just destroyed?” john binns, iis director 28 iguana volume 10, number 2 “swampers,” as the endemic utila spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura bakeri) are called locally, are arguably the most remarkable inhabitants of little utila island. differing from all other species of ctenosaura, which live almost exclusively in dry, open, sunny areas, c. bakeri is limited to mangrove swamps. maximum known size is 315 mm (head-body length) and 923 g for males and 229 mm and 424 g for females. although ctenosaurs often are called “black iguanas,” swampers are relatively colorful. juveniles are largely uniformly blackish-brown with a few darker brown stripes on the upper side of the body and tail (coloration that renders them quite cryptic against the muddy substrates of the swamp). adults, in contrast, vary from grayish-brown to an amazing turquoise, which is most obvious in bright sunlight. living exclusively in a mangrove swamp requires special adaptations, including the need to deal with a salty diet and the lack of freshwater. in addition, the substrate is muddy and frequently submerged during high tides, forcing swampers into the trees — where the only retreats are naturally occurring tree holes. suitable trees with holes are very much in demand. juveniles and adults are strongly territorial and will strenuously defend their home trees even against larger opponents. tree holes are mostly restricted to older mangroves, especially black mangroves (avicennia germinans), which are scattered on utila. the result is a patchwork-like distribution of c. bakeri, even in otherwise apparently suitable habitat. the few other reptiles known to be mangrove specialists are exclusively carnivorous. swampers, however, are omnivorous. mangrove leaves and, if available, mangrove flowers form the main part of the diet. the second largest part of the diet is fiddler crabs, which have been found in 72% of analyzed scat. to catch crabs, iguanas wait for low tide and either forage actively for prey or, usually with more success, employ a sit-and-wait strategy until a crab crawls within range. the fact that mangrove leaves contain only 7% crude protein versus 34% in crabs may explain the intensive efforts to hunt crabs. both mangrove leaves and crabs are salty, which creates an osmotic problem for swampers. since freshwater is available only during the rainy season, water usually is acquired with food (50–70% water) or by drinking the brackish swamp water. reptilian kidneys are unable to excrete excessive salt, so most is eliminated by specialized salt glands located in the nasal cavity. in effect, the salt is sneezed out. reproductive activity occurs during the dry season. triggered by decreases in rainfall (to <200 mm/m2) and increases in air temperature (to >24°c), usually from late january through march, adult males begin patrolling the invisible border around a mating territory, using displays and aggressive behavior to exclude male intruders. egglaying takes place from mid-march through early may, when the ground temperature is about 30°c. hatching usually occurs from mid-june to early august, before the onset of the next rainy season. in association with recent warming trends, a shift of the entire reproductive season to as much as two weeks earlier has been recorded. because of the saturated substrate, gravid females must migrate to nesting sites, which are restricted to a few sandy beaches. females may travel up to 1.3 km utila island swampers alex gutsche humboldt universität, berlin an adult male “swamper” (ctenosaura bakeri) basking on a mangrove stump near the canal. photograph by a.c. echternacht. adult male ctenosaura bakeri from iron bound. photograph by robert powell. 29iguanajune 2003 (direct line) to lay their eggs before returning to their home tree in the swamp. nesting sites must have sandy, well-drained soil and realize an average incubation temperature of 30.5°c. females stay at the beach for several days, searching for a suitable nesting site at up to 50°c surface temperatures. nesting tunnels range from 510–1240 mm in length and nesting chamber are at depths of 150–450 mm. clutches contain 6–16 eggs. three months later, hatchlings emerge and head straight for the mangroves. large brown basilisks (basiliscus vittatus), greattailed grackles (quiscalus mexicanus), raptors, and snakes all prey on juvenile iguanas, but only large boas (boa constrictor) pose a significant threat to adults. consequently, the major threats to c. bakeri are increases in uncontrolled human development and the consequent loss of habitat. the total range of c. bakeri on utila consists of three separate mangrove areas with a total area of about 10 km2. egglaying areas are much more limited and have a total size of less than 1 km2. as a result, utila iguanas have the smallest and most threatened distribution of any ctenosaur. population numbers will invariably decrease in the near future if the habitat, especially the nesting areas, becomes unavailable. although, hunting still occurs despite regulations against it, tourism and land sales that are increasing the extent of utila town are of greater concern. these result in deforestation or despoilment of mangrove areas with landfills. sandy beaches are in great demand for development, so nesting sites close to town are cleared of debris, rendering them unsuitable for iguanas even before construction begins. invasive plants also overgrow the open nesting sites and must be controlled. protection of suitable mangrove areas and nesting sites is critical — and must be implemented as quickly as possible. all beaches are privately owned, so purchasing key stretches for the use of iguanas is the only solution. creating an iguana refuge on utila will enhance the likelihood of the utila iguana’s long-term survival and also would serve to protect areas used as roosts by migratory birds and as nesting sites for critically endangered loggerhead and hawksbill turtles. a female ctenosaura bakeri on a mangrove stump. photograph by john binns. the distribution of ctenosaura bakeri on utila island (gray areas) corresponds closely to stands of old mangrove forest, especially large black mangroves with tree holes. females must migrate to nesting beaches (dark gray) in order to lay their eggs. all nesting beaches are in imminent danger of development. other threats to the species are indicated with x’s: the area near west end is being deforested; utila town, especially near the new airstrip, and pretty bush are expanding into swamper habitats and garbage is being dumped into the mangrove forests; iguanas in areas near east harbor, rock harbor, and red cliff remain vulnerable to hunting, which continues despite prohibitions. modified from a figure by alex gutsche. as might be expected when three large species with generally similar lifestyles occupy such a small area, they must in some way partition the severely limited resources in order to avoid direct and mutually disoperative competition. in fact, these iguanas are largely restricted to distinctly different habitats. green iguanas (i. iguana) inhabit the remaining upland forests, where continuous canopies allow them to remain inconspicuously hidden in the treetops — except when the females are forced to descend in order to nest. black iguanas (c. similis), referred to locally as “highlanders,” favor more open areas, occupying forest edges and rockpiles, fallen logs, or isolated trees in otherwise open fields. these lizards are quite capable of effectively utilizing heavily disturbed areas and frequently coexist closely with humans (seeing individuals basking on rooftops or along heavily traveled roads is quite common). unlike green and black iguanas, both of which have broad distributions throughout the entire neotropics and middle america, respectively, the utila iguana (c. bakeri) is found only on utila. possibly because of their smaller size or more retiring nature, utila iguanas are found only in the apparently inhospitable mangrove swamps, where they fare quite well on a diet of mangrove leaves supplemented with small fiddler crabs. known to the local utilians as “swampers,” utila iguanas do face a problem when nesting seasons roll around. since the swamps are regularly inundated and the soils totally saturated with brackish water, they are unsuitable nesting sites. instead, females must migrate considerable distances to one of the relatively few sandy beaches (only 38 ha on the entire island) to lay their eggs. interestingly, when they return, they reestablish residence in the very same mangrove they left some weeks before. how they find their homes with such inerring accuracy despite the bewildering similarities of one tangled tree and the next is one of several mysteries surrounding this ecologically unique iguana. * upon recommendations by the iis, consideration is being given to holding hatchlings until two years of age, when chances for survival are greatly enhanced. brief history of the iguana station karsten gees, director utila iguana research and breeding station the story began with an american consul at the end of the 19th century. while visiting utila, he collected some iguanas in the mangroves and sent them to the washington zoo. the zoo director, a mr. baker, sent these animals to the famous herpetologist, leonhard stejneger at the national museum of natural history in washington, dc. stejneger determined that the iguanas of utila were a new species, and he described them formally in 1901, giving the utila “swamper” the name ctenosaura bakeri in honor of mr. baker. the herpetological world essentially forgot about c. bakeri until 1994, when a group of german researchers led by gunther köhler rediscovered these iguanas in the wild. in the following years, the group determined that c. bakeri is endemic to utila and that its habitat is restricted to the mangrove swamps, with a total area of only 8 km2 (see article on p. 28). furthermore, they found that c. bakeri is threatened by hunting and by the unchecked development of infrastructure for the burgeoning tourist industry. thus was born the conservation and research project utila iguana. in 1997, a breeding program was established to support the wild population. half of the hatchlings each year are released immediately to the wild while the others are reared at the station for one year* before release. concurrently, an ongoing research program was initiated for the study of the distribution and behavior of the utila iguana. the zoologische gesellschaft frankfurt and the senckenbergische naturforschende gesellschaft frankfurt have been the principal supporters of the project and enabled the original acquisition of property and construction of the iguana research and breeding station in 1998. the iguana station continues to grow and improve. it now has a visitors’ center with exhibits focusing on c. bakeri, but also addressing the other reptiles and amphibians of utila. spacious cages have been constructed on the grounds for rearing hatchling swampers, along with cages for green iguanas (iguana iguana) and black iguanas (c. similis), both species of which also are native to utila. about 100 tourists visit the station each month. 30 iguana volume 10, number 2 continued from page 27 31iguanajune 2003 an adult male “swamper” (ctenosaura bakeri) at the research station. photograph by john binns. main building at the iguana research and breeding station. photograph by john binns. outdoor enclosures for head-starting iguanas. photograph by john binns. in addition to maintaining the breeding and research program, volunteers from all over the world provide environmental education programs for the local schools. in cooperation with bica (bay island conservation organization), the other ngo on utila, all grades have been covered this year. the goal of this outreach program is to enhance the sensibility and feelings of responsibility of the children for their island home, with its phenomenally abundant natural treasures. last but not least, the iguana station is working with the iis and other organizations to acquire funding for the purchase of beach properties that serve as nesting sites for c. bakeri and which are, at the moment, the most critically threatened portions of their habitat (see related story on p. 28). the zen of swamping — adventures on utila aj gutman what do you do when you’re dripping with sweat and knee-deep in fetid swamp mud that threatens to yank the boots off your feet with every step? you scramble to capture another tiny fiddler crab to stuff in your cargo pockets (to feed to the young utila iguanas in the rearing cages at the iguana research and breeding station). eyes alert for an endangered “swamper” (as the endemic mangrove swamp-dwelling iguana, ctenosaura bakeri, is known locally), you reach for the hand of a smiling friend as you climb onto a sturdy mangrove root, ready to lend a hand to the next person stuck in the mud. as muddy hands meet, you both burst into laughter, repeating “smacks of adventure!” perhaps not everyone would answer that question in quite the same manner, but all of the participants in the 2003 international iguana society conference on utila definitely would. seventeen iis members and assorted other conservation aficionados from around the world spent a week together on utila, a small island off the northern coast of honduras. much of that time was devoted to trekking through wet and muddy swamper habitat. our hosts included personnel from the station on the island and dr. gunther köhler, director of the conservation project utila iguana (cpui), from frankfurt, germany. i first read about dr. köhler and his research and conservation work on 32 iguana volume 10, number 2 organizations that have supported the conservation project utila iguana: the senckenbergische naturforschende gesellschaft frankfurt, the international reptile conservation foundation, and the zoologische gesellschaft frankfurt. only true iguana lovers (i.e., iis members) could have this much fun on a stomp through the swamp. photograph by john binns. john binns, representing the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf), installed about $2,500 in computer and network equipment in the lab at the utila iguana research and breeding station. this replaced aged equipment and dramatically improved the station’s ability to communicate while also aiding in its research efforts. david nieves and rick morrow, representing the kansas city herpetological society (kchs), donated about $500 worth of equipment including two electronic scales (full-size for the lab and a miniature version for use in the field), a gentle giant tong®, and a selection of tools including forceps, hemostats, dosing needles, and probes. all of these items were purchased from midwest tongs (www.tongs.com). behalf of the remarkable swamp iguana years ago in the iguana times. eager to meet him and his wife elke, i was entirely prepared to be dumbstruck with awe. what i didn’t expect was a warm and wonderful couple with whom i would make my country and western singing debut performing gunther’s original rendition of the “swamper song.” the station also proved to be delightful. walking there from where we were staying, we would regularly encounter several black iguanas, ctenosaura similis, that had taken up residence in hollow trees and on piles of rocks along the edges of utila town. the station “greeter” was rosalita, a charming red-naped amazon parrot who loved to have her neck scratched. the tidy grounds were dotted with hibiscus flowers and spacious enclosures filled with hatchling c. bakeri, as well as a few c. similis and iguana iguana that are used in environmental education programs for utilian school children. among my personal favorite animals were the large swamper male, who i named willy nelson because of his long dorsal spines, and a gorgeous female i called “marlene.” marlene is an astonishing hybrid between c. bakeri and c. similis. half of her tail, divided along the midline, has scalation characteristic of c. bakeri and the other half is characteristic of c. similis! one of our field trips was by boat through a mangrove-covered canal where we were delighted by numerous swamper sightings. our final destination that day was a beach in an area called “rock harbor,” where we cleared exotic invasive vegetation choking important egg-laying sites. what we didn’t know while we were doing this work is that this area is one of the few remaining beach sites available for purchase. in cooperation with the cpui and the international reptile conservation foundation, the iis is initiating a fundraising 33iguanajune 2003 gunther köhler (right), indulging his passion for country and western music, is joined by his wife, elke (center), and aj gutman (left), performs the “swamper song” for conference participants. photograph by john binns. a juvenile “highlander” (ctenosaura similis) on a rock wall. photograph by robert powell. rosalita, a red-naped amazon parrot, was the station “greeter.” photograph by joe burgess. a swallowtail butterfly visits a hibiscus flower at the station. photograph by robert powell. effort to help purchase and preserve this area for the utila iguana (details are given in the letter from the president on p. 59). this site also is part of the proposed ecotrail, which will allow tourist access to critical iguana habitat for the economic benefit of the island while minimizing impact on the endemic species. another field trip to the big bight took us past an extremely unattractive garbage dump (utila currently has no formal plan for waste disposal and the risk of contamination to groundwater is very real). given the number of anolis enthusiasts in our group, many people were eager to hunt for the endemic anolis utilensis (a really swell anole found in the swamp; see the species profile on p. 36). up to our knees yet again in water-inundated swamp, we happily climbed trees in pursuit of little lizards under the watchful and amused gaze of a black hawk. additional hikes, in which at least some of the conferees participated, went through prime swamper habitat to iron bound on the northern coast, to the beaches below pumpkin hill, which were graced by colorful “shaky paws” (see the species profile), and, after a long boat trip around the western tip of the island, on an unsuccessful search for don quickset pond, freshwater home to the few turtles known to occur on utila. although the pond remained elusive, hikers on that trip did manage to find a frog, one of five species known from the island but rarely seen except during the rainy season. 34 iguana volume 10, number 2 an educational sign near the harbor promoting swamper conservation. photograph by john binn. “marlene,” a female hybrid ctenosaura bakeri x similis. photograph by john binns. “willie nelson,” an adult male swamper at the station. photograph by robert powell. after showering off the mud, we spent our evenings at the bush bar, a wonderful open-air pavilion, which the owner had graciously offered as a venue for our presentations. conference participants, iguana station staff, and several utilians were treated to talks on “spiny-tailed iguanas,” “aspects of the ecology and population biology of ctenosaura bakeri,” “lizard ecology on west indian islands,” “lizard wars” (invasive versus native reptiles in florida), and “modern conservation practices in the caribbean.” 35iguanajune 2003 gunther köhler addressing the conference. photograph by alex lau. aj gutman, joe wasilewski, and betsy davis engage in some hands-on conservation by clearing invasive vines that are choking an important nesting site near rock harbor. photograph by john binns. a common black hawk (buteogallus anthracinus) supervising our anolis hunt in the big bight. photograph by robert powell. bob powell, sandy echternacht, alex lau, wendy townsend, mark keoppen, and an unnamed boat driver (from front to back) heading for and through the canal to rock harbor. photographs by joe burgess. the only frog (leptodactylus melanotus) seen on the trip. photograph by joe burgess. the iis thanks gunther köhler, sven zörner, alexander gutsche, karsten gees, and the volunteer staff of the iguana research and breeding station for making our conference an unforgettable experience. special thanks also to the thoroughly wonderful sandy binns for making all of our impossible travel arrangements. we never could have done it without you! iguana 10.2 anegada r.h. schomburgk first noted the presence of cyclura pinguis (stout or anegada iguana) on anegada in 1832, but literature documenting the status of this species has been sparse. however, each progressive publication has described or implied an ever-increasing concern for its survival. accounts from the 1940s and 1950s are essentially non-existent. by the early 1960s, large-scale development was planned for anegada. although these plans were never fully realized, the initial groundwork destroyed the traditional stone paddocks used to corral livestock, unleashing goats, sheep, cattle, and burros to roam and propagate freely. excessive grazing has since reduced the natural plant community to secondary, largely toxic vegetation. today, almost all free-ranging cattle and burros are emaciated and only goats are thriving. in 1968, w. michael carey conducted a field study on the ethoecology of the stout iguana and, in his classic 1975 paper, stated: “whatever the methods, steps must be taken now to ensure the continued existence of c. pinguis on anegada.” this statement was based in large part on his observations of competition for available food between stout iguanas and livestock and of predation on iguanas by domestic mammals. following carey, james lazell worked with stout iguanas in 1980 and 1982–1986 and numi mitchell worked with them in 1987–1996. glenn gerber, then with the university of tennessee and presently with the zoological society of san diego, began working on the species in 1998 under auspices of the iucn/ssc iguana specialist group (now funded by the international iguana foundation) and the british virgin islands national parks trust (bvinpt). james lazell first observed stout iguanas on anegada in 1980 while employed by the department of natural resources and the environment (dnre), government of the british virgin islands. expecting to find large densities at citron bush, the site of carey’s 1968 study, he instead found that iguanas had completely disappeared from the area in the intervening 11 years. lazell subsequently found the highest remaining stout iguanas: historical perspectives and status report john binns international reptile conservation foundation (all photographs are by the author unless otherwise indicated) 39iguanajune 2003 emaciated cattle are a common sight on anegada. although the vegetation appears rich, the plant matter is all secondary growth. this anegada iguana was estimated to be over 20 years old. concentration of iguanas at bones bight, which today remains one of the core areas for the species. carey’s warning was reiterated by others, but efforts to fund the removal of livestock and feral predators remain mostly unsuccessful, despite some recent activity. in 1997, concrete efforts to secure the species’ future materialized in the form of the anegada iguana headstart facility. in october 1997, at the request of bvinpt, west indian iguana specialist group (wiisg) members rick hudson (fort worth zoo), jeff lemm (san diego zoo, cres), and rondel smith (bvinpt) constructed a small facility to house three juvenile stout iguanas found floating in manhead pond. the facility provides a safe haven for collected hatchlings until they are large enough to reduce the threat of feral predators a year later, a grant from the uk foreign commonwealth office to the bvinpt and wiisg t-shirt and poster sales funded construction of the main complex by rick hudson and jeff lemm, joined this time by mike fouraker and glenn gerber. in august 2001, the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf) and the bvinpt funded an upgrade to the facilities to increase captive capacity. team members for this project were john and sandy binns (ircf), alberto alvarez (pr-dnre), juliann sweet, joel friesch (ircf), and rondel smith and lee vanterpool (bvinpt). to date, none of these head-started captives have been released into the wild, but a limited release on anegada, coupled with the relocation of a few captives to a neighboring island, has been discussed. in conjunction with this dialogue, a population assessment of stout iguanas is planned 40 iguana volume 10, number 2 aerial photograph of bones and windlass bight, anegada, bvi. this small stretch of land that lies between the ocean and salt ponds is the only core stout iguana habitat left on anegada. access cuts as well as the main road passing through the area are visible in the photograph. the anegada iguana headstart facility’s new sign is displayed proudly at the entrance. this five-year-old captive anegada iguana is one of the older animals at the facility. captive iguanas at the facility tend to be smaller than iguanas observed on guana and necker in the same age groups. the anegada iguana headstart facilities currently hold about 80 captives. the two structures at the front left are new cages located close to the gate, allowing visitors to view these rare animals. the main cage system lies behind these new cages. current keepers, rondel smith and lee vanterpool, have made substantial improvements and all animals are in good health. during july 2003 to update the previously published estimate of fewer than 200 remaining in existence. controlling livestock or feral predators on anegada is nearly impossible due to the island’s remote location and the tens of thousands of dollars that would be required. so, in 1980, in light of the obviously rapid and apparently unchecked decline of the iguana population during the previous decade, lazell and his colleagues believed that the species was headed for extinction — unless something was done immediately. because a solution on anegada was not feasible and anegada was the only place where the species still existed, the obvious recourse was to establish a second population — but where and by what means? guana essentially all possible relocation sites in the british virgin islands were equally infested with feral predators and goats. however, in 1932, chapman grant had noted the presence of iguanas on guana island and had identified the species as iguana iguana (common or green iguana), but the presence of that species was never confirmed and none has been seen since. sometime in the mid-1930s, louis bigelow, then owner of guana island, had extirpated goats and had banned woodcutting for making charcoal. this had left only a couple of domesticated burros and freeranging sheep on the island. the latter are far less destructive than goats. in 1974, henry and gloria jarecki purchased guana island. access to this small island (300 ha) is limited, although it lies only a few kilometers from tortola. the exclusive guana island club had been constructed in a location designed to 41iguanajune 2003 fallen jerusalem, bvi: this small island is a possible relocation site for some of the head-started animals on anegada. this island, with no feral livestock, is well fortified with large rock boulders that offer a degree of protection during heavy storms and hurricanes. heavily degraded habitat on the east end of anegada near crasy pond once supported subpopulations of stout iguanas. in 1984, the doa converted a deep freshwater limestone solution hole called “the fountain” to an aboveground watering hole, providing a permanent water source for feral livestock. recent surveys in and around the east end suggest that stout iguanas have been extirpated. a guana island view to the north showcases its rich flora. guana island’s lush habitat clearly demonstrates the positive results of controlling feral animals. minimize impact on the natural habitat, attributable to the foresight of louis bigelow, who chose the construction site of the main clubhouse in the 1930s. hiking trails around the island also were conceived to protect and minimize destruction of the lush vegetation. in 1980, lazell initially approached mary randall, then guana island club manager, to determine if the owners would allow relocation of stout iguanas. randall was very enthusiastic about the concept, but two years would pass before lazell would meet the owners and take the next step. in the interim, he continued working on a plan that would establish a second population of stout iguanas while promoting other conservation and restoration goals in the british virgin islands. an idea for an exchange of species came with the realization that the vast salt ponds of anegada, which had supported large colonies of greater flamingos (phoenicopterus ruber) in the 19th century, could be restored if funds could be found. the beauty of this plan was the mutual benefits to all parties involved: the british virgin islands and the residents of anegada would benefit from the reintroduction of flamingos and, at the same time, the second population would provide some assurance for the long-term survival of stout iguanas. lazell first discussed the plan with several anegada residents. one of them was the late clement faulkner, who maintained a stout iguana feeding station adjacent to his home in bones bight. the plan next was presented to robert creque (dnre), lazell’s boss at that time. everyone agreed that the idea made eminently good sense. in march 1982, lazell finally discussed the possibility of relocating iguanas with the jareckis, who were initially apprehensive. would stout iguanas damage the island they had worked so hard to protect? would they bite staff or visitors or destroy ornamental plants on the hotel grounds? these questions would take some time to answer. however, that meeting was instrumental in developing the long-term relationship between the jareckis and the conservation agency (lazell) that continues today. during the remainder of march and april 1982, lazell surveyed the island with the help of lianna, divonne, and tom jarecki (nieces and son of henry and gloria) and the late author, gerald durrell, who happened to be vacationing there. lazell visited guana regularly over the next several years, conducting fieldwork with the aid of the managers, mary randall and her successor john damron. lazell also continued to build a portfolio of published papers and testimonials noting the disastrous effects of feral competitors and predators on stout iguanas and their habitat. major contributors were the late dr. william maclean (university of the virgin islands), walter phillips of water island, usvi, dr. robert chipley, and nick clarke, former director of the national parks trust, bvi. in 1984, the jareckis agreed to rid their island of sheep, provide a sanctuary for stout iguanas, and fund the relocation of flamingos. their decision certainly was influenced by lazell’s efforts, but they also were drawn into wildlife conservation 42 iguana volume 10, number 2 practically any view from guana island is breathtaking. “hambone,” one of the founding iguanas on guana island, frequents the vicinity of the club. photograph by numi mitchell. through the interest their sons and nieces had shown. today, eugene jarecki remains interested in conservation, tom jarecki works for the environmental defense fund, and lianna jarecki is teaching biology at h.l. stoutt community college on tortola, bvi and is finishing her ph.d. with a thesis on salt pond ecology. in july 1984, lazell and four colleagues set off to anegada in search of the first stout iguana destined for relocation to guana island. lazell eventually captured a large, healthy, gravid female (svl 46 cm) that was taken to guana, where she was released on 29 july 1984. the other seven iguanas that comprised the founding stock (sex, svl, and release date) were: male (41 cm; 19 july 1985), female (44 cm; 19 july 1986), female (22.4 cm, 27 july 1986), two females (33.5 and 43 cm, latter gravid) and two males (50.4 and 50.9 cm; 31 july 1986). guana now had the foundation for a second population, but years would pass before the success of the relocation could be evaluated. lazell next set out to complete the species exchange plan. the bermuda aquarium, museum, and zoo (bamz) had both captive-bred and wild-stock flamingos and agreed to donate a number sufficient for establishing a population. numi mitchell (tca) arranged the international transfer of the birds (bvi agriculture and fisheries permit and veterinary certification of the birds’ health, especially newcastle’s disease). numi and glenn mitchell (tca) and james conyers (bamz) transported the birds by jet from bermuda to tortola and then by boat to anegada. the flamingos initially were released into a net holding pen at the salt ponds, allowing them to recuperate and adjust to their new environment. on 7 march 1992, in a ceremony at the north end of the salt ponds, the governor, the national parks trust, and the anegada community celebrated the arrival of the first 18 birds. by 2002, the flock had multiplied to approximately 80 resident birds (guana also supports six pinioned flamingos in a small salt pond, but they do not reproduce because the population density is too low). necker necker island, like guana, is privately owned and exclusive, with a single luxurious resort, the balinese great house, situated on the highest point and overlooking the coral reef-studded waters of the caribbean. the island supports dense tropical vegetation, composed of both native and non-native plants and enhanced by irrigation. the other half of the island is more typical of the region, with rocky terrain and small clusters of hardy trees, low shrubs, and dense stands of cacti. designated a bird sanctuary, necker is home to pelicans, doves, and hummingbirds. in 1994, richard branson, owner of necker island (30 ha), expressed an interest in establishing a third population of stout iguanas. because the iguanas on guana had enhanced the natural setting of the island and were well received by visitors, branson was eager to expand the conservation effort. lazell had worked previously on necker and knew the island to be free of feral livestock and rats. 43iguanajune 2003 greater flamingos (phoenicopterus ruber) in holding pens shortly after their arrival on anegada. photograph by numi mitchell. necker island, bvi: high atop the island is the balinese great house. in october 1995, four hatchlings were taken to necker and head-started for a year before being released. during that time, one female escaped, but was seen later and appeared to be gravid. in 2000, lazell reported seeing the first hatchling and subsequent reports from the island indicated that stout iguana hatchlings were abundant. although the population is still in its infancy, during the october 2002 population on necker, founding stock, young adults, and hatchlings were recorded. today long after these second and third populations were established, their existence is not commonly acknowledged, little pertinent information is available, and some controversy remains regarding the circumstances under which they were established. in 2002, i was invited to participate in an assessment of the guana and necker populations. that survey, directed by lazell and mitchell, was conducted during “scientists month” from 4–29 october (each year, guana hosts a large contingent of scientists who conduct research on the island). after 14 hours of travel and delays, guana was a little piece of paradise. at the dock, my gear was loaded into the club’s pickup and we proceeded up the steep, twisting road to the clubhouse. the club overlooks the dense tropical vegetation of the island’s southern end, the salt pond — home to the six flamingos, and the white beach of a little cove that merges imperceptibly with the crystalline waters of the caribbean. when i arrived at the patio, which overlooks the equally picturesque northern end of the island, it was alive with more scientific dialog than i could begin to imagine — scientists, some 20 of them, at lunch. after brief introductions, focus quickly returned to the population survey that was already in progress. that same afternoon, we were issued several 2-oz syringe barrels loaded with white latex paint and began a survey of the club’s wooded perimeter and nearby support structures. many stout iguanas, including the founders, live in close proximity to the club. the weather was cloudy and damp from the morning’s rain, which kept iguanas from venturing far to bask or forage. 44 iguana volume 10, number 2 a stout iguana hatchling on necker island basking on the light sand walkway that leads to the beach. small tail drags were numerous along these walkways. a southerly view of guana island from the club. the salt pond with the six flamingos is located in the lower left and the beach and docking area in the center. dr. james lazell on guana island, 2002. the first sighting was somewhat unusual. we came upon four workmen digging a ditch next to a small structure while talking loudly to be heard over the radio playing in the background. above them on a rock ledge, a large iguana lay casually, as if supervising their work. we marked the animal with paint, which did not appear to disturb it, and it remained nearby, seemingly unaffected by the intrusion. the remainder of the day included marking or sightings of younger adults and juveniles, but the weather was clearly hampering our efforts. the founding iguanas and other older adults were nowhere to be found. the next day, mitchell and i explored the area west of the main facility, accessed from the “iguana trail,” while another team surveyed the southern area. the weather had improved, but remained partly cloudy and cool compared to typ45iguanajune 2003 a hatchling stout iguana on guana island seeks refuge among the branches of a bush, reducing the likelihood of falling prey to a racer, but increasing the chances of being spotted by a kestrel. guana island’s north trail was created to minimize impact on the habitat, yet it provides hikers with fabulous views of the surrounding natural features. about 300 m beyond this point, an adult stout iguana was sighted thundering off into a cactus thicket. iguana trail: a path originating at the lower guana club level and leading leisurely to the salt pond and beach below. this subadult stout iguana was foraging casually along the hillside near the iguana trail and allowed us to approach within 3 m. this animal was marked after the photograph was taken. ical conditions. our first marking was a subadult on a steep wooded slope not 50 m from the trail’s entry point. like our first iguana on the previous afternoon, it was rather nonchalant about our presence. that afternoon, we focused our attention on the northern section of the island where iguanas were not known to occur. tail-drags are common on trails in the area south of north beach, but they abruptly disappear to the north of a line roughly parallel with crab cove. the trail eventually splits into two routes, and mitchell and i separated to cover more ground. about halfway between crab cove and chicken rock steps, i observed one large, unmarked adult, who, unlike others we had observed, responded to the intrusion by quickly thundering off into a cactus thicket. we saw no other iguanas or tail-drags, but did see some scat. the survey continued and the weather improved each day, as did the frequency of iguana sightings. in addition to the population size estimate (see “assessment” on p. 49), we recorded three incidents of predation on juvenile stout iguanas, two by racers (alsophis portoricensis) and the other by a female kestrel (falco sparverius). early on the morning of 14 october, ten of us left guana by boat for necker island to assess the third population of stout iguanas, only seven years after the initial four hatchlings were released. the survey was limited to two days, and the team members quickly dispersed upon arrival. mitchell and i began our survey at a location near the main facilities where iguanas are fed twice a day. the ground and trails showed many signs of tail-drags clearly produced by individuals of vastly different sizes. we saw several iguanas in the thick shrubs around this area. from there, i worked the very dry northern section of the island and saw 46 iguana volume 10, number 2 a southerly view from the north side of necker island reveals habitat more typical of the region, with rocky terrain and small clusters of hardy trees, low shrubs, and dense stands of cacti. a southwesterly view of necker island showing the balinese great house (upper right) and the retreat quarters in the pagoda styled structure (foreground). stout iguanas were sighted within this area. only one drag and one scat. mitchell sighted a few animals as she worked an area near where the iguanas are fed. others on the survey team successfully marked several individuals and recorded sightings of hatchlings along the pathways around the maintenance and support facilities. two racers also were observed in the same area. the next day, starting where the iguanas are offered food, we saw two of the founding iguanas. a conservative estimate placed these animals at about 47 cm svl and well over 5 kg. both appeared in excellent health, alert, and with coloration of rich brown above blending into turquoise flanks. we spent our remaining time around the nursery and beach facilities and saw several iguanas, including a subadult and hatchlings. as on guana, the necker iguanas appeared to concentrate near the developed areas. in stark contrast to the boisterous excitement that characterized the boat ride to necker, we quietly sought a comfortable spot for the return trip. although tired from the day’s hard work in blazing sun, we had time to reflect on events that had led us to this point in time and space. the absence of committed, long-term funding continues to impede efforts to secure the species’ survival on anegada. compounding loss of habitat is ongoing development. consequently, stout iguanas are fighting for survival, suffering simultaneously from habitat degradation and predation on juveniles. some fear that the upcoming assessment will determine that the anegada population has declined to critically low numbers and may be functionally extinct in the wild. however, i believe we all shared a warm feeling knowing that the outlook for stout iguanas had improved considerably through the efforts of a few very special people. 47iguanajune 2003 racers on necker island commonly feed on juvenile stout iguanas. one of the four founding stout iguanas on necker island (shown near the feeding area) was hiding behind a clump of debris, straining to see if his morning serving had arrived. this lightly wooded area near a salt pond on anegada shows vegetation heavily damaged by feral animals seeking shelter from the sun or areas to rest. habitat such as this has no chance of recovery while feral animals are allowed to roam free. acknowledgements i thank james lazell and numi mitchell for the invitation to participate in the guana and necker island population assessments, and henry and gloria jarecki and richard branson for their hospitality and enduring commitment to ensuring the survival of stout iguanas. allison alberts, rick hudson, and glenn gerber have been instrumental in all my conservation efforts, and my wife sandy has her sleeves rolled up right beside me. this article has benefited from comments by gad perry and robert powell. references binns, j. 2001. taxon report: anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis). iucn/ssc iguana specialist group newsletter 4(2):12–13. carey, w.m. 1975. the rock-iguana, cyclura pinguis, on anegada, british virgin islands, with notes on cyclura ricordii and cyclura cornuta on hispaniola. bulletin of the florida state museum 19:189–234. gerber, g.p. 2000. conservation of the anegada iguana, cyclura pinguis. field research report, prepared for the bvi national parks trust, fauna and flora international, and the zoological society of san diego. zoological society of san diego, san diego, california. goodyear, n.c. 1992. flamingos return to anegada: status update. national parks trust news, british virgin islands, august 1992:1. goodyear, n.c. and j. lazell. 1994. status of a relocated population of endangered iguana pinguis on guana island, british virgin islands. restoration ecology 2:43–50. grant, c. 1932. herpetology of tortola: notes on anegada and virgin gorda. journal of the department of agriculture of puerto rico 16:339–346. hudson, r. 2001. isg 2000 meeting minutes: anegada, headstarting program. iucn/ssc iguana specialist group newsletter 4(1):4. lazell, j. 1995. natural necker. the conservation agency occasional paper (2):1–2. lazell, j. 1997. the stout iguana of the british virgin islands. iguana times 6:75–80. lazell, j. 2002. restoring vertebrate animals in the british virgin islands. ecological restoration 20:179–185. levering, k. and g. perry. 2003. cyclura pinguis (stout iguana, anegada rock iguana). juvenile predation. herpetological review: in press. mitchell, n.c. 1999. effect of introduced ungulates on density, dietary preferences, home range, and physical condition of the iguana (cyclura pinguis) on anegada. herpetologica 55:7–17. mitchell, n.c. 1999. anegada island iguana, cyclura pinguis, pp. 45–70. in: a. alberts (comp. and ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn/ssc west indian iguana specialist group, iucn, gland, switzerland and cambridge, uk. mitchell, n.c. 2000. anegada iguana, pp 22–27. in: p. reading and b. miller (eds.), endangered animals: a reference guide to conflicting issues. greenwood press, westport, connecticut. schomburgk, r.h. 1832. remarks on anegada. journal of the royal geological society 2:152–170. 48 iguana volume 10, number 2 iguana 10.1 10 iguana volume 10, number 1 a bout four hundred adult turks and caicos rock iguanas (cyclura carinata carinata) are kissing the ground of their new home on long cay in the caicos bank. all of them were scooped out of the paths of bulldozers on big ambergris cay, where a new resort development is in the early stages of construction. big ambergris cay supports one of the last large populations of these animals — and it literally teems with them. iguanas occupy every suitable square inch of habitat on the island. because all of the usable space is taken, iguanas that find themselves in the way of roadbeds, houses, and canals have nowhere to go as their habitat disappears. equally substantial populations existed only decades ago on providenciales, north, middle, east, and south caicos, and on the smaller cays in between. the mistake made again and again as each island was developed was to think: “no problem — we’re practically tripping over these lizards with every footstep. how could they ever become endangered?” only in hindsight did we realize that populations of rough-and-tumble dinosaur-like lizards could actually be fragile. we now know that they cannot coexist with larger mammals, particularly cats, grazing animals, and humans. in fact, predation, competition, and habitat loss caused by these seemingly innocuous sources had wiped out 95% of the world’s population of the unique turks and caicos rock iguana by the mid-1900s. in 1999, when development on big ambergris cay began in earnest, the government was determined not to repeat the same iguanaextinction scenario that had already occurred on every large developed island in the turks and caicos (tci). that year, tci’s department of another chance for the turks and caicos rock iguana numi mitchell the conservation agency cyclura carinata carinata (female). photograph by john binns iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:10 am page 10 environment and coastal resources (decr) teamed up with the conservation agency and the denver zoo, who claimed they could find a home for some of the displaced lizards. the island’s owner, henry mensen, agreed to help. this was easier said than done. the problem was finding another, or several other, suitable islands. you couldn’t just move iguanas to any island that currently had no iguanas. if the island had humans and the usual entourage of free-ranging cats, dogs, and livestock, it was immediately disqualified. the team needed to find islands without iguanas that also were otherwise uninhabited. two types were found: (1) very small islands which, because of lack of fresh water, would not support cats, dogs, or livestock, and (2) larger islands with some fresh water that had free ranging cats or livestock that had been released and had survived. the conservation agency, denver zoo, and decr were interested in a long-term solution, and the team was curious as to why the smaller cays that were obviously capable of supporting permanent populations of iguanas didn’t already have them. they suspected that hurricanes were the major problem; during storms, small, lower-profile islands can overwash completely. the team chose to tackle a larger island with some topographic relief, in spite of the fact that the habitat would first have to be repaired. one island stood out: long cay, neighboring south caicos, a thin, unpopulated, 3-mile-long island with a backbone of 100-foot limestone cliffs, sandy scarps, and grassy plains and saltmarshes on the sheltered western side. the 260acre island was government-owned and already part of the admiral cockburn nature reserve. the beauty of long cay was striking from the cliff tops and the habitat was perfect — except for one fatal flaw — it supported a population of hungry domestic cats whose unwanted ancestors had been released there years ago. cats are very efficient predators and the relatively small turks and caicos iguanas are quite vulnerable to them, particularly 11iguanamarch 2003 in june 2000, the nation celebrated the return of the turks and caicos iguana to long cay during environment week as julia jones, wife of his excellency, governor mervyn jones, ceremonially cut the ribbon and the iguanas raced across the line into the lush bush of their ancestral home. numi mitchell in the dark dress and julia jones in the light dress. note the iguana running to numi’s right. photographer: beth outten. cyclura carinata carinata (young male). photograph by john binns iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 11 in the early morning when iguanas are cold and slow. a population of iguanas was known to have existed on long cay in the 1970s, and individuals had been seen sporadically as recently as the 1990s — but the introduction of cats had made it impossible for iguanas to survive on the cay. the conservation agency and denver zoo conferred and concluded that things could be worse. long cay could have goats, sheep, pigs, cows, donkeys, dogs, and cats. it had only cats, and not many at that. they took a vote and decided that, with the help of the decr, they could restore long cay and bring the iguanas home. in june 1999, the team tackled the job of clearing the island of the 5–10 cats whose presence would make iguana recolonization impossible. using a combination of toxic bait (1080, a plant derivative used successfully in new zealand to control feral cats and australian opossums) and box traps, they mounted an intensive campaign. by january 2000, they were confident that all of the cats were gone. the island was safe for iguanas and, with the help of many game volunteers, the team began catching and moving groups of iguanas from big ambergris to the now pristine long cay. what kind of people like catching iguanas? you would be surprised. the conservation agency, denver zoo, and the decr had no trouble finding “assistants” who enthusiastically agreed to be baked in the sun, serve as dart boards for thousands of mosquitoes, and be scratched, sometimes severely, by thorn scrub. local volunteers came from south caicos, grand turk, pine cay, and provo to steal around the bush “tossing” iguanas, as noosing is locally called. they used fishing poles with 200-lb-test monofilament loops at the end. some folks claimed that a whistled rendition of “yankee doodle dandy” would allow you to sneak up on iguanas more easily but, after noosing a couple of hundred myself, i can say it doesn’t really make much difference. nevertheless, people tended to stick with this method and, on capture days in the baking bush of big ambergris, one could always hear at least six asynchronous versions in at least three different keys. whistling or not, a hunter had to sneak up on an iguana and then distract it so it wouldn’t notice the noose being slipped around its neck. that accomplished, with a flick of the wrist, the hunter tweaked the noose tight and lunged forward to grab the furiously flailing iguana. males turned out to be relatively easy to noose because of their attitude — they stand their ground, even pumping themselves up on stiff legs to look larger as you approach. females tended to be shy and more apt to try to slip away. neither is shy when noosed, however. hunters who made the mistake of putting their hands too close to the mouth of an 12 iguana volume 9, number 3 volunteer virginia “gingee” brewer signed on for the expedition. on her first trip she coerced five of her associates to help with the effort. she is interested in both science and conservation but has an additional concern: she is a homeowner on pine cay. photographs by numi mitchell iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 12 13iguanaseptember 2002 indignant noosed iguana became charter members of “the bite club.” people almost always became members of the bite club immediately after laughing at others who had become members just before them. boatloads of 25–100 iguanas, traveling with their overheated, sore-muscled captors (most of whom were fantasizing about icy cold beer), were moved from big ambergris to the decr lab on south caicos, where they were held overnight. animals were weighed, measured, and each received a unique internal transponder tag that would allow researchers to identify them if they were recaptured. the following day, they were released on long cay. some sported radiocollars and were monitored for the next couple of months as they established themselves on their new island home. while the conservation agency, denver zoo, and decr provided the principal workforce, volunteers continued to help in many ways, particularly while radiotracking the new settlers and recapturing them to check their weights and conditions. many offered to help — kids, fishermen, grandmothers, and government officials — anyone adventurous, curious, or concerned. even his excellency, governor mervyn jones, and his wife julia came to long cay to pitch in. in june 2000, the nation celebrated the return of iguanas to long cay during environment week. julia jones cut the ceremonial ribbon and the iguanas raced across the line into the lush bush of their ancestral home. since that summer celebration, the iguanas on long cay have been thriving. all rapidly found burrows (many of which were probably once occupied by their ancestors) and apparently found plenty to eat. iguanas on the cay are proportionately fatter than those from big ambergris and are brightly colored (indicating that they are growing rapidly and frequently shedding their skin). oneand two-year-old babies are easy to see on the island — a fact attributable to the absence of cats. today, thanks to the conservation agency, the denver zoo, and the decr, long cay is a garden of eden for the rescued iguanas and their offspring. in the big picture, though, it is only one cyclura carinata carinata. photograph by john binns cyclura carinata carinata (male). photograph by john binns cyclura carinata carinata. photograph by john binns iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 13 basket of eggs. we need numbers of other reserves, and initiatives like those by the turks and caicos national trust in setting aside the chalk sound, little water cay, and little ambergris reserves, and current efforts by the san diego zoo to repopulate smaller cays, help to insure that the endemic turks and caicos rock iguana — found no where else in the world — survives. from the perspective of the conservation agency and the denver zoo, restoration work needs to continue. more candidate island homesites must be found and “repaired” by removing non-native wildlife that preys on, competes with, or otherwise undermines native or unique turks and caicos species. restoring habitat for iguanas will restore habitat for other native animals — local and migratory. we all will start to see a wider range of native wildlife reappearing in the tci. for now, the homeless iguanas of big ambergris will continue to provide opportunities to restock many of the islands on which this endemic lizard belongs. 14 iguana volume 9, number 3 numi mitchell photographed during a hike in mid-day heat. photograph by john binns long cay, turks and caicos. photographs by numi mitchell iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:11 am page 14 iguana 12.4 b&w text conservation of hispaniolan southern slider in jaragua-bahoruco-enriquillo biosphere reserve the antillean terrapins comprise a group of at least four species of freshwater turtles with a discontinuous distribution in the greater antilles and the bahamas. the hispaniolan southern slider (trachemys decorata) is endemic to the south paleoisland of hispaniola (south of the cul de sac plain – neiba valley). the central antillean slider (trachemys stejnegeri) occupies suitable habitat on the north paleoisland. as for other important endemic antillean groups, such as todies (small birds in the genus todus) and rock iguanas (cyclura spp.), hispaniola is the only island with two different species in each of those genera. the hispaniolan southern slider is a moderately sized freshwater pond turtle. males can reach 220 mm in carapace length, whereas larger females can reach 320 mm. the carapace is light brown and the plastron is yellow with scattered dark ocellated ovals. the skin is grayish brown with black-bordered yellow stripes, including the supratemporal stripe or “ears.” this turtle inhabits brackish and freshwater lakes. habitat destruction, pollution, and over-harvesting threaten the existence of this species, which is included as “vulnerable” on the iucn red list. in the dominican republic, the hispaniolan southern slider has a natural distribution that corresponds to a large degree with that of the critically endangered ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii), and the conservation of both species is intrinsically tied to the conservation of the jaragua – bahoruco – enriquillo biosphere reserve. grupo jaragua works for the conservation of these turtles, their natural habitats, and associated biodiversity by implementing and supporting conservation efforts in the biosphere reserve. www.grupojaragua.org.do f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n hispaniolan southern slider / hispaniolan elegant slider (trachemys decorata) iguana 12.2 b&w text it’s hard not to feel some sense of adventure when you’re standing on top of a pyramid built by a long dead civilization, looking out over a thick, green jungle — even though the person standing next to you appears to have been getting his senior citizen discount for a good 15 years, ropes and guard rails everywhere try to keep the less coordinated from plummeting to their deaths, and souvenir shops are visible back where you parked. nevertheless, i felt as though i should have donned my fedora and grabbed my trusty bullwhip before setting out on such an expedition — but i’m getting somewhat ahead of myself. the day after arriving in méxico, we visited chichen itzá, one of the best known of the mayan ruins that dot the yucatán peninsula and adjacent regions of central america. i knew something about the ruins already; my dad had been here 25 years ago, and had given me a bit of a briefing. we paid for our tickets and entered the park. a short walk from the entrance, we emerged from the forest into a clearing dominated by a towering pyramid, every architectural feature of which seemingly represented some aspect of mayan astronomy. we set out to climb the massive structure. we had arrived early in order to avoid the a yucatecan adventure perhaps the most interesting encounters involved the highway. when traveling, we always stop from time to time to examine roadkills. generally, that’s what we find — roadkill. twice on this trip, however, we encountered something much more interesting. we were driving the back roads from chichen itzá to ek balam when we saw a fairly large snake in the middle of the road. dad immediately said: “boa!” and hit the brakes. after a quick u-turn, we were once again approaching the snake and my dad was turning to pull off to the side of the road. as he leaned out the window to see if the snake was alive or not, he failed to see an oncoming car — at least not until my mom brought him back to reality. fortunately, dad continued off the road and the other driver adroitly avoided hitting us. dad immediately jumped out of the car and picked up the snake — a fairly good-sized boa constrictor. the driver of the other car also pulled over and got out. to dad’s dismay, he was wearing the uniform of the local policia. dad immediately apologized in his broken spanish (i caught the words “estoy idiota”). fortunately for us, the policeman seemed a bit taken aback by a gringo who picks snakes up off the road. he stopped well short of us, asked if the snake was alive. as dad responded in the affirmative, the cop smiled nervously, shrugged, got back in his car, and drove away. we took several photos, which didn’t seem to please the snake at all — i kind of felt like i was playing paparazzi to the boa’s sean penn as it struck repeatedly at me and the camera. later the same day, after touring the archaeological zone of ek balam, we saw another snake crawling across the road. this time we stopped without incident. dad immediately recognized it as a barba amarilla (bothrops asper), one of the more common snakes in the region and also one of the most dangerous. having already experienced the hostility of local reptiles toward photographers, i opted not to get involved with this one; instead i merely watched from the car as dad rescued the snake, photographed it, and then encouraged it to crawl off into the brush alongside the road. as our trips to the tropics go, we spent relatively little time in the yucatán hunting critters. that said, the time we did spend was exciting enough (read: had enough near-death experiences) to keep me satisfied. 114 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell rescuing a boa (boa constrictor) from the highway nearly resulted in a collision with oncoming traffic. the barba amarilla (bothrops asper) is a common and deadly snake. tour-bus crowds and we wanted to get up and down the pyramid without being trampled by masses of german tourists going on their industrious way. we arrived at the top, looked around the painfully empty inner chamber, and enjoyed the view of the rest of the site. by this time, more tourists had begun to arrive, and we started back down. climbing up the pyramid was tough, simply because of the many really steep stairs. climbing back down was even more exciting, as the uneven steps and downward perspectives emphasized the possibility of one small misstep leading to a rather unpleasant ride ending with an even more unpleasant landing. according to the guidebook, the pyramid had been built over an earlier, smaller structure, which was accessible. this sounded like an adventure, braving booby traps and ghosts of mayan guards to enjoy the splendor of an ancient temple. humming to myself, i followed a line of people into the pyramid. the path was dark, but not too difficult. it quickly turned into a huge set of stairs. i started climbing, figuring that the temple at the top and its red jaguar throne would be an ample reward for my effort. i finally reached the top, only to find that the “temple” consisted of a poorly lit room and that the “throne” was more like a bench that i couldn’t see very well. the whole area was smaller than my dorm room — and anyone who’s lived in a dorm can appreciate just how tiny that is. disappointed, i made the trek back down. so much for indiana powell. my mood improved, however, as we wandered through the rest of the ruins, learning about ancient mayan culture. the ball court, where the intent was to pass a ball horizontally through a stone ring hung high on a wall, was interesting, both in terms of the fates of the losers (rather grim) and for the fact that the walls were so precisely designed that a clap in the middle of the field would echo exactly seven times. we next followed a sacbe (an old mayan “road”) that extended from the clearing past a retaining wall that surrounded the center of the city, which had been built on an artificially raised, level platform. as impressive as the construction of the pyramid and temples had been, i was amazed that such a “primitive” culture could accomplish the immense task of moving thousands of tons of soil and compacting it adequately to support the huge stone structures. the road led on past the wall to a cenote, essentially a natural cistern that served as both a ceremonial site and a water source for the city’s inhabitants. it was what it was — a massive hole in the ground with water in it. being who we are, our attention was immediately attracted to a bird perching on a small tree near the bottom. it turned out to be an anhinga or “snake-bird” (so called because of its “serpentine neck”). i must admit that i was somewhat disappointed at how developed the site had become. i had been looking forward to climbing the various structures, an activity that’s discouraged — it’s hard on the ruins, particularly with the vast numbers of people that visit the site. ultimately, though, i had to admit that it was better this way. the sacrifice of my adventurous fantasies was worth the price of preserving the ruins, and the development of the site into a tourist attraction was more than justified by the worthy goal of exposing the average cruise ship passenger to a little ancient culture. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 115travelogue climbing the large pyramid at chichen itzá is a daunting task. the retaining wall around the elevated platform on which the main structures at chichen itzá were constructed clearly demonstrates the engineering feats of which the mayans were capable. returning from the cenote along the ancient sacbe (road), the pyramid at chichen itzá is an imposing structure. iguana 12.2 b&w text 116 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell chichen itzá maybe the most famous of all mayan archaeological sites, chichen itzá dates from the late classic period (~600–900 ad). within the 6 km2 of the archaeological zone are two distinct architectural styles (classified as “new” and “old” chichen). the glorification of the toltec god quetzalcoatl in his mayan form of kukulcan, the feathered serpent, led to the belief that the toltecs had taken over this formerly mayan city. now, however, scholars are beginning to dispute the idea of a foreign invasion. contemporary thought is that chichen itzá was a cosmopolitan city inhabited by a diverse group of peoples including the puuc mayans and the toltecs. ek balam dating from 100 ad to its height at 700–1,200 ad, the newly opened archaeological site at ek balam is unique and well worth a visit before the word gets out and the site is overrun by tourists. the main temple is over 500 feet long and 200 feet wide, making it one of the largest structures ever excavated in the yucatán. various sculpted works are extremely well preserved. the site’s most striking temple is the “monster mouth,” representing a portal to the “other world.” m a y a n s i t e s map of the yucatán peninsula showing the approximate locations of cancún and the four major mayan archaeological zones in the northeastern part of the peninsula. tulum was the only mayan city still thriving when the spanish conquistadors arrived. although mayan archaeological sites extend across the yucatán peninsula and throughout much of central america, visitors to the region who land in cancún should definitely include the following four sites in their travel agendas. visits early and late in the day are strongly recommended; not only are temperatures more pleasant, lighting more varied, but the vast busloads of tourists, especially at chichen itzá and tulum are thus avoided to a large degree. adapted from material provided at http://www.mayasites.com/. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 117travelogue tulum situated on a cliff facing the beautiful turquoise waters of the caribbean, this is among the most scenic of all the mayan sites. tulum was at its peak from 1,000–1,600 ad and is unusual in being surrounded by a high wall that speaks to a need for defense against invaders from both land and sea. tulum was one of the first cities encountered by the conquistadors and was the only mayan city still thriving when the europeans arrived. the mayans eventually abandoned the city, but not until almost a century after the spanish conquest. cobá the mayan ruins at cobá are unique in that they have been barely restored. only a few of the estimated 6,500 structures have been uncovered. cobá, dating from 600–900 ad, may once have had a population estimated at 100,000 people, largest of all the ancient mayan cities. the site’s pyramids and buildings are situated on the shores of several lakes and as many as fifty sacbes (ancient roads), one of them over 62 miles long (longest in the mayan world), connected cobá to cities throughout the region. the nohoc mul pyramid, at over 126 feet, is the tallest mayan structure on the yucatán peninsula, and the building techniques are characteristic of the petan region of guatemala. many sculpted works at ek balam are extremely well preserved. tulum is situated on a cliff overlooking the caribbean and is among the most scenic of all the mayan sites. waves breaking over the barrier reef that parallels the coastline can be seen in the background. climbing the pyramid at cobá was exciting, as the uneven steps forced one to consider how one small misstep would lead to an unpleasant and possibly lethal experience. the main pyramid at cobá is the highest mayan structure on the yucatán peninsula. several years ago, before a visit to méxico after an absence of over ten years, a friend who traveled south of the border on a regular basis told me that i would immediately notice three major changes that had come to pass since my last trip: (1) there are a lot more mexicans (villages had become towns, towns cities, and cities major metropolitan areas). (2) one can buy safe ice nearly everywhere (in the old days, one often had to search diligently for the local ice plant and then, not knowing the source of the water used, had to be extremely careful for fear of contracting what is widely known as “monteczuma’s revenge”). (3) the pemex (mexican national petroleum company) stations had clean restrooms (during previous visits, even females invariably preferred the “bushes” to the often-gruesome facilities at the filling stations). all of his observations were right on the money. if such dramatic changes were evident after only ten years, you might imagine what had happened in the 25 years since i had last visited the yucatán peninsula with students in 1980. i won’t try to list them all, but some of the innovations were impossible to ignore — and some were a bit disturbing. mexicans are definitely more abundant. cancún has grown from a little town into a booming metropolis with all of the accompanying traffic and pollution. playa del carmen is a city (with a sam’s club!) instead of a sleepy seaside village. much of the population growth is attributable to immigration into the region from other parts of méxico. when the government decided to foster development for the tourist trade some 40 years ago, it began the process by constructing an international airport. when we visited in 1980, the airport had been in operation only a few years and the terminal was an open-air affair through which one passed in seconds. today, the airport rivals those in large cities anywhere in the world with jet ways, huge customs complex, and stores and restaurants galore (even a hard rock café). in 1980, our rental vehicles had to be brought in from mérida (capital of the state of yucatán); today the rental car options equal those at any major international destination. growth and expansion continue. the more popular archaeological sites at chichen itzá and tulum now have paved parking lots with attendants, extensive visitor centers, and the free-lance vendors of largely hand-made crafts have been replaced by row after row of shops catering to almost any whim (local vendors still exist, but their access to the sites is carefully controlled). getting there is faster, since the old two-lane roads that had only recently been paved were now four-lane, limited-access highways. deserted stretches of beach have been replaced by one huge resort after another, and, instead of nesting sea turtles, the beaches are occupied by dense crowds of tourists covered in oil. note, however, that many of the attractions that promote near-shore snorkeling experiences require (and sell) biodegradable sunscreen to prevent the formation of huge oil slicks. sadly, the remaining mayan culture that we experienced so vividly in 1980 is much less visible today. this is partly attributable to the speed of travel (one couldn’t drive fast on the old roads even if so inclined) and partly to the displacement of 118 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell 25 years of change one significant advantage of development is access to fine dining establishments. this juvenile coleonyx elegans, a eublepharid gecko, was crossing the road at night. travel speeds that prevail today would have made seeing this little lizard difficult and stopping in time to catch it nearly impossible. mayan villages farther into the interior to make room for profitable enterprises. mayan faces were common then; today, one encounters them only rarely, usually in the form of maids or laborers with whom tourists have limited contact. wildlife still exists, but the diversity that was so evident 25 years ago is much harder to find (during our 1980 trip, we collected 25 snakes of 17 different species). those species that adapt well to humans and their altered habitats abound; those that don’t have retreated farther into the remaining forests, access to which is now more difficult. we were able to enter the forests along numerous small dirt roads that led to little villages or hunting and logging camps. these no longer exist. the huge flocks of shore birds that populated the myriad inlets and bays have moved to the protected biosphere reserves farther south and are rarely seen along the mayan riviera, replaced instead by motorboats and jet skis (an abomination and a sure sign of a declining civilization). was the cancún of 1980 more charming that what exists now? sure. however, i have a hard time condemning the development. not only has it proven to be an economic boon in a previously depressed area (well over 90% of all local revenue in the state of quintana roo is tourist-related), a large portion of the millions of tourists who have visited the region in the past couple of decades have been enticed to visit the archaeological sites — and a few may well have left with a much greater appreciation of pre-columbian culture than they could have acquired by watching the travel channel. knowing our past speaks well of our future, and tourism, albeit motivated largely by white-sand beaches and crystal-clear water, has been largely responsible for the education of many. robert powell iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 119travelogue mayan villages along the roads have been displaced by commercial development along the highways. archaeological zones provide protection for wildlife as well as ruins. here a great egret (casmerodius albus) waits patiently for lunch at the lake at cobá. red-eared sliders (trachemys scripta) are not native to the yucatán peninsula, but the crocs seem to find them every bit as tasty as the native species. treefrogs, like this phrynohyas venulosa, are abundant, but inconspicuous — until the males call during rainy periods. 120 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell just north of puerto morelos on what has become known as the mayan riviera, is a small roadside zoo called crococun. as the name implies, crocs are the featured attraction — and both american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus) and morelet’s crocodiles (c. moreleti) are abundantly represented. in fact, the privately supported facility has become sufficiently adept at breeding the latter that they have run out of sites to release them (many of the developers of luxurious resorts along the caribbean coast apparently resist efforts to reintroduce crocs to the lagoons and beaches where they once were plentiful). however, this little zoo offers much more than crocodiles. exhibits include many species native to the forests of the peninsula, including several snakes, a few lizards, and mammals that include whitetail deer (odocoileus virginianus; yes, the same species overrunning suburbs throughout the united states), collared peccaries or javelinas (tayassu tajacu), and spider monkeys (ateles geoffryi). because the rather steep admission price includes the services of a guide, visitors can interact with animals, feeding monkeys or deer and holding snakes or even crocs. even more interesting, however, than some of the exhibits are the wild animals that have learned that the zoo is an ideal place to scrounge an easy meal. wild spider monkeys readily approach humans in hopes of a handout and the fortunate visitor might stumble across an iguana foraging for scraps or a snake taking advantage of the rodents attracted to the stocks of animal food kept onsite. m u c h m o r e t h a n a n a l l i g a t o r f a r m crocs start out small, but don't stay that way. the author holding a hatchling crocodylus moreleti (left). an adult c. moreleti at the breeding facility at crococun (above). wild spider monkeys (ateles geoffryi) had learned that the zoo was a good place to solicit a handout. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 121travelogue nearby and also worthwhile is the dr. alfredo barrera marín botanical garden, with winding paths snaking through the various vegetative communities found on the peninsula. in addition to the flora, the facility also is a terrific place to see birds, occasional reptiles, and sometimes even a fleeting glance of a wild mammal disappearing into the brush. also worth exploring, at least for the aquatically inclined, are the fabulous coral reefs that parallel the coast, forming north america’s longest barrier reef. unfortunately for tourists (but presumably fortunate for the area’s inhabitants), core areas of the region’s terrestrial and coastal biosphere reserves are off-limits to casual visitors. biologists, archaeologists, and other scientists must obtain permission from the mexican government to conduct research in these areas. numerous other “natural wonders” are promoted on billboards along every stretch of highway, in every brochure that offers daily tours, and by the staff of “activity desks” at the area’s abundant hotels and resorts. most are pricey and some may be worth the investment of time and money, but don’t go expecting to see anything remotely resembling nature. what were once pristine and unique habitats supporting an unbelievably diverse wildlife have become just another tourist attraction. with their bright blue backs, wings, and tails, yucatan jays (cissilopha yucatanica) provided atmosphere in the form of raucous calls and splashes of color. the very slender vine snake (oxybelis aeneus) feeds primarily on lizards.these snakes were abundant 25 years ago and remain that way today. s o m e a d v i c e use sunscreen. even during the cooler winter months, the tropical sun is fierce and will fry you much faster than anything you’ve experienced back home. take insect repellent. although i overheard one tour guide tell visitors to cobá not to worry about bugs, reminding them that it was winter and “mosquitoes don’t like snow,” the truth is that biting insects are abundant — and seem to enjoy the taste of tourists. don’t be paranoid about food and drinks. the bad old days are in the past. the tourist-oriented economy on the peninsula has adapted well to the reality that folks won’t come back if they spend most of their vacation worshiping at the porcelain alter. do, however, use common sense. avoid food purchased from street vendors and eat fresh fruits only if served in a reputable restaurant or that you’ve peeled yourself. tequila is not a disinfectant that will save you from your sins if you eat something you should have avoided. as much as possible, plan activities for early and late in the day. midday temperatures can be brutal and no one has fun in a blast furnace. also, most animals are likely to be active in the morning and evening. so, eat a light lunch and take a siesta (a very civilized custom) or spend time in the pool or at the beach (but not in the sun!). if you decide to drive, figure on paying a premium for local insurance (u.s. insurance does not apply in méxico). when you drive, be patient. even if the locals drive like they’re in a nascar race (go fast, turn left, …), don’t emulate them. traffic violations involving injuries or property damage are criminal offenses and even minor transgressions can be expensive, since you may end up paying the arresting authority a substantial amount to allow you to proceed on your way (incidentally, don’t automatically assume that a policeman is looking for a bribe, that could get you into even more trouble, but follow boy scout guidelines and be prepared). above all, enjoy yourself. méxico is a terrific place full of mostly friendly people and with lots to offer in the way of cultural and natural history. 122 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell references general guides numerous guidebooks address the logistics of travel to what has become one of the western hemisphere’s major tourist destinations. all provide some basic background on the archaeological sites buried among recommendations for lodging, dining, and experiencing the apparently abundant nightlife. all are totally devoid of any meaningful discussions of the region’s natural resources (except those that have themselves been converted to tourist destinations). two guides that we found particularly useful, primarily because they went farther beyond the mundane than most of the alternatives, were: yucatán (lonely planet) by ben greensfelder and hidden cancún & the yucatán by richard harris. reptiles and amphibians the amphibians and reptiles of the yucatan peninsula by julian c. lee. phenomenally comprehensive, a reference rather than a guide. highly recommended, but expensive and not for carrying into the field. a field guide to the amphibians and reptiles of the maya world: the lowlands of mexico, northern guatemala, and belize by julian c. lee. a field guide based on the more authoritative coffee table book by the same author. highly recommended. amphibians and reptiles of northern guatemala, the yucatán, and belize by jonathan a. campbell. a nice guide enlivened by tales of the author’s personal experiences in the region. recommended. reptiles of central america by gunther köhler. nicely illustrated, but broader coverage than the other books listed results in less detail than in the other recommended guides. recommended, but expensive. birds a guide to the birds of mexico and northern central america by steven n. g. howell and sophie webb. the most comprehensive guide to the region, but large and heavy. highly recommended. birder’s mexico (louise lindsey merrick natural environment series, 12) by roland h. wauer. not so much a traditional guide as an introduction to birding in méxico; definitely nice to have and great for preparation prior to a trip. recommended. a field guide to mexican birds: mexico, guatemala, belize, el salvador (peterson field guides) by roger tory peterson (series editor) and edward l. chalif. not up to the standards of the peterson field guides for the u.s. and useful only with both u.s. guides in hand. definitely a third choice among those listed. field guide to the birds of mexico and adjacent areas: belize, guatemala, and el salvador by ernest preston edwards and edward murrell butler (illustrator). nice pictures, but disorganized and difficult to use. not recommended. the long slender bodies of blunt-headed tree snakes (imantodes cenchoa) allow them to span considerable distance as they move from branch to branch. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e blunt-headed tree snake imantodes cenchoa snakes in the genus imantodes are among several central american species to effectively exploit arboreal prey. like many other species that spend most of their lives in vegetation, these snakes are very slender and elongate and have very long tails. compressing their sides and forming their bodies into a semblance of an i-beam, they can span remarkable distances as they move from branch to branch. although they can and do occasionally venture onto the ground, most individuals probably never leave the trees and bushes on which they’re usually encountered. active at dusk and well into the night, these snakes take refuge during the day, occasionally hiding in bromeliads or other epiphytic vegetation. as do many neotropical snakes in the family colubridae (which includes most common snakes throughout the world), blunt-headed tree snakes have enlarged, grooved teeth near the back of each upper jaw with which they can inject venom. however, the location of the fangs renders the delivery of venom difficult unless the prey item has been taken well into the mouth. also, the venom appears to be most effective on their usual prey of lizards and frogs. they are not dangerous to humans and very rarely bite, even when handled. unlike vine snakes in the genus oxybelis, which fill a comparable arboreal, lizardand frog-eating niche during the daytime, imantodes cenchoa has a vertically elliptical pupil that allows for considerable enlargement in order to trap sparse light at night. like most snakes, however, blunt-headed tree snakes rely primarily on chemical cues to find lizards sleeping on branches and leaves, nocturnally active frogs, clutches of frog eggs suspended over water, or lizard and snake eggs hidden under bark or in nooks and crannies above the ground. their blunt heads allow them to consume larger prey than their slender bodies would seem to be able to accommodate. iguana 12.3 b&w text 182 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 henderson bob powell examining an anole with a student in his lab at avila university. a v il a u n iv er si ty iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 183profile of robert powell over the past 30+ years, i have had the good fortune of three prolonged and prolific collaborations. the first was with dr. henry fitch. it began in the early 1970s, continued into the late 1980s, and was briefly resurrected in the pages of this journal in 2003. i began my collaboration with dr. albert schwartz in 1982, and it continued until his untimely death in 1992. the third collaboration, with dr. bob powell, began in 1992 and, 14 years and 45 publications later, we’re still at it. over the course of this professional relationship, i have come to consider bob a good friend and someone whom i admire tremendously. born in germany, but raised in missouri (and eventually earning his ph.d. at the university of missouri), bob has had an amazingly productive career as an educator and researcher. he is professor of biology at avila university in kansas city, missouri. as a small, private school, the emphasis is on teaching and not research. despite a full teaching load, bob has nevertheless found time to write books, edit journals, and produce hundreds of research papers, often co-authored with undergraduate students. employed as he is with a heavy teaching load and many contact hours with students, it would have been easy for bob to relegate research to “hobby” status; i.e., publish an occasional note here and there, based on some fortuitous observation made on a class field trip. his passion for, and dedication to, herpetology has prevented that from happening — and how has bob accomplished this? by involving undergrads with a serious interest in biology in general, and perhaps amphibians and reptiles in particular. in 1991, bob applied successfully to the p r o f i l e successfully wearing two hats: a profile of robert powell robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum milwaukee, wisconsin 53233 photograph taken during the late 1970s before an attempt by bob, friends, and students to excavate an underground passage in an ozark cave. the “after” picture (apparently lost) showed less humanity and considerably more mud. bob is on the left and john parmerlee is second from the right (according to john, their positions in the photo correspond rather accurately to their political leanings). jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . national science foundation for a research experience for undergraduates (reu) grant. he and john parmerlee then recruited undergraduate students from throughout the u.s. to participate in a 10-week summer program that would introduce them to conducting original field research with reptiles and amphibians in an “exotic” locale. since the initial reu year, bob has led seven reu trips to the dominican republic, anguilla, grenada, and st. eustatius, and helped with another, organized by alicia mathis and bob wilkinson at southwest missouri state university (now missouri state university), to mexico. another trip, this one to st. vincent, is slated for 2006. 184 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 henderson meeting the local herpetofauna (geochelone sp.) on a trip to belém, brazil in the late 1980s. ph o to c r ed it : u n k n o w n carrying dishes to the creek during the 1970s on an early trip with students to mexico; bob uses this photo to imply that “everyone” has to help in the field, even with tasks that are less than fun. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . bob with a puerto rican racer (alsophis portoricensis) on guana island in the british virgin islands in 2003. r o b er t w . h en d er so n bob in a “supervisory” posture with students on grenada in 2002. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 185profile of robert powell prior to going in the field, the students gather at avila, where bob and john make sure that they familiarize themselves with the literature dealing with the frogs and reptiles they will encounter (and with which they will ultimately attain a high level of intimacy). they also learn something about the country they are going to visit, including local customs, health issues, conservation concerns, etc. possible research projects are discussed, including methods that may be employed, equipment required, germane statistical procedures, and so on. when they get to the study locale, they hit the ground running. they have three weeks to find a study site, finalize methods, and collect data. each student works on more than one project, making for three weeks of intensive biology. as an instructor on three reu trips, i know that it’s not unusual to be going from before sunup to well into the night. after the fieldwork, the students return to avila to analyze the data and write their research papers. this is accomplished under the guidance of bob and john. they work with students on their statistical analyses and technical writing, wanting each student to ultimately have one or more publications as a result of the reu experience. having those publications will look good when they apply to graduate schools, and bob is adamant about students completing projects they’ve started (even if completion occurs a year or two after their reu experience). powell knows this is in the students’ best interest, and it reflects his three-pronged teaching philosophy: 1) provide students with the opportunity to acquire, practice, and receive reinforcement of fundamental knowledge and skills; 2) encourage students to think, question, analyze, and test; 3) design courses that provide students with both realistic challenges and opportunities for success. i have observed bob apply this philosophy over and over with reu students, and i’m sure he employs it in the classrooms at avila as well. he makes sure he knows what each reu student is doing every day and monitors the progress of each project. over the course of about 50 trips to the west indies, bob has, either in collaboration with professional colleagues or with reu students, studied various aspects of the ecology and behavior of a broad taxonomic array of frogs and reptiles. he produced a herpetological guide to navassa island, examined niche partitioning in several species of anoles, geckos, ameivas, and curlytails, and has made observations on several iguanids (cyclura, ctenosaura, and iguana). when it comes to fieldwork, bob is tireless and, considering how out of shape he is, that’s pretty remarkable. he will sprint after lizards and snakes, huffing and puffing but almost always successful in his pursuit of some very surprised critters. he will rise early in the morning and scout for similarly earlyrising lizards, and he will work late into the night, collecting data on anolis sleep-sites or gecko activity. powell’s research focuses heavily on lizards, and he is particularly (unnaturally?) fond of anoles and iguanas. he has cited more than once a comment i made initially in a letter of recommendation supporting an application for a sabbatical at avila. in effect, i noted that we complement each other very nicely because he studies lizards and i concentrate on the snakes that eat them. over the years, i have learned a great deal about lizards from bob, and i think he bob climbing the “castillo” at chichen itzá on the yucatán peninsula in 1980. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . knows a little bit more about snakes than he did before we started to collaborate — and, at times, i believe that a little knowledge can be dangerous; on a couple of recent trips, he caught more snakes than i did, something he never lets me forget. in addition to fieldwork, powell has volunteered his time to editing several herpetological publications. between 1991 and 2004, bob was editor of the catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles, published by the society for the study of amphibians and reptiles. this often tedious and time-consuming responsibility produced detailed, loose-leaf accounts of at least 20 species every year. while still editing the catalogue, bob assumed the duties of editing this journal (iguana). besides the editing, bob solicited articles from a wide spectrum of potential contributors (zoo personnel, museum curators, his reu students, of course, and even his son), sought interesting illustrations, and wrote many articles himself. he has made a substantial contribution toward the transformation of iguana from a thin newsletter into a robust, attractive, and informative journal. the scope of the journal has expanded recently, but it has never lost sight of its original purpose of bridging gaps between hobbyists and “professionals” by emphasizing common interests in conservation, natural history, and husbandry. he also has co-authored two books and co-edited two others concerned with west indian herpetology and, straying from the antilles, he co-authored a book with identification keys to the amphibians and reptiles of the united states. in short, i find much to admire about bob, and to single out one attribute is perhaps doing him a disservice. nevertheless, i shall. i never cease to be impressed by bob’s dedication to his students and to teaching. although i only see him as a teacher in the context of the reu program, he never stops doing what he believes is in the best interest of the students. he gets down and dirty in the field, makes himself available at all hours, and will drive across an island at any hour of the day or night in order to get that last bit of data that might make all the difference in the quality of a student’s project. he does his homework regarding various statistical procedures necessary to adequately analyze the data collected in the field. he does not hesitate to contact colleagues that he feels can contribute to the analysis or that might be a good collaborator or mentor for a student with an especially strong interest in a particular topic. i have difficulty imagining someone more dedicated to his students and to his research discipline. a less focused person would quickly choose to do one or the other well (that is, to wear one hat). bob powell has devoted himself to both and has demonstrated excellence as a concerned educator and a dedicated scientist. acknowledgments i thank bob’s long-time friend john s. parmerlee, jr., for photos, information, and suggestions. 186 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 henderson bob on a winair flight to st. eustatius in 2004. sa r a h w is sm a n n exploring the extent of a recent clear-cut in a high-elevation cloudforest in the dominican republic in 1993. ja m es d . f o r es te r helping measure and mark a sampling site on st. eustatius in 2004. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . iguana_11.1_bw_text i.i.s. board of directors joseph wasilewski, president homestead, fl joseph burgess, vice-president jacksonville, fl a.c. echternacht, ph.d., treasurer university of tennessee, knoxville, tn aj gutman, executive secretary and associate editor of iguana west hartford, ct john & sandy binns, directors, associate editors of iguana and internet operations international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca gunther köhler, ph.d. and elke köhler, directors forschungsinstitut und naturmuseum senckenberg & herpeton, frankfurt, germany robert powell, ph.d., director and editor of iguana avila university, kansas city, mo i.i.s. editorial/advisory board allison c. alberts, ph.d. iucn/ssc iguana specialist group and zoological society of san diego, san diego, ca john bendon, illustrator for iguana bath, england gordon m. burghardt, ph.d. university of tennessee, knoxville, tn frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program, grand cayman, cayman islands jorge ferrari organización de rescate y protección de reptiles y anfibios, tegucigalpa, honduras matthias goetz, dipl.-biol. durrell wildlife conservation trust, jersey, british isles alexander gutsche, dipl.-biol. humboldt universität, berlin, germany richard hudson international iguana foundation and fort worth zoo, fort worth, tx john b. iverson, ph.d. earlham college, richmond, in chuck knapp university of florida, gainesville, fl michael ripca, managing editor of iguana leaping lizards graphic design, atco, nj thomas wiewandt, ph.d. wild horizons, tucson, az founder robert w. ehrig big pine key, fl statement of purpose the international iguana society, inc. is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to preserving the biological diversity of iguanas. we believe that the best way to protect iguanas and other native plants and animals is to preserve natural habitats and to encourage development of sustainable economies compatible with the maintenance of biodiversity. to this end, we will: (1) engage in active conservation, initiating, assisting, and funding conservation efforts in cooperation with u.s. and international governmental and private agencies; (2) promote educational efforts related to the preservation of biodiversity; (3) build connections between individuals and the academic, zoo, and conservation communities, providing conduits for education and for involving the general public in efforts to preserve endangered species; and (4) encourage the dissemination and exchange of information on the ecology, population biology, behavior, captive husbandry, taxonomy, and evolution of iguanas. membership information iguana, the journal of the international iguana society, is distributed quarterly to members and member organizations. annual dues: individual u.s. and canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual foreign membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 u.s. and canadian organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $35.00 foreign organizational membership* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $45.00 (*receives double copies of iguana) additional copies are available at a cost of $6.00 including postage. join on-line at: www.iguanasociety.org membership questions? call aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 solicitations members of the i.i.s. are encouraged to contribute articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of iguana biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to ctenosaura@cyclura.com). for any contribution, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. authors of one page or more of print are entitled to five copies of the issue in which their article appears. advertising policy of iguana we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). all products have been examined and been found to be high quality and fairly priced. contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sandy@cyclura.com or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2004 by the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international iguana society. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editors’ remarks long-time readers of iguana will have noticed regularly appearing features in recent issues addressing husbandry, profiles of notable “iguana persons,” historical perspectives, biographical sketches, book reviews, and, less regularly, species profiles about non-iguanid reptiles or amphibians found in areas where iguanas live. the husbandry feature serves an obvious purpose, namely to facilitate proper care of iguanas in captivity. because many of our readers maintain captive iguanas and many others became involved initially in iguana conservation or research as a consequence of interacting with captive iguanas, this feature is devoted to the core of our reading audience. note that husbandry features, although often focused on a particular type of iguana, present information that often is widely applicable to many species. however, some caution is advised. for example, some important differences apply to the care of green iguanas (iguana iguana) and black or spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura spp.) or even to different species of ctenosaurs (see husbandry, p. 39). the purpose for including historical perspectives may be less evident. george santayana, a notable philosopher, coined the phrase, “those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” many of the historical features presented so far date to the turn of the 20th century and are notable in that the scientists often expressed disdain for iguanas, with the notable exception of their gustatory qualities. that the most enlightened minds of that day were unable to anticipate the inevitable impact that such attitudes would have on future generations of iguanas speaks eloquently to the failure to anticipate the dramatic growth of the human population and its generally negative effects on natural habitats and the wildlife that inhabits them. sadly, such attitudes remain prevalent in the 21st century, especially among policy-makers, whose views rarely extend beyond the next election or quarterly statement. if santayana’s prediction holds, wildlife populations will continue to disappear at alarming rates — and only education and the resultant awareness can evoke the necessary changes to curb this distressing trend. future perspectives will continue to illustrate this recurring theme, but also will provide insights into the research that has caused at least some scientists and other concerned citizens to call for reforms. in the next issue, we’ll discuss profiles of individuals who have made important contributions to our knowledge of iguanas and of species who co-exist with iguanas in complex biotic communities. bob powell, aj gutman, and john binns iguana_11.2_text.ps iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 97cyclura ricordii nine species of hispaniolan curly-tailed lizards (genus leiocephalus) are currently recognized. of these, l. semilineatus is the smallest, with a maximum known snout-vent length of 53 mm. in addition to its small size, this species is distinguished by the light-bordered, dark brown lateral stripes that begin as a mask and extend onto the body before fading near the hindlimbs. these fading lateral stripes are responsible for the species’ scientific name. the species is known from the llanos de azua and also from the valle de neiba of the dominican republic through the culde-sac plain of haiti. the latter area is largely below sea level and is a remnant of the marine channel that once separated the north and south paleoislands that joined to form hispaniola. an apparent hiatus in the range separates those two areas. these little lizards are found in extremely dry habitats and may be among the most drought-tolerant of hispaniolan lizards. they frequently occur in sympatry with ameiva lineolata, a very small member of its genus and equally xerophilic (from the greek meaning “dry-loving”). although both species feed primarily on small arthropods, they apparently avoid most competition with one another by employing different foraging strategies. leiocephalus semilineatus, like all of its congeners, is a sit-and-wait forager. using an elevated perch on a rock or log, these lizards respond to movement by ambushing their prey. in contrast, ameiva lineolata, is an active forager, constantly on the move and rooting in surface litter, while searching for anything edible. although their diets overlap, a large proportion of that taken by l. semilineatus is composed of insects, such as ants and beetles, that move and attract the attention of lizards, whereas that of a. lineolata includes many prey items, such as pupae and larvae, that rest immobile under surface debris and would escape the notice of a sit-and-wait forager. like other curlytails, l. semilineatus coils its tail. unlike some members of the genus, however, the tail is never curled vertically over the lizard’s body. the reasons for this behavior are unknown, although luring insect prey, communication, and confusing predators have been mentioned as possibilities. references nelson, s.e., b.l. banbury, r.a. sosa, and r. powell. 2001. natural history of leiocephalus semilineatus in association with sympatric leiocephalus schreibersii and ameiva lineolata. contemporary herpetology 2001(1): 1–6 + 4 figs. + 2 tables (http://www.cnah.org/ ch/ch/2001/1/index.htm). nelson, s.e. and r. powell. 2002. leiocephalus semilineatus. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (751): 1–2. powell, r. 2002. species profile: leiocephalus personatus. iguana times 9: 80. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e leiocephalus semilineatus robert powell avila university, kansas city, missouri an adult male leiocephalus semilineatus from near hatillo, azua province, dominican republic. photograph by robert powell. president mejia has been a strong supporter of the development of national parks for tourism or mining, and has issued several decrees authorizing private companies to begin development. the only obstacle, however, has been that, at the onset of this administration, mejia had signed environmental law 64-00, which established guidelines for the conservation of natural resources. the new bill that is moving ahead in congress would resolve this impasse and enable unchecked development of the new areas by companies chosen by the mejia government. dominican legislature passes the revised protected areas law 13 may 2004 — santo domingo, dominican republic today, the dominican congress approved the protected areas law with significant changes that drastically reduce and render unsustainable the dominican system of protected areas the two areas that have suffered the most are parque nacional jaragua and parque nacional del este. the struggle by dominican and international environmentalists continues, but is becoming more and more difficult. the bill will now pass to the president for approval — but he has stated publicly on several occasions that he favors it. iguana 11.4 adult saban iguanas (iguana iguana) are melanistic; this gravid female retains some elements of juvenile color (article on p. 238). photograph by robert powell. g alápagos m arine iguanas (a m blyrhynchus cristatus) from isla e spanola (= h ood island)(see article on p. 190). photograph by t hom as w iew andt. iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) t he whorl-tailed iguanas (cyclura harl. [translator’s note: “harl.” refers to richard harlan, an american paleontologist and comparative anatomist who described many american and “exotic” species of amphibians and reptiles]) are distinguished from common iguanas [= iguana spp.] by their dentition, the smaller dewlap, and the more weakly developed gular fold. pattern and scalation is similar to that of other iguanas, except that the dorsal surface of the tail is distinguished by a ring of enlarged scales following three or four rows of typical scales. although these enlarged scales are not particularly long, their collective tips form a whorllike band of erect spikes around the tail. the dorsal crest may be interrupted in the shoulder and hip regions. the teeth, which appear to increase in number with age, are not serrated, but are threesided, as in common iguanas, and those on the pterygoid and sphenoid are small but numerous. femoral pores are distinct and form a long row on each leg. all species are terrestrial and are found primarily in sandy areas where they live in burrows which they excavate for themselves. the best-known species is cyclura lophoma gosse [this “species” is now known to consist of several distinct taxa, including c. collei, c. nubila, and c. cychlura; philip gosse was the author of the delightful a naturalist’s sojourn in jamaica, published in 1851] of cuba, jamaica, and the bahamas. this form may reach a total length of h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e 89iguanaseptember 2003 whorl-tailed iguanas* franz werner * excerpted and translated from franz werner (1913. die lurche und kriechtiere von alfred brehm. zweiter band: kriechtiere (schuppenkriechtiere). in o. z. strassen (ed.), brehms tierleben. allgemeine kunde des tierreichs. 4th ed. bibliographisches institut, leipzig and wien. translated by r. powell. adult male jamaican iguana (cyclura collei); at the time werner wrote this article, the jamaican species plus populations in cuba (c. nubila ) and the bahamas (c. cychlura) were all known as c. lophoma. photograph by jeff lemm. 1.2–1.3 m, of which the tail comprises about 70 cm, and is distinctive because of its relatively low dorsal crest, which is composed of linked, somewhat sickle-shaped spines, and which may be continuous at the nape and base of the tail or distinctly separated at one or both places. the snout is covered by three pairs of large, multi-sided, tuberculate plates that are separated from one another by small scales. plates of variable size, those that are medially located the most prominent, characterize the forehead, and on each side of the lower jaw is a row of large, quadrangular, heavily keeled scales. overall color of the body and limbs ranges from slate gray to brownish green. a few diagonal lines passing over the shoulder and several broad crossbands that extend from the dorsal crest to the belly are dark olive-brown. the tail is circled by regularly spaced light and dark olive-green bands. according to gosse, whorl-tailed iguanas live in only a few places on jamaica. they were relatively common on the limestone hills that extend from kingston harbor to the so-called goat island and are well known for the large numbers of feral goats, pigs, and chickens that live there. otherwise, one may find these iguanas with some regularity in the flats that separate the coastal hills from higher mountains of the interior, but only in areas that feature large numbers of old, hollow tree trunks. these lizards appear to have no particular fondness for water, although, like their relatives, they know how to swim rather well. a fortunate circumstance made it possible to learn more about the whorl-tail than many of its relatives. two individuals lived in an old acacia on the estate of a mr. minot for 16 months, providing him with the opportunity to observe them for an extended period of time. a friend of the owner had fortuitously discovered the two animals, but a blow with a riding crop frightened them so much that for weeks thereafter they emerged from their lair in only the most surreptitious fashion and immediately sought refuge in the hollow tree when any human approached too closely. subsequently, minot forbade any further disturbance of the animals and, over time, they forgot their fright and eventually became so tame that they consented to regular and proximate visits by their landlord. as the day warmed, one of the animals would emerge from its tree hollow and hang from the bark or crawl out on a thin, dry branch to bask in the sun. it would often spend the entire day doing little else, with nary a care for the rest of its environment. minot never saw it hunting insects and only once did he surprise a lizard while it was eating. this occurred when the sun broke through the dark clouds after a heavy rain and the vegetation had largely dried. one of the whorl-tails left the tree, covered about 10 m of ground with slow steps, moving only one leg at a time, until it approached a stand of so-called guinea-grass. tearing off mouthfuls at a time, it swallowed large masses without any trouble. startled by the observer whom it suddenly noticed, it rushed back to the tree, not so much running or walking as moving with a rapid series of frog-like hops. once there, it ducked into its hole and quickly disappeared from sight. minot made particular note of the fact that the fleeing whorl-tail showed no inclination to seek out water, as other iguanas are wont to do under similar circumstances. as a matter of fact, these jamaican animals showed little interest in water of any kind and seemed to tolerate even the driest conditions without drinking. the two inhabitants of the tree were obviously a pair, since they differed from one another in size and coloration. they also lived harmoniously together, but they were never seen out of the burrow at the same time. eventually, a goodfor-nothing youngster ended the observations, laying near the tree and heartlessly shooting the two 90 iguana volume 10, number 3 head of a rhinoceros iguana, metopocerus cornutus daud. photograph by l. medland, f.z.s. – finchley, n. harmless creatures one after the other. minot opened the carcasses of the shamefully murdered animals and found both stomachs filled with the previously mentioned grass. barbour [thomas barbour, an american herpetologist who traveled widely throughout the west indies during the first half of the 20th century] recently noted that the whorl-tail has been brought to the verge of extinction by the presence of the introduced mongoose (herpestes griseus [= herpestes javanicus]) and is now found only on goat island, which the interloper has yet to reach. although generally retiring, preferring to retreat in the face of humans whenever possible, the whorl-tail is quite brave and quite capable of defending itself in an emergency. the tail is a weapon that should not be underestimated and which can be used with great effect. easily aroused like all iguanas, the whorl-tail will respond with considerable wrath when cornered, inflating itself, erecting the dorsal crest, gaping to show its sharp teeth, staring darkly at its antagonist, and readying itself for an attack. if one continues to threaten the beast, it will turn around quickly and deliver a hefty blow with its tail, and then immediately turn the other way in anticipation of delivering another strike from the other side. hill [an unknown person] had been alerted by natives to the danger posed by this animal and had been clearly warned against a careless approach. the spikes on the powerful tail are sufficiently sharp that the animal can readily inflict a most painful wound. dogs that approach one carelessly often are severely injured. whorl-tails, possibly as a consequence of their diet, have such an unpleasant odor that even ants refuse to touch them — or at least to strip the flesh from a carcass thrown on their colony. these animals appear not to be hunted as eagerly as their relatives in mexico. the rhinoceros iguana, metopocerus cornutus daud. [metopocerus is now considered synonymous with cyclura; “daud.” refers to françoismarie daudin, a french naturalist who wrote histoire naturelle des quadrupèdes ovipares in 1800, in which he formally described the rhinoceros iguana], is a mighty beast found in san domingo [a reference to hispaniola and, more precisely, to the dominican republic]. it resembles the green iguana (iguana tuberculata [= iguana iguana]) in having teeth with serrated crowns and the spiny-tailed iguanas [= ctenosaura spp.] of middle america in color, size, build, and lifestyle — but is readily distinguished by the three large, cone-shaped, horn-like scales on the top of the snout of adult males. old males also are characterized by their bulging jowls and exceedingly large heads and make a considerable impression that is enhanced further by their proud posture and lively eyes. the powerful bite and the strong, spiky tail make the rhinoceros iguana a worthy opponent. rhinoceros iguanas are overwhelmingly terrestrial, consume both vegetable and animal matter, and in captivity can be readily maintained on a diet of fruit, juicy leaves, and strips of raw meat. ditmars [see the appended biographical sketch] indicated that they even overpower rats and young chickens, shaking larger prey until it is torn into pieces. given enough space and heat, these lizards 91iguanaseptember 2003 rhinoceros iguana. 92 iguana volume 10, number 3 b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h : raymond l. ditmars (1876–1942) raymond ditmars was america’s first great popularizer of reptiles. he was born in newark, new jersey and caught his first snakes at age 12 at gravesend bay near brooklyn, new york. in 1893, ditmars was hired by the entomology department at the american museum of natural history, but resigned in 1897 to take higher paying positions unrelated to his interest in animals. in 1898, as a reporter for the new york times, one of his beats was the newly-formed new york zoological society. shortly after the zoo opened, ditmars, barely 23 years old, was hired as assistant curator of reptiles and his private collection become the nucleus of the zoo’s reptile displays. ditmars published eight herpetological books, plus a dozen more about other animals or tales of his work or travels. the reptile book, published in 1907 (an expanded edition was published in 1930) established his reputation. this volume and several others (reptiles of the world, 1910, revised 1933; snakes of the world, 1931; reptiles of north america, 1936; and field book of american snakes, 1939) had an enormous public influence, kindling a widespread interest in reptiles and resulting in several generations of professional herpetologists, including many still active today, who can trace their interest to one or more of ditmars’ books. ditmars was often dismissed as a mere showman, mainly because he wrote highly popular books for the general public, but he also made substantive scientific and public contributions. he pioneered techniques for treating diseases of reptiles, he was a major organizer of the first effort to establish an antivenin institute in america, he produced influential nature films, and he led the development of the bronx zoo into the first rank of the world’s zoos. source: adler, k. 1989. herpetologists of the past, pp. 5–141. in k. adler (ed.), contributions to the history of herpetology. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, contributions to herpetology, number 5. ithaca, new york. raymond l. ditmars (photograph courtesty of kraig adler). do well in captivity and have become staples in zoos that maintain collections of reptiles. rhinoceros iguanas are lively, shy, and careful, and do not become tame in captivity for some time. a male, kept by werner [the author] in a cage for several years, gaped when approached, exposing its dark purple throat, but did not bite, instead retreated farther into the cage and, only when approached even more closely, did it turn and strike with its tail. when removed from its cage, it exhibited an extraordinary strength, resisted desperately, and flailed its tail violently. iguana 11.3 b&w text iguana 12.1 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 47historical perspectives thomas barbour was born to a wealthy family on martha’s vineyard, massachusetts in 1884. much of his inheritance was applied to his chosen life’s work, which, after a winter in florida and the bahamas recuperating from typhoid fever, focused largely on reptiles, the tropics, and island faunas. growing up in new york, he built a collection of preserved reptiles, largely composed of specimens saved for him by the zoo. the donation of this collection was his entrée to the museum of comparative zoology when he entered harvard college as a student. barbour graduated in 1906, continued for graduate study (a.m. 1908, ph.d. 1911), and, while still a graduate student, took over responsibility for the museum’s collection of amphibians and reptiles in 1910. after completion of his doctorate, barbour became associate curator of reptiles and amphibians. until the early 1920s, when he gave up curatorial responsibilities, he tripled the number of species. much of the growth is attributed to his own collecting throughout the world, but much was the result of an aggressive exchange program with other institutions and purchases out of his own pocket. in 1923, barbour became the executive officer charged with the development of barro colorado island, formerly a forested hill that became an island when gatun lake was formed during construction of the panama canal. barbour recognized the site’s potential for research, personally bought out the banana growers, hired the first superintendent, and supervised the construction of the first building on the site, which now serves as the smithsonian tropical research institute. barbour continued as executive director until 1945. barbour also developed the domestic production of snake antivenin. in 1926, he, raymond ditmars (see the biographical sketch in iguana 10(3):92), and other north americans, advised by afrânio do amaral, founded the antivenin institute of america. the organization, which included a venom-collecting serpentarium in honduras and an antivenin-producing laboratory in pennsylvania, also published a journal (bulletin of the antivenin institute of america) from 1927–1932, which barbour funded and co-edited. he also supported the journal of the american society of ichthyologists and herpetologists (copeia) by covering its operating deficits for many years. in 1927, barbour became director of the museum of comparative zoology and continued in that position for the rest of his life. he liberally supported museum projects and never drew a salary. several noted herpetologists (e.g., archie carr, emmett dunn, and g. kingsley noble) began their careers under his guidance and benefited from his support. despite his influence on american herpetology, his own research was rather diffuse and sometimes superficial (see also henderson and powell. 2005. thomas barbour and the utowana expeditions (1929–1934) in the west indies. bonner zoologische beiträge 52:297–309). his first two monographs (1912 and 1914) covered the amphibians and reptiles of the east and west indies, respectively. the largest fraction of his more than 200 subsequent herpetological titles also addressed the west indian herpetofaunas, continuing a tradition of harvard herpetologists that began with samuel garman in the late 19th century and continues to this day. major herpetological works included five editions of checklists of north american amphibians and reptiles (1917–1943, with leonhard stejneger), “herpetology of cuba” (1919, with charles ramsden), “sphaerodactylus” (1921), “antillean terrapins” (1940, with archie carr), and a semi-popular book entitled reptiles and amphibians and their adaptations (1929, revised in 1943). despite his formal training, many accomplishments, and numerous honors, barbour was in many ways more of a wealthy amateur than serious professional. in naturalist at large (1943), one of four autobiographical books completed shortly before his death in 1946, he provided a glimpse into his complex life (p. 45). b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h thomas barbour (1884–1946)1 1 source: adler, k. 1989. herpetologists of the past, pp. 5–141. in k. adler (ed.), contributions to the history of herpetology. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, contributions to herpetology, number 5. ithaca, new york.thomas barbour (photograph courtesy of kraig adler). iguana 10.2 36 iguana volume 10, number 2 in addition to an already remarkable three native iguanas, tiny utila (only 41 km2) supports a phenomenal reptilian diversity: 15 lizards (including the three iguanas), 11 snakes, a freshwater turtle, and a crocodilian. most are representatives of widely ranging central american species, but two are endemic to utila (anolis utilensis and ctenosaura bakeri) and three others are found only on the bay islands (anolis bicaorum, phyllodactylus palmeus, sphaerodactylus rosaurae). the american crocodile (crocodylus acutus) population on utila may be extirpated already and the turtle, a slider (trachemys sp.), is known to occur in only very small numbers in a single, largely freshwater pond in the undeveloped western half of the island. the snakes range in size from the boa constrictor and indigo snake (drymarchon corais), which may exceed 2 m in length, to the tiny thread snake (leptotyphlops goudotii), a termiteand ant-eating specialist that reaches a maximum known total length of 18.5 cm. swamp snakes (tretanorhinus nigroluteus) are highly aquatic and the very slender vine (oxybelis aeneus and o. fulgidus) and tree snakes (imantodes cenchoa) are adapted for a largely arboreal existence. the remaining snakes tend to be habitat and prey generalists of moderate size. these include the tropical ratsnake (pseudelaphe flavirufa) and three “racers” (coniophanes imperialis, dryadophis melanolomus, and leptophis mexicanus). the lizards include a beach-dwelling racerunner (cnemidophorus lemniscatus), a skink (mabuya unimarginata), the common or brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus), three anoles (anolis bicaorum, a. sericeus, and a. utilensis, all of which are sometimes assigned to the genus norops), and six geckos (coleonyx mitratus, hemidactylus frenatus, phyllodactylus palmeus, sphaerodactylus millepunctatus, s. rosaurae, and thecadactylus rapicauda). species profile: utila’s reptiles robert powell the boa constrictor usually is considered a predator of mammals, but it will readily hunt and consume iguanas and is relatively common in the mangroves, where ctenosaura bakeri would seem to be the primary prey. photograph by robert powell. the green-headed parrot snake (leptophis mexicanus) is a habitat generalist that is equally at home on the ground or in trees and bushes. although it will feed on birds and small mammals, its preferred prey is lizards. this may be the most common snake on utila. photograph by robert powell. like most skinks, the local species (mabuya unimarginata) has smooth scales well-adapted to foraging in leaf litter. they are most frequently encountered when they climb vegetation to bask. photograph by robert powell. tiny dwarf geckos (sphaerodactylus millepunctatus) are abundant inside rotten logs and in surface debris, where they feed on a variety of small arthropods. photograph by joe burgess. 37iguanajune 2003 anolis bicaorum is the most common anole on utila, but is abundant only in the forest-mangrove interfaces, where pairs occupy most of the larger trees. this male is responding to an intruder in its territory. photograph by joe burgess. basilisks (basiliscus vittatus) are known best for their ability to run quickly on their hindlegs, to the extent of being able to run on water. however, they are abundant in a variety of habitats, many of which are not associated with streams or ponds. photograph by robert powell. this brightly colored racerunner (cnemidophorus lemniscatus) is sometimes referred to as the rainbow lizard. because of a tendency to twitch an elevated forelimb when it pauses in its search for food (as this individual is doing), this lizard is known locally as the “shaky-paw.” they are locally abundant on sandy beaches. photograph by robert powell. the tropical rat snake (pseudelaphe flavirufa) is a capable climber. in addition to rodents and other mammals, this species, like all rat snakes, also will consume birds and lizards. photograph by robert powell. the very tiny striped thread snakes (leptotyphlops goudotii) are most frequently encountered in association with termite and ant nests, where they feed preferentially on eggs, larvae, and pupae. this specimen, however, was discovered in the open on a sandy beach. photograph by robert powell. 38 iguana volume 10, number 2 the turnip-tailed gecko (thecadactylus rapicauda) is named for the shape of its regenerated tail (the original is more typically tapered). these large geckos are abundant on trees and, more rarely, buildings. they are unusual among lizards in that they can retract their claws into “sheaths” when not in use. photograph by robert powell. this leaf-toed gecko (phyllodactylus palmeus) is abundant on trees and buildings, but is being displaced on the latter by the recently introduced house gecko (hemidactylus frenatus). photograph by robert powell. coleonyx mitratus is an unusual gecko in that it lacks adhesive lamellar scales on the undersides of its digits and doesn’t climb. these lizards are common in and around surface debris and trash. photograph by robert powell. anolis utilensis, like the other utila endemic, ctenosaura bakeri, is a mangrove specialist. common only in the black mangroves of the big bight, these well-camouflaged lizards behave in a very gecko-like fashion, crawling on the tree trunks and adpressing themselves tightly against the bark when threatened. photograph by robert powell. iguana 12.4 b&w text r ic or d’ s ig ua na (c yc lu ra r ic or di i) (s ee a rt ic le o n p. 2 22 ). ph ot og ra ph b y jo hn b in ns . iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 12, number 4 december 2005 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess special emphasis: conservation in the dominican republic ricord's iguanas (cyclura ricordii) are the focus of an extensive conservation and educational effort in the southwestern dominican republic (see article on p. 222). leiocephalus personatus is one of several lineages of terrestrial hispaniolan lizards with ranges that terminate at a sharp ecotone near the city of baní in the dominican republic (see article on p. 234). rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta) remain locally abundant in a few locations in the dominican republic, but many populations appear to be declining (see related article on p. 222, travelogue on p. 256, historical perspective on p. 263, and inside the back cover). the utila anole (norops [anolis] utilensis) occurs only in a few mangrove forests on the honduran bay island of utila. it may be the world's most endangered anole (see article on p. 240). r o b er t po w el l g u n th er k o h le r many monitor lizards (varanus spp.) become large, are fierce, and require substantial space and care; they are definitely not appropriate for beginning hobbyists; this is a red dwarf monitor (v. acanthurus brachyurus) (see article on p. 246). jo h n b in n s jo h n b in n s th o m a s w ie w a n d t iguana 12.1 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 1table of contents f e a t u r e s the emerald puzzle: geographic variation in corallus caninus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert w. henderson 2 working to save the andros iguana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .charles r. knapp 8 the sweetwater strategy: saving habitat at the grassroots level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .thomas wiewandt 14 chironius attack! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .césar luis barrio amorós 23 2004 isg meeting, suva, fiji: reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 session 1: taxon updates 2004 research update for cyclura cychlura cychlura and c. c. figginsi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .charles knapp, audrey owens, and coleman sheehy, iii anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis): 2004 update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .glenn gerber and kelly bradley booby cay report, cyclura carinata bartschi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .joe wasilewski, steve conners, and john bendon cuban iguana (cyclura nubila nubila) update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .ivan rehak ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii): species recovery plan update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .jan ramer and rick hudson status of the blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) recovery program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .john binns and fred burton jamaican iguana (cyclura collei) recovery project, 2004 update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .rick van veen and byron wilson turks and caicos iguana (cyclura carinata carinata): research update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .glenn gerber and allison alberts st. lucia iguana (iguana iguana) update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .karen s. graham and matthew morton distribution, natural reserves, and conservation of mexican ctenosaurs . .víctor-hugo reynoso, georgina gonzález-monfil, and rocío ponce-reyes session 2: general reports cyclura studbook . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .tandora grant isg veterinary advisor update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .bonnie raphael session 3: working sessions alliance for zero extinction (aze) iguana-friendly development guidelines isg and fiji national trust co-sponsor conservation and management plan workshop for fijian iguanas p r o f i l e rick hudson: a hero for iguana conservation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .allison alberts 34 t r a v e l o g u e stephens island: land of “lizards” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .jennifer germano 38 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s protective devices of snakes: rattlesnakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .thomas barbour 43 a new rock iguana from porto rico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .thomas barbour 44 collecting herpetological specimens in haiti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .thomas barbour 45 allison armour and the utowana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .thomas barbour 46 biographical sketch: thomas barbour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 c o m m e n t a r y comments from an old naturalist about exotic species and a new herpetocultural ethic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .ray ashton 48 b o o k r e v i e w the art and science of reptiles: singing the turtles to sea: the comcáac (seri) art and science of reptiles by gary p. nabham . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .robert powell 50 conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 12.3 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 197historical perspective xxx. a female from chiapam, of the natural size, also the inner side of the calf of the leg, to show the size of the scales. 3. ctenosaura quinquecarinata. cyclura quinquecarinata, gray, zool. misc. p. 59; cope, proc. am. phil. soc. xi. 1871, p. 161. enyaliosaurus quinquecarinatus, gray, cat. liz. p. 192. ctenosaura quinquecarinata, sumichrast, bibl. univ. et rev. suisse, 1873, p. 259; and bull. soc. zool. v. 1880, p. 175. hab. mexico, oaxaca (boucard), tehuantepec (sumichrast); honduras (mus. brit.). tail much thickened and depressed near its base, verticillated, each verticellus formed by a ring of large strongly armed scutes, and by a ring of much narrower and unarmed scutes. the armature is confined to the upper and lateral surfaces of the tail, the lower side being comparatively smooth. the strongest spines are arranged in one median, and two or three lateral series. dorsal crest very low, obsolete in the sacral region. upper parts and throat yellowish, marbled with black or brown. 4. ctenosaura defensor. cachryx defensor, cope, proc. ac. n. sc. phil. xviii. p. 124; proc. am. phil. soc. 1869, p. 169, t. 10; bocourt, miss. sc. mex., rept. p. 143, t. 17 bis. figg. 12, 12a. hab. mexico, yucatan (a. schott, u.s. nat. mus.). extralimital are the following species: — 1. iguana acanthura, blainville, = cyclura acanthura, dum. & bibr., = cyclura hemilopha, cope, boulenger, = ctenosaura acanthura, bocourt (miss. sc. mex., rept. p. 138), = ctenosaura interrupta, bocourt (le naturaliste, 1882, p. 47). — lower california. 2. ctenosaura erythromelas, boul. proc. zool. soc. 1886, p. 241, t. 23; cachryx erythromelas, cope, proc. u.s. nat. mus. 1886, p. 437. — probably lower california. albert günther was born in 1830 in esslingen, württemberg (germany). he entered the theological school at the university of tübingen in 1847 and took holy orders in the lutheran church in 1851, although he subsequently turned to medical studies because of a longstanding interest in natural history and the influence of several professors. he received a doctorate in philosophy and arts in 1853 and went on to medical school, initially in berlin, before teaching in bonn, and finally completing his medical degree in tübingen in 1857. that same year, günther offered his services to john e. gray, keeper of the zoology department at the british museum, and was hired to catalogue the museum’s snake collection, then the frogs, and finally the fishes, which occupied him for the rest of his life. günther took over the keeper’s position from gray in 1875 and, like gray before him, aggressively built the collection, taking advantage of opportunities presented as the british empire expanded. in 1879, he hired georges boulenger and placed him in charger of lower vertebrates, assuring that the long tradition of herpetological research at the british museum would continue. günther founded zoological record in 1865, and it is still today the most complete index of the world’s zoological literature. günther’s greatest zoological discovery occurred in 1867, when he announced the recognition that sphenodon of new zealand was not a lizard but the sole living representative of the order rhynchocephalia. in addition, he published reptiles of british india (1864), the gigantic land-tortoises (living and extinct) (1877 [1878]), and the herpetological volume in the series biologia centrali-americana (1885–1902). günther’s work on lower vertebrates was regularly cited by charles darwin in descent of man (1871), in which he depended heavily on günther for his information about sexual characters. in addition to the books, günther published some 200 papers on herpetology, with a geographic emphasis on australia, africa, and asia. günther retired in 1895 and died at kew, london in 1914. b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h albert c. l. g. günther (1830–1914)1 albert c. l. g. günther in about 1900. photograph courtesy of kraig adler and the british museum (natural history) library. 1 source: adler, k. 1989. herpetologists of the past, pp. 5–141. in k. adler (ed.), contributions to the history of herpetology. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, contributions to herpetology, vol. 5. ithaca, new york. iguana 12.3 b&w text turks and caicos iguana recovery program turks and caicos the critically endangered turks and caicos iguana (cyclura carinata carinata) is the smallest of the caribbean rock iguanas and the most vulnerable to predation by introduced mammals. once widespread, these iguanas now occupy less than five percent of their historic range, and island populations continue to be lost at an alarming rate. in response to this crisis, the san diego zoo’s applied conservation division, the turks and caicos national trust, and the turks and caicos department of environment and coastal resources initiated an intensive conservation program to restore turks and caicos iguanas to key portions of their former range. beginning in 2000, researchers translocated 218 animals from islands where they were threatened to four uninhabited cays within the turks and caicos reserve system. the research team is carrying out long-term ecological monitoring of restored populations, nutritional analysis of food plants, health and hormone evaluations, genetic studies, and educational outreach. to date, the translocated iguanas have experienced a 98 percent survival rate and nesting activity has been observed on all of the translocation cays. as a result of low population densities and lack of competition for resources, young iguanas hatched on translocation islands are growing up to four times faster than juveniles of comparable ages on source islands. ongoing research on restored populations and their respective source populations continues to provide valuable information about iguana population ecology as well as new insights into improved translocation methodologies. in 2003, the iucn iguana specialist group partnered with government officials, private businesses, and international iguana conservation experts to produce a detailed five-year management plan to conserve and restore populations of the turks and caicos iguana. with the successful return of healthy iguana populations to four of their island homes, we are one step closer to the plan’s objective — to conserve and restore iguana populations and perpetuate them as a symbol of national pride and sound environmental management in the turks & caicos islands. www.conservationandscience.org f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n turks and caicos iguana (cyclura carinata carinata) jo h n b in n s iguana 11.3 b&w text iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 147species profile s p e c i e s p r o f i l e among west indian snakes, only the dwarf boas (tropidophis) and the blind snakes (typhlops) are represented by more species than the racers (alsophis). racers are variable in color and pattern and members of the same species may look quite different on different islands. in the lesser antilles, home to five species of alsophis, each is found on only one or a few islands. alsophis antillensis is the most widely distributed, occurring on the monserrat, guadeloupe, and dominica island banks. alsophis rijgersmaei is found on the main islands of the anguilla bank, a. rufiventris on the saba and st christopher (st. kitts) banks, a. antiguae on the antigua bank, and a. sanctonum on the isles des saintes bank near guadeloupe. the introduced mongoose (herpestes javanicus) poses a threat to most species of racers on one or more islands, and several populations have been extirpated. the red-bellied or black racer, a. rufiventris, for example, has been extirpated from nevis and st. kitts, and occurs today only on mongoose-free saba and st. eustatius (statia). on saba and statia, alsophis rufiventris is widely distributed. it is a habitat generalist, found in disturbed and natural areas from near sea level to some of the highest elevations on these islands. it has been observed on the rim of the quill at an elevation of 550 m on statia, and within 30 m of the 864-m top of mount scenery on saba. on st. eustatius, this snake is most commonly encountered in shaded, rocky areas, which also harbor the densest populations of anolis schwartzi, the predominant prey of a. rufiventris on statia. like other members of the genus, alsophis rufiventris is an actively foraging diurnal predator. although primarily terrestrial, it sometimes ascends into shrubs and trees. observations on statia indicate that it spends roughly half of its time moving, with about half of that time spent searching for prey in leaf litter, under deadfall, or in the abundant crevices of rock piles. once a prey item has been seized, the snake may inject a weak venom to subdue its victim. alsophis rufiventris is a non-aggressive species that rarely bites. even if it does, it is generally considered to be harmless, as its venom infrequently elicits even mild reactions in humans. like all other species of alsophis, the red-bellied racer is oviparous, but little else is known about its reproduction. references breuil, m. 2002. histoire naturelle des amphibiens et reptiles terrestres de l’archipel guadeloupéen. guadeloupe, saint-martin, saintbarthélemy. patrimoines naturels 54: 1–339. censky, e.j. and h. kaiser. 1998. lesser antillean herpetofauna, pp. 181–221. in: b.i. crother (ed.), caribbean amphibians and reptiles. academic press, san diego. heinz, h.m., a.j. maley, a.z. savit, r.w. henderson, and r. powell. 2004. behaviour and time allotment in the west indian snake alsophis rufiventris (colubridae). herpetol. bull. (89): in press. henderson, r.w. and r.a. sajdak. 1986. west indian racers: disappearing act or a second chance? lore 36: 13–18. henderson, r.w. and r.a. sajdak. 1996. diets of west indian racers (colubridae: alsophis): composition and biogeographic implications, pp. 327–338. in: r. powell and r.w. henderson (eds.), contributions to west indian herpetology: a tribute to albert schwartz. ssar contrib. herpetol., vol. 12. ithaca, new york. sajdak, r.a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. status of west indian racers in the lesser antilles. oryx 25: 33–38. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. univ. florida press, gainesville. red-bellied racer (alsophis rufiventris) abigail j. maley ohio wesleyan university, delaware, ohio adult alsophis rufiventris from st. eustatius (top) and from saba. photographs by john s. parmerlee, jr. iguana 10.3 color covers (page c1) a lthough few iguanas in the genus ctenosaura are actually black (this occurs only in some individual c. acanthura and c. pectinata), one of the common names by which they are collectively known is “black iguanas.” this name is actually misleading when referring to some of the smaller, more colorful species (e.g., c. alfredschmidti, c. defensor, and c. flavidorsalis). another common name used in english for species in this genus is “spinytailed iguanas.” in central america, black iguanas are called “garrobos” or “iguanas negras.” local inhabitants of the islas de la bahia (utila, roatan, and guanaja), located off the northern coast of honduras, call the species that occur there, “wishiwillies,” and, on the isla de la providencia, they are known as “ishillies.” the phylogenetic relationships and taxonomy of iguanas have provoked considerable controversy in recent years. in 1988, eight monophyletic2 groups were shown to exist within what had been considered the family iguanidae. shortly thereafter, these were elevated to eight distinct families, largely because no evidence could be found for the monophyly of the entire family. this new classification was heavily criticized and eventually reversed on the basis of molecular genetic studies. however, after a very recent revision of the original study, which, among other things, now showed eleven monophyletic groups of iguanian lizards, the controversy continues. some experts believe that all pleurodont iguanian lizards should be included in a single family (iguanidae sensu lato) and that the monophyletic subgroupings should be treated as subfamilies (e.g., the subfamily iguaninae). in contrast, other experts think that real relationships are better portrayed by recognizing eleven separate families, one of which includes the “true” iguanas (iguanidae sensu stricto). accordingly, lizards in the genus ctenosaura are placed either in the subfamily iguaninae (in the family iguanidae sensu lato) or in the family iguanidae (sensu stricto). regardless of taxonomic rank, this group also includes the marine iguanas (amblyrhynchus), rock iguanas (cyclura), fiji iguanas (brachylophus), galapagos land iguanas (conolophus), desert iguanas (dipsosaurus), green iguanas (iguana), and chuckwallas (sauromalus). the genus ctenosaura is differentiated from the other genera within the family (or subfamily) by the presence of an extremely long subocular scale and whorls of enlarged, spiky scales on the tail. ctenosaurs are most closely related to lizards in the genera iguana and cyclura. in recent years, tremendous advances have been made in the systematics of ctenosaura. seventeen species are currently recognized: c. acanthura, c. alfredschmidti, c. bakeri, c. clarki, c. conspicuosa, c. defensor, c. flavidorsalis, c. hemilopha, c. macrolopha, c. melanosterna, c. nolascensis, c. oaxacana, c. oedirhina, c. palearis, c. pectinata, c. quinquecarinata, and c. similis. as recently as 1928, 13 species were recognized, but subsequent workers determined that the species c. brachylopha, c. brevirostris, and c. parkeri were actually c. pectinata; and, more recently, c. erythromelas was subsumed within c. defensor, reducing the number to only nine. more recently described species (the most recent in 2001) have elevated the number to the current 17. black iguanas: name and systematics1 gunther köhler1, aj gutman2, and robert powell3 1forschungsinstitut senckenberg, frankfurt a/m., germany; 2west hartford, connecticut, usa; 3department of biology, avila university, kansas city, missouri, usa. 79iguanaseptember 2003 1 adapted from köhler, g. 2002. schwarzleguane. lebensweise, pflege, zucht. herpeton verlag elke köhler, offenbach, germany. translated from german by aj gutman with additional commentary by robert powell. 2 a “monophyletic” group includes an ancestor and all of its descendants. in the past, some species (c. bakeri, c. palearis, c. quinquecarinata, c. clarki, and c. defensor) were split off from ctenosaura and placed in a separate genus, enyaliosaurus, but this division is no longer widely recognized. more recent studies, based on genetic and morphological data, have presented an hypothesis of relationships within the genus ctenosaura that recognizes three monophyletic species groups designated as subgenera (ctenosaura, enyaliosaurus, and loganiosaura). the subgenus ctenosaura includes the larger species, c. acanthura, c. conspicuosa, c. hemilopha, c. macrolopha, c. nolascensis, c, pectinata, and c. similis, all of which lack the enlarged, heavily keeled to spiky scales on the dorsal surface of the upper thigh (along with some other characters). the males in these species attain total lengths of over 1 meter. the morphological criteria contained in the initial descriptions of three of these larger species, c. acanthura, c. pectinata, and c. similis, were apparently quite variable and resulted in no definitive morphological characters by which these three taxa could be distinguished from one another. as recently as ten years ago, some authorities suggested that further study of 80 iguana volume 10, number 3 the status of the c. similis-acanthura-pectinata group would reveal that only a single species occurred from southern sinaloa (mexico) all the way to panama. this assumption proved to be incorrect. morphological and genetic studies have shown that these three species are all valid and can be distinguished by scalation and coloration. field studies also have provided a more detailed picture of the geographic distribution of the three species in the isthmus of tehuantepec, where their ranges approach each other. the subgenus loganiosaura includes the medium-sized species, c. bakeri, c. melanosterna, c. oedirhina, and c. palearis, which attain maximum total lengths of 80 cm. of these species, c. bakeri, c. melanosterna, and c. palearis possess a well-developed pendulous dewlap, whereas c. oedirhina has a transverse gular fold. the species in this subgenus also differ from other ctenosaurs in several skull characters, which reinforces the view that this group is monophyletic. the subgenus enyaliosaurus includes the small species, c. alfredschmidti, c. clarki, c. defensor, c. flavidorsalis, c. oaxacana, and c. quinquecarinata. these species are characterized, among other things, by a reduction of the number of postmental scales (from four to two) and possession of a relatively short, very spiky tail, which, at its widest point, is broader than it is high. within this subgenus, c. alfredschmidti, c. clarki, and c. defensor are notable for the reduction of the parietal eye, which is barely distinguishable with the naked eye (this trait is very evident in other species as the distinct spot in the middle of the parietal scale on the top of the head). these three species also have whorls of well-developed, enlarged, spiky scales all the way to the tips of their tails (approximately the distal third of the tail is without whorls in the other species). references bailey, j.w. 1928. a revision of the lizards of the genus ctenosaura. proc. u.s. natl. mus. 73:1–55. böhme, w. 1990. buchbesprechung. zschr. zool. syst. evol. forsch. 28:315–316. buckley l.j. and r.w. axtell. 1990. ctenosaura palearis stejneger. cat. amer. amphib. rept. (491):1–3. buckley l.j. and r.w. axtell. 1997. evidence for the specific status of the honduran lizards formerly referred to ctenosaura palearis. (reptilia: squamata: iguanidae). copeia 1997:138–150. de queiroz, k. 1987. phylogenetic systematics of iguanine lizards: a comparative osteological study. univ. california. publ. zool. 118:xii + 203 p. de queiroz, k. 1987. a new spiny-tailed iguana from honduras, with comments on relationships within ctenosaura (squamata: iguania). copeia 1987:892–902. de queiroz, k. 1990. ctenosaura bakeri stejneger. cat. amer. amphib. rept. (465):1–2. de queiroz, k. 1990. ctenosaura oedirhina de queiroz. cat. amer. amphib. rept. (466):1–2. etheridge, r.e. 1982. checklist of the iguanine and malagasy iguanid lizards, pp. 7–37. in: g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world. their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes publ., park ridge, new jersey. etheridge, r.e. and k. de queiroz. 1988. a phylogeny of iguanidae, pp. 283–368. in: r. estes and g. pregill (eds.), phylogenetic relationships of the lizard families: essays commemorating charles l. camp. stanford univ. press, stanford, california. frost, d.r. and r. etheridge. 1989. a phylogenetic analysis and taxonomy of iguanian lizards (reptilia: squamata). misc. publ. mus. nat. hist. univ. kansas 81:1–65. frost, d.r., r. etheridge, d. janies, and t.a. titus. 2001. total evidence, sequence alignment, evolution of polychrotid lizards, and a reclassification of the iguania (squamata: iguania). amer. mus. novit. (3343):1–38. gicca, d.f. 1982. enyaliosaurus clarki (bailey). cat. amer. amphib. rept. (301):1–2. gicca, d.f. 1983. enyaliosaurus quinquecarinata (gray). cat. amer. amphib. rept. (329):1–2. grismer, l.l. 1999. an evolutionary classification of reptiles on islands in the gulf of california, mexico. herpetologica 55:446–469. köhler, g. 1993. schwarze leguane—freilandbeobachtungen, pflege und zucht.. herpeton verlag, offenbach. köhler, g. 1995. eine neue art der gattung ctenosaura (sauria: iguanidae) aus dem südlichen campeche, mexiko. salamandra 31:1–14. köhler, g. 1996. freilanduntersuchungen zur morphologie, verbreitung und lebensweise des yucatan-schwarzleguans (ctenosaura defensor). salamandra 32:153–162. köhler, g. and c.r. hasbun. 2001. a new species of spiny-tailed iguana from mexico formerly referred to ctenosaura quinquecarinata (gray 1842)(reptilia: squamata: iguanidae). senckenb. biol. 81:257–267. köhler, g. and k. klemmer. 1994. eine neue schwarzleguanart der gattung ctenosaura aus la paz, honduras. salamandra 30:197–208. köhler, g., w. schroth, and b. streit. 2000. systematics of the ctenosaura group of lizards (reptilia: sauria: iguanidae). amphib.-rept.. 21:177–191. köhler, g. and b. streit. 1996. notes on the systematic status of the taxa, acanthura, pectinata, and similis of the genus ctenosaura. senckenb. biol. 75:33–43. lazell, j.d. 1992. the family iguanidae: disagreement with frost and etheridge (1989). herpetol. rev. 23:109–112. macy, j.r., a. larsen, n.b. ananjeva, and t.j. papenfuss. 1997. evolutionary shifts in three major structural features of the mitochondrial genome among iguanian lizards. j. mol. evol. 44:660–674. schulte, j.a., ii, j.r. macy, a. larsen, and t. papenfuss. 1998. molecular tests of phylogenetic taxonomies: a general procedure and example using four subfamilies of the lizard family iguanidae. mol. phylogen. evol. 10:367–376. 81iguanaseptember 2003 iguana 11.3 b&w text iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 153 curlytail lizards (genus leiocephalus) occur in the bahamas, turks & caicos islands, swan island (in the western caribbean), cayman islands, cuba, and hispaniola. extinct forms are known from navassa (situated between jamaica and hispaniola) and martinique (in the lesser antilles). the sawscaled curlytail (l. carinatus) is widespread in the bahamas and on cuba, with additional populations on swan island and the cayman islands. thirteen subspecies are currently recognized, suggesting that such a widely distributed form comprised of many insular populations may actually represent a species complex. leiocephalus carinatus varius occurs on swan island and grand cayman island, whereas l. c. granti is abundant on little cayman island and on cayman brac. like others in the complex, these are large curlytails. although males are larger than females, individuals of both sexes can exceed 100 mm snout-vent lengths (svl), with the largest males approaching 130 mm svl. like other curlytails, these lizards are exclusively diurnal, tolerant of hot, dry conditions, and often extremely wary. their habit of curling their tails like a watchspring over their backs led to the cuban common name, perrito (= little dog). caymanian populations are primarily coastal and individuals are locally common on beaches where resources (food and shelter) are abundant. males are aggressively territorial and will fight savagely when behavioral displays involving lateral presentations, head bobbing, strutting, and inflating the sides of their necks fail to discourage an interloper. the home ranges of several females may overlap with that of a single male. reference schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e saw-scaled curlytail (leiocephalus carinatus) robert powell avila university, kansas city, missouri photographs by john binns. leiocephalus carinatus scavenging a dead fish on little cayman island. curlytail diets have been described as “catholic,” and they quite willingly consume buds, flowers, seeds, and fruits of many plants along with a variety of small invertebrate prey. they regularly scavenge and may become quite tame in situations where they are fed or can forage on abundant food scraps. large males in at least some populations of some species are cannibalistic. although males are highly territorial, home ranges of several females may overlap with that of a single male. individuals usually are quite wary and closely watch any potential threat. if approached too closely, lizards quickly retreat into burrows or crevices. species profile iguana 12.4 b&w text in the previous issue of iguana, we presented captive care of monitors, part i: introduction and housing. part ii follows. diet almost all monitors are carnivorous, that is, they are exclusive meat eaters. two notable exceptions are varanus olivacaeus and the newly described v. mabitang, both of which live in the philippines and prefer to eat fruit and leaves (auffenberg 1988, gaulke and curio 2001). insects, spiders, crayfish, fish, amphibians, reptiles, eggs, birds, and mammals make up the bulk of the diet of most monitors. prey size and type generally depends on the size of the monitor. in the wild, monitors, particularly v. niloticus, v. gouldii, and v. panoptes, are known to find clutches of eggs of other monitors or crocodiles (bayless 1992, lenz 1995). in general, monitors do not appear to be particularly selective regarding food. occasionally, they are even cannibalistic. varanus komodoensis, from komodo island, not only feeds on pigs, which occur on this island, but also takes red deer and other feral animals. humans also have fallen prey to the komodo monitor. because size varies considerably between species, the food spectrum is also highly variable. in the wild, members of the smaller species feed mainly on insects and smaller reptiles, which they can overpower. the examination of stomach contents from wild monitors has revealed the preferred food items of some species (james et al. 1992, losos and greene 1988, pianka 1968, 1969a, b, 1970a, b, c, 1982, shine 1986, sprackland 1993, ziegler and böhme 1996, gaulke and curio 2001). the variety of food available to captive monitors is much more limited. common food items suitable for smaller species include crickets, grasshoppers, locusts, cockroaches, and larvae of the giant mealworm. newborn mice (thawed or recently euthanized) are occasionally offered to expand the menu. any captive diet lacks the balanced mixture of vitamins, minerals, and fiber available in the wild, thus supplementation is necessary to provide these nutrients. all insect prey should be dusted with a vitamin and mineral mixture such as nekton msa® or miner-all®. do not offer too much food, especially crickets and cockroaches, as they tend to hide within the furnishings of the cage, where the monitors cannot reach them. unconsumed nocturnal insects also may represent a physical risk to the sleeping monitor. to date, no reports have documented crickets attacking healthy monitors, but evidence suggests that crickets in a cage have consumed dead monitors. the risk of injury, especially for young offspring, should not be overlooked. larger monitors require larger food items. feeding a lizard the size of a v. mertensi on crickets and locusts is prohibitively 246 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 eidenmüller h u s b a n d r y captive care of monitors part ii: diet and reproduction1 bernd eidenmüller frankfurt am main, germany photographs by author. grasshoppers make an appropriately sized meal for the pilbara monitor (varanus pilbarensis). a dwarf monitor (varanus storri) at mealtime. 1 adapted by aj gutman from b. eidenmuller, monitors: natural history — captive care — breeding. herpeton verlag, offenbach, germany. iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 247monitors expensive. mice, and occasionally rats and chicks, are much more appropriate food items. the unit price is low and the protein more concentrated so less total food volume is required. feeding chicks has at least one drawback for the keeper; it tends to result in monitor excrement that is very runny and smells unpleasant. if you feed monitors on chicken, the enclosure should be cleaned immediately for hygienic reasons. canned dog or cat food should not be fed to captive monitors as these products contain too much protein and are very low in minerals and fiber. zupreem (premium nutrition products, inc.) produces a canned monitor and tegu diet that provides the proper balance of nutrition. conditioning for breeding all monitors live a solitary existence in the wild and, in captivity, should be maintained singly or at most as pairs. in order to synchronize pairs of animals sexually, i recommend an occasional period of separation. separations lasting between four weeks and three months can be carried out several times during the year. similarly, a brumation period lasting between one and three months, with an ambient temperature of approximately 15 °c is appropriate for animals from colder areas (e.g., for monitors from the southern parts of australia or south africa). a period of quiescence also will simulate a summer aestivation for animals from a tropical climate (e.g., v. mertensi or v. acanthurus), thereby promoting synchronization of the sexes and post-hibernation breeding. another possibility is the introduction of a rainy season that simulates the conditions required by animals from the equatorial rain forests (e.g., v. prasinus). a hibernation or aestivation period is comparatively simple to adopt in captivity by continuously reducing both the photoperiod and the amount of time that heat is supplied to the lizards over a winter rest period. in the middle of winter, the animal does not require significant heat and illumination within its enclosure. therefore, a spotlight that is switched on for short periods of time for the animal to bask is sufficient. throughout this period of relative dormancy, animals should always have a bowl of fresh drinking water available in the enclosure, so that large food insects can pose a hazard to hatchlings such as these timor monitors (varanus timorensis). this mangrove monitor (varanus indicus) has just eaten a mouse. when they wake up, they are able to drink. a real hibernation, in which animals are maintained without light and heat over long periods of time, is neither required nor recommended for any monitor species. when an animal enters this period of dormancy during the colder months, little other care is required until it emerges with the onset of warmer months. most animals will survive this period in their hiding places and remain inactive. animals should not be reactivated too quickly when the weather warms. they will note the change in climatic conditions and gradually over a period of days and in some cases weeks, reappear to seek a basking site and food. after they have recommenced basking over a few days, food can be offered. monitors from a tropical rainforest environment (e.g., members of the v. prasinus complex and v. scalaris from cape york peninsula) do not require the above-mentioned hibernation period. a rainy period can trigger mating behavior. the entire enclosure can be moistened two or three times a day with water from a spray bottle to simulate a rainy season. this will raise the humidity, as will a water basin placed in the enclosure on top of an under-tank heating mat. ultrasound humidifiers can increase humidity during the day by repeatedly switching on and off. these are very effective, but generally expensive. reproduction and egg husbandry if pairs of monitors have been maintained together for some time and they appear compatible, these animals may be successfully bred to produce clutches of eggs and healthy offspring. the time between the last observed mating and egg-laying in most monitors is between four and eight weeks. an exception seems to be v. mertensi. in this species, the time appears to be three weeks between mating and egg-laying. after mating activity has ceased, the female should be allowed to bask and obtain food as needed; therefore, after mating behavior has stopped, the male should be removed from the enclosure. this is particularly important for v. prasinus, because these animals are very stresssensitive, even outside of the mating season. the high stress induced by contact with conspecifics is an indication that members of this species are generally found as solitary individuals. prior to egg-laying, females show an increase in body size, becoming more rotund. at this stage, a suitable egg-laying box should be offered. the size of the egg-laying box should be suited to the size of the animal (e.g., a box 40 x 25 x 20 cm, lwh is sufficient for v. acanthurus). for larger species, the egg-laying box should be proportionally larger. bird nesting boxes have been used successfully for v. prasinus; these can be natural hollow logs with a cap on each end and a hole part way down for entry (eidenmüller 1996, eidenmüller and wicker 1992) or made of plywood (dedlmar 1994). these nests are filled with lightly moistened bark mulch or vermiculite. irrespective of whether the box is made of wood or plastic, the animal must be able to gain access to it from above. the box must be light impermeable, show a thermal gradient ranging from about 30 °c at the top to about 25 °c at the bottom, and the substratum must contain sufficient moisture to prevent desiccation of the eggs before they can be removed and incubated elsewhere. in some cases, the placement of a piece of cork bark on the substratum in the box may be helpful. this serves two purposes, first, it will allow little light into the burrowing material (bark mulch, sand, or vermiculite), and second, the digging animal gains a sense of security that the walls of her nest burrow will not collapse. 248 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 eidenmüller emerald tree monitors (varanus prasinus) mating on the back wall of their terrarium. bird nest boxes have proven to be acceptable egg-laying sites for tree dwellers such as varanus prasinus. iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 249monitors many monitors cease feeding prior to egg-laying. while food denial is not a sure sign of forthcoming egg-laying, it is nevertheless a good indicator that a lizard is gravid. if an animal does cease to feed, access to the egg-laying chamber is imperative. a substantial amount of energy is used during reproduction, and food must be available to the exhausted animal after oviposition. the tail base and thigh musculature have generally collapsed. egg-laying is a stressful time and can be accompanied by problems. in general, stress is the single greatest factor that can lead to difficulties in husbandry during reproduction. for example, animals that have not laid in the prescribed time are likely stressed by some unseen and intangible factor that can be very difficult to ascertain. possible conditions that can result in an animal failing to lay eggs include the nest box not being in place or in an inappropriate position, a male still present in the cage, insufficient nest humidity, or that the keeper had spent too long viewing the animal. stress factors must be teased out by a process of elimination. most monitors undertake test-diggings for suitable egg chambers some days before actually being ready to deposit eggs. as soon as they stop test-digging and refuse food, egg-laying is nigh. similarly, the collapse of the tail base and thighs may indicate imminent ovipositioning. if the monitor has been digging test holes for some time and then ceases all activity at a time when you are confident she should be laying but has not yet done so, medical help should be consulted. this is the single largest indicator that something has gone wrong. often a qualified veterinarian can induce egg-laying using the hormone oxytocin. if, however, egglaying is long overdue, a caesarean section may be needed. examples of a prolonged egg-laying period include clutches of both v. acanthurus and v. scalaris that were only partially laid, with the remaining eggs becoming bound to the oviduct. surgery was required to save the female and ensure her reproductive health for subsequent years. this is only one of many situations that can arise when egg-laying in a monitor is overdue. if egg deposition is weeks overdue, i can only suggest that the animal be placed in the care of a reliable reptile veterinarian. incubation as soon as the eggs have been laid, they must be removed from the enclosure or the egg-laying box. eggs are part of the diet of most monitors and they will be consumed quite readily by adults or destroyed during digging activities. in reptile eggs, the embryo attaches to a disk at the top of the egg and adheres via a membrane to maintain its position within the egg. in bird eggs, however, the embryo is held in position via a sinew, which allows the egg to be rotated during incubation. monitor eggs must be kept oriented along a single plane and not rotated. eggs can be marked on the upper (dorsal) surface with a graphite pencil to show the plane of orientation. a pen should not be used to mark eggs, as some types of ink contain toxic substances that can be fatal to the embryo. when marked, the eggs can be placed into a prepared box that is used for incubation. this box should contain either vermiculite or perlite mixed with an equivalent weight of water. varanus mertensi eggs can tolerate a huge range in humidity or water potential, and this ranges from a 2:1 to a 5:1 ratio of water to substrate (eidenmüller and wicker 1998). the particle size of either substrate is not significant. during incubation, the temperature should be between 26.5 °c and 29.5 °c, with humidity between 80% and 90%. if the water uptake of an egg is too high, the embryo inside can an appropriate nest box for a small ground-dwelling monitor. freckled monitor (varanus tristis orientalis) hatching. gould’s monitor (varanus gouldii flavirufus) hatching in a perlite incubation medium. become stressed by the water pressure and die. a small indentation of the egg is not a concern, provided that the eggshell is white. if more water is added to the substrate, this will be absorbed by the egg and plump up any indentations, especially if this occurs early in the incubation process. be careful not to drop water onto the surface of the egg, as this may harm the development of the embryo. generally, the incubation period correlates with the adult size of each species, but it may also depend on the temperature and humidity during incubation. incubation is a process that requires a great deal of patience, because the incubation periods in the literature can be different than the incubation period that you experience, even for the same species. if hatchlings are overdue and the eggs still appear viable, do not open the egg. in most cases, the egg will be opened too early and reveal a premature hatchling, which is unlikely to survive. if the humidity in the egg-incubation box is high it sometimes becomes apparent that eggs have swollen and in some cases there is water exuded from the egg. this is called “sweating.” if one or more eggs start to sweat during incubation, carefully slit the egg on the upper side. this slit in the egg decreases the pressure on the embryo and may enhance its chances of survival. rearing hatchlings after hatching, each individual should be measured and weighed carefully. these data may be of interest to other breeders. special care should be taken to avoid injuring the young animals, especially when trying to weigh and measure them. they likely will be intent on escape and even seemingly innocuous movements in the hand can damage a young varanid. after measuring the hatchlings, they should be placed in a cage where they can be reared. the size of the enclosure should be sufficient for the animals to move about their new quarters with ease. the cage should not, however, be so large that you do not have sufficient control over the food items being presented to the new arrivals. this will prevent insects that escape the hatchlings from becoming hidden in some recess of the cage, reappearing at night when the hatchling is asleep, and presenting a physical risk to its survival. the furnishings within a hatchling enclosure should be much the same as those of the adults, although they may be somewhat smaller. care must be taken to ensure that cork bark and stones are securely positioned so that they cannot fall and crush the hatchlings. a small bowl of fresh water should always be available. hatchlings of most monitor species can be kept together in small groups. exceptions to this are v. storri (eidenmüller and horn 1985) and v. prasinus, which should always be raised separately. young v. storri have fatally injured each other through constant biting, and the only way to avoid this is by keeping them separately. other species also may exhibit aggression toward one another, so i suggest keeping a close eye on all groups of hatchlings until a determination that they are compatible is justified. the problem of stress can be quite pronounced in v. p. beccarii; hatchlings in some instances have been known to refuse food and die within hours (eidenmüller 250 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 eidenmüller hatchling emerald tree monitors (varanus prasinus) must be raised individually. mertens’s water monitor (varanus mertensi) hatching. iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 251monitors 1996, eidenmüller and wicker 1991). most other monitor species are not problematic in this respect. when rearing a group of hatchlings, close attention should be paid to the feeding behavior of all individuals to ensure that they are all obtaining sufficient food. as they grow, some animals will become dominant and exclude others from the food. these animals should be removed. during the first two to ten days, the small monitors still live on yolk, which is the last thing to be incorporated into the body cavity before hatching. this food source for a newly hatched varanid can last between hours and days depending on the health of the female, size of yolk in the egg, and metabolic rate of the hatchling. hatchlings should be offered food items that are small enough for them to overpower, such as small crickets or cockroaches. food animals should always be treated with a vitamin and mineral powder. freshly caught grasshoppers are an excellent addition to the diet of a captive monitor as they contain more vitamins and fiber than cultivated insects. be certain to avoid catching insects from agricultural land, beside freeways, or in some gardens, where they are likely to have been subjected to pesticide and herbicide applications. many of these applications may be harmful to your hatchling. cultivated crickets and locusts are fed a biased diet that may not have all the necessary vitamin and mineral components to ensure the long-term health of your monitors. several manufacturers sell gut-loading cricket diets that considerably improve the nutritional value of food insects. references auffenberg, w. 1988. gray’s monitor lizard. university of florida press, gainesville. bayless, m.k. 1992. african varanids: diets in captivity and in the wild. varanews 2(5):2–3. dedlmar, a. 1994. haltung und nachzucht des smaragdvarans (varanus (odatria) prasinus). salamandra 30:234–240. eidenmüller, b. 1996. keeping and breeding the aru black tree monitor varanus beccarii (doria, 1874). reptiles 4(12):76–83. eidenmüller, b. and h.-g. horn. 1985. eigene nachzuchten und der gegenwärtige stand der nachzucht von varanus (odatria) storri mertens, 1966. salamandra 21:55–61. eidenmüller, b. and r. wicker. 1991. einige beobachtungen bei der pflege und nachzucht von varanus (odatria) timorensis similis mertens, 1958. salamandra 27:187–193. eidenmüller, b. and r. wicker 1992. varanus (odatria) prasinus beccarii (doria, 1874), pflege und zucht. salamandra 28:171–178. eidenmüller, b. and r. wicker. 1998. beobachtungen an varanus mertensigelegen, inkubiert unter verschiedene bedingungen. herpetofauna 20:30–34. gaulke, m. and e. curio. 2001. a new monitor lizard from panay island, philippines. spixiana 24:275–286. james c.d., j.b. losos, and d.r. king. 1992. reproductive biology and diets of goannas (reptilia: varanidae) from australia. j. herpetol. 26:128–136. lenz, s. 1995. zur biologie und ökologie des nilwarans, varanus niloticus (linnaeus, 1766) in gambia, westafrika. mertensiella 5:1–256. losos, j.b. and h.w. greene. 1988. ecological and evolutionary implications of diet in monitor lizards. biol. j. linn. soc. 35:379–407. pianka, e.r. 1968. notes on the biology of varanus eremius. w. austral. nat. 11:39–44. pianka, e.r. 1969. habitat specificity, speciation and species density in australian desert lizards. ecology 50:498–502. pianka, e.r. 1969. notes on the biology of varanus caudolineatus and varanus gilleni. w. austral. nat. 11:76–82. pianka, e.r. 1970. notes on varanus brevicauda. w. austral. nat.11:113–116. pianka, e.r. 1970. notes on the biology of varanus gouldii flavirufus. w. austral. nat. 11:141–144. pianka, e.r. 1970. notes on the biology of varanus tristis. w. austral. nat. 11:180–183. pianka, e.r. 1982. observations on the ecology of varanus in the great victoria desert. w. austral. nat. 15(2):1–8. shine, r. 1986. food habits, habitats and reproductive biology of four sympatric species of varanid lizards in tropical australia. herpetologica 12:346–360. sprackland, r.g., jr. 1993. rediscovery of a solomon islands monitor lizard (varanus indicus spinulosus) mertens, 1941. vivarium 4(5):25–27. ziegler, t. and w. böhme. 1996. über das beutespektrum von varanus dumerilii (schlegel, 1839). salamandra 32:203–210. hatchling pilbara monitor (varanus pilbarensis) in the terrarium. monitors natural history, captive care and breeding by bernd eidenmüller 174 pages (ful color), hardcover 132 color photos, 46 drawings distribution maps for each species price: 39 eur www.herpeton-verlag.de isbn 3-936180-13-x expected release: january/february 2006 available at: breck@herplit.com all presently recognized monitor species are covered in this book. contents: name and systematics, distribution and zoogeography, captive care, reproduction, raising the hatchlings, detailed descriptions of each varanid species and more ... author bernd eidenmüller has extensive experience successfully keeping and breeding many species of monitors. his primary interest has been the smaller members of the genus, particularly those from the indo-australian region. the author has produced countless popular and scientific articles adding significantly to our scientific knowledge of these animals, even discovering an entirely new species! iguana 12.2 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 129book review mccranie, j. r, l. d. wilson, and g. köhler. 2005. the amphibians & reptiles of the bay islands and cayos cochinos, honduras. bibliomania! salt lake city, utah. xiv + 210 pp. hardcover. $29.95 plus shipping (available at www.herplit.com). herpetology in central america appears to be coming of age. julian c. lee’s the amphibians and reptiles of the yucatán peninsula (1996) and his field guide to the amphibians and reptiles of the maya world (2000) were followed in 2002 by two monumental works: the amphibians of honduras by james r. mccranie and larry david wilson and the amphibians and reptiles of costa rica by jay m. savage. then, in 2003, gunther köhler published the english edition of his reptiles of central america, with a foreword by larry david wilson. after more than two centuries of scientific collecting expeditions to the region, detailed systematic studies, the description of new species, the publication of monographs devoted to species groups, single genera, and families, finding authoritative, detailed, and well-illustrated summaries of the amphibian and/or reptile faunas of entire political or geographic units is now possible. the latest addition to this burgeoning library is the amphibians & reptiles of the bay islands and cayos cochinos, honduras by mccranie, wilson, and köhler. the bay islands are a small archipelago of three major islands (roatán, guanaja, and utila) and a couple of smaller ones, off the northern coast of honduras. the cayos cochinos are a small cluster of two larger and several smaller islands nearer the coast of honduras south of roatán. although they are relatively close to the mainland of honduras (utila is only about 32 km from the coast and the cayos cochinos only about half that), the islands harbor a surprisingly large number of reptilian species that occur nowhere else. the total herpetofauna consists of 55 species, seven species of amphibians, one crocodilian, five turtles (three of which are sea turtles), 23 lizards, and 19 snakes. all of the amphibians are anurans (frogs and toads), no salamanders or caecilians occur on the islands. at first glance, this book seems to be a field guide, and at 6 x 9 in and just over 200 pages, full of species accounts, it looks like one, too — but this is more than a field guide. as for many of the more recently published field guides, the authors follow a brief introduction with a section on materials and methods that explains, among other things, how to use the keys in conjunction with the detailed descriptions and photographs in the species accounts to identify the animal at hand. next is a chapter on the physiography of the bay islands in general and each of the major islands individually, a brief overview of the region’s climate, and of the nine habitat types found there, including aquatic and urban habitats. then comes the first pleasant surprise: a chapter on the social history of the bay islands and cayos cochinos. like many islands and archipelagos, the bay islands have a long history of human habitation. the historical b o o k r e v i e w the bay island herpetofauna comes to life anolis (= norops) bicaorum occurs only in hardwood and mangrove forests in the eastern half of utila. g u n th er k ö h le r 130 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 book review background presented in this chapter is a necessary prequel to the concluding three chapters of the book. the bulk of the book, 137 pages, is occupied by species accounts. accounts include the common name of each species, in english, spanish, and/or “corrupted english,” a technical description and mention of similar species that might make identification difficult, a statement of the general geographic distribution and distribution in the bay islands and cayos cochinos, and a section on natural history. the authors attempted to avoid overly technical terminology, but, where it can’t be avoided, the reader can refer to a very useful glossary. the natural history comments are often much more detailed than those found in most field guides. the serious “herper” will appreciate the inclusion of keys for the identification of species and the photographs. many species are represented by several photographs, which, as noted in materials and methods, can be used with the keys to identify species. although most of photographs are of specimens found in the islands, some are of animals on the mainland of honduras or elsewhere in central america. the pre-publication copy of the book i examined had only black and white renditions of the photographs, all of which will be in color upon publication, so i cannot comment on the quality of the photographs other than to say that they all appear in focus and aesthetically appealing. in addition to the photographs of amphibians and reptiles, the book includes an unusually large number of landscape and habitat photographs, which provide a “feel” for the environment. following the species accounts are chapters on ecological distribution and relationships and on biogeographic relationships and their significance. the final three chapters constitute the second pleasant “surprise” in the book in that the topics covered often are omitted or given short shrift in field guides. the first is on the conservation status of the herpetofauna, which is usually relegated to a sentence or two at the end of individual species accounts in other regional guides, and the second is a description of ongoing conservation efforts in the bay islands and the cayos cochinos. special emphases in the latter chapter are on efforts to conserve the utila iguana (ctenosaura bakeri) and on the cayos cochinos biological reserve. the text concludes with a forecast for the future of the herpetofauna of the islands, a future that is clouded by habitat destruction and pollution associated with population increases and land development. the book closes with the glossary, an eight-page literature cited, and an index to scientific names. between them, the authors of this book probably know more about the amphibians and reptiles of honduras than anyone, and their expertise is evident. relatively few north americans visit the bay islands and fewer still get to the cayos cochinos, and those who do are most often there to dive … this is one of the few places in the world where one can fairly reliably encounter whale sharks. i hesitate to recommend that you go, because i’d really like to keep the place a secret, but it’s really a wonderful place. if you go, buy this book. read the chapters on social history, ecology, biogeography, and conservation before you go. you’ll be better prepared for what you’ll see. take the book with you, not only to help you identify the amphibians and reptiles you will surely encounter, but to learn more about their habits and habitats. herpetology is much more than just checking off the name of a species on a life list. even if you can’t visit the bay islands, buy this book. through its photographs, you can take a virtual trip. it’ll be worth it and, at $30.00, a lot cheaper than the real thing. arthur c. (sandy) echternacht university of tennessee, knoxville g u n th er k ö h le r g u n th er k ö h le r g u n th er k ö h le r in sharp contrast to boas, the silver snake (leptotyphlops goudotii) is the smallest snake in the islands. these diminutive snakes are rarely encountered, mainly because they spend most of their lives under cover or under ground. like relatives, they probably eat termites or ants. boa constrictors (boa constrictor) are the largest snakes in the islands. a local rumor suggests that agoutis (large rodents in the genus dasyprocta) on cayo cochino grande became abundant only after 5,000 boas were collected for the pet trade over a two-year period. the gecko, phyllodactylus palmeus, is endemic to the bay islands and cayos cochinos. historically abundant in various habitats, including buildings, this species may be affected negatively, especially in edificarian habitats, by the presence of the house gecko (hemidactylus frenatus; see also iguana 11(1), p. 20). iguana 12.2 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 127commentary right now, i’m thigh-deep in muck. clad in hip waders, i’m slogging through a spring-fed bog in northern maryland. i’m surrounded by tussock sedge, alder, jewelweed, skunk cabbage, and swamp rose. and i’m having a great time. i’ve done this for a couple of days almost every spring for the last dozen years. i’m out here as a volunteer to do wildlife surveys. in particular, we’re looking for the rarest turtle in north america, glyptemys muhlenbergii, the little four-inch bog turtle. in the 1970s, they were found in more than 400 sites in our little state. in the 1990s, we could only find them in about half those sites. the other sites had been ditched, drained, bulldozed, polluted, invaded by non-native plants, bisected by roads for turtle-smashing cars, depleted by collectors, or otherwise made uninhabitable for these little creatures. when i meet professional wildlife biologists and other volunteers, they’re surprised that an evangelical (or post-evangelical, or “younger evangelical,” or whatever) pastor would be out here doing this sort of thing. they’re not used to seeing mudsmeared pastors who aren’t afraid to grope around in bog muck for turtles or who keep track of chorus frogs and baltimore checkerspots and indian paintbrush. i know what they’re thinking: christians, especially ones associated with the term “evangelical,” are part of the problem, not part of the solution. they listen to james dobson and pat robertson and james kennedy, not wendell berry and herman daly; they focus on the family and the military, not the environment. the surface causes of environmental carelessness among conservative protestants are legion, including subcontracting the evangelical mind out to right-wing politicians and greedy business interests…putting the gospel of jesus through the strainer of consumerist-capitalism and retaining only the thin broth that this modern-day caesar lets pass through...a tendency to be against whatever “liberals” are for. even more important, though, are the deeper theological roots of environmental disinterest — and the emerging theological values that many of us are embracing instead. people who are sensitive to creation know that creation is in constant flux. continents drift, climates change, magnetic poles flip-flop, and bogs like this one gradually give way to wet meadows and then various kinds of forests. there’s a natural succession out here under the sun, and i think there’s a kind of natural succession going on theologically for many christians as well. let me mention three of these elements. first, increased concern for the poor and oppressed leads to increased concern for all of creation. the same forces that hurt widows and orphans, minorities and women, children and the elderly also hurt the songbirds and trout, the ferns and old growth forests: greed, impatience, selfishness, arrogance, hurry, anger, competition, irreverence — plus a spirituality that cares for souls but neglects bodies, that prepares for eternity in heaven but abandons history on earth. when greed and consumerism are exposed, when arrogance and irreverence are unplugged, when hurry and selfishness are named and repented of, the world and all it contains (widows, orphans, trees, soil) are revalued (or re-deemed) and made sacred again. no, in this emerging view, these little bog turtles we’re looking for today are a priceless treasure, an original creation of the greatest artist in (and beyond) history — even though they are deemed precisely worthless to someone who would want to build an interstate highway through this bog. second, the eschatology of abandonment is being replaced by an engaging gospel of the kingdom. the phenomenon of evangelical-dispensational eschatology (doctrine of last things or end times) makes perfect sense in the modern world. understandably, christians in the power centers of modernity (england in the 1800s, the united states in the 1900s) saw nothing ahead in the story of modernity — nothing but destruction. their only hope? a skyhook second coming, c o m m e n t a r y consider the turtles of the field 1 many evangelicals find themselves in an emerging theological habitat, where care of creation is central to mission. brian mclaren 1 published originally in sojourners magazine, march 2004; reprinted with permission from sojourners, 1-800-714-7474, www.sojo.net). bog turtle (glyptemys muhlenbergii): these tiny turtles (shell lengths usually < 9 cm) have a disjunct distribution throughout the eastern united states. they are federally listed as “threatened” under the 1973 endangered species act and as “endangered” by agencies in states with extant populations. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h opinions expressed are those of the author and may or may not reflect those of the ircf. 128 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 mclaren wrapping up the whole of creation like an empty candy wrapper and throwing it in the trash can, and the sooner the better, so god could bring us all to heaven, beyond time, beyond matter, beyond this creation entirely. in this model, virtually no continuity exists between this creation and the new heavenly creation; this creation is discarded like a non-recyclable milk carton. why get sentimental about a cheap container destined for the cosmic dumpster of nothingness? this pop-evangelical eschatology made one understandable but serious mistake: it assumed that modernity was all there was or ever would be. just as the early christians could not imagine the gospel outlasting the roman empire (unless they got the point of the apocalypse of john), 19th and 20th century evangelicals couldn’t imagine the gospel outlasting modernity, the empire of reason, consumerism, and individualism. for popevangelical eschatology to proliferate and maintain hegemony, it had to reinterpret the hebrew prophets. their prophetic visions of reconciliation and shalom within history (metaphorically conveyed via lions and lambs, children and serpents, swords and plowshares, spears and pruning hooks) had to be pushed beyond history, either into a spiritualized heaven or a millennial middle ground — between history and eternity, so to speak. the eschatology of abandonment also had to marginalize jesus (which they did, to a degree, by letting jesus remain as savior but promoting paul to master-teacher). but now, as more and more of us rediscover jesus as master-teacher, we are struck by the centrality of “the kingdom of god” in jesus’ message (and paul’s too). and it is clear to us that this kingdom is not just about heaven after we die: it’s about god’s will (or wish) being “done on earth” now, in history. in this kingdom, jesus said, sparrows matter. lilies of the field matter. yes, people matter even more, but it’s not a matter of either/or; it’s a matter of degree in a world where everything that is good matters — where everything god made matters. god sent jesus into the world with a saving love, and jesus sends us with a similar saving love — love for the orphans and widows, the prostitutes and lepers, the poor and forgotten to be sure, but also for the little creatures who suffer from the same selfish greed and arrogance that oppress vulnerable humans. third, the hallowed concept of private ownership is being confronted by the biblical concept of stewardship. if liberal christianity was tempted in the last century to become the civil religion of socialism that reverences state ownership, then certainly conservative christianity has since become the happy mistress of capitalism that enshrines private ownership. no wonder then that private ownership and private enterprise are defended by many conservative christians as vigorously as the doctrine of the trinity or salvation by grace. for increasing numbers of us who consider ourselves postliberal and post-conservative, words like private (meaning personal and individual), ownership (meaning autonomous personal and individual control), and enterprise (meaning autonomous, personal, individual control over projects that use god’s world for our purposes) seem to fly in the face of kingdom values. values such as community (meaning seeing beyond the individual to the communal), fellowship (which means sharing, holding in common with the community, not grasping as “mine!”), and mission (meaning our participation in god’s projects in god’s world for god’s purposes). can there be some alternative to the extremes that either deny or enshrine private ownership? could a biblical stewardship that celebrates god’s ultimate ownership someday fuel a new grace-based economy — just as private ownership currently fuels our greed-based consumerist economy (or as government ownership fuels a control-based socialist economy)? a stewardship economy doesn’t see every majestic mountain as a potential site for strip-mining operations, nor does it see forests as board-feet of marketable lumber, nor does it see this spring-fed emergent wetland (drained and bulldozed) as a lucrative site for a “housing development” (an unfitting term if there ever was one, since bulldozers and pavement un-develop in hours what it took god’s creation centuries to develop). rather, whatever we “own” (including the molecules and cells that constitute our bodies) is really lent and entrusted to us by god, received by us and reverently used for a time, after which we must let go one way or another — either through giving and voluntary sharing, or through dying and involuntary relinquishing. so, what do we do differently in this emerging theological habitat, this new stage in the spiritual forest succession? that remains to be seen. but for starters, we see differently, and we care differently, and we value differently — and if those differences catch on, with christianity being the largest religion in the world, there are bound to be good effects in our world. ultimately, those effects will have to go beyond the important but limited conservation actions of individuals (recycling, reusing, abstaining, etc.). the effects of caring will have to change our systems — transportation systems that depend on fossil fuels and that divide and devastate our nonhuman neighbors’ habitats, housing systems that maximize human impact through suburban sprawl, farming systems that violate rather than steward land, advertising systems that make us want more stuff that we don’t need and that will soon fill even more square miles with trash. even our family systems will need reconsideration. for example, we may realize that nuclear family (of so much christian focus) and “subatomic family” (i.e., the nuclear family further split by divorce) both require (and waste) more resources than the truly traditional family — the extended or “molecular” one. could extended families and intentional households ever make a comeback? if they do, it will be good news for all of creation — including humans. okay. enough talk. i need to continue my survey. it’s one little way as a member of my watershed (one’s watershed being one’s most important creational address, by the way — more important than nation, state, or zip code) that i can express my care for creation. a care that flows from my identity: a creature who wants to care for other creatures, because i am made in the image of a creator who cares for us all. i hope you’ll find your own ways to express care too, wherever your creational address. brian mclaren, founding pastor of cedar ridge community church in spencerville, maryland, is coauthor of adventures in missing the point: how the culture-controlled church neutered the gospel and author of a generous orthodoxy. iguana 11.4 256 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 wasilewski this year, the iucn iguana specialist group met in a geographic area other than the caribbean for the first time, meeting in suva, fiji. the nation of fiji is located in the south pacific and is composed of several hundred islands, of which about a hundred are permanently inhabited. two species of iguanas are native to these islands: the pacific banded iguana, brachylophus fasciatus, and the fijian crested iguana, brachylophus vitiensis. both are endangered as a result of essentially the same factors faced by other insular species of iguanas. the fijian species are spectacular animals, bright green with blue bands in the banded form and white bands in the crested form. banded iguanas are documented from 34 fijian islands and the crested iguanas from only four islands. the meeting in suva consisted of two days of intense discussions and workshops. the iguana specialist group, along with officials from the university of the south pacific, the national trust of fiji islands, and kula eco park, collected preliminary information that will be used to produce a management plan for brachylophus vitiensis. in addition to the privilege of working on the conservation & management plan for the fijian crested iguanas, i felt honored to see them in their natural state. at 3:30 a.m. of the morning following the meeting, the group visited the island of yadua and stayed in the village of denimanu. we had to be accepted into the village as guests prior to visiting yadua taba, the home of the crested iguana. once we were accepted as a group, each individual was adopted by a family from the village and we were set for an in-depth cultural experience. the village has no electricity (other than a small gasoline generator supplying power for a few fluorescent lights) or running water. most of the people live in grass huts, which also became our homes for a few days. all of our meals were prepared fresh, primarily from fish harvested from the offshore reef. the reef itself has been monitored for the past four years by a conservation group from the uk called greenforce. their study indicates that this is one of the few remaining pristine reefs in the world and that the harvest is sustainable. without refrigeration, the people take only enough to supply their immediate needs. although a local fijian language exists, most people speak english, especially the children, who attend school on the island until the eighth grade, and are then sent to the larger islands for further education if their parents are able to afford it. we were surprised to find no tables or chairs in the village; everyone sits on the floor (or ground) with their legs crossed. hats and sunglasses are not permitted and, while alcohol is banned, smoking is not. women wear calf-length skirts and men wear a sulu (or sarong) during any important event, which seemed to occur daily. the featured social activity is centered around a drink called kava, which is considered a sort of analgesic. our group brought kava root as a gift to the village. the root is pounded into a paste, which is then added to water. even drinking kava has rules; when it is offered and you wish to partake, simply clap your hands once, then proceed to drink the entire cup. after drinking, you hand the cup to the presenter and clap your hands three times. this gesture assures you of another round. if one leaves the kava circle, one must touch the kava bowl. never point your legs (which are supposed to be crossed anyway) toward the kava bowl. the drinking bowls were coconut-shell halves, some small and some quite large. our scientific curiosity piqued, many in the group were prompted to partake of this unique cultural activity until the wee hours of the morning. the villagers are quite proud of their native iguanas, although they are somewhat afraid of them, thinking their size (maximum svl of 223 mm and weighing up to 404 g) rivals that of mythical dragons. knowing this, peter harlow meant to ask the group to bring along photos of themselves with some of the huge reptiles some of us have the pleasure of handling on a daily basis. unfortunately, he forgot. i had brought along some photos of different iguana species (cyclura), but they lacked references to size. included among my photos was one showing me feeding an 18-foot long crocodile that weighs 800 lbs! that photo earned me a great deal of attention — and a few more kava bowls. i thank peter harlow and the many fijian naturalists, who are quite proud of their natural heritage and are willing to work to preserve it for future generations, for working tirelessly to make this meeting happen. to the people of denimanu village, who most graciously invited us back for a future visit, be careful what you wish, it may come true — i will return… l e t t e r f r o m t h e p r e s i d e n t this photograph of joe feeding an 800-lb crocodile earned him great respect from fijian villagers. photograph by stephanie saybolt. iguana_11.2_text.ps never mind the 219 publications, the dozens of new species described, and the unlikely places he’s been to find or rediscover some of the world’s rarest creatures, james “skip” lazell will always be a snake dangler. it began in early childhood, when he startled relatives with creatures thrust at them from a sock or pocket. ultimately, this was not “just a phase.” in man’s clothing, skip remains the boy who revels in disrupting the complacent with uncomfortable surprises pulled from beneath rocks or the recesses of his fertile mind. and this is the enthusiast who has become an interventionist on behalf of the rock iguana in the british virgin islands. skip knew his calling from the start. joe cadbury, science teacher at germantown friends school, first took him seriously. under cadbury’s wing, skip began his first collections of animals in suburban philadelphia. in his parents’ small house, he raised woodchucks (which subsequently colonized the neighborhood), young bats (which he nursed through gassy colic), and uncountable stacks of caged amphibians and reptiles. his family and friends were tolerant, but made him impatient with what he considered sanctimonious responses to extremely reasonable requests (e.g., may i bring home this rattlesnake?). that impatience led to a lifetime commitment to torment them in every way possible (as well as any others who, as he saw it, irrationally blocked his progress). cadbury ran interference with his parents, assuring them that skip’s passion for animals would later translate into scientific prowess. meanwhile, skip’s live animal collection was burgeoning, and he needed funds to support them. to this end, as an elementary schoolchild, skip opened an aquarium repair business. resourcefully, the glass he used was removed from portraits of the venerable in the halls of germantown friends. when the headmaster questioned and accused him, young skip was outraged that the man had con120 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 mitchell p r o f i l e james d. (skip) lazell on guana island (october 2002). photograph by john binns. james “skip” lazell numi mitchell the conservation agency � iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 121james “skip” lazell fronted him “without a shred of evidence.” at this point, skip was probably lucky that he fell under the influence of the late roger conant, author of a field guide to reptiles and amphibians of the eastern united states. skip so revered his work that conant could control skip’s wilder side by using a strong dose of conditional acceptance. for example, skip was not allowed to catch venomous snakes until roger conant — not his parents — gave him permission to do so. at 17 years of age, skip, because of conant’s referral, was funded by the philadelphia zoo to go to the west indies to collect specimens. here he began the biogeographical and taxonomic studies of anolis, which would later become the focus of his doctoral work. along the way, he so offended his major professor, the late ernest williams at harvard, with his outspoken (and maybe impertinent) ideas on iguanine relationships that he was dropped as a student. years later, williams revealed his hidden regard for skip’s work by publishing the dissertation as a bulletin of the museum of comparative zoology (mcz) with full color plates, and reinstating him at the museum. skip has never wavered from his mission of documenting the rare or new. once on saint lucia, he rented a used car that lost its brakes as he crested a mountain peak. he remembers only the tumbling plummet. he was found hours later, 300 feet down the mountainside, in a tree, clutching an iguana. his glasses, without which he is basically blind, were gone and he was repeatedly mumbling, “that’s all i needed: just one iguana.” it is in the mcz. after his university days, his lean wrestler’s physique gravitated toward that of a sit-and-wait predator. nevertheless, i have seen him spring fifteen feet from a standstill to nail a red-bellied watersnake on a riverbank. he is an adventurer. he tackles even well traveled biogeographical regions of the globe like a lunar explorer: he assumes he will find something new — and usually does. skip is concerned about and enjoys people, but rarely allows his mission to be slowed by political correctness. he has no time for foot-dragging. one of his most controversial and ongoing projects has involved one of the rarest west indian iguanas, cyclura pinguis. originally distributed across the entire puerto rico bank, this iguana’s range had shrunk to one peripheral population on anegada. researcher michael carey had noted in 1968 that the anegada population was threatened by food competition from free ranging livestock. a national park, which could protect this last naturally occurring population, had been proposed by 1980, but skip, who was working for the nature conservancy in the british virgin islands at the time, judged it was a long way from becoming reality. skip came in contact with the owners of guana island, part of the iguana’s former range. the owners, henry and gloria jarecki, had established a native wildlife sanctuary consisting of most of the 850-acre island. skip even during the war years (december 1944), skip was able to pursue his interest in animals. photograph by katee lazell. this article about the young naturalist appeared in the philadelphia inquirer magazine (december 1957). saw and seized an opportunity to restore and protect c. pinguis. he swiftly walked a proposal through government channels and relocated eight iguanas from anegada to guana island. although the paper trail shows that he did have both governmental permission and local cooperation, the people originally involved have since died, changed positions, or changed stories. 122 iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 mitchell during his brief career as a teacher, skip graphically explained to his students how they could be improved (march 1978). photograph by nancy nielsen. skip with an hawaiian rock wallaby on oahu in 1979. photograph by guy slaughter. skip and the “devil” (tasmania, 1981). photograph by marshall sklar. collecting haitian boas (epicrates striatus) for the philadelphia zoo (ca. 1957). serge brierre is on the left. photograph by john coutsis. iguana • volume 11, number 2 • june 2004 123james “skip” lazell consequently, long after the relocation, skip still is being characterized as a loose cannon or a renegade; his choice to relocate has been questioned by almost everyone. undaunted, skip has continued for almost two decades with his program to restore c. pinguis to parts of its former range. as a result of his efforts, guana has a population of over 100 iguanas, necker island has approximately 30, and norman island received a dozen colonizers in the fall of 2003 (i was pleased to be a part of the latter effort). these animals, all descendants of the eight individuals from anegada, now represent approximately half of the world’s population. as of 2004, local people remain divided over a proposal to establish a national park on anegada, and the iguana population there continues to decline, primarily as a consequence of livestock competition for food and feral cat predation. establishing a protected area on anegada remains vital in order to preserve as much of the species’ genetic diversity as possible. however, unless and until that becomes a reality, we are fortunate that the iguanas’ eggs are in more than one basket. for the 30 plus years i have known him, skip has generated a “theory of the day” for everything he observes of biological interest. if the next bit of additional data topples the idea, he cheerfully abandons old theory a for new theory b. skip is not wedded to his postulates; they merely reflect his all-or-none approach. as outrageous as some of his ideas may sound initially, skip has not infrequently been proven correct by more conservative and methodical scientists. herpetological colleague, c. robert shoop, who died in late 2003, characterized skip in the following way: “he provides an absolutely critical function: inspiration.” additional reading lazell, j. 2003. looking for lizards in all the right places, pp. 215–231. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), islands and the sea: essays on herpetological exploration in the west indies. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles contributions to herpetology, vol. 20. ithaca, new york. skip in the field on guana island (british virgin islands, 2002). photograph by gad perry. part of the team conducting a population census of cyclura pinguis on guana island (october 2002); left to right: lynford cooper, gad perry, and skip. photograph by kate levering. skip at day’s end during the cyclura pinguis population assessment on necker island, bvi (october 2002). photograph by john binns. iguana 11.3 b&w text 176 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 wilson rick van veen was born the son of a dutch father and an australian mother in upstate new york on 27 june 1967. rick’s stint in the u.s. was short-lived, as the family moved to australia when he was five months old. there, in the herp-rich outback, an extraordinary herper was born. at age four, rick brought home his first snake, a venomous copperhead (austrelaps superbus) that he had usurped from a kookaburra. that snake didn’t bite rick, but others did — included was a sea snake (enhydrina schistosa), a spotted black snake (pseudechis guttata), a tiger snake (notechis scutatus), a brown snake (pseudonaja textilis), and half a dozen “lesser” elapids. the brown snake incident resulted in rick being in a coma for 48 hours — an ordeal that left him with some lingering liver and kidney problems, as well as some apparent neurological anomalies (see below). fittingly, rick would later serve as an instructor on snake handling techniques for the queensland department of environment; perhaps more appropriately, he also served as an instructor on snakebite first aid. rick’s educational and work history reflect a man who has followed his dreams, and they have been varied. says rick: “if it ain’t fun, i ain’t doing it.” of course, rick’s idea of fun is somewhat different from what most people would regard as even bearable. remarks one of rick’s former australian employers: “rick’s exploits in the field are legendary… he actually seems to enjoy the sorts of conditions that most people would find downright unbearable.” one could not get a better recommendation for prospective work in the harsh hellshire hills of jamaica. indeed, rick quickly attained legendary status in jamaica. also, those of us who work with him soon came to realize that, when rick suggests some seemingly insane and undoable course of action, he is usually serious — and, then, invariably produces. for example, rick has been parlaying his masonry skills into converting our humble stick research station into a veritable rock fortress, an exercise that requires him to carry 90-lb bags of cement into the interior forest, not to mention other bulky or heavy construction materials. after early stints as a brick layer and horticulturist, rick focused full-time on pursuing a career in field biology and conservation — a career that has extended, literally, from the equator to the antarctic. during this time, rick also completed a bsc degree in botany/zoology at james cook university in queensland. rick’s employment history has included seven years working for the queensland national parks research branch on crocodiles, sea turtles, and endangered macropods (kangaroos, etc.); more to the south, he worked on pack-ice seal surveys with the tasmania/australia antarctic division, and studied the feeding ecology of macaroni penguins on heard island. rick gained additional animal handling skills working for a variety of australian wildlife parks, including the curumbin wildlife sanctuary, the healesville wildlife sanctuary, and the ballarat wildlife & reptile park. more recently, rick worked as resident naturalist at the pajinka wilderness lodge on the cape york peninsula, and, from 2002–2003, served as coordinator for the pompuraaw p r o f i l e rick van veen on heard island, contemplating work closer to the equator. photograph by tony dorr. rick van veen: a feral mammal’s worst nightmare byron wilson department of life sciences university of the west indies, mona kingston 7, jamaica iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 177rick van veen aboriginal land & sea management centre. these latter positions involved significant feral animal control work — experiences that uniquely prepared rick for front line duties in the hellshire hills. for example, rick participated in the “control” (i.e., with extreme prejudice) of thousands of wild pigs — providing the training that has made him the uncontested wild boar king on the jamaican iguana project. the rest of us remain humble pretenders. oddly, rick has long had a love for iguanas; odd because he grew up in a country devoid of iguanas despite harboring one of the world’s richest and most dramatic lizard faunas. whatever the explanation for his fascination with iguanas, in 2000, rick was able to whet his appetite by assisting with vegetation surveys and dietary analyses of the fijian crested iguana at the yandua-tabu island iguana conservation reserve. determined to become fully immersed in iguana work, rick traveled to the u.s. in 2003, passing by the fort worth zoo en route to attending the annual iucn iguana specialist group meeting in the turks and caicos islands. fortunately, rick hudson, a conservation biologist at fort worth, saw hellshire written all over van veen and cleverly pointed him south, toward the jamaican iguana project. funds to hire rick came initially from grants from the miami metrozoo and the audubon zoo. these were designated for a 3-month pitfall trap survey and associated mammal control experiment in the core iguana area. this project involved spending periods of over a month in the remote interior of the hellshire hills, and a trap-checking regimen that entailed walking the equivalent distance of the entire peninsula every day for the 48-day census period. rick began capturing and observing iguanas during this time, and quickly established that he was just the sort of biologist who could work happily and productively in hellshire’s interior forest. a grant from conservation international and the efforts of the international iguana foundation have secured funding to retain rick’s talents through 2004, and a major effort is now being directed at obtaining funds to keep him in jamaica for the remainder of his natural life (see www.iguanafoundation.org). next on the agenda for rick is a radio-telemetry study that will involve attaching transmitters to 20 hatchling iguanas during the september (2004) hatching period. this endeavor will yield critical ecological data on the most vulnerable, but poorly known life history stage of the species. indeed, aside from obviously high mortality rates resulting from predation by exotic mammals, virtually nothing is known about the habitat preferences, activity patterns, and movement ecology of young iguanas. rick’s skill and demonstrated dedication will no doubt ensure that this project will come to fruition. radio-tracking wild adults, especially post-partum females, is planned for the 2005 nesting season. that effort will help delineate the extent and characteristics of the habitat used by wild iguanas during the non-nesting portions of the year. aside from the continued monitoring of both wild and headstarted iguanas in the core conservation zone, rick’s participation will also enable us to embark on other high priority projects that have long awaited implementation. for example, survey work in the early 1990s identified a population of iguanas in the western hellshire hills that we have not been able to revisit. we plan to assess the status of this forgotten population, and will focus on the location and subsequent monitoring of nesting sites. that activity will permit harvesting a new source of wild hatchlings to provide fresh genetic material for the captive population. at present, all captives are derived from a handful of females that nest at two known communal nesting areas in central hellshire. additional nesting areas obviously exist. an infusion of new genetic variation will be a boon to the existing zoo population that now serves as a hedge against extinction — up close and personal with an elephant seal: rick pondering the wisdom of working on subjects that outweigh him by an order of magnitude. photograph by tony dorr. rick processing a jamaican iguana in the hellshire hills. 178 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 wilson and as a source of headstarters for use in on-going and future repatriation exercises. unfortunately, the future outlook for the iguana in the hellshire hills does not look bright. the plethora of invasive species (e.g., dogs, cats, rats, mongooses, pigs) will never be eradicated — only controlled through labor-intensive trapping efforts that will be difficult to maintain in both the short and long term. in addition, illegal logging activities continue to erode the remaining natural forest and pose a security risk to iguana project personnel. thus, while the preservation of the hellshire hills ecosystem is an objective that must be pursued, the only realistic strategy for ensuring the iguana’s survival in the wild is the creation of an off-shore population on the goat islands. lying just off the western edge of the hellshire peninsula, great goat island in particular has long been recognized as an ideal site for the re-establishment of an iguana population. the island could easily be rendered pest free and iguana friendly, and the prospects for effective, long-term management would be enhanced by economic and logistic feasibility. encouragingly, the bureaucratic issues that have historically prevented the initiation of a goat island restoration and iguana re-introduction program appear to be approaching resolution. both the hellshire hills and the goat islands have been accorded protected area status since 1999, as part of the portland bight protected area. the government of jamaica is now taking steps to ensure that appropriate management instruments will be instituted to conserve these national treasures. if all goes well, such a rehabilitation program will become a reality in the near future — and rick van veen is the obvious candidate to lead such a crucial field campaign. rick is not only the right person to launch an assault on the goat islands, but has already indicated his enthusiasm for remaining in jamaica and dedicating himself to the effort. in summary, rick’s participation in the jamaican iguana project has been of incalculable value. aside from running the field program in hellshire, he has infused new life into both the local project and the international donor community. in short, rick has provided the impetus for a renewed thrust to study and conserve the jamaican iguana and its unique but critically imperiled ecosystem. he also has made the project a more entertaining enterprise for the rest of us participants. although clearly comfortable with a hermit’s solitude, rick is a gregarious sort whose consistent good humor and contagious enthusiasm have been an invigorating influence at all levels of the project. in particular, for those of us who love wild pig meat, rick has improved the quality of our lives in such a dramatic fashion, we often find ourselves embarrassingly grateful. a reflective rick van veen, holding a freshly caught jamaican iguana in the hellshire hills. rick van veen at the research station "south camp," in the central hellshire hills. photograph by dawn fleuchaus. rick surveying a job well done: a dead mongoose that was trapped and removed from the core jamaican iguana conservation zone. iguana 13.1 b&w text 24 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 krysko et al. neonate brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) along water’s edge at vanderbilt beach county park, collier county. m a r k u s h en n ig iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 24 the florida herpetofauna presently contains 50 recognized species of lizards, with an overwhelming 34 (68%) of these being non-native and primarily of tropical origin (krysko and enge 2005). fifteen (44%) of these non-native lizards are in the superfamily iguania (sensu frost et al. 2001), and eight are anoles in the family polychrotidae. the brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus wiegmann 1828) is the only established representative of the family corytophanidae in florida, although a few adult green basilisks (basiliscus plumifrons cope 1876), a larger and more arboreal species than b. vittatus, have occasionally been observed (bartlett and bartlett 1999, meshaka et al. 2004, r. goushaw, pers. comm.). because no voucher specimens or photographs of b. plumifrons from florida are available, we view these sightings as escaped or released pets that do not presently represent established populations. until recently, b. vittatus had only been documented from northern miami-dade county and adjacent broward county in the southeastern peninsula. herein, we document likely modes of introduction of this species in florida and illustrate range expansion to the south, north, and west. materials and methods to determine the present geographic distribution of basiliscus vittatus in florida, we made field collections of this species from july 2000 through june 2005. specimens were collected by hand, with nooses (strong et al. 1993), blowguns shooting tapered corks, and fishing rods using invertebrates for bait (krysko 2000). basiliscus vittatus can be extremely wary and difficult to approach closely, but we were extremely successful at collecting this species using domestic crickets or crabs on a fishing hook for bait. when a lizard was observed, we used a fishing rod to cast a food item to within about 3 m of the lizard. lizards would typically jump off their perches or out from dense vegetation and eat the bait, and were then easily reeled in and collected. specimens were deposited in the florida museum of natural history (flmnh), university of florida (uf collection). we also obtained locality records from the literature and systematic collections throughout the united states. source acronyms for collections follow leviton et al. (1985), with the addition of everglades national park (ever), from which the entire collection is currently being accessioned into uf. all records with locality data were plotted using arcview v3.2 (esri). results and discussion native distribution and natural history.—basiliscus vittatus is found in lowland habitats from coastal regions of central méxico south through central america and northern south america to ecuador (savage 2002, köhler 2003). basiliscus vittatus inhabits tropical and subtropical forests in both disturbed and undisturbed habitats, where it can be found on the ground, in bushes, or on the lower branches of trees, particularly near bodies of water (campbell 1998). juveniles are more closely associated with the water’s edge than adults (maturana 1962, hirth 1963, laerm 1974). this diurnally active species is most frequently observed in august and september, but is active year-round (hirth 1963). peak activity occurs in the early morning and late afternoon during sunny days, but lizards may be active sporadically throughout the day during overcast weather (hirth 1963). basiliscus vittatus has a small home range of about 7.9–19.8 m2 in costa rica (fitch 1973a). at night, b. vittatus retreats to elevated (0.3–2.7 m or more) perches (i.e., in palm fronds, on twigs or branches overhanging rivers, under bridges), where it sleeps until daybreak (conant 1951, neill and allen 1959, alvarez del toro 1960, hirth 1963). neonates, which measure 35–40 mm snout-vent length (svl) and weigh 1.5 g, grow an average of 15 mm during their the introduced brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) in florida kenneth l. krysko1, jason c. seitz1, josiah h. townsend1,2, and kevin m. enge3 1florida museum of natural history, university of florida, gainesville, florida 32611, usa (kenneyk@flmnh.ufl.edu and jseitz@flmnh.ufl.edu) 2tropical conservation and development program, center for latin american studies, university of florida, gainesville, florida 32611, usa (jtownsend@flmnh.ufl.edu) 4florida fish and wildlife conservation commission, quincy, florida 32351 (kevin.enge@myfwc.com) abstract,—the brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus wiegmann 1828) is the only established representative of the family corytophanidae in florida. until recently, the only reported populations of b. vittatus in the united states were in the southeastern florida peninsula from northern miami-dade county and adjacent broward county to the north. herein, we document likely modes of introduction of this species in florida and illustrate range expansion as far south as homestead in miami-dade county, as far north as st. lucie county, and as far west as collier county. key words: corytophanidae, exotic, iguania, lizard, non-native iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 25basiliscus vittatus in florida � iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 25 first month of life (hirth 1963). maturity is reached at about six months of age; adults typically measure around 115 mm (females) to 134 mm svl (males), but males may grow as large as 170 mm svl and > 90 g (fitch 1973a, b, savage 2000). basiliscus vittatus is reported to live about three years in the wild, but most survive less than one year (hirth 1963, fitch 1973a). a female usually deposits between two and four clutches of 2–6 eggs annually (maximum of 12 eggs; alvarez del toro 1960), primarily during a nine-month nesting season beginning in midfebruary (fitch 1973a). neonates are reported to eat a variety of invertebrates — tenebrionid beetles, ants, grasshoppers, amphipods, lycosid spiders, and lepidopteran larvae — whereas adults feed on both invertebrates and plant matter such as grasses, seeds, stems, and berries (hirth 1963, lee 2000). predators include snakes, birds, other lizards, and atlantic ghost crabs (ocypode quadratus). basilisk eggs oviposited on beaches may sometimes be unearthed by nesting sea turtles (hirth 1963, campbell 1998). basilisks may run up to 30 m towards water or vegetation to escape predation (fitch 1973a), often in a bipedal stance with only their hind feet touching the ground. basilisks are popularly referred to as “jesus christ lizards,” because of their ability to run across the surface of water for short distances. distribution in florida.—we compiled 307 records of basiliscus vittatus from florida. sixty-eight of these are preserved speci26 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 krysko et al. records (n = 307) of the brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) in florida. localities include: (1) vanderbilt beach park, (2) golden gate, (3) homestead, (4) snapper creek canal, (5) red road, (6) miami international airport, (7) krome avenue and us 27, (8) key biscayne, (9) elaine gordon park, (10) cooper city, (11) davie, (12) hollywood, (13) parkland, (14) loxahatchee, (15) fort pierce, and (16) header canal and glades cutoff roads. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 26 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 27basiliscus vittatus in florida mens collected between 1979 and 2005 (appendix), 55 of which were collected during our surveys. the remaining 239 records are our observations of individuals in the wild. basiliscus vittatus was found in five florida counties, including broward, collier, miami-dade, palm beach, and st. lucie. wilson and porras (1983) first recorded basiliscus vittatus in florida from three localities in miami-dade and broward counties, and these had been the only reported populations in the united states until recently (see conant and collins 1998, crother 2000[2001]). in 1976, b. vittatus was found in two areas of miami, miami-dade county: near a sparsely vegetated canal near the northwestern corner of miami international airport (mia), and around an animal dealer’s compound near nw 70th street and 70th avenue (wilson and porras 1983). in 1981, the latter site was demolished, but lizards were subsequently seen on a nearby canal bank. wilson and porras (1983) predicted that the merging of these two nearby populations was likely because of the species’ ability to adapt to modified habitats and that its dispersal was not limited by city growth. meshaka et al. (2000) speculated that b. vittatus would be the next non-native species to enter everglades national park. in miami-dade county, we recorded basiliscus vittatus in parking lots and along canals, shores of lakes, and borrow pits from sw 120th avenue and 72nd street east to the snapper creek canal and red road, near the junction of krome avenue and us 27, in enchanted forest elaine gordon park, in bill baggs cape florida state park and crandon park on key biscayne, and as far south as sw 117th avenue and e palm drive in homestead near the turkey point power plant. for example, at mia we observed 20 juvenile b. vittatus in one hour hiding in grass about 60 cm tall along a single canal. at this site, we also recorded cane toads (bufo marinus), green anoles (anolis carolinensis/porcatus), bark anoles (a. distichus), brown anoles (a. sagrei), green iguanas (iguana iguana), tropical house geckos (hemidactylus mabouia), and brahminy blind snakes (ramphotyphlops braminus). we recorded five b. vittatus on sidewalks, in parking lots, and in grass on sw 117 avenue from snapper creek to just south of sunset drive. at this site, we also recorded greenhouse frogs (eleutherodactylus planirostris), giant whiptails (aspidoscelis motaguae), and anolis sagrei. on two occasions, while fishing for aspidoscelis motaguae, we blind casted a live cricket on the sidewalk in front of vehicular traffic and had a b. vittatus run out from shrubs onto the sidewalk to grab and eat the insect. we recorded more than 50 b. vittatus along snapper creek on red road between sw 88 and 100 streets. there, b. vittatus is frequently observed on trees, grass, or cement walls. at this site, we also recorded red-eared sliders (trachemys scripta elegans), anolis distichus, a. carolinensis/porcatus, a. sagrei, puerto rican crested anoles (a. cristatellus), knight anoles (a. equestris), and iguana iguana. around 25 b. vittatus were collected using flashlights at night as they slept in vegetation along a canal near the junction of krome avenue and us 27 (b. love, pers. comm.). along with at least 43 other non-marine amphibian and reptilian species, we recorded more than 125 b. vittatus from crandon park and bill baggs cape florida state park on key biscayne (krysko et al., in prep.). we recorded seven b. vittatus in vegetation along canals near the turkey point power plant. at these sites, we also recorded twotoed amphiuma (amphiuma means), bufo marinus, eleutherodactylus planirostris, green treefrogs (hyla cinerea), cuban treefrogs (osteopilus septentrionalis), anolis carolinensis/porcatus, a. sagrei, hemidactylus mabouia, corn (elaphe guttata) and yellow rat (e. obsoleta) snakes, southern (nerodia fasciata) and florida green (n. floridana) watersnakes, juvenile brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) on vegetation along snapper creek on red road between sw 88 and 100 streets, miami-dade county. k ev in m . e n g e adult female brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) on a tree along snapper creek on red road between sw 88 and 100 streets, miami-dade county. k ev in m . e n g e adult male brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) on a fig (ficus sp.) along snapper creek on red road between sw 88 and 100 streets, miamidade county. k ev in m . e n g e iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 27 ramphotyphlops braminus, ribbon snakes (thamnophis sauritus), florida soft-shelled turtles (apalone ferox), common snappers (chelydra serpentina), striped mud turtles (kinosternon baurii), peninsula cooters (pseudemys peninsularis), american alligators (alligator mississippiensis), and american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus). wilson and porras (1983) reported a third well-established population of basiliscus vittatus, of unknown origin, along a canal on nw 70th street between stirling and griffin roads in davie, broward county. in broward county, we found b. vittatus along many canals and lakes, and in parking lots at localities such as wolf lake park and stirling road just west of nw 66th avenue in davie, stirling road about 0.8 km west of i-95 in hollywood, stirling road about 1.6 km east of i-95 and just east of nw 65th avenue in hollywood, c-11 canal in cooper city, and in parkland. we recorded 16 b. vittatus along lake margins at wolf lake park, along with anolis distichus, a. sagrei, iguana iguana, ringneck snakes (diadophis punctatus), elaphe guttata, ramphotyphlops braminus, and florida brown snakes (storeria victa). we recorded four b. vittatus in the parking lot of a reptile dealer on stirling road just east of nw 65th avenue in hollywood, along with african rainbow lizards (agama agama), anolis equestris, a. sagrei, common house geckos (hemidactylus frenatus), red-sided curly-tailed lizards (leiocephalus schreibersii), a chinese water dragon (physignathus cocincinus), and smooth-backed gliding geckos (ptychozoon lionotum). we recorded five b. vittatus in the vicinity of nw 81 terrace in parkland, along with hispaniolan green anoles (anolis chlorocyanus), large-headed anoles (a. cybotes), a. sagrei, and iguana iguana. 28 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 krysko et al. juvenile brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) on a palm at crandon park, key biscayne, miami-dade county. k en n et h l . k r y sk o adult male brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) along a driveway on curb at crandon park, key biscayne, miami-dade county. k en n et h l . k r y sk o adult male brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) on a tree at wolf lake park, broward county. k en n et h l . k r y sk o iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 28 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 29basiliscus vittatus in florida krysko et al. (2005) first reported basiliscus vittatus from palm beach county in loxahatchee, where an adult male and female were observed in a backyard. however, in 1992, a reptile dealer reported buying 100–150 b. vittatus per week from children who collected them in the west palm beach area, and a commercial collector caught about 300 b. vittatus in three nights along canals in west palm beach in 2003 (g. ward, pers. comm.). krysko et al. (2005) first reported basiliscus vittatus farther north in st. lucie county at the northern end of cr 609 (header canal road), as well as east of carlton road ca. 1.6 km north of glades cutoff road, where an adult male and female and two juveniles were spotlighted and observed in dense vegetation along canals at night. an adult female was collected while sleeping on a branch at night in an abandoned citrus grove along eleven mile road ca. 1 km north of cr 712 (midway road). a disjunct population has been established since about 1990 in white city, south of fort pierce (g. ward, pers. comm.). krysko et al. (2005) first reported basiliscus vittatus from southwestern florida at vanderbilt beach county park in naples, and near the junction of 17th street sw and 16th avenue in golden gate, collier county. basiliscus vittatus was first observed at vanderbilt beach county park in 2000, where a locally abundant population inhabits an urbanized coastal wetland of predominantly red mangroves (rhizophora mangle) and brazilian pepper (schinus terebinthifolius). this small wetland is positioned around the perimeter of a public parking lot adjacent to a gulf of mexico beach. all size classes have been observed at this locality, mostly along the edges of water and the adjacent parking lot, sidewalks, and roads, where lizards are frequently observed basking and foraging. basiliscus vittatus has also been observed since january 2004 along a canal in adjacent golden gate. natural history in florida.—in florida, basiliscus vittatus is commonly found along the edges of vegetated canals and lakes, especially those bordered by australian pine (casuarina equisetifolia), brazilian pepper, willow (salix spp.), buttonwood (conocarpus erectus), and mangrove trees. this species is diurnal and is frequently observed on hot, sunny days; on overcast or cool days, it often basks on vegetation overhanging water or near the water’s edge. in miami-dade county, basiliscus vittatus is known to feed on beetles (including the eyed elator, alaus oculatus), roaches, ants, hemipterans, and ficus fruits (meshaka et al. 2004). at vanderbilt beach county park in naples, collier county, one of us (jcs) observed b. vittatus pursuing and eating large insects and arachnids 2.4–3.0 m away, as well as two b. vittatus fighting over a captured anolis sagrei. at this site, we have used domestic crickets, as well as locally collected wood (sesarma cinereum) or fiddler (uca pugilator) crabs as bait on fishing rods to collect b. vittatus. senior author holding an adult male brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) at wolf lake park, broward county. a n th o n y t . r ep pa s adult male brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) in vegetation east of carlton road, st. lucie county. k ev in m . e n g e adult male brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) on a brazilian pepper (schinus terebinthifolius) stump within red mangroves (rhizophora mangle) at vanderbilt beach county park, collier county. th o m a s m . c r a v en s iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 29 gravid female basiliscus vittatus have been found from march through july in florida, and a gravid female collected in june oviposited a second clutch in october (meshaka et al. 2004). elaphe guttata, black racers (coluber constrictor), and eastern indigo snakes (drymarchon couperi) are reported to have been observed eating juvenile b. vittatus (see meshaka et al. 2004). since the introduction of basiliscus vittatus in 1976 (wilson and porras 1983), this species had slowly spread throughout many parts of miami-dade and broward counties. its current presence in palm beach county is likely due to natural range expansion. however, the occurrence of this species in collier and st. lucie counties is likely due to subsequent illegal introductions, because large gaps in distribution occur between these localities. nonetheless, its preference for riparian habitats and the presence of an extensive and interconnected system of drainage canals will continue to allow b. vittatus to expand its range naturally into almost every area in southern florida. acknowledgments we thank anthony t. reppas, a. nichole hooper, ellen m. donlan, elizabeth a. golden, todd s. campbell, julian c. lee, andy p. borgia, rick rego, steve a. johnson, kurt w. larson, esther m. langan, larry d. wilson, sean b. thompson, debbie t. townsend, steve h. townsend, bill love, f. wayne king, chris s. samuelson, brooke l. talley, kristen l. bell, brian j. camposano, lorraine p. ketzler, ronald st. pierre, george j. ward, and mark a. flowers for assistance in the field; thomas m. cravens and markus hennig for providing photographs; bill love, stan chrzanowski, raymond goushaw, and j.h. altman for information on basilisk populations in florida; and jenny seitz for support to jcs. literature cited alvarez del toro, m. 1960. reptiles de chiapas. inst. zool. estado. tuxtla gutierrez, chiapas, mexico. bartlett, r.d. and p.p. bartlett. 1999. a field guide to florida reptiles and amphibians. gulf publ. co., houston, texas. conant, r. 1951. collecting lizards at night under bridges. copeia 1951:79–80. conant, r. and j.t. collins. 1998. a field guide to amphibians and reptiles of eastern and central north america. 3rd ed., expanded. houghton mifflin, boston, massachusetts. crother, b.i. (ed.). 2000 (2001). scientific and standard english names of amphibians and reptiles of north america north of mexico, with comments regarding confidence in our understanding. ssar herpetological circular (29):iii + 82 pp. fitch, h.s. 1973a. a field study of costa rican lizards. university of kansas science bulletin 50:39–126. fitch, h.s. 1973b. population structure and survivorship in some costa rican lizards. occasional papers of the university of kansas museum of natural history (18):1–41. frost, d.r., r. etheridge, d. janies, and t.a. titus. 2001. total evidence, sequence alignment, evolution of polychrotid lizards, and a reclassification of the iguania (squamata: iguania). american museum novitates (3343):1–38. hirth, h.f. 1963. the ecology of two lizards on a tropical beach. ecological monographs 33:83–112. köhler, g. 2003. reptiles of central america. herpeton, offenbach. krysko, k.l. 2000. a fishing technique for collecting the introduced knight anole (anolis equestris) in southern peninsular florida. caribbean journal of science 36:162. krysko, k.l. and k.m. enge. 2005. a new non-native lizard in florida, the butterfly lizard, leiolepis belliana (sauria: agamidae). florida scientist 68:247–249. krysko, k.l., k.m. enge, j.h. townsend, e.m. langan, s.a. johnson, and t.s. campbell. 2005. new county records of amphibians and reptiles from florida. herpetological review 36:85–87. laerm, j. 1974. a functional analysis of morphological variation and differential niche utilization in basilisk lizards. ecology 55:404–411. lee, j.c. 2000. a field guide to the amphibians and reptiles of the maya world: the lowlands of mexico, northern guatemala, and belize. cornell univ. press, ithaca, new york. maturana, h.r. 1962. a study of the species of the genus basiliscus. bulletin of the museum of comparative zoology 128:1–34. meshaka, w.e., jr., b.p. butterfield, and j.b. hauge. 2004. the exotic amphibians and reptiles of florida. krieger publ. co., malabar, florida. meshaka, w.e., jr., w.f. loftus, and t. steiner. 2000. the herpetofauna of everglades national park. florida scientist 63:84–103. neill, w.t. and r. allen. 1959. studies on the amphibians and reptiles of british honduras. publ. research div. ross allen reptile inst., inc. (2):1–76. savage, j.m. 2002. the amphibians and reptiles of costa rica: a herpetofauna between two continents, between two seas. univ. chicago press, chicago. strong, d., b. leatherman, and b.h. brattstrom. 1993. two new methods for catching small fast lizards. herpetological review 24:22–23. wilson, l.d. and l. porras. 1983. the ecological impact of man on the south florida herpetofauna. university of kansas museum of natural history, special publication (9):vi + 89 pp. appendix. specimens examined from florida counties. note that everglades national park (ever) specimens are in the process of being accessioned into uf. broward: uf 120962, 121430–35, 121798–99, 122501–02, 124584, 142920; collier: uf 137034–36, 141603; miamidade: ever 302935–37, 302960, 304113, 306530, 308399–401; ku 220259, 222395; uf 61444, 121460, 122500, 122581, 130654–56, 130773, 131490–91, 131505, 131519, 133835–37, 134228–30, 134821, 134904–05, 134911–15, 137075, 140835, 142694, 144157–61, 144248; palm beach: uf 137179–80; st. lucie: uf 137407, 137447. 30 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 krysko et al. juvenile brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) on a brazilian pepper (schinus terebinthifolius) stump at vanderbilt beach county park, collier county. m a r k u s h en n ig iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 30 iguana 13.1 b&w text 22 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 powell iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 22 male anoles (genus anolis) are fiercely territorial. although ritual behaviors involving posture, orientation, and head-bobs with dewlap extensions often dissuade an interloper from seriously challenging a resident male, battles sometimes ensue — and they can become violent, often leaving wounds that frequently become infected. large abscesses on the jaws of males are a common sight. in this instance, a male crested anole (anolis cristatellus, the darker, slightly smaller individual with the notch in his tail crest) had established a domain dominated by a small palm tree on the grounds of the resort on guana island (british virgin islands) — only to find himself confronted one morning in october 2005 by a serious rival. each quickly assumed a threatening posture involving lateral presentation, erection of the nuchal (nape) crest, an inflated body, elevated tail, and gaping jaws (facing page) in an effort to convince his counterpart that further efforts were futile. each possessed an advantage, the resident was defending an established territory with which he was intimately familiar, but the interloper was slightly larger. circling each other in an attempt to establish and hold the high ground (top left), all caution was thrown to the wind and jaws locked in an attempt to throw the other to the ground (top center and right). the interloper succeeded on three occasions, with the resident quickly reengaging in what had now become open warfare. eventually, larger size prevailed, and the former resident was banished to the outer reaches of the fronds from which he soon disappeared from view. within minutes, the proud victor claimed the spoils of battle (right) and life went on in the sometimes violent world of lizards. lizard warfare robert powell avila university, kansas city, mo iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 23lizard warfare � iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 23 iguana 12.4 b&w text 240 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 gutsche r o b er t po w el l norops utilensis 1 is endemic to the isla de utila (islas de la bahia, honduras). discovered in 1995, it is a poorly known member of the n. pentaprion-group. in contrast to the other members of the group, all of which live in broadleaf tropical rain forests, n. utilensis dwells exclusively in a highly spethe world’s most endangered anole? alexander gutsche department of biology, sensory biology, humboldt-university berlin, germany photographs by the author unless otherwise indicated. iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 241world’s most endangered anole? � 1 in 1987, craig guyer and jay savage (systematic zoology 35: 509–531) proposed a classification of anoles that included formal recognition of several distinct genera within the group. one of these genera was norops, to which the utila anole has been assigned. although recognition of those genera has been strongly advocated by some authorities, others, who would refer to the utila anole as anolis utiliensis, prefer a more conservative approach until a number of concerns regarding generic relationships among anoles have been addressed. those concerns were best summarized by ernest williams in 1989 (in: c.a. woods (ed.), biogeography of the west indies: past, present, and future. sandhill crane press, gainesville, florida). an adult female utila anole (norops utilensis). because suitable nesting holes are a limited resource in the mangrove forests, utila anoles may lay their eggs communally. the two shells in this nest hole in a hollow red mangrove root are remains of eggs that were undoubtedly laid by two different females. cialized habitat – the salty mangrove swamps of isla utila (see iguana 12:142 for detailed descriptions of the habitat). norops utilensis is a medium-sized anole, reaching about 150 mm in total length, most of it tail (maximum known snout-vent length = 59 mm). they are well-camouflaged due to a lichenose gray-brown dorsal pattern, which makes them difficult to detect as they adhere closely to the surface of mangrove trunks and branches. a red dewlap is present in both 242 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 gutsche one-day-old hatchling utila anole at the egg-laying site (tree hole in a rhizophora mangle root). natural habitat of norops utilensis at the type locality: a mixture of black (avicennia germinans) and red mangroves (rhizophora mangle). a common black hawk (buteogallus anthracinus) in the big bight, one of the areas where norops utilensis is known to occur. although these hawks typically prefer larger prey (including iguanas), they might occasionally take an anole. predation pressure from visual predators may contribute to the cryptic coloration and shy behavior of utila anoles. r o b er t po w el l iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 243world’s most endangered anole? males and females, but is much larger in males and forms a bright shining signal flag when they respond to intruders or advertise their presence to females. utila anoles are entirely arboreal and live and behave in a gecko-like fashion, pressing their bodies tightly against the substrate as they cling closely to the surface of mangrove trunks and twigs at heights ranging from 1–7 m above the waterlogged ground. like most anoles, females lay a single egg at a time, using suitable, detritus-filled tree holes. these tree holes are a limited resource within the mangroves; consequently, communal nesting appears to be common. although the local climate is strictly seasonal (with distinct wet and dry seasons), n. utilensis reproduces throughout the year. most reproductive activity occurs during the rainy season (when food is presumably most plentiful), but individuals quickly become reproductively active during periods in the dry season when favorable conditions exist. norops utilensis is not common in the mangrove swamps. since its discovery, only 13 specimens have been detected at two localities. due to the specialized and severely limited habitat, apparently low population sizes, and ongoing human threats to the habitat (e.g., deforestation and use of the mangrove swamps for solid waste disposal), n. utilensis meets all of the iucn red list criteria (http://www.redlist.org/info/categories_criteria.html) to qualify for critically endangered status. as for so many other threatened insular endemics, the best chances for long-term survival lie in controlling the size of the human population, education, and preservation of critical habitats (see iguana 10:28–37 and iguana 11:206–211 for additional pertinent information). references gutsche, a., j.r. mccranie, and k. nicholson. 2004. field observations on a nesting site of norops utilensis köhler, 1996 (reptilia, squamata) with comments about its conservation status. salamandra 40:297–302. köhler, g. 1996. a new species of anole of the norops pentaprion-group from isla de utila, honduras. senck. biol. 75:23–31. mccranie, j.r., l.d. wilson, and g. köhler. 2005. amphibians & reptiles of the bay islands and cayos cochinos, honduras. bibliomania!, salt lake city, utah. utila anoles are associated strictly with mangrove stands near the big bight. jo e b u r g es s utila anoles rely heavily on crypsis to avoid predators and rarely extend their dewlaps (see also inside front cover). iguana 12.1 snapping turtle conservation on the assumption that drivers were harvesting common snapping turtles (chelydra serpentina) crossing the roads, almost invariably females searching for nesting sites, tucker and lamer (2004. turtle and tortoise newsletter (8):10–11) examined sex ratios of turtles collected in three bodies of water in rural illinois, two near a heavily traveled road and one on a national wildlife refuge, isolated from heavy vehicular traffic. preliminary results indicated that the sex ratios in populations near the road where turtles are easily removed were heavily male-biased, whereas that of the population not subject to adventitious collecting was essentially 1:1. also, sex ratios of red-eared sliders (trachemys scripta), which presumably are not subject to collection for the cooking pot, were approximately 1:1 in all three lakes. the potential impact on the effective breeding size of the affected populations is severe. the authors recommended that the harvest of common snapping turtles during the nesting season (may and june in illinois) be prohibited and that similar surveys be conducted in other parts of the species’ range to determine the range of this problem. road mortality in european vipers in a study of road mortality of lataste’s viper (vipera latastei) and iberian adder (v. seoanei) in a portuguese national park, brito and álvares (2004. amphibiareptilia 25:459–465) reviewed a problem that affects many animals and proposed some ameliorating actions. they noted that road construction and accompanying vehicular traffic not only kill animals, but also change behavior, fragment habitats, create barriers, introduce pollutants, enhance the spread of exotic species, and increase human activity in fragile landscapes. affecting animals ranging from invertebrates to large mammals and aquatic, terrestrial, and aerial species, road mortality modifies the demography and population structure of species and affects the recovery of endangered species or contributes to the endangerment of others. local management strategies that could reduce the intensity of road mortality, at least in national parks or similar areas, include: (1) educational programs aimed primarily at children (see, however, the summary of gomez et al. 2004 on this page), (2) active removal of live animals from the roads, (3) studies identifying the areas where mortality is highest and erection of warning signs, barriers to block animals from entering those sections of road, and under-road passages to allow safe transit. classroom snake talks and attitudes toward conservation in a canadian study, gomez et al. (2004. herpetological review 35:338– 341) tested the assumption that class56 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 conservation research reports c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s snapping turtles are usually aquatic, rarely venturing out of the water. however, during the nesting season, females often range widely in search of suitable nesting sites. this adult female had recently emerged from a small lake when photographed. photograph by robert powell. reptiles are particularly vulnerable to road mortality due to thermoregulatory needs that favor the use of heat-retaining paved roads as heating surfaces, relatively slow locomotion, and migratory patterns exhibited by some species. this prairie kingsnake (lampropeltis calligaster) was killed in christian county, missouri. photograph by brian s. edmond. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 57conservation research reports room “snake talks” (interpretive programs) effectively alter grade-2 children’s attitudes toward snakes and conservation. results of the carefully designed study, implemented with full cooperation of the local public schools, showed that a “surprisingly high positive mean-attitude score” immediately and shortly after the presentations had returned to much lower pre-program levels within a week, and remained there until the end of the study two months later. the only exception to this general trend was an improved perception about touching snakes. “although this positive attitude change did not influence the students’ overall attitudes towards snakes, it still may have helped shape their ‘mental picture’ of them.” the authors suggested that interpretive programs should not be discontinued and that periodic revisiting of the topic might improve results, but that caution should prevail until additional, possibly longer-term studies address unanswered questions regarding the effectiveness of snake talks. endangered st. croix ground lizards on green cay the st. croix ground lizard (ameiva polops) was listed as endangered by the u.s. fish & wildlife service in 1977, and the population on green cay had not been surveyed since the mid-1990s. mcnair and lombard (2004. caribbean journal of science 40: 353–361) conducted surveys and conservatively estimated the population at 183 lizards, which suggested a decline in the long-term population size. the presence of lizards was positively associated with greater numbers of shrubs. ground lizards were more abundant than expected in forested areas in the southern half of the cay, but less numerous than anticipated on beaches. the authors recommended additional population surveys using a variety of methods to monitor the population and assess ongoing effects of hurricanes. (note that a pdf file of the entire article is available at www.caribjsci.org). tsd in river terrapins a long-standing conservation program in malaysia for the critically endangered river terrapin (batagur baska) may be hampered by the fact that clutches of headstarted animals raised from artificially incubated eggs and later released to the wild may be all male or all female. heng (2005. turtle survival alliance communiqué 2(1):1–2) described studies by dr. gerald kuchling, university of western australia, who used non-lethal endoscopy to examine animals from three headstart facilities on opposite coasts of malaysia. he concluded that animals from eggs incubated indoors in styrofoam boxes tended to be all male, whereas those produced by outdoor in-ground incubation were sometimes all female and sometimes a combination of both sexes, possibly reflecting the ambient temperatures in different years. incubation trials are being conducted to further investigate temperature-dependent sex determination (tsd) in this species. ameiva polops from green cay. photograph by amy mackay. (ms. mackay is a ph.d. candidate at the maryland cooperative fish and wildlife research unit, university of maryland eastern shore, and her dissertation deals with the green cay population of a. polops). critically endangered river terrapin (batagur baska). photograph by chris tabaka, dvm. attitude assessment instrument used to quantify children’s reactions. iguana 13.1 b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 61historical perspective raymond bridgman cowles (1896–1975) was born in south africa, but educated in the united states, receiving a doctorate from cornell in 1928. he spent most of his professional life at ucla, where he started out as an instructor in 1929 and became a full professor in 1947. important work, besides the paper covered here, includes a 1952 paper in science on infrared receptors of pit vipers and two books, zulu journal: field notes of a naturalist in south africa (1959) and desert journal: a naturalist reflects on arid california (1977). he retired in 1963 and died in 1975.1 charles mitchill bogert (1908–1992) was born in colorado and studied with raymond cowles at ucla, receiving his master’s degree in 1936. he then joined the american museum of natural history, where he eventually became the curator and chairman of the herpetology department. his collecting work took him to many parts of the world, and mexico was a particular favorite. in 1946, he became the first president of the herpetologists’ league, one of many posts he held for the major american herpetological societies. besides the thermoregulation studies for which he is most famous, bogert also published a 1956 monograph with rafael martín del campo, the gila monster and its allies, which was reprinted by ssar in 1993, and sounds of north american frogs, released by folkways records in 1958. he died in 1992.2 b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h charles bogert photographing a gila monster (heloderma suspectum). photograph courtesy of kraig adler. raymond cowles noosing a lizard. photograph courtesy of kraig adler. 1 for more information, see http://www.wku.edu/~smithch/ chronob/cowl1896.htm or copeia 1977:611–612. 2 for more information, see http://www.wku.edu/~smithch/ chronob/boge1908.htm or copeia 1993:264–266. artwork by david m. dennis from the cover of the 1974 reprint of this classic study. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 61 iguana 12.2 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 123historical perspectives dominica late in the afternoon ... we descried a speck dancing on the waves, which speck was, of course, a boat; and in that boat, when it reached us, i engaged passage for the shore, my unhappy companions drifting about until the next afternoon, sometimes in sight, sometimes lost of view for a long time. as we neared shore i had time to examine the character of the scenery of the western coast, as one object after another was unfolded, and the mass of green and blue resolved itself into wooded hills, narrow valleys, and misty mountain-tops that reached the clouds. a planter’s house gleamed white in a valley; a pebbly beach stretched between high bluffs, with a grove of cocoa palms half hiding a village of rude cabins along its border. i was approaching an island of historic interest and scenic beauty, of which the events of one and the elements of the other are little known to the world at large. it is the first island upon which columbus landed on his second voyage. having been first seen on sunday, it was called by him dominica, and this event dates from the 3d of november, 1493. blest isle of the sabbath day! many changes has it known since the great navigator first saw its blue mountains and landed upon its fragrant strand. does it read like a fairy tale, this second voyage of columbus? with three ships and fourteen caravels, containing fifteen hundred persons, he set sail from cadiz, touched at the canary isles, and then shaped his course for the islands of the caribs, of whose prowess and fierce nature he had heard many stories from the mild people of hispaniola. at the dawn of day, november 3d, a lofty island was descried to the west. as the ships moved gently onward, other islands rose to sight, one after another, covered with forests and enlivened by flights of parrots and other tropical birds, while the whole air was sweetened by the fragrance of the breezes which passed over them. grenada and the grenadines skirting the belt of mangroves bordering the lagoon, one morning in march, i anxiously searched the intertwined branches for iguanas. grenada is celebrated as being the home of great numbers of these reptiles, which may often be found basking on old walls within the limits of the town. my boatman was a negro, who, accustomed to the appearance of the iguana in the trees, discovered one long before i could distinguish the difference between the reptile and green leaves. even after it had been pointed out, i had difficulty in recognizing it, so nearly did its colors harmonize with those of the tree in which it was feeding. it lay quite still, stretched flat upon a branch, its tail hanging down like that of a snake. though it was evidently suspicious of our intentions, its quiet was not due to that alone, for it is normally a sluggish animal. yet, when once thoroughly aroused, it will dash over the ground at great speed. i fired, yet it still clung tenaciously to the bough, and a second shot did not kill it, for it would have escaped had not my boatman pinned it with an oar, after it had fallen into the mud. from one that we captured that morning, the man with me procured a dozen large, white eggs, which he saved to eat.… the order sauria, the lizard order, is well represented in the west indies, though in none of the smaller islands between porto rico and trinidad is to be found that greatest of the saurians, the alligator. the indians of dominica, to whom i described the alligator, were greatly amazed to hear of a ‘lizard’ twelve feet in length, as they had never seen one larger than an iguana, which seldom attains a greater length than five feet, and is as mild in disposition as the alligator is sanguinary. the islands, especially the shores, are teeming with lizards of every color, of every variety of marking, and of all sizes. especially do they love the cliffs, and if you are walking through the bushes at the base of any sunny precipice, or over any rocky tract, you will be startled by the frequent dashes made by these reptiles across your path. in a country where you must keep every sense on the alert, to guard against sudden surprise by serpents or poisonous insects, it is very annoying, often startling, to be so frequently disturbed by these active creatures. in the mountains are fewer species, and they are more sluggish, but h i s t o r i c a l p e r s e c t i v e s camps in the caribbees: the adventures of a naturalist in the lesser antilles1 frederick a. ober 1 excerpted from the book with this title published initially in 1879. a saban iguana (iguana iguana), “i had difficulty in recognizing it, so nearly did its colors harmonize with those of the tree in which it was feeding.” g le n n g er b er 124 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 in the warm lowlands you must be very active to capture one…. they are not poisonous, though repulsive to many, and though some of them will bite severely, they do not inflict dangerous wounds. there are many hideous forms, especially among those of south america, like the basilisk and the flying dragon; but in the west indies there is none more hideous than the iguana. never was more harmless creature invested with more frightening aspect…. in the islands where it exists it is eagerly sought as food, and its flesh is palatable and delicate, as i can testify from experience, being white, tender, and nutritious. the good father père labat (worthy missionary and bon vivant withal) compares fricasseed guana to chicken for the whiteness of its flesh and delicacy of its flavor.… some summer days in martinique centipedes and scorpions also abound here. indeed, it seems that nature has bestowed upon this island of martinique all the pests and scourges known to these islands; for only here and in the adjacent island of st. lucia is found that most venomous and vengeful of all serpents, the lance-head snake craspedocephalus lanceolatus [= bothrops lanceolatus]. the isolation of this snake on these two islands, when its nearest habitat is guiana, is one of the most vexing stumbling-blocks to one studying the distribution of animals. how came it here? was it introduced, or is it indigenous? was it wafted here upon some floating tree, or was its home here from the beginning? the correct solution of this problem would, doubtless, throw some light upon that more important and gigantic one, were these islands once a part of the continents? certain it is, the adjacent islands of dominica and st. vincent, separated from these channels less than thirty miles in width, are free from this scourge. nay, more; it is recorded that, during the wars between the english and the caribs, in the last century, the lance-head was carried to the islands just named, but could not be made to live. annually, during the crop season, many laborers are killed in each island, for this snake has its hiding-places in the canes as well as the forests. it has been so abundant that in this garden the pleasant walks and shady drives are nearly always deserted. a serpent over seven feet in length, killed in the garden, is shown in the museum. there is, it is said, no antidote for its bite…. the poison is quickly fatal, and decomposition rapidly follows…. the dread of the serpent is universal. it seems to possess a hatred for man; and it is seriously avowed by the natives that it will lie in wait for an opportunity to inflict death. the country people live in continual trepidation, and very few of them will venture from their houses after dark, even in the suburbs of the city. historical perspectives fer-de-lance (bothrops lanceolatus), “the dread of the serpent is universal. it seems to possess a hatred for man; and it is seriously avowed by the natives that it will lie in wait for an opportunity to inflict death.” h a n s e. a . b o o s “the islands, especially the shores, are teeming with lizards of every color, of every variety of marking, and of all sizes.” anolis aeneus from union island (the grenadines) (left) and a. richardii from grenada. r o b er t po w el l st. pierre, martinique in 1888, 14 years before the eruption of mt. pelee, “indeed, it seems that nature has bestowed upon this island of martinique all the pests and scourges known to these islands; for only here and in the adjacent island of st. lucia is found that most venomous and vengeful of all serpents, the lance-head snake…” (lanceheads from martinique, st. lucia, and mainland south and central america are now considered separate species). photograph courtesy of philip walwyn iguana 12.2 b&w text 78 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 bradley and gerber male cyclura pinguis (no. 9) one year after the initial release. this iguana traveled only about 13 m from the original release site on middle cay. k el ly b r a d le y natural history herbivorous rock iguanas (iguanidae: cyclura) occur only in the west indies. the critically endangered anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis) is one of the largest species in the genus. adults can grow to 550 mm in snout-vent length (svl) and weigh up to 7 kg (carey 1975). genetic studies have shown this species to be the most basal of extant lineages (malone et al. 2000). the extent of the historical range is uncertain. the species is known to have occurred on puerto rico, where cave fossils date from 15,000–20,000 years ago, before the arrival of humans (pregill 1981). fossil evidence also has been found on st. thomas (u.s. virgin islands). these remains, however, are associated with native american middens (miller 1918). whether these remains were imported or collected locally is unknown. regardless, presumably before europeans arrived in the americas, the anegada iguana became restricted to the island of anegada in what is now the british virgin islands (bvi). since 1984, the species’ range has been expanded through the introduction of iguanas from anegada to guana, necker, and, most recently, norman island, all three of which are also in the bvi (goodyear and lazell 1994, lazell 1995). these islands are privately owned and afford these established populations some protection from threats facing the population on anegada. these satellite populations appear to be thriving, and serve as a hedge against extinction for the species as a whole. on anegada, iguanas typically are found in two habitat types, sandy scrub or rocky woodland. sandy scrub is characconservation of the anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis) kelly a. bradley1 and glenn p. gerber2 1department of herpetology, dallas zoo, dallas, tx 75203, usa (kbradle@mail.ci.dallas.tx.us) 2conservation and research for endangered species, zoological society of san diego, san diego, ca 92112, usa abstract.—the long-term survival of the anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis) is uncertain. the species is in danger of becoming extinct due to habitat destruction, competition with feral livestock, and the introduction of non-native mammalian predators. in an effort to save the anegada iguana, the iucn iguana specialist group and the british virgin islands national parks trust began a concerted conservation effort in 1997. they initiated a headstart program in order to bolster the wild population until many of the problems facing the iguanas can be minimized or removed. headstarted iguanas were released back into the wild in october of 2003 and 2004. this paper briefly reviews the natural history of c. pinguis and presents some preliminary results from the ongoing long-term monitoring of the subadult iguanas reintroduced to the wild. key words: anegada iguana, cyclura pinguis, british virgin islands, conservation, headstarting, reintroduction, radiotelemetry iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 79anegada iguana � jo h n b in n s terized by small to medium-sized woody shrubs, grasses, and some larger trees. vegetation can be very dense and can limit access in some areas. in this habitat, iguanas dig burrows for retreats. rocky woodland has a limestone substrate with many holes and crevices that iguanas use as retreats. vegetation is composed of some smaller shrubs, tall mature trees, and cacti. vegetation at both sites supplies iguanas with food (leaves and fruit), shade, and retreats. reproductive activity is tied to seasonal changes that promote a high hatch rate (alberts 2000, harris 1982, rand and green 1982, wiewandt 1982). the mating season falls in may and june. females dig nests from late june through july, shortly after the spring rains, when the ground is soft. temperatures are high during the summer 90-day incubation period. hatchlings emerge during the wet fall, when food resources are most abundant (gerber 2000). females can lay up to 20 eggs, although the average is 13. the reproductive strategy of producing fewer but larger offspring is the result of evolving in a predator-poor environment. this strategy, however, renders the species very vulnerable to introduced predators that target juveniles. in contrast, the green iguana (iguana iguana), which evolved in the predator-rich environments of central and south america, can produce clutches of fifty eggs. consequently, introduced green iguanas can become established even on islands with effective predators such as cats and mongooses. conservation status and major threats the red list of the international union for the conservation of nature and natural resources currently lists c. pinguis as “critically endangered” (iucn 2004) and the species is listed in appendix i by the convention on the international trade of endangered species of wild fauna and flora (cites 2004). recent population estimates suggest that the anegada iguana has suffered an 80% decline in numbers since the late 1960s (mitchell 1999). accurately estimating population size is difficult because of the species’ secretive nature and fragmented population. the most recent estimates are 200 wild adults and 44 repatriated iguanas on anegada (gerber 2004) plus 80 individuals currently in the headstart facility (walker, pers. comm.), 130 on guana, and 30 on necker (perry and mitchell 2003). these low numbers suggest that c. pinguis is one of the most endangered lizards in the world. cyclura pinguis faces many threats. human encroachment is destroying the remaining habitat. an ongoing controversy over land ownership on anegada has resulted in many of the long-term residents being unable to acquire clear title to land on which they have lived for generations, and many locals have negative feelings toward establishing a large national park that incorporates most of the core iguana area. a portion of the core iguana area on anegada is within a ramsar site (ramsar convention on wetlands), which is internationally protected wetland. however, the most productive nesting area for the remaining population is currently unprotected. a second major threat to the survival of c. pinguis is the large feral livestock population. large herds of cattle, donkeys, goats, and sheep range freely. simply by stepping on them, live80 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 bradley and gerber a hatchling cyclura pinguis emerges from a nest that was excavated in july by a female in the bones bight area of anegada. k el ly b r a d le y the staff of the british virgin islands national trust (nevil vanterpoole, raymond walker, and rondel smith) and sylvia faulkner, a local resident who participated in the release of headstarted iguanas back into the wild. le e pa g n i fort worth zoo veterinarians surgically place transmitters into the coelomic cavity of each iguana. k el ly b r a d le y stock can collapse burrows and nest chambers, which can result in the death of an animal or an entire clutch of eggs. secondly, livestock is a significant competitor for food. vegetation is severely overbrowsed, and the plants not consumed by livestock come to dominate large sections of habitat, where the flora has been completely degraded. the result is vegetation that is used by neither mammals nor iguanas. the most immediate threat to the survival of c. pinguis is the feral cat (felis catus), a very effective predator of iguanas (iverson 1978). each fall, when hatchling iguanas emerge from their nests, feral cats prey on the naïve iguanas, resulting in high juvenile mortality. as a result, the wild population on anegada is made up almost entirely of older adults, with other age classes virtually absent. in the late 1990s, the british virgin islands national parks trust (bvinpt) contacted the iucn iguana specialist group regarding the creation of a conservation plan modeled after the jamaican iguana headstart program. the c. pinguis headstart program was established in 1997, when rondel smith of the bvinpt found three hatchlings floating in manhead pond. in cooperation with the isg, a captive facility was constructed on anegada to serve as a safe place for hatchling iguanas to be raised. this headstart facility has expanded over the years and currently houses over 80 iguanas. each july, nesting females are located and their nests are marked. the bvinpt then places protective barriers around each nest. hatchlings are collected in october and transferred to the headstart facility, where the iguanas are raised in a protective environment by the bvinpt until they are large enough to survive in the wild at relatively little risk from feral cats. the first release of anegada iguanas back into the wild was designed to answer several questions: (1) what is the smallest body size at which an iguana can survive cat predation? (2) what habitat type correlates with the highest survival rates? (3) can compromised habitat with feral livestock support additional iguanas? (4) can iguanas adapt to living in the wild after spending the first four to six years in captivity? methods study animals.—forty-eight iguanas were selected from the headstart facility on anegada during a pre-release health screening. these animals had been in the facility from four to six years. the health screenings consisted of physical exams, blood chemistry analyses, and fecal analyses. these were performed by the fort worth zoo veterinary staff as part of a five-year, multispecies, health-screening project funded by a morris animal iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 81anegada iguana a rare hatchling cyclura pinguis was captured along the road near pomato point on anegada. this individual was transferred to the headstart facility after being weighed and measured and having a blood sample taken for genetic studies. le e pa g n i foundation grant to bonnie raphael and rick hudson. all health screenings followed the guidelines for pre-release screening adopted by the isg. after passing the health screening, animals underwent surgery to implant radio-transmitters. a transmitter was surgically placed in the coelomic cavity of each animal prior to release by veterinary staff of the fort worth and bronx zoos. two radiotransmitter models manufactured by holohil systems, ltd. (ontario, canada) were used. twelve animals were implanted with model si-2, which weighed 9.3 g and had a projected battery life of 12–14 months. thirty-six animals were implanted with model ai-2t, which weighed 16 g and had a projected battery life of 24–26 months. each transmitter type provided both directional and temperature data. all transmitters were less than 1% of the average subject mass. the smaller transmitters were used in the smaller iguanas (<1200 g). morphometric data (svl, tail length, mass, head width, head length, and largest crest scale length) were recorded for each animal prior to release. animals were uniquely marked by using colored glass beads attached to nuchal crest scales. additionally, each animal also had an identification number painted on each side of its body using t-shirt bubble paint. after a recovery period of 5–10 days, the iguanas were released into the wild. to experimentally determine the optimal body size of headstarted iguanas for release back into the wild, we released a variety of sizes (table). in 2003, we released 24 animals ranging in mass from 750–2050 g. in 2004, we released another 24 iguanas ranging in mass from 597–1590 g. we released equal numbers of male and female iguanas at each site in both years. release sites.—each year, we released iguanas at two sites where wild iguanas were present prior to the release. iguanas were transported from the headstart facility and released in the early morning. each year, half of the iguanas were released on middle cay, one of the large peninsulas located in the western salt ponds. the substrate on middle cay is eroded limestone filled with solution holes and crevices. iguanas typically use the rock crevices and sink holes for retreats. vegetation is mostly xerophytic thorn forest, with the principle plants being “pokemeboy” (acacia anegadensis), loblolly (pisonia subcordata), and cactus (melocactus intortus) (carey 1975, mitchell 1999). the second release site is the faulkner site, located in the bones bight area. the faulkner site, part of the dune system on the northwestern shore, is a coastal scrub habitat with a sand substrate. iguanas typically dig burrows in the sand to use as retreats. vegetation is fairly dense, and principal plants are torchwood (dodonaea viscose), sea grape (coccoloba uvifera), and black candlewood (erithalis fruiticosa) (carey 1972, mitchell 1999). both sites are within the remaining core iguana area and are encompassed within the ramsar site, affording the iguanas some degree of protection. all of the animals were released in the same location at each study site on approximately the same day in 82 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 bradley and gerber table. initial mass of headstarted cyclura pinguis at time of release for the 2003 and 2004 study groups. mass in g. 2003 release 2004 release middle cay faulkner site middle cay faulkner site sex mass sex mass sex mass sex mass m 2050 m 1900 m 1540 m 1590 m 1300 m 1590 m 1340 m 1150 m 1200 m 1170 m 1040 m 950 f 1420 f 1360 f 1160 f 1160 f 1400 f 1360 f 1040 f 1060 f 1250 f 1290 f 950 f 980 m 1150 m 1250 m 760 m 930 m 1000 m 910 m 750 m 710 m 860 m 890 m 605 m 680 f 1200 f 1285 f 860 f 870 f 890 f 880 f 665 f 685 f 800 f 750 f 665 f 597 kelly bradley manually tracking iguanas at the faulkner study site. le e pa g n i iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 83anegada iguana early october, during the peak of the wet season, corresponding to natural hatching periods when food resources are presumably most abundant. post-release monitoring.—animals were manually tracked for the first 30 days after initial release in october. post-release monitoring trips lasting two to three weeks were made at 60 days, 120 days, 180 days, 270 days, and 360 days post-release during the first year for a total of 125 days of monitoring. animals that have a two-year battery transmitter will also be tracked at 420 days, 510 days, 570 days, 630 days, and 720 days for a total of 204 days of monitoring. animals were located daily, using a yagi antenna and a tx1001 receiver. each time an animal was sighted, its location was recorded using a trimble geo xt gps unit. in addition to manual tracking, a telemetry station was installed at the faulkner site. the telemetry station consists of a televit rx-900 scanner/receiver/data logger attached to four directional antennae on a 20-foot metal pole. during fieldtrips, the unit continuously records data, spending one minute on each iguana’s frequency. each time a frequency is detected, the unit records which antenna(e) responded, the strength of the signal, the pulse period relating to internal body temperature, and the time and date. we conducted focal animal observations on one individual each day. iguanas were observed for 45 minutes. observation periods occurred throughout the day to determine temporal patterns. data were collected on diet, habitat use, activity periods, and interactions with wild adults. virtually all animals were recaptured 60 days post-release. for each captured animal, we recorded morphometric data, body temperature, presence and location of ectoparasites, body condition, and surgical incision-site condition. identification numbers on the animals were reapplied and glass beads reattached, if necessary. we also attempted to recapture iguanas during subsequent monitoring trips, however, iguanas quickly learned the capture techniques, and new techniques had to be used. as a result, recaptures were not always successful. at various time, we used noose poles, large fishnets, and live traps. all animals were released at the point of capture. we collected all fecal deposits found in the field to document the diet and seasonal changes in diet of the headstarted iguanas as compared to the diet of wild adults. a size difference in fecal boluses from wild adults and the much smaller headstarted animals made the distinction obvious. results this is an ongoing project and information presented here is only an overview of results to date. data will continue to be taken through october 2006 or until transmitter batteries die. 2003 release.—sixteen months after initial release in october 2003, 83% of individuals survived. of the four animals lost, two from each site, three were males, and all were of medium size (890–1170 g). one female was found dead on middle cay two days after the initial release, and the death was attributable to complications from surgery. a second mortality occurred after 60 days for reasons unknown; only the transmitter was recovered. a thorough search of the area was made, but the carcass was not recovered. this animal was the smallest male released at the faulkner site, and also had traveled the farthest from the original release site. the last time this animal was observed alive, at the end of october 2003, it was approximately 322 m south of the point of release. rondel smith of the national trust saw the animal for another two weeks, but was unable to locate it after that time. two mortalities were discovered during the march monitoring trip. after 195 days, the transmitter of a medium-sized kelly bradley and glenn gerber measure and weigh each iguana prior to release. le e pa g n i kelly bradley and glenn gerber paint an identification number on a male iguana before he is released back into the wild at the faulkner study site. le e pa g n i male was found at the faulkner site. the transmitter appeared to be damaged by rats. we assumed that rats or large land crabs scavenged the carcass. the second mortality was another medium-sized male found in a rock crevice on middle cay. the animal was found alive, but in very poor shape. the animal was captured, but died on its way to the local veterinarian. this death occurred 202 days after initial release. a subsequent necropsy conducted by shannon ferrell, d.v.m., of the fort worth zoo, showed that this animal had ample fat reserves, but significant muscle atrophy, especially along the dorsal ridge and rear legs. the necropsy clearly showed no signs of granuloma formation or inflammation associated with the transmitter. the iguana had begun to wall off the transmitter with an almost transparent membrane. no clear cause of death was established. animals at the two sites moved similar distances from the release point. the shortest and longest distances moved by animals on middle cay were 13 m and 391 m. the respective distances for the faulkner site were 22 m and 322 m. the farthest distance one animal moved in a single 24-hour period was 286 m. approximately 26 gps points were recorded for each of the surviving 2003 animals, indicating that the iguanas had spread out evenly in their respective field sites. 2004 release.—the second group released in 2004 has been tracked for five months with 92% surviving. one animal from middle cay died at 60 days. the animal was a male with a mass at release of 760 g. no carcass was found; only the transmitter was recovered. a second dead iguana was discovered on middle cay five months after release. this female had an original mass of 860 g. the carcass was recovered, but it had been severely scavenged. the animal was deposited at the bvinpt and will undergo necropsy at a later date. future plans we hope to release a third group of iguanas from the headstart facility during october 2005. we plan to release eight animals of a smaller size class. because the five smallest iguanas released in 2003 are still alive 16 months after release, we believe that we have not yet determined the smallest size at which an iguana can survive in the wild while exposed to potential predation by feral cats. the minimum size of the 2003 release iguanas was 750 g; the minimum size for the 2004 release was 597g. we propose to release animals with a mass as low as 450 g in 2005. by incrementally decreasing the size of released iguanas, we should be able to determine the optimum size for release. this would 84 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 bradley and gerber iguana no. 4, three months after release on middle cay of anegada. k el ly b r a d le y points on the map represent locations where headstarted iguanas have been sighted during the first 10 months after initial release in october 2003. our initial prediction was that the smallest individuals would suffer the highest mortality. instead, iguanas of medium size died. the gray dot represents an animal that died due to complications from surgery. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 85anegada iguana enable the bvinpt to minimize an individual’s time in the headstart facility, and maximize the number of iguanas being brought through the headstart facility. the information gained from this study will optimize the efficiency of the headstart program and thus bolster the remaining wild population at a maximum rate in future years. acknowledgements we thank the following institutions for their financial support of this project: pittsburgh zoological society, chicago herpetological society, john ball zoological society, rhode island zoological society, cleveland metroparks zoo, international iguana foundation, morris animal foundation, dallas zoo, dallas zoological society, fort worth zoo, and san diego zoo. we thank the entire staff of the british virgin islands national parks trust for their assistance with this project: joseph smith abbott, ester george, raymond walker, nancy woodfield, lee vanterpoole, rondel smith, and nevel vanterpoole. we also thank the following people for their help: allison alberts, rick hudson, lee pagni, jeff lemm, jeanette boylan, cynthia bennett, and the fort worth and bronx zoo’s veterinary staff: drs. shannon ferrell, a.j. marlar, nancy lung, bonnie raphael, and sandra leel. the staff of the dallas zoo reptile department provided support and contributions to the project: ruston hartdegen, matt watson, michael burger, bradley lawrence, samantha snavely, jessica crowely, ryan steele, as did clay garrett of the fort worth zoo. kim harding, kerri mitchell, joe wasilewski, elyse kitterman, andrew brinker, and carol andersen helped in the field. references alberts, a.c. (ed.). 2000. west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn–the world conservation union, gland switzerland. carey, w.m. 1972. the herpetology of anegada, british virgin islands. caribbean journal of science 12:79–89. carey, w.m. 1975. the rock iguana, cyclura pinguis, on anegada, british virgin islands, with notes on cyclura ricordi and cyclura cornuta on hispaniola. bulletin of the florida state museum of biological sciences 19:189–233. cites. 2004. appendices i, ii, and iii to the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora. reprinted by the united states fish and wildlife service, washington, district of columbia. gerber, g.p. 2000. conservation of the anegada iguana, cyclura pinguis: field research report. unpublished report to the british virgin islands national parks trust, flora and fauna international, and the zoological society of san diego, san diego, california. gerber, g.p. 2004. an update on the ecology and conservation of cyclura pinguis on anegada. iguana 11:23–26. goodyear, n.c. and j. lazell. 1994. status of a relocated population of endangered iguana pinguis on guana island, british virgin islands. restoration ecology 2:43–50. harris, d.m. 1982. the phenology, growth, and survival of the green iguana, iguana iguana, in northern columbia, pp. 150–161. in: g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes, park ridge, new jersey. iucn. 2004. red list of threatened animals. international union for the conservation of nature and natural resources, gland, switzerland. iverson, j.b. 1978. the impact of feral cats and dogs on populations of the west indian rock iguana, cyclura carinata. biological conservation 14:63–73. lazell, j. 1995. natural necker. the conservation agency occasional paper (2):1–28. malone, c.l., a. wheeler, j.f. taylor, and s.k. davis. 2000. phylogeography of the caribbean rock iguana (cyclura): implications for conservation and insights on the biogeographic history of the west indies. molecular phylogenetics and evolution 17:269–279. miller, g.s. 1918. mammals and reptiles collected by theodore de booy in the virgin islands. proceedings of the united states national museum 54:407–511. mitchell, n.c. 1999. effect of introduced ungulates on density, dietary preferences, home range, and physical condition of the iguana (cyclura pinguis) on anegada. herpetologica 55:7–17 perry, g. and n. mitchell, n. 2003. guana and necker island population assessments 2002. iguana 10:49. pregill, g. 1981. late pleistocene herpetofaunas from puerto rico. university of kansas museum of natural history miscellaneous publication (71):1–72. rand, a.s. and h.w. greene. 1982. latitude and climate in the phenology of reproduction in the green iguana (iguana iguana), pp. 142–49. in: g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes, park ridge, new jersey. wiewandt, t.a. 1982. evolution of nesting patterns in iguanine lizards, pp. 119–141. in: g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes, park ridge, new jersey. author biographies kelly bradley is a senior research technician for the dallas zoo, reptile department, and a masters student at the university of texas at arlington. kelly has fifteen years experience in zoo herpetology, and is a member of the iucn iguana specialist group. she has worked on field projects with caribbean rock iguanas for eleven years, and became involved with the anegada iguana recovery project in 2001. glenn gerber, ph.d., is a millennium postdoctoral fellow, zoological society of san diego conservation and research for endangered species. dr. gerber has thirteen years of experience conducting conservation and research projects on caribbean rock iguanas. he is an active member of the iucn iguana specialist group and serves on the steering committee. iguana 11.4 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 247reptile quarantine the “animals are in quarantine” is a term often used by veterinarians — but what is the purpose of quarantine? why is it important to herpetologists? what are the important components of an effective quarantine protocol? quarantine can serve as a time for animals new to a population to adjust to a new environment and diet and to recover from the stresses of translocation. however, more importantly, quarantine isolates a sick animal from healthy ones and serves to prevent the introduction of an infectious disease into one reptile population from another. the introduction could be from one private or public collection to another, pet shop to a private collector, one zoo to another, wild caught animals to a captive population, or captive animals being reintroduced into the wild. many infectious diseases pose a risk to reptiles. because effective therapy does not exist for many of these disease organisms, preventing their introduction into a population is very important. diseases or infectious agents of concern include ticks, mites, coccidiosis, cryptosporidiosis, amoebiasis, roundworms, herpesvirus, paramyxovirus, mycoplasma, and inclusion body disease. reptiles from different regions of the world (e.g., western versus eastern hemispheres) should not be placed in the same enclosure. their gastrointestinal tracts may support a different h u s b a n d r y drawing blood for a complete blood count, chemistries, and serological tests should be part of any pre-shipment, post-shipment, and release from quarantine protocol. here blood is drawn from a vein on the underside of the tail of a mona island iguana. reptile quarantine tim reichard, ms, dvm animal health and nutrition department, toledo zoological gardens, toledo, ohio 43614 photographs by the author. weighing a mona island iguana; body weight is a crude but accurate indicator of condition. low weight may indicate poor prior care of a health problem that must be identified and treated. flora or suite of organisms, and their immune systems may be naïve toward each other’s disease organisms. quarantined animals must be physically isolated from any other populations at risk. ideally, housing is in a separate building or outside pen. if not in a separate building, animals are sufficiently isolated in order to prevent physical contact, aerosol or drainage contamination, and transmission of disease-producing agents via bedding, tools, or other inanimate objects. when feasible, animals should be housed individually. the area should be self-contained and easy to clean and disinfect. the animal caretaker should not be in daily contact with the rest of the reptile collection. if designating a separate caretaker is not feasible, care for quarantined animals should be scheduled at the end of the day, after all others are serviced. a separate set of feeding and cleaning utensils are used only in the quarantine area. protective clothing such as disposable gloves, coveralls, and boot covers are worn at the quarantine location. when possible, animals should be examined by a veterinarian before translocation to quarantine. shipment and adjustment to new environments stress animals in many ways. only healthy animals should be shipped, but this precaution is not always enforced. prior to shipping, each animal should be identified, given a complete physical examination, weighed, feces checked for parasites, and blood drawn for a complete blood count, chemistries, and serological tests. any disease concerns are addressed before animals are shipped, preferably with a medical history documenting any problems and all treatments. upon arrival at the quarantine facility, every animal should again be examined, weighed, and have its medical history reviewed. any transport materials such as crates, cloth bags, and packing materials are disinfected immediately or discarded. each animal is provided a proper thermal and light environment, shelter, hiding spots, basking locations, appropriate climbing structures, and enrichment items as appropriate. introduction 248 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 reichard corneal lesions, such as on this mona island iguana (cyclura cornuta stejnegeri), can be symptomatic of several different health problems that should be diagnosed and treated during quarantine. conducting an ophthalmic examination on a mona island iguana. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 249reptile quarantine to the diet is done gradually by replacing food items from the previous diet with new ones. a quarantine period of at least 90 days is recommended. this is usually enough time for clinical signs of disease to be manifested. ninety days also allows time for seroconversion (development of antibodies in response to natural infection or to the administration of a vaccine) in those animals where a serological test is available to determine if exposure to a disease has occurred. for example, blood is routinely drawn from snakes twice during the quarantine period to check for the presence of antibodies to paramyxovirus. the best program is also one in which all new animals come into the facility at the same time and leave at the same time. during the quarantine period, at least two additional fecal samples should be evaluated. after animals have adjusted to their new surroundings, medical tests not completed during the preshipment exam are performed or, in some instances, repeated. medical records are updated. daily observations are recorded for food consumption, fecal characteristics, abnormal behaviors, and body condition. an animal that dies in quarantine should be submitted for a necropsy, including the submission of tissues from various organs for histopathology evaluation, in order to identify the cause so that steps can be taken to prevent reoccurrence. at the end of the quarantine period, animals are weighed and given another physical examination. only healthy animals leave quarantine. if needed, the quarantine period may be extended until all disease concerns are addressed. references dutton, c. j. 2003. lizard pre-shipment/quarantine/preventative medicine guidelines. personal communication, august 2003. jacobson, e. r., p. morris, t. m. norton, and k. wright. 2001. quarantine. journal of herpetological medicine and surgery 11:24–30. mader, d. r., 1996. reptile medicine and surgery. w. b. saunders company, philadelphia. reichard, t. a. 2001. toledo zoological society animal quarantine procedures. unpublished materials, toledo zoo. conducting an oral examination on a mona island iguana. iguana 12.3 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 177monitors the family of monitors is monotypic, and all living members belong to the genus varanus. the genus is subdivided into nine subgenera. two distinct geographical radiations have been identified (böhme 1988a, 1993). the afro-asian radiation includes the subgenera psammosaurus, empagusia, philippinosaurus, and polydaedalus. the indo-australian radiation includes the subgenera odatria, varanus, papusaurus, euprepiosaurus, and soterosaurus. monitors are restricted in distribution to the old world, where they inhabit the tropical and subtropical climatic zones of africa, asia minor, south and southeast asia, australia, and the indo-australian archipelago. australia appears to be a significant hub for monitors worldwide, with 25 species and ten subspecies in three subgenera. monitors occupy almost all habitats: they live in sandy deserts, open savannas, and even tropical rain forests. rivers and lakes are used as habitat refugia by some species. monitors can be categorized by their preferred habitat. these include: water monitors, ground-, rock-, and tree-dwellers. all monitors share certain characters. they all have a completely ossified skull, which makes it possible for them to swallow large food items without the risk of pressure on the brain. the throat can be enlarged by raising the hyoid cartilage appah u s b a n d r y captive care of monitors1 part i: introduction and housing bernd eidenmüller frankfurt, germany 1 adapted by aj gutman from b. eidenmuller, monitors: natural history — captive care — breeding. herpeton verlag, offenbach, germany. juvenile varanus kingorum. this small species needs a rocky habitat equipped with many hiding places. ratus, helping them to swallow food. this inflation of the gular region increases the overall body size, and also acts to help intimidate enemies or impress rivals. all monitors have four limbs with five toes that are equipped with strong, backward-curving claws. the head is situated on a long neck, the eyes have round pupils, a distinct tympanum is clearly developed, and the tongue is very long and deeply forked. using the tongue, monitors extract minute particles from the air or substrate and convert these into a traceable scent using chemoreceptors in jacobson’s organ, which consists of a pair of pits in the roof of the mouth into which the tips of the forked tongue are inserted. these cues can be used to detect food, rivals, or sexual partners. the difference in size between the largest (komodo dragon, v. komodoensis, from the island of komodo, length to 350 cm, weight 150 kg) and smallest (the short-tailed monitor, v. brevicauda, from australia, length about 23 cm, weight about 20 g) living monitors spans almost four orders of magnitude (i.e., v. komodoensis is 7500 times heavier than v. brevicauda). this represents the largest size disparity between vertebrates within a single genus in the world. care as some species of monitors can reach both substantial total length and body mass, potential keepers must carefully consider the amount of space needed to properly maintain these animals. most enthusiasts are limited in the size of enclosures they are able to provide. given such constraints, the monitors in the subgenera odatria and euprepiosaurus are the most appropriate, although nearly all species within these subgenera are from either australia or the indonesian islands. the export of monitors from australia is strictly forbidden, and export from indonesia is very restricted. therefore, captive-bred animals must be sought. these animals are legal and offered regularly in fairly large numbers. which species suits me? deciding which species to purchase should be guided by the amount of space you have available for an enclosure and the amount of money you are prepared to pay. if you purchase a relatively inexpensive monitor such as the water monitor (v. salvator) from a pet shop, you need to be aware that this animal, if properly fed, has the potential to grow to more than two meters in less than two years. it will very quickly outgrow that small enclosure in the living room. furnishing the enclosure should be another consideration. preferably, the enclosure should be set up to mimic the type of habitat and climate that your particular species of monitor would encounter in the wild. in most monitor species, the sexes are almost impossible to differentiate. although a degree of sexual dimorphism (variable size and color) exists in some species, this tends to be the exception rather than the rule. many lizards and snakes are easily sexed by inserting a rounded probe into the hemipenial pockets at the base of the tail. the probe slides posteriorly into the pouch in the direction of the tail tip. the length of the inserted probe is used to determine sex, with males having a deeper probe depth than females. this method is not appropriate for sexing monitors, as females have a similar pouch at the base of the tail, which is the mirror of the hemipenial pocket of the male. this hemipenial structure in the female has been described as the hemiclitoris (böhme 1995, ziegler and böhme 1996a). similarly, the clusters of spines located at the base of the tail in some monitor species do not always indicate sex. in v. tristis, this feature is prominent in males but not females. in order to be 100% certain of sex in monitors, a reptile veterinarian must perform an endoscopic inspection of individual animals (schildger and wicker 1992, schildger et al. 1993). captive-bred animals obtained from a private breeder are generally healthy and should present few maintenance problems. wild-caught animals from reptile dealers are very often of inferior quality; these animals are likely to be highly stressed from capture and transport. although the initial cost may be a little higher, captive-bred animals are likely to be much more costeffective in the long term. the exception is for species new to the market, which may not as yet have been bred in sufficient numbers for their breeding biology to have become understood by specialist keepers who will eventually make them available as captive-bred progeny. opportunistic infections often appear in parallel with parasitic infestations, thus wild-caught animals should be observed for at least six weeks in a quarantine enclosure following acquisition, without exception. during this period, feces should be collected and examined by a reptile veterinarian for parasites. medication should not be administered without direct instructions from a reptile veterinarian. visible external injuries should also be referred to a veterinarian. problems seldom appear with captive-bred animals, although some exceptions to this may 178 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 eidenmüller juvenile varanus glauerti basking in a terrarium. juvenile varanus storri are often aggressive towards cagemates and must be raised separately. iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 179monitors become apparent as more and more people keep monitors as pets. varanus storri, for example, should be housed individually and paired only for the breeding season, as they tend to fight. the wide geographic distribution of some monitors presents another problem. a visual inspection of a wild-caught animal will not necessarily reveal its point of origin. with considerable climatic divergence within the distribution ranges of some monitors, problems may occur in synchronizing mating with seasonal differences between locations. a v. tristis from kingoonya in south australia may mate at one time of the year and the same species from daly waters, some 2000 km north in the tropics, may mate at another time of year. thus, even when two animals of the same species are paired, breeding success can remain elusive. with captive-bred animals, this does not appear to be a big problem, nor with animals that are long-term captives (i.e., three years or more). to date, little attention has been paid to the territoriality of monitors. in captivity, one animal simply cannot be replaced with another. monitors have an acute sense of smell and any new intruder in the cage is immediately recognized, a phenomenon i have observed in v. storri. when a new animal is introduced into a cage, it immediately begins to tongue-flick to investigate the entire enclosure. in several places within the cage, it will rub its cloaca, presumably to mark its territory, as well as to inform rivals and sexual partners living in the area/enclosure of its presence (eidenmüller 1993). the enclosure the goal of every responsible private keeper should be to strive for species-specific care for his or her captive monitors. each species will have different needs in terms of climate (including temperature, lighting and humidity), housing, and diet. the captive habitat should be set up to simulate as closely as possible the natural environment of its inhabitant(s). obviously, attempting to recreate natural elements such as flood and fire is neither simple nor desirable. however, this still leaves us with any number of parameters to manipulate in order to provide the greatest natural comfort and the highest probability of breeding success for our captive charges. monitors appear unable to distinguish between types of branches in the enclosure, be they cherry tree or some other tree branch. in my experience, the most important consideration is allowing the animal to feel secure when climbing and holding a branch. illumination is perhaps the most important and one of the most overlooked elements of the captive setup. since artificial lights cannot approach the degree of illumination provided by natural sunlight, in general, the highest degree of illumination that can be provided without overheating the enclosure is most appropriate. diet also is of great importance and appropriate food items (mice, rats, chickens, insects) to approximate each species’ natural diet should be provided. social conditions within any one enclosure must be closely monitored. housing animals of unequal size together may result in one becoming prey for another. parasitic infections in captive animals also require immediate intervention. under natural conditions all monitors carry both endoand ectoparasites and appear unaffected except in exceptional circumstances. in captivity, any number of factors can result in a parasitic imbalance, which can rapidly overwhelm an already stressed animal. let me again emphasize that the care of animals should approximate conditions in the wild as closely as practicable. the highest objective in captivity should be to maintain fit and healthy captives, capable of reproduction. enclosure size and furnishings need to be adapted to the natural movement and behavior patterns of the animals you wish to keep. different species will have different spatial needs within an enclosure. every keeper should offer the animals as much space as possible. recommended enclosure size for tree dwelling animals is 5 x 2 x 4 (length x width x height) times greater than snout-vent length (svl) or 4 x 2 x 5 times svl. for ground dwelling animals, cages should be 5 x 2 x 2 times svl. these guidelines will ensure that your monitor has sufficient room to move. for quarantine and hibernation enclosures, these measa tree dweller, such as this varanus timorensis, benefits from plenty of vertical structure within a terrarium. an albino juvenile varanus kingorum relaxes on a bare branch. 180 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 eidenmüller urements can be reduced by half. during quarantine, the enclosure should be cleaned frequently and a small space can be cleaned with relative ease. during hibernation at lower temperatures, the movements of the animals are restricted and a smaller enclosure is sufficient. water monitors have different cage requirements compared to terrestrial and rock-dwelling monitors. they require a fairly large water tank in which they can swim and dive. a small water dish is not sufficient. animals from arid regions should be provided with dust-free sand as ground cover. sand need not be sterilized before use. cypress mulch is the perfect substrate for animals from the tropics. this substrate retains moisture over long periods, thus increasing humidity within the enclosure. mulch should not be sterilized, as this will kill off natural microorganisms that serve to retard the growth of fungi. furnishings should be such that they are compatible with the general movements of the monitor being housed. most monitors are good climbers, and both the side and rear walls of the enclosure should be formed so that they can be used for climbing. this will increase the amount of activity area available to the animals. groundand rock-dwelling animals from desert areas will make ready use of a terrarium that has a rear wall modeled with styrofoam and epoxy-resin. as the resin dries, the whole wall can be dusted with sand to give it a stone-like texture (eidenmüller 1989, 1992a). for tree monitors, thick cork sheets can be affixed to the side and rear walls (eidenmüller and wicker 1992) to form climbing areas. cage structure can be enhanced further by using tree branches in the enclosure. smooth branches should be avoided, as they are difficult for the animals to grip. the overall layout of the terrarium is basically one of personal preference. my own water monitor terraria are built on top of an aquarium. atop the aquarium, i used styrofoam and epoxy resin to construct a ground area onto which the animals climb from the water. this type of layout offers the monitors both water for swimming, and a large overhanging ground area. the styrofoam rock area also serves as a basking area suitable for thermoregulation (eidenmüller 1990, 1995, eidenmüller and wicker 1995). since live plants rarely survive in monitor enclosures, i do not recommend their use. ground-dwelling monitors will inevitably dig, and during these excavations plants become uprooted and die. even the hardiest plants can only survive this activity for a short period. living plants in an enclosure for rainforest inhabitants (e.g., v. prasinus) appear very natural; however, even trees like the robust fig tree (ficus benjamina) die in a very short time when continually subjected to monitor claws. plastic plants do very well in some of my enclosures. they appear fairly natural and are easy to clean. animals do not seem to care whether the cover is natural or not. when using artificial plants, however, be careful that monitors do not ingest any broken parts of these plants along with their food. proper lighting is critical for the well-being of monitors in captivity; nevertheless, i find that many keepers fail to provide sufficient illumination in their enclosures. no amount of artificial light will replace natural lighting conditions. whereas lowintensity bulbs and common fluorescent tubes may be more efficient in terms of initial cost and long-term energy expenditure, and may even provide lighting that appears sufficient to the human eye, they represent a false economy and will inevitably result in health problems for captive monitors in very short order. in my experience, the use of mercury vapor lamps has a positive influence on the behavior of animals. mercury vapor lamps radiate ultraviolet (uv) light, which is critically important in a monitor enclosure. ultraviolet lighting must be installed in such a manner that animals have direct access to it without any intervening glass barriers that can block the uv rays. the temperature range produced within the enclosure should be carefully measured to avoid the problem of overheating. to this end, proper ventilation of the enclosure is essential. although animals such as this black-throated monitor (varanus albigularis ssp.) can become quite tame, potential owners must consider the amount of space required by a pet that can attain a length of up to 200 cm. jo h n b in n s varanus mertensi is a highly aquatic species from northern australia and even a juvenile requires a fairly large swimming area. appropriate housing can be constructed above an aquarium. also, ensure that no animal can come in direct physical contact with any of the heating lamps. burns from lights are all too common, and can potentially result in fatalities. all monitors are diurnal, and should be provided with a daytime photoperiod of appropriate length and intensity. the animals must also be able to regulate their body temperatures. a basking area under a spotlight should be provided as well as cooler areas more distant from a direct heat source. many keepers think that desert animals require high to very high temperatures. in actuality, animals in the wild can move from areas with high solar radiation to areas that offer protection from extreme temperatures. this movement in and out of high temperatures is known as “shuttling” behavior and is common to many reptiles. conditions that support this type of behavior are difficult to reproduce within an enclosure. keepers rarely have a terrarium deep enough to offer their captive monitors the opportunity to dig into 50 cm of sand or other substrate. i would recommend keepers use a heating source that has been installed to heat only one half of the enclosure. in many of my own enclosures, i have a 60-watt spotlight with a wide angle of light directed onto a flat rock some 40 cm away. this provides a good thermal gradient within the cage, but allows the monitor to attain an optimum body temperature without risk of overheating. i would not recommend the use of a ceramic heater, because it does not give off light; the animals do not realize that the amount of heat generated is substantial and can cause severe burns or even death. larger monitors will sometimes incur localized burns under a spotlight because the part of the body directly under the lamp heats up to burning point while the temperature over the rest of the body is insufficient to warn it of the danger presented by the spotlight. in sri lanka, water monitors (v. salvator) occasionally suffer dorsal burns due to their propensity for hiding in rubbish heaps. when the rubbish is burned, the animals are caught with a low body temperature while the flames create a high singlepoint temperature. an under-tank heating pad can be installed beneath the preferred hot spot. if a heating cable is used, it can be coiled around one half of the enclosure to create a temperature gradient. because most monitors are accomplished at digging, the cable must be secured so that the animals cannot dig it out or sustain electric shocks. the best method is to install the cable under the half of the terrarium that is to be heated. references böhme, w. 1988. zur genitalmorphologie der sauria: funktionelle und stammesgeschichtliche aspekte. bonn zool. monogr. 27:1–176. böhme, w. 1993. systematik und stammesgeschichte der warane – übersicht zum heutigen stand. monitor 2(1):7–12. böhme, w. 1995. hemiclitoris discovered: a fully differentiated erectile structure in female monitor lizards (varanus spp.). j. zoo syst. evol. res. 33:129–132. eidenmüller, b. 1989. beobachtungen bei der haltung und nachzucht von varanus (odatria) tristis orientalis fry, 1913. salamandra 25:265–271. eidenmüller, b. 1990. beobachtungen bei der haltung und nachzucht von varanus (varanus) mertensi glauert, 1951. salamandra 26:132–139. eidenmüller, b. 1992. bemerkungen zur haltung von waranen. monitor 1(1):7–13. eidenmüller, b. 1993. bisher nicht beschriebene haltungsweisen von varanus (varanus) flavirufus (mertens, 1958), varanus (odatria) acanthurus boulenger 1885, and varanus (odatria) storri mertens 1966 im terrarium. monitor 2(2):12–21. eidenmüller, b. 1995. the successful breeding of mertens’ monitor lizard, varanus mertensi. vivarium 7(2):18–20. eidenmüller, b. and r. wicker 1992. varanus (odatria) prasinus beccarii (doria, 1874), pflege und zucht. salamandra 28:171–178. eidenmüller, b. and r. wicker. 1995. the successful breeding of mertens’ monitor lizard varanus mertensi, glauert, 1951. herpetofauna 25(2):4–7. schildger, b, m. kramer, h. spörle, m. gerwing, and r. wicker. 1993. vergleichende bildgebende ovardiagnostik bei echsem am beispiel des chuckwallas (sauromalus obesus) und des arguswarans (varanus panoptes). salamandra 29:240–247. schildger, b.-j. and r. wicker. 1992. endoskopie bei reptilien and amphibien – indikationen, methoden, befunde. der praktische tierarzt 6:516–526. ziegler, t. and w. böhme. 1996. zur hemiklitoris der squamaten reptilien: auswirkungen auf einige methoden der geschlechtsuntersuchungen. herpetofauna 18(101):11–19. iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 181monitors varanus pilbarensis is a small, attractive rock dwelling monitor from western australia. iguana 12.2 b&w text the recovery of the anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis) depends on the diligent work of many natural resource managers and biologists as well as a commitment from the residents of anegada. that the species’ recovery program continues to include outreach activities aimed at increasing local knowledge of and support for conservation activities should not be surprising. “value-added” is an economic term that refers to increasing a product’s value and thus the revenue from it. outreach is a “value-added” activity because it increases the value of the research. transmitting results of conservation and research programs to the public increases the conservation programs’ “revenues” or effectiveness. designing and implementing outreach activities on anegada is truly a unique experience. with a total of about 100 full-time residents on the island, one can accomplish activities that reach all or most residents. the best method for determining the direction of an outreach program is to carry out a social survey to understand the outreach needs as they relate to conservation goals. we administered a general survey on anegada in july 2003 and a second, specific survey targeting teachers in october 2004. the first survey assessed local support for and understanding of various conservation activities relating to the anegada iguana. as would be expected, 94% of the respondents (n = 34) supported the headstarting program begun in 1997. somewhat of a surprise, however, was the strong majority of respondents (89%) who supported cat eradication. with this and other data about local perceptions of the conservation program, we developed a plan for outreach. in the last two value-added conservation science: outreach activities that support conservation of the anegada iguana lee pagni and deirdre ballou zoological society of san diego, san diego, california 92112 photographs by the authors unless otherwise indicated. 86 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 pagni and ballou lee pagni interviews a resident of anegada for the 2003 social survey. c li n to n " le e" v a n te r po o l the first issue of the “anegada wildlife news” was distributed in fall 2004. the newsletter serves the important purpose of keeping residents informed about the recovery process. � iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 87anegada iguana years, a variety of outreach activities that support anegada iguana conservation have been implemented on anegada and in the united states. these activities not only add value to the research, but also are ultimately vital to garnering public support for the conservation and research programs. acting local one of the most important lessons learned from the social survey was that anegada residents held a good deal of misinformation about the iguana restoration program. to help counter this and to attempt to inform all residents about current iguana conservation activities, we created a newsletter. data from the survey and other interviews told us what type of information residents were interested in knowing. in august 2004, the first edition of the “anegada wildlife news” was delivered to residents and schoolchildren throughout the island. the newsletter’s fun design, wealth of images, and popular crossword puzzle made it a hit with locals. the second survey, a teacher assessment given to all seven teachers at anegada’s only school, helped us develop a plan for engaging teachers and students in conservation education activities. the second-most requested outreach activity as determined by the survey was talks by scientists for the students. to meet this need, talks have been scheduled throughout the year. in february 2004, kelly bradley gave a presentation to the secondary students at the anegada school, introducing them to radio-telemetry and its utility for understanding the habitat requirements of iguanas. results of the 2003 survey indicated that the headstart facility is a focal point for locals and tourists wanting to learn more about the anegada iguana. in order to engage this interested audience, we developed plans to create a series of interpretive materials that allow a self-guided experience at the facility. the first sign developed was the result of a genetic study (see below) and will be integrated into other self-guided materials that explain all the activities involved in the recovery of the species. the only school on anegada has approximately 40 students and seven teachers. jennie lau of the zoological society of san diego’s conservation and research for endangered species (cres) department prepares genetic samples as part of the anegada iguana genetic study. making a full circle connection; zoocorps members learned about anegada iguana genetic studies, then made necklaces for students on anegada using a sequenced gene from iguanas. a zoocorps member makes sure she has the genetic sequence correct for her necklace. thinking global to add more value to conservation and research programs, we must remember that people living around the world are interested in programs that protect our collective natural heritage. a grant from the institute of museum and library services helped the san diego zoo carry out a comprehensive genetic study on the anegada iguana. the study helped determine how close the relationships were among the six iguanas in the zoo’s collection and measured genetic diversity within the wild population. the grant also helped fund outreach activities that add value to this important research. at the san diego zoo, a group of 13–16 year-old volunteers called zoocorps taught guests about the role genetic research plays in the restoration of the anegada iguana. volunteers were taught about microsatellites and how these non-coding genes are used to give an estimate of genetic diversity within the population. zoocorps members then set up a booth in front of the anegada iguana exhibit for two weekend days and taught guests about what is being done to protect the species. to reinforce the concept of genetics, zoocorps members led guests in making necklaces out of four differently colored beads representing the four genetic base pairs. at the end of this program, zoocorps members made necklaces for the students on anegada, including with the necklace a personal note to the anegadian students. from the genetic study, an educational activity was developed to help middle and secondary school students understand more about microsatellites and how they are used to determine the proximity of relationships. this study was a collaborative effort between geneticists and educational specialists at the san 88 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 pagni and ballou j.j., a member of zoocorps, works on the “genetic jewelry” that will be given to a student on anegada. one of the goals of outreach is to involve local residents in all parts of the research. here camilla serieux, a resident of anegada, helps release a headstarted iguana back to the wild. zoocorps members made this display and used it to help explain the anegada iguana’s genetic status to guests. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 89anegada iguana diego zoo. the lesson introduces students to concepts of genetic conservation and involves three increasingly difficult activities. the final activity relates directly to the research project and has students determine the paternity of six iguanas, given one female and two possible sires, each with a contrived set of determined microsatellite alleles at two loci. to distribute the lesson as widely as possible, it resides on the san diego zoo’s web site (www.sandiegozoo.org) and is indexed for internet search engines using keywords such as curriculum and microsatellite. several other outreach activities have been developed for this project. these include a graphic panel explaining the plight of the anegada iguana and how genetics are being used in conservation efforts. the sign will be placed in the anegada exhibit at the zoo. dr. oliver ryder, head geneticist at the zoological society of san diego’s cres (conservation and research for endangered species) added further value to the study by presenting the results at a local event highlighting the society’s work to conserve endangered species. finally, updated information on the project can be found on the san diego zoo’s “helping wildlife” section of their website. continuing the connection this program of adding value to the conservation and research activities will continue with several activities planned this year on anegada. in may, kelly bradley will deliver the gene necklaces made by zoocorps members to students at the anegada school. along with the necklaces, ms. bradley will give a presentation on genetic research as related to the anegada iguana. we also are working on the second edition of the “anegada wildlife news.” with the help of a journalism mentor from the british virgin islands department of sports and youth affairs, we hope to have students from the anegada school research, write, and help produce the upcoming issue. also this year, we will produce new interpretive materials for the headstart facility in order to help visitors better understand the amount and type of work that is going into the conservation of the anegada iguana. the anegada iguana recovery program demonstrates how conservation and research can be combined into engaging outreach programs. one research project, such as the genetic analysis, can serve as content for numerous educational activities and materials that help engender support for conservation locally, and patently connect others to conservation globally. clearly, outreach adds value to conservation science and plays an important role in the recovery of the anegada iguana. the settlement is anegada’s main population center. with about 100 full-time residents on the entire island, anegada offers unique opportunities for outreach. the use of molecular genetics in the management of captive populations of endangered species helps maintain healthy living collections that can become the foundation for successful breeding programs. collection of studbook information and determination of accurate pedigrees are crucial for successful management of animals in captivity, but this information may not be available, especially for animals caught in the wild. the san diego zoo’s collection contains three male and three female potential founders of the critically endangered anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis), the only captive individuals of breeding age in the world. these specimens came to the zoo with questionable backgrounds. through examination of dna microsatellite variation, the zoo’s genetics research team has been able to evaluate the relatedness of the captive population by comparing them with wild iguanas on anegada. based on genetic data, apparently, of our six captive adults, three pairs of animals are related (two of the males, two of the females, and one male-female pair), but are otherwise unrelated to one another. this information is now being used to design a captive management plan that maximizes genetic diversity in the captive collection. future pairings will focus on minimizing reproduction among related individuals and maximizing the retention of genetic diversity within the group. in addition, our genetic work has shown that the wild population on anegada, although highly endangered with a remaining estimated wild population of only a few hundred individuals, does not appear to be inbred when compared to other species. this finding bodes well for the future, and provides a valuable baseline for monitoring the genetic health of the wild population over time. we are grateful to the institute of museum and library services (imls) for funding this research. g e n e s a n d c o n s e r v a t i o n iguana 12.4 b&w text conserving an amazonian river turtle using a community-based sustainable harvest of eggs the exploitation of south american river turtles as a food source has long been considered the main factor contributing to the decline of populations. along a stretch of the aguarico river (ecuador), caputo et al. (2005. biological conservation 126:84–92) investigated the spatial and temporal distribution of terecay (podocnemis unifilis) nests, factors affecting nest success, and the effect of offering a reward for each hatchling captured on the pattern of egg consumption by the local human community. flooding appears to be particularly important in this amazonian region, destroying 63.1% of all nests, which is in excess of the number of nests needed to satisfy the local community’s consumption needs (28.2%). the proposed reward for each hatchling ensured the voluntary participation of the cofan people in the terecay conservation project, leading to: (i) nests being harvested only from sites where hatching possibilities were very low, (ii) efficient management and protection of nesting beaches with abolition of poaching of nests and adult females, and (iii) transplantation of nests from sites that would be flooded (and whose yield exceeds human consumption). therefore, we argue that in this area of aguarico river both biological and social conditions favor the establishment of a sustainable harvest of terecay eggs. genetic diversity of amazonian crocodilians farias et al. (2004. animal conservation 7:265–272) used the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene to study the population genetic structure of melanosuchus niger (brazil: negro and purus rivers, lake janauacá; french guiana: kaw river swamps), and caiman crocodilus (brazil: purus river, lake janauacá; french guiana: kaw river swamps). analyses indicated that isolation-by-distance was an important population dynamic in m. niger, but were unable to differentiate between isolation-by-distance, historical fragmentation or range expansion in c. crocodilus. hypotheses of demographic expansions were supported in one out of four and two out of three sampled localities of m. niger and c. crocodilus, respectively. populations of m. niger in central amazonia also appeared to show differentiation that was correlated with water type. these results are compatible with the life-style of these two crocodilians; c. crocodilus is a habitat generalist and appears to disperse rapidly to newly available habitats, whereas m. niger is a more sedentary habitat specialist. both species appear to be recovering from unregulated over-harvesting; however, their responses are life-historyand, potentially, ecologically dependent. home range and habitat associations of a bahamian iguana: implications for conservation the andros iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura) is an endangered lizard threatened by habitat loss, illegal hunting, impacts from historic large-scale logging practices, and predation by feral animals (e.g., cats, dogs, and hogs). local and national conservation organizations are interested in demarcating protected areas for the iguana in the southern portion of its range. however, no life history information is available. in order to provide data that can be applied in a sciencebased management strategy for the andros iguana, knapp and owens (2005. animal conservation 8:269–278) investigated seasonal variation in homerange size and habitat selection using iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 275conservation research reports c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s black caimans (melanosuchus niger) are relatively sedentary habitat specialists. genetic studies indicated that more geographically distant populations and those associated with different water types are more genetically distinctive. jo h n t h o r b ja r n a r so n populations of terecays (podocnemis unifilis), a south american river turtle, may be able to sustain a controlled harvest of eggs in at least one part of the aguarico river system. sa n d y b a r n et t large home-range sizes and associations with open pine forest and shrublands must be considered when establishing protected areas for the andros iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura). c h u c k k n a pp 276 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 conservation research reports radio telemetry. home ranges were the largest reported to date for free-ranging cyclura (30.6 ha for males, 5.6 ha for females). open pine was the only habitat type out of four where iguanas occurred more than expected by chance. however, the pair-wise comparisons of habitat types reveal that iguanas were found significantly closer to open pine and shrubland than to closed pine. conservation implications of the dynamic seasonal home-range fluctuations and habitat usage are discussed and recommendations are offered for establishing protected areas. spatial ecology of endangered grand cayman blue iguanas west indian rock iguanas (cyclura spp.) are among the most endangered lizards in the world and many populations will need to occupy human-modified habitats to escape extinction. fewer than 25 grand cayman blue iguanas (c. lewisi) remain in the wild. goodman et al. (2005. journal of herpetology 39:402– 408) examined spatial ecology of released, captive-bred iguanas in a botanic park on grand cayman. males used larger areas and moved greater distances than females in the summer but not in the fall and overall male home range sizes were greater than those of females. a few home range estimates were greater than any previously reported for cyclura. especially males during the breeding season used areas outside the park, where they are vulnerable to predation, vehicular death, and hunting by humans. reserves for c. lewisi must be large and surrounded by buffer zones or fenced. displacement of native geckos by introduced house geckos how introduced reptiles cause the loss of endemic reptiles is poorly understood. cole et al. (2005. biological conservation 125:467–474) investigated the role of the introduced house gecko (hemidactylus frenatus) in causing a catastrophic decline and extinction of the endemic night gecko (nactus spp.) populations in the mascarene islands. competition for enemy-free space was tested in experimental enclosures and showed that h. frenatus displace endemic nactus coindemirensis and nactus durrelli from favored positions in and near refugia, thus increasing the risk of predation and exposure to stochastic events. the ability of h. frenatus to grip substrates with their pad-bearing toes was examined, and the data indicated that naturally occurring substrates with a greater amount of loose surface material of a higher particulate concentration and size excludes h. frenatus, but not nactus. these findings support the hypothesis that h. frenatus led to the fragmentation and extinction of endemic nactus populations and demonstrate that artificial refugia made of a crumbly substrate may be used to limit future disturbances by this gecko and others like it in the mascarene islands and elsewhere. introduced house geckos (hemidactylus frenatus, top left) are displacing endemic night geckos (nactus coindemirensis, top right, and n. durrelli, bottom) from favored positions in and near refugia in the mascarene islands. n ik c o le released, captive-bred male grand cayman blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi) in a botanic park used larger areas and moved greater distances than females in the summer but not in the fall. d es ir ee w o n g iguana 12.3 b&w text so you want to be a herpetologist? i can’t blame you. the discipline can be both exciting and challenging. each week offers a rollercoaster of experiences that range from disappointing to elating and from near misses to complete success — but i didn’t start out with this career in mind. while i’ve always loved spending time outdoors and had an interest in wildlife, i never dreamed that i would become a herpetologist. throughout my undergraduate work at the university of arkansas–conway, my primary goal was to become a game biologist — amphibians and reptiles weren’t on my radar screen. during my last semester in college, i took a vertebrate biology course. this course provided my first glimpse of the rich diversity of species besides those you hunt or fish. my eyes were opened to a whole new world of species that had always been there but which i had never really “seen.” after receiving my b.s. in biology, i began graduate work at the university of arkansas–fayetteville. i struggled to decide what type of project i should pursue for my thesis. i looked into possible research on red-cockaded woodpeckers and red foxes. however, due to opportunity and funding, i finally resolved to study pond-breeding amphibians in the ouachita national forest. although i had little experience working with amphibians, spending night after night at my field sites studying their biology and behaviors changed all of that. after completion of my master’s thesis, i knew i wanted to spend my life learning the life and times of a state agency herpetologist jeff briggler herpetologist missouri department of conservation jefferson city, missouri 65101, usa photographs courtesy of the missouri department of conservation unless otherwise indicated. 160 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 briggler speaking to a master naturalist class, the author presents information on the importance of the ephemeral wetlands on which many of missouri’s amphibians rely for reproduction. � the author and a protection agent release an ozark hellbender (cryptobranchus alleganiensis). hellbender populations in missouri and throughout the range of the species are declining, with failed recruitment largely responsible, although specific causes remain unknown in many instances. numerous brochures have been produced in an effort to increase awareness of hellbenders and their plight. iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 161herpetologist more about these creatures and helping to protect them and their habitat. with this goal in mind, i decided to pursue to a ph.d. at the university of arkansas–fayetteville. i had no idea where i would end up after getting my doctorate, but i knew that, wherever it was, i wanted to be working with amphibians and reptiles. i was hired as the herpetologist of the state of missouri in july 2000. i replaced tom r. johnson, who had held the position since its inception in 1977. i spent the first few years learning more about the state’s amphibians and reptiles and their distributions across missouri, familiarizing myself with the millions of acres of publicly owned land, and becoming acquainted with hundreds of land managers throughout the state. being the herpetologist for the state of missouri, i rarely do the same thing two days in a row. i may be on the phone or writing emails to address questions from the public and department staff on monday, searching for massasauga rattlesnakes (sistrurus catenatus) in northwestern missouri on tuesday, helping a land manager inventory all of the ponds in his area on wednesday, attending a regulations committee meeting on thursday, and writing a manuscript detailing my most recent research on friday. a large part of the job deals with providing technical support to missouri department of conservation staff, other agencies, and the public. i spend considerable time addressing questions from the public regarding amphibians and reptiles. the majority of questions pertain to snakes and how to keep them away from people’s homes — but, on occasion, i receive a call from an individual on how to attract snakes to their property. in the author (top) looking at a flat-headed snake (tantilla gracilis, middle) on an ozark glade. glades occur where soluble surface rocks have dissolved, leaving largely insoluble rocks and little soil. these very dry, harsh habitats, characterized by drought-tolerant eastern red cedar trees (juniperous virginiana), support a large number of missouri’s reptiles, many of which are prairieor desert-dwelling species that reach the northeastern most extents of their ranges on missouri’s glades. for example, populations of eastern collared lizards (crotaphytus collaris, bottom) in missouri are closely tied to glades and are extremely vulnerable to habitat alterations that result from fire control and invasions of non-native plants. 162 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 briggler public education may be the most important facet of a state agency herpetologist’s job. here, the author shows a group of individuals a live eastern tiger salamander (ambystoma tigrinum). this species is common in many parts of missouri, but seldom encountered due to its secretive burrowing lifestyle. during a workshop training session (top), participants learn how to use a dipnet and how to identify tadpoles and larval salamanders. the author dipnets an ozark pond looking for amphibian larvae during a herpetofaunal survey of a state-owned conservation area (middle). general surveys such as this are essential for developing inventories of wildlife resources and necessary management plans that include considerations for the needs of amphibians and reptiles. most known populations of the ringed salamander (ambystoma annulatum; bottom) seem to be doing well, but the species has a very limited range, most of which is within the state of missouri. iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 163herpetologist addition, i write and edit many educational materials (articles, brochures, posters) and give numerous presentations on amphibian and reptilian life histories. overall, missouri’s citizens are eager to learn more about the biodiversity of their state. besides dealing with questions from the public, i work with land managers to address management and conservation needs as requested. i commonly provide management recommendations regarding prescribed burning, pond construction and renovation, mowing and haying, disking, timber harvests, etc. i also provide technical workshops each year for individuals wanting to learn more about amphibian and reptilian conservation. workshops include amphibian and reptile management, streamteam training, venomous snake handling, conservation agent training, hellbender (cryptobranchus alleganiensis) ecology, and rare and endangered species training. i have learned over the years that the key to increasing awareness and appreciation of amphibians and reptiles is through educational materials and especially through hands-on workshops. as the state herpetologist, i oversee many activities related to rare and endangered amphibians and reptiles. of the 108 species native to missouri, 29 are considered rare or endangered. these species receive extra attention in an effort to preserve them as part of missouri’s wildlife. information regarding the status and distribution of each of these species is archived and used to determine the vulnerability of these animals to extirpation. currently, i represent hellbenders and massasauga rattlesnakes on national recovery teams. these two species are in the most need of recovery efforts in missouri. in addition to them, other species have received considerable attention over the years. the restoration of eastern collared lizards (crotaphytus collaris) on glades has been and continues to be successful. i provide considerable management information regarding these species to area managers and private landowners, and much of my work involves surveys of these rare and endangered species and supervision of department-sponsored research projects through which we seek to learn more about their basic biology. a large part of my job involves surveying amphibians and reptiles across missouri. even though this is the best part of the job, one person cannot effectively survey the entire state. therefore, much time is spent acquiring grants to coordinate projects with staff, other agencies, and universities to conduct the work. currently, the missouri department of conservation is conducting surveys on natural areas and conservation areas around the state to obtain baseline information on all amphibthe author installing a drift fence during a massasauga rattlesnake (sistrurus catenatus) survey. this survey was conducted in a state park in collaboration with personnel from the missouri department of natural resources, federal authorities (especially when dealing with populations on national wildlife refuges), and university researchers. numerous surveys have been conducted for massasaugas during the author’s five-year tenure at the missouri department of conservation. the species presumably ranged across much of northern missouri in historical times, but is now limited to three known populations on state or federal refuges and a few scattered individuals that may or may not represent viable, self-sustaining populations. the author explaining to a state forester (above) how to tell a male from a female prairie lizard (sceloporus consobrinus, below). much of the work of a state agency herpetologist is working with the personnel of other agencies on issues relating to amphibians and reptiles. ians and reptiles. over the past five years, i, with the assistance of staff, have conducted specific surveys on illinois chorus frogs (pseudacris streckeri), wood frogs (rana sylvatica), northern crawfish frogs (rana areolata), ringed salamanders (ambystoma annulatum), hellbenders, illinois mud turtles (kinosternon flavescens spooneri), western chicken turtles (deirochelys reticularia), massasauga rattlesnakes, and timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus), to name only a few. i take a 164 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 briggler during an amphibian and reptile workshop, participants learn how to install drift lines and hoop traps in order to collect and survey for aquatic turtles. in addition to monitoring effects of such natural events as the massive floods of 1993, during which all of missouri’s major rivers ranged far out of their banks, some aquatic turtles, such as the chicken turtle (deirochelys reticularia, top left), blanding’s turtle (emydoidea blandingii, left), and illinois mud turtle (kinosternon flavescens spooneri, top), are of conservation concern in the state. chicken turtles are relatively common in the southeastern united states, blanding’s turtles have a disjunct distribution in the upper midwest, and illinois mud turtle populations are isolated relicts of what once was a much wider distribution. all are known from only one or very few localities in missouri. iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 165herpetologist great deal of pleasure and satisfaction when i capture and photograph a species that has not been seen in the state in 20+ years, or capture a species i had not previously encountered. although my job is exciting, some activities, especially those dealing with regulatory issues, may be less than thrilling — but they can be equally rewarding. much paper work is involved in overseeing wildlife collector permits and breeder permits. over 150 amphibian and reptile collector permits are processed and reviewed annually in missouri. in addition, i provide advice to pet stores, commercial farms, and other interested parties regarding the rules and policies and appropriate permits needed to propagate and sell native species in missouri. one of the more demanding parts of the job is to provide input on wildlife code regulations that impact amphibians and reptiles. much time and effort are involved with code changes, but the ultimate goal is better protection for wildlife. although the majority of a state agency herpetologist’s job is to increase awareness through educational materials, management recommendations, and regulation changes, some time remains to work with academic colleagues. i serve as primary contact person for university faculty and students who conduct research on amphibians and reptiles. numerous meetings occur with professors and graduate students across the state regarding potential projects. i’ve discovered that guiding a student’s research interests is exhilarating and gratifying. i also see the need for state agency biologists to publish data in peer-reviewed journals. considerable data is collected by agencies and the need to get this information to the academic world will further stimulate research and collaboration. although i never dreamed that i’d become a herpetologist, even during those long hours sitting by ponds listening to frogs as a master’s student, i can’t imagine anything else i’d rather be doing with my life. nothing can compare with the sense of joy when a member of the public who has always been afraid of snakes holds one for the first time, the elation of finding a clutch of eggs produced by an animal on the brink of extinction, the delight of spending a day creating a list of species for an area that has never been surveyed, the challenge of writing regulations that will protect a sensitive species, or the accomplishment when a manuscript is accepted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. i am thankful every day that missouri has the funding and the public support for a full-time advocate of the state’s herpetofauna — and that i’m the one that gets to do the job. wood frogs (rana sylvatica) in missouri are relicts of times when massive glaciers covered much of the state north of where the missouri river now flows. these remnant populations are scattered across the state in localized habitats that remain suitable for this cold-tolerant species, which is distributed for the most part far to the north. in 2005, the missouri department of conservation conducted numerous surveys for wood frogs in southwestern missouri. we’re still learning about species that are common in missouri. a student project investigating the distribution of purported subspecies of the common garter snake (thamnophis sirtalis) is shedding new light on what has been a “standard” taxonomy for many decades. b r ia n s . e d m o n d iguana 12.3 b&w text after seven years, “pharaoh,” a male grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi), will be leaving the deserts exhibit at the indianapolis zoo in 2005. based on a recommendation for breeding by the coordinator for aza’s west indian rock iguana species survival plan, the indianapolis zoo has agreed that pharaoh should be relocated to the gladys porter zoo in brownsville, texas. during summer 2005, a very young breeding pair of grand cayman blue iguanas will be arriving at the indianapolis zoo. the pair is currently in quarantine at the san diego zoo, after being sent from grand cayman earlier this year. these iguanas represent “founder” animals for the u.s. zoological blue iguana breeding program. the earliest expected breeding of this pair would be in 2006. when i first came to the indianapolis zoo as a volunteer in 2001, one of the first animals i met was “pharaoh,” a fourfoot-long, bright electric blue monster of a lizard. pharaoh is a grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi), a very rare lizard in the wild, and especially rare in zoological collections. pharaoh is a little more unpredictable than the other animals in the deserts exhibit, as i and the rest of the volunteers quickly discovered. he has this way about him, this strut of sorts that demonstrates that he knows he is the king of his domain — perhaps this is the origin of his name. he is not afraid to offer small head-bobs of recognition as you enter the exhibit, building into more deliberate movements of territoriality as you slowly approach. then he takes a step or two toward you with mouth agape before abruptly turning away at the last moment, moving back a few feet just to start it all over again. today, i am a senior keeper, and he remains zoo royalty, and he still considers me to be his lowly servant bringing his food and cleaning his kingdom. in 1999, pharaoh came to the indianapolis zoo from grand cayman and the cayman islands national trust. he was sent to us as an animal ambassador of sorts, since blue iguanas are found solely on the island of grand cayman. the island has many species of plants and animals that are endemic (found nowhere else in the world), but the blue iguana is arguably the most special. pharaoh represents the most critically endangered species of lizard in the world, with fewer than 50 left in the wild out of a population that once numbered in the thousands. to put this in perspective, although they are rare in zoo collections, hundreds of chinese giant pandas are left in the wild, far outnumbering blue iguanas. pharaoh is an ambassador from grand cayman making a last plea for help to save his kind. at the beginning of 2005, there were only 21 blue iguanas spread among nine zoological institutions in the united states. with so few blue iguanas in the u.s., visitors rarely hear this species’ cry for help. pharaoh is what is called a “founder” animal; his genes are not represented anywhere else in the u.s. population. to educate and promote awareness of the blue iguana among the general public, we hope that individuals like pharaoh will successfully breed and produce offspring. more offspring means more blue iguanas in more zoos. more “little pharaohs” running around mean more genetic diversity for the entire captive blue iguana population. at the indianapolis zoo deserts exhibit, pharaoh keeps up on all the latest fashions. he patiently waits near the front glass of the exhibit just to look at and hope to get a taste of the latest brightly colored shoes — shoes that resemble fruit, the candy of the iguana world. likewise, he is easily noticed on exhibit. he impresses visitors daily with his size, swagger, and color. during a normal day in the deserts exhibit, pharaoh is the star of the show, but, in the afternoons, visitors get an even more exceptional display. around 2:30 pm each day, our exhibit animals are offered insects or fruit in addition to the mixed salad they received earlier in the day. a grape speeding across the exhibit substrate brings on a demonstration of the excellent sight and swiftness of the blue iguana. as the sound of pharaoh racing over the dirt and gravel echoes in the building, visitors pop up from around corners of other exhibits to catch a glimpse. our visitors are surprised to see this monster excitedly eating his fruits and vegetables. parents often comment with envy, “if only little bobby would eat his fruits and veggies like that.” although fruits and vegetables are his favorite treats, pharaoh’s ultimate desire is for birdseed. as keepers, we do not pharaoh: a tribute joe ehrenberger senior keeper, indianapolis zoo iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 175pharaoh � pharaoh strikes a majestic pose: he has been the undisputed “king” of the indianapolis zoo’s deserts exhibit for the past seven years. quite understand the origin of his obsession. wild blue iguanas are primary vehicles for plant and tree seed dispersal. they eat the fruits, walk away, defecate, and the following year another plant or tree begins to climb out of the ground toward the sky. however, birdseed, not contained with a sweet or colorful fruit, is a bit different from the typical seeds iguanas help to disperse. the indianapolis zoo’s other three grand cayman blue iguanas, three jamaican iguanas (c. collei), and two rhinoceros iguanas (c. cornuta) couldn’t care less for birdseed. only pharaoh jumps at it and will do almost anything for it. even fred burton, director of the blue iguana recovery program (www.blueiguana.ky), who sent pharaoh to us, cannot explain this peculiar behavior. birdseed is the most precious loot this scaly caribbean pirate could steal to bury in the depths of his stomach. pharaoh is not just an impressive exhibit animal at the zoo. he came to us from grand cayman in an effort to get him to breed with females already in the u.s. however, his role producing offspring is not his only job. he is a novel research subject. over the years, we have studied his behavior in an effort to identify specific reproductive cues and territorial characteristics. we have studied his blood and compared it to blood of other captive iguanas, as well as to that of wild iguanas. most recently, we are studying hormone levels in his feces in an innovative approach to understanding his reproductive cycle. throughout these research duties, pharaoh rarely “complains” of his job at the zoo. after all, he gets to harass and chase us while getting an occasional tail-whip in, and then gets paid in grapes and birdseed. however, one of his primary duties in the country is to reproduce. although seven years have passed, pharaoh has no offspring. overall, reproduction of rock iguanas (lizards in the genus cyclura, grand cayman blue iguanas and their caribbean relatives) is limited and inconsistent at all of the best zoos in the u.s. cues from our vast knowledge of green iguanas (iguana iguana) have provided little help. as researchers, we are just starting to identify behaviors of many rock iguanas in the wild, including reproductive behaviors. with this knowledge, pharaoh’s next best chance for reproduction could be with a female blue iguana at a zoo in texas. to encourage successful breeding for pharaoh, the indianapolis zoo has decided to send this giant blue monster of a lizard to a zoo in brownsville, texas. although his departure is difficult for us, we retain many fond memories of pharaoh at the indianapolis zoo. while he isn’t exactly cute or cuddly, like many of the warm-and-fuzzy zoo animals favored by many visitors, he is impressive with his fantastic other-worldly color and his large size. how many other animals are four feet long and bright blue? he is charismatic and attentive. with his extraordinary red eyes, he has seen almost every visitor who walked by his exhibit. he is a “magnet.” he attracts all sorts of people, from visitors to keepers, and even the zoo’s own ceo became enamored with him within his first few weeks at the zoo, often telling the story of the endangered blue iguanas to donors, the media, and anyone who would listen. all of us at the indianapolis zoo hope that pharaoh will be a magnet to a blue iguana female and achieve reproductive success in his new texas home. the indianapolis zoo inspires local and global communities to celebrate, protect, and preserve our natural world through conservation, education, and research, and by providing an enriching and wondrous environment for our visitors and the animals in our care. the zoo is accredited by the american zoo and aquarium association — your assurance that you are supporting a facility dedicated to providing excellent care for animals, a great experience for you, and a better future for all living things. visit us at http://www.indyzoo.com. 176 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 ehrenberger pharaoh is being transferred to the gladys porter zoo in brownsville, texas in an effort to optimize his chances of reproductive success. iguana 11.3 b&w text iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 179historical perspectives the following observations on the iguana were made during a two year stay in panama: in the tropical forest vicinity of pacora, in the sabanas around la chorrera and in the various habitats found within the canal zone. terminology the name iguana is the only one that i have heard used for this lizard by english speaking people, with the exception of show people in the united states who sometimes use more spectacular terms, such as “dragon.” in central america the spanishspeaking people usually call the female iguana and the male gorrobo. the male is sometimes called ministro in el salvador, and guacho in costa rica. the young, of course, is called iguanita or gorrobito. in panama the lizard is facetiously called gallina de palo, “chicken of the tree.” most americans consider any small lizards in the tropics iguanas, ameivas and basilisks in particular, just as they call almost any tree a mahogany tree. sexual dimorphism males of this species show quite a variety of color; their heads vary from whitish, grayish, pinkish, to orange and black. the males in general have more orange and yellow coloring than the females, which are lighter colored and more greenish. females are usually smaller than males of the same age, and the head is smaller in proportion to the body. the dorsal spines are shorter in the female, being from one-half to one inch in length, while those of the male are two inches or more. the male has a row of glands on the underside of each thigh. externally they appear as disc-shaped, warty excrescences; just beneath the skin they are spherical in shape and measure from four to six millimeters in diameter. one male had 17 on one leg, 18 on the other. there is a belief in el salvador that these glands are warts. it is believed that a person can get warts from the blood of an iguana, unless it is washed off before it becomes dry. i have asked salvadoreans why warts were common in the united states, where there are no iguanas. i was told that they could be acquired from inadvertently coming in contact with urine from a person having warts. when i asked how they explained the fact that children had warts more commonly than adults, i was told that they were transmitted through the mother. when told about the myth prevalent in the united states, that handling toads caused warts, they were not familiar with this belief, and denied vehemently that toads would cause warts. male iguanas either outnumber the females, in adults, or are more conspicuous in their habits. on one trip i collected seven males to one female. possibly among the older population, more males survive predators than the smaller females. habitat the iguana is quite arboreal in its habits, but it is also at home on the ground. it is an excellent swimmer and takes voluntarily to the water to escape its enemies. i have never observed adults very far away from trees, although the young will wander quite a distance from them. they are particularly numerous in trees overhanging rivers, or perhaps they are more easily observed from the water. during cold, wet weather, they seem to prefer to stay on the ground, probably for greater warmth afforded by ground cover, such as brush, hollow logs, holes, etc. on one collecting trip, after a prolonged cool and wet period, i observed no iguanas in the trees. then the sun came out, and as it rapidly warmed up, iguanas were noticed coming to the tops of bushes and ascending into the tops of trees. in favorable weather, they apparently spend most of the time in the trees and even sleep there overnight. i once watched an old male, in a big fig tree near gatun, for several days. the tree was more or less isolated from others, and as the iguana had an unusual reddish color to its head, i felt reasonably sure that it was the same specimen. i could see him from quite a distance, but when i came beneath the tree, he tried to keep a branch between us. i first noticed him on september 20. on the 21st i was working in the same locality and observed him every time i looked for him, from 7:30 a.m. until 2:15 p.m., when i left. on the 22nd i couldn’t locate him. on the 23rd i saw him at 8 a.m. that day, while i was away eating my lunch, some of the men in my crew of laborers entertained themselves by catching this iguana for me. they had not known that i was watching it, and thought i’d be pleased with it. another large male was conspicuous in a big ceiba tree at fort davis. it was late in november, and the tree was bare of leaves. the new leaves were coming out and the iguana was feeding on the new shoots. this lizard remained in the same tree for at least four days. their choice of trees is based mostly on the food available at the time, as they probably select the species according to the season of new shoots, flowers, fruit or leaves. apart from the feeding angle, they seem to prefer heavily foliaged trees when the sun is bright, and when it is raining, more open trees are preferred, such as the wild fig. species to which they seem particularly partial are the wild plums, spondias species; the palo bobo, erythrina glauca; the guacimo, luehea seemannii; the wild cashew, espave h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s the iguana iguana iguana iguana (l)1 paul l. swanson 1 originally published in herpetologica 6:187–193 (1950). reprinted with permission. bracketed names were added and one typographical error corrected. 180 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 swanson excelsum, to mention a few. they are liable to be found on almost any tree, however, even small species like the cecropias. i once saw two iguanas we had shaken from a tree run into an armadillo hole to escape capture. when frightened from a tree growing on the bank of a river, they prefer to jump into the water rather than on land. they usually swim under water and come up under brush along the shore line, if such is available. a jump from a tall tree doesn’t seem to hurt them. i’ve seen them leap from heights of forty or fifty feet and apparently land unhurt. some times their tail is broken by intervening branches, or brush, but even if they hit practically bare ground, it takes a “flying tackle” at the moment of contact to capture one before it runs away. very young iguanas are frequently seen on the ground, sometimes in open areas, and they are probably terrestrial to a large degree. i have never seen one under ten or twelve inches in a tree, although smaller lizards would naturally be more difficult to observe there than on the ground. (i have observed many small lizards of other species in trees, however). locomotion iguanas are very agile climbers. i once observed a specimen climb the underside of a fairly large and smooth limb. they attempt to keep a limb between them and an observer, in the manner of a squirrel. sometimes they will go from one tree to another, if the branches are interlaced, and i have seen them make short jumps from one tree to another. in leaping to the ground or to the water from a tall tree, they hold the legs closely to the body in flight. i have not been able to verify how they break their fall, but it would seem that they would have to extend the legs, and that they might use the tail to some extent. while the tail isn’t so brittle as that of most lizards, one frequently captures specimens with part of the tail regenerated. at rest in a tree, they sometimes sprawl out parallel to a limb with the hind legs dangling over into space, not even the claws being in contact with the limb. in swimming, an iguana lets its four legs hang limply against its side, and propels itself with powerful strokes of the tail, much like a crocodilian. i have never seen one swim on the surface; they were always submerged. once i released an iguana on an open grassy area. at first it wouldn’t try to run away, so i left it for about an hour, and when i returned it had started to walk. when it saw me, it began to run, but i overtook it easily, when it again became quiescent. although this specimen traveled not more than seven miles per hour, i believe that an undisturbed adult could probably attain a speed of ten or twelve miles per hour for a short distance. food habits one of the favorite foods of the iguana in panama is the wild plum, spondias mombin. the fruit is about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inches in length, by about 3/4 inch in diameter, shaped somewhat like a prune, and containing a large pit. it ripens over a long period in august and september. of seven iguanas i dissected on a central american green iguana (iguana iguana). photograph by robert w. henderson. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 181historical perspectives september 2 (1943), five of them contained plums: 16, 29, 39, 41 and 79, respectively. the one with 16 plums also had many leaves in its stomach, the others very few. one other contained leaves and seeds of the guacimo tree. the only female of the seven contained no plums and only a few leaves, but a great many seeds, which my woodsmen identified as fig seeds, although one of them disagreed and insisted that they were seeds of the canillo, miconia argentea. other iguanas dissected contained fruit of the pepenance, ximenia americana, and mango leaves. i have observed them eating the leaves of the morning glory, ipomoea species, and new shoots of the ceiba, ceiba pentandra. they undoubtedly eat many different species of leaves, blossoms, buds and fruit. native panamanians and salvadoreans claim that they frequently eat leaves from vegetables in gardens. several natives claimed that they had seen iguanas, not once, but a number of times, eat human excrement. in captivity i have had them eat ripe bananas. very young iguanas are probably almost entirely insectivorous2, but i have made no personal observations on their feeding habits. i find no mention of stomach stones in my notes, nor do i remember finding any. mating i have not observed iguanas in the act of mating. one of my workers saw a pair mating in el salvador. if he remembered correctly it was in october. they were closely intertwined and upon the ground. another claimed that they mated in november at the close of the winter (rainy season). it is very likely that mating takes place upon the ground; if it took place in trees it would be more often observed. many of my men were excellent woodsmen and observers of nature, but few had ever seen iguanas mating. egg laying the eggs are laid from early february to march. they are spherical in shape and have a white shell, about 30 mm. in diameter. one informant told me that they are laid on the ground and covered with dirt. they probably hatch in about three months. (young iguanas are commonly seen from june on). the number deposited varies greatly; there may be as few as twenty or as many as seventy. a specimen dissected on a september 26 contained 72 eggs, varying from 3 to 6 mm in diameter; the total number probably represented more than one clutch. another examined on a november 21 contained 28 large eggs, of about 15 mm. in diameter, and many that were much smaller. late in january the eggs are about 25 mm. in diameter. growth young iguanas are observed most often in june and july. a native observer said that they reached a length of about three feet at the end of their first year. this sounds reasonable, as in june or july most specimens seem to be under ten inches or over three feet in length. they probably attain full size in two years. older specimens seem to become thicker in build but do not grow much in length. a specimen five feet in total length, and weighing about ten pounds, may be considered large. the largest specimen of many hundreds that came to my attention was caught at fort gulick, canal zone. it weighed 13 1/4 pounds, and measured 66 1/2 inches in total length, 4 inches of the tail having been regenerated. with a normal tail it would not have been more than an inch or two longer. the snout to vent length was 20 1/4 inches. i have not seen wild ones (at large) that i thought were any larger than this specimen. frequency iguanas are very common in many places where they occur. in a hunt for them near margarita, canal zone, on a september 26, i personally observed 39 specimens in two hours; of these my five helpers caught 8. they undoubtedly saw many more that i did not. that afternoon i observed 20 more, although i was not hunting for them then. between margarita and gatun, while driving slowly along the road one morning shortly after sunrise, i counted 58 iguanas sunning themselves on the tops of trees, within a distance of three miles. it is not unusual to see four or five in a tree. we once routed 12 iguanas from one fig tree, ficus glabrata. enemies many iguanas are marked by bad scars. according to the natives, most of the scars are the result of attacks by hawks. i have no reason to doubt this, as hawks are very numerous in the tropics, and the iguana’s habit of basking in the tops of tall trees would make it very logical prey. the fear of hawks is the basis of a stratagem for catching iguanas. the native whistles or screams like a hawk, which “freezes” the lizard and makes it easier to capture. i can not vouch for this personally, but i do not discredit it, as when frightened badly enough, an iguana usually remains motionless. boas and other snakes undoubtedly eat many iguanas. small snakes are capable of eating young specimens. we once caught a boa, constrictor c. imperator [= boa constrictor] of only six feet in length that contained an adult iguana. it was a big meal for the snake, and the tremendous bulge it made in his body rendered the capture of the snake very easy. i have no records of predatory mammals attacking iguanas, although i see no reason why they should not. defense the iguana’s chief defense against its enemies is probably its ability to climb, run, and swim. its protective coloration is an aid in escaping the notice of many potential enemies. it is amazing how inconspicuous it can be. i have talked to people who have lived in the canal zone for two or three years without having noticed a wild iguana, although they are present in large numbers in many parts of the zone. once when on a hunt, five good campesinos and myself could observe but three iguanas in a guacimo tree. a couple of the boys climbed it, and frightened ten iguanas to the ground. their keen vision helps them to avoid enemies. on an open sabana, one gave evidence of having seen me while i was still 100 yards away. i have tried to approach them in trees close enough to photograph, but could seldom get within 25 feet of one before it would leap to the ground. 2 editors’ note: green iguanas of any age are herbivorous. accounts of insectivory are due to incidents induced in captivity and should not be used to justify feeding meat or insects to captive green iguanas. usually a captured specimen offers no resistance. if it is released and teased, it sometimes puts up quite a show of angry defense. some of my men once caught and released an iguana, unknown to me. i came upon it, thinking it a wild one, and when i got close enough, it lashed out with its tail, striking me on the side of my thigh between the knee and hip. it raised a welt which lasted several hours. it also threatened to bite. i took it into a cabin and thrust a broom at it. the lizard struck at the broom with his tail, then bit at it savagely, taking off part of the straw. another specimen, trussed up in the usual panamanian manner, managed to get its front legs loose and bruised one of my companions arms with its tail. wounded specimens are much more likely to fight than uninjured ones. some natives claim they can make a good account of themselves with a small dog. commercial value3 iguanas are a source of meat for a great many tropical american people. their use as food seems to be confined to the areas where they are indigenous, as they are seldom transported from the lowland tropics to the cities at higher elevations where the iguana does not occur. most natives of central america who live where iguanas occur consider them excellent food. the jamaican negroes who worked for me in the canal zone could hardly conceal their disgust at people eating lizards. some of the highlanders of central america feel the same way. personally, i think they are delicious. unlike most animals, old specimens are better eating than young ones, perhaps because they are not so agile, resulting in softer muscles than in young, active specimens. their diet probably affects the taste also, as younger individuals may not have completely overcome the insectivorous habits of their infancy. possibly when feeding on fruits they have a better flavor than when feeding on leaves and other vegetation that would impart a flavor less palatable to humans. in the dry season they are not as good eating as in the rainy season. one i cooked for three hours in july remained tough and not very tasty. just after egg laying, in march, to about july, they are at their worst. they are usually considered at their best in september and october. many writers have mentioned tasting the flesh of the iguana and finding it unpalatable. in such cases, they have either let their imagination get the best of them, have tasted them at the wrong season or have tried too young a specimen. i have eaten many of them and find them delicious — equal if not superior to chicken. their eggs are also considered a delicacy. i have eaten them taken from an iguana and boiled. to me they tasted much the same as the hard boiled yolk of a hen’s egg, and had much the same appearance. the natives also eat them dried, as sort of a confection. the market value of iguanas varies much from country to country. in panama, in 1943, at the market in panama city, a large female with eggs sold for about $2.00 (males slightly cheaper). at the same time, the best class of fish retailed for about 32 cents per pound; chickens 60 cents live weight and 70 cents dressed. such an iguana would weigh 8 to 10 pounds. turtle steaks were 30 cents per pound. in el salvador at the same time, a similar iguana sold for the equivalent of 30 cents to 40 cents u.s. in nicaragua they could be bought for as little as 15 cents u.s. eggs of the iguana sold in panama city at 7 for 10c and in cartagena for as little as 4 for 1c u.s. in barranquilla, a string of 50 was sold for about 25c u.s. the iguana is a particularly convenient source of meat in hot places, as it can be kept alive for a long period without food or water. in panama it is the custom to fold the legs over the back, securing them by slitting the skin of the toes and placing a claw of one foot through the tendons of the toes of the opposite foot, and twisting them. this renders the iguana helpless. in panama city one may see dozens of them lying in the street of the market place. i am told that in venezuela the natives simply break the iguana’s back to keep it more or less immobile. i do not recall having heard an iguana voice a sound of any kind. however some of the mestizos who worked for me told me of an occasion in which an iguana caused much excitement among the sight seers who flocked off a boat at cristobal. the big lizard, held by a panamanian, made lots of peculiar noises, whistled and “talked.” an excited gringo thought that he had made a wonderful discovery for some zoo, and convinced the panamanian to part with it for the measly sum of $10.00. of course it was a trick of ventriloquy. 182 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 swanson 3 see also “a backward glance at iguana exploitation” (iguana 10(3):63–66). green iguanas still appear regularly at central american markets. photographs by gunther köhler. iguana 13.2 b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 85table of contents ircf international reptile conservation foundation table of contents f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s flying reptiles of malaysia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .l. lee grismer 86 reptiles of the santa lucia cloud forest, ecuador . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .aaron z. savit 94 fire in the salina reserve, grand cayman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .frederick j. burton 104 r e s e a r c h a r t i c l e population structure and reproduction of ctenosaura bakeri on utila . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .alexander gutsche 108 m e e t i n g r e p o r t s 2005 meeting of the iguana specialist group (isg) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 blue iguana recovery program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . fred burton ricord’s iguana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jan ramer jamaican iguana recovery project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . byron wilson and rick van veen turks and caicos iguana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . glenn gerber and allison alberts cyclura cychlura figginsi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . charles r. knapp 25-year overview for cyclura cychlura inornata . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . john iverson cyclura pinguis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . kelly bradley and glenn gerber conservation outreach for the anegada iguana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lee pagni fijian iguana update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . peter harlow mona island iguana, cyclura cornuta stejnegeri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . miguel garcía cyclura nubila on isla magueyes, puerto rico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . miguel garcía molecular analysis of the ctenosaurs of nuclear central america: insights into speciation, conservation, and management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . stesha pasachnik genetic studies update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . catherine stephen bartsch’s rock iguana, cyclura carinata bartschi . . . . . . . . steve conners, joe wasilewski, joe burgess, and john bendon the viii national meeting on iguanas in méxico: an overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .víctor hugo reynoso, laura briseño, gerardo olmos, and victor hernández 130 h u s b a n d r y emerald gems (corallus caninus): captive husbandry and propagation. part ii: care and reproduction . . . joseph m. polanco 133 p r o f i l e sandy echternacht: a lifetime of herpetology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . stesha a. pasachnik 138 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e adaptations for gliding in the lizard draco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . edwin h. colbert 145 biographical sketch: edwin h. colbert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . matthew colbert 149 c o m m e n t a r i e s killing animals for profit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . carl hiaasen 154 are alligator snappers out of the soup? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . j. whitfield gibbons 155 global climate change: should you care? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . gad perry 156 b o o k r e v i e w three on consilience: the difficult art of combining biological and social sciences to protect biodiversity . . . gad perry 160 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167 obituary: ronald goellner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jeff ettling 170 ircf on the move . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176 iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:18 pm page 85 iguana 12.2 b&w text anegada or stout iguana (cyclura pinguis) (see article on p. 78). iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 12, number 2 june 2005 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess g le n n m it c h el l this cross-stitch was created by anne fraser of calgary, alberta from a photograph of carley, a blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) at the captive breeding facility on grand cayman. the piece, which measures 6.8 x 4.2 inches, uses 6,100 stitches in 52 colors and took 180 hours to complete. it will be auctioned by the ircf at the daytona international reptile breeder’s expo on 20 august 2005. profits from the auction will benefit conservation projects for west indian rock iguanas in the genus cyclura. a subadult stout iguana (cyclura pinguis) awaiting release at the headstarting facility on anegada (see article on p. 78). timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus) reach the northernmost extent of their range on the bluff prairies in wisconsin (see article on p. 90). spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura similis) are abundant in archaeological zones on the yucatán peninsula. this individual is on the wall around the mayan city of tulúm (see article on p. 112). red-bellied or black racers (alsophis rufiventris) remain abundant on mongoose-free saba and st. eustatius, but have been extirpated on st. christopher and nevis (see article on p. 62). jo h n b in n s r ic h a r d s a jd a k r o b er t po w el l r o b er t po w el l iguana b&w text 52 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 book review the reluctant mr. darwin: an intimate portrait of charles darwin and the making of his theory of evolution. 2006. by david quammen. w.w. norton & co., new york. 304 pp. hardback – isbn: 0-393-05981-2. $22.95. as part of the landed gentry, charles darwin’s family lived a sedate and sophisticated life in a large georgian house in shrewsbury. darwin’s father, a successful doctor and capitalist, had a large library, especially rich in natural history; a greenhouse was just off the morning room, and darwin’s mother kept fancy pigeons. after what is often described as an unremarkable childhood, darwin left for edinburgh to study medicine at the age of sixteen, but was appalled by the body trade and especially the brutality of surgery without anesthesia. after he abandoned that career, his father told him, “you care for nothing but shooting, dogs, and rat-catching, and you will be a disgrace to yourself and all your family.” darwin’s next plan was to prepare himself for ordination at cambridge and become a parson-naturalist. but then it happened. in 1831, darwin received an invitation to accompany captain fitzroy on the second beagle expedition. darwin wrote in his autobiography that before leaving he “did not then in the least doubt the strict and literal truth of every word in the bible.” after nearly five years of collection, observation, and seasickness, he returned to england, and david quammen’s new biography the reluctant mr. darwin begins with this return. when considering the number of existing biographies of darwin, one may wonder what is left to say. however, quammen’s biography, while not revisionist, is noteworthy for several reasons. at 250 pages, it is concise and manageable, especially compared to adrian desmond and james moore’s 800 pages or janet browne’s 1000-page treatment. also, more than a biography of the man, quammen’s lucid and engaging book is the history of an idea — the “marvelous and shocking and grim” idea of natural selection. quammen provides just enough biographical detail to convey the birth of this idea in the context of a great deal of hesitation and reluctance on darwin’s part. with his characteristic flair for metaphor, quammen entitles the first chapter “the fabric falls,” and writes that for two years after the beagle voyage, darwin “lived a strange double life, like a spy in the corridors of the british scientific establishment, which at that time was closely attuned to anglican orthodoxy and grounded in the tradition of natural theology.” in 1837, an important breakthrough occurred when john gould examined the bird specimens from the galápagos archipelago. darwin had thought that one group represented an assortment of wrens, grosbeaks, orioles, and finches, but they were all finches, thirteen species, closely related but distinct, and all unknown to science. also, three distinct species of mockingbird were nestled in the collection, and, unlike the finches, the mockingbirds had been carefully tagged. each species inhabited a different island. another breakthrough occurred in 1844, when joseph hooker examined the old plant specimens from the beagle and found that their island-by-island diversity contradicted the preconceived notions of species radiating from a center. darwin wrote, “at last gleams of light have come & i am almost convinced (quite contrary to opinion i started with) that species are not (it is like confessing a murder) immutable.” quammen writes that this was a daring admission, “cast in sheepish understatement and contradicting one of the fundamental tenets of british natural theology.” at that time, darwin completed a 189-page draft of his species theory, tucked it away, and seemed to stop. in speculating on the reasons for what is referred to as “darwin’s delay,” quammen continues to examine the tensions between darwin’s class and status and the political implications of his work. as a gentleman and patriarch, darwin was part of the establishment working in a political climate in which church and government feared the chartists and street agitators bolstered by lamarckism and other such subversive ideas. as the law of the land, christianity helped to keep the lower orders in check; anything that challenged the church was seditious. darwin was not only afraid to publish, he wanted no part of this the reluctant mr. darwin b o o k r e v i e w iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 52 this image of a marine iguana (amblyrhynchus cristatus) is plate 12 from c. r. darwin (ed. 1843. reptiles, part 5, no. 2 of the zoology of the voyage of h.m.s. beagle by thomas bell “edited and superintended by charles darwin.” smith elder and co., london). the original image was drawn at natural size from nature on stone by b. waterhouse hawkins, printed by c. hallmandel, and labeled amblyrynchus demarlii, as the species was then known. reproduced with permission from the complete work of charles darwin online (http://darwin-online.org.uk/). iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 53book review class warfare. the evolutionary radicals in the public arena were not his kind of people. in 1846, darwin began to dissect barnacles, and because of his reputation and vast network of contacts, he was able to obtain them from all over the world. in contrast to his former belief regarding the rarity of variation, he discovered that barnacles were highly variable, and quammen writes, “here they were, the minor differences on which natural selection works.” after almost eight years of barnacle work, his volumes won the royal medal for natural science, providing even more scientific esteem and credibility from the establishment. darwin had sixteen years to refine the ideas he had outlined in 1842 and drafted in 1844. he had fathered nine children, buried two, and published eight books. why not publish? instead, he started to breed pigeons. quammen compares darwin to a kiwi, a bird that lays a disproportionately large egg. not only was it large, but darwin postponed and delayed and then published only when forced to do so. when alfred russel wallace independently developed the idea of evolution by natural selection, quammen writes that darwin responded with surprise, nausea, and despair. in 1858, the darwin-wallace material was read before the linnean society and published in the society’s journal of proceedings two months later — and triggered no immediate reaction. in 1859, just ten months after the wallace scare, darwin published origins, writing, “i am infinitely pleased & proud at the appearance of my child.” the idea of descent of species from common ancestors became widely accepted soon after origins, but natural selection did not. natural selection as the differential reproductive success resulting from small, undirected variations served as the chief mechanism of adaptation and divergence — but it lacked purpose or design and challenged not the existence of a divine force, but the godliness of humans. the coinage of such words and phrases as “agnosticism” by thomas huxley and “survival of the fittest” by herbert spencer indicates what a profound shift was taking place in intellectual and scientific circles. throughout the biography quammen discusses the incompatibility of darwinian evolution and christianity, writing that scientific insight and religious dogma “had never come more directly into conflict.” in the introduction by way of comparison, he notes that a 2004 gallup poll revealed that 45 percent of americans interviewed were creationists; 38 percent theistic evolutionists, and only 13 percent materialistic evolutionists. these results remained virtually unchanged over the course of a generation, representing “an extreme level of skepticism and willful antipathy.” although the majority seems slow to digest it, quammen calls origins one of the most influential books ever written, provoking the most cataclysmic change in human thinking in four hundred years. he also calls it “hastily composed” and “seriously flawed,” and one wishes that his reasons for doing so were more convincing. one also wishes that thomas huxley were more a part of the story, but, overall, this perceptive and concise biography is well worth reading. part narrative and part essay, it creates suspense, refuses to romanticize darwin, and confronts the politics of evolution in matter-of-fact and explicit ways — and, after considering darwin’s torturous reluctance and delay, perhaps we can better understand the contemporary unwillingness and inability to accept such a well-established scientific discovery. nancy cervetti department of english avila university, kansas city, missouri iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 53 iguana 12.3 b&w text the song of the dodo: island biogeography in an age of extinctions. david quammen. 1996. scriber, new york. 702 pp. 15 maps, glossary, source notes, bibliography, index. clothbound. $32.50 (touchstone paperback edition, $20.00). move over gould, watson, leopold, darwin, and wilson. the required reading list for biology students, professionals, and serious nature-lovers has expanded — the song of the dodo: island biogeography in an age of extinctions by science journalist david quammen should definitely be included. the song of the dodo takes the reader on exciting adventures through the work of island biogeographers and studies of evolution and extinction. this book is not only educational, but also thrilling and highly entertaining — and can be enjoyed even by readers who are not familiar with island biogeography and the study of evolving species. well-written and researched, this volume reads like a travelogue of fascinating animals and places while inspiring the reader to take action to curb habitat destruction and species extinction. the song of the dodo is organized into ten sections, each of which covers one issue relevant to the world of island biogeography. the author begins with a brief introduction entitled, “thirty-six persian throw rugs,” an analogy he effectively uses to focus the reader’s attention on the “unraveling of ecosystems.” he also introduces one of the themes of the book, namely that most of us are not up to date on the subject of ecosystem decay and the field of island biogeography. in the following section, “the man who knew islands,” the author defines biogeography (the study of the facts and the patterns of species distribution) and goes on to use examples of islands like bali and lombok to introduce some of the facts on which biogeographers rely when they ask questions pertinent to the discipline. in this section, the author also pays homage to alfred russel wallace and his studies in the malay archipelago and the amazon basin. the reader is pulled into the life of wallace and travels with him as he develops his own hypotheses concerning the evolution of species. the author also takes a look at charles darwin and his travels, including his famous studies in the galápagos islands. quammen skillfully brings to life the quest to form theories and the race to see who can first publish their hypotheses on the evolution of species. in the third section, “so huge a bignes,” quammen addresses the main subject of the book: the relationship between the evolution and extinction of species. he emphasizes that evolution is best understood while simultaneously examining extinction by stating that “… the evolution of strange species on islands is a process that, once illuminated, casts light onto its dark double, which is the ultimate subject of this book: the extinction of species in a world that has been hacked into pieces.” this section of the book provides several examples of species around the world that have or are rapidly disappearing, using events leading to declines in the numbers and kinds of tortoises to introduce features peculiar to island communities. these include dispersal ability, size changes, and the loss of defensive adaptations. in “rarity unto death,” the fourth section, quammen passionately describes the extinction of several species. of these, the extinction of the dodo on the island of mauritius is noteworthy. until humans invaded mauritius, the dodo thrived, living in a balanced ecosystem. with the intro204 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 extinctions on islands: a classic revisited book review b o o k r e v i e w editor’s note although the review of a book first published nearly a decade ago may seem odd, the subject matter and the readability of quammen’s book, combined with its relevance to the conservation and natural history of reptiles, caused me to solicit this review. i hope it encourages a few more readers to explore quammen’s world. r. powell iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 205book review duction by the portuguese of domestic mammals, the dodos quickly expired. on tasmania, the thylacine (a hyena-like creature often called a tasmanian “wolf”) and the aborigines both became extinct shortly after the british arrived. the plight of tasmania’s aborigines provided fuel for quammen’s thoughts about the extinction of a human culture. in “preston’s bell,” quammen takes a close look at the species-area relationship, emphasizing that “less area harbors fewer species.” he goes on to tell the story of frank preston and how he came to apply a bell curve to his data on communities of birds and insects. preston saw a pattern, biological communities contained a few very rare species, many fairly abundant species, and a few species that are very abundant. with this pattern in mind, quammen related the story of preston’s bell to his own adventures while searching for komodo dragons. the sixth section of the book, “the coming thing,” examines robert macarthur and edward wilson’s theories on species reaching equilibrium on assortments of islands. macarthur and wilson hypothesized that, because new species were continually arriving and old species were continually becoming extinct, species eventually reach an equilibrium. macarthur and wilson used a mathematical model to foretell the specifics of equilibrium on any island. a highlight of this section is quammen’s personal interview with wilson, in which they discussed macarthur and the impact of their work on the very fundamentals of population biology. the seventh section of the volume takes the author to the world of tom lovejoy, “the hedgehog of the amazon.” quammen examined the sloss (single large or several small) debate and its effect on the creation of the minimum critical size of ecosystems project. the author goes on to suggest that it might be tom lovejoy that needs to be thanked for those instances where larger natural reserves have been set aside. “the song of the indri” (the largest surviving lemur) shifts quammen’s travels and thoughts to madagascar. using the question: “how rare is too rare?” he extends the thoughts of minimum critical size to the world of population genetics and genetic drift. once again, the author beautifully weaves the “soul” of biology (in this case, the story of the life and death of the guide, bedo) into the world of professional science. “world in pieces” takes the reader from island ecosystems to the work of carl jones and the kestrels of mauritius and the primate work of karen strier in brazil. quammen summarizes his concerns about the patterns seen in these examples and others: “all over the planet, the distributional maps of imperiled species are patchy. the patches are winking. in some instances they’re winking off and on, but in many instances they’re merely winking off.” in the final section of the book, quammen takes the reader back to the travels and thoughts of wallace. in “message from aru,” we are reminded of the fragility of the natural world and wallace’s warning in 1869: “…should civilized man ever reach these distant lands, and bring moral, intellectual, and physical light into the recesses of these virgin forests, we may be sure that he will so disturb the nicely balanced relations of organic and inorganic nature as to cause the disappearance, and finally the extinction” of all too many species. for quammen, it comes down to a question: has it already happened, or do we still have time? readers of the song of the dodo will learn much about the research that has gone into the study of evolution and extinction — but the book is anything but a dry tome reciting facts, names, and dates. the author captures you and takes you into the minds of charles darwin, alfred wallace, robert macarthur, and other scientists during their quests for new insights. quammen’s gift is the story-telling that draws the reader into the events that led to each of many amazing discoveries. by incorporating exhilarating stories with educational information, the author painlessly teaches us the jargon of island biogeography, making this book an easy read for people who have little background in evolutionary biology and may have forgotten most of what they learned in high-school biology classes. although the subject matter is often depressing and the history of such an arcane discipline as island biogeography hardly seems appealing, this book is interesting and understandable — and often as entertaining as a best-selling novel. the occasionally hilarious, seat-gripping stories of well-known scientists combined with the depth of information make the book hard to set aside. sarah m. wissmann university of new england biddeford, maine and david a. wissmann avila university kansas city, missouri galápagos land iguana (conolophus subcristatus): two species are currently recognized, although some data suggest that they are mere geographic variants and other data provide support for even greater variation among populations on the various islands of the archipelago. land iguanas were among the species encountered by charles darwin during his sojourn in the islands. like many island endemics, they evolved in an environment largely free of predators and competitors and are extremely vulnerable to human activities that alter habitats and expose them to invasive carnivores and to herbivorous mammals that deplete the vegetation on which they depend. c o le tt e a d a m s iguana 11.4 the cuban iguana (cyclura macleayi [= c. nubila]) is a very agile and extremely wary animal, more dependent upon its vision than upon sound for protection. it generally catches sight of possible enemies before being seen. when off guard, as in eating or while sunning itself, it may be surprised, if one approaches carefully; but once alarmed and on guard, it cannot be approached successfully. in its departure from threatened danger this reptile almost never covers the entire distance to its hiding place in one dash, unless absolutely forced to do so. usually it advances or withdraws in short spurts of fifteen or twenty yards, poising then like a dog on the alert, listening for any sound. it stretches the neck upward and bobs its head in a rhythmical and comical movement. when it again scents or sights danger, it makes another dash of similar length, and so on until it reaches its hiding place, which in general is a hole or pocket in the rocks. here it hastens to take refuge and settles down in fancied security. if the hunter finds it in a rather shallow hiding place not affording complete concealment, the iguana opens its mouth in threatening fashion and gives voice to a disconcerting hoarse noise. the mobility and agility of this lizard is astonishing to one who has only seen it traveling at ease, with no cause for fright or alarm. it then seems heavy and slothful dragging its belly along the ground and leaving a track or furrow formed by the long, heavy tail. it is so agile, however, that with a few strides it can climb up a twenty-five foot stone wall or a tall tree, which it often does to satisfy its appetite. when surprised aloft it makes a single leap to the ground, and then sets out at high speed. unlike most cuban reptiles, which are active during the hours of darkness, the iguana, like a few other lizards as the ‘chameleon’ [= anoles, genus anolis] and ‘bayoya’ [curly-tailed lizards, genus leiocephalus], is active during the middle of the day, when the sun is highest. rarely is it seen before nine o’clock in the morning or after five in the afternoon. if found at such times, it is slow and lethargic. on cloudy or rainy days, it is not seen. the iguana may live in areas which completely lack water for drinking even in pits or hollows that might collect rainwater. it is found also on very small areas of land, such as keys and tiny islands. fishermen from regions of numerous small islands tell me that they have seen the iguana moving from key to key, crossing narrows of more than two hundred yards in width by swimming on the surface with the tail employed in the manner of a sculling oar. the iguana is an animal that prefers a solitary life, never being found naturally in groups; however, it tolerates collective life when constrained to live so. i keep large numbers together and have never witnessed a single fight amongst them. on cool nights they even huddle together presumably for the purpose of warmth conservation. cyclura macleayi reaches a very considerable size; i have had specimens up to 60 inches in length. in these lizards the tail is a most important organ, from the standpoint both of health and resistance. a fat tail on either a young or old specimen is a sign of good health, and that the individual can endure long enclosure and long voyages. however, the tip of the tail is so fragile that is will readily break off in the grip of the incautious handler. the teeth are small and sharp, the bite powerful enough to crush small bones. the iguana is omnivorous, eating fruits, vegetables, and ripe bananas, varied in captivity with left-overs from the table such as cereals, meat, and fish. 250 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s adult cuban iguana (cyclura nubila). photograph by thomas wiewandt. observation on habits of the cuban iguana1 mario s. buide 250 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 historical perspectives 1 translated by dr. d. f. munro. reprinted with permission from herpetologica 7:124 (1951). bracketed names were added and one typographical error corrected. iguana 12.2 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 61table of contents table of contents r e s e a r c h a r t i c l e s conservation status of lesser antillean reptiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell and robert w. henderson 62 conservation of the anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . kelly a. bradley and glenn p. gerber 78 value-added conservation science: outreach activities that support conservation of the anegada iguana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lee pagni and deirdre ballou 86 f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s rattlesnakes on the bluffs: wisconsin timber rattlesnakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . richard sajdak and craig berg 90 blue iguana update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . frederic j. burton 98 hellshire blues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . rick hudson 100 h u s b a n d r y care of uromastyx . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . thomas wilms 102 p r o f i l e the artist as iguanaphile: a profile of joel friesch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert w. henderson 108 t r a v e l o g u e mayan reptiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . michael a. powell 112 a yucatecan adventure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . michael a. powell 114 25 years of change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 116 species profile: blunt-headed tree snake (imantodes cenchoa) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 124 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s camps in the caribbees: the adventures of a naturalist in the lesser antilles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . frederick a. ober 123 florida and the west indies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . frederick a. ober 125 biographical sketch: frederick a. ober . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126 c o m m e n t a r y consider the turtles of the field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . brian mclaren 127 b o o k r e v i e w amphibians & reptiles of the bay islands and cayos cochinos, honduras by james r. mccranie, larry david wilson, and gunther köhler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . arthur c. echternacht 129 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 conservation news: ivory-billed woodpecker rediscovered! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140 a large adult male rhinoceros iguana (cyclura cornuta) “escorts” a rival from his territory in the large enclosure at zoodom, dominican republic. ircf international reptile conservation foundation jo h n b in n s iguana 13.1 b&w text 82 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 ircf on the move ircf’s 501(c)3 status came into play late last year, when the blue iguana recovery program was looking to apply to the dart foundation for project funding. for institutional reasons, an application was most likely to be successful if submitted by a 501(c)3 foundation or equivalent. responding to the blue iguana recovery program’s request, ircf submitted a formal bid to the dart foundation for us $36,400 to cover the costs of a range of urgently needed improvements to the captive breeding and head-starting facility for blue iguanas at the qe ii botanic park on grand cayman. at the same time, ircf launched a web appeal on www.blueiguana.ky to raise additional funds for a security fence for the facility. in mid-december, good news came in from the dart foundation, and, by mid-january, ircf had transferred the funds to grand cayman and the captive facility is now a hive of activity. the security and tour control fences are going up, a large hurricane-damaged breeding pen is being restored, landscaped, and subdivided, and plans are underway to trench for electrical and water supplies. the dart foundation and the individuals who have contributed to the fence appeal will all be recognized on a panel to be mounted in the main tour area. i r c f o n t h e m o v e dart foundation grant for blue iguanas dart foundation-funded improvements to the captive breeding and head-starting facility for blue iguanas on grand cayman. anyone interested in helping to support the andros footballers and their efforts to promote iguana conservation, please contact john binns (jfb@ircf.org). fr ed b u r to n the central andros football club adopted the andros iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura) as its mascot and was rewarded with t-shirts provided by the shedd aquarium and the ircf. the team logo (below) features the artwork of joel friesch (ircf). andros footballers adopt iguana mascot iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 82 iguana 12.1 venomous snakes can be lethal. unfortunately, many of us forget that even some non-venomous snakes usually considered to be harmless can, in fact, be very dangerous. accidents with large boas and anacondas (especially the latter) can be nasty and potentially life threatening. one of my jobs has been to catch anacondas and show them to tourists. over time, one gets to know (or believes that one knows) these animals, and one develops tricks to avoid bites. sadly, in certain situations, even with a lot of care, accidents can happen. when they do, one does not quickly forget an anaconda bite. these massive animals live in water, and their mouths and saliva are full of bacteria. even a relatively inoffensive bite from a baby anaconda can quickly become infected and produce a lot of pain, and the bite of an adult is another matter entirely! another snake that can be really aggressive and potentially dangerous is the common savanna racer, chironius carinatus. these snakes usually are encountered crossing roads, along paths, on beaches, or along rivers in bushes. i’ve been bitten by more than just a few. bites are very bloody, but usually no deeper than a cat scratch. on those (unfortunately frequent) occasions when i have been bitten while capturing one of these aggressive snakes, i take advantage of the opportunity to show people that they are non-venomous and pose little danger — until now… i have had two previous encounters with chironius attacking my face, in the rainforests of the guiana shield. on the first occasion, i was handling a chironius fuscus in front of a group of gold miners, with the intent of showing them that it was “harmless.” i let go of its neck for only a second and it immediately attacked my nose. at the time, i thought it was funny, but some of the garimpeiros almost died of heart attacks! the second time, i had seen a large, red c. scurrulus crossing a forest path. i ran and caught it by the tail — and the next view i had was the open mouth approaching my face at an amazing speed. i immediately released the snake and luckily avoided a bite. neither of those episodes was anything like my most recent encounter with a chironius in los llanos. rather than providing an amusing tale, that experience was quite serious. i had seen the tail of a big c. carinatus disappearing into a pile of dead logs along the bank of the apure river. i grabbed the tail and was showing the snake to a group of tourists before securing its neck — big mistake! i never would have imagined that its tail was strong enough to support its entire body, nor that an apparently panicked snake could effectively identify a particular target. i had considered the two previous attacks to my face as coincidental, mainly because bites resulting from handling these snakes at serpentariums were directed at my hands and arms, but i now realize that was due to the fact that only a small portion of the total length of those animals was free. i now believe that chironius attacks the face strategically. with at least 1.40 m of the animal’s total 1.60 m free, it had the potential to reach my face — and it did! it twice attacked the same eye, and after that my side and my arm, all in the few seconds before i finally secured its neck. of course, i closed my eye, and that saved my sight. even so, the bite was frighteningly effective. if chironius had longer teeth, such as those of an anaconda or a treeboa, they would have easily penetrated the eyelid and severely damaged my eye. i was extremely fortunate not to lose the eye, and i can only hope that i will be far more cautious the next time i handle a monster chironius! chironius attack! césar luis barrio amorós fundación andígena, apdo. postal 210, mérida 5101-a, estado mérida, venezuela (cesarlba@yahoo.com) iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 23chironius q all savanna racers, like this venezuelan chironius carinatus, are quick, aggressive snakes that bite readily when handled. photograph by the author. the author with the chironius carinatus that attacked his face. photograph courtesy of arassari trek/fundación andígena. iguana 12.4 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 281isg meeting the iucn iguana specialist group conducted their annual working meeting, 6–7 november 2005 in south andros, bahamas. generously hosted and substantially underwritten by mike and petagay hartley of tiamo resorts, isg participants enjoyed what is aptly described as “barefoot sophistication” at the eco-friendly tiamo lodge. planning and travel arrangements fell on the shoulders of chuck knapp, who did an admirable job of facilitating the arrival of so many people to this remote destination. for 11⁄2 days, the isg heard various species update reports and then discussed a number of pressing issues relevant to the group’s activities. one of the more productive discussions focused on drafting a prioritized list of isg projects for 2006, an exercise that has implications for short-term funding opportunities. finally, a jamaican iguana sub-group convened and began planning a species recovery plan workshop, tentatively scheduled for july 2006. this will be the first time since the jamaican iguana phva workshop in 1993 that this conservation strategy has been officially revisited. this information will be detailed in the meeting minutes in the upcoming isg newsletter. the 2005 isg meeting represented a significant milestone: it has now been ten years since this group began meeting together to discuss, plan, and strategize iguana conservation activities in the caribbean region. hosted by the miami metrozoo, we first met in 1996, although we were not formally recognized as an official specialist group — initially the west indian iguana specialist group — by the iucn species survival commission until the following year in seattle. we will recognize our official 10-year anniversary next year and plans are already being discussed for a cumulative photo expose on the isg’s work. following the isg meeting, a species recovery plan (srp) workshop for the andros iguana, cyclura c. cychlura, was convened. an important component of all srps is having local participants that help draft and then endorse the final product. thanks to support from the shedd aquarium in chicago, key local players and stakeholders were involved in the production of this plan. four primary working groups split off to work on the following topics: protected areas, education and public awareness, fund-raising, and research priorities. these documents will be incorporated into an overall conservation strategy (srp). one of the most exciting outcomes was the emergence of a bright, articulate, and highly motivated local high school teacher and coach, ricardo johnson, who plans to use the iguana as the mascot for the school’s soccer team. mascots are not commonly used in the bahamas and we have high hopes that this i u c n i g u a n a s p e c i a l i s t g r o u p m e e t i n g south andros, the bahamas 6–7 november 2005 participants in the iucn isg meeting, south andros, the bahamas, 6–7 november 2005 (from left): rick hudson, peter tolson, kristin hines, steve conners, tom wiewandt, stesha pasachnik, joe burgess, quentin bloxam, ricardo johnson, jeff lemm, byron wilson, karen graham, john iverson, allison alberts, catherine stephen, miguel garcia, bruce weissgold, jan ramer, fred burton, tandora grant, samantha addinall, tarren wagner, joe wasilewski, sandra buckner, and chuck knapp; not pictured, janet conners, who took the photograph. the lodge at the eco-friendly tiamo resort in south andros was the venue for a species recovery plan workshop for the endangered andros iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura). this one-day meeting enjoyed strong participation by the local community, and separate working groups “broke out” to discuss education/local awareness, protected areas, research priorties, and fund-raising. this workshop represented a major first step toward producing a conservation strategy for the iguana, with the species emerging as a potential icon for biodiversity conservation on south andros. to m w ie w a n d t 282 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 isg meeting action will serve to elevate the iguana from relative obscurity to iconic status in the eyes of the local community. popularizing the andros iguana and improving local awareness should have a positive impact on efforts to protect them and their habitat. south andros is a large island, with vast expanses of undisturbed wilderness that support considerable biodiversity. with the potential to become a showcase for biodiversity preservation in the region, one of the goals of the workshop was to include an iguana management zone within a much broader protected area on south andros. hopes remain high that this will become a reality and that this workshop will serve to catalyze this much-needed action. following the isg workshops, the board of directors of the international iguana foundation met on 9–10 november. this is the first time the two groups have met together, a trend that will likely continue. the primary order of business was reviewing 2005 funding proposals and awarding grants. the board reviewed five proposals requesting a total of $53,473. due to funding constraints, the board was able to award $31,864 to the following five projects or programs: (1) restoration of a second subpopulation of wild grand cayman blue iguanas, phase 2, $5,864. fred burton, principal investigator (pi); (2) jamaican iguana recovery program, $9,000. byron wilson, pi; (3) conservation of the anegada iguana: public education, headstart optimization, and nest protection, $8,000. k. bradley and g. gerber, pis; (4) conservation of the critically endangered fijian crested iguana, $3,000. j.s. keogh, p. harlow, and s. morrison, pis; and (5) development of a cost-efficient and effective monitoring program for the mona iguana population, $6,000. n. perez-buitrago, s.m. funk, w.o. mcmillan, and m. garcia, pis. subsequent to the iif board meeting, a $3,000 emergency request was awarded to ernst rupp (grupo jaragua) for a ricord's iguana survey on the southern shore of lago enriquillo, dominican republic. rick hudson isg co-chair iif executive director some of the participants took advantage of a break in the action to go snorkeling. to m w ie w a n d t the iif board met in conjunction with the isg in south andros; front row (from left): mike hartman (tiamo resort manager), quentin bloxam (durrell wildlife conservation trust), mike fouraker (ft. worth zoo), karen graham (sedwick county zoo); middle: rick hudson (ft. worth zoo); back row (from left): allison alberts (zoological society of san diego), jackie ogden (disney’s animal kingdom), colette adams (gladys porter zoo), peter tolson (toledo zoo), jan ramer (indianapolis zoo), and chuck knapp (shedd aquarium). ja n et c o n n o r s iguana 12.1 2 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 henderson corallus caninus from rio formoso, rondônia, brazil. photograph by laurie j. vitt. the emerald treeboa (corallus caninus) is one of the species most readily recognized by snake enthusiasts worldwide, yet we know remarkably little about its natural history. it has an extensive distribution on the neotropical mainland that encompasses most of the guianas, a large portion of venezuela, amazonian colombia, ecuador, and perú, northern bolivia, and much of the brazilian amazon at elevations from sea level to about 1000 m. in addition, valid records of corallus caninus exist for the departments of antioquia and córdoba in northwestern colombia. although largely arboreal, the emerald treeboa does occasionally descend to the ground. like other members of the genus, it is nocturnal. its diet is comprised mostly of rodents (e.g., rice rats, oecomys sp.), but it also includes opossums and lizards. despite many references to a diet of birds in the popular and technical literature, stomach content analysis has failed to support this notion. observations in the field strongly suggest that c. caninus is an ambush predator that may perch close to ground level with its head angled downward to await a passing rodent. next to nothing is known regarding population biology. a population density estimate of one treeboa per 2.7 km2 (= 0.004/hectare) came from departamento san martín, perú, but the investigator was dubious about the reliability of that figure. in contrast, i have calculated densities in excess of 50 corallus grenadensis per hectare at one site on grenada. however, most c. grenadensis in a local population prey on ubiquitous and phenomenally abundant anolis lizards, whereas c. caninus prey almost exclusively on small mammals that occur at much lower densities. emeralds may reach a total length in excess of 2.0 m, with those from the guiana shield attaining larger size than those from amazonia. the head of corallus caninus, attached to a relatively slender neck, looks menacing, due, in part, to the heatsensitive labial pits. in addition, these snakes are armed with long teeth on the anterior portions of the maxillae and mandibles. these meat hook-like teeth prevent prey from accidentally falling irrecoverably to the ground below. emerald treeboas are called “emerald” because of the exquisite green ground coloration on the dorsum. coupled with the striking white markings typically occurring along the dorsal midline and in the form of the ventrolateral blotches found in some populations, their aesthetic appeal as exhibit animals in zoos and for herpetoculturists is easy to understand. some of the latter are sufficiently enamored to specialize only in this species. occasionally snakes from the guiana shield lack the typical middorsal white markings, yet are still eye-catching because of the vivid shades of green that may occur on a single individual. still other individuals are heavily pigmented with black on the dorsum. newborn treeboas are usually brick-red dorsally, and the emerald puzzle: geographic variation in corallus caninus robert w. henderson section of vertebrate zoology, milwaukee public museum, milwaukee, wi 53233, usa (rh@mpm.edu) abstract.—the emerald treeboa (corallus caninus) is one of the most famous and easily recognized snakes in the world. despite this and its aesthetic appeal as an exhibit animal, surprisingly little is known about its biology. it has a wide geographic distribution in south america (the guiana shield and amazonia), but is common nowhere. emeralds are nocturnal and occur in mature rainforest where they prey on lizards, marsupials, and rodents. corallus caninus has had a remarkably stable taxonomic history since being described nearly 250 years ago, but ongoing examination of geographic variation in morphological characters and analysis of dna sequences strongly indicates that more than one species may be masquerading under the c. caninus umbrella. key words: treeboas, corallus caninus, south america, amazonia, guiana shield iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 3emerald treeboa q map illustrating the approximate range of the emerald treeboa (corallus caninus). the ontogenetic change to adult coloration is, i believe, part of the attraction of this species. taxonomic history corallus caninus has maintained a rather remarkable taxonomic stability since described by linnaeus nearly 250 years ago. although other “emerald” species were subsequently described (e.g., boa aurantiaca laurenti 1768, chrysensis batesii gray 1860), all were eventually relegated to the synonymy of corallus caninus. one hundred and forty-five years have passed since gray described chrysensis batesii based on a juvenile specimen collected by pioneer amazon naturalist, henry walter bates, in the “upper amazon.” boulenger placed it into the synonymy of corallus caninus in 1893. since then, surprisingly little attention has been paid to the biological relationships of c. caninus, despite its enigmatic juvenile coloration, its eye-catching adult coloration, and its popularity in zoos and among herpetoculturists. aside from a long-standing interest in corallus biology, i was intrigued by the apparent lack of interest in and information about such a “famous” snake. i knew it was highly coveted by herpetoculturists, and that some pattern morphs commanded prices in the thousands of dollars. i also was aware that the species is exported in substantial numbers for the pet trade (e.g., during 1990–1996, 6830 c. caninus were exported from guyana and suriname) and may be vulnerable to local extirpations. most boas are listed as cites appendix ii (i.e., species which may be threatened with extinction or which may be affected by international trade; those not listed as appendix ii are appendix i), and that includes emerald treeboas. although 4 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 henderson print of corallus caninus capturing a domestic chicken (from an unknown source). currently, we have no evidence of emeralds preying on birds (domestic or otherwise) by day or night. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 5emerald treeboa the species occurs over a wide geographic area, it is nowhere common, and occurs mostly in primary rainforest, which is disappearing at alarming rates. i began borrowing preserved specimens of emerald treeboas about 15 years ago. geographic variation was apparent, and i published some of my data over a decade ago. subsequently, however, articles by herpetoculturists who specialized in breeding c. caninus caught my attention when they referred to “northern” or “shield” emeralds and “basin” emeralds. although i had already observed and described some of the same geographic variation, i felt the species warranted more intensive scrutiny. i began anew my examination of preserved specimens of corallus caninus, but only about 75 with reliable locality data were held in u.s. collections. some countries within the range of c. caninus either were not represented by any specimens (e.g., french guiana) in u.s. collections, or were poorly represented (e.g., venezuela; one specimen). also, treeboas from brazil were, again, poorly represented in u.s. collections, and about 60% of the species’ range falls in that country. i contacted collection curators in brazil, colombia, and venezuela (museo de historia natural la salle), and also france (for french guiana material), the netherlands (for suriname specimens), and germany. not surprisingly, more specimens were in brazilian collections than elsewhere, and i received enthusiastic assistance from the instituto butantan, museo de zoologia at the universidade de são paulo, and the museo paraense emílio goeldi in belém. not all of the brazilian specimens i wished to examine were available for loan, so i solicited the collaboration of marinus hoogmoed. a dutch herpetologist, dr. hoogmoed has been studying south american frogs and reptiles for many years, and he now lives in brazil. i was pleased when he agreed to collaborate and examine the many specimens housed at the museo paraense emílio goeldi. pieces of the puzzle after examining several dozen treeboas from across the wide range of the species, i clearly recognized that snakes from the guiana shield (the area north of the rio amazonas and east of the rio negro, fide hoogmoed 1979) were distinct from those elsewhere in the range. most obvious was the virtual lack of lateral blotches (mean of 1.5 ± 0.52 in 32 snakes), a low number of scales across the top of the muzzle (mean = 3.4 ± 0.24), and pale tissue (usually) in the mental groove. that was the easy part. south and west of the guiana shield, variation was more like a jigsaw puzzle. to date, i have had the opportunity to examine about 125 corallus caninus with accompanying locality data. most snakes from eastern brazil south of the amazon (states of pará and maranhão) have conspicuous lateral blotches (mean of 16.4 ± 1.46), a white middorsal stripe connecting the bases of the white triangle-like markings that lie along the dorsum, more scales across the top of the muzzle (mean of 6.7 ± 0.34 in 16 snakes), and black interstitial tissue in the mental groove. in the state of rondônia in western brazil and in western mato grosso state, lateral blotches are absent or greatly reduced in number (mean of 5.8 ± 2.3 in 9 snakes), the middorsal stripe is absent, the number of scales across the top of the muzzle is reduced (mean of 4.9 ± 0.45), and the tissue in the mental groove is variable (white, gray, or black). in amazonas state north of the amazon and west of the rio negro (i.e., west of the guiana shield), the number of scales across the dorsal surface of the muzzle increases, lateral blotches are present, and the interstitial tissue engraving of gray’s chrysensis batesii from the “upper amazon,” based on a juvenile c. caninus (from the proceedings of the zoological society, london 28:132–133). of the mental groove is black in adults (like dorsal ground color, this tissue undergoes an ontogenetic shift from yellowish to black). surprisingly, i have no records from central brazil (south of the rio amazonas) in the state of amazonas. moving west into ecuador, perú (where the species occurs to 1000 m above sea level), and bolivia, lateral blotches are a constant (although shapes are variable) and are more numerous than elsewhere across the range (mean of 23.4 ± 1.1 in 36 snakes). likewise, the dorsal triangles are more numerous (mean of 32.8 ± 1.04 versus 25.9 elsewhere). a middorsal stripe may or may not be present. corallus caninus from ecuador and perú also exhibit more scales across the muzzle than elsewhere (mean of 8.1 in 36 snakes). legitimate records of emerald treeboas at what appear to be localities isolated from the rest of the range occur north of the colombian cordilleras occidental and central. through the kind cooperation of olga castaño (instituto de ciencias naturales, universidad nacional de colombia) and juan manuel daza-r. (instituto de biologia, universidad de antioquia), i have seen photographs and received scale and pattern data regarding these snakes. they lack middorsal stripes, but have lateral blotches typical of snakes from the upper amazon. likewise, the number of scales across the muzzle falls into the range for colombian emeralds collected east of the andes. assembling the puzzle considering the breadth of the range of corallus caninus, that the species displays geographic variation is not surprising. dna 6 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 henderson a young emerald treeboa from kilometer 88 on the road between el dorado and santa elena de uairen, bolivar, venezuela. note the absence of a middorsal stripe and lateral blotches. photograph by césar barrio, courtesy of serpentario los llanos. a juvenile corallus caninus (smf 80017) collected at ca. 1000 m above sea level at pozuzo, depto. pasco, perú. this is probably at or close to the upper altitudinal extreme for the species. photograph by edgar lehr. emerald treeboa from santa cecilia, sucumbios, ecuador, illustrating the middorsal stripe and lateral blotches common in c. caninus from some areas of amazonia. photograph by william e. duellman. adult corallus caninus from the vicinity of ariquemes, rondônia, brazil, illustrating the absence of a middorsal stripe and lateral blotches. photograph by w. carl taylor. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 7emerald treeboa sequences from critical areas across the range of c. caninus parallel the morphological data so far collected, and more than one species appears to be masquerading under the taxonomic umbrella of c. caninus. many hypotheses (e.g., refugia, riverine barrier, marine incursion) have been addressed in order to explain speciation in amazonia, and various authorities have noted that any amazonian speciation model will be complex and, to some extent, species-specific. collecting pieces of the “emerald puzzle” and their assembly is ongoing, with the analysis of morphological data hopefully providing additional insights into geographic variation and possible taxonomic partitioning of c. caninus. acknowledgements i am grateful to laurie vitt for providing photographs of emerald treeboas and for sharing his observations from the field and lab. juan manuel daza-r. called my attention to the colombian record from antioquia. bill lamar provided much useful information and offered photographs for my use. nicolas vidal was a pleasure to work with on the dna material. additional photos were provided by césar barrio, william duellman, edgar lehr, mikael lundberg, marcio martins, and carl taylor. rose henderson scanned images from old sources, and robert powell provided the map. joseph polanco and tony nicoli shared information based on their experiences breeding emeralds in captivity. i especially thank the personnel from many institutions in several countries who have, so far, loaned specimens for my examination. references boulenger, g. a. 1893. catalogue of snakes in the british museum (natural history). vol.1., containing the familes typhlopidae, glauconiidae, boidae, ilysiidae, uropeltidae, xenopeltidae, and colubridae aglyphae, part. trustees of the british museum, london. bush, m. b. 1994. amazonian speciation: a necessarily complex model. journal of biogeography 21:5–17. chiras, s. 1998. identification and husbandry of amazon basin emerald tree boas (corallus caninus). reptiles 69(3):48–67 + 70–75. cracraft, j. and r. o. prum. 1988. patterns and process of diversification: speciation and historical congruence in some neotropical birds. evolution 42:603–620. emmons, l. h. 1984. geographic variation in densities and diversities of nonflying mammals in amazonia. biotropica 16:210–222. gray, j. e. 1860. description of a new genus of boidae discovered by mr. bates on the upper amazon. proceedings of the zoological society, london 28:132–133. henderson, r. w. 1993. on the diets of some arboreal boids. herpetological natural history 1(1):91–96. henderson, r. w. 1993b. corallus caninus. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (574):1–3. henderson, r. w. 2002. neotropical treeboas: natural history of the corallus hortulanus complex. krieger publishing co., malabar, florida. hoogmoed, m. s. 1979. the herpetofauna of the guianan region, pp. 241–279. in: w. e. duellman (ed.), the south american herpetofauna: its origin, evolution, and dispersal. university of kansas museum of natural history monograph (7), lawrence, kansas. kivit, r. and s. wiseman. 2000. the green tree python & emerald tree boa: their captive husbandry and reproduction. kirschner & seufer verlag, keltern-weiler, germany. laurenti, j. n. 1768. specimen medicum, exhibens synopsin reptilium emendatum cum experimentis circa venena et antidota reptilium austriacorum, quod authoritate et consensu. j. thomæ trattnern, viennae. lehr, e. 2001. new records for amphibians and reptiles from departamentos pasco and ucayali, peru. herpetological review 32:130–132. martins, m. and m. e. oliveira. 1998. natural history of snakes in forests of the manaus region, central amazonia, brazil. herpetological natural history 6:78–150. renjifo, j. m. and m. lundberg. 1999. anfibios y reptiles de urrá. skanska, sweden. schulte, r. 1988. observaciones sobre la boa verde, corallus caninus, en el departamento san martín-perú. boletim de lima 55:21–26. vidal, n., r. w. henderson, a.-s.delmas, and s. b. hedges. submitted. phylogeny of the emerald treeboa (corallus caninus). an emerald treeboa from triunfo, slopes of santa rosa tepui, serrania del supamo (100 km sse of el manteco), estado bolivar, venezuela clearly showing the heat-sensitive labial pits that help give these snakes a menacing appearance. photograph by césar barrio. a road-killed corallus caninus from tierra alta, depto. córdoba, colombia (icn 8398). photograph by mikael lundberg. iguana_11.1_bw_text house geckos in the genus hemidactylus are widely distributed throughout the tropics and subtropics of the eastern hemisphere. as the common name implies, they often function as human commensals. consequently, these lizards are particularly prone to “hitch-hiking,” and several species have become established in the americas. at least three forms, h. haitianus in the greater antilles, h. leightoni in colombia, and h. palaichthus in northeastern south america, have diverged sufficiently from their ancestors to be considered endemic neotropical species. hemidactylus turcicus, native to the mediterranean region, is common in the southeastern united states. it has expanded its range considerably after presumably arriving originally in florida. at least one individual found its way to missouri in a travel trailer purchased in florida. hemidactylus garnotii, of the south pacific, is firmly entrenched in florida and has established satellite populations throughout the new world. hemidactylus mabouia, originally from sub-saharan africa, is widely distributed in eastern and northern south america and much of the caribbean area. it has recently become increasingly common in southern florida and apparently is displacing h. turcicus in most of the southern peninsula. its passage across the atlantic from africa may have predated human traffic. the most recently established newcomer is the asian house gecko, h. frenatus. all of these species are effective colonizers that either have or are currently expanding their ranges, “leap-frogging” from port to port or city to city in baggage or freight or as eggs in plants and shipments of lumber. the site of the first established population of h. frenatus in the western hemisphere is unknown, but the species has quickly become abundant throughout much of the neotropics, in some areas apparently displacing related species that had become established years earlier. as recently as the mid-1980s, this species was unknown in costa rica. by the early 1990s, it had become ubiquitous in towns and resorts of the pacific lowlands and is now found in caribbean ports and several inland localities, suggesting that range expansion is ongoing. although individuals occasionally are found in natural habitats, house geckos usually associate closely with humans. they are abundant in almost any type of structure, gathering in large numbers to feed on insects attracted to neon lights of business establishments or emerging at night from light fixtures and from behind picture frames to forage on walls and ceilings. references lever, c. 2003. naturalized reptiles and amphibians of the world. oxford univ. press inc., new york. savage, j.m. 2002. the amphibians and reptiles of costa rica: a herpetofauna between two continents, between two seas. university of chicago press, chicago, illinois. 20 iguana • volume 11, number 1 • march 2004 s p e c i e s p r o f i l e asian house gecko (hemidactylus frenatus) robert powell avila university, kansas city, missouri an adult hemidactylus frenatus on a television screen in jaco, on the pacific coast. powell iguana b&w text 212 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 owens until the umbilicus is healed, which usually occurs within a few days, hatchling guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) are kept on damp towels in a rubbermaid™ shoebox. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 212 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 213 as conservation strategies are developed for the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti), understanding all aspects of the life history of this species has become essential. unfortunately, this elusive and very rare lizard has not yet presented researchers with an opportunity to observe many aspects of its reproduction and characteristics related to hatchlings (e.g., size, weight, and coloration). beginning in 1986, after observing the moribund situation in the endangered ecosystem of the motagua valley, dr. jonathon campbell brought eleven animals into captivity as an assurance colony. this colony was eventually divided between the san diego zoo and zoo atlanta. these eleven animals have served as a paradigm of the animals in nature, provided us with data on reproduction, and have helped to elucidate elements of the guatemalan beaded lizard’s life history. enclosure since their arrival at the san diego zoo (sdz), the adult beaded lizards (2:3) have been housed in a variety of enclosures and conditions in an attempt to determine the optimum environmental conditions needed for reproduction. upon arrival at sdz, the group of h. h. charlesbogerti was housed together in a 2.3 x 3.6 m room in a quarantine facility. this room had floor heat, basking spots, and large hollow logs that served both as visual barriers and refugia. following the quarantine period, the lizards were moved to 1.3 x 0.6 x 0.6 m glass terraria. these enclosures utilized pine-bark substrate, 1–1.5 m cork-bark tubes (hollow), and a heavy dish for water. the latter type of enclosure was in use when the first successful breeding occurred. since not all females (n = 3) had nested, the group was moved to two 2.5 x 0.75 x 0.75 m neodesha™ cages. these enclosures are plastic with screen mesh for ventilation and mesh-covered openings in the top for basking lamps and 4-ft. fluorescent fixtures. with access through the front, these cages also made it safer and easier to work with venomous lizards. the substrate was pine-bark mulch and the same corkbark tubes were used. these enclosures, unlike earlier models, were equipped with nest boxes for the female beaded lizards. these were large rubbermaid™ storage containers with lids attached and 2/3-filled with supersoil™ potting soil. with circular holes cut in the side large enough for adult h. h. charlesbogerti to pass in and out of the container, they also served as refugia for individuals of both sexes. lighting/photoperiod and temperature in all the vivaria described in this article, beaded lizards were subjected to acrylite™ op4 skylights that transmit ultra-violet light. consequently, the photoperiod varied seasonally, providing an abbreviated winter at 9:15 light-to-dark ratio and extended in the summer to 13:11. in addition, fluorescent fixh u s b a n d r y ex-situ: notes on reproduction and captive husbandry of the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) thomas c. owens san diego zoo photographs by the author except where noted. guatemalan beaded lizards adult guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) at zoo atlanta, one of eleven founders of an assurance colony that has served as a paradigm of the species in nature. le e g o ss iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 213 tures utilizing a sylvania™ 350 blacklight bulb and a philips™ 40w colortone bulb in tandem supplied artificial light. basking lights consisted of 75-watt spotlight bulbs for 9 hours daily. the ambient temperature varied with season and time of day. the daytime temperatures during the summer range from 25–29 °c and at night can drop to 23 °c. the winter daytime temperatures are slightly milder, rarely getting much higher than 26 °c and dropping as low as 20 °c. basking spots are situated so that animals may choose to bask directly on the substrate or elevated on cage furniture (e.g. log, nest box). the basking temperatures ranged from 33 °c directly on the substrate to 46 °c at the highest basking spot. feeding when the group of adult h. h. charlesbogerti arrived at the san diego zoo, they did not feed readily on adult mice. if hatchlings have a large abdomen, yolk storage may be sufficient so that food will not be accepted or needed until the yolk is depleted (burghardt and layne 1995). some individual animals were reluctant to feed even after the yolk mass was spent. for the adult beaded lizards that would not eat, our initial feeding strategy involved forcing the nose of an adult mouse into the lizard’s mouth until the lizard began to swallow the prey on its own. at this time, subsequent mice could be fed by putting the head of another mouse into the mouth of the beaded lizard as it finished the prior mouse. this process took place weekly until all animals in the group began to feed on their own. adult h. h. charlesbogerti are fed three 21–35 g adult mice weekly. this diet is offered with the same frequency throughout the year. juveniles are fed 1–2 adult mice once per week. hatchlings are started on 2–4 g newborn mice and are quickly moved to 8–15 g mice. sometimes, as with other heloderma, some individuals are very difficult to feed for the first few meals after hatching. even reluctant feeders can usually be induced to feed by placing a pre-killed newborn mouse at the end of forceps and touching it to the base of tail of the hatchling beaded lizard. the animal will spin around defensively. this procedure is repeated until the lizard bites the newborn mouse defensively and then begins to swallow. breeding since the 1970s, with helodermatid lizards reproducing infrequently in captivity, the reproductive habits of beaded lizards have been slowly revealed, but difficult to assimilate into a successful breeding program. sexing h. h. charlesbogerti using previously described ultrasound sexing techniques (morris and alberts 1996, morris and henderson 1998) was problematic due to enlarged preanal plates and thick scalation. the population of h. h. charlesbogerti housed at sdz is comprised of two males and three females. since the time that they were housed together as a group in quarantine, many combinations of total numbers and sexes were utilized in an attempt to stimulate breeding. attempted combinations included one male and one female, one male and two females, and isolating males from females entirely until the breeding season, when they are reintroduced. two females have produced eggs and only one male has been observed breeding. the sizes of the two reproductive females are 43.2 cm snout-vent length (svl), 72.4 cm total length (tl), 1.8 kg and 40.9 cm svl, 74.3 cm tl, 1.5 kg, respectively. the nonreproductive female is smaller. the size of the reproductive male is 47.9 cm svl, 81.0 cm tl, and 2.1 kg. the other male is smaller. breeding has been observed on many occasions during july and august. at sdz, we have never observed combat behavior between males either in situations where two males are living together or where they are introduced just prior to being paired with a female. zoo atlanta has reported seeing very intense male combat behavior on multiple occasions (b. lock, pers. comm.) at sdz, males will sometimes refuse prey for 2–3 weeks during the breeding season. 214 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 owens yolk storage in hatchlings with a large abdomen may be sufficient so that food will not be accepted or needed until the yolk is depleted hatchling guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) have 4–5 broad yellow tail bands separated by black bands. after some experimentation, clutches are incubated on mixtures that are slightly drier than a 1:1 water-to-vermiculite ratio. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 214 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 215guatemalan beaded lizards eggs and incubation while eggs were yielded in all the enclosure types described above, viable eggs were obtained only in the latter two. reports indicate that egg-laying for h. h. charlesbogerti in the wild begins in late october and early november (campbell and vannini 1988, ariano 2003, beck 2005). at sdz, we have had eggs produced from the end of september until the beginning of january. clutch size for adult females (n = 2) has ranged from 5–10 eggs with a mean clutch size of 8 (n = 8). in all three types of enclosures provided at sdz, nesting has been problematic. although females have layed in a nest box, they seem to scatter the eggs on the substrate, and will lay in or behind the hollow logs even when provided with deep soil in a variety of nest boxes. the first four clutches were set up in a 1:1 water-to-vermiculite mixture. the fourth clutch of 10 eggs, was incubated at 30 °c (86 °f), and four eggs hatched after an incubation period of 145–148 days (owens et al. 2003). at a one-month interval, this clutch of eggs was candled and vascularization was well developed. embryos approximately 2 cm in length were observed in five of the eggs. about two months into incubation, one egg with an embryo ruptured and failed to hatch. incubation media were modified to a 1:2 waterto-vermiculite mixture for the next two clutches. both of these clutches began to dehydrate after only two months of incubation. so, clutches seven and eight were set-up just slightly drier than a 1:1 water-to-vermiculite ratio. due to infertility, one of these clutches deteriorated immediately. the last clutch of six eggs was incubated at 28 °c (82 °f). two of the eggs successfully hatched after 163 and 164 day incubation periods. this incubation period is considerably shorter than that reported for other subspecies of beaded lizards (ramirez-bautista 1994). hatching hatching success has occurred in two different clutches. the first event occurred in may 2003 and the second in march 2006. once slitting the egg, each hatchling took anywhere from 1–2 days to fully emerge. little to no yolk was visible externally at time of emergence. until the umbilicus is healed, which is usually within a few days, the hatchlings are kept on damp towels in a rubbermaid™ shoebox. all hatchlings (n = 6), from two different females, ranged in svl from 119–124.9 mm (197–208 mm tl) and weighed 33.5–37.0 g. coloration of the young is much like that of other forms of heloderma horridum. instead of 4–5 pairs of distinct yellow tail rings separated by black bands, the hatchlings have 4–5 broad yellow bands separated by black bands. acknowledgements i am most grateful to don boyer for his encouragement, support, and his endless enthusiasm for this species. i also thank john kinkaid and the rest of the staff in the department of herpetology at the san diego zoo for their collegial support. for her enriching comments on this manuscript, i thank aj gutman, and for her comments and humble support of a mutual passion, i thank melissa owens. literature cited ariano, d. 2003. distribución e historia natural del escorpión heloderma horridum charlebogerti campbell y vannini (sauria: helodermatidae) en zacapa, guatemala y caracterización de su veneno. licenciatura thesis, universidad del valle de guatemala, guatemala. beck, d.d. 2005. biology of gila monsters and beaded lizards. university of california press, berkley and los angeles. burghardt, g.m. and d. layne. 1995. effects of ontogenetic processes and rearing conditions, pp. 165–180. in: c. f. warwick, f. frye, and j. murphy (eds.), health and welfare of captive reptiles. chapman and hall, london. campbell, j. and j. vannini. 1988. a new subspecies of beaded lizard, heloderma horridum, from the motagua valley of guatemala. journal of herpetology 22:457–468. morris, p.j. and a.c. alberts. 1996. determination of sex in white-throated monitors (varanus albigularis), gila monsters (heloderma suspectum), and beaded lizards (heloderma horridum) using two-dimensional ultrasound imaging. journal of zoo and wildlife medicine 27:371–377. morris, p.j. and c. henderson. 1998. gender determination in mature gila monsters, heloderma suspectum, and mexican beaded lizards, heloderma horridum, by ultrasound imaging of the ventral tail. bulletin of the association of reptilian and amphibian veterinarians 8:4–5. owens, t., c.b. downer, and d.m. boyer. 2003. successful reproduction of the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) at the san diego zoo. unpublished notes. ramírez-bautista, a. 1994. manual y claves ilustradas de los anfibios y reptiles de la region de chamela, jalisca, méxico. universidad nacional autónoma de méxico, méxico, d.f. once eggs are slit, hatchlings take anywhere from 1–2 days to fully emerge. hatchling guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti). iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 215 iguana 12.3 b&w text 194 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 historical perspective iguana iguana, laurenti. 1. iguana rhinolophus. iguana rhinolophus, wiegm. herp. mex. p. 44; dum. & bibr. erp. gén. iv. p. 207; tyler, proc. zool. soc. 1850, t. 3 (metopoceros cornutus); cope, proc. ac. n. sc. phil. 1862, p. 356; sumichrast, ann. & mag. n. h. 1864, xiii. p. 500; bocourt, miss. sc. mex., rept. p. 134; cope, journ. ac. n. sc. phil. viii. 1876, p. 124. hab. mexico, mazatlan and presidio (forrer), cordova (sallé), tehuantepec and rio coazacoalcos (sumichrast), cozumel island on the coast of yucatan (g. f. gaumer); guatemala, chiapam (salvin); costa rica (cope); panama (brit. mus.), darien, r. truando (schott). “iguana verde” of the creoles; “guchachi-guëla” of the zapotec indians. this is the northern or central-american race of the south-american i. tuberculata; it does not seem to extend southwards beyond the isthmus of darien, but occurs also in the island of santa lucia and probably other parts of the west indies. 2. iguana tuberculata. iguana tuberculata, laur. syn. rept. p. 49. hab. guatemala (salvin); honduras (brit. mus.); nicaragua (brit. mus.); panama (dow), darien (schott).—generally distributed over the northern parts of south america and brazil; occurring also in many west-indian islands. ctenosaura ctenosaura, wiegmann, isis, 1828, p. 371. 1. ctenosaura acanthura. lacerta acanthura, shaw, zool. ii. 1802, p. 216. cyclura teres, harlan, journ. ac. sc. phil. 1825, p. 246, t. 16. ctenosaura cycluroides, wiegm. isis, 1828, p. 371; bocourt, miss. sc. mex., rept. p. 143 (part.); sumichrast, bull. soc. zool. fr. v. 1880, p. 175. ctenosaura shawii, gray, wiegm. cyclura pectinata, wiegm. herpet. mex. p. 42, t. 2; dum. & bibr. erp. gén. iv, p. 221. cyclura denticulata, wiegm. l. c. p. 43, t. 3. cyclura articulata, wiegm. l. c. cyclura acanthura, sumichrast, arch. sc. phys. et nat. xix. 1864, p. 49; ann. & mag. n. h. 1864, xiii. p. 500. ctenosaura acanthura, gray, cat. liz. p. 191; cope, proc. ac. nat. sc. phil. xviii. p. 124; bocourt, le naturaliste, 1882, p. 47; boul. cat. liz. ii. p. 195, varr. a, b, d. ctenosaura pectinata, gray, cat. liz. p. 191; ?cope, proc. ac. nat. sc. phil. xviii. p. 124; and proc. am. phil. soc. xxii. 1885, p. 388; bocourt, miss. sc. mex., rept. p. 140, and le naturaliste, 1882, p. 47; sumichrast, bull. soc. zool. v. 1880, p. 174. ctenosaura teres, bocourt, miss. sc. mex., rept. p. 142, and le naturaliste, 1882, p. 47. ctenosaura multispinis, brevirostris, and teres, cope, proc. am. phil. soc. 1886, p. 266. hab. north america, california.—mexico, tres marias is., presidio, mazatlan, cuidad, and ventanas (forrer), tierra colorado in guerrero (h. h. smith), colima (dugès, in mus. paris; u.s. nat. mus.), putla (boucard), tehuantepec (sumichrast), tampico (w. b. richardson), vera cruz (sallé; méhédin, in mus. paris), yucatan, cozumel i. (cope). h i s t o r i c a l p e r s e c t i v e albert c. l. g. günther biologia centrali-americana reptilia and batrachia1 on iguana and ctenosaura 1 reprinted in 1987 by the society for the study of amphibians and reptiles (facsimile reprints in herpetology) in cooperation with comité herpetológico nacional (méxico). editors’ note.—usually, we have chosen as featured historical works narrative pieces that lend insight into language as well as the state of knowledge applicable when the chosen article was written. the piece featured in this issue is quite different. instead of a narrative, this piece by albert günther is indicative of the sometimes massive works that documented results of extensive expeditions and simultaneously summarized the knowledge available at the time. although much less interesting to peruse, these types of publications allow us to recreate the historical events that lead to the present day and often include references to the works of authors that might otherwise be overlooked and forgotten. iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 195historical perspective “iguana negra” of the creoles; “guchachi-chévé” of the zapotec indians. tail subcylindrical; the spines of the broad rings moderately developed, the broad rings of the anterior verticelli separated by three or two narrow rings, rarely by one. dorsal crest generally interrupted in the sacral region; if continuous, the continuity is effected merely by the low and somewhat enlarged scales of the median series. scales of the calf of the leg very small. the coloration varies and changes with age. the ground-colour of the young is generally green, marbled with darker on the back, the dark markings forming more or less distinct, irregular cross bands, which are sometimes confluent, sometimes spotted with black, and about seven or eight in number on the back. with age the dark colour becomes more diffused and irregularly distributed over the body, at places entirely suppressing the groundcolour, which itself assumes a more olive tinge or changes into yellowish. specimens from tampico are uniform black when adult, and of a greenish-olive when young. one of the most monumental biological publications of all time is the 67-volume biologia centrali-americana, subtitled “contributions to the knowledge of the fauna and flora of mexico and central america.” edited by the eminent british naturalists osbert salvin and frederick ducane godman, the series appeared in parts, with 1677 plates (more than 900 colored), at irregular intervals, often monthly, over a period of 37 years, 1879 to 1915. it was actually more nearly a synopsis of the entire biota, as then known, of middle america — méxico (excluding baja california) through panamá — written by numerous specialists, although “certain groups, such as the crustacea and most of the lower invertebrates, were never treated owing to a lack of material, while a number of groups of insect were omitted because no workers could be found to undertake them …” selander and vaurie. 1962. amer. mus. novit. 2099:1–70. that the whole work was finished was due to the tenacity of purpose and administrative skill of godman and the editorial assistance of george charles champion, a beetle specialist, for salvin, the other editor, died june 1, 1898, at the age of 63, having been born february 25, 1835, in elmhurst, finchley, england. from 1898 on, all responsibility for biologia centrali-americana and for the joint salvin-godman collection fell to godman. he was then 64, having been born january 15, 1834, in park hatch, surrey, england. despite advancing years and ill health, he managed to complete the monumental work in all its parts, although the last, introductory volume of 1915 did not do justice to the overall theoretical analysis that had at one time been the editors’ hope. the coverage of the work was admittedly not complete, but what was started was brought to a most admirable conclusion. a few years later, on february 19, 1919, godman died, at the age of 85. hobart m. smith a b r i e f h i s t o r y o f t h e b i o l o g i a c e n t r a l i a m e r i c a n a … 196 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 i have examined a great number of specimens, which i am unable to divide into species, although they by no means agree with one another in every point. the development of the crest, which by some authors has been used as a specific character, depends partly on age, partly on sex. the largest specimens i have seen, males as well as females, are thirty inches long, of which the tail takes two thirds. shaw’s type is still preserved in the british museum, and said to be from california; also bocourt has examined specimens from that country. 2. ctenosaura completa. (tabb. xxix., xxx.) ctenosaura cycluroides, part., bocourt, miss. sc. mex., rept. p. 143. ctenosaura completa, bocourt, l. c. p. 145, and le naturaliste, 1882, p. 47; cope, proc. am. phil. soc. 1886, p. 268. ctenosaura acanthura, var. c, boul. cat. liz. ii. p. 197. hab. mexico, yucatan and cozumel i. (cope), mugeres i. (g. f. gaumer); british honduras, belize (dyson); guatemala, peten (morelet), chiapam (salvin); honduras (mus. brit., bocourt), bonacca i. (g. f. gaumer); salvador, la union (bocourt). tail subcylindrical; the spines of the tail very prominent and acute in the adult male, the scutes of the narrow rings being also strongly armed. dorsal crest not interrupted in the sacral region, the continuity being effected by short lobes in the adult male, and by depressed scales in females and young. scales of the calf of the leg larger than in c. acanthura. greenish or greenisholive, with six black cross-bands on the back, of which the anterior is the least developed, and, like the following, more or less distinctly paired; in old specimens these bands are narrower and more or less broken up, and the anterior may disappear altogether. of this species i have seen nine specimens — two adult males and several young from honduras, an adult female and young from belize, and an adult female from guatemala. it grows to the same size as c. acanthura, from which it is not easily distinguished. tab. xxix. represents a male from bonacca island, of half the natural size, with separate view of a part of the tail; tab. historical perspective b i b l i o g r a p h i c i n f o r m a t i o n günther’s volume on amphibians and reptiles is one of the most important publications on the herpetology of middle america and it is still in active use, yet it is not widely available. the original edition consisted of probably no more than 300 copies, according to the best estimates of several natural history booksellers, and is regarded by them as one of the scarcest volumes in the entire biologia centrali-americana series. as hobart smith notes in his introduction [to the ssar facsimile reprint], the herpetology volume cost the equivalent of about us$37 in 1902 when the volume had just been completed, a very considerable sum of money at the time. in recent years copies have sold for as much as $1000 on the secondhand market, when they can be found at all. dates of publication. günther’s book was issued over the period 1885 to 1902 and at the foot of the first page of each signature the date of publication is given. since the plates did not always accompany the corresponding text, these cannot be dated so easily. fortunately, however, such details are recorded on the wrappers in which the original parts were published, and a copy of the biologia with all of the wrappers intact exists in the zoology library of the british museum (nat. hist.), london, … kraig adler, editor 5 february 1987 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 197historical perspective xxx. a female from chiapam, of the natural size, also the inner side of the calf of the leg, to show the size of the scales. 3. ctenosaura quinquecarinata. cyclura quinquecarinata, gray, zool. misc. p. 59; cope, proc. am. phil. soc. xi. 1871, p. 161. enyaliosaurus quinquecarinatus, gray, cat. liz. p. 192. ctenosaura quinquecarinata, sumichrast, bibl. univ. et rev. suisse, 1873, p. 259; and bull. soc. zool. v. 1880, p. 175. hab. mexico, oaxaca (boucard), tehuantepec (sumichrast); honduras (mus. brit.). tail much thickened and depressed near its base, verticillated, each verticellus formed by a ring of large strongly armed scutes, and by a ring of much narrower and unarmed scutes. the armature is confined to the upper and lateral surfaces of the tail, the lower side being comparatively smooth. the strongest spines are arranged in one median, and two or three lateral series. dorsal crest very low, obsolete in the sacral region. upper parts and throat yellowish, marbled with black or brown. 4. ctenosaura defensor. cachryx defensor, cope, proc. ac. n. sc. phil. xviii. p. 124; proc. am. phil. soc. 1869, p. 169, t. 10; bocourt, miss. sc. mex., rept. p. 143, t. 17 bis. figg. 12, 12a. hab. mexico, yucatan (a. schott, u.s. nat. mus.). extralimital are the following species: — 1. iguana acanthura, blainville, = cyclura acanthura, dum. & bibr., = cyclura hemilopha, cope, boulenger, = ctenosaura acanthura, bocourt (miss. sc. mex., rept. p. 138), = ctenosaura interrupta, bocourt (le naturaliste, 1882, p. 47). — lower california. 2. ctenosaura erythromelas, boul. proc. zool. soc. 1886, p. 241, t. 23; cachryx erythromelas, cope, proc. u.s. nat. mus. 1886, p. 437. — probably lower california. albert günther was born in 1830 in esslingen, württemberg (germany). he entered the theological school at the university of tübingen in 1847 and took holy orders in the lutheran church in 1851, although he subsequently turned to medical studies because of a longstanding interest in natural history and the influence of several professors. he received a doctorate in philosophy and arts in 1853 and went on to medical school, initially in berlin, before teaching in bonn, and finally completing his medical degree in tübingen in 1857. that same year, günther offered his services to john e. gray, keeper of the zoology department at the british museum, and was hired to catalogue the museum’s snake collection, then the frogs, and finally the fishes, which occupied him for the rest of his life. günther took over the keeper’s position from gray in 1875 and, like gray before him, aggressively built the collection, taking advantage of opportunities presented as the british empire expanded. in 1879, he hired georges boulenger and placed him in charger of lower vertebrates, assuring that the long tradition of herpetological research at the british museum would continue. günther founded zoological record in 1865, and it is still today the most complete index of the world’s zoological literature. günther’s greatest zoological discovery occurred in 1867, when he announced the recognition that sphenodon of new zealand was not a lizard but the sole living representative of the order rhynchocephalia. in addition, he published reptiles of british india (1864), the gigantic land-tortoises (living and extinct) (1877 [1878]), and the herpetological volume in the series biologia centrali-americana (1885–1902). günther’s work on lower vertebrates was regularly cited by charles darwin in descent of man (1871), in which he depended heavily on günther for his information about sexual characters. in addition to the books, günther published some 200 papers on herpetology, with a geographic emphasis on australia, africa, and asia. günther retired in 1895 and died at kew, london in 1914. b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h albert c. l. g. günther (1830–1914)1 albert c. l. g. günther in about 1900. photograph courtesy of kraig adler and the british museum (natural history) library. 1 source: adler, k. 1989. herpetologists of the past, pp. 5–141. in k. adler (ed.), contributions to the history of herpetology. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, contributions to herpetology, vol. 5. ithaca, new york. iguana 12.1 8 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 knapp a female andros iguana protecting the termite mound where she just deposited her eggs. females may protect the mound for up to 10 weeks and can be extremely aggressive towards other females and even humans. the bahamian andros iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura) is the largest native terrestrial vertebrate, and the only iguana (of three species, seven subspecies) in the bahamas that is not confined presently to small cays. until recently, it was among the least-studied of the bahamian species of iguanas and virtually no natural history data were available. in addition, scientists had no indication how many iguanas roamed andros, and were forced to make arbitrary estimates of between 2500 and 5000 individuals for the international union for the conservation of nature (iucn) west indian iguana action plan (buckner and blair 2000). prior to 1999, the only information scientists could garner was that the andros iguana faced particularly severe anthropogenic pressures relative to other island-dwelling iguanas in the archipelago. these include habitat loss, illegal hunting, predation by feral animals (e.g., cats, dogs, and hogs), and impact from historic large-scale logging practices for caribbean pine (pinus caribaea var. bahamensis), which destroyed large tracts of iguana habitat in the 1960s and 70s. recent anecdotal accounts from the island presented grim scenarios featuring iguanas either already in cooking pots or in cages stoically awaiting that fate. some individuals were even discovered in a hunting camp with their arms and legs tied behind their backs and their mouths sewn shut. little regard was given to the andros iguana by international conservation organizations, mainly because reliable natural history and population-trend data were sorely lacking and no scientist was doing the work. the late walter auffenberg initiated preliminary field expeditions in the early 1970s, but the surveys were short-lived and generated only cursory observations. the lack of more recent work was not unwarranted. andros is the fifth largest island (~ 165 km long by 65 km wide) in the west indies, travel is expensive, and logistics are a nightmare. andros actually is a composite of three main inhabited islands (north andros, mangrove cay, and south andros) and dozens of associated uninhabited cays, separated by saline tidal channels called bights. much of the low-relief island (~ 90% < 6 m above mean sea level) is punctuated with small cavities and large blue holes. from east to west, a coastal ridge (to 30 m elevation) gives way to a flat and pine-forested interior. approximately halfway across the island, forest grades into extensive mangroves as the water table reaches the surface, and then is reduced to extensive mud flats. except for north andros, no roads slice beyond the eastern edge of the island making the interior accessible only by shallow-draft boats and hours of trudging through mangrove and poison wood-tangled bush. the labyrinth of waterways crosshatching the island and the quirky tides make reliable navigation difficult. also, in the 1980s, andros was a haven for drugrunning bandits and interior passage was unsafe. these logistical hardships for humans actually benefit the iguanas inhabiting the interior of the south andros area. access into the interior on north andros is facilitated by a series of hard-packed logging roads — relics from past timber exploitation. these roads allow hunters and their dogs to gain access to the interior of the island, where few iguanas remain. in contrast, the south andros area is characterized by large and small isolated cays accessible only by boat. these isolated havens are free from large feral mammals and are not visited as frequently as areas to the north. the waters are teaming with bonefish, eagle rays, sea turtles, and dolphin. on calm, windless days, surface waters settle and return to the clouds a reflection that is so breathtaking, it gives the illusion of flying through the air instead of planing on crystal-clear water. the isolation is raw and real, making it more unsettling when evidence of humans and their illegal activities are uncovered. in the late 1990s, while the dismal anecdotal iguana accounts were emerging from andros, i was trying to develop a working to save the andros iguana charles r. knapp conservation department, john g. shedd aquarium chicago, il 60605 (cknapp@ufl.edu) department of wildlife ecology and conservation, university of florida, gainesville, fl 32601 photographs by the author unless otherwise indicated. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 9andros iguana q andros island is actually a composite of three main islands and dozens of associated cays. graphic by john binns. field project for my doctoral degree at the university of florida. the andros iguana population apparently was in decline, and i felt that i could make a difference by studying the animal to facilitate initiation of a science-based management plan for the species. however, i did not intend to study only the iguana, make recommendations, and leave the island with a doctorate in tow. i wanted to help with on-the-ground conservation by working with local people, regional organizations, and the national government. if nothing else, i wanted the andros iguana to have an advocate for its preservation. before i could even initiate fieldwork, i had to uncover iguana populations dense enough for meaningful study. the problem is that finding an iguana on andros is akin to searching for a needle in a haystack. hundreds of kilometers of island interior had to be searched. where to begin? fortunately, i have been leading “citizen-scientist” research expeditions to the bahamas since 1995 aboard the john g. shedd aquarium’s research vessel, r/v coral reef ii. in 1999, we made the decision to cruise the waters of andros in search of iguanas. we have returned to the island each year (see iguana times 1(2):17–18, 1(3):4–7, 8(1):7–15, 8(4):8–10, 8(4):12–16) and the field participation from public assistants has been vital in making longterm ecological studies of the iguana a reality (see knapp 2004). in fact, we return in may 2005 to continue the work, which includes the seventh year of a mark and recapture study, and the investigation of the enigmatic nesting behavior of the andros iguana. the andros iguana is the only iguana in the world documented to deposit its eggs in termite mounds. witnessing a female iguana aggressively guarding a nesting mound is still among my favorite sights. whereas the ecological studies have been successful and have yielded information that will be used in establishing a management plan (see knapp and owens 2004 and other articles in press and in preparation), the opportunity to work with the local people on andros has been most memorable. for the past few years, i have been trying to raise awareness of iguanas among local settlements by taking advantage of frequent opportunities to get to know people and talk with them about their native iguana. sometimes, serendipitous events help spread the word about iguana conservation. in late october 2002, during my water “commute” to one of my study sites, i noticed two men walking the shore of a distant, small cay. it seemed odd to me that two people would be so far from civilization with no apparent boat in sight. i cut a wake in the smooth surface water and veered toward the men to check and make sure that they were ok. i was astonished to discover that they had been stranded for two days because they had run out of fuel. they shared two sandals between them and had to resort to a makeshift second sandal fabricated from snorkel fins. they were without food or water and were attempting to walk and swim across cays and waterways to reach safety. the thought of the men walking through the bush on the jagged limestone with little protection, and their inevitable battle with mosquitoes during the crepuscular hours made me shudder. i took the appreciative men back to their settlement and, from that day forward, i was known as the “iguana man who saved larry and luther.” as fate would have it, a week later, i was slated to leave the island with joe wasilewski, who had come to visit for a few days 10 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 knapp an adult male andros iguana moves through the extensive mangrove system. note the radio transmitter sutured to the dorsal/pelvic crest. this animal was tracked for a total of four months in 2003. ray dean from south andros island assisting with radio-tracking on linder cay, andros island in 2002. ray had a knack for finding lost transmitters during the first unsuccessful season of radio-tracking. to help with the research. we decided to leave one day early because hurricane michelle was churning up the caribbean and heading for andros. as rain fell and the sky darkened, we waited anxiously in the one-room airport on mangrove cay, hopeful that our plane would come to deliver us to safety. instead, we were flooded with forbidding radio reports about how the hurricane was to make a direct hit on mangrove cay. we will never forget the radio announcer exclaiming, “the nation prays for andros!” no planes came and the nervous crowd retreated to the safety of shelters. joe and i were stranded for hours, still hoping local andros boys, ricardo, ray, and bradley assisting the author in the field. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 11andros iguana the author with participants from the 2003 shedd aquarium iguana research expedition to andros. photograph by john bendon. andros iguana skull found in may 2004 at a known hunting camp on the west side of andros. according to anecdotal accounts, 40 iguanas were captured for food in just one illegal hunting expedition. we found many bones at the site and it was littered with shed iguana skin. typically, iguanas are brought back to the settlements alive and sold. that a plane would come and carry us away. however, we would face the impact of the hurricane while in a concrete hotel, and then be left stranded on mangrove cay for an additional two days. thankfully, damage was not as bad as expected and no one was hurt, so joe and i made the best of the situation by talking about iguanas with anyone who would listen. to this day, people still remember both of us and the reasons we study iguanas, because of that unexpected meteorological episode. reaching out to children and trying to establish a conservation ethic has been one of my major goals. i frequently bring high school students into the field with me to help with research. most of these students have not been off their individual subislands and none have ventured into the watery interior of andros. that pleasure is reserved for bonefish guides and fishermen. i instruct the students on how to capture and handle iguanas. some even get to try their luck at radio-tracking. another world opens up for them and the smiles on their faces speak volumes. in order to reach more students and make a larger conservation impression, i have been bringing iguanas to the local high schools and giving presentations. the presentations are fun and the animated crowds always buzz with excitement when i pull out a 4-kg iguana from its bag. my first school appearance stressed the importance of these presentations. first, i asked how many students had ever seen an iguana. approximately half the group raised their hands. i then asked how many had ever eaten an iguana and, again, approximately half raised their hands. following my presentations, i often would hear from parents that students were talking about iguanas while at home. the initial presentations provided the opportunity to develop a drawing contest for the students to further raise their awareness of iguanas. students were given the opportunity to draw a mural with a “protect the andros iguana” theme. all contestants were given an andros iguana t-shirt and winners received monetary prizes. our initial thought was to use the winning entries as background for a poster that was in development with the help of john binns and joel friesch of the international reptile conservation foundation. instead, we incorporated all the entries into the poster and it made a great impact. last september, i returned to the schools to award the prizes and donate the posters. the teachers were all thankful that we were bringing something back to the community and the students enjoyed seeing their artwork on a poster that will be displayed in all government buildings and schools (as well as most 12 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 knapp protect the andros iguana poster designed by john binns and joel friesch. the poster is currently in schools and government buildings throughout andros. a few even hang in local bars, since some of the most productive iguana-related conversations take place in those types of establishments. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 13andros iguana bars) on the island. one teacher even thanked us because our contest proved to students that good things can happen when they are presented with an opportunity, and then meet that opportunity with hard work. as expected during this project, i have learned a substantial amount about the natural history of the andros iguana. unexpected, however, was my conclusion that i should not be the spokesperson for the andros iguana. instead, the local community must take stewardship and assume the role of actively protecting their iguanas. only in this manner will the long-term survival of this impressive lizard be realized. i am much encouraged by the many dedicated people who i have met and who are willing to help take on this responsibility. acknowledgements the andros iguana would still be an enigma if not for the gracious assistance of many organizations and individuals. the john g. shedd aquarium has been the largest benefactor of andros iguana research and their support is greatly appreciated. recent financial assistance for educational materials was made possible through a grant from the u.s. fish and wildlife service international conservation fund. among many contributions, tiamo resorts of south andros has provided crucial logistical support and contributed monetary prizes for the poster contest. invaluable members of the research team include john bendon, who designed t-shirts and maps, audrey owens, and sandra buckner. lou roth, john rothchild, and charles julian of the shedd aquarium’s research vessel have been assisting beyond the call of duty for years. in addition, the volunteers participating in the john g. shedd aquarium research expeditions are responsible for allowing us to repeatedly visit the island aboard the research vessel. thanks also to john binns and joel friesch of the ircf for producing an incredible and invaluable conservation poster for the andros iguana. references buckner, s. and d. blair. 2000. species account: cyclura cychlura cychlura, pp. 31–32. in: a. alberts (ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn — the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. knapp, c.r. 2003. you study iguanas in the bahamas? pp. 23–28. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), islands and the sea: essays on herpetological exploration in the west indies. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles contributions to herpetology, volume 20. ithaca, new york.. knapp, c.r. and a.k. owens. 2004. diurnal refugia and novel ecological attributes of the bahamian boa, epicrates striatus fowleri (boidae). caribbean journal of science 40:265–270. knapp, c.r. and a.k. owens. in press. home range and habitat associations of a bahamian iguana: implications for conservation. animal conservation. knapp, c.r. and a.k. owens. in press. an effective new radio transmitter attachment technique for lizards. herpetological review. research opportunity join me from 6–15 may 2005 during the next, and possibly last, shedd aquarium iguana research expedition to andros island. this truly is a trip of a lifetime because we take you to areas that no one else has the opportunity to explore. we will be capturing iguanas for study and we also will witness the incredible behavior of the only iguana in the world that deposits its eggs in termite mounds. only a handful of people have ever seen this event, so bring your camera and plenty of film (or memory card space)! besides working in the field, you also will have opportunities to snorkel and swim, visit with local people, and travel to cays never before explored. if time allows, we will go fishing along the barrier reef and visit bimini island. the price is $1895, which includes accommodations, meals from breakfast on day 2 through lunch on day 10, transportation during the expedition, and departure taxes. airfare to and from miami, alcoholic beverages, and dinner on day 1 are not included. if interested, please contact michelle jost at mjost@sheddaquarium.org or (312) 692–3191 for more information. also feel free to contact me at cknapp@ufl.edu with specific questions concerning the fieldwork. the poster contest winners from mangrove cay high school with their poster. students interacting with the author and an andros iguana at the mangrove cay high school. photograph by audrey owens. iguana 12.4 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 263historical perspective introduction this study of the herpetology of hispaniola has been undertaken for the purpose of advancing the survey of the amphibian and reptile fauna of the greater antilles. of these islands hispaniola has remained the least known faunistically until the past two decades, during which time thorough collecting in certain regions has multiplied the number of species known to science. although undoubtedly a great many more species, and perhaps even some genera, remain to be discovered in areas in which little collecting has so far been done,2 it is hoped that the following keys, descriptions, and figures of the species already known from hispaniola may prove to be a stimulus to further discoveries. hispaniola, with the adjoining islets, now divided between the republic of haiti and the dominican republic, has been referred to by earlier writers as san domingo, st. dominique, santo domingo, hayti, and haiti. when such names are used without any specific river or town or other geographic feature that might serve to locate them definitely, it is often impossible to say whether it was the intention of the author to refer to the entire island or to either one of its political subdivisions, properly spoken of as the republic of haiti and the dominican republic. the old name of hispaniola is now taken to refer to the island as a whole and the adjoining islets gonave, tortue, sept frères, saona, alta vela, beata, île à vache, and the cayemites. in the locality lists the abbreviation “d. r.” refers to the dominican republic, and “haiti” to the republic of haiti alone. equivocal records are given in quotation marks. while the island of navassa3 is not included in this survey, figures of the types of the two navassan reptiles, typhlops sulcatus and celestus badius, will be found in the discussion of their apparent allies in hispaniola. for the loan of specimens my thanks are due to dr. thomas barbour4, of the museum of comparative zoology; to mrs. helen t. gaige, of the museum of zoology at ann arbor; and to k. p. schmidt, of the field museum. i am indebted to dr. g. k. noble, of the american museum of natural history, for the loan of several paratypes, and to dr. e. r. dunn for specimens in the academy of natural sciences of philadelphia. i have borrowed some leiocephali from the british museum, which boulenger had listed, and h. w. parker kindly furnished me with lists of other specimens in that museum, while i was later allowed to examine these specimens and those in several other european collections during a visit in 1938. my sincere thanks are due to dr. leonhard stejneger, of the united states national museum, whose unfailing interest, encouragement, and assistance in the many problems involved have made the completion of the work possible. most of the figures for this herpetology of hispaniola were made by me from photographs. in a few instances, where the specimens were mutilated or otherwise unsuited to photography, the drawings are freehand. when figures have been copied from earlier publications, credit is given in the legends. physiography an excellent summary of the geographical features of hispaniola appeared in “the birds of haiti and the dominican republic,” by dr. alexander wetmore and bradshaw h. swales [u. s. natl. mus. bull. 155, pp. 2–7, 1931]. there is little to add to their discussion, except to remark that the extremely rugged character of the island’s surface has proved to be a very effective means of isolation to certain genera of amphibians and reptiles, so that a truly astonishing number of entirely localized forms is often found within a relatively restricted area. the massif de la selle mountains, whose tops were islands when the cul-de-sac plain was below sea level, supplies a good example of this condition, for within the past few years two new genera of lizards and a new genus of snakes have been found on peak la selle. another interesting evidence of specialization carried out to subspecies is found in the genus leiocephalus. no less than 11 distinct subspecies of the personatus group are now known from hispaniola as a whole — seven from the mainland and one each from four of the adjoining islets. the snakes of the genus leimadophis [= antillophis] have the tendency to local specialization to nearly the same degree, as h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e the herpetology of hispaniola1 doris m. cochran 1 excerpted from the united states national museum bulletin (177): vii + 398 pp. (1941). this long out-of-print book will soon be available as the center for north american herpetology facsimile reprint series, number 1 (check www.cnah.org for availability). 2 for a more recent list of hispaniolan species of amphibians and reptiles, see: powell et al. 1999. the hispaniolan herpetofauna: diversity, endemism, and historical perspectives, with comments on navassa island, pp. 93–168. in: b.i. crother (ed.), caribbean amphibians and reptiles. academic press, san diego, california. 3 for more information about navassan reptiles, see: powell. 1999. herpetology of navassa island, west indies. caribbean journal of science 35: 1–13 (www.caribjsci.org) or www.avila.edu/biology/ bobweb/6pownav.htm. 4 see iguana 12:43–47. 264 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 cochran seven subspecies of the parvifrons stock can be recognized, three rather poorly separated forms from the present main body of the island and four rather distinct forms from outlying islets. an example of the effect of the removal of a natural barrier is evident here. almost within the memory of the oldest inhabitant, samaná peninsula was an island separated from the main body of hispaniola by a rapidly filling strait, in which pirate vessels were said to have lain in wait for richly laden merchantmen sailing for europe. on this island a black form of leimadophis developed. the melanistic color is found in a good many of the protenus specimens from the northeastern part of the dominican republic, and, as a matter of fact, it is at present very difficult to find a satisfactory basis for the separation of niger and protenus as subspecies, since so many intergrading specimens now exist in the lowlands lying between the areas once separated by stretches of sea. distribution of greater antillean genera in table 1 are listed the genera occurring on the neighboring islands of the greater antilles. hispaniola has 19 genera in common with cuba. cuba has 10 genera that hispaniola lacks, but, on the other hand, hispaniola has 13 genera not found in cuba. hispaniola and jamaica have 19 genera in common. jamaica has no genus that is not also found in hispaniola, while hispaniola has 13 that do not occur in jamaica — a condition perhaps to be expected as hispaniola is so much the larger of the two islands. the tiny isolated rock called navassa supports 10 genera, all of which are represented in hispaniola, including the highly specialized iguanid genus chamaelinorops [now included in anolis, and no longer believed to occur on navassa], which is not known from any other localities except navassa and western haiti. surveying the islands east of hispaniola, we find that puerto rico has only one (nonendemic!) genus — phyllodactylus — which is not represented on hispaniola [phyllodactylus is now known to occur on hispaniola], while mona does not have a single genus peculiar to itself. puerto rico lacks 15 of the genera that characterize hispaniola, while the two islands have 16 genera in common. distribution of hispaniolan species table 2 lists the species found in hispaniola and indicates their distribution among the various regions. the nonindigenous species out of 128 species and subspecies now known to inhabit hispaniola, only 6 or 7 are not indigenous. of the 32 known genera, 7 are found nowhere else. among the nonendemic forms now recorded from hispaniola, bufo marinus, which was very recently introduced, seems to be gaining a real foothold in monte cristi. hemidactylus brookii, originally introduced from africa with the traffic in slaves5, has now become established in tropical america. the same is true of hemidactylus mabouia. another gecko, sphaerodactylus cinereus, is one of the commonest species in cuba, whence it was probably transported to southern florida, navassa, and haiti6. the slipperyback, mabuya mabouia sloanii, represented very rarely in hispaniola, is considered by dr. dunn (1936, p. 546) to be the same as the form occurring in the southern bahamas, jamaica, the virgin islands, mona, and puerto rico7. typhlops lumbricalis is a species of which more hispaniolan material is needed before an ultimate decision as to ameiva chrysolaema chrysolaema (usnm no. 66730, from tubano, azua province, dominican republic). see also article on p. 234. 5 see discussions in: powell and maxey. 1990. hemidactylus brookii. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (493):1–3, and powell, r., r.i. crombie, and h.e.a. boos. 1998. hemidactylus mabouia. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (674): 1–11. 6 cuban and navassan populations once considered to be sphaerodactylus cinereus are no longer considered to be conspecific with the haitian populations. 7 the status of west indian populations of mabuya is poorly understood and in much need of work by researchers using genetic data. currently, as many as four species are thought to occur in the region, but at least two of these may represent species complexes of uncertain complexity. leimadophis [= antillophis] parvifrons parvifrons (usnm no. 60607, from moline, haiti). iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 265historical perspective table 1.—distribution of greater antillean genera of amphibians and reptiles1. genus cuba jamaica navassa hispaniola mona puerto rico bufo x (x) — x — x hyla x x — x — eleutherodactylus x x — x — x leptodactylus — — — x — x sminthillus x — — — — — gonatodes x — — x — — phyllodactylus — — — — — (x) hemidactylus (x) (x) — (x) — (x) aristelliger — x x x — — tarentola x — — — — — sphaerodactylus x x x x x x chamaeleolis x — — — — — xiphocercus — x — x — — chamaelinorops — — x x — — audantia — — — [x] — — deiroptyx x — — — — — anolis x x x x x x norops [x] — — — — — cyclura x x x x x x leiocephalus x — x x — — hispaniolus — — — [x] — — celestus x x x x — x sauresia — — — [x] — — wetmorena — — — [x] — — cricosaura [x] — — — — — ameiva x x x x x x cadea [x] — — — — — amphisbaena x — — x — x mabuya — x — x x x typhlops x x x x x x epicrates x x — x x x tropidophis x x x x — — natrix x — — — — — tretanorhinus x — — — — — uromacer — — — [x] — — alsophis x x — x x x leimadophis x x — x — x hypsirhynchus — — — [x] — — arrhyton [x] — — — — — darlingtonia — — — [x] — — ialtris — — — [x] — — pseudemys x x — x — x crocodylus x x — x — — total 29 19 10 32 8 17 1 (x) introduced; [x] endemic. 266 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 cochran genus haiti, sept tortue gonave petite grande petite île à beata alta dominican saona mainland frères gonave cayemite cayemite vache vela republic bufo güntheri x — — — — — — — — — x — marinus — — — — — — — — — — x — hyla dominicensis x — — — — — — — x — x — pulchrilineata x — — — — — — — — — x — vasta x — — — — — — — — — x — heilprini — — — — — — — — — — x — eleutherodactylus inoptatus x — — — — — — — — — x — ruthae — — — — — — — — — — x — jugans x† — — — — — — — — — — — ventrilineatus x† — — — — — — — — — — — flavescens x — — — — — — — — — x — poolei x — — — — — — — — — — — glandulifer x† — — — — — — — — — — — darlingtoni x† — — — — — — — — — — — glanduliferoides x† — — — — — — — — — — — minutus — — — — — — — — — — x — weinlandi x — — — — — — — — — x — rufifemoralis — — — — — — — — — — x — schmidti schmidti — — — — — — — — — — x — schmidti rucillensis — — — — — — — — — — x — abbotti x — — — — — — — — — x — femur-levis x† — — — — — — — — — — — pictissimus x† — — — — — — — — — — — brevirostris x† — — — — — — — — — — — audanti x† — — — — — — — — — — — intermedius — — — — — — — — — — x — semipalmatus x† — — — — — — — — — — — montanus — — — — — — — — — — x — bakeri x† — — — — — — — — — — — auriculatus auriculatoides x — — — — — — — — — x — auriculatus wetmorei x† — — — — — — — — — — — armstrongi — — — — — — — — — — x — leptodactylus dominicensis — — — — — — — — — — x — gonatodes notatus x — — x — — — — — — — — hemidactylus brookii x — — — — — — — — — x — mabouia x — — — — — — — — — — — aristelliger expectatus x — — x — — — — — x? — — lar x — — x — — — — — — x — sphaerodactylus cinereus x — — — — — — — — — — — copei x — — — — x — — — — — — stejnegeri x — — — — — — — — — — — samanensis — — — — — — — — — — x — difficilis x x — — — — — — — — x — armstrongi — — — — — — — — — — x — altavelensis — — — — — — — — — x — — xiphocercus darlingtoni x† — — — — — — — — — — — chamaelinorops wetmorei x† — — — — — — — — — — — anolis ricordii x — — — — — — — — — x — semilineatus x — — — — — — — — — x — olssoni x — — x — — — — — — x — bahorucoensis — — — — — — — — — — x — distichus dominicensis x — x — — x x — — — x — distichus juliae — — — — — — — x — — — — distichus altavelensis — — — — — — — — — x — — distichus wetmorei — — — — — — — — x — — — distichus caudalis x — — x x — — — — — — — cybotes cybotes x — x — — x — x — — x x cybotes longitibialis — — — — — — — — x — — — cybotes doris — — — x x — — — — — — — monticola x† — — — — — — — — — — — darlingtoni — — — — — — — — — — x — chloro-cyanus x — x x — — — — — — — x coelestinus x — — x — x — x — — — — hendersoni x — — — — — — — — — — — table 2.—distribution of hispaniolan species of amphibians and reptiles1 [for a current list of the island’s species, see: http://evo.bio.psu.edu/caribherp/lists/hsp-list.htm]. 1 a dagger (†) indicates species peculiar to the southwestern mountains of haiti. iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 267historical perspective genus haiti, sept tortue gonave petite grande petite île à beata alta dominican saona mainland frères gonave cayemite cayemite vache vela republic audantia armouri x† — — — — — — — — — — — shrevei — — — — — — — — — — x — cyclura cornuta cornuta x — x x x x — — — — x — ricordii — — — — — — — — — — x — leiocephalus schreibersii x x x — — — — — — — x — melanochlorus x — — — — — — x — — x — personatus personatus x — — — — — — — — — — — personatus semilineatus x — — — — — — — — — — — personatus barahonensis — — — — — — — — — — x — personatus altavelensis — — — — — — — — — x — — personatus aureus x — — — — — — — — — — — personatus scalaris x — — — — — — — — — x — personatus mentalis — — — — — — — — — — x — personatus lunatus — — — — — — — — — — x — personatus beatanus — — — — — — — — x — — — personatus vinculum — — — x — — — — — — — — personatus louisae — — — — — — — — — — — x hispaniolus pratensis x — — x — — — — — — — — celestus costatus x — — — — — — — — — x — darlingtoni — — — — — — — — — — x — sauresia sepsoides x — — x — — — — — — x — wetmorena haetiana x† — — — — — — — — — — — ameiva lineolata lineolata x — — — — — — — — — x — lineolata beatensis — — — — — — — — x — — — taeniura x — — — — x x x — — x — chrysolaema chrysolaema x x x x — — — x — — x — chrysolaema woodi — — x — — — — — — — — — chrysolaema abbotti x — — — — — — — x — — — chrysolaema affinis x — — — — — — — — — — — barbouri — — — x — — — — — — — — rosamondae — — — — — — — — — — — x amphisbaena manni x — — — — — — — — — x — innocens x — — x x — — — — — — — caudalis — — — — — x — — — — — — mabuya lineolata — — — — — — — — — — x — mabouya sloanii — — — — — — — — — — x — typhlops lumbricalis x — — — — x — — — x x — pusillus x — — — — — — — — — x — epicrates striatus striatus x — x — — — — x — — x — inornatus fordii x — — x — — — — — — x? — gracilis gracilis x — — — — — — — — — x — tropidophis maculatus haitianus x — x x — — — — — — x — uromacer catesbyi x — x x — — x x — — x — scandax — — x — — — — — — — — — frenatus x — — — — — x x — — x? — wetmorei — — — — — — — — x — — — dorsalis — — — x — — — — — — — — oxyrhynchus x — x x — — — — — — x — hypsirhynchus ferox x — — — — — — — — — x — alsophis anomalus x — x — x — — — — — x — melanichnus x — — — — — — — — — x — leimadophis parvifrons parvifrons x — — — — — — — — — — — parvifrons lincolni — — — — — — — — x — — — parvifrons niger x — — — — — — — — — x — parvifrons protenus x — — — — — — — — — x — parvifrons alleni — — — x — — — — — — — — parvifrons tortuganus — — x — — — — — — — — — parvifrons rosamondae — — — — — — — x — — — — darlingtonia haetiana x† — — — — — — — — — — — ialtris dorsalis x — — — — — — x — — x — parishi x — — — — — — — — — — — pseudemys stejnegeri vicina x — — — — — — — — — x — decorata x — — — — — — — — — — — crocodylus acutus x — — — — — — x — — x — 1 a dagger (†) indicates species peculiar to the southwestern mountains of haiti. table 2.—continued 268 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 cochran its status can be made. crocodylus acutus is found in cuba, hispaniola, jamaica, florida, and central america. species erroneously recorded from hispaniola the type of spelerpes infuscatus peters, now in the berlin museum (no. 6556), supposedly from “hayti,” has been positively identified by dr. e. r. dunn as oedipus lineolus cope and hence must have come from mexico (dunn, 1926). the intensive collecting done during the past few years leaves little expectation of finding any endemic tailed amphibians in the west indies. hispaniolan records of eleutherodactylus auriculatus cope are undoubtedly based on misidentifications of the several small frogs that bear quite a close resemblance to the rather variable true auriculatus of cuba. boulenger’s record of a dendrobates trivittatus (1882, p. 145) from “s. domingo” is probably based on an incorrect locality record, as no true dendrobates is to be expected so far out of its range. doris mable cochran was a specialist in neotropical herpetology and was for many years the custodian of the american national collection at the smithsonian institution in washington, d.c. her interest in natural history began as a child growing up in a small town near the shores of lake erie and, while still an undergraduate at george washington university (a.b. 1920, m.s. 1921), she became aide in the division of herpetology at the united states national museum. although formally under the curatorship of leonhard stejneger, cochran was responsible for the day-to-day administration of the herpetological collections. in 1927, she became assistant curator and, in 1942, associate curator, before formally taking charge of the collections after stejneger’s death in 1943. in the interim, she earned a ph.d. at the university of maryland (1933) with a thesis on crab myology. eventually promoted to curator in 1956, she retired in 1968, and died less than a month later. cochran’s research emphasized the herpetofaunas of southeastern asia, the west indies, and south america, particularly those of brazil and colombia. she published nearly 90 titles from 1922–1970, most of them short taxonomic papers describing new genera (8) and species and subspecies (125). her interest in the west indies spanned a 20-year period and culminated in the herpetology of hispaniola (1941). subsequently, she focused most of her attention on south american frogs, about which she published many papers and two books, frogs of southeastern brazil (1954) and frogs of colombia (1970), the latter published posthumously with her longtime collaborator, coleman j. goin. she also wrote numerous semi-popuular articles and some wartime booklets for use by the military. her most widely known book was the profusely illustrated living amphibians of the world (1961), which was translated into at least ten languages. the new field book of reptiles and amphibians (1970), coauthored with goin, was not successful and never competed seriously with existing north american field guides by roger conant and robert c. stebbins. b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h doris m. cochran (1898–1968)1 doris m. cochran (photograph courtesy of kraig adler). 1 source: adler, k. 1989. herpetologists of the past, pp. 5–141. in k. adler (ed.), contributions to the history of herpetology. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, contributions to herpetology, vol. 5. ithaca, new york. cyclura cornuta (usnm no. 82107, from petite gonave island, haiti). see also article on p. 222. iguana 12.3 b&w text t he g ra nd c ay m an is la nd a no le (a no lis co ns pe rs us ) i s o ne o f s ev er al sp ec ie s t ha t s ho ul d be ne fit fr om la nd p ro te ct io n fo r t he b lu e ig ua na (s ee a rt ic le o n p. 1 66 ). t hi s g re en v ar ia nt is ty pi ca lly fo un d in th e w es te rn p or tio n of th e isl an d, in g eo rg e to w n an d ar ou nd th e ai rp or t. t he w es te rn p op ul at io ns h av e be en c on sid er ed b y so m e to r ep re se nt a s ub sp ec ie s di st in ct fr om p op ul at io ns to th e ea st . t hi s in di vi du al w as p ho to gr ap he d fa r to th e ea st o f w he re li za rd s o f t hi s c ol or p ha se a re u su al ly fo un d, p os sib ly a ft er h av in g “h itc he d a rid e” o n a ca r. john binns u tila iguana (c tenosaura bakeri) (see article on p. 142). john binns iguana 12.2 b&w text editorial board robert powell, ph.d. exectutive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. or canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 international membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $50.00 u.s. institutional subscription, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international institutional subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. join on-line at: www.ircf.org membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via email (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and email address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2005 by the international reptile conservation foundation, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international reptile conservation foundation. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editors’ remarks we hope that you have enjoyed the first two issues of iguana published by the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf). although this current issue is unusually long, we do plan to continue bringing you full-length articles in addition to the regular features that include: an article on husbandry, a profile of a prominent conservationist/herpetologist, a travelogue about a herpetologically interesting destination, a historical perspective giving a glimpse of herpetology in years past, a commentary, a book review, summaries of articles in other journals that address issues pertinent to the conservation of reptiles, newsbriefs, and a focus on conservation highlighting a project worthy of your support. from time to time, we may include short (2–3 page) articles or special features like the essay on the rediscovery of the ivory-billed woodpecker, which appears in this issue. also, because we are interested in your thoughts and comments, we plan to occasionally publish selected letters from readers and, if those letters include questions, we’ll do our best to respond in a thoughtful and informative manner. as you can imagine, this rather ambitious agenda has stretched us to our limits. the two of us and john binns, who processes all images that appear in iguana, are familiar to most readers, and many of you have showered us with compliments regarding some of the changes that have taken place over the past couple of years. however, the member of our team who rarely is acknowledged, but without whom we wouldn’t be where we are today, is mike ripca. mike, our art director, assembles a myriad of pieces into the journal with which you are familiar, provides us and authors with proofs, makes corrections (many of them our fault) without complaining, and then does it all again a couple of months later. mike, our hat’s off to you. robert powell and aj gutman erratum: the map of southern florida on p. 160 in the article on introduced green iguanas (iguana iguana) by meshaka et al. (2004. iguana 11(3):154–161) was incorrect. the uncredited map shown was by kenneth l. krysko and indicated localities mentioned in an article on a similar subject by townsend et al. (2003. iguana 10(4):111–118). the map that should have been included in the article by meshaka et al. is shown here. it illustrates florida counties in which breeding populations of green iguanas are known to occur. note that green iguanas have been recorded from highlands and alachua counties, which are not shaded, but iguanas in those counties do not appear to be reproducing. ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 12.2 b&w text.qx6 7/16/05 2:04 pm page 139 iguana 13.1 b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 1table of contents ircf international reptile conservation foundation table of contents f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s slender toes in southern malaysia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . l. lee grismer 2 conserving the remarkable reptiles of guantánamo bay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . allison c. alberts 8 size does matter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . saúl s. nava 16 lizard warfare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 22 r e s e a r c h a r t i c l e the introduced brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) in florida . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .kenneth l. krysko, jason c. seitz, josiah h. townsend, and kevin m. enge 24 s y m p o s i u m r e p o r t timber rattlesnake (crotalus horridus) biology and conservation in the upper mississippi river valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 h u s b a n d r y emerald gems (corallus caninus): captive husbandry and propagation. part i: introduction and habitats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . joseph m. polanco 37 p r o f i l e a. stanley rand (1932–2005) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . michael j. ryan 42 t r a v e l o g u e the blue anoles of isla gorgona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . joe burgess 47 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e a preliminary study of the thermal requirements of desert reptiles . . . raymond bridgman cowles and charles mitchill bogert 53 biographical sketches: raymond bridgman cowles and charles mitchill bogert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 c o m m e n t a r i e s intelligent design? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . gad perry 62 we need a national reptile and national amphibian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . j. whitfield gibbons 66 b o o k r e v i e w ecology & evolution in the tropics: a herpetological perspective edited by maureen a. donnelly, brian i. crother, craig guyer, marvalee h. wake, and mary e. white . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 68 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 non-native reptiles in florida . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 rediscovery of the montserrat galliwasp (diploglossus montisserrati) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 obituaries: john l. behler and raymond walker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 ircf on the move . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 1 iguana 12.3 b&w text editorial board robert powell, ph.d. exectutive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. or canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 international membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $50.00 u.s. institutional subscription, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international institutional subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. join on-line at: www.ircf.org membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via email (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and email address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2005 by the international reptile conservation foundation, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international reptile conservation foundation. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editors’ remarks disclaimer! when you see the term, “disclaimer,” you probably think either of legal fine print or someone not taking responsibility for something they should. however, since we began including commentaries earlier this year (see, for example, p. 198 in this issue), the editorial board has been careful to include a disclaimer with each published essay. no lawyer told us we had to do this and we’re certainly not trying to evade responsibility for what we publish. on the other hand, we do want to voice ideas and opinions that are relevant to any one of our three-fold emphases of conservation, natural history, and husbandry of reptiles. because conservation programs and policies and issues related to husbandry can be controversial, we believe that ideas from different perspectives are not only appropriate but necessary for fostering discussions and reaching conclusions that are most likely to be correct and in the best interests of the animals about which we all are concerned. consequently, we chose not to impose arbitrary constraints on our contributors and, by not doing so, left ourselves open to publishing opinions with which we do not necessarily agree. faced with the choice of stifling input or adding a disclaimer, we opted for the latter. on occasion, as in this issue, we may solicit additional input on the topic from other sources or reprint opinions available in the public domain (see pages 202 and 203). again, these may or may not represent our views or those of the ircf. nevertheless, they are relevant to the discussion and worthy of consideration. if you hold strong opinions on topics that are pertinent to the goals of the ircf and the emphases expressed in iguana, feel free to send your commentary to us. we do not guarantee publication, but are interested in your input. be aware, however, that you should be prepared to see different, even opposing ideas in the same or subsequent issues — which is the whole point: in order to be relevant and worthwhile, discussions should include more than one point of view. also note that, regardless of how much we agree or disagree with you, we will disclaim your entry. the editors ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 12.2 b&w text 122 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell references general guides numerous guidebooks address the logistics of travel to what has become one of the western hemisphere’s major tourist destinations. all provide some basic background on the archaeological sites buried among recommendations for lodging, dining, and experiencing the apparently abundant nightlife. all are totally devoid of any meaningful discussions of the region’s natural resources (except those that have themselves been converted to tourist destinations). two guides that we found particularly useful, primarily because they went farther beyond the mundane than most of the alternatives, were: yucatán (lonely planet) by ben greensfelder and hidden cancún & the yucatán by richard harris. reptiles and amphibians the amphibians and reptiles of the yucatan peninsula by julian c. lee. phenomenally comprehensive, a reference rather than a guide. highly recommended, but expensive and not for carrying into the field. a field guide to the amphibians and reptiles of the maya world: the lowlands of mexico, northern guatemala, and belize by julian c. lee. a field guide based on the more authoritative coffee table book by the same author. highly recommended. amphibians and reptiles of northern guatemala, the yucatán, and belize by jonathan a. campbell. a nice guide enlivened by tales of the author’s personal experiences in the region. recommended. reptiles of central america by gunther köhler. nicely illustrated, but broader coverage than the other books listed results in less detail than in the other recommended guides. recommended, but expensive. birds a guide to the birds of mexico and northern central america by steven n. g. howell and sophie webb. the most comprehensive guide to the region, but large and heavy. highly recommended. birder’s mexico (louise lindsey merrick natural environment series, 12) by roland h. wauer. not so much a traditional guide as an introduction to birding in méxico; definitely nice to have and great for preparation prior to a trip. recommended. a field guide to mexican birds: mexico, guatemala, belize, el salvador (peterson field guides) by roger tory peterson (series editor) and edward l. chalif. not up to the standards of the peterson field guides for the u.s. and useful only with both u.s. guides in hand. definitely a third choice among those listed. field guide to the birds of mexico and adjacent areas: belize, guatemala, and el salvador by ernest preston edwards and edward murrell butler (illustrator). nice pictures, but disorganized and difficult to use. not recommended. the long slender bodies of blunt-headed tree snakes (imantodes cenchoa) allow them to span considerable distance as they move from branch to branch. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e blunt-headed tree snake imantodes cenchoa snakes in the genus imantodes are among several central american species to effectively exploit arboreal prey. like many other species that spend most of their lives in vegetation, these snakes are very slender and elongate and have very long tails. compressing their sides and forming their bodies into a semblance of an i-beam, they can span remarkable distances as they move from branch to branch. although they can and do occasionally venture onto the ground, most individuals probably never leave the trees and bushes on which they’re usually encountered. active at dusk and well into the night, these snakes take refuge during the day, occasionally hiding in bromeliads or other epiphytic vegetation. as do many neotropical snakes in the family colubridae (which includes most common snakes throughout the world), blunt-headed tree snakes have enlarged, grooved teeth near the back of each upper jaw with which they can inject venom. however, the location of the fangs renders the delivery of venom difficult unless the prey item has been taken well into the mouth. also, the venom appears to be most effective on their usual prey of lizards and frogs. they are not dangerous to humans and very rarely bite, even when handled. unlike vine snakes in the genus oxybelis, which fill a comparable arboreal, lizardand frog-eating niche during the daytime, imantodes cenchoa has a vertically elliptical pupil that allows for considerable enlargement in order to trap sparse light at night. like most snakes, however, blunt-headed tree snakes rely primarily on chemical cues to find lizards sleeping on branches and leaves, nocturnally active frogs, clutches of frog eggs suspended over water, or lizard and snake eggs hidden under bark or in nooks and crannies above the ground. their blunt heads allow them to consume larger prey than their slender bodies would seem to be able to accommodate. iguana 13.2 b&w text 86 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 grismer gliding lizards in the genus draco use wings for “flight” and also to facilitate species recognition and intra-species communication. w w w .s o lv in za n k l. c o m iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 86 standing on the peak of gunung kajang on tioman island after a miserable, leech-infested, three-day climb to the summit, i was looking across a deep valley toward the twin peaks of nenek-semukut wishing i could spread my wings, glide between the peaks across the valley, land on the beach at mukut, and crack open a nice, cold drink — anything to keep from hiking back down that mountain. as it turns out, i’m not alone. flying has been a preoccupation of humans for time on end. sadly, however, humans will never acquire the capability of unassisted flight and we’ll have to continue appeasing and teasing ourselves with everything from hang-gliders to space shuttles. in other vertebrates, however, flying is really no big deal. some fish leap out of the water to escape predators, extend their enlarged pectoral fins, and glide for hundreds of meters. many frogs have extensively webbed, elongate fingers and toes that function as parachutes when they leap from the leaves and branches of trees to glide across the forest. several groups of mammals, ranging from bats to rodents to colugos, have evolved many different ways to move through the air. reptiles have been flying for millions of years. the earliest fliers were the frigate bird-like pterosaurs. they were also the first reptiles capable of powered flight and ranged in size from chickens to giants having wingspans of over 16 m. however, the most successful flying reptiles of all time are (not were) the dinosaurs and their modern-day representatives — birds. in southeastern asia, modern, non-avian reptiles have gone crazy and flight of some sort has evolved independently at least three, maybe four times in lizards, and once in snakes — but why flight, and why in southeastern asia? although a number of hypotheses have been proposed, the overarching theme the flying reptiles of peninsular malaysia l. lee grismer department of biology, la sierra university, riverside, california, 92515, u.s.a. photographs by the author except when otherwise indicated. iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 87flying reptiles of peninsular malaysia � black-bearded gliding lizards (draco melanopogon) have light bodies with big wings and can attain lift immediately after leaving the tree, even at slow speeds, and are capable of considerable in-flight maneuverability. the bronzeback snake (dendrelaphis cyanochlorus) is an adept climber that frequently preys on arboreal lizards. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 87 throughout all of them is predator evasion. think about it: you’re less than 15 cm in body length, you have no formidable defenses, and you’re living in a jungle. by default, that makes you one of nature’s “fast-food” entrées. so, if you want to avoid becoming the next mclizard in the rainforest happy meal, you had better develop an effective escape mechanism. this always seemed logical to me, but it really hit home one afternoon while i was taking a break along the banks of the sungai mentawak on tioman island. i was just about to resume my hike when i noticed a bronzeback snake (dendrelaphis cyanochloris) crawling up the trunk of a large tree. this snake’s ability to climb on flat, vertical surfaces had always fascinated me, so i decided to watch for a while. its coils were purposely looped in just the precise way necessary for gaining purchase on the irregularities of the tree’s surface as it continued to effortlessly push itself upwards. then i noticed it was ever so slightly moving its head from side to side and rapidly flicking its tongue — the telltale signs that it was following a scent-trail. at that very moment, i saw a black-bearded gliding lizard (draco melanopogon) leap from the tree and glide through the green, filtered light of the forest to land on a different tree. then, suddenly, the snake struck and grabbed a spotted forest skink (lipinia vittigera), which i hadn’t seen, right off the side of the tree. while the bronzeback snake gnawed and manipulated the forest skink in its mouth, to position it just so before swallowing, i realized that this particular little skink and i had something in common; we both wished that we could fly. what made that crucial life-or-death difference between the skink and the gliding lizard was a wing. in fact, gliding lizards (genus draco) are southeastern asia’s most adept flying reptiles, and their wings have clearly contributed to their widespread distribution (india to eastern indonesia) and radiation (over 40 species). oddly enough, the draco wing is just a marvelously rearranged rib cage. the opposing ribs, the ends of which normally meet in the center of the body to form a bony basket (i.e., the rib cage) to protect the heart and lungs, have become disconnected. the ribs have lengthened and now lie bunched up alongside the body when not flexed. muscles in the chest that normally lift and elevate the rib cage to draw air into the lungs now pull the ribs forward and outward, opening the wing. the amount of skin along the sides of the body has increased and now functions as the flying surface that the lengthened ribs support. although this wing is not capable of generating power, it does provide enough lift to extend the length of the glide and provide considerable in-flight maneuverability. gliding lizards use their wings for more than just flight, however. these expansive surfaces also function as prime advertising space for communicating to other gliding lizards. each of malaysia’s 11 species has its own, unique wing pattern. when not flying or displaying, gliding lizards are commonly seen sitting head-up on the trunks of trees with their wings inconspicuously folded against their bodies. they spend many of their daylight hours running up and down trees feeding on ants, which make up the vast majority of their diet. however, when it’s time for a change of scenery, they simply leap from the tree, extend their ribs to open the wings, and glide to the next tree. the extent and speed of the glide depends on a couple of factors: height of the lizard on the tree and the surface area of the wing relative to the weight of the body. as it turns out, not all draco are created equal. the smaller, frail black-bearded gliding lizard, with its pencil-neck and light bulb-shaped head, has a light body with big wings, attains lift immediately after leaving the tree, even at slow speeds, and is capable of considerable in-flight maneuverability. in stark contrast, the orange-bearded gliding lizard (d. fimbriatus), with 88 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 grismer orange-bearded gliding lizards (draco fimbriatus) have thick necks, heavy, robust bodies, and relatively small wings; consequently, in-flight maneuverability is poor, but glide speed is very fast. spotted forest skinks (lipinia vittigera) often forage on trunks of trees, but lack the escape capabilities of gliding lizards. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 88 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 89flying reptiles of peninsular malaysia wing patterns of gliding lizards serve to facilitate species recognition and intra-species communications. patterns of western malaysia’s species of draco are exceedingly variable. from left to right: (top row) d. blanfordii, d. cristatellus; (upper middle) d. fimbriatus, d. formosus; (lower middle) d. haematopogon, d. maximus; (bottom row) d. maculatus, d. melanopogon. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 89 90 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 grismer more wing patterns of western malaysian species of draco: d. quinquefasciatus (top left), d. sumatranus (top right), d. taeniopterus (middle), and d. melanopogon (bottom; note the variation in the extent of stippling when compared to the individual illustrated in the previous figure). fr a n s la n ti n g ( b o tt o m ) its thick neck and heavy, robust body and relatively small wings, has poor in-flight maneuverability but a very fast glide speed. in fact, when this species jumps off a tree, it has to dive straight down with its wings folded against its body until it picks up enough speed to open them up and glide. when it does glide, it looks like a jet rocketing through the forest. consequently, orange-bearded gliding lizards often are found high in some of the forest’s tallest trees, from which they can safely dive in order to gain the momentum necessary to initiate the glide. black-bearded gliding lizards usually are found on lower portions of trees. as it turns out, this is one of the reasons these two species can coexist in the same forest and even on the same trees. their flight anatomy helps separate them ecologically and keeps them from competing directly for some of the rainforest’s resources. in certain areas of the forest, up to eight different species of draco may occur together. generally, when closely related species with unique, restrictive life histories (and being an arboreal, flying, anteater is pretty restrictive) live in the same area, the potential for competition is high and resources must be carefully partitioned. draco do this in such a way that you rarely see more than two species in close proximity. for example, common gliding lizards (d. sumatranus) and spotted gliding lizards (d. maculatus) are common in open and disturbed areas; five-banded gliding lizards (d. quinquefasciatus) are usually found in dense forest with relatively small, closelyspaced trees; giant gliding lizards (d. maximus) are somewhat restricted to riparian areas; smaller yellow-bearded gliding lizards (d. haematopogon) and larger blanford’s gliding lizards (d. blanfordi) occur at higher elevations than most other species; and black-bearded gliding lizards and the larger dusky gliding lizards (d. formosus) are habitat generalists in lowland forests. however, gliding lizards aren’t the only flying, reptilian denizens of malaysia’s rainforests. as if geckos weren’t weird enough already, with their big heads, bulging lidless eyes, ability to vocalize, and elaborate hands and feet, some can add flight to their résumés. as exemplified by flying geckos (genus ptychozoon), their wings lack the elaborate thoracic (chest) modifications of gliding lizards. instead, they are composed solely of a large flap of skin along their flanks. these flaps remain folded across the belly until the lizard jumps from a tree. at that point, they become passively opened by air during the descent. accompanying the body flaps are extended flaps along the sides iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 90 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 91flying reptiles of peninsular malaysia of the head, neck, and tail, backsides of the hind limbs, and extensive webbing on the hands and feet. during flight, when all the flaps and webbing are splayed and extended, they serve to provide more of a parachuting effect rather than generating lift as with the wing of a gilding lizard. nonetheless, i have seen kuhl’s flying gecko (p. kuhli) display remarkable in-flight maneuverability and actually change directions 180° during flight. very similar flying surfaces have evolved independently in an unrelated species known as the frilly gecko (cosymbotus craspedotus). the frilly gecko is smaller than most flying geckos and has not been observed demonstrating the same inflight maneuverability or ability to glide from tree to tree. it usually uses its parachuting capabilities to glide from one portion of a tree to a lower section of the same tree in order to avoid predators. the different means by which these distantly related groups of lizards have solved the same problem (making a wing to escape predators) beg an interesting evolutionary question. i mean, if you’re a lizard and you’re going to make a wing, why not do it the same way? well, it probably has a lot to do with the general life styles of the members of their respective families to whom they are related. in southeastern asia, the agamidae, the family to which gliding lizards belong, are arboreal, diurnal, conspicuous insectivores that signal to one another by puffing out their throats and expanding their chests to display their brilliant color patterns. they also jump from branch to branch in search of prey and to escape predation. so, in a sense, they can already do everything necessary to fly — jump from one place to another and expand their rib cages. now all that’s necessary is to do them both at the same time and let natural selection run its course. in support of this hypothesis is a remarkably obvious intermediate condition in the green crested lizard (bronchocela cristatella), a common, arboreal agamid also native to southeastern asia. when threatened, green crested lizards will leap from one tree to next, splay out their limbs, and expand their rib cages during flight. although they have no trace of a wing, the increased surface area resulting from the expanded rib cage and splayed limbs significantly decreases the angle of the drop and extends the length of the “glide.” so, seeing how natural selection may again, within the same selection regime and same related group of lizards, be developing flight in the green crested lizard is not hard to imagine. geckos (family gekkonidae), however, are cryptic species that attempt to go undetected during the day and are active at night. all the displaying and leaping common to many agamids tail and thigh flaps and webbed foot of a flying gecko (ptychozoon kuhli). nesting female draco sumatranus. m a r c u s n g m a r c u s n g iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 91 do not happen in geckos. in fact, their color patterns generally match the substrate on which they reside, enabling them to go unnoticed. interestingly, the flat-tailed gecko (cosymbotus platyurus), a species closely related to the frilly gecko, presents us with another example of intermediacy. it has the same folds of skin along the head, body, limbs, and tail as the frilly gecko, but they’re not nearly as well developed. these geckos lay these flaps out on the trunk of the tree to prevent the curvature of the body from casting a shadow where it contacts the trunk in order not to give away its location. if these flaps passively opened up like they do in other geckos when this gecko jumps from one branch to another, and this imparted even a small advantage by extending the length of the jump, natural selection will come into play. this is a likely example of what evolutionary biologists refer to as “preadaption” — a situation in which a structure evolves to be used in one context (camouflage) and becomes modified later to be used in a completely different context (flight). because of their lack of limbs and other appendages, one might think that the most unlikely group of vertebrates to evolve flight mechanisms would be snakes. however, in peninsular malaysia, three, closely related species of snakes have the ability to glide for considerable distances. these are the tree snakes (genus chrysopelea). their flight modification involves a simple little notch on each side of each belly (ventral) scale where the ends turn upwards along the lower sides of the body. this notch works like an expansion joint, allowing tree snakes to flatten out and widen their bodies. the flat, wide body works like a parasail, and its undulatory movements during flight, analogous to a spinning frisbee, stabilize the body to prevent it from overturning. prior to launching themselves from branches, tree snakes hang the uncoiled forepart of their body off the 92 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 grismer when threatened, green crested lizards (bronchocela cristatella) will leap from one tree to the next, splay out their limbs, and expand their rib cages during flight. although they have no trace of a wing, the increased surface area resulting from the expanded rib cage and splayed limbs extends the length of the “glide.” kuhl’s flying geckos (ptychozoon kuhli) display remarkable in-flight maneuverability and can change directions during flight. frilly geckos (cosymbotus craspedotus) usually use their parachuting capabilities to glide from one portion of a tree to a lower section of the same tree in order to avoid predators. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 92 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 93flying reptiles of peninsular malaysia branch in a “j-loop.” then, by rocking the body upward while simultaneously springing outward by rapidly straightening their coils and releasing their hold on the branch, the snakes take flight. intermediate conditions to this style of flight are found in related, semi-arboreal snakes such as bronzebacks (mentioned earlier), which have notched ventral scales that help anchor them to the substrate while climbing vertical surfaces. they also expand their rib cages as a defense mechanism to expose brightly colored markings on their scales. so, the three main ingredients, arboreality, notched ventral scales, and a behavior involving the expansion of the rib cage, already existed in this group of related snakes — perhaps another example of preadaptation. so, back to the earlier questions of “why flight, and why here in southeastern asia?” i think i’ve pretty much answered “why flight,” so let’s look at “why in southeastern asia?” with the exception of birds and bats, when you compare the number of flying vertebrates in asian and australasian rainforests to those in the world’s other major rainforest ecosystems — central and south america and africa — a striking pattern emerges. these other rainforests have no flying vertebrates. also, no really solid or generally agreed upon hypotheses explain why. however, the most common explanation suggests that the presence of flying reptiles has to do with asian rainforests lacking the extensive vines and understory vegetation that, in the other rainforests, connect adjacent trees to one another. additionally, the crowns of some trees in asian rainforests are discontinuous. in fact, in species such as the kapur (dryobanalops aromatica), the crowns of adjacent trees chemically repel one another. consequently, getting from one tree to the next is more difficult for arboreal species unless they climb down to the ground and walk across the forest floor, running a substantial risk of becoming prey for some opportunistic predator — so they fly. whatever the reasons behind these remarkable evolutionary success stories, i don’t think i will ever become accustomed to standing in the forest and seeing a snake go gliding by overhead or a giant gliding lizard with a wingspan like that of a small pigeon leap from a tree to glide 30–40 meters across a stream and land on another. in no other rainforests in the world can we enjoy these natural eccentricities, which leaves me saying to myself once again, “i sure wish i could fly.” crowns of adjacent kapur trees (dryobanalops aromatica) chemically repel one another, resulting in a discontinuous crown. tree snakes (chrysopelea) flatten out and widen their bodies and can glide for considerable distances. from top to bottom: c. ornata, c. paradisi, and c. pelias. flat-tailed geckos (cosymbotus platyurus), a species closely related to the frilly gecko, use folds of skin along the head, body, limbs, and tail to prevent the curvature of the body from casting a shadow on a tree trunk and giving away its location to a predator. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 93 iguana 13.1 b&w text i had the good fortune of spending a day with him just a week before his death as we put the finishing touches on a manuscript on which we were working. at the end of the day, we made plans to meet in late winter at bog brook, where we had been surveying turtles together for nearly a quarter of a century. his death has been a great shock to me and everyone who knew him. alvin breisch new york state department of environmental conservation john luther behler was born in allentown, pennsylvania. he received his undergraduate degree from the university of miami and his master’s degree in biological sciences from east stroudsburg university. after teaching biology at hobart and william smith colleges, he joined the wildlife conservation society, which operates the bronx zoo, as a new york state council on the arts curatorial trainee in 1970. in 1976, he became curator of the herpetology department. since 1996, he also served as program coordinator for the wildlife conservation society’s wildlife survival center on st. catherines island, georgia. behler assumed leadership positions in the development of captive breeding programs for endangered and threatened crocodilians, tortoises, and freshwater turtles. through his efforts, batagur turtles (batagur baska and callagur borneoensis) and false gharials (tomistoma schlegelii) successfully bred in captivity for the first time at the bronx zoo. he received the american zoo and aquarium association’s (aza) edward h. bean award in 1980 for most significant reptilian birth for his work with chinese alligators (alligator sinensis). behler’s interests also focused on the ecology and behavior of reptiles and reptilian diseases. he also conducted extensive field studies of tortoises in madagascar and of spotted and bog turtles (clemmys guttata and glyptemys muhlenbergii, respectively) in north america. among his many conservation affiliations, behler chaired the world conservation union’s tortoise and freshwater turtle specialist group and was a member of the convention on international trade in endangered species (cites) turtle trade working group. he was a former coordinator of the aza’s crocodilian advisory group and was a member of the aza’s chelonian and lizard taxon advisory groups. behler worked closely with the new york state department of environmental conservation’s endangered species unit and the u.s. national park service. he served on his community’s conservation board and on the westchester county environmental management council. in the early 1990s, he warned about an increasing trade of wild asian turtles in china, where they are prized as food and in preparing traditional medicines. at the time, the chinese had been importing turtles from thailand, indonesia, and even the united states. behler argued against the practice and pushed for the opening of turtle farms in china to supply the growing commercial market. he authored more than 40 popular and scientific articles and five guidebooks highlighting reptiles and amphibians, the best known of which was the 1979 reference book that remains in wide use, the national audubon society field guide to north american reptiles and amphibians, coauthored with f. wayne king. raymond walker raymond walker died on saturday, 21 january 2006, from complications following surgery to remove a brain tumor. for the past six-plus years, raymond worked for the british virgin islands national parks trust, where he oversaw the anegada iguana headstart and recovery programme. that program experienced many changes and improvements under raymond’s oversight, growing from a basic headstart operation to one that has repatriated 72 iguanas back to the wild since 2003. those of us who worked in the bvi on the iguana project with raymond knew him to be a decent, genuine, and hardworking individual, one who took great pleasure in contributing to the progress of the program. he was always helpful and upbeat, with a contagious smile that made working with him a pleasure. some members of the iguana specialist group met raymond when he attended the isg meetings in puerto rico (1999) and grand cayman (2001). personnel at the bvi national parks trust office are deeply saddened by this tragic turn of events. he will be missed by all of us who worked with him over the years. please join me as we extend our sincere condolences to his family, including his wife and two very young children, and co-workers. rick hudson isg co-chair o b i t u a r i e s john l. behler (1943–2006)1 john behler with a spotted turtle (clemmys guttata) equipped with a tracking device. john conducted extensive field studies on this species, which is becoming increasingly rare throughout much of its range. w il d li fe c o n se r v a ti o n s o c ie ty 1 the bulk of this obituary was provided by alvin breisch, much of it based on data provided by linda corcoran, wildlife conservation society; a small amount of additional information came from the obituary published in the new york times on 5 february 2006. raymond walker and nancy woodfield, bvi national parks trust, during a cyclura pinguis species recovery plan workshop held in tortola, bvi, july 2001. jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 81obituaries iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 81 iguana 13.1 b&w text red-headed kraits (bungarus flaviceps) occur in lowland rainforests of southern malaysia, one of the most biologically diverse and complex terrestrial ecosystems in the world (see related article on p. 2). iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.orginternational reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 13, number 1 march 2006 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess l. l ee g r is m er “el lagarto azul,” the blue anole (anolis gorgonae) of isla gorgona, colombia (see travelogue on p. 47). cuban iguanas (cyclura nubila) are but one of several cuban reptiles that use the u.s. naval base at guantanamo bay as a wildlife refuge (see article on p. 8). the cat gecko (aeluroscalabotes felinus) is a slow moving, almost catatonic species with a range that extends from southern thailand south through peninsular malaysia and singapore to borneo (see article on p. 2). male anoles are fiercely territorial. here two male anolis cristatellus on guana, british virgin island, battle over a territory centered on a small palm tree (see article on p. 22). jo se ph b u r g es s r o b er t po w el l brown basilisks (basiliscus vittatus) are well-established in southern florida and are expanding their range (see article on p. 24). the puerto rican dwarf gecko, sphaerodactylus klauberi, is found only in mesic, montane habitats (see article on p. 16). k en n et h l . k r y sk o a le ja n d r o s a n c h ez adult male emerald tree boa (corallus caninus) with head elevated in response to stimuli indicating the presence of a possible meal. long thought to be a difficult captive, the key to successful husbandry is careful preparation (see article on p. 37). jo se ph m . p o la n c o l. l ee g r is m er jo se ph b u r g es s iguana 12.1 the natural world in florida, as in much of the rest of the world, is changing so rapidly that it is virtually beyond comprehension. from a biological perspective, we often do not know how to respond. should we be alarmed and take immediate action? i think we should definitely be alarmed; and, in some instances, appropriate action can mitigate much of the damage resulting from the changes. however, in other instances, we have little choice but to remain passive observers of the most intensive period of change in the earth’s biological history. i choose not to dwell on the obvious changes like habitat loss due to development, changes in the environment due to pollution, global warming, and simply because humans have long since crossed the dangerous threshold of exceeding the world’s carrying capacity for their own species. however, i will comment on other circumstances in the role of an “old dinosaur naturalist” (a title applied by younger colleagues to non-specialist biologists who began watching nature, catching critters, and learning about natural processes as children). first, i am shocked at the large number of herpetologists who seek to curtail the rights of “new herpers” to keep and enjoy reptiles and amphibians in their homes. combine this with the loss of habitat and changes that are causing substantive declines in the numbers of our native reptiles and amphibians, and we will soon have a society that is completely indifferent to these animals. the discovery channel and all of the “tv cowboy herpers” who are providing less-than-factual information to our kids will do little to encourage current youngsters to become passionate or even vaguely concerned about conservation. we have already lost the political momentum for wildlife conservation throughout the world. what will the situation be like in 20 years without the stimulation of having a live herp from which to learn? the new generation of herpers is estimated to number in the millions. when i was a kid, probably no more than 50 kids and young adults in the whole of the state of ohio were interested in herps. we formed a society so that we could talk and learn from each other. few books and no conant field guides were available in those days. in stark contrast, millions of people care about herps today, but their interest seems very different than ours. we wanted to learn about the animals in the wild — but we also were excited about keeping them in captivity. this desire led to efforts to breed them and develop good husbandry, something the current generation takes for granted. advances in the captive breeding of some reptilian species have resulted in easy access to a wide variety of herps. the current popularity of herpetoculture is very similar to the tropical fish craze some thirty years ago. one unfortunate result of this is that people with pet herps (just like people with dogs and cats) get tired of them or cannot keep them and find out they cannot sell them or even give them away. this situation has contributed dramatically to one of the big changes in our environment today — the presence of invasive exotics. the list of exotic animals and plants that can be found in this country is quite extensive. incidentally, many of the exotics that have wrought havoc with the natural environment (and continue to do so) were brought into the united states by various federal and state agencies. non-native plants and insects are causing serious damage to native wildlife and habitats. southerners will readily tell you about the devastation caused by fire ants (solenopsis spp.) and kudzu (pueraria montana var. lobata). now that we have millions of people with pet herps, the release of herps has become an issue, especially in florida. we now have what i call “shake and bake ecology.” one can find more than 40 exotic herps in florida (see mashaka et al. 2004. the exotic amphibians and reptiles of florida, krieger publishing company, malabar, fl). without a doubt, some of these animals are exerting a profound impact on native herps. a single adult cuban tree frog (osteopilus septentrionalis) can eliminate all the native frogs around a house in one summer. other species may fit niches that are not filled and will have no immediate impact on the environment, yet we cannot predict the full consequences of such introductions. one interesting twist to exotic releases is that no one has complained about the whooping crane (grus americana), an exotic recently released in florida by federal and state game agencies. no evidence exists that this species has been a resident of this state in either recent or prehistoric times. apparently these now resident birds (worth hundreds of thousands of dollars in tourist revenues) prefer to eat many more snakes and frogs than they do in their native habitat. one crane can find and eat an amazing number of snakes. what impact will this have on indigo snake (drymarchon corais) populations? i suggest that some of our agencies need to practice what they preach. 48 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 ashton c o m m e n t a r y comments from an old naturalist about exotic species and a new herpetocultural ethic ray ashton the gopher tortoise conservation initiative newberry, florida opinions expressed are those of the author and may or may not reflect those of the ircf. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 49commentary recently, two lizard controversies have reared their heads in florida: the nile monitor (varanus niloticus, see iguana 10(4):119–120) population in and around cape coral and the spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura similis, see iguana 10(4):111–118) on gasparilla island (see “newsbriefs” in this, p. 58, and recent issues). in the former instance, local citizens have lodged complaints (probably initiated by one or two folks and then snowballing). many are deeply concerned that these predators will impact listed species like the florida burrowing owl (athene cunicularia floridana) and nesting sea turtles. dog and cat lovers, who illegally let their wildlife-devastating animals run loose, are worried that their predatory pets will, in turn, become prey for introduced exotics. this may be the case, and we should be alarmed — and we should study the situation to determine what really is happening. of course, what stimulated this article is that residents of gasparilla island have fussed about ctenosaurs coming into their yards and destroying their (mostly exotic) vegetation. naturally, when a biologist suggested that we shoot them, the resultant outcry of disgust obscured the reality that few alternatives exist to this direct method of “getting rid of the problem.” trapping lizards, darting lizards, or any other method of taking the lizards is less efficient and certainly more stressful for the animals. the fact is that a lot of ctenosaurs live there — and a considerable effort and a great deal of money will need to be expended to get rid of them. the same is true for the monitors on cape coral. these are species that have established a strong foothold in their new environment. unlike many of the geckos that were largely restricted to specific buildings near the miami airport, the monitors and spiny-tailed iguanas, along with green iguanas, will likely be part of the florida landscape as long as one remains. when exotic plants like brazilian coffee (coffea arabica) or animals such as the iguanas achieve huge population sizes, the cost in money and time essentially makes them impossible to eradicate. some control may be possible, but eradication is unlikely. in my opinion, i think we have little choice but to live with the situation. however, the introduction of exotic amphibians and reptiles is not a good idea and the new generations of herpetologists and herpetoculturists should develop a new conservation ethic if they wish to retain their right to keep animals in captivity. we used to tell the herpers of my day that they should take only the specimens that served a specific purpose. today, we need to establish some new rules, which should include: 1. before buying any pet, learn about it! do not count on the pet store staff to know more than you do. buy and read a book about the animal. learn about the species’ natural history, not just how to keep it in captivity. for example, do you know that some tortoises eat more than 400 species of plants? much of this type of natural history information is not listed in care manuals, but it may well be the key to successfully keeping and breeding some reptiles. 2. acquire your pet from a reputable source. do not become part of the problem by encouraging the collection of rare species from ever-declining habitats. in almost every instance, no justification exists for buying anything but captive-bred animals (one exception might be to catch your own exotic species — folks on gasparilla, for example, would appreciate your efforts). 3. make sure that your caging is appropriate for the type of animal you plan to keep — and that it is escape proof! if real (or artificial sunlight) is required, don’t settle for less, or you’ve likely doomed your pet to a nasty death. 4. ascertain your pet’s nutritional requirements and make sure you can devote the time and money necessary for purchasing and preparing the right food on an appropriate schedule. 5. many keepers are avid about breeding their pets. social needs are enormously variable from species to species, but most amphibians and reptiles are not social and do not need companions. in many instances, adding an additional animal to a confined space may create stress that can lead to immunocompromise and disease. an iguana has a home range in the wild that can cover several acres of land. how big is the cage you can provide? 6. have an escape strategy for when you want to get rid of your pet (or its offspring). perhaps the pet store or animal dealer from which you obtained it will permit you to return it, or you might be able to take it to an animal rehabber who may have better contacts. if all else fails, take it to a veterinarian or animal shelter to be euthanatized. sound awful? well, think about what may happen to the animal before you hand over the money for it. do not let the animal go, even if it is a species that is found locally. if you have exotic and native herps, be sure to keep them in separate cages (or, better yet, separate rooms). the release of pets may result in the transfer of deadly pathogens to populations of native species. such a situation can be far more dangerous to wildlife than the animals competing with or preying on each other. 7. avoid confrontations with neighbors. be respectful of their concerns and fears. educate them, but don’t try to force them to accept your exotic pet. if you want to take your pet outside, do it in a private place. one incident is all that’s needed to set non-herpers on the warpath. that, in turn, will inevitably lead to knee-jerk responses from local politicians. ultimately, it all boils down to common sense. spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura similis) are firmly entrenched on gasparilla island, where residents might be well advised to learn to live with them. photograph by john binns. iguana b&w text populations of the texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) have disappeared in eastern and central texas, and are decreasing in other areas (see “historical perspectives” on p. 224 and the “focus on conservation” on p. 240). green anoles (anolis carolinensis) were first reported on o‘ahu in 1950, and now occur on all of the major hawaiian islands. a recent introduction to coconut island (off o‘ahu) apparently failed (see article on p. 198). brown treesnakes (boiga irregularis) have caused the elimination of most of guam’s native forest birds, and decimated other birds, lizards, and mammals (see travelogue on p. 216). in march 2006, an adult female cuban iguana (cyclura nubila) in a population established on isla magueyes, puerto rico, chased, caught, and ate a conspecific hatchling (see article on p. 206). jo se ph b u r g es s n és to r f . p ér ez -b u it r a g o the critically endangered guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) is restricted to forest remnants in the motagua valley (see articles on pp. 178, 184, and 212). many aspects of the fijian crested iguana’s (brachylophus vitiensis) biology remain unknown, mostly because of the remoteness of the uninhabited iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba (see article on p. 192). zo o tr o pi c je ff s c h m a tz , m o d is , n a sa /g sf c ovulation in emerald treeboas (corallus caninus) follows some time after the cessation of breeding activity. during ovulation, many females hang grossly distended midbody loops off their perches (see article on p. 209). jo se ph m . p o la n c o g a d p er r y w en d y h o d g es mexican beaded lizard (heloderma horridum). th o m a s w ie w a n d t, w il d h o r iz o n s gila monsters (heloderma suspectum; illustrated) and beaded lizards (h. horridum) are the world’s only venomous lizards. populations of both species are declining, primarily as a consequence of habitat loss. see related articles on pp. 178, 184, and 212. iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 13, number 3 september 2006 h aw aiian g reen a noles (anolis carolinensis) are descendants of escaped pets. t hey occupy w hat w as once a vacant ecological niche and thrive in association w ith introduced plants in the low lands on all m ajor islands(see related article on p. 198). ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess robert powell th o m a s w ie w a n d t, w il d h o r iz o n s << /ascii85encodepages false /allowtransparency false /autopositionepsfiles true /autorotatepages /none /binding /left /calgrayprofile (dot gain 20%) /calrgbprofile (srgb iec61966-2.1) /calcmykprofile (u.s. web coated \050swop\051 v2) /srgbprofile (srgb iec61966-2.1) /cannotembedfontpolicy /error /compatibilitylevel 1.4 /compressobjects /tags /compresspages true /convertimagestoindexed true /passthroughjpegimages true 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/leaveuntagged /untaggedrgbhandling /usedocumentprofile /usedocumentbleed false >> ] >> setdistillerparams << /hwresolution [2400 2400] /pagesize [612.000 792.000] >> setpagedevice iguana 11.4 252 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 iguana newsbriefs iguana specialist group and fiji national trust co-sponsor conservation and management plan workshop for fijian iguanas on 10–11 november 2004, the iucn ssc iguana specialist group and the fiji national trust co-sponsored a conservation and management plan workshop for fiji’s native crested (brachylophus vitiensis) and banded iguanas (b. fasciatus). the workshop was held on the laucala campus of the university of the south pacific, and was attended by 50 participants from both within and outside fiji. the purpose of the workshop was to develop a comprehensive strategy to guide the conservation of fiji’s native iguanas by identifying and prioritizing the actions needed to ensure their future survival. for crested iguanas, participants identified a series of key objectives, including prioritization of islands most suitable for long-term survival, implementation of a comprehensive management plan for the yadua taba crested iguana sanctuary, recommendations for field research on iguanas and their habitats, development of captive breeding and reintroduction strategies, and establishment of education, awareness, and ecotourism programs. for banded iguanas, about which much less is currently known, participants developed a research agenda that focuses on collection of baseline data, genetic studies, and education needs. results of the workshop will be published early next year. following the workshop, participants had the opportunity to visit a traditional fijian village on yadua island, home to the custodians of the crested iguana sanctuary on nearby yadua taba. following a traditional sevusevu ceremony, permission to visit the sanctuary was given, and participants had the rare treat of viewing an extraordinarily dense population of crested iguanas in the wild. after returni g u a n a n e w s b r i e f s rick hudson, co-chair of the iucn ssc iguana specialist group, with a crested iguana on yadua taba, fiji. photograph by jone niukula. participants in the conservation and management plan workshop for fiji's native iguanas at the laucala campus of the university of the south pacific. photograph by joe burgess. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 253iguana newsbriefs ing to the main island of viti levu, the iguana specialist group met in suva on 15 november. the meeting centered on planning discussions for a number of key taxa, as well as special sessions on public relations and the media, iguana friendly development guidelines, and funding priorities for 2005. allison alberts and rick hudson co-chairs, iucn ssc iguana specialist group residents of boca grande seek to exterminate introduced spiny-tailed iguanas citizens attending a meeting of the gasparilla island conservation and improvement association overwhelmingly favored ridding the island of the increasingly numerous spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura similis), which they regard as no better than rats. jerome jackson, a scholar at the florida gulf coast university, believes the iguanas pose a serious threat to several endangered species, consuming everything from turtle hatchlings, mice, and native vegetation to the eggs of gopher tortoises and birds. suggestions for exterminating the animals included rounding them up and selling them to high schools for dissection or selling the meat as an exotic delicacy and hides for purses. bob janes, lee county commissioner, said that no timetable had been established, nor were cost estimates or formal plans for the removal of iguanas in place. according to one study, iguanas on the island number around 10,000 (see also iguana 11(2):130). gopher tortoises and feral iguanas do not compete for food ray ashton of the ashton biodiversity research and preservation institute (www.ashtonbiodiversity.org) is the author of a forthcoming book on gopher tortoises (gopherus polyphemus). he recently was asked whether the increasing number of feral iguanas in florida poses a threat to the endangered gopher tortoise by competing for the same food plants. ray reported that he is frequently asked this question by individuals concerned about possible ecological consequences of feral iguanas in southern florida. he further stated that his in-depth studies on the diet of gopher tortoises (in press) indicate that the average tortoise forages on 80–165 species in a yearly cycle and that more than 400 species of forage plants are documented in its range. furthermore, coastal diversity studies indicate that about 120 species are commonly available for tortoises on florida beach strands. by bulk, about 80% of the diet of tortoises (all size classes) is composed of grasses and sedges. he concluded: “i doubt very much that there is competition with the lizards.” long island reptile museum closed the long island reptile museum in hicksville, new york went out of business on 9 november when the unheated building was condemned. workers from the suffolk county spca and volunteers from a number of rescue organizations evacuated 182 reptiles and amphibians, including two 6-foot alligators, a 250pound aldabra tortoise, and over a dozen venomous snakes and lizards. the international fauna society housed animals temporarily until they could be released legally to adoptive homes. the closure of the museum was the culmination of more than two years’ effort on the part of reptile rescue groups in new york and connecticut working in cooperation with local police and spca officials (see also iguana 11(1):72–73). a recent article on iguana rescue (iguana 10(4):121–126) euphemistically referred to the museum as the “alternative reptile institution” while describing the horrific conditions in which iguanas had been kept. another 19 spiny-tailed, rock, and green iguanas still resided at the museum until the recent closure. all of these iguanas are currently in rehabilitation or have been placed in permanent adoptive homes. spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura similis) are considered pests by some residents of boca grande. photograph by john binns. florida gopher tortoise (gopherus polyphemus) diets probably are not affected by the presence of introduced iguanas. photograph by joe burgess. digger, a “cuban” iguana rescued from the long island reptile museum, proved to be a hybrid blue iguana once he was cleaned and examined carefully. photograph by carole saucier. iguana 13.1 b&w text 70 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 conservation research reports erosion netting a threat to snakes and lizards erosion netting consists of woven mats of seed-implanted straw or jute layered between two sheets of netting. the most commonly used size of netting is 20 x 20 mm. although supposedly photodegradable, netting may remain intact after as many as eight years. walley et al. (2005. journal of kansas herpetology (16): 26–28) documented the threat of this netting to lizards and snakes, which become entrapped in it. entangled animals may perish from heat exposure or starvation or suffer injuries that might prove fatal due to constriction of vital organs or infection. cites-listed lizards in the french pet trade during the 1990s, over 100,000 citeslisted lizards were imported by the french pet trade, with the numbers per year increasing dramatically during the last half of the decade. reporting results of a study funded by wwf-france, affre et al. (2005. herpetological review 36:133–137) examined the data pertaining to imports of cites-listed lizard into france, which is a growing distribution center for reptilian pets in europe. the top five species imported during the 1990s were iguana iguana (over 40,000 individuals, mostly from the united states), phelsuma madagascariensis (almost 6000 individuals, almost all from madagascar), uromastyx acanthinura (over 5000 individuals, mostly from mali), chamaeleo senegalensis (over 5000 individuals, nearly all from senegal), and varanus exanthematicus (nearly 4000 individuals, largely from togo). data indicated that increasing numbers of imported cites-listed lizards were captive-bred, reflecting the farming of green iguanas (i. iguana) in central and northern south america. these data, however, are misleading in regard to other listed species, which are almost always wild-caught, as are many non-listed species for which data are lacking and about the status of which we know essentially nothing. habitat quality and australia’s most endangered snake fire suppression over the past two centuries has produced increases in vegetation density and canopy cover in many australian landscapes, potentially affecting small populations of nocturnal reptiles that use exposed shelters for diurnal thermoregulation. webb et al. (2005. copeia 2005: 894–900) tested the effect of removing overhanging vegetation from shaded rocks on use by australia’s endangered broad-headed snake, hoplocephalus bungaroides. one year after clearing vegetation, basking rocks were hotter and were used more frequently by three reptilian species, including broadheaded snakes and an important prey species (velvet geckos, oedura lesueurii). the authors suggest that, until effective fire management measures are in place, sapling removal from overgrown rock outcrops could help to protect small populations of endangered reptiles. island boas of belize boa constrictors (boa constrictor) inhabiting islands off the coast of belize have been heavily collected for the pet trade, which describes these as a “dwarfed” race. boback (2005. copeia 2005: 880–885) determined that, compared to mainland boas, island boas have significantly smaller litters of smaller neonates and have extraordinarily small population sizes that range from 8–88. evidence of declining population sizes and application of iucn criteria indicate that island populations of belizean boas warrant immediate conservation priority due to their low reproductive output, small population sizes, and continued demand in the pet trade. c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s during the 1990s, nearly 4000 savannah monitors (varanus exanthematicus) were imported by the french pet trade, mostly from togo. jo h n b in n s butler’s gartersnake (thamnophis butleri) from ozaukee county, wisconsin showing injuries from erosion netting. g a r y c a sp er australia’s endangered broad-headed snake (hoplocephalus bungaroides) may benefit from clearing vegetation that has overgrown basking sites after two centuries of fire suppression. pa v el g er m a n /w il d li fe im a g es this adult male crawl cay boa (boa constrictor; 116 cm svl) was one of only about eight free-ranging individuals on an island that has been heavily impacted by collection. after completion of the initial study, the author returned to the cay in 2003 to find that more land had been cleared and that a new structure was being built. in only a very short amount of time, the author and his colleagues found no boas. sc o tt m . b o b a c k iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 70 iguana 13.2 b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 149historical perspective effected. the spreading of the flight membrane, which is supported by five, six, or seven elongated ribs, is accomplished by the use of a few muscles, particularly the iliocostalis and the intercostals, while the arching and the stiffening of the ribs are performed by the very long, slender muscle slips that run along the length of each rib. the wings in draco, when expanded, provide a flight surface that is very similar in relative extent, and thus of wing loading, to that in the large soaring birds. perhaps this similarity is due to the fact that the lizards and the birds in question, though quite dissimilar in size, have similar problems of aerodynamics. the significance of the adaptation for gliding in draco is twofold. first, it represents the one example among modern reptiles for aerial locomotion through considerable distances. second, although in itself perhaps comparatively recent in reptilian evolution, it seems to represent the earliest type of aerial locomotion to be adopted by the vertebrates. recent studies of fossil lacertilians of triassic age show adaptations for gliding that are remarkably similar to those in draco. hence it is probable that the first aerial vertebrates were reptiles equipped to glide from tree to tree on expanded membranes supported by elongated ribs, leaving all four limbs free for arboreal and terrestrial locomotion. apparently such adaptations for flight preceded by several million years the first attempts at true flight, attained by the pterosaurs. thus, looking at draco, we are, in effect, looking back through some 200 million years, to view the manner in which backboned animals first took to the air. my grandfather, edwin harris (ned) colbert, had a long and distinguished career in vertebrate paleontology. much of this was at the american museum of natural history (amnh) in new york, where he started as a graduate research assistant, and wound up as chairman of the department of fossil vertebrates. he made good use of the museum’s world-class fossil collections and was involved in a number of great fossil discoveries around the world. one of the most significant was the late triassic ghost ranch quarry of new mexico, where he recovered multiple skeletons of the early dinosaur coelophysis, a discovery that profoundly influenced our understanding of early dinosaur evolution. these global travels also took him on a pioneering trip to antarctica, where his fossil finds supported emerging plate-tectonic theories. his outstanding publication record includes more than 300 published papers and two textbooks. he also wrote a number of popular books on dinosaurs (including a few targeted at young readers), on plate tectonics, a biography, and two autobiographies. in many ways, his legacy to the field of paleontology was as much a consequence of his efforts at reaching out to the general public, as was his scientific output. rather than summarize this remarkable career, i here attempt a more intimate portrait using the excavation of coelophysis at ghost ranch as a vignette to better understand his life. when i knew him, my grandfather’s research focused on triassic terrestrial vertebrate faunas from around the world. this research program incorporated newly emerging plate-tectonic theories to explain the distribution of ancient faunas. you can imagine my surprise to find that he wrote a couple of papers on fossil tapirs, a group i now study and one that didn’t originate until the cenozoic! to compound the somewhat inbred feeling that gave me, one of these papers actually reinterprets an earlier tapir-paper by my namesake, great-grandfather william d. matthew, whose daughter my grandfather had married. only then did i come to realize the extent of grandfather’s work in the middle to late cenozoic, the study of which was the focus of his ph.d. dissertation and early career. my earliest memories of my grandparents predate grandfather’s retirement from the amnh in 1969. my family lived in b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h ned colbert in his office at the american museum of natural history, ca. 1940s. remembrances of edwin h. colbert, paleontologist matthew colbert university of texas, austin (www.digimorph.org and www.ctlab.geo.utexas.edu) photographs courtesy of the author except where indicated. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 149 150 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 colbert new york city, and we would often visit on weekends. my mother would take my brother and me to see grandpa at the amnh. like most children, we loved the jurassic and cretaceous dinosaur halls that he had designed (now redesigned in a phylogenetic arrangement). i vaguely recollect his fifth floor tower office, which commanded a beautiful view of central park, and have dim memories of a large mounted theropod skull near his desk. however, i most vividly remember the little plastic dinosaurs he would give us. i have more concrete recollections of my grandparents after their 1969 move to flagstaff, arizona, when i was six. from that year until my graduation from high school, my brother and i would spend part or all of our summer vacations with them. i continued to visit until grandfather passed away in november 2001, at the age of 96. he remained active, having an emeritus position at the museum of northern arizona (mna). although he stopped doing active fieldwork near the end of his life, he continued writing, and was working on a book about his antarctic trip when he died. partly as a consequence of my grandfather’s presence, the mna geology program had attracted a number of bright young paleontologists. as a volunteer in the 1970s, i had the opportunity to see my grandfather interact and work with both staff and visiting scientists. my grandfather had a down-to-earth and generally humble demeanor. only as i got older did i begin to understand the respect and honor accorded ‘ned’ by his peers. flagstaff was a nice place to retire for many reasons, but i am sure that part of the call was its proximity to the great triassicaged rocks in the southwestern desert. in these rocks, he had made his first great triassic discovery. before he worked on dinosaurs (and other mesozoic and paleozoic vertebrates), edwin colbert worked on fossil mammals. he was a midwesterner, born in clarinda, iowa in 1905, and raised in maryville, missouri. he received his undergraduate degree from the university of nebraska in 1929. there he worked as a research assistant at the paleontology museum. this training spurred him to pursue paleontology as a graduate student at columbia university under the tutelage of william k. gregory. his ph.d. dissertation examined the extensive collection of cenozoic mammals from the siwalik hills of india. the strength of his dissertation led him to a job at the amnh, where he continued to publish on cenozoic mammals. he thoroughly enjoyed these studies, and would have been happy to make a career out of researching fossil mammals, but opportunities for career advancement were slim at the time, especially because of the crowded field working on fossil mammals. so, when recommended for a position as curator of fossil reptiles and amphibians, he changed his research direction. he had always had an interest in ancient reptiles, and the switch of focus also made available the extensive dinosaur collections housed at the amnh. the collections included fragments of a little dinosaur called coelophysis that had been collected in the late 19th century from northwestern new mexico. although only preserved as a few postcranial fragments, these fossils provided a glimpse of what the earliest dinosaurs were like, a key to understanding their subsequent modifications. his realization of the significance of these fossils was further solidified when he had the opportunity to do a little fieldwork in the late permian of north texas with paleontologist al romer. these earlier permian faunas were characterized by a markedly different assemblage of animals, the dominant components of which were large amphibians and synapsids (the lineage that ultimately gave rise to mammals). by contrast, these animals were represented only as relicts in the triassic faunas, which were instead dominated by archosaurs (which included many crocodilelike forms and early dinosaurs). a major faunal transition separated ned colbert relaxing at his flagstaff, arizona home. my grandfather, brother, and i striking an american gothic pose. i am on the right. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 150 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 151biographical sketch the two time periods, and colbert was confident that the ancestry of the dinosauria was to be found in the triassic. with this idea in mind, in the summer of 1947, he petitioned for and obtained permits to collect fossils in the extensive exposures of the triassic chinle formation in the petrified forest national park of northeastern arizona. colbert and george simpson, a paleontologist who was colbert’s superior at the museum set out by train for albuquerque, where they met their field crews and vehicles. the plan was for simpson, who studied fossil mammals, to collect from the tertiary sediments in the san juan basin of new mexico. meanwhile, colbert, after spending a few days in simpson’s camp, was to drive with his crew to find ancient reptiles and amphibians. just east of simpson’s camp, however, were some nice exposures of triassic rocks in an on-andoff dude ranch called ghost ranch. this area had been worked years before by charles camp, a paleontologist from the university of california. colbert had spent a summer at berkeley a few years earlier and had had the opportunity to see camp’s collections from both ghost ranch and petrified forest. thus, on a whim, he decided to take his crew there for a week or two of prospecting for fossils before heading west to the petrified forest. ghost ranch was — and is — a beautiful place. nestled in a canyon, it boasts spectacular cliffs with rock formations covering the different mesozoic periods. triassic-aged rocks are represented by the chinle formation, a rock body whose sediments document the passage of a large river system that flowed west from texas to the coast, which at that time was somewhere in present-day nevada. colbert and crew were welcomed there by skeleton of coelophysis. image courtesy of the university of california museum of paleontology. a photomosaic of ghost ranch, northern new mexico. the reddish sediments exposed below the lowest cliff represents the triassic chinle formation. a summary of the geologic timescale iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 151 152 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 colbert the owner, arthur pack, who kindly gave them permission to poke around and collect what they found. years before, charles camp had found numerous skeletons of large crocodile-like animals called phytosaurs from the low badlands of ghost ranch. not surprisingly, then, colbert and his crew found a nice fossil phytosaur skull on their first day of fossil hunting. they spent about three days collecting it, and then opted to do a little more prospecting before heading west. on a hunch, colbert decided that they would work some small sidecanyons instead of prospecting the flats, as had previously been done. there, george whitaker, one of colbert’s crew, found some delicate bones, including a small claw, weathering down a talus slope. excitedly, whitaker brought the fragments to colbert, who immediately recognized that they pertained to coelophysis. whitaker showed colbert the spot, and they worked their way up the slope until they discovered the layer from which the bones were weathering. after some cleaning with brushes and awls, they soon realized that they were looking at articulated skeletal remains. at this point, colbert had to make a decision: stay in ghost ranch and sacrifice the hard-won permits for petrified forest, or abandon the site and head west — but the question was really moot, you stick with the fossils in hand. with these thoughts, colbert contacted george simpson and told him of the find. simpson arrived the next day, and realizing that this was probably the finest triassic vertebrate site in the world, agreed that they should abandon their petrified forest plans. but how much more was to be found? perhaps the site only extended another couple of inches into the hill, and the steep slope meant that the farther they dug in, the more sediment they would have to remove from above the fossils. this sort of digging was frustrating, as loose dirt and rocks would keep tumbling down from above. more than an annoyance, these rockfalls could easily damage the extremely fragile bones that were emerging (not to mention those working on them!). accordingly, they spent several days, and considerable effort with picks and shovels, clearing a platform several feet into the slope, a foot or two above the bone-layer. for every two feet they dug into the slope, the hill rose about a foot. so, when they had finished their platform, they had a small cliff six or seven feet tall at the back of the quarry. they then carefully sunk a couple of small test pits at the base of this little manmade cliff. the moment of truth was approaching, and it was with great joy that they were rewarded by the sight of more bones. the work was long and tedious. the bones were too fragile and too densely packed to remove one-by-one, instead requiring excavation as a series of large blocks that eventually revealed a massgrave containing the skeletons of hundreds or perhaps thousands of individual coelophysis. indeed, the bones were so tightly packed that digging channels between the blocks to separate them was impossible without destroying some bones. the field season lasted into september, and the crew also worked all the next summer. they removed a total of thirteen large blocks, which they shipped back to the amnh for controlled preparation in the lab. although the bed was still yielding bone, they decided to stop quarrying after the second season, to allow preparation and description of the material, before going back to collect more. the exceedingly delicate bones demanded great care in preparation. in fact, preparation of the blocks collected in the summers of 1947 and 1948 was so time consuming that it is incomplete to this day. enough was revealed, however, to allow colbert to begin the research process. first of all, the skeleton of coelophysis could now be described thoroughly, revealing itself to be a long-necked, lightly-built biped about 6 to 11 feet in length and standing about 3 feet tall at the hip. it had strong hind legs that were well suited for fast running. its long bones are hollow, a characteristic for which it was named (coelo = hollow, physis = ned colbert near some ancient channel sandstones and conglomerates. ned and margaret colbert at ghost ranch, new mexico. margaret is the daughter of a prominent paleontologist, william diller matthew. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 152 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 153biographical sketch form). the skull is gracefully constructed with sharp, recurved, and serrated teeth well adapted for a diet of meat. although details of the anatomy are specialized, in its overall aspect the skeleton of coelophysis provided a nice model of the earliest theropod dinosaurs. a brief digression on dinosaur classification is necessary here. the dinosauria comprises two great groups, the ornithischia and saurischia. ornithischians are herbivorous, and include such animals as the horned and frilled triceratops, duck-billed dinosaurs, armored ankylosaurs, and plated stegosaurs. saurischians, on the other hand, split into two main lineages, one leading to the giant herbivorous sauropods (e.g., the brachiosaurs) and the other to the theropods, which includes all carnivorous dinosaurs (such as tyrannosaurus and velociraptor) and birds. coelophysis is one of the earliest theropod dinosaurs. a great size-range was represented in the dinosaurs from the quarry, including fully adult forms and presumed juveniles. a size disparity among adult specimens suggests that coelophysis exhibited sexual dimorphism. one specimen has the remains of a juvenile coelophysis contained within its ribcage. the position of the specimen within the ribcage and its preserved condition suggested to colbert that it was a victim of cannibalism. the accumulation of skeletons and partial skeletons found at ghost ranch begs the question of how they all wound up there. although other species are represented in the quarry, the prevalence of coelophysis suggested to colbert that these animals might have lived in a group or herd that met its demise as the result of a flood or some other catastrophic event. in any case, this find gave colbert the unparalleled opportunity to study variation and growth in a 225-million-year-old animal. colbert’s formal description of the coelophysis specimens recovered from ghost ranch was published as a bulletin of the museum of northern arizona in 1989 — 42 years after the initial discovery. although he felt that this description did not do justice to the site, he also realized that it needed to be published. he always seemed a little embarrassed about the amount of time it took from discovery to publication. of course, he had lots of excuses. not only were the blocks extremely time-consuming to prepare, but he also had other projects that demanded his time. he continued his descriptions of triassic life, including the gliding reptile icarosaurus, which led to the study of draco, reprinted here. he also was involved in the creation of the great dinosaur halls in the amnh and had many other obligations as a museum curator. perhaps one of his biggest distractions from the coelophysis project was his trip to antarctica in 1969, where he recovered triassic vertebrates. the worldwide distribution of these animals helped solidify the newly emerging theories of plate tectonics, and his description of these fossils and their implications to the past connections of continents occupied most of his research during the 1970s. the last of his published works dealing with coelophysis was a popular book called “the little dinosaurs of ghost ranch,” which recounted his experiences, and presented the story as a paleontological case study, and on which (in addition to his autobiographies) i have largely based this account. as mentioned previously, grandfather had a prodigious publication record. part of his success was a well-defined work ethic. he was able to compartmentalize his life quite effectively, and established personal routines that enhanced his productivity. for example, when i knew him as a ‘retiree’ in flagstaff, he would walk to his office for a morning of work, and then walk home for lunch at noon. this was followed by an afternoon nap, and then another hour or two of work in the late afternoon before dinner and relaxation. however, these rather strict routines did not mean that he was inflexible. he remained open-minded and fair throughout his life. as much as he loved paleontology, i think he loved nature even more. i remember his enjoyment watching the squirrels and birds that would come to the feeder in flagstaff. ahead of his time, he did not believe in growing lawns in a desert, and left the arizona meadow and forest intact on their couple of acres. he learned to identify all of the wildflowers that could be found in their little meadow, and delighted in monitoring their appearance after the arizona summer monsoons. he always exhorted me to observe living animals in order to better understand long-extinct fossil forms. i remember attending a lecture that he gave to the general public, which ended with a slide of the planet earth from space. although this was a talk about dinosaurs, he felt it his duty to remind the audience that this is a small world on which we live, and we should treat it with love and respect. reconstruction of coelophysis. ned colbert preparing for fieldwork in antarctica. his discoveries of triassic vertebrates there helped solidify emerging plate-tectonic theories. en c a r ta .m sn .c o m iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 153 iguana 13.1 b&w text forty-one exotic species of amphibians and reptiles are known to occur in florida, and more are being discovered on a regular basis. a hospitable climate, disrupted natural ecosystems, a mobile and growing human population, and service as the major transportation center for the u.s. pet trade all contribute to the increasing numbers of invasive species. enge and krysko (2004. florida scientist 67:226–230) documented an established population of the asian agamid lizard commonly called the bloodsucker (calotes versicolor) in st. lucie county, florida. this population was apparently introduced in 1978, and approximately 100 specimens have been captured by two commercial collectors in the past 10 years. all specimens were captured from nocturnal roosts 1–9 m high in weeds, vines, bushes, and trees. the known population boundaries extend approximately 10 km east-west and northsouth, and they encompass citrus groves, brazilian pepper (schinus terebinthifolius) thickets, mesic flatwoods, and canals. the authors did not attempt to assess the possible ecological impact of this species on native wildlife, but it has been known to feed on small vertebrates in asia. krysko et al. (2004. florida scientist 67:249–253) documented an established population of the veiled or yemen chameleon (chamaeleo calyptratus) in fort myers, lee county, florida. the authors recorded at least 70 individuals, including both genders and all size classes in consecutive years, indicating a reproducing population. chamaeleo calyptratus also has been reported from areas near lehigh acres and alva, lee county, and naples, collier county, suggesting independent introductions of this popular exotic lizard. monitoring of this population should continue, and eradication should be attempted if adverse ecological impact on native species is observed. enge et al. (2004. florida scientist 67:303–310) documented populations of the introduced african rainbow lizard (agama agama africana) in homestead, miami-dade county; hollywood, broward county; palm city, martin county; punta gorda, charlotte county; and sanford, seminole county. the homestead and punta gorda populations have been established for over 10 years and have expanded at least 0.5 km from the point of introduction. the palm city population has been established since 1999 and the sanford population since 2000. all lizards were in urban or suburban situations. maximum clutch size and maximum snout-vent length (svl) of male and female a. a. africana in florida exceeded those in native nigerian populations. all adult females (> 94 mm svl) collected may–august contained 5–18 vitellogenic follicles or oviductal eggs, but a female collected on 19 september was not gravid. monitoring should be conducted to determine whether the species could invade natural habitats and exert a negative impact on native wildlife. the nile monitor (varanus niloticus), the longest lizard in africa, was first observed in southwestern peninsular florida in the cape coral area of lee county in about 1990. from april 2001 through july 2003, enge et al. (2004. southeastern naturalist 3:571–582) compiled data from 146 sightings or captures of this species. numerous individuals of all size classes were observed or collected, suggesting the occurrence of a reproducing population. although records are mostly confined to cape coral, the data indicate that v. niloticus has recently expanded its range northwards and to nearby islands. because this large lizard has the potential to disperse into nearby ecologically sensigravid female and neonate bloodsuckers (calotes versicolor) from st. lucie co., florida. k en n et h l . k r y sk o adult and juvenile (chamaeleo calyptratus) from lee co, florida. k en n et h l . k r y sk o african rainbow lizard (agama agama africana) from miami-dade co., florida (uf 134222). k en n et h l . k r y sk o this 5-foot, 15-pound nile monitor (varanus niloticus) was captured at a residence in cape coral. to d d c a m pb el l non-native reptiles in florida iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 71conservation research reports iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 71 tive areas and preserves where it could pose a serious threat to waterbirds, burrowing owls (athene cunicularia), sea turtles, and other native wildlife, population monitoring and eradication are warranted. krysko and enge (2005. florida scientist 68:247–249) confirmed the existence of the butterfly lizard (leiolepis belliana) in miami, miami-dade county, florida. the authors found l. belliana active during the daytime in an area encompassing six square city blocks, where it was observed basking and foraging on open grassy lawns and inhabiting burrows. the population of l. belliana originated from a tropical fish dealer and has been established since at least 1992. if eradication of the miami population is desired, it should be attempted while the population remains localized. green iguanas (iguana iguana) are firmly established in southern florida, including a large population on key biscayne. in its native range, i. iguana is known to be almost strictly herbivorous. juveniles are often reported to be somewhat omnivorous, but prey items are rarely identified. the tree snail drymaeus multilineatus is common in southern florida, where it is found on stems and leaves and in edificarian habitats. townsend et al. (2005. southeastern naturalist 4:361– 364) examined i. iguana stomachs from bill baggs cape florida state park, key biscayne, and discovered d. multilineatus in two lizards, including 12 snails in one juvenile i. iguana. the large and rapidly growing i. iguana populations in southern florida may have the potential to devastate some highly localized native species of tree snails. meshaka et al. (2005. southeastern naturalist 4:521–526) searched for introduced northern curlytails (leiocephalus carinatus armouri) along florida’s southeastern coast from port salerno, martin county, north to the indian river/brevard county line to determine the extent to which this species has expanded its range since its introduction to palm beach county almost 50 years ago. they found the distribution of these lizards to be almost uninterrupted in heavily modified coastal habitats from northern broward county through palm beach county. despite urban heat islands, the authors suggested that frost isotherms would prevent stable populations from becoming established north of fort pierce on the eastern coast and just below sarasota along the state’s western coast. recent studies of geographic patterns of nonindigenous species richness suggest that a few key biogeographic and anthropogenic factors explain much of the variation in the richness of established species. however, the factors identified in these studies may be taxonand scalespecific or general rules might apply broadly across taxa and spatial scales. to address this issue, smith (2006. biological conservation 127:327–335) identified factors that contributed significantly to variation in nonindigenous herpetofaunal richness at a relatively small spatial scale, the county level, in florida. the author also used the jaccard similarity index to determine if nonindigenous species affect the biotic similarity of the herpetofaunas of floridian counties. county latitude strongly and negatively affected nonindigenous herpetofaunal richness, explaining approximately two-thirds of the variation in this variable. to a smaller degree, human population and university presence both related positively with nonindigenous herpetofaunal richness. several other variables, including county land area, were not significantly related to nonindigenous herpetofaunal richness. the consistent importance of human population to nonindigenous species richness in this and past studies suggests that the influence of anthropogenic factors may be universal and are as or more important than the natural biogeographic factors that generally relate with native species richness. the author found no evidence of overall homogenization, but a significant relationship between homogenization scores and distance between counties suggested that the effect of nonindigenous herpetofaunal richness on the similarity of county biotas is scale-dependent, such that adjacent counties tend to experience homogenization. the results of this and similar studies may be useful in predicting the introduction and spread of nonindigenous species and in evaluating the effects of such introductions on native biodiversity. 72 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 conservation research reports butterfly lizard (leiolepis belliana) from miami-dade co., florida. k en n et h l . k r y sk o the tree snail drymaeus multilineatus is common in southern florida, where it is known to be eaten by introduced green iguanas (iguana iguana). such observations suggest that the large and rapidly growing i. iguana populations in southern florida may have the potential to devastate some highly localized native species of tree snails. k en n et h l . k r y sk o northern curlytail (leiocephalus carinatus) from palm beach co., florida. k en n et h l . k r y sk o k ev in m . e n g e iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 72 iguana 12.4 b&w text if you are involved in reptile research and need to import or export specimens, tissue, blood, or dna samples or, if you are importing or exporting live reptiles, you may need to apply for a cites and/or esa permit. you probably have heard of the u.s. endangered species act (esa), but you may not have heard of the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora (cites). although some overlap exists between the two, they are, in fact, distinctly different entities. in addition, the lacey act may apply. under its provisions, it is unlawful to import, export, sell, acquire, or purchase fish, wildlife, or plants taken, possessed, transported, or sold: (1) in violation of u.s. or indian law, or (2) in interstate or foreign commerce involving any fish, wildlife, or plants taken, possessed, or sold in violation of state or foreign law. the law covers all fish and wildlife and their parts or products, plus plants protected by cites or state laws. esa was enacted in 1973 and cites in 1975. cites remains the only global treaty that ensures that international wildlife trade is based on sustainable use and management of wild and captive populations. it provides a framework for cooperation and collaboration among nations to prevent further decline in wild populations of animals and plants. cites establishes a system of import/export regulations to prevent the overexploitation of plants and animals listed in three appendices to the convention. today, 168 countries, including the united states, implement cites, with additional countries joining each year. different levels of trade regulations are set depending on the status (i.e., appendix) of the listed species and the impact any trade has on the decline of the species. for example, if a species is listed in appendix i of cites (such as west indian rock iguanas, cyclura spp.), it may not be traded for primarily commercial purposes, whereas an appendix ii-listed species such as the common or green iguana (iguana iguana) may be traded commercially. based on the level of protection under cites, different criteria are evaluated, so an application for an appendix ii-listed species would likely be processed more quickly than one for an appendix i-listed species. depending on the status of the species in the wild, the level of protection may change over time. for example, the spider tortoise (pyxis arachnoides) was uplisted (afforded more protection) from appendix ii to appendix i of cites in january 2005. the american crocodile (crocodylus acutus), on the other hand, was downlisted from appendix i to appendix ii due to an evaluation of new data. every two–three years, cites signatories meet to discuss wildlife trade, review species, and make revisions as needed. laws governing the importation and exportation of reptiles compiled by the editorial board1 244 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 editorial board 1 in consultation with amy brisendine, u.s. fish and wildlife service. part of the species recovery plan for the jamaican iguana (cyclura collei) involves captive-breeding programs in u.s. zoos. repatriated individuals born in the united states would require cites permits to enter jamaica. jo h n b in n s the red-bellied racer (alsophis rufiventris) of st. eustatius and saba in the netherlands antilles has been extirpated on nevis and st. kitts. although “red-listed” by iucn, the species is not listed in cites. r o b er t po w el l � iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 245cites over the last few decades, cites has helped ensure global conservation of species. some of the recent cases in which these laws have halted illegal wildlife trade include: in 2005, a man in new york was sentenced to six months in jail for smuggling wildlife parts; ten individuals in new mexico were indicted for illegal hunting and killing of wildlife on a national preserve; and a man in indiana was required to pay more than $450,000 for several violations of wildlife laws (for copies of the news releases, visit news.fws.gov). as advancing technology makes it possible to ship wildlife anywhere in the world and as issues of wildlife use grow ever more complex, cites provides tools to effectively conserve the world’s diverse natural resources. in sharp contrast, the esa is strictly a u.s. law and is not enforced in other countries; that is, it may only be enforced within the jurisdiction of the united states. it prohibits unauthorized taking, possession, sale, and transport (import and/or export) of endangered species such as the jamaican iguana (cyclura collei). examples of permits issued for esa-listed species include reasons such as bona fide scientific research or enhancement of the survival of the species in the wild. the service frequently receives applications from zoos and research institutions such as universities or non-profit foundations to conduct these types of activities. below are some frequently asked questions and answers that may help you in determining if you need permits to conduct your activities: q. is a particular species cites-listed? a. you can check to see if and how a species is listed by visiting www.cites.org. if it is listed by cites, submit form 3-20029, which is available from www.fws.gov/permits. if you need additional information, look at the ”how to apply“ section for detailed information on application procedures. q. is a particular species listed by the esa? a. visit www.fws.gov/permits and click on ”species lists” to check if a species is listed. if it is listed by esa, you may use form 3200-37. the u.s. fish and wildlife service (fws) will generally combine cites and esa permits into a single permit. q. what can i do to make the process go smoothly? a. plan at least six months in advance and submit your application at least five months in advance of your trip in order to have permits ready in time. cites export permits are typically valid for six months; cites import permits for one year. q. once my permit is received, what do i do? a. instructions will be enclosed with the permit. you will have to clear the wildlife samples through fws at the port of export or import. if you need additional information, please visit www.le.fws.gov. q. where can i research these wildlife laws? a. the cites website is www.cites.org and the website for the u.s. cites management authority is www.fws.gov/permits. if you have additional questions about importing or exporting wildlife samples, you may contact the u.s. fish and wildlife service, international affairs / division of management authority, 4401 n. fairfax drive, room 700, arlington, va 22203 or (800/703) 358–2104 or send an email to managementauthority@fws.gov. tuataras (sphenodon punctatus) are restricted to a few small, very strictly protected islands off new zealand (see iguana 12:38–42). permission to import into the united states any animals or parts would require cites permits from both new zealand and the u.s. jo h o a r e because the st. croix ground lizard (ameiva polyps) is found only within a u.s. commonwealth, the endangered species act would apply to any efforts to study the species. a m y m a c k a y not only is the star tortoise (geochelone elegans) listed in cites appendix ii, so are all species of geochelone. this often is necessary to prevent confusion between similar taxa within a genus, all of which are in need of protection. th o m a s w ie w a n d t iguana b&w text 224 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 historical perspectives synonymy from the various catalogues of reptiles, the taxonomic needs of this paper may be served by reference to gentry’s review of the genus phrynosoma. this cunning little iguanid is harmless, never biting its captor, and soon becoming so tame that it may be trained to work in harness pulling a toy wagon, or to eat insects from one’s hand. when gently rubbed it puffs itself out, but when in fear it becomes flattened to the ground. phrynosoma chiefly enjoys a dust heap, where with tail and feet flirting the warm calcareous powder over its body, or with alternate sawing motions of its sides, it quickly buries all of itself save the head, and sometimes even this part, in the dirt. while built after an awkward pattern for a lizard, and generally moving slowly, yet it can, when alarmed, run rapidly. it is very clever at ‘playing possum’ and, aided by its protective coloring, often escapes from an enemy. the food of phrynosoma always consists of live animals — spiders, flies and especially ants. in texas the agricultural ant in a recent number of the ‘zoölogischen anzeiger’ prof. charles l. edwards, of the university of cincinnati, gives the following interesting notes upon the habits of the horned lizards of texas: while living in austin, texas, from may, 1892, to july, 1894, i had abundant opportunity of verifying previous observations upon the life of phrynosoma, and of adding some notes that, so far as i can find, have not been given before this paper. phrynosoma cornutum harlan, in texan parlance the ‘horny frog,’ is easily approached under the natural conditions of its habitat, and with a plentiful supply of live flies i have had no difficulty in keeping from fifty to one hundred of them confined in vivaria for many weeks at a time. six months of the hot, dry, texas summer, with long days under the glaring sun, and the ground covered with a layer of fine, limestone dust, gives this species of phrynosoma an ideal environment. a review of the principal points concerning the biology of this familiar genus as brought out in the literature appended, and confirmed by myself, may be first presented. not to go back to the original systematic descriptions of wiegmann, girard, harlan, hallowell, bell, gray and blainville, or to mention the h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s life habits of phrynosoma1 1 reprinted from science, new series, vol. 3, no. 73 (22 may 1896, pp. 763–765). a dorsolaterally flattened body and fringes of scales along their sides allow texas horned lizards (phrynosoma cornutum) to blend effectively with a gravel/sand substrate. this is especially noticeable when they flatten themselves against the ground when frightened. this reduces the animal’s shadow (very evident in this photo) and causes its outline to merge with the background, rendering them amazingly cryptic. w en d y l . h o d g es iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 224 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 225historical perspectives (pogonomyrmex barbatus) furnishes almost exclusively the diet of the horned frog. if, however, a quantity of ants are placed with the latter in a vivarium, they soon find thin places on the apparently tough, horny armor of their enemies, and by stinging they drive the horned frogs crazy and frequently to death. while having an abundant supply of water in the vivarium, i have never seen these lizards drink, although they are said to lap up drops of dew when in natural environment. the molting and the curious habit of ejecting blood from the eyes are phenomena often observed. the statement of böttger that a voice is absent in phrynosoma must be modified, for under certain conditions of excitement it utters a sharp squeak. this lizard has always been given as viviparous. on the contrary, it builds a nest and lays eggs therein. the only time i observed the nest-building was on june 25, 1894. the location was on a stony clay bank at the side of an austin street. when first seen, 6 p. m., the female was excavating a tunnel at an angle of about 75° to the surface of the ground, and wide and high enough to comfortably work in. she dug with her front feet, pushing back the loose earth and bits of stone with her hind feet until this debris was quite clear of the entrance. so absorbed was she in her work that my presence did not cause any alarm. the next morning i found the tunnel neatly filled again and the lizard gone. after carefully removing the replaced debris, the tunnel was found to be seven inches deep. at the bottom, forming an l with this tunnel, was a narrow entrance leading into a chamber three and one-half inches in diameter and two inches high, which was quite round, except for two projecting stones. here perfectly packed in with loose earth were twenty-five eggs, while again in a hole one and one-half inches deep, at the bottom of the tunnel, were fifteen more. since the embryos of one of these sets were at a considerably more advanced stage, this female must have taken advantage of the excavation of another. at the time of ovulation the embryo, while at an advanced stage, is still not ready to hatch by probably some days or even weeks. this stage will be considered in detail in a later paper on the embryology of phrynosoma. authors give the period of gestation as high as one hundred days in females kept in confinement, but while i have not complete data from coition to ovulation i believe that under natural conditions the time of carrying the eggs is much shorter. a female which had laid eggs in captivity in august, 1864, became very restless after the eggs were taken away. she tried constantly for two or three days to get out of the vivarium at the place where the wire screen had been raised to remove the eggs. lockwood gives an instance of this maternal anxiety where a female attempts to distract the attention of an observer from her young. on june 30, at the head of john’s cañon, las vegas range, n. m., i was somewhat surprised to find a horned lizard in the uppermost part of the canadian zone, above 10,000 feet (the aneroid indicated 10,500, but is not quite reliable at that altitude). the species is phrynosoma hernandes 3 (girard), and the specimen is dark gray, beneath white mottled with gray. the top of the range is hudsonian, and no lizards are found there. a horned lizard at a high altitude2 t.d.a. cockerell 2 reprinted from science, new series, vol. 14, no. 342 (19 july 1901, p. 111). 3 mountain short-horned lizard, phrynosoma hernandesi. editor’s remarks everybody likes horned lizards (genus phrynosoma). they are strange-looking but calm, rarely bite or even try to scurry away, and most are attractively colored. unfortunately, most species are also declining despite local or federal protection over at least some of their ranges. the causes are complex, but primarily appear to involve habitat loss, invasive species such as the imported fire ant, chemical use in agricultural fields, and — at least historically — collection for pets (a problem even in the early part of the 20th century as explicitly stated in one of the following notes). considerable research is ongoing, and we hope to highlight several projects in the next few issues. readers can find additional information and ways to become involved at the website of the horned lizard conservation society (http://www.hornedlizards.org/). the hlcs will be having its annual meeting in texas later this year, and we will report on the topics covered in a future issue of iguana. in the meantime, we have collected a series of short classics reporting on these fascinating creatures. one of the issues they cover is blood-squirting from the eyes, a defense mechanism primarily employed by the lizards against canid predators. long enshrined in myth, this behavior came into question when early herpetologists were unable to elicit it. only later did it become fully established that this does, indeed, occur. gad perry texas tech university, lubbock iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 225 226 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 historical perspectives asurprisingly small amount of knowledge concerning the embryology and development of the iguanidæ has been collected. one reason for this is the fact that, for most forms, there is no reliable method of distinguishing the sexes by external characters. this is particularly true in the case of the familiar, but little studied, “horned toad,” phrynosoma cornutum, and undoubtedly many “pairs” which have been shipped north by well meaning collectors have been of the same sex. in making a study of the stomach contents of phrynosomas, i have had occasion to open some two hundred specimens, trying always to find some connection between external characters and sex. the problem very quickly was solved; and i can affirm, that for this region at least, and during the spring months, the crescent markings on the back of the female are much brighter yellow than those of the male. the difference is very marked, and little or no practise is required to enable one to distinguish the sexes, even without comparison of specimens. a note on distinction of the sexes in phrynosoma4 w.m. winton the horned lizard’s (or horned “toad’s”) remarkable habit of ejecting blood from its eye when attacked, although well authenticated, is so rarely observed that it is thought by many to have its origin and its creditability in the little animal’s dragon-like appearance. even ditmars confesses that it took an actual demonstration, witnessed only after handling several hundred specimens, to upset his skepticism. his description of the performance is well known. an examination of blood-ejecting horned lizards5 w.m. winton mountain short-horned lizards (phrynosoma hernandesi) can be found at elevations over 3000 m. w en d y l . h o d g es 4 reprinted from science, new series, vol. 40, no. 1026 (28 august 1914, pp. 311–312). 5 reprinted from science, new series, vol. 40, no. 1039 (27 november 1914, pp. 784–785). iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 226 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 227historical perspectives hay (1892), stejneger (1893), van denburg (1897), bunner (1907), bryant (1911) and others have observed and mentioned this peculiar habit. it is not limited to any single species. various explanations have been suggested; among others that the phenomenon is connected with the breeding season, that it may be due to some parasite, and that it may be “a secondary use acquired by a relatively few forms.” bryant sectioned the eyelids of a blood-ejecting specimen, and found them highly vascular and full of blood sinuses. on july 4, while collecting specimens of phrynosoma cornutum for examination of stomach contents, i was fortunate enough to witness this phenomenon. one of my students, walking by my side, stooped and thrust out his hand to pick up a large specimen, when he was met by a sudden spurt of blood coming unmistakably from the lizard’s eye. the blood spread over the young man’s hand in a fan shaped and even smear, extending from the second joint of the index finger to the wrist, and being about thirty mm. wide at the base. on july 7, another specimen, while being chloroformed, shot a quick jet of blood from one eye. the blood was given an almost explosive impulse, and formed a single thick drop on the inner wall of the bell jar. on july 20, another specimen ejected blood while being anesthetized. in this case, the blood on the wall of the bell jar was mixed with tiny fragments of skin and a few scales. all three animals were subjected to a very careful examination. all were males. their lengths were 108 mm., 110 mm. and 108 mm. the lizards were in good condition, even being free from tapeworms and other intestinal parasites with which local phrynosomas are much infected. the stomach contents were characteristic, consisting of agricultural ants, small beetles, isopods, etc. in each case, the eye from which the blood was ejected showed a small quantity of clotted blood in the posterior corner. the vessels were slightly swollen. the cornea seemed to be intact. in the first two cases there was a small spot in the sclerotic coat, which can be best described as a blood blister. the contents on removal to a slide, and staining with wright’s stain, showed nothing except a few red corpuscles and lymphocytes. the third specimen slowed nothing but a mass of clotted blood in the posterior corner of the eye. in each case, careful dissections were made, using needles and working under a 48 mm. objective. no parasites of any kind were found. in my opinion, the most significant fact of all is that all three animals were moulting, the third being in quite an advanced stage. texas horned lizards (phrynosoma cornutum) share with all other horned lizards the capacity to eject blood from sinuses near the eyes. this appears to deter at least some potential predators. w en d y l . h o d g es texas horned lizards (phrynosoma cornutum) have a broad distribution, but have been extirpated from some core areas by urban expansion and alterations of habitat for agricultural purposes. w en d y l . h o d g es iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 227 228 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 historical perspectives random examinations of stomach contents, made by various workers during the past forty years, have indicated that phrynosoma cornutum, the texas horned lizard, is of great economic importance. to determine its status as a valuable animal, an examination of four hundred and eighty-five stomachs has been made. as only a small per cent. of the animals found in the field were captured and killed, several facts — besides the principal one — concerning this animal have been disclosed. the texas horned lizard, unlike the other species of the genus, is distinctly not a desert form. its area of distribution is quite extensive, going northward into kansas, southward far into the mexican table land, and westward into arizona; but, clearly, the area of its greatest abundance is the north and south strip of texas known as the black and grand prairies. this strip of country includes the cities of fort worth, dallas, waco, austin and san antonio — in fact all of the large cities of the state except houston and galveston; and is preeminently the best part from an agricultural standpoint. within this area, where conditions are all favorable, the phrynosoma population averages at least thirty to the acre. this is despite the fact that for a number of years these lizards have been captured and sold to visitors from the east. the life history has not been well worked out, but the newly hatched young begin to appear by the first of august; so that it is safe to say that the ordinary agricultural operations such as spring and fall plowing, do not interfere with the life cycle. the natural enemies are few and unimportant, being mainly road runners and opossums. the stomachs examined included the following forms: four species of ants; four species of bees (mainly miner bees); eight species of beetles; three species of stink bugs; nymphs of grasshoppers and allied orthoptera; five species of flies; and a few caterpillars, some of which have not yet been identified. the noxious forms found overwhelmingly outnumbered the useful forms. a preliminary note on the food habits and distribution of the texas horned lizards6 w.m. winton texas horned lizards (phrynosoma cornutum) often have been described as “ant specialists,” because of their habit of sitting near ant trails and picking off individuals that stray too close. although consumption of small prey, if sufficiently abundant and easy to capture, can be energetically efficient, horned lizards opportunistically eat essentially any small arthropod that will fit in their mouths. w en d y l . h o d g es 6 reprinted from science, new series, vol. 41, no. 1065 (28 may 1915, pp. 797–798). iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 228 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 229historical perspectives agricultural ants were found in 80 per cent. and stink bugs in 60 per cent. of the stomachs. neither of these is much subject to the attacks of birds. obviously this enhances the value of phrynosoma. incidentally, there was a remarkable consistency or homogeneity in the contents of the individual stomachs. for example, in one case, nearly all of the forms present would be hymenoptera; in another, nearly all would be heteroptera, etc. this could mean that individuals acquire a taste for sour food, or fatty food, etc.; or, what is more likely, that the same individual requires from time to time certain special elements in its food. from the data thus far assembled, it can be safely affirmed that the horned lizards of texas are of tremendous importance to agriculture in that region; and may, perhaps, play as important a part as does the common toad in the better watered regions of the united states. the urine of the horned lizard7 a.o. weese vauquelin,8 in reporting the first analysis of reptilian urine, in 1822, stated that is was composed almost entirely of uric acid, and since that time this fact has been interpreted by various observers as an adaptation to the conditions of life in arid regions, where animals obtain their only external water supply in very limited quantities in the food substances, and this type of nitrogenous excretion involves practically no water loss. the reptiles of arid regions have been known for some time to excrete practically all of their waste nitrogen in the form of uric acid and its salts, while, on the other hand, birds and aquatic and semiaquatic reptiles may secrete considerable amounts of urea. the urine of the horned lizard is excreted in the dry form at the same time as the feces, from which it is separated by a constriction of the common mass, the material voided at any one time having roughly the shape of a dumbbell, one of the enlargements being composed of urine and the other of fecal matter. the following figures for the composition of the urine of phrynosoma cornutum (specimens obtained at alamogordo, n.m.) have been obtained recently in the laboratory of physiological chemistry of the university of illinois, the work having been undertaken at the suggestion and under the direction of dr. h.b. lewis. constituents mg. per gm. of dry urine total nitrogen 260 urea + ammonia nitrogen 1.4 ammonia nitrogen 1.4 uric acid 765 creatinine trace ash 87.5 phosphorus as p2o5 3.5 it will be noticed from the above figures that uric acid accounts for practically the total amount of nitrogen present, and that there is no urea. the small amount of ammonia is probably present as ammonium urate. the ash present is mostly composed of foreign materials (sand grains, etc.) inseparable from the urinary mass and therefore weighed and analyzed with it. 7 reprinted from science, new series, vol. 46, no. 1195 (23 november 1917, pp. 517–518). 8 vauquelin, louis nicolas, “examen des excrémens des serpens que l’on fait voir en ce moment à paris, rue saint-nicaise,” annales de chimie et de phisique, 2me serie, tome 21, p. 440, 1822. two boas, species not stated, were the source of the urine examined in this case. uric acid had also been associated with reptiles as early as 1793, when a “pasty deposit” found in the bladder of a tortoise by vicq-d’azyr was found to contain this substance [footnote from original]. like most congeners, desert horned lizards (phrynosoma platyrhinos) are found in arid regions that have at least some loose soil available for burrowing. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 229 iguana 11.4 232 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 burton “slugger,” an adult male grand cayman blue iguana, cyclura lewisi, in the qeii botanic park. introduction conservation efforts for cyclura lewisi led by the national trust for the cayman islands have been underway on grand cayman since 1990 (burton 2000). commencing with small-scale captive breeding, the program has expanded to include field research, large-scale captive breeding and headstarting, reintroduction and restocking, habitat protection and management, education, and awareness activities. a species recovery plan was formalized in 2001 in collaboration with the iucn-ssc iguana specialist group. now identified as the blue iguana recovery program, the work remains under the umbrella of the national trust for the cayman islands, but operates with support from and strong links to the international conservation community. status population estimates of the unmanaged, wild population of c. lewisi, which is endemic to the island of grand cayman (burton 2004), were conducted by the program in 1992–3 and in 2002. over that period, the population appears to have declined from approximately 100–200 individuals to between 10 and 25 individuals (burton 2002). in the same period, the range occupied by wild c. lewisi declined by 50%. in 2002, active breeding occurred at a single location, possibly representing a single breeding pair, with little evidence that any offspring were surviving to maturity. overall, the population appeared very close to functional extinction. the species shares threats common to all cyclura populations, notably predation by introduced mammals (rats, cats, and dogs), habitat loss, road kills, and (to a lesser degree) trapping. pilot population restocking over a similar period to this extreme decline in the wild population, a pilot release program in the queen elizabeth ii botanic park was proving successful. small numbers of twoand threeyear-old, pit-tagged, captive-bred c. lewisi have been released annually since 1995, with a proportion of these surviving and establishing home ranges at least partially within the park (f. j. burton and r. m. goodman, unpublished data). reproduction in the wild by this released population was inferred from the battling extinction: a view forward for the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) frederic j. burton director, blue iguana recovery program p.o. box 10308 apo, grand cayman, cayman islands (fjburton@blueiguana.ky) photographs by john binns except where indicated. abstract.—the national trust for the cayman islands has been implementing conservation efforts for cyclura lewisi since 1990. commencing with small-scale captive breeding, the program has expanded to include field research, large-scale captive breeding and head-starting, reintroduction and restocking, habitat protection and management, education, and awareness activities. a formal species recovery plan is in place. in the past 12 years, the size of the wild population appears to have declined from 100–200 to 10–25 animals and is functionally extinct. principal causes for the decline are habitat loss, predation by introduced mammals, road kills, and continued exploitation by humans. reproduction in the wild by animals released from the captive breeding population has been confirmed. however, in order to assure the greatest possible genetic diversity within the captive population, wild individuals with potentially distinct genetic constitutions must be captured and assessed before their genes become diluted as a consequence of interbreeding with released animals. goals of 100 hatchlings and approximately 100 two-year-old iguanas for release annually are being approached. options for restoring self-sustaining wild populations are limited to habitat islands, for which perimeter fencing will be essential to restrain iguanas and exclude predators. the recovery program is operating on institutional grants, program-generated income, and private donations, but we hope that this charismatic lizard will become able to support its own survival through carefully managed tourism activities and related commerce. key words: cyclura lewisi, grand cayman, blue iguana recovery program, headstarting, predator exclusion, conservation iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 233grand cayman blue iguana � appearance of hatchlings in 2001, and confirmed by direct observation in 2002. currently, the restocked population consists of 29 individuals of known captive origin, plus one breeding female of as-yet unconfirmed origin. all known nests are excavated and the eggs incubated to yield hatchlings for headstarting. the qe ii botanic park covers 26.3 ha, and has no perimeter fences capable of restricting immigration or emigration of iguanas. much of the park’s area is sub-optimal cyclura habitat under closed canopy forest or seasonal wetland, with the iguanas preferentially occupying human-modified areas with paths and gardens. with 30 individuals sharing this space, strong territorial aggression occurs between males, and subordinate males are being excluded to the extent that they spend most of their time outside the boundaries of the park. individuals that were released in the park, but did not establish territories there, have now been recovered from locations 10 km away. the park apparently is near to its unfenced carrying capacity and further releases must increasingly be expected to disperse into unprotected surrounding habitat. program transition the captive breeding and headstarting elements of the program have undergone a dramatic expansion in the last two years, with over 80 hatchlings in both 2003 and 2004 generated from captive-laid eggs and nests excavated in the qe ii botanic park. this is close to the program’s goal of 100 hatchlings per year, reared to supply approximately 100 two-year-old iguanas for release annually. 234 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 burton the first captive facility built in the botanic park shown at completion in 1996. the facility was funded by milwaukee country zoo and its partner foundation for wildlife conservation. the facility included 12 8 x 8 foot and 16 4 x 4 foot cages. photographer unknown. blue iguana, “yellow,” at the edge of the large pond in the qe ii botanic park. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 235grand cayman blue iguana the restocking potential from the captive program now far exceeds reproduction in the unmanaged wild population, and is an order of magnitude higher than the average annual release to the qe ii botanic park to date. now that restocking techniques have been tested, adapted, and verified on a small scale, the time has come to put the lessons learned into practice on a scale that can reverse the population decline in this species. in moving from pilot project to large scale population recovery, two important biological issues are unresolved and must be addressed in a wider context than qe ii botanic park. these are management of continuing threats and the integration of the restocked population(s) with the remnant unmanaged wild population. managing threats as evidenced by the 2002 population survey, the present and historic range of c. lewisi is occupied by feral cats, known as predators of juvenile cyclura on a level capable of devastating entire populations (iverson 1978). semi-domestic dogs are roaming in areas that supported breeding c. lewisi in 1992–3. vehicular roads are being extended within occupied blue iguana habitat, and road kills are reported annually. a heavily trafficked coastal road separates the remnant population from presumed historic coastal nesting sites. restocking of a wild population of c. lewisi in this degraded environment would at best be buying time for the species, and offers no long-term solution. grand cayman has no offshore islands suitable for establishing iguana populations free of these threats, and the sister isles, cayman brac and little cayman, are occupied by c. nubila caymanensis, and are thus not available for c. lewisi restoration work. options for restoring self-sustaining wild populations of blue iguanas are therefore limited to habitat islands — areas within the larger landmass of grand cayman which are protected and within which the threats to c. lewisi are eliminated or reduced in a sustained way. in practice, to maintain eradication of feral cats, exclude dogs, and to retain iguanas within the safety of one or more habitat islands, perimeter fencing will be essential. suitable fencing in the extreme karst terrain characteristic of grand cayman’s xerophytic shrubland presents particular challenges. fencing specifications must be tested, adapted, and refined to arrive at the most cost-effective barrier design that is capable of excluding predators and retaining iguanas in this environment over long periods of time. in late 2004, 24 captive two-year-old c. lewisi are scheduled for release into the salina reserve, a 250-ha protected area with diverse habitats, owned and managed by the national trust for the cayman islands. these animals will be radio-tracked for at least six weeks after release and monitored at intervals therethe facility was fenced to improve security in 1998. 2002 population survey team (from left): joe wasilewski, alberto jamarillo, fred burton, and joel friesch. not shown: quentin bloxam. photograph by joel friesch. the blue iguana captive breeding and headstarting facility today. beginning at the bottom of the photograph are four large adult breeding pens, four small adult breeding pens, and six adult holding pens. next are 102 4 x 4 x 2 foot headstarting cages. the original fenced facility cages are in the upper left of the photograph. after. again, the release area, although fully protected, is not fenced, and predator control will be limited to cat trapping (dogs currently are unable to reach this area). the survival and dispersal of these animals will provide a baseline against which to compare releases into fenced areas, with more active predator controls, in the future: some 70–80 head-started c. lewisi will be available for release into the salina reserve in 2005. the unmanaged wild population three of the blue iguanas released in the qe ii botanic park over the last nine years have been recovered in locations that suggest that they may have migrated through the area still occupied by the remnant, unmanaged wild population. an immature female tagged in the only remaining breeding area of wild c. lewisi in 2003 was captured on a coastal road in 2004 at a location that suggests that it may have migrated through the designated salina reserve release site. both observations are indicative of a strong potential for genetic exchange between the restocked population and the unmanaged wild one. currently, the restocked population of c. lewisi is derived from eight captive founders of wild origin (two additional founders and four potential founders also are in captivity). to capture the widest possible genetic diversity for the breeding and head-starting effort, obtaining representatives of the remaining wild gene pool before it becomes interbred with restocked animals is desirable. to achieve this level of genetic management without risking disruption of the fragile wild population requires more knowledge of these animals than is currently available. the 2002 population survey identified an access road to a fruit farm where very small numbers of yearling c. lewisi hide and feed. annual turnover is indicated, with older individuals dispersing into the dense surrounding shrubland, and hatchlings of the year taking their place. rats, cats, and dogs are present. adults are almost never seen and the breeding site(s) have not been located despite extensive searching. we do not know if the population includes dispersed released individuals from the qe ii botanic park or their progeny. the size of the population is poorly defined, survival of the young is in question, and the area of occupancy is unknown. a research presence sustained over several months will be needed to address these unknowns, using a network of trap and radio-tracking to identify and monitor an increasing proportion of the population during a period running into the breeding season, when adult females can be tracked to nesting sites. the environment is exceptionally difficult to traverse and presents severe challenges to tracking and sighting unhabituated iguanas, so this will inevitably be a resource-intensive project. this detailed investigation of the unmanaged wild population is now an urgent priority. identifying individuals and nesting sites will enable strategic, low-impact capture of the remnant wild gene pool before this population merges with increasingly numerous animals of captive origin in the neighboring salina reserve in 2005 and thereafter. the long term the most severe long-term challenge to the blue iguana recovery program is the protection and ongoing management 236 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 burton 2004 season hatchling, “crusoe,” basking on a tree branch with his brother and sisters in the background. blue iguana, “forest,” on the road approaching the botanic park. rachel goodman monitoring ground temperatures in 2002 as part of a study of iguanas released in the botanic park. photograph by fred burton. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 237grand cayman blue iguana of sufficient c. lewisi habitat to sustain a wild, breeding population of at least 1,000 individuals. work to date has demonstrated that, at a technical level, this goal is almost certainly achievable, and this offers a very real hope for the future of what is currently the world’s most endangered iguana. cyclura lewisi is a flagship species for grand cayman’s xerophytic shrubland habitat, which supports a wide range of regionally and locally endemic animals and plants. this environment is underrepresented in the cayman islands’ protected area system and vulnerable to ever-expanding human impacts ranging from rock quarrying to residential settlement. more than enough suitable shrubland habitat still exists to support 1,000 blue iguanas, but the majority is currently unprotected and in private ownership. conservation land purchases and landowner agreements will be essential steps for achieving the program’s ultimate goal. the blue iguana recovery program is presently operating on institutional grants, program-generated income, and private donations totaling approximately $150,000 per annum, and the investment required to save this species and its habitat may ultimately run into millions of dollars. once the major work is completed, we hope that this charismatic giant blue lizard will support its own survival through carefully managed tourism activities and related commerce for conservation. references burton, f. j. 2000. grand cayman iguana, cyclura nubila lewisi, pp. 45–47. in: a. c. alberts (ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn — the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. burton, f. j. 2002. grand cayman blue iguanas in the wild, 2002. a survey of the population status of cyclura nubila lewisi. unpubl. report, national trust for the cayman islands, georgetown. burton, f. j. 2004. revision to species of cyclura nubila lewisi, the grand cayman blue iguana. caribbean journal of science 40:198–203. iverson, j. b. 1978. the impact of feral cats and dogs on populations of the west indian rock iguana, cyclura carinata. biological conservation 14:63–73. author biography fred burton has been actively involved with the national trust for the cayman islands since 1991, first as environmental programs manager and later environmental programs director. he currently volunteers as the full-time director of the blue iguana recovery program. other professional commitments include preparation of a red list for the cayman islands’ native flora as well as vegetation mapping, classification, and biodiversity assessment of the islands’ remaining natural vegetation zones. adult male c. lewisi courting a female during breeding season inside the qe ii botanic park grounds. a two-year-old wild blue iguana at the captain charles farm in 2002. photograph by fred burton. the salina reserve interior, extreme karst terrain with a small soil patch in the foreground where we hope iguanas will nest. iguana 13.2 b&w text this illustration of a flugdrache (= flying dragon) is a gliding lizard (genus draco). the plate is from alfred brehm’s tierleben (= animal life), volume 2, kriechtiere (= reptiles), by franz werner, published by the bibliographisches institut, leipzig and vienna, 1913. the artist is josef fleishmann of vienna. the lizards in the figure were identified as d. volans, but may actually represent a population formerly assigned to that species but now recognized as a distinct form. book plate courtesy of thomas wiewandt. bibliographic information courtesy of kraig adler, cornell university. © 2006 ircf the jamo negro (ctenosaura melanosterna) has been hunted almost to extinction in honduras (see article on p. 130). jo h n b in n 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/leaveuntagged /untaggedrgbhandling /usedocumentprofile /usedocumentbleed false >> ] >> setdistillerparams << /hwresolution [2400 2400] /pagesize [612.000 792.000] >> setpagedevice iguana 13.2 b&w text extinction imminent. the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti), endemic to the arid, desert region of southeastern guatemala’s motagua valley, is one of the most endangered reptiles in the world. first seen by scientists in 1984 and formally described in 1988, only a decade later the species was thought to be extinct in the wild. in 2002, a few individuals were found and limited studies obtained the first, sparse data on their lives in the wild, but most of this creature’s life history remains a mystery. the motagua valley is a small sliver of desert habitat, isolated on all sides by massive cloud-forested mountains and rainforested valleys. these guatemalan lizards have evidently existed in total isolation for many thousands of years. deforestation for cantaloupe, tobacco, and milpa (feed corn) farming has reduced the already tiny amount of suitable habitat for this species to about 16,200 ha and estimates suggest that this is sufficient to sustain at most 150–200 individuals. negative myths and attitudes have long led local people to kill these venomous lizards on sight. also, the rarity of this subspecies in particular and the rising popularity of beaded lizards and gila monsters (h. suspectum) as captives have led to exploitation for the pet trade. estimates suggest that approximately 35 individuals were captured and sold abroad during the 1990s. with the recent rediscovery of the species and two natural history studies performed with support of zootropic, an interested ngo, the government of guatemala has shown interest in protecting these animals and their habitat. in addition, zootropic has launched an educational campaign targeting villagers in areas surrounding beaded lizard habitat. since 2004, no reports exist of lizards being killed or sold. studies are needed and planned to answer basic questions concerning critical habitat needs. resultant data will be used to guide land preservation decisions. a proposed breeding facility in the motagua valley is needed, and any young animals produced would be slated for attempted reintroduction into protected habitat. how you can help: with fewer than 200 individual guatemalan beaded lizards remaining, your help is desperately needed to save these unique creatures. wayne hill and the national reptile breeder’s expo will be donating all proceeds from this year’s annual auction to “project heloderma.” to make this auction the greatest success possible, we need auction items. monies collected for this fund will go only to efforts to save the guatemalan beaded lizard, specifically to fund conservation research projects, raise awareness within its home range about its plight, and build an in-country breeding facility. for more information, to volunteer, or to donate auction items, please log on to: www.ircf.org/projectheloderma f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) project heloderma © 2 00 6 ph o to c o u r te sy o f st ep h a n ie s c a n li n / zo o a tl a n ta iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 176 iguana 12.1 nabhan, g.p. 2003. singing the turtles to sea: the comcáac (seri) art and science of reptiles. university of california press, berkeley. xviii + 318 pp. hardcover. $34.95. gary nabhan, professor and director of the center for sustainable environments at northern arizona university, collaborated closely with seri tribal governors and the traditional council of elders on this ethnoherpetological treatise. if ethnoherpetology sounds stodgy and suitable only for graybeards of academia, think again. nabhan is an award-winning nature writer who brings both the seri and the myriad reptiles with which they interact to life. also, as harry greene notes in his foreword, lessons abound for all of us interested in conservation: “why do reptiles, elsewhere so often reviled rather than protected, play such a central and positive role in the lives of the seri? can local communities sustainably harvest globally endangered organisms in a framework that encompasses both conservation and traditional beliefs? and more broadly, what can indigenous peoples teach us about managing and appreciating our surroundings? how can we as outsiders, onlookers, or even participant-observers in the life of a particular place steer between two incomplete and misleading visions: that native peoples always live in harmony with nature, and that exclusive reliance on western science will save us from the ever more devastating impact of humans on earth?” nabhan makes the case early on in his introduction that “indigenous communities’ traditional ecological knowledge is a curious mix of scientific insight and artistic expression.” he also suggests that this traditional knowledge “has the capacity to enrich our own views of the natural world and, accordingly, to encourage us to better protect natural diversity,” but goes on to warn that, “if however, this ‘folk knowledge’ is categorically dismissed as unscientific and ultimately replaced by western scientific knowledge alone, we stand to lose something of import,” not just by diminishing the local culture, but possibly losing knowledge that could “help protect, restore, and recover threatened reptiles.” following a key to the pronunciation of words in the cmique iitom language of the comcáac1, the foreword by harry greene, and his introduction, nabhan organized this volume in two parts: eight chapters that collectively provide a narrative account of traditional ecological knowledge that uses the seri people’s voices to raises issues and offer general answers and a second part, consisting of a single “chapter” that provides “in essence a status report on what is known of the herpetofauna of the comcáac homelands from both indigenous and western scientific perspectives.” following part 2 is an appendix listing specimens of reptiles from the sonoran coast of the sea of cortés and nearby islands, an extensive literature cited (testament that, despite the volume’s narrative format in part 1, this is, in fact, a rigorous study), and an index that is both complete and utilitarian. typographical errors are very few and both editorial and production standards are high. on a minor note, i did not like the use of different fonts to distinguish stories from analysis or (instead of italics) to emphasize certain terms. i found that affectation distracting, although i thoroughly, like most readers, i suspect, enjoyed the stories, which brought a vibrancy to the narrative that might otherwise have drifted, at least occasionally, into the drier prose of traditional academia. i particularly liked those anecdotes that addressed cultural conflicts, many of which mirror those i’ve experienced myself in other places. more importantly, as a biologist, but not an ethnobiologist, i very much appreciated the excerpts from the notes and literature of the latter discipline that were used to highlight specific points and introduce individual chapters. they lent insights into perspectives of both the comcáac and ethnobiologists that i, to my detriment, would otherwise have missed. the color plates (25 plates on 16 pages) and the black and white figures are of consistently high quality, especially considering that many are historical and would normally reveal the ravages of age. however, i wanted desperately to see more images — especially of the phenomenally realistic portrayals of many reptiles by seri artisans. i also believe that the book would have benefited greatly from portraits of the animals themselves (only a few species are illustrated), as many readers will not be famil50 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 book review b o o k r e v i e w the art and science of reptiles 1 nabhan uses “comcáac” to refer collectively to the people and their culture and “seri” to refer to activities peculiar to one or a few individuals within the community, as well as to products advertised to the outside world as “seri indian.” iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 51book review iar with the many peculiar forms native to the region. the latter concern could be addressed by keeping close at hand a copy of lee grismer’s excellent amphibians and reptiles of baja california, including its pacific islands and the islands in the sea of cortés (2002. university of california press, berkeley — both it and the volume at hand are parts of the university of california press’s series on “organisms and environment,” which also includes lizards: windows to the evolution of diversity by eric pianka and laurie vitt, 2003; reviewed in iguana 11:183–184). although grismer’s volume does not address specifically the sonoran fauna, it does portray and discuss the many endemics of the islands in the sea of cortés, plus many of the sonoran species have close counterparts on the baja california peninsula. to best illustrate the colorful range of cultural perspectives regarding comcáac responses to reptiles — which include the naturalistic, aesthetic, mythic, and utilitarian — i have chosen to excerpt quotations (some rather extensive) from each chapter, mostly from the stories, which, as i mentioned previously, lend so much life to the narrative. better than any summary i could provide, the use of the author’s words dramatizes both the scope of this volume and much of its appeal. chapter 1: islands of uniqueness. endangered cultural knowledge of endemic creatures. “it dawned on me that we were participating in a sacrament, one that has been performed ever since the comcáac first became seafaring people. by blessing this yound woman’s rite of passage with the meat and blood of moosni cooyam [green sea turtle], they were linking her life to the very creature that swims through their culture’s stories, songs, dreams, and diet. “i felt honored and humbled to be part of the communion. but as i looked up again into the face of the sea turtle shining in the firelight, another wave of emotion washed over me. because i once shared quarters with a marine biologist who worked tirelessly to protect the nesting beaches of sea turtles, i had for twenty years boycotted any restaurants that featured sea turtle meat, eggs, or soup. “caught up in the moment, perhaps flattered by the invitation to share sea turtle with seri friends, had i suffered some ethical lapse, somehow forgetting that sea turtles are endangered? or had i not let my ethics slip, but instead accepted a tenuous balance between how i express my concern for an endangered people and how i express my concern for an endangered animal?” chapter 2: mapping the comcáac sense of place. seri homelands and reptilian habitats. “i remembered what amalia astorga said to me when she learned a month ago that i would be going to the island she called coftécöl, ‘giant chuckwalla’: ‘don’t go out there unless you are with someone who knows the song to placate coimaj caacoj. he’s the giant serpent who lives underwater between islas tiburón and san esteban. by writhing along on the ocean bottom there, he churns up the water between the two islands much of the time. if you try to cross his place between the islands without paying him respect, he’ll smash your boat to bits.…’ “alfredo was in his late fifties and had harvested fish and turtles from the waters between the islands for decades. he had always maneuvered these waters in boats equipped with less than optimal equipment — old engines, cracked or bent props, leaking hulls. and yet, by following the routes he had been taught and remembering certain sacred petitions, he had been spared the difficulties to which other, more reckless, pangueros had succumbed.” chapter 3: the shape of reptilian worlds. island biogeography and the herpetofauna of the sea of cortés region. “i quietly crawled toward the resting chuckwalla, then advanced upslope from it, a sidewinder (crotalus cerastes) carved out of ironwood by josé luis blanco. photograph by helga teiwes (from nabhan 2003). a green sea turtle (chelonia mydas) carved from elephant tree wood by armando torres. photograph by helga teiwes (from nabhan 2003). sauromalus varius is found on islas san esteban and roca lobos and may have hybridized with s. ater and/or s. hispidus on isla acatraz. this is the focal species at the captive breeding exhibit at punta chueca. photograph by brad hollingsworth. where i carefully began removing cobbles on either side of the ledge it was hidden under. as i dislodged one cobble, the partially exposed chuckwalla stirred, revelaing another, smaller, chuck tucked in safely behind it. “after taking a deep, quiet breath, i made my move. my right hand clasped the bigger chuckwalla, a male, just in front of his back legs. he tried to dig further in under the ledge, but i lifted his lumpy black-and-buff body up into the air before he could lodge himself deeper into the crevice. he flailed his chubby legs for a moment, but then, as i stroked his underbelly, he grew calm and tame. “he was the size of a sunday newspaper rolled up and thrown onto your porch. that made him far larger than any i had seen on the mainland, and he had many more black blotches than those i recalled from my earlier trip to isla san esteban with two seri men from punta chueca. i remembered how alfredo lópez had held one of the piebald chuckwallas there, looking at its buttonlike femoral pores on the back legs, which he likened to poker chips. “‘yes, this one is a male,’ he said, laughing and pointing to the swollen hormone-charged pores lining the crease of its back leg. ‘he’s muy macho; see his winnings?’ he told a story about chuckwallas being good gamblers and winning their femoralpore ‘poker chips’ from other inhabitants of san esteban. “i held my own chuckwalla up in the dusky light and saw that five or six large pores were oozing goo out along the ridges of each back leg. this confirmed that the chuck was indeed a male, but i was not sure what species he was. he looked as though he had gathered traits from several different species, like the melting-pot descendants of immigrants who had passed through ellis island off new york. [see also hollingsworth. 2004. iguana 11:78–85]. “whatever his species, this giant was my ‘winnings’ for the night. catching him was no big deal, but spending time in the hunt had helped me better understand a creature whose history is intimately linked to that of the comcáac. i sensed that the comcáac had created a distinctive ‘breed’ of chuckwallas, just as much as the navajo had shaped their own breed of churro sheep, and australian aborigines had shaped the course of dingo evolution. “my friends hollered for me to get back to the boat, and i placed the chuckwalla on a flat rock still warm from the day, released it, and watched as it lumbered off into the darkness. once i and my party headed home, vacating the island, the chuckwalla once again became the largest flightless land animal on isla alcatraz, the 1,800-gram king of the mountain.” “to say that there are seri individuals intimately familiar with the locations of reptile nest sites is to understate the matter. between 1978 and 1982 biologists s. reyes-osorio and r. b. bury conducted desert tortoise surveys of isla tiburón, working together with seri field assistants, and in so doing they claimed to have recorded one of the highest densities of desert tortoises ever found. one of their seri fieldhands, alfonso méndez, later told me that he worked as their “finder” of desert tortoise congregating places. he recalled finding several hibernating groups — one numbering no less than seventy-five individuals holed up in a single cave — that the biologists told him were much larger than any they had ever found on their own. whether this seri hunter simply had a knack for tracking down hibernating colonies, or whether he had a good recall of places where other seri had formerly found them, i do not know. however, in spring 2001, méndez joined me and my students on isla tiburón and relocated several tortoise caves he had seen previously. historically, both comcáac women and men would seek out these iime shelters with the aid of dogs, which could smell the hibernating desert tortoises long before humans could see them. (the exact location of some iime for chuckwallas, tortoises, and rattlesnakes could also be deduced by tracing the tracks and tail draggings left on sandor silt-covered beaches back into the rocks where these animals were sequestered.) since any given area has only a few suitable shelters, these iime were likely used by generations of tortoises over many centuries. the comcáac community has consequently kept in its collective memory a living record of where particularly large congregations of desert tortoises can be encountered during extended periods of cold or drought.” “… herpetologist lee grismer has concluded that the presence of spiny-tailed iguana populations on islas san esteban and cholludo ‘is probably the result of aboriginal introduction by seri indians who once inhabited the island. the coastal distribution of c[tenosaura]. hemilopha on mainland sonora only extends as far north as near guaymas, approximately 115 km south of the nearest coastal mainland locality opposite isla san esteban.’ this distributional anomaly is matched by an ecological anomaly: san esteban is the only island out of more than one hundred in the sea of cortés where both spiny-tailed iguanas and gigantic chuckwallas occur together. contrary to predictions from ecological niche theory, they successfully coexist there, foraging for largely the same plants in the very same habitat, at the same time of day, over the same season.” (see also grismer. 2002. iguana 9:3–8). “preliminary results illustrate the obvious: (1) children more easily catch lizards than adults do; and (2) contemporary comcáac villages serve as artificial oases for some native species, but they repel others. despite the fact that villages offer permanent sources of water, structural heterogeneity for roosts, and plenty of artificial crevices for nesting or escape, they also pose significant threats to reptilian well-being: fast cars, carnivorous pets, parasites, and microbes. only western whiptails and sideblotched lizards seem to thrive in the presence of such perils, while tree lizards, banded geckos, and zebra-tailed lizards find these new habitats to be both a blessing and a curse. the risks of comcáac villages today are vastly different from those of the historic encampments, where a small number of families stayed for only a few weeks and so had a relatively short-term impact on lizards’ and snakes’ habitat.” chapter 4: naming the menagerie. how to sort one snake from another. “during a time when the comcáac knew just one kind of chuckwalla within their prehistoric territory, it was apparently called simply coof, polysemous with a verb, ‘to hiss’ or ‘to blow air.’ later, when they encountered a second kind of chuckwalla on isla san lorenzo or ángel de la guarda, they called this large, dark-colored species coof coopol, or ‘chuckwalla blackish.’ 52 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 book review iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 53book review however, when they came upon another kind of reptile in the mountains that reminded them of chuckwallas, they fashioned a name for it using a modifier in front of the generic term for chuckwalla: hast coof, for instance, a name that means something like ‘chuckwalla-like mountain dweller’ and is now used for collared lizards.” chapter 5: reptiles as resources, curses, and cures. how the comcáac recognize beauty, utility, and danger. “while the mere sight of certain animals would terrify my own aunts or my o’odham neighbors, the same sickening feeling came to my comcáac friends not with rattlesnakes but with geckos. not with seasnakes but with night lizards. not with coralsnakes but with desert iguanas. and not with gila monsters but with collared lizards. “to the comcáac, it does not matter that the former creatures deliver toxic bites while the latter are known to be nonvenomous. their fear of particular reptiles is rooted in the notion that considerable psychosomatic harm can come to anyone who does not behave appropriately around geckoes, night lizards, desert iguanas, collared lizards, and even their usually benign friends horned lizards, desert tortoises, and leatherback turtles. “danger, like beauty and utility, is in the eye of the beholder.” “it is remarkable how many men, women, and children in the comcáac community handle venomous and nonvenomous snakes, dead or alive, without the flinching of their non-seri neighbors. they have often had to evict rattlesnakes from their camps or kill them with stones or sticks or process the skins, meat, oil, and bones for practical uses. … children grow up among elders who carry, skin, butcher, and roast or boil snakes, iguanas, and turtles without blinking an eye, and boys acquire these skills themselves at an early age. they learn stories and songs about serpents, some of them mythical giants who live high in the mountains or deep within the ocean. they see rattlesnake designs elaborated in basketry and carvings, and women wearing rings made from gila monster and western coralsnake skins. clearly, one cannot consider the comcáac as ophidiophobic, or snake-aversive, as many of the other cultures surrounding them.” “the capture or use of desert iguanas is simply not an option for the comcáac. in general, it appears that some of the taboos associated with desert iguanas, regal horned lizards, leatherback turtles, and desert tortoises are associated with ancient stories referring to the time when animals could understand cmique iitom and could themselves speak and argue. seri individuals who fail to heed the message of these stories put themselves at risk, becoming susceptible to illness or even death. …, seri who break a taboo and realize it often experience great anxiety and psychosomatic trauma that can be relieved only through a shamanistic purification ritual that restores healthy relationships with particular animals.” chapter 6: what eats from the turtle’s shell, what the turtle eats. comcáac perceptions of local ecological interactions. “…, hamísj catójoj, the name for what english speakers know as the brown vinesnake (oxybelis aeneus), refers to this snake’s mimicry of the stems of ashy limberbush (jatropha cinerea), on which it hides. this name makes perfect sense (and is therefore quite memorable) in a hyperarid land where few true vines even grow.” “some ecological processes may simply be more fascinating to the human mind than others, regardless of their practical value. i have been struck at the number of times a seri ecotourist guide and foreign naturalists have stood together watching ecological interactions in utter delight: those between whipsnake and rattler, horned lizard and ant, or tortoise and cactus. academic scientists may ask different questions and answer them using different tools than do local naturalists, but the same sense of biophilia holds when they witness a female sea turtle lumber onto a beach to lay her eggs or a spiny-tailed iguana climb high into the arms of a cardón cactus.” chapter 7: the comcáac as conservationists. practicing what they preach, and benefiting from alliances. responding to a proposal by “several agencies in the federal and state governments … jointly proposing that the comcáac community assume complete management authority over the natural resources of the islands” (islas tiburón and san esteban), “tribal governor pedro romero took over the microphone. he reminded the entire congregation that his people had been the legitimate managers and stewards of the two islands all along. in an eloquent philosophical tone, he posed a series of rhetorical questions to the audience: why, he asked, were there so many animals still on these two islands that scientists could not find anywhere else? perhaps because the comcáac did not deplete their populations as some of their neighbors had done elsewhere. why were animals like the desert tortoise more abundant in comcáac territory than nearly anwhere else scientists had studied them? perhaps because comcáac spiritual traditions taught respect for these animals, and so they had reasons to refrain from hunting tortoises at certain times, or under certain conditions. why should the comcáac be the managers of this land and not the state or the federal government? perhaps because the comcáac had detailed local knowledge of the resources unique to the area, and had shared this knowledge down through the generations over centuries. their ancestors had lived and died there. for that reason alone, it would be hard for them to ever let this land be destroyed or developed.” the desert tortoise (gopherus agassizii) features prominently in seri traditions. photograph by thomas wiewandt. chapter 8: the historic decline and recent revival of traditional ecological knowledge. “during the fall of 2000, a traditional school was inaugurated in punta chueca by elder antonio robles as one more means of providing young seri individuals with training in the native flora and fauna and their curative powers. the opening of the school was celebrated with a feast of traditional foods, including fish, reptile meat, prickly pear, mesquite, and agave. “perhaps the children attending this school will be more prone to heed the words of their former tribal governor, pedro romero, when he said that ‘islas tiburón and san esteban and the midriff of the sea of cortés have great economic and cultural significance for us, the comcáac. it is from here that our people obtained an important part of our nutritional and spiritual sustenance, and received the strength to survive times of great social or natural adversity.” part 2, chapter 9: accounts of reptiles known by the comcáac. “part 2 (chapter 9) is perhaps a more ‘standard’ ethnobiolgoical monograph in that it offers a species-by-species account of the herpetofauna of the central sonoran coast and its adjacent islands.” i use two entries in their entirety as examples to illustrate the combination of traditional and practical seri lore with “western” science. cited references are listed at the end of this review. sauromalus hispidus, s. obesus (s. ater2), s. varius, and hybrids english common names: spiny (black) chuckwalla, northern chuckwalla, and piebald (isla san esteban) chuckwalla, respectively spanish name: iguana comcáac names: coof coopol, ziix hast iizx ano coom, and coof, respectively coof is related to the verb coof, meaning “to hiss, snort, or puff” like a chuckwalla. ziix hast iizx ano coom loosely means “living thing that wedges itself into a rock crevice.” becky moser informs me that iizx is from the verb cazx, “to tear or to split,” which describes the sound heard when one tries to remove an inflated chuckwalla from its crevice. these three chuckwallas are distinguished from one another by color and size, with the coof coopol of islas san lorenzo, ángel de la guarda, and nearby islets being the darkest and least blotchy in coloration. the shrubs, caves, and crevices that these species frequent are well known to contemporary comcáac hunters, who formerly scared the animals out of hiding by whirring wandlike branches of asclepias milkweeds overhead to make a windlike noise (felger and moser 1985). the bloated animals were also deflated with pointed sticks and removed by hand. although the san esteban people had few land animals available as food, it is said that they did not particularly like the taste of chuckwallas so did not overexploit them (bowen 2000). in one cave near the mouth of arroyo limantur, says ernesto molina, during the winter they stacked themselves atop one another clear to the ceiling, in a behavior which he called ano yasnan, “blanketing” or “stacking”; here they would have been particularly vulnerable to overharvesting. tom bowen and the mosers have recorded an oral history which suggests supernatural punishment for those who senselessly kill or drown chuckwallas. as bowen (2000) puts it, “hast cmique said it is wrong to kill animals without reason…. a person who mistreats a chuckwalla by throwing it into the sea will 54 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 book review sauromalus ater is the species found on the mainland surrounding the gulf of california. photograph by brad hollingsworth. sign at the chuckwalla (sauromalus varius) captive breeding exhibit at punta chueca. photograph by karen krebbs (from nabhan 2003). 2 actually, the proper scientific name is sauromalus ater; see hollingsworth (2004. iguana 11:78–85) and the transcript of the iczn opinion 2072 (case 3143), iguana 11:86. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 55book review be punished when he is at sea, perhaps by being subjected to strong winds.” the chuckwallas themselves are known to relish ironwood leaves and cholla cactus flower buds. a song composed by jesús félix tells of a chuckwalla waiting for the sun to break through the fog before it goes to eat its favorite things. when josé juan moreno went foraging with me on isla san esteban, he found a female chuckwalla on a ridge covered by cacti and agaves, and caught it with little trouble. at first i throught her snout had blood on it from biting josé juan’s finger, but he laughed and said that her reddish mouth was from subsisting on pitahaya agria, “sour cactus fruit” (stenocereus gummosus), over the previous weeks. moreno disabled his catch by twisting her legs, and kept the animal alive until he was back home in punta chueca. he savored the meat, including the fat-laden tail, the next morning. zooarcheologist richard white (pers. comm.) informs me that the comcáac have occasionally brought island chuckwallas to the mainland for release. only recently have they formally initiated translocation for the purpose of wildlife conservation. several comcáac reported to me that their ancestors released chuckwallas from san esteban onto tiburón and punto sargento, and i was able to confirm the latter. in september 1998, the comcáac community in punta chueca launched a chuckwalla captive breeding program with one male and three females from isla san esteban. by september 1999, the weakest female had died, but three other males had been recruited from the island. the seri then discussed plans to shift the sex ratio of the group and expand their foraging area and native plant diet. the project, which they named ziix hast iizx ano coom hant an ihacámot, meaning “chuckwalla nursery grounds refuge,” remains successful as of the date of this publication. chilomeniscus stramineus (c. cinctus3) english common name: bandless sandsnake spanish names: culebra de los médanos, coralillo falso comcáac name: hapéquet camízj hapéquet camízj means something akin to “causing a pregnant woman to have a well-formed child.” the bandless morph of this sand-loving snake is treated with great affection by the comcáac. they know that it burrows effortlessly through sand, and if they encounter one while digging, they will hold it in their hands and stroke it, then release it. it will not bite them; for their part, the comcáac felt that they must protect this friendly snake from predatory coralsnakes and uncaring humans. to ensure that a baby will be born with lovely skin, this snake is captured and passed across the belly or the small of the back of the expectant mother. this ritual, performed less and less frequently, is also intended to give pregnant women hopeful feelings and help them give birth to good-looking children. did i enjoy this book? immensely. why? i’m less sure. part of its allure may have been pleasant memories of fieldtrips to the region around the sea of cortés and part of it may be a general fascination with desert landscapes and their reptilian faunas, but i think most of my favorable response can be attributed to a combination of an appreciation for new insights into favorite topics and getting caught up in the author’s enthusiasm for his subject. because i believe strongly in a conservation ethic, i also benefited from a better understanding of relationships between aboriginal peoples and the nature on which they depend. will other readers be equally enthralled? maybe. despite a broad interest in etymology and the generally utilitarian key to pronunciation of words in cmique iitom, i often became frustrated with my inability to translate the strangely spelled words into anything pronounceable. others may find this even more daunting. also, without a familiarity with the animals of the region prior to reading the book, many of the references and insights make sense only in retrospect. although this is a common trait in academic monographs, casual readers should be fully aware that this is inevitable — or make sure to have the aforementioned copy of grismer’s guide to the baja california herpetofauna readily at hand. if, however, one can cope with those two issues, the author’s ability as a science writer as well as a scientist will inevitably make reading this volume eminently enjoyable. nabhan’s prose is down-to-earth and resorts to discipline-specific jargon much less frequently than almost any book that is comparably authoritative. he has invested much of his life in getting to know the human subjects of this narrative, and his obvious like of them, as well as of the animals who share the limelight, carries over to the printed page. his formal training as an ethnobotanist lends insights that introduce new dimensions for consideration by those of us whose expertise and interests have largely been limited to animals. ultimately, however, what makes this book a winner is its unique ability to provide perspectives on animals in which we share an interest and which we could otherwise acquire only by spending years in the comcáac territories. references bowen, t. 2000. unknown island: seri indians, europeans, and san esteban island. university of new mexico press, albuquerque. felger, r.s. and m.b. moser. 1985. people of the desert and sea: ethnobotany of the seri indians. university of arizona press, tucson. chilomeniscus stramineus may be banded or uniformly colored and common names reflect that difference, although both pattern phases represent the same species. photograph by robert powell. 3 the name chilomeniscus cinctus is no longer considered valid; see powell (2004. iguana 11:7) and references cited therein. iguana 12.1 2 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 henderson corallus caninus from rio formoso, rondônia, brazil. photograph by laurie j. vitt. the emerald treeboa (corallus caninus) is one of the species most readily recognized by snake enthusiasts worldwide, yet we know remarkably little about its natural history. it has an extensive distribution on the neotropical mainland that encompasses most of the guianas, a large portion of venezuela, amazonian colombia, ecuador, and perú, northern bolivia, and much of the brazilian amazon at elevations from sea level to about 1000 m. in addition, valid records of corallus caninus exist for the departments of antioquia and córdoba in northwestern colombia. although largely arboreal, the emerald treeboa does occasionally descend to the ground. like other members of the genus, it is nocturnal. its diet is comprised mostly of rodents (e.g., rice rats, oecomys sp.), but it also includes opossums and lizards. despite many references to a diet of birds in the popular and technical literature, stomach content analysis has failed to support this notion. observations in the field strongly suggest that c. caninus is an ambush predator that may perch close to ground level with its head angled downward to await a passing rodent. next to nothing is known regarding population biology. a population density estimate of one treeboa per 2.7 km2 (= 0.004/hectare) came from departamento san martín, perú, but the investigator was dubious about the reliability of that figure. in contrast, i have calculated densities in excess of 50 corallus grenadensis per hectare at one site on grenada. however, most c. grenadensis in a local population prey on ubiquitous and phenomenally abundant anolis lizards, whereas c. caninus prey almost exclusively on small mammals that occur at much lower densities. emeralds may reach a total length in excess of 2.0 m, with those from the guiana shield attaining larger size than those from amazonia. the head of corallus caninus, attached to a relatively slender neck, looks menacing, due, in part, to the heatsensitive labial pits. in addition, these snakes are armed with long teeth on the anterior portions of the maxillae and mandibles. these meat hook-like teeth prevent prey from accidentally falling irrecoverably to the ground below. emerald treeboas are called “emerald” because of the exquisite green ground coloration on the dorsum. coupled with the striking white markings typically occurring along the dorsal midline and in the form of the ventrolateral blotches found in some populations, their aesthetic appeal as exhibit animals in zoos and for herpetoculturists is easy to understand. some of the latter are sufficiently enamored to specialize only in this species. occasionally snakes from the guiana shield lack the typical middorsal white markings, yet are still eye-catching because of the vivid shades of green that may occur on a single individual. still other individuals are heavily pigmented with black on the dorsum. newborn treeboas are usually brick-red dorsally, and the emerald puzzle: geographic variation in corallus caninus robert w. henderson section of vertebrate zoology, milwaukee public museum, milwaukee, wi 53233, usa (rh@mpm.edu) abstract.—the emerald treeboa (corallus caninus) is one of the most famous and easily recognized snakes in the world. despite this and its aesthetic appeal as an exhibit animal, surprisingly little is known about its biology. it has a wide geographic distribution in south america (the guiana shield and amazonia), but is common nowhere. emeralds are nocturnal and occur in mature rainforest where they prey on lizards, marsupials, and rodents. corallus caninus has had a remarkably stable taxonomic history since being described nearly 250 years ago, but ongoing examination of geographic variation in morphological characters and analysis of dna sequences strongly indicates that more than one species may be masquerading under the c. caninus umbrella. key words: treeboas, corallus caninus, south america, amazonia, guiana shield iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 3emerald treeboa q map illustrating the approximate range of the emerald treeboa (corallus caninus). the ontogenetic change to adult coloration is, i believe, part of the attraction of this species. taxonomic history corallus caninus has maintained a rather remarkable taxonomic stability since described by linnaeus nearly 250 years ago. although other “emerald” species were subsequently described (e.g., boa aurantiaca laurenti 1768, chrysensis batesii gray 1860), all were eventually relegated to the synonymy of corallus caninus. one hundred and forty-five years have passed since gray described chrysensis batesii based on a juvenile specimen collected by pioneer amazon naturalist, henry walter bates, in the “upper amazon.” boulenger placed it into the synonymy of corallus caninus in 1893. since then, surprisingly little attention has been paid to the biological relationships of c. caninus, despite its enigmatic juvenile coloration, its eye-catching adult coloration, and its popularity in zoos and among herpetoculturists. aside from a long-standing interest in corallus biology, i was intrigued by the apparent lack of interest in and information about such a “famous” snake. i knew it was highly coveted by herpetoculturists, and that some pattern morphs commanded prices in the thousands of dollars. i also was aware that the species is exported in substantial numbers for the pet trade (e.g., during 1990–1996, 6830 c. caninus were exported from guyana and suriname) and may be vulnerable to local extirpations. most boas are listed as cites appendix ii (i.e., species which may be threatened with extinction or which may be affected by international trade; those not listed as appendix ii are appendix i), and that includes emerald treeboas. although 4 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 henderson print of corallus caninus capturing a domestic chicken (from an unknown source). currently, we have no evidence of emeralds preying on birds (domestic or otherwise) by day or night. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 5emerald treeboa the species occurs over a wide geographic area, it is nowhere common, and occurs mostly in primary rainforest, which is disappearing at alarming rates. i began borrowing preserved specimens of emerald treeboas about 15 years ago. geographic variation was apparent, and i published some of my data over a decade ago. subsequently, however, articles by herpetoculturists who specialized in breeding c. caninus caught my attention when they referred to “northern” or “shield” emeralds and “basin” emeralds. although i had already observed and described some of the same geographic variation, i felt the species warranted more intensive scrutiny. i began anew my examination of preserved specimens of corallus caninus, but only about 75 with reliable locality data were held in u.s. collections. some countries within the range of c. caninus either were not represented by any specimens (e.g., french guiana) in u.s. collections, or were poorly represented (e.g., venezuela; one specimen). also, treeboas from brazil were, again, poorly represented in u.s. collections, and about 60% of the species’ range falls in that country. i contacted collection curators in brazil, colombia, and venezuela (museo de historia natural la salle), and also france (for french guiana material), the netherlands (for suriname specimens), and germany. not surprisingly, more specimens were in brazilian collections than elsewhere, and i received enthusiastic assistance from the instituto butantan, museo de zoologia at the universidade de são paulo, and the museo paraense emílio goeldi in belém. not all of the brazilian specimens i wished to examine were available for loan, so i solicited the collaboration of marinus hoogmoed. a dutch herpetologist, dr. hoogmoed has been studying south american frogs and reptiles for many years, and he now lives in brazil. i was pleased when he agreed to collaborate and examine the many specimens housed at the museo paraense emílio goeldi. pieces of the puzzle after examining several dozen treeboas from across the wide range of the species, i clearly recognized that snakes from the guiana shield (the area north of the rio amazonas and east of the rio negro, fide hoogmoed 1979) were distinct from those elsewhere in the range. most obvious was the virtual lack of lateral blotches (mean of 1.5 ± 0.52 in 32 snakes), a low number of scales across the top of the muzzle (mean = 3.4 ± 0.24), and pale tissue (usually) in the mental groove. that was the easy part. south and west of the guiana shield, variation was more like a jigsaw puzzle. to date, i have had the opportunity to examine about 125 corallus caninus with accompanying locality data. most snakes from eastern brazil south of the amazon (states of pará and maranhão) have conspicuous lateral blotches (mean of 16.4 ± 1.46), a white middorsal stripe connecting the bases of the white triangle-like markings that lie along the dorsum, more scales across the top of the muzzle (mean of 6.7 ± 0.34 in 16 snakes), and black interstitial tissue in the mental groove. in the state of rondônia in western brazil and in western mato grosso state, lateral blotches are absent or greatly reduced in number (mean of 5.8 ± 2.3 in 9 snakes), the middorsal stripe is absent, the number of scales across the top of the muzzle is reduced (mean of 4.9 ± 0.45), and the tissue in the mental groove is variable (white, gray, or black). in amazonas state north of the amazon and west of the rio negro (i.e., west of the guiana shield), the number of scales across the dorsal surface of the muzzle increases, lateral blotches are present, and the interstitial tissue engraving of gray’s chrysensis batesii from the “upper amazon,” based on a juvenile c. caninus (from the proceedings of the zoological society, london 28:132–133). of the mental groove is black in adults (like dorsal ground color, this tissue undergoes an ontogenetic shift from yellowish to black). surprisingly, i have no records from central brazil (south of the rio amazonas) in the state of amazonas. moving west into ecuador, perú (where the species occurs to 1000 m above sea level), and bolivia, lateral blotches are a constant (although shapes are variable) and are more numerous than elsewhere across the range (mean of 23.4 ± 1.1 in 36 snakes). likewise, the dorsal triangles are more numerous (mean of 32.8 ± 1.04 versus 25.9 elsewhere). a middorsal stripe may or may not be present. corallus caninus from ecuador and perú also exhibit more scales across the muzzle than elsewhere (mean of 8.1 in 36 snakes). legitimate records of emerald treeboas at what appear to be localities isolated from the rest of the range occur north of the colombian cordilleras occidental and central. through the kind cooperation of olga castaño (instituto de ciencias naturales, universidad nacional de colombia) and juan manuel daza-r. (instituto de biologia, universidad de antioquia), i have seen photographs and received scale and pattern data regarding these snakes. they lack middorsal stripes, but have lateral blotches typical of snakes from the upper amazon. likewise, the number of scales across the muzzle falls into the range for colombian emeralds collected east of the andes. assembling the puzzle considering the breadth of the range of corallus caninus, that the species displays geographic variation is not surprising. dna 6 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 henderson a young emerald treeboa from kilometer 88 on the road between el dorado and santa elena de uairen, bolivar, venezuela. note the absence of a middorsal stripe and lateral blotches. photograph by césar barrio, courtesy of serpentario los llanos. a juvenile corallus caninus (smf 80017) collected at ca. 1000 m above sea level at pozuzo, depto. pasco, perú. this is probably at or close to the upper altitudinal extreme for the species. photograph by edgar lehr. emerald treeboa from santa cecilia, sucumbios, ecuador, illustrating the middorsal stripe and lateral blotches common in c. caninus from some areas of amazonia. photograph by william e. duellman. adult corallus caninus from the vicinity of ariquemes, rondônia, brazil, illustrating the absence of a middorsal stripe and lateral blotches. photograph by w. carl taylor. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 7emerald treeboa sequences from critical areas across the range of c. caninus parallel the morphological data so far collected, and more than one species appears to be masquerading under the taxonomic umbrella of c. caninus. many hypotheses (e.g., refugia, riverine barrier, marine incursion) have been addressed in order to explain speciation in amazonia, and various authorities have noted that any amazonian speciation model will be complex and, to some extent, species-specific. collecting pieces of the “emerald puzzle” and their assembly is ongoing, with the analysis of morphological data hopefully providing additional insights into geographic variation and possible taxonomic partitioning of c. caninus. acknowledgements i am grateful to laurie vitt for providing photographs of emerald treeboas and for sharing his observations from the field and lab. juan manuel daza-r. called my attention to the colombian record from antioquia. bill lamar provided much useful information and offered photographs for my use. nicolas vidal was a pleasure to work with on the dna material. additional photos were provided by césar barrio, william duellman, edgar lehr, mikael lundberg, marcio martins, and carl taylor. rose henderson scanned images from old sources, and robert powell provided the map. joseph polanco and tony nicoli shared information based on their experiences breeding emeralds in captivity. i especially thank the personnel from many institutions in several countries who have, so far, loaned specimens for my examination. references boulenger, g. a. 1893. catalogue of snakes in the british museum (natural history). vol.1., containing the familes typhlopidae, glauconiidae, boidae, ilysiidae, uropeltidae, xenopeltidae, and colubridae aglyphae, part. trustees of the british museum, london. bush, m. b. 1994. amazonian speciation: a necessarily complex model. journal of biogeography 21:5–17. chiras, s. 1998. identification and husbandry of amazon basin emerald tree boas (corallus caninus). reptiles 69(3):48–67 + 70–75. cracraft, j. and r. o. prum. 1988. patterns and process of diversification: speciation and historical congruence in some neotropical birds. evolution 42:603–620. emmons, l. h. 1984. geographic variation in densities and diversities of nonflying mammals in amazonia. biotropica 16:210–222. gray, j. e. 1860. description of a new genus of boidae discovered by mr. bates on the upper amazon. proceedings of the zoological society, london 28:132–133. henderson, r. w. 1993. on the diets of some arboreal boids. herpetological natural history 1(1):91–96. henderson, r. w. 1993b. corallus caninus. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (574):1–3. henderson, r. w. 2002. neotropical treeboas: natural history of the corallus hortulanus complex. krieger publishing co., malabar, florida. hoogmoed, m. s. 1979. the herpetofauna of the guianan region, pp. 241–279. in: w. e. duellman (ed.), the south american herpetofauna: its origin, evolution, and dispersal. university of kansas museum of natural history monograph (7), lawrence, kansas. kivit, r. and s. wiseman. 2000. the green tree python & emerald tree boa: their captive husbandry and reproduction. kirschner & seufer verlag, keltern-weiler, germany. laurenti, j. n. 1768. specimen medicum, exhibens synopsin reptilium emendatum cum experimentis circa venena et antidota reptilium austriacorum, quod authoritate et consensu. j. thomæ trattnern, viennae. lehr, e. 2001. new records for amphibians and reptiles from departamentos pasco and ucayali, peru. herpetological review 32:130–132. martins, m. and m. e. oliveira. 1998. natural history of snakes in forests of the manaus region, central amazonia, brazil. herpetological natural history 6:78–150. renjifo, j. m. and m. lundberg. 1999. anfibios y reptiles de urrá. skanska, sweden. schulte, r. 1988. observaciones sobre la boa verde, corallus caninus, en el departamento san martín-perú. boletim de lima 55:21–26. vidal, n., r. w. henderson, a.-s.delmas, and s. b. hedges. submitted. phylogeny of the emerald treeboa (corallus caninus). an emerald treeboa from triunfo, slopes of santa rosa tepui, serrania del supamo (100 km sse of el manteco), estado bolivar, venezuela clearly showing the heat-sensitive labial pits that help give these snakes a menacing appearance. photograph by césar barrio. a road-killed corallus caninus from tierra alta, depto. córdoba, colombia (icn 8398). photograph by mikael lundberg. iguana 12.4 b&w text 234 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 gifford an adult male leiocephalus personatus from near juanillo, la altagracia province. this wide-ranging species reaches the westernmost extent of its range along the southern coast in association with a sharp ecotone near baní. r o b er t po w el l hybrid zones have been of great interest to evolutionary biologists for quite some time. however, only in the last few decades have they received much attention. this change follows a paradigm shift from viewing hybrid zones as rare occurrences in the general distribution of “pure” forms to their potential importance as regulators and creators of biodiversity (harrison 1993). the resultant research effort has created a realization that the analysis of hybrid zones can provide information with far-reaching implications for speciation, adaptation, and even conservation (arnold 1997, harrison 1993). with this in mind, the following article discusses hybrid zones in the context of their consequences for speciation and conservation, focusing on an area identified as a zone of secondary contact between two lineages of the lizard ameiva chrysolaema in the dominican republic. hybrid zones can be defined as regions (either narrow or broad) of genetic or anatomical changes that separate otherwise continuous and homogeneous “taxa.” “taxa” is placed in quotes here to represent not only recognized species but also divergent ecotones and hybrid zones: implications for conservation illustrated by ground-dwelling lizards from hispaniola matthew e. gifford department of biology, washington university saint louis, missouri photographs by the author except where indicated. iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 235ecotones and hybrid zones � ameiva chrysolaema from 5 km west of duvergé, independencia province. two distinct lineages of this species meet at the ecotone near baní. lineages that may or may not be formally recognized. the advent of new methodologies and availability of increasingly detailed genetic data has revealed that previously unknown lineages are common and characterize most widely distributed groups of organisms. areas of contact between lineages many times result in interbreeding among members of these lineages. such zones provide unique opportunities to study the process of speciation and adaptation. combined analyses of different types of characters (genetic and anatomical) provide information on the processes that maintain hybrid zones or contribute to their collapse (barton and hewitt 1985). hybrid zones can form in areas of continuous habitat or at habitat transitions (i.e., ecotones). the hybrid zone discussed herein is associated with a prominent ecotone in the south-central dominican republic near the city of baní. the island of hispaniola has had a dynamic geological history highlighted by periodic inundation of the cul de sac-neiba valley in the central portion of the island. these inundations separated hispaniola into two paleoislands at various times during the miocene to pleistocene epochs (~15–1 million years ago [mya]; mann et al. 1999, mclaughlin et al. 1991, taylor et al. 1985). after recession of seawater, habitable land likely became emergent during the late pleistocene and holocene. genetic data suggest that these seawater inundations fragmented populations of ameiva chrysolaema, forming eastern and western lineages along the southern coast of the island (gifford et al. 2004). this study also identified a restricted area (in the vicinity of baní) where these two lineages have come into secondary contact. the diverse topography of the island contributes to a vast array of environmental conditions and creates near baní a sharp environmental shift from relatively moist conditions in the east to extremely dry conditions in the west. character shifts in a. chrysolaema associated with this ecotone include body size (svl), dorsal scale size, and both nuclear and mitochondrial genetic characters (unpubl. data). in the following section, i consider what these character shifts imply about the nature of the hybrid zone and discuss the implications of these shifts for speciation, adaptation, and conservation in the group. please note that this discussion is based on preliminary data and is used only to illustrate a thesis. additional data collected during future field seasons will be necessary to further characterize this hybrid zone and test the hypotheses discussed here. patterns of character variation across the zone mitochondrial genetic characters show a sharp change in frequency from those characterizing the western lineage being found in essentially all individuals in those populations west of the ecotone, to being absent from populations on the east side of the ecotone. however, two populations within the ecotone contain characters of both lineages (gifford et al. 2004). preliminary data from studies of nuclear genetic material show a similar pattern, but the area over which the change occurs 236 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 gifford map of mean annual precipitation (mm) for the dominican republic. the ecotone discussed in the text refers to the area in the vicinity of baní. appears to be wider. anatomical characters also seem to exhibit comparable relationships across the contact zone. in the case of body size, populations in dry habitats to the west tend to contain smaller individuals than populations in the moister eastern environments. this is illustrated clearly by a positive correlation between precipitation and svl across the contact zone. implications of contact zones for speciation and adaptation the coincidence of contact zones (i.e., the occurrence of zones corresponding to several characters in similar geographic locales) and the concordance of changes (i.e., similar rates of change over the contact zones for different characters) have been used as evidence that natural selection can maintain a hybrid zone (endler 1977, barton and hewitt 1985). however, two types of selection could be responsible and are indistinguishable from one another. selection may work against individual hybrids, which would suffer a decrease in fitness relative to “pure” forms. alternately, selection may favor local adaptation to different selective pressures on either side of the zone. one may be able to distinguish between these types of selection by using additional data. for example, the first hypothesis may be supported if populations in the hybrid zone are found in a population density trough (i.e., have decreased population densities), which is a testable prediction. that hypothesis would be further strengthened if reciprocal transplant experiments indicated a decreased fitness of hybrids in all transplanted habitats. although testing these predictions takes considerable time and effort, the important point here is that natural selection is important in structuring the hybrid zone. variation among transition zones for anatomical characters could arise in several ways. some characters may be under selection while others are effectively neutral. that could lead to transition zones for neutral characters governed most strongly by totally random factors (as opposed to selection). variation among transition zones for genetic characters might be generiguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 237ecotones and hybrid zones morphological (dashed line) and environmental (solid line) clines for populations of ameiva chrysolaema sampled across the ecotone. boxes represent mean svl (mm) for each sampled population along the transect. crosses represent mean annual precipitation (mm) for each sampling point along the transect. the x-axis represents distance (in km) from an arbitrary locality on the western side of the ecotone. leiocephalus semilineatus from 5 km west of duvergé, independencia province. this very drought-tolerant species is largely confined to the very dry cul de sac-neiba valley and reaches the easternmost extent of its range at the ecotone near baní. ated by the different properties of mitochondrial versus nuclear genes. the latter generally evolve more rapidly, so differences might be coupled with the age of the hybrid zone. if genetic variation is minimal and anatomical variation pronounced, natural selection on anatomical features may be very strong. different patterns may suggest that the lineages are diverging while others might indicate that they are merging in a fashion that could result eventually in a single genetic lineage. implications of hybrid zone studies for conservation at first glance, the presence of a hybrid zone may cause problems for conservationists. these problems likely stem from the lack of consensus about the appropriate methods by which we should identify species. by viewing speciation as an extended process and species as elements of populations-level lineages (sensu de queiroz 1998), some of these problems may be 238 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 gifford leiocephalus schreibersii from 5 km west of duvergé, independencia province. this species is largely associated with very dry habitats; like l. semilineatus, it reaches the easternmost extent of its range at the ecotone near baní. leiocephalus lunatus from catuano, isla saona, la altagracia province, dominican republic. although this individual is not from the main island of hispaniola, the species is fairly uniform in pattern across its range. this species has a largely coastal distribution that reaches its westernmost extent at the ecotone near baní. iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 239ecotones and hybrid zones addressed more effectively. the goal of conservation is to preserve biodiversity. biodiversity can be defined as the natural diversity of independently evolving lineages (as opposed to formally recognized species or even higher taxa; see, for example, powell 2004 and references therein). consequently, we must understand the evolutionary consequences of lineage contact and the processes acting to either maintain lineage differences or facilitate lineage merger. ecotonal contact zones mark the confluence of different environmental conditions that may also represent the limits of other species adapted to the alternative environments. as such, these ecotones represent areas of high faunal turnover and, hence, high diversity. by conserving these areas, we may preserve the selective pressures (environmental heterogeneity) that have shaped the current distribution of taxa and the processes that maintain and structure biodiversity. other ground-dwelling lizards whose distributional limits are located at this particular ecotone include leiocephalus semilineatus, l. schreibersii, and ameiva lineolata on the dry western side and l. personatus and l. lunatus on the moister eastern side. literature cited arnold, m.l. 1997. natural hybridization and evolution. oxford university press, new york. barton, n.h. and g.m. hewitt. 1985. analysis of hybrid zones. annual review of ecology and systematics 16:113–148. de queiroz, k. 1998. the general lineage concept of species, species criteria, and the process of speciation: a conceptual unification and terminological recommendations, pp. 57–75. in: d.j. howard and s.h. berlocher (eds.), endless forms: species and speciation. oxford university press, new york. endler, j.a. 1977. geographic variation, speciation, and clines. princeton university press, princeton, nj. gifford, m.e., r. powell, a. larson, and r.l. gutberlet, jr. 2004. population structure and history of a phenotypically variable teiid lizard (ameiva chrysolaema) from hispaniola: the influence of a geologically complex island. molecular phylogenetics and evolution 32:735–748. harrison, r.g. 1993. hybrids and hybrid zones: historical perspectives, pp. 3–12. in: r.g. harrison (ed.), hybrid zones and the evolutionary process. oxford university press, new york. mann, p., p.p. mclaughlin, w.a. van den bold, s.r. lawrence, and m.e. lamar. 1999. tectonic and eustatic controls on neogene evaporitic deposition in the enriquillo basin, dominican republic, pp. 287 – 341. in: p. mann and k.j. hsü (eds.), sedimentary basins of the world: caribbean basins. elsevier, amsterdam, the netherlands. mclaughlin, p.p., w.a. van den bold, and p. mann. 1991. geology of the azua and enriquillo basins, dominican republic; 1, neogene lithofacies, biostratigraphy, biofacies, and paleogeography, pp. 337–366. in: p. mann, g. draper, and j.f. lewis (eds.), geologic and tectonic development of the north america-caribbean plate boundary in hispaniola. geological society of america special papers, vol. 262. powell, r. 2004. species and subspecies: what do they mean and why should we care? iguana 11:108–113. taylor, f.w., p. mann, s. valastro, jr., and k. burke. 1985. stratigraphy and radiocarbon chronology of a subaerially exposed holocene coral reef, dominican republic. journal of geology 93:311–332. ameiva lineolata from isla catalina, la romana province. although most populations of this drought-tolerant species are found in the very dry cul de sac-neiba valley west of the ecotone near baní, some apparently relict isolates are found far to the east. r o b er t po w el l iguana 12.4 b&w text 252 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 mission statement grupo jaragua is a non-govermental, non-profit organization founded in 1987. its mission is to achieve the effective management of the dominican republic’s biodiversity resources through research and implementation of specific projects to solve local conservation problems. grupo jaragua places special emphasis on regional development of protected areas through participatory processes at the community level, in particular in jaragua national park and its surrounding communities. to achieve its mission, grupo jaragua works in collaboration with government and non government institutions, as well as grass-roots organizations. philosophy and values we believe that it is possible to achieve at the same time the conservation and the sustainable use of biological diversity. we also believe that human wellbeing and development are basic rights that guide all our actions. respect for human plurality is our highest priority; we try to conduct our work in harmony, acknowledging and respecting differences in views, while at the same time highlighting our common goals and the way forward towards conservation and sustainable development. we place high value in altruism, professional and human ethics, and we respect cultural differences. we strive to find consensual solutions, respect cultural differences, and encourage the widest participation of all stakeholders. ramer iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 253 conservation is hard work. it requires patience, perseverance, teamwork, compassion, and respect, not to mention the ability to accomplish big things on a shoestring budget. grupo jaragua is a non-governmental organization (ngo) in the dominican republic that exemplifies a conservation group that works well — sometimes under extraordinarily difficult circumstances. with a staff of only 13 dedicated people and a network of collaborators, grupo jaragua has worked tirelessly for the past 15 years to achieve their mission, which is the “effective management of natural resources through research and implementation of specific projects to solve local conservation problems.” they work primarily in the southwest of the country in and around jaragua national park, and their list of accomplishments and honors is long and varied (visit their website www.grupojaragua.org.do for a complete list). they have partnered with organizations like the nature conservancy, world wildlife fund, the ocean conservancy, birdlife international, center for international migration and development, conservation international, and the macarthur foundation. projects include a national campaign in bird conservation, marine conservation and research including the development of a hawksbill sea turtle education campaign, developing a freshwater fish inventory, and implementation of a sustainable use program in the area around jaragua national park. that latter includes job creation, capacity building, and public use of natural resources. grupo jaragua has recently received a grant from the macarthur foundation for a three-year project to complete a conservation plan that will help link protected areas in the southwestern dominican republic through the development of biological corridors, building scientific understanding of the island’s ecological communities, and enhancing local livelihoods and environmental stewardship through eco-tourism and improved agro-forestry practices. they worked with the dominican government to establish under unesco the first dominican biosphere reserve — jaragua-bahoruco-enriquillo biosphere reserve. and this is just a short list! i’ve had the privilege of working with three key grupo jaragua members on ricord’s iguana conservation for the past five years. together, they are the public face of the organization. p r o f i l e the faces of grupo jaragua jan ramer indianapolis zoo profile sixto incháustegui was instrumental in founding both the national museum of natural history and the grupo jaragua. yvonne arias is the current president of the grupo jaragua. 254 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 ramer yvonne arias earned her master’s degree in ecology and environmental conservation in 1992, and has over 20 years of experience in herpetology and ecology. yvonne has been with grupo jaragua since its inception and is currently its president. she is involved with all aspects of the organization, from developing curriculum and training students in environmental conservation, to meeting with lawmakers when critical habitat is in political jeopardy. she serves on several national committees and projects involving environmental education, environmental protection, and research, and has over 30 publications on these subjects. in addition to the work she does in the dominican republic, she has consulted on projects in guatemala, honduras, and costa rica. dr. sixto incháustegui has been working in the field of herpetology and environmental conservation for over 30 years, but his love affair with reptiles started at a very early age. he tells a story about his father bringing back four baby turtles from a trip to the united states when sixto was eight years old. he enjoyed them so much that he saved all his money and ordered 10 more the next time his father returned to the states. he set up a breeding colony, which did very well, and he still has some of those turtles to this day! in one way or another, sixto has been studying reptiles ever since. in college, he initiated an exchange of letters with dr. albert schwartz, who encouraged him to host michael carey, one of dr. schwartz’s students working with cyclura. after that first field trip, which was his “official” introduction to the study of cyclura, he was hooked. over the years, he and yvonne have worked with josé ottenwalder to pioneer the study of c. ricordii and c. cornuta in and around lago enriquillo. sixto is a pioneer in several ways, being the first dominican herpetologist, the first dominican biologist who became director of the school of biology, one of the founders of both the national museum of natural history in santo domingo and the first dominican ngo working for environmental conservation (grupo jaragua). he is currently professor of biology at the universidad autónoma de santo domingo, professor and investigator at the instituto tecnológico de santo domingo (intec), an invited professor at the city college of new york, to name a few of the institutions to which he contributes. sixto’s publications are too numerous to mention, and his contributions to the field of conservation are so significant that the iv congress on caribbean biodiversity in january 2002 was dedicated to him. ernst rupp was born in germany, earned his master’s of business administration at the university of iowa, worked for three years on assignment with the german development service (gds) in malaysia as an economic advisor to the federal agricultural marketing authority, then, in 1984, moved to the dominican republic on assignment with the gds as an advisor to a farmer’s cooperative. he has been working in the dominican republic ever since, with projects ranging from reforestation with native tree species, gds advisor to the dominican wildlife department coordinating a program to manage the buffer zone of the national park “sierra de neiba,” with special emphasis on local participation, and investigating the distribution of bats in the sierra de neiba. he has been with grupo jaragua since 2001, promoting and coordinating the investigation of endangered species and of the threats to these species, collecting data on these species and human impact, integrating the data in a data bank, establishing the use of geographical information systems (gis), and developing programs of conservation for these species while involving the local communities. ernst has been concentrating his efforts on ricord’s iguana conservation and research since 2002, and says about his work with iguanas, “maybe i just was at the right place at the right time for once in my life.” these are three pretty amazing people. i remember being very nervous at my first meeting with yvonne and sixto — after all, she was the president of grupo jaragua and he was a living legend! i was a naïve veterinarian from indiana who had only just started working with iguanas, had fallen in love with the dominican republic, and wanted to help with ricord’s iguana conservation in any way that i could. i was prepared to be completely intimidated by these conservation icons; but, at that first meeting with sixto, yvonne, and ernst, next to the pool at the hispaniola hotel, i met three genuine, dedicated, warm, and welcoming people, who immediately put me at ease. grupo jaragua’s work with iguanas could fill many pages, so i’ll concentrate here on their work since the 2002 iucn iguana specialist group meeting, during which the ricord’s iguana species recovery plan (srp) was developed. during that meeting, i enjoyed watching yvonne, sixto, and josé ottenwalder — the most respected environmental conservationists in the dominican republic — work so hard to develop an aggressive informal 2003 meeting at the hotel hispaniola in santo domingo; (from left) the author, sixto incháustegui, yvonne arias, and ernst rupp. jo e eh r en b er g er 2004 meeting with educators; back row (from left): two educators, elizabeth skeet, two more educators, dr. alfonso ferreira; front row (from left): gloria santana, josepha castro, quentin bloxam, the author, angelica espinal, john foster, sixto incháustegui, ernst rupp, and rick hudson. but realistic plan to recover this critically endangered species. since then, grupo jaragua has identified the two remaining populations of c. ricordii outside of isla cabritos — the pedernales population and a population that lives along the southern shore of lago enriquillo. ernst has been working hard with the pedernales population and habitat, hiring salvador (miguel mella pérez), previously an iguana hunter, as his main guide. needless to say, salvador is very good. ernst has conducted socioeconomic interviews in the area, funded in part by a grant from the riverbanks zoo, to determine the human impact on iguana populations. through this ongoing work, we now know the actual status and distribution of c. ricordii in pedernales province, breeding information for both c. ricordii and c. cornuta, and the main threats to both species in this region. ernst has worked hard to increase the local community’s participation in iguana conservation, actively involving two local conservation groups: asociacion de guias de la natraleza de pedernales (aguipe) and voluntarios comunitarios de oviedo. he is now turning his attention to the c. ricordii population on the southern shore of lago enriquillo, where he will use many of the same methods to determine status, distribution, and threats. in july 2004, a second workshop was held to discuss progress on the 2002 srp and to adjust goals as needed. grupo jaragua, zoodom (the dominican national zoo), and government officials met with quentin bloxham, rick hudson, and me to go over the 2002 srp line by line, and, once again, grupo jaragua stepped up, volunteering to move many of the new action steps forward. during that meeting, yvonne was very busy, spending long hours in fighting legislation that removed protected status from a beautiful stretch of sand beach in jaragua national park. unfortunately, the bill passed while we were there — but, thanks to yvonne, significant changes were made; as of today, construction on the resort has not yet begun, and the fight continues. while yvonne was working on this bill, sixto and ernst took our small party to see the habitat in pedernales. we got to meet salvador, viewed many active c. ricordii nests, and saw several adult animals. during our visit to the area, the governor of the province signed into law the first municipally protected land in pedernales, protecting critical c. ricordii habitats that are not included in the nationally protected areas system — another first for grupo jaragua! on our way back to oviedo, sixto took us briefly across the border into a haitian town — his interests include all of hispaniola. we saw no iguanas, but the cultural differences were interesting to see, and the rum was good… as if fighting environmentally unsound laws, establishing protected areas, and participating in a species recovery plan meeting were not enough, yvonne and sixto treated us to a wonderful dominican lunch at their home in oviedo. we ate delicious food prepared by yvonne, under the shade of native trees purposely planted in their back yard, and watched the tanks of native fish that sixto has been breeding over the years — all in all a very special afternoon! the bottom line here is that sixto, yvonne, and ernst, and all of the other members of grupo jaragua, are among the most dedicated environmental conservationists in the caribbean and maybe even the entire world. their stated values include altruism, professional and human ethics, and respect for cultural differences. they strive to find consensual solutions and encourage the widest participation of all stakeholders. they live these values. i have truly enjoyed working with these three individuals over the past five years, and i am honored to call them my friends. iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 255profile this meeting was held on 26 august of this year in fondo paradí, a newly created ecotourism venue in jaragua national park that is devoted primarily to birdwatching. present were rangers of the national park, the administrator of the park, the mayor of oviedo, commanders of the armed forces, oviedo police department, and the marine base in cabo rojo, and representatives of grupo jaragua. participants in the meeting discussed problems and possible solutions and pledged closer coordination between the various entities represented. the meeting was deemed an overwhelming success. iguana 13.1 b&w text status and conservation of treeboas on the grenada bank the grenada bank treeboa (corallus grenadensis) exhibits one of the most variable color patterns in any species of snake, and that variation has been shown to be correlated with elevation and associated meteorological conditions (temperature, rainfall, amount of possible sunshine). the species is known to occur on ten islands on the grenada bank. the largest island on the bank is grenada, with an area of 311 km2. the other nine islands are part of the grenadines (with political affiliations to st. vincent or grenada), have areas ranging from 0.7 km2 (petit martinique) to 32 km2 (carriacou), an average size of 8.5 km2, and a total area of 77 km2. the total potential range of corallus grenadensis is under 400 km2. over the past 200–300 years, however, deforestation has reduced that area by at least 50%. over the past 500+ years, treeboas on grenada have had to adapt to new prey species (introduced rodents), large-scale elimination of native trees and the introduction of orchard trees (nutmeg, mango, breadfruit, citrus, cacao), and the introduction of alien predators (opossums, mongooses, monkeys). since 1989, projects focused on treeboa biology (primarily on grenada) have monitored numbers of snakes at several localities in disparate habitats and weather regimes across the island. in the late 1990s, researchers from the milwaukee public museum (mpm) began to witness declines in treeboa encounter rates. those declines have continued to the present — and are of grave concern. of equal concern is a lack of information about what may be happening on those grenadines that harbor treeboas. these small, picturesque islands are rapidly being developed for a burgeoning tourist industry, and several have been sold to private entities. mpm would like to initiate population assessments of treeboas on several of the smaller grenadines, and anyone interested in contributing to the treeboa assessment program is encouraged to send tax-deductible contributions to: milwaukee public museum attn: bob henderson 800 w. wells street milwaukee, wi 53233-1478 f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n grenada bank treeboa corallus grenadensis r o b er t po w el l iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 84 iguana 11.3 b&w text 148 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 burton location of grand cayman in the north-west caribbean, the only island where cyclura lewisi occurs. illustration by john binns. founder male daniel, 13 years old at the time of this photograph, is breeding successfully in a large open-air pen at the blue iguana recovery program’s captive breeding and head-starting facility on grand cayman. photograph by john binns. potential founder male, hal, was until recently in illegal captivity and is now recovering from a decade of chronic malnutrition. he mated in 2003 and 2004, but so far remains infertile. in a recent paper in the caribbean journal of science, i relied on several different lines of evidence to formally conclude that the grand cayman blue iguana is a full species, cyclura lewisi. the old classification, in which the blue iguana was considered to be a subspecies of the cuban iguana (c. nubila), didn’t make much sense after 2000, when catherine malone and her colleagues showed that cuban iguanas and the iguanas from little cayman and cayman brac are, if anything, more closely related to the bahamian species (c. cychlura) than they are to blues. apart from dna, the most diagnostic feature distinguishing the blue iguana is the color of adults. the remarkable bright blue of adult c. lewisi was first described by chapman grant in 1940, but the color patterns of hatchlings and subadults have never been reported in detail. when they first emerge from the nest, blue iguana hatchlings are intricately patterned, very much like hatchlings of c. nubila and c. cychlura. the head and dewlap are pale bluish gray and unmarked, except in some individuals, which may show subtle dark marks just behind the eyes. the interparietal scale (the “pineal eye” in the middle of the back of the head) is particularly pale, and the nostrils are narrowly rimmed with black. the iris of the eye is golden and essentially fills the exposed area of the eye. the surrounding sclera is reddish but rarely seen at this age. starting at the neck and proceeding down the length of the body is a pattern of dark “chevrons” — looking down from above, they appear as a series of v’s running diagonally back and down both sides of the body. from the side, they look like diagonal dark stripes on a paler background, running from the neck and back rearwards down the flanks to the belly. to some people, they look like pale stripes on a dark background — i guess it all depends on your point of view. this pattern starts with an inconspicuous, very short, dark gray chevron starting near the front of the incipient nuchal (neck) crest. viewed from above, this and a conspicuous second dark chevron are u-shaped, curving over the neck crest. the ends of the second chevron turn downward to stop above the front legs. the third and subsequent chevrons are v-shaped from above and somewhat wavy on the flanks, sometimes breaking up lower on the sides. eight chevrons usually are present between the beginning of the nuchal crest and the pelvis, each becoming progressively less distinct after the fourth. the skin between the first and second chevrons is unmarked silvery gray, becoming pale cream away from the nuchal crest. after the second chevron, from the rear edge of each dark band the flanks are pale bluish gray, heavily mottled with dark gray. the mottling gives way to a series of discrete small pale cream spots, close to (but not usually in contact with) the front edge of the next chevron. along the back, the chevrons connect to an alternating pattern of near-black and pale cream spots down the middorsal line, marking where the dorsal crest will emerge. the cream spots begin as a single pale nuchal crest scale between the first and second chevrons, followed by three progressively larger spots to the third chevron, two large spots to the fourth, and a single spot between subsequent chevrons. black scales between these spots color and pattern in grand cayman blue iguanas fred burton blue iguana recovery programme, grand cayman island photographs by author, except where indicated. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 149grand cayman blue iguanas � newly hatched cyclura lewisi: at this age the hatchling is still consuming its yolk sac and has not started feeding. are continuous with chevrons, where those occur, and otherwise form isolated dark spots. this complex arrangement creates a bold alternating pattern down the middorsal line. the series of cream spots continues onto the tail, merging into an alternating series of narrow pale cream bands and broad dark gray bands around the upper two-thirds of the tail. the end of the tail is almost black. the legs have extensive cream mottling and pale bluish gray flecks on a dark gray base, with distinct cream spots particularly evident on the rear legs and feet. pale cream spots extend onto the toes, where they coincide with the joints, making the toes on both front and rear feet appear banded. the underside of the abdomen is silvery gray with the pale, fragmented ends of the strongest chevrons from each side almost meeting beneath. by one year of age, the bluish gray and gray base colors have become clear blue and the chevrons have begun to erode, narrowing and breaking up into spots on the lower flanks, where they may become circles exposing a center of blue. the back is 150 iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 burton spots on the legs, still evident at one year, usually disappear completely as the animal ages. adult female c. lewisi: juvenile markings have been lost. iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 151iguana • volume 11, number 3 • september 2004 151grand cayman blue iguanas speckled with isolated pale cream scales and the flanks between chevrons are still marked with diffuse pale cream spots. the blue base color is progressively obscured by dark gray on the tail, where the banding becomes less distinct with age. the alternating cream and black pattern on the dorsal crest is reduced but still evident. the juvenile pattern changes to the adult form gradually, by further replacement of cream spots and speckling with the blue base color and the variable loss of the dark chevrons (some adults lose them entirely). limbs also become blue, apart from the toes, which lose all banding and darken to black. the nuchal and dorsal crest scales all become bright blue, with no trace of the juvenile pattern. the lower half of the tail becomes darker, with banding either totally obscured or very indistinct. the sclera of the eye becomes redder and more exposed as the animal grows. having said all of that, a blue iguana is only blue when it wants to be blue. all that blue is masked in dark gray when an iguana is cold, sleeping, or just trying to remain inconspicuous. the gray color closely matches the surrounding carbonate karst rock, on which iguanas seem to vanish into the landscape. watching these iguanas in the wild, they appear to use their color selectively and carefully, as signals to each other. in the greens and earth tones of grand cayman’s dry shrublands, the bright blue of c. lewisi shines out like a beacon. references burton, f.j. 2000. grand cayman iguana, pp. 45–47. in a. alberts (comp. & ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and action plan. iucn, gland, switzerland. burton, f.j. 2004. taxonomic status of the grand cayman blue iguana. caribbean journal of science 40:198–203. grant, c. 1940. the herpetology of the cayman islands. bulletin of the institute of jamaica, science series (2):1–55. malone, c.l., t. wheeler, j.f. taylor, and s.k. davis. 2000. phylogeography of the caribbean rock iguana (cyclura): implications for conservation and insights on the biogeographic history of the west indies. molecular phylogenetics and evolution 17:269–279. schwartz, a. and m. carey 1977. systematics and evolution in the west indian iguanid genus cyclura. studies on the fauna of curaçao and other caribbean islands 173:15–97. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e compared to their relatives in the families boiidae and pythonidae, the ground boas of the genus tropidophis (family tropidophiidae) are relatively small and are sometimes referred to as “dwarf boas.” the largest species reaches a total length of barely over a meter and the smallest less than a third of that length. unlike most boas and pythons, ground boas lack infrared sensors in interlabial pits, but, like their larger relatives, they possess vestiges of hind limbs, which are visible externally as a pair of cloacal spurs. all are live-bearers. they are grounddwelling or semiarboreal and feed primarily on small vertebrates, mainly frogs and lizards. when disturbed, these snakes may exhibit autohemorrhaging from the eyes and mouth as well as cloacal discharge. on loose substrates, at least one species is known to employ sidewinding locomotion. many (maybe all) species also are capable of physiological color changes, a phenomenon that is rare in snakes. ground boas apparently are unique among those snakes that can change colors in that they do so on a 24-hour cycle: they are lighter in color at night and darker during the day. all members of the genus are listed in cites appendix ii and are rarely seen in the pet trade. species of tropidophis are relatively broadly distributed in the west indies and south america, but they are secretive. consequently, many are not well-represented in museum collections and their taxonomy has been poorly understood. previous ground boas (tropidophis) of the cayman islands a.c. echternacht department of ecology & evolutionary biology university of tennessee, knoxville photographs by the author. adult grand cayman ground boa, tropidophis caymanensis. iguana 12.4 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 221table of contents although once widely distributed on hispaniola, the only remaining large population of american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus) in the dominican republic is in lago enriquillo (see travelogue, p. 256). ircf international reptile conservation foundation jo h n b in n s table of contents f e a t u r e a r t i c l e conservation of cyclura ricordii in the southwestern dominican republic and a brief history of the grupo jaragua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ernst rupp, sixto incháustegui, and yvonne arias 222 ecotones and hybrid zones: implications for conservation illustrated by ground-dwelling lizards from hispaniola . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . matthew e. gifford 234 the world’s most endangered anole? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . alexander gutsche 240 laws governing the importation and exportation of reptiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . compiled by the editorial board 244 h u s b a n d r y captive care of monitors part ii: diet and reproduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . bernd eidenmüller 246 p r o f i l e the faces of grupo jaragua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jan ramer 252 t r a v e l o g u e the rock iguanas of parque nacional isla cabritos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . barb l. banbury and yanerys m. ramo 256 species profile: hispaniolan vinesnakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell and robert w. henderson 262 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s herpetology of hispaniola (introduction) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . doris m. cochran 263 biographical sketch: doris m. cochran . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268 c o m m e n t a r y the case against captive reptiles and amphibians . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ann-elizabeth (ae) nash 269 b o o k r e v i e w the reptiles and amphibians of the dutch caribbean: st. eustatius, saba, and st. maarten by robert powell, robert w. henderson, and john s. parmerlee, jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . arthur c. (sandy) echternacht 273 conservation research reports (summaries of published articles) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275 newsbriefs (summaries of published reports) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277 iucn iguana specialist group meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284 iguana 12.3 b&w text ircf nets record amount for rock iguana conservation at nrbe auction the auction sponsored by the international reptile conservation foundation at this year’s national reptile breeder’s expo in daytona beach was a tremendous success, bringing in a record $20,100 for the preservation of critically endangered rock iguanas in the west indies. the ircf would like to thank wayne hill and the expo management, the many donors who gave generously and the countless volunteers for their many man-hours of work. we couldn’t have done it without you! auction funds will be distributed to a number of conservation projects operated under the auspices of the iucn iguana specialist group and supported by the international iguana foundation as follows: (1) the san salvador rock iguana (bahamas) will receive $8,000 to assist with relocation work, (2) the jamaican rock iguana will receive $5,000 to assist with predator control and iguana conservation work in the hellshire hills, (3) the anegada rock iguana will receive $4,000 to augment existing funds for the purchase of a small used truck to assist with release of captive-reared iguanas into the wild and follow-up radio tracking, and (4) $3,100 will go to the grand cayman blue iguana recovery program for this year’s phase ii release of captive-raised animals. the ircf would also like to welcome the 25 new members who joined in daytona beach. we are delighted to have you as part of our organization! ircf attends narbc anaheim, ca – september 2005 the national reptile breeder’s conference and trade show marked ircf’s first official appearance at an expo on the west coast, providing a wonderful opportunity to network with the southern california community. the ircf would like to express gratitude and appreciation to bob ashley and brian potter (http://www.narbc.com) for donating booth space. the ircf also welcomed 15 new members. i r c f o n t h e m o v e ircf members at the joint annual meeting of the society for the study of amphibians and reptiles (ssar), the herpetologists’ league (hl), and the american society of ichthyiologists and herpetologists (asih) in tampa, florida in june 2005. from left to right: chuck shaefer, joe burgess, kenny krysko, bob powell, and sandy echternacht. 218 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 ircf on the move desiree wong at the helm of the ircf booth in anaheim with izzy, ircf west coast spokesiguana. mark o’shea becomes an ircf member at the anaheim show, shown here with john binns. john binns, joel friesch, desiree wong, aj gutman, mary-jane garnett, sandy binns, and digger, ircf east coast spokesiguana at the daytona expo. an enthusiastic audience turned out for the auction to benefit west indian iguanas. iguana 11.4 238 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 powell surprisingly little is known about the natural history and behavior of lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima). this is an adult female from st. eustatius. photograph by robert powell. introduction iguanas in the lesser antilles comprise a mosaic of two species with populations of varying antiquity and origins. although the ancestors of extant and extirpated populations undoubtedly arrived in the islands from south america or offshore continental islands, some apparently managed the voyage by natural overwater dispersal via rafts of vegetation originating in flooding south american rivers. other populations evidently had a helping hand from humans. endemic lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima) appear to have been established since long before amerindians began their trek north from south america some 7,000 years ago. effectively isolated from their ancestors, they diverged and eventually colonized as many as 17 major islands on eight island banks. similarly, some insular populations of green iguanas (i. iguana) appear to predate human arrival in the archipelago, with those on st. lucia and saba (and maybe monserrat) developing sufficient genetic and morphological differences (malone and davis 2003) that they might warrant taxonomic distinction. populations on the southernmost islands (e.g., grenada, st. vincent and the grenadines) also probably originated from ancestors that arrived by natural means, and the lack of distinction from mainland ancestors may merely reflect geographic proximity, occasional recruitment by means of more recent rafting events, and similar selective pressures. however, some evidence suggests that amerindians, may have translocated iguanas from island to island, establishing populations destined to serve as sources of food during later trips. in addition, large numbers of individuals have been released on islands either intentionally or accidentally in association with the international pet trade. consequently, individual island populations include interbreeding mixtures of animals of both species, and at least some green iguana populations may include both descendants of ancestors predating human settlement and others from released or escaped pets within the past several decades. status of iguana delicatissima the species is listed in cites appendix ii and as “vulnerable” in the most current iucn red list (hilton-taylor 2000). all populations are protected from hunting, although enforcement ranges from non-existent to sporadic. the species’ original range extended from martinique in the south to anguilla in the north. however, populations have been extirpated on barbuda, saint kitts, nevis, antigua, les îles des saintes, marie-galante, and st.-martin/st. maarten. breuil (2002) recently listed the populations on dominica, îles de la petite terre, and la désirade as vulnerable. apparently only that on petite terre is stable and conservation of iguanas (iguana delicatissima and i. iguana) in the lesser antilles robert powell department of biology, avila university, kansas city, mo 64145, usa (powellr@mail.avila.edu) abstract.—lesser antillean iguana populations include at least two species, iguana delicatissima and i. iguana, the latter of which may actually represent several species-level taxa. iguana delicatissima is endemic to the region, as are at least two unique populations of i. iguana. other populations in the region may have arrived naturally from south american by means of over-water dispersal, been introduced by amerindians within the past 7,000 years, or been introduced within the past several decades as a by-product of the international pet trade. although most extant populations of i. delicatissima are critically endangered, declines have been documented for several, and the gene pools of others have been contaminated as a consequence of hybridization with introduced populations of i. iguana, the species is considered only “vulnerable” according to iucn red list criteria. iguana iguana is not listed. protection is afforded both species under the auspices of cites appendix ii, which lists all iguanids, but which includes provision for the harvest and export of i. iguana from many nations without consideration of the genetic distinctiveness of any population. most island populations are small, which renders them vulnerable to natural or human-mediated, stochastic or non-random events. in addition to hybridization, development-related habitat destruction and alteration, introduction of alien plants, predators, and competitors, and ongoing hunting pressure contribute to the precarious state of most populations. conservation plans must be implemented and will have to include provisions for surveys and field research, establishment of protected areas within which livestock must be controlled, predator control strategies in some instances, extensive educational efforts, and, in at least the instance of the st. lucian iguana, a captive-breeding and headstarting program. key words: lesser antillean iguanas, iguana delicatissima, green iguanas, iguana iguana, lesser antilles, conservation, habitat degradation, mammalian predators and competitors, hybridization iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 239lesser antillean iguanas � only that on dominica is of even moderate size (anonymous 2004a). however, even the “stable” population on petite terre suffered greatly during a prolonged drought in 2001 (breuil 2002 and references therein). breuil (2002) listed populations on basse-terre, îlet chancel (martinique), and st.-barthélemy as endangered, and those on antigua, anguilla, barbuda, île fourchue and satellites (st.-barthélemy), grande-terre, martinique, st.-martin, and st. eustatius as critically endangered — and those on antigua, barbuda, and st.-martin/st. maarten have already disappeared (fogarty et al. 2004), along with populations on st. christopher (st. kitts), nevis, and marie-galante. status of iguana iguana because of the species’ broad continental range, which extends from méxico through central america and much of northern south america, and a general lack of recognition of genetic variability among populations, protective measures are considerably less stringent than for i. delicatissima. iguana iguana is listed in cites appendix ii, but export quotas exist for many countries, primarily for live animals (pet trade) or products (leather goods and meat). no distinction is made for native versus introduced or for continental versus insular populations. hunting is usually prohibited, but enforcement of laws is lax at best. in grenada, green iguanas are considered game animals (powell 2004), with a “regulated” hunting season and bag limits. both are routinely ignored by local hunters. in the lesser antilles (breuil 2002, schwartz and henderson 1991), presumably native populations occur on grenada, st. vincent and the grenadines, st. lucia, saba, and montserrat. populations of unknown or mixed origin are on martinique, guadeloupe, les îles des saintes, and marie-galante; and populations presumed or known to be introduced occur on antigua, barbuda, st.-martin/st. maarten, and anguilla. a population on barbados is extirpated (breuil 2002). island populations and threats as for all island species, especially those on small islands, populations are at constant risk of extirpation. many lesser antillean islands can provide suitable habitat, but often are less than ideal for large animals vulnerable to extinction. most islands are small, which inevitably leads to small population sizes and an increased risk of extirpation due to natural or human-mediated, stochastic or non-random events. human population growth with accompanying improvements in infrastructure, often associated with increasing demands of tourist-related development, leads to habitat destruction and alteration. in addition, introduction of alien predators and competitors and ongoing hunting pressure all contribute to the iguanas’ plight. these threats and their impact on iguana populations are essentially similar to those facing populations of rock iguanas (cyclura spp.) in the bahamas, cayman islands, and greater antilles, and have been discussed previously in this issue by alberts (2004), burton (2004a), and wilson and vogel (2004). however, two additional, separate threats face populations of i. delicatissima on st. eustatius and on martinique, guadeloupe, and possibly anguilla. mexican creeper (antigonon sp.) was introduced onto st. eustatius as an ornamental garden plant, but has escaped and covers entire regions of the island, where it actively threatens native vegetation (fogarty et al. 2004). no effective means of control has been identified. even goats find the creeper unpalatable and will eat it only in the absence of any alternatives. the impact on plants consumed by iguanas has not been assessed, but the danger is obvious. 240 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 powell the most obvious feature distinguishing st. lucian iguanas (iguana iguana) from those on other lesser antillean islands is the prominent “horns.” photograph by matt morton. adult saban iguanas (iguana iguana) are melanistic and become completely black with age. photograph by john s. parmerlee, jr. a lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) from anguilla. note the lack of an enlarged subtympanic scale, which distinguishes this species from i. iguana. photograph by glenn gerber. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 241lesser antillean iguanas the second threat facing populations of i. delicatissima on martinique and guadeloupe is the possibility of hybridization with introduced populations of i. iguana. the possibility of previous, “natural” contact between the two species on various lesser antillean islands cannot be disregarded, despite the fact that the natural distribution of the two species appears to be allopatric. fossil remains of i. iguana are known from grandeterre (guadeloupe), where i. delicatissima presumably occurs naturally. also, breuil (2002) noted that the one figure in seba (1734) that was not an illustration of i. iguana and on which laurenti (1768) largely based his description of i. delicatissima was probably a hybrid, indicating that contact between the two species is not a recent phenomenon (see pasachnik et al. 2005 for a complete list of pertinent references and an extensive discussion of the species’ nomenclatural history). intermittent contact, with the possibility of introgression into native populations of either species, quite possibly occurred on several islands (although the statement in anonymous 2004a that “dominica, la désirade and la petite terre are the only islands where just iguana delicatissima is thought to live” is not warranted or accurate, as no reason exists to doubt the “purity” of populations on anguilla or st. eustatius). regardless, in recent years, humanmediated introductions of i. iguana onto islands inhabited by i. delicatissima and reductions in the extent of suitable habitat caused by human encroachment have dramatically magnified the frequencies of contact between the two species on martinique and guadeloupe, where populations of “pure” i. delicatissima have essentially disappeared. distribution of lesser antillean iguanas. islands on which iguana delicatissima has been found are indicated by gray arrows, whereas those on which i. iguana has been found are indicated by white arrows. arrows with an x indicate that the population has been extirpated, those with an i indicate an introduced population, and those with question marks indicate populations of unknown origin (see text). note that no island is known to have ever supported two native populations of different species. in 1995, as a consequence of hurricane luis, a floating mat of logs and uprooted trees carried at least 15 i. iguana, presumably from guadeloupe, to anguilla (censky et al. 1998), providing irrefutable evidence of over-water dispersal by rafting. although the “raft” landed near the eastern tip of anguilla, far from the areas occupied by native i. delicatissima (hodge et al. 2003), a decision to catch and destroy any green iguanas was implemented in order to avoid any possibility of contaminating the native gene pool. although recent reports indicate that green iguanas still occur on anguilla (hodge 2003), no evidence exists that hybridization has occurred. looking to the future unlike essentially all other west indian iguanas, management strategies developed for the conservation of lesser antillean populations face the possibly insurmountable hurdle of involving a number of different governmental entities in any development and implementation of species recovery plans. complicating matters even more is the reality that needs vary considerably from island to island. however, some generalities apply. if iguana delicatissima and unique insular populations of i. iguana are to be saved, plans will have to include surveys and field research, establishment of protected areas within which livestock must be controlled, predator control strategies, massive educational efforts, and, in a few instances, captive-breeding and headstarting programs. we know surprisingly little about the abundance and distribution of lesser antillean iguanas. basic surveys have utilized various methods, many of which are not comparable. also, because iguanas often are confined to the most rugged and remote regions of the respective islands on which they occur, many populations have not been surveyed recently — and some not at all. furthermore, the basic biology of most populations has not been examined and many of the available studies may be compromised to varying degrees by focusing on animals acclimated to some degree of human activity. assumptions that each population requires substantially the same essential resources may or may not apply. we simply lack the information necessary to make that determination. consequently, we can only 242 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 powell st. lucian iguanas, like those from saba, are morphologically and genetically distinct from populations on the south and central american mainland and the more southerly lesser antillean islands. photograph by matt morton. the unusual pattern of this juvenile iguana iguana from saba provides support for the contention that this island population is specifically distinct. photograph by john s. parmerlee, jr. like most other populations of iguana delicatissima, that on anguilla is critically endangered. photograph by glenn gerber. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 243lesser antillean iguanas guess at changes resulting from recent development or at the impact of hurricanes on populations occupying increasingly smaller parcels of suitable habitats. any effective management plan must include provisions for a single administrative entity that will be responsible for establishing guidelines for surveys and for training participants to assure the comparably reliable data that will be necessary for establishing priorities. basic surveys are most necessary on montserrat, where the status of the i. iguana population is unknown and on islands, such as st. vincent, the grenadines, and grenada, from which we have no current data on the populations. in addition, surveys on islands where i. delicatissima is in gravest danger of extinction (e.g., anguilla, île fourchue and satellites, and st. eustatius) should be implemented on a recurring and regular basis. populations of iguanas on guadeloupe and martinique, which may represent hybrid “swarms,” need to be monitored in order to evaluate ongoing interactions between the two species in order to better understand the relevant dynamics in anticipation of possible contact between them elsewhere. field research on the basic biology of populations are needed for all populations, but priority should be given to better understanding the unique populations of i. iguana on saba and st. lucia (morton 2004) and those populations of i. delicatissima in gravest danger of extinction (see above). human encroachment on iguana habitats is inevitable unless protected areas are established and their boundaries enforced. the situation is least critical on islands (e.g., saba and dominica) with established reserves and rugged terrains that defy development in many areas. the needs are greatest on islands already heavily developed (e.g., st.-barthélemy), with essentially no public land (e.g., anguilla), or where protected an adult female iguana delicatissima on a tamarind tree in st. eustatius, a favorite food tree. photograph by robert powell. an adult male green iguana (iguana iguana) from st. maarten. all iguanas on st. maarten are descendants of escaped or released pets. the lesser antillean iguanas (i. delicatissima) endemic to the island have been extirpated. photograph by john s. parmerlee, jr. areas exist, but are being degraded rapidly by invasive plants and free-ranging livestock (e.g., st. eustatius). establishing satellite populations to reduce the threat of stochastic events, which has been implemented, for example, for several rock iguanas (see alberts 2004), is not practical in most instances. either satellite islands with suitable habitat do not exist or they are privately owned and unavailable. also, many of the possible candidates support populations of feral dogs or cats or introduced mongooses (herpestes javanicus), which would have to be eliminated at considerable cost in money and effort. education is critical for any conservation effort. local residents of many lesser antillean islands are unaware that native iguana populations are endangered, that populations on several islands are unique, or that populations on other islands are composed entirely of individuals that are descended from escaped pets. that lack of awareness translates into a lack of support for conservation plans and a lack of concern for ongoing exploitation of iguanas for food, often by guest workers from other nations where iguana harvesting is a well-established tradition. this can be countered only by extensive educational programs. current efforts are sporadic and vary in effectiveness. anguilla, for example, has issued commemorative stamps and the national trust successfully solicited funding for a book on the island’s reptiles and amphibians (hodge et al. 2003), which is being used in educational programs. a consortium of private and public entities on saba has established a month-long “sea & learn” program (http://www.seaandlearn.org/), during which resident and visiting “experts” provide educational programs and outings for residents, students, and tourists. the st. eustatius national parks (stenapa) foundation regularly visits the nation’s public and private schools and provides opportunities for students to learn about conservation both in and out of the classroom. in addition, with financial support from the international iguana society, signs promoting iguana conservation have been posted across the island (anonymous 2004b, 2004c; fogarty et al. 2004). on st. lucia, the international iguana foundation and the durrell wildlife conservation trust have funded signs asking people to keep dogs on leashes in areas occupied by iguanas (bendon 2003). captive-breeding programs for i. delicatissima exist at the jersey zoo in the english channel islands and the memphis and san diego zoos in the united states. however, success has been limited, with only the jersey zoo producing offspring (one in 1997 and eight in 2000). to the best of my knowledge, no captive-breeding programs for any lesser antillean green iguanas exist. some discussion on anguilla has addressed the possibility of headstarting individuals in anticipation of establishing a satellite population on an offshore island, but concrete plans are yet to be completed. on st. lucia, iguana nests are monitored and protected, but no headstarting program exists. the st. lucian iguana, however, is a prime candidate for headstarting and for an ex situ captive breeding program. the principal impediment appears to be a general lack of recognition that this population is unique and worthy of such efforts. malone and davis (2003) eloquently discussed the sometimes tragic consequences of establishing conservation priorities on taxonomies that do not reflect true phylogenetic relationships, citing the extinction of all but one population of the tuatara (sphenodon guentheri), that mistakenly had been considered but a subspecies of the more widely distributed s. punc244 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 powell an emaciated green iguana (iguana iguana) after an over-water arrival on anguilla via a floating mass of vegetation. photograph by judy dudley. this young adult saban iguana is mostly black, but retains some markings on the head. photograph by robert powell. iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 245lesser antillean iguanas tatus and, consequently, for which no protection was afforded. malone and davis (2003) also provided data indicating that similarly erroneous taxonomies exist for west indian iguanas. the elevation of cyclura lewisi to full species (burton 2004b) effectively corrected one error, but any formal recognition of distinctive clades within i. iguana has not been addressed. management plans must be developed and implemented for lesser antillean iguanas, but two substantive barriers exist: (1) governmental agencies and non-governmental conservation organizations must recognize the value of the unique insular populations currently classified as i. iguana and move ahead with conservation plans without waiting for the erroneous taxonomy to be formally corrected. (2) those same entities must realize the precarious situation facing i. delicatissima, in spite of the fact that, as a species, it is merely “vulnerable” according to the current iucn red list (hilton-taylor 2000). in light of the precarious existence of nearly all populations, the extirpation of several, and observed declines and genetic contamination in others, those that remain must be afforded effective protection now, before the situation deteriorates further. in the meantime, educational efforts must be expanded or developed and implemented, with a particular emphasis on the potential harm to current and future conservation efforts if no consideration is given to the genetic distinctiveness or innate biological value of populations of either species. this gravid female saban iguana was quite tolerant of humans. photograph by robert powell. adult st lucian iguanas feature distinct bands of black or dark gray on a pale background. photograph by matt morton. acknowledgments i thank michel breuil, ellen j. censky, robert w. henderson, karim v. d. hodge, john s. parmerlee, jr., and a host of undergraduate students, most notably sean p. fogarty and stesha a. pasachnik, who focused their attention almost exclusively on iguanas, for their collegiality and support over the years. national science foundation grant nos. dbi-9732257 and dbi-0242589 funded fieldwork. references alberts, a. c. 2004. conservation strategies for west indian rock iguanas (genus cyclura): current efforts and future directions. iguana (journal of the international iguana society) 11:212–223. anonymous. 2004a. lesser antillean iguana. unpubl. report, durrell wildlife conservation trust, trinity, jersey, english channel islands, british isles (http://www.jerseyzoo.co.uk/). anonymous. 2004b. iguana newsbriefs: educational signs for st. eustatius. iguana (journal of the international iguana society) 11:73. anonymous. 2004c. iguana newsbriefs: iis draws attention to statian iguanas. iguana (journal of the international iguana society) 11:130. bendon, j. s. 2003. the st. lucian green iguana — a special case? iguana (journal of the international iguana society) 10:71–78. breuil, m. 2002. histoire naturelle des amphibiens et reptiles terrestres de l’archipel guadeloupéen. guadaloupe, saintmartin, saint-barthélemy. patrimoines naturels 54:1–339. burton, f. j. 2004a. battling extinction: a view forward for the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi). iguana (journal of the international iguana society) 11:232-237. burton, f. j. 2004b. revision to species of cyclura nubila lewisi, the grand cayman blue iguana. caribbean journal of science 40:198–203. censky, e. j., k. hodge, and j. dudley. 1998. over-water dispersal of lizards due to hurricanes. nature 395:556. fogarty, s. p., v. h. zero, and r. powell. 2004. revisiting st. eustatius: estimating the population size of lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima). iguana (journal of the international iguana society) 11:138–146. hilton-taylor, c. 2000. 2000 iucn red list of threatened species. iucn — the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. hodge, k. v. d. 2003. evidence of green iguana reproduction in anguilla. iguana (journal of the international iguana society) 10:94. hodge, k. v. d., e. j. censky, and r. powell. 2003. the reptiles and amphibians of anguilla, british west indies. anguilla national trust, the valley. laurenti, j. n. 1768. specimen medicum, exhibens synopsin reptilium emendatum cum experimentis circa venena et antidota reptilium austriacorum, quod authoritate et consensu. j. thomæ trattern, viennae. malone, c. l. and s. k. davis. 2003 (“2004”). genetic contributions to caribbean iguana conservation, pp. 45–57. in: a. c. alberts, r. l. carter, w. k. hayes, and e. p. martins (eds.), iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. morton, m. 2004. st. lucian iguana project: 2003 summary. iguana (journal of the international iguana society) 11:38. pasachnik, s. a., m. breuil, and r. powell. 2005. iguana delicatissima. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles: in press. powell, r. 2004. lesser antillean iguanas, iguana delicatissima and i. iguana. iguana (journal of the international iguana society) 11:37. schwartz, a. and r. w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. seba, a. 1734. locupletissimi rerum naturalium thesuari accurata descriptio, et iconibus artificosissimis expressio, per universam physices historiam. tomas i. j. wetsterium, g. smith, and janssonio-waesbergios, amstelae [= amsterdam] (partial reprint: 2001. le cabinet des curiosités naturelles. les tableaux coloriés complets. taschen, köln [all the plates are reproduced in color from handpainted volumes conserved at the koninklijke bibliothek of la haye, the netherlands. one volume without the text of seba]). wilson, b. s., o. f. robinson, and p. vogel. 2004. status of the jamaican iguana (cyclura collei): assessing 15 years of conservation effort. iguana (journal of the international iguana society) 11:224-231. author biography robert powell is professor of biology at avila university in kansas city, missouri. he completed his ph.d. at the university of missouri–columbia. for the past 20 years, his research focus has been on the herpetofaunal communities of the west indies. his primary interest is population and community ecology and how insular species have responded to humanaltered habitats. he is co-author or co-editor of four books and has published hundreds of peer-reviewed articles, often with students that frequently accompany him to the islands. he is editor of the catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (society for the study of amphibians and reptiles) and iguana (journal of the international iguana society). 246 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 powell iguana 12.2 b&w text 90 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 sajdak and berg timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus) reach the northernmost extent of their range on the bluff prairies in wisconsin. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 91 rattlesnakes are an essential bit of americana, confined solely to the new world. the “belled serpent” was one of the most distinctive and frightening members of a fauna that confronted the pilgrims after their arrival in massachusetts. man and the rattlesnake have always had a checkered relationship — on one hand hated, feared, bountied, on the other, used as a sports logo to adorn baseball caps and once hoisted aloft by colonial militiamen over the motto, “don’t tread on me.” even today, in parts of the appalachians, handling rattlesnakes as proof of faith is practiced in a few fundamentalist churches. shamefully, in several parts of the country, rattlesnake roundups still attest to the uglier emotions the snakes elicit. the timber rattlesnake (crotalus horridus) is one of the largest and most widely ranging species of rattler. the timber rattlesnake ranged from southern maine south through the appalachians, along the coastal plain from virginia to northern florida, and westward to east texas, oklahoma, kansas, and extreme southeastern nebraska. in the mississippi river valley, the snake meanders north with the river into wisconsin and minnesota, making minor excursions along some of the larger tributaries. in wisconsin, the timber rattler reaches the northernmost edge of its range, just barely below 45° n latitude, perhaps 20 miles north of historical records from vermont and over a hundred miles farther north than current new york and vermont populations. declining populations ever since the arrival of europeans, humans have been in incessant advance, the timber in constant retreat. originally known from 32 states and the province of ontario, the snake has been extirpated in delaware, rhode island, maine, and canada. it remains only in a bare handful of sites in new england. for another example, in ohio, historical records are known from at least 20 counties, whereas current populations are known from only nine. beginning in the 1970s, some effort was made in various states to repeal bounties and enact protective legislation. in wisconsin, a bounty was paid until 1973. wisconsin bounty records themselves highlight the rattler’s decline. in the county where our study was conducted, the number of bounties paid dropped from approximately 10,000 in 1965 to only 2,000 in 1972. across the river in one minnesota county, the number of bounties declined from 4,955 in 1980 to 191 in 1987. both of us have played a part in gaining protection for this snake. in 1973, rich was part of the bounty repeal effort, attending public meetings and contacting people. in 1997, craig, with david sorensen from the milwaukee county zoo and gary casper and robert henderson from the milwaukee public museum, petitioned the state of wisconsin to list the snake as a “threatened species.” however, politics being politics, listing a venomous snake as “threatened” was not possible, but “protected wild animal” was. discretion being the better part of valor, in 1998, the timber rattlesnake became a protected species in wisconsin. during the 1980s and 90s, one of our rite-of-spring traditions was to drive across the state from milwaukee one day each year in mid-may, climb the bluffs overlooking the river, and revel in the beauty of the place and the returning warmth and sun after a long winter, and to see if the rattlers were still at home. like many other rattlesnake admirers, we were aware of rattlesnakes on the bluffs: wisconsin timber rattlesnakes richard sajdak1 and craig berg2 1pittsford, ny 14534 2milwaukee county zoo, milwaukee, wi 53226 photographs by r. sajdak except where indicated. the beeping kept getting stronger as i moved in, and inside my boots my toes were beginning to curl. it was my third day of radio tracking timber rattlesnakes, and my largest snake, a four foot male later to become famous as the swamp fox because of his love for a soggy patch of creek bottom, was almost certainly coiled up somewhere in the tangle of branches of a huge fallen oak tree. over the ensuing weeks i would grow confident (and occasionally overconfident) in approaching venomous snakes hidden in tangles, but today i was nervous. — rich sajdak wisconsin timber rattlesnakes � rich sajdak searching for a timber rattlesnake. 92 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 the snakes’ decline, and of new roads and new building encroaching and splintering their habitat. over the years, the visits were slowly transformed into a very low energy effort to study the snakes. we soon realized from conversations and reading ‘the literature’ that next to nothing was known about these isolated upper-mississippi river valley rattlesnakes. anecdotal reports, a few surveys, interviews with old bounty hunters, and extrapolation from studies by bill brown and howard reinert in new york and pennsylvania were all we had. bob hay of the wisconsin department of natural resources’ bureau of endangered resources made it clear that, although he and others in the bureau were concerned about the timber rattlesnake, limited resources and a plate full of more severely threatened species meant that funding for rattlesnake studies would remain on the back burner. studying rattlesnakes while rich was reptile curator at the milwaukee county zoo, he put together a funding proposal to intensively study a rattlesnake population using radiolocation and tagging. the goal was to amass the basic ecological and behavioral data on wisconsin populations. these would be necessary for the develsajdak and berg the gray areas indicate the current known distribution of the timber rattlesnake (crotalus horridus). the species occurs sparingly along some streams on the tifton plateau in south-central georgia. also, notice the narrow corridor extending north along the mississippi river, where prime rattlesnake habitat is associated with prairie habitats on bluffs overlooking the river. jo h n s ea ly a n d w . h . m a r ti n the largest threats to timber rattlesnakes in the upper midwest are loss of bluff prairie habitat and development. notice the thick growth of red cedar overgrowing prairie on the point. in the last two years, five roads and over one hundred vacation home lots have been cut along the bluff tops within a mile of our study site. wisconsin timber rattlesnakes opment of future conservation management plans. although the project was not funded by the time he left the zoo, craig took over the curatorial position, and continued to push for the study. in 1998, the zoological society of milwaukee county agreed to fund the project. craig administered the grant, and rich became the primary researcher. during the heat of the summer, rich was free to spend five months a year living in a ratty old trailer, climbing 600-foot bluffs every day, and dodging swarms of mosquitoes, stinging nettles, and thunder storms. during the winter, craig had the pleasure of treading through snow, tobogganing down hills on his backside, and fending off frostbite. heaven! of course, as often as possible, we shared each other’s joys. with bob hay’s help, we began our study with six snakes, two large males, two gravid females, a juvenile male, and a juvenile female captured along rock ledges in open prairie habitat on high bluffs overlooking the mississippi river. in wisconsin, iowa, minnesota, and northern illinois, these bluff prairies are classic rattlesnake habitat, and locations favored by old time bounty hunters. many residents are surprised to find that the rattlesnakes leave this habitat. our study site, on an extensive tract of state land, was relatively undisturbed, with huge ravines forested with oak trees and a large area of swamp and marsh habitat along a nearby creek. as we followed the snakes through the first year, several things soon became apparent. the two gravid females confined themselves to relatively short movements within the prairie, moving between ledges and flat rocks. these open habitats were sunny, hot, and dry, and the females used the heat to maintain body temperatures over 5°c higher than those maintained by male snakes (29.7°c versus 24.4°c). this pattern is well known in gravid snakes and is thought to help embryonic development. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 93 open bluff prairies are classic snake-hunter favorites. these prairies are not only critical as den and birthing locations, but reservoirs of rare prairie plants as well. bob hay, armund bartz, and craig berg processing a rattlesnake in the field. the snake is restrained in a clear plastic tube for safety. length and weight are measured, the snake is sexed, rattles counted and painted, tissue sample taken, pit-tagged, and released. while the females basked in the prairie, the big males moved off the bluff into the wooded ravines to hunt. one snake stayed in the ravines, while the “swamp fox” moved on into the creek bottom. both snakes preferred cooler, more shaded conditions than the females, and, rather than rocks, they were most often found touching or close to logs. the juveniles seemed intermediate in habitat preference. they were found in or near the prairie habitat, but in oak openings: areas with more oak trees and more closed canopy. while both males moved a mile or so from their capture location, the juveniles and females moved only about a quarter mile. as august arrived, the males became more active, and were found courting females or copulating on several occasions. the gravid snakes continued to move from rock to ledge, leaving me to wonder each time whether this, finally, would be the birthing site. at last, on the 30th, one female gave birth, followed by the other two days later, each giving birth to six or eight foot-long babies. after only four or five days, the females had abandoned the neonates and the birth site, moving over the bluff top into the wooded ravine, searching for a meal in the few weeks before hibernation. in succeeding years, we found that hunting females, unlike gravid ones, behaved like males, moving into wooded ravines or swamps to hunt. one female required two hunting seasons to gain enough weight to reproduce again (a three-year cycle), whereas the other needed four hunting seasons (a five-year cycle). over the years, we found that females average a three-year reproductive cycle, although we have seen cycles as short as two or as long as five years. in 2004, four of six females in our study appeared to be gravid. one of the gravid snakes had not given birth in five years. this observation suggests that reproductive events may exhibit pulses that reflect variations in weather and food supply. by early august, all hunting snakes had reached their maximum distances from the den, and had begun a slow trek back. by early september, snakes had begun entering the den. the last to enter were the two post-reproductive females, one entering during the last week of september, and the other in early october. since that start in 1999, we have radio-tracked 19 rattlesnakes, tagged over 100, and located seven dens. we found that, like their cousins in the northern reaches of the appalachians, they have a very short activity period. our snakes began emerging from dens in late april and may, although we have occasionally seen snakes out as early as 4 april or still in the 94 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 sajdak and berg a large gravid female regulates her body temperature by adjusting how much of her body is exposed to the sun. one of our radio-equipped rattlesnakes in classic ambush posture. having picked up the odor of a chipmunk trail along the top of the log, the snake settles in, ready to strike as the rodent passes by. snakes will maintain this position for days at a time. a clutch of neonates lies basking at the edge of the birth rock. the snakes are less than a day old, and have not yet shed. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 95wisconsin timber rattlesnakes den in mid-june. rattlesnakes begin entering the dens in september or as late as 19 october. oddly, timber rattlesnakes leave the den weeks later and enter the den weeks before black ratsnakes (elaphe obsoleta) and blue racers (coluber constrictor) using the same dens. rattlers moved as much as a mile or mile and a half away from the dens. we found that, on our original study site, an extensive tract of relatively undisturbed state land, the snakes preferred hunting in oak woodland or swamp woodland habitats, and avoided entering agricultural fields or crossing highways. however, in other locations, on private land in areas closer to humans, timbers utilized fields and even backyards, where they sometimes came to grief. the snakes grow very slowly, taking at least seven years to reach maturity. in new york, bill brown has recaptured timber rattlesnakes he originally tagged over twenty years earlier, and believes they can approach a thirty-year life span. our study is not of that duration, but, based on our recaptures, one of our big snakes like the “swamp fox” would have to be at least 15 years old. we suspect that we will eventually confirm a life span of well over 20 years. in years past, we had often wondered if the denning behavior of wisconsin snakes would prove to be very different from the rattlesnakes that bill brown was studying in up-state new york. the northernmost populations of timber rattlesnakes in wisconsin are probably reproductively isolated from those in new england. one might expect to see differences in snakes that are following separate evolutionary paths. on the other hand, the severe winters in the north are likely to be an extremely important evolutionary constraint. similar environmental challenges are likely to yield similar results. as we learned, the denning behavior of wisconsin snakes is almost identical to those in new york. a juvenile rattlesnake lying exposed in a rainstorm. only extreme conditions, such as an unseasonable snowstorm, will make a hunting rattlesnake take cover. table. comparison of denning behavior in wisconsin and new york timber rattlesnakes. wisconsin new york* earliest emergence 6 april 8 april general emergence 7–21 may 7–21 may general ingress 14 september – 1 october 14 september – 1 october latest ingress 19 october 16 october mean body temperature 10.8°c (51.4°f)(6 dens/1yr) 10.5°c (50.9°f)(1 den/3 yrs) *from brown (1992) although we do not know what the inside of a timber rattlesnake den looks like, a recent observation does lead to interesting speculation. might timber rattlesnakes hibernate in pools of water found in the rocky recesses of their dens? during this past winter (2004–2005), we had to bring two large males into the lab. during the month of november, when they would normally be moving deeper into their dens, both animals spent a considerable amount of effort trying to push their way through the bottoms of their drinking bowls. this behavior had not been seen in two previous months of captivity. could they have been trying to hibernate underwater? several tantalizing clues suggest that this might be the case. in the pine barrens of new jersey, timber rattlesnakes do hibernate underwater. also, timber rattlesnakes frequently emerge from hibernation bearing fungal sores similar to those found on fox snakes (elaphe vulpina), another species known to hibernate underwater. rattlers and local residents one of our biggest surprises and unexpected rewards came not from the snakes, but from local residents. we had initially planned to keep as low a profile as possible, to avoid stirring up trouble. we had visions of some of the angry opponents we remembered from the bounty repeal and rattlesnake protection meetings deciding that a visit to the study site would end this nonsense. the problem, of course, was that our effort to keep the work secret was impossible. also, if people don’t know what’s going on, they will imagine the worst — and the fact that the “usual suspect ” drove a vehicle sporting new york license plates didn’t help! within a month, we heard of rumors that snakes were being moved and introduced onto private lands. the vow of silence was broken. casual discussions revealed that, while people didn’t exactly like the snakes, they had a great deal of curiosity about them. additionally, we had cut ourselves off from a lot of information and help. we met several snake hunters from the bounty days, who told us about other dens and things they had seen. likewise, they were surprised by many of the things we were discovering. most of their work was done at the dens or nearby ledges and rocks. rattlesnakes hunting in the woods are so scattered and so well camouflaged that these hunters, despite years of experience, knew almost nothing about the biggest parts of a rattlesnake’s life. one man first said that the project was a waste of time because “lots of timbers” were still around. a week later, he mentioned that he had been talking with some friends, and 96 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 sajdak and berg a controlled burn: without periodic burns and selective cutting, most bluff prairies would become overgrown with red cedar and buckthorn, eliminating rare prairie plants and degrading rattlesnake habitat. due to its slope and exposure to the winter sun, this den is mostly free of snow even in february. implanting a transmitter into one of our anesthetized females at the university of wisconsin veterinary hospital. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 97wisconsin timber rattlesnakes that, while a lot of snakes were still around, many places where they used to find snakes don’t have them anymore. kirk soon became a friend. he showed us new locations, and joined us in tracking timbers in the swamps and woods. in 2000, we put a transmitter into a rattlesnake that spent weeks at a time in junk piles right behind his barn. the snake became “kirk’s snake,” and the rattlesnakes gained an advocate. other locals would call kirk or us if they found a snake, so we could remove it. we have come to believe that for any conservation effort to succeed, especially those involving feared and despised species, the education and support of local residents is an essential component. just last year, we heard about a school bus full of kids that came upon a timber rattlesnake crossing the road, a sure recipe for a dead snake in past years. the kids and driver got out to see if it was one of our study snakes, which have painted rattles. they let it crawl off to bask another day. now that’s success! acknowledgments funding for the study was provided by the zoological society of milwaukee county and the milwaukee county zoo. robert hay and the bureau of endangered resources, wisconsin department of natural resources gave invaluable support. john sealy and w. h. martin provided the distribution map. bob hay, john kivikoski, armund bartz, and many others contributed gallons of sweat and many days in the field. lester flick provided hard-won experience. kirk holliday gave us his time, sweat, good will, and home. rich’s wife, linn, was long-suffering and always supportive. references brown, w. s. 1991. female reproductive ecology in a northern population of the timber rattlesnake, crotalus horridus. herpetologica 47:101–115. brown, w. s. 1992. emergence, ingress, and seasonal captures at dens of northern timber rattlesnakes, crotalus horridus, pp. 251–258. in: j. a. campbell and e. d. brodie, jr. (eds.), biology of the pit vipers. selva, tyler texas. brown, w. s. 1993. biology, status, and management of the timber rattlesnake (crotalus horridus): a guide for conservation. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, lawrence, kansas. casper, g. and r. hay 1998. timber rattlesnake homepage. http:// www.mpm.edu/collect/vertzo/herp/timber/factshe1.html. reinert, h. k., d. cundall, and l. m. bushar. 1984. foraging behavior of the timber rattlesnake, crotalus horridus. copeia 1984:976–981. rubio, m. 1998. rattlesnake: portrait of a predator. smithsonian institution press, washington, dc. tyning, t. f. and d. w. kimball (eds.). 1992. conservation of the timber rattlesnake in the northeast and the timber rattlesnake in new england – a symposium. massachusetts audubon society, lincoln, massachusetts. several of our radio-equipped snakes made forays into bushes and trees. here, “kirk’s snake” courts a pre-shed female. his head lies on top of hers. a r m u n d b a r tz iguana 12.4 b&w text 222 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 rupp, incháustegui, and arias ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) on isla cabritos. th o m a s w ie w a n d t after the iucn ssc iguana specialist group drafted a species recovery plan for ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) during a workshop in santo domingo on 17–18 november 2002, grupo jaragua (gj) began systematically searching for populations on the barahona peninsula. work was initiated in december 2002 by looking for informants who would share their knowledge of the species. subsequently, gj scheduled field trips to verify the information. on 8 april 2003, we found the first signs of a ricord’s iguana. they consisted of a head, a stomach, and the intestines of a freshly killed animal. the body was gone. somebody had taken it, possibly with the intention of preparing a meal. since then we have been able to find more animals, live ones, their dens and nests. major help in making these discoveries accrued from the integration of a young man from pedernales into our research team. his name is miguel mella pérez. salvador (the savior), as he is commonly known, never had a formal education. he spent most of his youth hunting and trapping iguanas with his uncle “turco,” who was a folkloric figure who made a living catching and selling iguanas. turco was killed in a gunconservation of cyclura ricordii in the southwestern dominican republic and a brief history of the grupo jaragua ernst rupp, sixto incháustegui, and yvonne arias grupo jaragua inc. santo domingo, dominican republic photographs by ernst rupp unless otherwise indicated. iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 223conservation of cyclura ricordii � young ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) are testament to successful recruitment into extant populations. fight 17 years ago when he tried to recover some of his stolen goats. salvador is still pursuing iguanas, but now for the good of the species. with his gift of patient observation, he has acquired an immense knowledge about iguanas that has helped us to compile valuable data needed for the conservation of the species. also strengthening our research efforts was the involvement of jairo isaa matos arache. pirín, as we call him, made it to 3rd grade. he spent many years trying to make ends meet by burning and selling charcoal. now he is dedicated to conservation work. he is an excellent field assistant with a natural curiosity. he has been crucial in developing the simple methods that we use in our research on nesting ecology. on the barahona peninsula, c. ricordii can be found in an area of about 32 km2 just to the east of the town of pedernales. the area surrounds a low alluvial plain called “los olivares,” which consists of fertile reddish soils. during the past 30 years, los olivares (8 km2) has been successively cleared to make way for agricultural production under irrigation. unfortunately, this area also has been the major living and nesting grounds of c. ricordii. according to salvador and other local residents, the species maintained high population densities in los olivares before clearing began. the species is now confined to the periphery of los olivares, an area that consists of a mosaic of smaller depressions filled with reddish soils (fondos), marine terraces of limestone rock, and intervening areas covered by gravel and boulders. although of less value for agriculture, this periphery is conducive to the production of free-ranging cattle. the land in the area is owned by the state. in 2003, it had no legal protec224 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 rupp, incháustegui, and arias salvador (miguel mella pérez) with a rhinoceros iguana (cyclura cornuta). pirín (jairo isaa matos arache) measuring the depth of a cyclura ricordii nest. iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 225conservation of cyclura ricordii tive status, and persons with the necessary financial means often enclose state land with fences before clearing it and then declaring it to be their own property. pedernales is a small border town with a population of about 12,000. the jobless rate is above 50%. the proximity to impoverished haiti aggravates the economic situation. many haitian citizens are illegally crossing the border trying to earn a meager living by clearing land to produce short-term crops or burn charcoal. limestone mining and the production of cement in the cabo rojo area have generated some income during the past two years. bauxite mines in the lower regions of the nearby sierra de bahoruco also have been reopened. these activities, though economically beneficial to a small percentage of pedernales residents, have had a high environmental cost in the form of dust pollution and destruction of iguana (c. cornuta) habitat. being aware of the imminent danger of more destruction of remnant c. ricordii habitat, gj decided to initiate conservation measures based on a bottom-up approach. the basic principles of this approach are: (1) integration, participation, and empowerment of the main stakeholders in the local community in the conservation process. (2) an effective educational program to inform and convince the local community of the importance and value of endangered species. (3) conservation activities that generate economic benefits for the community. map of the southwestern dominican republic showing the areas where ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) are known to occur. jo h n b in n s a local support group has been formed. members of this group are young women and men from pedernales, whose love for nature has committed them to conservation. gj has provided logistical support and training as nature guides. the principal person responsible for this process is laura perdomo. laura never seems to get tired and never stops smiling. she studied veterinary medicine at the universidad nacional pedro henriquez ureña, santo domingo, and holds a master’s degree in management and conservation of wildlife from the universidad nacional de heredia, costa rica. the local support group has formed its own association of nature guides (aguinape). apart from showing visitors the wonderful and unique natural attractions around pedernales, they also are involved in environmental education in local schools and run a radio program to inform the general public of environmental issues. aguinape plays an important role in the strategy of promoting ecotourism in the southwestern region of the country, which has been declared a biosphere reserve by unesco. strong pressure exists from influential political groups to bring mass tourism to the region and turn the last pristine beaches into high-capacity resorts. gj has been spearheading a resistance movement to counteract those plans and to develop alternative tourist concepts that keep intact the natural resources of the region. in may of this year, the members of the town council of pedernales voted in favor of a resolution that declares their hometown a “town of sustainable tourism.” this resolution was the result of a process involving intense discussions by local stakeholders, including small business entrepreneurs, to decide their own future. they decided in favor of sustainable tourism. the town council passed another resolution in september. this establishes two “espacios municipales protegidos” (municipal protected areas). one involves wetlands close to cabo rojo that serve as an important bird sanctuary. the other, with an area of 85 km2, covers most of the presently known c. ricordii range north and east of los olivares as well as a fairly extensive buffer zone. a nature path is being built to allow visi226 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 rupp, incháustegui, and arias hatchling cyclura ricordii in the fondo de la malagueta, about 5 km northeast of pedernales. the nest was excavated between 19 may and 1 june 2004. emergence of the hatchling occurred on 2 september. how long the hatchling spent in the nest after hatching is unknown. hatchling cyclura ricordii in the fondo de la malagueta, about 5 km northeast of pedernales. iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 227conservation of cyclura ricordii tors to actually watch ricord’s and rhinoceros iguanas in the adjacent marine terrace. members of aguinape will guide tourists on the path, and salvador is providing the necessary training to find and correctly identify animals at a distance. two other local groups have access to the protected areas. one is the “asociación de bosque seco” (dry forest association), which extracts dead wood from the northern part of the protected area, where vegetation is denser. this association had been active in the zone long before the protected area was declared. to stop their activities would have created a social conflict that may have put in jeopardy the success of the resolution. the other group consists of beekeepers who are allowed to place hives in laura perdomo (center) on an excursion with nature guides from oviedo. members of aguinape during their general assembly meeting. esteban garrido is on the left, second row. designated spots. fences are presently built in strategic areas to prevent entry into the area by free-ranging cattle. the man responsible for the lobbying that was necessary to convince the mayor and members of the city council of the importance of establishing a protected area for ricord’s iguanas is alcibíades ledesma. he was born in pedernales and is an agricultural engineer by profession. he is the director of the “unidad de gestión ambiental municipal” (municipal environmental unit) and is responsible for the improvement of environmental conditions in and around pedernales. his love for and dedication to the local flora and fauna make him a valuable ally. another important ally has been the vice-secretary of protected areas and biodiversity of the ministry of environment and natural resources, angel daneris santana, who has cleared the legal pathways in order to establish the local municipal protected areas. while ricord’s iguanas may have gained some time and space to breathe more freely on the barahona peninsula, the situation for the population along the southern shore of lago enriquillo is still uncertain. in may 2005, gj began focusing considerable attention on that area. we have found juveniles and adults, but the actual distribution of the species in that region has not yet been studied. the future of the species may be bleak for those iguanas. the area has no legal protected status. the vegetation where ricord’s iguanas are found is impoverished. intensive charcoal burning in the past seems to have taken a heavy toll on the original flora. today, vegetation is dominated by only a few species (prosopis juliflora, cylindropuntia caribaea, opuntia moniliformis, and cephalocereus polygonus). trapping of iguanas and excavation of their dens also appears to be a major problem. signs of these activities can be seen everywhere. the problem is aggravated by the fact that people in the area believe that iguanas are a deadly threat to young goats. according to well-circulated stories that have never been substantiated, iguanas crawl under the bellies of young goats, rip the bellies open with their sharp crests, and supposedly eat the goats. overcoming such notoriety is difficult, and goat owners are not very happy to find iguanas in close vicinity to their animals. in addition to all the problems already listed, habitat destruction is rampant. just recently, the senator of the province ran a bulldozer through the area and opened up a 4 km-long 228 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 rupp, incháustegui, and arias alcibiades ledesma and ernst rupp discussed the resolution of protected areas with the mayor and members of the town council of pedernales well into the night. sixto incháustegui with gloria santana and other colleagues during field work at enriquillo lake. a n d r ea s sc h u b er t iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 229conservation of cyclura ricordii strip with the intention of clearing the land for agriculture. this illegal action within a ramsar site has been denounced by the ministry of environment and natural resources, which has taken legal action against the senator. the case was highlighted by the press and constituted one of the biggest recent environmental scandals in the country. nevertheless, the damage has already been done. in a situation where the majority of the people are without a stable income, clearing land for agricultural production is often popular and is perceived as an appropriate measure for improving the local economy. sustainable alternatives are not considered. with traditional beliefs that justify persecution of iguanas and a senator, who is a popular political figure, destroying iguana habitat to increase agricultural production, the task of securing a future for c. ricordii on the southern shore of lago enriquillo does not appear very promising — but this task is a challenge which has to be met. gravid female cyclura ricordii in search of a nesting site near pedernales. excavated cyclura ricordii den on the southern shore of lago enriquillo. note also the new den of a smaller animal in front of the dog. “pet” cyclura ricordii in the town of baitoa on the southern shore of lago enriquillo. the challenge of conserving ricord’s iguanas, rhinoceros iguanas, and other endangered species and habitats is complex and inevitably of long duration. we cannot save the iguanas by focusing solely on them as individual species. the southwestern dominican republic is one of the most important biodiversity sites not only of hispaniola, but also of the entire insular caribbean. for this reason, the first biosphere reserve of hispaniola was established there. jaragua bahoruco enriquillo biosphere reserve extends from beata and alto velo islands across the flat limestone plateau of the barahona peninsula, over the sierra de bahoruco, and into the lowlands of the neyba valley, the location of lago enriquillo. having a biosphere reserve established in the region has been the result of hard work by many individuals over the past 25 years. many dominicans and foreigners have contributed to the knowledge of the region’s biodiversity. many species new to science have been discovered, and more new species continue to appear. one of the most important, primarily for the resultant international attention garnered, was the discovery of the jaragua dwarf gecko (sphaerodactylus ariasae), the smallest known tetrapod in the world. this diminutive lizard was discovered in jaragua national park and named after yvonne arias, in recognition of her work for biodiversity and conservation. the national parks department was legally created in 1974 (now included, since 2000, in the ministry of environment and natural resources). in 1983, the protected areas system was expanded beyond the five parks included in 1974 (one of which was jaragua national park). a management 230 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 rupp, incháustegui, and arias i g u a n a s a n d e d u c a t i o n john foster indianapolis zoo ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) are mysterious creatures found only in the dominican republic. the majority of dominicans who have an awareness or understanding of the creature are park rangers and those individuals who hunt iguanas for food. an additional handful of dominicans are working to expand our understanding of these creatures, both in terms of field conservation and captive husbandry. although the body of knowledge regarding ricord’s iguanas continues to expand, most dominican citizens are unaware of the species’ existence — and this has the potential to be problematic. gaining support to protect habitat for an endangered species that no one has ever heard of and certainly not seen is, at best, very difficult. to begin to address the unknown lizard phenomenon, a partnership has been established between grupo jaragua, a major ngo conservation group in the dominican republic, zoodom, the national zoological park, and the indianapolis zoo. this partnership was formed in order to develop curricular materials and a resource kit that could be used by elementary school teachers in the dominican republic. the partners met in 2004 in order to establish goals for the curricula and identify educators’ needs. u.s. fish and wildlife and aza conservation endowment fund grants funded the development of curricular materials. these grants not only helped underwrite curricular development and teacher resource kits but expenses associated with implementing teachers workshops. the curricula will allow teachers to take their students on an exploration of ricord’s iguana natural history and conservation threats through games, simulations, and other activities while simultaneously strengthening math and language arts skills. teacher training workshops will be held in two geographic regions. zoodom staff will lead workshops for teachers in and around santo domingo. grupo jaragua staff will conduct similar activities for teachers whose students live “sympatrically” with ricord’s iguanas in the southwestern dominican republic. when all the workshops are conducted, 400 teachers will have been trained to use the materials. the partners hope that as we expand our knowledge and ability to conserve ricord’s iguanas, we will have helped build a community that values these animals and supports activities to conserve them. the jaragua dwarf gecko (sphaerodactylus ariasae) is the smallest known tetrapod in the world. s. b la ir h ed g es iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 231conservation of cyclura ricordii plan was published in 1986. immediately thereafter, a group of concerned citizens, mostly biologists, working in different governmental agencies and universities, explored options for providing permanent support of jaragua and other parks and biodiversity in general. after a year of discussions and reflections, the grupo jaragua, a dominican biodiversity conservation ngo, was established. gj is now one of the leading organizations to have contributed significantly to the preservation of the nation’s natural resources. sixto j. incháustegui served as its first president. sixto is a dominican biologist, who was committed to conservation even before he started college. he had the opportunity, for instance, to participate in the release of green turtle hatchlings sent to the dominican republic marine biology institute from dr. archie carr’s program in 1968. the same year, he made his first trip to the southwest, where he visited isla cabritos in lago enriquillo with michael carey. that visit was coordinated by albert schwartz, arguably the “dean” of west indian herpetology, and recounted by sixto in a recently published essay (see references). yvonne arias is another founding member of the organization who has been actively working in biodiversity research, conservation, and education since the 1970s. she succeeded sixto as president of gj. she feels as comfortable discussing biodiversity problems with the president of the country, ministers, congressmen, and mayors of local governments as with fishermen, farmers, and the women and children of local communities. she has created the very popular jaragua environmental educational summer camps for children from local communities in the region. the eighth camp took place this past summer. in 2001, ernst rupp joined gj. ernst is a strange mixture, as are many who are devoted to conservation. after years of being in business administration, he studied agrobiology in his native germany. after visiting the dominican republic for the first time in 1984, he has served in various positions, all directly related to local development and conservation, throughout the country for 13 years. seventeen years of hard struggle have passed since grupo jaragua was established. gaining the confidence of local citizens has been one of the most important issues, showing them that we are not interested in their lands for short-term personal gain, but are instead interested in understanding and learning from one another, developing programs together for sustainable livelihoods, including those initiatives directly related to iguana conservation. gj is presently developing an agroforestry program that has integrated local people from the beginning. it is intended to promote the use of local plant species with economic value. the region, in most cases, is extremely dry with little soil and almost no freshwater. developing such a program is a real challenge. if successful, it will provide sustainable livelihoods for local people, sixto incháustegui during a visit to a cape town, south africa biodiversity hotspot during the fifth iucn world parks congress in 2003. two-year-old cyclura ricordii in the fondo de la malagueta, about 5 km northeast of pedernales. k ir st en a ll en protect local plant species, and offer habitats for iguanas, birds, and other endangered and endemic plants and animals. we have learned much through the many programs and projects that we have undertaken over the years, but if we had to highlight one of the most important factors involved in our success, unquestionably it would be local support. almost from the beginning, gj has received strong local support. pericles mercedes, a well-known primary school director from oviedo, offered key support. olga vidal and esteban garrido, residents of oviedo, are members of the gj board of directors. esteban, in fact, has become one of the best field ornithologists in the country. after several years of work in the southwest, something happened that was quite unexpected to most of us. youngsters decided to form a volunteer conservation group, voluntarios comunitarios de jaragua, to support gj’s work. this was, indeed, powerful and welcome feedback to our work. a few years later, another even more relevant event is happening. from those local community children and youngsters 232 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 rupp, incháustegui, and arias parque zoológico nacional (zoodom) is the national zoo of the dominican republic. situated near downtown santo domingo, the zoo occupies over 250 acres of wooded hills. zoodom opened in 1975, and has large, wonderful, naturalistic habitats for the many species that live there. they have had very successful breeding programs with a number of species, including both rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta) and ricord’s iguanas (c. ricordii). in the late 1990s, a new ricord’s iguana exhibit was completed and filled with native plants collected from isla cabritos. under the watchful eyes of general curator angelica espinal, a pair was placed in the exhibit, and as fortune would have it, the first hatchlings emerged during the 2002 isg meeting in the dominican republic. needless to say, we were all very excited to see these beautiful, critically endangered lizards. those four babies (three males and one female) are thriving today as juveniles. since then, the pair produced ten more babies in 2004, all of which were examined and had pit-tags placed last spring — and all appeared to be healthy and strong. one of the objectives of the revised ricord’s iguana srp is for zoodom to maintain this breeding pair, learning as much as we can about breeding behavior, incubation, hatchling development, and any other relevant subject. another enclosure with a second pair for increased genetic diversity is on the horizon. congratulations to zoodom on their successful breeding program. zoodom general curator angelica espinal (standing), head keeper "nacho" nacisso, and the author conducting a physical examination of ricord's iguana hatchlings at zoodom. em il y h a n se n each hatchling ricord’s iguana was carefully examined, weighed, and measured. em il y h a n se n a pit-tag, donated by the indianapolis zoo, was inserted in each hatchling. em il y h a n se n iguana breeding program at zoodom jan ramer indianapolis zoo iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 233conservation of cyclura ricordii who had been participating in summer camps, volunteer work, and nature guide courses during recent years, some decided to go to college and study biology. hector andujar is leading the group. young, strong, and committed, he is a native of los tres charcos, a community of about 100 houses within the biosphere reserve. he currently is in his third year of college. pablo feliz, native of el cajuil, a community of nearly 125 houses near the laguna de oviedo, is the son of an entrepreneurial local woman, chucha, the only fisherwoman in town. pablo is very different in personality than hector. he is quiet and relaxed, but equally committed. he is now in his second college year. the list could go on. at present, six young people native to local villages are studying or about to start school in santo domingo. these events have exceeded all of our expectations. i doubt that any of us, although we love our careers in field biology and conservation, ever told any of these young people to become biologists. however, today, they represent the long-term sustainability of gj as an organization. they represent the sustainability of iguana conservation and the sustainability of jaragua bahoruco enriquillo biosphere reserve. they are the new generation of dominican conservationists. if ricord’s iguana conservation faces hard times, the unexpected and spontaneous recruitment of young local people into biology and conservation offers the needed means and hope for supporting current and future conservation efforts in the southwestern dominican republic. acknowledgments we thank iif, aeci/araucaria/onaplan, and ford motor foundation for their financial support. we also express special gratitude to the ministry of environment and natural resources, the municipality of pedernales, and the community for their collaboration in the project. references arias, y., s.j. incháustegui, and e. rupp. 2004. cyclura ricordii on the barahona peninsula: a preliminary report. iguana 11:9–14. incháustegui, s.j. 2003. isla cabritos: paradise lost?, pp. 191–206. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), islands and the sea: essays on herpetological exploration in the west indies. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles contributions to herpetology, volume 20. ithaca, new york. ottenwalder, j.a. 1999. ricord’s iguana, cyclura ricordi, pp. 51–55. in: a. alberts (comp. & ed), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn/ssc west indian iguana specialist group. iucn, gland, switzerland and cambridge, uk. ramer, j. 2004. a survey of ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) and rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta) in isla cabritos national park, dominican republic 2003: a preliminary report. iguana 11:89–95. yvonne arias and hector andujar during the last summer camp. pirín (jairo isaa matos arache) working in the nursery for native and endemic plants. iguana 12.1 itook one big leap and let out a sigh of relief when my feet hit solid ground. i dropped my bag and turned around to help unload supplies as they were tossed off the boat that had just brought us from the little village of french pass, new zealand. stephens island lacks a proper wharf, just a bit of rock that sticks out into the ocean, so landings can be quite a challenge when the sea is rough. from our landing site, we carried our gear up a narrow track and put it in a trailer that would be winched up the hill. all of the gear would be placed in the rat-free room until we could check it for rodents trying to hitch a ride to this predator-free island. not counting marine life, the only native mammals found in new zealand are two species of bats, but numerous other mammalian species that have been introduced either purposefully or inadvertently have wrought havoc on this island nation’s wildlife. for many endemic species, predator-free islands such as stephens are one of the last safe refuges. every ecosystem seems to have its own battle with invasive species. in the states, honeysuckle, kudzu, zebra mussels, and pretty much everything in south florida has taken advantage of hospitable conditions and the absence of predators and competitors, but nowhere are ecosystems more vulnerable to the effects of invasives than on islands. perhaps that is why the fauna of island nations such as new zealand have been so devastated by the introduction of nonnative species. because stephens is a scientific reserve administered by the new zealand department of conservation (doc), access is restricted to researchers and doc personnel in order to protect the island’s unique wildlife. after a hike up the steep hill to the hut, we certainly got the impression that the conservation measures were working. with every few steps, we noticed a rustle in the grass or a glimpse of a tail just as it was disappearing. the place can almost be considered a temperate version of the galápagos, with fairy prions (pachyptila turtur) instead of boobies and tuataras (sphenodon punctatus) instead of marine iguanas. wildlife is everywhere, and much of it is endemic to new zealand. sea lions rule the beaches and sea birds such as “titi” (sooty shearwaters, puffinus griseus) and fairy prions fly in from the ocean at night. three kinds of “weta” (giant nocturnal cricket-like insects in the family stenopelmatidae) inhabit the forest and little blue penguins (eudyptula minor) hop up the hill every evening after they return from the sea. the summit of the island holds a rock bank that is home to hamilton’s frog (leiopelma hamiltoni), perhaps one of the most endangered frogs in the world. despite all of these marvelous creatures, however, stephens island is truly an island of reptiles. with four species of skinks, three types of geckos, and the largest colony of tuataras in the world, the entire island seems to be ruled by “lizards.” stephens island has no shortage of researchers. i was there for a week to help one of them, jo hoare, set up a radio-tracking project to study the behavior of marlborough green geckos (naultinus manukanus). as i walked up the steep trail that zigzagged its way up the hill, jo pointed out a few of the island’s landmarks — the trail that led down to queen’s beach, the winch house which was spewing smoke as the ancient piece of machinery groaned and pulled our gear up the slope, the old sheep-shearing barn converted into a lab known as the palace. all the while, though, i was staring at the ground, trying to catch a glimpse of what was rustling in the clumps of tussock along the path. we stopped for a moment to catch our breath (nothing on stephens is flat and the trails are often narrow and 38 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 germano t r a v e l o g u e stephens island from the air. photograph by jo hoare. stephens island: land of “lizards” jennifer germano zoology department, university of otago, dunedin, new zealand location of stephens island, new zealand. graphic by john binns. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 39stephens island filled with holes from the tuatara and fairy prion burrows) and jo motioned for me to go ahead. that was when i spotted my first tuatara, sitting in the middle of the path with its crest proudly erected. it stared at me for a moment and only when i approached very closely did it scuttle into the safety of the grass. amazed, i walked on and smiled as i saw another tuatara basking only a few meters farther along the track. with up to 2,000 tuataras (or “tuts” as they’re commonly called) per hectare, stephens island is truly a herpetologist’s paradise. due to its split from gondwanaland some 80 million years ago and the fact that humans arrived only during the last 1,000 years, no mammalian predators are present, and new zealand consequently has one of the most unique herpetofaunas in the world. a number of new zealand’s species have been called “living fossils,” species that have changed little from their extraordinarily ancient origins. these include the tuatara and all four of the native leiopelmatid frogs, the most endangered of which lives on stephens island. in addition to these ancient species, the lizards have their own unique adaptations, including a number of skinks and geckos that are livebearers. within an hour after disembarking from the boat, i was climbing trees with a radio receiver in hand trying to find the first of jo’s telemetered geckos. marlborough green geckos have reached such a level of camouflage that they are almost undetectable on the leaves of the native bushes. their color, in addition to the fact that they move very little — and very slowly when they do creep from leaf to leaf, makes them perfectly adapted to a world in which the main threat comes from avian predators. jo, a ph.d. student at victoria university, is studying these geckos in the presence and absence of introduced predators to see if the threat of mammals such as stoats, ferrets, and rats has affected their basking behavior. after locating the first gecko basking happily on top of a tree, we decided that the transmitter attachment wasn’t having any ill effects on the gecko’s movements. this meant that jo could proceed with her project and we set off to catch four more geckos. this was easier said than done, as it took nearly an hour with five people searching to locate the next two geckos that would be tracked for the study. we attached transmitters to the geckos using a sort of backpack made of colored gauze and bandage tape with the transmitter’s antennae trailing along the back and tail of the lizard. we released the lizards where they were caught and monitored their movements among the trees every hour for the next week. fairy prions (pachyptila turtur) are one of many species of sea birds found on stephens island. they often nest in burrows not far from the tuataras that have been known to eat their chicks. photograph by jo hoare. a common skink (oligosoma nigriplantare) pauses before escaping into the grass. photograph by jo hoare. a “weta,” this giant cricket-like creature is one of new zealand’s largest insects. photograph by phil bishop. a tuatara (sphenodon punctatus) outside its burrow. although primarily active at night, tuataras occasionally may be seen during the day. unlike most of the lizards that they superficially resemble, they tolerate very cool temperatures. photograph by the author. the fact that these geckos move very little, if at all, made our job a bit easier, and gave me plenty of time for spotting skinks and tuataras along the trails. most of my days on stephens consisted of tracking green geckos, which went fairly smoothly until we decided to attempt tracking one of the nocturnal common geckos (hoplodactylus maculatus). while the green geckos spend most of their time on leaves and tree branches, making them perfect candidates for the use of external transmitters, the common geckos tend to wedge themselves under rocks, in crevices, or between boards — and this one was no exception to the rule. a day after releasing him, he ended up with nearly fifty other geckos in between the boards that held up the roof of the old woodshed behind the former lighthouse keeper’s home. staring into the eyes of a dozen geckos peering at you from under the sheetmetal roof made it rather clear that observing only one gecko was going to be quite difficult. it also meant that the possibility of the transmitter getting jammed or coming off was anything but remote. jo ended up abandoning this portion of her project after i left, focusing solely on green geckos. each night, as we were finishing dinner in the old lighthouse keeper’s home that now serves as a field base for researchers, scientists studying the nocturnal critters of the island donned their headlamps and headed out into the dark. feeling fairly awake, i decided to join some of them and set off to the island’s highest point to help with the hamilton’s frog census. as i mentioned earlier, hamilton’s frog is new zealand’s most endangered frog, with only 200–300 individuals occupying a 600-square meter rock pile on stephens. the trail to the top of the island is narrow and winding and bordered on either side by 40 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 germano a young marlborough green gecko (naultinus manukanus) basking on a leaf. photograph by the author. an adult marlborough green gecko (naultinus manukanus) with a radio-transmitter backpack. photograph by the author. a tuatara (sphenodon punctatus) perched above the trail at night. photograph by jo hoare. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 41stephens island trees and bushes and the occasional stinging nettle. unfortunately for me, it had started raining during dinner — great for frogs, not so good for dirt tracks. halfway up the steep hill, with the fairy prions attracted by our headlamps and flying into our heads, i managed to slip and fall into a patch of nettles. now, this stuff is unlike anything i’ve ever encountered in the states. no itchy red rash like poison ivy, no visible thorns or prickles to remove — but the minute you touch it, you know. my whole hand swelled up and i felt a burning sensation run through my fingers. the good thing about working with biologists is that they have a pretty good understanding of their environment, and within a few minutes someone had found a local plant, whose leaves we crushed and rubbed all over my hand to numb the pain. it wasn’t entirely adequate and the strange tingling feeling in my hand persisted for nearly a week, but it was bearable. after the nettle incident, i managed to make it up to the frog bank. a series of boardwalks have been constructed to crisscross the giant rock pile where the frogs live, allowing researchers to monitor the population without the danger of squashing frogs. in addition, a giant fence has been constructed around the rock pile to keep the tuataras out. crazy to think, but this is one of the few places where one rare species must be protected from being eaten by another. we did find one young tut that had managed to sneak in among the rocks, no doubt a bit fuller from a feast of frogs. he was caught and placed in a bag so he could be relocated outside the frog bank. we moved slowly along the boardwalks, crawling on our hands and knees trying to catch a glimpse of the frogs. unlike most frogs, the native species of new zealand don’t call. one of the most primitive frogs in the world, they lack eardrums and can’t hear. researchers believe that they communicate more like salamanders than other anurans, using some form of chemical communication to differentiate between kin and non-kin, male and female, and the size of other individuals. in addition, these evolutionarily peculiar frogs breed without water and, although it has yet to be confirmed in the wild, males in captivity tend to the young by guarding the eggs and later carrying the little froglets on their backs. we managed to catch nearly a dozen of these frogs, all of which were put into plastic containers until they could be weighed, measured, and photographed before being released at the original site of capture. after a long night of frogging, we made the hike back down the hill to the hut. the fog had rolled in from the sea, but you could still see swarms of seabirds flying through the headlamps’ glare. they were so close that you could smell them and feel their wings beat as they flew past. others made it a bit closer than that and occasionally you would look up just in time to see a fairy prion fly right into your face before crashing onto the ground, where it would wobble around, searching for its burrow. after a few nights of frogging and one full night of sleep (although sleep is hard to come by in a hut that is constantly being bombarded by seabirds…… earplugs would be highly recommended to any future travelers to stephens), i decided that the time had come for a night out with the tuatara team. led by nicola nelson of victoria university in wellington, the tut team spends months every year monitoring the breeding population of tuataras on stephens island. armed with pit-tags, flashlights, and some pretty heavy-duty pesola scales (although you must remember that this is coming from someone who a nocturnal common gecko (hoplodactylus maculatus) searches for prey in the dark. photograph by the author. the lighthouse on stephens island guides boats through the cook strait. mount taranaki on the north island is visible in the background. photograph by phil bishop. a hamilton’s frog (leiopelma hamiltoni) emerging from the rock piles at night. photograph by the author. works with skinks and frogs that you can easily hold in one hand), we split into groups and moved into the fields that were until recently grazed by sheep. doc removed all of the remaining sheep from the island within the last year, although the female tuataras seemed to prefer the unnatural short grassy fields to the forests. despite this, they still tend to move out from the bush each night to dig their nests in the dirt of the old paddocks. surprisingly, tuataras aren’t that hard to catch. just like a snake, you grab them right behind the head in hopes that they won’t turn around and bite you with their three rows of teeth (one on the lower jaw and two on the top, a feature that distinguishes tuataras from iguanas and other lizards). once you have them in hand, they generally remain calm and tolerate being weighed and tagged without too much of a fuss. we spent the rest of the night walking transects through the fields and catching any females we encountered. nests were marked with a bit of flagging tape and the females were checked for pit-tags to see if they had been marked during a previous nesting year. to observe these amazing creatures in their natural habitat was truly an opportunity of a lifetime. the tuts are the only living members of the order sphenodontia and, although they were once found throughout new zealand, today they are limited to a handful of offshore islands. unfortunately, perhaps because their eggs are laid in burrows on the ground, the mainland populations of these animals disappeared after the introduction of predators such as rats. unlike lizards, tuataras don’t have visible ear openings and the young tuts have a “third eye” to collect extra uv-rays during the first few months of their lives. in addition, male tuataras lack a penis, mating by passing sperm directly from cloaca to cloaca. tuts remain active through most of the night, preparing their nests, mating, and feeding on wetas and the unsuspecting chicks of seabirds that dig their burrows nearby. it takes nearly the whole night to finish the transects before heading back to the hut. only a few hours of sleep for me and then i’m up early to pack my things. a helicopter brings supplies to the island once a week during the research season, and this is to be my ride back to the mainland. unfortunately, due to the unpredictable new zealand weather and a bit of persistent fog, three attempts were necessary before the helicopter made it to the island. we lifted off from the grassy lawn next to the lighthouse and moved out over the ocean. i watched as stephens island disappeared in the fog behind me. a week is not enough time to spend in such an amazing place. few people ever get a chance to see some of the exceptional creatures that live on the offshore islands of new zealand. with visitors restricted to researchers and doc staff, fewer still have the opportunity to visit stephens. however, perhaps because of those restrictions, life goes on for the reptiles of stephens island — and i’ll certainly never forget my little glimpse into their world. 42 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 germano the author successful in her search for nesting tuataras (sphenodon punctatus). photographer unknown. a tuatara (sphenodon punctatus) making a meal of a “weta.” photograph by phil bishop. a tuatara (sphenodon punctatus) in front of stinging nettle (also known as “ongaonga” in new zealand). photograph by jo hoare. iguana 12.2 b&w text artwork by joel friesch (see profile on p. 108). m any lesser a ntillean reptiles, like this a nolis sabanusfrom saba, are ecologically versatile and have adapted w ell to hum an alterations of their habitats. som e, how ever, are affected dram atically by habitat alterations and destruction and the introductions of alien predators and com petitors (see article on p. 62). john s. parmerlee, jr. iguana 12.2 b&w text 98 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 burton blue iguana “yob” (bead tag: yellow-orange-blue), moments after release back into the wild after being fitted with a pit-tag, bead-tag, and radiotransmitter. “team blue 2005,” a rotating team of international volunteers, is in the midst of an ambitious field season working with the blue iguana recovery program on grand cayman. as the grand cayman blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi) reach the peak of the annual mating season, program staff and the team blue volunteers are capturing and attaching radio transmitters to wild blue iguanas in the deep interior of grand cayman’s east end, and to 23 captive-bred blues released in december into the salina reserve, a protected area in northeastern grand cayman. the work in the salina reserve builds on two months of radio-tracking that commenced immediately after these iguanas were released. at that time, they were still subadults. now, in may, they have grown to the point that some at least appear to be in breeding condition, and aggressive interactions are driving the males into the rocky shrubland surrounding the small soil patches where we hope the females will nest. the elusive remnant wild population in the eastern interior is only slowly revealing its secrets to dilligent observers. in previous years, this has been the only known site where unmanaged wild iguanas still appeared to be breeding. very few individuals seemed to be involved, with possibly only one nest per year — but the nest site(s) and the locations of the breeding adults were completely unknown. this year for the first time in many years, no new young have appeared in this home of the last wild blues. most likely, all were drowned in the nest during the floods that accompanied hurricane ivan last year. team blue members struggled to make the first contact, but in late april eventually managed to trap a young but mature male, who was bead-tagged green-red-blue (grb), fitted with a radio transmitter, and released. over the next two weeks, twice-hourly triangulations of his position showed him spending most of his time in six small areas within his large home range, providing the team with indications as to where they should focus their efforts. using blinds at these locations, two more wild iguanas were first spotted, and then eventually, on 9 may, these also were trapped and radio-tagged. one was a young mature female, laden with eggs, the other a young male scarred from fights, probably with grb. the female (tagged greengreen-red) and the second male (yellow-orange-blue) are now also being tracked by triangulating their radio signals throughout each day, hopefully leading the team to more wild blues, and to their nesting sites in june. by the end of june, the blue iguana recovery program hopes to be incubating eggs from these wild iguana nests, as well as from nests in the salina reserve and from the released and captive populations in the qe ii botanic park. references binns, j. and f. burton. 2004. status of the blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) recovery program. iguana 12:27–28. burton, f. j. 2004. battling extinction: a view forward for the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi). iguana 11:233–237. blue iguana update frederic j. burton director, blue iguana recovery program p.o. box 10308 apo, grand cayman, cayman islands (fjburton@blueiguana.ky) photographs by the author. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 99blue iguana update � team blue 2005 volunteers (left to right) ae nash, nick louis, and lorraine scotson carrying yob back to the site of his capture. male iguana (green-red-blue) receiving a pit tag. b a r b a r a w a tk in s 100 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 hudson whenever i take someone to the hellshire hills in jamaica to see the iguana field project, i describe the habitat as someplace where they definitely don’t want to fall down. the brutally sharp limestone rock, known as karst, can inflict grievous bodily harm to someone unfortunate enough to take a tumble. however, after seven years of trekking around hellshire without serious injury, i took that tumble in june 2000, when we had gathered a field team to search for new nesting areas. i was wearing a new pair of boots and not at all confident of my stride. without my “field legs,” i predictably stumbled and hit the uncompromising karst with both hands and knees. deep puncture wounds in the heels of each hand plus some nasty knee injuries kept me laid up in the hammock for a day recuperating and ingesting pain pills and anti-inflammatory drugs. although it could have been a lot worse, to this day i wear thick leather gloves when traversing the karst of hellshire. that way, if i feel myself going down, i can at least break my fall with my hands without risking serious injury. as painful as that day in 2000 was, it absolutely does not compare to the indignity suffered on my recent february 2005 trip. a record (my personal) three iguana bites over three days, combined with walking out of hellshire in the dark (which can be dicey even in broad daylight), topped off by getting mired past my knees in swamp mud, all resulting in what i consider my roughest trip yet. maybe not the roughest physically, but certainly the most damaging to my psyche. the misadventure began at the hope zoo in kingston, home of the jamaican iguana headstarting program. we were preparing another cohort of 16 iguanas for repatriation into their native habitat, and i was joined by a veterinary team from the fort worth zoo plus two ministry of agriculture veterinarians. during the next three days, we would be conducting prerelease medical screening exams on 22 midto adult-sized iguanas to certify them healthy for release. this includes weighing and measuring, collecting blood and cloacal cultures, physical exams, and attaching bead tags for visual identification in the field. my job was to restrain the iguana during much of this process, which is something that i have done so routinely that it has become second nature — or so i thought. the first bite on my right thumb from a small female was minor; i covered the wound with a band-aid and we were underway again in no time. the next day, with our performance under the glare of a graduate biology class from the local university of the west indies, i sustained my second bite. with a hood over the iguana’s head and eyes to relax it, and using a rather cavalier one-handed restraint, i somehow managed to pass my left hand in front of the iguana. with a quick lunge and shake of the head, i had a perfect, u-shaped bite on top of my hand that was bleeding profusely. i took this latest injury in stride and began trying to staunch the flow of blood. the class was amused, except for one student who couldn’t handle the sight of blood and had to leave the building. fortunately, the veterinary team was amply prepared with a range of first-aid supplies, and veterinary technician kim evans dutifully (again) bandaged my wound. no band-aid was adequate, and, for the rest of that trip, my hand was bound in green veterinary wrap. however, the clincher came on friday, 25 february, our first day in hellshire. with eight pairs of iguanas in hand, we hit the beach at manatee bay around noon and set up camp. around 4 pm, three of us (field biologist rick van veen, kim, and me) decided to make the trek to south camp to release a few males. we tend to release males in a somewhat random manner in order to disperse them in hopes of reducing conflicts. in contrast, females are always released at one of two primary nesting sites so that they have an opportunity to imprint on the hellshire blues rick hudson fort worth zoo, fort worth, texas 76110 � this iguana bite would later seem insignificant, but only two hours later we were mired deep in the mud and muck of a “dried-up” salina. the word “salina” means swamp, but is designed to avoid a sense of dread. don’t be fooled; if you hear this word, and it involves your walking through it, be very afraid. k im e v a n s iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 101hellshire blues area in case this becomes important later. so, with the sun low in the sky, and with the full realization that it would begin setting in two hours, we began our ascent into hellshire. to lighten my load, i had removed most non-essential field gear — including a headlamp that had to weigh all of eight ounces. what a relief that was! after reaching south camp, we caught our breath, had a drink of water, and started unbagging the males for release. these were all large adult males, well within breeding size. whether it was a lapse in judgment, carelessness, or just a slip of my hand, i somehow managed to allow one of these big boys to clamp on to my right thigh, way too high for comfort. to make things worse, he didn’t just lunge and bite, he held on with a tenacity that i thought was reserved for wolverines and alligator snappers. registering pain beyond anything iguanarelated i had previously experienced, and with blood streaming down my leg into my boot, i issued an expletive-laced cry for help. rick was quick to respond, but not in the way that i had expected: between bouts of wicked laughter and mumbling about not having batteries for his flash, mr. van veen (formerly known as my favorite aussie) searched for his camera. he couldn’t resist the urge to catch the famous iguana man in such a compromising situation. kim busied herself finding the first-aid kit, and extracted some cotton balls and a few band-aids. fully expecting a gaping flesh wound in need of suturing, i thought to myself “that ain’t gonna cut it, honey; you better look for some #2 cat gut.” rick had finally managed to stifle his laughter and began the task of trying to extricate the iguana that was so intimately involved with my upper thigh. each attempt to loosen the jaws would produce another chomp and another surge of intense pain. with kim working the back and rick the head, he finally managed to pry the jaws loose. first aid included application of some primitive foul-smelling wound dressing that rick had in camp (i remember something like dr. percival’s bitterroot swamp tonic) followed by an elastic bandage. with this unexpected event taking up valuable time and the sun quickly setting, we released the four males and began heading back to camp. only halfway there and visibility was already extremely poor; three-fourths of the way and the three of us had to hold hands to stay in contact as we maneuvered the rocky trail. i lamented not bringing my headlamp, to which rick replied: “if i’d thought of it, mate, i could have brought one from south camp.” although i wasn’t sure what an aneurysm felt like, i was pretty sure i was about to add that to my list of the day’s maladies. my only comment to rick was that killing his primary sponsor and #1 champion for his project was not a good career advancement strategy. when we finally reached a point where continuing on the trail was becoming hazardous, and facing a final stretch to the beach that meant stepping from one large boulder to the next, we opted to walk through the “dry” salina. with no tree canopy to block the new moon, the salina was better lit but no more hospitable. kim and rick would leave shallower footprints than my 210-pound bulk, but they were already sinking to their ankles. not long thereafter, i punched through and began sinking. once the mud goes past your knees, any hope of an unassisted escape is gone, and, on at least three occasions, i had to be unceremoniously extracted from the swamp (i’ll never call it a salina again) — only to take a few steps and sink again. something about crawling helplessly in the mud is very humbling — and i can say with absolute certainty that i never want to feel that humble again. jo el f r ie sc h nothing is capable of consoling a person who has just emerged, iguana-bitten, beaten down, and exhausted from a night of wandering in a swamp — but an ice-cold red stripe was about as welcome a sight as any i could have imagined. now that’s proper planning! k im e v a n s recommendations for purchase and acclimation ideally, one should acquire captive-bred animals directly from a breeder. these animals are already accustomed to humans and tend to be free of pathogens. most breeders also are willing to provide helpful advice on how to care for young uromastyx and continuing support should any problems arise later. in contrast, wild-caught animals are usually highly stressed by capture, transport, and handling by retailers. they often are suffering from illness, parasites, and dehydration. sick animals often have sunken eyes, jutting pelvic bones, muscle wasting of the tail and extremities, and poor color. however, regardless of the source from which the uromastyx is purchased, the following ground rules should be followed: 1. the uromastyx should be alert, moving normally, and interested in proffered food. newly imported uromastyx display obvious defensive reactions when handled. obviously “tame” behavior in a recent import is an indication of possible illness. missing toes and tail tips are usually not a problem; however, any injuries should be well healed. 2. the animals should not have any signs of infection, abscesses, or burns on their bodies, extremities, or tails. special attention should be paid to skin folds. mites are known to inhabit skin folds of the neck and limb insertions as well as the areas around the eyes and in ear openings. limbs should not exhibit any swelling. uromastyx tend to have shedding problems, particularly on the spiky scales of the tail. no old skin layers should be present anywhere on the body. 3. the mucous membranes of the mouth should not exhibit any injuries, crusting, or infection. under no circumstances should any parasites be visible in the mouth and the breath should not smell unpleasant. 4. eyes should be clear. nasal openings should be dry and without mucus discharge. nasal glands may produce a watery salt solution, which, when dry, forms a white salty crust around the nasal openings. 5. the animal should appear properly nourished. the base of the tail should not be concave and pelvic bones should not be obvious. 6. breathing should not be labored. any whistling, coughing, or sneezing can be an early sign of illness. note, however, that even healthy uromastyx will sneeze occasionally to expel excess salts (see point 4 above). an important first aid measure for animals with sunken eyes, jutting pelvic bones, muscle wasting, and poor color is rehydration. a daily dose of 20–30 ml of a physiological electrolyte solution (e.g., pedialyte® or gatorade®) per kg body weight should be administered orally. opening the animal’s mouth may present difficulties. under no circumstances should it be forced. if oral administration is not successful, the alternative is to have a veterinarian inject subcutaneously (under the skin) a sterile electrolyte solution. if the animal refuses food for an extended period of time, an easily absorbed formula such as critical care® or ensure® with added fiber can be administered orally (50 cc/kg body weight daily, divided into three to four meals spread out over the course of the day). sustained force-feeding can lead to further problems; any animal that does not start eating independently within a day or two should be seen by a qualified reptile veterinarian. 102 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 wilms h u s b a n d r y captive care of uromastyx1 thomas wilms bad dürkheim, germany photographs by the author except where noted. 1 translated and adapted by aj gutman from t. wilms, uromastyx: natural history – captive care – breeding. herpeton verlag, offenbach, germany. uromastyx: natural history – captive care – breeding by thomas wilms (142 full-color pages, hardcover, 138 color photos, 23 drawings, and distribution maps for every species). price: 39 eur. offenbach: herpeton, 2005 (www.herpeton-verlag.de). isbn 3-936180-12-1. this book provides detailed information about all species in the genus uromastyx and addresses all topics relevant to the hobbyist, professional herpetologists, and veterinarians. contents: name and systematics, distribution and zoogeography, habitat and natural history, behavior, captive care, reproduction, raising hatchlings, skin diseases, an identification key to all species of uromastyx, accounts of all species, and more ... available at bibliomania (breck@herplit.com) iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 103uromastyx regardless of origin, a newly acquired uromastyx should be quarantined for 6–8 weeks in an easily cleaned habitat. even though the quarantine habitat is only temporary, the various psychological and physiological needs of the animals must still be met. temperature must be properly regulated and hiding places provided so that the animals feel secure. during the quarantine period, stool samples should be taken repeatedly and checked for parasites. these should also be cultured for amoebas. a sick uromastyx should always be seen by an experienced reptile veterinarian; self-treatment is not recommended. the minimum terrarium dimensions for a pair of uromastyx are 5 x 4 x 3 (l x w x h) times the snout-vent length (svl) of the animals. thus, for an svl of 25 cm, the minimum dimensions would be 125 x 100 x 75 cm. in my opinion, these dimensions represent an absolute minimum, but other parameters also play a significant role in providing species-specific care for uromastyx. these considerations include: population density, social structure, terrarium setup, climate, lighting, and nutrition. population density and social structure adult male uromastyx are territorial and intolerant of sexually mature males of the same species. adult males should never be kept in the same terrarium. even females, especially when gravid, can be highly intolerant of each other. uromastyx are best kept in pairs. in many instances, a lower ranking animal will become so stressed by the mere presence of a dominant animal that it will refuse food and cease to exhibit any normal activity. these animals grow slowly, if at all, and are susceptible to bacterial and parasitic infections. eventually, fights will break out, which, within the confines of a terrarium, can result in damage. injuries from bites to the toes, tail, and flanks as well as broken extremities can be largely avoided by keeping animals in pairs. aggression between males and females is much less common. if this occurs, the animals should be placed with different partners. occasionally, some individuals will display consistently high levels of aggression and must be kept by themselves. in smaller terraria with a high population density, fighting and biting among all species is inevitable. animals in very small terraria with very high population densities demonstrate virtually no natural behavior. they are unable to claim any territory and give the external appearance of being compatible and “tame.” in the past, this has led to the belief that uromastyx are social creatures, which should be kept in groups. however, such animal husbandry does not conform to the biology of the animals and is strongly discouraged. juveniles should never be kept with adults! in principle, keeping uromastyx with other species with similar ecological requirements is possible, if enough space is provided. some examples of suitable species are the hardun and relatives (laudakia sp.), fringe-fingered lizards (acanthodactylus sp.), and middle eastern agamids (trapelus sp.). keeping different species of uromastyx together is not advisable. the behavioral repertoire of the various species is so similar that crossbreeding between species can occur. crosses between u. aegyptia males and u. acanthinura females as well as between u. acanthinura and u. dispar maliensis are known. hybridization within a genus is possible; however, to date, hybrids between u. acanthinura and u. dispar maliensis are known only from captive breeding situations. setting up the terrarium commercially available glass terraria can be used for keeping young uromastyx or species that remain small. however, these do not provide sufficient space to house adult animals of most species. in general, a uromastyx terrarium must be custom built. laminated wood or plastic boards can be used in combination with glass. even when used for a desert habitat, wood should be sealed against moisture. any materials used inside the habitat should be as durable as possible. large knotted branches as well as natural or artificial rocks are suitable. the habitat should be structured to provide visual barriers for the animals. natural or artificial rock can be used to create caves and tunnels. a hide-box can be used or the habitat can be set up with a double floor. as a safety precaution, any cave or hide-box should be high enough that the animal’s back will touch the roof when reclining conventionally. the interior should also be large enough for the animal to turn around comfortably. all stone structures should be securely attached, although caves and tunnels should be accessible to the caretaker at all times. with a little crafting skill, you will be able to create your own artificial rock. a technique that works well for this type of a healthy seven year old u. acanthinurus female receives regular exposure to natural sunlight, weather permitting. jo h n b in n s healthy male uromastyx acanthinura nigriventris. 104 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 wilms application involves gluing sheets of styrofoam to the back and/or side walls of the terrarium. these can then be modeled to form hiding places and caves. the resulting styrofoam “rockscape” can then be plastered with modeling cement. while still soft, the cement can be colored by stirring in readily available paint emulsions. to avoid cracks, i use a preservative coating, which leaves the cement far more durable and resistant to crumbling. the surface of the cement can also be modeled with a brush while it is still wet and subsequently strewn with sand. once dried, this produces a hard surface with plenty of traction for the animals. in my opinion, an external coating of epoxy is not necessary in a dry terrarium. hiding places allow the animals to fulfill their need for concealment. without an appropriate retreat, a uromastyx will feel insecure and react to even the slightest disturbance with hectic flight. wild caught individuals are much more difficult to acclimate without a secure hiding place. natural sand mixed with clay makes the best substrate. pure quartz sand is not suitable. a depth of about 5–6 cm of substrate is sufficient if artificial caves and tunnels are present. if you are not using prefabricated caves and tunnels, the animals should have the opportunity to create their own. this requires a substrate at least 25 cm deep and in which they can dig. aside from housing uromastyx in a conventional terrarium, they can be maintained in a heated green house, which could provide the animals with nearly optimal light and heating conditions. an open terrarium can be built on a podium approximately 80 cm high. the glass surfaces of the green house should be made of plexiglas panels which are uv-penetrable. climate the two most important climate parameters for keeping uromastyx are temperature and light intensity that approximate natural seasonal fluctuations. the ambient temperature during the animals’ activity period during the day should be from 28–40 °c, in exceptional cases to 45 °c, and from 18–20 °c at night. basking spots with a localized temperature of 50–60 °c should also be provided. heating for these basking areas is best provided by radiant heat sources. emitters should provide both heat and light in the visible spectrum. pure heat emitters, such as infrared lights or “hot rocks” are not appropriate. uromastyx are heliophilic (sun-loving) and associate warmth with light. “dark” basking spots do not meet the physiological requirements of the animals. in my experience, many uromastyx species are better kept too cold than too warm. for appropriate maintenance of species such as u. aegyptia, u. acanthinura, and u. hardwickii, a brumation period at reduced temperatures is necessary. in the wild, these species can be seen outside their burrows during warmer weather. a brumation period in the terrarium is introduced by a gradual lowcombat between a pair of male uromastyx acanthinura nigriventris. juveniles, such as this uromastyx dispar dispar, should be raised separately from adults. gravid female uromastyx thomasi in front of her retreat. part of the author’s terrarium setup devoted to uromastyx. ering of temperature to 15–20 °c and a reduction in photoperiod and lighting intensity. throughout the brumation, the animals should have the opportunity to warm themselves to preferred temperatures under a heat emitter. this heat source should be in operation for about 6–8 hours, and the remaining lighting should be operational for about 10 hours per day. if maintained in a greenhouse, species requiring a brumation period should be kept at a temperature of at least 15°c. on sunny winter days, the air temperature can reach values over 20 °c through sun exposure. also in a greenhouse situation, depending on the weather, heat emitters should be in operation for 6–8 hours a day from mid-september until the end of march. in the terrarium, the duration of the brumation period is 2–4 months for u. acanthinura, 3–4 months for u. aegyptia, and 4 months for u. hardwickii. for species with no significant annual temperature fluctuation, a slight reduction in temperature during the winter is sufficient. for u. dispar, u. thomasi, and u. ornata, experience has shown that a maximum temperature reduction of 5–10 °c is sufficient to encourage reproduction. other species in this category include u. princeps, u. benti, u. ocellata, and u. macfadyeni. when maintained in a greenhouse, even winter temperatures must correspond to natural conditions within the range of each species. in addition, lighting must be provided in the terrarium. although uromastyx are acclimated to life in desert and semi-desert regions, a minimum of humidity is necessary to maintain them in captivity. in the wild, the animals will spend a significant portion of the day in their burrows, where the moisture content of the air and the surrounding ground is somewhat higher than that on the surface. the humidity requirements also differ according to species. species originating in extremely arid inland deserts are considerably more tolerant of dryness than species from coastal mountains. climate tables for each species’ point of origin should be consulted. an occasional misting can increase the humidity within the terrarium; juveniles should be provided with a water dish. however, water build-up in the terrarium should be avoided, as this is a known cause of many of the skin diseases that occur in various species of uromastyx. lighting conditions lighting in the terrarium should vary seasonally and correspond with the length of the natural photoperiod. in general, a duration of 12–14 hours of light per day in the summer and 8–10 hours per day in winter is beneficial. fluorescent tubes, mercury vapor lamps, and metal halogen lamps are all suitable for illuminating the terrarium. in a terrarium of up to 65 cm in height, the desired lighting intensity (without heat emitters!) should be about 100–120 w/m2. in principle, a uromastyx terrarium can never have too much lighting, and it tends to be limited only by financial constraints. the use of appropriate uv lighting is critical for maintaining uromastyx species. apart from critical uv rays, the heavy illumination will also positively affect the activity levels and overall well-being of the animals. the distance between the light and the animal will vary depending on the lighting products used; however, the animals must be able to withdraw from proximity to the light if they become overheated. mercury vapor bulbs such as t rex’s uvheat and zoomed’s powersun uv can be operated all day long to provide both heat and ultraviolet light. specially designed fluorescent tubes also can be used to provide uv (e.g., zoomed 5.0 reptisun). in order for these tubes to be iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 105uromastyx retreats are important for providing humidity. this u. acanthinura guards the entrance to her self-excavated below-ground retreat (bottom left of photo). effective for desert reptiles, the animals must be in fairly close proximity to the bulbs. in my opinion, the bulbs should be installed in the terrarium so that they are no more than 20 cm above the basking sites. nutrition a well-balanced and varied diet is critical for maintaining and breeding uromastyx. the species of this genus are omnivorous, with plant matter making up the largest dietary component. juveniles often prefer animal nutrition; e.g., the diet of juvenile u. acanthinura in the wild consists of approximately 75% animal source components. remnants of tenebrionid and carabid beetles, ants, and grasshopper larvae have been found in the stomachs of young u. aegyptia, but animal materials constitute only 1–2% of the total food intake in these lizards. plant matter should be offered daily, but with one or two fast days per week. in the winter, escarole, collard greens, romaine, and other leafy greens are available as well as parsley, grated carrots, and sprouted mung beans, lentils, wheat, sunflowers, and other seeds. during the growing season, a wide variety of wild plants should be fed. apart from common dandelions (taraxacum officinale), narrowand wideleaf plantain (plantago lanceolata and p. major), as well as several clover species (lotus sp. and trifolium sp.) are eagerly consumed. both the plumed leaves and the flowers of vetches (vicia sp.) are prized, as are the leaves and flowers of robinia (robinia pseudoacacia). the animals can also be offered composites (including hawkweed, hieracium sp.; goatsfoot, (senecio sp.; various dandelion species, leontodon sp.), convolvules (including bindweed, convolvulus sepium and c. arvensis), and carnations (including chickweed, stellaria media). other appropriate food plants are daisies, alfalfa, coltsfoot, borage, dill, chervil, lovage, rosemary, sage, sorrel, and lemon balm. various species of grasses and their seeds also may be offered. uromastyx also should be provided with a mixture of dried seeds and beans made up of green and red lentils, small grain corn, small green peas, barley, wheat, soybeans, vetch, oats, rice, hemp, mung beans, sunflower seeds, buckwheat, and millet. this dry food mixture should be constantly available. fruits are rarely or only occasionally consumed and should generally not be included in the menu. food plants can be fed whole or chopped into smaller pieces and strewn on the bottom of the terrarium. food remnants can actually be left in the terrarium, as the animals often prefer dried leaves to fresh ones. in this case, you do need to be careful to avoid the development of rot or fungus. apart from this vegetable matter, uromastyx can be fed various insects such as cockroaches, grasshoppers, wax worms, crickets, beetle larvae, etc. juveniles can be fed insects 4–7 times per week, whereas adults should only receive them once or twice a week. the composition of the diet should vary throughout the year. in the wild, certain foods are accessible only at certain times of year. due to the meager and highly seasonal precipitation in their natural habitat, fresh plant material in the form of herbaceous annuals (so-called therophytes) is usually available for only a short time. most of the time, uromastyx survive on the few perennials plus seeds. in captivity, the dietary proportion of wild plants and sprouts can be increased either following brumation or in the spring for species without a clearly defined seasonal rhythm. at this time, the proportion of animal-based foods in the diet can be increased. females in particular have an increased protein requirement in order to produce eggs. during mid-summer, the dietary proportion of seeds can be increased. through seasonal changes in dietary composition and climate regulation, the animals are further encouraged to maintain their natural annual rhythm. during brumation, very little food is consumed. however, fresh drinking water must be available during this period. to ensure that vitamin and mineral requirements are properly met, various supplements can be used. combined vitamin and mineral preparations (e.g., miner-al™, nekton rep™, rep-cal™, etc.) can be used to dust food insects. however, an appropriate mineral supplement should also be mixed in with seeds. certain preparations can easily be sprinkled on plant food, while others produce a slimy, foul-smelling film and should not be offered to this species in this manner. fluid vitamin preparations should be administered to each animal individually. 106 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 wilms lighting in a terrarium for uromastyx should be fairly intense. sprouted seeds make an excellent addition to the diet of this female u. ocellata. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 107uromastyx unfortunately, no guidelines for vitamin dosages are available for uromastyx. life expectancy to date, little information is available on the life expectancy of uromastyx species. due to the relatively late onset of sexual maturity in many species (u. acanthinura at 4–5 years of age, in u. aegyptia at 4–6 years), a certain longevity is expected. so far, the shortest time span to onset of sexual maturity in a uromastyx species is 11–18 months (u. ornata). life spans have been recorded for u. aegyptia (15 years, 4 months), u. acanthinura (11 years, 5 months), and u. ocellata (3 years, 9 months), and all individuals were still alive at the time of the report. i had a u. benti that was imported as an adult that survived for 7 years and a female u. ornata, also an adult import, that is still alive after 10 years. a u. asmussi that was captured as an adult on 9 april 1954 lived until 23 october 1960, and a u. acanthinura survived for 13.5 years in captivity. that this is considerably less than the maximum life expectancy for species of uromastyx is demonstrated by a u. acanthinura that was kept for 22 years. this particular animal, which was imported as a subadult, remained in the best of health when the report was made. yet another u. acanthinura, imported as an adult in 1973, survived until 1995. the presumed longevity record within the genus is held by a u. aegyptia living in the wild in israel. the age of this animal was estimated to be at least 33 years. the animal was captured on 15 june 1980, measured and marked, and recaptured on 19 march 1994. the total length during these 13 years and 88 days increased from 4.3 cm to 74.3 cm. the age estimate is based largely on the calculated growth rate. acknowledgments a. a. schmidt (pers. comm. 1995) provided longevity records; d. dix (pers. comm. 1999) provided information on hybrids between uromastyx acanthinura and u. dispar maliensis in captive breeding situations; and h. leslie (pers. comm. 2000) informed me of the onset of sexual maturity in u. ornata. references bouskila, a. 1984. habitat selection, in particular burrow location in the dablizard, uromastyx aegyptius, near hazeva. unpubl. m.sc. thesis, the hebrew univ., jerusalem. bouskila, a. 1986. habitat selection in the desert lizard uromastyx aegyptius and its relation to the autoecological hypothesis, pp.119–128. in: z. dubinsky and y. steinberger (eds.), environmental quality and ecosystem stability. vol. 3 a/b. bar-ilan univ. press, ramat-gan, israel. brendel, h. 1978. eine dornschwanz-agame legt eier. datz 31:318–320. bringsøe, h. 1998. observations on growth and longevity in uromastyx aegyptia in the negev desert, southern israel (reptilia: sauria: agamidae). faun. abh. mus. tierkunde dresden 21, suppl. (6):19–21. christie, b. 1993. the egyptian spiny-tailed lizard (uromastyx aegypticus) at the indianapolis zoo. captive breeding 1(3):20–25. gray, r. 1997. captive reproduction of the ornate spiny-tailed lizard, uromastyx ocellatus ornatus. vivarium 8(6):29 & 67–69. grenot, c. and f. loirat 1973. l’activité et le comportement thermoregulateur du lézard saharien uromastyx acanthinurus. extrait de la terre et la vie, revue d’écologie appliquée 27:435–455 [fide müller 1976]. hughes, b. 1988. longevity records of african captive amphibians and reptiles: part 2. lizards and amphisbaenians. j. herpetol. assoc. africa 34:20–24. kevork, k. and h. s. al-uthman. 1972. ecological observations on the egyptian spiny-tailed lizard uromastyx aegyptius. bull. iraq nat. hist. mus. 5, 2:26–44. köhler, g. 1993. schwarze leguane – freilandbeobachtungen, pflege und zucht. herpeton verlag, offenbach. köhler, g. 1998. der grüne leguan – biologie, pflege, zuct, erkrankungen. herpeton verlag, offenbach. kolar, k. 1957. jugendentwicklung von uromastyx acanthinurus bell. der zool. garten (nf) 23(1/3):18–27. küppers-heckhausen, c. 1993. zur lebensweise des indischen dornschwanzes. datz 46:572–575. mertens, r. 1954. als herpetologe in pakistan, teil 1–4. datz 7:18–2, 42–46, 68–71, 103–107. müller, k. 1976. temperaturund aktivitätsperiodik bei uromastyx acanthinurus (reptilia, agamidae). unveröffentliche staatsarbeit, 84 pages. richter, e. 1961. zwei arten dornschwanz-agamen, uromastyx asmussi und uromastyx acanthinurus als “haustiere.” teil 2. datz 14:343–347. richter, e. 1966. uromastyx acanthinurus 13,5 jahre in gefangenschaft. datz 14:374–377. fischer, j. von. 1885. der veränderliche schleuderschwanz (uromastyx acanthinurus bell). der zool. garten 26:268–278. wilms, t. and b. löhr. 1994. die nordafrikanische dornschwanzagame – uromastyx acanthinura – ökologie, haltung und zucht. elaphe (n.f.) 2(3):25–29. wheeler, s. 1987. husbandry of the spiny-tailed agama uromastyx acanthinurus at the oklahoma city zoo, pp. 107–117. in: proceedings 10th–11th international herpetological symposium. zoological consortium, inc., thurmont, maryland. wheeler, s. 1989. husbandry of the spiny-tailed agamas uromastyx acanthinurus and u. aegyptius at oklahoma city zoo. intl. zoo yb. 29:70–74. author information thomas wilms is a biologist who has worked with uromastyx for over 15 years. he has successfully and repeatedly bred many species and the hatchlings often become subjects of new research projects. wilms also has traveled widely in the natural range of uromastyx lizards, where he discovered a new species and where observations of wild-living populations have effectively supplemented his laboratory studies. juvenile uromastyx thomasi at the age of six months. iguana b&w text cook’s treeboa (corallus cookii) is endemic to st. vincent in the lesser antilles. see article on p. 252. iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 13, number 4 december 2006 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess r o b er t po w el l the recently described bromeliad-dwelling frog hyla melacaena is the only species of frog known to occur in the dwarf forests of cusuco national park, honduras (see article on p. 242). green tree monitors (varanus prasinus) have been successfully bred at the san diego zoo. hatchlings are quite active and ready to disperse (see article on p. 283). cosmopolitan house geckos (hemidactylus mabouia) are human commensals that have become established throughout the tropics as a consequence of this close association (see article on p. 252). b r o o k e l. t a ll ey r o b er t po w el l puerto rican ground lizards (ameiva exsul) readily dove into the sea and swam both under and on the surface (see article on p. 272). g a d p er r y ctenosaura similis may be an invasive species on isla utila, honduran bay islands, where it could threaten the genetic integrity of the endemic c. barkeri population (see article on p. 264). jo h n b in n s b r et t b a ld w in exuma island iguanas (cyclura cychlura figginsi) populations are increasingly affected by a growing number of tourists visiting the islands (see related reports on p. 278). goniurosaurus luii was described from southern china in the late 1990s. within months, these geckos were demanding high prices in the pet trade (see commentary on p. 288). m a r li es r a sk er jo h n b in n s iguana 12.2 b&w text 62 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell and henderson a red-bellied racer (alsophis rufiventris) basking on the rim of the quill, a dormant volcano on st. eustatius. these snakes are abundant here, but have been extirpated elsewhere on the st. christopher bank, where the mongoose has become established. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . insular populations of terrestrial animals often suffer as a consequence of alterations to their habitats by human agency (e.g., fosberg 1983, case et al. 1992). habitat specialists and endemic species that have evolved in the absence of efficient mainland predators and competitors are particularly vulnerable (e.g., case et al. 1992). faunas of isolated oceanic islands are represented disproportionately on lists of threatened or endangered species (e.g., 327 of 1264 or over 25% of species included on the list of u.s. endangered species are from hawaii (http://ecos.fws.gov/tess_public/tessusmap?status=listed). declines in amphibian populations throughout the world have been documented in recent years (e.g., iucn et al. 2004), but comparable surveys of reptilian species have yet to be implemented. although a few species and even some genera (e.g., west indian rock iguanas in the genus cyclura; e.g., alberts 2000, alberts et al. 2004) have been the focus of intensive conservation efforts, populations of many more species, a large proportion of them found only on small islands, are in various stages of decline, and some are in imminent danger of extinction, often with little recognition by the public or even professional conservation biologists. herein we address these concerns for reptiles inhabiting the lesser antilles, an archipelago of oceanic islands on which reptiles are frequently the most abundant and obvious naturally occurring vertebrates. general surveys of the herpetofauna include schwartz and thomas (1975), schwartz and henderson (1988, 1991), and censky and kaiser (1999), but the only previous systematic overview of conservation needs is that of corke (1992), and that was restricted to the windward islands. although many lesser antillean species are ecological generalists and some thrive in altered habitats (e.g., henderson and powell 1999, 2001), populations of many others are declining at alarming rates. some recent extirpations and even some extinctions have been documented, with a majority of both attributable to human agency. based on our own work in the region and surveys of the literature, we contend that at least 37 of 81 (45.7%) presumably native terrestrial reptilian species conservation status of lesser antillean reptiles robert powell1 and robert w. henderson2 1department of biology, avila university, kansas city, mo 64145, usa 2section of vertebrate zoology, milwaukee public museum, milwaukee, wi 53233, usa abstract.—island populations of terrestrial animals often are vulnerable to human-mediated changes to their environments. many insular endemics have become extinct, had populations extirpated, or are in various stages of decline. herein we address the conservation status of terrestrial reptiles in the lesser antilles. although many species in the region are ecological generalists and have adapted to the presence of humans, nearly half of the reptilian species native to the archipelago have suffered as a consequence of human alterations of their habitats or introductions of alien predators and competitors, often aggravated by catastrophic natural events such as hurricanes. particularly vulnerable are species that are terrestrial and diurnally active. although many of the listed factors have contributed to the decline or elimination of particular species from individual islands, we contend that the introduction of the mongoose is the single event most responsible for the extirpations and declines of many lesser antillean reptiles. key words: conservation, reptiles, lesser antilles iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 63lesser antillean reptiles � st. st. n sombrero bank anguilla bankanguilla st. martin/st. maarten st. barthélemy saba bank st. eustatius st. christopher nevisst. christopher bank redonda bank montserrat bank barbuda antigua antigua bank guadeloupe bank grande-terre la desirade basse-terre île des saintes bank marie-galante bank dominica bank martinique bank st. lucia bank grenadines grenada 100 km12° 14° 18° 60°62° 16° lesser antilles st. vincent bank grenada bank barbados bank map of the lesser antilles, showing major islands and island banks. inhabiting these islands have been affected negatively in some substantive way by human activities (table 1). these include species that have become extinct since european arrival and species (e.g., lizards in the genera ameiva or iguana and snakes in the genus alsophis) with at least some populations that have been extirpated or drastically reduced in numbers. below is a summary of the terrestrial reptilian species found in the region, with particular emphasis on those that we believe warrant further attention by governmental and non-governmental, local and international conservation agencies. for those species that are most severely threatened, we provide an overview of the distribution, note any protective measures that currently exist, and provide tentative identification of the principal causative agents responsible for declining population numbers and preliminary recommendations for protection. turtles (testudines) tortoises (testudinidae) in the lesser antilles are represented by an amalgam of populations that are apparently natural (e.g., fossil remains of geochelone sombrerensis from sombrero and g. carbonaria from anguilla; auffenberg 1967, lazell 1993, respectively) and populations of g. carbonaria on several islands (e.g., schwartz and henderson 1991) or g. denticulata on guadeloupe (breuil 2002) that may be natural, introduced by amerindians, established recently as a consequence of escaped pets, or combinations thereof (e.g., censky 1988). red-footed tortoise (geochelone carbonaria) populations occur on many islands ranging from grenada north to anguilla, but populations often are small and many are undoubtedly declining. to see tortoises on these islands, one frequently must find the person or persons who have taken an interest in them and who will accept donations of any individuals, often keeping them in enclosures on their property. at least some of these animals date to before the advent of the pet trade in the region and are descendants of either naturally dispersed ancestors or animals carried to the islands by amerindians in pre-columbian times or early european settlers. in either case, tortoise populations were likely intended to serve as food resources on future visits or during hard times. subsequent exploitation for food, efforts at extirpation of competitors for laboriously grown vegetable crops, collection for the pet trade, and habitat alteration and destruction have depleted essentially all populations. protection is difficult to justify when the origins of the constituent animals is uncertain. until genetic markers can be established to distinguish long-term residents and recently escaped or released pets, protective measures aimed at specific island populations are unrealistic expectations. however, efforts to develop the necessary tools and to monitor existing populations are undoubtedly warranted on at least those islands where individuals with ancestors that arrived there by natural means are suspected to occur. both g. carbonaria and g. denticulata (known in the region only from guadeloupe; breuil 2002) are listed as cites 64 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell and henderson red-footed tortoise (geochelone carbonaria) populations in the lesser antilles represent an amalgam of individuals that may have descended from ancestors that arrived naturally in the islands by over-water dispersal, been introduced by amerindians or colonial europeans (presumably as food stocks), or are recently released/escaped pets. r o b er t po w el l jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 65lesser antillean reptiles table 1. reptilian species of special concern in the lesser antilles. the following list includes those species that have already been recognized by cites or the iucn as being in need of some level of international protection. additional annotations, many based on our observations, are listed in the last column. species island/bank cites iucn annotation appendix1 category2 geochelone carbonaria lesser antilles ii systematic study denticulata guadeloupe ii vulnerable3 cnemidophorus vanzoi maria major vulnerable4 kentropyx borckiana barbados monitor ameiva ameiva st. vincent bank monitor grenada bank monitor cineracea guadeloupe bank extinct5 corax little scrub (anguilla) monitor corvina sombrero bank monitor erythrocephala st. christopher bank griswoldi antigua bank monitor major îles de la petite terre extinct6 plei anguilla bank monitor on st.-martin/st. maarten diploglossus montiserrati montserrat critically endangered7 mabuya spp. lesser antilles monitor, systematic study iguana delicatissima lesser antilles ii vulnerable8 upgrade status to “endangered” iguana lesser antilles ii monitor, systematic study leiocephalus cuneus anguilla, barbuda, extinct9 antigua, guadeloupe herminieri martinique extinct10 gonatodes sp. union (grenadines) monitor sphaerodactylus kirbyi bequia (grenadines) monitor alsophis antiguae antigua bank critically endangered11 antillensis montserrat monitor guadeloupe possibly extirpated marie-galante possibly extirpated rijgersmaei anguilla bank endangered12 especially on st.-martin/st. maarten rufiventris saba, st. christopher bank endangered13 extirpated on st. kitts and nevis sanctonum les saintes (guadeloupe) monitor clelia clelia grenada ii possibly extirpated errabunda st. lucia extinct14 chironius vincenti st. vincent critically endangered15 liophis cursor martinique bank critically endangered16 probably extirpated on martinique juliae guadeloupe, dominica possibly extirpated on guadeloupe, monitor on dominica ornatus maria major endangered17 extirpated on st. lucia perfuscus barbados endangered18 probably extinct mastigodryas bruesi st. vincent, grenada bank monitor boa constrictor dominica, st. lucia ii monitor corallus cookii st. vincent ii monitor grenadensis grenada bank ii monitor typhlops annae st.-barthélemy monitor tasymicris grenada monitor 1for criteria, see http://www.cites.org/, 2for iucn red list criteria, see http://www.redlist.org/info/categories_criteria.html, 3tortoise & freshwater turtle specialist group 1996, 4gibson 1996a, 5world conservation monitoring centre 1996a, 6world conservation monitoring centre 1996b, 7day 1996d, 8breuil and day 1996, 9breuil 2002, 10world conservation monitoring centre 1996c, 11day 1996a, 12day 1996b, 13day 1996c, 14underwood 1995, 15henderson 1996, 16breuil 1996, 17gibson 1996b, 18carrington et al. 1996 appendix ii (criteria for listing are given at: http:// www.cites.org/), and g. denticulata is “vulnerable” according to iucn red list criteria (tortoise & freshwater turtle specialist group 1996; for iucn red list criteria, see http:// www.redlist.org/info/categories_criteria.html). all other non-marine turtles found in the region are introduced semi-aquatic species in the genera trachemys (emydidae) and pelusios (pelomedusidae). the common slider (t. scripta), native to the american mainland from the southeastern united states at least into méxico and possibly into central and south america, is established on st.-martin/st. maarten (rp, pers. obs.) and on guadeloupe, marie-galante, and martinique (breuil 2002). the central antillean slider (t. stejnegeri), native to puerto rico, parts of hispaniola, and some bahamian islands, has been introduced on guadeloupe, marie-galante, and les saintes (breuil 2002). populations of both species are recent arrivals in the lesser antilles and probably originated as escaped or released pets or are descended from animals imported as food. both have been evaluated according to iucn red list criteria and are considered to be at “lower risk” of becoming threatened or endangered. schweigger’s terrapin (p. castaneus) is native to west africa and the origin of the west indian populations on guadeloupe and les saintes is uncertain. breuil (2002) noted that records of these turtles on guadeloupe date to the early 19th century. consequently, since they are edible, they may have originally been introduced in association with the african slave trade. this species is listed as cites appendix iii, based on exploitation of african turtles and with little or no consideration of the introduced west indian populations. teiid and microteiid lizards (squamata: teiidae and gymnophthalmidae) the st. lucia whiptail (cnemidophorus vanzoi) is the only member of its genus in the antilles (presch 1971, schwartz and henderson 1991). apparently endemic to two small islets, maria major and maria minor, off the coast of st. lucia (corke 1987), the entire population is estimated at fewer than 1000 individuals (rowe et al. 2002). a third population has been established recently through translocation on nearby praslin island, from which exotic mammals (e.g., goats and rats) had been eradicated (dickinson et al. 2001, john 1999). gibson (1996a) listed the species as “vulnerable.” the relevant iucn red list criteria still apply, but the species is receiving the necessary attention that should keep its status from deteriorating. kentropyx borckiana is a unisexual species of hybrid origin that originated on the guyana shield and became established on barbados following dispersal and colonization (cole et al. 1995). whether colonization was human-mediated is not known, nor have studies been implemented to evaluate the relationship between the barbadian population and those on the south american mainland. the population on barbados was once thought to be extinct (http://users.sunbeach.net/rhhinds/), but is being encountered more frequently in recent years (fraser et al. 1990), albeit in a very small portion of its historic range. considering the extensive development of barbados for agricultural purposes and, more recently, to accommodate the tourist trade, efforts to monitor this population should be encouraged. two lesser antillean species in the genus ameiva are considered extinct (world conservation monitoring centre 1996a,b). ameiva cineracea apparently was restricted in recent times to grand îlet off petit-bourg on the eastern coast of basseterre (guadeloupe)(schwartz and henderson 1991), although fossil records suggest that it formerly ranged across guadeloupe, la désirade, marie-galante, and les saintes (breuil 2002). ameiva major was thought to occur on martinique, but breuil (2002) indicated instead that it was endemic to les îles de la petite terre near guadeloupe. breuil (2002) suggested that introduced predators and consumption by amerindians played roles in the extinction of most populations, whereas a hurricane might have been largely responsible for the extinction of a. major. the three melanistic populations of ameiva from redonda (a. atrata), little scrub island off anguilla (a. corax), and sombrero (a. corvina) appear to be thriving in their respective island habitats. a documented capacity to survive potentially catastrophic natural events (e.g., hurricanes) and isolation on islands that discourage human access while offering little in the way of attractions seem to have served them well (e.g., censky and paulson 1992, censky and powell 2001). however, the very small size of these islands (little scrub 1.2 ha, sombrero 38.4 ha, redonda 130 ha) and the seasonal abundance and scarcity of food resources renders all three of these populations vulnera66 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell and henderson the entire population of the st. lucia whiptail (cnemidophorus vanzoi) is estimated at fewer than 1000 individuals. s. b la ir h ed g es ameiva erythrocephala appears to be doing well on mongoose-free st. eustatius, but is essentially restricted to heavily trafficked “urban” areas on st. christopher and nevis. r o b er t po w el l iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 67lesser antillean reptiles ble to unforeseen stochastic events. iucn red list criteria would qualify all three species for listing, although none are currently offered any formal protective status and all should be closely monitored. populations of other species of ameiva also have declined dramatically, but they remain common in at least some portion of their historic range. ameiva plei is common on anguilla and some of its satellites (e.g., hodge et al. 2003) and on st.barthélemy (breuil 2002), but populations on mongooseinfested st.-martin/st. maarten are localized, and the species is absent from many areas that apparently provide suitable habitat and adequate resources (breuil 2002). similarly, a. erythrocephala appears to be doing quite well on mongoose-free st. eustatius (kerr et al. 2005, rojer 1997a), but is essentially restricted to heavily trafficked “urban” areas on st. christopher and nevis (barbour 1930a, malhotra and thorpe 1999, westermann 1953). ameiva griswoldi is rarely encountered on antigua (rp, pers. obs.), but remains abundant on several offshore islets and is common on barbuda, despite the potential for extensive predation by feral cats (rwh, pers. obs.). populations of a. ameiva on grenada and the grenadines also appear to be largely restricted to areas where high levels of human activity may moderate mongoose predation (germano et al. 2003, simmons et al. 2005), but many populations on st. vincent are extirpated (corke 1992). no recent surveys have addressed the status of a. pluvianotata on montserrat. however, because of its largely lowland distribution (schwartz and henderson 1991), most populations probably were not affected dramatically by the ongoing eruptions of the soufrière volcano. lesser antillean microteiids (family gymnophthalmidae) are comprised of insular populations of species with broad south american distributions (e.g., williamson and powell 2004). bachia heteropa is a burrowing/litter-dwelling form that appears to be holding its own on grenada (germano et al. 2003) and the grenadines. parthenogenic populations of cryptozoic species in the genus gymnophthalmus are either expanding their ranges to new islands or are merely being discovered on islands where these small, inconspicuous lizards may have been present for some time. no populations appear to be threatened by current levels of human activity. lizards: galliwasps and skinks (squamata: anguidae and scincidae) in his description of the montserrat galliwasp, diploglossus montiserrati, underwood (1964) quoted the collector of the holotype as saying that he had seen this lizard only once before, and that was twenty-five years previously. stevens and waldman (2001) listed several more recent sightings (through 2001), but no successful efforts at collecting additional animals. day (1996) considered the species to be “critically endangered.” although recent records suggest that the population is extant, the rarity of encounters and the unknown effects of recent volcanic activity on moist woodland habitats seemingly preferred by these lizards warrant extensive efforts to determine the current population size and distribution of this species, which may very well be one of the most endangered lizards in the world. although d. montisserrati is the only anguid native to the region, skinks in the genus mabuya occupy similar niches on many islands (breuil 2002, schwartz and henderson 1991). although widespread, they are nowhere abundant, and populations on st.-martin/st. maarten, basse-terre (guadeloupe), marie-galante, and martinique have apparently been extirpated (breuil 2002). predation by mongooses, cats, and other exotic predators and deforestation with a resultant loss of surface litter on which these animals depend appear to be primarily responsible for these lizards’ extirpations, rarity, and possible population declines. much of the lack of concern may be attributable to the assumption that these are relatively recent introductions of one or two species that are widely distributed on the american mainland. however, no detailed systematic studies exist and, since potentially threatened endemic taxa could be hidden among populations currently assigned to m. mabouya or m. sloanii, establishing the identity and relationships of antillean populations and those in south america (see comments in mayer and lazell 2000, miralles 2005, and powell and henderson 2003) should be high priorities for researchers in the region. iguanian lizards (squamata: iguanidae, leiocephalidae, polychrotidae) unlike its more familiar relative, the common or green iguana (iguana iguana; see below), which has an extensive range throughout much of the neotropics, the lesser antillean iguana (i. delicatissima) is endemic to this region. the species’ original range extended from martinique in the south to anguilla in the north. however, populations have been extirpated on barbuda, saint kitts, nevis, antigua, les îles des saintes, marie-galante, and st.-martin/st. maarten (fogarty et al. 2004, powell 2004). the critically endangered montserrat galliwasp (diploglossus montisserrati) is known only from a single specimen and very few sightings. this drawing of the holotype is from underwood (1964). skinks in the genus mabuya are widely distributed in the lesser antilles, but are nowhere abundant, and several populations have apparently been extirpated. r o b er t po w el l breuil (2002) recently listed the populations on dominica, îles de la petite terre, and la désirade as vulnerable. apparently only that on petite terre is stable and only that on dominica is of even moderate size (anonymous 2004). however, even the “stable” population on petite terre suffered greatly during a prolonged drought in 2001 (breuil 2002 and references therein). breuil (2002) listed populations on basse-terre, îlet chancel (martinique), and st.-barthélemy as endangered, and those on antigua, anguilla, barbuda, île fourchue and satellites (st.barthélemy), grande-terre, martinique, st.-martin/st. maarten, and st. eustatius as critically endangered — and those on antigua, barbuda, and st.-martin/st. maarten have already disappeared (fogarty et al. 2004, powell 2004), along with populations on st. christopher, nevis, and marie-galante. along with all iguanas, the species is listed in cites appendix ii and as “vulnerable” in the most current iucn red list (breuil and day 1996). all populations are protected by local regulations from hunting, although enforcement ranges from non-existent to sporadic. two additional, separate threats face populations of i. delicatissima on st. eustatius and on martinique, guadeloupe, and possibly anguilla. mexican creeper (antigonon sp.) was introduced onto st. eustatius as an ornamental garden plant, but has escaped and covers entire regions of the island, where it actively threatens native vegetation (fogarty et al. 2004). no effective means of control has been identified. even goats find the creeper unpalatable and will eat it only in the absence of alternatives. the impact on plants consumed by iguanas has not been assessed, but the danger is obvious. the threat facing populations of i. delicatissima on martinique and guadeloupe is the possibility of hybridization with introduced populations of i. iguana. the possibility of previous, “natural” contact between the two species on various lesser antillean islands cannot be disregarded, despite the fact that the natural distribution of the two species appears to be allopatric. fossil remains of i. iguana are known from grandeterre (guadeloupe), where i. delicatissima presumably occurs naturally. also, breuil (2002) noted that the one figure in seba (1734) that was not an illustration of i. iguana and on which laurenti (1768) largely based his description of i. delicatissima was probably a hybrid, indicating that contact between the two species is not a recent phenomenon (see pasachnik et al. 2005 for a complete list of pertinent references and an extensive discussion of the species’ nomenclatural history). intermittent con68 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell and henderson the red list status of lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima) should be reevaluated and almost certainly upgraded to “endangered.” this male was foraging in the boven hills of st. eustatius. se a n p . f o g a r ty iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 69lesser antillean reptiles tact, with the possibility of introgression into native populations of either species, quite possibly occurred on several islands (although the statement in anonymous 2004 that “dominica, la désirade and la petite terre are the only islands where just iguana delicatissima is thought to live” is not warranted or accurate, as no reason exists to doubt the “purity” of populations on anguilla or st. eustatius). regardless, in recent years, humanmediated introductions of i. iguana onto islands inhabited by i. delicatissima and reductions in the extent of suitable habitat caused by human encroachment have dramatically magnified the frequencies of contact between the two species on martinique and guadeloupe, where populations of “pure” i. delicatissima have essentially disappeared. in light of documented declines in many populations, ongoing habitat destruction and alterations, continuing competition with introduced mammalian herbivores, predation by alien predators on many islands, and possible contamination of the gene pool as a consequence of interbreeding with introduced populations of green iguanas (pasachnik et al. 2005), the red list status of the species should be reevaluated and almost certainly upgraded to “endangered.” only the fact that populations remain on multiple islands precludes assignment of “critically endangered” status. like lesser antillean populations of tortoises (see above), those of green iguanas (iguana iguana) may be descendants of ancestors that arrived in the islands by natural (non-humanmediated) overwater dispersal, have been introduced by amerindians (probably for food), established recently as a consequence of escaped pets, or combinations thereof (powell 2004). presumably native populations occur on grenada, st. vincent, the grenadines, st. lucia, saba, and montserrat. populations of unknown or mixed origin are on martinique, priority should be given to better understanding the unique populations of iguana iguana on saba, montserrat, and st. lucia. this individual is from saba. r o b er t po w el l guadeloupe, les îles des saintes, and marie-galante; and populations presumed or known to be introduced occur on antigua, barbuda, st.-martin/st. maarten, and anguilla. a presumably natural population on barbados is extirpated (breuil 2002). because of the species’ broad continental range, which extends from méxico through central america and much of northern south america, and a general lack of recognition of genetic variability among populations, protective measures are considerably less stringent than for i. delicatissima. iguana iguana is listed in cites appendix ii, but export quotas exist for many countries, primarily for live animals (pet trade) or products (leather goods and meat). no distinction is made for native versus introduced or for continental versus insular populations. hunting is usually prohibited, but enforcement of laws is lax at best. in grenada, green iguanas are considered game animals (powell 2004), with a “regulated” hunting season and bag limits. both are routinely ignored by local hunters. basic surveys are necessary on montserrat, where the status of the i. iguana population is unknown and on islands, such as st. vincent, the grenadines, and grenada, from which we have no current data on the populations. field research on the basic biology of populations are needed for all populations, but priority should be given to better understanding the genetically unique populations of i. iguana on saba, montserrat, and st. lucia (malone et al. 2004, morton 2004), all of which might warrant recognition as distinct species (powell 2004). other iguanian lizards in the region include the ubiquitous and scansorial anoles (anolis), which are found on essentially every island capable of supporting any vegetation. these lizards appear to adapt well to alterations of their habitats, functioning as human commensals in many instances (henderson and powell 1999, 2001). however, we cannot predict the effects on native species by introduced anoles. documented instances in the lesser antilles (a. carolinensis on anguilla, eaton et al. 2001; 70 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell and henderson anoles, such as this anolis sabanus from saba, are found on essentially every island capable of supporting any vegetation and appear to adapt well to alterations of their habitats, functioning as human commensals in many instances. r o b er t po w el l this woodcut of a “roquet” in rochefort (1658) undoubtedly represents leiocephalus cuneus and provides convincing evidence that the species was extant during the colonial period (from breuil 2002). iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 71lesser antillean reptiles a. sagrei on grenada, greene et al. 2002; a. cristatellus on dominica, powell and henderson 2003; and the apparently unsuccessful colony of a. bimaculatus on st.-martin/st. maarten, powell et al. 1992) suggest that the introduced species are limited to areas of dramatically altered habitats, where they presumably pose little threat to native congeners. these are all relatively recent introductions, however, and longer-term effects are unknown. in stark contrast to the anoles and more comparable to the fate of many populations of ameiva is the apparent status of terrestrial curly-tailed lizards (leiocephalus). two species occurred in the lesser antilles, and both appear to have become extinct in historical times, albeit prior to the introduction of the mongoose (breuil 2002, world conservation monitoring centre 1996c). leiocephalus cuneus may once have been widespread (fossil remains assigned to l. cf. cuneus are known from anguilla, barbuda, antigua, and guadeloupe; breuil 2002, schwartz and henderson 1988), whereas l. herminieri is known only from martinique. no specimens of the latter have been taken since the 1830s (world conservation monitoring centre 1996c). the association of remains with archaeological sites suggests that pre-columbian human activities may have contributed to these species’ declines, although populations of both were apparently extant after european colonization. geckos (squamata: gekkonidae) phyllodactylus pulcher is the only leaf-toed gecko known to occur in the lesser antilles. the species is endemic to barbados, where it presumably is “nocturnal, arboreal, and insectivorous” (dixon 1962, schwartz and henderson 1991). although some references to edificarian habits exist (e.g., http://users.sunbeach.net/rhhinds/), known localities for the species are limited and its range has not been systematically investigated (government of barbados 2002). the species is considered rare (ministry of physical development and environment, barbados 2001). surveys seeking to establish the distribution and abundance of this barbadian endemic should be encouraged, especially since insular populations of leaf-toed geckos elsewhere appear to be vulnerable to population declines when faced with competition from house geckos in the genus hemidactylus (g. köhler, pers. comm.). other geckos known to occur on lesser antillean islands include two species of house geckos (hemidactylus), the turnip-tailed gecko (thecadactylus rapicauda), various species of dwarf geckos (sphaerodactylus), an undescribed species of clawed gecko (gonatodes), and the introduced tokay gecko the barbadian leaf-toed gecko (phyllodactylus pulcher) is the only known member of its genus to occur in the lesser antilles. essentially nothing is known about its natural history, distribution, or abundance (http://users.sunbeach.net/rhhinds/leaf%20toed%20gecko.html). r .h . h in d s alsophis rufiventris remains abundant on mongoose-free saba and st. eustatius, but has been extirpated on mongoose-infested st. christopher and nevis. r o b er t po w el l (gekko gecko). house geckos are human commensals and are abundant nearly everywhere. turnip-tailed geckos are widely distributed, but appear to be less common than house geckos, although that might be attributable largely to habitat preferences for forested areas rather than buildings (e.g., howard et al. 2001). many dwarf geckos are phenomenally abundant (e.g., s. parvus and s. sputator on anguilla or s. sabanus and s. sputator on st. eustatius; nava et al. 2001, hensley et al. 2004), but others, such as s. elegantulus on antigua are rarely encountered, even in apparently suitable habitat (rp, pers. obs.). the first dwarf gecko to be found on the grenada bank, s. kirbyi, was described from six specimens in the mid-1990s (lazell 1994). it has so far been recorded only from bequia, one of the northernmost of the grenadines. the population on bequia should be monitored and other islands in the grenadines should be surveyed for dwarf geckos, as should grenada, the only major landmass in the windward islands that does not harbor a species of sphaerodactylus. the undescribed clawed gecko (gonatodes sp.) appears to be restricted to leaf litter in mature upland dry forest on union island in the grenadines. nothing is known about the distribution or natural history of this species, the habitat of which should be monitored closely. common snakes (squamata: colubridae) the ranks of the colubridae, like the ground-dwelling ameiva lizards, have suffered the greatest number of extirpations, extinctions, and/or dramatic reductions in geographic ranges in the west indies in general and the lesser antilles in particular. west indian racers (alsophis) are, essentially, snake counterparts of ameiva. they are ground-dwelling, diurnal, fast-moving, oviparous, and apparently susceptible to predation by grounddwelling, diurnal, fast-moving mongooses. although some species on some islands harbor healthy racer populations (e.g., alsophis antillensis on dominica and montserrat, a. rijgersmaei on anguilla and st.-barthélemy, and a. rufiventris on saba and st. eustatius; breuil 2002, heinz et al. 2004, henderson 2004, hodge et al. 2003, maley et al. 2005, malhotra and thorpe 1999, rojer 1997a,b, savit et al. 2005, rwh and rp, pers. observ.), populations of the same species are restricted to small, isolated enclaves on st.-martin/st. maarten (a. rijgersmaei; powell et al. 1992, rojer 1997c, breuil 2002) and extirpated on antigua (a. antiguae), marie-galante (a. antillensis), st. christopher and nevis (a. rufiventris), and possibly guadeloupe (a. antillensis)(barbour 1930a, henderson 1992, 2004, maley et al. 2005, sajdak and henderson 1991, sajdak 2004). in each instance, the mongoose appears to be primarily responsible. if mongooses are present on an island, racers have usually been extirpated; if the mongoose is absent, racer populations are healthy (table 2). a textbook example is illustrated by the situation on antigua and one of its satellite islands. mongooses were introduced onto antigua in the late nineteenth century (henderson 1989), and, in 1936, parker declared a. antiguae extinct. apparently unknown to parker, however, a population of a. antiguae survived on the small (9.9 ha) mongoose-free satellite known as great bird island, situated 2.5 km off the northeastern coast of antigua. valiant efforts are being made to insure that the great bird island population of a. antiguae does not go the way of the main island populations (daltry et al. 2001). 72 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell and henderson table 2. presence or absence of species of ameiva, alsophis, liophis, and the mongoose (herpestes javanicus) on lesser antillean islands. a “+” indicates presence and a “–” indicates absence of the mongoose or absence of a species of ameiva, alsophis, and/or liophis from an island where that species once occurred. an asterisk (*) indicates that, if the species still occurs on the island, it is very rare or restricted to isolated enclaves. the absence of either a “+” or a “–” denotes that no record of that taxon occurring on that island exists. many small islands and cays not listed here may support ameiva populations and have no mongooses. alsophis also is known from barbuda, but only as a fossil. island mongoose ameiva alsophis liophis sombrero – + anguilla – + + scrub – + + little scrub – + st.-martin/ st. maarten + + +* st.-barthélemy – + + saba – + st. eustatius – + + st. christopher + +* – nevis + +* – antigua + +* – great bird – + + barbuda – + redonda – + montserrat – + + guadeloupe + +* +* terre-de-haut – + + terre-de-bas – + marie-galante + – +* dominica – + + + martinique + – rocher de diamant – + st. lucia + – maria major – + barbados + – st. vincent + +* grenada + +* like populations of other diurnal, terrestrial reptiles, liophis, like this l. juliae from dominica, is extremely vulnerable to predation by introduced mongooses. a n it a m a lh o tr a iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 73lesser antillean reptiles grove snakes (liophis) are, like racers, ground-dwelling, diurnal, oviparous, and have been extirpated on islands where mongooses have been introduced (table 2). for the most part, they occur on islands south of the range of alsophis, although guadeloupe, marie-galante, and dominica have or had representatives of both genera. grove snakes have been eliminated from martinique (l. cursor), st. lucia (l. ornatus), and barbados (l. perfuscus). a satellite population of l. cursor occurs on rocher de diamant (0.06 km2) and, similarly, a satellite population of l. ornatus occurs on maria major (0.09 km2) off the coast of st. lucia. the status of both of these populations is, at best, precarious. liophis juliae occurs on guadeloupe and dominica. it is rare to possibly extirpated on mongoose-infested guadeloupe and, conversely, it is widespread and common on mongoose-free dominica. two species of clelia, often called “cribo” in the west indies, are somewhat of an enigma. clelia clelia (cites appendix ii) may reach 2.0 m and is a powerful snake that is capable of constriction and injecting venom via fangs situated in the rear of the upper jaws. the venom is effective for subduing vertebrate prey (mostly snakes and small mammals). because it shares characteristics with alsophis and liophis (ground-dwelling, sometimes diurnal), it may be or may have been vulnerable to mongoose predation. it may never have been common in the west indies (henderson 2004). during fieldwork spanning 15 years on grenada, rwh has never encountered this species, and grenadians concur that it is a very rare snake. most adults have not seen one since they were children. although the species warrants protection on grenada, we are uncertain how to effectively establish protection for a species that most people have never seen and therefore would not know it if they did see it. clelia errabunda was endemic to st. lucia. it is now extinct, and underwood (1995) attributed its disappearance to human activity. a single species of mastigodryas (m. bruesi) occurs on st. vincent and the grenada bank. it has been introduced to barbados, possibly via banana shipments that originated in st. vincent (underwood et al. 1999). this slender, diurnal snake was often encountered sleeping in trees on st. vincent in the late 1980s, but surveys in the early 1990s failed to produce any sightings. barbour (1914) described this species as “… apparently, the most abundant ophidian on the island [of grenada].” whether or not that was an accurate statement in 1914 is impossible to say (see comments in henderson and powell 2005 regarding the accuracy of barbour’s assessments of herpetofaunal abundance), but it doesn’t apply today. barbour (1930a, 1930b, 1935, 1937) declared the species extinct on st. vincent and “very rare” on grenada. corke (1992) noted that the species was “relatively common,” but might have been referring solely to st. vincent. the species apparently is rare in grenada (greene et al. 2003). rwh has not observed a live individual over a 15year span, but two field associates saw individuals at two different sites in 2003. the species may be more common on at least some of the grenadines, but it has been over a decade since active fieldwork has been conducted there. although its arboreal tendencies (schwartz and henderson 1991) might provide some protection from predation by terrestrial mongooses (sajdak and henderson 1991), the species’ uncertain status throughout its known range certainly calls for survey work and possible monitoring. the largely arboreal habits of mastigodryas bruesi appear to render this species somewhat less vulnerable to mongoose predation than more terrestrial colubrid snakes in the region. r o b er t po w el l whether the apparent recent decline in the numbers of treeboas (corallus grenadensis) is a natural phenomenon or not is uncertain. r o b er t w . h en d er so n boa constrictors (boa constrictor), such as this individual from dominica, are subject to persecution on the lesser antillean islands where they occur; although not in imminent danger of eradication, populations should be monitored. a n it a m a lh o tr a chironius, a geographically and ecologically widespread genus on the neotropical mainland, is represented by a single species in the west indies. chironius vincenti is endemic to st. vincent. henderson et al. (1988) described the first specimen to reach a museum in over 100 years. this may be the most habitat-dependent snake species in the lesser antilles. snakes are restricted to primary and secondary forests at elevations from 275–600 m, where they are active by day on the ground and in trees and where they feed on anurans (henderson and haas 1993). radical modification of primary and secondary forests on st. vincent would have serious consequences for c. vincenti; it is considered “critically endangered” on the iucn red list (henderson 1996). boas (squamata: boidae) the boa constrictor (boa constrictor) is restricted to dominica and st. lucia in the lesser antilles, and each island supports an endemic subspecies (b. c. nebulosus and b. c. orophias, respectively). on dominica, the species is exploited for its fat, which is rendered and the resultant oil is used to treat arthritis and other joint ailments (malhotra and thorpe 1999; m. day, in litt.). boa constrictors are subject to persecution merely because they are snakes, and also because they may represent a potential danger to humans as a consequence of their size. to the best of our knowledge, b. constrictor populations in the lesser antilles are not in imminent danger of eradication, but they should be monitored. the treeboas corallus cookii and c. grenadensis are lesser antillean endemics on st. vincent and the grenada bank, respectively. corallus cookii was moderately common when last surveyed in the late 1980s and early 1990s (henderson 2002). corallus grenadensis occurs on ten islands (grenada plus nine of the grenadines). we have not surveyed populations on the grenadines for over a decade, but we assume all populations are still extant. population declines have been observed on grenada (henderson 2002, henderson and berg 2005), but we are unable to state with any certainty why they have occurred. we have seen declines at sites where treeboas were being captured, marked, and released; we have also witnessed them where no handling occurred. although henderson (2002) did not agree with grenadians that c. grenadensis was not as common as they once were, he now concurs that, certainly at some sites, numbers have dwindled (henderson 2003, henderson and berg 2005). the depression in numbers we are now seeing may be a natural phenomenon, and numbers might eventually increase again. regardless, the situation on grenada warrants monitoring. pit-vipers (squamata: viperidae) two species of pit-vipers occur in the lesser antilles: bothrops caribbaeus on st. lucia and b. lanceolatus on martinique. both species survived years of having bounties on their heads. although bounties are no longer offered, over a seven-year period in the 1960s, bounties on more than 50,000 b. lanceolatus were collected on martinique (pinchon 1967). these snakes undoubtedly are routinely killed when encountered by humans. nevertheless, we are led to believe that both species remain common on their respective islands (lazell 1964, powell and wittenberg 1998). lazell (1964) even suggested that, unlike so many other west indian endemic snakes and lizards, bothrops may have benefited from the introduction of the mongoose, as larger individuals readily consume mongooses. blind snakes and thread snakes (squamata: leptotyphlopidae and typhlopidae) because of the secretive habits of these small antand termiteeating snakes, assessments of their status are difficult. leptotyphlops bilineatus (martinique, st. lucia, barbados) and typhlops geotomus (st. christopher bank, antigua bank) have multi-island distributions and likely have healthy populations. conversely, t. annae (st.-barthélemy), t. monastus (montserrat), t. guadeloupensis (guadeloupe), t. dominicanus (dominica), and t. tasymicris (grenada) have single-island distributions and some species may deserve legislated protection. typhlops domincanus is widespread on dominica (malhotra and thorpe 1999), and we have had no trouble finding t. guadeloupensis. typhlops annae was only recently described (breuil 1999) and it occurs on a small (22 km2) island; its status should be monitored. typhlops tasymicris was discovered in 1968 (thomas 1974) and, since then, only one additional specimen has been deposited in a scientific collection (wallach 2000). we have made unsuccessful efforts to collect it (or even to find someone on grenada who is 74 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 powell and henderson pit-viper populations may have benefited from the introduction of the mongoose, as larger snakes readily consume them. this bothrops lanceolatus is from martinique. h a n s e. a . b o o s because of the secretive habits of snakes in the genus typhlops, assessing the status of these small antand termite-eating snakes can be difficult. this is t. geotomus from nevis. s. b la ir h ed g es iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 75lesser antillean reptiles familiar with the species). we are unaware of the status of t. monastus. its relatively extensive distribution on montserrat (schwartz and henderson 1991) would suggest that the species is secure despite recent volcanic activity on that island. possible effects resulting from the introduction of ramphotyphlops braminus on anguilla, st.-martin/st. maarten, and st.-barthélemy (breuil 2002, censky and hodge 1997) are unknown. summary many lesser antillean reptiles are habitat generalists, descendants of effective colonizers, and often adapt well to humanmediated alterations of their environments. the most obvious examples are the many anoles that probably were arboreal historically, but adapt readily to almost any vertical structure. furthermore, they are heliothermic to varying degrees and seem to thrive in situations in which human activity has created habitat edges. also apparently doing well are some of the nocturnally active species (e.g., hemidactylus and thecadactylus), those that are small and inconspicuous (e.g., gymnophthalmus and some sphaerodactylus), and species that spend most of their lives underground (e.g., bachia and most typhlops). in sharp contrast, many other reptiles have seen populations decline precipitously and even disappear altogether. particularly vulnerable are species that are associated primarily or solely with pristine habitats that no longer exist on most islands, are large and can serve as an economic commodity, inspire fear, or are diurnally active and terrestrial. undoubtedly the most widely applicable effects on the majority of species are associated with habitat destruction or change. species, such as diploglossus montisserrati or chironius vincenti, for example, that are adapted to either dry lowland forests or lush rainforests, usually at higher elevations, often suffer as trees are cleared to make way for agriculture, human housing and associated infrastructure, or the demands of the tourist industry. iguanas often suffer when forced to compete for food with introduced mammalian herbivores, and treeboas (corallus) require a contiguous canopy that exists in increasingly fewer localities within their ranges. some, such as the tortoises, the iguanas, and even boa constrictor, are exploited directly for food or other marketable products. others, such as nearly all of the snakes, are persecuted by residents who consider them all dangerous. factors that may contribute to declining populations (and, potentially, extirpation or extinction) are listed in table 3. with the exception of natural catastrophes, the one variable that the rest of these factors have in common is the human element. the first four categories all require human involvement. with so many factors that are capable of contributing to the extinction, extirpation, or obvious decrease in population numbers or constricted geographic ranges, singling-out one factor to explain a geographically broad pattern of extirpations may seem irresponsible. however, the geographically broad scope of the extirpations points to a single factor and, more importantly, to a single species: herpestes javanicus. the almost complete correlation between the presence of mongooses and the decline or absence of terrestrial lizards (e.g., ameiva, possibly mabuya) and snakes (e.g., alsophis, liophis)(table 2) clearly indicates that this introduced predator has, in fact, directly contributed to the decline, extirpation, and even extinction of lesser antillean reptiles. this assertion differs with corke (1992), who suggested that no conclusive evidence existed for the widely reported role of introduced mongooses in the decline of the islands’ reptiles. likewise, baskin and williams (1966) were, at best, ambivalent regarding the impact of herpestes on ameiva. although we concede that other factors (e.g., overdevelopment; cats, dogs, and rats) have contributed to the decline or elimination of a particular species from an island, we contend that, in the absence of mongoose introductions, extirpations would be far less common in the lesser antilles. acknowledgments recent fieldwork in the lesser antilles by henderson has been funded by the windway foundation and the zoological society of milwaukee county. work in the region by both henderson and powell has been funded by grants from the national science foundation (dbi-9732257 and dbi-0242589 to r. powell). table 3. factors that may contribute to extinctions, extirpations, range constrictions, and/or declining populations in lesser antillean reptiles. factor examples introduced predators cats, dogs, mongooses, rats introduced competitors gekko gecko, elaphe gutatta, herbivorous mammals habitat modification housing for growing human due to development population; hotels and golf courses for tourism habitat modification deforestation to create pastures to sustain human or livestock; fields for crop population production, charcoal production habitat modification cropping of vegetation to dirt due to free-ranging level by goats, sheep, burros, livestock pigs, and cattle natural catastrophes hurricanes in the absence of mongoose (herpestes javanicus) introductions, extirpations of terrestrial reptiles in the lesser antilles would be far less common. a la in f o ss é references alberts, a. (ed.). 2000. west indian iguanas. status survey and conservation action plan. iucn/ssc west indian iguana specialist group. iucn, gland, switzerland and cambridge, united kingdom. alberts, a. c., r. l. carter, w. k. hayes, and e. p. martins (eds.). 2004. iguanas: biology and conservation. univ. california press, berkeley. anonymous. 2004. lesser antillean iguana. unpubl. report, durrell wildlife conservation trust, trinity, jersey, english channel islands, british isles (http://www.jerseyzoo.co.uk/). auffenberg, w. 1967. notes on west indian tortoises. herpetologica 31:34–44. barbour, t. 1914. a contribution to the zoögeography of the west indies, with special reference to amphibians and reptiles. mem. mus. comp. zoöl. 44:209–359 + 1 pl. barbour, t. 1930a. some faunistic changes in the lesser antilles. proc. new england zoöl. club 2:73–85. barbour, t. 1930b. a list of antillean reptiles and amphibians. zoologica (ny) 11:61–116. barbour, t. 1935. a second list of antillean reptiles and amphibians. zoologica (ny) 19:77–141. barbour, t. 1937. third list of antillean reptiles and amphibians. bull. mus. comp. zoöl. 82:77–166. baskin, j. n. and e. e. williams. 1966. the lesser antillean ameiva (sauria, teiidae). stud. fauna curaçao and carib. isl. 89:144–176. breuil, m. 1996. liophis cursor. in: iucn 2004. 2004 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.redlist.org>. breuil, m. 1999. nouvelle espèce du genre typhlops (serpentes, typhlopidae) de l’île de saint-barthélemy, comparaison avec les autres espèces des petites antilles. bull. mens. soc. linn. lyon 68:30–40. breuil, m. 2002. histoire naturelle des amphibiens et reptiles terrestres de l’archipel guadeloupéen. guadeloupe, saint-martin, saint-barthélemy. patrimoines naturels, paris 54:1–339. breuil, m. and m. day. 1996. iguana delicatissima. in: iucn 2004. 2004 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.redlist.org>. carrington, c. m., g. evans, and j. horrocks. 1996. liophis perfuscus. in: iucn 2004. 2004 iucn red list 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r. powell. 2003. herpetofaunal communities in grenada: a comparison of altered sites, with an annotated checklist of grenadian amphibians and reptiles. carib. j. sci. 39:68–76. gibson, r. 1996a. cnemidophorus vanzoi. in: iucn 2004. 2004 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.redlist.org>. gibson, r. 1996b. liophis ornatus. in: iucn 2004. 2004 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.redlist.org>. government of barbados. 2002. a national biodiversity strategy & action plan for barbados. the ministry of physical development and environment, barbados (http://www.biodiv.org/doc/world/bb/bb-nbsap-01-en.pdf). greene, b. t., r. powell, and r. w. henderson. 2003. mastigodryas bruesi. cat. amer. amphib. rept. (777):1–3. greene, b.t., d.t. yorks, j.s. parmerlee, jr., r. powell, and r.w. henderson. 2002. discovery of anolis sagrei in grenada with comments on its potential impact on native anoles carib. j. sci. 38:270–272. kerr, a. m., r. powell, and j. s. parmerlee, jr. 2005. ameiva erythrocephala (teiidae) on sint eustatius, netherlands antilles: baseline data on a small population in a severely altered habitat. carib. j. sci. 41:162–169. heinz, h. m., a. j. maley, a. z. savit, r. w. henderson, and r. powell. 2004. behaviour and time allotment in the west indian snake, alsophis rufiventris (colubridae). herpetol. bull. 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(676):1–4. presch, w. 1971. tongue structure of the teiid lizard genera ameiva and cnemidophorus with a reallocation of ameiva vanzoi. j. herpetol. 5:183–185 rojer, a. 1997a. biological inventory of sint eustatius. unpubl. knap project report 96–10, carmabi foundation, curaçao, netherlands antilles. rojer, a. 1997b. biological inventory of saba. unpubl. knap project report 96–10, carmabi foundation, curaçao, netherlands antilles. rojer, a. 1997c. biological inventory of st. maarten. unpubl. knap project report 96-10, carmabi foundation, curaçao, netherlands antilles. rowe, g., h. c. dickinson, r. gibson, s. m. funk, and j. e. fa. 2002. st lucia whiptail lizard cnemidophorus vanzoi (sauria : teiidae) microsatellite primers. mol. ecol. notes 2:124–126. sajdak, r. a. 2004. snakes of the caribbean: an island-by-island look at the 25 snake species of the lesser antilles. reptiles 12(10):58–65. sajdak, r.a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. status of west indian racers in the lesser antilles. oryx 25:33–38. savit, a. z., a. j. maley, h. m. heinz, r. w. henderson, and r. powell. 2005. distribution and activity periods of alsophis rufiventris (colubridae) on the quill, st. eustatius, netherlands antilles. amphib.rept.: in press. schwartz, a. and r. w. henderson. 1988. west indian amphibians and reptiles: a check-list. milwaukee pub. mus. contrib. biol. geol. (74):1–264. schwartz, a. and r. w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. schwartz, a. and r. thomas. 1975. a check-list of west indian amphibians and reptiles. carnegie mus. nat. hist. spec. publ. (1):1–216. seba, a. 1734. locupletissimi rerum naturalium thesuari accurata descriptio, et iconibus artificosissimis expressio, per universam physices historiam. tomas i. j. wetsterium, g. smith, and janssonio-waesbergios, amstelae [= amsterdam] (partial reprint: 2001. le cabinet des curiosités naturelles. les tableaux coloriés complets. taschen, köln [all the plates are reproduced in color from handpainted volumes conserved at the koninklijke bibliothek of la haye, the netherlands. one volume without the text of seba]). simmons, p. m., b. t. greene, k. e. williamson, r. powell, and j. s. parmerlee, jr. 2005. ecological interactions within a lizard community on grenada. herpetologica 61:124–134. stevens, m. and g. waldmann. 2001. animal biodiversity of the lesser antillean island of montserrat (british west indies): an annotated checklist of terrestrial and freshwater animals. archiv zool. publ., vol. 6. martina galunder-verlag, nümbrecht, germany. thomas, r. 1974. a new species of lesser antillean typhlops (serpentes: typhlopidae). occ. pap. mus. zool. louisiana st. univ. (46):1–5. tortoise & freshwater turtle specialist group. 1996. geochelone denticulata. in: iucn 2004. 2004 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.redlist.org>. underwood, g. 1964. an anguid lizard from the leeward islands. breviora (200):1–10. underwood, g. 1995. a tale of old serpents. st. lucia nat. trust, st. lucia. underwood, g., j. a. horrocks, and j. c. daltry. 1999. a new snake from barbados. j. barbados mus. hist. soc. 45:67–75. wallach, v. 2000. typhlops tasymicris: maximum length and second known specimen. herpetol. rev. 31:180. westerman, j. h. 1953. nature preservation in the caribbean. a review of literature on the destruction and preservation of flora and fauna in the caribbean area. publ. found. sci. res. surinam neth. antilles (9):1–107. williamson, k. e. and r. powell. 2004. gymnophthalmus underwoodi. cat. amer. amphib. rept. (793): 1–5. world conservation monitoring centre. 1996a. ameiva cineracea. in: iucn 2004. 2004 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.redlist.org>. world conservation monitoring centre. 1996b. ameiva major. in: iucn 2004. 2004 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.redlist.org>. world conservation monitoring centre. 1996c. leiocephalus herminieri. in: iucn 2004. 2004 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.redlist.org>. iguana 12.4 b&w text rhinoceros iguana (cyclura cornuta): a lithograph by joseph smit from lydekker’s the royal natural history (1893–1986). richard lydekker (england, 1849–1915) is not one of the great names in the history of zoogeographical inquiry, but he did explore the subject frequently, often as a function of his studies in vertebrate paleontology. as a young man, he joined the geological survey of india, and there he was able to carry out extensive investigations that prepared him for his later position with the british museum of natural history. on returning from india, he was charged by the museum to prepare catalogues of their fossil vertebrate collections; this was accomplished in less than ten years. in his later years, lydekker took an increasing interest in public venues, contributing to changes in exhibit design at the museum and preparing many writings of a more popular orientation. joseph smit (1836–1929) was a very skilled lithographer and excellent artist who illustrated numerous 19th century natural history publications. a native of holland, he moved to england in the 1860s, at first specializing in bird illustrations, but later painting mammals as well. by the end of the century, he was considered to be the best animal painter in the country. t he u tila a nole (n orops[anolis] utilensis) m ay be the w orld’s m ost endangered anole (see article on p. 240). joe burgess iguana 13.1 b&w text 68 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 book review donnelly, m. a., b. i. crother, c. guyer, m. h. wake, and m. e. white (eds.). 2005. ecology & evolution in the tropics: a herpetological perspective. the university of chicago press, chicago, illinois. 675 pp. softcover. isbn 0-226-15658-3. $45.00 (hardcover also available for $95.00).1 this edited volume contains a short foreword by luis d. gómez dedicating this compendium to jay m. savage (author of the monumental 2002 book: the amphibians and reptiles of costa rica: a herpetofauna between two continents, between two seas), a brief preface acknowledging a host of contributors and reviewers, 18 separately authored chapters organized into two sections (“part i: evolution and biogeography” and “part ii: ecology, biogeography, and faunal studies”), followed by a 65-page listing of references, affiliations of contributing authors, and extensive indices to subjects and taxa. although typically organized around a central theme, collections of contributed papers often suffer from deficiencies in focus that might be inevitable in many instances. in this instance, the individual chapters often provide extensive, useful, and timely information, but an almost total lack of cohesion and continuity leaves the reader feeling that they might as well have appeared separately in scientific journals. only the connection of many of the contributors to jay savage (whose publications and interests were as diverse as this collection) and a general tropical theme unite them. however, even the “tropical” theme so prominently featured in the title is misleading (might this have been imposed by the publisher in order to entice a more diverse readership?). only a few systematic chapters address taxa found north of costa rica, only one (on taxonomic theory) is widely applicable, only one (on evolution of anoles assigned to the genus norops) touches on the west indies, and only three (on higherlevel snake phylogeny, elapid relationships, and long-term frog monitoring by local people in papua new guinea) focus largely on areas outside the neotropics. the title promised a much broader overview. consequently, the value of this volume must be evaluated on the basis of its individual parts. these vary from the theoretical to practical and highly technical to readable and entertaining. all are professionally written and edited, and adequately illustrated (although the volume cries out for more illustrations of especially the more unfamiliar taxa discussed in many chapters). however, many are so narrow in scope that few readers will find more than a couple of chapters applicable to their own interests. part i begins with arnold kluge proposing a new system of classification, which he illustrates by using eublepharid geckos. his rankless hierarchy of names effectively reflects phylogenetic relationships and is undoubtedly superior to traditional linnaean nomenclature in doing so. whether its utility in this context will lead to wide acceptance remains to be seen. chapter 2, by marvalee wake, gabriela parra-olea, and judy sheen, examines phylogenetic relationships in central american caecilians. although data generated by using various techniques have yet to establish an unambiguous phylogeny for these poorly known fossorial amphibians, current data have shed new light on evolutionary patterns of reproductive modes. david wake, in chapter 3, uses phylogenetic and distributional information to infer how costa rican salamanders radiated to fill their current niches. wake concludes his chapter with a very timely discussion of amphibian declines in costa rica. chapter 4, by ronald heyer, rafael de sá, and sarah muller, addresses conflicting hypotheses seeking to explain the distribution of leptodactylus silvanimbus, a ecology and evolution in the tropics b o o k r e v i e w 1 this review is being published simultaneously in the bulletin of the chicago herpetological society. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 68 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 69book review frog found only in the cloud forests of honduras. the authors conclude that the species is a relict and has no close relationships with any other middle american forms. shyh-hwang chen, in chapter 5, uses chromosomal data to elucidate historical relationships in two groups of eleutherodactylus frogs from central america. in chapter 6, sharon emerson examines the physiological basis of sexual dimorphism in frogs. the next two chapters deal with snake phylogeny. chapter 7, by mary white, maria kelly-smith, and brian crother, examines the origins of snakes, whereas chapter 8, by the late joseph slowinski and robin lawson, takes a narrower view by using molecular data to elucidate relationships among elapids. the last chapter in this section, by harry greene and roy mcdiarmid, honors alfred russel wallace and jay savage for their contributions to our understanding of venomous snake mimicry. for both its historical value and well-written evaluations of mimicry systems, this may be the most broadly appealing and even entertaining contribution in the entire volume. the content entices even nonsnake biologists with its potentially wider applications, and the very subject is so innately fascinating that any biologist, professional or amateur, will be entranced. part ii begins with karen lips using a detailed examination of a single breeding season of the recently described, leaf-breeding frog, hyla calypsa, to evaluate reproductive modes in tropical anurans. in chapters 11 and 12, craig guyer and maureen donnelly explore interspecific competition among co-occurring hylid frogs at a reproductive site in costa rica and norman scott and luz aquino describe foraging strategies of frogs in the gran chaco of paraguay. i love the title of the latter, “it’s a frog-eatfrog world in the paraguayan chaco,” and i very much appreciate the color plates that illustrated a few of the species mentioned (as indicated previously, many of the other chapters would have benefited from doing the same). david bickford, in chapter 13, uses a study in papua new guinea to describe how an integrated conservation and development project can be used to answer scientific questions about frog diversity and conservation. although narrowly focused, this contribution has broad applicability for similar projects that might be designed and implemented in developing tropical nations throughout the world. in chapter 14, kirsten nicholson focuses on mainland taxa to explore the origins and radiation of anoles placed in the genus norops. similarly, in chapter 15, steven werman used phylogenies for neotropical pitvipers to infer a most likely historical scenario. chapters 16 and 17 present faunal inventories by roy mcdiarmid and jay savage (of the osa peninsula in costa rica) and by maureen donnelly, megan chen, and graham watkins (of the iwokrama forest in guyana). the volume’s final chapter presents an overview of the presumably ancient herpetofaunal diversity of guyanan tepuis, odd, elevated geological formations that form habitat islands within a broad region. because of jay savage’s vast body of work and the fact that contributors are linked to him by academic genealogy or collaboration, a few common ideological threads are apparent. both detailed phylogenetic studies and examinations of natural history traits are of tremendous value in expanding our understanding of amphibians and reptiles. combining them is less common, of even greater value, and some of the chapters in this volume are testament to savage’s example for integrated studies using various methods once thought to be independent or even mutually exclusive of one another. on the other hand, formal recognition of the genus norops, for example, although advocated by many scientists who study mainland anoles, is less enthusiastically received by others who work primarily in the west indies. similarly, historical biogeographies that emphasize vicariance versus over-water dispersal for the origins of many west indian species are less than universally accepted. presenting these without discussion of alternative hypotheses does the uninformed reader a disservice by implying a concordance that doesn’t exist. so, who should buy (or at least read) this book? professional herpetologists will certainly find at least a few chapters of interest, conservation biologists should definitely read the chapter by david bickford on using local resources when implementing conservation projects, and everyone should read harry greene and roy mcdiarmid’s chapter on mimicry. although relatively inexpensive by modern standards, i doubt that very many nonprofessionals will find enough of interest to justify purchasing the volume. instead, they should prevail on friends who make the plunge or on the nearest university library to read the selections applicable to their own interests. robert powell avila university kansas city, missouri leptodactylus silvanimbus, found only in the cloud forests of honduras, is the subject of one of the very few chapters addressing neotropical species found north of costa rica. ja m es r . m c c r a n ie jo se ph b u r g es s the knight anole (anolis equestris), mistakenly attributed to south america, was used as an outgroup in the analysis of relationships among anoles assigned to the genus norops. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 69 iguana 13.1 b&w text 66 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 we need two new symbols in america — a national reptile and a national amphibian. for the reptile, i nominate the garter snake. for the amphibian, i propose the leopard frog. together they would symbolically represent america’s commitment to our natural heritage of native animals, including the reptiles and amphibians, the herpetofauna. herpetofauna for the most part are not game species and are unfamiliar to most people. also a few can be dangerous when they defend themselves. but they are part of our natural environments and deserve our respect and protection. designating representatives that everyone in america can be as familiar with as the bald eagle would go a long way toward shifting attitudes positively toward our native, nongame wildlife. a mechanism for choosing a national reptile and amphibian has already been set up through partners in amphibian and reptile conservation (parc). the national steering committee could readily set up a discussion of the selection process on their listserve. membership to parc is free and access to the parc web site (www.parcplace.org) is open to anyone. the final choice of the national reptile and amphibian could be done by a web site vote, as was done recently in illinois. in that election, the eastern tiger salamander was chosen as the state amphibian and the painted turtle became the state reptile. for the national reptile and amphibian, after the parc web site election, the national steering committee would begin the political process of getting approval through congress, a final step to make it official. every state has an officially recognized bird, flower, and tree. thirty-five have a state mammal. more than half have a state insect. all are animals or plants that are special in some way to the state. an official state organism presumably represents the natural or cultural heritage of the state (but keep reading for some puzzling exceptions). we should celebrate our native wildlife on a national scale. this includes reptiles and amphibians. the environmental sentiment of the country has developed to the point that we recognize that birds, mammals, trees, and flowers are not the only important natural resources in a region, state, or nation. every state should have an official reptile, such as a turtle, snake, or lizard, and an amphibian, a frog or salamander. so should the nation. why should nongame, noncommercial animals get this kind of attention? because when people feel something belongs to them, their concern for its welfare increases. officially recogcommentaries we need a national reptile and national amphibian1 j. whitfield gibbons savannah river ecology lab, aiken, south carolina 1 reprinted with permission by the author and partners in amphibian & reptile conservation (http://www.parcplace.org/). a red-sided garter snake (thamnophis sirtalis parietalis) from holt county, missouri. some type of garter snake occurs in every one of the 48 continguous states. b r ia n e d m o n d iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 66 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 67commentaries nized national species would enhance awareness of the natural heritage of our country and in the case of herpetofauna bring attention to a beleaguered group of animals. selecting a national reptile and amphibian may stir debate among herpetologists, members of parc, and others. although some states have shown a creative and progressive spirit in promoting native animals as symbols of their natural heritage, many state plants and animals surprisingly are not native species. choosing an introduced species to represent one’s state does not support our natural heritage. nonetheless, 11 states have selected the european honeybee as their official insect. picking nonnative species does not stop with honeybees. south dakota’s bird is the chinese ring-necked pheasant. for state mammals missouri has a mule and five states have the horse, neither of which is native to the united states. alabama may hold the record for the most perplexing change in a state species, changing its state flower from the native and gorgeous goldenrod (which contrary to conventional wisdom does not cause hay fever) to the camellia, an east asian import. but garter snakes and leopard frogs are as native as you can get, occurring in every one of the 48 contiguous states. it’s true that no single species of reptile or amphibian is found in all of the states; so quibblers may point out that the species of garter snakes and leopard frogs found in alabama are not the same ones as those found in arizona. nonetheless, each represents a group of closely related, recognizable species. the fact that no species of garter snake or leopard frog occurs naturally in hawaii should not be a concern in the debate about how to select a national animal, because neither does the bald eagle. southern leopard frogs (rana sphenocephala) are one in a complex of related species found throughout the continental united state. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 67 iguana 12.3 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 187travelogue the andes mountains along the western edge of south america run more or less due north–south, encompassing an amazingly large chunk of the latitudinal spectrum. they straddle the equator in ecuador, and run north toward venezuela and south to southern chile and argentina. naturally, such a wide geographic span gives rise to a varied and fascinating array of natural and anthropological histories, from the lush cloudforests and high altitude grasslands of northern south america to the towering conifer stands of patagonia. on the northern half of the continent, the amazon basin dominates the topography east of the andes. the northern part of perú offers a fascinating cross-section of this extraordinary diversity. as opposed to southern perú, which has a well-developed tourist infrastructure centered around machu pichu in cuzco, the northern half of the country gets only a small number of visitors and organized bus tours are all but unknown. nevertheless, knowledgeable local guides are readily available for most of the major sites of interest. i arrived in perú from ecuador, entering the country through piura, a relatively large city near the coast with little to recommend. i continued almost immediately on to chiclayo, another coastal city that is a major agricultural center. the city is very nice for several blocks surrounding the plaza, then quickly degenerates into the usual urban sprawl. however, a very large market offers for sale all varieties of produce, meat, and seafood, in addition to any other staple article of clothing, electronics, or toiletries. other booths offer indispensable services ranging from haircuts to cobbling. although i found the atmosphere a bit too hectic to even consider weekly shopping trips for groceries, i sure enjoyed taking a day or two strolling around the myriad stalls and gorging on cheap, fresh fruit, many varieties of which i’d never previously encountered. from chiclayo, i headed east into the andes, stopping in the pleasant mountain town of chachapoyas. chachapoyas is the capital of the department of amazonas and is surrounded by many interesting archaeological sites representing several different cultures. the most prominent is the lambayeque culture, named for the modern city in the south of amazonas. the bus i took from chiclayo to chachapoyas was old and cramped, even by peruvian standards. i arrived at four or five o’clock in the morning and wandered with my pack to the central plaza to wait for the sun to rise. as the cloudless sky shifted t r a v e l o g u e northern perú: ocean to mountains to amazonian rainforest aaron z. savit biology department, earlham college, richmond, indiana photographs by the author. northern perú is geographically diverse and is both a biological and archaeological hotspot. jo h n b in n s tortoises (geochelone denticulata) are commonly seen in amazonian markets for use in soup. slowly from black to blue and the cocks started to raucously advertise their presence, the city slowly came to life. the plaza started to see foot traffic; elderly couples or professionals dressed for work would take several minutes to stroll around the plaza chatting amongst themselves or just taking in the town center as it slowly began to awake. that same morning, i caught a ride from chachapoyas down through a winding maze of river valleys surrounded by steep, daunting ridges and peaks, finally arriving at the small village of tingo. tingo sits next to a river in a valley flanked by steep, rugged ridges. most travelers stay there just long enough to get a ride to or from chachapoyas, and perhaps for a meal in one of the very basic restaurants. the main reason for coming to tingo is the trailhead that leads up the ridge to the impressive pre-inca site of kuelap. kuelap is a heavily fortified city perched atop a ridge overlooking the utcubamba river valley. although the hike from tingo is only about 9 km, you gain about 1300 m in altitude from your starting point near the river. i arrived just as darkness was falling, and pitched my tent right next to the fortified ruins, overlooking the river valley and surrounding mountains. the ruins themselves are elliptical in shape, with one long side looking down into the river valley, and the other overlooking a large stretch of relatively flat and arguably arable land that now supports a small community of subsistence farmers. it is surrounded by a massive wall of cut stone that is up to forty feet tall in some places and pierced by three highly defensible entrances. walking into the ruins is surreal. the massive fortifications retain soil and rainwater, producing conditions that allow large trees, hardly ever seen on the very arid mountainsides of the area, to grown out of the ruined dwellings. growing in large numbers on these trees are several species of orchid — and hundreds of one cyrtochilium species were in full bloom during my visit. excavations at the site are ongoing, and much of it has already been exposed. the bases and sides of the circular houses that are the trademark of this culture have been exposed, and decorative geometric stonework patterns are visible on several of them, and one has been completely restored. at one point, a small herd of llamas found their way in through one of the entrances and set about gently grazing on the low-growing vegetation. as i sat on top of an inner, secondary wall, and looked out on the llamas grazing in the ruins and the farmed land beyond, i was overwhelmed by the timelessness and tranquility of the area, the poor campesinos working to scratch a livelihood out of the rocky soil in the shadow of this monumental ruined city. before leaving the area, i visited another, less well-known archaeological site called ‘pueblo de los muertos’ or city of the dead. this is a row of about six houses that were built on a narrow rock outcrop about halfway up a vertical cliff face. only one route allows access, and the space between the houses and the cliff edge was sometimes less than two feet. the surrounding cliff faces are dotted with the mud sarcophagi with stylized human faces that are typical of the area. the area is dotted with piles of ancient human bones, and symbols beyond my ken were engraved in the sides of some of the houses and painted in red pigments on the sides of the cliff. this site was not impressive in a monumental way, as was kuelap, but it was powerful on a more esoteric and very human level. 188 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 savit cryptic symbols carved into the wall of a house in pueblo de los muertos.a llama takes a break from grazing in the pre-inca fortress of kuelap. iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 189travelogue the bus ride from chachapoyas down the eastern flank of the andes and into the amazon basin offers amazing scenery, with a wide variety of vegetation and habitat types, from rugged, arid mountains to lush exuberant cloud forest. while crossing the last foothills of the andes, you can see the wide amazonian plain stretching out endlessly to the horizon. no real forest is left in the area; most has been converted to pasture. much of some secondary growth is in the process of being cut and burned a second time. the road runs due east into the amazon, finally ending in yurimaguas, a bustling river town on the banks of the río marañon. this city is an important port for riverboats taking cargo and passengers downriver to the large jungle city of iquitos and to various smaller settlements in between. these boats pass by several small settlements on the outskirts of picaya-samiria national park, the largest protected area in perú. because it is well off of the southern tourist circuit, it gets only a small fraction of the tourists of the manu reserve in the south. nonetheless, some of the larger towns are used to seeing the occasional tourist, although one shouldn’t expect luxury or an english-speaking guide. this area, however, is probably the best place to arrange a tour into the rainforest — if you cannot pay the often outrageous prices charged by tour operators in the south of perú. i disembarked at lagunas, a town of about 5000 residents that is the most popular place to arrange a jungle tour into picaya-samiria national park. even before we got off the boat, several folks were visibly anxious to arrange a tour for us. we spoke with both of them, asked many questions, and ultimately went with a well-established tour operator who seemed fairly professional. a nocturnal boat-billed heron (cochlearius cochlearius) in picayasamiria national park. a large nocturnal treefrog (osteocephalus taurinus) in picaya-samiria national park. waters were just beginning to recede from seasonally inundated forests. after registering with the local police and the park rangers, we loaded our large dugout canoe with our gear and set out downriver. most of our equipment was fairly traditional; our canoe was made from a single piece of wood in the same way they have been made for centuries, our guides used heavy, spadeshaped paddles made from a very dense wood, and our fishing equipment included a net and a three-pronged spear for fishing shallow water. picaya-samiria contains a lot of seasonally flooded forest and, at the time, the rivers were still receding. for the first couple days of paddling, we saw almost no dry land. our camping sites were no more than small islands in what was otherwise an endless expanse of flooded plain. the vegetation shifted notably as we passed downstream into the uninnundated forest. the flooded parts of the forest were dominated by several species of palm. the tufts of fronds perched atop the 30+ meter trunks gave the forest a sort of dr. seussian feel, and gregarious groups of brilliantly-colored blue and yellow macaws (ara ararauna) called raucously as they foraged in the trees or flew over the forest. during our first night, we camped on a small patch of dry land, with only mosquito nets between us and the moonlit jungle. surrounded by the surreal sounds of the night, i listened to the haunting melodies of howler monkeys (alouatta sp.) and a chorus of frogs and insects until they eventually lulled me to sleep. i awoke the next morning to see our guides paddling back to camp. they had pulled in the fishing net that they left out during the night, and had met with some success. they had managed to catch a meter-long catfish of a type that usually swims too low for the nets to snag. the meat was a darker red even than tuna, and that fish kept me, two other tourists, and our two guides satiated for several days. as we passed downstream, the palms were replaced gradually by the towering hardwoods that come to mind when we think of the amazonian rainforest. monkeys were abundant and easily approached with our noiseless, motorless canoe. by night, we would scan the waters for caiman. most of those we saw were quite small, as all of the larger individuals had been hunted for their meat. we also spotted some incredible tree frogs i was unable to identify and got quite close to a nocturnal boat-billed heron (cochlearius cochlearius). about midway through the third day, our guide pulled the boat onto a river bank still flooded under several feet of water and pointed to a large brown lump about 4 m up the trunk. it looked 190 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 savit monkeys, such as this spix’s night monkey (aotus vociferans) are sometimes kept as pets in the amazonian lowlands. our guides with the evening catch; the catfish sustained our entire group for days. the black caiman (melanosuchus niger) that we encountered were small; larger animals have been hunted extensively and are rarely seen. not unlike many of the other large, brownish lumps protruding from the tree and the various vines choking the trunk, but he told us it was a sloth. he hopped out of the boat and into the kneedeep water and started to clamber his way up the trunk of the tree. he proceeded to poke and prod the sloth until it worked its way far enough down the tree for an excellent photo opportunity. he also gave an interesting lecture on the behavioral psychology of the three-toed sloth (bradypus variegatus): “if you tap it on the head,” our guide raul said, “it will go down.” i was excited when we finally reached an area of permanently dry forest. this is where you find the towering, 50-m hardwoods and, of course, all of the interesting land animals that you are likely not to see in a visit to the amazonian rainforest. we hiked for several hours. having size-15 feet, i was equipped with the largest rubber galoshes the guides had, but still three sizes too small. i consequently made obscenely flatulent noises with each step, sockless and awkward in my rubber galoshes. the walk was interesting from a herpetological perspective as we encountered myriad frogs and toads. many small, brown frogs were elegantly camouflaged to look like dead leaves, and only appeared as they hopped out of the way. we found a medium-sized toad with two crests protruding from behind its eyes. i spotted several brilliantly-colored teiid lizards (kentropyx sp.) basking and foraging in the small patches of sun that occasionally reach the forest floor. we came across several snakes, including a black colubrid with yellow mottling that, according to our guide, produces a mild venom. we originally saw it on the ground, but it quickly shot about 3 m up into a tangle of vines when we approached too closely. botanically, the walk was very interesting as well. raul showed us plants with traditional culinary and medicinal uses, including a small palm nut with a pill-shaped hollow containing a white coconut-like flesh. after these nuts fall to the ground, a large grub develops inside the nut, eating away the white flesh. it tastes pretty good — as long as you get to it before the grub does. at one point, we came across a massive leafcutter-ant mound. this mound was about 2.5 m in diameter, over a meter tall, and the center of converging trails composed of thousands of ants scrambling to get leaf sections or carrying huge chunks of leaf back to the nest. also clearly visible were large warrior ants with extremely big heads and powerful jaws, and even the tiny ‘rider’ ants that hitch a ride on sections of leaf and are carried back to the mound. the function of this odd caste of rider ants is unknown. during our paddle back upstream toward lagunas and relative civilization, our guides pulled the boat to the side of the river and urged us to be quiet. we first saw a flash of pink and then a large splash, then, after a wait, another. we were lucky enough to be seeing botos (pink amazon river dolphins, inia geoffrensis) splashing and playing in the river. due to the murkiguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 191travelogue the expression of an irritated three-toed sloth (bradypus variegatus) bears a striking resemblance to every other expression of which the sloth is capable. according to our guides, this colubrid snake (chironius fuscus) has only a mild venom. iness of the water, you only learn of a dolphin’s presence as it jumps playfully out of the water. after watching for a while, we realized that not only were we seeing pink river dolphins, but also at least one member of the other amazonian freshwater dolphin species, the gray river dolphin (sotalia fluviatlis). we sat and watched in rapt amazement until ten minutes went by with no dolphin surfacing, at which point we shook ourselves out of our daze and continued paddling upstream. paddling back to the village was like slowly coming out of a daydream. the vegetation gradually shifted back to its disturbed state surrounding the village. the massive hardwoods became shorter and shorter, and the choking vines began to be replaced by the seussian palms. with the palms came the groups of screeching macaws that flew by to bid us farewell. as we slowly shifted from one set of surreal surroundings to another, i had already begun to think back on all that i had seen and to plot my eventual return to this humbling forest. before i knew it, we had traded the dugout for our own two legs, and were walking past burning fields of dry ferns and grasses, with most of the trees relegated almost to the horizon. back in lagunas, my plan had been to catch one of the daily cargo boats heading down the river toward iquitos. once we got back, however, we quickly learned that this was no longer an option. just a day or two before, the peruvian government had started allowing rice imports from southeast asia, which sent the cost of rice plummeting from about $300 per 1000 kg of rice to about $120. this prompted all the rice farmers nationwide to strike, setting up roadblocks on all the major roads and essentially bringing all ground transport to a halt. no transport meant no cargo and no cargo meant no boats heading downriver. i eventually ended up catching a boat back to yurimaguas, and waited there for almost two weeks until i could start retracing my steps over the andes. the road down from the mountains and into yurimaguas was the last to open and, by the time i actually started making my way back, several roadblocks remained, forcing me to walk across and switch vehicles countless times. with the little time i had left before my return to the united states, i decided to explore some additional archaeological sites. my first stop south of chiclayo was trujillo, another large city very near the coast. a few sites around trujillo are of interest, including the massive mud-brick city of chan-chan. chan-chan was built by the chimu culture from around 192 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 savit piles of human bones, pueblo de los muertos. this young matamata (chelus fimbriatus) shows the elaborate head camouflage typical of its species. adults with carapace lengths to 40 cm have been found. stylized mud-brick reliefs in the tschudi complex at chan chan. mud-brick reliefs of birds in the tschudi complex at chan chan. iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 193travelogue 850–1470 ad. one large complex, the tschudi complex, has been excavated and studied, but many more temples and other large complexes await systematic examination. the excavated parts of the site include a number of beautiful mud-brick reliefs centering on several motifs that included fishing nets, fish, birds, stylized figures, and basic geometric shapes such as circles and squares. a small on-site museum was accompanied by several overpriced gift shops. chan-chan makes an interesting comparison with a nearby site that was built by the moche (ca. 100–800 ad), the culture that immediately preceded the chimu. the site is called huacas de la luna y del sol, and its main features are two pyramids at opposite ends of the site. excavations at the smaller pyramid, huaca de la luna, are uncovering many magnificent polychrome reliefs. the pyramid was actually a series of stepped structures superimposed upon one another, and it seems to have had regular resurfacing with the addition of another level every hundred years or so. each time another addition to the pyramid was made, the underlying reliefs and painted patterns were sealed in a layer of mud-brick and mortar, which effectively preserved them. the moche were a coastal people living in a harsh, semi-arid region where life was centered around rivers and streams, and irrigation was almost essential for the growing of crops. their religion centered on mountain worship and the god ai apaec, which translates to “the decapitator.” huaca de la luna is situated at the foot of a solitary peak in what is otherwise a very flat, dry region. remains of several dozen human sacrifices have been uncovered, and some evidence suggests that some victims may have been tortured prior to being killed. in many of the reliefs and murals, the ai apaec, who assumes various forms such as felines and spiders, is depicted holding a severed human head. several of the murals are still being renovated and are not yet open to the public. however, you can view them from a distance. my last archaeological stop was in the small coastal city of casma. just outside of town is a fascinating and ancient archaeological site called séchin. the site consists mainly of a single temple, which is fairly small in comparison to the other sites i visited. what sets this site apart is its age — it is about 3600 years old, outdating the moche civilization by some 1700 years. the outer wall of the temple is covered with stylized and often gruesome reliefs. these consist mainly of warriors and decapitated heads, although various dismembered body parts and organs also are obvious. compared to some of the other ruins in perú, the site may seem plain, but the very age of the temple renders it impressive. despite some discouragement and derisive reviews from the locals, i was enthralled with the reliefs and some of the relics in the small, on-site museum. the northern section of perú certainly has a lot to offer to the intrepid traveler with a keen interest in nature or archeology or both. the lack of tourists offers a more authentic glimpse of the challenges most peruvians face and of the daily rhythms of peruvian life. smiles from the locals seem more genuine, restaurants and markets have more character, and a wide range of natural and cultural wonders await those curious and eager enough to seek them out. ai apaec, god of the moche, also known as “the decapitator,” huaca de la luna. depiction of a warrior on the outer wall of the temple at séchin; note the severed heads decorating the warrior’s outfit. iguana 13.1 b&w text why a symposium about timber rattlesnakes? why the concern about a venomous species of snake that shares home-space with humans in states along the upper mississippi river? … [s]tudies reveal and confirm that the species is losing its foothold along the upper mississippi and its collateral river-bluffland corridors. timber rattlesnakes once ranged from southern maine to florida and westward to minnesota and oklahoma, down to texas.… timber rattlesnakes were probably the first venomous snake encountered by early settlers during their forays into the forests and mountains of eastern north america. one of the earliest explorers to our region, father louis hennepin, noted rattlesnakes as “serpens sonnettes” in his travel log during his upper mississippi voyage in 1680. shortly thereafter, in 1700, leseur mentioned the potential “danger” of rattlesnakes in the caves around lake pepin. two centuries later, the impact of increased human settlement along the mississippi on timber rattlesnakes could be read about in local newspapers. one such article reported the killing of hundreds of “rattlers” in a single day at minnesota’s cedar creek bluffs (the winona daily republicanherald; august 16, 1913). similar events occurred at other sites along the upper mississippi valley, and human fear regarding this abundance of dangerous rattlesnakes led to the implementation of a bounty system that served as an economic incentive for the killing of timber rattlesnakes. the bounty system provided a viable source of income for some individuals during years of hard economic times, and thousands of timber rattlesnakes were killed. their heads and rattles were turned in for a fee. bounty systems were eventually repealed in wisconsin and minnesota, but not until 1975 and 1989, respectively. amazingly, for three centuries following the arrival of settlers, the timber rattlesnake has managed to persevere despite the continuous loss of its habitat to agriculture, the dissecting of its habitat with roads, encroaching housing developments in recent decades, and depredation by man. one cannot deny that timber rattlesnake (crotalus horridus) biology and conservation in the upper mississippi river valley1 saint mary’s university of minnesota winona, minnesota 24 september 2005 photographs by barney oldfield, www.lizardsandlandscapes.com excerpts from abstracts.2 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 31timber rattlesnake symposium � an old adult male timber rattlesnake (crotalus horridus) from houston county, minnesota. 1 limited quantities of the complete program with extensive “abstracts” and color photographs are available from zoo book sales (zoobooks@acegroup.cc) or visit their website: www.zoobooksales.com. 2 daniel keyler’s introduction is presented verbatim, with excluded sections indicated by “…” abstracts are summarized and occasionally paraphrased for brevity. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 31 the mississippi’s bluffs and valleys, which have been the timber rattlesnake’s home for thousands of years, represent some of the most beautiful landscapes in the country. however, the constantly increasing interface between timber rattlesnake habitat and humans has gradually taken its toll on the rattlesnakes over time, and loss of timber rattlesnake habitat is accelerating. mutual coexistence between humans and rattlesnakes is complex, but is essential if the timber rattlesnake is to retain its place in the upper mississippi river valley ecosystem…. if true conservation of this species is not achieved in the near future, the timber rattlesnake will fade from the upper mississippi river valley, becoming a legend of the past. daniel e. keyler some notes on phenology, reproduction, and winter biology of timber rattlesnakes in wisconsin since 1999, timber rattlesnakes at several wisconsin den sites have been monitored with radio transmitters [see iguana 12:90–97]. three records of snakes emerging in early april may have involved animals that were ill. the latest recorded den ingress was 19 october. snakes moved within winter dens, reaching their deepest penetrations during december and january. lowest body temperatures occurred from late march to early april. movement toward the den entrance began at about that same time. seven females monitored over five years produced 15 clutches. mean interval between clutches was 3.14 years (range 2–5 years). the earliest recorded birth was 30 august, the latest occurred in early october. craig berg reproduction at a northwestern illinois timber rattlesnake rookery since 1991, monitoring a timber rattlesnake rookery in northwestern illinois has generated the following data: (1) gravid females arrived between 29 april and 21 july. (2) postpartum female departure ranged from 22 august to 30 september. (3) earliest neonate appearance ranged from 19 august to 15 september. (4) latest dates for neonate emergence ranged from 28 august to 12 october. (5) litter sizes ranged from 5–11 (total of 106 births observed to date). (6) of 18 reproductive cycles, 13 (72.2%) were 2 years and 5 (27.8%) were 3 years (mean = 2.28 years). two females had both 2-year and 3-year cycles. (7) for 22 females, 10 (46%) gave single births during the monitoring period, 8 (36%) gave birth twice, 2 (9%) gave birth 3 times, and 2 (9%) 4 times. (8) many gravid females depart from the rookery prior to parturition and give birth at undetermined locations. one such location was about 30 m upslope from the rookery den. additional observations included: one mating event on 22 august 2001 in the vicinity of the rookery; interactions between neonates and mothers, including cloacal posturing with scent ejection; interactions between gravid females, non-gravid females, and males; rain-drinking by gravid females; and molting. habitat modification by burning and cutting around the rookery resulted in the creation of an additional rookery that was utilized by females from the original rookery. such practices might be used to restore historical basking/gestating/birthing sites in blufflands that have become overgrown and shaded and are no longer used. brian bielema long-term field studies of the timber rattlesnake: what has been learned? a series of dens in the southeastern adirondack mountains of new york have been under continuous study since 1978. resultant data and on-going conservation efforts allow this system to serve as a microcosm of approaches taken to protect and manage timber rattlesnakes anywhere in their range. den populations vary from 42–558 new individuals captured over a 25-year period. although not population size esti32 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 timber rattlesnake symposium an adult male timber rattlesnake (crotalus horridus) from houston county, minnesota, showing classic sulphur coloring, black chevrons, velvet black tail, and tan rattle. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 32 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 33timber rattlesnake symposium mates, the data suggest a wide variation in numbers of snakes using dens. shifts between dens are rare. estimated survival rate in field-born snakes was about 65% in the first year, whereas adults (5+ years old) survived at about 90% per year. recapture intervals of 22 and 23 years for snakes released initially as adults (at least 10 years old when marked) suggest a natural lifespan that approaches 35 years. five major range segments correspond to ecoregions. these divisions may deserve targeted conservation attention based on particular biological features associated with each region and its subdivisions. varying parameters of snake biology can guide efforts within a management unit. for example, in the new england upland management unit (where the current study is taking place), the snake is characterized by high adult survival rates, low rates of reproductive performance brought on the decadal span necessary for female maturity, and exceptional longevity in some individuals. in contrast, snakes in the southeast atlantic-gulf coastal plains management unit would require different strategies because adult survival rates may be lower, reproductive performance higher or shifted to younger age classes, and shorter longevity. some management plans should therefore stress steps to enhance survival, others to enhance reproduction. enhancing longevity might be achieved by legal protection coupled with vigilance. to reflect such regional variations, a national timber rattlesnake conservation action plan (trcap) was developed ten years ago. the chief goal of the plan has been to produce a major synopsis of the historical and current distribution, threats, and management options authored at the state level by recognized authorities. those involved in trcap are hopeful that this plan will become an exemplary model of a comprehensive conservation strategy for the timber rattlesnake. certainly, it is one of the first for any reptile in north america. william s. brown a history of timber rattlesnakes in winona county, minnesota detailed petroglyphs of rattlesnakes were traced by theodore lewis in the 1880s from a cave in la moille and artifacts from a nearby rock shelter were attributed to the woodland tradition (~2500–1000 years before present). unfortunately, the petroglyphs are no longer extant. tales from the 1800s tend to emphasize the size of individual snakes and the sheer number of snakes that were destroyed at certain localities. the most celebrated characters in the history of human interactions with rattlesnakes were the bounty hunters of the 1900s. “black bill” venzol of elba would bring rattlesnakes to the old schoolhouse for the children to see, raymond carter of pickwick caught 86 rattlesnakes from one spot in a single afternoon during the great depression, and, across the border in fillmore county, arnold rank killed over 2000 rattlers during his long career. fortunately, times have changed. the bounty has been eliminated, and bounty hunters have been replaced by rattlesnake responders who remove nuisance snakes from yards and relocate them to more natural habitats within their home ranges. philip a. cochran timber rattlesnake work with private landowners in minnesota triggered by increased frequencies of human-rattlesnake encounters, the minnesota department of natural resources (mn dnr) has been working with private landowners in southeastern minnesota on bluff prairie management and timber rattlesnake management. the main reasons for increased encounter rates are degrading habitat, habitat fragmentation, and encroaching land development. the timber rattlesnake was listed as a threatened species in minnesota in 1996. its range once covered all of the bluff counties along the mississippi river. today, the active range is reduced to remnant populations in goodhue, olmsted, wabasha, and winona counties, with larger populations in fillmore and houston counties — with most on private lands. many once active den sites are extirpated, and many currently active dens are in jeopardy of extirpation. restoration of habitats involved clearing cedar-infested bluff prairies in critical snake habitats. initially, efforts were successful, but slow, affecting only a few acres at a time. a new federal program created by congress in 2002, the landowner incentive a timber rattlesnake raising its head in response to the approach of the photographer (winona county, minnesota). an adult female timber rattlesnake in a rock cranny with neonates, which will stay with her up to two weeks. note the opaque eyes of the neonates prior to their first shed (houston county, minnesota). iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 33 program (lip), administered by the u.s. fish & wildlife service, allocates funds to assist states in working with private landowners on “at risk species.” lip funds help landowners implement management practices that maintain, enhance, or restore habitats that benefit bluff prairie “at risk” species. practices include cedar removal, invasive species control, and prescribed burning. jaime edwards and dave spiering status of timber rattlesnakes in wisconsin wisconsin timber rattlesnake populations appear to be significantly reduced from historic levels. human persecution, including a county-administered bounty system, has been a major contributing factor. records indicate that hunters targeted gravid females, accelerating the population declines by restricting recruitment. other factors include den destruction and habitat loss to agriculture. in recent years, natural succession has resulted in overgrowth of prairies, specifically contributing to degradation or loss of overwintering or rookery sites. the state has outlined a four-tiered approach to conservation that will be implemented as funding allows. one element is an educational program for rural landowners called “rare snake workshops.” these help promote conservation of four prairieor bluffland-dwelling snakes, including the timber rattlesnake. as of summer 2005, 58 workshops have been conducted. each addresses how to safely handle and move venomous snakes, why habitat management is necessary, and the department of natural resource’s nuisance control program. additional conservation efforts include surveys to identify and protect hibernation sites and support of research to better understand this snake in wisconsin. robert hay timber rattlesnake bites in the upper mississippi river valley two species of rattlesnakes, the timber rattlesnake (crotalus horridus) and massassauga (sistrurus catenatus) are native to the upper mississippi valley. bites, albeit rare, do occur. prior to 1880, 70 cases of venomous snakebite were reported in wisconsin. twelve were fatal, five victims were men, four were children, and three were women. literature records indicate that 15 bites occurred in wisconsin from 1958–59, but only four in minnesota. more recent records show 36 cases of rattlesnake bite, involving eight different species, in minnesota, western wisconsin, and northeastern iowa from 1982–2002 (1–2 bites per year). timber rattlesnakes were responsible for 27 bites, with 15 in minnesota, seven in wisconsin, and five in iowa. all bites occurred between april and october. fewer than half (44%) were naturally occurring bites; the rest resulted from deliberate human manipulation of snakes. most victims were males (81%) and the average age was 33 ± 12 years. all victims were evaluated in a medical facility, only 12 were hospitalized. fang punctures were evident in all patients, but symptoms of envenomation were absent or minimal in 52% of victims. one instance of intravenous envenomation was fatal. venom-induced effects were profound and occurred rapidly. antivenin was administered to 11 patients, two had surgery, and average hospital stay was 3.5 days. daniel e. keyler timber rattlesnakes in northeastern iowa timber rattlesnakes occur in northeastern, southeastern, and small areas of central iowa. little information exists in the liter34 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 timber rattlesnake symposium a very large adult male timber rattlesnake with a complete (tan) rattle and a black basal segment (fillmore county, minnesota). iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 34 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 35timber rattlesnake symposium ature regarding the species in the state and unpublished surveys provide insubstantial baseline data. consequently, trends are difficult to quantify. variations in morphology encompass the full range of what is expected in the upper mississippi valley. ground color ranges from golden yellow to tan or brown. a rust-red middorsal stripe is almost always present, but may vary in intensity, especially posteriorly. “bow-tie” markings are common and often become full bands toward the tail. entirely gray specimens are known, but are uncommon. emergence begins in late april to early may. autumn staging is initiated in late september; ingress occurs by mid-october. individuals have been observed basking in mid-april, but those animals usually show signs of dermatitis. most adult males and non-gravid females appear to migrate to summer feeding sites 7–15 days after first emergence. gravid females select den sites, rock crevices with significant depth or large loose rocks, as rookeries. neonates to two-year olds seem to prefer loose rock in small forest patches in or at the edge of prairies. reproductive data are scant. nothing is known of courtship or mating. females produce litters at least biennially or triennially. parturition usually occurs in late august or early september, peaking during the first week in september. litter sizes range from 5–12, average of 8. neonates range from 257–348 mm in total length; average is 344 mm. bounty records from 1925–1952 show an obvious decline in numbers, and conversations with bounty hunters indicate a decline in snakes rather than a reduction in efforts to catch them. timber rattlesnakes were unprotected in iowa until 2001 (the only other reptile unprotected in the state was the garter snake. recent revisions of rules now protect timber rattlesnakes in 12 counties of eastern and southern iowa. jeff leclere velvet tails of the blufflands: field observations and anecdotal information over 22 years, i have searched and searched, found timbers, not found timbers, photographed more than several, molested many gathering biological information, answered a few intriguing questions, and pondered numerous riddles of timber rattlesnake biology. den areas are found in limestone and dolomite outcrops, rookery sites in limestone and sandstone, and summer pastures in hardwood forests and bluff prairies. with others, i have documented egress and ingress dates, average and maximum sizes of males and females, color variation, reproductive dynamics, maturity, longevity, frequency of shedding, and behavior. also during this time, the battle to remove the minnesota bounty was won, and the timber rattlesnake was subsequently given legal protection in both wisconsin and minnesota. however, in minnesota, with this revived emphasis, poaching and anti-rattlesnake sentiment have grown. seldom are rattlesnake bites to large animals such as cattle and horses likely to be fatal, although facial and throat swelling that restrict airways may be a concern. dogs and rarely cats may be bitten, most frequently in the head or front legs. venomous snakebite that produces rapid swelling and pain should be considered serious, and the animal should be taken immediately to a veterinarian. the use of antivenin may be limited due to cost factors, but aggressive medical therapy including antibiotics, analgesics, and supportive therapy may be indicated. a trio of male timber rattlesnakes at spring emergence. this site was destroyed by snake hunters later in the same season. den rocks were dislodged from the bluff, and several crushed ringneck snakes (diadophis punctatus) were all that remained. the den has not been used since (pierce county, wisconsin). iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 35 the ultimate survival of “velvet tails” in the upper mississippi river valley must be about habitat protection, public education, and a strictly enforced protective policy. since reestablishing dens is not a reliable option, attention should be focused on known viable populations by providing relatively large expanses of minimally managed habitat. barney oldfield the ecology and conservation of the timber rattlesnake in the agricultural landscape of central iowa since 2002, we have focused attention on a den site in madison county that appears to be healthy despite being adjacent to a busy highway. data are based on over 100 snakes plus litters born in captivity from wild-caught females. monitoring about nine snakes implanted with radio transmitters per year, we found that, in 2001, 42% of snake locations were in edge/scrub habitats, 24% in woodland habitats, and 34% in grassy/open habitats. average canopy cover was 60%. madison county animals tended to have smaller home ranges and move shorter distances than rattlesnakes in eastern populations. an effort to document time spent in agricultural fields and in natural versus disturbed habitats indicated that efforts aimed only at protecting rock outcrops used as hibernacula are doomed to failure if the entire range of the animals is not considered. one individual, for example, spent nearly an entire season in a field or along a fence line bordering a cow pasture. much of the remaining habitat in iowa is extremely fragmented and degraded, calling for conservation efforts on a landscape scale. jeffrey r. parmelee and paul w. frese minnesota state parks: protecting timber rattlesnakes within an ecosystem management framework the minnesota department of natural resource’s division of parks and recreation is legislatively mandated to preserve presettlement natural features and communities as well as other natural, scenic, scientific, and historic features of significance. given this mandate, the division has the responsibility to preserve and perpetuate populations of timber rattlesnakes along with other rare species. the historic range of the timber rattlesnake in minnesota included eight southeastern counties that encompassed ten state parks. the current range has decreased to six counties with seven state parks. at least 37 historic den sites are known from those seven parks. assuming a minimum viable population size of 25–45 snakes per den suggests that these parks once supported populations totaling about 1000–1600 individuals. the bounty system in effect from 1909–1989 resulted in these parks being heavily hunted. the impact of wanton killing combined with vandalism of den sites and habitat degradation due to disturbances have caused significant declines in populations (>90% in one park). rattlesnakes have been extirpated in three of the seven parks and populations in the other four have declined dramatically. only about one-third of historically active den sites remain extant. the division’s objectives for these parks are: (1) to restore or maintain native plant communities, and (2) to preserve or restore animal populations so that all native species for which reintroductions and maintenance are possible are present. specifically, for timber rattlesnakes, the objectives are: (1) to restore sustainable populations to the three parks where the species has been extirpated, and (2) to restore and maintain existing populations at levels that are sustainable. since 2001, increased efforts to protect the species have been funded through the state wildlife grant program, with current work grouped into four main categories: surveys and monitoring, protection, habitat management, and education. ed quinn and shawn fritcher habitat selection and home ranges of wisconsin timber rattlesnakes in the mississippi river valley data collected from nine radiolocated timber rattlesnakes (4 males, 3 females, 2 juveniles) and 353 subsequent observations (132 male, 129 female, 92 juvenile) reveal that all three groups were found in secondary woodland more than expected by chance (19% female, 24% male, and 39% juvenile versus 13% expected). the greatest disparity was for use of prairie habitat (28% female, 2% male, 15% juvenile versus <2% expected). sumac/dogwood/blackberry shrub also was over-utilized (13% female, 5% male, 11% juvenile versus <2% expected). males were found most frequently in mature oak woods (39%), but less frequently than expected (43%). males also utilized swamp woodlands (24%) at about the expected rate (25%). marsh (3% female, 4% male, 0% juvenile versus 13% expected) and agricultural habitats (0% female, 1% male, 0% juvenile versus 13% expected) were under-utilized. richard a. sajdak 36 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 timber rattlesnake symposium a rust-colored middorsal stripe characterizes many timber rattlesnakes from the upper mississippi river valley (pierce county, wisconsin). iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 36 iguana 12.4 b&w text powell, r., r. w. henderson, and j. s. parmerlee, jr. 2005. the reptiles and amphibians of the dutch caribbean: st. eustatius, saba, and st. maarten. the st. eustatius national parks foundation, gallows bay, st. eustatius, netherlands antilles, 192 pp. softcover. isbn 978-09673958-8-3. $25.00 plus shipping. u.s. distributor: bibliomania! (www.herplit.com). these days, it’s fairly easy to produce a field guide to the amphibians and reptiles of a relatively small geographic area. it isn’t even necessary to know much about the natural lives of the animals. it’s enough to have access to good photographs of each species, often taken under controlled conditions in artificial “habitat” sets, and an abbreviated discussion of the distribution and biology of the species. knowledge of the latter can often be found in scientific and lay literature, including other field guides. such guides may be useful in identifying the animal before you — but, unless your only goal is to add a species to your herpetological life list, they may leave you hungry for more. a really good field guide is worth its weight in gold, and distressingly few are available. you probably already know this. you may have several guides to the amphibians and reptiles of a particular area on your shelf, but only one is dog-eared from page turning and trips to the field. to my mind, the ideal field guide is portable (it is, after all, supposed to be a field guide), includes photographs that are useful not only for purposes of identification but illustrate some aspect of the ecology or behavior of the animals, and text that includes descriptions of the species, including developmental, sexual, and geographic variation, how to distinguish each species from similar species that occur in the region, and discussions of distribution, habitat, food habits, reproduction, behavior, and conservation status. a general discussion of the geography of the region covered by the guide and of the habitats that are found there should be included, as well as a glossary of terms used in the guide with which the reader may not be familiar and a bibliography or literature cited section to lead the interested reader to more detailed information. powell, henderson, and parmerlee (hereafter, php) have produced a field guide to the amphibians and reptiles of the dutch antillean islands of st. eustatius, saba, and st. maarten that meets my expectations. including introduced species, the herpetofauna of the dutch windward islands (the dutch leewards are aruba, bonaire, and curaçao, which are south american continental islands) consists of two species of amphibians, both frogs, 15 or 16 (depending on whether or not the green iguana of saba is a species distinct from iguana iguana) species of lizards, three of snakes, and two of turtles, plus three species of sea turtles known to nest in the islands and a fourth that is sometimes seen in the surrounding waters. this relatively small fauna has allowed php to produce a guide that is portable while including extensive accounts for each species. a similarly detailed guide for the herpetofauna of, for example, cuba (which has at least 50 species of anoles alone) would take on the proportions of an unabridged dictionary. following the introduction, the guide describes the natural features of each island. included are topographic maps and aerial photographs and a discussion of the region’s geological history. this is followed by a history of the human occupation of the islands; this section is enhanced by additional photographs of each island, including archival photographs that sometimes highlight the changes that have accompanied the human occupation and development of the region. next comes a section on conservation that identifies parks and reserves, and emphasizes the local conservation organizations that are working to conserve the natural heritage of each island. next is an extensive section introducing amphibians and reptiles. it begins with definitions: what are amphibians and reptiles. the definitions go beyond external morphology to dutch windward island herpetofauna iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 273book review b o o k r e v i e w 274 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 book review include features associated with respiration, reproductive biology, and thermoregulation. there follows a short discussion of scientific names, their derivation, and why they occasionally change. common names and why they can create difficulties are discussed next. a subsection on biogeographic relationships emphasizes human-mediated introductions in the dutch antilles and the biogeographic similarities and differences among the three islands. disappointingly, a discussion of the biogeographic origins of the elements of the herpetofauna of these islands is lacking, although species accounts remedy this shortcoming to some degree. a general discussion of conservation status includes concise descriptions of the conservation threat categories employed by the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora (cites) and the red list of the world conservation union (iucn). the dutch antillean species listed by either organization are discussed, as are the negative effects of the introduction of mongoose on the herpetofauna of st. maarten. this section concludes with “stories about reptiles,” including a discussion of the medicinal use of reptiles, iguana meat as an aphrodisiac, and other myths. here you can find two recipes for lizard soup, once thought to be a treatment for bronchitis and asthma. the bulk of the book is devoted to individual species accounts. this section is a little anachronistic in not following the usual taxonomic organization of amphibians first, then turtles, then lizards, and then snakes. instead, lizards appear first, then snakes, then turtles, with amphibians bringing up the rear. even within the lizard accounts the order of presentation of the families is unusual. none of this, however, detracts from the quality of the individual family and species accounts. family and species accounts begin with the common english and scientific names, and the derivation (etymology) of the scientific name. the latter is an interesting feature omitted from most field guides. this is followed, for family accounts, by a statement of the geographic range and of any interesting taxonomic considerations. species accounts include a description that will facilitate identification, as well as any changes in color or pattern that are associated with age or sex. the distribution among the three islands is stated and note is made of populations known to have been extirpated. in some accounts (e.g., iguana delicatissima), the origin of the species is discussed. habitat is described in some detail and additional subsections address food and predators. the discussion of reproduction may include, among other things, seasonality, mode of reproduction (e.g., eggs, live-bearing, parthenogenesis [= reproduction within all-female population]), and clutch size. rare in a field guide, the discussion of behavior is usually fairly extensive. each species account concludes with a discussion of conservation status including primary threats and, if known, recent population trajectories. the accounts are all copiously illustrated (the book contains over 300 color and eight black & white photographs). the photographs of amphibians and reptiles were taken, for the most part, in natural habitat and often highlight differences among similar species, document age and sex variation in color and pattern, or illustrate aspects of behavior. following the species accounts is a section entitled “strays and a vagrant.” the strays are species that were introduced to areas where they do not naturally occur but failed to become established. strays are known only on st. maarten and include two species which occur naturally elsewhere in the dutch antilles (green tree lizard, anolis bimaculatus; red-bellied racer, alsophis rufiventris) and five exotic snakes: boa constrictor (boa constrictor), rainbow boa (epicrates cenchria), blood or short-tailed python (python curtus group), ball python (python regius), and corn snake (elaphe guttata). the loggerhead sea turtle (caretta caretta) is listed as a vagrant. not known to nest in the dutch antilles, loggerheads are occasionally encountered at sea around the islands. the book concludes with a bibliography, a list of taxonomic authorities for each dutch antillean species (unique, so far as i know, for field guides), a glossary, and an index to names of reptiles and amphibians. the bibliography lists 164 citations, two-thirds of which date from 1990 or later. the glossary contains 112 entries. my complaints about the book are minor. each page is uv-coated, lending a glossy appearance that dramatically enhances the photographs and renders the book moisture and mildew resistant (not an unimportant consideration for a guide to the herpetofaunas of tropical islands), but the slick surfaces stick together, making it next to impossible to casually leaf through the book. the book, although ostensibly soft covered, is heavy and stiff. whether the quality of the images and weather resistance justifies the unusual feel may well vary from reader to reader. also, i think we needed to have only one photograph of a mongoose, and a few individuals are illustrated more than once (figures 177 and 251 of a red-bellied racer, alsophis rufiventris, are an interesting example of photographic pseudoreplication). the php guide ought to serve multiple audiences. for the amateur naturalist visiting the dutch antilles, it can serve as both an introduction to the islands and the herpetofauna, facilitating the location and identification of species. the book will serve the same purpose for the professional biologist new to the islands. in addition, it provides enough information on the biology of the amphibians and reptiles, and clues as to what is not known, that it will point the way for future research. with respect to all of these, the book ought to be widely read by anyone conducting research on the amphibians and/or reptiles of the dutch antilles and beyond. it should be particularly popular with graduate students contemplating work in the region. php have conducted research on amphibians and reptiles throughout the west indies for an aggregate of over 60 years and, together with a small army of students, they have worked extensively in the dutch antilles. fifty of the citations in the php bibliography are authored or co-authored by powell, henderson, or parmerlee. although new species may yet be discovered in these islands, and others will without doubt be introduced, this guide will be the gold standard for years to come. the world wildlife fund (netherlands) and prince bernhard nature fund (netherlands) are to be commended for funding its publication and allowing the proceeds from sales to go toward conservation efforts in the dutch antilles. however, as php was not produced by a major publisher, the number of copies printed may be relatively small. get yours while you can! arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee, knoxville iguana b&w text 292 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 book review sea turtles of the atlantic and gulf coasts of the united states. 2006. by carol ruckdeschel and c. robert shoop; foreword by james r. spotila. the university of georgia press, athens, georgia, usa. vii + 136 pp. paperback – isbn: 0-8203-2614-3 – $19.95. anyone who has ever walked along a beach and seen a sea turtle emerge from the ocean will never forget the experience. although these marine reptiles have roamed the oceans for over a hundred million years, in the past few centuries their populations have declined toward extinction at the hands of humans. today, all sea turtles are listed as endangered or critically endangered by the iucn redlist (2006) and are protected under the u.s. endangered species act. whether the conservation efforts of governments or ngos around the world are able to repair the damage remains to be seen, but the galvanization of public support through education is a necessary part of conservation work if we are to have any hope of success. this book is an excellent introduction for the general public to some of the seas’ most beautiful animals. the first chapter gives a broad introduction to sea turtle biology and includes general life history stages, diets, diseases, and predators. a brief section on conservation talks about some of the threats facing sea turtles living in the coastal waters of the eastern u.s. and some of the efforts being used to address them, such as turtle excluder devices (teds) installed on fishing nets. no mention was made of head-starting programs, such as that on padre island. these have had mixed results and have become quite controversial in recent years (see references). a set of brief guidelines for people who wish to observe nesting turtles concludes the introduction. the bulk of the book (pp. 35–106) is devoted to accounts of each of the six species found along the eastern coast of the united states: leatherbacks (dermochelys coriacea), loggerheads (caretta caretta), kemp’s ridleys (lepidochelys kempii), olive ridleys (l. olivacea), greens (chelonia mydas), and hawksbills (eretmochelys imbricata). each account follows the same format, starting with the species’ status and its distribution, which is illustrated with color maps, followed by extensive descriptions that include photographs, sections on life history and behavior, and ending with summaries of conservation threats and work specific to that species. a one-page epilogue emphasizes the importance of further conservation work, and gives a list of ways for the public to help. concluding the book is an appendix, which contains useful and easy-to-follow keys and a glossary. the key uses numerous illustrations to clarify the written descriptions. in addition to a key for identifying living turtles, another helps identify carcasses that may have washed ashore. the latter is based on different body parts, in case the turtle has begun to decompose. the glossary provides clear and simple definitions for all technical and turtlespecific terms and a short list of books and websites that provide further information on sea turtles. taken as a whole, this book summarizes a great deal of information, although it is a bit dry and tedious at times. each account differs in only a few species-specific details, which becomes repetitive. the authors have amassed a large collection of photographs, which add immensely to the appearance and utility of the book. the photographs and the keys are this book’s strongest points. diagrams and illustrations generally were quite good, although some (e.g., fig. 1, p. 14, which shows the relative sizes of eggs produced by different species) seemed less than professional in quality. overall, however, ruckdeschel and shoop did an excellent job of compiling an easy-to-understand guide to sea turtles for the general public. references heppell, s. s., l. b. crowder, and d. t. crouse. 1996. models to evaluate headstarting as a management tool for long-lived turtles. ecological applications 6:556–565. iucn (the world conservation union). 2006. 2006 red list of threatened species. www.iucnredlist.org. mortimer, j. a. 1995. headstarting as a management tool, pp. 613–615. in: k.a. bjorndal (ed.), biology and conservation of sea turtles. smithsonian institution press, washington, d.c. woody, j. b. 2001. guest editorial: it’s time to stop headstarting kemp’s ridley. marine turtle newsletter 55:7–8. jennifer m. germano zoology department university of otago, new zealand sea turtles: a guide for the general public b o o k r e v i e w iguana 13.2 b&w text flying dragon (draco volans) (see related article on p. 86). iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.orginternational reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 13, number 2 june 2006 conservation, natural history, and husbandry of reptiles st ep h en d a lt o n important notice: please support the august 2006 national reptile breeder’s expo auction to benefit the critically endangered guatemalan beaded lizard, heloderma horridum charlesbogerti (see p. 176). for details visit www.ircf.org. ctenosaura bakeri lives an unusual life in the mangrove forests on isla de utila, honduras; both the mangrove forests and nesting beaches are threatened by development (see article on p. 108). nose-rub, clearly evident in this emerald treeboa (corallus caninus), is indicative of being kept in an inappropriate enclosure. this may reflect neglect in other aspects of care (see article on p. 133). the conservation status of the exuma island rock iguana, cyclura cychlura figginsi, was one of many discussed during the iucn iguana specialist group meeting in november 2005 (see article on p. 116). jo h n b in n s jo h n b in n s gliding lizards in the genus draco use wings for “flight” and also to facilitate species recognition and intra-species communication (see article on p. 86). exploitation of the pacific spiny-tailed (black) iguana, ctenosaura pectinata, was a major topic of discussion during the viii national meeting on iguanas in méxico (see article on p. 130). w w w .s o lv in za n k l. c o m jo h n b in n s chironius monticola is a terrestrial snake most often seen basking in warm, open areas of the santa lucia cloud forest reserve (see article on p. 94). a a r o n z . s a v it jo se ph m . p o la n c o ph o to c o u r te sy o f st ep h a n ie s c a n li n / z o o a tl a n ta iguana 12.1 editorial board robert powell, ph.d. editor avila university, kansas city, mo michael ripca managing editor atco, nj aj gutman associate editor west hartford, ct john binns associate editor international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. or canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 international membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $50.00 u.s. institutional subscription, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international institutional subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. join on-line at: www.ircf.org membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via email (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and email address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2005 by the international reptile conservation foundation, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international reptile conservation foundation. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. publisher’s remarks the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf) would like to welcome members of the now dissolved international iguana society. the ircf will continue to publish the journal, iguana, and expand on the original mission of the iis by striving to preserve reptiles and their habitats through the support of conservation efforts, educational programs, and scientific research that promote the welfare of natural ecosystems. the ircf provides support to conservation and research programs throughout the world, and promotes conservation awareness in schools, at special events and conventions, on television, and through its public website, cyclura.com. among others, the ircf has assisted the blue iguana recovery program, conservation project utila iguana, turtle survival alliance, chinese alligator fund, international conservation fund for the fijian crested iguana, and anegada iguana recovery efforts. as a member of the ircf, you will continue to receive our quarterly journal, iguana. while continuing to focus on iguanas, content of the journal will reflect the broader mandate of the ircf as described by the addition of conservation, natural history, and the husbandry of reptiles below the title. as in previous issues, iguana will continue to provide regular feature articles, species profiles, husbandry, profiles of prominent herpetologists and conservationists, historical perspectives, book reviews, and newsbriefs. beginning with this issue, we also will include travelogues that feature herpetologically interesting places throughout the world, commentaries on topics important to conservation, summaries of current reptile conservation efforts, and a “focus on conservation” that will highlight a specific conservation effort worthy of your support. membership dues for iguana will remain $25 per year for our domestic and canadian members, while the price for international members will be raised to $50 to cover the expense of mailing the journal overseas. both domestic and international members will have the option of receiving a digital version of the journal in abode pdf format for $25. the latter can be downloaded on demand, and notification of each new issue will be sent to digital subscribers via email. the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. we at the ircf look forward to your continuing support. please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions. — john binns, president, ircf erratum: on p. 214 of the december 2004 issue of iguana, the photograph labeled “cyclura cychlura figginsi” actually portrays a concentration of allen cays iguanas (c. c. inornata) on leaf cay. ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 12.2 b&w text seminoles left in florida by the treaty of 1842—between two and three hundred only in number; and here they lead a peaceful life, cultivating their fields, and hunting. it was while among the seminoles, in 1872 and 1874, that i enjoyed my best sport hunting the alligator. all are, of course, sufficiently familiar with this saurian not to need a further description from me. by thousands and thousands the guileless alligator of tender years has been ruthlessly torn from the maternal breast and sent adrift upon the frozen north; hence, the alligator in a menagerie is as familiar as the ubiquitous monkey. even to-day, after having been the sport of tourists for years, they may be shot on the st. john’s; though the best hunting is to be found in secluded creeks and bayous. though the alligator attains sometimes a length of 12 or 14 feet, he is more commonly found at 8 or 10. his jaw is always one fourth his entire length, and one 12 feet long displays an open countenance a yard wide. the teeth work up well into ivory ornaments, and the skin, when properly tanned, makes the most durable of leather. some hunting boots i had made from a pair of nine-footers lasted me five years’ wear and tear by flood and field. the alligator’s vulnerable spots are the eye, ear and just abaft the fore-leg. the rifle is the best weapon, but i have shot several dozen with a shot-gun and some even with a small revolver. the alligator is daintily-choice in his food, preferring a dog to the piney-woods hog, and a juicy, well-developed negro to either. the bull alligators have a tremendous roar, which shakes the forest when they indulge in a concert. i once found them so numerous, in the indian country, that we gave over shooting and took to harpooning them; a certain hunt by moonlight lingers in memory yet through a dozen intervening years. one hundred years ago, when that quaint old philosopher and botanist, bartram, sailed up the st. john’s in his indian canoe, the river was without a settlement its entire length, and the worthy man was frightened nearly out of his wits by the enormous alligators, which bit pieces out of his boat and nearly succeeded in devouring him. 126 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 historical perspectives frederick ober was born in beverly, massachusetts, to a relatively impoverished family and had little formal education. at 14, he learned the shoemaker’s trade, the traditional winter occupation of local fishermen; at 18, he was working in a drug store; at 21, he was in business with his father. however, his passion was ornithology. as a teenager, he taught himself taxidermy, collected and classified nearly all the birds of new england, and attracted the attention of alexander agassiz, the distinguished biologist from harvard. in 1871, ober abandoned business and went on a major expedition to florida to explore lake okeechobee, writing a series of vivid journal articles. for the next twenty years, he was an almost constant traveler, principally in the caribbean, but also in méxico, spain, north africa, and northern south america. ober initially saw himself as a scientist; he sent much material back to the smithsonian institution, two species of birds carry his name, and the smithsonian published the report of his first caribbean expedition. however, after the commercial success of his travel book, camps in the caribbees: the adventures of a naturalist in the lesser antilles (1879), ober broadened his horizons and, after some financial struggles, made a career for himself as a travel writer, journalist, public lecturer, novelist, and historian. ober wrote over forty books, including three classic travel books: camps in the caribbees (1879), the long and beautifully produced travels in mexico and life among the mexicans (1884), and the book that resulted from his appointment as collector of caribbean and columbusrelated material for the quatercentenary, in the wake of columbus: adventures of the special commissioner sent by the world’s columbian exposition to the west indies (1893). in addition, two of many novels had a contemporary caribbean setting: under the cuban flag, or the cacique’s treasure (1897) and the last of the arawaks: a story of adventure on the island of san domingo (1901). in the last years of his life he worked as a real-estate dealer in hackensack, new jersey, where he died in 1913. since his death, nobody has taken much interest in frederick ober or his writings, but, during the last decade of the nineteenth century, ober probably knew as much about the caribbean as anyone in the united states. he had traveled widely in the region, especially in the more remote parts rarely visited by other travelers, met with many of the statesmen and leading figures, and read widely about the area’s history. nobody knew the contemporary situation of the small indigenous populations as well, and few had a better knowledge of its history and the history of spanish colonialism with which it was intertwined. in one sense, however, this made ober an atypical figure. after 1898, when the stream of writing about the spanish-speaking caribbean became a torrent, his would seem like a minor voice, that of an amateur drowned by the instant expertise of economists, sociologists, and other analysts of the backward islands that had fallen into u.s. hands. b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h frederick albion ober (1849–1913) adapted from the online literary encyclopedia (http://www. litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&uid=3390). iguana b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 293 timber rattlesnake population extirpated timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus) are long-lived and slowly maturing snakes. populations throughout the distribution of the species in the eastern united states have been negatively impacted by habitat alteration, poaching, and vehicular traffic. over a three-year period, foster et al. (2006. bulletin of the chicago herpetological society 41:147–148) surveyed habitats and potential hibernacula at a site in clark county, illinois where numerous recent, credible reports of timber rattlesnakes had occurred. finding no rattlesnakes, the authors concluded that the population had been extirpated. because snakes encountered in the area in the past had been killed despite laws protecting this species in the state, education must be an integral part of conservation strategies in illinois and throughout the species’ range. changes in an italian snake fauna eight species of snakes have been recorded from a protected area in central italy. filippi and luiselli (2006. the herpetological journal 16:29–36) compared recent survey data with those collected 10 years previously. although more species (8 vs. 6) were found during the recent survey and a slight rise in the species diversity index was recorded, the species dominance index increased dramatically. this was largely due to a relative increase in the most abundant species (coluber viridiflavus) and a decline in the relative abundance of other species. two species (elaphe longissima and vipera aspis) apparently were affected negatively by clearing of brush at an archaeological site. documenting such declines is particularly relevant in europe, where many protected areas are set aside for archaeological or historical rather than biological reasons. unsuccessful reintroduction eighteen years after 29 mugger crocodiles (crocodylus palustris) were reintroduced into the neyyar wildlife sanctuary, kerala, india. jayson et al. (2006. the herpetological journal 16:69–76) indicated that the effort was a failure. although fishes provided ample prey for smaller crocodiles, large mammalian prey was insufficient for larger animals. crocodile attacks on livestock were reported within two years of reintroduction, and 35 attacks on humans (two of which were fatal) have occurred. nine crocodiles were removed to reduce conflicts, but the local population does not support the conservation of crocodiles under existing conditions. earless lizards disappearing in kansas although once abundantly (albeit spottily) distributed throughout the western two-thirds of kansas, taggart (2006. kansas journal of herpetology 19:10) noted that the lesser earless lizard (holbrookia maculata) has all but disappeared in kansas within the past 10 years. causes are unknown. c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s conservation research reports efforts to reestablish a population of mugger crocodiles (crocodylus palustris) into the neyyar wildlife sanctuary, kerala, india, failed. r u c h ir a s o m a w ee r a populations of timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus) throughout the eastern united states have been negatively impacted by habitat alteration, poaching, and vehicular traffic. b a r n ey o ld fi el d , w w w .l iz a r d sa n d la n d sc a pe s. c o m lesser earless lizards (holbrookia maculata), such as this individual from sumner county, have all but disappeared in kansas. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h the european asp (vipera aspis) was one of two species negatively affected by clearing of brush at an archaeological site in central italy. jo h n t a sh ji a n iguana 13.1 b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 53historical perspective introduction: at the present time there is little available information on the influence that desert climates exert on ectotherm activities. the small amount of data which are available has been gathered chiefly as matter incidental to other problems in the biology of reptiles. even with this meager information, the potential significance of these data requires more elaborate studies than those now available. it appears probable that temperature as a factor of the environment has a profound influence on reptilian distribution and ecology. undoubtedly it has been fully as important in the evolution and dispersal of reptiles. preface cowles and bogert’s “preliminary study of the thermal requirements of desert reptiles” is something of an anomaly in biology. it is a paper that introduced new concepts concerning an entire vertebrate class and presented a rigorous framework for experimental studies which has survived with remarkably little change for three decades. a major field of herpetological research can be traced directly to the appearance of this work, and for more than a quarter of a century nearly every paper dealing with the thermal relations of reptiles has referred to “cowles and bogert 1944.” cowles had long been interested in the ecology of the reptiles of the deserts of southern california and in 1938 he took advantage of sabbatical leave to set up a field station in the coachella valley. his initial interest was the winter activities of reptiles and he gathered information by following a bulldozer that was excavating clumps of mesquite and creosote bush in preparation for irrigation. it was this interest in cold reptiles that first brought him into the desert with a thermometer in his hand. the resistance of reptiles to low temperatures and their ability to resume activity when they were warmed suggested to him that perhaps it was increasing temperatures at the end of the mesozoic that led to the extinction of dinosaurs via heat-induced sterility. on this basis he suggested that fur and feathers first evolved to keep heat out, not in. from this hypothesis it was a natural step to studying the reactions of living reptiles to high temperatures. the prevailing view at the time held, with impeccable logic, that if a lizard sits on a burning hot rock, the lizard must be as hot as the rock. biologists marveled at the heat tolerance of reptiles, although there were some hints that reptiles really preferred to be cooler. the continuing value of the “preliminary study” rests on its two major characteristics: it was an entirely new way of looking at the biology of reptiles, and the methods and their application were extraordinarily rigorous. cowles and bogert discarded 80% of their body temperature measurements because of uncertainty about the activity of the animal before a measurement was made or because they felt the temperature might have changed during the process of h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e preliminary study of the thermal requirements of desert reptiles1 raymond bridgman cowles and charles mitchill bogert 1 bulletin of the american museum of natural history 83:261–296 (1944, reprinted in 1974 by the society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, miscellaneous publications, facsimile reprints in herpetology). editor’s note.—early herpetological literature tended to be of interest to a very limited audience — other herpetologists. much of the work was focused on listing the species found in particular areas and describing their basic natural history, and an evolutionary perspective, beyond the taxonomic focus, was rare. perhaps the first herpetological work to break into the awareness of biologists at large was the 1944 publication of “a preliminary study of the thermal requirements of desert reptiles” by cowles and bogert, an eco-physiological study with an evolutionary view. the importance of the work stems from the demonstration that “cold-blooded” organisms did not passively take on the temperature of their environment, as previously thought. instead, cowles and bogert were the first to document what we now take for granted: reptiles have sophisticated behavioral mechanisms that allow them to precisely regulate their body temperatures within a fairly wide range of ambient conditions. this was not the last collaboration between the two nor the final study of reptilian physiology. however, whereas most of the work published that long ago is rarely referenced, the paper excerpted here is still frequently cited, showing its enduring value — sixty years later, this work is still a major milepost. the original paper is too long to fully include here, as is the preface by harvey pough, added in the ssar 1974 reprint. i have selected excerpts from both the original work and pough’s preface in order to give readers a sense of the scope of the work, selecting paragraphs that illustrate both substance and style of the work. in the interest of brevity, the bibliography has been omitted, although references were retained in the text (but not in the preface). for those interested in reading more, the ssar reprint is still available for sale, along with some other historically important herpetological publications. all can be found at www.nbb.cornell.edu/neurobio/department/faculty/ adler/not%20using/ssar.html. gad perry, editor texas tech university continued on page 54 iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 53 54 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 the great advantage inherent in studies of desert reptiles lies in the extraordinarily high maximum temperatures, as well as the greatly exaggerated temperature changes, so characteristic of desert climates. such environmental conditions may amplify subtle details of thermal relationships that would otherwise escape notice. the resulting accentuation of temperature responses throws into relief temperature relations which in the equable climate of the tropics might otherwise remain as imperceptible, or at least unperceived, nuances in thermal adaptations. methods: the region wherein most of these experiments were conducted presents typical aspects of the coloradan subdivision of the lower sonoran life zone. cages and other equipment were installed in the field, as described hereinafter, at a locality near indian wells, riverside county, california. this locality lies on the floor of the coachella valley a few feet above sea level, with drainage to the southeast into the sink of the salton sea. the surface of this body of water is below sea level. experimental results (representative species, chosen for diversity and availability of pictures): coleonyx variegatus, banded gecko. the thermal responses of this nocturnal lizard closely approximate those of the nocturnal snakes. it is able to crawl at temperatures as low as 11° c., but in actual practice the animals do cowles and bogert measuring. the importance of that caution cannot be overstressed. inanimate objects (in this instance beer cans) distributed through the environment show a distribution of “body” temperatures which resembles the body temperature distribution measured from live lizards. in other words, the observation of a negatively skewed temperature distribution centered about a clearly-defined mean that is higher than air temperature does not demonstrate thermoregulation. it is essential to combine measurements of temperatures with observations of the animals’ activities. the scope of the field opened to investigation by the view of reptiles as animals capable of a considerable degree of homeothermy has not yet been fully realized. in the first place it has made the classic division of animals into homeotherms (warm-blooded) and poikilotherms (coldblooded) meaningless. during the course of the study cowles coined the words endotherm and ectotherm to emphasize the source of the energy that warms the body. the realization that reptiles can and do control their body temperature has had ramifications in many areas of herpetology. ecologists have found that niches are defined in part by thermal relationships, ethologists have discovered that reptiles behave differently at different body temperatures, and zoogeographers must consider the radiant energy regimes available on postulated routes of migration. it is scarcely possible to ask a question about the biology of reptiles in which their thermoregulatory capacities are not directly or indirectly involved. in particular, the very active research in reptilian environmental physiology is built to a great extent around thermal relations and thus stems from the “preliminary study.” there has been remarkably little modification of the views embodied in the original paper during more than a quarter century of extensive work. one of the first changes was a de-emphasis of the concept of the “ecological optimum” represented by the mean value of the body temperatures measured during activity. bogert found that the same genera of lizards maintained very similar body temperatures in different habitats while different genera maintained different temperatures in the same habitat, indicating an hereditary preference for a particular body temperature level. the hereditary preference could be affected by environmental conditions. for example, in florida, which was frequently cloudy, cnemidophorus body temperatures were skewed toward the lower end of the activity range while they were skewed to the upper end in sunny arizona. in other words, the activity temperature should be viewed as a range of temperature which is acceptable to a lizard species and allows it to carry on the activities necessary for life. indeed, a lizard that is kept continuously at the average temperature it selects in a temperature gradient loses weight and may even die. regal has shown that lizards voluntarily select low body temperatures at night. apparently different aspects of a lizard’s internal economy function best at different temperatures and some temperature variation is essential. f. harvey pough (excerpted from the 1974 ssar edition) preface continued from page 53 the thermal responses of nocturnal banded geckos (coleonyx variegatus) closely approximate those of nocturnal snakes. l. l ee g r is m er this view from santa rosa mountain illustrates several “typical” components of the coloradan subdivision of the lower sonoran life zone. l. l ee g r is m er iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 54 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 55historical perspective not ordinarily expose themselves to temperatures below 16° c. as a matter of fact, they are rarely found in the open below air temperatures of 18° c., except when the ground is warm. whereas this gecko appears to be somewhat more resistant to cold than the snakes, it is also capable of enduring somewhat higher temperatures than these animals. for the snakes as well as for this lizard, the activity range lies in the vicinity of 30° c. this is well below that of the diurnal lizards. the small number of available specimens has prevented a satisfactory determination of the critical maximum, but this point is reached at a body temperature somewhat below 41° c. under extreme conditions of heat and with relative humidity at 11 per cent, respiratory cooling of about 2.5° c. has been noted. dipsosaurus dorsalis dorsalis, desert iguana or northern crested lizard. after one night of exposure to temperatures slightly below 8° c., a common night temperature in early spring, these lizards are torpid and often so sluggish that they are unable to move. as their body temperatures rise with increasing warmth, they remain helpless up to 14° c. at 18° c. they are unable to coordinate rapid movements, and they resort to clumsy intimidation displays. a temperature of 21° c. permits slow locomotion, and at 24° c. torpidity is still evident but the animal can walk with well-coordinated movements. the temperature of 27° c. constitutes a welldefined minimum voluntary tolerance. it is notable that at low temperatures this species of lizard is more seriously discommoded than are some others that have wider territorial ranges. normal activity extends from 34°–41° c., and the mean for all records (38 observations) is 37.4° c. retreat from high temperatures observed in 20 caged animals over a period of two months indicates that they avoid exposure to body temperatures of more than 41° c. nevertheless, lizards under apparently ideal conditions were recorded with temperatures of 42° c. immediately after they were shot, and on six occasions lizards captured alive had temperatures of 43° c. although the lizards that were shot did not give any evidence of prolonged exposure resulting from fear of the collector, the noosed lizards assumed the usual state of tonic immobility attendant on the presence of danger. however, it did not appear probable that there had been time for any abnormal heat absorption. until additional observations are possible, it seems advisable to consider 41° c. the maximum normal temperature tolerance. desert iguanas taken near indian wells on the colorado desert reach the critical maximum at 47.5° c. (6 trials; min., 47° c.; max., 48° c.). a like number from saltdale, a locality at a higher elevation on the mojave desert, under experimental conditions reached the critical maximum at 47° c. three of the animals were again subjected to the same test and at the end of 30 minutes collapsed and died at 47° c. only two tests for the so-called lethal temperature have been made, one based on an individual from the mojave desert and another from the colorado desert. the one from the cooler mojave died at 50° c., the other at 50.5° c. the difference is doubtfully significant and probably not the result of climatic adaptation. crotaphytus wislizenii, leopard lizard. only one individual was available for study. after repeated observations over a period of two weeks it became evident that this animal invarinormal activity of desert iguanas (dipsosaurus doralis dorsalis) occurs at temperatures ranging from 34–41 °c. l. l ee g r is m er iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 55 56 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 cowles and bogert ably retreated to cover when lowering temperatures approached 23°c. other observations did not yield conclusive data. sauromalus obesus, chuckawalla. at 14° c. these animals are scarcely able to right themselves from a supine to normal position. at 21 ° c. slow but effectual locomotion is possible, while at 24° c. the fear response seems to be dulled, a distinct contrast to the condition in dipsosaurus where fear and alertness seem to reach the normal pitch at this temperature. fifteen observations were made on wild individuals obtained on the mojave desert in the course of a single cloudy day. throughout the period, air temperature remained at 24° c., while the temperature in the crevices occupied by the animals was 25.5° c. although all the individuals were discovered in rock crevices, none of the animals was more than halfway to the bottom of its retreat. reluctance to appear in the open at what seem to be entirely tolerable conditions apparently endows these animals with an excellent safeguard against capture by predators; apparently chuckawallas do not expose themselves to view until their body temperatures have risen to the point where celerity of responses insures their ability to escape. it was instructive to find that the lighter colored, but somewhat smaller individuals from the colorado desert absorbed heat more slowly than the black-and-dark-red color phases more characteristic of the cooler mojave desert. at maximum temperatures attainable under moderate thermal conditions, a large black and red individual reached a temperature 2° c. higher than that of smaller, lighter colored individuals. in spite of its darker color and more effective heat absorption, the larger lizard required a longer time to reach its ultimate thermal level. this is consonant with the change in surface area relative to the changed mass of an organism. the influence of color on rate of absorption can be determined to an exact degree only by the use of two series of lizards of different color but having identical surface areas and mass. chuckawallas should furnish an excellent source of information on the importance of color as a physiological adaptation versus its value as a means of concealment. the color variability (but not metachromatism) that is found within any one species of the horned lizard (phrynosoma), fringe-footed lizard (uma), and many snakes seems to be a device of primary importance in concealment. the same may be found true in the chuckawalla which displays a high degree of color variability in different localities, particularly in the colorado desert. the darker coloration of the mojave desert form may reflect a need for greater heat absorption consonant with its larger size and the cooler climate of this higher desert. the various pattern phases represented in the warmer colorado desert are lighter colored on the body, although the head is nearly completely black. it is pure speculation, but it seems possible that such a pattern enables these colorado desert lizards to absorb heat rather rapidly when only the head is protruding from a crevice. on the other hand, the yellow coloration of the trunk would not absorb heat so rapidly as would the red and black body of the mojave desert form when these lizards venture forth into direct sunlight. such a black and yellow pattern, therefore, may represent an evolutionary compromise. on the other hand, such a pattern can be interpreted as disruptive coloration. klauber (1939) has pointed out that black rock or the dark areas resulting from shadows in a paler rock habitat may make it difficult to distinguish the body outline of these dusky colored lizards. hence their coloration may be of protective value. it is noteworthy, however, that large diurnal lizards in all parts of the world tend to be dark colored. this is particularly true of the crocodilians, the larger monitors (varanus), and of the larger iguanids (ctenosaura and amblyrhynchus for examples). it is not impossible that the heatabsorbing properties of dark skins are required to insure the intake of sufficient heat to permit these large poikilotherms to attain temperatures within the normal activity range. to return to sauromalus obesus, the average range for activity is 37.7° c. this figure was obtained from 25 observations which were made as the animals retreated to shade, and 24 as they retreated underground when shade temperatures became too high. the two series agree to within 0.2° c. the highest temperature recorded for voluntary tolerance was 42° c. the critical maximum appeared at 44.5° c. in one individual, at 49° c. in another, and in a third (under laboratory conditions) at 43.3° c. the reasons for the wide variations are not known. the putative lethal was found to be 50°-51° c. with only four trials, one of them conducted in the laboratory. phrynosoma sps., the horned lizards. little difference in thermal preferences can be detected between the three southern california horned lizards, although, to judge by their preferred habitats, strong differences would be expected. one species, phrynosoma b. blainvillii, is confined to the coastal areas and the higher semidesert districts of the mountains. another, phrynosoma p. platyrhinos, has a wide geographic range that includes considerable temperature differences, and the third, phrynosoma m’callii, is restricted to the warmer areas of the colorado desert. p. p. platyrhinos is found at elevations of 3000 feet, but it is also encountered in the coachella valley at sea level or slightly below, where, as at the mouth of the box canyon in riverside county near mecca, its range overlaps that of p. m’callii. in view of the slight differences in heat economy and the considerable difference in temperature conditions in these habitats, it seems probable that the necessary accommodation to diverse climates is accomplished by means of habits. coloration and neurological adjustments may also be involved, and it is chuckwallas (sauromalus ater, formerly s. obesus) do not expose themselves to view until their body temperatures have risen sufficiently to insure an ability to escape a predator. b r a d fo r d d . h o ll in g sw o r th iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 56 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 57historical perspective noteworthy that both of the desert dwelling species are paler in coloration than the coastal form. a comparison of the averages of temperature adjustment at the most significant levels is shown below. from these data it appears probable that a difference of thermal adjustment amounting to only 2° c. distinguishes the coastal species from p. m’callii, an inhabitant of the hottest desert areas. this thermal similarity was further emphasized by the observation that sand temperatures of 41° c. or more seemed equally effective in restraining the sand-burrowing impulse. when forced to submerge themselves, however, they all endured short exposures to temperatures as high as 43° c. as temperatures became unbearable all three species submerged in the sand of their cages, and as the surface layers became hotter they pushed downward until a hard-pan at a depth of 75 to 80 mm. prevented them from penetrating deeper. under these conditions, usually by 2 to 3 p.m., they would rush to the surface and retreat to the nearest shade, where by that time temperatures had moderated sufficiently to be endurable. phrynosoma m’callii displayed a greater tendency to crepuscular activity than either of the other species, sometimes remaining above ground for an hour or more after the others had retreated and temperatures in the late dusk had dropped to 29° c. retreat below ground appeared to be due as much to the light conditions as to the compulsion exerted by a falling temperature. one of the difficulties involved in obtaining thoroughly reliable thermal records for any given reaction is revealed by the inconsistent behavior of a single example selected at random from among a large number of similar instances. while attempting to obtain data on the minimum temperature at which phrynosoma m’callii leaves the sand on first emergence in the morning, it was noted on one occasion that two individuals resting side by side under apparently identical conditions ultimately emerged at body temperatures respectively 22° and 36° c. thus there was manifest a difference of 14° c. for a single, apparently spontaneous reaction. it should be emphasized that the lower temperature is well below the level usually tolerated, while the higher figure lies well within the range for normal activity and not far below the limit of voluntary tolerance to high temperature. arizona elegans occidentalis, western glossy snake. burrowing snakes are difficult creatures with which to work, and consequently there is little available information on the activities of this digging species. although it is one of the commoner snakes collected while driving at night, in captivity it was secreretreat from cold activity range maximum voluntary tolerance number of observations p. b. blainvillii 28.0° c 34.9° c 39.0° c 26 p. p. platyrhinos 29.0° 36.8° 39.0° 10 p. m’callii 29.3° 36.9° 41.0° 10 desert horned lizards (phrynosoma platyrhinos) have a broad geographic range that includes varying temperature regimes. l. l ee g r is m er iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 57 58 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 cowles and bogert tive and seldom appeared above ground except for intervals of relatively short duration. like any true burrowing snake, it seems capable of flowing into and out of the loose desert soil with very little locomotory difficulty. surplus heat acquired during active periods on the surface is rapidly lost by direct conduction when these animals burrow. the lowest temperatures at which this species was observed above ground were 14° and 18° c. these appearances were exceptional, and surface activity was of very short duration, probably not much in excess of a few seconds. at 19°-20° c., appearances become more frequent, and it is probable that this constitutes a normal lower limit for voluntary surface activity. as stated previously, strong stimuli such as fright or those involved in sexual activities frequently result in modifications of other normal responses. when glossy snakes were confined in the same cage with crotalus cerastes and rhinocheilus lecontei there were no marked differences in their responses to temperature. with respect to light, however, c. cerastes was more tolerant than the other two species. apparently these three snakes are all relatively cold-tolerant reptiles. klauber (1939) lists c. cerastes and rhinocheilus as the snakes having the appearance of greatest tolerance to low temperatures, and we would include arizona in the same category upon the basis of our observations. one of the difficulties besetting the acquisition of exact thermal data is the ability of the burrowing snakes to glide into the soil with no preliminary warning of the approach of a change in behavior. on one occasion, as temperatures fell rapidly, eight of the burrowing snakes were moving about the cage shortly after dusk. as their disappearance was anticipated at air temperatures of 19°–20° c., and body temperatures were desired, the observer was ready to grasp the snakes as they started to descend into the soil. as frequently happened, there was almost simultaneous retreat, and before the snakes could be extricated some seconds’ delay had occurred. because they had already been immersed in what at the time were the warmer, deeper layers of the soil, and would be expected to yield erroneous data, the attempt was abandoned. however, a c. cerastes in the same cage, which retreated at the same time and was halfway down the mouth of its open burrow, was seized and the temperature recorded as 20° c. it is probable that the somewhat higher temperature represents heat absorption from the substratum, and that the other snakes would have shown the same temperature at the time of their departure. under laboratory conditions these snakes reached their critical maximum at 42, 42, 41, 41, 42, 43° c., mean 41.8° c. putative lethal temperatures were 43°–44° c. (six observations). despite the normal avoidance of both light and high temperatures, these snakes occasionally bask on the surface of the ground in winter, and in summer a large gravid female was captured in coachella valley, july 7, 1940, at 8 a.m. in full sun. the day was cloudless and hot, probably well over 38° c. in the shade. to judge by the tracks in the sand, the snake had been glossy snakes (arizona elegans) are burrowers; any surplus heat acquired during periods when active on the surface is rapidly lost by direct conduction when these animals burrow. l. l ee g r is m er sidewinders (crotalus cerastes) and long-nosed snakes (rhinocheilus lecontei) are both relatively cold-tolerant, but the former is more tolerant of light than other nocturnally active snakes. l. l ee g r is m er iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 58 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 59historical perspective very active, presumably during the night and early morning, boring in and out of the ground near a large hummock of earth. it was probably seeking a suitable spot for oviposition. she deposited 23 eggs the following day, and these hatched after 68 days of incubation at room temperature, which fluctuated between 25° and 32° c. at eight days of age, the young were tested for the critical maximum and responded at 38°–39° c. all recovered but showed varying degrees of partial caudal paralysis. thus the young appear to suffer from temperatures 3°–5° c. lower than those which would be fatal to the adults. crotalus atrox (c. cinereous auct.), western diamond rattlesnake. freshly captured individuals have been observed moving about at 14° c. but this was presumably the result of abnormal stimuli; activity at this low temperature may be ascribed to the presence of abnormal environmental factors. even at 18° c. there is some activity, but it is limited in frequency, and it is not until temperatures of 27°–30° c. are encountered that the snakes are persistently active. a temperature of 39° c. was observed in the only test for the critical maximum, and this is probably somewhat lower than should be expected. discussion: as suggested earlier, one of the seemingly important requirements of reptiles is an effective extension of both their daily and seasonal hours of activity. this necessity constitutes a problem which is greatly accentuated in desert regions of the temperate zone…. the acquisition and maintenance of necessary body temperatures are the sine qua non of existence for terrestrial vertebrate ectotherms. all other activities requisite for survival of reptilian species seem ultimately to depend upon the maintenance of necessary body temperatures which makes this element one of basic importance. successful predation by carnivorous reptiles is based on ‘alertness and agility’ and these attributes reach maximum efficiency at or near optimum temperatures. even for the herbivorous types, the attainment of suitable temperatures is imperative, for they must also maintain high body temperatures if they are to function at maximum efficiency during the crucial moments when they must escape their enemies. “survival of the fittest” among terrestrial reptiles would appear to be the survival of the warmest in those instances where other factors are equal. in other words, the most successful reptiles probably are those which, by means of their habits, are able to approach a state comparable to that attained by homiothermic animals…. presumably the less adaptable reptiles have failed to survive in desert regions because of the rigorous climatic conditions. conversely, relicts are more often found on islands and peninsulas owing to the relatively slight temperature fluctuations characteristic of maritime climates. schmidt (1943) has recently discussed peninsular life and “paleopeninsulae,” pointing out that, “the common faunal characteristic of the major peninsulas is their accumulation of peculiar forms of life, frequently primitive.” it has often been hypothecated that insular and peninsular relicts survive because they are relieved of “competition with modern elements,” or because “biotic pressures are reduced.” on the other hand other authors have spoken of the “extraordinary congestion in species” on peninsulas. can an abundance of species lead to diminution of competition?... many modem distributions possibly can be interpreted in terms of thermal and moisture requirements when these are better understood. it must be borne in mind that the principal climatic areas of today probably were in existence prior to the pliocene. during the late quaternary seasonal changes presumably approximated those of today. as the summer advances, the temperatures of the surface soils rise above the optimum during daylight hours, and most species included in the sand fauna, both invertebrates as well as vertebrates, burrow increasingly deeper. by so doing they follow the vertical drift of favorable temperatures. the resultant concentration or stratification of fauna in favorable thermal zones may be an important factor in the lives of burrowing reptiles, since it results in a concentration of the available food supply in a comparatively narrow thermal zone. summary and conclusions: twelve diurnal and seven nocturnal species of reptiles indigenous to the southwest have been studied. data derived from field observations, from animals in cages set up in the desert, and from supplementary laboratory investigations provide the basis for the following statements: 1. the reptiles under observation were voluntarily active only between the temperature extremes of 16° and 42° c. (cloacal temperatures). thus the maximum voluntary thermal tolerances of reptiles are somewhat less than those reported for birds. actually the ecological optimum or the mean for the “normal activity range,” as defined herein, is somewhat lower than the normal temperature of many mammals. consequently even the reptiles inhabiting one of the hottest regions in the world cannot be considered notably thermophilic. 2. contrary to previous reports, nocturnal reptiles not only tolerate but prefer temperatures somewhat lower than those of diurnal reptiles. provisionally the difference between mean critical thermal levels for diurnal arid nocturnal reptiles may be said to approximate 6° or 7° c. 3. under captive conditions approximating those in their normal habitats the reptiles studied were able to avoid extensive temperature fluctuations. particularly noteworthy in this respect was the ability of the sidewinder (crotalus cerastes), while in a relatively inactive or quiescent state, to maintain its body temperature within the narrow limits of 31° and 32° c. the acuity of temperature discrimination in this species under such conditions is astonishing, more especially because the sidewinder proved to be one of the least stenothermic reptiles investigated. individuals in an active state were noted with temperatures varying from 16° to 34.5° c. 4. observations recorded for one lizard (sceloporus m. magister) indicate that defecation is most frequent at body temperatures of 37° to 38° c. it is suggested that such temperatures are necessary before peristalsis is possible, although this same lizard commonly fed with the body temperature closer to 30° c. if such precise requirements are widespread among reptiles, it may account for the high mortality rate among captive reptiles in many zoological gardens where animals are maintained under conditions which prevent them from selecting preferred temperatures. 5. one of the notable facts is the close approximation of the maximum temperatures tolerated voluntarily and the critical maximum which immobilizes the animals. a difference of somewhat less than 6° c. between these levels is indicative of the temiguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 59 perature hazards under which some of these animals would exist, were it not for concomitant adaptations, particularly in habits. the utter impossibility of prolonged activity in the full summer sunshine of the desert is clearly indicated by the black-bulb temperature of 87° c. observed as early as may. 6. it is suggested that reptilian relicts tend to survive on islands or peninsulas owing to the relatively slight temperature fluctuations characteristic of maritime climates. for similar reasons such relicts would tend to survive in tropical regions rather than in continental climates of temperate zones where a higher degree of adaptability to temperature fluctuations would be a prerequisite. 7. a notable characteristic of desert reptiles is the rapidity with which these animals absorb heat. changes are so rapid as to exceed those of the thermometer in the case of small lizards (uta stansburiana). the rapid changes in reptilian temperatures seem to be due primarily to: (1) their lack of effective surface insulation; (2) their lack of hypodermal adipose tissue; (3) their pigmentation, particularly the melanin; and (4) in the smaller species, to the relatively small volume in proportion to the large heat-conducting surface. 8. since an important factor in the thermal adjustment of desert reptiles is the surface-mass ratio of the body, it follows that smaller lizards are capable of utilizing very short intervals of favorable exposures (assuming other factors to be approximately equal). in contrast, larger lizards, under favorable conditions of heat, will require more time in which to reach the optimum, but their activities at higher temperatures will be less restricted than those of smaller individuals or species. 9. although large lizards exposed to solar radiation or to the warm substratum attain temperatures of maximum toleration more slowly (and also dissipate heat more slowly) than small lizards, there is no apparent correlation between body size and the maximum temperature voluntarily tolerated. even though the largest diurnal lizard used in these experiments (sauromalus obesus) withstood a body temperature of 42° c. of its own volition, this maximum was closely approached by a much smaller diurnal lizard (phrynosoma m’callii) that voluntarily tolerated 41° c. the data for nocturnal reptiles are not so extensive, but preliminary investigations demonstrate a lower voluntary tolerance. 10. it is apparent that for diurnal lizards the effect of color change (that is, the tint or shade rather than the hue) operates to provide an extension of time at marginal thermal levels, but the data assembled in these preliminary investigations throw little light on the relative merits of protective coloration versus physiological adaptation. however, a consideration of the size, pattern, and coloration of sauromalus obesus in various regions suggests that some patterns may be interpreted in terms of habits, and that an evolutionary compromise may exist when antagonistic forces are involved. 11. thermotaxis through behavior is one of the outstanding characteristics of desert reptiles. body temperatures within the normal activity range are attained principally (1) by selecting positions in or on soil, or rock, where heat through direct conduction can be absorbed, or (2) by basking, with all or only part of the body exposed, to sources of solar heat. conversely temperatures above the critical maximum are avoided (1) by retreating to cooler depths, in the ground (by burrowing or in preempted burrows), in rock crevices, or beneath insulating material, (2) or by respiratory cooling under extreme conditions. 12. because the activities necessary for the survival of both the species and the individual are dependent upon the acquisition and maintenance of suitable body temperatures, thermoregulation by means of behavior may be considered an element of basic importance in the existence and evolution of reptiles in continental climates. 60 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 cowles and bogert rapid changes in reptilian body temperatures, especially in smaller species like the side-blotched lizard (uta stansburiana) are attributable, at least in large part, to the relatively small volume in proportion to the large heat-conducting surface. l. l ee g r is m er iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 60 iguana 12.3 b&w text 152 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 dodd sunset on the west coast of egmont key: the box turtle was not placed in the photo, but was found naturally on the beach. the eastern box turtle, terrapene carolina, one of four forms that may be found in florida, is familiar to both residents and visitors. box turtles are known to occur in virtually all counties plus offshore islands in the gulf of mexico, where they presumably dispersed over water by floating during floods. although often considered to be “common,” box turtles are not evenly distributed within the state and statements of abundance are misleading in the absence of empirical demographic data, and probably result from a variety of misperceptions. at the same time, knowledge is lacking concerning the status of t. carolina, which may impede conservation efforts, even on so-called “protected” lands. dilemma of the common species: florida box turtles c. kenneth dodd, jr., ph.d. usgs/florida integrated science centers 7920 nw 71st street gainesville, fl 32653, usa ken_dodd@usgs.gov photographs by the author except where indicated. iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 153florida box turtles � adult florida box turtle (terrapene carolina bauri) on egmont key, florida. the large influx of people into florida, especially in the latter half of the 20th century, has resulted in the shrinkage and isolation of box turtle habitats to the point where turtle survival may depend on the presence of public lands. this is especially true in the southern and central parts of the state, areas that historically were known to contain large populations. state, federal, and privately held conservation-based lands may still contain sizable populations. box turtles are ecological generalists, a niche that has made them successful for millions of years. in florida, they are usually terrestrial, although they like to soak in water, especially after dry periods. they are omnivorous, eating a wide variety of both animal and vegetable matter, and florida populations are active throughout the year to varying degrees, depending on temperature. home ranges are generally small and individuals frequent the same areas from one season to the next. box turtles are very aware of their environments, such as the location of food sources, hiding places, nesting sites, and retreats from cold and drought. however, a few turtles are wanderers and never seem to remain in one place. although not generally considered social animals, they are tolerant of conspecifics and may recognize neighbors. populations may be dense (14–16 or more turtles per hectare) and large, given favorable habitat and environmental conditions. the legal basis for conserving box turtles in florida no statutory regulations in florida are specifically designed for the protection of box turtles in native habitats. however, commercial collecting is banned, and state law limits possession to two individuals per person without a permit. box turtles gain some protection on certain federal and state lands, such as national and state parks, since removing any fauna from such lands is illegal without special permits. internationally, all terrapene are protected by the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora (cites). florida box turtles (t. carolina bauri) are listed in appendix ii. trade in appendix ii species must be monitored, lest these species become threatened as a result of commercial exploitation. constraints on conservation the biological constraints on conservation are those characteristics of a species that relate to its behavior, physiology, population structure, reproduction, and longevity, among others, that are not amenable to change as a result of human management. the life-history characteristics of a population of box turtles reflect a fine balance resulting from natural selection over a long period of time. thus, the constraints imposed by the species’ 154 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 dodd plastron of a florida box turtle; plastra vary from yellow to dark brown, and many have colorful patterns. juvenile florida box turtle: juveniles comprise >20% of egmont key’s box turtle population. florida box turtle buried under cover: turtles seek refuge in deep leaf litter during drought, cold, and heat. hatchling florida box turtle: hatchlings are found occasionally in the leaf litter under a dense overhead canopy. physiological, demographic, or other life-history requirements set the biological limits within which researchers and natural resource managers must fashion conservation programs. as a result of many natural history studies (see dodd 2001), box turtles are categorized as long-lived, somewhat slowmaturing, iteroparous (i.e., with overlapping generations) reptiles with a high rate of adult survivorship, high mortality among eggs, hatchlings, and juveniles, and a relatively low reproductive output. this suite of life history characteristics, together with their needs for space and a proper biophysical environment, form the boundaries within which options for long-term survival must be framed. these same traits make them vulnerable to habitat change and exploitation because animals with such life history traits take a long time to rebound from perturbations, whether natural or as the direct result of human activity (seigel and dodd 2000, dodd 2001). human constraints on conservation include the need for a legal or administrative mandate to protect or conserve a species; the funds, equipment, and personnel (both in the short and long term) to carry out management programs; the time and logistics necessary to conduct preliminary research or other management activity; and a determination whether public support or opposition is present. the diverse types of public lands also have many diverse types of management mandates. the adoption of an “ecosystem approach” to land management by many natural resource agencies (e.g., the u.s. fish and wildlife service, usfws) may even result in ignoring so-called “single species” problems, except where legal mandate or traditional agency focus dictates otherwise. therefore, the designation of “public” does not mean that the land and its ecosystems are protected or managed for biological diversity or for the long-term benefit of its natural resources. case study: the box turtles of egmont key egmont key (27º 36’ n, 82º 45’ w) is a small (ca. 180 hectares) continental island precariously situated at the junction between tampa bay and the gulf of mexico. the island has a long history of human occupancy, and little was known of its flora and iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 155florida box turtles dense habitat formed by brazilian pepper (schinus terebinthifolius): the exotic pepper provides cover, leaf litter, shade, and helps retain high humidity. an aerial view of the island looking to the southwest from the lighthouse toward fort dade: at one time, the island was nearly twice the size of its present configuration. fauna prior to extensive modifications made in connection with lighthouse construction and military use beginning in the middle 1800s. herpetological collections made in 1869–70 and 1904 did not mention box turtles and, indeed, not until the early 1990s did biologists become aware of the large population of florida box turtles (terrapene carolina bauri) on the island (franz et al. 1992). the origin of the population and the length of time that box turtles have been on the island are unknown, although box turtles are frequent residents on the barrier islands of the southeastern atlantic coast and gulf of mexico. because of their large population size, their relative freedom from overabundant human-associated predators (especially raccoons and other mammals), and their physical isolation from current anthropogenic activities that threaten turtle populations everywhere (e.g., massive habitat destruction and alteration, disturbance, and collection; see klemens 2000), the box turtles on egmont key do not represent just another population, but a unique natural resource that cannot be replicated elsewhere. the large numbers of conspicuous individuals form a dense population that may provide a glimpse of what box turtle populations were like prior to human colonization. although human activities have severely changed the environment of egmont key through past land clearing and the introduction of non-indigenous plants, habitat conditions favorable to turtles (box turtles, gopher tortoises, gopherus polyphemus, and nesting loggerhead sea turtles, caretta caretta) have created a unique phenomenon in north america, “l’île des tortues” (the island of turtles; devaux 1993). since 1991, scientists from the u.s. geological survey, florida integrated science center (usgs/fisc), have marked more than 2400 box turtles and recorded more than 5200 individual recaptures in a long-term usgs study of the life history of this declining species. project goals include: (1) gathering biological data that will provide immediate assistance in habitat management; (2) monitoring box turtle population dynamics during restoration efforts; (3) documenting effects of increased human activity on box turtle population dynamics; (4) determining spatial and temporal aspects of habitat use by box tur156 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 dodd adult gopher tortoise (gopherus polyphemus): gopher tortoises are common on egmont key, with estimates of >1500 tortoises on the island. fighting gopher tortoises: behavior not normally witnessed is routinely observed on egmont key. these were both females! iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 157florida box turtles tles, their activity patterns, population structure and size, and reproductive activities; and (5) determining characteristics of life-history, such as survivorship, growth, disease, and the biology of all age classes. one might expect that the occurrence of large populations of turtles seemingly unaffected and undaunted by humans on a national wildlife refuge/state park would ensure their protection — but this may not be the case for box turtles. no plan guides resource management and the development of the island, the author measuring a box turtle. m a r ia n g r if fe y the author’s wife, marian griffey, removing box turtles from an abandoned gopher tortoise burrow. florida box turtles sometimes use these burrows to escape drought, heat, cold, and sudden decreases in humidity — but never if a tortoise is present. mellon battery at fort dade: gopher tortoises prefer the open areas afforded by the restoration of the buildings of the spanish american-era fort. although many ongoing activities have profound effects on box turtles and other non-protected species. the northern third of the island has had extensive amounts of vegetation removed in order to expose historic sections of fort dade for visitors and to stabilize remaining structures; a visitor center is being established using fort dade’s renovated guard house; tour boats discharge an increasing number of day visitors, and thousands of people may visit, especially on holiday weekends. visitors to the island can assist endeavors to protect and conserve all of egmont key’s natural resources by: (1) avoiding restricted areas, (2) maintaining a no litter policy, (3) leaving plants and wildlife alone, (4) taking from the island nothing but photographs and memories, and (5) leaving behind nothing but temporary footprints in the island’s glittering sands. perceptions and the future in effect, florida box turtles have been labeled as common in public parlance, without the benefit of supporting data. so labeled, they face the “dilemma of the common species,” that is, if a species is perceived as common, no incentive, legislatively or financially, exists to promote studies and monitoring. this is especially true when critical resources are limited by public priorities that do not regard the environment or natural resources as matters of high importance. threats certainly affect box turtles in florida, as is apparent from the rapid landscape changes that have occurred within the last 60 years. with hundreds of thousands of people moving to florida annually, native terrestrial habitats and marshy wetlands are being converted to housing and other forms of urban development. between 1936 and 1995, forests in florida declined by 22% and herbaceous wetlands by 51%, whereas agricultural lands increased by 60% and urban lands by 632% (kautz 1998). certain florida habitats known at one time to contain sizeable box turtle populations have nearly disappeared and all trends point to a continued loss of habitat diversity within the state (kautz et al. 1993). increasing numbers of people in florida will bring more transportation corridors (leading to mortality), isolate populations, increase contacts with people (who will collect them) and domestic pets (that will kill them), and increase susceptibility to disease through contact with infected captives or other species of chelonians. commercial collecting is the only threat to box turtles that has been addressed thus far by resource agencies in florida. in order to maintain an ecosystem, the functional biodiversity of that ecosystem, including the role of common species, 158 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 dodd this sign alerts visitors to the presence of box turtles on the island. visitors flock to egmont’s beaches and to historical remnants of fort dade (1898–1924). eastern diamondback rattlesnake (crotalus adamanteus) on egmont key: although now extirpated, this was one of the last observed specimens on the island. soldiers serving at fort dade in the early part of the 20th century complained about rattlesnakes, mosquitos, and boredom. black racers (coluber constrictor) are common on the island; they more closely resemble specimens in the distant florida keys both morphologically and in coloration than those on the nearby mainland. iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 159florida box turtles must be understood before the common species decline to the point that their existence is jeopardized. ironically, the somewhat vague concept of ecosystem management (see goldstein 1999), an idea with many interpretations and practical applications (yaffee 1999), should be used as a basis for not taking the abundance and biomass of common species into special consideration during natural resource planning, and thereby perhaps even to jeopardize the “commonness” of these species. certain places should be maintained where presently common species can be appreciated and protected in their sheer numbers and diversity, and where abundance can be left alone or managed as a national asset, rather than be seen as a reason to do nothing (or very little) or as an excuse for exploitation. only on public lands is this likely to be feasible in florida’s future, especially for box turtles and other reptiles and amphibians. scientists, resource managers, and concerned citizens must work together to ensure that scientific principles and careful deliberation guide natural resource decisions on public lands, perhaps through the development of a formal, independent, scientific review of management options (meffee et al. 1998). box turtles (particularly unique populations such as that on egmont key) and other perceptively common species should not be forgotten or subsumed in the decision-making process, especially when valid concerns suggest that they too might join the ever-increasing ranks of imperiled species in florida. references devaux, b. 1993. l’île des tortues. la tortue 23:4–9. dodd, c. k. 2001. north american box turtles. a natural history. university of oklahoma press, norman. franz, r., c. k. dodd, jr., and a. m. bard. 1992. the non-marine herpetofauna of egmont key, hillsborough county, florida. florida scientist 55:179–183. goldstein, p. z. 1999. functional ecosystems and biodiversity buzzwords. conservation biology 13:247–255. kautz, r. s. 1998. land use and land cover trends in florida, 1936–1995. florida scientist 61:171–187. kautz, r. s., d. t. gilbert, and g .m. mauldin. 1993. vegetative cover in florida based on 1985–1987 landsat thematic mapper imagery. florida scientist 56:135–154. klemens, m. w. (ed.). 2000. turtle conservation. smithsonian institution press, washington, d.c. meffee, g. k., p. d. boersma, d. d. murphy, b. r. noon, h. r. pulliam, m. e. soulé, and d. w. waller. 1998. independent scientific review in natural resource management. conservation biology 12:268–270. seigel, r. and c. k. dodd, jr. 2000. manipulation of turtle populations for conservation: halfway technologies or viable options?, pp. 218–238. in: m. klemens (ed.), turtle conservation. smithsonian institution press, washington, d.c. yaffee, s. l. 1999. three faces of ecosystem management. conservation biology 13:713–725. open forest of sabal palms (sabal palmetto): this is ideal habitat for box turtles on egmont key. this is the only specimen of mole skink (eumeces egregius) observed on the island; its coloration resembles none of the other described subspecies of e. egregius. iguana 12.3 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 141table of contents table of contents r e s e a r c h a r t i c l e distribution and habitat utilization of ctenosaura bakeri on utila . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . alexander gutsche 142 f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s dilemma of the common species: florida box turtles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . c. kenneth dodd, jr. 152 the life and times of a state agency herpetologist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jeff briggler 160 restoring a new wild population of blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi) in the salina reserve, grand cayman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .frederic j. burton 166 pharaoh: a tribute . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . joe ehrenberger 175 h u s b a n d r y captive care of monitors part i: introduction and housing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . bernd eidenmüller 177 p r o f i l e successfully wearing two hats: a profile of robert powell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert w. henderson 182 t r a v e l o g u e northern perú: ocean to mountains to amazonian rainforest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . aaron z. savit 187 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s biologia centrali-americana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . albert c. l. g. günther 194 biographical sketch: albert c. l. g. günther . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197 c o m m e n t a r y the economic roots of species invasions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jenny a. ericson 198 b o o k r e v i e w the song of the dodo: island biogeography in an age of extinctions by david quammen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .sarah m. wissmann and david a. wissmann 204 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210 ircf on the move . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220 adult male grand cayman blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi) battle for dominance. ircf international reptile conservation foundation jo h n b in n s iguana 12.4 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 277newsbriefs flat-tailed horned lizard gets another chance a lizard known for its dinosaur-like features is back in line for endangered species protection, according to backers of the tiny, desert reptile. a federal judge in arizona on 13 september ruled that the u.s. fish and wildlife service erred when it dropped the flat-tailed horned lizard (phrynosoma mcallii) from consideration as a “threatened” species eligible for special legal protection. in a 15-page ruling, district court judge neil wake said the government “violated the endangered species act” by failing to evaluate the impact of habitat loss on the species when it withdrew a proposal to list it as threatened. the ruling means that the flattailed horned lizard will once again be considered for threatened species status. environmentalists say that could help the reptiles recover from building and other pressures that have pushed it from developed areas like much of the coachella valley. federal wildlife officials say they don’t yet know the ramifications of the decision. “without a listing it really just gets lip service,” said daniel patterson, desert ecologist for the center for biological diversity, one of the environmental groups behind the legal challenge. “you can’t just go out and plow lizard habitat into the ground,” patterson said. however, if the lizard were to gain the special status, it could mean costly new building requirements in its habitat, including places like the coachella valley. listing opponents say the lizard litigation battle is more about thwarting development than preserving reptiles. earlier decisions by the fish and wildlife service to withdraw threatened species consideration for the flat-tailed horned lizard were based on sound science, said ed kibbey, spokesman for the desert chapter of the building industry association. if the lizard were to get added protection it could mean builders would have to compensate the government in exchange for disturbing lizard habitat, kibbey said. that could mean anything from setting aside land on a project site to buying land for the lizard elsewhere, he said. the flat-tailed horned lizard has already been driven from much of its local habitat, said allan muth, director of the palm desert-based boyd deep canyon research center, a university of california, riverside desert wildlife research center. he said it once roamed around snow creek and other sandy areas, but is now limited to the coachella valley preserve, a refuge in thousand palms. “they can’t survive in developed areas,” he said. “too many kids, cats, dogs, traffic, all those things.” the lizard has been the subject of intense legal and bureaucratic battles dating back to 1982. in 1997, the u.s. fish and wildlife service withdrew a proposal to list the flat-tailed horned lizard. in 2001, a federal judge ordered the service to reconsider. the lizard was again proposed for listing, but in january wildlife officials withdrew it once more. “this species has been the subject of a fair amount of litigation over the years,” said jane hendron, a spokeswoman for the carlsbad office of the fish and wildlife service. a proposed local plan to balance economic growth with protecting the environment was designed to ensure the flat-tailed horned lizard sufficient habitat to survive in the coachella valley, even without federal listing — but the coachella valley multi-species plan is not yet in place, and some lizard supporters say the government’s threatened species tag would give momentum to ongoing preservation efforts. wake’s ruling tuesday drew praise from the environmentalists, but it didn’t outline what the government would need to do to comply. the judge scheduled a conference between the opposing groups. benjamin spillman the desert sun proposed regulations in pa: bad news for rattlesnake roundups, good news for herps no two states handle wildlife management the same way — especially reptiles and amphibians. even after the pennsylvania fish and boat commission (pfbc) reluctantly took charge of these animals in 1980, the state’s 76 reptilian and amphibian species and subspecies n e w s b r i e f s the protected status of flat-tailed horned lizards (phrynosoma mcallii) has been the subject of intense legal and bureaucratic battles dating back to 1982. a r iz o n a -s o n o r a d es er t m u se u m ( tw o -c o lu m n ) w en d y h o d g es 278 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 newsbriefs remained an unwanted burden and were continually tossed back and forth between pfbc and the pennsylvania game commission. whereas most fish and wildlife create millions of dollars of state revenue through hunting and fishing licenses, reptiles and amphibians are not so lucrative. neither agency has ever wanted to deal with them, so they have remained largely unregulated in pennsylvania — until recently. pennsylvania is one of seven states where rattlesnake roundups are still legal (others are texas, oklahoma, new mexico, kansas, alabama, and georgia). pennsylvania is home to no less than nine or ten roundups per year, despite the fact that the state’s rattlesnakes are a candidate-threatened species (timber rattlesnake, crotalus horridus) and an endangered species (eastern massassauga, sistrurus c. catenatus). unlike the relatively resilient western diamondback collected for most southwestern roundups, the candidatethreatened timber rattlesnake is quite vulnerable. adults only reach sexual maturity after 8–10 years, and only reproduce once every 3–5 years. research shows timbers may abandon den sites that have been molested. survival rates are well under 25% for snakes released outside of their small 1–2 mile home range. during roundups, dens are commonly disturbed or destroyed and snakes that aren’t killed or kept often are released outside their home ranges. after decades of roundups, these actions have taken their toll. a several-year study by state biologists has shown 71% of pennsylvania’s south mountain timber rattlesnake population has gone the way of the buffalo. currently wildlife advocates are working on a long-term project to completely do away with roundups. in the meantime, the pfbc has come up with a short-term solution involving new roundup regulations. to roundup organizers, these new regulations are a major roadblock. to wildlife advocates, these changes are a big step in the right direction. under current regulations, a $5 permit allows roundup participants to take up to two timber rattlesnakes per year, regardless of sex or age. in fact, “heaviest rattlesnake” prizes are awarded at roundups, encouraging participants to seek out and capture gravid females from the wild. under the proposed regulations, timbers will receive much more protection. hunt permits will cost $50 instead of five, and participants will be allowed only one snake instead of two. females will be completely off-limits, and males must be a minimum of 42 in (average adult length of a male timber is 41 in). although roundups will still be legal, they will be far less harmful to rattlesnake populations. pennsylvania also leads the union with more roads per square mile than any other state. consequently, the state’s amphibians and reptiles have really felt the sting of fragmentation and habitat loss. other changes proposed in the new regulations aim to sustain many other declining populations. northern copperheads (agkistrodon contortrix mokasen) will be given a closed season and collection-permit for the first time. a new permit system for snapping turtles (chelydra serpentina) will monitor their collection much more closely. snapping turtle changes came after a single philadelphia meat vendor reportedly sold 12,000 pounds of snapper meat per year. additionally, every other species in the state is given extra protection with possession limits being dropped from two to one. several species that have been negatively affected by collection from the wild (e.g., eastern box turtle, terrapene carolina carolina) will no longer be legal to collect at all. proposed regulations are being met with fierce opposition from rattlesnake roundup organizers, who make thousands of dollars from roundups. in order for the improved regulations to pass, wildlife advocates who support these changes must make their opinions known to pfbc. proposed regulations are up for public comment from 15 october through 15 december. comments concerning the proposed regulations can be e-mailed through pfbc’s website (www.fish.state.pa.us). copies of the new regulations are available at http://sites.state.pa.us/pa_exec/fish_bo at/rulemakings/175nprp.htm. jesse rothacker forgotten friend reptile sanctuary eastern box turtle regional conservation workshop 28 september 2005 national wildlife center, patuxent research center, laurel, maryland this was the first ever workshop that concentrated on the eastern box turtle (terrapene carolina carolina). its goal was not just to go over what we know, but what must be done. the issues and actions discussed do not just pertain to the eastern box turtle but all north american box turtles. new regulations in pennsylvania will provide protection for northern copperheads (agkistrodon contortrix mokasen, top) by requiring permits for their harvest, and for threatened timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus, middle) and endangered eastern massassaugas (sistrurus catenatus catenatus, bottom) by implementing restrictive rules on participants in the state's rattlesnake roundups. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h a new permit system in pennsylvania will monitor the harvest of common snapping turtles (chelydra serpentina) much more closely than in the past. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h presentations were given by dr. kenneth dodd, author of north american box turtles: a natural history, on challenges to conserving box turtles in the 21st century. dr. richard seigel spoke about the importance of population demography. a rather frightening report documented the discovery of an iridovirus that has been discovered in wild populations of box turtles and which has caused massive die offs. breakout sessions produced lists of suggestions concerning further research needs, the state and federal roles, education, the problem of repatriations and rehabilitation of box turtles, development threats. and more. plans already are in the works for developing a special working group on box turtles that meets every two years. (tentatively in north carolina in fall of 2006). allen salzberg herpdigest illness threatens turtles in puerto rico a population of endangered green sea turtles (chelonia mydas) is in danger of being wiped out on the puerto rican island of culebra because of a tumorcausing illness, environmental officials said thursday. five of the tiny island’s some 300 green sea turtles have died from the tumors recently, and officials fear more could fall ill, said carlos diez, a biologist with puerto rico’s department of natural resources and environment. the tumors, believed to be caused by a form of the herpes virus, form internally and externally, obstructing the turtles’ breathing, intestinal system, and vision, diez said. “eventually, (the virus) kills the animal, putting the species in danger,” he told reporters. diez said it was unclear how the turtles might have become infected with herpes, which is usually transmitted sexually among humans. possible causes could be contamination in the ocean, changes in ocean water temperature, or problems with the turtles’ immune systems. authorities are conducting tests on the waters where the turtles live around culebra, an island off eastern puerto rico, to check for contamination. besides puerto rico, green sea turtles are found around the u.s. virgin islands, florida, and throughout the north pacific. the species received endangered status in 1978, although the current worldwide population size is not known. the biggest cause of the species’ dwindling numbers is the commercial harvest of eggs for food, according to the u.s. national marine fisheries service. associated press 27 october 2005 grand cayman blue iguana twins hatch at gladys porter zoo on 22 august 2005, the herpetarium crew at the gladys porter zoo in brownsville, texas was elated to learn that the sole grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) egg that had been in their incubator for 76 days contained not one, but two, grand cayman blue iguanas. the twins were connected by the umbilical stalk, and both seemed quite vigorous. the stalk was tied off and the two lizards were separated and returned to the incubator. after 15 days, one of the two began to eat and, by three weeks of age, both of them were eating well. they prefer various types of red flowers, including the pistils from hibiscus flowers, which are cut into tiny bits with scissors. although the hatchlings weigh less than half the average for normal baby blue iguanas, based on data provided by frederic j. burton, director of the blue iguana recovery program on grand cayman, their chances for survival are good. the egg hatched from a clutch of eight laid on 7 june at the zoo. three eggs appeared to be fertile at time of laying, but only one developed. keepers noted that the egg did not retain the typical oval shape of a developing cyclura egg. midway through incubation, it was almost perfectly round. this represents the first successful hatching of a grand cayman blue iguana at the gladys porter zoo. the female that produced the offspring is of u.s. captive stock and, in previous years, iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 279newsbriefs caribbean green sea turtles (chelonia mydas), such as this young adult, may be vulnerable to a tumor-causing virus. pa u l h o et je s the west indian rock iguanas of the genus cyclura are, as a group, under severe threat throughout their range. as large island animals with no adaptations for dealing with mammalian predators and competitors, they are suffering catastrophic declines from dog, cat, and rat predation, hunting, habitat degradation by goats and cattle, and large-scale habitat loss to human activities. the grand cayman blue iguana is the most endangered in the group, with an estimated 10–25 individuals surviving in the wild. eastern box turtles (terrapene carolina carolina) were the focus of a conservation workshop in maryland and will benefit from new no-harvest regulations in pennsylvania. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h 280 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 newsbriefs had been paired with godzilla, the 60+ year-old blue iguana that passed away in may 2004 (see iguana 11:168–171). although copulation had been observed and the female has laid eggs nearly every year, none were fertile until she was allowed to breed with another male. dog tracks burmese pythons in the everglades a detection dog is sniffing out an unusual problem — his specialty, burmese pythons (python molurus bivittatus). because so many non-native snakes have been released by pet owners in south florida, the population of these snakes is growing, especially in the everglades. now, a one-year-old beagle, nicknamed python pete, is hot on the trail of the snakes. pete’s owner and handler is wildlife technician lori oberhofer. she bought pete from a missouri breeder and had him shipped to florida. “beagles are used around the world,” oberhofer said. “they have a great sense of smell.” oberhofer tests pete’s skills often by dragging snakes in a mesh bag through the grass, leaving a scent trail for pete to track. “i don’t want him to get there before me, so he is on a short leash. when he sees a python, i can see him and i can pull him back,” oberhofer said. his twice-a-week training sessions should be finished by this winter, when it’s expected that python pete will be ready to spring into action on a regular basis. once he finds snakes in the everglades, they will be removed. from the mid-1990s to 2003, more than 50 burmese pythons were caught in the park. but with the surge in the snake population, last year alone, 61 of the snakes were taken out of the park. the plan is to use pete around park roads and trails where the snakes are most likely to run into people. wplg miami, florida; 1 july 2005 environmentalists sue usfws over mexican garter snake the center for biological diversity is accusing the u.s. fish and wildlife service of failing to respond to a petition seeking the protection of the mexican garter snake (thamnophis eques) as an endangered species. the tucson-based organization filed a lawsuit in an attempt to get the federal agency to act on the petition it filed more than a year ago. it says the mexican garter snake has vanished from most of its native range across arizona, southwestern new mexico, and méxico, including the san pedro, gila, colorado, and santa cruz rivers. the snake eats mostly native fish and frogs, but also may eat mice and lizards. biologists say the snake’s decline is tied to the disappearance of native fish and frogs and the declining quality of stream habitats. kvoa tucson, arizona; 19 may 2005 mexican garter snakes (thamnophis eques) have disappeared from much of their native range and an environmental advocacy group has accused the u.s. fish & wildlife service of failing to respond to a petition seeking protection for the species. to m b r en n a n this one-year-old burmese python (python molurus bivittatus) was caught as a hatchling in everglades national park and now serves as a training snake for pete, the detector dog. lo r i o b er h o fe r ( n a ti o n a l pa r k s er v ic e) twin grand cayman blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi) were hatched at the gladys porter zoo in august 2005. g la d y s po r te r z o o iguana 13.1 b&w text editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. or canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 international membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $50.00 u.s. institutional subscription, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international institutional subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. www.ircf.org join online at: www.ircf.org/iguana membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2006 by the international reptile conservation foundation, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international reptile conservation foundation. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editor’s remarks since expanding the journal’s coverage from iguanas to all reptiles in 2005, we extended the scope of our “newsbriefs” to include newsworthy items affecting reptiles from all over the world and we introduced “conservation research reports,” summaries of articles published elsewhere about the conservation of reptiles. simply put, the purpose of both sections is to increase the awareness of events and new research that supplement the other features of iguana and vastly extend the journal’s breadth of coverage. to entice readers to explore these sections, we try very hard to illustrate each entry with at least one photograph, especially when the focal species is likely to be unfamiliar to many readers. in order to accomplish this, we have exploited friends, colleagues, and strangers by asking permission to use their photographs — and, mostly because they, too, have an interest in the conservation of reptiles, permission is readily and quickly forthcoming. although singling out any contributors generates the risk of omitting others who are equally deserving, two individuals stand out, primarily because we have asked for their help again and again — and, each time, they cheerfully supply the necessary images. suzanne l. collins, of the center for north american herpetology (cnah), almost invariably has and lets us use her exquisite images of north american species, and kenneth l. krysko, of the florida museum of natural history, graciously allows us to supplement newsbriefs or summaries with his photos of species native to and introduced into florida. we thank them and all of the other generous contributors who, we like to think, dramatically enhance the written word with their art. the editors ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 83 iguana 12.3 b&w text sea turtles in the netherlands antilles until recently, information on sea turtle nesting in the netherlands antilles consisted mostly of anecdotal accounts and sea turtle nesting was considered to be a rare or accidental occurrence. debrot et al. (2005. caribbean journal of science 41:334–339) cited several recent studies and presented documentation of several additional sea turtle nesting beaches on curaçao, klein curaçao, st. eustatius, and st. maarten. historically, most studies have focused on large sea turtle nesting beaches, whereas the results of this study support the idea that small, scattered nesting beaches could cumulatively contribute significantly to both reproductive output and recovery potential of several species when examined on a regional scale. impact of foxes on freshwater turtle populations the resilience of a freshwater turtle population to stage-specific predation is density-dependent, and some species are more susceptible to predation because of their life-history strategies. nest predation by introduced red foxes (vulpes vulpes) on australian freshwater turtles is a major source of mortality, but its full impact has yet to be evaluated. freshwater turtles are long lived, and a population decline resulting from nest predation by foxes may take a long time to become evident. spencer and thompson (2005. conservation biology 19:845–854) evaluated the impact of foxes on population growth and patterns of survival of two widely distributed australian freshwater turtles in the murray river, where nest predation rates have previously been reported at above 95%. they estimated densities and survivorship of emydura macquarii and chelodina expansa from the nest to adult stage, and then conducted a fox-removal program to determine the impact of foxes on populations of these species. chelodina expansa was five times less abundant than e. macquarii. densities of c. expansa nests were low and situated away from shore, and nest-predation rates were half those of e. macquarii. emydura macquarii populations had low productivity and relied on a standing crop of adult turtles for population maintenance, whereas c. expansa had relatively more juveniles in the population and was less reliant on adult survival. despite its vulnerable status, c. expansa is relatively more stable than e. macquarii, primarily because there were proportionally more juveniles in the population. management options focusing on reducing adult mortality in both species will be most effective. destructive collecting practices and reptilian abundance collecting reptiles often results in irreparable damage to microhabitats. such activities and the concomitant destruction of habitats are increasing in frequency due largely to rising demand for reptiles in the pet market. goode et al. (2004. journal of wildlife management 68:427–432) compared abundance of reptiles on rock outcroppings in arizona before and after disturbance. results suggest that destructive collecting techniques led to a decrease in the abundance of diurnal lizards, which preferred undisturbed portions of rock outcrops. the authors recommended that collecting methods be strictly regulated and that implementation of these regulations be accompanied by increased enforcement to render them effective. loggerhead turtle nesting trends hawkes et al. (2005. oryx 39:65–72) analyzed a 24-year set of data from intensive monitoring of a nesting beach at bald head island, north carolina, usa and more limited data from nearby rookeries to investigate trends in loggerhead turtle (caretta caretta) nesting numbers. re-migrating turtles were larger and had larger annual clutch frequencies than neophyte turtles. however, no statistical evidence suggested either an increasing or decreasing trend in numbers of clutches laid per year, although a significant decrease in the number of turtles nesting and number of clutches laid per year was found over the period since 1991. efficacy of green turtle headstarting headstarting is a management technique employed to enhance recruitment of turtles into diminished or extirpated marine turtle populations. although numerous worldwide projects have been implemented, few detailed investigations have examined the efficacy of the concept. bell et al. (2005. oryx 39:137–148) noted that between 1980 and 2001, 206 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 conservation research reports c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s leatherback sea turtles (dermochelys coriacea) are nesting more frequently in the netherlands antilles. r o ze n n l e sc a o ( st en a pa ) populations of chelodina expansa in australia appear to be less vulnerable than those of emydura macquarii to nest predation by introduced red foxes (vulpes vulpes), presumably because nest densities of the former are low and nests are located farther from shores. d a r r el s en n es k e loggerhead turtles (caretta caretta) often nest on beaches in subtropical and even temperate zones. sc o tt a . e c k er t (w id ec a st ) iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 207conservation research reports 16,422 captive-raised hatchlings and 14,347 yearling green turtles (chelonia mydas) were released from the cayman turtle farm. approximately 80% of all turtles released were subject to some form of tagging. a total of 392 tagged animals have been recaptured at intervals of up to 19 years. of this total, 160 individuals were captured in the cayman islands and 232 were recorded from other locations within the wider caribbean and southeastern united states. a positive relationship exists between time at large and size at recapture, and data suggest that growth rates are comparable to those of wild green turtles in the region. age at maturity may be as short as 15–19 years, depending on stage at release. results show that some headstarted turtles are moving around the caribbean, surviving for long periods of time, contributing to local breeding population, and may be displaying age-related shifts in habitat utilization similar to those recorded for wild individuals. marine turtles in the gambia, west africa barnett et al. (2004. oryx 38:203– 208) reported the first systematic survey of the marine turtles of the 80 km of the gambian coastline, and brought together new data and all past records and reports of marine turtles in the gambia. green turtles (chelonia mydas) are the most abundant turtles and this is the only species so far observed nesting in the gambia, with peak nesting between august and october. although 75% (60 km) of the gambian coastline appears to be suitable for turtle nesting, most nesting activity is confined to the southern coastline. offshore foraging habitat is apparently extensive. strandings of green turtles, olive ridley turtles (lepidochelys olivacea), leatherback turtles (dermochelys coriacea), and hawksbill turtles (eretmochelys imbricata) have been recorded, but we were unable to find evidence for loggerhead turtles (caretta caretta). threats are mainly of human origin, and include illegal harvesting of eggs, juveniles, and adults, as well as mortality as fisheries bycatch, including trawling. one stranded green turtle apparently had fibropapilloma disease. the major threat to nesting habitats is erosion and unregulated development of the coast for tourism. marine turtles are fully protected under gambian law. lesser antillean snakes: conservation concerns thirty-three islands in the lesser antilles range in area from 0.06–1,510 km2 and collectively harbor 25 species of snakes representing five families and 10 genera. henderson (2004. oryx 38:311–320) noted that the islands have suffered at least six, and possibly as many as 11, historical extirpations and at least one historical extinction. the number of snake species per island is 1–5, and species richness is correlated with island size and habitat diversity. islands that harbor three or more species exhibit greater habitat diversity, are larger, have a higher maximum elevation, and are situated closer to the south american mainland, the source area for most genera. north of the guadeloupe archipelago, islands support one or two species (an alsophis or an alsophis and a typhlops). from the guadeloupe archipelago southward, snake faunas have species belonging to genera that are widespread on the neotropical mainland: boa, corallus, chironius, clelia, liophis, mastigodryas and bothrops. between 50 and 75% of the lesser antillean snake fauna preys on anolis lizards. snake faunas in the lesser antilles are not saturated, and many islands could support additional species; fossil evidence and written records indicate that they did. the islands have a 5,000-year history of habitat alteration, but introduced predators probably have had the greatest negative impact on snakes. the potential establishment of an alien snake (e.g., elaphe guttata) into the lesser antilles is a valid concern. preventing additional introductions of alien predators and protecting satellite island populations of threatened species are the two most important mechanisms for snake conservation in the region. an adult green turtle (chelonia mydas) on a grand caymanian beach. jo h n s u ll iv a n , r ib b it p h o to g r a ph y hawksbill turtles (eretmochelys imbricata) have been recorded along the gambian coast. r o w a n b y r n e (w id ec a st a n d w w w .m a r in ec r ea tu r es .c o m ) introduced predators, notably the mongoose (herpestes javanicus), undoubtedly have had the greatest negative impact on native lesser antillean snake populations. mastigodryas bruesi is somewhat less vulnerable than many other species because of its arboreal inclinations. r ic h a r d s a jd a k santos, g., j. pacheco, g. ceballos, f. mendoza-quijano, g. daily, and p. ehrlich. countryside biogeography in reptile and amphibian communities in southern costa rica: conservation value of human dominated landscapes. the future of biological diversity in the tropics depends largely on the conservation value of human-dominated lands. in this study, we investigated the distribution of amphibians and reptiles in five habitats of southern costa rica: relatively extensive forest (227 ha), coffee plantation, pasture, coffee with adjacent forest remnant (<35 ha), and pasture with adjacent forest remnant (<35 ha). species richness, composition, and abundance varied significantly with habitat type and distance from the extensive forest. additionally, we recorded the local extinction of at least five species, likely as a result of human-induced changes such as forest fragmentation, introduced diseases, and global warming. of the 67 amphibian and reptilian species recorded in our plots, most (48, 68%) were found in forests and forest fragments, 36 (50%) in coffee plantations, and 38 (51%) in pastures. additionally, 20 were recorded exclusively in extensive forest and forest fragments, eight in coffee, and eight in pastures. relatively continuous forest and small forest patches in combination with coffee plantations are important for the maintenance of the region’s biological diversity, despite large scale negative human activities. santos, g., j. pacheco, and g. ceballos. natural protected areas and the conservation of amphibians and reptiles in mexico: priorizing species and areas for conservation strategies. one principal goal in establishing protected natural areas is to preserve ecosystems and associated biodiversity in order to perpetuate natural evolutionary processes. this study evaluates the efficiency of protected natural areas for the conservation of mexican amphibians and reptiles. these groups are highly diverse in mexico, with 1164 species (360 amphibians and 804 reptiles) and high endemism (60%, 241 and 450, respectively). we used 34 inventory lists from protected areas and considered conservation status, geographic range, and endemism of listed species to build a hierarchical system to identify priority species for conservation. the complementary study of these areas revealed that 56% of the mexican herpetofauna is excluded from the protected areas. jessop, t.s., j. imansyah, d. purwandana, h. rudiharto, and c. ciofi. management and conservation requirements for komodo dragon populations in komodo national park, indonesia. within archipelagos, populations may exhibit intraspecific differences requiring plasticity in management and conservation practices. four of the five island populations of the komodo dragon (varanus komodoensis) reside within the world heritage-listed komodo national park in eastern indonesia. to identify current management and conservation requirements for the park’s dragon populations, a concerted long-term research program has been established. results indicate that major differences in demography and ecology exist between dragon populations on the two large islands of komodo and rinca and the two small islands of motang and kode. specifically, island area influences prey diversity and avail208 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 conservation research reports 1 9 t h a n n u a l m e e t i n g o f t h e s o c i e t y f o r c o n s e r v a t i o n b i o l o g y universidade de brasília, brazil 22 july 2005 excerpts from abstracts dealing with the conservation of reptiles. the brown basilisk (basiliscus vittatus) actually may benefit from forest fragmentation because of its dependence on edges. many species however suffer when human activities break up contiguous stretches of suitable habitat into pieces too small to support viable populations. jo h n b in n s ctenosaura nolascensis is restricted to an island in the gulf of california, méxico. like all islands in the gulf, san pedro nolasco is a protected area. enforcement, unfortunately, is inconsistent. nevertheless, many mexican species, including many that are threatened or endangered, have no populations in protected areas. jo h n b in n s populations of komodo dragons (varanus komodoensis) remain vulnerable to human affects on their habitat. reductions in the population size of timor deer, attributable to poaching, affected body condition and population size structure of the dragons. jo e w a si le w sk i iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 209conservation research reports ability, which, in turn, influences the density, growth, and body size of dragons. the motang island population, estimated at 51 ± 6 post-hatchling individuals, recorded a recent reduction in catch per unit effort, body condition, and changes in population size structure. such changes have resulted from a decreased abundance of timor deer, due to suspected poaching. increased resource security and potential augmentation of prey density may be required to conserve this population. gerber, g.p. and a.c. alberts. translocation as a recovery strategy for the critically endangered turks and caicos iguana. in response to threats from introduced mammalian predators and human development, turks and caicos iguanas (cyclura carinata) were translocated in january 2002 and 2003 from two large but threatened island populations to four small protected islands with suitable habitat but lacking extant iguana populations. translocation islands received 18–82 adult iguanas of equal sex ratio from one of the two source islands, depending upon their area (1–12 ha) and estimated adult carrying capacity. source and translocated populations were monitored 2–3 times annually between 2002 and 2005. by five months, post-translocation adult iguanas on translocation islands had established normal movement patterns and were exhibiting normal or increased growth rates relative to source populations. successful reproduction has occurred on all translocation islands each year since reintroduction and iguanas hatched on translocation islands are exhibiting growth rates 2-4 times that of juveniles of the same age on source islands. this has resulted in a decrease in age at maturity on translocation islands, relative to source islands, from 6–7 years to 2–4 years. we attribute increased growth rates on translocation islands to decreased intra-specific competition (i.e., density), relative to source populations, and predict that growth rates will return to baseline as carrying capacities are approached. freire, e.m.x., u. caramaschi, m.t. rodrigues, and s.t. silva. effects of the fragmentation of atlantic forest in the state of alagoas (northeastern brazil) on the diversity of species of lizards and snakes. the atlantic forest of brazil has become fragmented and reduced to about 7% of its original size. in the northeastern region, the most significant remnants are in the states of bahia (6%) and alagoas (2%). an inventory of different-sized forest fragments in the state of alagoas involved 2,950 person-hours. species diversity was high and 19% of the species were endemic to the northern part of the atlantic forest and two were new to science. the smallest area exhibited the highest diversity index, which two subsequent studies (1,100 person-hours) confirmed. this diversity may not be maintained, because the populations of animals in these fragments may not be viable in the long term. bennett, d. conservation of a large frugivorous monitor lizard in the philippines. frugivory is a rare strategy in lizards, but, in the philippines, a group of large (>9 kg) varanus lizards has evolved to become specialized frugivores in dipterocarp forest. efforts to understand their ecology and promote their conservation have been hampered by their highly arboreal and secretive behavior. here i report on the behavioral ecology of a population of varanus olivaceus in fragmented forest on polillo island, quezon province, that have been the subject of a non-destructive and largely non-intrusive study instigated in 1999. despite the large numbers of fruit types available to animals in dipterocarp forest, the lizards feed mainly on fruit from just four genera. they act as unique dispersers of pandanus seeds, which results in high densities of these plants along slopes and ridges, which, in turn, has important implications for other fauna and flora dependent on pandanus microhabitats. their inability to fly means that large frugivorous lizards are more vulnerable to forest fragmentation than sympatric frugivores (birds and bats), but the results of this study indicate that populations can be maintained in disturbed forest if a few key resources are maintained. translocated populations of turks and caicos iguanas (cyclura carinata) are showing growth rates and ages at maturity suggesting that they are taking full advantage of resources that are superabundant as long as the population of iguanas remains below carrying capacity. jo h n b in n s varanus olivaceus is one of very few frugivorous lizards in the world and acts as an important disperser of pandanus seeds. je ff l em m animal populations inhabiting the atlantic forest of northeastern brazil are becoming increasingly fragmented, reducing the chances of maintaining long-term biodiversity. particularly vulnerable are large species and those, such as corallus hortulanus, dependent on forest habitats. la u r ie j . v it t iguana 12.3 b&w text 198 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 commentary across ecosystems and geographic regions, the rate of newly detected biological invasions is increasing, and, in the case of individual species, this increase is often exponential (ruiz et al. 2000, ruiz and carlson 2003, fofonoff et al. 2003, kraus 2003). invasive alien species have become a real threat to our environment and economy. the economic costs of invading alien species in the united states alone come close to $120 billion per year (pimentel et al., in press). harmful invasions of alien or non-indigenous species often produce devastating impacts on agriculture, recreation, and natural resources (ota 1993). they threaten biodiversity, habitat quality, and ecosystem function and are now considered among the greatest threats to native species in the united states (wilcove et al. 1998). in combination with other economic activities, the rapid expansion of international trade, travel, and transport have contributed significantly to the increasingly high rate of species invasions. also, unfortunately, “the pressures to increase trade are currently greater than the pressures for precaution in moving biological material across former barriers” (mooney and hobbs 2000). the following discussion highlights the links between this exponential increase and the unrestricted trade of a growing global economy. one of the by-products of international trade and travel is the transportation of species beyond their natural geographic range. a species that is not native to a particular ecosystem is c o m m e n t a r y the economic roots of species invasions1 jenny a. ericson2 1 adapted from “economic growth forum,” fisheries 30(5):30–33 (may 2005) and published with permission. 2 the author is an independent natural resource management consultant currently working with invasive species on a federal government contract. she can be contacted at riverine8@hotmail.com. opinions expressed are those of the author and may or may not reflect those of the ircf. the house or wall geckos of florida and other southern states actually represent a sequence of invasions that began with the mediterranean gecko (hemidactylus turcicus), which was followed by the cosmopolitan house gecko (h. mabouia, pictured), and even more recently by the asian house gecko (h. frenatus). how these species will ultimately partition the available habitats remains to be seen. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 199commentary referred to as alien, exotic, or non-indigenous. a subset of alien species is considered invasive by virtue of their ability to cause economic or environmental harm, or harm to human health (executive order 13112). they generally exhibit characteristics such as rapid growth rate, exceptional dispersal capabilities, large reproductive output, and broad environmental tolerance. although naturally occurring movement of species has taken place across the surface of the earth for hundreds of millions of years, human activity has greatly increased the velocity of invasion and, by dissolving temporal and spatial boundaries, has enabled many species to relocate that would not normally have had this opportunity. most arrive in relation to human economic activities, either intentionally or unintentionally. invasive species move along routes referred to as pathways. their movement is facilitated by vectors, the means by which a species is moved, such as ships, planes, people, and other organisms. throughout history, cultures and civilizations have relied on trade to improve relations and increase prosperity. archaeologists have found evidence of human-assisted movement of species by way of seafaring trade connecting continents early in history. among the first specialized sailors and merchants were the phoenicians (ca. 3000 b.c.) who traded articles such as lebanese cedar and processed dyes (cameron 1997). greek sailors and merchants traded basic storable foodstuffs, such as grain, grapes, olives, wine, and oil. during roman times, sea trade existed between india and egypt; and, as early as the sixth century, the vikings were exchanging honey, fur, weapons, and slaves for arabian silver, which has been found as far west as north america (het huis van de aarde museum 2005). between the eighth and fifteenth centuries, indian diaspora and far east trade routes were used not only for economic expansion, but also for the expansion of religion. by the first half of the seventeenth century, the netherlands had established a fully global trading network (brummett and edgar 1999). the popularity of red-eared sliders (trachemys scripta elegans) in the pet trade and the resultant and maybe inevitable escapes and releases have led to wild populations in many areas where the species is not native, with negative effects on native turtles and yet-to-be evaluated impact on native invertebrates and aquatic vegetation (see also newsbriefs, p. 216). jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . introductions of mammalian herbivores, such as these burros on st. eustatius, alter vegetative communities in ways that cannot be predicted, often with catastrophic effects on native herbivores such as iguanas. pa m el a m ed in a d ía z 200 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 commentary today, transportation of people and cargo via ships and planes has become fast, efficient, and frequent. increased speed and efficiency of transport enables international trade and feeds aspirations for economic globalization and growth. one shipping company alone can maintain a global network of shipping lines. for example, in 2004, the shipping company maersk sealand advertised itself as one of the largest liner shipping companies in the world with over 300 shipping vessels and 950,000 containers traveling around the globe, with feeder vessels, trucks, and dedicated trains available for door-to-door service (www.maersksealand.com). with increases in total volume of trade and the speed and frequency of transportation and delivery come greater risks of introduction, both intentional and unintentional. for example, larger numbers of products bring greater opportunity for unintentional introductions referred to as “hitchhikers,” organisms that attach themselves to the product itself, such as insects on plants, or that exist within the transportation medium, such as ballast water. as shipping technology continues to improve, ships take less time to traverse greater distances, which means mortality decreases and organisms that might have once died while en route for a few weeks or a month may now have a better chance of survival, given that the journey has been shortened to a number of days. as the rate of non-indigenous, potentially invasive, species introduction accelerates, trade itself begins to look more and more like a sort of “metavector,” comprising numerous, individual, yet associated, vectors. international trade currently represents a growing share of the u.s. economy. import volume increased from $40 billion in 1991 to around $100 billion in 2001, more than doubling in a 10-year period (bureau of transportation statistics 2002). some predict that global trade will double again by the year 2020. this international trade facilitates the intentional and unintentional transport of biological organisms around the world. approximately 42% of the plants and animals federally listed as threatened or endangered species are at risk because of alien and invasive species (pimentel et al., in press). the national invasive species council’s (2003) working group on pathways identifies three major categories of pathways for the introduction of alien and invasive alien species: (1) transportation, (2) living industry, and (3) miscellaneous. within the category of transportation, pathways include the movement of water (e.g., ballast water, sediments, and dredge spoil materials), items used in transport (e.g., vehicles and ships), and “hitchhikers,” organisms attached to vehicles, ships, or materials attached to them. perhaps the most notorious example of a species entering through a transportation pathway is the zebra mussel (dreissena polymorpha). this invasive species entered the united states through the st. lawrence seaway as planktonic larvae, probably in the ballast water of a bulk cargo vessel coming from a black sea port (holeck et al. 2004). since their discovery in 1988, zebra mussels have spread from the hudson river in the east to oklahoma in the west, and from ontario and quebec in the north to louisiana in the south. zebra mussels are small bivalves that cluster in colonies of hundreds of thousands per square yard and clog the openings of underwater pipes, often closing them off altogether. additionally, invasions are facilitated by the mail, internet, and overnight shipping companies. in particular, the internet is a very difficult pathway to control. although recognized as a federally-prohibited weed, giant salvinia (salvinia molesta) is still available for purchase on the internet. within the council working group’s category of “living” industry, pathways include the food industry and non-food industries transporting animals and other organisms, such as the pet trade, research, and public education and enjoyment such as zoos and public aquariums. through any of the living industry pathways, species can be intentionally released, escape, or hitchhike with people, products, and services. the plant trade is often a vehicle for species introduction through nurseries and pet stores. water hyacinth, an example of a highly invasive aquatic species, began charting its course around the globe in 1884. this alien carnivores, such as this jamaican mongoose (herpestes javanicus), originally imported from india to control rats in the sugar cane fields, were subsequently introduced to many other west indian islands and to the major hawaiian islands. among the unintended consequences were little impact on rat populations and dramatic declines in populations of ground-nesting birds and diurnally active terrestrial reptiles. jo h n b in n s because of their sensitivity to desiccation and exposure to salt water, amphibians are rarely effective invasives. nevertheless, some exceptions exist. cuban treefrogs (osteopilus septentrionalis) are native to cuba and may have expanded their range naturally to the bahamas, cayman islands, and possibly to florida. however, increasing numbers of populations are being established, mostly due to inadvertent “hitch-hiking” with exotic, tropical plants from southern florida that are destined for resorts to meet tourists’ expectations of what the tropics should be like. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 201commentary plant originally came from the amazon basin in south america and is today a serious pest in north america, tropical africa, and southeast asia. in certain parts of tropical africa, riverboat transport has become impossible because this aquatic weed has completely blocked entire river systems. the control cost to seven african countries runs about $20–50 million per year (mcneely et al. 2003). the council working group’s category of miscellaneous pathways includes interconnected waterways for aquatics or interconnected landmasses for terrestrial organisms. one example of introduction by interconnected waterways is the sea lamprey (petromyzon marinus), which is native to the atlantic ocean. it entered the great lakes through the hudson river and the welland canal in 1829 and was later discovered in lake erie in 1921 (mooney and hobbs 2000). the sea lamprey attaches itself to other fish and with its suctorial mouth extracts blood and other body fluids. in order to address the problem of biological invasions, some important legislation has been passed. in 1990, the nonindigenous aquatic nuisance prevention and control act (nanpca) called for a national program to prevent and respond to problems caused by the unintentional introduction of nonindigenous aquatic species into u.s. waters, and it established the multi-agency aquatic nuisance species task force to carry out its mandates. a reauthorization took place in 1996 in the form of the national invasive species act (nisa). currently a second reauthorization, the national aquatic invasive species act (naisa), is under review by congress. the latter would require a standard for ballast water management and appropriation of funds for the national oceanic and atmospheric administration, the u.s. geological survey, and the smithsonian institution to establish baselines and invasion rates, as well as improved tools for early detection. it also will focus on rapid response to incipient infestations, establish a separate fund administered by the u.s. fish and wildlife service to assist states to respond to newly detected species. it would allocate funding for establishing a screening mechanism for intentional introductions. it also will encourage the examination of new pathways besides the historical focus on ballast water. finally, it will mandate more and better research on the topic. although nearly 30 federal acts and executive orders pertain in some way to invasive species, and some address terrestrial forms (e.g., the brown tree snake control and eradication act of 2004), none, individually or collectively, effectively addresses problems caused by terrestrial invasives in the same fashion as naisa does for aquatics. efforts concerned with prevention, specifically risk identification and assessment, further research on pathways, and continued exploration of avenues available through regulation, must continue. we need to strengthen outreach at all levels and continue to support research specifically in invasion ecology. for management of invasive species at the field level to be successful, we must encourage a greater understanding of early detection/rapid response, control and management, and restoration techniques. invasive species have been recognized as one of the most significant drivers of environmental change worldwide — and biological invasions are facilitated by the increasingly expanding network of commercial highways underlying international trade, travel, and transport. we must address these pathways. however, even if urgent measures are taken, the number of species invasions in the united states will probably continue to increase in conjunction with the growth of the economy and the sectors that constitute or represent pathways for invasive species. references brummett, p., r. b. edgar, n. j. hackett, g. f. jewsbury, a. m. taylor, n. m. bailey, and t. w. wallbank. 1999. civilization past and present. 9th ed. longman publ. grp., white plains, new york (http://occawlonl ine .pearsoned.com/bookbind/pubbooks/brummett_awl/ chapter20/deluxe.html). bureau of transportation statistics. 2002. value of u.s. imports and exports. u.s. department of transportation, washington, d.c. (www.bts.gov/publications/transportation_indicators/december_2002/economy/html/value_of_us_imports_and_exports.html). cameron, r. 1997. a concise economic history of the world: from paleolithic times to the present. oxford univ. press, new york. czech, b., p. r. krausman, and p. k. devers. 2000. economic associations among causes of species endangerment in the united states. bioscience 50:593–601. fofonoff, p. w., g. m. ruiz, b. steves, and j. t. carlton. 2003. in ships or on ships? mechanisms of transfer and invasion for nonnative species to the coasts of north america, pp. 152–182. in: g. m. ruiz and j. t. carlton (eds.), invasive species: vectors and management strategies. island press, washington, d.c. het huis van de aarde museum. 2005. viking trade routes: arabian coins in the viking world. the netherlands (www.huisvandeaarde.nl/ e-index2fr.htm). holeck, k. t., e. l. mills, h. j. macissaac, m. r. dochoda, r. i. colautti, and a. ricciardi. 2004. bridging troubled waters: biological invasions, transoceanic shipping, and the laurentian great lakes. bioscience 54:919–929. kraus, f. 2003. invasion pathways for terrestrial vertebrates, pp. 68–92. in: g. m. ruiz and j. t. carlton (eds.), invasive species: vectors and management strategies. island press, washington, d.c. mcneely, j. a., l. e. neville, and m. rejmanek. 2003. when is eradication a sound investment? conservation practice 4:30–313. mooney, h. a. and r. j. hobbs (eds.). 2000. invasive species in a changing world. island press, washington, d.c. national invasive species council. 2003. invasive species pathways team final report. national invasive species council, washington, d.c. (www.invasivespecies.gov). ota (office of technology assessment). 1993. harmful non-indigenous species in the united states. u.s. congress, ota. u.s. govt. printing office, washington, d.c. pimentel, d., r. zuniga, and d. morrison. in press. update on the environmental and economic costs associated with alien species in the united states. ecol. econ. ruiz, g. m., p. w. fofonoff, j. t. carlton, m. j. wonham, and a. h. hines. 2000. invasion of coastal marine communities in north america: apparent patterns, processes, and biases. ann. rev. ecol. syst. 31:481–531. ruiz, g. m. and j. t. carlton. 2003. invasion vectors: a conceptual framework for management strategies. island press, washington, d.c. wilcove, d.s., d. rothstein, j. dubow, a. phillips, and e. losos. 1998. quantifying threats to imperiled species in the united states. bioscience 48:607–615. 202 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 commentary action alert! action alert! action alert! if you have “non-native” weeds, grass, trees, or shrubs on your property (and everyone does) you’re in trouble. under “invasive species” provisions currently sitting in the senate’s version of the transportation bill, your property could quickly become the target of radical environmentalists and federal bureaucrats. the bill’s name is the “safe, accountable, flexible and efficient transportation equity act” or safetea 2005 (*please note* that it does not yet have a bill number). it is vitally important that you call both of your senators this week, and next week, and tell them to demand that any invasive species provisions be stripped from the safetea bill. safetea could come up for a vote before the full senate at any time! **call the senate switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and simply ask for your senators by name.** currently, the safetea act contains provisions to “minimize invasive species.” this is the foot in the door to federal control of all so-called “invasive species” — something that the greens openly covet. under the senate version of safetea, the federal government will dictate to the states what types of grasses and plants are allowed to be planted next to roads. this has nothing to do with science or the environment. this is about land control and money for radical green groups. **call your senators at (202) 224-3121 and tell them: no invasive species provisions in the transportation bill!** imagine the endangered species act on steroids. now multiply its devastating effect on property rights one-hundred fold. that should give you a pretty good idea of what “invasive species” legislation will mean for property owners in every state, county, and city in this nation. “invasive species” is the radical greens’ key to controlling every square inch of land in the united states. and safetea is the just the beginning. this nightmare all began when bill clinton signed executive order 13112 in 1999, creating an “invasive species council” to monitor and control “alien species.” what are alien species? according to clinton’s order, “alien species means, with respect to a particular ecosystem, any species, including seeds, eggs, spores, or other biological material capable of propagating that species, that is not native to that ecosystem.” most agricultural crops and animal species clearly fall within the definition of “alien.” domesticated pets, many houseplants, and kentucky bluegrass used in most lawns and golf courses are already defined as alien species. indeed, this is all the greens and their allies in the federal government need to control all land in the u.s. think the invasive species monster can’t get any worse? it already has. in 2001, the invasive species council issued a management plan that states: “council member agencies will work with the global invasive species programme (gisp) and other relevant bodies to expand opportunities to share information, technologies, and technical capacity on the control and management of invasive species with other countries, promoting environmentally sound control and management practices.” and just what is the global invasive species programme? a quick trip to the gisp website reveals it is: the united nations environmental programme (unep), the united nations environmental, scientific, and cultural organization (unesco), the convention on biological diversity, the nature conservancy, the international union for the protection of nature, [and] diversitas: an international programme of biodiversity science (another unesco project). invasive species legislation opens the door to federal and international control over private property in the united states. and that’s why greens in the senate are trying to sneak it into the federal transportation bill — without any proper debate. we are running out of time. contact your senators today, tomorrow, and next week. the house version of the transportation bill has already passed and thankfully does not include any invasive species language. but the senate version (safetea 2005) does! once again, the house is on the right track and the senate is out in left field. act now! **action to take** call both of your senators and tell them to demand that any and all “invasive species” provisions are removed from the senate transportation bill (safetea). call the senate switchboard at (202) 2243121 and ask for your senators by name. ***please send this urgent alert to as many people as possible*** urgent: invasive species legislation in highway bill!1 march 30, 2005 1 from the american policy center (http://www.americanpolicy.org/sledgehammer/species.htm); the apc promotes its website as the “property rights and back-to-basics education grassroots internet headquarters.” iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 203commentary for many years, governments and citizens in michigan and throughout the great lakes basin have been battling a notorious invader – the zebra mussel. these small mollusks invaded the great lakes in the 1980s, quickly multiplied and spread across the region, clogging water intake pipes and creating problems for boaters who have to spend time and money cleaning hulls. last summer, a voracious fish known as the northern snakehead became a media celebrity and a serious threat to maryland waterways. this predator wipes out native fish and, once it is done feeding in one pond, it literally gets up and crawls across land to the next one. these are only two examples of “invasive species” – animals and plants that are introduced, take hold and multiply in ecosystems where they don’t have any competition, causing tremendous economic and environmental harm. if you polled americans as to what the most pressing economic and environmental issues are, dealing with invasive species probably wouldn’t make the list. but considering the economic and environmental threats they pose to our nation, attention must be paid to invasive species. for example, recent studies have estimated that zebra mussels have cost governments and utilities in the great lakes region more than $1 billion since the late 1980s. on an environmental level, invasive species are now recognized as the no. 2 threat to endangered species, as they often compete for food and destroy the habitat of other native plants and animals. congress must act to combat this threat. that’s why i, along with senator carl levin and others, have sponsored a comprehensive legislative package (h.r. 1080 & 1081 and s. 525) to do just that. one central theme drives our effort – “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” if we spend millions preventing aquatic invasive species from entering our waters, we will avoid spending billions trying to control and manage them once they are here. our legislation does three overarching things fitting with this theme. first, this legislation takes major strides forward in managing the shipping industry, which is responsible for (unintentionally) bringing most of the aquatic invasive species into our waters through ships’ ballast tanks. the legislation contains provisions that require shippers to ensure that they are using best management practices, and, most importantly, treat ballast water so that species are killed before ballast water is dumped into our waterways. this is the most effective way to prevent the next zebra mussel from entering our waterways and wreaking economic and environmental havoc. second, we will, for the first time, establish a screening program to look at the intentional introduction of new plants and animals into the united states. people have been bringing new species into america since before our nation was created. the rate of these introductions has increased dramatically over the past 50 years because of global trade and efficient and fast transportation systems. under current law, we take no action until we know that a species is harmful, which is too late. this legislation changes that burden by allowing federal agencies to screen for potential “bad actors” and prevent the next northern snakehead from being imported into the united states. finally, we establish a comprehensive research program, which was sorely lacking in previous legislative efforts to deal with invasive species. i’m taking the lead on this part of the legislative effort, because when i looked at the underlying law, it became clear that research was simply an afterthought. this explains why so much of the invasive species management program has been stalled for years. good science must underpin management decisions if these decisions are going to be considered credible to the outside world. it is time to change our strategy in dealing with aquatic invasive species. it is time for congress to realize that this threat continues to grow and will not go away unless we act. it is time for congress to move this legislation forward. invasive species don’t recognize or respect political boundaries or timelines and they are arriving here even as you read this today. invasive species legislation1 congressman vernon j. ehlers2 united states house of representatives washington, d.c. 20515-2203 1 adapted from an op-ed piece for business direct weekly, march 2003. 2 the honorable vernon j. ehlers, united states house of representatives, serves michigan’s third district. he serves on the following committees: house committee on education and the workforce, subcommittee on 21st century competitiveness, subcommittee on education reform; house committee on house administration; house committee on science, subcommittee on energy, subcommittee on environment technology and standards (chair); house committee on transportation and infrastructure, subcommittee on aviation, subcommittee on water resources and environment; joint committee on the library of congress. iguana b&w text 178 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 ariano-sánchez guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) are endemic to the semiarid motagua valley in guatemala. to m m y o w en s, s a n d ie g o z o o iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 178 the semiarid motagua valley in guatemala is one of the most endangered and unique ecosystems in the world. this region receives the lowest average rainfall in central america (ca. 500 mm) and is characterized by many endemic species. this region once occupied about 200,000 ha, most of which is now a heterogeneous landscape of crops, grasslands, thornscrub, and very dry deciduous forest remnants. the latter are home to the very rarely encountered endemic guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti). natural history the guatemalan beaded lizard, which (in conjunction with h. h. alvarezi) may actually represent a distinct species, is restricted to forest remnants in the motagua valley. the beaded lizards and gila monsters (h. suspectum) comprise the helodermatidae, a unique family of lizards with venom glands. although the subspecies h. h. charlesbogerti was described in 1988, it had not been studied until very recently. this species reduces its activity drastically during the dry season (december to may), when individuals remain almost constantly concealed in subterranean shelters that provide protection from extreme temperatures and desiccation. suitable shelters are limited resources in the remaining forests and may limit population size. recent estimates, based on average homerange sizes of this and other subspecies and on remaining available habitat, suggest that only 200–250 individuals remain in the wild. only 24,000 ha of suitable habitat remain, and these are comprised of patches ranging in size from < 1 ha to around 1,500 ha. if only those patches of > 100 ha are considered, the potential distribution of these lizards is reduced to 17,000 ha. this area comprises the localities of cabañas, usumatlán, and gualán in the zacapa department, and el jicaro in the el progreso department, in the semiarid region of the motagua valley in guatemala. conservation status the guatemalan beaded lizard is almost certainly the most endangered species in guatemala. it is listed in cites appendix ii and as vulnerable in the iucn red list of threatened species. the greatest threats to its continued existence are agricultural practices not compatible with conservathe guatemalan beaded lizard: endangered inhabitant of a unique ecosystem daniel ariano-sánchez director, research & conservation projects zootropic organization ciudad guatemala, guatemala dariano@zootropic.com photographs by the author except where indicated. iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 179guatemalan beaded lizard � a female guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) in the wild. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 179 tion, illegal extraction for local and international collectors, and persecution by local people, who consider it to be dangerous. from 1994–2000, an estimated 30 animals were illegally collected, and, from 2000–2001, local people at only one locality killed 11 lizards. another factor that may have had a negative impact on wild populations of h. h. charlesbogerti was hurricane mitch in november 1998. vast zones of the most arid portions of the motagua valley were flooded that year, causing considerable damage to the human population and to the wildlife of the region. late october-early november is the beginning of the egg-laying season for beaded lizards, and the eggs are known to be very sensitive to humidity. a number of clutches may well have been lost or failed to hatch because of floods. unfortunately, no baseline data existed at that time, so the impact on wild populations cannot be evaluated. conservation efforts since the initiation of intensive studies in 2002, conservation efforts have increased, in part because of an increased public awareness regarding the threatened status of the species. these efforts have been led by a local ngo, “zootropic.” the program is constituted of four basic elements: (1) education, (2) applied scientific research, (3) habitat conservation, and (4) development of conservation policies for this species. research has focused on determining distribution, the nature and cause of threats, the basic biology of the species, movement patterns, shelter use and their availability as a limiting resource, and characterization of venom. the education program has been ongoing since mid-2003 in localities where this species occurs and in coordination with local authorities and local partners of zootropic. the habitat conservation component has two approaches: (1) conservation of private lands by commitment of owners to preserve forest remnants and (2) an official declaration of municipal, communal, and private natural reserves as 180 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 ariano-sánchez guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) emerging from and resting in subterranean shelters. l. m el en d ez , z o o tr o pi c land-use changes within the distribution of heloderma horridum charlesbogerti: changes are primarily attributable to production of commercial crops like melon (top) and subsistence crops like corn (bottom). l. m el en d ez , z o o tr o pi c iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 180 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 181guatemalan beaded lizard part of the guatemalan protected areas system. finally, zootropic has promoted and coordinated the planning of a national strategy for guatemalan beaded lizard conservation with the support of the nature conservancy. this conservation plan was generated in collaboration with local and international experts representing 16 institutions, including the national council of protected areas (conap), which is guatemala’s official institution in charge of biodiversity conservation. local people: poachers and conservationists considering that two of the most serious threats to the species are illegal trade and extermination, environmental education has been strongly emphasized. this program actively engages local people, some of whom were poachers of heloderma in the past. today, they are proud conservationists. demonstrating the uniqueness and importance of conserving this species, locals have learned that many of the myths associated with the species were not true. some individuals have learned to use the radiotelemetry equipment and implement basic research techniques. the principal objective of this involvement is to incorporate members of the community in the research in order to instill an appreciation for this species. only with a strong relationship between locals and scientific researchers is an understanding of the importance of the project possible. these people now function as promoters of the conservation plan within their own communities. potential distribution of heloderma horridum charlesbogerti in the semiarid motagua valley in guatemala (indicated by the shaded area on the map). determination of the potential distribution took into account historical and recent collection sites, land use patterns, rainfall and temperature data, forest types, and distances to human settlements. current research is using radiotelemetry to reveal movement patterns and shelter selection in the wild l. m el en d ez , z o o tr o pi c iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 181 182 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 ariano-sánchez next steps in spite of strong conservation efforts already implemented, gaps still exist in the data. very little is known, for instance, about the species’ ecology, characteristics of the nests, and which specific physical factors affect shelter selection. reproductive behavior has not been observed or documented in the wild. such data are of great importance for implementing ex situ and in situ conservation strategies. also, emphasis continues on strengthening environmental education programs and continuing to promote the conservation of this species to official environmental agencies. a captive-breeding program has been initiated. within the year, genetic analyses of wild and captive populations are slated to begin. a group of local and international experts (representing 16 institutions) are collectively responsible for the national strategy for guatemalan beaded lizard conservation. l. m el en d ez , z o o tr o pi c the environmental education program addresses local farmers (top) and school children (bottom). a . g o n za le s, z o o tr o pi c a heloderma horridum charlesbogerti with a radiotransmiter is entering a subterranean shelter. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 182 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 183guatemalan beaded lizard acknowledgements i thank daniel beck, brad lock, and john binns for information and suggestions that improved this paper. i thank lester melendez for the use of some photographs, and all the institutions and persons that supported this project at different times: craig ivanyi (arizonasonora desert museum), atlanta zoo, idea wild, german academic exchange service, the nature conservancy, national fund for nature conservation (fonacon), national council of protected areas (conap), nature defenders foundation (fdn), university of the valley of guatemala (uvg), university of costa rica (ucr), and especially gilberto salazar, luis alvarado, antonio urbina, rodrigo botrán, and alejandro gonzalez from from zootropic for supporting, participating, and believing in this project. references ariano, d. 2003. distribución e historia natural del escorpión heloderma horridum charlesbogerti campbell y vannini (sauria: helodermatidae) en zacapa, guatemala y caracterización de su veneno. licenciatura thesis, universidad del valle de guatemala, guatemala. ariano, d. in prep. distribucion potencial, uso de refugios y comportamiento del lagarto escorpión, heloderma horridum charlesbogerti. msc. thesis, universidad de costa rica, san josé. ariano, d. and l. masaya. 2005. estado poblacional actual e historia natural del escorpión, heloderma horridum charlesbogerti campbell y vannini, (sauria: helodermatidae) en cabañas, zacapa, guatemala: informe final de consultoría. zootropic y the nature conservancy, guatemala. beck, d.d. 2005. biology of gila monsters and beaded lizards. university of california press, berkley and los angeles. beck, d.d. and r.d. jennings. 2003. habitat use by gila monsters: the importance of shelters. herpetological monographs 17: 112–130. bulova, s. 1994. patterns of burrow use by desert tortoises: gender differences and seasonal trends. herpetological monographs 8: 133–143. campbell, j. and j. vannini. 1988. a new subspecies of beaded lizard, heloderma horridum, from the motagua valley of guatemala. journal of herpetology 22: 457–468. dinerstein, e., d.m. olson, d.j. graham, a.l. webster, s.a. primm, m.p. bookbinder, and g. ledec. 1995. una evaluación del estado de conservación de las ecoregiones terrestres de américa latina y el caribe. world bank, wwf, washington, d.c. douglas, m., r. douglas, g. schuett, d. beck, and b. sullivan. 2003. molecular biodiversity of helodermatidae (reptilia, squamata). abstract. program, joint meeting of ichthyologists and herpetologists, manaus, amazonas, brasil. zimmerman, l., m. o’conner, s. bulova, j. spotila, s. kemp, and c. salice. 1994. thermal ecology of desert tortoises in the eastern mojave desert: seasonal patterns of operative and body temperatures, and microhabitat utilization. herpetological monographs 8: 45–59. land owners have designated forest remnants on their farms for protection; this large remnant near el arenal is inhabited by guatemalan beaded lizards. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 183 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 119historical perspectives itself by the destruction of the snake. but the certainty of the effect of the poison serves as a warning and is advantageous, not in defense after the attack is made, but in preventing an attack from being made. if, then, the color of the rattlesnake were different from all harmless snakes, so much so as to render it conspicuous, this would be beneficial to it, by the readiness with which all animals would recognize it, and thus protect the snake by this notice of the deadly character of its weapons. if then a conspicuous color would be of advantage, it seems to me that any other means which it may be able to use in making known its character to any animal that may come near it, would be advantageous, and would be increased and preserved by natural selection, and that the whirring noise which it produces, in this view of the matter, admirably serves its purpose. in effect it amounts to this, and by experience its enemies learn to understand its language, “i am a rattlesnake, armed with what will be death to you if you come too near; give me a wide berth!” prof. shaler remarks that it is a fact well known doubtless to those who have observed serpents, that many when in a state of excitement vibrate the end of their tail just as the rattlesnake does. this statement reminded me of a south american species described by darwin in his “voyage of a naturalist” (vol. i, p. 123, harper’s ed.), where he says:— “of reptiles there are many kinds: one snake (a trigonocephalus, or cophias), from the size of the poison channel in its fangs, must be very deadly. cuvier, in opposition to some other naturalists, makes this a sub-genus of the rattlesnake, and intermediate between it and the viper. in conformation of this opinion i observed a fact, which appears to me very curious and instructive, as showing how every character, even though it may be in some degree independent of structure, has a tendency to vary by slow degrees. the extremity of the tail of this snake is terminated by a point, which is very slightly enlarged; and as the animal glides along, it constantly vibrates the last inch; and this part striking against the dry grass and brushwood, produces a rattling noise, which can be distinctly heard at the distance of six feet. as often as the animal was irritated or surprised, its tail was shaken; and the vibrations were extremely rapid. even as long as the body retained its irritability, a tendency to this habitual movement was evident. the trigonocephalus has, therefore, in some respects, the structure of a viper, with the habits of a rattlesnake; the noise, however, being produced by a simpler device.” it was these remarks of darwin that first suggested the problem of the rattlesnake’s tail to my mind, and, as i had thought considerably about the matter, of course i was deeply interested in the paper by prof. shaler; but i must acknowledge that, while many of his suggestions are correct and highly valuable, i was disappointed to find that the only advantageous use, in his estimation, of this tail appendage of the rattlesnake, is an imitative call-note to allure birds within its reach, and that, otherwise, it is rather a disadvantage than an advantage to be preserved and perfected by natural selection. if it is useful for both purposes, then there is a double reason for the action of natural selection. if it is not used as an imitative call-note, but is useful in the manner i have pointed out, then i have shown that it is explained by natural selection. iwish to contribute my observations on the rattlesnake, having been specially favored in opportunities for the study of this reptile. of all the articles that have appeared on the subject in the naturalist that by mr. putnam appears to me to present the most satisfactory theory concerning the use of the rattles. i am satisfied that one of their uses is to bring the sexes together. in july, 1869, i was engaged in surveying along the logan river in wayne county, nebraska. after completing my contract i devoted a day to investigating the natural history of the neighborhood. while washing a collection of unios at the water’s edge, i heard the familiar rattle of the massasauga (crotalophorus the rattle of the rattlesnake6 professor samuel aughey 6 reprinted from the american naturalist 7:85–86 (february 1873). prairie rattlesnakes (crotalus viridis) were locally abundant across the great plains at the time these articles were written. many of the rattlesnake encounters reported by pioneers traversing the oregon and mormon trails were with this species. this snake is in a classic “defensive” position. ja c k g o ld fa r b , w w w .j a c k g o ld fa r b .c o m 120 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 aughey editor’s remarks rattlesnakes are iconic symbols of the american west. during the 18th century, rattlesnakes became symbols of the american colonies and their fight for independence from the british. for example, paul revere showed the snake fighting a british dragon on the masthead of the massachusetts spy in 1774. in 1775, a letter attributed to benjamin franklin appeared in the pennsylvania journal, calling for the adoption of the rattlesnake as the symbol of the united states and saying, among other things, that the rattlesnake “never begins an attack, nor, when once engaged, ever surrenders: she is therefore an emblem of magnanimity and true courage. ... she never wounds ’till she has generously given notice, even to her enemy, and cautioned him against the danger of treading on her,” leading to the motto “don’t tread on me,” emblazoned on an early revolutionary flag. yet today, rattlesnakes invariably appear as “bad guys” in movies and books. rattlesnake roundups still occur in many places, and focus on killing as many of these useful animals as possible. a proposed position paper from the american society of ichthyologists and herpetologists “strongly opposes traditional rattlesnake roundups. such roundups promote overexploitation of natural populations of wildlife, unnecessary killing and inhumane treatment of individual animals, degradation of habitat, and promotion of outdated attitudes toward important elements of america’s natural heritage.” we strongly agree with this statement. here we reprint several classic scientific papers focusing on rattlesnakes. in 1872, n. shaler published a piece in the american naturalist attempting to explain the function of the rattle. “for some years i have been teaching that the tail appendage of the rattlesnake was not to be explained on the doctrine of natural selection, inasmuch as it could contribute in no way to the advantage of the animal.” however, having provided a “useful” purpose for the “appendage,” he concluded that “it must be confessed that the case of the rattlesnake seems to me no longer the bar to the acceptance of the theory it once did.” later that year, and in the same journal, j. henderson speculated on the evolution of the rattle and its possible function. the following year, samuel aughey proposed yet another possible explanation. today, these discussions, which occurred less than two decades after publication of charles darwin’s on the origin of species* in 1859, seem naïve. even the language and the methods are archaic. for example, the almost indiscriminant use of “theory” speaks eloquently to the evolution of language (today we would substitute “hypothesis” for all applications other than to darwin’s theory of natural selection). also, the heavy reliance on anecdotal observations and a readiness to draw definitive conclusions from them contradict modern scientific methods. our knowledge has greatly increased in the intervening years, and our ability to test hypotheses about form and function is much more sophisticated. nevertheless, 134 years after the last of these papers first appeared, many u.s. citizens still adamantly cling to their opposition of evolution. gad perry * complete title: on the origin of species by means of natural selection, or the preservation of favoured races in the struggle for life. paul revere showed an american snake fighting a british dragon on the masthead of the massachusetts spy in 1774. benjamin franklin at one time called for the adoption of the rattlesnake as the symbol of the united states. that suggestion led to the motto and image emblazoned on this revolutionary war era flag. western diamondback rattlesnakes (crotalus atrox) are icons of the american west. yet today, these rattlesnakes invariably appear as “bad guys” in movies and books. rattlesnake roundups still occur in many places, and focus on killing as many of these useful animals as possible. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h tergeminus [= sistrurus catenatus]). i quietly crept up the bank and cautiously looking over the level bottom i saw, at the distance of about thirty feet, a rattlesnake coiled up with head erect and gazing in an opposite direction from my position. every three or five minutes the snake would cease rattling for a minute or more and then commence again. in about half an hour from the time that i first saw the snake i observed another rattlesnake approach the first one. closer and closer the second one approached, until at length they met and indulged in a sexual embrace. i watched them for at least an hour and left them at last without disturbing them. the next year at the bow river in the same state i saw the same thing repeated under similar circumstances. in neither case could i ascertain whether it was the male or female that give the call. i am satisfied that the theory that the rattle resembles the noise made by the cicada, and that it is employed because of this resemblance to entrap birds, etc., is a mistake. i have been accustomed to the sound of the cicada and the rattle of the rattlesnake from my youth, and soon learned to distinguish them, although there is betimes a striking resemblance between them. my familiarity with them was gained in my native state amid the alleghanies of pennsylvania. in the last week of june, 1869, i was on the missouri flood plain in a dense timber in cedar county, nebraska. at the time there were many cicadæ and multitudes of birds in the timber. one day i was sitting on a log, classifying a collection of flowers and plants. suddenly i heard the well-known rattlesnake rattle. the snake was not more than forty feet from me. i could not have been the cause of its alarm as a large log lay between us and i had been quiet for nearly an hour. even the cicadæ were alarmed and disappeared, and soon not a bird was to be seen, but the rattling continued. unfortunately, on the impulse of the moment, i killed the snake without waiting to see or learn the purpose of its rattling. again i have noticed that the massasauga, at least in nebraska, is by far the most abundant far away from the timber, where the cicadæ are rarely if ever seen. these observations seem to me to point to the theory that the rattle calls the sexes together. in july, 1871, i was in the timber on the missouri in dakota county, nebraska. i got sight of a baltimore oriole (rare in nebraska) which i was following as it flitted from twig to twig. as it swept near the ground a rattlesnake struck his highest notes and seemed to paralyze the oriole with fear. this snake was a crotalus. the poor bird hovered near the snake and fearing that it might fall into its jaws i shot the reptile. this experience suggested the theory that perhaps an additional purpose of the rattle was to frighten its victims into submission and to protect itself by the terror it inspires from its natural enemies. however that may be, is it not a mistake to limit such a peculiar organ to any one single purpose? what is needed to determine definitely the natural history of the rattlesnake is closer and more accurate observation over a wide area, and by persons who are fitted by nature and education for such work. unfortunately for science, the almost universal custom has been to kill the rattlesnake as soon as found, without waiting to learn its disposition and habits of life. once in the dakota nebraska timber i saw an attack of hogs on a rattlesnake. in a few minutes after the snake commenced rattling, three others made their appearance. they apparently came to the assistance of the first one, but all were killed by the hogs in a few minutes. seven hogs were more than a match for four rattlesnakes. here evidently the rattle was used to call for help. these belonged to the genus crotalophorus. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 121historical perspectives in 1873, professor samuel aughey indicated that the rattle might also be used to attract mates or allies in a struggle against predators. like henderson, many of his observations were of western massasaugas, although he also described an encounter with a prairie rattlesnake (crotalus viridis), illustrated here. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 12.4 b&w text 262 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 species profile the term “vinesnake” applies to several genera of long, slender, usually arboreal snakes and is descriptive rather than taxonomic (i.e., vinesnakes look alike but are not necessarily related). on hispaniola, one endemic genus (uromacer) includes three species that share the structural characteristics of all vinesnakes, are mostly arboreal (even sleeping coiled on the ends of branches), and are egg-laying opisthoglyphs (rear-fanged). uromacer catesbyi reaches a maximum snout-vent length (svl) of about 0.8 m. adults are bright green, with or without light lateral lines; hatchlings have green heads but gray to tan bodies. although elongate, these snakes are much less slender than their congeners. a wider head and a stouter body facilitate capture and consumption of relatively large prey, including many treefrogs. other prey items are invariably lizards, usually anoles. these snakes spend most of their time in trees, but may engage in extensive forays on the ground. individuals employ both sit-andwait (for anoles) and active (for treefrogs) foraging strategies. this species is found islandwide on hispaniola. uromacer oxyrhynchus reaches a maximum svl of about 1.5 m. most adults are green above and tan below, but some individuals are entirely green and a very few entirely tan. all possess white lateral lines that extend almost the entire length of the body. these snakes feed exclusively on lizards, mostly anoles, but also on ground-dwelling leiocephalus and ameiva. the species is widely distributed across the north paleoisland (north of the cul-de-sac plaine/valle de neiba), although it has successfully invaded the south island. uromacer frenatus reaches a maximum svl of a little less than 1 m. heads are usually green, but body color may vary from green to gray to tan or brown. if lateral lines are present, they fade before reaching midbody. these exceedingly elongate snakes feed exclusively on lizards, especially anoles, but also substantial numbers of terrestrial leiocephalus and ameiva. although largely arboreal, individuals may assume a sit-and-wait posture near the ground, waiting for ground-dwelling lizards. these snakes are widely distributed across the south paleoisland and île-de-lagonâve. references henderson, r.w., m.h. binder, and r.a. sajdak. 1981. ecological relationships of the tree snakes uromacer catesbyi and u. oxyrhynchus (colubridae) on isla saona, república dominicana. amphibiareptilia 2:153–163. henderson, r.w., a. schwartz, and t.a. noeske-hallin. 1987. food habits of three colubrid tree snakes (genus uromacer) on hispaniola. herpetologica 43:241–248. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e hispaniolan vinesnakes robert powell1 and robert w. henderson2 1department of biology, avila university, kansas city, missouri 2section of vertebrate zoology, milwaukee public museum, milwaukee, wisconsin a relatively blunt head and stout body allow uromacer catesbyi (left) to consume large prey. the long snout, green color, and a longitudinal light line to disrupt the snake's shape allow u. oxyrhynchus (center) to blend effectively into its surroundings. very slender u. frenatus (right) adopts a sit-and-wait foraging pose near the ground in order to prey on terrestrial lizards. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h r o b er t po w el l r o b er t po w el l r o b er t po w el l pages from pages from vol12no4-8.pdf pages from vol12no4-9.pdf iguana b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 177table of contents ircf international reptile conservation foundation table of contents f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s conservation of the guatemalan beaded lizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . daniel ariano-sánchez 178 the conservation of thorn scrub and dry forest habitat in the motagua valley, guatemala: promoting the protection of a unique ecoregion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . andrea nájera acevedo 184 soaking wet in a fijian dry forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . peter s. harlow and suzi morrison 192 the anoles of coconut island, kane‘ohe bay, o‘ahu, hawai‘i . . . . . . . . . . . . . . alexander j. muensch, penny d. leininger, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .dusty e. werth, angela m. fawks, and sydney m. thomas 198 cannibalism in an introduced population of cyclura nubila nubila on isla magueyes, puerto rico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . néstor f. pérez-buitrago, a.o. álvarez, and miguel a. garcía 206 h u s b a n d r y emerald gems (corallus caninus): captive husbandry and propagation. part iii: propagation . . . . . . . . joseph m. polanco 209 ex-situ: notes on reproduction and captive husbandry of the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . thomas c. owens 212 t r a v e l o g u e guam and the commonwealth of the northern mariana islands: pieces of america in the far pacific . . . . . . . . gad perry 216 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s life habits of phrynosoma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . charles l. edwards 224 a horned lizard at a high altitude . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . t.d.a. cockerell 225 a note on distinction of the sexes in phrynosoma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . w.m. winton 226 an examination of blood-ejecting horned lizards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . w.m. winton 226 a preliminary note on the food habits and distribution of the texas horned lizards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . w.m. winton 228 the urine of the horned lizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a.o. weese 229 c o m m e n t a r y crocodiles and alligators are very different . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . j. whitfield gibbons 230 b o o k r e v i e w biology of gila monsters and beaded lizards by daniel d. beck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . aj gutman 231 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235 ircf on the move . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240 a rhinoceros iguana (cyclura cornuta) at zoodom (parque zoológico nacional, the national zoo of the dominican republic). when basking, lizards often sprawl to get as much surface in contact with the warm substrate as possible. the considerable volume and relatively limited surface through which heat can be absorbed result in high thermal inertia for especially the larger species. consequently, iguanas and other lizards of comparable body sizes do everything they can to acquire heat from all possible sources. jo h n b in n s iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 177 iguana 13.2 b&w text 160 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 book reviews 1. protecting biological diversity: roles and responsibilities. 2001. edited by catherine potvin, margaret kraenzel, and gilles seutin. mcgill – queen’s university press, canada, 160 pages. hardback isbn: 0773521585 $75.00. paperback isbn: 0773521593 $24.95. 2. experiments in consilience: integrating social and scientific responses to save endangered species. 2003. edited by frances r westley and philip s miller. island press, usa, 328 pages. hardback isbn: 1559639938 $70.00. paperback isbn: 1559639946 $35.00. 3. the future of the wild: radical conservation for a crowded world. 2006. by jonathan s. adams. beacon press, usa, 296 pages. hardback isbn: 0807085103 $27.95. life is full of ironies, and this is not the least of them: many of us “got into wildlife” because we like nature, yet spend most of our professional lives dealing with “people” issues. the rapid extinction of species and the ongoing homogenization of what is left bring a sense of urgency to anyone who would like to see biodiversity protected. not surprisingly, conservation biology has often been called a crisis discipline. because the problem is human-caused, the answers must also involve humanity. conservationists have long realized that biologists and social scientists will have to collaborate, and e. o. wilson coined the word “consilience” to more-or-less describe this idea in a 1998 book of the same name. the matter of application has remained somewhat fuzzy, however. the three recent books reviewed here attack this question from different perspectives and with varying degrees of success. one of the ironies of conservation is that the ideology, know-how, and finances typically come from technologically and economically developed but biodiversity-poor countries, whereas the biodiversity to be conserved is usually found elsewhere. protecting biological diversity focuses on the need for scientists and practitioners from both spheres to collaborate effectively and equitably. concerned about the perceived lack of clear ethical guidelines for conservation practitioners, the editors “strive to determine what ‘good practice’ may be.” an edited volume resulting from an iucn symposium held in 1996, this is a truly international effort. of the 26 authors, only nine call north america home; nine are from india, and the rest originate from across the tropics. perhaps because of this unusual makeup of authorship, the book focuses on an important but often-ignored issue: the tension between local and expatriate outlooks on joint conservation projects. eight chapters offer case studies and make some references to the importance of collaboration between locals and foreign conservation biologists. for example, chapter one states that “overall, these co-operative and collaborative projects have been remarkably successful….” in general, the authors tend to highly value local knowledge, ignore local deficiencies, and focus on the mismatches. for example, “the philosophy behind the integral reserve is that of pure conservation [but] in a poor country, such as madagascar, where citizens depend on wood for fuel, it has proved impossible to prevent use of these resources” (chapter 5). the language is often rather strong. for example, chapter 1 denounces “the arrogant and shocking attitudes and behaviour of some european experts.” it goes on to recount “a well-known incident [that] involved an african researcher who three on consilience: the difficult art of combining biological and social sciences to protect biodiversity b o o k r e v i e w s iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 160 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 161book reviews was refused the right to take his seriously-ill spouse to the health centre … while the belgian expert allowed himself the luxury of using the vehicle to spend the weekend in the regional headquarters.” potentially most helpful is the ninth chapter, which includes a list of recommendations. many of these, such as respecting local people, laws, and customs, are commonsensical. finding ways to remunerate local populations when profit is to be made from their knowledge or biodiversity and making results available to local authorities should also prove non-controversial. however, the authors of this and other chapters take it a big step further: researchers should not only provide results, but also include field notes. they should not only communicate in the official language of the host country, but “using local dialect in all communications.” as this book amply illustrates, western scientists have not always acquitted themselves well. scientific imperialism, often in the form of ignoring the contributions of local team members when authorship is decided, is a pernicious problem, and i commend the editors and authors of protecting biological diversity for discussing it openly. nonetheless, statements such as “conservation biologists and ethnobiologists have not yet proved their willingness to conform to either local or universal values” (editors’ introduction to the final chapter) seem excessively strong. working in a foreign country, under time and budget constraints and within a different culture and language, can be overwhelming. regardless, many western scientists have taken these challenges on because of a deep commitment to helping solve complex problems in far-away places. the book offers some thoughts on how to be culturally sensitive, behaving ethically, and giving credit where it is due, and thus providing insights on how incoming collaborators can enhance the chances of forming successful partnerships. however, the responsibility of host nations to also invest in the collaboration seems to have been forgotten by the authors and editors of this volume, which i generally found repetitive and one-sided. the second book, experiments in consilience, emerged from a 1997 canadian initiative “to build interdisciplinary connections and stimulate the exchange of expertise among specialists concerned with the conservation of biodiversity.” social and biological scientists working in teams analyze a series of workshops conducted by the conservation breeding specialist group of the iucn. overall, the authors agree that “bridge building between specializations” is both feasible and advantageous, but also costly and only “useful if it contributes to species conservation.” the tone throughout is fairly optimistic. for example, chapter 5 evaluates in detail the overall performance of the iucn workshops and concludes that the process “is indeed both generic and robust and worthy of further study and development.” ironically, given the recommendations of the previous book, the authors of chapter 2 identify “globalization of scientific norms and culture,” rather than conformation to local language and customs, as one of the most important characteristics contributing to their success. another encouraging conclusion is that “progressive resource-based companies are motivated to become involved in … conservation of species and habitat” (chapter 16). this book would be primarily of value to those planning similar workshops. where similarities exist between the two books, this one is clearly superior. for example, chapters 9 and 15 focus on how to incorporate local knowledge into conservation projects, and this issue is also addressed in other chapters. nonetheless, weaknesses exist, most having more to do with the subject matter than with the book itself. “just as there is no free lunch, there is no (or little) free interdisciplinary collaboration.” most of the species and habitats in need of attention are far less glamorous than the gorillas and wolves (typical of the obsession with birds and mammals so common in conservation) featured in this book, and the iucn workshop approach would be hard to replicate. the closing paragraph of this book states that “we must continue to refine this and other conservation processes to make use of the conservation world’s greatest resource: the judgment and wisdom of all those who care about saving our endangered spaces and the species therein.” i finished the book, perhaps as the editors did, with a better understanding of the experiment and a glimmer of hope, but with no abiding enthusiasm or sense of closure. the final and most recent volume, the future of the wild, is a single-authored effort by one of the leaders of the nature conservancy. his approach carries a different flavor, more an extended op-ed piece aimed at an educated lay audience than detached scientific discourse. in his introduction, adams explains the impetus for his work: “across north america and indeed iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 161 around the world, conservation scientists, activists, and communities have begun crafting visions for conserving and restoring wild creatures and wildlands. such visions smack of particularly naïve optimism,” adams argues, because our idea of the wild is overly simplistic in today’s world. the scale at which we are used to framing conservation questions is too small: “parks and reserves need to be large enough to absorb the blows from a oncein-a-century” event, whereas “tiny refuges tucked into a landscape otherwise completely converted to intensive human use will not long survive.” part 1 of the book, entitled “thinking big,” is devoted to making this point by using examples such as the spotted owl. adams argues that science, rather than “politics, aesthetics, and economics,” must to be allowed to determine the shape of conservation efforts. to do that, “conservation must come to grips with the human communities that surround parks as well as the more distant communities that value parks and wilderness … that they never see.” adams provides a positive conceptual framework: “conservation cannot just be the art of saying no … [it] must offer a sense of the possible, and a reason for hope.” part 2, “science and community,” focuses on how landscapes in california and florida have mainly become urban or near-urban over the last few hundred years and how some communities are trying to address conservation problems in such modified landscapes. adams expects both conservation and society to change. “some of the changes in conservation will be revolutionary, others evolutionary. all will require new appreciation for where science, community, and values intersect.” arguably, the element most missing from modern conservation biology is hope. the number of new reserves being established worldwide, even tiny ones, has declined precipitously since the 1980s, and the administrations of several western countries are trying to dismantle protections for many of those that currently exist. adams offers some hope in part 3, where he presents yellowstone as an example of how things might work. he emphasizes ideas that have been important in the conservation literature for some years, such as looking at landscape-level effects and creating connections among smaller reserves by judicious use of wildlife corridors, but he does so in the context of actual community-wide efforts to achieve integration in fragmented, multiple-use landscapes. the challenge is how to achieve this grand vision on the required scale. recent decades have brought the unpleasant realization that, while the human sphere is growing, the rest of the biosphere is in decline. as the human population continues to expand and the average resource consumption per individual maintains an upward trajectory, the need for the priority-juggling exercise that is conservation grows as well. thus, the better we understand the human element of this equation, the more effective we can become in reaching our goals for the biological side. adams’s thought-provoking and accessible book, which could be the basis of discussions in undergraduate classes, might offer a small step in this direction. the three books address a variety of mostly non-overlapping topics involving the interaction between the human and natural sciences in conservation. ultimately, however, the underlying issue remains the ever-growing size and impact of the human population. as global climate change shows, even the largest and best-protected preserve established today may offer little conservation value tomorrow. literature in this field could thus benefit from further integrating this topic into its analyses — something that has become rather rare in current mainstream conservation literature. gad perry department of range, wildlife, and fisheries management texas tech university, lubbock, texas 162 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 book reviews iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 162 iguana 13.2 b&w text 94 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 santa lucia is a cloud forest reserve of some 820 hectares in a lushly forested section of pichincha province, ecuador. draped over the steep slopes of the andean cordillera occidental, the reserve lies between elevations of about 1400–2600 m. because the region receives about 2,000 mm of rain per year, the precipitous slopes host an astonishing plant and animal diversity despite the rugged terrain and the often chilly climate. the large maquipucuna reserve borders santa lucia to the south, protecting an additional 6000 hectares. together, these reserves protect an extensive complex of pristine and regenerating subtropical cloud forest that makes up much of the rio umachaca drainage. santa lucia is a local conservation and eco-tourism cooperative established by a number of land-owning campesino families to find a sustainable alternative to the agriculture and ranching for which a small fraction of the less precipitous slopes were formerly used. about 84% of santa lucia’s land is primary cloud forest. the remaining area is about evenly divided between secondary forest and pastured hillsides. santa lucia hosts an astounding variety of plant and animal species. particularly speciose groups include birds, arthropods, and orchids. the current bird list exceeds 370 species and over 340 species of orchids (among nearly 2000 vascular plant species) have been documented in the neighboring maquipucuna reserve (webster and rhode 2001, 2005). although the reptilian fauna of santa lucia is not nearly so diverse as the groups mentioned above, many of the species are endemic and have relatively small ranges. additionally, our reptiles of the santa lucia cloud forest, ecuador aaron z. savit department of biology, earlham college, richmond, indiana photographs by the author. � savit thick clouds of fog settle on the mountains at night and often linger well into the day. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 94 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 95 knowledge of most of these species is so scant that their natural history and habitat preferences usually have not been described in the literature. perez-santos and moreno (1991) published a volume that renders the chaos of identification a bit less imposing, at least as far as snakes are concerned, but no comparable treatment covers andean lizards, although some fairly comprehensive treatments of entire genera (i.e., harris 1994, torres-carvajal 2001) make diagnosis a bit more feasible. however, the following list is the first that documents the reptilian species from an andean cloud forest site. i have made every effort to present information in a manner that does not require prior knowledge of obscure andean taxa and to gather and present all available ecological and distributional data, both from the literature and my own observations. this list represents the squamate species i found at santa lucia over a five-month period from november 2004 to april 2005. most were caught along a ridge at elevations from 1800–2000 m. several additional species are probably present in the reserve, especially at its upper and lower reaches. i particularly suspect that one or more species of elusive, litterdwelling spectacled lizards (“microteiids” in the family gymnophthalmidae) escaped detection. one species in the gymnophthalmid genus proctoporus from the lower reaches of the reserve remains unidentified, as does a species of ground snake (atractus, probably a. major). additionally, the reserve’s guides and staff reported several other species of snakes, but none could be captured and identified. readers should bear in mind that considerable geographic variation in coloration exists for many of the species described. however, the color variations mentioned herein refer solely to documented differences within the populations at santa lucia. any information not specifically cited is based on my own observations and measurements. l i z a r d s anolis aequatorialis werner 1894 description: this relatively large anole has snout-to-vent (svl) lengths that can exceed 80 mm. dorsal color patterns include a series of dark transverse markings with mottled greens, browns, and blacks, with juveniles exhibiting significantly more brown and black coloration. the striking dewlap has greenishyellow lines where it comes into contact with the body and throat, but these quickly degenerate into a series of brick-red blotches on a black background. hints of turquoise often appear on the anterior part of the dewlap near the throat. both males and females of the species possess dewlaps, although those of males are relatively larger in individuals of similar sizes. juveniles also have an ocellum on each side of the head postesituated at the end of a ridge, the lodge at santa lucia overlooks lush valleys on three sides. reptiles of the santa lucia cloud forest iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 95 rior to the tympanum. this appears to dissipate in older males, but is retained in adult females. ecology: this species is most often found on well-shaded leaf litter, although juveniles are frequently seen in low undergrowth near the ground. these lizards seem to prefer cooler substrates and air temperatures, both of which averaged around 18.5 ºc. average body temperature of 21 a. aequatorialis was 20.5 ºc. the elevational range for the species is roughly 1000–2000 m (torres-carvajal 2001). anolis gemmosus o’shaughnessy 1875 description: this anole reaches just over 60 mm svl. an astounding diversity of color phases can occur within a single population. perhaps the most common phase at santa lucia is the patterned phase, in which males have a series of transverse rows of black spots. in females, this pattern manifests itself as a caudal series of spade-shaped black blotches. other color phases include a nearly solid green, which occurs in both males and females, and a female morph with a wide, light-brown vertebral stripe bordered by two thinner gray stripes on a green background. in a very rare variation of the male patterned phase, the spaces between the rows of black spots are filled with large white markings. ecology: these anoles appear to prefer cooler environmental temperatures much like those associated with a. aequatorialis. average substrate and air temperatures were both around 19 ºc. body temperature of 34 a. gemmosus averaged 21.1 ºc. anolis gemmosus differ from a. aequatorialis in that they are completely arboreal. the elevational range is roughly 2000–3000 m (torrescarvajal 2001). these lizards are most frequently encountered along forest edges, but never in direct sun. the preference for edge habitat is probably an artifact of increased arthropod prey abundance in those areas. cercosaura vertebralis (o’shaughnessy 1879) description: a gymnophthalmid of medium size, santa lucia cercosaura vertebralis had svls to 69 mm, although adults were usually below 65 mm svl. these lizards have a prominent 2–3 scale-wide vertebral stripe that starts as light orange on top of the head and fades through yellow to become white over the sacrum. dorsal background color is black to dark brown. golden-yellow subocular stripes run from the tip of the snout under the tympanum and terminate at the front limbs. whitecentered ocelli often are present on the flanks around the foreand hindlimbs. more prominent ocelli are frequently accompanied by red highlights on the flanks and a red venter mottled with black. in other individuals, the venter would be cream 96 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 savit edge habitats, such as this partially forested slope, provide favorable conditions for some lizards such as anolis gemmosus and cercosaura vertebralis. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 96 with extensive black mottling. this coloration was displayed far more frequently in animals collected between november and january than in those collected from february to april. this suggests that red on the venter and flanks, as well as the enhanced ocelli, may be breeding coloration. ecology: cercosaura vertebralis belongs to a group of three gymnophthalmid genera that have recently been shown to be monophyletic (doan 2003). the species is highly heliophilic, and individuals are mostly active in dry leaf litter. however, they can be seen both foraging and basking on soil, litter, and deadfall anywhere where sunlight is sufficient. they may be completely absent from the surface for days if weather is not suitable. substrate and air temperatures for sites at which c. vertebralis was found averaged 26.8 and 21.9 ºc, respectively. these lizards maintain relatively high body temperatures, which averaged 27.9 ºc (n = 20). the species has been recorded at elevations as low as 700 m and as high as 2500 m and ranges from northern colombia and far southern panamá through ecuador and the far north of perú (uzzell, 1973). proctoporus oculatus (o’shaughnessy 1879) description: this impressive gymnophthalmid can grow as large as 88 mm svl (kizirian 1996) and have a tail more than twice that long. the dorsum is dark brown with two faint dorsolateral bands extending from the head and dissipating near the pelvis. a series of yellow-centered ocelli extend from the neck to the base of the tail. the black-and-white mottled venter gradually fades into a very striking pattern of red and black along the flanks. iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 97reptiles of the santa lucia cloud forest anolis aequatorialis. top: male (left, 80 mm svl) and female (right, 76 mm svl); bottom: male (79 mm svl). anolis gemmosus. color phases: transverse bars (top), white blotches (middle), and striped (bottom). iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 97 ecology: this species occurs in only a few drainages along the western ecuadorian andes, and has been previously recorded in sympatry with p. unicolor (kizirian, 1996). they are rarely seen on the surface, and prefer the cool temperature and cover afforded by abundant leaf litter. proctoporus unicolor (gray 1858) description: this medium-sized gymnophthalmid grows to slightly over 60 mm svl. dark brown dorsally, it has two light dorsolateral stripes that extend over the shoulders and dissipate quickly. a small amount of white spotting may be present on the throat or flanks. a bright red accents the ventral part of the flanks, and extends most of the way down the tail. the underside of the jaw is white mottled with black. otherwise, the venter is solid black. kizirian (1996) indicated that considerably more color variation exists than was observed at santa lucia, where all p. unicolor generally adhered to the description above. ecology: like p. oculatus, this species is limited in range to the northwestern ecuadorian andes. it has been previously reported at elevations from 2390–3300 m (kizirian 1996). these lizards appear to prefer cool temperatures, and quickly turn lethargic when held in the heat of a human hand. they forage under the thick cover of damp leaf litter and hardly ever emerge on the surface. they have extremely powerful jaws and a strong tail that can be up to 250% of svl if unbroken and not regenerated. proctoporus sp. description: only one individual of this unknown species was captured. it measured 49 mm svl and 146 mm total length (with a complete tail). this lizard had a brown dorsal background color with broken dorsolateral lines of lighter brown blotches outlined with black. flanks had a number of yellowcentered ocelli that were particularly prominent near the forelimbs and decreased in size posteriorly. venter was white with regular black spotting forming rows and increasing in intensity posteriorly. white markings remained near the cloaca, but the ventral surface of the tail was solid black with a strong iridescent blue sheen. 98 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 savit proctoporus oculatus is rarely seen on the surface. they seem to prefer the cool temperatures and cover afforded by abundant leaf litter. cercosaura vertebralis is heliophilic (sun-loving), and individuals are mostly active in dry leaf litter. proctoporus unicolor quickly turns lethargic when held in the heat of a human hand. they forage under the thick cover of damp leaf litter and hardly ever emerge on the surface. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 98 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 99reptiles of the santa lucia cloud forest ecology: the one individual was found in the lower reaches of the reserve at an elevation of about 1500 m. ptychoglossus plicatus (taylor 1949) description: a medium-sized gymnophthalmid lizard, p. plicatus grows to about 65 mm svl. head scales are light lime green, with the exception of supraocular scales, which are black and have a yellow-green stripe on the very edge. these stripes, as well as the other colored head scales, join at the back of the skull to form a dorsal stripe 3–5 scales wide that fades towards the tail. the dorsal ground color is dark brown. lateral creamcolored lines extend back from behind the eyes. these lines are more prominent in some individuals than in others, but they usually begin to dissipate around the forelimbs. flanks are a deep mahogany red. the venter is a bright salmon-red, fading to cream around the throat and jaw, with some green tinges near the very front of the mandible. in situ, p. plicatus can appear quite similar to cercosaura vertebralis, but they are easily distinguished by the distinctive cephalic green coloration and relatively thicker vertebral stripe. ecology: this species is known to occur from costa rica to the panamá-colombia border, with another population possibly occurring slightly farther south in northwestern colombia (harris 1994). obviously, a population in northern ecuador represents a very considerable extension to the range of this species. because santa lucia lies at the upper extremity of their documented elevational range of 30–1890 m (harris 1994), that more p. plicatus were seen several hundred meters below the main collection area, which was located just above 1900 m, is probably indicative of an elevational range mostly below that of the reserve. this lizard is an active forager that can sometimes be seen weaving in and out of the leaf litter. they will tolerate both full shade and mixed sun, and are most often found in mature forest. stenocercus varius (boulenger 1885) description: this stocky lizard in the family tropiduridae can grow to about 8.5 cm svl (torres-carvajal 2000). basic coloration consists of regular black markings along the dorsum, with a dark greenish-brown background and occasional yellow spots. the top of the head has the same dark background coloration, with the region around the mouth and eyes generally a much lighter shade of green. the flanks also are a lighter shade of green, with yellow-green spots arranged in regular transverse rows. the venter is green to greenish-white with a light orange color on the ventral surface of the tail. these lizards are capable of rapid color change. they can appear nearly melanistic at times, with the light green of the mouth and eyes and the yellow spotting on the flanks completely obscured. ecology: stenocercus varius occurs at elevations from 1460–2200 m. they are restricted to montane forests with high rainfall, and are frequently found on tree trunks and fallen logs, particularly in cleared areas. they also occur along forest edges (torres-carvajal 2000). they are quite rare at santa lucia, although they appear to be quite territorial, with one individual recaptured 3 m from the release site after a period of four months. proctoporus sp.: only one individual of this unidentified species was found in the lower reaches of the reserve at an elevation of about 1500 m. ptychoglossus plicatus is an active forager that can sometimes be seen weaving in and out of the leaf litter. they will tolerate both full shade and mixed sun, and are most often found in mature forest. stenocercus varius appears to be restricted to montane forests with high rainfall, and is frequently found on tree trunks and fallen logs, particularly in cleared areas. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 99 s n a k e s atractus occidentalis savage, 1955 description: this rather small snake in the family colubridae reaches lengths a bit under 35 cm total length in mature females. they are thick snakes with small heads and no obvious neck differentiation. symmetrical pairs of black spots mark the dorsum. dorsal ground color exhibits some variation, with both brown and burgundy phases documented. additional variation may exist. the venter is black posteriorly and mottled with a rose-tinged cream anteriorly. ecology: this species has been documented as occurring at elevations from 1200–3000 m (perez-santos and moreno 1991). they are terrestrial snakes that generally forage in the litter of the forest interior. in mid-february, a heavily gravid female with svl = 31 cm (34 cm total length) was encountered basking on a trail and responded to capture by playing dead. she was kept for observation, and, about 12 hours after capture, laid two eggs, each measuring about 3 x 1 cm. both eggs were fertile and appeared to be developing when candled. however, they had not hatched by the time i left the reserve about 3 months later. they were kept moist and still appeared healthy at that time. atractus (major?) boulenger, 1893 description: this tentative identification is based on a single specimen that was captured, but could not be photographed. consequently, the species is only tentatively identified as a. major. this individual displayed a very distinct pattern of broken, irregular, longitudinal bands running the length of its body. markings were brown with black bordering on a brickred ground color. venter was white with some dark blotches. the single specimen measured about 45 cm total length (38 cm svl), which is over the maximum length of most species of atractus, but well under the maximum known for the presumed species (72 cm; perez-santos and moreno, 1991). ecology: atractus major is very widespread throughout the amazonian slopes and eastern lowlands of venezuela, colombia, ecuador, perú, bolivia, and brazil. this species has been documented at elevations from near sea level to almost 3000 m (perez-santos and moreno, 2001). given this large elevational range, a. major or a closely related species could very easily be present on the pacific slopes of the andes. this is particularly likely in light of the huancabamba depression, an area in northern perú where both andean cordilleras drop well below 3000 m. 100 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 savit atractus occidentalis is a small inconspicuous snake that forages in leaf litter on the forest floor. bothrocophias campbelli are small, stout pit-vipers that are perfectly camouflaged and almost invisible in leaf litter. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 100 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 101reptiles of the santa lucia cloud forest bothrocophias campbelli (freire 1991) description: these stout pit-vipers can grow to over half a meter in length. a pattern of brown angular blotches on a gray background extends laterally from either side of the middorsum. these coalesce into a more cohesive banded pattern toward the tail. the venter is gray with black speckling, and a series of regular black splotches occur ventrolaterally. ecology: four species of snakes, including b. campbelli, were recently allocated to a new genus, with this species being restricted to the ecuadorian cordillera occidental (gutberlet and campbell 2001). this species has a very restricted range, especially in comparison with two of its congeners, both of which have extensive ranges on the eastern side of the andes and in parts of the amazonian lowlands. these snakes are perfectly camouflaged and are almost invisible in leaf-litter. they are inconspicuous, secretive, and nocturnal. chironius monticola roze 1952 description: this impressive colubrid snake can grow to over 1.5 m in total length. the dorsum is a solid forest-green with dark outlines of each scale. the venter is a light gray-green, turning yellow anteriorly. throat, jaw, and upper labials are a bright yellow. ecology: this terrestrial snake is most often seen basking in the open on warm, sunny days. it is very alert and can disappear rapidly into the leaf litter and undergrowth. they range from venezuela through bolivia, and have been documented at elevation from 1200–2000 m (perez-santos and moreno 1991). dipsas oreas elegans (boulenger 1896) description: this small, elegant colubrid has a laterally compressed body and a large, blunt head. the body is covered by alternating bands of brownish-gray and black. the venter is a silvery gray with black blotches. the long, prehensile tail accounts for about a third of the snake’s total length. ecology: dipsas oreas is an arboreal snake with an elevational range of 1200–3000 m (perez-santos and moreno 1991). the diet consists mostly of invertebrates, especially soft-bodied species. they are active nocturnally. liophis epinephelus albiventris jan 1863 description: this medium-sized colubrid snake grows to just under 80 cm (perez-santos and moreno 1991). ground color of the dorsum is deep green. a series of black spots along the chironius monticola is very alert and can disappear rapidly into the leaf litter and undergrowth. dipsas oreas elegans is arboreal and has a laterally compressed body and a large, blunt head. the former character facilitates climbing and the latter the consumption of relatively large prey. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 101 dorsum merge posteriorly to form two lateral stripes and a thicker dorsal stripe. the venter is bright yellow, as are the superior and inferior labials. bright orange skin can sometimes be seen between dorsal scutes. ecology: this terrestrial species responds to threats by flattening its head and body in a convincing viper impersonation. this particular subspecies is restricted to ecuador, whereas two other subspecies occur throughout northern south america as far north as panamá and as far south as perú (perez-santos and moreno 1991). virtually nothing is known about the ecology of this species. mastigodryas boddaerti (sentzen 1796) description: a relatively large colubrid snake, mastigodryas boddaerti can reach 160 cm in total length (perez-santos and moreno 1991). it has a brown dorsum, sometimes with dark longitudinal stripes. a white subocular stripe extends from the rostrum to the nuchal region, where it fades into the brown of the dorsum. the venter is a creamy-yellow with a small amount of black spotting. some variation in coloring has been documented for this species. ecology: a fairly widespread species, m. boddaerti ranges from colombia to bolivia and brazil. it has been documented at elevations ranging from close to sea level to about 2000 m (perezsantos and moreno 1991). aside from the fact that it is mostly terrestrial, not much is known about behavior, habitat use, or life history. 102 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 savit mastigodryas boddaerti. other than being largely terrestrial, little is known about behavior, habitat use, or life history. liophis epinephelus albiventris (female, 41 cm svl): this terrestrial species responds to threats by flattening its head and body in a convincing viper impersonation. mastigodryas pulchireps is an alert, terrestrial snake found mainly in forest interior. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 102 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 103reptiles of the santa lucia cloud forest mastigodryas pulchireps (cope 1868) description: this striking snake has a beautiful pattern consisting of a row of blackish-brown rectangles running along the dorsum, with another lateral row of rectangles along either flank. each rectangle is separated by a whitish-gray stripe. the tail is almost entirely black. the venter is black with a small white spot on either side of each scale. black ocular stripes help to camouflage the eyes. maximum size for this species is not known. the only specimen i caught was 24 cm svl (32 cm tl). specimens at the zoology museum at the pontifica universidad católica del ecuador were “somewhat larger” than the one i caught, but i did not measure them. ecology: this species is known from colombia and ecuador, although it has heretofore been documented only as high as 1500 m (perez-santos and moreno 1991). the specimen i caught in the reserve was at an elevation of about 1750 m. it is an alert, terrestrial snake found mainly in forest interior. little else is known about its life history. tantilla melanocephala (linnaeus 1758) description: this small colubrid reaches over 40 cm in total length. neonates can be as small as 5 cm svl. the neck is not distinctly differentiated. the head is black with a light snout, postocular stripes, and two white spots on the back of the head. dorsal background color is a light brown, and some individuals may have a varying number of longitudinal stripes. the venter is yellow. ecology: this is an extremely widespread species, ranging from central america to northern argentina and uruguay. they can occur from sea level to 2500 m (perez-santos and moreno 1991). they eat mostly small arthropods and arthropod eggs, and are often found in association with leaf litter. they were the most abundant snakes i encountered at santa lucia, with four of 13 snakes belonging to this species.1 acknowledgments i thank all the staff and community members of santa lucia, especially santa lucia’s administrator, francisco molina. i am indebted to jorge noé morales, julio ayala, carlos calvache, eduardo tapia, and arturo alba zuñiga for help in collecting animals. i also thank dr. luís coloma and the pontifica universidad católica del ecuador for access to their collections. robert henderson generously helped with identification, advice, and material support. robert powell provided useful advice during my time at santa lucia and since. literature cited doan, t.m. 2003. a new phylogenetic classification for the gymnophthalmid genera cercosaura, pantodactylus and prionodactylus (reptilia: squamata). zoological journal of the linnean society 137: 101–115. gutberlet, r.l. and j.a. campbell. 2001. generic recognition for a neglected lineage of south american pitvipers (squamata: viperidae: crotalinae), with the description of a new species from the colombian chocó. american museum novitates (3316): 1–15. harris, d.m. 1994. review of the teiid lizard genus ptychoglossus. herpetological monographs 8: 226–275. kizirian, d.a. 1996. a review of ecuadorian proctoporus (squamata: gymnophthalmidae) with descriptions of nine new species. herpetological monographs 10: 85–155. perez-santos, c, and a.g. moreno. 1991. serpientes de ecuador. museo regionale di scienze naturali, torino, italy. torres-carvajal, o. 2000. ecuadorian lizards of the genus stenocercus (squamata: tropiduridae). scientific papers, natural history museum, university of kansas (15): 1–38. torres-carvajal, o. 2001. lizards of ecuador: checklist, distribution, and systematic references. smithsonian herpetological information service (131): 1–35. uzzell, t. 1973. a revision of lizards of the genus prionodactylus with a new genus for p. leucostictus and notes on the genus euspondylus (sauria, teiidae). postilla (159): 1–7. webster, g.l. and r.m. rhode. 2001. plant diversity of an andean cloud forest: inventory of the vascular plants of maquipucuna, ecuador. university of california publications in botany, volume 82. berkeley, california. webster, g.l. and r.m. rhode. 2005. maquipucuna monocots. http://maqui.ucdavis.edu/newest_maqui_monocots.html. tantilla melanocephala eats mostly small arthropods and arthropod eggs, and is often found in association with leaf litter. 1 editor’s note: snakes in the mainland neotropics often are difficult to find, apparently due to a combination of low population densities and secretive habits. the low number of encounters at the reserve also reflects conditions at high elevations, which are rarely ideal for squamate reptiles. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 103 iguana b&w text st. vincent dwarf gecko (sphaerodactylus vincenti) iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 14, number 2 june 2007 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess r o b er t po w el l the survival of sand dune lizards (liolaemus multimaculatus) in argentina is threatened by alterations to the habitats for which they are uniquely adapted (see article on p. 66). although any use of green anacondas (eunectes murinus) is prohibited by venezuelan law, illegal harvests are common (see article on p. 74). boelen’s python (morelia boeleni) was described only 50 years ago, testament to its remote distribution nestled deep in the mountains of papua indonesia (see article on p. 86). fe d er ic o k a c o li r is a r i r . f la g le dark leaf litter frogs (leptobrachium smithii) from bangladesh have very distinctive red eyes (see travelogue on p. 108). a li r ez a lu tz d ir k se n the golden toad (bufo periglenes) of central america was discovered in 1966. from april to july 1987, over 1,500 adult toads were seen. only ten or eleven toads were seen in 1988, and none have been seen since 15 may 1989 (see commentary on p. 122). butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri) was listed as a threatened species in wisconsin in 1997. an effort to remove these snakes from the wisconsin list of threatened wildlife has been thwarted for the moment (see article on p. 94). g a r y s . c a sp er about the cover diminutive geckos (< 1 g) in the genus sphaerodactylus are widely distributed and represented by over 80 species in the west indies. sphaerodactylus vincenti is a relatively large sphaerodactyl, reaching a maximum snout-vent length of 40 mm. the s. vincenti complex includes nine currently recognized subspecies, which occur on the st. lucia, dominica, martinique, and st. vincent island banks. these lizards can be found in leaf litter, under rocks and rotten logs, and in bromeliads. on st. vincent, s. v. vincenti reaches high densities (to 5,625 lizards/ha) in moist, shaded leaf-litter. such microhabitats provide refuges, access to prey, and protection against desiccation, to which these tiny lizards are exceedingly vulnerable. geckos living in moist environments at higher elevations are larger and less resistant to water loss than geckos occupying drier habitats at lower elevations. sphaerodactylus vincenti appears to be a dietary generalist that feeds on a variety of small arthropods primarily by day. see also the natural history research report on p. 132. r o b er t po w el l c h a r le s h . s m it h , u .s . f is h & w il d li fe s er v ic e iguana 12.4 b&w text 268 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 cochran its status can be made. crocodylus acutus is found in cuba, hispaniola, jamaica, florida, and central america. species erroneously recorded from hispaniola the type of spelerpes infuscatus peters, now in the berlin museum (no. 6556), supposedly from “hayti,” has been positively identified by dr. e. r. dunn as oedipus lineolus cope and hence must have come from mexico (dunn, 1926). the intensive collecting done during the past few years leaves little expectation of finding any endemic tailed amphibians in the west indies. hispaniolan records of eleutherodactylus auriculatus cope are undoubtedly based on misidentifications of the several small frogs that bear quite a close resemblance to the rather variable true auriculatus of cuba. boulenger’s record of a dendrobates trivittatus (1882, p. 145) from “s. domingo” is probably based on an incorrect locality record, as no true dendrobates is to be expected so far out of its range. doris mable cochran was a specialist in neotropical herpetology and was for many years the custodian of the american national collection at the smithsonian institution in washington, d.c. her interest in natural history began as a child growing up in a small town near the shores of lake erie and, while still an undergraduate at george washington university (a.b. 1920, m.s. 1921), she became aide in the division of herpetology at the united states national museum. although formally under the curatorship of leonhard stejneger, cochran was responsible for the day-to-day administration of the herpetological collections. in 1927, she became assistant curator and, in 1942, associate curator, before formally taking charge of the collections after stejneger’s death in 1943. in the interim, she earned a ph.d. at the university of maryland (1933) with a thesis on crab myology. eventually promoted to curator in 1956, she retired in 1968, and died less than a month later. cochran’s research emphasized the herpetofaunas of southeastern asia, the west indies, and south america, particularly those of brazil and colombia. she published nearly 90 titles from 1922–1970, most of them short taxonomic papers describing new genera (8) and species and subspecies (125). her interest in the west indies spanned a 20-year period and culminated in the herpetology of hispaniola (1941). subsequently, she focused most of her attention on south american frogs, about which she published many papers and two books, frogs of southeastern brazil (1954) and frogs of colombia (1970), the latter published posthumously with her longtime collaborator, coleman j. goin. she also wrote numerous semi-popuular articles and some wartime booklets for use by the military. her most widely known book was the profusely illustrated living amphibians of the world (1961), which was translated into at least ten languages. the new field book of reptiles and amphibians (1970), coauthored with goin, was not successful and never competed seriously with existing north american field guides by roger conant and robert c. stebbins. b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h doris m. cochran (1898–1968)1 doris m. cochran (photograph courtesy of kraig adler). 1 source: adler, k. 1989. herpetologists of the past, pp. 5–141. in k. adler (ed.), contributions to the history of herpetology. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, contributions to herpetology, vol. 5. ithaca, new york. cyclura cornuta (usnm no. 82107, from petite gonave island, haiti). see also article on p. 222. iguana 12.1 14 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 wiewandt gila monster (heloderma suspectum).—this non-aggressive resident of the sweetwater area is our largest, most fabled, and only venomous lizard in the united states. few people have had the good fortune to see one in the wild. these secretive reptiles have large home ranges that span a mile or more and are readily displaced by urban sprawl. they occasionally turn up in swimming pools. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 15 saving crucial habitat is by far the most effective means of conserving wildlife. traditionally, conservationists have abdicated this responsibility to institutions, public or private — but sometimes individuals have to take the initiative into their own hands. following is a step-by-step guide based on the successful establishment of the sweetwater reserve near tucson, arizona. step 1: recognize the opportunity — and act! identifying a parcel of land of ecological importance is critical. even experienced biologists, trained to recognize biological values that might be missed by the amateur, cannot do it alone. ecologists may know to consider parcel size, its ecological diversity, and its connections with other protected natural areas. these are crucial attributes. land lacking even one of these elements probably doesn’t warrant protection. opposition to the proposal will quickly recognize and exploit such inherent weaknesses. however, biological significance isn’t enough. an area’s the sweetwater strategy: saving habitat at the grassroots level thomas wiewandt wild horizons, tucson, arizona photographs by the author except where indicated. sweetwater strategy q sweetwater preserve.—this view is to the northeast toward tucson, as seen from the western end of the sweetwater property. tucson and the santa catalina mountains appear on the distant horizon. saguaro-studded hills in the foreground block views of homes along camino del cerro. our goal: acquisition of sweetwater preserve by a public agency for conservation and open space purposes to help achieve the goals of the sonoran desert conservation plan. 16 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 recreational potential and aesthetic appeal must be taken into account. selling the idea of a sanctuary that would be “off-limits” to people is much more difficult than promoting one with some carefully managed recreational potential and visual appeal. to effectively integrate such varied concerns, a team that includes nature lovers such as birders, hikers, campers, artists, and ordinary citizens is necessary. once an area has been identified, act quickly! determine who owns the land and investigate its potential for acquisition. trying to stop a project after the property has been sold to a developer almost invariably proves futile. step 2: organize like-minded citizens should meet to discuss the proposal and develop an action plan. an effective group should include scientists and the nature lovers to which we alluded above, but a consortium that effectively solicits support from individuals with a wide variety of skills will have a much higher probability of success. involvement of persons such as attorneys, writers, photographers, real estate agents, graphic designers/publishers, and community members skilled in public speaking and political activism will dramatically enhance the likelihood of success. part of any effective action plan is the recruitment of an appropriate broker to negotiate the acquisition. ideally, this would be a widely recognized and reputable conservation organization such as the nature conservancy, an open land trust, the trust for public lands (tpl), or comparable regional and wiewandt fishhook barrel cactus (ferocactus wislizeni).—succulent surprises abound within the sweetwater preserve. dense stands of young saguaros (carnegiea gigantea) and ancient barrel cacti of enormous proportion populate the land. flowers of the barrel cacti open in july and august during the summer rainy season, providing nectar and pollen for native bees. in autumn, mule deer (odocoileus hemionus), antelope ground squirrels (ammospermophilus sp.), and curved-billed thrashers (toxostoma curviostre) are among the animals that feast on the lemon-yellow fruit. sweetwater preserve: key points size and diversity proximity to other conservation areas watershed and riparian habitat vertebrate species of concern cultural and historic resources viewsheds trails sweetwater strategy even international entities. in some cases, this organization eventually would become the owner/steward of the property; in others, they would act as an intermediary between the land owner(s) and the recipient organization, e.g., a city or county government. representation by such an institution lends credibility to the effort. not only does it remove the possibility of criticism that those involved seek to benefit personally in any way, but such entities do not become engaged in proposals that lack substance, and their participation provides a means of soliciting financial support via deductible contributions. in the sweetwater effort, the neighborhood group worked with the tucson mountains association and tpl. tpl entered a prolonged and difficult three-year negotiation with the owners on behalf of pima county, arizona, and eventually purchased the land for the county government, a loan to be repaid with funds raised through a local bond election. step 3: prepare a report a visually and intellectually enticing document is essential for moving the project forward — and the difficulty of doing this effectively should not be underestimated. experience and expertise are critical. seek outside help if the assembled team doesn’t already include such persons. a poorly written and poorly executed report will waste everyone’s time and will almost inevitably doom the project to failure. iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 17 desert spadefoot toad (scaphiopus couchii).—awakened by vibrations from pounding raindrops during violent summer storms, spadefoot toads emerge to breed in temporary puddles in arroyos. life in the water — from egg to tadpole to toadlet — can be completed in less than two weeks. by eating only one big meal of termites, adults can outwait fickle rains and make it through another year of sleep underground. sweetwater timeline june 2000 tucson mountains committee (tmc) prepares report identifying sweetwater as the largest remaining tract of undeveloped land in the eastern tucson mountains march 2001 community members meet with county supervisor and are directed to prepare a detailed report and to talk with the trust for public land (tpl) to solicit their support in acquiring the property july 2001 tpl meets with county supervisors, the county administrator, and the tucson mountains association (tma) and agrees to assist the county and community in efforts to secure sweetwater september 2001 tma sweetwater preserve committee completes report and presents it to county supervisors, the national park service, and the arizona congressional delegation october 2001 began ongoing process of soliciting endorsements from diverse community, environmental, and governmental organizations; in all, 52 endorsements were secured, including: national park service, arizona sonoran desert museum, coalition for sonoran desert protection, pima trails association, southern arizona hiking club, neighborhood coalition of greater tucson, tucson pima county historical commission, sierra club, tucson mountain riders, arizona daily star november 2001 tpl begins negotiations with the landowners to secure an option for the potential acquisition of sweetwater august 2002 tpl completes negotiation of terms of option contract; tma raises > $30,000 for option payment contribution november 2002 tpl and the landowners sign the option contract for the 620-acre sweetwater parcel with the understanding that a bond election is planned for may 2003; property owners begin survey of property to plan development in the event the bond does not pass december 2002 supervisors delay bond vote until november 2003 july 2003 supervisors delay bond vote until may 2004 december 2003 tpl/landowner option agreement expires; tpl negotiates a contract extension through mid-june 2004, requiring additional option payment and firm tpl purchase commitment by february 2004; additional 80 acres added to the project after consultation with county and community/environmental groups february 2004 purchase agreement completed; pima county board of supervisors approve purchase of sweetwater (with contingencies) by a 5–0 vote may 2004 “open space” bond passes with sweetwater as the first property listed; final appraisal provided by tpl to county for review and approval october 2004 sweetwater nature preserve becomes a pima county park the document should be concise, yet filled with compelling facts and a sense of urgency. this will require the engagement of specialists to make surveys and assessments to broaden the appeal of the project and strengthen its case. if possible, include critical habitat for rare or endangered species, but keep the focus broad. the endangered species act offers tremendous legal clout, but emphasizing the integrity of the whole endeavor will help build wider community support for a conservation project and alleviate possible fear of excessive governmental interference on the part of those who own property adjacent to the focal parcel. prepare the report so that it is easy to digest. assume that important decision-makers, whose support (or lack of opposition) is crucial, won’t take the time to study in detail every document that comes their way. use engaging photographs with descriptive captions, an “executive summary,” and sidebars or pullouts to emphasize key points. ask yourself, “would someone completely unfamiliar with this project come away with a full grasp of its significance by just reading the executive summary, the photo captions, and the highlighted bits of text?” if the answer is “yes,” the report will most likely serve its purpose. have the document professionally designed and printed. local designers and printers who identify with your cause will often do the job at cost or even offer their services for free. in the sweetwater project, the designer discounted her services; and one printer handled the color pages while another did the blackand-white printing, collating, and binding — all at their cost. a supporter paid for the design and printing services, channeled through a non-profit organization (tpl) to make this a taxdeductible contribution. step 4: form alliances with a convincing report in hand, circulate copies to important individuals and community organizations for support. seek written endorsements from a broad base, including such groups as neighborhood associations, newspapers, women’s organizations, experts on natural resources, hiking clubs, and conservation societies. the more, the better — keeping in mind that support from persons and groups with disparate agendas will strengthen dramatically the appeal of the proposal to decisionmakers. add such letters of support to the document. 18 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 wiewandt despite the pace of development on the west side over the last 20 years, large portions of the desert landscape remain relatively undeveloped. one of the more pristine areas is a 615-acre tract in the foothills of the tucson mountains near the western extremity of sweetwater road. it’s a remarkably scenic and peaceful slice of the sonoran desert, but in the absence of county action, it may one day be turned into another resort. the land is now owned by sweetwater properties, inc., a company partly controlled by local investors who evidently are willing to sell if the price is right. the tucson mountains association wants to see the land turned into a nature preserve that would be open to the public for hiking, horseback riding and bicycling. a deal is in the works, but its success depends partly on public donations and partly on county action. the owners of the tract say they’ll take the land off the market for a year if somebody comes up with the $40,000 property tax payment due on november 15. the tucson mountains association has raised approximately $18,000 and the trust for public lands, a national conservation organization, has agreed to put up $20,000. this is a cause worth supporting. it potentially will have long-range benefits for the entire community, both in terms of outdoor recreation opportunities and the preservation of plants and animals native to the sonoran desert. success or failure hinges to a large extent on whether the pima county board of supervisors votes to include the sweetwater property in a bond election that will be held next year. the board’s vote is expected early next month. a spokesman for the tucson mountains association says it will not cash any of the donations it has received until it knows for certain that the property will be included in the bond election that will be held next may. the land in question is a stone’s throw from the eastern boundary of saguaro national park. the university of arizona’s entomological research station is about a quarter mile to the south. the county’s extraordinary tucson mountain park is also nearby. this is an area that is populated but not densely developed. it should be kept that way. the proposed sweetwater preserve is a rare opportunity for the community. the property would make an excellent regional park that could be managed to protect wildlife corridors and the rare vegetation native to the sonoran desert. at present, the fate of this project is precarious. the land has not yet been appraised and no one knows beyond a doubt what its market value is. the owners — so far the names of those involved in sweetwater properties inc. have not been disclosed — are willing to delay any sale if somebody else pays the property taxes until the matter is settled. for the public, this remains a risky investment but one with potentially great rewards. b u y i n g t i m e arizona daily star, 22 october 2002 continued on p. 22 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 19sweetwater strategy work diligently at soliciting local support. educational programs aimed at the local populace, especially school children, will elicit positive local media coverage. establish rapport with reporters and write letters to editors and station managers. the more people who are aware of the proposal and convinced of its value, the more likely will be the eventual success of the project. arrange for special meetings with state, county, and city officials to enlist their support (emphasizing the need for involvtiger rattlesnake (crotalus tigris).—this attractive reptile lives only in the desert mountains of southern arizona and northern méxico. thirty years ago, this species was relatively common in tucson mountain park near gates pass; today it is rare there. it is unprotected, prized by snake collectors, and, like many desert reptiles, suffers heavy mortality on paved roads. paved roads trap heat, so heat-seeking pedestrians — reptiles and amphibians — often linger on these warm surfaces. tiger rattlesnakes still are seen regularly in the sweetwater preserve area. reptiles of the tucson mountains2 lizards: western banded gecko (coleonyx variegatus), mediterranean gecko (hemidactylus turcicus)*, desert iguana (dipsosaurus dorsalis), spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura hemilopha)*, lesser earless lizard (holbrookia maculata), greater earless lizard (cophosaurus texanus), common collared lizard (crotaphytus collaris), long-nosed leopard lizard (gambelia wislizenii), desert spiny lizard (sceloporus magister), clark’s spiny lizard (sceloporus clarkii), sideblotched lizard (uta stansburiana), tree lizard (urosaurus ornatus), regal horned lizard (phrynosoma solare), giant spotted whiptail (cnemidophorus burti stictogrammus)**, sonoran spotted whiptail (cnemidophorus sonorae)**, western whiptail (cnemidophorus tigris)**, gila monster (heloderma suspectum). snakes: western blind snake (leptotyphlops humilis), spotted leaf-nosed snake (phyllorhynchus decurtatus)***, saddled leaf-nosed snake (phyllorhynchus browni)***, coachwhip (masticophis flagellum), sonoran whipsnake (masticophis bilineatus), western patch-nosed snake (salvadora hexalepis), glossy snake (arizona elegans), gopher snake (pituophis melanoleucus), common kingsnake (lampropeltis getula), long-nosed snake (rhinocheilus lecontei), blacknecked garter snake (thamnophis cyrtopsis), banded sand snake (chilomeniscus cinctus)****, southwestern black-headed snake (tantilla hobartsmithi), lyre snake (trimorphodon biscutatus), night snake (hypsiglena torquata), western coral snake (micruroides euryxanthus), western diamondback rattlesnake (crotalus atrox), sidewinder (crotalus cerastes), black-tailed rattlesnake (crotalus molossus), tiger rattlesnake (crotalus tigris), mojave rattlesnake (crotalus scutulatus). turtle: desert tortoise (gopherus agassizii). * introduced ** north american lizards formerly assigned to cnemidophorus are now placed in the genus aspidoscelis *** confirmation is needed nearer the mountains **** sand snakes are now placed in the species chilomeniscus stramineus (see iguana 11(1), p. 7). 1 this and all other boxed items were excerpted from the sweetwater preserve and sonoran desert conservation plan, prepared by the tucson mountains association sweetwater preserve committee, september 2001. 2 compiled by cecil schwalbe and taylor edwards. note that not all species listed are found within the sweetwater preserve. dense stands of the saguaro cactus populate sweetwater preserve, and young plants are numerous…. during the early summer dry season, when food and water are often critically scarce, the saguaro provides the desert’s only source of moist fruit; and the multitude of animals that feed on it are as diverse as wasps, bats, javelinas, and woodpeckers. mountain lion (puma concolor).—many of us who live in tucson dream of the day when we can capture an image like this one in the wild. symbol of the arizona-sonoran desert museum and photographed there, this magnificent cat still roams our desert mountain ranges. in recent years, mountain lions have been observed on several occasions in the sweetwater area. 20 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 wiewandt xeroriparian habitat and the 700-acre sweetwater preserve.—habitats with intermittent water supplies are vital to the welfare of more than toads, they help sustain most wildlife in the tucson mountains. besides providing opportunities to drink, desert streambeds offer food and shelter that is unavailable or less desirable elsewhere. for many large mammals, arroyos serve as roadways, making travel across desert terrain quick and easy. four major washes on sweetwater preserve have been identified by pima county as important xeroriparian “a” habitat; i.e., that of greatest value to wildlife. sweetwater drive and adjacent areas with low-density private dwellings is on the left, two major tributaries of sweetwater wash join as they intersect with blue bonnet road in the lower left, and hiking/equestrian trails can be seen to the north (right) of these important natural watercourses. photograph taken from an ultralight aircraft by adriel heisey. the 700-acre sweetwater preserve in the tucson mountains is now on the verge of public ownership, after the board of supervisors took a crucial step tuesday toward buying it. the board approved the sale of $11.7 million in bonds to cover sweetwater’s purchase. the vote came more than three years after neighbors of the parcel near tortolita road south of camino de oeste launched a campaign to save it. the sale, part of a larger sale of $65 million in county bonds, gave the trust for public land the assurance it needs to buy sweetwater from its private owners, county administrator chuck huckelberry said. the county will in turn buy the land from the trust. by the end of june, the county will buy the sweetwater preserve area, lying in the shadow of saguaro national park west and tucson mountain park. this will be the first major purchase with the county’s new, $174 million open-space bonds voters approved in may. on tuesday, the private, nonprofit trust sent a title company the money for the land. formal closing will occur in a week, said michael patrick, the trust’s sweetwater project manager. the parcel’s size, its classically sonoran mix of saguaro, ocotillo, prickly pear, creosote, palo verde and the scenic mountain views it affords have long made it a priority for its neighbors and many other tucson environmentalist to buy. in february, supervisors unanimously agreed to its purchase if three other conditions were met: voter approval of the open-space bonds, county approval of a property appraisal and a recommendation for the purchase by the conservation acquisition commission. but partly because of the parcel’s high cost and because the board approved it before the open-space bond vote in may, the purchase has had critics. last week, five acquisition commission members abstained on the recommendation. three members supported it. but nobody spoke against the sweetwater purchase tuesday. debbie hecht, co-chairwoman of the sweetwater nature preserve committee, told the board that tucson mountain residents had put in countless volunteer hours and raised tens of thousands of dollars to help keep an option alive to buy the property. sweetwater purchase is nearing reality tony davis (arizona daily star, 16 june 2004) iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 21sweetwater strategy the county’s open space bond was approved in a landslide victory on may 18, 2004, with the voters of pima county approving $174 million to acquire lands for protecting biologically important habitat, providing additional open space for the community and preventing urban encroachment of davis-monthan air force base. pima county announced on june 11, 2004 that it completed the purchase of the sweetwater preserve, 695acres of important biological habitat and open space land in the tucson mountains, with assistance from the trust for public land. the property will be set aside for permanent use as a recreational and natural resource area and as an addition to the county’s tucson mountain park. this acquisition is the first land protected using funds from the county’s open space bond funds. tma expressed their gratitude to supervisor richard elias, supervisor sharon bronson, pima county administrator chuck huckelberry, congressman raul grijalva and michael patrick from the trust for public land, who have supported this effort for the past four years. “saving sweetwater required a tremendous commitment in grassroots volunteer efforts from the people of the tucson mountains, including a major effort to get out the vote in support of the may open space bond measure. the best is yet to come as our children and grandchildren enjoy this pristine land for years to come. we look forward to working with pima county parks and natural resource staff in the park planning process for sweetwater,” said debbie hecht, who along with paula chronister co-chaired the sweetwater nature preserve committee. the sweetwater preserve committee wrote the sweetwater report starting the process in june 2000. tma was advised during meetings with supervisor raul grijalva (who was district 5 supervisor at the time) and chuck huckelberry, pima county administrator to ask for help from the trust for public lands. tma raised over $30,000, which was used as part of the money to secure the option on the property. tma volunteers worked many hours with the friends of the sonoran desert to pass the 2004 open space bond. sweetwater preserve is the largest remaining undeveloped property in the eastern portion of the tucson mountains, located south of camino del cerro, north of sweetwater and west of camino de oeste, just three miles outside of tucson’s city limits. in addition to providing for outstanding recreational uses by county residents, the property provides habitat for a number of vanishing species, for example the cactus ferruginous pygmy owl, desert tortoise, gila monster, lesser long nosed bat, grey fox, tiger rattle snakes and mountain lions. it also contains many thousands of young and mature saguaro cacti. because of the diverse geology of the tucson mountains and uneven distribution of plants and vegetative communities in this area, the sweetwater preserve will provide additional protection for the estimated 30% of the botanical diversity in the tucson mountains that falls outside the boundaries of the saguaro national park west. the preserved area contains sweetwater wash, a major watershed for the tucson mountains and a major wildlife connector between the national park and the santa cruz river. acquisition of the property has received endorsements from over fifty organizations, including national park service, u.s. fish and wildlife service, the arizona sonoran desert museum, tucson audubon society, the coalition for the sonoran desert protection, arizona open land institute, the nature conservancy, southern arizona hiking association, pima trails and the sonoran institute, among others. s w e e t w a t e r n a t u r e p r e s e r v e b e c o m e s a p i m a c o u n t y p a r k celebration planned for october 17, 2004 at the tortolita (north) side of the property www.tucsonmountainsassoc.org today, the gila monster is celebrated for what he is: a unique, native southwesterner whose infrequent appearances bestow a special blessing on the land and brighten any day afield. the animal’s venomous nature is considered fascinating rather than sinister, and his bizarre reputation is regarded more as charming regional folklore than the product of gothic nightmares. as one of the most brilliantly colored, yet least seen and understood inhabitants of the sonoran desert, the lizard has come to symbolize the desert’s beauty and mystery. let us hope the gila monster will remain a source of such inspiration and be with us always. — from brown & carmony, 1991 gila monster: facts and folklore of america’s aztec lizard ing team members experienced in political activism who have already established contacts). many such meetings are required to keep the project in constant view (politicians, especially, often have short attention spans). be certain that all public hearings are well attended by knowledgeable and well-spoken persons who support the project. detractors must be out-voiced, and the best way of achieving this is to present overwhelming quantities of supportive evidence, which almost always wins over even the most loudly voiced opinions. step 5: persevere challenging those who would rather see wildlife habitat turned into a resort or a housing project is never easy. don’t assume victory until the papers are signed. the hurdles are numerous and will sometimes seem insurmountable. however, with a welldesigned and effectively implemented strategy and perseverance, grassroots conservation projects can succeed. 22 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 wiewandt desert tortoise (gopherus agassizii).—this charismatic reptile is especially vulnerable to habitat disturbance, illegal collecting, and disease. alien grasses that take root and spread from roadsides and housing developments foster desert fires. fires injure and kill tortoises and degrade their habitat. because females mature slowly and produce few young, the loss of just one animal per year can be catastrophic to a declining population. in arizona, killing or collecting desert tortoises is illegal, but they are not federally protected at this time. adults and juveniles are regularly seen within the sweetwater preserve. the tucson mountains support a surprising botanical richness…. no other desert range of similar size has such a large flora. one reason for the great richness is its topographical diversity ranging from the santa cruz river through valley floors and bajadas, rocky slopes, deep canyons, and a summit that is just above the desert in relict oak-grassland vegetation. the equal summer and winter rainy seasons contribute further to the number of plants; numerous species respond mainly to one or the other season. lastly, because of its position on the wet eastern edge of the sonoran desert there are numerous elements coming in from the grasslands to the east. — mark dimmitt iguana 12.3 b&w text 142 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 gutsche especially males are not always grayish or blackish. this male was amazingly colorful, looked freshly shed, and his skin displayed a pearlescent quality in bright sunlight. the utilization of mangroves as preferred habitat has a certain exclusivity within the iguanidae and also (as far as we know) within the class reptilia. certain reptiles appear frequently in mangrove habitat, but these are typically temporary visitors from marine (e.g., crocodylus acutus) or terrestrial habitats (e.g., boa constrictor). even species often designated as mangrove specialists, such as the mangrove skink (emoia atrocostrata), the mangrove monitor (varanus indicus), and the mangrove snake (boiga dendrophila), also inhabit terrestrial habitats such as rocky coastlines and tropical rainforest (alcala 1986, manthey and grossmann 1997). in contrast, the utila endemics ctenosaura bakeri (commonly known as the “swamper”)and norops utilensis are exclusively mangrove-dwelling lizards (gutsche et al. 2004, köhler 1996). from evolutionary and ecological perspectives, inhabiting mangroves entails some very specific adaptations of diet, behavior, and resource utilization. male ctenosaura bakeri reach a total length of over 800 mm, snout-vent length (svl) of 315 mm, and a weight around 900 g. females are about 30% smaller. adult males have a welldeveloped dewlap (up to 30 mm long) and a prominent dorsal crest consisting of up to 56 dorsal spines (each to 25 mm in height); both are less developed in females. body coloration of adults varies from an inconspicuous grey-brown to bright turquoise blue. the body is generally patternless, and dark shading and dark lateral crossbands are only rarely distinguishable. in contrast, the tail has distinct dark crossbands. the dorsal crest of males consists of white and black spines arranged in alternating groups of two or three of the same color. juvenile c. bakeri are uniformly blackish brown to grey-brown in color with dark brown crossbands on the dorsum and dorsal surface of the tail. this juvenile coloration varies notably from that of many other spiny-tailed iguana species, whose young display green or yellow-green pattern elements or are entirely green in color (köhler 2002). isla de utila belongs to the small caribbean island group known as the islas de la bahia and lies in the gulf of honduras, distribution and habitat utilization of ctenosaura bakeri on utila alexander gutsche institute for biology, department of sensory biology, humboldt university, berlin, germany (alexander-gutsche@web.de) photographs by the author except where indicated. abstract.—ctenosaura bakeri, endemic to utila (honduran bay islands), is one of only two reptiles that are exclusive mangrove dwellers. with a total distribution of 1091 ha, the total size of the three mangrove areas on utila, this species has the smallest range of any in the genus. distribution of three species of mangroves is not homogenous in any of the three areas. also, effects of tides and salt content vary substantially over place and time. i collected and marked 171 iguanas at three study sites. the most animals (107) were caught at the iron bound site, fewer than half that many (40) were caught at big bight pond, and only 24 iguanas were caught at blue bayou. adult iguanas totaled 125, 2.7 times the number of subadults (46). population densities were 63 adults per ha or 103 iguanas (adults + subadults) per ha (iron bound), 37 adults or 39 iguanas per ha (big bight pond), and 20 adults or 24 iguanas per ha (blue bayou). recaptures of marked iguanas numbered from 1–14 and generated 123 distances moved involving 52 individuals (25 females and 27 males). five animals were recaptured exclusively at initial capture sites and most (56 %) moved < 20 m from the site of initial capture. distances moved were greater in males than females. time between first capture and last recapture ranged from 10–323 days. sex specific differences were not evident. the primary factor controlling population density was the abundance of tree hollows, used as retreats and found primarily in larger black mangroves (avicennia germinans). these were inhabited for at least four years, regarded as territory year-round, and aggressively defended. estimates, made using two different models, of total adult population size for the entire island were 21,820–73,097 and 38,185–85,098. key words: ctenosaura bakeri, utila, honduras, bay islands, mangroves, population size, habitat association iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 143ctenosaura bakeri on utila � swamper habitat in a black mangrove (avicennia germinans) stand near iron bound lake. note the finger-like aerial roots emerging from the water in the foreground. about 30 km off the honduran coast. the maximum length of the 41.4-km2 island is 13 km, the maximum width is 4.6 km. utila is of coralline origin and lies on a base of metamorphic rock. the island has very little relief, rising only slightly from west to east. large portions of the island are flat and lie only a few meters (or in the case of the mangrove swamp areas, only a few centimeters) above sea level. the only two areas with more substantial topography are both in the eastern region. the remainder of the erstwhile volcanic crater, pumpkin hill, at 74 m above sea level, is the highest elevation on utila, although it covers only a small area. the considerably larger area of the 51m high stuart hill extends as a hilly landscape from the settlement at east harbor (utila town) and runs about two kilometers to the north. also significant to the makeup of the island is the canal, which was excavated in the 1950s as a connection between the south (oyster bed lagoon) and north coasts (rock harbor) for small fishing boats and to provide easier access to the north side. the climate of utila has relatively constant temperatures throughout the year and distinct rainy and dry seasons. the rainy season begins around the end of august and extends to the end of february. the rainiest months are october and november, in which more than half (58%) of the annual precipitation falls. at this time, the northeast trade winds can form hurricanes over the central caribbean, and these are known to pass over the island at irregular intervals (e.g., hurricane marco, november 1996; hurricane mitch, october 1998). the dry season, with monthly precipitation < 100 mm/m2, starts in early march and lasts until the end of july, sometimes to mid-august. the months of march and april are driest. the average monthly temperature is relatively constant with a mean annual temperature of 26.3 ± 1.9 °c. the lowest temperatures occur during the rainy season. the absolute daily temperatures during this period vary between 19 (night) and 29 °c (day). starting in march, the weather conditions change. as the frequency of precipitation decreases, the mean daily temperature increases slightly, fluctuating between 23 and 32 °c, with the highest monthly mean in august (28.6 °c). the relative constancy of utila temperatures can be attributed to its location in the tropics and the moderating effect of the surrounding caribbean sea. utila lies in the range of semi-evergreen, tropical tradewind forest. leaf loss and blossoming of the uppermost canopy layers are tied to the summer dry season, whereas the lower levels remain largely evergreen (walter and breckle 1999). the vegetation of utila is remarkably diverse, considering the small size of the island and the limited relief. also notable is the clear separation of the various vegetative communities. extensive transition zones are absent. the island can be divided roughly in two parts: the higher-lying eastern part with the remains of semievergreen tradewind forest and the larger, flatter western part, which is dominated by mangroves and wet savannah. the mangroves on utila make up one of the most important, but azonal (i.e., not linked to climate zones) vegetative communities (walter and breckle 1999). their occurrence is much more strongly tied to the presence of salt and/or brackish water in the tidal zone. strictly speaking, genuine mangrove habitat (hogarth 1999) is characterized by the following criteria (tomlinson 1986): (1) they are woody tree species, whose occurrence is restricted to mangrove habitat where they can form 144 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 gutsche adult males are impressive. they can grow to a total length of 80 cm and weigh more than 900 g. dorsal spines are not always held erect like those of green iguanas, but they can be erected for advertisement or aggressive displays. iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 145ctenosaura bakeri on utila stands; (2) stands are periodically flooded by salt water; (3) the mangrove species have both physiological and morphological adaptations to their habitat, e.g., mechanisms for salt elimination and pneumatophores (erect roots that rise above the soil or water and promote gas exchange). mangroves on utila are surrounded in some areas by mangrove-accompanying flora, which has a transitional character between the genuine mangrove and the bordering vegetation. this flora includes species that are not found in pure mangrove habitat and have only limited tolerance for salt water and flooding. adaptations, such as pneumatophores and salt glands, are lacking in these species. materials and methods field studies occurred mainly in two phases, from 27 june 1999 until 17 july 2000 and 1 january to 31 december 2001, allowing examination of distribution, abundance, and population structures within a complete yearly cycle. due to the arboreal lifestyle of c. bakeri and the fact that the ground beneath the trees was usually submerged, trapping, as suggested for other large lizards (e.g., varanus niloticus and iguana iguana; lenz 1995, van marken lichtenbelt and alberts 1993), was not possible. in addition, traps would be in constant danger of plundering by poachers. nighttime capture (as with i. iguana and amblyrhynchus cristatus; boersma 1982, harris 1982) is also not possible, because these lizards spend the night in largely inaccessible tree hollows. consequently, animals were captured by hand with the aid of a noose. this was facilitated by a particular behavior of c. bakeri. although many animals would flee at the approach of humans, some would remain motionless on their perches, bodies pressed against the branch. i climbed trees to 17 m in height, using a 3-m-long catchpole equipped with a self-closing noose. i used 2–3 mm strong, smooth cord for adult iguanas and waxed dental floss for lighter juveniles. once noosed, a secure grip behind the head would calm the animal, which was then transferred into a sturdy cloth bag and passed to a second person on the ground. handling time between capture and removing the noose was generally less than one minute. following capture, i examined, measured, and marked each iguana. this task was facilitated by the lethargic behavior individuals generally began to exhibit once caught. i recorded biometric data, sex, any special characteristics, cloacal and ambient temperatures, and the identification code. two types of marking were used; a permanent code by removing some dorsal spines, and a temporary lateral color code for distance recognition. i also noted the exact circumstances of capture, such as the location and time, tree criteria (e.g., the presence of a hollow retreat or basking perch), exact position of capture, and the current weather conditions. data collection and marking required about 15 min. subsequently, each iguana was released in the tree from which it was taken. results ctenosaura bakeri exclusively inhabits the genuine mangrove swamps and iguanas occurred in all areas with mangrove stands. individuals might inhabit an appropriate tree in mangrove-bordering vegetation, which would only occasionally be influenced by tides; however, this tree would always be within a few meters of true mangrove habitat. because the mangrove areas are clearly differentiated from the bordering vegetative communities and transition zones rarely extended more than a few meters, the habitat of c. bakeri was essentially congruent with areas covered by mangrove. these photographs of iron bound lake during high and low tides demonstrate the extreme and dynamic nature of swamper habitat. the brackish mangrove swamps form a permanent part of utila’s wetland and cover about 30% of the island. large portions of utila’s west side are covered with the non-permanent wet savannah, a unique and fascinating landscape rarely seen on the mainland because of deforestation and draining of land. the wet savannah is covered with up to 30 cm of fresh water during rainy seasons and completely dry during dry seasons. the primary vegetation is reed grass, small palm trees, and shrubs; carnivorous plants are common in some spots. the total distribution area of c. bakeri consisted of three separate mangrove areas not connected by corridors of mangrove or mangrove-bordering vegetation. the smallest of these areas (115 ha) is on the eastern part of the island. it extends around big bight pond between the settlement at utila town and utila’s eastern coast. another area lies in the central part of the island and extends from the northern coast of utila at rock harbor and iron bound along the canal to oyster bed lagoon in the south and from there first to the west and then north to turtle harbor pond. with a total area of 612 ha, this is the largest stretch of habitat. the third area is in western utila and has an area of 364 ha. it extends from the southern coast at aliah channel in a northeasterly direction as far as the north coast at turtle harbor, where it splits into two small stretches, one east along the coast at turtle harbor and the other west as far as don quickset bay. the total size of the three mangrove areas is 1091 ha or 10.91 km2 and comprises 26.6 % of utila’s total land area. three mangrove species occur on utila: black mangrove (avicennia germinans, verbenaceae), white mangrove (laguncularia racemosa, combretaceae), and red mangrove (rhizophora mangle, rhizophoraceae). the three mangrove species display no particular distribution pattern on utila, across the island and within individual stands. in principal, the following formations could be identified. a large portion of mangrove stands was composed of a mix of the three species with mean tree height of 8–10 m. the mixture of mangrove species was not homogeneous, instead r. mangle predominated and small groups of the other two species were interspersed in a mosaic pattern. one other formation was characterized by the clear dominance of one of the three species, with the non-dominant species scattered individually. tree height was highly variable. for example, in the area of oyster bed lagoon, stands were dominated by r. mangle with a mean height of 3 m, whereas the two interspersed species reached heights to 6 m. in contrast, stands in the area around iron bound lake were dominated by a. germinans that reached heights to 12 m, whereas the interspersed species reached only 3–5 m. stands consisting of only one of the three mangrove species were both rare and small. trees within these stands were mostly very old, massive, and tall. examples include a. germinans west of oyster bed lagoon (to 17 m), r. mangle on the banks of turtle harbor pond (to 15 m), and l. racemosa north of aliah channel (to 20 m). several mangrove lakes, such as iron bound lake, occurred in all areas. these are open basins with isolated mangrove islands and often only temporary drainage. noteworthy was a high proportion of dead mangroves inside of the lakes. the periodic flooding (tide) of the mangroves on utila occurs over lagoons (e.g., oyster bed lagoon) and canals as well as over the coralline, highly porous ground, which is filled with an extensive network of cavities (j. grant, usaid, pers. comm., 2001). according to my measurements, the normal tidal rise along the coast was about 300 mm, in the mangrove areas in the interior of the island only 30–50 mm. only mangrove areas close to the shore are subjected to periodic tides throughout the year. areas far from shore were extremely dependant on precipitation-related flooding. during the rainy season, these areas, depending on relief, would be covered by up to 800 mm of floodwater. during the dry season, water levels would be 146 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 gutsche knob-like aerial roots of the white mangrove (laguncularia racemosa). the most striking feature of mangrove trees is the aerial roots, which are essential for the trees to breathe in the saturated soil. to catch the swamper, the author had to climb as high as 15 m into the trees with his catchpole and noose loop. a le x a n d er a r zt one of the essential requirements for swampers is a refugium. tree hollows are necessary for mangrove dwellers unable to dig holes in the ground. older black mangroves (more often than the other mangrove species) offer hollow trunks and branches. from our studies, we were able to conclude that a high incidence of older black mangroves (with the swamper’s preferred tree hollows) correlated with higher population densities of swampers. without a compelling reason to seek a new home (outgrowing a current one or destruction of a tree by a hurricane or poachers), swampers may stay in the same tree for years. a le x a n d er a r zt iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 147ctenosaura bakeri on utila reduced to a few centimeters or nothing. occasionally even the flatter mangrove lakes would be completely dry for long periods of time. when the spring tides came, the tidal rise along the coast measured about 600 mm. mangrove areas that had dried up completely were flooded within a few hours without any precipitation. salt content of the mangrove areas varied considerably and was inversely proportional to the yearly distribution of precipitation. during the winter rainy season, brackish water in the mangroves is diluted by precipitation. beginning at the onset of the dry season, the salt content increased over the course of the summer, sometimes substantially exceeding that of the ocean. also, heavy rains spontaneously decreased concentrations. capture-recapture study.—the following data pertain largely to adults. wherever relevant, data from juvenile animals is included, although detailed conclusions were not possible due to the nature of the data. animals with an svl > 150 mm were designated as adults and smaller animals as subadults. i collected and marked 171 iguanas at three study sites, each about one ha in size, over a period of 11 months. the most animals (107) were caught at the iron bound site, fewer than half that many (40) were caught at big bight pond, and only 24 iguanas were caught at blue bayou. adult iguanas totaled 125 individuals (73.1 %), 2.7 times the number of subadults (46 individuals, 26.9 %). similar adult-biased ratios occurred at all three study sites: 1.00:0.20 (blue bayou), 1.00:0.05 (big bight pond), and 1.00:0.60 (iron bound). population densities were 63 adults per ha or 103 iguanas (adults + subadults) per ha (iron bound), 37 adults or 39 iguanas per ha (big bight pond), and 20 adults or 24 iguanas per ha (blue bayou). variation in population density was closely correlated with the abundance of appropriate tree hollows that were used by iguanas as retreats for sleeping and hiding. blue bayou exhibited a comparatively small number of iguanas and a comparably small number of retreats, whereas iron bound had both a high density of iguanas and a greater number of retreats. even on a small scale within study sites the distribution of tree retreats is heterogeneous. for example, in one of two 300-m2 areas at iron bound, two retreats exist and were used by two adults. in the other area, of 12 retreats, only nine had adult inhabitants, while the other two were unoccupied. the abundance of tree retreats depended largely on the presence of particular mangrove species. within the three study sites, 31 of 945 mapped mangrove trees contained retreats. of these, 27 (87.1 %) retreats were in black mangroves, four (12.9 %) in white mangroves, and none in red mangroves. in relation to the number of trees of each species, 14.8 % of black mangroves (n = 182), 10.8 % of white mangroves (n = 37), and none of the swamper habitat in a white mangrove stand near iron bound lake. “mangrove” is a generic name for an intertidal forest. surrealistic view of a mangrove lake during low tide. open places like this, with dead remnants of mangrove trees, are common components of utila’s swamp vegetation. the genesis of utila’s mangrove lakes is not precisely clear; they nevertheless create a fascinating landscape. red mangroves (n = 726) contained retreats. the proportion of mangrove species varied among study sites. blue bayou was dominated by red mangroves with few retreats and a limited number of iguanas. iron bound, with a smaller percentage of red mangroves and an increase in black mangroves, had a greater abundance of iguanas (table 1). space and time constancy.—the greater the spatial and the longer the temporal constancy of the animals locally, the more precise the estimates of population size and structure (white 1982). the measure used to determine spatial constancy for c. bakeri was the distance between capture and recapture location, and for temporal constancy, the time span between first and last capture or sighting. to calculate the distance covered by the iguanas, all adult iguanas with at least one recapture were considered. the number of recaptures ranged from 1–14 and generated 123 distances involving 52 individuals (25 females and 27 males). five animals, three females and two males, were recaptured exclusively at initial capture sites. extreme values occurred at iron bound, where one male was recaptured 14 times at his original capture site and another male was recaptured twice with displacement distances of 77 and 89 m. of the 123 distances, 50 (42.3 %, 30 females and 20 males) fell within 5 m of their first capture site. the number of recaptured animals diminished with increasing distance. only 22 (44.0 %) captures involved distances > 20 m from the site of initial capture. mean distance covered, as well as the minimum and maximum values for males at both big bight pond and iron bound were higher than for females. at blue bayou, no females were recaptured. altogether, the mean distance covered by females was 8.8 m and the greatest recorded distance for any female was 36 m. with a mean of 19.6 m, the mean distance for males was 2.2 times greater than that of females. the individual time differences between first capture and last recapture for the 52 iguanas ranged from 10–323 days. seven (13.5 %) animals were recaptured within one month, 29 (55.8 %) animals within to six months, and 16 (30.8 %) animals within 7–11 months after initial capture. sex specific differences were not evident. population sizes.—i selected two models to calculate adult population sizes at each of the three study sites (table 2). both models are extrapolations using proven statistical methods. based on recapture data, the population numbers calculated for each of the individual study sites varied from 35–78 individuals per hectare using the first model and from 72–114 individuals per hectare for the second model. the lowest values were for blue bayou, the highest for iron bound. based on the reality that the total distribution is small and of known size, adult iguanas display site fidelity over several years, and individual activity radii are small, i calculated an estimated total adult population size for the entire island (table 3) as 21,820–68,733 based on actual capture data, 38,185–81,825 (model 1) and 78,552–120,010 (model 2). discussion the habitat of ctenosaura bakeri is limited exclusively to three disjunct mangrove areas of utila with a total area of 1091 ha. i could not determine whether the surviving remnant mangrove areas were once contiguous. such a scenario is quite possible given the flat topography of utila and the variable water levels evident in the region’s geological history (perfit and heezen 1987, pregill and olson 1981). larger anthropogenic influences on the extent of the mangroves, at least in modern times, can be ruled out. older local people claim that the current extent is the same as it was about 30–40 years ago (j. gabourel, s. mcnab, bica-utila, pers. comm., 2000). however, clearing and draining of small sections of mangrove around utila town occurred at the end of the 19th century (rose 1904). with a total distribution of 1091 ha, ctenosaura bakeri has the smallest range of any species in the genus ctenosaura (köhler 2002). only c. nolascensis, with a range of barely 1500 ha (grismer 1999), comes close. consequently, c. bakeri was recently upgraded to the status of “critically endangered” by the iucn (zoerner and köhler 2004). habitat association.—based on both biotic and abiotic factors, the habitat of ctenosaura bakeri can be characterized as extreme. the mangroves of utila correspond to a type of basin or inland mangrove (hogarth 1999). limited tidal influence and the accumulation of nutrients and sediment are typical for this type, as is the influence of local conditions such as precipitation, evap148 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 gutsche resting volunteers in swamper habitat in a pure red mangrove (rhizophora mangle) stand. surveying the swamper population is a difficult job involving a great deal of climbing. table 1. characterization of habitat relative to the abundance of ctenosaura bakeri in three study sites on utila. high abundance dominance of black mangrove (> 60 %) (iron bound) or pure stands, predominantly medium to larger sized trees (6–12 m), other species interspersed. medium abundance slight dominance of red mangrove (big bight pond) (ca. 50–60 %), predominantly of medium height (6–8 m), other species in small areas or interspersed in a mosaic pattern. low abundance strong dominance of red mangrove (blue bayou) (> 80 %), predominantly of low to medium height (3–6 m), other species isolated or scattered throughout. iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 149ctenosaura bakeri on utila oration, and the flow of ground water, which collectively result in enormous fluctuations of salt content. such abiotic conditions have a crucial influence on the distribution of individual mangrove species (hogarth 1999, tomlinson 1986) and may be responsible for the heterogeneous composition of utila’s mangroves. the reasons for ctenosaura bakeri adapting to specialized mangrove habitats on utila are unclear. the species probably evolved from mainland-based ancestors. potential ancestors may include the same ancestors as for c. melanosterna and c. palearis. ctenosaura similis, which also occurs on utila, belongs to a different subgenus (buckley and axtell 1990, köhler et al. 2000, köhler 2002). access to the island may have involved over-water dispersal during hurricanes, as is known for i. iguana in the lesser antilles (censky et al. 1998), or a landbridge to the mainland during the last ice age (perfit and heezen 1987, pregill and olson 1981). two possible explanations for the habitat associadistances between initial capture and recapture sites for c. bakeri in the three study areas. the x-axis is distance (m). hypothetical abundance of c. bakeri on utila. table 2. hypothetical total population of adult ctenosaura bakeri on utila. calculations reflect extrapolations from actual capture data and from models 1 and 2. study site #/ha #/ha #/ha total population estimates (capture data) (model 1) (model 2) (1091 ha) blue bayou 20 35 72 21,820 / 38,185 / 78,552 big bight pond 37 43 70 40,367 / 46,913 / 76,370 iron bound 63 75 110 68,733 / 81,825 / 120,010 tion include forced adaptation, since mangrove swamps largely covered utila at the time of speciation, or, more likely, ecological exclusion from other habitats that had been successfully colonized by c. similis and iguana iguana. niche partitioning would account for the coexistence of three species of large iguanas in a limited area, a situation unique to utila, the only known location with more than two sympatric, naturally-occurring species of iguanas. population density.—the high population densities within my three study sites (24, 39, 103 individuals/ha) was comparable to findings from three other sites where kuttler (2000) found densities of 27, 39, and 50 individuals/ha. in contrast, studies of other large iguana species in areas not threatened by hunting often found lower population densities, e.g., 5.1 individuals/ha for ctenosaura similis (case 1982, fitch and henderson 1978), 1.5–17.7 individuals/ha for iguana iguana (muñoz et al. 2003, van devender 1982), and 12.4 individuals/ha for sauromalus varius (case 1982). high population densities seem to correlate with a high proportion of juveniles, mainly because adults are territorial and usually protect large individual territories (fitch 1973, fitch and henderson 1978). this would account for isolated high population densities of c. similis (139.2 individuals/ha) and i. iguana (100.5 individuals/ha), where the proportion of adults was only 10 % (van devender 1982). in contrast, the average proportion of adult ctenosaura bakeri in all six study sites (this study and that of kuttler 2000) was 77.6 ± 11.3 % (62.6–95 %) and all available personal observations indicate that the animals are territorial throughout the year. an explanation for the high density of individuals would be the favorable distribution of limited resources, e.g., suitable retreats for hiding and sleeping (duellman and duellman 1959, fitch and henderson 1978, köhler 2002). where retreats were abundant locally, high concentrations of individuals were observed, e.g., for c. similis (fitch and henderson 1978). similar correlations seem to exist for c. bakeri, as the number of tree-hole retreats corresponds to abundance. the behavior of c. bakeri confirms the significance of suitable retreats. retreats were inhabited exclusively for at least four years, regarded as territory year-round, and aggressively defended. retreats were found predominantly in avicennia germinans, usually in older trees. this is due to core rot, which begins in early stages of growth. the correlation between the number of retreats and iguanas and the obvious significance of suitable retreats thus appears relevant for extrapolating the total distribution area of c. bakeri. during the capture-recapture study, adults displayed sitefidelity and remained predominantly within a radius of about 150 iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 gutsche typical view of a swamper, high in a tree, difficult to see, and almost impossible to reach. when it is too late for them to hide in holes (as in this picture), they rely on crypsis by pressing their bodies against a branch and remaining motionless. in the face of any threat (in this case, the author), swampers move behind branches and carefully assess the risk while relying on crypsis and lack of motion to prevent detection. such "squirreling" behavior is not uncommon among iguanian lizards.. another avenue of escape is to jump from a tree and dive or swim away from the threat. in this case, the male jumped from about 10 m when the author tried to catch it, but iron bound lake was too shallow and it could not escape. table 3. population density estimates of adult ctenosaura bakeri in the individual study sites based on recaptures of marked animals. data are from two different models. each value is presented ± one standard error (se), followed by the 95 % confidence interval in parentheses. study site model 1 model 2 blue bayou 35 ± 9 (26–65) 72 ± 20 (45–129) big bight pond 44 ± 3 (41–55) 72 ± 15 (53–117) iron bound 78 ± 5 (73–91) 114 ± 16 (93–155) iguana • volume 12, number 3 • september 2005 151ctenosaura bakeri on utila 20 m from their home tree. suitable retreats continued to be inhabited even past the 11-month study period. of 29 animals recaptured in iron bound during the course of the study, 17 were recaptured at the same home tree in later control captures after periods of 410–1305 days. behavioral observations in 2001 (in iron bound) additionally showed that individuals not recaptured during the study (1999/2000) continued to inhabit their home trees. with animals situated permanently, the basic conditions for the most precise possible calculation of the population size are satisfied (begon 1979, white 1982). the estimated population size of 21,820–73,097 adults, in comparison to earlier population estimates of only a few hundred individuals (köhler 1998) was surprising, although similarly high numbers (21,000–24,000) were estimated by kuttler (2000). the earlier lower estimate was attributable to a lack of sufficient data. maximum densities in the study sites had not yet been reached. new captures originated predominantly from animals that were present within the study area. this resulted in observations of individuals living in the study sites but not yet captured, as well as studies of flight behavior. when approached, over 90 % of iguanas fled into retreats. only a few animals would remain in place with bodies held tightly against the branch and could be captured or identified. this was further verified by the low number of iguanas sighted per catch day, which ranged from 5–19 % of the total number of animals captured and the number of animals actually proven to be in the areas. new captures were distributed over the entire catch period, so that the probability of capture was not based on time-dependant criteria. the total recapture rate (41.6 %) would have been lower if capture and marking had substantially influenced behavior. many marked animals were recaptured during the next catch day. personal observations indicated that some iguanas would leave their retreats within 30 min of being marked. the recapture rate of males was higher than that of females. this is probably attributable to more aggressive territorial behavior in males, and is similar to observation of male c. similis and c. pectinata (evans 1951, fitch and henderson 1978). acknowledgements this study was part of a dissertation project and i am grateful to all friends, colleagues, and field assistants for their help. a special thanks to robert powell and aj gutman for realizing the tranlation of the text. this work was supported by the german academic exchange service, a graduate grant by the town of berlin and the isler-foundation. literature cited alcala, a. c. 1986. guide to the philippine flora and fauna: amphibians and reptiles. univ. philippines, manila. begon, m. 1979. investigating animal abundance: capture-recapture for biologists. e. arnold, london. boersma, p. d. 1982. the benefits of sleeping aggregation in marine iguanas, amblyrhynchus cristatus, pp. 292–299. in: g. m. burghardt and a. s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes publ., park ridge, new jersey. buckley, l. j. and r. w. axtell. 1990. evidence for specific status of the honduran lizards formerly referred to ctenosaura palearis (reptilia: squamata: iguanidae). copeia 1990:138–150. case, t. j. 1982. ecology and evolution of the insular gigantic chuckwallas, sauromalus hispidus and sauromalus varius, pp. 184–212. in: g. m. burghardt and a. s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes publ., park ridge, new jersey. censky, e. j., k. hodge, and j. dudley. 1998. over-water dispersal of lizards due to hurricanes. nature 395:556. duellman, w. e. and a. s. duellman. 1959. variation, distribution, and ecology of the lizard enyaliosaurus clarki of michoacan, mexico. occ. pap. mus. zool. michigan (598):1–11. evans, l. t. 1951. field study of the social behavior of the black lizard, ctenosaura pectinata. amer. mus. novitates (1493):1–26. fitch, h. s. 1973. a field study of costa rican lizards. univ. kansas sci. bull. 50:39–126. fitch, h. s. and r. w. henderson. 1978. ecology and exploitation of ctenosaura similis. univ. kansas sci. bull. 51:483–500. grismer, l. l. 1999. an evolutionary classification of reptiles on islands in the gulf of california, mexico. herpetologica 55:446–469. gutsche, a., j. r. mccranie, and k. e. nicholson. 2004. field observations on a nesting site of norops utilensis köhler, 1996 (reptilia, squamata) with comments about its conservation status. salamandra 40:297–302. harris, d. m. 1982. the phenology, growth, and survival of the green iguana, iguana iguana, in northern colombia, pp. 150-161. in: g. m. burghardt and a. s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes publ., park ridge, new jersey. hogarth, p. j. 1999. the biology of mangroves. oxford university press, new york. köhler, g. 1996. a new species of anole of the norops pentaprion group from isla de utila, honduras (reptilia: sauria: iguanidae). senck. biol. 75:23–31. köhler, g. 1998. das schutzund forschungsprojekt utila-schwarzleguan. natur und museum 128:44–49. köhler, g. 2002. schwarzleguane. lebensweise – pflege – zucht. herpeton verlag, offenbach. köhler, g., w. schroth, and b. streit. 2000. systematics of the ctenosaura group of lizards (reptilia: sauria: iguanidae). amphibia-reptilia 21:177–191. kuttler, h-p. 2000. untersuchungen zur populationsökologie und zum ortsverhalten des utila-leguans (ctenosaura bakeri). unpubl. diplomarbeit, johann wolfgang goethe universität, frankfurt/main. lenz, s. 1995. zur biologie und ökologie des nilwarans, varanus niloticus (linnaeus 1766) in gambia, westafrika. mertensiella. dght, rheinbach. manthey, u. and w. grossmann. 1997. amphibien und reptilien südostasiens. natur und tier-verlag, gmbh., münster . muñoz, e. m., a. m. ortega, b. c. bock, and v. p. paez. 2003. demography and nesting ecology of green iguana, iguana iguana (squamata: iguanidae), in 2 exploited populations in depresion momposina, colombia. rev. biol.trop. 51: 229–239. perfit, m. r. and b. c. heezen. 1987. the geology and evolution of the cayman trench. geol. soc. amer. bull. 89:1155–1174. pregill, g. k. and s. l. olson. 1981. zoogeography of west indian vertebrates in relation to pleistocene climatic cycles. ann. rev. ecol. syst. 12:75–98. rose, r. h. 1904. utilla: past and present. f. a. owen publ. co., dansville, new york. tomlinson, p. b. 1986. the botany of mangroves. cambridge univ. press, cambridge. van devender, r. w. 1982. growth and ecology of spiny-tailed and green iguana in costa rica, with comments on the evolution of herbivory and large body size, pp. 162–183. in: g. m. burghardt and a. s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology, and conservation. noyes publ., park ridge, new jersey. van marken lichtenbelt, w. d. and k. b. alberts. 1993. reproductive adaptations of the green iguana on a semi-arid island. copeia 1993:790–798. walter, h. and s. w. breckle. 1999. vegetation und klimazonen. grundriß der globalen ökologie. verlag eugen ulmer, stuttgart. white, g. c. 1982. capture-recapture and removal methods for sampling closed populations. los alamos national laboratory, los alamos, new mexico. zoerner, s. and g. köhler. 2004. ctenosaura bakeri. in: iucn. 2004. 2004 iucn red list of threatened species. www.redlist.org. iguana 12.2 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 131conservation research reports road mortality altering sex ratios in turtles with an increase in turtle road mortality accompanying the expansion of the road network throughout the united states, affecting mostly females searching for suitable nest sites, gibbs and steen (2005. conservation biology 19:552–556) predicted that historical trends in sex ratios of turtle populations would be increasingly male-biased. using 165 estimates of population-level sex ratios for 36 species (published from 1928–2003), the authors demonstrated that the proportion of males in populations had increased linearly. populations have become more male-biased in aquatic species, in which movement differentials between males and females are greatest, and are least biased in semiaquatic and terrestrial species, in which overland movements are more comparable between sexes. their results suggest an ongoing depletion of breeding females from wild turtle populations over the last century. commercial trade in amphibians and reptiles amphibians and reptiles are taken from the wild and sold commercially as food, pets, and traditional medicines. because some species have been over-collected and the united states, unlike most countries, tracks imports and exports of all amphibians and reptiles, schlaepfer et al. (2005. bioscience 55:256–263) examined records from 1998–2002. this revealed a us trade of several million wild-caught amphibians and reptiles each year, although many shipments were not recorded at the species level. because accurate trade and biological information for most species are not available, establishing whether current take levels are sustainable is difficult. the void of information also implies that population declines due to over-collecting could be going undetected. decline in a population of wood turtles in southern québec wood turtle (glyptemys insculpta) populations have been declining throughout the species’ range and some populations have been extirpated. daigle and jutras (2005. journal of herpetology 39:130–132) used mark-recapture methods to document a 50% reduction over seven years in an agricultural area in southern québec. emigration from the area is not likely; instead, increased mortality and poor recruitment probably are responsible for the decline in the turtle population. increased mortality may be related to increased incidence of roadkills, deaths attributable to farm machinery, burial or crushing by heavy machinery during stream bank stabilization, higher predation pressure, and even poaching. because of success in finding juveniles in other wood turtle populations, the authors did not think the low numbers of young individuals was due to either secretive habits or use of habitats that were not sampled. thus, the best explanation is poor recruitment. since apparently suitable nesting sites are available, low nesting success, attributable to increased predation, especially by racoons (procyon lotor), appears to be responsible. conservation status of the komodo dragon information on population size and distribution of the komodo monitor (varanus komodoensis) is largely restricted to surveys conducted on only part of the species’ range, the most recent of which was conducted in 1971. ciofi and de boer (2004. the herpetological journal 14:99–107) noted that populations occur on only four islands in komodo national park and on the island of flores in southeastern indonesia. population density estimates for flores were more than 60% lower than those for islands in komodo national park. habitat fragmentation and poaching of prey species currently represent the main threats to v. komodoensis. protection of monsoon forests in western and northern flores is crucial for the long-term conservation of the species. c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s road-killed common snapping turtle (chelydra serpentina) from hickory county, missouri. populations have become more male-biased in aquatic species, because females may wander far in search of nesting sites, whereas males rarely leave the immediate vicinity of water. b r ia n s . e d m o n d detailed and accurate data are not available for most imported species. establishing whether or not current take levels are sustainable is impossible. complicating matters is high mortality in many shipments. these flat, stacked boxes, nailed together for shipping, are barely high enough to accommodate animals, which are packed tightly. the “tegues” (= tegus, tupinambis sp.) in this shipment, photographed in the mid-1990s at john f. kennedy international airport in new york, did not survive. a ll en s a lz b er g wood turtle (glyptemys insculpta) populations are declining throughout the species’ range. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h a solitary male komodo monitor (varanus komodoensis) on the island of komodo. often called “dragons,” these largest living lizards are threatened by habitat fragmentation and poaching of prey species. jo e w a si le w sk i impact of humans on savanna lizard assemblages habitat degradation through over-grazing and wood collection is prevalent in south africa. although protected areas have been designated for conservation, little is known about diversity outside these areas. smart et al. (2005. biological conservation 122:23–31) assessed the impact of land use on lizard assemblages in communal rangelands by comparing abundance, species richness, and species diversity in degraded communal lands and a protected area. communal lands had fewer large trees and less ground cover, but the authors found no evidence that any species of lizard was negatively affected by habitat disturbance. some species were more common in communal lands, and species richness and diversity were also higher when using certain sampling techniques. this may have been attributable to the preference of many terrestrial lizards for open, sparsely grassed areas, but reduced numbers of predators and competitors may also have played a role. however, species commonly used by traditional healers were not encountered in field surveys, and local residents indicated that they appeared to be declining. declining population or always rare? species that are rare when discovered present a practical management problem because we may not be able to determine whether a taxon is in the final stages of an anthropogenic decline or is naturally uncommon. berry and gleeson (2005. biological conservation 123:197–210) analyzed mitochondrial and microsatellite dna data to distinguish between these possibilities in a rare lizard from southern new zealand. grand skinks (oligosoma grande) are large, rock-dwelling lizards with a fragmented distribution consisting of a western and eastern cluster of populations separated by about 120 km. this distribution could result from human disturbance, pre-human climatic and vegetation changes, or both. the current situation is likely to have both historical and recent anthropogenic elements. two eastern populations showed evidence of being historically large, although they are now small, supporting anecdotal data that grand skinks have declined in historical times. however, reciprocal monophyly suggests long independent evolutionary histories of eastern and western populations that predate the arrival of humans. eastern and western populations fulfill many criteria necessary for consideration as evolutionarily significant units (effectively, species), but such a classification must be balanced against addressing more immediate threats to the species’ survival, such as introduced predators. blanding’s turtle in nova scotia nova scotia populations of blanding’s turtle (emydoidea blandingii) are small and disjunct. what was previously thought to be a single panmictic population consists of three discrete groups in two different watersheds. mockford et al. (2005. biological conservation 123:373–380) identified significant genetic differences in pairwise comparisons between groups. distance rather than watershed seemed to be the principal determinant. population simulations suggested that this differentiation likely pre-dated human influence on the local landscape. in the face of rapid environmental changes, understanding 132 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 conservation research reports the lacertid, pedioplanis lineoocellata, was more abundant in disturbed areas than in a protected area. the species is reasonably common in sparsely vegetated areas throughout much of southern africa. this specimen is from southern namibia, near aus. r o ss s a d li er , a u st r a li a n m u se u m the grand skink, oligosoma grande, is restricted to 8% of its former range in otago, new zealand due to agricultural development and predator pressure. these endangered skinks live on schist rock outcroppings in the harsh environments of the high country. tr en t b el l significant genetic differences exist between isolated populations of blanding’s turtles in nova scotia. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 133conservation research reports spatial structure in this population complex is essential for matching management strategies to ecological realities in this longlived, late-maturing species. artificial lights and hatchling sea turtles artificial lighting disrupts the nocturnal orientation of sea turtle hatchlings as they crawl from their nest to the ocean. tuxbury and salmon (2005. biological conservation 121:311–316) used laboratory experiments in an arena to simultaneously present artificial light (that attracted the turtles toward “land”) and natural cues (a dark silhouette of the dune behind the beach) that promoted “seaward” orientation. artificial lighting disrupted seaward crawling in the presence of low silhouettes, but not high silhouettes. low silhouettes provided adequate cues for seaward crawling when the brightness of artificial light was reduced. based on these results, the authors postulated that artificial light disrupts orientation by competing with natural cues. current restoration practices at nesting beaches emphasize light reduction. however, at many sites, some lights cannot be modified. the study suggests that pairing dune restoration (to enhance natural cues) with light reduction (to the extent possible) should significantly improve hatchling orientation, even at nesting beaches where lighting cannot be entirely eliminated. green bridges teufert et al. (2005. zeitschrift für feldherpetologie 12:101–109) examined use of the “green bridge” across autobahn 4 near bischofswerda (germany). they documented use of the bridge by three species of amphibians (european common toad, bufo bufo; common eurasian spadefoot toad, pelobates fuscus; european common frog, rana temporaria) and three species of reptiles (viviparous lizard, zootoca vivipara; slow worm, anguis fragilis; grass snake, natrix natrix). most crossings were by b. bufo and z. vivipara. the latter especially demonstrated a very high fidelity to appropriate microhabitats, suggesting that the efficacy of green bridges is dependent on maintaining appropriate habitat structure on the bridge and in areas to either side. buffer zones the preservation of riparian taxa often requires the preservation and management of buffer zones around riparian areas. roth (2005. copeia 2005: 399–402) tested this assumption using radio-telemetry to examine the spatial distribution of male, gravid female, and non-gravid female cottonmouths (agkistrodon piscivorus) in a stream/riparian habitat in texas. over 80% of all observations were within 10 m of the stream. however, gravid females were most frequently found farther away, up to 94 m from the shoreline. the author concluded that disturbances to the terrestrial areas surrounding the riparian habitat would have a disproportionate effect on gravid females, potentially affecting the reproductive capacity of the population. this study reinforces the importance of buffer zones and consideration of spatial use differences between population subunits when developing management plans. cottonmouths (agkistrodon piscivorus) usually are associated with streams. however, especially gravid females may move some distance from the stream, indicating a need to maintain sufficient buffer zones when conserving riparian habitats. adult in defensive posture (top), showing the white oral lining from which the common name is derived; juveniles (bottom) are much more distinctly patterned and retain a yellow tail through several sheds. b r ia n d . g r ee n e species that are known to use the “green bridge” near bischofswerda: the viviparous lizard (zootoca vivipara, male and female) and the slow worm (anguis fragilis). g u n th er k ö h le r these hatchling leatherback sea turtles (dermochelys coriacea) were photographed using light from a flashlight with a red filter over the lens in order not to disrupt their orientation. photograph courtesy of the st. eustatius national parks foundation (stenapa). iguana b&w text editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. or canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, 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95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2006 by the international reptile conservation foundation, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international reptile conservation foundation. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editors’ remarks the need for collaboration during world war ii, “collaboration” came to mean something very negative: helping the occupying nazis administer their reign of death. in science, too, the word used to have uncomfortable implications. scientists were expected to be loners, working by themselves in glorious isolation to reduce distraction and intellectual pollution. today, however, the pejorative meaning of the word is becoming less and less common. in science, collaboration is now typically seen as an essential component of successful research. what has changed is the complexity of the projects with which we are dealing and the amount of knowledge needed to address each element. for example, zoos once dealt only with housing animals. then, zoo personnel had to learn to breed them, which required an improved understanding of nutrition and behavior. in addition, modern zoo work involves endocrinologists, who monitor and interpret hormone levels, and veterinarians, who focus on health. in the meantime, however, we’ve noticed that breeding animals in captivity is a hollow success, unless a natural habitat remains to which they can be returned. enter a team of experts who study the animal in the wild and work to protect its environment. consequently, modern zoos employ biologists of all kinds, but also rely on policy experts, lawyers, bankers, landowners, and, to make the public understand why this is all happening, a cadre of education experts. each person is essential for a successful conservation project. several stories in this issue show the importance of collaboration. when the iguana specialist group met (p. 278), reports from various perspectives enhanced iguana conservation. similarly, the horned lizard working group (p. 296) brought together people from diverse disciplines. also, one of our articles is authored by two biologists and a landscape architect (p. 272), who worked in collaboration with private landowners to prevent the arrival of invasive species on a caribbean island. rather than dilute scientific expertise, as people originally feared, collaborations foster better research and conservation. teams of experts working together toward a single goal bring a diversity of tools, experiences, and thought processes to bear on the problem, often resulting in solutions no one scientist could have conceived. we are pleased to see abundant evidence of collaboration on the pages of iguana. ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 12.1 visits to saba, st. kitts, nevis, antigua, guadeloupe, marie galante, dominica, st. lucia, barbados, st. vincent, cariacou, grenada, tabago [sic], trinidad, followed, then la guaira and puerto cabello in venezuela, curacao, santa marta, and cartegena [sic] in colombia, colon in the canal zone, port limon in costa rica, tela, honduras, and cienfuegos, cuba, where we fetched up on the 15th of april. the collections from the west indies in the museum of comparative zoology are extraordinarily rich and varied, so that in many localities there was nothing especially for me to do but to see the sights. this always gave me the greatest possible enjoyment. next to vigorous collecting in a new locality, nothing is so interesting to the naturalist as the opportunity to see those places from which he has studied material gathered by other collectors. that was the case with all these islands in the lesser antilles, which i myself had never visited before. from beata island,2 however, we had no material whatsoever in the agassiz museum so that everything which we got there was new to us, and we made a fine haul, too, all pure gold. this is one of those islands where one of those great and strange looking rhinoceros iguanas3 once abounded. the big, bulky lizards crept about the high limestone hills not far inland from the beach. harmless and inoffensive nevertheless they look like fearsome dinosaurs on a miniature scale. each about three feet long and weighing perhaps fifteen or more pounds they walk slowly about browsing on buds and leaves and before scuttling away with surprising alacrity when they are approached, they first stare at the intruder and bob their heads up and down in a singularly truculent way. this might be a bit disconcerting to one unfamiliar with the ways of lizards in general and iguanas in particular. we preserved several. i am glad we did, for observations made during this visit, and subsequent ones as well, forced the conclusion that they belong to a doomed race.4 no young individuals were to be found and tracks in the sand showed that feral cats, escaped from the abandoned camps of fishermen, who go to beata to dry fish or catch turtles, were responsible. i may add that the fishing off the west coast of the island near our anchorage was splendid. 46 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 historical perspectives allison armour and the utowana1 thomas barbour 1 excerpted from barbour, t. 1945. allison armour and the utowana. priv. published, cambridge, massachusetts. 2 off the southern tip of the barahona peninsula of hispaniola. 3 cyclura cornuta. 4 the population on beata is extant and doing well, despite barbour’s pessimistic assessment. barbour’s conclusion that the rhinoceros iguana population on isla beata was a “doomed race” was premature. photograph by john binns. iguana b&w text 2 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 critically endangered ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) occur only in the dominican republic. a critical portion of the species’ very restricted range has been removed from the dominican protected areas system. rupp, incháustegui, and arias jo h n b in n s iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 2 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 3 ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) is endemic to hispaniola, where it is one of two species of rock iguanas on the island. ricord’s iguana is critically endangered according to the current iucn red list. the population is divided into two isolated areas in the southwest of the dominican republic. one area is in the neyba valley: on isla cabritos in lago enriquillo and some adjacent habitats on the southern shore of the lake. effective management is in place for the isla cabritos lago enriquillo ramsar site, which is also a national park. the southern shore of the lake, however, is not legally protected at this time. in fact, law 202-04 (2004) eliminated this region from the dominican protected areas system. the present study examines the distribution of the species along the southern shore of lago enriquillo and assesses the conservation status of that population. methods in order to localize cyclura ricordii habitats and populations along the southern shore of lago enriquillo, key informants were contacted and interviewed about their knowledge of c. ricordii. photographs of c. cornuta and c. ricordii were used to determine if the persons interviewed were able to discriminate between the two species. in addition, field trips were undertaken to the locations mentioned by informants and landsat satellite photographs were examined in order to identify further potential c. ricordii habitat. the presence or absence of c. ricordii was determined by: (1) direct sightings (clear identification of animals as being c. ricordii), (2) dead animals (identification of carcasses or parts of dead animals as being c. ricordii), (3) tracks (given conditions of fine soil substrate, tracks of c. ricordii and c. cornuta can be differentiated by their width and form), and (4) retreats (c. ricordii tends to occupy sites close to retreats for basking; knowing locations of retreats facilitates identification of basking animals and tracks leading to active burrows can provide an indication of the species occupying the specific retreat). coordinates of locations where the presence of c. ricordii was verified were registered with gps (utm, map datum: nad 27 of the caribbean) and integrated into gis. the extent of major threats to the species was defined and quantified by: (1) interviewing local people; (2) fieldtrips to assess human impact on vegetation and iguanas; and (3) habitat changes evident in satellite images. results status.—the presence of c. ricordii was verified in the following areas: (1) along the main road from duvergé to jimaní preliminary report on the distribution and status of cyclura ricordii along the southern shore of lago enriquillo ernst rupp, sixto incháustegui, and yvonne arias grupo jaragua inc., el vergel # 33, santo domingo, dominican republic photographs by the authors except where indicated. cyclura ricordii in lago enriquillo � distribution of cyclura ricordii in the dominican republic. numbered areas represent isolated populations: (1) isla cabritos in lago enriquillo, (2) southern shore of lago enriquillo, and (3) areas south of the sierra de bahoruco. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 3 4 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 rupp, incháustegui, and arias between the towns of baitoa and el limón; (2) in the area north and east of laguna del limón (called “la florida”), (3) in the area north and east of laguna en medio (the lagoon actually has been drained); and (4) along the old road from duvergé to jimaní starting west of baitoa and extending to arroyo aculadero about 5 km east of jimaní. the occupied areas cover roughly 50 km2, conforming largely to the historically known range identified by josé a. ottenwalder in 1999, but with the notable addition of extending substantially farther to the west along the old road to jimaní. not all areas within this zone harbor the species. dens are absent in areas covered by rock or gravel. the species is mainly present in sandy soil. a high concentration of dens was found in the banks of dry creek beds and ravines, which cut through the marine sediments, often of corals and shells. these sediments make up the major part of the geological layers of the zone. most creeks have a south-north direction and drain into the southern shore of lago enriquillo. one area of apparently suitable habitat (dry creeks, open vegetation) remains to be investigated. it is an area of about 40 km2, situated north of el limón and east of jimaní. cyclura ricordii is sympatric with c. cornuta in the region. a more detailed study is needed to define where c. ricordii appears to have a competitive advantage over c. cornuta. for bank of a ravine with an adult male cyclura ricordii in front of his den. confirmed presence of cyclura ricordii along the southern shore of lago enriquillo. present boundaries of parque nacional lago enriquillo and the nearby area not yet investigated for the presence of cyclura ricordii. bank of a dry streambed with two active dens. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 4 example, thomas wiewandt (unpublished field notes) visited one of the ravines (“cañada de guayabo”) in 1975. he saw only c. cornuta (3 adults on 28 july and one adult and 3 juveniles the following day). we visited the same ravine on 25 may of this year and detected four adult and one juvenile c. ricordii and two adult c. cornuta. the population structure of c. ricordii in this region seems to be healthy. juveniles are seen regularly, indicating that successful recruitment is taking place and suggesting that nesting activities should also be plentiful. so far, we have only been able to detect one nest (12 eggs, all hatched). we assume that females do not move far from their dens to nest wherever suitable substrate is present. in the sandy soils of the area, they should have little trouble finding suitable sites. successful reproduction and a reasonable survival rate of juveniles may have been the key to the survival of the species in the zone to date. however, all of the adult animals can be quickly exterminated in a given area. subsequent recruitment into such areas is therefore of vital importance. threats.—the major part of the zone where c. ricordii is present is not legally protected. it is not included in the dominican national system of protected areas. before law 202-04 was put into effect, all of the known distribution of these populations of c. ricordii was within the boundaries of parque nacional lago enriquillo. law 202-04 reduced the protected habitat of c. ricordii to a small strip along the lakeshore, including the dry laguna en medio. intensive charcoal burning in the 1970s and 1980s practically eliminated all the original vegetation in the area, although wiewandt noted relatively undisturbed vegetation in 1975. the main impact of charcoal production has been a reduction of plant species diversity combined with the introduction of aggressive species like mesquite (prosopis juliflora) and a cholla-like cactus (cylindropuntia caribaea). these two species and three other cacti (stenocereus histrix, opuntia moniliformis, neoabbotii paniculata) dominate most of the current habitat of c. ricordii on the south side of lago enriquillo. the effects of charcoal production on soil and ground conditions are not clear. we have found c. cornuta nesting in old charcoal pits in the area near tres charcos, which is close to parque nacional jaragua, where animals seem to prefer the relatively open pits to the surrounding denser vegetation. we have not been able to verify the same situation along the southern shores of lago enriquillo. iguana hunting is ongoing, involving an estimated 30 persons from the towns of duvergé, venganaver, and baitoa. hunters do not discriminate between c. cornuta and c. ricordii and, in fact, seem to possess little knowledge of iguanas. this is in sharp contrast to the situation in pedernales, where persons with an excellent knowledge about iguanas can be found. one method of catching iguanas consists of putting snares at the entrances of dens. another method consists in closing the iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 5cyclura ricordii in lago enriquillo a two-year-old juvenile cyclura ricordii from the southern shores of lago enriquillo. approximate extent of recent charcoal production and of an agricultural irrigation scheme. a satellite image of a dry streambed and surrounding area near jimaní. note the roads that lead to charcoal production areas. the small round circles are charcoal pits. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 5 entrances of active dens with objects such as stones after iguanas have left their dens. the hunters then wait for the iguanas to return and hunt them with dogs. the most common practice is the excavation of dens. some areas seem to have been “mined” for iguanas, with excavated dens nearly everywhere. recently, charcoal production has begun again in the region between the dry laguna en medio and the town of duvergé, with most of the charcoal destined for haiti. at present, little effort is being exerted to halt this illegal activity. charcoal production and iguana hunting are closely tied. whenever a charcoal pit is found, all dens in the area have been excavated, suggesting that charcoal production not only destroys valuable habitat, but that individuals engaged in such activities also engage in hunting iguanas. over the past few years, an agricultural irrigation scheme has been implemented southwest of el limón, affecting an area where c. ricordii may have been present, although we lack the historical data necessary to confirm that assumption. the concentration of dens in dry creek beds may constitute an additional threat to the species. although creek beds may remain dry during many years, occasional floods can destroy dens because the marine sediments are only loosely cemented together and can easily be washed away. effects of the flood that wiped out part of the town of jimaní in 2004 illustrate the risk to dens in the region. conservation measures.—we had entered into a process with the local government (town hall) of duvergé to delimit, declare, legalize, and administer the zone as a municipal protected area. a change in the political composition of the town council of duvergé in august halted the process, which has yet to be reinitiated. our studies on the distribution of the species have shown that a substantial part of ricord’s iguana habitat lies within the jurisdiction of the town of jimaní. this also is the portion of the range most affected by current charcoal production. a principal focus of our efforts will be to involve the town of jimaní in conservation activities directed toward the designation of a municipal protected area. corresponding regional and national authorities are being addressed regarding the illegal charcoal production in the jimaní area. 6 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 rupp, incháustegui, and arias a gravid female cyclura ricordii inside her den.a stand of cacti (stenocereus histrix) surrounded by mesquite (prosopis juliflora). a recently abandoned charcoal pit. an excavated iguana den approximately 8 m in length. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 6 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 7 a local group, “cielo,” in duvergé has been actively supporting our efforts. with their help, we mounted a teachers’ workshop in august. this program was developed in cooperation with the indianapolis zoo and zoodom (the national zoo in santo domingo). teachers have expressed considerable interest in units addressing the nation’s natural heritage, of which ricord’s iguana comprises an important element. establishing a local support group in jimaní and implementing additional workshops for teachers are critical if the local authorities are to become interested in conservation. acknowledgements we thank the international iguana foundation for its support of this work. references alberts, a.c., r.i. carter, w.k. hayes, and e.p. martins. 2004. iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. arias, y., s.j. incháustegui, and e. rupp. 2004. cyclura ricordii on the barahona peninsula: a preliminary report. iguana 11:9–14. ottenwalder, j.a. 1999. ricord’s iguana, cyclura ricordi, pp. 51–55. in: a. alberts (comp. & ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn/ssc west indian iguana specialist group. iucn, gland, switzerland and cambridge, uk. ramer, j. 2004. a survey of ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) and rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta) in isla cabritos national park, dominican republic. 2003: a preliminary report. iguana 11:89–95. rupp, e., s.j. incháustegui, and y. arias. 2005. conservation of cyclura ricordii in the southwestern dominican republic and a brief history of grupo jaragua. iguana 12:223–233. cyclura ricordii in lago enriquillo certainly the most ubiquitous snake species on the greater antillean island of hispaniola (including many of its satellite islands) is the colubrid antillophis parvifrons. it is a slender snake with a maximum snout-vent length (svl) of 530 mm. dorsal ground color is variable (brown, black, gray, or bluish), and the dorsum may be patternless or with middorsal and dorsolateral stripes. the species occurs in habitats ranging from xeric scrub to rainforest. these snakes appear to be highly seasonal breeders in dry habitats, but may exhibit prolonged or even continuous breeding activity in moister situations at higher elevations. a fast-moving, ground-dwelling, diurnally active snake, it can be found in orchard and plantation situations (e.g., banana, breadfruit, cacao, coconut, coffee), where it may be observed cruising through leaf litter or concealed in coconut or banana trash. it appears to do well in greatly altered habitats and is often encountered near human habitations. antillophis parvifrons is an active forager that feeds on a wide array of frogs (osteopilus, eleutherodactylus) and lizards (sphaerodactylus, anolis, leiocephalus, celestus, ameiva), but anolis accounted for nearly 71% of all prey items in a sample of almost 200 snakes. in contrast, frogs of the genus eleutherodactylus accounted for only 12% of prey items. although small mammals (mus musculus) are occasionally taken, they are not typical fare (2.2% of the sample). groups of three to five individuals have been found together on île-de-la-gonâve (haiti), perhaps in a breeding situation. clutches of 2–15 eggs have been reported, and clutch size is positively correlated with female svl. when threatened, some individuals will raise the forepart of the body and the neck will become flattened dorsoventrally, reminiscent of some species of west indian racers (alsophis). references henderson, r.w., b.i. crother, t.a. noeske-hallin, a. schwartz, and c.r. dethloff. 1987. the diet of the hispaniolan snake antillophis parvifrons. journal of herpetology 21:328–332. powell, r., s.a. maxey, j.s. parmerlee, jr., and d.d. smith. 1991. notes on the reproductive biology of a montane population of antillophis parvifrons protenus (serpentes: colubridae) from the dominican republic. journal of herpetology 25:121–122. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e hispaniolan lesser racer (antillophis parvifrons) robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum, milwaukee, wisconsin the hispaniolan lesser racer (antillophis parvifrons) occurs in habitats ranging from rainforest to xeric scrub, such as that found in the area around lago enriquillo. ja m es d . f o r es te r iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 7 iguana 11.4 i.i.s. board of directors joseph wasilewski, president homestead, fl joseph burgess, vice-president jacksonville, fl a.c. echternacht, ph.d., treasurer university of tennessee, knoxville, tn aj gutman, executive secretary and associate editor of iguana west hartford, ct john & sandy binns, directors, associate editors of iguana and internet operations international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca gunther köhler, ph.d. and elke köhler, directors forschungsinstitut und naturmuseum senckenberg & herpeton, frankfurt, germany robert powell, ph.d., director and editor of iguana avila university, kansas city, mo i.i.s. editorial/advisory board allison c. alberts, ph.d. iucn/ssc iguana specialist group and zoological society of san diego, san diego, ca john bendon, illustrator for iguana bath, england gordon m. burghardt, ph.d. university of tennessee, knoxville, tn frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program, grand cayman, cayman islands jorge ferrari organización de rescate y protección de reptiles y anfibios, tegucigalpa, honduras matthias goetz, dipl.-biol. durrell wildlife conservation trust, jersey, british isles alexander gutsche, dipl.-biol. humboldt universität, berlin, germany richard hudson international iguana foundation and fort worth zoo, fort worth, tx john b. iverson, ph.d. earlham college, richmond, in chuck knapp university of florida, gainesville, fl michael ripca, managing editor of iguana leaping lizards graphic design, atco, nj thomas wiewandt, ph.d. wild horizons, tucson, az founder robert w. ehrig big pine key, fl statement of purpose the international iguana society, inc. is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to preserving the biological diversity of iguanas. we believe that the best way to protect iguanas and other native plants and animals is to preserve natural habitats and to encourage development of sustainable economies compatible with the maintenance of biodiversity. to this end, we will: (1) engage in active conservation, initiating, assisting, and funding conservation efforts in cooperation with u.s. and international governmental and private agencies; (2) promote educational efforts related to the preservation of biodiversity; (3) build connections between individuals and the academic, zoo, and conservation communities, providing conduits for education and for involving the general public in efforts to preserve endangered species; and (4) encourage the dissemination and exchange of information on the ecology, population biology, behavior, captive husbandry, taxonomy, and evolution of iguanas. membership information iguana, the journal of the international iguana society, is distributed quarterly. individual and organizational annual membership dues: u.s. or canada (hard copy) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 international (hard copy) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $50.00 digital file (adobe pdf*) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 * adobe pdf files may be selected by u.s., canadian, or international members. the pdf file is downloaded on demand. notification of download availability will be sent via email. additional copies are available at a cost of $6.00 plus postage. join on-line at: www.iguanasociety.org membership questions? call aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 solicitations members of the i.i.s. are encouraged to contribute articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of iguana biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to ctenosaura@cyclura.com). for any contribution, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. advertising policy of iguana we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). all products have been examined and been found to be high quality and fairly priced. contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sandy@cyclura.com or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2004 by the international iguana society, inc., 133 steele road, west hartford, ct 06119 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international iguana society. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. remarks craig hassapakis, editor of amphibian and reptile conservation (arc), originally conceived the idea to devote a special publication entirely to iguana conservation. allison alberts organized the topics and authors. the first five articles in this issue were subsequently reviewed and edited by craig, his associate editor, jack sites, and the editorial team at arc. they thank the following individuals for their service in reviewing and/or editing those articles: mark goodwin, malcolm mccallum, gad perry, michael dreslik, csilla csaplar, john mcvay, stephen johnson, deahn donner wright, bethany meisinger-reiff, and craig snyder. due to an impacted publication schedule at arc, iguana kindly offered to publish the special issue. this solution exemplifies the cooperation being exhibited in herpetology, and arc and the authors of the articles are grateful to the editors of iguana for their foresight and generosity in accommodating this material. editorial note.—in powell (2004. iguana 11(2):108–113), the author commented (figure caption, p. 109) that “cyclura carinata bartschi is not genetically distinct from the nominate subspecies,” citing malone and davis (2004. in: alberts et al. (eds.), iguanas: biology and conservation). in fact, the genetic composition of the booby cay population has yet to be compared to populations in the turks & caicos islands that are assigned to the nominate population. we thank glenn gerber for bringing this to our attention. iguana 12.2 b&w text i’m not sure how many iguanaphiles can boast of having fabricated the suit for robocop ii, or being the visual effects supervisor on cat woman, but joel friesch can (not that he boasts — he doesn’t — and, yes, he met halle barry). i’ve known joel friesch for 20 years, and his artistic talents continue to amaze me. our paths first crossed in the milwaukee public museum in the mid-1980s when joel, as a fine arts (painting and drawing) student at the university of wisconsinmilwaukee, was hired to model and paint amphibians and reptiles for a permanent exhibit on rainforest ecology. as it was my responsibility to oversee all aspects of the exhibit concerned with herps, joel and i had many interactions. during the multi-year production of the exhibit, joel intimated that his supervisor wanted him to enhance the color of some of the critters to make them more eye-catching. he told me he’d only paint them the way i wanted them done. i was, of course, impressed with his devotion to accuracy. we had some live giant hispaniolan treefrogs, osteopilus vastus, for the exhibit. on his own time, joel carved and accurately painted a model of this neat frog about 50 times life size. on the night the exhibit opened, he had fastened it to a wall of the exhibit and we enjoyed watching visitors’ surprise as they 108 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 henderson p r o f i l e the artist as iguanaphile: a profile of joel friesch robert w. henderson section of vertebrate zoology, milwaukee public museum 800 w. wells street, milwaukee, wisconsin 53233, usa joel painting “mugwumps” for david cronenberg’s movie naked lunch at chris walas, inc. in the 1990s. joel clear-coating a model of a burmese python (python molurus molurus) modified and painted to look like a green anaconda (eunectes murinus) at the milwaukee public museum in 1987. photograph courtesy of the milwaukee public museum. joel painting reptiles with jerry persick for a rainforest exhibit at milwaukee public museum in 1987. photograph courtesy of the milwaukee public museum. iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 109profile of joel friesch realized what they were seeing (that giant frog now resides in my living room, a gift from my wife who bought it from joel). joel came to the museum already enamored of iguanas. he had two between 2nd and 5th grades, but was forced to donate them to the milwaukee zoo because his parents felt they were “too big” for him. because we had to purchase some live green iguanas in order to make detailed models for the exhibit, joel asked me to order two juveniles for him. i don’t think joel has been without iguanas since. i knew joel’s goal was to work in the movie industry as a special effects artist. i had hoped he’d stay at the museum, but showbiz beckoned; shortly after graduation, he headed for california. not surprisingly, success in the movies came fairly quickly. he free-lanced for disney and other studios before assuming a permanent position with tippett studios in san francisco. as luck would have it, just as joel was beginning his career in the movies, the movies were in the process of going almost exclusively to computer-generated special effects. joel learned the new techniques on-the-job, and he has graduated from an animatronics technician on “arachnophobia” to visual effects supervisor on the forthcoming “charlotte’s web.” between his spider pics, joel has worked on “naked lunch,” “nightmare before christmas,” “mission to mars,” “cat woman,” and “hellboy,” to name a few. he also has done lots of commercials, winning a couple of clio awards in the process. a few years into his “hollywood” career, joel called and asked when i was heading out for my next field trip and could he come along. i was heavily involved with treeboas (corallus) by then, and making regular trips to grenada. in 1993, joel made the first of his treeboa trips. i knew he’d be low maintenance in the field: hardworking and no complaining. however, he went a step farther by bringing along a supply of pop tarts for breakfast to offset the monotonous menu of peanut butter sandwiches. joel was fearless in the field: he’d climb trees i was no longer agile enough to ascend myself, and he always wanted to capture the biggest treeboas. i can recall his first shot at capturing a large female (uh, treeboa). it was perched low under some shrubbery and joel had to stoop low to get a good angle on it. once you commit to grabbing one, you can’t hesitate ‘cause they’ll nail you. joel hesitated and joel got nailed. he yelped and bled, but he joel participated in the 2000 shedd aquarium trip to andros island, bahamas; shown here with the first capture of an andros iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura). c h u c k k n a pp a portrait of “billy” (grand cayman blue iguana, cyclura lewisi) as joel first saw him at the breeding and headstarting facility on grand cayman. treefrog (osteopilus vastus) sculpture (above joel), circa 1986-7. this sculpture now hangs in the home of the author. photographer unknown. caught the snake. subsequently, joel made a second trip to grenada and one to trinidad, always in pursuit of treeboas. despite my best efforts to keep joel focused on snakes, his early fascination with iguanas would not go away. he counts seeing a male iguana iguana sprawled on a branch high above a river in belize among his fondest memories. working with chuck knapp, his first sighting of cyclura on andros was another high point, along with seeing billy, the blue iguana (c. lewisi) emerging from the brush to greet him for the first time on grand cayman. despite being ultra-sensitive to poisonwood (joel’s wife cathy is a nurse, and, when she picked him up at the airport after his return from andros, the first stop was the emergency room at the local hospital.), he has returned to the bahamas to be of assistance as needed. joel has been, and continues to be, active in iguana conservation. he designed: the old and new logos for the international iguana foundation, signs for protection of iguana delicatissima on st. eustatius, a hurricane ivan t-shirt for grand cayman iguana promotion, cyclura pinguis art for the san diego zoo, the logo for the turtle survival alliance, the dr. frederic frye veterinary medicine award, the utila iguana t-shirt, header art for the anegada wildlife news, a t-shirt for conservation of iguanas on saba, a “save the andros iguana” poster for chuck knapp that he distributes on andros, and cartoons for the blue iguana recovery program. one of joel’s most recent artistic endeavors is the design for the king blue bobblehead figure, the head of which is based on his meticulously detailed blue iguana bust. he also helped build head-start cages for cyclura on anegada. for his own enjoyment, joel has created wonderfully detailed sculptures of various species of iguanas (as well as the occasional monitor, tortoise, and snake). these are scale-for-scale representations and each is hand-painted. the elegant sculptures can be viewed at www.scaledart.com. i’m the proud owner of two. attached to their home in san rafael is the rwh cyclurium, a walk-in habitat for a male cyclura cornuta and a male c. lewisi x c. caymanensis hybrid (the two guys are separated by a wooden door). joel and his 4-year-old son mason check on the iguanas every morning; with joel’s enthusiasm for iguanas, i’m sure it’s just a matter of time before baby daughter avery makes it a threesome. 110 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 henderson joel receiving hugs from “dino,” john and sandy binns’s black throat monitor (varanus albigularis ionidesi) in 2001. jo h n b in n s joel and his son mason in the “rwh cyclurium” holding “andros” (rhinoceros iguana, cyclura cornuta) with “duke” (grand cayman blue and cuban iguana hybrid, cyclura lewisi x nubila) on the other side of the screened cage. c a th y f r ie sc h joel was an ircf team member refurbishing the anegada headstarting facility in 2001. jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 111profile of joel friesch an illustration of an utila iguana (ctenosaura bakeri) that joel created to support the conservation program for the utila iguana. at an ircf-sponsored educational event at marin formative, san rafael, in april 2005, joel displays “duke,” his grand cayman blue and cuban iguana hybrid (cyclura lewisi x nubila) to young attendees. m a h in b eh r o u z, t ea c h er cyclura lewisi population survey in june 2002 (from left: joe wasilewski, alberto jaramillo, fred burton, and joel friesch). jo el f r ie sc h joel arriving in tortola, bvi in 2001waiting to clear immigration on the way to anegada. jo h n b in n s illustration of a saba black iguana (iguana iguana) that will be used to promote public awareness of the unique iguanas of saba, netherlands antilles. illustration of a rhinoceros iguana, cyclura cornuta. illustration of a stout iguana, cyclura pinguis. iguana 12.3 b&w text grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) (see article on p. 166). iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 12, number 3 september 2005 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess jo h n b in n s populations of the utila spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura bakeri) are limited by the availability of tree-hole retreats in the black mangrove trees of the island’s swamps (see article on p. 142). is the abundance of florida box turtles (terrapene carolina bauri) in some areas detrimental to their conservation status (see article on p. 152). the massasauga rattlesnake (sistrurus catenatus) is one of many species of concern to missouri’s state herpetologist (see article on p. 160). pharoah, a grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi), was “royalty” at the indianapolis zoo (see article on p. 175). monitor lizards, such as as this water monitor (varanus salvator), are not for beginning hobbyists (see article on p. 177). c . k en n et h d o d d , j r . jo h n p u r pu r a jo e eh r en b er g er ae nash releases a wild grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) with a radio transmitter attached, in the blue iguana recovery program’s bid to learn about the last of the wild blues (see article on p. 166). fr ed er ic j . b u r to n b er n d e id en m u ll er a le x g u ts c h e iguana 13.1 b&w text t hi s c lo se -u p of a t im be r r at tle sn ak e (c ro ta lu s h or ri du s) re ve al s t he e lli pt ic al p up il ch ar ac te ris tic o f n oc tu rn al ly a ct iv e pi tvi pe rs a nd th e in fr ar ed -s en sit iv e pi t f ro m w hi ch th is fa m ily o f s na ke s g et s i ts n am e an d w hi ch is u se d to d ire ct st rik es . t hi s i nd iv id ua l w as fr om p ie rc e c ou nt y, w isc on sin (s ee a rt ic le o n p. 3 1) . barney oldfield, www.lizardsandlandscapes.com “e l lagarto a zul,” the b lue a nole (a nolis gorgonae) of isla g orgona, c olom bia (see travelogue on p. 47). joeseph burgess << /ascii85encodepages false /allowtransparency false /autopositionepsfiles true /autorotatepages /none /binding /left /calgrayprofile (dot gain 20%) /calrgbprofile (srgb iec61966-2.1) /calcmykprofile (u.s. web coated \050swop\051 v2) /srgbprofile (srgb iec61966-2.1) /cannotembedfontpolicy /error /compatibilitylevel 1.4 /compressobjects /tags /compresspages true /convertimagestoindexed true /passthroughjpegimages true /createjdffile false /createjobticket false /defaultrenderingintent /default /detectblends false /detectcurves 0.0000 /colorconversionstrategy /leavecolorunchanged /dothumbnails false /embedallfonts true /embedopentype false /parseiccprofilesincomments true /embedjoboptions true /dscreportinglevel 0 /emitdscwarnings false 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/leaveuntagged /untaggedrgbhandling /usedocumentprofile /usedocumentbleed false >> ] >> setdistillerparams << /hwresolution [2400 2400] /pagesize [612.000 792.000] >> setpagedevice iguana 13.1 b&w text 8 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 alberts adult cuban iguana, cyclura nubila, and an example of the very dry habitats at guantánamo bay. jo se ph b u r g es s iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 8 when looking for a suitable place to study some of the world’s rarest reptiles, a relatively isolated military base might at first seem like a surprising choice. however, the united states naval base at guantánamo bay, cuba, like many military installations worldwide, supports large areas of undisturbed natural habitat and is home to an impressive abundance of wildlife. guantánamo bay lies in oriente province in the southeastern corner of cuba. it is the oldest overseas united states military base, originally acquired as a coaling station in 1903, but reaffirmed by treaty in 1934 after the american fleet aided cuba during the spanish-american war. because only 11% of the 20square-mile base is actively used by the military, large areas of near-pristine cactus and thorn scrub, buttonwood and phyllostylon forest, and mangrove tidal thickets remain. guantánamo lies in the rain shadow of the looming sierra maestra. consequently, this starkly beautiful region is very dry, receiving only 40–75 cm of rain each year. with air temperatures averaging 28–30 °c throughout the year, it’s no wonder that as many as 30 terrestrial species of amphibians and reptiles, 21 of which live nowhere outside of cuba, make guantánamo their home. among these, the cuban iguana (cyclura nubila) is one of the largest, undoubtedly the most visible, and certainly the most charismatic. no one completes a tour of duty at “gitmo” without getting to know these inquisitive, prehistoriclooking giants. giant iguanas remarkably, these robust lizards have somehow managed to survive millennia of hurricanes and hunting by native peoples. unfortunately, outside the fenceline, iguana populations are now declining because their habitat is being eliminated by developconserving the remarkable reptiles of guantánamo bay1 allison c. alberts photographs by the author except where indicated. iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 9reptiles of guantánamo bay � endemic cuban todies (todus multicolor) take advantage of large areas of near-pristine habitats at the united states naval base, guantánamo bay, cuba. 1 reprinted with permission from: a. c. alberts. 2003. conserving the remarkable reptiles of guantánamo bay, pp. 67–73. in r. w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), islands and the sea: essays on herpetological exploration in the west indies. contributions to herpetology, volume 20. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, ithaca, new york. typical undisturbed coastal habitat at the united states naval base, guantánamo bay, cuba. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 9 ment or degraded by invasive species. a host of exotics, including mongooses, dogs, feral cats, and black rats, prey heavily on juvenile iguanas, and, in many areas, domestic ungulates are consuming the native vegetation on which iguanas critically depend. since the early 1990s, my colleagues and i at the san diego zoo have had the privilege of visiting guantánamo bay many times, working to design conservation strategies for cuban iguanas and other threatened reptiles. getting to guantánamo is no easy undertaking, but thanks to the united states navy, we’re able to fly in style aboard the base commander’s c-12 aircraft, with a pleasant layover in jamaica that allows us to spend time with friends and colleagues at the tiny yet fascinating hope zoo in kingston. since the rediscovery of the jamaican iguana (thought to be extinct since 1940) in a rugged limestone-floored forest outside kingston, aptly named the hellshire hills, the hope zoo has been working to establish a headstarting program for young iguanas. a dedicated facility was built on zoo grounds, which currently houses 100 baby iguanas — all being raised in a safe environment until they are old enough to survive on their own in the wild. to date, 26 iguanas sporting radiotransmitters have been returned to hellshire, all have established stable home ranges, and at least some released females appear to be nesting successfully. education is a major part of the mission of the hope zoo, and they have recently completed a new learning center on zoo grounds that attracts thousands of school children each year. the brightly painted sign at the zoo’s iguana exhibit sends a simple message that says it all: “nuff respect due.” after a short plane flight out of kingston, cuba’s rugged coastline comes into view, and one can begin to appreciate the strategic and economic importance of the many deep and sheltered harbors afforded by guantánamo bay. with the hazy mountains and bustling guantánamo city in the distance, we board a military ferry to cross the bay, a journey that begins in calm waters favored by west indian manatees, but becomes increasingly choppy as the crossing progresses. after about 45 minutes, we arrive on the windward side of the naval base, piled high with gear, and ready to begin our research. lizards and howitzers we initially began our field studies of cuban iguanas in 1993 along a windswept section of rocky coast called firing point, with the hope of gaining an understanding of the basic biology of these lizards, as well as developing practical strategies for their recovery. we quickly came to appreciate the origin of the site’s name when we first experienced the thunderous testing of nearby howitzers, an event to which the local iguanas appear amazingly and blithely oblivious. although frustrating trial and error characterized our early attempts to capture these often feisty five-foot-long lizards, the process was ultimately made easier by our fortuitous discovery that red grapes, like red flowers, were a favored food item and could easily be used to lure unsuspecting iguanas into hand nets. over the course of a year, we captured each adult iguana at firing point once a month, and recorded its body length, weight, head size, and the diameter of the femoral scent glands lining the thighs, all of which seem to be important for successful defense of territories. after placing the animals in canvas bags to quiet them, we also collected a blood sample from the tail for hormone analysis. for the iguanas, the daily routine varies little, consisting of a vigorous burst of social activity after morning emergence, followed by relatively peaceful migration to nearby areas of vegeta10 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 alberts adult cuban iguana, cyclura nubila, at guantánamo bay. jo se ph b u r g es s iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 10 tion for midday feeding, and ending with a second bout of social interaction late in the afternoon prior to entering nighttime refuges. most adult males regularly engage in aggressive interactions with other males. these usually consist of a lumbering chase, but occasionally prolonged pushing, hissing, and biting matches ensue. almost without exception, the most dominant males have the highest testosterone levels, are larger in body and head size, and possess more active scent glands than lower-ranking males. these despots defend small but superior territories that each overlap the ranges of several females. lower-ranking males do not defend territories, instead moving between the territories of dominant males, from which they are continually evicted. headbobbing, chases, and mouth-gaping, the typical weaponry of iguana territoriality, are used almost exclusively by dominant males. these males also spend more time close to females during the breeding season, courting them with gentle nudges and headnods. although dominant males appear to have better access to mates than subordinate males, they comprised no more than a third of all adult males at firing point. the following year, we conducted an experiment to determine if temporary relocation of dominant males would increase the chances that sexually mature but genetically underrepresented subordinate male iguanas would have the opportunity to mate. this strategy represented a unique approach to lizard conservation, and has the potential to serve as an important management tool for critically small populations. for the duration of the breeding season, we moved the five most dominant males from firing point to a large outdoor holding enclosure at the base army veterinary clinic. within a few days, the five largest previously subordinate males began defending territories that were nearly spatially identical to those vacated by the relocated individuals. in the absence of the dominant males, subordinate males courted females vigorously and their testosterone levels rose dramatically. at the close of the breeding season, the previously dominant males regained their previous territories within two days, although the battles required were among the longest and most intense that we had ever observed. temporary removal of dominant males may represent a valuable management tool for small or otherwise genetically compromised populations by potentially increasing the number of males contributing to the gene pool. iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 11reptiles of guantánamo bay study site at firing point, guantánamo bay, prior to 1995. about 60 adult iguanas inhabited the area shown here. the most unfortunate iguana/human encounters, which iguanas invariably lose, involve motor vehicles. jo e b u r g es s iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 11 the world intrudes when you work at the same site year after year, you begin to take for granted that it will never change. such had been the case for firing point and its enviably observable iguanas until the fateful spring of 1995, when over 50,000 cuban and haitian migrants arrived unexpectedly at guantánamo bay, aboard literally anything that could float. in response to the crisis, extensive areas of forested habitat were graded along the coastline in order to construct temporary tented housing. although military officials did an admirable job of keeping people and wildlife at a safe distance, operation sea signal nevertheless resulted in a noticeable reduction in the local iguana population. at the height of the refugee crisis, the dry tropical forest surrounding firing point was reduced to less than 5% of its former extent, and we could only find a single forlorn adult male iguana inhabiting the area. our deep dismay at seeing the destruction of firing point’s ancient cactus forest was slightly tempered by the realization that we now had the unique opportunity to study if and how rapidly iguanas would recolonize the area. our aim was to document the extent to which this dry tropical forest ecosystem was sufficiently resilient to recover from severe disturbance, and to study the ecological role that iguanas might play in this process. by mid-1999, we were heartened to find that over 25 adult iguanas had resettled the area, and all appeared to be growing well and in good health. for both males and females, the relationship between body mass and body length had improved to the point where it was comparable to that of healthy undisturbed iguanas, indicating that despite the loss of significant habitat, iguanas were able to forage effectively following disturbance. at the same time, vegetation at the site showed definite signs of regeneration and a number of new seedlings emerged. given that iguanas relish the fruits and flowers of many plants, we believed that they might play an important role in the recovery of native vegetation. past research by us and others has shown that seeds that have passed through the digestive tracts of iguanas tend to sprout sooner and produce seedlings that grow faster than seeds that have not. in addition, repetitive cropping by iguanas, evidenced by an abundance of oddly-shaped flattopped bushes along guantánamo’s limestone coastline, is likely to stimulate the development of new foliage. by aiding germination, providing nutrients to developing seedlings, promoting plant growth, and dispersing seeds into new areas, iguanas play a key role in keeping forest ecosystems healthy. as so often happens with scientific endeavors, one study leads to a host of new avenues for research. seeing the recovery process first hand at firing point, a site that was so intimately familiar to us, led to a new line of inquiry into the relationship between local iguana populations throughout the base and the vegetation on which they depend. as unglamorous as it may seem, surveying different habitats to determine the density of local iguana populations is an important first step in assessing their ecological relationship with local plant communities. after identifying eight key habitat types on the base, we returned to guantánamo in 2000 to carry out a series of morning and afternoon walking surveys using a technique called distance sampling. this involved a team of three slogging through varying densities of thorn scrub (one must stay on an absolute straight-line course to meet the strict assumptions of this survey methodology — meaning that, as much as we wanted to, we 12 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 alberts giant anoles (anolis smallwoodi) are relatively common at the guantánamo bay naval base. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 12 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 13reptiles of guantánamo bay could never cheat and go around those nasty-looking cactus patches), for a half-mile or so per transect. whenever an iguana was sighted, we paused our sweaty march to cheer, note the size and sex of the animal, and measure its perpendicular distance from the transect line. we used a global positioning system (gps), which communicates with a series of navigational satellites orbiting the earth, to record the latitude and longitude of the start and finish of each transect line. the morning breeze, which blessedly and predictably picked up around 1100 each day, was a welcome break from the stifling heat. additional delights included the occasional delicate pink orchid suspended in midair amid impenetrable thorn scrub, or the bright green, yellow, and azure hues of a sleeping giant anole, or “chipojo,” in a capparis tree. despite hazardously steep terrain, we successfully completed 24 transect lines, and determined that iguanas are approximately four times as abundant along the coastline as inland. most likely, this is due to the many holes and crevices in the crumbling limestone that characterize the shoreline. these provide a host of hiding places and refuges from the heat, particularly for young iguanas. not surprisingly, iguanas are three to ten times as abundant in natural areas as in those that have been impacted by people. perhaps because suitable refuges are fewer and farther between, habitat disturbance in the form of construction and replacement of native vegetation by introduced grasses appears to have twice the negative impact on inland iguana populations as on those along the coast. during one of our transects, we did come across an unusual and unexpected sight — an adult male iguana with the telltale remains of a diminutive yellow juvenile cuban grassquit (a small passerine bird) in his mouth, testament to the fact that iguanas are not always vegetarian in their food choices. snakes, turtles, and banana rats with financial support from the united states department of defense, we have recently been able to expand our work to include population surveys not only for iguanas, but also for two other ecologically important reptiles on the base, boas and sea turtles. taking on this additional task meant no rest for the weary — to make the most of our limited time on the base, each full day of iguana surveys was followed by an evening of searching for cuban boas and monitoring sea turtle nesting beaches. the most efficient way to search for cuban boas (epicrates angulifer) — a truly impressive snake, with rainbow iridescence on its scales and a body length of up to nearly four meters — is united states marine with cuban boa, epicrates angulifer, at cuzco beach nature area, guantánamo bay. populations of large rodents called cuban hutias (capromys pilorides) or “banana rats” appear to be burgeoning on the base, and their exploding population is causing significant problems by destroying vegetation and damaging equipment. cuban boas (epicrates angulifer) probably play a key role in naturally regulating hutia populations. r o b er t po w el l iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 13 to slowly drive roads just after sundown. nevertheless, one of our most intriguing boa encounters occurred when we were on foot. researcher glenn gerber’s practiced eye spotted a lignumvitae “tree of life” which had been hollowed out by lightening — the perfect hiding place for a young male boa. we marked the snake with a microchip just under the skin for permanent identification, and collected a small blood sample for genetic analysis. on future trips, our goal is to use surgically implanted radiotransmitters to track the movements of these elusive and little-known snakes in order to better understand their home range dynamics and habitat requirements. we are especially interested in documenting the effects of an ongoing relocation program, in which boas are removed from urban areas by base personnel and released into more natural surroundings. in recent years, populations of large rodents appear to be burgeoning on the base. these animals are known to science as hutias, but to most base residents as “banana rats,” owing to the distinctive curvature of their scat. although one can’t help but smile at the ubiquitous hutias, which traipse around the base in ungainly family groups that communicate constantly with chirps and whistles, their exploding population is causing significant problems by destroying vegetation, chewing through radiator hoses, and perpetrating other undesirable antics. cuban boas probably play a key role in naturally regulating hutia populations, so we are keen to further investigate the ecological relationship between these two species. after about 2100 hours, when nightly boa catching became significantly less likely, we headed out to investigate a series of beaches on the base that are potentially used by sea turtles for nesting. because they are relatively undisturbed and protected from hunting, guantánamo’s scenic beaches are of regional importance for sea turtle conservation. fortunately, it’s fairly easy to distinguish which species of turtles are using these beaches simply by examining their tracks. the nesting crawl of all sea turtles generally resembles the path of a miniature bulldozer, with hawksbill tracks showing an alternating flipper pattern and green turtles a more symmetrical, opposite pattern. because leatherbacks are one of the largest living reptiles, surpassed in size only by some crocodilians, their tracks are impossible to miss. to date, we have mapped ten beaches on the base using gps and surveyed them for evidence of sea turtle nesting activity. eight of the ten beaches are used by hawksbill turtles, one by green turtles, and one by leatherback turtles, information that will help guide the navy in successfully managing these beaches for both people and turtles. two of the beaches have evidence of more than 100 nesting pits each, and appear to be especially important for hawksbills. given that hawksbill populations are under intense hunting pressure throughout much of the caribbean, it is crucial that these beaches be carefully managed to minimize human impacts. together with natural resources personnel on the base, we are committed to evaluating alternative management strategies and raising public awareness about sea turtles and their nesting habits. without a doubt, the highlight of our sea turtle work at guantánamo bay was a particularly warm and humid night at pebble beach in june. this is a small, rocky beach, but one favored by turtles nonetheless. we hadn’t dared hope that we would actually encounter a living turtle, but to our delight, as we approached the beach we heard the rasping sound of a female hawksbill’s plastron scraping over the rocks as she lurched onto land. with a special flashlight that emitted only a dim red beam, we were able to scrunch forward on our bellies close enough to observe the nesting process. she selected a site under an aged sea grape tree that, judging from soil erosion that revealed old eggshells encrusted many layers deep, has probably been used for this purpose for decades. oblivious to the eggs of previous 14 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 alberts eight of ten beaches at the united states naval base, guantánamo bay, cuba, are used for nesting by endangered hawksbill turtles (eretmochelys imbricata). iguana crossing signs installed at key locations throughout the naval base have helped reduce road casualties. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 14 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 15reptiles of guantánamo bay nesters, which she dug up and flipped out of the nest cavity with impunity, this particular female took about an hour to dig her nest. with remarkable dexterity, she used her rear flippers to reach down, scoop out flipperfulls of sand, and carefully deposit them nearby. when the nest cavity was deep enough to suit her, she proceeded to lay over a hundred glistening spherical eggs, and then gently backfilled the nest cavity. her task complete, she never paused to rest, instead making a direct line to the water and disappearing into the moonlit waves. reptile outreach public education is key to the success of any conservation program. over the years, we have attempted to educate both military servicemen and civilians through open lectures at our field sites, classroom presentations to elementary and secondary students, endangered species pamphlets, and newspaper and radio interviews. in response to a rash of unfortunate incidents in the mid-1990s, we designed a set of “iguana crossing” signs for high traffic areas where collisions had occurred. we have been thrilled to see that over 20 of these signs have been erected at critical locations, and to learn from our local collaborators that iguana road casualties are now a rare occurrence. in fact, the only “problem” with the signs has been their unanticipated popularity as impromptu souvenirs — an issue subsequently addressed by offering scaled-down versions for sale in a local giftshop. with the help of the base tv station, which advertises regularly for us on the event scroller, we have had excellent turnouts for our semi-annual iguana demonstrations. these presentations are held in the evenings at iguana house, a relatively remote building near the coast that always seems to have an iguana or two hanging around. usually about 80 or so people attend, some of them getting their first-ever close up view of an iguana, with a chance to touch one if they wish. while we try to spread the message that iguanas should be neither harassed nor fed (an ever-present problem), we also spend a significant amount of time answering questions. these range from why iguanas bob their heads to how the large population of feral cats on the base is impacting them. interest and curiosity among base residents about iguanas and other native reptiles continues to be intense, and past interviews and surveys have shown that most people’s feelings about them are positive, boding well for the continuing successful co-existence of humans and wildlife on the base. public interest in guantánamo’s extraordinary wildlife continues to be high, as evidenced by the more than 75 dedicated volunteers who have helped us with our work over the years. part of the message we hope to send is that protecting wildlife need not conflict with the military mission. in fact, healthy natural systems are often those best suited to supporting the security and training functions central to military operations. for such a small piece of land, guantánamo bay has experienced an unusually tumultuous history. despite its drastic transformation from the early days of open commerce to its more recent role as a safe haven for cuban and haitian refugees, the extraordinary biodiversity of guantánamo has managed to survive intact. whatever the future may hold, we can only hope that with awareness and dedicated stewardship, the distinctive reptiles, other native wildlife, and the natural habitats of guantánamo bay will continue to flourish. suggested reading alberts, a. c. (ed.). 2000. west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn—the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. alberts, a. c., t. d. grant, g. p. gerber, k. e. comer, p. j. tolson, j. m. lemm, and d. boyer. 2001. critical reptile species management on the u.s. naval base, guantanamo bay, cuba. report to the united states navy for project no. 62470-00-m-5219. alberts, a. c., j. m. lemm, a. m. perry, l. a. morici, and j. a. phillips. 2002. temporary alteration of local social structure in a threatened population of cuban iguanas (cyclura nubila). behav. ecol. sociobiol. 51:324–335. berovides, v. a. 1980. notas sobre la ecologia de la iguana (cyclura nubila) en cayo rosario. cien. biol. 5:112–115. bjorndal, k. a. (ed.). 1995. biology and conservation of sea turtles. smithsonian institution press, washington, d.c. eckert, k. l., k. a. bjorndal, f. alberto abreu-grobois, and m. donnelly. 1999. research and management techniques for the conservation of sea turtles. iucn/ssc marine turtle specialist group publication no. 4. gland, switzerland. estrada, a. r. and r. ruibal. 1999. a review of cuban herpetology, pp. 31–62. in b. i. crother (ed.), caribbean amphibians and reptiles. academic press, san diego, california. hartley, l. m., r. e. glor, a. l. sproston, r. powell, and j. s. parmerlee, jr. 2000. germination rates of seeds consumed by two species of rock iguanas (cyclura spp.) in the dominican republic. carib. j. sci. 36:149–151. lando, r. v. and e. e. williams. 1969. notes on the herpetology of the u.s. naval base at guantanamo bay, cuba. stud. fauna curaçao other carib. isl. 31:159–201. lemm, j. m. and a. c. alberts. 2000. reptiles and amphibians of guantánamo bay. reptiles 8:10–25. perera, a. 1985a. datos sobre la dieta de cyclura nubila (sauria: iguanidae) en los alrededores de cayo largo del sur, cuba. poeyana 291:1–12. perera, a. 1985b. datos sobre abundancia y actividad de cyclura nubila (sauria: iguanidae) en los alrededores de cayo largo del sur, cuba. poeyana 288:1–17. rodríguez schettino, l. (ed.). 1999. the iguanid lizards of cuba. univ. florida press, gainesville, florida. sedaghatkish, g. and e. roca. 1999. rapid ecological assessment: u.s. naval station, guantanamo bay, cuba. the nature conservancy, washington, d.c. silva lee, a. 1996. cuba natural. pangaea, saint paul, minnesota. tolson, p. j. and r. w. henderson. 1993. the natural history of west indian boas. r & a publishing ltd., taunton, somerset, england. annual iguana demonstrations are held for military and civilian personnel and their families. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 15 iguana 12.1 rick was born in roanoke, virginia, in 1954, and grew up nearby in the small town of stuart in the heart of the blue ridge mountains. from the very beginning, he was adamant that he would be a zoo man. his earliest childhood memory was standing in front of the hippo exhibit at the national zoo in washington, d.c. when he was four and getting stung by a bee. always a catalyst for action, twelve-year old rick opened his very own backyard “woodland zoo,” featuring local lizards, frogs, turtles, salamanders, and other assorted creatures. the operation attained local fame in his native patrick county, even leading to a feature article in the local newspaper in 1966. the article quoted rick as saying that, when he grew up, he aspired to “become a naturalist and work in a real zoo” — and that’s exactly what he did. showing an uncanny aptitude for creative fundraising that i’m fairly certain will last a lifetime, rick once admitted to me that he supported his mini zoo by charging a quarter to curious kids wanting to watch the rabbits … well, you get the idea. after graduating from the university of richmond with a degree in biology, rick’s dream of a zoo career was realized in 1980, when he joined the professional staff of the fort worth zoo. there he served as assistant curator of reptiles for 20 years, building a model program that was to become widely admired throughout the international zoo community. rick’s tenure in the herpetological department was guided by an enduring philosophy that recognized the need to link captive populations to their wild counterparts in order to achieve the greatest conservation impact. as a result, the remarkable collection at fort worth was integrally tied to field conservation programs around the world, including chameleons on mt. kenya, geckos, boas, and chelonians in madagascar, arboreal alligator lizards (genus abronia) in southern méxico, and komodo dragons in indonesia. nowhere, however, was this philosophy more effectively put into action than in the islands of the caribbean. rick first visited this unique and beautiful region in 1977 with a trip to jamaica. it was no less than love at first sight. since then, his appreciation and affection for these islands, their natural communities, their unique cultures (did i mention cuisine?), and most of all their majestic iguanas, has only grown. he has had the good fortune to work with rock iguanas (genus cyclura) not only in jamaica, but also in the cayman islands, the british virgin islands, cuba, the dominican republic, puerto rico, the turks and caicos islands, and the bahamas. by rick’s account, the dr is his all-time favorite because of the rich cultural experience and warmth of the people. initially, rick’s contributions were realized through his capacity as chair of the american zoo and aquarium association’s lizard advisory group from 1991–2003, and as coordinator of the rock iguana species survival program from 1996 to the present. in these roles, he has served as a tireless organizer, involving over 25 u.s. zoos in such varied activities as education, field research, captive propagation and reintroduction, technology transfer, and genetic and nutritional research, not to mention generating over $400,000 to support iguana conservation. that so many zoos have become committed at such a remarkable level attests to rick’s innate ability to bring people of diverse backgrounds together and inspire them to achieve a shared vision. i first met rick in 1992 at an iucn conservation breeding specialist group (cbsg) workshop in vancouver. the 34 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 alberts p r o f i l e rick and his “mini-zoo” in 1965. photograph by r.d. hudson. rick hudson: a hero for iguana conservation allison alberts the center for reproduction of endangered species the zoological society of san diego iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 35hudson goal of the workshop, led by the late ulysses s. seal, then head of cbsg and one of rick’s most influential mentors, was to develop a conservation assessment and management plan for iguanid and varanid lizards. although i had previously conducted ecological research on desert and green iguanas, i was a novice to lizard conservation and relatively new to the people and issues involved. rick welcomed me warmly and assured me that i had a contribution to make. so began a friendship that would steer my life in a new direction. over the next two days, we tried in vain to fill in excel® spreadsheets with data about species distributions, population trends, and threats to survival. we were finally forced to admit how woefully little information was available for so many species, especially iguanas. a need to organize researchers and managers to gather the expertise needed to help guide and prioritize conservation efforts was clearly evident — and rick had the skills and drive to do it. the next two years were pivotal for rick. he cites two inspirational experiences that served to define his future career path. sitting in a headstart facility at the hope zoo, surrounded by young jamaican iguanas (cyclura collei), watching their interactions, and then later that summer at guantanamo bay, cuba, observing a dense congregation of habituated cuban iguanas (c. nubila), something clicked, and the connection was so visceral that he remembers thinking, “you know, this is worth dedicating your life to. this is where i need to be.” a logical place to start was the jamaican iguana, a species thought to be extinct until the remarkable rediscovery in 1990 of a tiny remnant population clinging to existence in the rugged hellshire hills outside kingston. again working with ulie and cbsg, rick and peter vogel of the university of the west indies organized a population and habitat viability analysis workshop for the species, then considered to be the most endangered lizard in the world. although a solid plan was developed and key research needs identified, perhaps the most significant outcome occurred the day after the workshop officially concluded, when the participants stayed on to informally share information on a variety of rock iguanas and to brainstorm how we might work together in a more coordinated fashion to help ensure their future survival. it was here that the idea of forming an iucn iguana specialist group was born, with the consensus that our initial focus would be on the critically endangered iguanas of the west indies. to gain official sanction for the group from the somewhat resistant iucn species survival commission, rick enlisted the help of commission steering committee members ulie seal, george rabb (chicago zoological society), and russ mittermeier (conservation international) in lobbying for approval. rick’s tenacity finally paid off three years later, when george announced to the assembled iguana enthusiasts at the american society of ichthyologists and herpetologists (asih)/herpetologists’ league (hl) meeting in seattle that the west indian iguana specialist group had become a reality. in 2000, the group expanded its mandate to become a global iguana specialist group, which i have had the pleasure to cochair, most recently with rick. he has been instrumental in developing a new species recovery planning process that is changing the way we approach iguana conservation by fully engaging local partners and thereby ensuring a lasting impact. if i bring a scientific, analytical perspective to the iguana specialist group, then rick surely represents its heart and soul. he is a joy to work with, always upbeat and eager to take on even the most rick assisting with health screening of a grand cayman blue iguana in november 2001. photograph by john binns. rick was completely “disarmed” by this young javan gibbon at the taman safari wildlife park in bogor, indonesia (taken while on his honeymoon in 1994). photograph by lis hudson. complex problems and situations. his commitment never wanes, and it is clear from watching him that his work on behalf of iguanas is truly a labor of love. in 2000, the fort worth zoo wisely realized that the cause of conservation would be better served by allowing rick to devote his energy and talents full-time to this endeavor. he became their conservation biologist, able to devote 100% of his time to endangered species recovery programs. this was also the year that things came full circle for rick, when a group of twelve zoos, led by fort worth, shared the aza international conservation award for their collaborative efforts to help save the jamaican iguana. rick will proudly tell you that recognition of the jamaican iguana conservation and recovery program as one of the world’s great conservation success stories was a highlight of his professional career — but, if you catch him in a more personal frame of mind, he might also share with you a defining experience he had when participating in a release of headstarted iguanas deep in jamaica’s hellshire hills. as he was watching a repatriated iguana slowly move away from the release site, the animal looked back, directly into rick’s eyes, and he felt a connection so profound that he was moved to tears. that was a moment that embodied everything rick has worked so hard to achieve, and a memory that will remain with him all his life. never satisfied with the status quo, rick’s most recent contribution has been to act as the impetus for the formation of the international iguana foundation. the mission of the non-profit foundation, which rick serves as program officer, is to support conservation, awareness, and scientific programs that enhance the survival of wild iguanas and their habitats. the foundation, which has raised over $236,000 to date in direct support for iguana conservation activities, works hand-in-hand with the iguana specialist group to develop and administer programs, as well as determine funding priorities. in looking back over his years of contributions to iguana conservation, rick had this to say: “the successful iguana reintroduction programs that we’ve launched in jamaica, grand cayman, and anegada prove that captive-reared or headstarted iguanas are good candidates for such recovery strategies. they appear to be hard-wired, and rapidly adapt to wild conditions. we are seeing good survival rates, and released iguanas are now integrating with wild populations and reproducing naturally. programs such as these once received harsh criticism from some in the academic community, but i take great pride in proving the critics wrong. reintroduction technology is such a wideopen field and there are so many possibilities, we are just starting to write the book. i’m just happy to be involved with it at such an intimate level. when i consider my primary influences and my most productive collaborations in iguana conservation, three people come to mind: allison of course, who has been with me from day one, and has always shared my ‘let’s get it done’ attitude. with her, i am confident that anything is possible. for strategic thinking and planning, especially fund-raising, my director, mike fouraker, has been instrumental. plus he recognized my abilities and gave me the time and support to use them. and, most recently, john binns; his tireless work ethic and perfectionist attitude is contagious, just being involved with him drives you to give it your best. i know as long as john is around that i will never be able to sit back and rest on my laurels.” amazingly, rick still finds time to make major contributions to herpetological conservation efforts beyond iguanas. in 2001, he co-founded the iucn turtle survival alliance (tsa), a non-profit organization with the goal of developing and maintaining a global network of living tortoises and freshwater turtles that maximizes future options for the recovery of wild populations. the tsa is particularly committed to helping alleviate the asian turtle crisis, brought on by the enormous and unsustainable harvest of turtles throughout southeast asia for the 36 iguana • volume 12, number 5 • march 2005 alberts rick digging in jamaica’s hellshire hills to install a data logger in an iguana nest. photograph by glenn gerber. rick releasing a headstarted jamaican iguana in the hellshire hills in 1998. photographer unknown. iguana • volume 12, number 5 • march 2005 37hudson chinese food market. to date, over 4,727 turtles belonging to 38 species have been rescued by the alliance and placed in managed captive programs worldwide. under rick’s guidance the tsa has emerged as a widely recognized force for turtle conservation, expanding their global network to support range country programs in india, malaysia, vietnam, and myanmar. rick shares that he is “particularly passionate about insuring tsa’s success, because we are proving the naysayers wrong. most doubted that such a diverse coalition of partner organizations and individuals could unite for a common cause — saving turtles. but then i’ve made a career out of proving the critics wrong and i’ve never minded sticking my neck out for a good cause. but more importantly, i know this is a battle we can win.” in addition, rick serves as an active member of the iucn conservation breeding, crocodile, reintroduction, and madagascar reptile and amphibian specialist groups. he has traveled widely to destinations that include two “tours of duty” in madagascar (that he still considers the trips of a lifetime), africa, costa rica, guatemala, méxico, malaysia, india, and indonesia, where his up-close and personal experiences with komodo dragons while on honeymoon absolutely fulfilled a lifetime dream. rick has never been one to shy away from controversial issues or seemingly lost causes. in fact, he has made a living by tackling tough issues and successfully rallying others to do the same. he entices all the stakeholders to the table, and has a rare gift for keeping them there in the pursuit of mutual solutions to challenging conservation problems. his dedication and passion continue to enable him to recruit new partners to the cause of iguana conservation and motivate them to make a difference. rick will tell you that he lives by a simple creed: every species has a right to survive, and humankind does not have the right to cause the extinction of another species. as long as rick has anything to say about it, iguanas are in good hands indeed. if you would like to help, please visit the websites of the international iguana foundation (www.iguanafoundation.org) and the turtle survival alliance (www.turtlesurvival.org). rick overlooking the western ponds complex on anegada, taking a break after a long day of fieldwork. photograph by jeff lemm. rick during his first trip to madagascar in 1991, shown here at the amphijora field station, site of the breeding program for the endangered angulated tortoise, geochelone yniphora. photograph by john behler. iguana 13.1 b&w text 62 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 commentaries charles darwin was not looking for trouble when he set off on the beagle in 1831. he most definitely could not have imagined that, more than 150 years later and a third of the globe away, judges in one of the world’s most advanced nations would still be handing down rulings on his findings. yet here we are, and, as i write this in late december 2005, a federal judge once again has had to inform the american public that the theory of evolution is the only scientific explanation we have for how life arose on this planet. the case in point involved the school board of dover, pennsylvania, which in late 2004 adopted a policy requiring students in science classes to be told about “intelligent design” (id) as “an explanation of the origin of life” (the text of the statement can be found at http://www.cnn.com/2005/law/ 12/20/intelligent.design.ap/). in striking down this requirement, u.s. district judge john e. jones iii, a republican appointed by president bush, said that the school board’s decision was not just unconstitutional but also dishonest: “we find that the secular purposes claimed by the board amount to a pretext for the board’s real purpose, which was to promote religion in the public school classroom.” he also had some strong words for the members of the school board who created the policy, all eight of whom subsequently lost their positions in recent elections and were replaced by board members who promised to eliminate the policy. he called the effort to force id on the students a “breathtaking inanity” and pointed out that “it is ironic that several of these individuals, who so staunchly and proudly touted their religious convictions in public, would time and again lie to cover their tracks and disguise the real purpose behind the id policy” (the text of the decision can be found at http://www.pamd. uscourts.gov/kitzmiller/kitzmiller_342.pdf). alas, that is not likely to be the end of the ongoing battle to remove the teaching of evolution from the nation’s science curricula, preferably to be replaced by material perceived to be more compatible with christian views of a particular flavor. proponents of id correctly point out that evolutionary theory does not explain everything. the struck-down dover statement, for example, says: “gaps in the theory exist for which there is no evidence.” in as much as our knowledge of anything is incomplete, they are absolutely correct. however, the underlying problem appears to be that many religious people in the u.s. believe that accepting evolution somehow requires them to give up their faith. the theory of evolution does make statements about how life evolved once it appeared on earth, and these statements now have extensive support from biology, geology, and other fields of science. they are not consistent with a literal interpretation of the biblical creation story, but neither are parts of physics, astronomy, geology, and other sciences. nonetheless, science has nothing to say about whether or not any particular deity exists, and evolutionary theory does not make claims about the ultimate source of life. as stated by the recently-deceased pope john paul ii, one can be a christian and accept evolution: no inherent contradiction exists between the two. in fact, many believers see no problem accepting evolution, and many scientists are religious. c o m m e n t a r i e s intelligent design? gad perry department of range, wildlife and fisheries management texas tech university, lubbock, texas charles darwin is often villified by those claiming evolution cannot be true, and his theories are often disparaged by critics who pejoratively call them “darwinism,” suggesting that an acceptance of evolution is comparable to a personality cult. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 62 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 63commentaries what is id? at heart, it claims that biological complexity — proponents often cite processes such as blood clotting, which rely on multiple biochemical pathways — shows that life could not have evolved, but must rather have been formed by an unnamed intelligent designer. in pennsylvania, judge jones complained about the “striking ignorance” of the education board regarding the underpinnings of id, but that does not necessarily discredit the concept. however, judge jones also had some clear words about the underlying scientific merit. id is “not science,” and “the fact that a scientific theory cannot yet render an explanation on every point should not be used as a pretext to thrust an untestable alternative hypothesis grounded in religion into the science classroom or to misrepresent well-established scientific propositions.” in fact, he ruled that id is “creationism relabeled.” id cannot be science primarily because it does not provide any means for scientists to test it. the few scientists who advocate id have been unable to provide scientifically valid ways to evaluate their idea, and have consequently yet to receive external support for such work or publish anything in the peerreviewed scientific literature. moreover, let’s assume for a moment that id proponents are correct and evolutionary theory is too weak to hold water. the scientific method would require us to seek an alternative, but the judge pointed out that the argument made by id proponents is “at bottom premised upon a false dichotomy, namely, that to the extent evolutionary theory is discredited, id is confirmed.” ok, id is not science. why have scientists throughout the world long accepted evolution as the cornerstone of all biological sciences? to appeal to scientists, an explanation has to have predictive value. one must be able to make statements such as: “if i am correct about the nature of gravity then this pen will drop as soon as i let go of it.” only a single case in which the pen drifts up to the ceiling disproves our hypothesis, but no matter how many times it falls, the possibility always remains that next time, it will do something different. that is why scientists should never claim to have proven anything. still, we have now dropped enough items and watched them crash to the floor that no sane person will step off the roof with the hope of floating up. gravity has so much predictive power that we now call it a theory and take it for granted, even though physicists still do not understand why it works. our understanding of evolution also allows us to make testable predictions about the world around us. for example, a single solid case in which a fossil of a mammal is found in a layer preceding the evolution of fish would refute our understanding of the process, because fish are thought to be ancestral to mam“as a christian, a trained engineer and scientist, and a professor at emory university, i am embarrassed by … [attempts] to censor and distort the education of georgia’s students,” said former president jimmy carter, a baptist and nobel prize winner, in 2004 in response to suggestions that the word “evolution” should be banned from the state’s curriculum. additional information can be found at the white house web site (http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/ jc39.html). this series of “family trees” shows how natural selection has affected anoles on the islands of the greater antilles. a. when only physical characteristics are considered, species cluster according to ecomorph class (a descriptive suite of characters that reflects an animal’s lifestyle or niche) regardless of geographic affinities. letters indicate the islands on which a species is found (c = cuba; h = hispaniola; j = jamaica; p = puerto rico). b. in sharp contrast with a., this tree, which was generated using molecular data (dna sequences), indicates frequent transitions among ecomorph classes and a much stronger correlation between close relationships and geographic affinities. in other words, species found on the same island are much more likely to be closely related than species on different islands that might share very similar appearances as a consequence of being in the same ecomorph class. this example of how evolutionary methods can shed insights on ecological relationships was adapted from losos et al. (1998. science 279: 2115–2118). michelangelo’s sistine chapel illustrates the negative consequences of curiosity. the church in michelangelo’s time, like many authoritarian regimes, very actively stifled any free-thinking, believing that curiosity would foster doubts and lead to inquiries, all of which are threatening to the status-quo. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 63 64 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 commentaries mals. in fact, evolutionary biologists predicted the evolution of drug-resistant germs and pesticide-resistant insects. both are large and well-publicized problems now, especially with the prevalence of drug-resistant diseases such as tuberculosis being on the rise. evolutionary biologists also were the first to point out that a disease such as avian flu, that currently attacks birds in asia, could easily evolve into a pandemic killing many millions of people all over the world — a contingency many countries, including the u.s., are investing billions of dollars to address. evolutionary biologists made predictions about the mechanisms by which evolution proceeds long before the tools for studying evolutionary developmental biology were available to test them. cutting-edge research from recent years has shown how different-looking morphological structures could evolve from similar underlying genetic building blocks. scientists used to think that eyes had evolved many times, giving rise to the different structures shown by insects and mammals, for example. recent discoveries have identified a single gene, called pax-6, which is involved in the formation of eyes in creatures as diverse as fruit flies, squid, and humans. apparently, all modern eyes, no matter how different-looking, have evolved from a primitive evolutionary studies have confirmed cuba as the origin of all species in the anolis carolinensis group (top); adapted from glor et al. (2005. molecular ecology 14: 2419–2432). most dispersal routes follow prevailing winds and currents; a notable exception is a. longiceps on navassa island (left; no. 6 on the map), which is to the southeast of cuba. over-water dispersal of the ancestors of a. longiceps was presumably facilitated by the counter-clockwise winds associated with hurricanes (powell. 1999. caribbean journal of science 35: 1–13). iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 64 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 65commentaries organ found in a shared ancestor. as one final demonstration of its utility, an understanding of evolutionary processes allows us to use dna to determine paternity, identify bodies, and assign blame in criminal cases. for those of us engaged in conservation, an understanding of evolution is especially important. “everybody knows” small populations are at risk, but evolutionary biology explains why, and further predicts how fast they might decline. we all recognize that habitat fragmentation is undesirable, but only because evolutionary theory allows us to analyze the potential genetic consequences. without the concept of coevolution, how would we understand the strong dependence some plants have on particular pollinators, or why closely related species of parasites often infect closely related hosts? evolutionary theory also tells us that invasive species are going to adapt to their novel environments and become even more problematic, something managers have to know when designing responses to that problem. finally, evolution is responsible for the many species of iguanas and other insular species in the caribbean, and an understanding of dna and the varying rates at which different kinds of dna evolve allows us to identify unique populations deserving of extra protection. the now-defeated dover board defined a theory as “a welltested explanation that unifies a broad range of observations.” by every measure available to us, evolution is not “just a theory” — as one so often hears it disparagingly called — but is instead an extremely robust and successful theory whose predictive value has repeatedly been demonstrated. of course, there are many things we do not yet know. as a leading proponent of id pointed out after the pennsylvania ruling, “a thousand opinions by a court that a particular scientific theory is invalid will not make that scientific theory invalid … it is going to be up to the scientists who are going to continue to do research in their labs that will ultimately determine that.” some details of evolutionary theory will doubtlessly need to be reformulated as more information comes in — for that’s how science works. the time has come for religious zealots to leave their beliefs outside the science classroom, which is properly devoted to studying natural explanations of the phenomena that rule our lives. evolutionary theory is unlikely to be replaced any time soon. understanding evolution can have important practical applications. doonesbury © 2005 g.b. trudeau. reprinted with permission of universal press syndicate. all rights reserved. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 65 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 125book review biology of the boas and pythons. 2007. edited by robert w. henderson and robert powell. eagle mountain publishing, lc, eagle mountain, utah. x + 438 pp. hardback – isbn: 978-09720154-3-4. $100.00. this sumptuous book is the result of a symposium entitled biology of boas, pythons, and related taxa conducted at the 2005 joint meetings in tampa, florida, usa, and sponsored by the society for the study of amphibians and reptiles. this symposium represented the first effort to assemble researchers working on some aspect of the biology of boas and pythons. an impressive and exquisitely produced volume, biology of the boas and pythons (bbp) contains 29 chapters authored by 79 contributors. these chapters follow a foreword by richard shine, in which he notes the paradoxical situation in which many laypeople envision a large boa or python when the word “snake” is mentioned, yet herpetologists have generally ignored these “spectacular” animals — until the present volume. the main portion of the book is organized into five sections. the first section is the introduction, and the remaining four sections deal with “ecology, natural history, and evolution,” “behavior,” “physiology, neurology, and reproductive biology,” and “conservation.” thirty-four taxa of boas and pythons are addressed, with many chapters dealing largely with members of the genera python (three chapters), boa (six), and eunectes (five). the book’s editors, the two bobs, henderson and powell, wrote the book’s masterful introduction, which provides a short summary of the book’s contents, but mostly serves as a review of the literature on these basal macrostomatans prior to the 2005 symposium. this review is divided into a series of sections dealing with early publications on pythonid biology, various overviews of boid and pythonid biology, checklists of taxa, studies of basal macrostomatan phylogeny, and works on ecology and behavior, on morphology, physiology, and reproductive biology, and on conservation. two tables and one appendix, all very useful, summarize the taxa of basal macrostomatans and the conservation status of a number of species. this chapter is graced with photographs of several herpetologists who study these creatures. the literature cited section is expectedly lengthy, containing 196 entries, five from 2006. instead of following the sections of the book, we have chosen to review the bulk of this volume from a taxonomic standpoint, grouping chapters dealing with the same taxon, which leaves us with a group of six chapters dealing with more than a single taxon. five deal will multiple higher-level macrostomatan taxa. the first of these, by nicolas vidal and coauthors, addresses higher-level alethinophidian relationships, splitting this clade into two new entities, the amerophidia, of hypothesized south american origin, which includes the families aniliidae and tropidophiidae, and the afrophidia, of presumed african origin, which contains the remaining alethinophidians. they further hypothesize that this deep split is the result of the separation of south america from africa in the mid-cretaceous, which infers that the clade that contains almost all snakes, save for the amerophidians and the scolecophidians, had its origin on the emerging african continent. the authors acknowledge that the “phylogenetic status of ‘henophidia’ (all afrophidia, excluding caenophidia) remains uncertain.” a second such chapter, by pizzatto and coauthors, addresses the evolution of ecomorphology in boine snakes, primarily of south america. by comparing morphological features (body size and shape) and macrohabitat use (arboreal to terrestrial to aquatic) to the two most complete boine phylogenies of kluge and burbrink, the authors hypothesize that the ancestral boine was a stout, short-tailed snake of moderate head length, but note that further characterizations differ between character optimizations based on morphology and those based on molecular data. grace and matsushita examine the interplay between vision and infrared imaging in guiding complex behavior in boas and pythons and concluded that infrared-imaging systems can be used alone to target prey, but almost certainly function in conjunction with vision when visible light is available. other possible uses of infrared imaging in boas and pythons, such as predator avoidance, defense, and locaa bonanza of boas and pythons b o o k r e v i e w tion of refugia, are almost completely unstudied in these snakes. goris et al. begin their summary of current knowledge of the anatomy and physiology of infrared imaging in snakes with a frank discussion of the stumbling blocks involved in their research. their summary indicates that facial pits in snakes “appear to represent an ideal form of infrared eye.” finally, ott and secor studied the specific dynamic action (sda), the amount of energy involved in the processing of a meal, in four species of boas and fours species of pythons. they demonstrated that sda responses vary according to differences in meal size, meal type, body temperature, body size, and, perhaps, with type of foraging behavior, i.e., ambush foraging versus active foraging. this book also has something for those interested in aspects of the anatomy, mechanics, and physiology of feeding and constriction in boas and pythons. cundall and coworkers studied aspects of the biomechanics of feeding in 15 species of boas and pythons in nine genera through a series of recorded feeding trials. in this exemplary study, the authors identify three patterns of strike kinematics evident in boids, which can be preliminarily associated with the phylogenetic patterns evident at the subfamilial level. secor and ott explore the adaptive regulation of digestive function and intestinal physiology in boas and pythons, and the correlation between feeding habits and digestive performance. in a chapter measuring and comparing the constriction strength in 12 species of snakes, including eight boas and pythons and one tropidophiid, moon and mehta demonstrate that snake diameter and the number of coils employed in constriction strongly influence the pressure exerted during constriction, and that the crushing power employed by many species is enough to kill many prey items by crushing the spinal cord or stopping the heart, rather than by suffocation alone. no single species is as well represented in this volume as boa constrictor, with six chapters devoted entirely or almost entirely to this widespread neotropical boa. while boa constrictor is currently considered a single widespread species, the variation demonstrated by this large snake across its range is apparent in the breadth of its coverage in the volume. two chapters are devoted to insular populations of boa in central america, including boback and carpenter’s study of the ecomorphology of boas from islands off belize. while insular boa populations are well known for generally being much smaller than their mainland conspecifics, belizean island boas also have longer heads and larger eyes, traits apparently inherited in this population. reed and coworkers provide an assessment of the microhabitat, distribution, and conservation of another dwarf island race of boa, from cayos cochinos, honduras, and indicate that initial population size estimates for these small islands are alarmingly low. these boas, called “hog island boas” in the live animal trade, have been and continue to be heavily exploited since at least 1979, yet this volume presents the first detailed study of this species in its natural habitat. this is one of the strengths of bbp, providing well-researched data on wild populations of species that are among the most heavily exploited snakes in the pet trade and simultaneously among the most poorly known snakes in their native environs. two complementary chapters deal with the argentine boa constrictor (boa constrictor occidentalis): chiaraviglio and bertona’s contribution examines factors influencing the ecological distribution of this subspecies, whereas cardozo and coworkers use landscape modeling and populationlevel genetic markers to elucidate the effects of habitat loss and fragmentation on gene flow. these studies have important implications for the conservation of boa constrictor in the wild, as does holtzman and coworkers’ chapter on the movement patterns and microhabitat selection of experimentally displaced boas in nicaragua, which were shown to move more frequently and over greater distances than resident boas. the widespread popularity of boa constrictor and other large snakes in the pet trade has had negative impacts other than overexploitation of wild populations, as exemplified by the final chapter in the book, by snow and coworkers. in this chapter, the distribution and ecological impact (existing and potential) of introduced populations of boa and the burmese python (python molurus bivittatus) in southern florida are revealed. while the established boa population seems restricted to a relatively small natural area along biscayne bay that is surrounded by suburban development, python molurus bivittatus, which can readily exceed 4 m in length, is now well-established and reproducing throughout everglades national park. the impact of such a large predator in the everglades is demonstrated by interactions between pythons and native alligators (alligator mississippiensis), illustrated in three dramatic color photographs. two other chapters deal with species of python, and both serve to further enlighten us about the natural history of heavily exploited pet-trade species. perhaps the most popular of all pet boas or pythons is the ball or royal python (python regius), and a comprehensive ecological study of this species and the syntopic central african rock python (python sebae) in the niger delta, nigeria, is provided by luiselli and coworkers, and represents one of the most complete studies on wild populations of these two species. a chapter on the thermal biology of the southern rock python (python natalensis), formerly considered a subspecies of python sebae, by alexander is another data-rich and detailed analysis of a poorly known taxon, this time using modeling and field studies to evaluate the distribution of p. natalensis in relation to its thermal requirements. a couple of contributions deal with habitat utilization of caribbean boids in the genera corallus and epicrates. sylvia 126 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 book review epicrates monensis occurs on the puerto rico bank and on isla mona. this small, largely arboreal boid is listed in appendix i of cites. epicrates m. monensis, such as this subadult emerging from a bromeliad (tillandsia utriculata), is endemic to isla mona. pe te r j . t o ls o n iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 127book review powell and coworkers examine habitat utilization of two caribbean treeboas, corallus cookii and c. grenadensis, and indicate that treeboas are more commonly encountered in orchards and other disturbed habitats that contained edge microhabitats than in higher elevation “pristine” habitats that had few or no edges. tolson and coworkers provide our first look at habitat use and natural history in one of the most poorly known extant members of the genus epicrates, e. monensis monensis, which is endemic to the small limestone island of mona in the strait between hispaniola and puerto rico. these boas appear to be habitat generalists on their xeric island, but larger individuals tend to be found only among limestone boulders or high in the canopy. all three of these caribbean boids are under threat from habitat disturbance and destruction, as well as introduced species like the mongoose, feral goats, and feral pigs. these contributions represent important additions to the body of data available to influence the conservation and management of remaining critical habitat. five chapters are concerned with features of the biology of two of the four species of eunectes. two chapters deal with e. murinus and three with e. notaeus. rivas et al. examined the natural history of e. murinus in the venezuelan llanos. in what is one of the significant chapters in this volume, these authors note the need to consider natural history to be “good science,” especially for the purposes of conservation and sustainable management, but that funding agencies may not support work that does not involve easily formulated and quickly testable questions. they also note that funding support may depend on such nonbiological features as the degree of “charisma” of the research subject. four of these authors also studied sexual size dimorphism and the mating system of this species, demonstrating that females are more than 4.5 times the size of the males, one of the largest sexual size differences known, and that prolonged breeding-ball polyandry is the principal mating system. young demonstrated that e. notaeus responds to aquatic acoustic stimuli, allowing snakes to locate prey swimming on the surface. waller et al. studied the conservation biology of e. notaeus in northeastern argentina, in an area where this snake is heavily exploited for the skin trade. they concluded that due to biological trait plasticity, habitat inaccessibility, and rudimentary local hunting methods, this species is capable of being sustainably managed. finally, mendez et al. investigated the management implications of the genetic population structure of e. notaeus, concluding that demonstrated genetic isolation of yellow anaconda populations in northern argentina require these populations to be treated as distinct management units. one chapter each deals with some aspects of the biology of charina, liasis, and ungaliophis and two chapters deal with species of morelia. dorcas and peterson tested the coadaptive relationship between thermoregulatory behavior and thermal physiology in charina bottae, and found that a tight relationship between the two cannot be applied to this snake. carmichael et al. examined geographic variation in pheromone-trailing behaviors among island populations of liasis mackloti, concluding that pheromone-trailing discrimination parallels the relationships demonstrated by morphological and genetic means, and supports the recognition of three clades. burger and ford examined aspects of the reproductive biology of poorly-known ungaliophis continentalis, finding that males use two distinct types of courtship behavior, one passive and the other assertive. the latter, which involves continuous tail-biting, is unique to the species. when combined with coiling, it allows males to adjust their behavior for successful copulation through sexual coercion. wilson investigated the foraging ecology and diet of m. viridis, a sit-and-wait ambush predator. this species is largely arboreal and adopts either a feeding or resting posture in sites that can be maintained for up to 14 days, making it possible to time-lapse videotape radiotelemetered individuals. wilson determined that this species’ foraging behavior and diet are affected by both ontogeny and sexual differences. as such, they demonstrate “an ontogenetic change in their diet from invertebrates and diurnal skinks to primarily nocturnal mammals as they increase in size. this dietary change happens in conjunction with a change in hunting time from primarily diurnal to nocturnal and an ontogenetic color change from yellow to green.” freeman and bruce studied habitat use in two species of morelia (m. kinghorni and m. spilota) in north queensland, australia, using data derived largely from roadkills. by this means, they demonstrated that m. kinghorni is primarily restricted to closed rainforest habitats, where they use large epiphytic ferns for basking, and is no longer found in cleared rainforest locales. in contrast, m. spilota is commonly found in cleared/mosaic areas, including agricultural and urban areas. for differing reasons, neither of these snakes is considered currently in danger of extirpation. this book is a hugely important contribution to our burgeoning knowledge of the biology of this fascinating group of diverse, beautiful, and phylogenetically significant basal snakes. it takes its rightful place alongside the earlier compendia on the biology of pitvipers and vipers in general, also available through eagle mountain publishing. in a number of ways, this volume actually stands ahead of its brethren. it is full-color throughout (with more than 200 color images) and the layout and production values are impressive, attesting to the skills of its editors and publisher. this book is a classic out of the gate. this is also a book that cries out for a sequel, so we can hope the editors and publisher will consider such for the near future. any herpetologist will be seriously embarrassed if this book is not on the shelves of his or her library. instead of filling up the gas tank two or three times, we recommend buying this book, curling up under a reading lamp in your favorite chair, accompanied by something soothing, and learning about the biology of some of these really nice animals. better options may exist, but we have forgotten how … and why. larry david wilson department of biology miami dade college kendall campus miami, florida 33176 and josiah h. townsend school of natural resources and environment and florida museum of natural history university of florida gainesville, florida 32601 iguana b&w text 66 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 sand dune lizards (liolaemus multimaculatus) are extremely cryptic. surveys consist of multiple researchers walking transects across the dunes while counting the fleeting glimpses of lizards as they scurry away. kacoliris iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 67 the day is dawning on the beaches of buenos aires. the sun’s first rays caress the sand. as the temperature starts to rise, so too do the small inhabitants of this landscape. the sand dune lizard (liolaemus multimaculatus) starts its daily activities at a sluggish pace that will quicken with the warming rays of the sun. this small saurian, a typical representative of these immense sand fields, has evolved for so many centuries in such close association with the landscape that it is unable to survive elsewhere. its current conservation status is critical, primarily due to the irrational and excessive exploitation of these environments. thus, this argentinean endemic lizard is now categorized as a vulnerable species. an overview of the dynamics of this ecosystem, as well as of its former and present use, is essential in understanding both the life history of this species and its current situation. what is the value of coastal areas? coastal environments represent about 8% of the earth’s surface, and they are considered among the most threatened environments on the planet. most human-generated threats to biodiversity are exacerbated in these areas, mainly because human populations have always flourished along shorelines. over half the world’s population (about 3.2 billion people) live within 200 km of oceans and seas (only 10% of the earth’s land surface). with this population distribution, increasing human numbers and mounting developmental pressures are taking a grim toll on coastal and near-shore resources. sand dunes act as filters for water that allow the existence of aquifers (underground reservoirs of drinking water that supply nearby localities) and protect the coastline from erosion, ensuring the long-lasting existence of sandy beaches. in addition, coastal areas are attractive and offer great potential for tourism. the marine coastal zone of buenos aires province is particularly diverse in natural environments, including sandy beaches, cliffs, extensive sand dunes, and a large brackish lagoon (mar chiquita). these diverse ecosystems support numerous native plant and animal species that are threatened to varying degrees. several of these species are poorly known, and some are in danger of extinction, as is the case with the sand dune lizard. from a historical perspective, urban development along the coast of buenos aires, which has been the most popular tourist destination in the country for about a century, has not involved adequate planning or resource management. urban planning has not taken into account the risks of erosion when designing roads or drainages, or the impact of sand extraction on the sediment transport cycle. furthermore, the current environmental impact legislation does not consider climate change, an extremely relevant factor in these highly dynamic systems. other factors, such as pollution, overexploitation of resources (both fisheries and sand), use of 4 x 4 vehicles on the beaches and dunes, and the introduction of exotic plants for dune fixation, natural history and conservation of the sand dune lizard (liolaemus multimaculatus) federico kacoliris sección herpetología, departamento de vertebrados museo de la plata, buenos aires, argentina (fedekacoliris@yahoo.com.ar) photographs by the author. sand dune lizard � the mar chiquita provincial park lies along the argentinian atlantic coast jo h n b in n s 68 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 kacoliris represent additional disturbances. these problems seriously affect biological and geological aspects of the coastal fringe by altering its natural dynamics, modifying the landscape, and threatening the natural, paleontological, historical, and cultural heritage of the community. the populations of endemic fauna and flora, that is, those species that evolved in and can only survive in coastal habitats, are the most affected by these activities, and they could be wiped off the face of the earth within a few years. the sand dune lizard is one of these species, and its populations are already severely compromised. sand dune lizards five species of lizards occur in the coastal sand dunes in buenos aires province and the northern coastal region of río negro sand dune lizards (liolaemus multimaculatus) have evolved in such close association with these sandy habitats that they cannot exist elsewhere. sand dune lizards, such as this adult female, are small saurians, less than 70 mm from snout to vent, with a flattened body and a stout head. small size, body form, and color are all adaptations for life in the sandy dunes. province, argentina. these are liolaemus multimaculatus, l. wiegmanni, l. gracilis, l. darwinii, and stenocercus pectinatus. all but l. darwinii are known as sand-dwelling lizards due to their preference for sandy biotopes. in addition, l. multimaculatus and l. wiegmanni are highly specialized for life in the sand, and are accordingly clustered in a monophyletic assemblage of “sanddwelling lizards” within the genus liolaemus. however, only the populations of l. multimaculatus occur exclusively in these habitats, whereas the other four species have wider geographic disiguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 69sand dune lizard six isolated patches of coastal dunes remain in buenos aires province; all have been declared “áreas valiosas de pastizal” (valuable grassland areas). these patches are separated from each other by coastal towns catering to tourists, which block gene flow between lizard populations in each area. endangered coastal dunes in argentina act as filters for water that allow the existence of aquifers and protect the coastline from erosion, ensuring the long-lasting existence of sandy beaches. juvenile sand dune lizards may be distinguished from adults by the yellow lateral bands that disappear at maturity. tributions. historically, this species could be found throughout the marine coast of buenos aires; now, however, it has become hard to find in areas where it used to be abundant. its habitat specializations make this lizard an “indicator species.” indicator species reflect the “health” of the ecosystems they inhabit and are the first to disappear when faced with serious alterations of their habitats. liolaemus multimaculatus is a small saurian, less than 70 mm long from snout to vent, with a flattened body and stout head. its dorsal coloration shows a somewhat irregular pattern of dark spots in transverse series on a brownish background. the spots are outlined posteriorly by white scales, which give them a sand-like appearance. these lizards show evident sexual dimorphism in size and ventral coloration (males are larger and have scattered ventral spots). they usually are seen on dunes with low or sparse plant cover as they scurry away; when not in motion, the lizards are virtually undetectable; their coloration and texture are a perfect match for the substrate. to burrow and “sandswim,” these lizards require loose sandy substrate, which does not occur in areas with abundant vegetation, such as the those planted with exotic species such as pines (pinus sp.), acacias (acacia sp.), or tamarisk (tamarix sp.). what is happening to the sand dune lizard? this species is highly adapted to life in the sand. its sand-swimming ability and cryptic coloration attest to the close evolutionary ties between this lizard and the coastal dunes. its situation is even more critical given the severe alterations experienced by the coastal habitats in buenos aires province, because it cannot colonize and survive in other habitat types. studies carried out in a dune sector called “mar del sur” have shown that this species is highly sensitive to habitat alteration; minor disturbances such as the establishment of a trail for 4 x 4 vehicles can seriously affect its natural populations, causing a critical drop in population density and eventually leading to localized extirpation. this situation is clearly evident in the dune sector situated between the 70 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 kacoliris males are larger than females and have scattered ventral spots that are not visible in this view. “sand-swimming” involves axial oscillations of the trunk and tail, and can be performed only in substrates that are too loose to permit tunnel formation, which is not the case in areas with abundant vegetation, such as those planted with exotic species. the author and ricardo cañete, a park ranger at the mar chiquita natural reserve. rangers monitor and enforce protective measures intended to preserve some of the few remaining natural areas. they also are providing logistical help with this study. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 71 towns of villa gesell and cariló, where this lizard was abundant no more than 10 years ago; today it is practically impossible to find in that area. only six patches of coastal dunes remain in buenos aires province, and they have been declared “áreas valiosas de pastizal” (valuable grassland areas) for south america. these patches are isolated and separated from each other by coastal towns catering to tourists, thus making it impossible for the lizard populations in each of them to interbreed. this factor prevents gene flow, thus reducing the genetic and phenotypic plasticity that allows greater flexibility in responding to abrupt environmental changes. in addition, these patches (with the exception of small portions that have been preserved as natural reserves) are not managed with a focus on the conservation of the habitats and species that live in them. on the contrary, the excessive and irrational exploitation that takes place in these areas disregards any environmental protection, and ultimately facilitates the disappearance of the original environment along with its native flora and fauna, including the sand dune lizard. studying and conserving the sand dune lizard in 2004, as part of a ph.d. research program, a study of the population dynamics of this lizard was initiated under the direction of jorge williams (la plata university). due to its restricted distribution in dune islands, as well as its high degree of specialization for this particular type of environment, this species is an excellent model organism for basic ecological studies. later, after considering the problems that affect this species, the project was expanded to include new aspects related to the protection of its relictual populations. the main goals of this project are: (1) locating, assessing, and monitoring the status of wild populations, and (2) providing the general public with clear information about its circumstances, and taking action to promote conservation strategies for this species in particular and the sand dunes in general. this is accomplished by means of two interrelated programs. sand dune lizard spots are outlined posteriorly by white scales, giving these lizards a sand-like appearance and rendering them extremely cryptic. even when their approximate location is known, finding and catching these lizards is difficult. the scientific research program the goal of this program is the study of basic aspects of population dynamics (spatial arrangement, population density, survival, and mortality), autoecology (habitat use, home range), and elements that allow us to assess the status of wild populations, such as the study of fluctuating asymmetry (a bioindicator of environmental stress that is expressed in populations subject to primarily anthropic impacts producing size differences between left and right body sides) and any decreases in genetic variability due to population isolation. knowledge of the basic ecology of a species is essential for establishing management guidelines and initiating conservation action. the study is intended to encompass all of the coastal dunes that remain in buenos aires province. however, due to the lack of effective and sustained financial support, the project has been restricted largely to research in specific sectors, mainly the natural reserves at mar chiquita and faro querandí and neighboring areas. the results of these studies will permit the identification of priority areas for monitoring and conserving wild l. multimaculatus populations, as well as for ongoing assessments of their conservation status. to optimize fieldwork, volunteers from around the world have been solicited to help with this project. thus, a relatively large group of people are available during the most intense stages of the project (e.g., during the reproductive season in spring and summer, when these lizards are most active, given that they hibernate and are inactive during the winter. volunteers perform different research-related tasks, and some also participate in activities that promote public awareness. 72 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 kacoliris volunteers from around the world have helped with this project. the 2007 sand dune lizard work group in the field (from left to right): gala sanchez velíz (la plata university), the author, gianluca guaitoli (an italian naturalist), alberto rafael (la plata university), cristiano liuzzi (an italian wildlife technician), and alejandro molinari (la plata university). gala sanchez velíz, an advanced biology student at la plata university, measures a lizard. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 73sand dune lizard public awareness program the goal of this program is to provide clear and understandable information about the severe threats affecting the sand dune lizard and the coastal dunes. results of the research program are conveyed to the local community in an effort to create a greater awareness about these issues. using a conservationist approach, we emphasize information about the benefits of conserving the coastal natural resources. this program is part of a larger team effort, the “coastal conservation workgroup” (“grupo de trabajo para la conservación de las costas” or gtcc) integrating researchers from the universidad nacional de la plata, universidad de buenos aires, and fundación de historia natural “félix de azara,” all of whom share a mutual interest in the conservation of coastal environments. to achieve the project’s stated goals, conferences are organized and brochures and posters are distributed in several coastal towns. results of this work also have been presented at meetings and in scientific journals in argentina and internationally. what can we do? gaining knowledge is the first stage of a process that can lead to a greater awareness of the difficulties faced by this species in particular and its environment in general. the second stage is the initiation of definitive actions that promote rational and sustainable use of these habitats at personal, institutional, and governmental levels. these natural habitats can be enjoyed without altering them or affecting the plants and animals that have coexisted for such a long time. these goals can be realized if humans become aware of the current situation and sensitive to other realities beyond our own. the preservation of the natural world is our responsibility. the coast grows dark, and as the sun moves into the sea to hide beyond the horizon, a lizard burrows in the sand under a large tussock where it has chosen to spend the night, escaping the cold and nocturnal predators. the sand dune lizard rests from its forays, recovering its energy for what we hope will be many new tomorrows. acknowledgements the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf) and the neotropical grassland conservancy (ngc) supported fieldwork in 2007. references bilenca, d.n. and f.o. miñarro. 2004. identificación de áreas valiosas de pastizal (avp’s) en las pampas y campos de argentina, uruguay y sur de brasil. fundación vida silvestre argentina, buenos aires. hinrichsen, d. 2004. ocean planet in decline. people & the planet 2000–2007 (www.peopleandplanet.net/doc.php?id=429&section=6). kacoliris, f., n. horlent, and j. williams. 2006. herpetofauna, coastal dunes, buenos aires province, argentina. check list 2(3) (www.checklist.org.br/ getpdf?sl010-06). vega, l., p. bellagamba, and l. fitzgerald. 2000. long-term effects of anthropogenic habitat disturbance on a lizard assemblage inhabiting coastal dunes of argentina. canadian journal of zoology 78: 1-8. once in hand, individuals are measured and marked prior to release at the original site of capture. blood samples are taken for genetic studies that will allow researchers to assess the effects of isolation on individual populations. the author (right) is assisted by volunteers: javier caimi (center) and paula lourenco are biology students at la plata university. information about preservation efforts is diseminated in public education programs and at scientific meetings; here, the author (right) and cintia celsi present a poster at a meeting of the grupo de trabajo para la conservación de las costas (gtcc = coastal conservation workgroup). iguana 12.1 58 iguana • volume 12, number 1 • march 2005 iguana newsbriefs getting rid of the gasparilla island ctenosaurs: the lizards don’t want to leave a news item in the boca beacon, the boca grande (gasparilla island) weekly newspaper, reported that reptile rescuers jamie and mark mitchell of pinellas county came to the island with about a dozen volunteers in an attempt to round up as many of the introduced spinytailed iguanas (ctenosaura similis) as they could capture on 17–18 december and attempt to domesticate them. the mitchell’s claimed to have screened 300 individuals who had applied to adopt the captured animals and had a further 2,000 adoption applications. on both days of the roundup, conditions were partly cloudy and daytime highs were around 70 °f. according to sarah watkins, director of the gasparilla island conservation and improvement association, with whom the rescuers had coordinated their efforts, the actual number of animals caught was “around six.” as well-intentioned as i’m sure the mitchell’s were, a brief study of some ctenosaur natural history might have served to increase their chances of capturing animals. these ctenosaurs are wily ground-dwellers. on gasparilla, they have adapted to hiding (sometimes in gopher tortoise burrows) on days when temperatures are suboptimal. each individual, regardless of age or gender, will usually occupy a clearly defined territory capable of providing adequate food resources, basking spots, lookout spots, and a snug retreat into which it can quickly escape at the first sign of danger. in short, these animals are not easy to catch even for professionals, much less a random collection of volunteers. a second, equally relevant issue is the proposed plan to “domesticate” the animals once they were captured. in my experience with the captive care of six (of 17) different ctenosaur species, i would say that ctenosaura similis is among the more difficult species to maintain. some ctenosaurs, notably c. acanthura and c. pectinata, are social and well-adapted to living in groups. ctenosaura similis is not the least bit social and individuals must be housed separately. these animals also are easily extremely wary and, if unable to retreat into a secure spot, they can become very aggressive, even to the point of being self-destructive. in essence, they make poor captives. a number of years ago, i adopted six gasparilla ctenosaurs trapped by a local rescuer. even the very youngest of these animals, little more than a hatchling, had enormous difficulty adapting to captivity and i have had a 50% mortality rate. perhaps, as ray ashton (commentary, p. 48) has suggested, this is one instance when we simply cannot correct the human folly that created the situation, and the best response is to stand back to observe and learn while nature takes her course. — aj gutman an endoscope and iguana burrows the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf) donated an endoscope with the intention that it be used to probe iguana burrows during surveys in the dominican republic (see iguana 11(1):8–14). ernst rupp, grupo jaragua, reports that they started out by introducing the endoscope directly into burrows. unfortunately, the tip of the endoscope gets clogged with dirt and dust and visibility is quickly reduced to zero. maneuvering the cable in the fairly wide burrows also was difficult. in an effort to avoid those problems, they have experimented with inserting the endoscope into various flexible plastic hoses and tubes that can be maneuvered by pulling on one of two strings that are attached to the distal end. flexible tubes seem to work best and they feel that they are making some progress. they have experienced some success inserting the endoscope into the burrows of juvenile iguanas. grupo jaragua recently acquired a digital camera that can be attached to an adapter purchased for the endoscope, so they hope to be able to generate photographs in the near future. unfortunately, the 3-meter cable of the endoscope is not long enough to reach the end of the burrows of adult iguanas, which may be as long as 5 m. larger endoscopes are too expensive at the moment and an additional problem would arise in regard to the light source (weight, batteries, power). in the interim, they will continue to work on improving their methods. i g u a n a n e w s b r i e f s ctenosaurs such as those established on boca grande (gasparilla island) are quite elusive. photograph by john binns. an endoscope of the type used to explore iguana burrows in the dominican republic (note, however, that the scope used in the field has a much longer optical cable than illustrated here). iguana 13.1 b&w text 16 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 nava adult male puerto rican dwarf gecko, sphaerodactylus macrolepis guarionex: like other very small lizards, dwarf geckos struggle with heat and water loss, avoidance of which requires sophisticated exploitation of available structural, thermal, and temporal microhabitats. sa ú l s. n a v a iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 16 size of an animal is in many ways its most important biological trait. according to j.b.s. haldane’s principle, “sheer size very often defines what bodily equipment an animal must have.” lizards are a diverse group of animals with extremely diverse morphologies and biologies. lizards vary greatly in size from the largest living lizard, the komodo dragon (varanus komodoensis), which measures up to 3 m from head to tail, to the smallest living lizard, the jaragua dwarf gecko (sphaerodactylus ariasae), which measures only to 28 mm from head to tail. many exhibit amazing adaptations relative to their sizes. however, extremes in body size can incur considerable consequences. particularly, as size decreases, physiological functions such as water balance and heat regulation can become exigent on small lizards’ biologies. herein i discuss the physiological challenges facing dwarf geckos (genus sphaerodactylus) and describe how these remarkable lizards not only cope, but also thrive in suitable environments. the genus sphaerodactylus is comprised of over 90 species that are widely distributed throughout the west indies, occurring on every major island in the caribbean, as well as in northern south america through central america into parts of méxico as well as southern florida. species of sphaerodactylus occupy a wide variety of ecosystems that range from montane rainforests and hilly scrub woods to coastal, desert-like habitats. species range in size from 16 mm snout-vent length (svl) to 40 mm svl. a few species reach the lower limits of amniote body size and are considered to be the smallest terrestrial vertesize does matter saúl s. nava department of biology, indiana university, bloomington, indiana, usa (email: snava@indiana.edu) “we are prisoners of the perceptions of our size, and rarely recognize how different the world must appear to small animals.” steven jay gould natural history, january 1974 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 17size does matter � adult male sphaerodactylus macrolepis macrolepis from st. croix, u.s. virgin islands: s. macrolepis is a polytypic species with nine currently recognized subspecies, all endemic to the puerto rico bank. sphaerodactylus macrolepis is the most abundant and widely distributed dwarf gecko in puerto rico. populations in different areas exhibit great variation in morphology, microhabitat use, and osmoregulation. a le ja n d r o s á n c h ez sphaerodactylus ariasae, discovered in 2001 on isla beata, a small hispaniolan satellite island, is the smallest known amniote (a group that includes all reptiles, birds, and mammals). extremely small body size imposes severe challenges in regard to thermoand osmoregulation. s. b la ir h ed g es iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 17 brates discovered to date. adults of the smallest species, sphaerodactylus ariasae, from isla beata, off the southern coast of hispaniola, can curl up on a dime! furthermore, population densities can be phenomenally high. one species (sphaerodactylus macrolepis), which is endemic to the puerto rico bank, is known to reach densities to 67,000 lizards per hectare, quite possibly the highest population density for any lizard in the world! for such tiny lizards, dwarf geckos exhibit considerable diversity in morphology, ecology, behavior, and general natural history — including the fact that many violate a general rule of gecko biology. unlike most geckos, which are nocturnal, species of sphaerodactylus, with only a few exceptions, are diurnal or crepuscular. another departure from general gecko habits is that most species are ground-dwellers, with very few known to be primarily arboreal or saxicolous. the paucity of arboreal forms may be attributable to the fact that dwarf geckos lack the typical large flattened “toe pads” used by most other geckos for climbing. these toe pads sport tiny rows of plate-like projections called lamellae, each of which is equipped with thousands or even millions of microscopic hook-like hairs called setae. these make it possible for most geckos to climb on nearly any surface, even ceilings or vertical panes of glass. however, as the name implies, sphaerodactylus (sphaero = round and dactylus = digit) feet bear round lamellae that are restricted to the tips of their toes. these tiny lizards inhabit a variety of microhabitats in just about every type of terrestrial environment in the west indies. they are commonly found in dense leaf litter, inside termitaria, or under dead palm fronds, agaves, fallen trees, large rock spills, and human debris, such as wooden boards and galvanized steel sheets. a few species (e.g., jamaican s. semasiops and s. oxyrhinus) are known to occur only in the complex microhabitats of arboreal bromeliads. the surface area-to-volume ratio a major physiological challenge that affects all small animals is a high surface area-to-volume ratio (sa/v), which, in turn, affects basic physiological processes like osmoregulation and thermoregulation. as a lizard’s body size decreases, the relative surface area increases. this increase occurs because surface area decreases as length squared, whereas volume decreases as length cubed. consequently, volume decreases more rapidly than surface area, resulting in a high ratio. for tiny sphaerodactyls, the high sa/v has profound effects on how they live their lives and function in the environment. problem 1: evaporative water loss one vital challenge associated with a high sa/v is controlling water loss to the environment through evaporation. evaporative water loss (ewl) plays an important role in the patterns of behavior and activity for lizards of all sizes, but most especially the smaller species. the rate of ewl depends primarily on three factors: size of an animal, rate of oxygen consumed, and physical properties of the skin. due to their incredibly high sa/v, small lizards inevitably experience very high rates of cutaneous evaporative water loss. this is particularly true of dwarf geckos. 18 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 nava adult male sphaerodactylus macrolepis mimetes from puerto rico: note the toe tips with round lamellae for which the genus is named. sa ú l s. n a v a iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 18 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 19size does matter in the few ewl studies on sphaerodactylus, researchers found that these lizards exhibit incredibly high rates of ewl. in fact, some of the rates reported for sphaerodactylus are among the highest recorded for any lizard. these studies suggest that, in comparison to other lizards inhabiting similar or identical environments, dwarf geckos have modest physiological adaptations capable of compensating for high ewl. additionally, ewl rates are generally higher for reptiles inhabiting humid habitats than species inhabiting arid habitats. in terms of humidity, species of sphaerodactylus occupy all types of environments. some, like s. klauberi, which is endemic to puerto rico, are found only in very mesic (moist) montane ecosystems, whereas others, such as s. parkeri, from jamaica, occupy xeric (dry) coastal environments that have all of the characteristics of deserts. although all species demonstrate high ewl rates, one study found that eggs of s. cinereus, a hispaniolan form, might have the lowest ewl rate of any reptilian egg. more research on ewl of eggs is needed to further explore this adaptation. problem 2: thermoregulation thermoregulation is also difficult when faced with a high sa/v. dwarf geckos are poikilothermic, meaning that they have no internal metabolic mechanism for regulating body temperatures, which consequently vary with the environment. as in any smallbodied animal, heat is gained and dissipated relatively rapidly, negating any ability to effectively regulate body temperatures using behavioral mechanisms, such as those used with amazing efficiency by many larger reptiles. large surface areas result in greater exposure, and the relatively small body volume retains heat ineffectively. thus, sphaerodactyls are extremely vulnerable to heat stress. on the other hand, unlike larger lizards, dwarf geckos absorb heat rapidly, and, unlike most larger forms, do not need to bask in order to raise their temperatures. the net effect, however, is that these diminutive species cannot effectively deal with variations in environmental temperatures. the solution: microhabitat selection so, what defenses do dwarf geckos have against dehydration or heat stress imposed by their diminutive sizes? although evidence shows that their bodies are not adapted physiologically to minadult sphaerodactylus klauberi from a montane rainforest in southeastern puerto rico: s. klauberi is endemic to puerto rico and is one of the larger species of dwarf gecko, reaching sizes to 39 mm svl. this species is found only in mesic, montane habitats. a le ja n d r o s á n c h ez adult sphaerodactylus nicholsi from the bosque seco, an extremely arid region in southwestern puerto rico: this species is the smallest dwarf gecko endemic to puerto rico and lives in sympatry with the much larger s. roosevelti. a le ja n d r o s á n c h ez a cosmopolitan house gecko (hemidactylus mabouia) from tortola, british virgin islands. this gecko is widely distributed in the west indies. although much larger, house geckos may share communal nests with dwarf geckos and often are found cohabitating under large rocks, fallen trees, and logs. a le ja n d r o s á n c h ez sphaerodactylus parvus, from anguilla: this species can attain huge population densities in suitable habitats. r o b er t po w el l iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 19 imize water loss and maintain suitable body temperatures, sphaerodactyls can overcome these limitations by behaviorally exploiting microhabitats often unavailable to larger species. microhabitat selection is undoubtedly the best defense against dehydration and overheating. most of the terrestrial habitats occupied by these lizards are relatively heterogeneous regarding humidity, and individuals of most species occur under a variety of complex substrates that appear to preserve high humidity levels. several studies on dwarf gecko ecology have shown that the two most important factors in microhabitat selection are relative humidity and structural complexity. for example, s. parvus, endemic to the anguilla bank, demonstrates a clear preferential use of microhabitats, such as large rocks shaded by dense forest canopies that provide effective insulation from overheating. additionally, leaf litter on the forest floor, for example, can be relatively deep and dense, sometimes greater than a meter in depth. this type of substrate provides an ideal microclimate in which relative humidity levels are substantially higher than ambient humidity. microhabitat selection extends also to aspects of reproduction in dwarf gecko ecology. nest sites are invariably established in humid, sun-sheltered microhabitats (e.g., under large, fallen trees, logs, or large rocks). moreover, dwarf gecko eggs are commonly found in communal nests (one nest site where multiple females lay eggs), often with eggs of other species and genera (e.g., hemidactylus spp.). even in arid environments, dwarf geckos typically are found in the most humid and appropriate microhabitats, usually under trees or cover — access to which is possible only because of their small sizes. for example, in puerto rico’s “bosque seco” (dry forest), which is in essence a desert, s. nicholsi and s. roosevelti, are typically found in the leaf litter underneath sea grape trees, which is substantially more humid than the ambient climate. by actively selecting microhabitats that preserve humidity, these lizards can endure and even thrive in very arid environments. additionally, many species restrict activity to twilight hours, times of day when ambient temperatures are less severe. although not common among species of sphaerodactylus, presumably because most forms can effectively exploit the “right” microhabitats, some species, like s. roosevelti from puerto rico, s. parkeri from jamaica, and s. sputator from the anguilla and st. christopher banks, have opted for nocturnal lifestyles, reducing even more their exposure to daytime heat and the consequent danger of dehydration. conclusion “for every type of animal there is a most convenient size, and a large change in size inevitably carries with it a change of form.” j.b.s. haldane, 1928 despite physiological challenges imposed by diminutive size, geckos in the genus sphaerodactylus, like many other small animals, must rely on behavioral and ecological strategies to survive. dwarf geckos overcome the challenges of desiccation and heat stress by actively selecting the least dehydrating microclimates available in their macroenvironments. so, the small size that is 20 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 nava adult female sphaerodactylus roosevelti from the bosque seco in puerto rico: this species reaches sizes to 39 mm and is active predominantly at night. like many, but not all dwarf geckos, s. roosevelti is sexually dimorphic. note the prominent dorsal stripes, a characteristic seen only in females of this species. a le ja n d r o s á n c h ez iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 20 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 21size does matter disadvantageous in the context of physiological responses to the environment is the very thing that facilitates the exploitation of microhabitats, enabling these tiny lizards to survive and successfully radiate across the west indies. consequently, i can add to haldane’s principle that size “defines what bodily equipment an animal must have” the caveat that size also defines what behavioral responses an animals must use. references bentley, p.j. 1976. osmoregulation, pp. 365–412. in: c. gans and w.r. dawson (eds.), biology of the reptilia. vol. 5. physiology a. academic press, new york. dmi’el, r., g. perry, and j. lazell. 1997. evaporative water loss in nine insular populations of the lizard anolis cristatellus group in the british virgin islands. biotropica 29:111–116. dunson w.a. and c.r. bramham. 1980. evaporative water loss and oxygen consumption of three small lizards from the florida keys: sphaerodactylus cinereus, s. notatus, and anolis sagrei. physiological zoology 54:253–259. gould, s.j. 1974. size and shape: the immutable laws of design set limits on all organisms. natural history 83:20. haldane, j.b.s. 1928. possible words and other papers. harper and brothers, new york. heatwole, h. and j.e.n. vernon. 1977. vital limit and evaporative water loss in lizards (reptilia, lacertilia): a critique and new data. journal of herpetology 11:341–348. hedges, s.b. and r. thomas. 2001. at the lower size limit in amniote vertebrates: a new diminutive lizard from the west indies. caribbean journal of science 37:168–173. hensley, r.l., s.m. wissman, r. powell, and j.s. parmerlee, jr. 2004. habitat preferences and abundance of dwarf geckos (sphaerodactylus) on st. eustatius, netherlands antilles. caribbean journal of science 40:427–429. krysko, k.l., c.m. sheehy, iii, and a.n. hooper. 2003. interspecific communal oviposition and reproduction of four species of lizards (sauria: gekkonidae) in the lower florida keys. amphibia-reptilia 24:390–396. leclair r. 1978. water loss and microhabitats in three sympatric species of lizards (reptilia, lacertilia) from martinique, west indies. journal of herpetology 12:177–182. maclean, w.p. 1985. water loss rates of sphaerodactylus parthenopion (reptilia: gekkonidae), the smallest amniote vertebrate. comparative biochemistry and physiology 82a:759–761. mautz, w.j. 1982. patterns of evaporative water loss, pp. 443–481. in: c. gans and w.r. dawson (eds.), biology of the reptilia. vol. 12. physiology c. academic press, new york. nava, s.s. 2004. microhabitat selection, resource partitioning, and evaporative water loss by dwarf geckos (sphaerodactylus) on puerto rico. unpublished master’s thesis, the university of texas at el paso. nava, s.s., c.r. lindsay, r.w. henderson, and r. powell. 2001. microhabitat, activity, and density of a dwarf gecko (sphaerodactylus parvus) on anguilla, west indies. amphibia-reptilia 22:455–464 powell, r. 1999. herpetology of navassa island, west indies. caribbean journal of science 35:1–13. powell, r. and r.w. henderson. 1999. addenda to the checklist of west indian amphibians and reptiles. herpetological review 30:137–139. regalado, r. 1997. social behavior of the ashy gecko (sphaerodactylus elegans): repertoire and sex recognition. herpetological natural history 5:41–52. regalado, r. 2003. social behavior and sex recognition in the puerto rican dwarf gecko sphaerodactylus nicholsi. caribbean journal of science 39:77–93. rodda, g.h., g. perry, r.j. rondeau, and j. lazell. 2001. the densest terrestrial vertebrate. journal of tropical ecology 17:331–338. snyder, g.k. 1975. respiratory metabolism and evaporative water loss in a small tropical lizard. journal of comparative physiology 104:13–18. adult male sphaerodactylus roosevelti from the bosque seco in puerto rico: note the reduced prominence of dorsal stripes, which is characteristic of males. a le ja n d r o s á n c h ez iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 21 iguana b&w text conservation of the indonesian herpetofauna indonesia is an archipelagic nation composed of some 17,000 islands of varying sizes and geological origins, and with marked differences in flora and fauna. indonesia is considered one of the earth’s megadiversity centers. according to the biodiversity action plan for indonesia, 16% of all amphibian and reptilian species occur in indonesia, a total of over 1,100 species. new research activities, launched in the last few years, indicate that these figures may be significantly higher than generally assumed. herpetological research in indonesia, however, has not progressed at a rate comparable to that of neighboring countries. in the last 70 years, 762 new taxa have been described from southeastern asia, of which only 262 were from indonesia. in general, the herpetofauna of indonesia is poorly understood compared to the herpetofauna of neighboring countries. moreover, geographic distribution patterns for many species are poorly known. in view of the alarming rate of forest loss, measures for more effective protection of the herpetofauna of indonesia are urgently required. the iucn red list status of virtually all indonesian species remains unknown, and no action plans have been formulated. iskandar and erdelen (2006. amphibian and reptile conservation 4:60–87) provided an overview of the herpetofauna as part of indonesia’s biodiversity, outlined the history of herpetological research in the region, and identified major gaps in our knowledge of the indonesian herpetofauna. the latter addressed the contents and shortcomings of compilations of lists of protected or threatened species by national and international authorities and major threats to the indonesian herpetofauna, and proposed measures for better long-term conservation. rangeland management and a tallgrass prairie herpetofauna the flint hills of kansas and oklahoma have changed dramatically in the past 30 years, largely due to conversion from natural tallgrass prairie to cattle rangeland. because the effects of fire and grazing on the herpetofauna are poorly understood, wilgers et al. (2006. herpetologica 62:378–388) examined how different land management practices, such as cattle stocking rates and seasonal burning, affected amphibians and reptiles. fourteen herpetofaunal surveys documented the number of individuals, environmental conditions, and community dynamics, including the probabilities of local extinction or permanent emigration. land-use practices during the study were traditional season-long stocking during the first 10 years, burning pastures in alternate years. in 1999, land management practice changed to intensive early cattle stocking, combined with annual burning. data suggested that burn frequencies and cattle stocking affected the herpetofauna, with rates of species loss higher during years of burning than in non-burn years. forest fragmentation and community structure in costa rica habitat fragmentation is one of the most serious threats to biodiversity. the increasing conversion of land to agricultural uses in costa rica has greatly reduced forested area, and has more than doubled the number of forest fragments in some areas. reptiles and amphibians occur at high densities in the neotropics, but we know little about their responses to land-use changes. bell and donnelly (2006. conservation biology 20:1750–1760) examined community and population structure of frogs and lizards in the fragmented landscape surrounding la selva biological station, costa rica to better understand the effects of forest fragmentation. nine fragments, ranging in area from 1–7 ha, were compared to an 1,100-ha area in the preserve. community structure of frogs and lizards in forest fragments differed significantly from that of the intact forest community. lizard density was higher and frog density was lower in forest fragments than in continuous forest, and 25% of species found in continuous forest were not observed in fragmented forest. species composition and relative abundance varied among sites according to fragment size. the extent of isolation and habitat variables did not affect species richness, composition, or nesting. the authors concluded that small populations 128 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 conservation research reports c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s the great plains skink (eumeces obsoletus) is one of many prairie-dwelling species affected by land management practices. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h the endangered giant river terrapin (batagur baska) is one of many indonesian reptiles about which very little is known. c h r is t a b a k a , d v m iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 129 are threatened by edge effects, and that preservation of large reserves is crucial for the preservation of reptiles and amphibians in la selva and in other fragmented habitats. the pigeon paradox conservation of urban nature is rarely discussed, yet, as ecosystems continue to shrink and change due to urbanization, conservation will increasingly rely on urban habitats to preserve natural communities. dunn et al. (2006. conservation biology 20:1814–1816) refer to this phenomenon as the “pigeon paradox.” based on assertions that current conservation action is insufficient, people are more likely to take conservation action when they have direct experiences with the natural world, and humans in the future will experience nature primarily through contact with urban wildlife, the authors concluded that providing opportunities for children living in cities to experience nature is essential, as the future of conservation will depend largely on the urban culture. to meet this need, societies must restore urban ecosystems, improve access to urban nature, and carefully consider the costs and benefits linked to how we portray non-native and “pestiferous” urban species (such as “pigeons”). climate change and herpetofaunal declines araújo et al. (2006. journal of biogeography 33:1712–1728) explored the relationship between current european distributions of amphibian and reptilian species and potential impacts of climatic warming by asking what proportion of species are projected to lose and gain suitable climate space; whether species projections vary according to taxonomic, spatial, or environmental properties; and what climate factors might be driving projections of loss or gain in suitable environments. distributions were projected into the future using five climate-change scenarios for 2050, and projections were made according to two extreme assumptions: species have unlimited dispersal ability or species have no dispersal ability. many species were projected to expand distributions if dispersal is unlimited, mainly because warming in the cooler northern ranges of species creates new opportunities for colonization. if species are unable to disperse, then most species were projected to lose range, mainly in southwestern europe, where dry conditions were projected to increase. the authors suggested that the impact of increasing temperatures on amphibian and reptilian species might be less deleterious than previously postulated. however, the ability of species to cope with climatic warming may be offset by projected decreases in the availability of water, particularly for amphibians. limited dispersal ability may further increase the vulnerability of amphibians and reptiles to changes in climate. island differences in komodo dragons species inhabiting archipelagos are often characterized by high levels of interpopulation divergence (e.g., size-related traits). this divergence may, in turn, influence life history. to facilitate better management and conservation of the komodo dragon (varanus komodoensis), jessop et al. (2007. biological conservation 135:247–255) identified demographic differences between two island populations in komodo national park, indonesia. comparison of data collected from dragon populations inhabiting rinca island and the much smaller gili motang island indicated that between 1994 and 2004, the komodo dragon population on gili motang significantly decreased its mean body mass, body condition, and relative abundance. these results suggest that the numerically small gili motang population was oscillating downward; in contrast, the rinca island population had been relatively stable. these results emphasize the necessity for managers of this priority conservation species to understand further the inherent functional differences among dragon populations to develop island-specific management units. current management practices instigated by komodo national park management ignore smallconservation research reports costa rican lizards, such as this black iguana (ctenosaura similis), which benefit from breaks in forest canopies that provide effective basking sites, often increase in numbers in response to forest fragmentation. g a d p er r y green iguanas (iguana iguana) are common urban species both where the species is native and in areas, such as southern florida, where it has been introduced. a lb er to l o pe z many european reptiles, such as this slow worm (anguis fragilis) are expected to expand their ranges in response to global warming. g u n th er k ö h le r island dragon populations and thus run the risk of being unable to detect adverse effects for populations that are potentially most prone to decline. dim future for fiji’s endemic crested iguana the fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis) was not described until 1981, but it appears to be secure on only one small island sanctuary. harlow et al. (2007. oryx 41:44–50) surveyed 17 islands in western fiji with historical records of crested iguanas, and found that iguanas were “extremely rare or extinct” on all of those islands. iguanas were recorded on four of the surveyed islands, but the authors suggested that all of these populations are small and continuing to decline, primarily due to ongoing forest habitat destruction by fire and goat grazing and the introduction of feral cats. most distressing were the repeated surveys of the cat-free, uninhabited island of monuriki, where a population estimate of 40–80 iguanas in 1998 had decreased by a factor of four in 2003 — so low that an estimate was no longer possible. the authors indicated that these data should spur the government of fiji to instigate immediate conservation action on behalf of the nation’s most famous wildlife icon. effects of agricultural practices on wood turtles in north america, the spatio-temporal scale of deforestation has resulted in a 94% decrease in temperate forests within 360 years. despite the enormous scale of this disturbance, agriculture is so pervasive in modern society that its impacts are highly underappreciated. saumure et al. (2007. biological conservation 135:581–591) investigated the impact of current agricultural practices on a disturbance-dependent species in southern québec, canada. of 30 wood turtles (glyptemys insculpta) followed via radiotelemetry, 20% died as a result of agricultural activities. anthropogenic mortality estimates for adults and juveniles in 1998 were 0.10 and 0.18, respectively. for 1999, these values were 0.13 and 0.17, respectively. of those turtles that survived, many had injuries inflicted by agricultural machinery. sub-lethal mutilation rates for adults were 90 ± 3% in both years, whereas the maximum frequency for juveniles was 57%. the cutting height of disc mowers increased to 100 mm increases harvest yields, reduces wear on machinery, and decreases soil erosion. a by-product of such a change in cutting height is that turtle mortality and injury rates should be reduced, as wood turtle carapace height is < 87 mm. without changes in agricultural practices, this population will be extirpated. conserving new zealand’s diurnal geckos visually cryptic, long-lived, diurnal green geckos (naultinus) were a significant component of natural ecosystems throughout much of new zealand prior to human settlement about 1800 years ago. since then, habitat modification and introduced mammalian predators have threatened many populations, making their survival a conservation priority. hare et al. (2007. journal of herpetology 41:81–93) pooled data collected over a 25-year period on the population of n. manukanus on mammalfree stephens island and determined that it is female-biased (1:1.7), a trend evident from birth, that sexual maturity occurs at approximately four years of age, and that 71% of females reproduce annually. these geckos are strictly diurnal, arboreal, and opportunistic thermoregulators. movements are limited, averaging 0.6 m per day, characteristic of a sit-and-wait foraging strategy. these data provide a context for developing conservation management plans for increasingly threatened populations of geckos in the genus naultinus. 130 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 conservation research reports demographic differences between two island populations of komodo dragons (varanus komodoensis) in komodo national park, indonesia emphasize the necessity for managers of this priority conservation species to develop island-specific management units. jo e w a si le w sk i populations of the fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis) were found on only four of 17 islands in western fiji on which iguanas had been documented in the past. pe te r s . h a r lo w marlborough green geckos (naultinus manukanus) on mammal-free stephens island off new zealand are visually cryptic, long-lived, strictly diurnal, arboreal, and opportunistic thermoregulators. je n n if er g er m a n o wood turtles (glyptemys insculpta) are vulnerable to common agricultural practices. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana b&w text 264 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 pasachnik the author processing a ctenosaur in the mangrove swamp on utila. d en n is b a u le c h n er mesoamerica is one of the most biologically diverse areas in the world. iguanid lizards comprise a conspicuous component of this diversity, largely due to the species-rich genus, ctenosaura. this genus encompasses 17 distinct species (more than twice as many as the second most diverse genus, cyclura). these lizards are threatened with extinction by habitat destruction and fragmentation, over-harvesting, pollution, and exportation for an illegal pet trade (four of the five largest threats to biodiversity). in 2004, ten species in this genus were red-listed by the iucn. four of five species listed as critically endangered form the ctenosaura melanosterna clade. in order to address the high degree of intra-generic diversity, gain an understanding of the threats faced by these critically endangered species, and aid in their protection, i plan to do a multi-scale molecular evaluation of the clade and its wide-ranging and sympatric congener, c. similis. one principal goal of my research is the construction of a molecular phylogeny of the ctenosaura melanosterna clade, which occurs along the caribbean versant of honduras and guatemala and on the honduran bay islands. when added to recent studies of the southern sister clade, the c. quinquecarinata complex, this work will complete the phylogenetic analysis of ctenosaurs in southern nuclear mesoamerica. a second component of this project will address the threat that habitat destruction poses to ctenosaura bakeri, endemic to the bay island of utila, by evaluating the degree and direction of genetic introgression with c. similis. these hybridization events may result from a novel overlap in the ecological distributions of these species that resulted from habitat destruction. a detailed management plan will recommend methods of preserving the genetic integrity of c. bakeri. the third portion of this investigation concerns the colonization by ctenosaura bakeri, c. similis, c. melanosterna, and c. oedirhina of the bay islands, cayos cochinos, and various islets in the caribbean sea bordering honduras. this will allow for insight into evolutionary rates and patterns within this clade. additionally, due to ecological and hybridization threats that c. similis poses to c. bakeri, dating the arrival of the former on utila will be necessary to determine if it is an invasive species. during the spring and summer of 2006, i spent six months collecting data on ctenosaura melanosterna, c. bakeri, c. oedirhina, and c. similis populations throughout their respective ranges in honduras. the goal of this preliminary report is to discuss the success of collecting dna samples and the current status of the populations of these species. later reports will discuss my molecular findings. southern honduras (march) department of choluteca.—along the main highway, we encountered children selling c. similis and iguana iguana and ctenosaurs of honduras: notes from the field stesha pasachnik department of ecology and evolutionary biology, university of tennessee, knoxville photographs by the author except where noted. iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 265ctenosaurs of honduras � destruction of what had been a mangrove stand southeast of the canal on utila. the author (left) and hadas grushka, a volunteer from israel, noosing ctenosaurs from an incomplete foundation. d en n is b a u le c h n er were able to obtain tissue samples from four c. similis. these children told us that, in an effort to be sustainable, they only catch males. we could not confirm that contention, but i see no reason for them to lie, since hunting iguanas at all is illegal. in an area locally called la bonanza, we again encountered children selling c. similis and i. iguana. we obtained tissue samples from three more c. similis, before traveling north along a dirt road toward the town of el triunfo, where we caught a juvenile ctenosaur. given the locality, this should have been c. similis, however, it looked strikingly like c. flavidorsalis. a genetic sample and subsequent molecular analysis should resolve this mystery. inspired by a photo of what looked like c. quinquecarinata from this area (sent to me by dr. thomas akre), i asked locals about this possibility. apparently, c. quinquecarinata did and may still occur in this area, although we found no individuals. department of valle.—in an area known as san juan pali, we encountered a man carrying a bag of ctenosaurs. we obtained tissue samples from four c. similis, but were unable to determine the sex of these individuals due to their condition. locals at playa blanca helped us catch two additional lizards, one of which appeared to have been poisoned, a local technique for ridding gardens of iguanas. in san pablo we hired a boat to take us to isla del tigre and isla exposicion. although we saw many c. similis on isla del tigre, we were unable to catch any. our visit to isla exposicion proved more successful. aided by four local teenagers, we caught three male c. similis. apparently, all of the sizable islands in the golfo de fronseco support ctenosaurs. hunting pressures on ctenosaurs in these southern departments are intense. hunters have little fear of being caught. additional molecular work from this area is desperately needed to determine if the c. similis in the area represent a unique gene pool. intense field and molecular work also are needed to determine if either c. flavidorsalis or c. quinquecarinata are present. northern honduras department of cortez (july).—locals in san pedro sula told us that ctenosaurs are not sold in markets due to the presence of law enforcement. we did, however, encounter both i. iguana and c. similis being sold along the highway north of the city. we obtained a tissue sample from one adult female c. similis. in puerto cortez, we searched for ctenosaurs in areas where they are normally sold, only to be told that it was the wrong season. however, one roadside “store” had “iguana” meat for sale. we could not determine what type of iguana this was due to its condition. traveling west along the coast toward omoa, we encountered many c. similis, but were able to obtain tissue from only one individual. in the small garifuna village of travesia, locals told us that they normally have many iguanas for sale, but it was not the right season for hunting iguanas. department of atlantida (june and july).—in the towns of miami and tornabe, we obtained tissue from seven c. similis. along the road from tornabe to miami and in the village of miami, we saw many hatchlings, indicating that this is a very stable population, despite the presence of local hunters. in 266 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 pasachnik ctenosaura oedirhina from barbareta, roatan. iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 267ctenosaurs of honduras miami, a grove of large red mangroves (rhizophora mangle) provides habitat for many adult c. similis. we hired a small boat to take us into the punta sal national park, where we visited the areas of puerto carib and cocolito. we caught seven hatchlings in puerto carib and six more in cocolito. additional molecular work is needed, but the population in the park seems to be reproducing well. the lack of encounters with adults was probably attributable to the very dense vegetation, although we cannot rule out hunting pressure. department of colon (july).—our time here was split between the coastal regions, where c. similis occurs, and the valle de aguan, where both c. melanosterna and c. similis occur. we obtained eight c. similis tissue samples from sambo creek, between la ceiba and trujillo. we stopped in many different towns and asked about ctenosaurs in markets, but were told each time that selling iguanas is illegal. ctenosaura similis appears to be thriving in the gated area at puerto castillo. guards, most likely representing the standard fruit company, apparently provide protection for the ctenosaurs in this area. we easily caught three individuals. we then entered the naval base, where c. similis was similarly abundant, although catching them was impossible. my impression was that they are harassed but not hunted. along the road from puerto castillo and around casa kiwi, we found a good number of juvenile c. similis, the latter a result of protection provided by the new zealand owners. we asked to collect tissue samples, but were told that no iguana could be harmed for any reason. although disappointing for our study, such an attitude should help preserve c. similis in the area. we acquired two tissue samples west of trujillo, one subadult female in the town of san antonio and one sample retrieved from the tail of a c. similis, lost as it escaped into a hole. ctenosaura similis appears to be much less threatened in these northern coastal areas than in the south. northern populations seem to be reproducing at good rates, and individual property owners seem to be taking an active interest in their preservation. however, illegal hunting does occur, but populations seem to be handling this threat. in the valle de aguan, we acquired genetic samples from eight c. melanosterna and seven c. similis. four c. melanosterna (two juveniles and two hatchlings) and six hatchling c. similis were captured north of the río aguan in an area known as agua caliente, and four additional c. melanosterna (three sub-adult males and one hatchling) and one hatchling c. similis were captured south of the river in the area around arenal. the situation in this area is dire. hunting pressure is greater than i have seen anywhere else, with the possible exception of southern honduras. the threat is aggravated by the fact that this is the only continental area where c. melanosterna occurs. i did not see a single adult c. melanosterna and saw very few hatchlings. hatchling c. similis were abundant, and the timing was such that hatchling c. melanosterna should also have been prominent — if they are indeed breeding. given the reduced range of c. melanosterna and the anthropogenic factors involved, this population could be extirpated within a few years if action is not taken immediately. the honduran government in past years was working on a reserve for endemic species. this effort, headed by paul house, was to include a breeding program for c. melanosterna. this project is no longer funded and is at a standstill. the only alternative is a coordinated effort by international organizations and the cohdefor office in olanchito, which recently has established a protected area in the valle de aguan, and is in the process of building a visitor/research center on site. at present, guards watch over this area, and i strongly recommend that a breeding program be implemented within that reserve. cayos cochinos (june) the cayos cochinos archipelago is protected by the honduran coral reef foundation (hcrf), which has set up a national marine reserve that encompasses all of the islands in the archipelago. we spent approximately one week on both cayo pequeno and cayo grande, the only islands of the archipelago where ctenosaurs are found. although both islands are technically protected under honduran law, cayo pequeno has increased protection due to the presence of a research station, founded by the hcrf. this allows c. melanosterna to thrive, because both hunting and habitat destruction have stopped. we caught eleven individuals from this island. cayo pequeno is extremely small and has no obvious physical barriers, so i consider animals from the entire island as one population. work on cayo grande proved to be much more difficult. lizards were very skittish and the island itself is much larger. we nevertheless caught nine animals, all from one area. based on the lizards’ ctenosaura oedirhina from along the mangrove canal on roatan. behavior and the absence of large individuals, we concluded that c. melanosterna probably is being hunted regularly on cayo grande by the garifuna people living on this island. locals who helped us came equipped with dogs and slingshots, tools typical of mainland iguana hunters. mainland hondurans also may hunt on the island and return to the mainland to sell their catch, as the c. melanosterna on the island are much easier to catch than c. similis on the mainland. isla de roatan (june) we caught 25 c. oedirhina at six sites that were spread fairly evenly throughout the island. five individuals were caught from the west bay area. this area is the site of ongoing development, where clearing in the past has opened up a rocky area in which ctenosaurs seem to thrive. we saw no physical evidence of hunting in this area, although a local, intrigued by our efforts to dig ctenosaurs out of the rocks, quickly jumped in and caught one for us. additionally, we saw very few adults, which could be indicative of hunting. we caught six individuals at the paya bay resort on the northeastern half of the island. interestingly, ctenosaurs are abundant on the open rock faces abutting the ocean, and locals have told us that they often see them in the ocean, although i was unable to confirm this with my own observations. four individuals came from arch’s iguana farm. although this “farm” is dedicated to the preservation of green iguanas (iguana iguana), a few c. oedirhina can be found in the area. through the efforts of one of the farms caretakers, ctenosaur breeding may be incorporated into the farm’s objectives. this would be of great benefit to the species, and considerations should be given to helping him with such an effort. we hired a dory to take us through the red mangrove canal. this is a tourist route, and was recommended as a place to find ctenosaurs. we were able to catch four individuals from this area in about one hour. hunting pressure appears to be low, at least in part because the ctenosaurs are a tourist attraction. we took a second dory trip to the far eastern end of the island and to the two small islands of morat and barbareta. barbareta is a private island that is heavily guarded against local poachers of green iguanas, ctenosaurs, and sea turtles. the owner of the resort on this island seems to be very concerned with protecting the wildlife. with the assistance of two guards, he allowed us to collect samples from five individuals. our trip to morat was unsuccessful. we examined the entire southern side of the island, but saw no signs of any kind of iguana. we saw no tail drags, evidence of nesting or hatching, or fecal matter. we also saw no clear signs of hunting, although branches had been cut off the mangrove trees, the pattern was not typical of ctenosaur hunting. santa elena, located on the far eastern side of roatan, also proved unsuccessful, although we did see one individual. we stopped farther west at rocky point and saw many ctenosaurs, but were unable to catch any as they were extremely skittish. hunting pressure on the far eastern side of the island appears to be high. the situation for c. oedirhina on roatan seems to be fairly good, although the fact that hunting is occurring was no secret. the island seems to be big enough and contain enough protected areas to conserve this species. ctenosaura oedirhina also seems to be able to exploit many different environments, from red mangrove stands to dry scrub forest, indicative of its ecological versatility, a characteristic that should help this species as habitats change or are destroyed. i propose that conservation efforts focus on the populations on barbareta and at arch’s iguana farm. isla de utila (march–may) on utila, i continued and expanded work initiated in 2005, which included mark-recapture, collection of dna samples, and ongoing evaluations of the status of c. bakeri and c. similis, with particular efforts aimed at assessing the possibility of hybridization between the two species. in addition to sites visited last year, i discovered many new sites, some of which support only c. bakeri or c. similis, whereas others have both species. in all, i identified 26 sub-sites located throughout the island. these sub-sites can be grouped into three main geographic regions based on both anthropomorphic and natural barriers and useable habitat connections. geographic region one (gr1) encompasses the most easterly portion of the island and is divided from geographic region two (gr2), which encompasses the middle section of the island, by the presence of utila town in the south and uninhabitable savannah through the interior of the western part of the island. these barriers may be more of a problem for c. bakeri than for c. similis. gr1 includes five sub-sites, of which one is occupied solely by c. similis, one solely by c. bakeri, and three have both species. we captured a total of 71 c. bakeri (30 males, 32 females, 9 juveniles) and 31 c. similis (five males, 15 females, 11 juveniles) in gr1. 268 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 pasachnik typical locally made noose found near the tradewinds properties. iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 269ctenosaurs of honduras geographic region two encompasses the middle section of the island on both the eastern and western sides of the canal and is separated from geographic region three (gr3) by the presence of uninhabitable savannah running essentially north-to-south through the western section of the island. although a man-made canal runs north-to-south through the middle of gr2, it is not a geographic barrier for ctenosaurs, because it is extremely shallow in many areas and trees occasionally form a contiguous canopy over the water. this barrier, however, may affect c. similis more than c. bakeri. gr2 includes 17 sub-sites, two occupied solely by c. similis, 12 solely by c. bakeri, and three support both species. we captured a total of 271 c. bakeri (118 males, 114 females, 39 juveniles) and 20 c. similis (six males, nine females, five juveniles) in gr2. geographic region three is the largest region and encompasses the most westerly portion of the island. gr3 includes eight sub-sites, five occupied solely by c. bakeri and three include both species. we captured a total of 40 c. bakeri (14 males, 15 females, 11 juveniles) and five c. similis (1 female, 4 juveniles) in gr3. we spent substantially less time collecting in gr3 due to the difficulty of reaching the area. i can now conclude that c. bakeri can be found in nearly all areas of the island, with the sole exception of the savannah. although traditionally thought to be a mangrove specialist, c. bakeri may actually be more of a generalist. although they thrive in mangroves, i also found them doing well in dry areas that were once thought to be occupied solely by c. similis or to be entirely ctenosaur-free. this may be an artifact attributable to habitat destruction, but occupied areas on the northwestern side of the island, which are virtually free of people, argue otherwise. additional observations from the eastern shore indicate that c. bakeri often exploits dry beaches far from mangroves stands, even during periods other than the breeding and nesting seasons. similar to c. oedirhina on roatan, i suggest that c. bakeri can be considered a habitat generalist that is adept at exploiting mangrove swamps. however, on utila, c. bakeri shares the island with a congener (c. similis) that appears incapable of surviving in the mangroves. i also visited many of the small cays off the southwestern and western coasts of utila, and found no evidence of iguanas. my purpose on these cays was to check for the presence of ctenosaurs and evaluate them for the possible introduction of c. bakeri rescue populations. the only cay that might be able to support iguanas is bird cay, which offers suitable habitat and is free of human visitation. however, the island is very small and could support only a small population of lizards. i was unable to recapture enough individuals to estimate accurately population or subpopulation sizes. this may reflect ctenosaura bakeri from northwestern utila. 270 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 pasachnik ctenosaura similis from a new development on the eastern side of utila. cleared area on the eastern side of utila at the blue bayou lagoon. iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 271ctenosaurs of honduras the fact that only 100 individuals were marked in 2005 or it may be attributable to the recent increase in iguana hunting on the island. although questions regarding hybridization between the two species will be addressed more conclusively once molecular evidence can be taken into account, i found no obvious morphological evidence suggesting that hybridization occurs more than very rarely, supporting tentative conclusions based on molecular work in 2005. although populations of c. similis and c. bakeri on utila seem stable at this time, hunting, development, and traffic on the island have increased dramatically in just the past year. in 2005, i rarely saw hunters or signs of hunting. in sharp contrast, i rarely had a day in the field this year during which i did not encounter hunters, find evidence that people had been hunting, or hear people hunting with guns. additionally, habitat destruction continues to threaten the wildlife of utila, particularly the illegal destruction of mangrove forests. utila’s roads and associated traffic also are expanding. this year, for the first time, i found roadkilled ctenosaurs. i strongly recommend support of the habitat action plan being developed by the utila iguana research and breeding station to buy land, give land owners incentive to be ecologically friendly, and hire guards to protect wildlife. summary honduran ctenosaurs face many threats. in the south, the greatest threat is illegal poaching. in the north and on the islands, in addition to illegal hunting, the greatest threats are habitat destruction and a growing human population. throughout the country, the sporadic or total lack of law enforcement that should have been protecting these animals since 1994 leaves them vulnerable. in 2004, the iucn listed all of these ctenosaurs, except c. similis, as “critically endangered,” indicating the severity of the situation. without local protection, their future is questionable at best. only those individuals and institutions that feel a moral obligation to protect the diversity of nature can postpone the seemingly inevitable extirpation of at least many populations. acknowledgements the success of this field season would have been impossible without the help of many amazing volunteers: dennis baulechner, corey shaffer, jeff liechty, wendy naira, melissa issis medina, sammy nuñez, and hadas grushka, my thoughtful mentors drs. arthur echternacht, john iverson, and tom near, the utila iguana research and breeding station, the overseas research station on roatan and dr. david evans, the cayos cochinos foundation, dr. gustravo cruz, jorge ferrari, and the many offices of afe-cohdefor. additional thanks go to oscar maccio, colin meeks, and martin nuñez for aid in translating the report on which this article is based. references abdelkrim, j., m. pascal, and s. samadi. 2005. island colonization and founder effects: the invasion of the guadeloupe islands by ship rats (rattus rattus). molecular ecology 14:2923–2931. hasbun, c.r., a. gomez, g. kohler, and d.h. lunt. 2005. mitochondrial dna phylogeography of the mesoamerican spiny-tailed lizards (ctenosaura quinquecarinata complex): historical biogeography, species status and conservation. molecular ecology 14:3095–3107. myers, n., r.a. mittermeier, c.g. mittermeier, g.a.b. da fonseca, and j. kent. 2000. biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities. nature 403:853–858 dead ctenosaura similis hit by a four-wheeler on the road near annie marelli’s hotel. iguana b&w text 230 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 commentary florida recently reported another alligator attack. as more people invade alligator habitat in southern states, we have (or at least should have) come to expect such news. contact between us and them is steadily increasing. ironically, humans, the invasive species, are the ones who become offended when another species takes objection to our presence. i do not want to belittle or trivialize the traumatic experience suffered by anyone who has been injured by an alligator or had a family member, friend, or pet actually killed by one. however, a comparison between american alligators (alligator mississippiensis) and some crocodiles is worth considering, if for no other reason than to show how a truly aggressive species copes with interlopers. the saltwater crocodiles (crocodylus porosus) of australia are very different from american alligators in their response to humans — they will attack and eat people. these are the reptile world’s equivalent of great white sharks or bengal tigers. they frequent ocean habitats as well as rivers and freshwater marshes near where people live. their maximum size is enormous, more than 20 feet. a crocodile only 15 feet long could easily kill and swallow a full-grown man. despite prevailing views about the sanctity of human life, some predators view people as simply another source of protein — and people living in areas where such attacks are common often develop different attitudes from those to which we are accustomed. for example, one journalist noted that people inhabiting the northern territory in australia “seemed almost jubilant whenever someone was taken by a crocodile.” when a “mineworker met a grisly death in the jaws of a giant crocodile” in a national park, many of the residents in the northern territory displayed “widespread and bizarre delight” that the crocodile had been victorious. once when i visited the region near darwin, australia, someone was killed and eaten by a saltwater crocodile in the adelaide river. the local folks with whom i talked the next day were seemingly unmoved by the incident. why the lack of compassion by the residents? because, as someone said, they view themselves as “rugged frontiersmen carving out an existence in an untamed wilderness.” they reject even the hint of a suggestion that the crocodile population be reduced in any way. the preservationist attitude about the saltwater crocodile by old-time residents is based on the principle that the rivers of northern australia belong to the crocodile. if humans want to share the waters and adjoining land, they must assess the risks of these giant predators and be prepared to live (or die) with them. this is my image of the pioneering spirit of early america, which differs dramatically from the attitude of most americans today. what is the difference between an alligator and a crocodile, aside from the fact that some crocodiles will eat people? the answer is not simple. almost two dozen species of crocodilians exist today, which vary greatly in shape and size. however, american alligators have broad snouts, and american crocodiles (c. acutus), which are native to southern florida, have narrower snouts. fortunately, american crocodiles do not indulge in the antisocial behavior of eating people. american crocodiles, in fact, behave somewhat like alligators, which are usually shy and inoffensive. some people consider american alligators a menace because they occasionally attack people, but this seldom happens without some provocation. almost all alligator attacks can be traced back to human irresponsibility of some sort, including people feeding alligators. yet, if an animal causes harm to people, we hold the animal responsible, without considering that we may have entered its natural environment, threatened its young, and destroyed its habitat. maybe americans need to be more accepting of the nature of wild animals and more willing to share the environment with them. this doesn’t mean we must acquiesce to the idea that humans are acceptable prey items, but none of our native species are typically out to make a meal of us. to avoid alligator attacks or other unfortunate encounters with nature we must consider the rules of safety and probabilities of risk when dealing with any animal that could bite, trample, scratch, sting, or otherwise injure us. developing an attitude that we must be responsible will be a good first step. c o m m e n t a r y saltwater crocodiles (crocodylus porosus) are much more aggressive than american alligators (alligator mississippiensis) and american crocodiles (c. acutus). crocodiles and alligators are very different1 j. whitfield gibbons savannah river ecology lab, aiken, south carolina 1 adapted with permission by the author and partners in amphibian & reptile cconservation (http://www.parcplace.org/). jo e w a si le w sk i iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 230 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 235newsbriefs mexican herpetological society meeting the mexican herpetological society and the universidad autónoma de nuevo león (uanl) school of biological sciences are pleased to announce the ninth reunión nacional de herpetología méxico on 6–9 november 2006. the meeting will be held in the raúl rangel frías library, located on the campus of uanl, monterrey, nuevo león, méxico. participation and attendance is open to all parties interested in the study of mexican herpetofauna. papers and posters on mexican herpetofaunal systematics, biogeographic analysis, faunistics, ecology, conservation, reproduction, and development are welcome. for further information contact: www.sociedadherpetologicamexicana. com or www.fcb.uanl.mx exotic snakes in australia keith larner, senior investigator at the department of sustainability and environment in victoria, australia reports that, in the past four years, the dse has found 340 “exotic” reptiles in victoria, including 55 boa constrictors (boa constrictor) and 63 corn snakes (elaphe guttata). he believes that these invaders pose a serious threat to the ecosystem. many of the interlopers are discovered by dse officers executing search warrants, and often are found in the homes of suspected drug dealers. in a recent search, “we gathered enough information for a search warrant, and, as a result, we found a massive amount of stolen machinery, computers, telephones, there were signs of intravenous drug use, a quantity of drugs was seized and a quantity of ammunition,” mr. larner said. a profile compiled by the dse suggests that a person most likely to be keeping exotic reptiles illegally is: 18 to 35 years old, living in the western suburbs or geelong, a blue-collar worker or unemployed, licensed to keep native wildlife, and a cannabis grower. the dse says drugs and exotic reptiles go together because cannabis is sold to pay for electricity to keep the snakes warm. some also believe that a large boa constrictor is more of a deterrent to thieves than a dog. since 11 september, the postal service has been closely monitored, so reptile smugglers are turning to couriers. “a person from sydney was recently apprehended at the airport with cobras strapped to his legs,” mr. larner said. “some of these snakes might only be eight inches [20 cm] long, but they can still deliver venom. there’s a whole network of people out there who have these deadly snakes and they’re quite proud of it.” of more concern is the fact that people are breeding venomous snakes rather than just importing them. as well as the threat to the ecosystem from voracious corn snakes and red-eared slider turtles (trachemys scripta), people could be bitten, and little or no antivenom is available for these species in australia. “these are an environmental pest. we can’t do anything about it unless people tell us what’s happening out there.” the dse is happy to negotiate with anybody wanting to surrender these animals. theage.com.au 26 may 2006 swig program is being harmed please take action by contacting your united states senators and letting them know that you oppose cuts to the state wildlife grants program, which recently passed in the house of representatives. partner-driven and results-oriented, the state wildlife grants program is an corn snakes (elaphe guttata, top) and red-eared slider turtles (trachemys scripta) are invasive species in australia that might pose serious threats to native ecosystems. r o b er t po w el l su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h n e w s b r i e f s iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 235 236 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 newsbriefs innovative program that is already producing on-the-ground conservation benefits for amphibian and reptilian habitat across the country. please let your lawmakers know how much more could be done if they support full funding for the state wildlife grants program. state wildlife grants support costeffective and proactive approaches to wildlife conservation, conserving wildlife and their habitat before they become endangered and hence more difficult and costly to conserve. robust state wildlife grants funding is needed to implement each state’s wildlife action plan, each of which was a collaborative effort aimed at outlining the conservation priorities for each state, and without appropriate levels of state wildlife grant funding, the plans will remain just that, plans. to write your lawmakers and urge them to support full funding for the state wildlife grants program, see: http://www.congressweb.com/cweb4/ index.cfm?orgcode=iwla&hotissue=11 geckophiles gather in texas with an accomplished lineup of speakers and a weekend of exciting gecko-related events, the first annual geckophile gathering took place from 9–11 june in austin, texas. the festivities began on friday night, with an informal icebreaker sponsored by rep-cal. the lectures began on saturday, with a beautiful slideshow and dvd presentation by joe furman. he shared his experiences studying namibian geckos and other herps in the field. ron tremper, who talked about his decades of work with leopard geckos, impressed attendees with all of the interesting morphs he has created over the years. paul freed then gave a humor-filled talk about geckos and other herpetofauna of australia, leaving participants hungry for more photos and information about such unique species. after lunch, tony gamble discussed his research efforts in brazil, including his activities to collect geckos and other herps in the field. daniel scantlebury, a local university of texas student and lifelong gecko lover, shared his extensive knowledge about the form, function, and diversity of gecko feet. dr. paddy ryan had the audience in stitches with his lecture about herpetological conservation in new zealand, which was peppered with hilarious anecdotes and fun facts about the region, and illustrated with some incredible photos of new zealand geckos and the tuatara. finally, one of the most anticipated speakers of the day, aaron bauer, shared his exhaustive research of new caledonian geckos and tried to make sense of forty new species by examining and explaining recent taxonomic and systematic changes within the diverse group of geckos from that region. after a full day of intense and exciting talks, attendees met for a tex-mex style dinner followed by a charity auction to benefit the international reptile conservation foundation. the ircf graciously donated funds and dry goods for the symposium and auction, and everyone made sure to dig deep to give something back to an organization and a cause they care about passionately. attendees and many well-known companies in the herp industry offered some fantastic dry goods for the auction. the auction raised hundreds of dollars for the ircf, and everyone had a great time at the dinner. nathan hall puerto rico to rid airport runways of basking iguanas green iguanas (iguana iguana) basking on runways at puerto rico’s largest international airport have become such a hazard that this u.s. caribbean territory plans to rid the area of the invasive reptile species, an official said friday. javier velez arocho, secretary of the island’s department of natural and environmental resources, said he hopes that teams can soon begin killing or capturing the iguanas, which he described as “a plague,” at the luis munoz marin international airport near the capital of san juan. an effort to capture the iguanas alive was under consideration, velez said at a news conference, but authorities also were discussing other options: flooding burrows where the iguanas lay their eggs or sending teams armed with .22-caliber rifles to shoot the adult reptiles, which can grow to be more than a meter long. flight landings and takeoffs have been delayed because of the reptiles, which are sold in puerto rico as exotic pets. the lizards also create traffic hazards as they soak up the sun on roads near the airport. carla capalli, of the humane society of puerto rico, said she recognized that the iguanas posed safety problems, but questioned some of the methods velez suggested to eradicate them. “i understand that they have become a plague, a danger, and a threat, and that they must be removed from the area, but . 22-caliber rifles are also a public security danger,” capalli said. green iguanas (iguana iguana) have become phenomenally abundant in the san juan area of puerto rico, to the extent of causing problems at the luis muñoz international airport. this individual was photographed near the airport in a stand of red mangroves (rhizophora mangle), which are heavily exploited by this introduced population. a lb er to l o pe z iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 236 endangered jamaican iguanas hatched at the indianapolis zoo first time hatching outside of jamaica exciting news for conservation the indianapolis zoo is extremely excited to announce that for the first time ever endangered jamaican iguanas (cyclura collei) have been hatched outside of their native island nation. two baby iguanas hatched at the zoo on 29 august, and a third emerged on 30 august. “chester,” age 15, and “myrtle,” 14, are the parents of the first three hatchlings, which are not only the first jamaican iguanas to hatch outside of jamaica, but the first to hatch via artificial incubation. this first clutch contained a total of 14 eggs of which six were fertile. three fertile eggs died at various stages of development. the zoo has a second clutch of 20 viable eggs (total clutch size of 21 included one infertile egg) that began hatching on 2 september. as of 4 september, seven have hatched from this second clutch. the female that laid this clutch is “gertrude,” age 15. hatchling total length ranged from 20.2–22.2 cm. body masses ranged from 22.4–33.0 g. the first clutch began hatching after an 81-day incubation period, whereas the second clutch started hatching after 77 days. in 1994, the indianapolis zoo was one of only three zoos in north america to receive juvenile jamaican iguanas as part of the overall conservation program, which included establishing a breeding population in the u.s. each year, the zoo staff has made strides in developing an in-house captive breeding program. this successful hatching is a terrific development that offers hope for the continued survival of these lizards. in addition to the captive breeding aspect, indianapolis zoo has provided support to the “jamaican iguana head start” program since the early 1990s. if all the expected eggs hatch, these hatchlings will double the population of jamaican iguanas in north america zoos. lynne villers and richard reams indianapolis zoo sire and dam of the first jamaican iguanas to hatch via artificial incubation. neonate jamaican iguana “pipping” from the egg. first hatchling jamaican iguana born outside of jamaica; the second egg is “pipping.” iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 237newsbriefs r ic h a r d r ea m s r ic h a r d r ea m s r ic h a r d r ea m s iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 237 iguana 13.1 b&w text 42 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 ryan stan rand recording túngara frogs (physalaemus pustulosus) on barro colorado island, panamá, in the 1960s. pa t r a n d iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 42 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 43 there is a hole in my chest where my heart used to be, and a chasm in tropical biology the size of the panama canal. stan rand died on 14 november 2005, and we are all the worse off for it, personally and professionally. dr. austin stanley rand, stan to all who knew him, was born on 29 september 1932. perhaps destiny dealt him no choice but greatness in biology, as his father austin was already a famous ornithologist at stan’s birth. stan was never far from field biology or museums when he grew up — he published his first paper when he was 12! stan began his graduate studies with dr. ernest williams at harvard, where he became an early member of that awesome lineage of students of anolis biology under williams’s tutelage. he received his ph.d. in 1961, and remained at harvard on a postdoc for a year. that year included an intensive period of study of jamaican anoles at the university of the west indies. he and his wife pat then relocated in são paulo, brazil, for two years while stan was a postdoc with dr. paulo vanzolini. initially, stan was paid from royalties from a song that “vanzo” wrote. that tune must have been quite a hit in brazil — or maybe stan just lived modestly (money was never a big issue to him). regardless, the rand’s first child, hugh, was born there and it appears he didn’t starve. in 1964, stan received an invitation from dr. martin moynihan to join a new cadre of impressive young scientists that moynihan was assembling at the smithsonian tropical research institute in panama. stan joined the staff. he, pat, and hugh moved to panama, where their two daughters, margaret and katherine, were born. they lived on stri’s barro colorado island (bci), where the forest was inhabited by anoles and iguanas during the day and the rands were serenaded by choruses of túngara frogs at night. stan published early and often — over 100 scientific papers in 60 years of publishing. note that he is not yet done; túngara frog papers with his data will continue to bear his name for some time, and i predict that one will appear in 2014 to mark stan’s 70th year in the scientific literature. many of stan’s scientific contributions can be partitioned into studies of anolis lizards, iguanas, and crocodiles, and, as a grand finale, his study of túngara frogs. stan explored many fascinating tidbits of nature in addition to those projects, but i will briefly review only these contributions. stan published a series of studies on anolis biology in the 1960s that had an immediate and lasting impact on tropical biology, ecology, and behavioral ecology. prominent among those contributions was his notion of the “ecomorph.” the genesis of this concept originated when his data showed that on each island of the greater antilles, different anolis species had diversified and adapted to nearly identical niches on separate islands. during that time, stan also investigated dominance interactions among lizards, showing that, if the size difference between males was sufficient, the larger male won, but, if the size difference was minimal, the resident won. he demonstrated the “residency effect” in 1967, well before this became an important issue in behavioral ecology. stan also integrated physiological ecology into his studies. critical to the ecomorph concept was the climatic, not just the structural, habitat the lizards occupied. at the behavioral level, he showed that lizards’ responses to predators were strongly influenced by their body temperatures. all of this foreshadowed stan’s continuing emphasis on the organism’s entire biology and the necessity of viewing it in its natural context. p r o f i l e a. stanley rand (1932–2005)1 michael j. ryan university of texas at austin profile stan and pat rand in front of their house in gamboa, panama, in 2003. k a th r in p . l a m pe r t 1 iguana has not and does not plan to use obituaries as “profiles” again in the future. however, stan rand’s contributions to herpetology were so monumental that we felt that we could not, in good conscience, let his death preclude the opportunity to feature him and his impact on our discipline. — the editors iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 43 44 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 ryan stan made at least two other major contributions during his work with anoles. one was a paper with williams in 1970 on signal redundancy in communication systems. they used information theory to estimate the quantity of information about species identity that potentially could be communicated in a lizard community. they calculated that the total amount far exceeded what was necessary. this study was a wonderful demonstration of how animals use multiple aspects of their displays to reinforce the same message, and it was one of the first applications of information theory to animal communication in the wild. stan also considered the relationship between ecological space and predator-prey interactions in the context of “aspect diversity,” arguing that variation among species could result from predator-driven selection that causes species to diverge in the “escape space” available to them. this concept greatly augmented studies of apostatic selection and anticipated much of the work we see today in sensory ecology. another stage in stan’s work dealt with social behavior in and between green iguanas and crocodiles. much of this work was with gordon burghardt and his students, centered on the small island of slothia, a mere stone’s throw from barro colorado island. female iguanas swim to slothia from bci and nest communally. stan and his brother will wrote an insightful paper on conflict resolution. it analyzed the competition between female iguanas over the burrows they dug for nesting. the analysis combined stochastic processes and energetic constraints and showed that females took into consideration the amount of energy they had expended in building the burrow. this study later led to some consternation among theoreticians interested in honest signals who were convinced that the “concorde effect” (adding more investment only because past investments have been made) should be maladaptive. i remember one night on bci when, over some rather mediocre panamanian rum, john maynard smith (who to me was always the “stan of theoretical biology”) asked stan just how this could be. although stan knew the theory about games, the data reigned supreme — this is what they do, he replied. some interesting interactions between crocs and female iguanas had been witnessed by few besides stan. a female croc had earlier nested at the same site where the fecund iguanas sought shelter for their eggs. the female croc, natasha, as the several-meter-long crocodile was affectionately known, rushed a nesting iguana, and grabbed the expectant mother in her mouth. instead of devouring her, or at least dismembering her, as any protective maternal archosaur should do, natasha delicately carried the iguana back to the water and released her. crocodiles carry their newly hatched young to the water, so stan thought that having a small squirming baby reptile in her mouth released natasha’s maternal instincts. some of this crocodile work is published, and much more is oral history on bci. when great scientists such as stan pass, we marvel at the accumulation of knowledge they left us, and we lament the untapped knowledge that went with them. stan began to study acoustic communication in frogs in the forest of boracéia in brazil while conducting his postdoctoral research with vanzolini. that interest continued when he moved to panama. he immediately set out to document the vocal diversity of these gnomes of the panamanian nights, but he also turned his considerable nocturnal skills towards one species, the túngara frog (physalaemus pustulosus, which at the time had the more melodious generic moniker of engystomops). i went to bci to begin my studies of sexual selection and communication in red-eyed treefrogs (agalychnis callidryas) in 1978. these frogs proved intractable for the study i had planned, and i quickly switched my attention to túngara frogs. at this point, stan had published one paper on their foam-nesting behavior, although nothing on their communication. embarking for a 1990 field trip to the mountains of western panamá (from left: debbie greene, walt wilczynski, stan rand, mike ryan, kyra mills, ulysses [uncertain of last name], and frederico bolanos). pa t r a n d stan rand wearing his “túngara team” hat during the field season in 2004. x im en a e . b er n a l iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 44 however, he gave me a manuscript that had been written in the late 1960s or early 1970s that described the complex calling of these frogs: a simple call, or “whine”, that could be produced alone or could be followed by one-to-many secondary components, or “chucks.” the manuscript was filled with incredibly interesting and detailed natural history as well as experimental studies of female phonotaxis. among other things, stan was interested in whether female frogs were more attracted to the complex call over the simple call. these experiments were conducted when the emphasis of mate recognition was focused at the species level and was concerned with how it contributed to speciation through behavioral isolation. in frogs, this work was being carried out in exemplary fashion by such luminaries as murray littlejohn and carl gerhardt, both of whom were inspired by the earlier studies of frank blair. so, at that time, stan was working in the intellectual shadow of the modern synthesis and its emphasis on speciation, but instead he was addressing questions about female choice and sexual selection. this was some time before robert trivers (who also worked on anolis and was advised by williams during his ph.d. studies) wrote his paper on parental investment and sexual selection in 1972. i added some to that early manuscript of stan’s and we published it in 1981. i finished my thesis in 1982 while stan was still concentrating on reptiles. stan and i remained in touch during the next few years, although neither of us worked on túngara frogs. in 1985, we met in the halls of the smithsonian’s natural history museum in washington, d.c. and i suggested we start up a joint project with those little beasts. in 1986, we began a now 20-year collaboration on what became known to some as the “túngara frog project.” our initial interests were modest as we began testing female phonotaxis in a carport using a plywood and burlap testing chamber in gamboa, panama. stan and family had just moved from panama city to gamboa, and stri was planning on having some laboratory facilities there soon. the first question we addressed was what aspects of the mating call made it attractive to females, and the first studies we published in 1990 argued that, in this system, sexual selection was generated by sensory exploitation. that idea, convergent with and inspired by others such as mj west eberhard at stri, has generated some interest. our interests in sexual communication in these frogs continued to expand in concert with the lab facilities in gamboa, which in turn accommodated a more sophisticated approach to our own research questions. stan was always interested in the entire biology of an animal, and our studies soon grew to embrace additional aspects of communication, comparative studies of populations and related species, and, through our collaboration with dr. walt wilczysnki, the neural mechanisms that controlled mate choice. memorable during those years was a 5000-km transect in which stan and i sampled and collected túngara frog calls and tissues throughout the entire range of the species. most of the data were collected when we departed from austin, texas after the meetings of the american society of ichthyologist and herpetologist (asih) that was hosted there in 1993. we drove from texas to panama, collecting all the way. those samples were supplemented by numerous trips to south america, where we studied other populations of túngara frogs and their relatives. the data from that transect have already provided the grist for at least four separate studies, and their uses are still not exhausted. in the year 2000, stan, walt wilczynski, david cannatella, and i were pi’s on a multidisciplinary grant. this grant, which involved collaborations among more than a half dozen labs, addressed issues from phylogenetics to molecular neurobiology, all emanating from the basic biology of the túngara frog that stan first glimpsed in 1964. as the grant ended in 2004, we were asked to organize a two-day symposium on “sexual communication in túngara frogs” at the animal behavior society meetings in oaxaca, méxico. to kick off that symposium, numerous attendees, many with little or no interest in frogs, sexual selection, or communication per se, packed the room to hear stan rand present what ended up being his last scientific presentation: “natural history of the túngara frog.” when stan finished that talk, i detected in the sustained applause a tone of reverence and appreciation for someone special. the work on túngara frogs will continue unabated, serving as a scientific legacy to stan, but it also will be a continuing collaboration from the grave. although no longer with us, we will never outlive stan’s inspiration or exhaust his insights. having now provided a most cursory summary of stan’s scientific career, i would like to end by saying more about stan the person, which is the real reason why so many of us mourn his passing. above all, stan was a naturalist. his eyes, ears, and mind were focused on the organism in its environment. he was well schooled in theory, but not terribly impressed by it. he was iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 45profile holding a microphone and a marine toad (bufo marinus) in place of the crucifix and the dove, stan rand impersonates saint francis of assisi. stan was passionate about fieldwork and deeply appreciated the beauty of toads. the picture was digitally modified at stan’s request to create a monk’s hairstyle. x im en a e . b er n a l iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 45 a great experimenter, but was always a bit cynical about how such results might apply in the wild. once we were waiting out a drought in a small dusty town in the bush in brazil. we went to see a movie, “edward scissorhands.” an old woman narrates the story in which, as a youth, she befriends a boy who has scissors for hands. afterwards, i asked stan how he liked the movie. he said it was totally unrealistic, the chronology didn’t match, and the old woman could not have been a youngster when she first met edward. i said, “stan, for chris-sakes, the boy had scissors for hands! how realistic is that? so what if the chronology was off.” he wouldn’t budge. the opening of the movie was built on a house of cards and he would contemplate no farther. for most, stan is intricately associated with stri. the smithsonian tropical research institute is a great institution, and barro colorado island is its crown jewel. we celebrated stan’s retirement from stri with a symposium in his honor at the 1998 meetings of the asih in guelph, canada, the proceedings of which are published in anuran communication (smithsonian institution press, washington dc, 2001). all of the more than 20 authors i first invited to participate said yes; so much for a list of back-ups! when i introduced the symposium, i said that, but perhaps for bci, stan was stri’s most valuable resource. an institution’s greatness is defined, of course, not just by its physical facilities but also by its humanity — and that is where stan made by far his greatest contribution. because of his immense knowledge of tropical biology, stan was often called upon for advice, especially to initiate novices to this land of plenty. his generosity knew no bounds, and his humor, warmth, and enthusiasm were contagious. he readily extended this generosity into the personal realm. he and pat formed the social hub of gamboa for the last 20 years, and their house was a scientific salon. pat’s famous “frog dinners” for many of the visiting researchers in gamboa (regardless of whether or not the scientists worked on frogs) were the social highlights of our summers. these dinners were also an incubator of scientific ideas. stan was not a “science nerd,” he was broadly informed and could entertainingly engage guests with a broad array of topics, but his insights and wit were always sharpened and ready to be applied to the next scientific question. i remember once bemoaning that, because stan was not at a university, numerous students missed out on all that he had to offer. wrong, wrong, wrong! stri offers a wide array of fellowships for researchers at all stages of their careers. they all need stri sponsors. i have counted more than 50 students that stan sponsored before 1990; surely i have missed many. in addition, since 1986, stan acted as sponsor to more that 70 interns and associates who have worked with us on the túngara frog project. he visited my lab in austin twice a year for a long time; those visits were so heavily booked that i had to sequester stan at a local pub to have time with him — but even that hiding place was discovered all too quickly. finally, literally hordes of students owe stan deeply. two now rather famous biologists, one studies monkeys and the other ants, told me long before they were famous that stan was crucial to the early development of their research forays on bci. when i informed by mass e-mail numerous colleagues of stan’s death, i received a plethora of responses in which the word “love” was used much more than one might associate with “macho” (and “macha”) field biologists. so, now we say good-bye, stan. thanks for all that you shared, the family, the friends, the tropics, and the frogs. you will not be forgotten. next rum’s on me. acknowledgements i thank both ray huey and jonathon losos for their thoughts on stan’s anolis work. 46 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 ryan when a student asked stan about chemical defenses of túngara frogs (physalaemus pustulosus), he volunteered to lick some to find out if he could detect any chemicals. stan had a humorous disposition and enjoyed making people laugh in the lab. x im en a e . b er n a l stan getting ready to fly in an ultralight plane in 2003 over the area of chilibre, panamá. stan was an adventurous man always looking forward to new experiences. x im en a e . b er n a l iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 46 iguana 12.4 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 269commentary keeping animals as pets is an accepted facet of american society. domestic cats hold the number one spot followed by dogs, rodents and rabbits, birds, and finally, reptiles. approximately 10% of the us population keeps reptiles and amphibians as pets: 3 million ‘herps’ are in private ownership. what is the state of affairs for captive reptiles and amphibians? how are reptiles and amphibians like other pet animals and how are they different? are necessary resources available? these include veterinary attention, knowledgeable husbandry practitioners, nutritious foods, and useful supplies for owners to care for their pets properly. simply stated, can we do a good job for a captive herp? if not, why? what are the consequences of our failures? ray ashton’s “commentary from an old naturalist about exotic species and a new herpetocultural ethic,” (iguana 12(1), march 2005) inspired me to think anew about reptileand amphibian-related animal welfare and conservation issues. while we warrant a new ethic toward this group of animals, my conclusions start and end at a very different spot: i am a “new herper” who hopes to end the practice of keeping reptiles and amphibians in captivity. ashton referred to himself as an ‘old naturalist’ interested in reptiles and amphibians since childhood, and one of a small minority whose curiosity had been piqued by these animals. conversely, ‘new herpers’ may come later to such interests and are more easily able to join study societies, interest groups, and have other resources available that simply didn’t exist a generation ago. in his commentary, ashton ostensibly offers seven useful and logical steps toward responsible reptile and amphibian ownership. these ideas are often repeated in hobby journals, internet groups, and countless herpetological societies. using the green iguana (iguana iguana), a very common and most neglected, discarded, unwanted, and abused reptilian pet for the basis of my discussion, we can see that ashton’s set of rules is difficult to follow or achieve. 1. learn about your pet. purchasing and reading a book about the common green iguana won’t necessarily provide an owner with correct, up-to-date husbandry information. some publishers are unscrupulous about their editions, updating a photo here and there so a new copyright date hides gross inaccuracies. new books can also be poorly written and edited, directing a motivated owner toward a potentially fatal husbandry mistake. few single sources provide all the knowledge we need about any one species. 2. only purchase captive bred animals. discussions regarding captive bred (cb) versus wild caught (wc) are largely rhetorical. removing wild animals for introduction into the pet trade will negatively effect a wild population. yet, we rarely consider the fate of cb reptiles and amphibians. questions remain — how well can we care for a cb reptile or amphibian? is our care humane? potential suffering of a cb animal must be considered of equal importance to that of a wild-caught animal. 3. provide secure caging and lighting. we can build escapeproof cages and provide uvb lighting — but we do not yet c o m m e n t a r y the case against captive reptiles and amphibians ann-elizabeth (ae) nash, director colorado reptile humane society (corhs) (www.corhs.org) photographs by the author. opinions expressed are those of the author and may or may not reflect those of the ircf. pablo is a recent arrival at colorado reptile humane society (corhs). even among the few green iguanas that survive captivity, few live out their entire natural lifespan of 20–30 years in the care of a single owner. 270 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 commentary know how much uvb lighting is enough or too much. many other habitat elements also need consideration: climate, seasonal weather, visual breaks, height versus area, etc. 4. provide appropriate food. nutritional research focused on longevity versus breeding is scarce, as are commercially available diets based on such research. most owners cannot offer natural foods for i. iguana in captivity. it is time-consuming and tiresome to prepare fresh foods daily. 5. consider habitat size. what percentage reduction in space is tolerable when housing a lizard that typically roams an acre of area in its natural habitat? if we house a single adult i. iguana in a bedroom (10 x12’ = 120 sq. ft.), we’ve removed more than 99.7% of its normal home range. is this acceptable? even a 2000 sq. ft. house represents only 5% of a normal habitat. 6. when you need to ‘get rid of’ your pet. no animal should be sent to an uncertain fate, released in a park, a stream, from a moving car, or any other cruel method that causes unnecessary stress, injury, or death. animal welfare thinking encourages pet ownership for the life of the pet, not the fluctuating interest of the owner. is a profit-motivated pet store a good avenue for an unwanted animal? shelters and rescuers are unable to re-home all green iguanas that come through their doors. no one wants another iguana. euthanasia is often the outcome when an owner “exit strategy” is implemented. 7. avoid confrontations with non-herpers. respecting your neighbors always makes sense when you house any animal. no one likes a barking dog, bird killing ‘barn cat,’ or other at-large pet. fear of snakes is especially deeply felt, regardless of legitimate danger. however, negative reactions from individuals or politicians should not be seen as unthinking. many concerns about keeping wild animals as pets are reasonable. reptiles and amphibians are readily available for sale or trade from outlets that include retail stores, internet sellers, and breeder’s shows. in my home state of colorado and other states in the us, certain species may be legally taken from their wild habitats and held in captivity. the average owner follows few of the points outlined in mr. ashton’s list, purchasing whichever reptile or amphibian they desire with little or any research regarding care, longevity, and nutrition. however, even the most dedicated and educated owners, supporting the pet trade through the purchase of a cb reptile or amphibian, subject a wild animal to a life of imprisonment and often a reduced life span, even in the absence of predators. why is this acceptable? we have not truly domesticated any reptile or amphibian; i will therefore conclude that cb animals are as wild as their wc counterparts. cb reptiles and amphibians may be more or less acclimated to life near or with humans; they may or may not display aggressive behaviors to territorial intruders or other encounters and experiences. they may or may not make ‘good’ wild animals since, as often as not, breeders keep alive every hatchling regardless of fitness. to declare an animal unable to withstand the pressure of a life in its wild habitat does not make it any less wild. the individual animal would have simply met demise early in its natural life. moving from the difficulties of caring for reptiles and amphibians in captivity, a far more important question needs addressing: on what grounds do we humans have the right to impose captive conditions on wild animals? combined with the problems of invasive exotic species, mr. ashton should not be surprised that some ‘new herpers’ wish to curtail reptile and amphibian ownership for both the wild animals themselves and for good stewardship of native populations. while we may possess a legal right to keep reptiles and amphibians in captivity, i suggest that we lack the moral right to keep a wild animal captive for our own personal benefit or other financial or emotional needs, whether it is captive bred or wild caught. much of my ethos regarding reptiles and amphibians stems from experiences as the founder and director of a small humane society in colorado that is dedicated to this group of animals. through my work, i have personally appreciated many reptiles and amphibians. from this familiarity has grown a profound sadness for these wild animals that are captive solely as a consequence of human folly. the new generation of reptile and amphibian owners does not share any values beyond possession — any more than ford automobile owners or ice cream purchasers constitute a distinct socio-economic, other demographic, or moral class. old herpers, mr. ashton declares, were interested in learning about wild animals — “but were also excited about keeping them in captivity.” i have no doubt that this is true. keeping and breeding reptiles and amphibians generated great enthusiasm among pet owners — but at what cost to the animals? i am confident that a thorough investigation will clearly answer mr. ashton’s shock toward those of us who would see the end of the worldwide trade in reptilian and amphibian pets: � when the best and most resourceful owners cannot provide even a small percentage of the real estate a wild animal has in its natural habitat, we have failed that animal. � when nutrition research focused on longevity (not breeding) is scarce, when the foremost veterinary medical text is a mere 512 pages for all species of reptiles and amphibians, a malformed three-toed box turtle (terrapene carolina triunguis) suffered from an insufficient diet and a lack of ultraviolet light. iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 271commentary when we have no antibiotics or other drugs designed for even a single species, we have failed. � when reptile and amphibian owners cause immense suffering and death to at least 500,000 green iguanas each year in the us alone — and who knows the numbers for other species — we have failed. � when we refuse to recognize that most captive-breeding programs bring into existence wild animals doomed to a life in captivity, we have failed. after seven years of sheltering and euthanizing unwanted reptiles and amphibians, i would suggest that the average individual with a typical amount of space, time, and funds is simply not equal to the responsibilities of owning a pet reptile or amphibian — even if it began as an appropriate endeavor. in fact, most reptile and amphibian owners surrendering their animals to the colorado reptile humane society can probably tell you more about the attributes of their cell phone and calling plan contract than the live animal of which they now wish to rid themselves. like all bell curves, a few humans do a great job for their pets, a few would meet a legal definition as perpetrators of cruelty, and the great majority provide mediocre care. mediocre care to millions of reptiles and amphibians seems to me something old naturalists and new herpers ought to oppose collectively. does the fact that an amphibian or reptile was captive-bred really matter? can we learn from our myriad failures and experiences? some will answer that better research will yield the knowledge we presently lack, that educated owners will improve husbandry issues, and that we can protect our native ecosystems from invasive species. my experiences tell me otherwise. on a typical afternoon at the colorado reptile humane society’s shelter, one owner who ‘got rid of ’ his bearded dragon (pogona vitticeps) because she was ‘too boring’ was already planning the purchase of a chameleon. another owner brought forth an iguana with an advanced type of metabolic bone disease, misdiagnosed by a veterinarian. the owner had provided uvb lighting, but it was too far away from the lizard to be useful. red-eared sliders (trachemys scripta) are dumped by the dozens after outgrowing aquaria that were never large enough. who is going to house an unwanted (and unsocialized) 4.5’ black-throated monitor (varanus albigularis spp.)? he was surrendered because his fecal material “smelled bad.” owners do not often advance their own education beyond “cool — a reptile!” these animals forfeit their natural lives on human whim. a realistic accounting of how captive reptiles and amphibians endure our lack of largesse would convince most individuals that we only rarely meet the lowest bar of care standards — and that wild animals should remain wild animals. i often counsel would-be adopters of north american box turtles (terrapene spp.) that these turtles roam about two football fields worth of habitat. subjecting box turtles to life in a 55-gallon aquarium is equivalent to a human living out the rest of her life in a small bathroom — and without internet, cell phone, or other stimuli. as north american box turtles experience a near 70% predation rate on relocation, they cannot be released. however, for permanent captives, we can raise the standards we allow to pass for captive husbandry. let me propose a less than radical notion toward reptiles and amphibians: acknowledge them as the wild animals they are and operate as their conservation advocates and wardens, keeping them and their needed ecosystems protected in our world — and out of all living rooms. reptiles and amphibians are not appropriate personal pets, any more than we would reasonably consider mountain lions, hippos, or ostriches. if they were larger, vocal, and able to harm us more easily and more often, i suspect they would no longer be such a popular part of rosie, a green iguana (iguana iguana), now a permanent resident of the butterfly pavilion (www.butterflies.org), is seen here atop her tree bower. 272 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 commentary the pet trade. we can shut down the introduction of new individuals and new species of reptile and amphibians into the pet trade — and greatly reduce suffering and death. these ideals should inform a true conservation ethic. a conservation ethic might include captive breeding to increase the chances for a species’ survival — but wild animals that exist only as captive specimens are already lost to our natural world. we assure a species’ survival when we realize the animal can function as a wild animal only in its natural habitat. captive breeding for release must already encompass habitat preservation and management — without which release is impossible. we need a conservation-focused ethic — for the reptiles and amphibians we hope to protect and not for the reason of continued ownership of wild animals in our homes. conservation needs to occur because, as mark beckoff observed, the human race has already won the race — and included in our winner’s ‘spoils’ could be a greater future for reptiles and amphibians than captive animals suffering and dying for short-term enjoyment. as winners, we could instead be generous toward these often-misunderstood animals, protecting them in the wild, while reducing and eliminating their human-imposed captivity. as a model for enjoying reptiles and amphibians in the wild, we could duplicate many of the elements of bird watchers. life-long species lists (without taking herps from the wild!), reptile-watching trips, photography contests, and reptile conservation societies could greatly contribute to the protection of these wonderful species — all without subjecting them to captivity or an early demise. instead, land could be protected for habitat, and participants could help collect useful data and assist researchers and conservationists. the natural world is a wonderful place and to rediscover, as most of us do, that it contains reptiles and amphibians, should be exciting. i can conceive of no better gift than to leave wild animals wild, hippo and herp alike. this ornate monitor (varanus ornatus) is now deceased. an animal that can attain a length of two meters, has a naturally aggressive disposition, and requires a largely aquatic habitat is a questionable choice as a pet for most people. what others say about this book... bulletin of the association of reptilian and amphibian veterinarians “i would recommend this book to anyone that is thinking of buying an iguana, anyone that owns an iguana and any veterinarian treating iguanas, no matter what level your expertise.” reptiles magazine “the amount of reliable information provided is staggering.... if you own a green iguana, you really should pick up a copy.” vivarium magazine “in both content and presentation green iguana—the ultimate owner’s manual sets its own high standard. most readers will consider it the definitive work on management, care, and personality traits of green iguanas in captivity.” new second edition � updated text and index � new color photographs � medical photos green iguana–the ultimate owner’s manual is available through all of the major on-line book stores, herpetological and pet web sites, plus leading book and pet stores. if you need more information, please feel free to contact us at: dunthorpe press, p.o. 80385-r, portland, or 97280, usa new: now at all petsmart ® stores contact us: dunthorpe press (503) 635-8222 fax (503) 635-8405 www.iguana.com best iguana source book ever! if you own an iguana, you need this book. proper care information can mean the difference between life and death for your iguana. choose the care book that everyone has confidence in and recommends... green iguana – the ultimate owner’s manual. now only $22.95 (was $32.50) green iguana – the ultimate owner’s manual by james w. hatfield iii over 10 years of research, weighs in at over 21/2 lbs and is the largest, most comprehensive, up-to-date, helpful, fun, easy-to-read iguana pet care book ever written. people call our book the ‘bible’ of iguana pet care iguana b&w text 198 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 muensch, leininger, werth, fawks, and thomas world war ii-era spotlights testify to the military role of coconut island. today, they remain among decorative plantings utilized extensively by cuban brown anoles (anolis sagrei). r o b er t po w el l iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 198 originally, moku o lo‘e, owned by the bishop family estate, was used by shepherds and local fishermen. during the 1930s, christian holmes, owner of hawaiian tuna packers (now coral tuna) and heir to the fleischmann yeast fortune, purchased the island for his tuna-packing factory. at that time, the island was 12 acres in size and had several coconut trees, which is how it got its popular name, coconut island. holmes, unhappy with the small size of the island, had it expanded to 28 acres and also created many fishponds. holmes imported hundreds of exotic plants to the island, constructed a large saltwater swimming pool equipped with a slide and a diving board, built outdoor bars at various points around the island, introduced a bowling alley, and reconstructed a shooting gallery that he had bought at an amusement park in san francisco. coconut island even housed a small zoo for a short time. animal residents included donkeys, a giraffe, monkeys, and a baby elephant. after holmes’s death, these animals became the foundation for the honolulu zoo. during the war, the military used the island as an r&r post for officers. in 1947, a group of five wealthy oilmen bought the anoles of coconut island, kane‘ohe bay, o‘ahu, hawai‘i alexander j. muensch, penny d. leininger, dusty e. werth, angela m. fawks, and sydney m. thomas department of biology, avila university, kansas city, mo 64145 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 199anoles of coconut island � n o la n r o b er so n coconut island in kane‘ohe bay. photograph courtesy of the hawaii institute of marine biology. lagoon on coconut island. plantings in the foreground were occupied by anolis sagrei. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 199 the island. eventually, one of them, edwin pauley, bought out the interests of the other four and became sole owner of the island, where his family spent their summers. many famous people visited coconut island as pauley’s guests. included among them were harry truman, lyndon b. johnson, john wayne, red skelton, richard nixon, and ronald reagan. in 1951, pauley helped establish the hawai‘i marine lab. the name was changed in 1965 to the hawai‘i institute of marine biology, now affiliated with the university of hawai‘i. amphibians and reptiles of coconut island no terrestrial amphibians or reptiles are native to hawai‘i, but many species have become established, introduced primarily as escaped or released pets. due to frequent movement of people and materials back-and-forth from o‘ahu to coconut island, many of the species established in the kane‘ohe area now occur on coconut island as well. in 2001, documented species included the cane toad (bufo marinus), stump-toed gecko (gehyra mutilata), mourning gecko (lepidodactylus lugubris), metallic skink (lampropholis delicata), and island blind snake (ramphotyphlops braminus). in 2004, two species of anolis, a. carolinensis and a. sagrei, were found on the island. both had highly restricted distributions, suggesting that both introductions had occurred shortly before their discovery. coconut island anoles anolis carolinensis, the green anole, is moderately sized (svl of hawaiian animals = 51–76 mm, total length = 125–230 mm). these lizards are native to the southeastern united states. populations also have become established in europe (spain), japan (bonin and ryukyu islands), the west indies (grand bahama island, anguilla), and the pacific (all of the major hawaiian islands; guam; tinian and saipan in the northern mariana islands; yap; koror and malakal islands in the republic of palau (or belau). an introduction on sand island, midway atoll, failed. green anoles were first reported on o‘ahu in 1950, when they were initially misidentified as a. porcatus (a closely related cuban species). anolis carolinensis is a “trunk-crown ecomorph” (ecomorphologies anatomically and behaviorally influence microhabitat use as a way of reducing interspecific competition). these lizards are abundant in hawai‘i, especially in gardens and resorts, where introduced plants and insect prey provide suitable conditions. although they will forage on the ground on occasion, green 200 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 muensch, leininger, werth, fawks, and thomas r o b er t po w el l r o b er t po w el l mourning geckos (lepidodactylus lugubris), here shedding its skin in one of the suites on coconut island, and stump-toed geckos (gehyra mutilata) are abundant. cane toads (bufo marinus) are well-established on coconut island. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 200 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 201anoles of coconut island anoles spend nearly all of their time on elevated perches in bushes, trees, or artificial substrates like fences and buildings. anolis (norops) sagrei, the cuban brown anole, is a moderately sized (svl of hawaiian animals = 38–64 mm, total length = 130–210 mm) lizard native to cuba, bahamas, and cayman islands, but which has become established in various mainland (e.g., southeastern united states, belize, and southern méxico to northern honduras) and insular (e.g., st. vincent, grenada, jamaica, hawai‘i [o’ahu and k’auai], and taiwan) locales. brown anoles were first reported on o‘ahu in the late 1970s and early 1980s. anolis sagrei is a “trunk ground ecomorph,” meaning that it spends most of its time within two meters of the ground, and is generally less arboreal than a. carolinensis. anolis sagrei is most commonly found in shrubs, on tree trunks, the ground, and rock piles, but readily exploits human dwellings, planters, and fences. it feeds on small invertebrates (mostly insects), but will occasionally take small lizards. foraging strategies typically exploit an ambush mode, often involving a rapid descent from a vertical, head-down, sit-and-wait posture. this species can also be found in a vertical, heads-up position while basking, especially in the morning. both species are habitat generalists, a trait that appears to have served them well as colonists of areas far from their native ranges. like most anoles, both are diurnal, largely arboreal, primarily insectivorous, and intensely territorial. several females and juveniles may occupy the territory of a single male. adult r o b er t po w el l male anolis carolinensis from coconut island (2004). female anolis carolinensis from o‘ahu (2006). although apparently extirpated on coconut island, green anoles remain abundant elsewhere in the hawaiian islands. r o b er t po w el l iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 201 202 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 muensch, leininger, werth, fawks, and thomas r o b er t po w el l female anolis sagrei from coconut island (2006). r o b er t po w el l male anolis sagrei from coconut island (2006). iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 202 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 203anoles of coconut island males frequently exploit different microhabitats, such as higher perches, than females or juveniles. somewhat more robust than the more gracile green anole and apparently more aggressive, introduced a. sagrei has largely displaced the native green anole, especially in disturbed habitats, where the two species are sympatric in peninsular florida and elsewhere in the southeastern united states. methods during a visit to coconut island in march 2006, we sought to establish the ranges of both species, which we expected to have increased since the discovery of the two populations in 2004. we also examined microhabitat use by anoles in different size classes to test a null hypothesis that perches of lizards of different sizes do not vary. at various times of day and under varying weather conditions (which were often rainy during our stay), we searched microhabitats where anoles were most likely to be found, concentrating on areas near where they were first observed in 2004. for each anole sighted, we recorded time, size class, height above ground, perch diameter (if applicable), orientation, and various behaviors. anoles were categorized into three classes: “1” for adult males, “2” for subadult males and adult females (which are sometimes difficult to distinguish from a distance), and “3” for juveniles of indeterminate sex. orientation on a perch was numerically interpreted as 1 = vertical, facing up; 2 = horizontal; 3 = vertical, facing down. we used statview 5.0 (sas institute, inc., cary, north carolina) for statistical analyses. means are presented ± 1 standard error. results we were unable to find anolis carolinensis. shrubs and intermingled vines in the area where they were most abundant in 2004 had been cleared, although considerable, apparently suitable habitat remained, including large ficus trees where individuals had been observed two years previously. anolis sagrei remained abundant in the area where first seen in 2004, and these lizards had expanded their range to nearby areas and to a peninsula characterized by only marginal habitat. considerably more apparently suitable habitat exists throughout much of the island, including sites adjacent to those where we found lizards. we found no brown anoles in the area that had been occupied by a. carolinensis in 2004. for obvious reasons, our investigation of microhabitat use was restricted to a. sagrei. we made 82 observations (12 adult males, 50 subadult males/adult females, 18 juveniles, and 2 for which size class was not recorded). most (n = 65) were under cloudy skies or during rain. seven observations were of individuals on the ground, 18 on rocks, 17 on artificial perches (e.g., pipe, box, debris, planter), 8 on stumps or logs, and 32 on vegetation. of the latter, 20 were on leaves. we observed one individual eating (small arthropod), one mating pair, one other incidence of courting behavior, and two territorial displays. fifteen instances of elicited escape behavior included 10 individuals jumping to the ground or crawling under an object on the ground and five lizards jumping onto vegetation, four of them from rocks or the ground. mean perch height for all size classes was 35.1 ± 2.8 cm (n = 79), mean perch diameter was 8.7 ± 1.9 cm, and mean orientation was 1.9 ± 0.1, or predominantly horizontal. perch heights of adult males (53.8 ± 6.6 cm, n = 12) were significantly higher than those of subadult males and adult females (34.1 ± 3.5 cm, n = 48) and those of juveniles (29.1 ± 5.1 cm, n = 17; anova, p = 0.02). mean perch height differences between classes 1 and 2 (19.7 cm) and between classes 1 and 3 (24.6 cm) were significant (fisher’s plsd, both p = 0.01). however, mean perch height differences between classes 2 and 3 (5.0 cm) were not significant (p = 0.45). perch diameters used by anoles in different size classes did not differ significantly (anova, p = 0.82), nor were any differences between any two classes significant (fisher’s plsd, between classes 1 and 2 p = 0.65, between classes 1 and 3 p = 0.54, between classes 2 and 3 p = 0.69). similarly, orientations did not differ significantly among classes (anova, p = 0.97), nor between individual classes (fisher’s plsd; not valid between classes 1 and 2 due to limited sample sizes; between classes 1 and 3, p = 0.85; between classes 2 and 3, p = 0.80). discussion the apparent absence of anolis carolinensis may represent one of the few documented failed colonization attempts by any invasive reptile. despite the altered vegetation in the area where these lizards were most commonly encountered in 2004, the presence of apparently suitable habitat, including some used by green anoles in 2004, suggests that other factors are involved. because we found no a. sagrei anywhere near where a. carolinensis had been found previously, we have ruled out displacement as a consequence of interspecific competition. in a concurrent survey of distribution of anolis sagrei in 2004 (narrow dashed line) and in 2006 (solid narrow line) and of a. carolinensis in 2004 (broad solid line). iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 203 204 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 muensch, leininger, werth, fawks, and thomas r o b er t po w el l an adult male cuban brown anole (anolis sagrei) seeks shelter in vegetation near the base of a large banyan tree (ficus benghalensis) on coconut island in 2006. ecologically versatile, these anoles readily exploit large trees, small bushes and shrubs, as well as walls, buildings, and human debris. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 204 birds, we did find many more introduced red-vented bulbuls (pycnonotus cafer) and a lesser number of red-whiskered bulbuls (p. jocosus) than had been observed during similar surveys in 2001 and 2004. both species are known predators of diurnal lizards, both in their native range (indian subcontinent through southeastern asia) and in hawai‘i. the combination of altered vegetation and presumably increased predation pressures may have combined to eliminate green anoles from coconut island. although anolis sagrei remains present and has expanded its range on the island, the extent of the expanded range in light of abundantly available and apparently suitable habitat is much less than we had expected. because vegetation in the areas occupied by brown anoles had not been substantively altered, bulbuls may be implicated in the slower-than-expected exploitation of suitable habitats by a. sagrei. activity may have been suppressed by inclement weather, but observed perch choices and escape behaviors were compatible with expectations for a trunk-ground anole. males selecting higher perches and the sexual size dimorphism evident in these lizards may serve to spatially partition resources among different size classes, thereby reducing intraspecific competition. larger animals (i.e., adult males) perching higher than smaller conspecifics may indicate that the former are able to take advantage of their size to monopolize microhabitats that facilitate optimal foraging. these more elevated positions also may result in more distinct territorial boundaries between conspecific males. data regarding perch diameters were equivocal due to too few observations of adult males and juveniles (n = 1 in each instance). this does reflect the large number of observations of animals using perches other than those for which diameter data were appropriate (e.g., the ground, rocks, and artifical perches such as boxes, refuse, and even buildings). this conforms to observations for this species in other areas, and to expectations for a trunk-ground ecomorph. the same frequency of occurrence on the ground and common use of rocks and artificial perches were undoubtedly responsible for the fact that most anoles were oriented horizontally, which did not vary among size classes. acknowledgments we thank avila university instructors david wissmann and robert powell for the opportunity to conduct this project on moku o lo‘e and the hawai‘i institute of marine biology for permission to work on the island. robert w. henderson and sandy echternacht made helpful suggestions on an earlier draft of this manuscript. references birding hawaii. 2003. non-avian wildlife of hawai’i – on the ground. birding hawaii (www.birdinghawaii.co.uk/nonavianground2.htm). campbell, t. 2001. invader of the month: the brown anole, anolis sagrei. institute for biological invasions (invasions.bio.utk.edu/invaders/ sagrei.html). campbell, t. and a. echternacht. 2003. introduced species as moving targets: changes in body sizes of introduced lizards following experimental introductions and historical invasions. biological invasions 5: 193–212. casanova, l. 2004. norops sagrei, animal diversity web (animaldiversity. ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/norops_sagrei.html). decker, h., r. powell, and a.m. bauer. 2003. gecko populations on coconut island, hawai‘i. gekkota 4: 25–33. fernandez, e., t. prince, s. salas-vega, m. tablante, j. lee, v. manteuffel, k. trotta. 2001. the effects of age and gender on aggressive responses of adult male brown anoles (anolis sagrei). university of miami department of biology (www.bio.miami.edu/ecosummer/eco2001/ wizardpaper.html). gerber, g. and a. echternacht. 2000. evidence for asymmetrical intraguild predation between native and introduced anolis lizards. oecologia 124: 599–607. gorgoy, l. 2000. anolis sagrei dumeril and bibron, 1837. caribbean anole database (www.anole.net/sagrei.html). hawaii audubon society. 2005. hawaii’s birds. 6th ed. hawaii audubon society, honolulu. himb (hawai‘i institute of marine biology). 2005. a brief history of moku o lo‘e — “coconut island” (www.hawaii.edu/himb/history.html). invasive species specialist group. 2006. norops sagrei. global invasive species database (www.invasivespecies.net/database/species/ecology.asp?si= 603 &fr=1&sts=). lever, c. 2003. naturalized reptiles and amphibians of the world. oxford university press, new york. mckeown, s. 1996. a field guide to reptiles and amphibians in the hawaiian islands. diamond head publ., inc., los osos, california. pansza, j.m. and r. powell. 2005. geographic distribution: anolis carolinensis. herpetological review 36: 201. powell, r. 1992. anolis porcatus. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (541): 1–5. powell, r. 2001. amphibians and reptiles (of coconut island) (www.avila. edu/hawaii/amprep_coconutislans.htm). powell, r. and j.m. pansza. 2005. geographic distribution: anolis sagrei. herpetological review 36: 201. iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 205anoles of coconut island sc o tt s tr ei t (w w w .b ir d -f r ie n d s. c o m ) red-vented bulbuls (pycnonotus cafer) are aggressive predators on small, diurnal lizards. these introduced birds have become increasingly common on coconut island. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 205 iguana 13.2 b&w text 154 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 commentaries c o m m e n t a r i e s killing animals for profit1 carl hiaasen, miami herald if your kids asked to bury a small animal alive, you’d be horrified. you’d tell them that’s an awful thing and that they ought to be ashamed. most children wouldn’t dream of doing it, of course, because they know what’s wrong and what’s right. unfortunately, they don’t make the rules. consider florida’s poor, pokey gopher tortoise. since 1991, the state has allowed grown-ups to bury 74,000 of them because their burrows stood in the path of future subdivisions, highways, golf courses, and supermarkets. officials prefer the word entomb instead of bury, but it’s the same dirty deed. even on his most fleet-footed day, the average tortoise cannot outrace earth-moving machinery. some are able to tunnel to freedom, but most suffocate slowly over a period of weeks. gopher tortoises have been around for 60 million years, but the last few decades have been murder. the florida fish and wildlife conservation commission classifies these ancient land turtles as a “species of special concern,” although obviously not special enough to be left in peace. a child can’t legally keep one as a pet, yet a big company or even a school district can obtain permits to snuff them by the hundreds. dwindling in numbers, the animals live in dry hammocks, coastal dunes, and pine scrub. there they dig elaborate dens that provide shelter to more than 300 other species, including rabbits, burrowing owls, and the endangered indigo snake. as luck would have it, prime tortoise habitat is often prime real estate, which means the tortoises get the boot or, more typically, the bulldozer. the state calls this “incidental taking,” which is a bureaucratically sanitized way of saying “smothering to death.” the permit process is straightforward. developers seeking to build on land colonized by tortoises typically agree to contribute to a habitat fund, or set aside a relatively small parcel. it’s called mitigation, a lame charade intended to make the state appear vigilant and to make developers appear caring. in the past 10 months, florida has granted 345 permits to bury tortoises. the [south florida] sun-sentinel recently published a sampling: • the tuscano golf course development near sarasota got permission to kill 260 of the reptiles in exchange for preserving 138 acres. • in duval county, the young land group was told it could destroy 190 tortoises if it paid $169,442 for 29 acres of habitat. • the orange county public schools got permission to kill 110 tortoises on the future site of a high school, in exchange for preserving 12 acres at a cost of $92,037. since 1991, the state has allowed the burial of 74,000 gopher tortoises (gopherus polyphemus) because their burrows stood in the path of future subdivisions, highways, golf courses, and supermarkets. c h u c k s c h a ff er . 1 reprinted by permission of the author and the miami herald. © miami herald 7 may 2006. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 154 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 155commentaries south carolina and louisiana have major problems with some of their senior citizens. as summer begins, louisiana will have begun to address the problem for one group. south carolina will still be seeking a solution for their denizens. the problem relates not to aarp members but to turtles: how to control their removal from the wild by commercial turtle trappers. neither state can afford to lose many more of their native turtles and keep their natural heritage intact. recent positive action by the louisiana senate regarding one species bears mentioning. one of the most magnificent reptiles in america is the alligator snapping turtle (macroclemys temminckii), a species that is fast disappearing from southern rivers and swamps. the giant turtle, one of the largest freshwater turtles in the world, gets bigger than the adults of some sea turtles. typical adults can weigh more than 100 pounds and the record is more than 200. alligator snappers have a come-hither scam that operates quite effectively with hungry fish. the turtle sits on the bottom with its mouth open. its bright red tongue wiggles like a worm. as unsuspecting fish move in for a meal, they become a meal themselves when the unseen con artist slams its jaws shut. alligator snappers inhabit the mississippi river drainage and are found as far east as southern georgia, west to texas, and north to indiana, although not in the carolinas. once they were in virtually all large rivers throughout their geographic range. recently, their numbers were estimated to be less than five percent of what they once were, and still declining. all but one state (louisiana) had passed laws to protect these mighty creatures from the assaults of commercial trapping. i think it safe to say that they are part of the natural world that most americans would like to preserve. louisiana may actually make that a reality. louisiana senate resolution no. 49 introduced by sen. robert j. barham is “to urge and request the louisiana department of wildlife and are alligator snappers out of the soup?1 j. whitfield gibbons savannah river ecology lab, aiken, south carolina alligator snapping turtles (macroclemys temminckii) are fast disappearing from southern rivers and swamps. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h 1 reprinted with permission of the author and partners in amphibian & reptile conservation (http://www.parcplace.org/). • vikings llc in marion county was approved to wipe out 470 tortoises for a 542-home golf course development, in exchange for preserving 136 acres. • in palm beach county, wal-mart got permission to bury five tortoises in exchange for a whopping 1.49 acres of habitat. mitigation is always meager. a pending project in the tampa bay area would obliterate 2,573 acres of tortoise habitat, yet under current rules the developer is required to set aside only 168 acres. that’s a net loss to the tortoises of 93 percent of their home territory. news accounts about the tortoise-burying permits have angered many floridians and discomfited wildlife officials, who admit that not enough is being done to save the reptiles. the state now wants to expand tortoise preserves in the panhandle, which sounds like a plan, except that moving the critters hasn’t worked. studies have shown that most of the relocated newcomers have died from respiratory disease or other ailments. process as slow as the tortoise four years ago, the fwcc staff proposed elevating the status of the gopher tortoise to a “threatened species,” which theoretically would offer more protection from habitat loss. no action was taken, and the sanctioned killings continued. several local governments decided there was no time to lose. lee, collier, martin, and hillsborough counties adopted ordinances that made it more difficult to destroy the species, even with a permit. on 7 june, the state wildlife commission convenes in west palm beach, a public meeting at which the plight of the gopher tortoise finally will be addressed. a key factor will be the “risk of extinction,” which grows worse with every mass burial. if commissioners agree that the species should be reclassified as threatened, biologists and administrators will begin drafting a management plan. it’s a process as slow and lumbering as the tortoise itself. in the meantime, officials say they’re working with developers and landowners to deal with the “entombment issue,” which has turned into a serious public-relations headache. there’s nothing “incidental” about burying an animal alive. just ask your kids. they’ll know better. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 155 iguana b&w text 216 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 as part of an effort to reawaken an awareness of pre-european culture, a guamanian youth troupe recreates an ancient chamorro dance. perry iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 216 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 217travelogue t r a v e l o g u e in the spring of 1521, ferdinand magellan and his crew became the first europeans to see the pacific islands we now know as the marianas. magellan named guam, saipan, tinian, rota, and a number of uninhabited islands the islas de las velas latinas (= islands of the lateen sails). his crew coined the name still sometimes used today, islas de los ladrones (= islands of the thieves). at that time, the island’s inhabitants, the chamorros, had been there for several thousand years and had developed a distinct culture and language. concepts of personal property among the locals apparently differed greatly from those of the europeans, leading to the unflattering name used by the seamen. when spain formally claimed the islands in 1667, an estimated 40,000–60,000 chamorros lived there. unappreciative of the efforts to make them into good catholic subjects of spain, the guam and the commonwealth of the northern mariana islands: pieces of america in the far pacific gad perry department of range, wildlife, and fisheries management texas tech university, lubbock photographs by the author except where noted. a simplified map of the western pacific showing some important nations for orientation. guam and the northern mariana islands are in the center, surrounded by lots of water. jo h n b in n s iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 217 locals resisted. showing the christian charity typical of the period, the spaniards proceeded to exterminate nearly all of them. today’s chamorros are typically catholic and carry last names such as cruz and santos. guam is now a u.s. territory, and the other islands form the commonwealth of the northern mariana islands (cnmi), also a us protectorate. arriving in guam’s airport, one is welcomed by a sight not very different from many places in the u.s. or europe. the island’s center is highly urbanized, and contains most of the local population (about 100,000) and the major concentration of tourists (some 1 million each year). however, the heat and humidity of the tropics (guam is at latitude 13) immediately tell you this is just an illusion, and, like toto and dorothy, you quickly realize that you are no longer in kansas. not all of the island is as dramatically affected by humans as the center. the southern part remains especially beautiful, with many picturesque coves. although little remains of the preeuropean chamorro culture, a few archeological sites exist. attempts are ongoing to encourage the use of the chamorro language among the youth, many of whom are more comfortable in english, and to revive some of the cultural practices that were likely carried out by ancient chamorros. much more common today are signs of the catholicism, a backbone of modern culture on guam. i first arrived on guam in late 1995 as part of a team studying the devastating effects of the brown treesnake (boiga irregu218 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 perry latte stones, such as this one located in inarajan, testify to the presence of the pre-european chamorro culture. archeologists believe series of these stones served as the foundations of raised houses that were safe from occasional flooding. a structure just outside guam’s international airport welcomes visitors and locals. the capital and largest city, hagatña (formerly known as agaña), is in the background. this cove near inarajan is one of many beautiful spots in the south of guam. bellin’s 1752 map of the mariana islands (http://www.carto.com/ maps/02118761.jpg). guam is shown in an inset on the bottom left. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 218 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 219travelogue laris) on the ecology of the islands. almost immediately, i went to assist with a project on saipan and discovered that the disparaging name dating back to magellan’s crew still held some truth. while we were conducting research in the forest at night, someone broke into both of our vehicles, the contents of the trunks were stolen, all eight tires were slashed, and large rocks were used to smash the windshields. luckily, this did not set the tone for the rest of my time in the region, which was much happier. typhoons, the pacific equivalent of north atlantic hurricanes, rarely get press exposure in the u.s. strong typhoons can leave behind extensive damage to human structures, snapping thick concrete poles like matchsticks. the result can be weeks or months of recovery time, during which much of the island may lack power or water. such powerful winds are a common feature in the marianas, and an important organizing feature affecting the local ecology. although i was off-island for typhoon paka, i returned soon thereafter. i also got to experience several other typhoons, including keith earlier in 1997. storm preparations are a lot like getting ready for an impending war. one collects food and water, makes sure plenty of batteries are available, covers all the windows with heavy metal shutters, and waits. as the storm approaches, power is cut off to preserve the infrastructure. your house now lacks both air conditioning and air flow. you are in a dark, hot, humid space. your battery-powered radio gives occasional updates on the progress of the storm: how close, how fierce. you wait. when the storm hits you can hear it through the concrete walls: torrential rains, buffeting winds, and flying debris all hit your “shell” with a passion. you wait some more. eventually, it recedes and you step outside to see how much damage has been done and to begin the process of picking up the pieces and starting life again. this small sign is all that marks the place where little boy was attached to the enola gay before its fateful flight to hiroshima, japan (http:// tourtinian.homestead.com/files/bpit.jpg). american troops on the beach near camel rock. the reoccupation of guam occurred in 1944 and was very costly. this is a park service placard on guam. super-typhoon paka swept ashore in december 1997 with measured winds of up to 380 km per hour (240 mph). the damage was extensive. here, a grove of coconuts that lost their tops in the storm. few trees hit this badly recovered. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 219 for many years, the marianas were a sleepy backwater. the u.s. became the landlord after the spanish-american war of 1898, but not much changed. things became a lot less pleasant when the japanese took the islands at the beginning of world war ii. the fighting that followed when the u.s. took the islands back near the end of the war in the pacific was fierce, as the japanese were heavily fortified. one can still see some of the gun emplacements. some 80% of the structures on guam were destroyed in the shelling that preceded the ground offensive. the japanese had built large bases, especially airfields, on all the major islands in the chain. all of them were taken back by the u.s. military and served in the war, but the one on tinian had an especially important role to play. the enola gay, an american b-29 bomber, left from there on 6 august 1945, carrying “little boy,” a u-235 bomb, to hiroshima, japan. some 100,000 people died when the bomb exploded at 08:16:02, and a similar num220 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 perry the brown treesnake (boiga irregularis) is a nocturnal tree-dweller with a broad diet. these invasive snakes have had a profound ecological and economic impact on guam. japanese tourists visit an old gun emplacement their countrymen placed on rota during ww ii. pandanus, a native plant common in the pacific, often serves as a daytime hiding place for brown treesnakes. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 220 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 221travelogue mangrove monitors (varanus indicus) climb well and are often encountered on trees. the green tree skink (lamprolepis smaragdina) rarely visits the ground and can be green, bronze, or gray. it often perches head-down on trunks of trees. a mating aggregation of introduced cane toads (bufo marinus) takes advantage of a puddle created by the explosive rains of the wet season. tadpoles develop quickly and can take advantage of even small bodies of water. no native amphibians occur on guam. a medium-sized brown treesnake and its prey: three introduced tree sparrows (passer montanus) it had eaten before being captured. these snakes are extremely efficient predators. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 221 ber were seriously injured. today, only a small and badly-kept marker stands at this historic location. the snake that i came to study on guam was accidentally introduced in the aftermath of ww ii, when guam became a major hub for u.s. military activity in the pacific. other invasive reptiles and amphibians occur in the marianas. among others, these include the mangrove monitor (varanus indicus), the green tree skink (lamprolepis smaragdina), which has been widely introduced but never established on guam, probably because of snake predation, and the cane toad (bufo marinus), which has caused so much trouble in australia. however, none are as damaging as the brown treesnake. by 1980, the snake was found island-wide, had caused the elimination of most of guam’s native forest birds, and had decimated other birds, lizards, and mammals. today, only three species of forest birds remain on guam, and nine are gone. of the remaining species, one, the aga crow (corvus kubaryi), is down to five individuals; a single cave houses about two hundred vanikoro swiftlets (aerodramus vanikorensis); and only a few hundred micronesian starlings (aplonis opaca) remain. we have even found evidence that the ecological damage has trickled down to impact plant communities, many components of which have lost their pollinators and seed-dispersers. the snake is also responsible for frequent and costly power outages and social change, including infant envenomation and loss of culturally important species. species such as the guam rail (gallirallus owstoni, known locally as the “ko’ko,” extinct in the wild) and marianna fruitbat (pteropus tokudae, the “fanihi,” down to about 150 individ222 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 perry the guam national wildlife refuge at ritidian point protects many habitats in the hope that native species can someday be restored to help create a functional ecosystem. small-scale test arenas, such as this concrete model built at the guam nwr, were the final testing stage for all of the snake barriers we developed. the largest gecko in the marianas, this island gecko (gehyra oceanica) is rarely seen on guam, but remains locally abundant elsewhere in the marianas. this animal was encountered on saipan. the rock gecko (nactus pelagicus), an all-female ground-dwelling species, is now rarely encountered on guam. their decline is almost assuredly attributable to the brown treesnake. the endemic guam rail (gallirallus owstoni) used to be common on the island. it is now extinct in the wild, but breeds well in captivity. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 222 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 223travelogue uals) had high social importance in the life-style of the chamorros. unfortunately, the brown treesnake is also an accomplished disperser. stowing away on ships and airplanes, snakes have already reached other micronesian islands, hawaii, texas, and even spain. recognizing the potential impact and danger to other locations, congress in 1990 made the brown treesnake the only terrestrial organism controlled under the non-indigenous aquatic nuisance prevention and control act. i was based at the guam national wildlife refuge, located at ritidian point in the northern end of guam. this is the only area on the island designated and consistently managed for conservation. part of my job was to develop barriers that could be used to block the dispersal of snakes from guam. this is the kind of work that is not very exciting to a herpetologist: more technology development than chasing animals. worse, the technology/biology part is by far the easier element in this equation. we developed three types of barriers that showed great efficacy in various kinds of testing. several of these are currently in use on guam and elsewhere, helping protect some of the native species such as the rock gecko (nactus pelagicus) and the island gecko (gehyra oceanica). perhaps most gratifying, use of barriers made possible the release of captive guam rails into a protected native forest area, where they bred for the first time in two decades. still, policy adoption has lagged behind the availability of the tools, and many places remain less protected than they could be because the funds to build barriers have yet to be allocated. the future of the marianas is uncertain. much of the cnmi economy has rested on the ability of sweatshops to cheaply produce garments with a “made in usa” label. traveling around the cnmi, one can see high walls crowned with barbed wire where workers from other countries labor, often in abject conditions. the garment industry has effectively convinced members of congress, using the usual free trips, to continue supporting the practice, but this will surely not continue forever. tourism is a strong basis of the economy, and one that is again lucrative now that asian economies have recovered from their slump of a few years ago. however, the biggest unknown is the u.s. military, which controls much of guam’s area and is a major source of income for both it and the cnmi. the “voice of america” reported in august 2006 that the military plans to enhance its presence on guam. the pacific daily news, guam’s newspaper, reported that thousands of soldiers currently based on okinawa soon will be moving to guam. some talk has stationed the u.s.s. carl vinson, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, on guam. such actions are expected to pump billions of dollars into the local economy, but must come at the cost of native habitats. moreover, north korea is repeatedly mentioned in such stories, and i cannot help but wonder what such talk does for the tourist industry. finally, will the increased traffic associated with this economic expansion result in greater opportunities for brown treesnakes to leave guam, or bring additional species to the region? only time will tell. a 1.5 m (4 ft) brown treesnake hiding in the wheelwell of an airplane about to depart guam. the snake was located by the pilot during a preflight check and was removed by the author. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 223 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 135obituary (inger and marx 1965). this monograph embraced many of the newest methods and approaches of that time and it remains a landmark work on that group of snakes today. in addition, marx’s research interests also included the herpetofauna of egypt, the systematics and zoogeography of the vipers, the phyletics of morphological characters, the application of phyletic character analysis to convergent snake species, and the application of sharrock and felsenstein’s combinatorial method to phylogenetic studies. to facilitate his nsf-supported collaborative research with george rabb, over five hundred snake skulls were removed from preserved specimens and prepared for character analysis. these skulls, comprising over 235 genera, form a subset of the osteological collection that is well used by researchers. this work resulted in their “50 characters volume” (marx and rabb 1972) that still is of great practical use to students of squamate systematics. following this time, one of us (hkv), had the privilege of collaborating with george rabb and hy on a project involving character analysis (marx, rabb, and voris 1977). during the two years that we worked on this project, the three of us had many stimulating and heated discussions. those readers who knew hy will understand us when we say that hy provided us with plenty of aggravation and entertainment. he often referred to his two co-workers, not as his esteemed collaborators, but rather as his “close enemies.” hy’s research interests were varied, but the subject that interested him most was the evolution of venomous snakes in the family viperidae. but hy did not fit any stereotype of a dusty, dry museum curator — if you met hy, even briefly, you immediately learned that he was exceptionally gregarious! this was true in both his personal and professional life. in his professional life, this took the form that most of us call collaborations, o b i t u a r y hymen marx, curator emeritus at the field museum of natural history in chicago, illinois, died on 25 january 2007 in sun city, arizona. during his 42 years at the field museum, hy contributed much to the field of herpetology through his own research and through his unique, lively, and supportive personality. hymen “hy” marx was born 27 june 1925 in chicago, illinois. he lived in the chicago area until his move to arizona in the early 1990s. his father, phillip marx, was a butcher and his mother, minnie serota marx, was a homemaker. hy was drafted into the u.s. air force in 1943. he served as a radar mechanic and was stationed in the u.k., where he worked on a ground crew of the 8th air force maintaining the radar systems of the famous “flying fortresses.” like so many others, hy went back to school in 1945 under the g.i. bill and graduated in 1949 from roosevelt university with a b.s. degree and a major in biology. that marked the end of hy’s formal education, and from then on he depended on colleagues and his own intellectual curiosity to fuel his career development. in hy’s case — and to his great credit — that was enough. while in school, hy met audrey elaine greene and they married in 1950 and had two children. in 1948, while he was a student at roosevelt university, hy began volunteering in the division of amphibians and reptiles, working as an assistant to karl p. schmidt. hy referred to clifford h. pope and “k. p.” schmidt as his “academic papas.” hy joined the division in 1950 as its first full-time assistant. for the next ten years, he served as “collection manager,” and oversaw the collection through significant growth and reorganization, including a major move from the third floor to the ground floor in 1952–53. this period of intensive collection growth was marked by the arrival, in 1954, of 35 five-gallon milk cans containing 77,000 frogs and toads that were sent by the institut des parcs nationaux de congo belge to karl schmidt for identification. this huge shipment almost matched the number of specimens (85,000) in the entire collection at the time, and a significant number of these specimens were deposited at the field (bauer 1954). this period also was marked by the division’s single most significant purchase, that of the edward harrison taylor collection of 35,000 specimens, which was accessioned beginning in 1959. that collection, which is extensively cited in the herpetological literature, includes many type specimens, caecilians, and skeletons. its geographic strengths include mexico, costa rica, liberia, sri lanka, and thailand. during these ten years, hy also published 16 papers, which led to his promotion to the curatorial ranks. he was promoted to full curator in 1973. for roughly 40 years, hy’s career at field museum overlapped with that of robert (bob) f. inger. hy and bob collaborated on several publications, but the most notable was their monograph on the snakes of the colubrid genus calamaria hymen marx (1925–2007) hymen marx releasing a male common basilisk (basiliscus basiliscus) prior to determining its running speed (photograph © 1966, courtesy of the field museum. z89606). 136 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 but hy referred to it as “sharing our sandbox.” he was a great collaborator, but this activity was not for the weak of heart! he was sharp, witty, insightful, and prone to wander far off the subject. a lively discussion might initially address the shape of the dentary bone in the gaboon viper (bitis gabonica) and then inexplicably shift to hy providing a review of “sleeper,” woody allen’s latest movie at the time. this was vintage hy marx. no collaborator could expect to evade one of hy’s practical jokes — that was the cost of doing business. karel liem, henry bryant, bigelow professor of ichthyology at harvard university, and george rabb, now president emeritus of the chicago zoological society, and several others know this only too well! hy contributed greatly to the academic and administrative life at field museum. he served as the head of the division of amphibians and reptiles from 1970–79, and from 1985–90, and over the years served on more than 20 museum committees. hy fully understood the importance of encouraging young people in their interests, and for that reason, he was an active contributor to members’ nights at the museum, when doors were opened for members to view the work that goes on “behind the scenes.” hy also had many unofficial roles at the museum, and he served as a sort of social guru to the entire staff. in this regard, hy referred to himself as a “social butterfly,” and enjoyed organizing both intellectual discussions on character analysis as well as recruiting teams and scheduling times for doubles tennis matches. during hy’s 40 years of service at field museum, he also served on the committee on evolutionary biology at the university of chicago. in this capacity, he did not teach formal classes, but rather he informally guided both master’s and doctoral degree students in their research programs. on this, one of us (hkv) can speak from first-hand experience. hy helped me choose a ph.d. research topic on sea snakes that shaped my entire professional career. he freely gave his time and expertise to help many young visiting scientists prosper in their special fields of study. one of the “official” activities of visiting researchers and students was to visit hy’s office and kibitz about their research. for this we are all very grateful. hy was not a man who tried to impress others by putting on airs. instead, he was equally friendly to the museum’s housekeeping staff and the top administrators of the field museum and other lofty institutions. he was not impressed with administrative rank and academic credentials, and he applied uniquely marxian methods to make this evident. in his assignment of nicknames, no one received much respect and no one could hide! for example, robert k. johnson, chairman of the zoology department, was “bunky” or “el bunko grande,” james p. bacon, curator of reptiles, san diego zoo, was “bakey,” and george rabb, director of the brookfield zoo, was “georgy porgy.” of course, behind each of these nicknames was an endearing story that showed how hy paid attention to the human beings with whom he lived and worked. we were individuals, not directors, curators, and chairmen. in the end, that is why so many at the field museum and in the field of herpetology counted hy marx as a close friend, a great colleague, and a real human being. hy marx was truly one of a kind, absolutely unique, an amazing rare bird, and irreplaceable. all of our lives have been immensely enriched by knowing hy marx, and we will miss him greatly. literature cited bauer, m.j. 1954. frogs, frogs, frogs — and more frogs. chicago natural history museum bulletin 25(5):5. inger, r.f. and h. marx. 1965. the systematics and evolution of the oriental colubrid snakes of the genus calamaria. fieldiana zoology 49:1–304. marx, h. and g.b. rabb. 1972. phyletic analysis of fifty characters of advanced snakes. fieldiana zoology 63:1–321. marx, h., g.b. rabb, and h.k. voris. 1977. the differentiation of character state relationships by binary coding and the monothetic subset method. fieldiana zoology 72:1–20. resetar, a. and h.k. voris. 1997. herpetology at the field museum of natural history: the first one hundred years, pp. 495–506. in: t.w. pietsch and w.d. anderson, jr. (eds.), collection building in ichthyology and herpetology. american society of ichthyologists and herpetologists, lawrence, kansas. stewart, m.m. and c. redhed. 2002. hymen marx. copeia 2002:524–526. harold k. voris and alan resetar division of amphibians and reptiles department of zoology field museum of natural history 1400 south lake shore drive chicago, illinois 60605 obituary hymen marx holding a preserved specimen of the common european viper (vipera berus) that was cataloged as fmnh 200,000 in september 1975 (photograph © 1975, courtesy of the field museum. gn82282). iguana 13.1 b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 47travelogue the idea for this trip began to form about six years ago. a group of anolis enthusiasts (yes, believe it or not, such folks do exist) were corresponding on our website when someone posted a photograph of a pure blue anole with the label “anolis gorgonae.” at that time, none of us had ever heard of it. considering that over 350 species of anolis have been described, this was not too unusual. i was familiar with all of the west indian species (at least by name), and, based on the looks of the animal in the photograph, i suspected that it was a continental form in a group of species frequently assigned to the genus norops1. however, i was skeptical that this was even a real lizard. it was a pure blue, from head to tail, and the picture just looked like it had been doctored. not only did i suspect that the color was enhanced, but a name like gorgonae (after a mythical creature) suggested that this, too, was a mythical creature and that someone was playing a prank on the group. blue lizards do exist. species such as cyclura lewisi and chamaeleo (furcifer) pardalis are blue, and several anoles and some day geckos (genus phelsuma) are at least partially blue. so, why was this animal so hard for me to take seriously? this lizard was just too blue to believe. it looked as if it had been painted blue; it had no pattern and no stripes or spots. what purpose could being solid blue serve any creature in a natural environment (and, in nature, logical reasons almost always exist for certain colors or characters)? a day or two later, a group member from germany confirmed that anolis (norops) gorgonae was a real species, and was even able to identify the geographic origin — isla gorgona off the pacific coast of colombia. i searched in earnest to find more information, but met with very little success. i did determine that isla gorgona was a real place, but… was the lizard really blue? i couldn’t find any natural history information or any descriptions that verified the color. some subsequent exchanges on the website discussed the possibility of going to isla gorgona to find out for ourselves, but, at that time, the western coast of colombia could be a dangerous place, with paramilitary guerillas and government insurgents in control of some areas. some problems remain, but, as time passed, the image of the blue anole of gorgona haunted me. every so often, i would do an internet search in an effort to find more information or photographs of the species. discussions (mostly less than serious) about getting to isla gorgona persisted — but too many obstacles appeared to preclude a casual trip to the island. i had checked, and getting there was certainly not like traveling to one of the easy-to-visit islands in the west indies with which i was quite familiar. isla gorgona is a colombian national park (and a prison?), and you need permission to visit. in addition, the logistics of getting to the island are daunting. the park service does not provide transportation. so, how could an anolis fanatic get there? one day, as luck would have it, nathan, the very same person who posted the picture of the anole, met and married ingrid, a colombian woman. could this finally be an in? it was! still, it didn’t happen overnight. over the next year, i continued to search for information. i even enlisted the help of sandy echternacht (university of tennessee), who had spent considerable time in the neotropics, and he managed to find a publication about the herpetofauna of gorgona. it was from the early 1970s and in spanish, but it was far more than i had been able to find. i also came across another picture of a blue lizard that t r a v e l o g u e the blue anoles of isla gorgona joseph burgess jacksonville, florida 1 see the footnote in the article by alexander gutsche (iguana 12:240–243) about the status of the genus norops. colombia sits at the junction of central and south america, features a vast array of varying habitats, and is a hot-spot of biodiversity. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 47 48 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 burgess was linked to dr. kirsten nicholson’s website. i contacted her and found out that she had been to isla gorgona just a few months earlier — now, i was making some real progress. we corresponded via email, and she helped clarify the status of some of the other anoles that occurred on the island and which the publication (in spanish) had misidentified. getting to isla gorgona traveling to any country is always an adventure, but, when you are able to dive into the culture with one of its citizens, you really get a different perspective. i had been to colombia before, but, after the first day, i could tell i was going to see a lot more than i had previously. the trip began in the beautiful old city of cartagena, where i attended nathan and ingrid’s wedding. from there, we spent some time in bogotá and cali before setting out for gorgona. we would be joined on the trip by one of nathan’s friend, dominic. while herpetology is not his interest, he would prove to be a good sport and supportive of our efforts. getting to the island is no easy task, and definitely not something for the casual traveler. from the u.s., you would have to take several flights on progressively smaller planes and then a boat ride from two optional points of departure. we chose the town of guapi, since the boat ride from there was about eight hours shorter; however, the boat was much smaller than i’d prefer for a voyage into the pacific. as soon as we landed in guapi, the plane was surrounded by colombian marines with automatic weapons. they established a perimeter for the safe debarking of passengers. the entire town had a strong military presence, a constant reminder of how dangerous this area of colombia could be. the river town of guapi. the old city of san diego, cartagena, colombia. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 48 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 49travelogue guapi is an interesting little river town. no roads pass in or out of the city, which has only the small airstrip and the river for transporting people and goods. although roads exist within the town, vehicular traffic, excepting only an occasional minibus or truck, is absent. being there was like stepping back in time. we watched dugout canoes bringing fruits and vegetables to the riverside town square. the river was truly the main street; all of the action was there. after about a half-hour wait spent taking in the local flavor, our boat captain, “highpitch,” arrived and we were on our way. after a short stretch of the rio guapi, we emerged into the pacific ocean. about 20 miles of ocean now stood between us and our destination. the day was overcast and hazy, but the island started to take shape on the horizon after about 10 miles. it didn’t look much different than many of the mountainous islands i’d visited before, but it was a stark contrast compared to the mainland we had just left behind. this portion of colombia’s western coast is a flat estuarine coastal landscape. so, having this island rise from the sea before us was immensely impressive. as we got closer, we began to make out some of the island’s features, a beautiful rainforest that probably hasn’t changed much in thousands of years. i could see the few small buildings of the park facilities as we approached the shore, but no dock. i wasn’t dressed for a beach landing, but highpitch was an experienced captain and got us right onto the beach; i didn’t even get my shoes wet. upon arrival, we were greeted by park staff and given an indoctrination to the park, its rules, and a brief history (in spanish). in 1526, francisco pizarro discovered the island on his way to perú. when he visited the island, he was amazed by the number of snakes he saw, and consequently named it “gorgona,” in reference to medusa, the mythical gorgon with a proliferation of serpents upon her head. the island is still known for its plentiful snakes, but it also has an otherwise rich fauna, flora, and marine environment (coral reefs). for these reasons, the government declared the island a national park in 1984. prior to that, it contained the most feared penitentiary in the country. the ruins of the prison remain, but are quickly being reclaimed by the forest. the park facility buildings are actually part of the old prison’s administrative and staff structures. the park includes 61,688 hectares, of which approximately 97% correspond to marine area and 1,660 hectares are terrestrial. the main island is 9 km long and 2.5 km wide, with a highest elevation of 330 m. it and the smaller island of gorgonilla are covered by lush tropical forest that descends from the top of the mountain to the edge of the ocean. the known fauna includes 19 lizards (4 of which are endemic), 15 snakes, 8 amphibians, over 175 birds (including sea and migratory), 12 bats, monkeys, a sloth, sea turtles, whales, and sea lions that come to visit from the relatively nearby galápagos islands. the park receives only about 7,000 visitors a year, most of which are students or scuba divers. isla gorgona we collected our bags and were on our way to our cabin when we came across the first reptile, a red-headed basilisk (basiliscus lush isla gorgona. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 49 50 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 burgess galeritus), quickly followed by our first amphibian, a dart frog (epipedobates boulengeri). these were the most commonly encountered species during our visit. the dart frogs were present almost in plague proportions, a testament to the efficiency of their toxic skin secretions to deter predation. when walking, we had to be careful not to step on them. we were eager to get into the forest and begin our search for the blue lizards. from the very beginning, i was concerned about even finding one. anoles on the southern continent often are far less abundant than what you encounter in the west indies or even some parts of north america. my previous visits to south america had yielded only a few individuals, and i often missed many targeted species. we discussed our desire with a member of the park staff, who took us to a trail along which he had seen them — but he told us that they are very rare. we traversed the trail and found many other interesting species, a handsome male red-headed basilisk (basiliscus galeritus), one of the most commonly encountered reptiles on isla gorgona. dart frogs (epipedobates boulengeri) were ubiquitous and obvious, exploiting the protection provided by extremely toxic skin secretions. a large mural depicts the park namesake, medusa, the gorgon. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 50 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 51travelogue harlequin toads (atelopus elegans), wood lizards (enyaliodes heterolepis), bridge’s ground lizards (ameiva bridgesii), and a large-scaled black treesnake (chironius grandisquamis), but we were almost to the end of the trail and had not seen a single anole. we decided to take a side trail into an overgrown fruit orchard, which turned out to be a very good decision. we almost immediately found two species, and after some initial confusion, identified them as anolis (norops) medemi (an endemic) and a juvenile a. (n.) princeps. we returned to the main trail and, with only about 50 meters left, our guide pointed out an enormous a. (n.) princeps. i had no idea they could get that big. with my eyes locked on this giant anole, i walked right past the object of the trip. from behind me, i heard dominic say: “it’s the blue one” (remember that he is not a “herper” and is unfamiliar with scientific names). as i turned to see what he was describing, i saw it: a glowing neon blue lizard that looked very out-of-place in this shadowy forest. it was more fantastic than i imagined it could be, and we all stared in amazement. all doubt was gone, and the fabled blue anole not only existed, it lived up to all the anticipation. after a lot of talk and a short photo session, we headed back. although exciting, we still had some work to do. virtually no literature addresses a. (n.) gorgonae, so i wanted to find out as much about it as i could. we had to find more. as we adjusted to a steady diet of fish (or sometimes chicken), rice, and plantains provided by the park, we made several additional excursions into the forest, but with limited success. we were finding only about one blue anole per day. only a few trails were accessible and the park required visitors to have a guide. the staff was very protective of the park, which was a welcome surprise. they also had an obligation to protect the everyday tourist from the serpents and had strict rules for venturing out at night. our guide, orlando, was always a little nervous about our “off the trail wanderings” and the fact that nathan and i were not wearing “snake protection boots.” concerns centered mostly on venomous snakes, like the fer-de-lance (bothrops sp.), especially at night, although we saw none. snakes of other kinds were certainly not in short supply. we encountered several in the area immediately around our cabin. in fact, one afternoon, we found a large boa constrictor (boa constrictor) consuming one of the large rodents (proechimys semispinosa) that graced our cabin porch each night. however, after wrangling several large boas and several other snakes, we earned orlando’s respect and confidence. we also in a way became his guide, teaching him specifics about the amphibians and reptiles that we encountered along the trails. after a while, we were permitted to make several hikes alone, which is normally not allowed, and we were grateful. although this was considered the dry season, it rained often and was extremely humid. after one good downpour, nathan and i hit the trails to see what the rain had brought out of hiding. one interesting observation was that the multitudes of dart frog were now carrying tadpoles on their backs. this is a common strategy among some dart frogs. they lay their eggs in a moist and protected crevice or a convenient crab-opened ingrid watches a large boa constrictor finish its meal. anolis princeps is a true giant, reaching total lengths to 64 cm. harlequin toads (atelopus elegans) often lie exposed to view, even during daylight hours, relying on bright warning coloration to deter predators. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 51 52 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 burgess coconut. upon hatching, they ferry the tadpoles to a permanent source of water in which to complete their development. one fortunate day, we were on the beach trail and conditions must have been perfect, because we found five a. (n.) gorgonae. in the following days, we found additional animals in this area. so far, all were in closed canopy forest with little to no undergrowth. also, 90% of what we had seen so far was on small diameter (single stalk) trees and lizards were perching low (< 1 m) on the trunks. we also were finding a high female-tomale ratio, with females being a deeper blue than any of the males we observed. our observations contrasted with what kirsten nicholson had seen during the wet season, when she found no females and only three males, all of which were found on large-diameter trees at heights >3 m. the paucity of arboreal lizards was easy to explain. the density of saurophagus snakes (oxybelis, leptophis) was very high. although not reported in any of the literature, house geckos (hemidactylus sp., probably h. frenatus or h. leightoni) were present in small numbers. these most likely represented a recent introduction from the mainland. already, however, these apparently new arrivals appeared to be excluding a smaller introduced gecko (lepidodactylus lugubris) from several of the facility’s buildings. one frustrating situation during this trip was our failure to find two species of anoles i had hoped to see, a. (n.) biporcatus and a. (n.) chocorum. while i am familiar with a. (n.) biporcatus, having encountered them during visits to central america, i was completely unfamiliar with a. (n.) chocorum. fortunately, the park had a small lab with preserved specimens, which were immensely helpful in clarifying the inevitable identification problems initially encountered with new faunas. those specimens also gave me the opportunity to view any species we had not observed in the field. the park also had an informative library (mostly in spanish), with references to the island’s ecology as well as that of colombia and south america. every day on isla gorgona brought new discoveries and interesting creatures we had never seen. our time on the island came to an end all too quickly — but it and the lagarto azul will be long remembered. the island is a great opportunity for any student or professional herpetologist. very few noncolombian scientists visit the island, and its abundant biotic riches lay largely untapped. acknowledgement i thank ingrid sorza, for planning and coordinating the trip and for her tireless translation and patience. we saw only two species of tiny geckos in the genus lepidoblepharis, this is l. peraccae. one of the many brown vine snakes (oxybelis aeneus) encountered during the trip. these exceedingly slender snakes feed primarily on lizards. yellow-headed geckos (gonatodes albogularis) have an extensive distribution throughout central america and northern south america. like many lizards in the genus gonatodes, this species is sexually dimorphic; females lack the yellow head of males for which the species is named. “lagarto azul,” the blue anole (anolis gorgonae) of isla gorgona. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 52 iguana 13.2 b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 155commentaries south carolina and louisiana have major problems with some of their senior citizens. as summer begins, louisiana will have begun to address the problem for one group. south carolina will still be seeking a solution for their denizens. the problem relates not to aarp members but to turtles: how to control their removal from the wild by commercial turtle trappers. neither state can afford to lose many more of their native turtles and keep their natural heritage intact. recent positive action by the louisiana senate regarding one species bears mentioning. one of the most magnificent reptiles in america is the alligator snapping turtle (macroclemys temminckii), a species that is fast disappearing from southern rivers and swamps. the giant turtle, one of the largest freshwater turtles in the world, gets bigger than the adults of some sea turtles. typical adults can weigh more than 100 pounds and the record is more than 200. alligator snappers have a come-hither scam that operates quite effectively with hungry fish. the turtle sits on the bottom with its mouth open. its bright red tongue wiggles like a worm. as unsuspecting fish move in for a meal, they become a meal themselves when the unseen con artist slams its jaws shut. alligator snappers inhabit the mississippi river drainage and are found as far east as southern georgia, west to texas, and north to indiana, although not in the carolinas. once they were in virtually all large rivers throughout their geographic range. recently, their numbers were estimated to be less than five percent of what they once were, and still declining. all but one state (louisiana) had passed laws to protect these mighty creatures from the assaults of commercial trapping. i think it safe to say that they are part of the natural world that most americans would like to preserve. louisiana may actually make that a reality. louisiana senate resolution no. 49 introduced by sen. robert j. barham is “to urge and request the louisiana department of wildlife and are alligator snappers out of the soup?1 j. whitfield gibbons savannah river ecology lab, aiken, south carolina alligator snapping turtles (macroclemys temminckii) are fast disappearing from southern rivers and swamps. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h 1 reprinted with permission of the author and partners in amphibian & reptile conservation (http://www.parcplace.org/). • vikings llc in marion county was approved to wipe out 470 tortoises for a 542-home golf course development, in exchange for preserving 136 acres. • in palm beach county, wal-mart got permission to bury five tortoises in exchange for a whopping 1.49 acres of habitat. mitigation is always meager. a pending project in the tampa bay area would obliterate 2,573 acres of tortoise habitat, yet under current rules the developer is required to set aside only 168 acres. that’s a net loss to the tortoises of 93 percent of their home territory. news accounts about the tortoise-burying permits have angered many floridians and discomfited wildlife officials, who admit that not enough is being done to save the reptiles. the state now wants to expand tortoise preserves in the panhandle, which sounds like a plan, except that moving the critters hasn’t worked. studies have shown that most of the relocated newcomers have died from respiratory disease or other ailments. process as slow as the tortoise four years ago, the fwcc staff proposed elevating the status of the gopher tortoise to a “threatened species,” which theoretically would offer more protection from habitat loss. no action was taken, and the sanctioned killings continued. several local governments decided there was no time to lose. lee, collier, martin, and hillsborough counties adopted ordinances that made it more difficult to destroy the species, even with a permit. on 7 june, the state wildlife commission convenes in west palm beach, a public meeting at which the plight of the gopher tortoise finally will be addressed. a key factor will be the “risk of extinction,” which grows worse with every mass burial. if commissioners agree that the species should be reclassified as threatened, biologists and administrators will begin drafting a management plan. it’s a process as slow and lumbering as the tortoise itself. in the meantime, officials say they’re working with developers and landowners to deal with the “entombment issue,” which has turned into a serious public-relations headache. there’s nothing “incidental” about burying an animal alive. just ask your kids. they’ll know better. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 155 156 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 commentaries global climate change: should you care? gad perry department of range, wildlife, and fisheries management texas tech university, lubbock, texas about ten years ago, i was seated at a large lecture hall at ohio state university, waiting for an economist to talk about environmental issues. it’s good to get a different perspective every once in a while, after all. the speaker was clear: “i don’t believe for a moment that global climate change is happening,” he stated emphatically, then paused for dramatic effect. “but if it is,” he continued, “all that means is that we need bigger and better air conditioners!” reactions in the room were mixed. about one third of the listeners cheered, another third seemed unclear about what he had said, and the final third were close to apoplectic. a decade later, things have not changed much. some people are still warning that the future does not look good. the remainder appears to be divided between those happy not to think about environmental issues and an influential sector that pretends nothing is going on or that bigger ac units will solve our problems. so, does a problem really exist? much of the u.s. political and business leadership has spent the last decade or more claiming either that climate change is not occurring or that it is occurring as a consequence of natural processes over which we have no control. recently, this argument received surprising support from author michael crichton. his 2004 book, state of fear, used a hunt for environmental terrorists as a device for bashing environmentalists, and especially anything to do with climate change. sounding a lot like my economist, one of the characters stated (p. 407): “the threat of global warming is essentially nonexistent. even if it were a real phenomenon, it would probably result in a net benefit to most of the world.” although climate scientists have repeatedly shown the book to be scientifically lacking, an adventure yarn is certainly entitled to have a preposterous premise (consider some of crichton’s other novels, such as jurassic park, for which one must suspend any critical analysis to enjoy the story). however, for the u.s. senate to invite mr. crichton to testify on environmental issues is just wrong — and my students using his fiction as an authority by which to reject the evidence compiled by many hundreds of scientists is even worse. science is built on observing a phenomenon and making predictions that are supported by previous knowledge. a climate expert would know that co2 acts as a greenhouse gas and would consequently predict that global climate will change in certain ways if co2 levels continue to rise. could climate change scientists be wrong? of course they could. our data remain limited, and the pattern that has emerged might not be representative of long-term trends. nonetheless, we have to work with the data at hand, revealed by multiple scientific papers and reports by individual scientists and national and international bodies. the hallmark of science is to test those predictions, which have so far proven depressingly realistic, varying only in assessments of the extent to which the damage will accrue. the scientific community overwhelmingly agrees: global climate change is occurring, appears to be tied to human activities, and is likely to have devastating effects on both people and other organisms. because of the magnitude of the impacts and fisheries to place a moratorium on the taking of alligator snapping turtles.” the resolution notes that these turtles have “historically been a vital and integral part of the louisiana wildlife ecosystem [and are] presently suffering excessive exploitation for meat in local commercial markets, as well as an increasing international market.” the impact of such a resolution will go far in setting the system right for alligator snappers in louisiana. other states should consider taking similar steps to protect their turtle species. although resolutions are only suggestions, and the state’s wildlife department does not have to honor them, such a suggestion by a state senate is a positive start. the louisiana wildlife and fisheries commission has now taken action and voted to “stop the taking and possession of alligator snapping turtles by anybody with a commercial license.” recreational trapping of alligator snappers was not affected. i asked dr. joseph pechmann, a biologist at the university of new orleans, how he thought the louisiana senate had ever been able to pass a resolution that would protect the turtles. “they accepted the idea that part of louisiana’s natural heritage was going to disappear if commercial harvest was allowed to continue. recreational harvesting of alligator snappers is a pastime important to many in the state, but the current levels of commercial removal were clearly unsustainable.” the southeastern turtle saga is not over, and i’m not sure how it will end before meaningful regulations are in place in all states. i do know the loss of alligator snappers from the commercial scene will have little effect on the turtle soup au sherry at commander’s palace restaurant in new orleans. but i do not know whether the south carolina legislature will realize that it must now step forward and take some action to protect its own turtles. when i asked dr. pechmann how he personally felt about the resolution to protect the giant turtles in louisiana, he said, “it’s about time.” let’s hope tight restrictions on overharvesting will not be too late coming for alligator snappers in louisiana, or for other turtles elsewhere. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 156 iguana 12.4 b&w text if you want to see two species of west indian rock iguanas (cyclura spp.) in natural habitat at the same time, your only choice of destinations is the dominican republic (dr). the dr shares the island of hispaniola with the republic of haiti; however, the biogeographic boundaries of the island differ substantially from the current political configuration. two major islands, referred to as the north and south paleoislands, were joined when the south island “caught” the north island after the latter collided with the bahama platform. this event probably occurred during the middle of the tertiary period. reef limestones were deposited in the former marine channel that separated the two islands. this area is now a barren valley known as the plaine de cul-de-sac in haiti and the valle de neiba in the dr. much of this valley lies below sea level in the rainshadow of the sierra de neiba. two of the four large lakes that 256 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 banbury and ramos t r a v e l o g u e the rock iguanas of parque nacional isla cabritos1 barb l. banbury2 and yanerys m. ramos3 1 updated from an article first published in the iguana times 8(2):3–7 (summer 2000). 2 natural history museum, university of kansas, lawrence, kansas (current address: department of biological sciences, university of missouri-rolla; rolla, missouri). 3 section of neurobiology and behavior, cornell university, ithaca, new york (current address: venus gardens, san juan, puerto rico). parque nacional isla cabritos lies in lago enriquillo, in the heart of the valle de neiba, dominican republic. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 257 characterize this valley lack outlets to the sea and are saline. powell et al. (1999) provided a summary of the geological history of hispaniola, listing pertinent references and documenting the herpetofauna of biogeographic regions, including the valle de neiba. lago enriquillo is a hypersaline lake situated 40 m below sea level. it is named after a native-american taino chieftain who successfully resisted spanish efforts to enslave the indigenous population during the early colonial period. annual temperatures in the area average 28 °c (hoppe 1989), although daily temperatures often exceed 40 °c during the summer months. average annual rainfall is only 642 mm, most of which falls during two “rainy seasons,” one in late spring and the other in late summer and early fall (the latter associated with the hurricane season). a small island (12 x 2.0–2.5 km), isla cabritos, lies in lago enriquillo. it was incorporated into the dominican system of national parks in 1974, and serves as a sanctuary for a flora and fauna that include a number of species endemic to hispaniola. the plant community on the island is characterized as dry thorn forest — and just about every plant is equipped to stick, stab, or scratch the unwary hiker. cacti, including the tree cactuses, caguey (neoabottia paniculata) and alpargata (opuntia moniliformis), cholla (opuntia caribaea), and a tall cactus locally known as cayuco (cereus hexagonus), fill gaps between scrubby trees. the most common trees are mesquite (prosopis juliflora), ziziphus (ziziphus rignoni), and catalpa (catalpa longissima) (hoppe 1989). birds and reptiles are the most conspicuous components of the island fauna. sixty-two species of birds have been recorded (hoppe 1989). hispaniola’s largest flock of greater flamingos (phoenicopterus ruber) feed on arthropods and mollusks, and great blue herons (ardea herodias) and little blue herons (egretta caerulea) fish the shallows. glossy ibis (plegadis falcinellus) and roseate spoonbills (ajaia ajaja) frequent the shores, and hispaniolan palm crows (corvus palmarum) call raucously while carefully surveying visiting humans in hopes of soliciting (or stealing) a handout. the most famous inhabitants of the island, however, are the large, endangered reptiles, american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus), rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta), and ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii). in the summer of 1999, we were part of a national science foundation-funded undergraduate research program working in the dominican republic. in the course of our three-week-long studies of lizard communities, we made arrangements with the national park service (dirección nacional de parques) to take a day off and visit isla cabritos to see crocodiles and iguanas in their natural habitat. on 12 june 1999, we left our base in barahona well before dawn in order to catch an early boat to the island. the boat drivers generally prefer to return by early afternoon before the offshore winds, funneled through the valley from the east, kick up high waves. the morning was cloudy and surprisingly cool, exceedingly pleasant for humans, but less than ideal if you are searching for basking reptiles. nonetheless, we had high hopes for success — and were almost immediately rewarded. while we were still waiting on the dock as the drivers were preparing the boat for our trip, we saw a small crocodile swimming nearby. although not visibly disturbed by our presence, it swam away slowly, submerged, and we didn’t see it again. after an uneventful crossing, we docked on the north side of isla cabritos and took a trail that led us to the park station. cicadas and the ubiquitous crows serenaded us as we wound our way along the path through the prickly vegetation. the ground underfoot was sandy, but often gave way to large areas of darker consolidated rock. upon close examination, we observed that both rock and sand were composed of coral and shell fragments, relics of the ancient sea life inhabiting the former marine channel. after a short stop at the park station, our driver, now in the role of guide, led us toward the south side of the island to a beach where crocodiles frequently bask. along the way, our guide took us on a short detour to look for iguanas. almost instantly, we spotted a large male cyclura ricordii. although we had been alerted to watch for iguanas, we were unabashedly amazed by his size and demeanor. we took some pictures, but the ruckus raised by our excited group scared the iguana back into its burrow. a short walk later, we arrived at the beach. cautioned to remain quiet, as the crocodiles are very sensitive to human disturbance, we approached from behind some vegetation along a shoreline dune. unfortunately, no crocodiles were basking, but a large individual was swimming just off the beach. although it continued to swim away, we got a good look through binoculars and snapped some pictures. travelogue an adult male ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) outside its burrow on isla cabritos. notice the characteristic vegetation. k im s c h n ei d er the range of the american crocodile includes coastal regions of southeastern north america, central america, northwestern south america, cuba, jamaica, and hispaniola. the species was once very abundant in hispaniola, but is now found only at lago enriquillo and in the nearby haitian lake, etang saumatre. the depletion of populations has mainly been the result of habitat destruction, hunting, and nest poaching (schubert and santana 1996). at lago enriquillo, nesting sites are scattered along the main shoreline and along the shores of isla cabritos. after hatching, the baby crocodiles, which cannot tolerate the high salinity of the lake, must move from the nesting beaches to fresh water habitat. crocodile mothers nesting on isla cabritos have to carry their babies from the nesting beaches to areas where freshwater springs, called borbollones, empty into the lake. we visited isla cabritos at the end of the nesting season and saw an empty nest, littered with egg fragments. on the way back from the beach, we stopped again at the iguana burrow and found that the iguana had re-emerged and was sitting in a small patch of sunlight. this time we were quieter and everyone had a chance to take pictures and admire this beautiful animal for a few minutes. cyclura ricordii is endemic to hispaniola, where it can be found in the valle de neiba and on the lower península de barahona, where apparently separate populations occur near pedernales and along the southern shore of lago enriquillo. although the species is common on isla cabritos, thanks to the legal protection provided by the island’s status as a national park, other populations in hispaniola are of uncertain size and may 258 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 banbury and ramos an adult male ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) outside its burrow on isla cabritos. b a r b b a n b u r y an adult american crocodile (crocodylus acutus) in lago enriquillo off the southern shore of isla cabritos. jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 259travelogue be declining. the separate populations probably are genetically as well as geographically isolated from each other, rendering the threat of extirpation more serious, since unique gene pools could be lost forever. because it is more of a habitat specialist than c. cornuta, c. ricordii is more susceptible to alterations in its habitat. other threats include predation by and competition with exotic species, and hunting (j.a. ottenwalder, pers. comm.). captive breeding programs were established in the early 1990’s at the indianapolis zoo and parque zoológico nacional (zoodom) in santo domingo (christie 1996), but became inactive within a few years due to a lack of animals (w. christie, pers. comm.). since the level of success in these programs was low (j.a. ottenwalder and w. christie, unpubl. data), better captive husbandry techniques needed to be developed. in 1999, a successful breeding program was reestablished at zoodom to help ensure a future for this species.4 major threats to c. ricordii on isla cabritos are nest predation by feral cats, and competition for forage with mammalian herbivores that cross the land bridge connecting the island to the shore during dry periods. in the meantime, the weather had cleared and the day was heating up, so we went looking for c. cornuta. our guide led us to a regularly visited burrow. almost immediately, we saw a female, but she quickly retreated. this burrow was situated under a limestone ledge, like most of the others we were to see. ledges or the root systems of trees or bushes provide necessary support for large burrows in sandy soil, which would collapse if not reinforced. while continuing our search, one member of the group spotted a big male. unlike the other individuals we had seen previously, he was not at all shy. instead, he walked directly toward us before apparently losing interest and wandering away. the guide told us that this male, named “pancho” by the guides, and a few other individuals had grown accustomed to human visitors and their handouts. this might not have been the most natural behavior, but it was an excellent opportunity to get a close look. on the way back to the dock, we saw several more an adult male rhinoceros iguana (cyclura cornuta) named “pancho” by local guides. r o b er t po w el l 4 see article on p. 222. rhinoceros iguanas and a female c. ricordii, most basking just outside their burrows. as they were less accustomed to visitors than pancho, we were careful to maintain our distance. prior to the early 1950s, c. cornuta was very common in the arid areas of hispaniola, but populations have declined substantially (ottenwalder and powell 2002). even though the preferred habitat of c. cornuta is not favorable to human settlements, the introduction of exotic animals has increased the competition with and predation on the iguanas. they have also been illegally hunted for food and the pet trade. because isla cabritos is protected, it is one of the few areas where population densities appear to be near what are assumed to be precolumbian numbers. on the boat ride back to the mainland, we stopped by the borbollones to look for more crocodiles. instead, we got a close look at flamingoes. one of them took off and flew over our 260 iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 banbury and ramos birds are conspicuous residents of lago enriquillo. most birds in this view are either great (ardea alba) or snowy egrets (egretta thula). a few greater flamingos (phoenicopterus ruber) and black-necked stilts (himantopus mexicanus) are evident, and a single little blue heron (egretta caerulea) can be seen in flight (upper left). notice also the american crocodile (crocodylus acutus) in the foreground. jo h n b in n s male rhinoceros iguana (cyclura cornuta) courting a prospective mate. r o b er t po w el l iguana • volume 12, number 4 • december 2005 261travelogue heads (fig. 10). when we returned to the mainland, several people were waiting to visit the island. most were dominicans, testament to the growing awareness of the unique ecological value of the lago enriquillo area. educational programs presented locally through slide shows and nationally on television illustrate natural communities and feature endangered species. posters and brochures about the lake and its species are to be distributed throughout the country (schubert and santana 1996). this heightened awareness among dominicans is critical to the success of any conservation efforts. literature cited christie, b. 1996. taxon management account: ricord’s iguana, cyclura ricordi. in: s.h. hammack (ed.), american zoo and aquarium association lizard advisory group, taxon management accounts, 7 pp. american zoo and aquarium assoc., fort worth, texas. hoppe, j. 1989. los parques nacionales de la república dominicana. the national parks of the dominican republic. editoria corripio, santo domingo. ottenwalder, j.a. and r. powell. 2002. brief notes on the status of hispaniolan rhinoceros iguanas, cyclura cornuta. iguana times 9:78. powell, r., j.a. ottenwalder, and s.j. incháustegui. 1999. the hispaniolan herpetofauna: diversity, endemism, and historical perspectives, with comments on navassa island, pp. 93–168. in: b. i. crother (ed.), caribbean amphibians and reptiles. academic press, san diego, california. schubert, a. and g. santana. 1996. conservation of the american crocodile (crocodylus acutus) in the dominican republic, pp. 425–433. in: r. powell and r. w. henderson (eds.), contributions to west indian herpetology: a tribute to albert schwartz. contributions to herpetology, vol. 12. society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, ithaca, new york. additional references alberts, a.c. (ed.). 2000. west indian iguanas. status survey and conservation action plan. iucn/ssc west indian iguana specialist group. iucn, gland, switzerland and cambridge, united kingdom. alberts, a.c. 2004. conservation strategies for west indian rock iguanas (genus cyclura): current efforts and future directions. iguana 11:212–223. alberts, a.c., r.l. carter, w.k. hayes, and e.p. martins (eds.). 2004. iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. ramer, j. 2004. a survey of ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) and rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta cornuta) in isla cabritos national park, dominican republic, 2003. iguana 11:88–95. ramer, j. and r. hudson. 2005. taxon updates: ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii): species recovery plan update. iguana 12:27. adult female ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) on isla cabritos. jo h n b in n s getting to lago enriquillo from santo domingo requires a 21⁄2–3 hour drive, taking the road toward barahona, turning right on the road to neiba and continuing to la azufrada. at la azufrada, you can hire for a modest fee one of the commercial boats or one of the parques boats to take you to the island. inexpensive park permits can be acquired at the main office of dirección nacional de parques in santo domingo or at la azufrada. the closest tourist accommodations are about one hour away in the town of barahona. however, pensions and a few very modest hotels can be found in the nearby town of la descubierta, along with some small restaurants, the best of which is at the “hotel iguana,” where the more intrepid traveler may want to stay. female rhinoceros iguana (cyclura cornuta) outside her burrow on isla cabritos. jo h n b in n s ja n r a m er although not normally considered to be human commensals, some dwarf geckos, such as this sphaerodactylus altavelensis enriquilloensis, seem to seek out human companionship. this photograph was taken at the hotel iguana in la descubierta, near lago enriquillo. iguana b&w text radio-telemetry at the redbank reserve near macraes flat, central otago. she tracked 13 skinks from december 2003–april 2004 for 26–111 days. neither distances moved nor frequencies of movements differed significantly between males and females. home range estimates (using the 100% minimum convex polygon method) ranged from 200–5,400 m2, with male home ranges significantly larger than those of females, and those of non-gravid females significantly larger than those of gravid females. home range overlap was substantive and interactions between individuals occurred frequently. capturing animals increased frequency of movements, especially on days immediately following capture. data generated by this study will be incorporated into a management plan for the species. iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 197natural history research reports desert tortoise hibernation nussear et al. (2007. copeia 2007: 378–386) examined the onset, duration, and termination of hibernation in desert tortoises (gopherus agassizii) over several years at multiple sites in the northeastern part of their geographic range in utah, arizona, and nevada, and recorded the temperatures experienced by tortoises during winter hibernation. the timing of hibernation by desert tortoises differed among sites and years. environmental cues acting over the short-term did not appear to influence the timing of the hibernation period. different individual tortoises entered hibernation over as many as 44 days in the fall and emerged from hibernation over as many as 49 days in the spring. this range of variation in the timing of hibernation indicated a weak influence at best of exogenous cues hypothesized to trigger and terminate hibernation. regional trends do appear, as hibernation tended to begin earlier and continue longer at sites that were higher in elevation and generally cooler. the emergence date was generally more similar among study sites than the date of onset. while the climate and the subsequent timing of hibernation differed among sites, the average temperatures experienced by tortoises while hibernating differed by only about five degrees from the coldest to the warmest site. feeding ecology of rattleless rattlesnakes crotalus catalinensis is a rattleless rattlesnake endemic to santa catalina island, in the gulf of california, mexico. some authorities have hypothesized that the lack of a rattle in this species is a stealth adaptation for hunting birds in vegetation. avila-villegas et al. (2007. copeia 2007: 80–84) provided detailed data on the diet of these snakes from samples obtained during nine trips to the island in 2002–2004. over twothirds (70%) of the diet was composed of the santa catalina deer mouse (peromyscus slevini). the remaining prey were lizards (dipsosaurus catalinensis, uta squamata, and sceloporus lineatulus). the diet shifted ontogenetically, and feeding activity was greater during the dry season. the diet of this species is only a small subset of the diet of its supposed closest relative, c. ruber, probably as a result of limited prey diversity on the island. the lack of birds in the diet argues against the hypothesis relating the lack of a rattle with a stealth hunting technique for birds in vegetation. however, because p. slevini is partially arboreal, the lack of a rattle might be an adaptation for stealth hunting for mice in vegetation. habitat affects predator attack frequencies predators use characteristics such as pattern and shape in forming search images of prey, thereby influencing the evolution of prey morphology. in lizards, sit-andwait foraging species are thought to have body shapes that enhance their ability to remain cryptic to predators. structurally complex habitats provide more opportunities for prey to avoid detection, thus predator foraging efficiency is predicted to be higher in structurally simple habitats. shepard (2007. herpetologica 63: 193–202) used clay lizard models to test whether predation varies among lizards with different body shapes and whether predation varies among habitats in the brazilian cerrado with different structural characteristics. predator attack frequency was highest in the most structurally complex habitat, but the probability of being attacked was higher in more open microhabitats. attack frequencies did not differ significantly among the four lizard model shapes. lizards and birds were the main attackers of models, and attacks were primarily directed toward the models’ heads. results demonstrated that predator-prey interactions are largely influenced by the environmental context and scale, and that body shape alone does not efficiently promote crypsis. n a t u r a l h i s t o r y r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s local climate affected timing of hibernation, but average temperatures experienced by hibernating desert tortoises (gopherus agassizii) differed very little. th o m a s w ie w a n t, w il d h o r iz o n s rattleless santa catalina island rattlesnakes (crotalus catalinensis) feed primarily on mice and lizards, arguing against the hypothesis that the lack of a rattle facilitates stealthy hunting for birds in vegetation. l. l ee g r is m er iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 197 iguana b&w text 34 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 roberts jim murphy as the defender of rattlesnakes in a 1989 dallas zoo conservation day skit. d a v id t . r o b er ts iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 34 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 35profile james b. murphy was born in oak park, illinois. during his youth, he developed an interest in reptiles and amphibians. throughout high school, he associated with herpetologists both at zoos and museums in chicago. his parents, who had never been exposed to these creatures, had, as jim puts it, “a considerable period of adjustment” while he filled his bedroom with his collection of reptiles and amphibians. after graduating from high school, jim decided to major in philosophy at xavier university in cincinnati, ohio with the intention of becoming a college professor in that discipline. according to jim, he later came to his senses and embarked on a zoo career. since that time, jim has not only become one of the most respected curators in the zoological park field, but also in the academic communities of herpetology and conservation. jim’s first zoo position was as a keeper in the herpetology department at the atlanta zoo. he acquired this position shortly after graduating with his b.s. in philosophy in 1965. from there, jim moved west and accepted a keeper position in the newly formed herpetology department at the dallas zoo, which had just constructed a bird and reptile building. later that year, jim was promoted to supervisor of the department. from this point, murphy started to become professionally entrenched in the herpetological community. he became program chair for the international herpetological society (ihs) that same year and put together a group of speakers and developed a symposium. since then, jim has chaired the ihs program two other times. in 1998, he developed a symposium on the differences between captive and wild snakes. today, jim is an honorary advisor of the ihs. murphy’s career led to many professional affiliations, including the herpetologists’ league (hl), society for the study of amphibians and reptiles (ssar), british herpetological society, american society of ichthyologists and herpetologists (asih), texas herpetological society, and the american zoo and aquarium association (aza). he has served those organizations in a variety of positions, including president, chairperson, editor, member of the board of directors, advisor, and professional fellow. jim also has been a member of numerous foreign and regional societies. during his career at the dallas zoo, jim worked with myriad people from many different disciplines. he invited experts from other zoos, universities, and conservation organizations from around the world to visit the dallas zoo’s collection. he would lead these individuals through the collection, introducing his staff and allowing them to discuss their interests and expertise with the visitors. these introductions were jim’s way p r o f i l e jim murphy and jack joy in the field. jim and his wife judith near their home in washington, d.c. in 1995. d a v id t . r o b er ts been there, done that: a profile of james b. murphy david t. roberts dallas zoo iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 35 of encouraging collaborative relationships with his staff and other organizations. murphy has a wonderful philosophy for managing people. he encourages his staff ’s interests, guides their learning, helps forge relationships with individuals who share similar interests, and allows his employees to “run with the ball.” in other words, he provides his staff with the necessary tools they need to spark their own interests and reach goals they set for themselves. i came to know murphy through my love of reptiles and amphibians. as a youngster in the late 60s, i too had a strong interest in capturing and keeping native reptiles and amphibians — a common thread among herpetologists. i had a particularly strong interest in rattlesnakes, and was given a copy of maintenance of rattlesnakes in captivity, by j.b. murphy and b.l. armstrong. that summer of 1979 was the first time i had ever heard of jim murphy. the publication was full of information about more species of rattlesnakes than i knew existed. it was also the first publication to spark my interest in learning the formal taxonomic names of animals. the little book was full of them, and of references to other publications revolving around every aspect of captive rattlesnake husbandry. that book changed my life. i knew then that having a career working with reptiles and amphibians was possible. in 1982, i literally packed up everything i owned and moved to the dallas area from upstate new york in an attempt to garner a position at the dallas zoo. in april 1986, i was hired as a keeper for the dallas herpetology department. that was more than 20 years ago, and today i still am deeply involved in herpetological conservation and research. under jim’s guidance, i was privileged to work with one of the most dynamic groups of herpers for more than 15 years. during jim’s leadership as curator of the department, we had the opportunity to work with some of the top researchers in our field, including such academic experts as carl gans, hobart smith, joe collins, jonathan campbell, and harry greene, as well as peers from other zoos, such as joe laszlo, bill lamar, rick hudson, dave barker, bern tryon, and charlie radcliffe, just to name a few. the list is too extensive to account for every 36 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 roberts jim in his office at the dallas zoo herpetarium in 1990. d a v id t . r o b er ts books like these, co-authored or co-edited by murphy, served as valuable resources at a time when captive maintenance was considerably less sophisticated than it has since become. by sparking interest and providing valuable references, both books effectively promoted the possibility that careers in herpetological conservation and research were realistic goals of young enthusiasts. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 36 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 37profile influential person who came to discuss ideas, philosophies, and techniques to tease out aspects of the biology, reproduction, and behavior of reptiles and amphibians. many of these people were close friends of murphy’s, and most took the opportunity to put jim on the spot with the kinds of embarrassing stories to which those of us in herpetology invariably are burdened. jim has a wonderful sense of humor and would laugh aloud during these memory-jogging sessions. through his career, jim has served as a reviewer for many scientific journals including copeia, herpetologica, transactions of kansas academy of sciences, journal of herpetology, southwestern naturalist, texas journal of science, science, herpetological review, hormones and behavior, acta zoologica et pathologica antverpiensia, and zoo biology. murphy also served as editor for his department. he would jokingly get out a large red marker whenever one of us would hand him our latest manuscript for his perusal. during his tenure, the department produced more than 50 publications exclusive of murphy, with his own numbering more than 110, including articles, book chapters, and books. the department also received two edward h. bean awards for reproduction (in bismarck ringed pythons and bushmasters), four significant achievement awards for reproduction (in eastern diamondback rattlesnakes, tancitaran rattlesnakes, coahuilan box turtles, and rattlesnake reproduction programs), 21 first captive breeding awards, and a silver and gold propagator’s certificate (for the american milksnake) from the aza. jim also was instrumental in coordinating the dallas zoo’s receipt of a national science foundation grant totaling more than half a million dollars to investigate improved visitor education techniques concerning amphibians and reptiles in a zoological garden. murphy’s accomplishments in herpetology were acknowledged by the university of colorado-boulder when they honored him with an honorary doctor of science degree in 1989. this was a great moment in jim’s life, and much of the recognition for this honor was organized by murphy’s long-time colleagues david chiszar and hobart smith. after more than 30 years at the dallas zoo, jim retired from his position as curator and moved to washington, d.c. in 1994. he is currently a smithsonian research associate in the department of herpetology at the smithsonian’s national zoological park, and he stays involved with many organizations, including the iucn/ssc declining amphibian populations task force and the iucn/ssc captive breeding specialist group, and is the section editor of the “zoo view” column in herpetological review. his research interests are now centered on developing quantitative methods for assessing the competence of animals raised in captivity, zoo history, the behavior of pitvipers and other reptiles, and the evolution of herpetological illustrations. 1987 edward h. bean award certificate for captive reproduction of bushmasters (front left: donal boyer; front right: ardell mitchell; back, left to right: david roberts, clay garrett, steve hammack, and jim murphy). r o b er t c a b el lo w il li a m b . l o v e r ic k h u d so n under murphy's guidance, the herpetology department at the dallas zoo received edward h. bean awards for reproduction in bismark ringed pythons (bothrochilus boa; top) and bushmasters (lachesis muta; middle) and significant achievement awards for reproduction in eastern diamondback rattlesnakes (crotalus adamanteus; bottom), among others. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 37 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 57natural history research reports tion that narrowly distributed mediterranean snakes are more specialized than their widely distributed counterparts does not apply to the dietary ecology of these snakes. jump dispersal in introduced mediterranean geckos from 1962–1997, mediterranean geckos (hemidactylus turcicus) were intentionally introduced multiple times into a science building at the university of central oklahoma in edmond. in 2005, locey and stone (2006. journal of herpetology 40:526–530) recorded 365 captures of 305 individuals and estimated the population size to be 1005 geckos with at density of 478 lizards/ha. the population had dispersed a maximum of 200 m from the point of introduction, a diffusion dispersal rate of 20 m/yr. the wide distribution of this species across the southern united states since their introduction in key west, florida was recorded in 1910 suggests that expansion of the species’ range occurred as a consequence of multiple jump dispersal events instead of slow diffusion dispersal. population structure and density of leopard tortoises leopard tortoises (geochelone pardalis) are the largest tortoises in southern africa, where they are widely distributed in a variety of habitats. mcmaster and downs (2006. journal of herpetology 40: 495–502) studied leopard tortoises in semi-arid farmland in nama-karoo, central south africa. the sex ratio of 92 tortoises did not differ significantly from 1:1. adult females were larger than adult males, and adults were larger than conspecifics studied in more mesic habitats. a population estimate of 57.6 ± 4.0 tortoises translated to a very low density of 0.017 tortoises/ha, much lower than in more mesic situations. slow rates of diffusion dispersal in introduced mediterranean geckos (hemidactylus turcicus) suggest that the wide distribution of this species across the southern united states is a consequence of multiple jump dispersal events. d a w so n /w ik ip ed ia .o r g the population density of leopard tortoises (geochelone pardalis) was lower in dry south african habitat than in more mesic situations, but adults were larger. a n d er s g .j . r h o d in , c h el o n ia n r es ea r c h f o u n d a ti o n butler’s garter snake will remain on protected list a legislative committee in wisconsin that this summer had threatened to remove butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri) from a protected list that stops developers from killing it, reversed course and decided to allow the snake to remain on a list of threatened species. the decision was praised by state department of natural resources executive assistant mary schlaefer, who said protecting the endangered snake was vital to the overall health of the environment. critical steps need to be taken when there is a species like this snake that is in danger of disappearing, she said. with their habitat shrinking, the reptiles were placed on the threatened list in 1997 by the dnr, meaning that in most cases the snakes cannot be killed. the protected area encompasses about 405,000 acres in southeastern wisconsin. known for its colorful yellow stripes, the 1to 2-foot-long snake is generally found in marshes, prairies and fields, as well as in roadside grassy areas and in vacant lots. in addition to southeastern wisconsin, it can be found in ohio, indiana, michigan, and in southern canada. the republican-controlled joint committee for review of administrative rules decided in july to remove the snake from the dnr’s threatened list if the agency didn’t soften its regulations. the agency on tuesday outlined a number of changes it had made and was in the process of implementing, including reducing the time of review of proposed projects from 27 to seven days and coming up with more funding to reduce costs for homeowners to get needed surveys. those surveys can cost up to $10,000, said andy galvin, a consultation specialist in the dnr’s bureau of endangered resources. the agency also reduced the number of acres in the protected area by 500. it is working to identify as many as 65 protected sites for the snake. once those are established and stabilized, regulations on private landowners can be ended more quickly, schlaefer said. “our goal is to manage based on science, but in a way that minimizes impact on homeowners,” she said. the committee voted 7-2 not to take the snake off the protected list. one of the two no votes, state rep. debi towns, r-janesville, said she was concerned that the dnr was not setting a n e w s b r i e f s a legislative committee in wisconsin that this summer had threatened to remove butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri) from a protected list that stops developers from killing it, reversed course and decided to allow the snake to remain on a list of threatened species. g a r y c a sp er iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 57 goal of how many snakes needed to be in the area before the protection is removed. “i just think the whole thing is so nebulous. ... there’s no end game,” towns said. also voting no was state rep. dan lemahieu, r-oostburg. developers had complained that the snake’s presence was delaying, and sometimes halting, construction projects. the snake has been found in fond du lac, milwaukee, ozaukee, sheboygan, washington, and waukesha counties. scott bauer associated press database details pesticide effects on reptiles and amphibians the citizens group californians for alternatives to toxics (cats) has created a user-friendly database of the most recent international research about the effects of pesticide use on amphibians and reptiles. “by bringing together current research on beleaguered amphibians and reptiles, we have made this global information readily accessible to academics, neighborhood activists, and students,” said patty clary, cats programs director. the reptile, amphibian, and pesticides database (rap) builds on an earlier version that covered the literature to 1998 and was assembled by the canadian wildlife service. “the value of this database is that biologists and other users can easily access information about the effects of pesticides on amphibians and reptiles drawn from a variety of sources,” said marlon gil, a biologist who compiled the database for cats. gil, whose frog research has taken him as far afield as west africa, said, “hopefully this will enhance efforts to prevent losses of these species worldwide.” the updated research is searchable by species and genus, location of research, pesticide studied, and toxicological effect. it includes a list of 327 scientific papers published since 1999 on the effects of pesticides on amphibians and 128 research papers on the impact of pesticides on reptiles. clary said that cats will update the database as new information becomes available. the database specializes in field studies from california that are meshed with findings from the unique pesticideuse database of the state’s department of pesticide regulation. california is one of the “hot spots” in the global decline of amphibian populations, and native aquatic frog and toad species have been disappearing for two decades. for example, research by the u.s. geological survey since 1997 has revealed dangerous levels of pesticides in both the bodies of frogs and in their aquatic habitats in pristine areas of the sierra nevada. entire populations of native frogs have vanished, and research has pinpointed pesticide sprays that have drifted hundreds of miles from the central valley to settle in wilderness areas. founded in 1982, cats was a major player in a suit that won increased protection from pesticides for the redlegged frog (rana aurora draytonii), made famous by mark twain in his story “the celebrated jumping frog of calaveras county.” the new database is available at the cats website at: http://www.alternatives2toxics.org. environment news service 22 december 2006 python patrol plies the ’glades: crews aim to stem voracious non-native species imperiling the fragile ecosystem “snake!” hearing this shout, skip snow slammed on the brakes. when the off-roader plowed to a halt, he and his partner, lori oberhofer, leapt out and took off toward two snakes — 10-foot burmese pythons (python molurus bivittatus) lying on a levee, sunning themselves. after slipping, sliding and tumbling down a rocky embankment, snow, a wildlife biologist, grabbed one of the creatures by the tail. the python, oberhofer says, did not care much for that. “it made a sound like darth vader breathing,” she said, “and then its head swung around and i saw this white mouth flying through the air.” snow saw the mouth too — jaws open 180 degrees, needle-sharp teeth bared in an almost devilish grin. he let out a shriek, then blinked. when his eyes opened, the python’s head was hanging in midair, a foot from his own. oberhofer, with a ninja-like thrust, had snared the python in midstrike. in the end, the humans were victorious: both snakes were bagged, trucked off to the everglades research and education center, euthanized and necropsied for the benefit of science. so goes python control in the everglades, a painstaking, around-theclock slog against a voracious, foreign snake species that has established a stronghold in this wilderness and put native wildlife at risk. scientists also worry that these slithery giants may soon start to feast on native species whose survival is in doubt. “the everglades doesn’t work by itself anymore,” says leon howell, who has been associated with the park for 21 years and now is a park ranger. “this whole landscape has to be managed today: water, fire, exotics — you name it.” which explains the evolution of snow and oberhofer into a human firewall against non-native species. without them, howell figures, “there’d be pythons all over the place.” the pythons began turning up here in the late 1990s. pet owners were releasing their unwanted snakes in and around the park. convincing the public that the pythons are a danger to the everglades is a tough sell. as vast as these wetlands may appear, they have been so drained and abused by humans in the last century that a population of pythons, if left unchallenged, could take down this fragile web of life within a generation. “it’s a now-or-never thing,” oberhofer said. “we still have a chance, with the python’s numbers being so limited, to do something. but if we let this go, we don’t know how far the pythons will migrate, how much they will reproduce.” native to southeastern asia, the burmese python has come to the 58 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 newsbriefs o r la n d o c o y k en n et h l . k r y sk o burmese pythons (python molurus bivittatus) have become established in the everglades and efforts to control them and other invasive species may be a last-ditch effort to protect native wildlife. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 58 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 59newsbriefs everglades by way of the burgeoning global trade in exotic pets, creatures shipped to america legally and distributed via pet shops and flea markets. since 2000, about 1 million pythons have been imported to the u.s. for commercial sale. todd lewan associated press 20 december 2006 tighter rules urged as exotic pets adapt to florida’s wild with giant snakes battling alligators in the everglades, the state wildlife commission has proposed sharp restrictions on the owners of burmese pythons (python molurus bivittatus) and four other nonnative reptiles, including a requirement to implant their slithery pets with computer identification chips. florida’s climate has made the state a congenial home for species from africa, asia, and south america let loose by their owners after they become too big or too high maintenance. a breeding population of burmese pythons has been discovered in everglades national park, where the constrictors have been killing native birds, mammals, and, in one notorious incident, an alligator. elsewhere in the state, trappers routinely catch pythons and other large non-native snakes. the new rules would limit sales of constricting snakes that grow to at least 12 feet, specifically burmese pythons, reticulated pythons (p. reticulatus), african rock pythons (p. sebae and p. natalensis), amethystine or scrub pythons (morelia amethystina), and green anacondas (eunectes murinus). the rules also would restrict sales of nile monitors (varanus niloticus), carnivorous lizards that can grow as long as 6 feet and already have established a breeding population in the cape coral area on florida’s gulf coast. at the moment, anyone can walk into a pet shop and walk out with a python. under the new rules, buyers would have to be 18 years old, complete a questionnaire, apply for a state permit, submit a plan for keeping the animal secure in case of a hurricane or other disaster, and have the reptile implanted with a computer chip. the rules would go into effect 1 january 2008. they would be retroactive, although owners would have until 1 july 2008 to comply with the chip requirement. assuming — and hoping — that many owners of the big snakes would find these rules too onerous, the state plans to set up amnesty programs that would allow people to drop off unwanted reptiles at sites yet to be determined — no questions asked. “we don’t know how many are out there,” west said. “we have a suspicion it’s a high number. we’re hoping a lot of people will say they don’t want to do this and turn them in.” the restrictions would have to be approved by the wildlife commission, a seven-member board appointed by the governor. the commission initially will consider the proposals in february. david fleshler south florida sun sentinel 1 january 2007 court grants protection for recently discovered salamander in response to a suit brought by the environmental protection information center, klamath-siskiyou wildlands center, and center for biological diversity, superior court judge peter busch ruled today that the department of fish and game (dfg) cannot lawfully strip protection for the scott bar salamander (plethodon asupak) under the california endangered species act. formerly considered a subpopulation of the siskiyou mountains salamander (p. stormi), which is listed as a threatened species under the california endangered species act, the scott bar salamander was described as a new species in may 2005. rather than herald the discovery of new species, dfg immediately informed forestry officials and timber companies that the salamander had lost protection, which allowed several logging projects to destroy salamander habitat. at least one private logging plan is currently proposed in scott bar salamander habitat and likely will be affected by today’s decision. “dfg’s move to allow logging in the scott bar salamander’s habitat runs counter to their mission to protect the state’s fish and wildlife,” said joseph vaile, campaign director of the klamathsiskiyou wildlands center (ks wild). “the court today made it clear that dfg lacks the authority to remove protections from rare species just because they were described as a new species.” the court’s decision was important because it clarifies that only the fish and game commission, and not dfg, can remove protection for species under the california endangered species act. because advances in genetic analyses allow detection of previously undetectable species, it is quite likely that other new species will be separated from already protected species. today’s decision ensures that these species will continue to receive protection until the fish and game commission has a chance to review their status in light of the thorough scientific review and public comment required under the law. 16 january 2007 a court ruling clearly stated that the california department of fish and game cannot remove protection from rare species, such as the scott bar salamander (plethodon asupak), just because they were described as new species. a la n b a r r o n lo r i o b er h o fe r as burmese pythons (python molurus bivittatus) become more common in the everglades, so do encounters with native wildlife, such as this american alligator (alligator mississippiensis). although large ’gators eat pythons, large snakes eat small alligators. long-term effects on either species are unknown. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 59 iguana b&w text editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and 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$55.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. www.ircf.org join online at: www.ircf.org membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2006 by the international reptile conservation foundation, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international reptile conservation foundation. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editor’s remarks our efforts to expand and diversify the content of iguana create an ever-increasing demand to obtain new and often rare photographs to enhance content and adorn covers. locating sources for this material is a daunting task that often takes months of searching just to obtain a single photograph. several generous photographers have consistently donated photographs in support of our efforts. their contributions have played a major part in shaping the new look of iguana. the ircf gratefully thanks: suzanne l. collins, cnah (www.cnah.org), a major contributor of many photographs over the past few years; thomas wiewandt, wild horizons (www.wildhorizons.com), for spectacular photographs that include this issue’s cover; l. lee grismer, la sierra university, for breathtaking photographs; joseph burgess, for photographs and other countless contributions; joseph wasilewski, natural selections (www.natselections.com), for crocodilian and iguana photographs; and glenn p. gerber, cres (http://cres.sandiegozoo.org) for photographs of west indian rock iguanas. john binns, ceo ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 239 iguana 13.2 b&w text 156 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 commentaries global climate change: should you care? gad perry department of range, wildlife, and fisheries management texas tech university, lubbock, texas about ten years ago, i was seated at a large lecture hall at ohio state university, waiting for an economist to talk about environmental issues. it’s good to get a different perspective every once in a while, after all. the speaker was clear: “i don’t believe for a moment that global climate change is happening,” he stated emphatically, then paused for dramatic effect. “but if it is,” he continued, “all that means is that we need bigger and better air conditioners!” reactions in the room were mixed. about one third of the listeners cheered, another third seemed unclear about what he had said, and the final third were close to apoplectic. a decade later, things have not changed much. some people are still warning that the future does not look good. the remainder appears to be divided between those happy not to think about environmental issues and an influential sector that pretends nothing is going on or that bigger ac units will solve our problems. so, does a problem really exist? much of the u.s. political and business leadership has spent the last decade or more claiming either that climate change is not occurring or that it is occurring as a consequence of natural processes over which we have no control. recently, this argument received surprising support from author michael crichton. his 2004 book, state of fear, used a hunt for environmental terrorists as a device for bashing environmentalists, and especially anything to do with climate change. sounding a lot like my economist, one of the characters stated (p. 407): “the threat of global warming is essentially nonexistent. even if it were a real phenomenon, it would probably result in a net benefit to most of the world.” although climate scientists have repeatedly shown the book to be scientifically lacking, an adventure yarn is certainly entitled to have a preposterous premise (consider some of crichton’s other novels, such as jurassic park, for which one must suspend any critical analysis to enjoy the story). however, for the u.s. senate to invite mr. crichton to testify on environmental issues is just wrong — and my students using his fiction as an authority by which to reject the evidence compiled by many hundreds of scientists is even worse. science is built on observing a phenomenon and making predictions that are supported by previous knowledge. a climate expert would know that co2 acts as a greenhouse gas and would consequently predict that global climate will change in certain ways if co2 levels continue to rise. could climate change scientists be wrong? of course they could. our data remain limited, and the pattern that has emerged might not be representative of long-term trends. nonetheless, we have to work with the data at hand, revealed by multiple scientific papers and reports by individual scientists and national and international bodies. the hallmark of science is to test those predictions, which have so far proven depressingly realistic, varying only in assessments of the extent to which the damage will accrue. the scientific community overwhelmingly agrees: global climate change is occurring, appears to be tied to human activities, and is likely to have devastating effects on both people and other organisms. because of the magnitude of the impacts and fisheries to place a moratorium on the taking of alligator snapping turtles.” the resolution notes that these turtles have “historically been a vital and integral part of the louisiana wildlife ecosystem [and are] presently suffering excessive exploitation for meat in local commercial markets, as well as an increasing international market.” the impact of such a resolution will go far in setting the system right for alligator snappers in louisiana. other states should consider taking similar steps to protect their turtle species. although resolutions are only suggestions, and the state’s wildlife department does not have to honor them, such a suggestion by a state senate is a positive start. the louisiana wildlife and fisheries commission has now taken action and voted to “stop the taking and possession of alligator snapping turtles by anybody with a commercial license.” recreational trapping of alligator snappers was not affected. i asked dr. joseph pechmann, a biologist at the university of new orleans, how he thought the louisiana senate had ever been able to pass a resolution that would protect the turtles. “they accepted the idea that part of louisiana’s natural heritage was going to disappear if commercial harvest was allowed to continue. recreational harvesting of alligator snappers is a pastime important to many in the state, but the current levels of commercial removal were clearly unsustainable.” the southeastern turtle saga is not over, and i’m not sure how it will end before meaningful regulations are in place in all states. i do know the loss of alligator snappers from the commercial scene will have little effect on the turtle soup au sherry at commander’s palace restaurant in new orleans. but i do not know whether the south carolina legislature will realize that it must now step forward and take some action to protect its own turtles. when i asked dr. pechmann how he personally felt about the resolution to protect the giant turtles in louisiana, he said, “it’s about time.” let’s hope tight restrictions on overharvesting will not be too late coming for alligator snappers in louisiana, or for other turtles elsewhere. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 156 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 157commentaries the long time required to reverse global climate changes, many feel that the risk of not doing anything if climate change is indeed occurring far exceeds the cost of reacting to a threat that we cannot yet fully predict. this is a good time to distinguish the commonly-used but naïve “global warming” from the more appropriate “global climate change.” the first term implies two things: first, that we are going to see higher temperatures everywhere, and second, that no other impacts are to be expected. in fact, neither of these is correct. the best predictions current science allows us to make indicate that different locations are likely to be affected in different ways, with impacts to some, such as the arctic, far exceeding those to others. in 2001, the intergovernmental panel on climate change (ipcc) released its third report. it was based on the work of about 1,200 scientists from all over the world, went through three review cycles, and is thousands of pages long. the authors concluded that an increase in extreme temperature events is to be expected, with higher maximum temperatures, more hot days and heat waves, and fewer cold days. however, these impacts were not going to affect the entire globe uniformly, so some areas might see a cooling trend even as most become warmer. the ipcc also predicted an increase in extreme precipitation events in many places. with more intense storms dropping more rain in less time, increased flooding, more intense drying during the summer, and more frequent droughts are likely in many regions. data collected in the past few years have certainly supported these predictions and raised additional concerns. doubting the validity or the magnitude of the problem has become increasingly difficult for the unbiased observer. after all, the ten hottest years ever recorded have all occurred since 1990. moreover, this past year’s climate brought the issue closer to home for many of us. in december, nasa scientists estimated that 2005 would be the hottest year since reliable records have been kept for about the past 125 years. more viscerally, people notice when a hurricane the magnitude of katrina slams into the u.s. gulf coast. when storm after storm gets wide media coverage — 26 named storms developed in 2005, an all-time record, and an unprecedented 16 became hurricanes — climate becomes a topic of discussion. “conocophillips recognizes that human activity, including the burning of fossil fuels, is contributing to increased concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere that can lead to adverse changes in global climate,” now states the energy giant (www.conocophillips.com/about/sustainable+development). impacts on humans have begun to be quantified. here are a few numbers from recent reports: • worldwide, natural disasters caused by climate change cost over $60 billion in 2003, according to the un (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3308959.stm). these graphs, released by the ipcc (http://www.ipcc.ch/present/graphics/2001syr/large/05.16.jpg) show the increase in temperature in the recent past (top) and last 1000 years (bottom). iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 157 158 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 commentaries • a june 2005 report by the association of british insurers (www.abi.org.uk/climatechange) predicted that the cost of cleaning up after climate change will have risen by as much as two-thirds by 2080. reducing carbon emissions now could reduce insurance costs by 80%. • according to the members of the g8 economic group of nations (http://www.g8.gov.uk/servlet/front?pagename=open market/xcelerate/showpage&c=page&cid=1098795669277), the number of people affected by floods worldwide has already risen in the last four decades from 7 to 150 million today — much faster than population growth. the 2002 flooding in europe caused 37 deaths and $16 billion in damages. the 2003 european heatwave caused 26,000 premature deaths and $13.5 billion in damages. • in the u.s., in 2005 alone, over 1,300 people lost their lives to hurricane katrina and costs are estimated at up to $200 billion. damage from hurricane rita topped $9 billion. so far i have discussed broad patterns that should concern every citizen, but this journal is aimed at people who are interested in biological diversity and its conservation. should we as biologists be especially concerned? yes! the data to support that now include dozens of studies on hundreds of species and encompass up to 50 years. plants are flowering, frogs are emerging, and bird spring migrations are starting earlier than they have in recorded history. the distributions of species are changing, with many extending their ranges towards the poles or higher elevations and contracting in lower elevations or latitudes. in addition, coral bleaching, associated with warmer water, is becoming more prevalent — being recorded for the first time at two of the caribbean sites where i work. even more disconcertingly, the effects of climate change are meshing with those of habitat degradation and invasive species. for example, the observer has reported (http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/ 0,6903,1670017,00.html) that atlantic puffins (fratercula arctica), colorful seabirds that nest in scotland, are in trouble. over-fishing has depleted their food source, and now global climate change is allowing the invasive tree mallow (lavatera arborea) to expand its range, covering the ground where birds used to nest. such effects are not going to limit themselves to puffins. unfortunately, the impacts to non-humans are rarely monitored. how many iguanas died when storms lashed the caribbean this year? how many sea turtles will lose their nesting beaches as sea levels rise in the decades ahead? how much money would each of these lives be worth, if we could replace it? what to do? this is where things get tricky. different people see the threat of climate change in different ways and have widely varying views on the acceptable price for addressing it. many in the business and political sectors have taken the stance that doing anything about climate change would cost too much. in a september 2002 speech in new jersey, president bush took an unusually clear position: “we need an energy bill that encourthe economic damage of extreme weather events is on the rise (source: ipcc, http://www.ipcc.ch/present/graphics/2001syr/large/08.17.jpg). iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 158 ages consumption” rather than reducing greenhouse gas emissions. in his much-hyped book, the skeptical environmentalist (on which crichton based much of his novel), bjorn lomborg estimated the cost of controlling climate change to be between $3 and $33 trillion, compared to a benefit of $5 trillion, and recommended against doing anything. lomborg’s work has been widely attacked as inaccurate and biased but, not being an economist, i do not feel qualified to judge the details. however, this kind of argument has been made many times. for example, a similar attitude was used to delay the banning of leaded gas and lead-based paints in the u.s. the overwhelming experience with environmental legislation has been a huge payoff in improving public health, developing new technology, and environmental benefits. for example, the cdc estimates that banning the use of lead has reduced the number of u.s. children suffering from lead poisoning from nearly 15 million in 1978 to fewer than 900,000 by the early 1990s. in analyzing the costs and benefits of additional regulations related to the use of lead, the epa estimated an economic benefit of over $2.5 billion per year (just as with climate change, however, that is rarely the real issue — in 2004, the epa decided to scrap the new lead rules). similarly, the banning of cfcs after a hole was discovered in the ozone layer was initially predicted to create a huge economic impact, yet quickly led to development of alternative chemicals that also allowed more energy-efficient cooling. unlike the national u.s. leadership, others inside and outside the country have shown considerable concern. “in my view, climate change is the most severe problem that we are facing today, more serious even than the threat of terrorism,” said sir david king, chief scientific adviser to britain’s prime minister, in a january 2004 article in the journal science. “we must protect our environment even if it results in great sacrifices,” said mayor richard ward of hurst, texas, regarding the climate agreement (http://www.ci.seattle.wa.us/mayor/climate/default.htm) unanimously approved by the u.s. conference of mayors in june 2005. in december 2005, new york governor george pataki, a republican, led the governors of seven northeastern u.s. states in signing the regional greenhouse gas initiative, which hopes to use market-based initiatives to first freeze gas emissions at current levels, and then reduce them. the expectation is that household expenses will initially rise slightly (up to $24/family/year), but that the development of cleaner technologies will ultimately offset the extra cost. the kyoto protocol, an international treaty intended to address greenhouse gas emissions, was negotiated in 1997, ratified by 156 countries so far (not including the u.s., which was also one of the last to ban lead), and has come into force in early 2005. the protocol has helped raise awareness and hope. over 90% of companies responding to information requests from the carbon disclosure project (http://www.cdproject.net/report.asp) identified risks and opportunities associated with global climate change. just over one half have put in place programs to reduce emission levels. yet plans and pacts are not enough. while 13% of companies in the fortune 500 reported reductions in emission levels over the past few years, 17% reported increases. as individuals, we hope to be here for many more years. as a species, we would like to stick around for a few million more years before going extinct. as people interested in conservation, we hope that as many other species as possible will see that future with us. the impacts from global climate change add up quickly, and the excuses for delaying action grow more and more feeble. unfortunately, both the citizens of the u.s. and their elected leadership are characterized by an abysmal lack of scientific proficiency, which makes many people unable to assess issues as complex as global climate change. we need to remedy this, and we need to act on global climate change before too much more damage is caused. scientists already estimate that many decades will pass before the effects of our past actions on global climate can be countered. iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 159commentaries glaciers are melting all over the world. in this example, released by greenpeace (http://www.svalbard-images.com/spitzbergen/climatechange-a.php), the top picture was taken in 1918 and the bottom picture was taken in 2002. michelangelo’s view of the biblical flood illustrates the catastrophic impacts of sea level rise. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 159 iguana b&w text amphibians and reptiles declining at la selva, costa rica amphibians stand at the forefront of a global biodiversity crisis. more than onethird of amphibian species are globally threatened, and over 120 species probably have become extinct since 1980. most alarmingly, many rapid declines and extinctions are occurring in pristine sites lacking obvious adverse effects of human activities. the causes of these “enigmatic” declines remain highly contested. still, lack of long-term data on amphibian populations severely limits our understanding of the distribution of amphibian declines, and therefore the ultimate causes of these declines. whitfield et al. (2007. proceedings of the national academy of sciences (usa) 104: 8352–8356) identified a systematic community-wide decline in populations of terrestrial amphibians at la selva biological station, a protected oldgrowth lowland rainforest in lower central america. the authors used data collected over 35 years to show that population densities of all species of terrestrial amphibians had declined by 75% since 1970, and they demonstrated identical trends for all species of common reptiles. the trends are neither consistent with recent emergence of chytridiomycosis nor the climate-linked epidemic hypothesis, two leading putative causes of enigmatic amphibian declines. instead, the data suggest that declines are due to climate-driven reductions in the quantity of standing leaf litter, a critical microhabitat for amphibians and reptiles in this assemblage. these results raise further concerns about the global persistence of amphibian populations by identifying widespread declines in species and habitats that are not currently recognized as susceptible to such risks. herpetofauna of longleaf pine savannas means (2006. chapter 6. vertebate faunal diversity in longleaf pine savannas. pp. 155–213 in s. jose, e. jokela, and d. miller (eds.), longleaf pine ecosystems: ecology, management, and restoration. springer, new york) thoroughly reviewed the vertebrates (including 9 salamanders, 26 frogs, 29 snakes, 14 lizards, 1 amphisbaenian, and 10 turtles) that are characteristic species residing in longleaf pine savannas. the author discusses at length each of the specialists (species whose geographic limits are confined within or closely associated with the limits of longleaf pine, and which live in the longleaf pine community itself ) and then the importance of temporary ponds, dead trees (snags, fallen logs), stumpholes or tree bases, fire, problems associated with pine plantation silviculture, habitat fragmentation, and declining species. large snakes in north-central florida little is known concerning home range and activity of large terrestrial snakes. during the course of an inventory of a large biological preserve in north-central florida, dodd and barichivich (2007. florida scientist 70: 83–94) tracked five snakes (eastern indigo snakes, drymarchon couperi, and coachwhips, masticophis flagellum) for periods of 49–322 days. a single eastern indigo snake had a home range of 100–185 ha, depending on estimator, whereas the coachwhips used smaller home ranges that varied individually and by season. the authors provided information on ecdysis, feeding activity, and retreat sites for the five tracked individuals, which includes the first such data on free-ranging coachwhips. gopher tortoise and small mammal burrows were important retreat sites for both species, particularly during ecdysis. both species frequented upland habitats, with coachwhips using longleaf pine and xeric oak sandhills and former pastures, and the eastern indigo snake preferring upland mixed pine and hardwoods. although sample sizes are small, these results, coupled with data on the movements of other upland species, suggest that large terrestrial snakes require substantial amounts of contiguous habitat in order to maintain populations. movements and home ranges of otago skinks otago skinks (oligosoma otagense) are among new zealand’s largest and rarest lizards. germano (2007. journal of herpetology 41: 179–186) examined movements and home ranges using 196 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 conservation research reports c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s eastern indigo snakes (drymarchon couperi) in florida had a home range of 100–185 ha and preferred upland mixed pine and hardwoods. k en n et h l . k r y sk o otago skinks (oligosoma otagense) are among new zealand’s largest and rarest lizards. these individuals, bearing radio-transmitters, were part of a study to determine movements and home ranges. je n n if er m . g er m a n o declines in populations of amphibians and reptiles, such as the speckled racer (drymobius margaritiferus), at la selva, costa rica, have been attributed to climate-driven reductions in the quantity of standing leaf litter. g a d p er r y the florida worm lizard (rhineura floridana) is probably the most unusual of the 54 reptilian species known to occur in longleaf pine savannas. k en n et h l . k r y sk o iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 196 radio-telemetry at the redbank reserve near macraes flat, central otago. she tracked 13 skinks from december 2003–april 2004 for 26–111 days. neither distances moved nor frequencies of movements differed significantly between males and females. home range estimates (using the 100% minimum convex polygon method) ranged from 200–5,400 m2, with male home ranges significantly larger than those of females, and those of non-gravid females significantly larger than those of gravid females. home range overlap was substantive and interactions between individuals occurred frequently. capturing animals increased frequency of movements, especially on days immediately following capture. data generated by this study will be incorporated into a management plan for the species. iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 197natural history research reports desert tortoise hibernation nussear et al. (2007. copeia 2007: 378–386) examined the onset, duration, and termination of hibernation in desert tortoises (gopherus agassizii) over several years at multiple sites in the northeastern part of their geographic range in utah, arizona, and nevada, and recorded the temperatures experienced by tortoises during winter hibernation. the timing of hibernation by desert tortoises differed among sites and years. environmental cues acting over the short-term did not appear to influence the timing of the hibernation period. different individual tortoises entered hibernation over as many as 44 days in the fall and emerged from hibernation over as many as 49 days in the spring. this range of variation in the timing of hibernation indicated a weak influence at best of exogenous cues hypothesized to trigger and terminate hibernation. regional trends do appear, as hibernation tended to begin earlier and continue longer at sites that were higher in elevation and generally cooler. the emergence date was generally more similar among study sites than the date of onset. while the climate and the subsequent timing of hibernation differed among sites, the average temperatures experienced by tortoises while hibernating differed by only about five degrees from the coldest to the warmest site. feeding ecology of rattleless rattlesnakes crotalus catalinensis is a rattleless rattlesnake endemic to santa catalina island, in the gulf of california, mexico. some authorities have hypothesized that the lack of a rattle in this species is a stealth adaptation for hunting birds in vegetation. avila-villegas et al. (2007. copeia 2007: 80–84) provided detailed data on the diet of these snakes from samples obtained during nine trips to the island in 2002–2004. over twothirds (70%) of the diet was composed of the santa catalina deer mouse (peromyscus slevini). the remaining prey were lizards (dipsosaurus catalinensis, uta squamata, and sceloporus lineatulus). the diet shifted ontogenetically, and feeding activity was greater during the dry season. the diet of this species is only a small subset of the diet of its supposed closest relative, c. ruber, probably as a result of limited prey diversity on the island. the lack of birds in the diet argues against the hypothesis relating the lack of a rattle with a stealth hunting technique for birds in vegetation. however, because p. slevini is partially arboreal, the lack of a rattle might be an adaptation for stealth hunting for mice in vegetation. habitat affects predator attack frequencies predators use characteristics such as pattern and shape in forming search images of prey, thereby influencing the evolution of prey morphology. in lizards, sit-andwait foraging species are thought to have body shapes that enhance their ability to remain cryptic to predators. structurally complex habitats provide more opportunities for prey to avoid detection, thus predator foraging efficiency is predicted to be higher in structurally simple habitats. shepard (2007. herpetologica 63: 193–202) used clay lizard models to test whether predation varies among lizards with different body shapes and whether predation varies among habitats in the brazilian cerrado with different structural characteristics. predator attack frequency was highest in the most structurally complex habitat, but the probability of being attacked was higher in more open microhabitats. attack frequencies did not differ significantly among the four lizard model shapes. lizards and birds were the main attackers of models, and attacks were primarily directed toward the models’ heads. results demonstrated that predator-prey interactions are largely influenced by the environmental context and scale, and that body shape alone does not efficiently promote crypsis. n a t u r a l h i s t o r y r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s local climate affected timing of hibernation, but average temperatures experienced by hibernating desert tortoises (gopherus agassizii) differed very little. th o m a s w ie w a n t, w il d h o r iz o n s rattleless santa catalina island rattlesnakes (crotalus catalinensis) feed primarily on mice and lizards, arguing against the hypothesis that the lack of a rattle facilitates stealthy hunting for birds in vegetation. l. l ee g r is m er iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 197 iguana b&w text 74 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 rivas green anacondas (eunectes murinus) are the most widely distributed species of anacondas. although some pythons may attain greater lengths, no other snake is as massive. these snakes are found in most tropical lowland habitats east of the andes. although any use of the green anaconda is prohibited by venezuelan law, illegal harvests are common. between 1988 and 1990, international authorities confiscated 2,138 anaconda skins in holland that supposedly originated in venezuela. lu tz d ir k se n many biologists consider economics and politics to be bad words. because we are not trained in their use and implications, we often prefer to avoid issues that involve those topics. consequently, when we discuss the economics of conservation, we usually talk about economic incentives for conservation and sustainable use of natural resources, but often fail to delve more deeply. we identify the cost of a commodity from nature, what its exploitation represents from an environmental perspective, and what economic incentives might filter down to the populace, but we almost always lose sight of the larger macroeconomic framework in which such discussion belongs. for this reason, the solutions we offer often fail to address the real economic needs of both natural and human communities, and our proposed solutions frequently are vulnerable to fiscal and political pressures that fail to consider that the environment is more than a source of commodities. herein, i will discuss the macroeconomic situation in latin america and the impact that politics and economic policies have had on conservation, and specifically how these affect anacondas and related conservation issues in south america. conservation of green anacondas: how tylenol conservation and macroeconomics threaten the survival of the world’s largest snake jesus a. rivas department of mathematics and natural sciences, somerset community college, somerset, kentucky iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 75conservation of green anacondas � capturing green anacondas can be difficult. although snakes are large and can inflict painful bites, they move slowly compared to many smaller snakes, and can be handled safely by experienced personnel. to n y c r o c c et ta the problem of conservation visitors to rural areas of latin america have enjoyed beautiful landscapes and pristine natural ecosystems alongside the lesspleasurable experiences of seeing how the local people live. their economic limitations and struggles make it immediately clear that no amount of education or enforcement of regulations can (and should?) prevent them from using natural resources for their own survival (mcsweeney 2005). people living in a moneydriven system with few means of obtaining money are easily persuaded to exploit nature in an unsustainable fashion. the sale of wildlife is a common example (e.g., fitzgerald et al. 1991, robinson and redford 1991, vickers 1991). whether they use nature unsustainably of their own accord, due to lack of education and environmental awareness, or are encouraged (or forced) by external commercial interests (e.g., camhi 1995), abject poverty is the primary problem and no conservation program can succeed without addressing it. neoliberal economic policies for the last half century, international economic agencies (ieas), such as the world bank (wb), the international monetary fund (imf), and the united states agency for international development (usaid), have been actively promoting development by injecting money into the national economies of underdeveloped nations. the idea is to stimulate those economies, eventually providing countries with the means to pay back the money received (e.g., world-bank 2001, kütting 2004, clapp and dauvergne 2005). however, reality differs; nations that have received the most economic “help” have experienced dramatic increases in poverty (e.g., buhdoo 1994, rich 1994, jochnick 2001, navarro-jimenez 2004). the problem seems to be that help comes with strings attached. these “strings,” called structural adjustment programs (saps), may include decreasing or eliminating internal subsidies for agriculture, dropping trade barriers, allowing international companies to operate in the 76 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 rivas during the breeding season, as many as 13 male green anacondas have been observed competing to mate with a single female, with the mating aggregation lasting as long as four weeks. here, eight males court a female in venezuela. females may mate with more than one male during the breeding season. w il li a m h o ls tr o m capable of taking large prey, green anacondas, nevertheless, are often injured during the struggle. this snake is ingesting a capybara (hydrochaeris hydrochaeris), which inflicted the bite responsible for the large wound. c a r o l fo st er iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 77conservation of green anacondas country, granting exceptions to environmental regulations, eliminating social benefits, and relaxing labor laws. also, money must often be used to hire specific transnational companies. such entities are known as export credit agencies (ecas) and often are associated with the government of a developed country. consequently, much of any loan never reaches the country it is supposed to benefit, moving instead from one bank account to another in a developed nation (e.g., goldzimer 2003, perkins 2004, clapp and dauvergne 2005). ecas hire employees at minimum wage, but since saps impose lower wages and drop social assistance and workers’ benefits, the minimum wage does not really address poverty. people have jobs, but the costs of essential commodities (produce, water, housing) have gone up because the workers are now part of a global market. consequently, the local standard of living drops (e.g., horta 1991, cheru 1992, yunus 1994). such a neoliberal agenda can lead to environmental degradation. people use resources in an unsustainable manner and companies dump pollutants (in part due to the lowering of environmental standards originally intended to spur economic growth). both result in habitat deterioration (e.g., horta 1991, cheru 1992, rich 1994, pearce et al. 1995, horta et al. 2002). especially when companies are temporary, like those involving mining or logging, departure leaves behind pollution, destroyed habitat, unemployment, and even more poverty than existed previously (e.g., goldzimer, 2003). one example is argentina, which embraced a neoliberal agenda wholeheartedly during the late 1990s. in 2002, the bubble burst, leaving the country in great poverty (blustein, 2005). the crash of the argentinean economy was followed by political upheaval and economic and social turmoil. such social unrest has caused a series of uprisings in south america, toppling presidents in argentina (2002), bolivia (2003, 2005), and ecuador (1997, 2000, 2005). needless to say, during times of economic and political upheaval, conservation takes a back seat. economy and the environment the sustainable use of natural resources has been offered as one potential solution to economic problems, with the rational use of wildlife as an alternative to destruction of natural habitats. sustained harvest of wild populations has been implemented in several countries for subsistence (robinson and redford 1991, shaw 1991, silva and strahl 1991, vickers 1991, balick and mendelson 1992, bodmer et al. 1997) and commercial purposes such as hides, meat, or live pets (fitzgerald et al. 1991, groom et al. 1991, beissinger and bucher 1992, joanen et al. 1997). for example, several endangered crocodilians are recovering in response to effective harvesting practices (see thorbjarnarson et al., 1992 for a review). wildlife management and conservation in venezuela venezuela has withstood the economic crisis better than other latin-american countries, primarily due to the country’s oil reserves. however, from 1982 to 1998, the economy slowly but consistently declined. as the economy of the country deteriorated and wages fell, people were forced to rely on unconventional resources. for instance, in the past, traditional consumption of capybara (hydrochaeris hydrochaeris) meat was restricted to the week before easter. more recently, illegal hunting of capybaras extended throughout the year, as people resorted to capybara meat as a staple. traditionally, most of the country’s meat came from rancho el frío. for more than 30 years, el frío had sustained an estimated population of roughly 30,000 green anacondas are ambush predators on aquatic prey or animals that come to the water to drink. this adult female (svl 363 cm, 40 kg) regurgitated a 10-kg white-tailed deer (odocoileus virginianus) shortly after capture. w il li a m h o ls tr o m this carcass of a green anaconda was found on the parched savanna. snakes moving in the dry season searching for water occasionally fail to find a cool refuge during the heat of the day. to n y c r o c c et ta capybaras, of which about 10,000 were harvested annually (ojasti, 1991). in 1986, i participated in a survey of el frío capybaras that recorded a population of only slightly above 4,000 animals. later surveys showed an additional decrease in the population, with poaching acknowledged as the leading cause of the population crash. this trend is, not surprisingly, expected to continue and extend to other species as poverty in the country becomes increasingly prevalent. pressures on anaconda populations although any use of the green anaconda (eunectes murinus) is prohibited by venezuelan law, illegal harvests are common. between 1988 and 1990, international authorities confiscated 2,138 anaconda skins in holland that supposedly originated in venezuela (profauna archives). among the confiscated hides were skins of e. murinus, which occurs in venezuela, and of yellow anacondas (e. notaeus), which occur only in southern south america. when i and my collaborators started studying anacondas in 1992 (rivas et al. 2007), i learned that tanneries were paying the equivalent of u.s. $16.67 per meter of skin. this is a significant amount for a worker whose income otherwise averages about $3.50 a day. legal low-profile anaconda harvests occur in several south american nations. in guyana, anacondas are harvested opportunistically by fishermen and sold to local tanners (mirna quero, pers. comm.). yellow anacondas have been harvested legally in argentina (waller et al., 2007) and illegally in paraguay (p. micucci, pers. comm.). bolivia had initiated studies investigating the sustainable use of e. murinus, but political unrest halted the development of the program (j. aparicio, pers. comm.). farming versus harvesting anacondas the most common methods of extractive wildlife management are farming, harvesting, or some combination of both. in a farming model, animals are kept in captivity, a relatively expensive proposition, but practical for animals with fast growth rates, low maintenance expenses, and capable of being held in high densities. traditional farming of green anacondas is not practical. the cost of facilities and maintenance would be prohibitively high. also, anacondas take several years to reach adulthood, and females breed only every other year at best (rivas, 2000). however, an “open farm system” may be possible. large pregnant females can be found along the riverbanks (rivas 2000, rivas et al. 2007b), caught, kept in captivity, and released after they deliver. due to high fertility (rivas, 2000), a large number of individuals can be produced quickly. neonates have a high natural mortality in the field (rivas 2000, rivas et al. 1999, 2001, 2007b). releasing some percentage of individuals subjected to lower captive mortality rates would presumably equal the number that would have survived to that age in nature. neonates can grow quickly (holmstrom 1982, rivas et al. 2007b), and, after a relatively short period in captivity, could provide scar-free, small-scaled skins with high value on the legal market. anacondas do not make good pets. they quickly outgrow cages, and become a risk to other pets and even people. they 78 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 rivas the venezuelan llanos (= flatlands) are characterized by vast grasslands with ribbons of forest along creeks and rivers. it is an environment of harsh extremes, severe droughts alternating with floods. the llanos are sparsely populated by humans, with most inhabitants engaged in raising cattle. the llanos are venezuela’s greatest repository of wildlife. jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 79conservation of green anacondas have an aggressive temperament and never become an easy (or safe) animal to handle. they also release a fetid musk when disturbed. nevertheless, anacondas remain popular and potentially profitable (approximately $250/neonate, retail). the illegal import of live reptiles for the pet trade continues to grow (hoover 1998). this market is hard to control, and the number of animals being extracted from nature is difficult to quantify. a legal source of neonates from a sustainable system could serve to protect the wild population. closed-system farming would benefit only the few people working on the farm, and does not require pristine habitat. consequently, farming has at best a modest impact on the local economy (thorbjarnarson 1999). so, although sustainable, farming would not be a constructive conservation method, but merely business as usual, differing only in the use of a wildlife commodity. a system of open farming, involving the capture and post-parturition release of adult females, on the other hand, has potential as a conservation tool because it requires a pristine environment where the animals live. in contrast, in a cropping system, animals are harvested from the wild; thus a direct link exists between the economic activity and the conservation of the species and its habitats. economic incentives are directly linked to habitat preservation, and thus cropping has real potential for use as a conservation tool. harvesting is best suited for animals that occur in high densities and are easy to find and catch. overhead is much lower than for farming, since the only investment involves finding and catching animals (product storage and transport to market is an inevitable component of either method). however, harvesting has a much greater potential for detrimental effects on natural populations. monitoring and controlling the harvest are high priorities that can be very expensive and potentially troublesome. estimating numbers before attempting the management of any species, we must understand its basic life history. even modest success at wildlife management depends upon some knowledge of demography, especially abundance, rate of increase, fecundity, mortality, recruitment, and dispersal. estimates of population size and the intrinsic rate of increase are necessary in order to calculate the maximum sustainable yield (msy; the maximum number of individuals that can be removed from a population while maintaining population size). because anacondas are secretive, we cannot accurately determine the total number of animals in any area. an alternative is to estimate the population size using an index of relative abundance (e.g., number of snakes seen per km of road). this way we can propose a conservative msy, refine it by monitoring the impact of harvesting with repeated surveys, detecting any problems, and adjusting the take in a timely fashion (caughley, 1977; caughley and sinclair, 1994). to date, however, we lack any estimate of anaconda abundance, which would require longterm mark and recapture studies, nor do we have any index of relative abundance — and none of the traditional methods are easily applied. one possibility would be to count sightings of pregnant females along riverbanks or edges of roads, where they frequently bask. in the interim, the lack of a field-based method for monitoring the impact of a cropping program, commercially exploiting anacondas could result in over-harvesting. capturing animals presents another challenge. looking for anacondas is probably not cost-effective in light of the low frequency of capture that i have encountered (rivas et al. 2007b). one option would be to combine harvests of anacondas with that of other potentially valuable species such as spectacled caimans (caiman crocodilus), turtles (podocnemis spp), common iguanas (iguana iguana), and common tegus (tupinambis teguixin) (thorbjarnarson and velasco 1999). all of these reptiles occur in relatively high densities and are potentially manageable. however, implementation of a sustainable management plan for any or all of these species requires basic knowledge about their populations in any given area — knowledge that is currently lacking. hunters typically target the largest individuals (males in many exploited species), because they provide more skin or meat. in polygynous species (in which a male mates with more than one female in a single breeding season), this is potentially sustainable, since most matings are by only a few males, leaving a theoretical surplus available for harvesting. anacondas, however, are polyandrous (in which a female mates with more than one male in a single breeding season; rivas 2000, rivas and burghardt 2001, rivas et al. 2007a, 2007b) and females are larger. also, the largest females contribute the most offspring (females >340 cm are responsible for nearly 60% of new offspring every year, and females >300 cm contribute nearly 75% of each new generation; rivas, 2000). in other words, harvesting practices biased for large females would dramatically and quickly impact population numbers. harvesting males would seem to be a feasible alternative. they are easier to find, can be gathered in greater numbers in breeding aggregations, and have skins with fewer scars because they are smaller in size and feed on less dangerous prey (rivas 2000, rivas and burghardt 2001, rivas et al. 2007b). however, females that are courted by several males have higher reproductive success (rivas, 2000), so the quota of males would have to be assessed very carefully, and hunters may not accurately discriminate males from females. sustained commercial use of large snakes appears to work in sumatra, where reticulated pythons (python reticulatus), blood pythons (python brongersmai), and short-tailed pythons this female green anaconda (410 cm svl, 44 kg) is being courted by 12 males. to n y r a tt in (python curtus) are harvested serendipitously near plantations and villages (shine et al., 1999). this method targets mostly males due to their higher mobility, and produces a variable rate of harvest that changes with snake abundance. because hunters are not targeting snakes, this method of hunting has the potential to be self-regulating. a drop in the population will produce a lower encounter rate that will result in a lower harvest. a similar method is used for green anacondas in guyana, where fishermen gather snakes opportunistically. like the python harvest, this method seems to be sustainable, although quantitative data are lacking. however, increases in poverty levels of rural inhabitants can dramatically increase the levels of harvesting. management of anacondas anacondas and other boids are listed in cites appendix ii, which requires permits be obtained for any commercial trade. in venezuela, anacondas remain abundant due to large expanses of relatively undisturbed wetland habitats (rivas et al. 2002). no legal commercial trade exists, and the illegal market for skins places little pressure on populations at the moment. although edible, anacondas are not eaten. other than the skin, the only product of value is the fat. melted anaconda fat is considered a medicine for throat problems, asthma, and other respiratory ailments. however, the demand is low and localized. because selling anaconda products is illegal, few campesinos engage in harvests. instead, the main reason that local people kill anacondas is because they fear and dislike them. arguments that anacondas eat poultry, livestock, pets, or even people are often used to justify killing snakes. habitat degradation in the llanos has not yet been a serious problem, since most land use for cattle involves increasing the area covered by water for longer periods (rivas et al. 2002). the impact of extensive cattle ranching on wildlife here is much lower than the impact in the united states or other countries where cattle are kept at higher densities. however, old-fashioned ranching practices involve cutting forests to ease handling of livestock (that often hides in the forest and becomes feral) and allow easy access to water in dry season. federal laws prohibit deforestation within 50 m of a river, but this regulation is seldom enforced. deforestation increased dramatically in the late 1990s. riverbanks often develop “caves” that are supported by tree roots, and these caves are frequently used as refugia by anacondas. in the treeless savanna, anacondas have fewer places to hide and escape from extreme drought. this can be important in atypical years during which anacondas may be exposed to extreme heat (rivas 2000, rivas et al. 2007b). caves along segments of rivers without forest are less abundant and smaller than those in other areas because the lack of roots allows erosion. cutting the forest is a direct threat to anacondas, in addition to the effects of deforestation on populations of prey species and other components of forest ecosystems. management as a means of incorporating use of anacondas into economic development plans is difficult, and more research is needed. harvesting males, as well as farming of neonates, are 80 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 rivas much of the venezuelan llanos is managed for cattle, with dikes used to hold water for the dry season. consequently, encounters between cowboys and snakes occur frequently. to n y c r o c c et ta iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 81conservation of green anacondas possible alternatives that can be explored. however, both practices involve many logistical problems in addition to ethical issues that cannot be ignored. killing animals for human comfort and leisure is an ongoing theme of heated debates between those concerned with animal welfare and those who manage wildlife for profit (robinson 1993, joanen et al. 1997, struhsaker 1998, mclarney 1999, medellin 1999). new regulations adopted by the international community regarding import of exotic wildlife, in the name of conservation or animal welfare, can limit the market and jeopardize investments made by producers. importing live animals raises ethical issues regarding the welfare of pets that might end up in the hands of novice pet owners who do not maintain animals in optimal conditions. in the case of larger reptiles, an additional problem arises when an animal reaches a size at which it is difficult to keep. frequently, animals are released in exotic environments where they usually die of exposure or starvation. if they survive and reproduce, further problems arise as a consequence of exotic invaders in foreign ecosystems (atkinson 1989, snow et al. 2007). for instance, green anacondas have been found in the florida everglades (snow et al. 2007), although evidence of reproduction is lacking. many countries have resorted to exploiting wildlife to solve economic crises. in venezuela, recommendations resulting from my research have largely stemmed plans to commercially harvest anacondas, but less out of concern for the resource than because the abundance of oil has relieved part of the pressure on the economy. at the moment, anacondas are at little risk of being harvested in venezuela. however, poverty in rural areas throughout south america, increased human encroachment, and political and economic turmoil continue to threaten the species, and these threats are expected to increase. i suggest that the least difficult and controversial benefit to local communities vis-à-vis anacondas is the lure that a “charismatic mega-fauna” provides for ecotourism. the llanos has a tremendous and unrealized potential for ecotourism due to the large abundance and diversity of wildlife, which is comparable to that of the amazonian rainforest (rodríguez and rojas-suarez 1996). however, in the vast savannas of the llanos, animals are readily spotted and appreciated. reinvesting profits generated by ecotourism in the local community in terms of jobs, education, and welfare are vital if ecotourism is to succeed as a conservation tool. spectacled caimans in venezuela in 1986, the venezuelan government initiated the harvest of spectacled caimans (caiman crocodilus). this program operates on private lands, where owners hire a biologist to survey the population, and, based on the estimate of population size, profauna licenses a given quota. owners hire people to harvest and process the animals. skins are bought by tanners that prepare the skins to crosta (one step of the tanning process) and sell them to overseas companies that manufacture the final products. this program provides some benefits to landowners, to local workers, to biologists who conduct surveys, and to tanners who process and export skins. relying on a prolific species of high commercial value that is relatively easy to count and harvest (thorbjarnarson and velasco 1999), the program would appear to be a perfect example of conservation management. regardless of potential and good intentions, the program has been engaged in a battle of wits with poachers who took advantage of loopholes in the regulations. once the word got out that a square foot of caiman skin was worth $40, no safe havens remained for the animals. every effort to tweak legislation was matched and overmatched immediately by new means of circumventing the law. landowners would kill and market caimans from surrounding areas to keep their own populations high in future surveys. efforts to count skulls and carcasses and match them with the number of skins were implemented to ensure that caimans were killed where permits allowed (carcasses are too heavy to carry on burros, causing poachers to retrieve only skins). this immediately spawned a new breed of entrepreneur, whose business consisted of renting truckloads of rotting carcasses to crooked landowners. this is only one example of the many tricks that profauna had to uncover in their effort to implement the program. many of the people who were supposed to be involved in the management of a sustainable resource never perceived it as anything other than an ephemeral source of wealth. consequently, this resulted in dramatic population declines in many areas (thorbjarnarson and velasco 1999). this program was unsuccessful not only because it failed to convince locals that it was a long-term program capable of providing sustained revenues, it also failed to provide adequate economic incentives to the local populace, who never saw the need to protect the resource. in 1986, the venezuelan government initiated the harvest of spectacled caimans (caiman crocodilus) on private lands. photograph copyright © 1996 florida museum of natural history, used with permission (http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/ natsci/herpetology/crocs/crocpics.htm). f. w a y n e k in g 82 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 rivas yellow anacondas in argentina1 an experimental harvest of yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) has been implemented in formosa province, argentina. the program encouraged indigenous peoples and rural mestizos to catch snakes over 2.3 m in length that were found opportunistically during the months of august–october, the beginning of the warm season. the 2.3-m length was determined by the fact that skins of that size were 23 cm wide, the minimum necessary for making purses without patching pieces together. locals were paid 15–20 pesos (= ~$4–5.40), depending on the size of animals. no quotas or restrictions on where animals were caught were imposed. the economic benefits can represent an important part of the locals’ annual budget in an area where farmers live on incomes of about $150/year. however, the people who took the lion’s share of proceeds were higher in the economic chain. skins were sold to shoeand purse-making factories at $50 per meter. so, a snake that was, for example, 3 m in length, was bought for $4 by the tanner and then sold for $150 to make purses worth several hundred dollars. if local people had benefited adequately, they would have become guardians and active stewards of the land. instead, the program was less of an effort to manage anacondas than an economic enterprise using anacondas as a capital commodity. to place this program into economic and political contexts, we have to realize that the country’s neoliberal constitution (1994) established autonomy for the provinces over their natural resources, which took the decision-making away from the central government. consequently, for example, if an association of tanners proposed a program to the central government offering to inject $100k into the economy, it would not be nearly as tempting for the nation’s government as it would be for that of a small province. by allocating the decision-making to smaller authorities, persuasion of those authorities by offers that might not be in the best interests of the country or the environment is much easier. yellow anacondas are smaller than green anacondas, but share a female-biased sexual size dimorphism. because 2.3 m in length is about the upper limit on the size of males, this harvesting plan pretty much guarantees the exclusive harvesting of females. furthermore, animals are found primarily by searching for individuals basking on dense vegetation, and the only snakes that regularly bask are pregnant females (rivas, 2000). conversations with local harvesters indicated that they anticipated a sharp decline in anacondas due to the large number of females harvested. 1 editor’s note: an argentinian ngo (fundación biodiversidad) developed and proposed this plan to the national government in 2001. it later became the first experimental approach (possibly worldwide) for the adaptive management of a boid that has been hunted historically and massively regardless of any law or biological consideration. the program (which generates skins for international trade) deals with a cites appendix ii species, requiring its management to comply with article iv (non-detrimental finding) of the treaty. the fundación biodiversidad must provide annual reports to the national government (cites authority) in order to renew export authorizations and comply with cites requirements. the program is monitored closely, which allows detection and correction of any problems that might arise. waller et al. (2007) noted that: “for the first time in more than 20 years, biologists were able to design and test a harvest methodology for this traditionally exploited species. the experimental harvest began in 2002, and approximately 5,000 skins of an average length of 2.6 m were obtained in formosa each year between 2002 and 2004, following strict administrative and technical procedures (micucci et al., 2006).” an article describing the plan in detail will appear in the next issue of iguana. an experimental harvest of yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) has been implemented in formosa province, argentina. lu tz d ir k se n iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 83conservation of green anacondas management versus conservation conservation and use of wildlife are not detached from other economic and political issues, and we cannot address the former without considering the latter. common tendencies are to use the natural resources for profit without an environmental agenda by exploiting opportunities and funds provided by conservation. such an approach is not sustainable, although it appears to use natural resources in a “green” manner. in fact, such activities may harm conservation efforts. the use and depletion of natural resources in the name of conservation give it a negative image, which, in turn, drains funds and distracts attention from real solutions. business or conservation? when management is used for conservation, the economic incentives are tools for encouraging local people to protect the environment. the purpose of assigning an economic value to a resource is to provide stewards of the land reasons for protecting it. the alternative is exploiting the environment for commercial gain. the latter, however, may involve businesses that use resources in a sustainable manner and are environmentally friendly or businesses that loot the environment for short-term profit. while sustainable use is a legitimate practice, it differs from conservation measures in that the priority is maximizing gains. impact of neoliberalism on conservation despite evident declines in venezuelan caiman populations (see box) (thorbjarnarson and velasco, 1999), profauna chose to ignore repeated warnings of over-exploitation from the scientific community, probably because the agency depended on the revenues generated by sales of caiman skins. a program is inherently flawed when the people who administer a resource are dependent on the exploitation of that resource. this is an example of a larger problem. in the late 1980s, venezuela was heavily influenced by a neoliberal agenda (larrea, 2004). recommended measures for economic development (saps) demanded that the government did not sponsor research or any other activities that were not linked to administration of resources; instead, selffinancing became the mantra of the relevant governmental agencies. the laws of supply-and-demand should rule the system (navarro-jimenez 2004). however, because managers had to compromise their own jobs if they took any action to stop the program, they did not respond to evidence of declines. in fact, when the program slowed solely due to the increasingly low density of caimans, profauna underwent major structural changes, downsized, and eventually disappeared. the argentinean program for harvesting yellow anacondas (see box) also embraced a neoliberal agenda. during the late 1990s, economic growth had slowed and the nation was facing serious economic problems. by the end of 2001, the imf pulled out and the economy crashed (blustein 2005), rendering imperative the exploitation of a natural resource. tanners in formosa province provided a fund of $100,000 for harvesting anacondas, a juicy contribution to a stagnant economy. the whole system depended on the urgent need to produce cash to ameliorate the economic crises. turning down a business opportunity was not an option. the fallacy of tylenol conservation choosing to ignore or deny the impact of macroeconomics on conservation will not lead to a solution. we cannot address the problems of conservation unless we acknowledge the root cause. ignoring the big problems by trying to address those that are easier or cheaper to solve is the fallacy of “tylenol conservation.” taking a painkiller rather than addressing the underlying problem often results in the need for more and stronger painkillers as time passes. a similar approach in conservation creates an illusion that we are working to make a difference while distracting us from addressing the real issues. another example of tylenol conservation is the tendency to identify and protect areas of high diversity, when the real solution is addressing threats to the land. protective legislation is, like a painkiller, a handy tool, but not a solution to the problem. in latin america, extreme poverty is the underlying cause of conservation problems. protecting a piece of land, education, and providing some economic relief for locals through wildlife management or ecotourism are laudatory, but are only painkillers that provide, at best, only temporary relief. the main point with which i want to leave the reader is that conservationists must realize that politics and macroeconomics are not dirty words, but simply disciplines in which we need to be involved. if we really want to make a difference in conservation, we need to attack the roots of problems and causes — and the origins of conservation problems are rarely biological. instead, economic, social, and political issues are often responsible. integrating concerns about environmental degradation and loss of biodiversity with support of movements for sustainable economies and perhaps even anti-neoliberal globalization movements can result in more effective solutions with better chances for long-term successes. acknowledgements i thanks sarah corey and william hayes for relevant comments on earlier versions of this article. i also thank covegan and estacion 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j.b., h. messel, f.w. king, and j.p. ross. 1992. crocodiles, an action plan for their conservation. iucn, gland, switzerland. thorbjarnarson, j.b. and a. velasco. 1999. economic incentives for management of venezuelan caiman. conservation biology 13:397–406. vickers, w.t. 1991. hunting yields and game composition over ten years in an amazon indian territory, pp. 53–81. in: j.g. robinson and k.h. redford (eds.), tropical wildlife use and conservation. university of chicago press, chicago, illinois. waller, t., p.a. micucci, m. mendez, and e. alvarenga. 2007. the management and conservation biology of yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) in argentina. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), biology of the boas and pythons. eagle mountain publishing company, eagle mountain, utah. world bank. 1992. world development report. oxford university press, new york. world bank. 2001. adjustment lending retrospective: final report operation policies and country services. world bank, washington, d.c. (http:// siteresources.worldbank.org/projects/resources/alr06_20_01.pdf). yunus, m. 1994. preface: redefining development, pp. ix–xii. in: k. danaher (ed.), 50 years enough: the case against the world bank and the international monetary fund. south end press, boston, massachusetts. the most geographically and ecologically widespread of the eight currently recognized species of the neotropical treeboa genus corallus, c. hortulanus ranges from amazonian colombia and venezuela, through the guianas, throughout amazonian brazil, ecuador, peru, and bolivia, and south into brazil’s atlantic forest to about 26º 08’ south latitude, and on ilha grande (off southeastern brazil). it occurs in diverse habitats, including primary and secondary rainforest, mixed forest, second growth, palm forests, swamp forest, cerrado, caatinga (where it is probably confined to gallery forests), and savanna/grassland with stands of trees. it is often associated with edge situations and may be especially common in trees at the margins of bodies of water (rivers, lagoons, lakes). it also exploits heavily disturbed situations, such as fruit orchards (bananas, cacao), and will enter human edifices (outbuildings, homes), likely seeking shade, a diurnal retreat, or a human commensal rodent. altitudinal distribution is from sea level to about 915 m, although it is uncommon above 300 m. few snake species worldwide can compete with corallus hortulanus when it comes to variation in color and pattern. dorsal ground color of the boas may be various shades of yellow, orange, gray, taupe, and/or brown. they may be virtually patternless yellow or orange, or have an ellipse-like shape that may be a shade of the ground color or in sharp contrast to it, or it may appear extremely mottled (but close inspection usually reveals the ellipse shape). amazon treeboas are nocturnal and, as the name implies, largely arboreal. their bodies are laterally compressed, and snakes may attain snout-vent lengths (svl) over 1.6 m, and can reach svls of 1.8–1.9 m. both active and ambush foraging strategies are employed, and the diet consists almost entirely of endotherms. when young (<750 mm svl), birds (and, to a lesser degree, bats) comprise a significant portion of their diet (likely captured via active foraging while the birds are at roost) but, with increasing size, mammals (especially rodents) become their principal prey. frogs and lizards are taken infrequently by c. hortulanus. references henderson, r.w. 2002. neotropical treeboas: natural history of the corallus hortulanus complex. krieger publishing co., malabar, florida. pizzatto, l., o.a.v. marques, and m. martins. 2007. ecomorphology of boine snakes, with emphasis on south american forms, pp. 35–48. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), biology of the boas and pythons. eagle mountain publishing, eagle mountain, utah. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e amazon treeboa (corallus hortulanus) robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum although corallus hortulanus demonstrates tremendous color and pattern variation throughout its range, this individual exhibits a much higher percentage of white scales than typically observed. it was captured in a small section of bamboo forest near the rio cristalino in northern mato grosso, brazil. the habitat is transitional between southern amazonian rainforest and the vast savanna-like cerrado to the south. a second snake with similar coloration was found several days later. whether these individuals are just variants of an extremely variable species or a color pattern anomaly is unknown. la u r ie j . v it t iguana 13.2 b&w text 138 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 pasachnik a contemplative sandy echternacht. jo h n b in n s iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 138 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 139 even as a toddler, sandy echternacht wasted no time in demonstrating an apparently innate affinity for reptiles. “i have no idea what originally attracted me to reptiles, but i’ve always known exactly what i wanted to do.” sandy tells of how, as a child, despite his mother’s distaste of lizards and snakes, he took to them readily, distinguishing himself as the family herpetologist as early as the age of two while on family trips to various parks in the southwestern united states. on the earliest of these trips to the grand canyon, still in his mother’s arms, sandy was already exhibiting the symptoms of what would become a lifetime habit, happily touching and investigating any snake offered by the park’s rangers. while growing up in iowa, sandy delivered newspapers in order to keep himself supplied with lizards, snakes, and even bats. as his collection grew, he was forced to move into the attic of the family home for fear that his collection would invade the rest of the house. his mother had a habit of destroying snakes by chopping them into pieces whenever she came across them, so this move could be considered sandy’s first contribution to conservation. sandy’s interest in collecting and keeping animals soon became more academic. in an effort to learn more about the natural history and taxonomy of the species in his collection, he wrote a letter to a biologist at arizona state university. to sandy’s amazement, the professor sent a letter back and, within no time at all, the two had become herpetological pen pals. they corresponded through sandy’s junior and senior high school years. while still in high school, sandy was offered a job in the professor’s lab upon his graduation. in 1957, he moved from his hometown in iowa to tempe, arizona to begin his formal studies. unfortunately, the relationship he once had on paper with the professor dwindled, and sandy returned to iowa to attend university and complete his bachelor’s degree in general sciences. in 1961, sandy was again drawn to arizona state university, this time to work on a master’s degree in zoology. in the following year, sandy was finally able to go on his first formal collecting trip for the arizona state museum with his advisor, the ichthyologist dr. w. l. minckley. they traveled to new mexico, méxico, and back through texas on what, as sandy describes it, was one of the most memorable trips of his career — no small claim for someone who has regularly spent time in the caribbean, south and central america, africa, and the pacific. sandy’s master’s thesis was a comparative study of unisexual and sexually-reproducing species of cnemidophorus (whiptail lizards) in the santa rita mountains of southern arizona. upon completion of his master’s research in 1963, sandy moved back to the midwest, but to kansas this time, to begin his doctoral research with the eminent herpetologist, dr. william duellman, at the university of kansas. duellman’s interests at that point were in central america and méxico, and he was in the midst of collecting data for his monograph on the hylid frogs of middle america. this provided sandy with the perfect opportunity to begin his own research in central america — and he jumped at the chance. interested in studying geographic variation throughout the region and using the lizard genus ameiva as p r o f i l e sandy echternacht: a lifetime of herpetology stesha a. pasachnik1 department of ecology and evolutionary biology, university of tennessee, knoxville profile a one-year-old sandy and his mother near the grand canyon in 1940. near here, he snatched a snake out of the hands of a park ranger and thereby, according to his mother, became hooked on reptiles. he appears to have weighed about the same then as he does now. photograph courtesy of arthur p. echternacht. 1 written with input from todd campbell, william duellman, glenn gerber, rachel goodman, and justin walguarnary. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 139 140 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 pasachnik sandy dwarfed by logs at a “green” logging operation near itacoatiara, amazonas, brazil (ca. 160 km east of manaus on the northern bank of the rio amazonas). sandy and shy new friend in makokou, gabon, equatorial west africa, march 1982. su sa n e . r ie c h er t iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 140 a study group, sandy devoted more than a year reviewing all available museum specimens. while at kansas, sandy held a teaching assistantship in the department of zoology and took an array of courses in the department. he also became closely associated with other graduate students in the division of herpetology in the museum of natural history where he had an office. among those students were several who were working on some aspect of neotropical herpetology, namely john d. lynch, charles w. myers, and linda trueb. sandy and john lynch were the “bad boys” in the division, and usually were responsible for various pranks, such as littering the professor’s office with innumerable coke cans and “filing” cut-outs of playboy nudes throughout duellman’s 3 x 5 card catalog of his reprints. in the summer of 1965, sandy piled equipment and survival necessities into a vw bus and headed out of lawrence, kansas, with the goal of reaching panamá while collecting and seeing as much as possible along the way. as sandy tells it, the two most important pieces of equipment on this trip were a five-gallon bucket for pickling and a bag full of rubber bands (sandy has a well-deserved reputation, among all who know him, as a crack shot with a rubber band). during the following summer, sandy collected at remote sites along the caribbean coast of honduras and nicaragua, and on several off-shore islands. his last fieldwork on ameiva was with duellman and richard montanucci in ecuador in 1971. after completing his dissertation research, dr. arthur c. echternacht (“only my mother and telemarketers call me ‘arthur’,” claims sandy) joined the faculty of boston university and soon thereafter became a research associate at harvard. then, on columbus day in 1973, a friend from the university of tennessee iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 141profile near makokou, sandy tried to become familiar with the objects of his interest, communing closely with an unidentified chameleon. su sa n e . r ie c h er t sandy processing the fruits of his labors in loja, ecuador in 1971. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 141 called to inform him of a job opening there. he applied and was offered the position on a friday, but on monday was notified that the funding for the position had disappeared. two years later, he was offered another job with the university of tennessee without even applying. sandy accepted the position in the department of zoology, ascended the ranks to full professor, and served as department head for 13 years. today, 31 years and countless graduate students later, sandy continues to be an active member of the department, now called ecology and evolutionary biology. sandy had his first experience with rock iguanas (genus cyclura) on grand cayman in the late 1980s, while vacationing on little cayman island. “i was really entranced by cyclura nubila caymanensis because they were very abundant and out in the open.” sandy took several “vacations” to little cayman after that, including one on which he suffered a compound fracture of his ankle while exploring the jagged karst interior on his own. as the story goes, sandy found two empty coca cola bottles (no pepsi for this man!) to protect his hands from the jagged rocks, and using these dragged himself through the karst and thick underbrush to the edge of booby pond. from there he hollered for help, eventually attracting the attention of a local, and was carried out of the bush on a board and taken by boat to cayman brac, where he received medical attention. despite this experience — or perhaps because of it, sandy’s enthusiasm for cyclura continued to grow. while he and glenn gerber were working on glenn’s dissertation research on the interactions between grand cayman’s endemic anole (anolis conspersus) and the introduced cuban brown anole (a. sagrei), sandy took glenn to little cayman to take a look at the cyclura. glenn was equally entranced and, with sandy’s encouragement, initiated a year-long autecological study of the iguanas on little cayman. he has since gone on to investigate other caribbean iguanas. during the course of research trips to grand cayman, sandy met fred burton (at that time working for the mosquito research and control unit and helping to establish the cayman islands national trust). fred was initiating a captive-breeding program for the critically endangered grand cayman blue iguana, cyclura nubila lewisi (now c. lewisi). sandy, of course, found these lizards fascinating. he and fred arranged for bridget donaldson, who had just completed her master’s degree working with sandy on box turtle ecology, to initiate a radio-telemetry study of c. lewisi. by then, fred had quit his job at the national trust and had founded the blue iguana recovery program. sandy’s student rachel goodman expanded this work with a master’s project that examined the home ranges, behavior, activity patterns, and diet of these iguanas in a protected botanic park on grand cayman. sandy also is active in iguana conservation efforts through his involvement with the international reptile conservation foundation, where he serves on the editorial board, the international iguana society, where he served as treasurer for two years, and by being a member of the iucn iguana specialist group. in the past few years, sandy’s interests in iguanids have again been sparked after a trip to the small island of utila, which is located just off the caribbean coast of honduras. this island has been of interest to herpetologists for some time, in large part because it is home to the threatened iguana, ctenosaura bakeri. this island endemic with a very narrow distribution is faced with the all-too common threats of habitat destruction and over-harvesting. however, it is also faced with the threat of extinction by hybridization with its more widely ranging congener, c. similis. the most recent addition to the echternacht lab, stesha 142 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 pasachnik sandy with aj gutman and ctenosaura bakeri at the international iguana society (iis) meeting on isla de utila, honduras in 1999. jo h n b in n s adult male little cayman rock iguanas (cyclura nubila caymanensis) are often quite approachable, especially if baited, during the breeding season. in dense thorn scrub forest, the most efficient way to catch them is just to (carefully) pile on. g le n n p . g er b er iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 142 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 143profile pasachnik, has begun to investigate the degree and direction of this hybridization using a slew of molecular markers. a smallscale phylogeny of the c. melanosterna clade, the honduran type series of which was collected by sandy during one of his early trips through central america, will also be constructed in hopes of elucidating the colonization events that led to the speciation we see in the bay islands today. in addition to his work with iguanas, sandy and his students (mark wilson, dan macdonald, ed michaud, jim minesky, david bishop, and rachel goodman) have for almost 20 years been studying the natural history of the green anole, anolis carolinensis, in the southeastern united states, including latitudinal aspects of body size, reproduction, and genetics and long-term studies of thermoregulation in several populations living on southfacing cliffs in tennessee, near the northern range limit of this species. as a logical extension of his expertise with this species, he is also studying the “natural” history of green anoles where they have been introduced on islands in the south pacific. since the late 1980s, he and his students have been investigating the introduced cuban brown anole, a. sagrei, in the southeastern u.s. sandy and rachel goodman on grand cayman in 2001. jo h n b in n s sandy plying the tools of his trade, noosing a lizard on a spoils island in the florida intracoastal waterway. to d d c a m pb el l iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 143 this line of inquiry has attracted the interest and efforts of nearly a dozen graduate students, the work of whom has spanned levels of investigation from physiology and morphology through behavior and reproduction to population dynamics. early efforts to substantiate anecdotal reports of green anole declines following brown anole invasion and to implicate direct interspecific malemale aggression in these territorial animals produced surprising results that suggested simple answers would be inadequate in explaining the interaction. subsequent research included outdoor enclosure experiments with students glenn gerber, todd vincent, and justin walguarnary. an experimental manipulation with student todd campbell of whole populations of green and brown anoles on dredge spoil islands in the florida intracoastal waterway to simulate invasions has clarified a pattern in which niche partitioning, reproductive interference, and even intraguild predation have a combined negative effect on green anoles. most recently, sandy and his student nathan turnbough have been investigating effects of brown anoles on food webs in an effort to explain how these lizards might influence whole communities. in the end, although sandy has (for good reason) focused his attention mainly on lizards, his work has made significant contributions to many fields of biology. powered mainly by coca-cola, fine pipe tobacco, and nearly inedible lunchtime snacks, sandy’s energy in the field is infectious, and his effect on students, colleagues, and the general public has been lasting and profound. we can only hope that his enthusiasm for the study of basic natural history of all kinds of organisms has rubbed off on the next generation of scientists. 144 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 pasachnik accustomed to the rigors of fieldwork, sandy seeks a shaded retreat from which to record data on anoles on a spoils island in the florida intracoastal waterway. to d d c a m pb el l accompanied by an inevitable coca cola, sandy marks an anole on a spoils island in the florida intracoastal waterway. to d d c a m pb el l iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 144 iguana 13.2 b&w text 108 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 gutsche ctenosaura bakeri basking in utila’s mangroves. jo h n b in n s iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 108 field studies occurred mainly in two phases, from 27 june 1999 until 17 july 2000 and 1 january to 31 december 2001, allowing examination of distribution, abundance, and population structures within a complete annual cycle. population structure: biometric data data for ctenosaura bakeri captured during the study at various sites and for which sex could be clearly determined are included. as in most iguanas, males were longer and heavier than females. the total length (tl) of the largest animal captured, a male with a partial tail, was 781 mm. adding the snout-vent length (svl, 315 mm) and the mean tail length/svl suggest a possible tl of about 828 mm. males attain a larger size (mean 230.9 mm and 460.6 g) than females (mean 188.0 mm and 237.4 g), with females averaging 81.4% of svl and 51.5% of body weight of males. mean tail length for males (337.0 mm) was 11.9% longer than that of females (296.9 mm). differences in relative tail length (tail length/svl) of both sexes did not differ significantly. growth and development i examined growth of captive juveniles maintained in outdoor enclosures for periods usually lasting one year, at which point the sex of the animals could not yet be clearly determined. some individuals were raised and measured for up to 2.3 years, enabling collection of sex-specific growth data. increases in length were predominantly linear, whereas weight increased exponentially. juveniles (sex unknown) attained 1.7 times initial svl and 4.9 times initial weight at 300 days. development was sex-specific. males were 5.1% larger and 8.6% heavier than females at hatching, 17.9% larger and 48.6% heavier at 300 days, and 9.1% larger and 27.9% heavier at 650 days. no comparisons were made beyond 800 days as only one (small) male remained. when i compared growth rates of captive-held and wild-caught animals, rates of growth were essentially similar for captive and wild caught animals of both sexes. the proportional growth of svl and tail length was examined for 145 wild caught animals with intact tails. relative tail length decreased with increasing svl, from longer tails in juveniles to relatively shorter tails in adults. the relative tail length of juveniles was significantly greater than that of adults. sex-specific differences for relative tail length were not evident, although males had longer tails than females. population structure and reproduction in ctenosaura bakeri on isla de utila 1 alexander gutsche institute of biology, department of sensory biology, humboldt university, berlin, germany photographs by the author except where indicated. iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 109ctenosaura bakeri on isla de utila � relationship between mass (g) and snout-vent length (svl, mm) of adult ctenosaura bakeri. because of a suspected allometric relationship, loge-transformed variables were used. biometric values for male and female ctenosaura bakeri from isla de utila (mean values ± 1 standard deviation, range, sample size). lengths are in mm and mass in g. character males females total svl (mm) 230.9 ± 42.2 188.0 ± 18.6 208.9 ± 38.7 145–315 151–229 145–315 n = 76 n = 80 n = 156 tail length/svl 1.60 ± 0.09 1.57 ± 0.09 1.58 ± 0.09 1.40–1.74 1.32–1.79 1.32–1.79 n = 38 n = 48 n = 86 m (g) 460.6 ± 231.5 237.4 ± 79.9 339.9 ± 200.6 100–923 105–424 105–923 n = 76 n = 80 n = 156 1 this is a continuation of a series that began in iguana 12(3):142. see that article for an introduction to the series and for maps and detailed descriptions of the study sites. all articles are based on the dissertation research of the author. translation by aj gutman. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 109 sexual maturity in order to clarify the issue of age and size of c. bakeri at onset of sexual maturity, i compared body weights of 87 wild-caught gravid females with those of individually marked iguanas that were raised under controlled conditions. the smallest wildcaught gravid female had an svl of 150 mm, likely the lower limit of sexual maturity for this species. among captive-raised animals, three of five females had attained an svl of 150–154 mm at an age of about 650 days, and at an age of about 840 days, all females had attained an svl > 150 mm. by the end of 2001, mating activity had not been observed among the captive-raised animals. only in the following spring (2002), during the regular mating season, was mating activity first noted in this group (s. knapinski, pers. comm., 2002). at that time, animals were approximately 2.5 years old, likely the earliest age at which mating would be initiated in the wild. population and age structure the following data are based on the capture-recapture study. based on growth data from captive animals, i roughly evaluated age structure. when comparing the individual study sites, the proportion of subadult iguanas (< 150 mm svl) in iron bound was higher than that at blue bayou and big bight pond. at big bight pond and iron bound, the proportion of both adult iguanas and large iguanas was higher than at blue bayou. of the 24 iguanas captured at blue bayou, four animals (16.7%) were subadults and 20 animals (83.3%) were adults. subadults (50–130 mm svl) ranged in age from about 0.5–1.5 110 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 gutsche snout-vent length (svl) and mass of captive ctenosaura bakeri. nesting area at iron bound. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 110 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 111ctenosaura bakeri on isla de utila years. five females (150–170 mm svl) were about 2.5 years old, and four females (190 mm svl) were more than 2.5 years old. four males (150–170 mm svl) were about 2–2.5 years old, and seven males (190–230 mm svl) were more than 2.5 years old. of 40 iguanas taken at big bight pond, two animals (5%) were subadults and 35 animals (95%) were adults. the subadults (50, 70 mm svl) were about 0.5 years old. of the 18 females, one female (150 mm svl) was about 2.5 years old and 17 (190–210 mm svl) were older than 2.5 years. five males (150–170 mm svl) were about 2–2.5 years old and 15 males (190–310 mm) were more than 2.5 years old. of the 107 captured iguanas collected at iron bound, 40 (37.3%) were subadults and 67 (62.7%) were adults. subadults (50–130 mm svl) were about 0.5–1.5 years old. thirty females (150–170 mm svl) were about 2.5 years old, and 11 females (190–210 mm) were older. of the 26 males, four males were about 2.5 years old, and 22 males (190–270 mm svl) were more than 2.5 years old. the ratios of males to females at blue bayou (11:9) and big bight pond (20:18) were closely balanced, but that at iron bound (26:41) was conspicuously female-biased. the latter probably results from the polygynous mating system in the species, rather than a real demographic skew. reproduction the reproductive cycle occurs during the dry season, roughly from mid-january to early august. mating begins when both the quantity and frequency of precipitation decreases in comparison with the heavy rainfall of previous months. in 2000, the first mating was observed on 17 january. mating activity reached the highest intensity by about mid-february; the last mating of the year was observed on 24 march. egg-laying began about midmarch at all study sites and during all three years of the study. the most intense nesting activity was observed from the beginning until the middle of april. egg-laying ended in early may at all sites. hatching began during the latter half of june, with the earliest observed hatch occurring on 20 june 2000 at iron bound. the latest observed hatching date was 10 august 2001. frequency distribution of ctenosaura bakeri by snout-vent length (svl) for various size classes, differentiated by sex and study site. data are based on the capture-recapture study. ctenosaura bakeri in copula. jo h n b in n s iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 111 112 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 gutsche female digging a nest burrow. reproductive cycle of ctenosaura bakeri comparing the amount of precipitation (bars) and air temperature (line) throughout the year. climatic data represent mean monthly values from 1999–2001 (at big bight pond); the reproductive phases are averaged from observational data. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 112 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 113ctenosaura bakeri on isla de utila no reproductive activities occurred outside this time period in this or other years. nesting areas female ctenosaura bakeri exclusively use a small number of sandy coastal areas as nesting grounds. all are adjacent to the mangrove areas where iguanas spend the bulk of their time. more distant sandy coastal areas (e.g., at pumpkin hill on the northeastern coast or between big rock and david beach on the southern coast) were not used, nor were inland sandy areas bordering mangroves. the total extent of the nesting areas amounted to roughly 109 ha. vegetation consists largely of plants characteristic of caribbean coasts (e.g., ipomoea pres-caprae, cocos nucifera, coccoloba uvifera). nesting burrows were invariably located in the vegetation-free areas. iguanas avoided even those open areas where the surface of the ground was covered with fallen leaves. erstwhile vegetation-free nesting sites used for many years at iron bound and rock harbor were gradually colonized after 2001 by an invasive creeping vine. in 2002, nest burrows were restricted to the remaining open areas; by 2003, these areas had also become overgrown. within a few days of the growth being manually removed, the first test excavations were observed. i noted a clear preference for sunny locations. of 110 excavations, 55.5% (test and nest burrows) were situated where they received full sunshine throughout the day or were subject to light shade for only a few minutes. such conditions were present primarily in sandy areas where short periods of shade occurred only in the vicinity of isolated trees. partly sunny locations subject to shade at particular times of the day were also utilized (49 excavations; 44.6%). these locations were close to or within adjacent beach forest. burrows were preferentially selected in areas with sandy substrate and few coarse coral fragments. larger coral fragments or pieces of driftwood were often (61.8%) incorporated into nesting burrows, with entrances located directly beneath these surface structures. depths of nest chambers were occasionally influenced by various environmental factors. chambers in areas with welldeveloped root networks were directly beneath the root system. these nests were generally deeper (mean 345.0 mm) than those in sandy areas without root networks (mean 242.9 mm). surface substrates (to 170 mm) were dry. nesting chambers, however, were discernibly damp. temperature loggers buried at depths of 200 and 400 mm (representing upper and lower limits where nests were typically found) recorded mean temperatures between 29.7 °c (200 mm) and 30.3 °c (400 mm). migration of females to nesting areas five females marked in the mangroves were recaptured in various nesting areas. two were from blue bayou and the other three from iron bound. distances between the original capture site and the nesting areas were 158.1–880.0 m. four of the females were recaptured in nesting areas bordering their home mangrove areas. the fifth female was marked at iron bound and recaptured 880 m away on the beach at rock harbor. the return journey was documented for two of the females at iron bound, with both recaptured at their home trees. nesting burrows females dig individual nesting burrows in sandy beach substrate in order to deposit eggs. burrows are dug anew each breeding season. females will usually dig a number of test burrows in various locations before selecting a final nesting site. test burrows are abandoned in various stages of completion. the actual nest burrow is backfilled with substrate following successful oviposition.beginning of a nest excavation (test dig). opened nesting chamber with temperature logger. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 113 nest burrows consist of an entrance, a tunnel, and a connecting egg-laying chamber. openings were uniformly oval. the smallest measured entrance was 60 x 30 mm, the largest 100 x 70 mm. tunnels were roughly circular in cross-section with diameters of 50–70 mm and lengths of 510–1240 mm from the entrance to the end of the nest chamber. nest chambers were fist-shapes, measuring on average 112 x 73 mm (width x height). depths, measured from the surface of the ground to the bottom of the nest, were about 300 mm (160–450 mm). of 22 nest chambers excavated, five had approximately1-cm air pockets above the eggs, all others were filled with loose sand. incubation data on natural incubation temperatures were collected for four clutches in 2000 and four clutches in 2001. data loggers were placed directly next to the eggs either on the day they were deposited or on the day following and removed 95 days (13 weeks) later.temperature fluctuations were generally small and varied, despite differing locations, times of day, and depths, on average between 29.1–30.8 °c with a total mean of 30.1 ± 0.2 °c. deeper nests varied less (only by about 1.0 °c around the mean value) than shallower nests. observations on last oviposition and first hatch indicated incubation periods in the wild that 114 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 gutsche incubation periods for ctenosaura bakeri at various temperatures under artificial conditions. distribution of gravid ctenosaura bakeri females by size class. numbers above the bars are mean clutch size for that size class. opened nest burrow; the knife marks the entrance. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 114 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 115ctenosaura bakeri on isla de utila ranged from 91–99 days. also, all eggs in nests (n = 22) excavated after 95 days had hatched. under artificial conditions, incubation period decreased with increasing temperature. hatching rates seventeen clutches from 2000 consisted of 204 eggs with clutch sizes of 6–16 eggs. hatching rate was 94.1%. one clutch of 12 eggs all died. one day following oviposition, an inspection of the nest, which had not been sealed by the female, revealed that hard root tips had pierced the shells of two eggs and the yolk had run out. the nest was full of tiny black ants feeding on the damaged as well as undamaged eggs. all eggs had been fertile. five clutches from 2001 contained a total of 57 eggs with clutch sizes of 9–14 eggs. hatching rate was 86.0%. one clutch of 14 eggs produced only six hatchlings; the other eight eggs died. of these, seven contained dark, hardened yolk remnants, and one egg contained remnants of vertebrae. fly pupae (family sarcophagidae) were on and in all of the dead eggs. clutch data clutch data were obtained from free-living females (n = 87) that were caught at various nesting sites and others housed in outdoor enclosures at the “iguana station” until oviposition. the svl of captured gravid females ranged from 150–229 mm. mean body weight before egg-laying (body weight including clutch) was 224.5 g (118–435 g). whereas clutches averaged 27.5% of female body weight before egg-laying, the average loss of body weight due to egg-laying was about 33%. the difference of roughly 5.5% might reflect water released during ovipositioning. mean clutch weight was 55.3 g (30.6–107.3 g) and varied significantly according to the number of eggs per clutch. mean egg weight was 6.2 g (4.8–8.4 g). the mean number of eggs laid was 9.8 (5–16). mean egg dimensions were 30.5 x 18.7 mm (27–35 x 18–19 mm). larger females produced significantly more eggs per clutch, but only very slightly larger eggs. the relationship of body weight before and after egg-laying was strongly linear. egg and hatchling masses were significantly correlated, but clutch size had no apparent effect on hatchling mass. using number of adult females captured, mean clutch sizes for each size class, and the natural hatching rate (92.3%), i calculated birth rates for females at each study site for the year 2000. using census and distribution data for each area, hypothetical birth rates were 79.9 (blue bayou), 184.0 (big bight pond), and 346.0 (iron bound) hatchlings per hectare.female with collapsed flanks following oviposition. gravid female on the trunk of a coconut palm. eggs are clearly visible along the flanks. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 115 iguana b&w text 288 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 commentary the chronicle of higher education the gecko could have sprung from the mind of dr. seuss: it had black spots. it had white spots. it had stripes upon those spots. the nine-inch-long lizard with bright-orange eyes was new to science in the late 1990s, when l. lee grismer, a professor of biology at la sierra university, first encountered it — but now, doing nothing more than research, he may have indirectly wiped out the gecko species from its home range in southern china. dr. grismer simply described the lizard in a scientific journal, the journal of herpetology. he named it goniurosaurus luii and recalls thinking, “if we’re going to protect these animals, we need to describe them and get them on the books.” to his dismay, “within months of the description, these things hit the pet trade with a bang,” he says. “these things were going for $1,500 apiece.” dr. grismer has not returned to the site, but other scientists have. “they say when you go to this place in southern china, it looks like a bomb hit it,” he says. “the rocks are overturned, they’re smashed, you don’t have geckos anywhere.” while poaching exotic animals is not new, dr. grismer thinks that smugglers have become more clever in that they are using scientists’ research papers to find newly described animals. he is not alone in that concern. three other scientists joined him in a letter to the journal science in may, telling the glum stories of three new species, all quickly decimated by poachers after their scientific description appeared in print. the letter warns fellow taxonomists that their activities may actually harm the animals they intend to study or to conserve. c o m m e n t a r y dr. l. lee grismer described goniurosaurus luii from southern china in the late 1990s. within months, these geckos were demanding high prices in the pet trade. endangered by research: poachers mine the scientific literature for locations of newly discovered animals1 lila guterman 1 copyright 2006, the chronicle of higher education (http:// chronicle.com). section: research & publishing; volume 52, issue 46, page a12. reprinted with permission. m a r li es r a sk er iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 289commentary the problem may not yet be widespread for new animal species, but the researchers urge their colleagues to debate solutions before it grows in scope. the issue is even forcing biologists to consider withholding information from publication — a solution anathema to some researchers. “science is a free flow of information,” says dr. grismer. “i’ll be damned if i’m going to have these criminals dictate how i’m going to do my science.” plants in peril the wildlife trade is a multibillion-dollar industry, but it seems to have branched into newly discovered animals only recently. botanists, by contrast, have faced the problem for longer. “that’s the unfortunate thing of discovering and publishing a new species — it obviously brings with it the need for collectors to have one,” says geoff bailey, a scientific consultant in manchester, england, who studies cacti as a hobby. when scientists discover a new animal or plant, they normally collect one or more — legally, they point out, often going through a lengthy permit process — to deposit in an institutional collection. that animal or plant becomes the “type” specimen, the representative of its species. as hobbyists or poachers hunt for plants, says michael chamberland, collections manager of the herbarium at the u.s. national arboretum, the area where the type specimen was found often becomes the “sacrificial locality.” “one has to hope that there are satellite locations elsewhere and that those are not going to be revealed as widely,” he says. some botanists have concluded that to preserve species of commercial interest — like orchids, cacti, and carnivorous plants — they should publish only general geographical information, rather than precise locations. for example, when the wollemi pine (wollemia nobilis) was discovered in 1994, in a national park near sydney, australia, scientists kept its location a closely guarded secret. just a few dozen of the trees live in the wild, and before their discovery, the species was known only from fossils millions of years old. the australian government restricts visits to the site, and some scientists were even brought there blindfolded. researchers rarely go to such extremes. however, botanists often play it coy in their publications. mr. bailey says, “nowadays people are very guarded as to giving location other than a very generalized statement.” other researchers object to withholding information in articles. w. john kress, a research scientist and chairman of the department of botany at the smithsonian institution’s national museum of natural history, points out that habitat loss threatens far more plant species than does poaching. “one hundred years down the line,” he says, “when these habitats are destroyed anyway, having the records of where these things were scientifically will be very important.” the animal scientists who published the letter in science concur. “i believe very strongly that the conservation benefits far outweigh the potential detriment,” says bryan l. stuart, the lead author of the letter, who defended his ph.d. thesis last month at the university of illinois at chicago. he described a new salamander that quickly appeared in the exotic-pet trade. in most countries, legislation to protect a rare species requires that it have a scientific name and that the government know where the species occurs. what’s more, even if they don’t plan to sample the organism, scientists studying the species need to know where it lives (or lived) to determine how it evolved and adapted to its environment, among other things. rogerio bertani, a tarantula expert at the butantan institute, a biology and biomedicine organization in são paolo, brazil, agrees, even though brazilian officials once caught smugglers with copies of his papers. dr. grismer, who discovered the gecko, imagines taking matters into his own hands. “i fantasize that just one time i’m going to find one of these guys” taking a rare animal, he says, “and i’m going to make an example of him. i may end up in jail, but it would be worth it.” of course, he realizes that violence would not solve the wildlife-smuggling problem — and neither would policing the areas, which costs too much for even the united states to eliminate poaching from its national parks. “the best thing i can come up with is an imperfect solution,” says dr. stuart. he recommends that taxonomists delay publishing their finds until they have worked with the government of the country where the animal was found to develop laws to protect it. internet insecurity once researchers describe a species, the information often goes into online databases, which provide an even bigger security risk. when the wollemi pine (wollemia nobilis) was discovered in 1994, scientists kept its location a closely guarded secret. ja im e pl a za finding articles in obscure research journals takes some hunting by poachers, but anyone with an internet connection can check the online archives at many institutions, finding the origins of the plants and animal species in their collections. scientists treasure that kind of easy access. for instance, combining data from an entire region with past records of plant ranges should help scientists predict how climate change could affect plant populations, says zack e. murrell, an associate professor of biology at appalachian state university and director of a database organization called the southeast regional network of expertise and collections. but curators of herbaria are debating how much data to reveal online. “it’s very ad hoc,” says richard l. pyle, an associate zoologist in ichthyology and the database coordinator for natural sciences at the bishop museum, a museum of natural and cultural history in honolulu. “every scientist and institution makes up their own approaches as they go.” arthur d. chapman, an independent scientist in queensland, australia, hopes to get more scientists talking about the issue. this spring, under the auspices of the global biodiversity information facility, an international organization trying to provide online access to biodiversity data, he conducted an online survey of people who worked at botanical and zoological collections. he found that most of the 102 who responded said they did restrict access to sensitive data in their publicly accessible data sets, using a variety of methods. he plans to publish the results of the survey and hold a workshop about them. working together while many scientists fight commercial collectors, some researchers have taken a more cooperative approach. dr. pyle has found collectors in his field friendly and useful. he studies coralreef fish. when an aquarium-fish collector finds an unusual animal, he says, “in almost every case they’ve deferred to science instead of making a quick buck” by selling their specimen. the money is no small potatoes: “some collectors spend literally $10,000 for a single fish,” he says. in the late 1980s, a collector named chip boyle described to dr. pyle two rare species that he had seen while scuba diving off rarotonga in the cook islands. he invited dr. pyle to see them, stay in his house, and use his boat. the brightly colored species turned out to be new to science, and dr. pyle described them in the scientific literature, naming one centropyge boylei after the aquarium-fish collector. he also discovered a third species while visiting mr. boyle. with all three fish, mr. pyle had no qualms about describing their location. “you have to have high-tech equipment to go to that depth,” he says, since the fish live some 300 feet below the surface. besides, he says, “they’re the most abundant species down there.” but he acknowledges that terrestrial species are another matter. when people discover new fish species, he says, they usually reside in an unexplored area or deeper in the ocean than taxonomists had looked before. “usually the species is very abundant wherever it lives,” he says. on dry land, different rules 290 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 commentary centropyge boylei occurs at depths of nearly 100 m near the cook islands in the south pacific. unlike other species featured in this article, it is not in any way threatened by commercial harversters, and indeed was brought to the attention of scientists with the help of a commercial harvester. fortunately for the fish, its habitat is out of reach of most divers. r ic h a r d l . p y le iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 291commentary apply. for both animals and plants, says dr. kress, of the smithsonian museum, “99 percent of the common stuff has already been found, so it is going to be things that are inherently endangered and rare that are discovered and described now.” and unfortunately, that very rarity can drive the exotic pet or plant trade. “it’s like rare art collectors,” says dr. stuart. “the rarer a piece is, the more desirable it is.” too much information scientists who find a new species of plant or animal face a difficult choice. if they follow scientific procedures and publish the precise location of their find, that new species may soon be snatched up by collectors, who are always looking for rare organisms. here are tales of three newly discovered species. bryan l. stuart was horrified this year to find that a large, colorful, warty salamander, which he had first described in the scientific literature in 2002, was for sale online. he eventually found out that german and japanese collectors had hired local people in laos to collect the salamander, called paramesotriton laoensis, from the two streams where the amphibian lives. “it has a very restricted range,” says dr. stuart, a research assistant at the field museum in chicago. “it’s being exploited before we have any idea how abundant it is.” dr. stuart fears his paper in the journal of herpetology led the smugglers to their treasure. “all that’s been published is what’s contained in the original description,” he says. the collectors may take so many animals that the species will be in danger. “it’s very sad for the salamander,” he says. a “living rock” cactus species survived unmolested by thieves for a decade after its discovery. the cactus, ariocarpus bravoanus, which blends in with its rocky surroundings in mexico, was described in 1992 in a scientific journal, with only vague details of its location. but poachers later discovered the site and by 2002 had removed almost all of the plants. scientists discovered two new sites where the cacti grew and did not publish their locations, but when geoff bailey, a cactus enthusiast from britain, visited in 2003, he and two others could not find a single plant. “to all intents and purposes,” he says, “it’s virtually extinct.” the 2002 discovery of a new “slipper orchid,” phragmipedium kovachii, in peru set the orchid world buzzing — the deep-reddish flower was twice the size of most other slipper orchids, which feature flowers with pouches. but that was not all that got people talking. the plant was first brought to light by a commercial dealer, who smuggled it into the united states and made it available to scientists at the marie selby botanical gardens, in sarasota, florida. the dealer and the gardens were eventually fined for illegally importing and possessing the rare flower. a year later, an orchid expert visited the region where it lived and saw signs of substantial poaching. four locations were totally stripped of the plants, and at one site, he found seven large sacks stuffed with the orchids. paramesotriton laoensis, known only from two streams in laos, is being exploited before we have any idea how abundant it is. b r y a n l . s tu a r t a “living rock” cactus (ariocarpus bravoanus) survived unmolested for a decade after its discovery in 1992. poachers since discovered where the species grew. today, these cacti are virtually extinct. h a n sjü r g en b r ä u er , w w w .t h ea m a te u r sd ig es t. c o m a new “slipper orchid” (phragmipedium kovachii) was first brought to light by a commercial dealer, who smuggled it into the united states and made it available to scientists. within a year of its formal description, signs of poaching were prevalent throughout the species’ habitat. er ic a m o r o n iguana 13.1 b&w text wake up, floridians, to this cold-blooded killing as if the results of the sixth day of creation, when god made “every thing that creepeth upon the earth,” were being canceled out, hordes of new people are putting some of florida’s humblest residents to flight, wiping them out in hundreds of thousands. amphibians and reptiles: status and conservation in florida, a just-published scientific survey edited by walter e. meshaka, jr. and kimberly j. babbitt, paints a gloomy picture of what is happening to the state’s herpetofauna. crushed beneath car wheels, buried by bulldozers, poisoned by insecticides and fertilizers, chased from back yards and patios as obnoxious pests, eaten alive by exotic red ants, over-collected by egotistical pet owners, florida’s snakes, turtles, frogs, lizards, and salamanders face a future that is getting grimmer and narrower year by year. “florida has a greater biodiversity of reptiles than any place on the north american continent, just a wonderful diversity of creatures,” said bruce means, executive director of the coastal plains institute and one of the contributors to the book. “unfortunately, they are under assault from wildly burgeoning human masses. i’ve been doing this for 44 years, and i’ve seen species like the southern dusky salamander just disappear. i am not optimistic about the future at all.” a collection of articles by scientists who are experts in their field, the book speaks openly of “persecution” and “extirpation” of some reptiles, particularly box turtles, gopher tortoises, and common kingsnakes. scientific abbreviations like “dor” stand for “dead on road,” and mean the myriad squashings of frogs, lizards, turtles, and snakes beneath the wheels of ever more abundant vehicles. some roads, like u.s. 441 across payne’s prairie in alachua county, and the tamiami trail that runs across florida from miami to tampa, are virtual abattoirs, greased with the gory little bodies of “anurans.” “on aug. 5, 1991, i stopped counting after 10,000,” biologist jim weimer said in a 1996 interview, describing a single night on u.s. 441 across payne’s prairie. “this was just one night. on may 2, 1991, there were over 5,000 southern leopard frogs killed.” florida is growing by leaps and bounds. the population is already above 15.3 million and expected to reach 25 million over the next quarter-century. every hour, 28 new people come to live in florida. billions of dollars are to be made in development. “but at what price?” meshaka and babbitt ask in their introduction. “drives to work are unbearable, and one must drive farther and farther to see nature . . . as space runs out, agriculture is now giving way to human development, the borders of which stand cheek to jowl with every major wetland, upland, and estuarine system in the state.” the condition of florida’s herpetofauna has become “drastically unrecognizable” from what it was 50 years ago. in short, these little frogs, snakes, lizards, salamanders, and turtles are behaving like croaking, slithering, wriggling, ploddingfooted, extremely stressed little canaries in a sunny coal mine. their deaths are hastening the day when florida, the richest habitat in america for mammals, birds, reptiles, turtles, crocodilians, and amphibians, will be little more than a sterile monoculture. interestingly, enormous palm beach county is not the most biodiverse county in florida when it comes to herpetofauna. that honor goes to little franklin county, southwest of tallahassee in the big bend, with 99 native amphibian, turtle, crocodilian, and squamate reptile species. nearby liberty county is second, with 98, and santa rosa county has 97. palm beach county, by contrast, has only 69, martin 44, and st. lucie 46 species. the least biodiverse place in florida, when it comes to these creatures, is desoto county, just east of charlotte county near florida’s lower west coast. if you want to grasp the dizzying reach of these creatures’ antiquity, consider the lowly eastern box turtle (terrapene carolina). it has been in florida since the pliocene era, which began five million years ago. at least three subspecies occur in the state, and one island, egmont key, off tampa bay, used to have so many of them that early 18th century french explorers in the gulf referred to all of america as “l’île aux tortues,” the isle of turtles [see iguana 12: 152–159]. egmont key became a national wildlife refuge in 1974, but it is being eroded and lacks the funds to afford more than a single caretaker. the box turtle is generally thought of as “common” in florida but this report suggests it may not be nearly as common as supposed. the fate of the gopher tortoise (gopherus polyphemus) is even more dire. this slow-moving creature lives in burrows on sandy uplands, the very sort of land most prized by developers. bulldozers often entomb the hapless tortoises alive. thanks to their slow metabolism, they may linger for months underground before dying of thirst and hunger. as many as 68,000 gopher tortoises have been killed in florida over the past 12 years, according to florida fish and wildlife conservation commission figures, in order to make room for roads, houses, malls, and golf courses. “current gopher tortoise regulations and conservation measures appear to be inadequate to sustain the species in n e w s b r i e f s iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 73newsbriefs as many as 68,000 gopher tortoises (gopherus polyphemus) have been killed in florida over the past 12 years in order to make room for roads, houses, malls, and golf courses. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h kingsnakes (lampropeltis getula) are declining precipitously in florida. those spared by collectors ae being killed by non-native fire ants. k en n et h l . k r y sk o iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 73 74 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 newsbriefs florida through the next century,” writes ray e. ashton jr. in the new report. the grimmest article of all in the new book is “the decline and extirpation of the kingsnake in florida,” by kenneth l. krysko and daniel j. smith. the common kingsnake (lampropeltis getula) is a magnificent creature, coming in several colors, harmless, beautiful and sweet-tempered, and therefore much sought-after by collectors, who pay up to $300 for one. traffic and drainage along the infamous u.s. 441 across payne’s prairie practically wiped out the snake in the 1960s. by 1977, not a single common kingsnake could be found there. collectors captured practically all the common kingsnakes along the tamiami trail west of miami by 1995. franklin county used to abound with them. a survey in 2000 found a single specimen, mortally wounded on a highway. at present, the only large population of common kingsnakes lies around and to the west of lake okeechobee. non-native fire ants are busily killing off these refugees. more than 77,590 american alligators (alligator mississippiensis) have been killed as “nuisances,” because they invaded florida back yards since 1977; the state fish and wildlife conservation commission now fields about 5,000 calls each year from alarmed homeowners. the state lets private trappers dispose of them, and their meat and hides were worth nearly $3 million in 1999. the pet industry is thriving at the expense of wildlife. one florida collector caught 4,194 southern cricket frogs (acris gryllus) and sold them over a twoyear period. turtles are captured and sold at the rate of up to 5,663 a year. rattlesnakes are sought-after for their skins, meat, and gallbladders, which are used in chinese traditional medicine. about 20,000 snakes of all species are removed from the wild annually to be sold as pets. the legendary ross allen of silver springs was one of the biggest entrepreneurs. jolly old ross allen was a hero to countless children and boy scouts in the 1950s and 1960s. they loved watching him handle snakes fearlessly, and were thrilled to hear how many times he had been bitten by rattlers and survived. they didn’t know allen was in the snake trade up to his neck. over a five-year period, allen bought and sold 6,858 eastern rat snakes (elaphe obsoleta; now assigned by some authorities to pantherophis alleghaniensis) alone, the new report says. allen regarded the woods of central florida as a kind of infinite piggybank of valuable snakes. the figures in the new book are devastating. from 1990 to 1994, collectors captured and sold 5,683 salamanders, 88,096 frogs and toads, 17,627 turtles, 189,712 lizards, and 85,311 snakes of all species. eighty percent of the lizards, 76 percent of the snakes, 50 percent of the turtles, and 27 percent of the lizards came from lake okeechobee south. this is just the legal, reported trade. a few bright spots appear in the report. american alligators are thriving, even getting larger. the average “nuisance” alligator hide now measures 7.3 feet in length. also, 1.26 million acres of state-protected land remains in florida, off-limits to development. still, meshaka and babbitt declare: “rather than just waving our arms to attempt to slow the rate of human growth and habitat alteration, we should anticipate the worst and develop plans that have the potential to maintain current levels of biodiversity.” michael browning palm beach post 15 september 2005 american alligators killed any florida alligator longer than 4 feet that makes residents or visitors feel unsafe, and that is reported to the state’s gator hotline, is subject to a practice called “harvesting.” the animal is taken away by a trapper and ultimately killed. linda collins, a spokeswoman for florida’s statewide nuisance alligator program (snap) reports that a total of 7,991 were harvested in 2005. for years, the city of sanibel only had aggressive gators removed from the island. however, following an incident in july 2004, in which a woman was killed by a 12-foot american alligator, sanibel joined the statewide program for removing them. since the change on sanibel, more than 100 american alligators have been harvested there, including 23 in 2005. no fatalities and no subsequent reports of pets or human attacks have been reported since the policy was instituted. news-press (fort myers, florida) over one five-year period, ross allen, famous florida snake-handler, bought and sold 6,858 eastern rat snakes (elaphe obsoleta; now assigned by some authorities to pantherophis alleghaniensis). su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h american alligators (alligator mississippiensis) that frighten or threaten florida residents may be “harvested” (taken by a hunter and killed). su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h nearly 80,000 american alligators (alligator mississippiensis) have been killed as “nuisances” since 1977. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 74 mexican garter snake one step closer to protection as an endangered species responding to a petition and lawsuit from the center for biological diversity, the u.s. fish and wildlife service (usfws) announced today that the mexican garter snake (thamnophis eques) may warrant protection as an endangered species under the endangered species act (esa) and announced that they will begin a status review to be completed by september 2006. the species is an aquatic garter snake with a distribution in arizona, southwestern new mexico, and méxico. it is one of hundreds of native riparian species that are threatened by the destruction and degradation of rivers, streams, and springs in the southwest. the center petitioned for protection of the snake 15 december 2003. populations of the mexican garter snake are severely fragmented and isolated due to loss and destruction of suitable habitat, which consists of riparian areas with permanent water, streamside vegetation for cover, and native prey species. “the decline of the mexican garter snake is symptomatic of an extremely widespread decline in the aquatic fauna of the southwest,” stated dr. phil rosen, herpetologist with the university of arizona. the mexican garter snake has been extirpated from most of its u.s. range, including the colorado, gila, and much of the santa cruz and san pedro rivers. the decline of the mexican garter snake is closely linked to the deteriorating quality of streamside habitats, the disappearance of native frogs and fishes, and the rampant introduction and spread of nonnative species, such as the bullfrog, sunfish, and bass. “widespread degradation of southwest rivers and introduction of dozens of exotic species necessitates protection of the mexican garter snake,” stated noah greenwald, conservation biologist for the center for biological diversity. “the endangered species act is an important safety net for the nation’s wildlife and could help save the mexican garter snake.” center for biological diversity 5 january 2006 second eastern box turtle conservation workshop the north carolina zoological park and the humane society of the united states are pleased to announce that the second eastern box turtle conservation workshop will be held at the north carolina zoological park in asheboro, north carolina on 24–25 march 2006. this workshop will pick up the work started at the first workshop held in laurel, maryland in 2004. several presentations will be scheduled in the morning, but the focus of the meeting will be to develop working groups for the issues identified under research, repatriation, and rehabilitation of box turtles and box turtle conservation education. u.s. turtle species added to cites appendix iii the alligator snapping turtle (macroclemys temminckii) and all species of map turtles (graptemys spp.), which are native to the united states, are being given international protection by their inclusion in appendix iii of the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora (cites). the listing, which will allow the u.s. fish and wildlife service to work with states to regulate exports, marked the first time the u.s. has used appendix iii to protect native species. the alligator snapping turtle, the largest freshwater turtle in the world, is a species of concern due to several factors that include loss of habitat and collection from the wild for human consumption and export as pets. twelve species of north american map turtles are currently recognized. two of these are on the federal list of threatened species and a third is a candidate species for federal listing. map turtles are vulnerable for many reasons; some currently known threats to the species include loss of habitat, exposure to contaminants, and collection for the pet trade. surprising killer of southeastern salt marshes: common sea snails conserving diamondback terrapins may help preserve coastal habitats periwinkles (littorina sp.), the spiralshelled snails commonly found along rocky u.s. shorelines, play a primary role in the unprecedented disappearance of salt marsh in the southeastern states, according to new research published in science. based on extensive field studies, the work challenges six decades of salt marsh science. ecologists have long thought that stressed soil – too much salt, not enough oxygen – was the main killer of this critical marine habitat. brian silliman, a brown university research fellow and a iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 75newsbriefs mexican garter snakes (thamnophis eques) are one step closer to protection as an endangered species. to m b r en n a n eastern box turtles (terrapene carolina carolina) are the focus of a second conservation workshop this month in north carolina. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h alligator snapping turtles (macroclemys temminckii) and all species of map turtles, such as this barbour’s map turtle (graptemys barbouri) are now included in cites appendix iii. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 75 76 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 newsbriefs university of florida assistant professor, said drought-stressed soils pave the way for predatory periwinkles that spread fungal disease as they graze on cordgrass. “snails can transform healthy marsh to mudflats in a matter of months,” said silliman, lead author of the science paper. “this finding represents a huge shift in the way we see salt marsh ecology. for years, scientists thought marsh die-off was simply a ‘bottom-up’ problem related solely to soil conditions. we found that the trouble also comes from the top down. drought makes the marsh vulnerable, then the snails move in.” thousands of acres of salt marsh have disappeared from south carolina to texas since 2000, according to several scientific studies. in louisiana alone, more than 100,000 acres of marsh were severely damaged between june 2000 and september 2001. this drastic decline poses a serious threat to the ecology and economy of the southeastern seaboard and the gulf coast. salt marshes serve as nursery grounds that support commercial fisheries, protect coastline from storminduced floods, and filter fresh water before it flows out to sea. mark bertness, chair of the department of ecology and evolutionary biology at brown and a co-author of the paper, said a better understanding of the causes of salt marsh loss would point to better ways to protect them. “loss of blue crabs and turtles, which prey on periwinkles, allows the snails to flourish,” bertness said. “protect the crabs and turtles [such as diamondback terrapins, malaclemys terrapin] and you can help save the marshes.” silliman came up with the periwinkle premise as a graduate student conducting field research in virginia. silliman found that removing snails from cordgrass, the dominant plant species in salt marshes, bumped up grass growth as much as 50 percent. silliman earned his ph.d. at brown and worked in the bertness lab along with johan van de koppel, a former postdoctoral research associate now at the netherlands institute of ecology. for more than two years, the trio tested silliman’s top-down hypothesis of marsh ecology along the georgia, south carolina, and louisiana coasts in conjunction with louisiana state university researchers lee stanton and irving mendelssohn. in 12 randomly selected die-off sites, the team surveyed periwinkle populations. they found the largest concentration of snails – as many as 2,000 per square meter – along dead-zone borders. to test the idea that the snails contribute to cordgrass death, they created dozens of deterrents – wire mesh enclosures measuring about one meter square. enclosures were placed ahead of fronts of grass-grazing snails and monitored for more than a year. inside the enclosures, snail-free cordgrass thrived. in fact, plant biomass increased more than threefold. outside the cages, in 11 of the 12 sites, snail overgrazing converted healthy marsh to exposed mudflats in as little as three months. when snail density was high, destruction was more extensive. researchers also wanted to test the notion that increased soil salinity, brought on by drought, acts in concert with snails to kill marshland. so, in one healthy site in georgia, the team elevated soil salt concentrations in areas with and without snails. sites were monitored for eight months. in the experimental plots, increased salinity reduced grass growth by 45 percent, while high salt levels, in combination with the presence of snails, reduced grass growth by 84 percent. how do periwinkles contribute to marsh destruction? silliman has shown that they kill the grass by slicing the stems during grazing, leaving plants vulnerable to harmful fungi. in a process called “fungal farming,” snails then consume the fungi living off injured grass. “we’ve found a synergism between climate change and grazers,” silliman explained. “severe drought triggers formation of traveling fronts of grazing snails. then there is runaway consumption, which leads to waves of marsh destruction. given predicted increases in climate change-induced drought, these results highlight the potential for marsh die-off to be even more intense and extensive in the future.” the findings, the authors argue, underscore the interplay of climate and consumers in the worldwide collapse of coastal systems. while an overabundance of snails may fuel southeastern salt marsh destruction, they point to other examples of habitat destruction that may be caused, in part, by a plethora of grazers: sea urchins wiping out california kelp beds, sea stars devastating australian coral reefs, snow geese decimating marshes along the artic sea, bark beetles killing off arizona pine forests. georgia sea grant, louisiana sea grant, the nature conservancy, the national science foundation and the schurebeijerinck-popping fund supported the work. science daily, 20 december 2005 source: brown university (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/ 12/051219091308.htm) florida may require permit for large reptiles you can’t keep them from eating alligators in the everglades. you can’t bust people for letting them loose — unless you happen to catch them in the act — but you can, at least, make people think twice before buying a burmese python or a nile monitor or any of a handful of large, nonnative reptiles that have formed wild colonies from flamingo to deland. that’s the rationale behind a new state bill that would require a $100 annual diamondback terrapins (malaclemys terrapin) are known predators of small mollusks like periwinkles. impacted by the declining quality of coastal habitats and heavily exploited by humans for food, terrapin populations in many areas have declined dramatically in historical times. actively managing the species may not only help conserve these turtles, but may help preserve salt marsh habitats in the southeastern united states. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h periwinkles (littorina sp.) are spiral-shelled snails commonly found along rocky u.s. shorelines. they apparently play a primary role in the unprecedented disappearance of salt marsh habitats in southeastern states. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 76 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 77newsbriefs permit to keep certain large reptile species, and provide for “pet amnesty days,” during which 16-foot pythons and the like can be turned in, no questions asked. while the exact list of species has yet to be figured out, and the state’s plan for the unwanted animals is fuzzy at best, the bill “is a great start,” said florida rep. ralph poppell, r-vero beach, who is cosponsoring the legislation along with sen. bill posey, r-rockledge. it would put large reptiles in the same tightly controlled category as venomous snakes — which florida residents also need a $100 permit to keep. “before, you could just buy little johnny one, no big deal,” poppell said. now little johnny could be forking over $2,500 during the course of the snake’s life, and have to answer to the state if it ever gets loose. the bill would, its supporters hope, slow the tide of unwanted reptile pets and reduce impulse purchases, since buyers would need a permit in hand first. biologists don’t expect the bill, if it passes, will make burmese pythons vanish from the everglades, or even slow their progress beyond south florida. “there’s thousands of them out there,” said kevin enge, a biologist with the florida fish and wildlife conservation commission. “burmese pythons could potentially survive up to orlando or on the coast even farther north.” strangely, the recent abundance of pythons seems to have only encouraged more python-dumping. “the park biologists are finding clean ones lately, without scratches or marks,” enge said, indicating they’ve been raised in captivity. the bill would give unhappy owners a way to dispose of their erstwhile captives. the state’s first “pet amnesty” event is being planned for orlando. what will happen to the dropped-off creatures, however, is unclear. “that’s something we’ll have to work out,” enge said. “a lot of these animals i don’t think there’s a real market for. realistically, they are probably gonna be euthanized. how we’re gonna explain that to the public i don’t know.” dave soltz, manager of mr. petman in south daytona, said he felt the $100 permit requirement would dissuade retail buyers of large reptiles. soltz said he tries to be as clear as possible about the growth and requirements of pets like burmese pythons, but it doesn’t always take. “we give them as much information as they’re willing to listen to,” he said. commercial reptile breeders, of which florida has dozens, have lent support to the permitting measure — because the alternative could be to shut down the trade in all exotics. “that would be the next step,” poppell said. “but we really don’t want to put people out of business.” enge thinks dealers may have been responsible for the first releases of nile monitors and burmese pythons, because it takes quantities of animals to establish a breeding colony. eugene bessette, an alachua county snake breeder who supports the restrictions and helped the state craft them, said he thought individual pet owners were to blame for most of the releases. “people throw away cats; they throw away dogs; they throw away children,” bessette said. “we live in a disposable society.” whatever the cause, the fact is that colonies of spiny-tailed iguanas, nile monitors, burmese pythons, african rock pythons, and boa constrictors are established in pockets of florida, and have been for years. eradication efforts are likely to intensify soon, enge said. “they’re gearing up for the burmese pythons. there will probably be federal money to try and eradicate them.” it’s not merely because 16-foot snakes freak people out, said enge, but because their prey items could include threatened and endangered species. “so far what we’ve found in their stomachs are limpkins, house wrens, one had a feral cat,” enge said. “we worry that they could get into wood stork colonies.” the bill, if it passes, may serve to keep the next big, unwelcome, predatory species out of the state. anacondas are being considered for the list. at least two have been discovered in the everglades, probably released by their owners and not reproducing. no one expects that the giant south american snakes would survive and breed here, but then, no one expected burmese pythons to, either. “ten years ago, i’d have said burmese pythons could never become established in florida,” enge said. virginia smith daytona beach news journal 19 february 2006 state to consider reptile ban in schools1 for students who have pet snakes, salamanders, or other reptiles in their classrooms, an order to remove the coveted creatures would probably seem coldblooded. state officials aren’t ready to lay down that law in public schools yet, but they recently did so at licensed child care centers across north carolina. the reason is salmonella – a bacterium found in the digestive tracts of all reptiles that can cause diarrhea, fever, headaches, and severe vomiting in humans. a newly formed panel with the n.c. commission for health services 1 editors’ note: the ircf strongly endorses the educational use of reptiles in properly supervised situations in which necessary precautions and hygiene are enforced. spiny-tailed or black iguanas, such as this ctenosaura similis, a middle american native, are locally abundant in several regions of southern florida where they often inflict considerable damage on decorative landscaping, most of which is composed of nonnative vegetation. jo se ph b u r g es s this young burmese python (python molurus bivittatus; top), caught in everglades national park, is testament to the reality that wild snakes are thriving and breeding in southern florida. the larger adult (bottom) is more typical of snakes being seen and reported; many obviously are former pets released by owners when they become too large to easily accommodate in captivity. r o y w o o d , e v er g la d es n a ti o n a l pa r k lo ri o be rh o fe r, e v er g la d es n a ti o n a l pa rk iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 77 will meet for the first time this month to discuss school sanitation rules, which haven’t been revised in 15 years, and it could be a scaly outcome for the use of reptiles in education. “the sanitation requirements now (at schools) are not nearly as restrictive as they are for toddlers and infants at child care facilities,” said ed norman, an environmental epidemiologist with the children’s health branch of the n.c. department of environment, health, and natural resources. “this committee has formed to look at those rules.” norman said the rules governing child care centers were reviewed in august and went into effect january 1. public health officials suggested the reptile ban as a way of preventing salmonella outbreaks among preschoolers who can be forgetful about handwashing. since salmonella is carried in the intestinal tracts of reptiles, they intermittently or continuously shed the bacteria in their feces. the disease can be fatal for young children or anyone with a weakened immune system, norman said. “younger kids are at greater risk, but really, any child could be,” he said. robert hunt, environmental supervisor for the nash county health department, said he knows of no childcare centers here that were affected by the new rule. in line with the state standard, his office performs health inspections only once a year at public schools in the county, but hunt said he would recommend that children not be allowed to handle a reptile – especially iguanas – in a classroom. “ensuring proper handling and handwashing afterward is very important,” hunt said. reptiles can’t be found at every school around the twin counties, but they’re not exactly uncommon. science kits furnished as part of the n.c. standard course of study provide many classrooms with critters such as hermit crabs, earthworms, and mice. at d.s. johnson elementary school, that’s also how fourth-grade teacher edith berry obtained eight anoles – tiny lizards that resemble chameleons. berry said the benefits have been innumerable. her students learn about the lizard’s ecosystem, its ability to change color according to its surroundings and its dietary affection for crickets. “it’s been absolutely wonderful,” berry said. “it’s one of the reasons my students have grown to love science.” berry requires her students to wear disposable gloves while handling the anoles. at williford elementary school, third-grade teacher suzanne lindsey doesn’t feel that’s necessary. lindsey said she has had a snake in her classroom aquarium every spring for about the last 20 years – usually from april through the end of the school year. she’s also occasionally had other reptiles. “it would be a terrible thing to have something that neat and not be able to touch it,” lindsey said. “but my kids are only allowed to hold it under supervision. “they understand the risk of salmonella, and we talk about the importance of handwashing when we’re finished.” lindsey’s students are not allowed to feed the reptiles or help with cleaning the aquarium, and she said having an animal in the classroom is more enriching than simply looking at a picture. last year, their red-bellied water snake (nerodia erythrogaster) turned out to be pregnant and gave birth to 63 babies that were each smaller than a pencil. “every class came by and saw them, and it was so memorable,” lindsey said. if the law changes, she said, so be it. “if we’re told they’re no longer allowed, i’ll respect that,” lindsey said. “unfortunately, these laws come and go.” michael barrett rocky mount telegram 6 february 2006 lose the lizards in lee county the city of cape coral has a population of the nile monitor lizard (varanus niloticus) perhaps numbering in the thousands. the city has been logging sightings and attempting to eradicate the monitor lizard since 2001. the trapping effort has included city employees, grant-funded individuals, college interns, and volunteers. so far, we have captured 120 monitors. in recent months, monitors have been sighted on sanibel island, fort myers, and in the charlotte harbor aquatic buffer preserve. they are probably established on pine island. the fears that these exotic lizards would spread to the barrier islands are most likely founded. with the realization that the city’s current efforts are not adequate to reduce the population of monitors, we are enlisting the aid of the u.s. department of agriculture, wildlife services. they have been the lead agency dealing with brown tree snakes, african pouch rats, and feral hogs, among others. they are familiar with the monitor lizard problem and are interested in assessing what is needed to control the population. they are attempting to gauge the amount of local support for an eradication/management effort. they are also interested in meeting with anyone concerned about the spread of the nile monitor in southwestern florida. we are asking you for support in eradicating the monitors of lee county, florida. the usda needs to hear from concerned individuals now. the amount of federal funding for this will depend on the amount of public support for its necessity. please pass this information along to anyone that is concerned with the spread of monitor lizards in southwestern florida. a letter or email to your congressional representatives or the usda stating your support for eradicating the florida populations of monitors would be helpful. 78 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 newsbriefs a red-bellied water snake (nerodia erythrogaster) in a classroom at williford elementary school (north carolina) greatly enriched the learning experience for students. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h todd campbell, assistant professor of biology at the university of tampa, holding a nile monitor (varanus niloticus). building on work by kraig hankins (city of cape coral), kenneth krysko (florida museum of natural history), and kevin enge (florida fish and wildlife conservation commission), whose collective efforts generated a public awareness of this issue, dr. campbell has been actively working on the monitor problem since 2003. c o u r te sy o f to d d c a m pb el l iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 78 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 79newsbriefs thank you for your efforts to preserve florida’s and the nation’s natural resources. bernice constantin florida and puerto rico wildlife services 2820 east university avenue gainesville, florida 32641 bernice.u.constantin@aphis.usda.gov kraig hankins environmental biologist, city of cape coral khankins@capecoral.net grant to fund bog turtle conservation a program aimed at restoring and conserving tennessee’s smallest, most endangered turtle got a $11,350 boost from the american zoological association’s conservation endowment fund. the grant to the knoxville zoo and bern w. tyron, the zoo’s director of animal collections/herpetology, will be used in 2006 to increase resources and staff for the tennessee bog turtle program. the program began in 1986 when the first animal was found in johnson county. funding comes from the nature conservancy of tennessee, tennessee wildlife resources agency, and the zoo. bog turtles (glyptemys muhlenbergii) live in wetlands with shallow, slowly flowing water. bog turtles are characterized by a large bright orange, red, or yellow blotch on each side of the head. these animals have been found in 12 states, from new york to maryland, and, after a 250-mile gap, south from southwestern virginia to northern georgia. fewer than 100 live turtles have been discovered in tennessee since the first was found almost 20 years ago. tyron estimated 93 wild turtles now live in the remnants of a wetland bog in eastern tennessee. the mud-loving turtles aren’t always easily seen. two of the johnson county sites were found as recently as 2002 and 2003. one of north america’s smallest turtle species, the average bog turtle is 3 1⁄2” long. the largest known southern bog turtle, found in johnson county, is only 41⁄2” long. helping wild turtles reproduce is the key to helping the species survive. researchers haven’t seen young turtles in recent years, but have found destroyed nests. “the eggs just disappear,” tyron said. data suggest that only half of the females lay eggs in any given year; typically each only lays three eggs. some of the grant money will pay for an outdoor egg incubation station to safeguard the wild turtles’ eggs. tyron and field coordinator, lynn eastin, will remove eggs from the nests they find to the center. after they hatch, baby turtles will be returned to their nest spots. while the program’s priority is restoring and managing animals found in the wild, it also places captive-born turtles into the field. born and reared for a time at the zoo, 113 of the captive-born turtles have been put on undisclosed carter county property in the last 15 years. even after 15 years, tyron said the release of the zoo-born turtles remains an experiment that cannot replace efforts to save those born in the wild. he estimates more than 50 percent of the captive-bred turtles have survived in carter county. add those to the 93 known wild animals and still fewer than 200 bog turtles live in the tennessee countryside. other cef grant money will hire a second field coordinator for the program and pay for 23 tiny radio transmitters. secured to turtle shells by epoxy, the 5.2g transmitters have allowed researchers to monitor 39 wild turtles since 2001 and nine captive-born released turtles since 2002. the grant-funded transmitters are in addition to 30 paid for by the nature conservancy. tyron plans to put a transmitter on every adult wild female turtle that is found. the transmitters will help researchers know which turtles reproduce and then find the eggs for the incubation center. bog turtles may be small, but they can move. from april until fall hibernation, a turtle may crawl 1⁄2–3⁄4 of a mile. the signal from one turtle’s transmitter led researchers to the johnson county habitat found in 2002. one turtle traveled almost 2 1⁄2 mi, moving out of its home valley and over a mountain. researchers will never know exactly where the animal was going; its transmitter was found by the side of a road. amy mcrary (amymcrary@comcast.net) 12 december 2005 memorandum of understanding between isg, iif, and icrf in october 2005, a memorandum of understanding between isg, iif, and icrf was established in order to facilitate cooperation in the development and implementation of conservation action on behalf of iguanas and their habitats. the iucn/ssc iguana specialist group (isg) prioritizes and facilitates conservation, science, and awareness programs that help ensure the survival of wild iguanas and their habitats. the isg currently consists of 86 biologists, conservation managers, and government officials from 25 countries. isg membership is by invitation from elected cochairs on behalf of the chair of the iucn species survival commission. the international iguana foundation (iif), chartered in part to support the conservation action plans of the isg, supports conservation, awareness, and scientific programs that enhance the survival of wild iguanas and their habitats. iif membership is restricted to approved board members (14 currently serve). the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf) works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them, with a strong emphasis on iguanas. an advisory council and editorial board advise the president and other officers. public membership is international with payment of annual dues, and members receive quarterly copies of the journal iguana. both iif and ircf are registered 501 c (3) nonprofit foundations and engage in fund-raising activities to support iguana conservation. ircf focuses primarily on web-based marketing campaigns and direct merchandising to fund programs, whereas iif relies strongly on a zoo base of support and extramural grants. both ircf and iif fund projects in accordance with isg conservation priorities, with priority given to those projects that: (1) are components of approved species recovery plans, (2) are isg endorsed, (3) directly contribute to the survival of endangered iguanas and their habitats, and (4) are part of an established conservation program. for researchers studying tennessee bog turtles (glyptemys muhlenbergii) received a grant from the american zoological association’s conservation endowment fund. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 79 projects not involving iguanas, ircf seeks recommendations from other iucn specialist groups as appropriate. mutual benefits include: (1) enhanced ability to develop coordinated strategies to meet ongoing project needs, particularly those of an emergency nature requiring a rapid response and the use of volunteers. (2) enhanced ability to reach the general public with conservation messages through a variety of media, including a strong internet presence, the journal iguana, joint public relations campaigns, and public venues such as trade shows. (3) enhanced information-sharing channels with the american zoo and aquarium association (aza), scientific community, and public sector to raise both monetary and in-kind services to support iguana conservation projects. (4) enhanced communication to facilitate prioritization of worthy projects, provide insight into critical project needs, and foster public support for program priorities. iif, ircf, and isg are committed to using their collective resources to promote the cause of iguana conservation. iif, ircf, and isg pledge to work together to identify and outline funding priorities and projects that complement each other. in general, iif will seek to provide long-term core project support, including baseline funding for salaries and project costs, including travel, equipment, and supplies, whereas ircf will focus on immediate, discrete, critical program needs, and gaps in funding and staff. both ircf and iif will continue to prioritize their iguana conservation efforts based on the guidance of the isg. all three organizations will strive to maintain open communication channels to maximize information flow and coordination of efforts. 80 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 newsbriefs during recent herpetological surveys, durrell wildlife’s herpetologist on the ground in montserrat, agnieszka ogrodowczyk, found a critically endangered giant montserrat galliwasp (diploglossus montisserrati). the significance of this find is that the montserrat galliwasp had been considered possibly extinct, because only two other individuals had been found in the last ten years, both from just one small area in the centre hills. this discovery provides optimism for believing that the giant galliwasp of montserrat is in a better state than was previously thought. however, the species must still be regarded as highly threatened due to the active volcano, which has already reduced the forest, on which the species appears to depend, by one third of its original range. the animal caught by agnes was 41 cm in length and weighed 170 g. giant galliwasps are large (20 cm or more in head-body length), secretive, ground-dwelling lizards found only in the neotropics. four species are known from the west indian islands of hispaniola and jamaica, but the montserrat species is the only one found in the eastern caribbean. all galliwasps are threatened with extinction, and one jamaican species is known from only one museum specimen, and may in fact be extinct. the next step is for the montserrat forestry department and durrell wildlife conservation trust to develop and carry out a full field survey of all the remaining moist forest areas in order to develop a conservation strategy for this unique island lizard. the herpetology staff at durrell wildlife also is working on and studying a closely related species in an effort to better understand these animals’ behavior and breeding ecology in hopes of generating valuable information that can be transferred to field scientists in montserrat to conserve the species in the wild. the montserrat reporter online 27 january 2006 the montserrat galliwasp in its habitat. d u r r el l w il d li fe c o n se r v a ti o n t r u st durrell herpetologist, agnieszka ogrodowczyk, holds the newly rediscovered montserrat galliwasp. d u rr el l w il d li fe c o n se rv a ti o n t ru st durrell wildlife finds montserrat galliwasp lizard thought to be extinct iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:17 am page 80 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 241table of contents ircf international reptile conservation foundation table of contents f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s denizens of the dwarf forest: the herpetofauna of the elfin forests of cusuco national park, honduras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . josiah h. townsend and larry david wilson 242 an annotated checklist of the amphibians and reptiles of st. vincent, west indies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . michael l. treglia 252 ctenosaurs of honduras: notes from the field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . stesha pasachnik 264 keeping invasive species off guana island, british virgin islands . . . . . . . . gad perry, robert powell, and howard watson 272 west indian iguanas: an update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . glenn gerber, kirsten n. hines, john b. iverson, and charles knapp 278 h u s b a n d r y successful care and reproduction of green tree monitors (varanus prasinus) at the san diego zoo . . . . . . brett baldwin 283 c o m m e n t a r y endangered by research: poachers mine the scientific literature for locations of newly discovered animals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lila guterman 288 b o o k r e v i e w sea turtles of the atlantic and gulf coasts of the united states by carol ruckdeschel and c. robert shoop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jennifer m. germano 292 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294 obituaries: ella “marie” poyner and margaret “meg” stewart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299 ircf on the move . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304 sister isles rock iguanas (cyclura nubila caymanensis): taken in august 2006 on little cayman’s west end on a residential street where iguanas bask and beg. the number of cats has increased in all areas of the island and fewer than the normal number of hatchlings were seen during this period. jo h n b in n s iguana 12.2 b&w text iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 125 hitherto we have been in pursuit of information pure and simple; i now claim the privilege of a relaxation, and ask you to paddle off with me to the hunter’s fairyland, to the elysium of reminiscences. let us go camping out. you know how it is in camping out; a man divests himself of every artificial surrounding that makes life enjoyable and then sets out to enjoy it. indian river, a vast salt-water lagoon, is the paradise of the camper-out. the eddies of the gulf stream, in ages past, have thrown upon florida’s eastern shore such an accumulation of broken shells and coquina that the mouths of the southern rivers have been closed, and their waters thrown back on the country, uniting laterally and forming extensive lagoons. indian river, 120 miles in length, connects with another system, the mosquito lagoon and matanzas, giving altogether over 300 miles of protected water travel within the sound of the surf beat of the ocean. all the game in florida, bear, deer, turkeys, panthers, were once here in the greatest abundance. in the swamps along its borders were vast heronries, where, gathered by hundreds, were beautiful egrets and snowy herons with downy, filamentous plumes. pelicans breed here by thousands, oysters are abundant, and on the sea-beach, in june, scarcely a night passes that we cannot turn over an immense turtle’s nest containing half a hundred eggs. in this lagoon also is captured the bulky sea-cow, or manatee, sometimes 8 feet in length, and weighing 500 or 600 pounds. far down in the everglades, in the little-known interior of florida, surrounded by impenetrable swamps and gloomy forest, lies the mysterious lake of the south, the vast okeechobee. at the commencement of the present century this lake was as little known as in the time of de soto; and even 50 years ago, at the beginning of the seminole war, every thing about it partook of the vagueness, and was tinged with the romance, that such an unexplored region, surrounded by indians alleged to be hostile, was likely to create. such it was even in 1874, when i organized my expedition to explore it. we were a month absent on this exploration, and my boat was the first to float upon its waters in nearly 30 years. we succeeded in dispelling the halo of exaggeration that surrounded the lake, and gave to the world a truthful account of its resources. no creek or river formed the outlet of this vast body of water; the accumulated drainage of thousands of square miles of territory slowly percolated through the everglades by countless channels. since my visit to okeechobee, a company of capitalists has effected its partial drainage and added a vast area of cultivable land to florida’s territory. the only sections not in swamp or under water were covered with huge “india-rubber” trees, delicately foliaged box, and sweet-scented bay, their trunks covered with gorgeous epiphytes with flaming blossoms, and their branches, draped in spanish moss, the roosting-place of vultures and turkey-buzzards. in the southern portion of the peninsula—around lake okeechobee and near the northern keys—reside the few historical perspectives american alligators (alligator mississippiensis) became endangered throughout florida and much of the southeastern united states as a consequence of legal hunting and, more recently, poaching. hides and meat were valuable commodities. alligators have benefited from legal protection and their conservation status has been upgraded from endangered to threatened. the species is now abundant in many areas, although habitat loss and changes in water management continue to threaten them, as well as many other species in florida. jo e w a si le w sk i roseate spoonbills (ajaia ajaja), like many other species of wading birds, were decimated by plume hunters around the turn of the 20th century. they have recovered due to protective legislation, but have not reached the populations densities recorded by ober and others during the late 19th century. jo e b u r g es s florida and the west indies1 prof. f. a. ober 1 excerpted from the 1886 journal of the american geographical society, volume 18. seminoles left in florida by the treaty of 1842—between two and three hundred only in number; and here they lead a peaceful life, cultivating their fields, and hunting. it was while among the seminoles, in 1872 and 1874, that i enjoyed my best sport hunting the alligator. all are, of course, sufficiently familiar with this saurian not to need a further description from me. by thousands and thousands the guileless alligator of tender years has been ruthlessly torn from the maternal breast and sent adrift upon the frozen north; hence, the alligator in a menagerie is as familiar as the ubiquitous monkey. even to-day, after having been the sport of tourists for years, they may be shot on the st. john’s; though the best hunting is to be found in secluded creeks and bayous. though the alligator attains sometimes a length of 12 or 14 feet, he is more commonly found at 8 or 10. his jaw is always one fourth his entire length, and one 12 feet long displays an open countenance a yard wide. the teeth work up well into ivory ornaments, and the skin, when properly tanned, makes the most durable of leather. some hunting boots i had made from a pair of nine-footers lasted me five years’ wear and tear by flood and field. the alligator’s vulnerable spots are the eye, ear and just abaft the fore-leg. the rifle is the best weapon, but i have shot several dozen with a shot-gun and some even with a small revolver. the alligator is daintily-choice in his food, preferring a dog to the piney-woods hog, and a juicy, well-developed negro to either. the bull alligators have a tremendous roar, which shakes the forest when they indulge in a concert. i once found them so numerous, in the indian country, that we gave over shooting and took to harpooning them; a certain hunt by moonlight lingers in memory yet through a dozen intervening years. one hundred years ago, when that quaint old philosopher and botanist, bartram, sailed up the st. john’s in his indian canoe, the river was without a settlement its entire length, and the worthy man was frightened nearly out of his wits by the enormous alligators, which bit pieces out of his boat and nearly succeeded in devouring him. 126 iguana • volume 12, number 2 • june 2005 historical perspectives frederick ober was born in beverly, massachusetts, to a relatively impoverished family and had little formal education. at 14, he learned the shoemaker’s trade, the traditional winter occupation of local fishermen; at 18, he was working in a drug store; at 21, he was in business with his father. however, his passion was ornithology. as a teenager, he taught himself taxidermy, collected and classified nearly all the birds of new england, and attracted the attention of alexander agassiz, the distinguished biologist from harvard. in 1871, ober abandoned business and went on a major expedition to florida to explore lake okeechobee, writing a series of vivid journal articles. for the next twenty years, he was an almost constant traveler, principally in the caribbean, but also in méxico, spain, north africa, and northern south america. ober initially saw himself as a scientist; he sent much material back to the smithsonian institution, two species of birds carry his name, and the smithsonian published the report of his first caribbean expedition. however, after the commercial success of his travel book, camps in the caribbees: the adventures of a naturalist in the lesser antilles (1879), ober broadened his horizons and, after some financial struggles, made a career for himself as a travel writer, journalist, public lecturer, novelist, and historian. ober wrote over forty books, including three classic travel books: camps in the caribbees (1879), the long and beautifully produced travels in mexico and life among the mexicans (1884), and the book that resulted from his appointment as collector of caribbean and columbusrelated material for the quatercentenary, in the wake of columbus: adventures of the special commissioner sent by the world’s columbian exposition to the west indies (1893). in addition, two of many novels had a contemporary caribbean setting: under the cuban flag, or the cacique’s treasure (1897) and the last of the arawaks: a story of adventure on the island of san domingo (1901). in the last years of his life he worked as a real-estate dealer in hackensack, new jersey, where he died in 1913. since his death, nobody has taken much interest in frederick ober or his writings, but, during the last decade of the nineteenth century, ober probably knew as much about the caribbean as anyone in the united states. he had traveled widely in the region, especially in the more remote parts rarely visited by other travelers, met with many of the statesmen and leading figures, and read widely about the area’s history. nobody knew the contemporary situation of the small indigenous populations as well, and few had a better knowledge of its history and the history of spanish colonialism with which it was intertwined. in one sense, however, this made ober an atypical figure. after 1898, when the stream of writing about the spanish-speaking caribbean became a torrent, his would seem like a minor voice, that of an amateur drowned by the instant expertise of economists, sociologists, and other analysts of the backward islands that had fallen into u.s. hands. b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h frederick albion ober (1849–1913) adapted from the online literary encyclopedia (http://www. litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&uid=3390). iguana b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 299obituaries in memoriam: margaret “meg” stewart (1927–2006) distinguished teaching professor emerita of biological sciences margaret “meg” stewart passed away on 2 august 2006 after battling pancreatic cancer. stewart was known for a lifetime of dedication to science and biological conservation. an outstanding teacher, she was particularly interested in mentoring female students. her graduate trainees are themselves a distinguished group of scientists and academics. known internationally for her studies of amphibians and reptiles, stewart officially retired in 1997, although she continued to serve as founding director of the graduate program in biodiversity, conservation, and policy. associate professor george robinson of the department of biological sciences said, “she spent a lifetime doing the difficult things that others shirked, and her fierce scots integrity stands out in all her accomplishments.” stewart’s first love was frogs. an african frog was named for her (phrynobatrachus stewartae) and is known as stewart’s puddle frog. she also studied the mink frog (rana septentrionalis) of the adirondacks, the frogs of jamaica, and the coqui (eleutherodactylus coqui) of puerto rico. her distinguished work on the coqui led to an honorary doctorate from the university of puerto rico–mayagüez in 1996. in 1979, stewart became the first woman to lead a professional herpetological organization when she was elected president of the society for the study of amphibians and reptiles (ssar). in 2005, the american society of ichthyologists and herpetologists (asih) awarded her its robert k. johnson award for excellence in service to the society and the asih’s highest award, the henry s. fitch award, for long-term excellence in herpetology. survivors include her husband, george e. martin, mathematics professor emeritus at the university at albany, and her brother, john m. stewart, a renowned peptide chemist at the university of colorado medical school in denver. o b i t u a r i e s in memoriam: ella “marie” poyner (1963–2006) ella “marie” poyner was born woo mon chue in taiwan on 25 january 1963, and was adopted by the poyner family in february 1963, moving with them to national city, california. marie’s dream of becoming a veterinarian went unfulfilled. nevertheless, she never hesitated to help animals (and people) throughout her life. marie cared for many iguanas, including baby and dragon, who came into her life in 1994. she read extensively on iguana husbandry and veterinary care in order to provide the best possible life for her charges. marie touched the hearts of many people, sharing her knowledge through online forums and providing assistance to iguanas in distress, even going so far as to purchase and ship supplies to animals in need. marie was a longtime ircf member who provided gift memberships for her friends in order to encourage them to become involved with conservation. she also was an enthusiastic supporter of the blue iguana recovery program. to make a donation honoring marie, please contact des@ircf.org. marie passed away in cleveland, ohio on sunday, 10 october 2006. she is survived by family, many friends, and her three iguanas. she will be sorely missed by all, for her sharp wit, delightful personality, and extensive iguana knowledge. rest in peace, marie. marie poyner and one of her beloved pet green iguanas. margaret “meg” stewart in the mid-1980s at el verde field station in puerto rico. g eo r g e e. m a r ti n iguana b&w text 198 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 newsbriefs suspect sliders stopped the florida fish and wildlife conservation commission approved new regulations concerning many species that are not native to florida. the new rules add the red-eared slider (trachemys scripta elegans) to a list of “conditional species” that are covered under this rule. the rule will prohibit the possession of any red-eared slider less than four inches (10 cm) carapace length after 1 july 2008, except by special permit. redeared sliders possessed prior to 1 july 2007 (when the rules are proposed to become effective) will be exempt, as will those with distinctive aberrant color patterns (e.g., albino, amelanistic); the latter sell for high prices, are unlikely to be released, and probably have low survival value in the wild. the rule does not prohibit breeders from exporting sliders out of state. the florida reptile pet industry expressed its support for the new rules. thanks go to everyone who wrote to the commission last year in support of establishing rules that would help to prohibit the mass sales of red-ear slider hatchlings in florida (at least some of which are released into the wild to compete or hybridize with native turtles). carolina herp atlas on the web the carolina herp atlas, a new online database developed by davidson college and partly funded by the n.c. wildlife resources commission (wrc), will harness the power of “backyard biologists” with an interactive website that could shed new light on countless animals across north and south carolina. “many species of amphibians and reptiles are very difficult to sample because they’re either rare, difficult to find, or active at times that make it tough,” said mike dorcas, an associate professor with davidson’s biology department. “the carolina herp atlas provides a method where we can rapidly collect information on the distribution of amphibians and reptiles, and that information is desperately needed for us to make management decisions.” “in the past, we’ve relied on a small number of herpetologists to provide the critical information that is used by the wildlife resources commission to prioritize conservation activities for reptiles and amphibians,” said chris mcgrath, a biologist with the n.c. wrc. “the carolina herp atlas is a powerful new tool that gives all citizens an opportunity to contribute scientific information that will help the commission achieve our wildlife conservation goals.” for more information or to become a member, visit the carolina herp atlas at www.carolinaherpatlas.org. raleigh, north carolina funding cut for the savannah river ecology laboratory the savannah river ecology laboratory (srel) is a research unit of the university of georgia, located on a u.s. department of energy (doe) facility and primarily funded by doe. founded in 1951, srel provides independent evaluations of the ecological effects of the nuclear reactor located on the site. activities include extensive research, including many valuable herpetological studies, as well as education and outreach. a major benefit of the savannah river ecology lab has been its long-term research and steady accumulation of detailed field records that can provide insights into, among other things, the possible consequences of climate change on the complex ecology of the region. unfortunately, we may lose this valuable resource. funding was exhausted at the end of may 2007, and the lab will be forced to close unless additional funds can be obtained. during the past year, srel has worked with savannah river site (srs) representatives to implement a new 5year cooperative agreement with taskbased funding, similar to what has been used for the past 20+ years. according to written and verbal communications from doe, the funds have been budgeted for srel tasks that have been underway since september 2006, and the funds are actually at the srs to complete these n e w s b r i e f s red-eared sliders (trachemys scripta elegans) have become a plague in florida, where they have been introduced, presumably via the pet trade. many have been released into the wild, where they are breeding and competing or even hybridizing with native turtles. the female (top) was collected in miami, the adult (middle) was photographed in oak grove park (miami), and the 28 turtles in the tubs (bottom) were trapped in one night using 12 traps at crandon park on key biscayne. k ev in e n g e redbelly water snakes (nerodia erythrogaster) are essentially ubiquitous in the carolinas. this image graces the carolina herp atlas homepage (www.carolinaherpatlas.org). e. p ie r so n h il l iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 198 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 199newsbriefs tasks. however, the funds have not been released to srel, a decision made by officials at doe headquarters in washington, d.c. the nature of the tasks proposed and approved by srs managers appears not to have played a role in this decision. the srel has been home to herpetologists drs. j. whitfield gibbons and justin d. congdon and their colleagues, collaborators, and students for 30+ years. gibbons, who received the esteemed henry s. fitch award for excellence in herpetology in 2006, and his colleagues have conducted ecological research on reptiles and amphibians since 1967, producing over 700 research papers and 15 books. the srs has been a host to several long-term ecological studies, resulting in the marking of over 20,000 turtles, and the capture and rerelease of 1.4 million amphibians and 20,000 snakes. closure of srel would also bring to an end an ongoing, longterm study of an amphibian community at rainbow bay that was initiated in 1978 and continues today with the help of researcher david scott. the loss of this long-term amphibian study comes at a critical time, when amphibian population declines are being reported globally and as many as 32% of amphibian species are threatened. srel was one of the founding constituents of partners in amphibian and reptile conservation (parc; www.parcplace.org), and members of srel were present at the first stakeholder meeting to establish parc in atlanta in 1998. “closure of srel would be a tragic loss to the global science of reptile and amphibian ecology,” stated brian todd, srel graduate student and doctoral candidate at the university of georgia. “the attempted closure of srel is yet another warning of the increased hostility against independent environmental oversight and ecological research that we have seen in recent years. today it may be srel, but tomorrow it could undoubtedly be any other ecological research lab. it saddens me deeply that the closure of srel may come so soon after the losses of srel founder dr. eugene odum and vocal srel advocate and alumnus dr. frank golley. it does no honor to their memory to dismantle the lab that they put on the map. we must come together and take a stand to declare that ‘enough is enough’ or we will see no end to the loss of important institutions like srel and others.” in late may, the investigations and oversight (i&o) subcommittee and the energy and environment (e&e) subcommittee of the house committee on science and technology called on energy secretary samuel bodman to continue funding for the savannah river ecology lab. “we are currently unsure why and how the decision was made to terminate the department’s support for the facility,” wrote i&o subcommittee chairman brad miller (d-nc). “we ask that you continue to provide support to the lab until the committee can thoroughly review the department’s actions in this case.” “the subcommittees deserve a chance to review the logic that led doe to terminate support for a lab that has been doing world-class research since 1951,” added e&e subcommittee chairman nick lampson (d-tx). “on the face of it, this is a difficult action to understand.” miller and lampson called the lab indispensable in tracking the environmental conditions around the savannah river site and providing unbiased information to the public and the government about those conditions. the chairmen have asked for continued support for the lab from doe pending further review by the subcommittee. they have also asked that the department provide all records since 1 august 2006 regarding the lab and the decision to terminate support. all citizens, including researchers, parents, teachers, and children, who want to urge doe to release the funding for srel to continue tasks approved by srs managers should contact individuals who could make this happen. the more people who express their concern, the more likely it is that action will be taken. you should write letters to your congressional representatives, newspapers, or anyone else you think should know. kansas river flood triggers snake movements alfred cramer and lisa bryson had been sitting on large, jagged rocks watching the rapid flow of the kansas river when they suddenly realized they had close company. “there was a snake and a muskrat, or something like a rat,” cramer said of a couple of critters they saw crawling among the rocks near the river’s edge just east of the bowersock dam. cramer and bryson decided it was time to move off the rocks to the dirt path behind them. they were among a steady stream of people who continued to gather tuesday on the banks of the kaw (= kansas) to watch the slowly receding river and the tremendous amount of debris it carried. ornate chorus frogs (pseudacris ornata) are among the 1.4 million amphibians that have been examined in long-term studies conducted at the savannah river ecology laboratory since 1967. the lab will be forced to close unless additional funds can be obtained after threatened cuts in federal support. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 199 200 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 newsbriefs lawrence residents jonathan doerr and steve dahlberg also saw snakes on the bank. “we thought there was a copperhead over there, but someone said it was something else,” dahlberg said, pointing to a now-vacant slab of rock. the flood may cause more snake sightings near the river, but that doesn’t mean there are more of them, said john simmons, collections manager in the division of herpetology at kansas university’s natural history museum. simmons indicated that the rising water has flooded the snakes’ usual places to sit and hide, causing them to move around, looking for places to go. water snakes in the lawrence area are not venomous, and water moccasins, which are venomous, to not occur in the area. mike belt lawrence journal-world, 9 may 2007 adding insult to injury a chesterton man faces possible charges of illegal possession of venomous snakes after one of his “pets” bit him. robert urbanski, 66, was airlifted to methodist hospital in indianapolis after suffering the snake bite. urbanski told rescue personnel he was handling a western diamondback rattlesnake (crotalus atrox) when it bit him. an indiana department of natural resources (dnr) conservation officer arrived at the home and learned that two rattlesnakes were still inside the house. urbanski told investigators that he had purchased the snakes five days earlier at a swap meet in hamburg, pennsylvania. one was a western diamondback and the other a dusky pygmy rattlesnake (sistrurus miliarius). owning venomous snakes without a permit is illegal in indiana. the dnr said urbanski did not have a permit. the case was referred to the porter county prosecutor’s office for possible charges for illegal possession of venomous snakes. the snakes are being held at the dnr’s michigan city office and will be destroyed. they cannot be returned to the wild. western diamondbacks are commonly found in the southwest, whereas pigmy rattlesnakes are found in florida. neither is indigenous to northwestern indiana. tom wyatt northwest indiana post-tribune 7 & 8 may 2007 a license to kill gopher tortoises workers buried the 30-pound gopher tortoise (gopherus polyphemus) on a lee county construction site, its shell crushed by a backhoe. two weeks later, despite a spinal injury, the determined tortoise dug its way out. the remarkable resurrection led a wildlife expert to nickname the 16-inch-long tortoise “phoenix.” it was the largest gopher tortoise ever found in the wild. it died last week. for 16 years, florida officials have allowed developers to bury gopher tortoises alive and pave over their burrows, in exchange for paying money into a fund to buy land for tortoises elsewhere. because of their low metabolic rate, tortoises can take months to suffocate under convenience store parking lots, shopping centers, and new subdivisions. by this year, the state’s pay-to-pave program had issued permits to bury more than 94,000 gopher tortoises. now the species is in sharp decline, and tortoise experts blame the permitting program. “it’s a massive loss of tortoises,” said george heinrich of heinrich ecological services in st. petersburg and a former co-chairman of the gopher tortoise council, a group of biologists concerned about the animal’s future. state wildlife officials have decided to end the program by 31 july 2007, prompting a rush by developers to beat the deadline. up to a dozen applications a week have been sent in for the last permits to kill gopher tortoises, according to rick mccann, who runs the permit program for the florida fish and wildlife conservation commission. four months ago, for instance, the orlando-orange county expressway authority got a permit to kill more than 400 gopher tortoises whose burrows were in the path of a new highway. before the bulldozers could crank up, the humane society of the united states flooding causes snakes along rivers to move to higher ground. the northern water snake (nerodia sipedon) is a common species in the kaw river system, and probably accounts for most sightings of snakes during springtime floods. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h a “pet” western diamondback rattlesnake (crotalus atrox) bit its owner, who may face charges for illegal possession of a venomous snake. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h florida’s “pay-to-pave” program had issued permits to bury more than 94,000 gopher tortoises (gopherus polyphemus). c h u c k s c h a ff er iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 200 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 201newsbriefs lodged a protest. last month the expressway authority agreed to drop its plans to kill the tortoises and agreed to move them to a gopher tortoise preserve area in the 48,000-acre nokuse plantation in the panhandle. the humane society is eager to see the pay-to-pave program end, said jennifer hobgood, program coordinator in the society’s tallahassee regional office. but hobgood is concerned about the rush to beat the deadline. the permits the state wildlife commission are issuing now have no expiration date, so developers who get them can use them any time in the future. “they would be permitted to kill limitless numbers of tortoises indefinitely,” hobgood said. no one knows for sure how many gopher tortoises remain, but more live in florida than anywhere else. however, the habitat gopher tortoises favor also is popular with developers. by 2003, more than 1.7 million acres of florida land that was once tortoise habitat had been turned into home sites, roads, shopping centers, and the like, according to the wildlife commission. in 1979, state wildlife officials included them on a list of imperiled animals as a “species of special concern.” that meant no one could harm or harass one without the state’s permission. since 1991, developers who wanted to build in gopher tortoise habitat could choose between two state-authorized solutions: write a check to the state and pave over the burrows, suffocating the occupants, or pay someone to find all the gopher tortoises and move them. moving tortoises was the feel-good choice, mccann said, but it didn’t always work. the tortoises often tried to find their way home, only to be run over; or they carried a respiratory disease that then spread to other tortoises already on their new home turf. for a while, the state required developers who wanted to relocate gopher tortoises to pay to test them for the disease first, making that option much more expensive than paying to kill the tortoises. mccann contended that the payto-pave program was, in a way, better for gopher tortoises, because the money collected from developers was used to buy and preserve 25, 000 acres of tortoise habitat. unfortunately, that makes up for only one-fifth of the habitat that’s been wiped out, hobgood said. meanwhile, the government has sanctioned suffocating tens of thousands of the animals. in a report last summer, a panel of state wildlife experts estimated that the population of gopher tortoises in florida has declined by more than half in the past 60 to 90 years. that persuaded state officials to take the first step toward bumping the tortoise up to “threatened,” one rung below “endangered.” the change is long overdue, said matt aresco, conservation director of nokuse plantation. craig pittman st. petersburg times 7 may 2007 monitor lizard shot in orlando a 41⁄2-foot monitor lizard that made waves in the lost lake subdivision earlier this month is believed to be dead, casselberry police said. a police officer caught the lizard sunning on the bank of a pond and shot it twice. the creature crawled back into the water after being struck, and authorities have not been able to locate the body. officers had been given the goahead to take out the vicious lizard after several attempts to trap it, including one in which it dragged a trapper into the water. police think the creature once was a house pet that either escaped or was released when it grew too large to be confined. residents in the area feared for their pets’ and children’s safety after close encounters with the lizard. sarah langbein orlando sentinel 27 may 2007 cairo snake smuggler snared customs officers were stunned when a passenger was caught trying to smuggle 700 live snakes onto a plane. the man was stopped at cairo’s international airport with the serpents stashed in small cloth sacks in a carry-on bag. among the snakes were two poisonous cobras. the would-be smuggler said he had hoped to take them into saudi arabia and sell them. police confiscated the snakes and turned the passenger over to the prosecutor’s office, accusing him of violating export laws and endangering the lives of other passengers. according to customs officials, the would-be smuggler claimed that the snakes are wanted by saudis who display them in glass jars in their shops, sell them to research centers, and keep them as pets. news.sky.com 25 may 2007 an orlando police officer shot a monitor lizard (varanus niloticus) sunning on the bank of a pond. residents in the area feared for their pets’ and children’s safety. to d d c a m pb el l customs officers in cairo arrested a passenger trying to smuggle 700 live snakes, including two egyptian cobras (naja haje), onto a plane. the snakes were destined for saudi arabia. w o lf g a n g w ü st er iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 201 202 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 newsbriefs los angeles gator captured one of america’s most-wanted has finally been caught — after spending the past two years lounging in a los angeles lake. for months, the 2-m american alligator (alligator mississippiensis) called reggie evaded authorities and made more headline news than the average alist celebrity. the late “crocodile hunter” steve irwin had even offered to help nab reggie at one point, when the local newspaper kept a “reggie watch” on its masthead. reggie even inspired a song, two children’s books, and innumerable tshirts. every day, crowds of people converged on harbor city’s lake machado, hoping to catch a glimpse of the elusive creature that was dumped in the park by its owner back in 2005. however, when reggie’s time was up — as he sunbathed in a secluded area of the park — he refused to surrender without a fight. in true hollywood style, as tv helicopters hovered above, and fans and paparazzi gazed on, reggie thrashed around as six men attempted to restrain him while reptile expert ian recchio hooked his neck so the alligator’s jaws could be taped shut. reggie was then loaded onto a truck by firefighters bound for the los angeles zoo, where he will be kept in quarantine for up to two months. clearly fame doesn’t come without a price. www.itv.com 25 may 2007 new texas regulations protect nongame wildlife on 24 may, the texas parks and wildlife commission approved a measure that will prohibit commercial collection of all wild turtles from public waters and public land in the state, but will still allow collection of three varieties of turtles on private property, including ranch stock tanks and farm ponds. the turtle provisions are part of new texas nongame regulations that create a “white list” of 84 species that can be collected and sold and prohibit the commercial collection of all other nongame animals not on the list. the new regulations are designed to help monitor and regulate the escalating commercial collection and sale of wild turtles, snakes, and other nongame animals (species not covered under hunting and fishing regulations) in texas. the change would protect at least 15 species of turtles and more than 200 other nongame wildlife species that are not on the white list. the texas parks and wildlife department (tpwd) staff had proposed new nongame regulations in april that would have prohibited the commercial collection of turtles everywhere in the state. however, public comments during the past few months showed that while about 90 percent of those who commented support turtle protection, some landowners expressed concerns about not being able to effectively manage turtles within their property. “we currently have a huge and growing demand for turtle meat, coupled with unrestricted commercial collection, and we need to move toward sustainability,” said matt wagner, ph.d., tpwd wildlife diversity program leader, in a briefing to commissioners on 23 may. “it is a fact that unrestricted take of any species from the wild, including turtles, over the long term leads to population declines. if we need to further restrict activity in the future, based on ongoing monitoring, we can.” the new regulations will allow commercial collection of three varieties of turtles from private property in texas, including the red-eared slider (trachemys scripta elegans), the common snapping turtle (chelydra serpentina), and the five varieties of softshell turtles (apalone spp.). commercial collection of all wild turtles will be prohibited on public land and in public waters of the state, such as rivers and public lakes. wildlife biologists say the new nongame regulations are needed in part because of increased pressure from outof-state collectors and dealers, fueled in part by a growing demand for turtle meat sold to china and other asian markets. in recent years, an average of 94,442 turtles per year were collected or purchased by at least 50 texas dealers, mostly for export from the state. wildlife experts are expressing particular concern about the turtle trade. abundant scientific research indicates that unregulated commercial turtle harvest from the wild is not sustainable. at least four southeastern states have prohibited commercial collection of turtles from the wild, and most others are more restrictive than texas. a total of 84 species are on the new white list, with annual permitting and rigorous reporting required for anyone possessing more than 25 specimens in the aggregate of listed animals for commercial purposes. “for any nongame species not on the white list, there will be a possession limit of up to six nongame animals at one time for personal use,” said matt wagner, tpwd wildlife diversity program director. “we want kids, for example, to be able to keep a pet turtle or two.” “reggie,” a 2-m long american alligator (alligator mississippiensis) became quite a celebrity before his capture in a los angeles (california) lake. d es ir ee w o n g spiny softshell turtles (apalone spinifera) may still be collected for commercial use on private land after implementation of new texas regulations addressing the unrestricted take of turtles from the wild. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 202 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 203newsbriefs box turtle conservation workshop a box turtle conservation workshop will be held 9–10 november 2007 at patuxent research refuge’s national wildlife visitor center in laurel, maryland. this is the third in a series of workshops aimed at bringing together individuals actively engaged in box turtle research and conservation to assess the status of these species, the challenges they face, and to devise strategies to help secure their future. the workshop is sponsored by the jug bay wetlands sanctuary, the humane society of the united states, and the north carolina zoological park. this workshop will focus exclusively on research studies of box turtle population status, ecology, and life history strategies. box turtle populations are declining throughout their range, yet few efforts have been made to assess current population status in the interest of developing long-term conservation strategies. the principal goals of this workshop will be to provide current information, where it exists, on population size assessment throughout the species’ ranges, and to initiate population studies in as many states as possible where these turtles occur. nature museums are threatened the great american natural history museum could be headed for the vulnerable species list, alongside the polar bear and the redwood tree. a national survey last year showed nature museums’ annual bottom lines sinking chronically into the red, and some of the leading institutions have winnowed their staffs since the decade began. science leaders worry that financial pressures and demands to boost attendance could prompt natural history museums to self-lobotomize, cutting away brain matter — the pure scientific research that’s largely hidden from the public — to save the exhibits and educational programs that are the institutions’ visible cash generators. research is what makes natural history museums special: the mandate to venture into nature and bring back new finds and fresh questions, while maintaining millions of specimens. some scientists say that amid global warming and a rapid die-off of species, these collections encompassing the world’s life forms, living and extinct, have become especially valuable for the clues they might hold. how have creatures through the eons adapted or failed as their environments have changed? what’s happening now? biologists say those questions are vital in coping with today’s challenges, and they can’t be answered fully without museum collections. “with some major exceptions, there’s been a 20-year retraction” in museum-based natural history research, said leonard krishtalka, who directs the museum at the university of kansas. “we’re slowly witnessing, by the whittling of curatorial positions, the extinction of incredible knowledge. for many organisms there are only one or two world experts, and they retire with no one to replace them.” officials with the american assocation of museums, which conducted the 2006 survey that tags natural history as an underperforming sector, cautioned against drawing strong statistical conclusions, but there’s no shortage of anecdotal woe. the milwaukee public museum lies fiscally prostrate. the academy of natural sciences in philadelphia, the deficit-ridden, 195-year-old granddaddy of american natural history museums, sold some of the family jewels to prop up its finances last year, earning $1 million for a chunk of its mineral collection. the smithsonian institution’s natural history museum in washington, d.c., which draws more than 5 million visitors a year and has the nation’s largest collection, with more than 126 million specimens, is seen as deeply troubled; the staff has shrunk almost a third since 2000. even the american museum of natural history in new york, which stands with the smithsonian and the field museum in chicago as the big three of natural history exhibits and research, has had to economize. the museum has reduced its staff about 11% this decade, although curators were untouched. the l.a. museum, which vies with san francisco’s california academy of sciences for fourth place in national rankings, turned to shock therapy in 2003, laying off 7% of its staff to save $2 million and reverse a long string of deficits. most remaining employees endured a wage freeze that ended this year. universities aren’t a strong alternative, scientists say, because many have given up their expensive-to-maintain natural history collections and focused their efforts elsewhere, including biomedical research, genetics, and technology. experts even worry that the very name “natural history museum” has a victorian tinge that makes it harder to compete for audiences and funding. “it harks back 300 years and doesn’t resonate anymore,” said krishtalka, the university of kansas museum director who reclassified his venue as a “biodiversity institute.” the challenge and potential salvation, he believes, lie in making visitors and donors understand the connection between the fate of the earth and all those seemingly inert specimens tucked into drawers or arrayed on back-room shelves in jars of alcohol. “our collections and knowledge help inform solutions to the problems the planet’s facing,” krishtalka said. “our time is now, and museums that reach out and grab that mission strongly will be the ones who survive.” mike boehm (mike.boehm@latimes.com) los angeles times 3 june 2007box turtle populations are declining throughout their range, a november workshop will focus exclusively on research studies of box turtle population status, ecology, and life history strategies. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h natural history museums are essential for addressing many different kinds of questions. for example, the study elevating the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) to fullspecies status involved the examination of museum specimens. jo h n b in n s iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 203 204 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 newsbriefs 2007 gopher tortoise council meeting the 29th annual meeting of the gopher tortoise council (gtc) is scheduled for 11–14 october 2007 at adventures unlimited, a private retreat facility north of milton, florida, in the western florida panhandle. gtc is a group of scientists, agency personnel, educators, and laypersons who are interested in the ecology and conservation of the gopher tortoise (gopherus polyphemus) and the upland ecosystems in which it lives, especially longleaf pine-wiregrass habitats. the annual meeting is an informal venue to share ideas and research results. students are especially encouraged to attend and present their research. friday’s special session, “real world solutions for conservation,” will highlight the application of scientific research, unique approaches, and new partnerships to solving conservation challenges. epa sued over pesticide poisoning of san francisco bay area endangered species the center for biological diversity filed a lawsuit against the u.s. environmental protection agency (epa) for violating the endangered species act (esa) by registering and allowing the use of 60 toxic pesticides in habitats for nearly a dozen san francisco bay area endangered species without determining whether the chemicals jeopardize their existence. may 27th would have been the centennial birthday of rachel carson, whose pioneering 1962 book silent spring raised awareness about the deadly impacts of pesticides on the environment and human health, and led to a federal review of pesticide policy and an eventual ban on ddt in the united states. “ending the use of known poisons in habitat for our most endangered wildlife is an appropriate 100th birthday tribute to rachel carson, who alerted us to the hazards of exposure to toxic chemicals almost half a century ago,” said jeff miller, conservation advocate with the center. “unfortunately, the epa has not learned from her legacy and still has no plan to adequately assess impacts while registering and approving pesticide uses that pose a clear and present danger both to imperiled species and human health.” at least 61 million pounds of pesticide active ingredients were applied in bay area counties from 1999 through 2005 — over 8.5 million pounds annually. actual pesticide use may have been several times this amount since most home and commercial pesticide use is not reported to the state. under the bush administration, the epa has consistently failed to consult with the u.s. fish and wildlife service (usfws) on endangered species impacts when registering and authorizing use of toxic pesticides. studies by the usfws, epa, u.s. geological survey (usgs), and california department of pesticide regulation show that at least 60 pesticides of concern are used or accumulate in or adjacent to (upstream or upwind) habitat for 11 bay area endangered species, including freshwater and wetlands habitat for the california tiger salamander (ambystoma californiense) and san francisco garter snake (thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia) and terrestrial habitat for the alameda striped racer (masticophis lateralis euryxanthus). according to the service, pesticide use may threaten an additional 19 of the 51 bay area animal species listed under the esa. the epa is required under the esa to consult with the usfws over registration, re-registration, and approved uses of pesticides that may endanger listed species or adversely affect their designated critical habitat. the consultation is designed to ensure that the epa avoids authorizing pesticide uses that jeopardize the existence of endangered species. the center is seeking pesticide-use restrictions in habitat for the 11 bay area species until epa and usfws assessments of pesticide impacts have been completed. the consultations should result in some permanent use restrictions for harmful pesticides. similar protections were obtained by the center for the california redlegged frog (rana aurora draytonii) under a settlement signed by the epa and the pesticide industry last october. the use of 66 pesticides is now prohibited in and adjacent to core frog habitats statewide for three years, until the epa completes consultations. “the registrations of contaminants known to be deadly to endangered species and harmful to human health, such as atrazine, should be cancelled,” said miller. “given the proximity of agricultural pesticide spraying to some bay area residential areas, surveys that have detected accumulation of pesticides in local creeks and san francisco bay, and what we know about movement of pesticides through drift and runoff, we should be wondering if we are next when we see endangered species poisoned by these chemicals.” in 2006, the center published “poisoning our imperiled wildlife: san francisco bay area endangered species at risk from pesticides” (www.biologicald i ve r s i t y.o rg / swcbd/prog r ams / science/pesticides/bayareapesticidesrepo rt.pdf), a report analyzing the epa’s dismal record in protecting endangered species and the agency’s ongoing refusal to reform pesticide registration and use in accordance with scientific findings. despite mounting evidence of harm to endangered species and human health, the bush administration keeps dodging use restrictions for dangerous pesticides and has tried to exclude wildlife agency oversight of the pesticide-registration process. in 2004, the center published “silent spring revisited: pesticide use and endangered species” (www.biologicaldiversity.org/swcbd/programs/science/pesticides/ report.pdf), detailing the decades-long failure of the epa to regulate pesticides harmful to endangered species despite numerous lawsuits, three of which have been filed by the center. the epa still has no meaningful plan to protect endangered species from pesticides. numerous studies have definitively linked pesticides with significant developmental, neurological, and reproductive damage to amphibians. pesticide contamination can cause deformities, abnorthe gopher tortoise council is a group of scientists, agency personnel, educators, and laypersons who are interested in the ecology and conservation of the gopher tortoise (gopherus polyphemus) and the upland ecosystems in which it lives. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 204 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 205newsbriefs mal immune system functions, diseases, injury, and death of frogs and salamanders. studies by dr. tyrone hayes at the university of california have strengthened the case for banning atrazine, a potent chemical that is the most common contaminant of ground, surface, and drinking water nationwide. dr. hayes demonstrated that atrazine is an endocrine disruptor that “assaults male sexual development,” interfering with reproduction by chemically castrating and feminizing male frogs. atrazine has also been linked to increased prostate cancer, decreased sperm count, and high risk of breast cancer in humans. thousands of pounds of atrazine are used each year in the bay area in close proximity to habitat for the red-legged frog and tiger salamander. the bush administration has attempted to undercut endangered species act protections by changing how pesticide impacts on wildlife are evaluated and making it easier for pesticide manufacturers to ignore the effects of their products on endangered plants and animals. the epa proposed new regulations in 2004 that would have removed input from expert wildlife agencies in determining whether pesticides threaten endangered species, but a federal court overturned these new rules in 2006. the lawsuit, report on pesticide impacts to bay area species, maps of pesticide use, and information about the listed species are available at: www.biologicaldiversity.org/swcbd/programs/science/pesticides/bay-area.html freshwater and wetlands habitat used by the endangered san francisco garter snake (thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia) has been contaminated by pesticides. a lawsuit seeks to prevent further applications until a thorough review of the effects of potentially harmful agents has been properly assessed. ?? ? o b i t u a r y george mcduffie, a well-known ohio herpetologist, passed away on 15 april 2007. born in cincinnati, ohio, on 25 august 1927, george received his bachelors (1952), masters (1956), and doctoral degrees (1960) from the university of cincinnati, the latter doing research on the natural history of copperheads in the buckeye state. his research on these snakes was published in 1963 [studies on the size, pattern, and coloration of the northern copperhead (agkistrodon contortrix mokasen daudin) in ohio. journal of the ohio herpetological society 4: 15–22]. he was one of the founding members of the ohio herpetological society, which evolved into the society for the study of amphibians and reptiles. during the 1950s and 1960s, george mentored many young herpetologists in southwestern ohio, and most of them experienced their first real snake hunt under his watchful eye. he is remembered for his sense of humor, and on field trips to shawnee state forest in southern ohio, many students and colleagues on their first field trip listened in stunned silence to the plethora of risqué limericks that he sang with gusto (and which they eventually memorized and sang also). more importantly, he took the time and made the effort to teach them how to find amphibians and reptiles, and much of what they know today about field herpetology can be traced directly back to george. at the first shawnee herpetological weekend held at shawnee state forest in may 2006, keynote speaker joseph t. collins (who grew up in cincinnati and was mentored by george during his teenage years) dedicated the event to george mcduffie, and spoke fondly of his influence. memorial contributions should be sent to the torch lake protection alliance, p.o. box 706, bellaire, mi 49615. george thomas mcduffie (1927–2007) george mcduffie with a western diamondback rattlesnake (crotalus atrox) ca. 1960. photograph courtesy cnah files. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 205 iguana b&w text 60 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 obituary sion for her fellow humans, and she channeled that professionally by becoming adept at conflict resolution and facilitation. she assisted many service and state fish and wildlife agency programs as a trainer and facilitator. she left federal aid in 2002 to become the national coordinator for partnerships in amphibian and reptile conservation (parc). alison was diagnosed with stage-4 ovarian cancer in late 2002, and on the insistence of her physicians, took a medical retirement from the service to focus on treatment and recovery. despite an unbelievably grueling regimen of surgeries and chemotherapy, alison formed a non-profit organization, cures for ovarian cancer, to advocate for early detection screening, which is not currently a part of routine physical examinations for women or provided for in health care plans. her campaign took her far and wide speaking to audiences to increase awareness. an accomplished artist specializing in water color, alison also formed the non-profit northeast wildlife heritage to raise funds for conservation efforts in the northeast through sales of her art and other crafts. alison is survived by her husband john, her parents, two sisters and a brother, and many nieces and nephews, and her two corgis, ursa and ry, named for two of her favorite constellations, ursa minor (the little dipper) and orion (the hunter). she leaves a network of friends, whom she touched deeply with her ability to make others feel good. alison’s spirit will be with us on starry nights when ursa minor and orion grace the sky, but those who knew her well will feel her presence when the planet venus rises, the diminutive planet that burns the brightest. parc has established the alison haskell excellence in herpetofaunal research and conservation award. donations for the first award can be made to: the new england chapter, tws, attn: a haskell herp award, c/o doug blodgett, vt fish and wildlife, 271 north main street, suite 215, rutland, vt 05701. john f. organ chief, division of wildlife and sport fish restoration u.s. fish and wildlife service hadley, massachusetts o b i t u a r y alison haskell (1956–2006) the fish and wildlife service family and conservation community lost a very special friend. alison haskell died peacefully at her home in ashfield, massachusetts in the company of her husband john rosseel and family and friends. alison was born on 26 december 26 1956 in berkeley, california, and grew up on the coast of massachusetts. she received a b.s. and m.s. in wildlife biology from the universities of new hampshire and massachusetts, respectively. her master’s thesis focused on population ecology of the plymouth redbelly turtle (pseudemys rubriventris). she studied at tufts university veterinary school, where she also worked as the chief veterinary technician at the wildlife clinic for five years, and became noted for her exceptional ability in handling raptors. in 1993, she joined the fish and wildlife service as a wildlife research specialist in the division of federal aid. alison’s unique and extraordinary blend of skills, ranging from wildlife health to population viability analyses, suited her extremely well in administering a wide variety of grant programs, including section 6 endangered species, wildlife restoration, partnerships for wildlife, wildlife conservation and restoration program, and state wildlife grants. alison’s passion for wildlife may have been exceeded only by her compasalison haskell in the field with a bear cub. fr ed s n y d er , n ew j er se y d iv is io n o f fi sh a n d w il d li fe an eastern box turtle (terrapene carolina carolina): watercolor by alison haskell. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 60 iguana b&w text 294 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 newsbriefs snake-spotting may have helped humans evolve snakes may make people jump for a good reason — human close-up vision may have evolved specifically to spot these reptiles. humans, monkeys, and other primates have good color vision, large brains, and use their vision to guide reaching and grasping. although some scientists believe these characteristics evolved together as early primates used their hands and eyes to pick fruit and other foods, lynne isbell, a professor of anthropology at the university of california–davis, believes they may have evolved to help primates evade snakes. “a snake is the only predator you really need to see close up. if it’s a long way away it’s not dangerous,” said isbell, who has published her theory in the journal of human evolution. neurological studies show that the structure of the brain’s visual system seems to be well connected to brain structures involved in vigilance, fear, and learning, she said. mammals evolved about 100 million years ago and fossils of snakes with mouths big enough to eat those mammals appeared at about the same time, she pointed out. other predators, such as big cats, hawks, and eagles, evolved later. venomous snakes evolved about 60 million years ago, which forced primates to get even better at detecting them. “there’s an evolutionary arms race between the predators and prey. primates get better at spotting and avoiding snakes, so the snakes get better at concealment, or more venomous, and the primates respond,” isbell said. no dangerously venomous snakes occur on madagascar, and lemurs, which only live on that large island and which have poor eyesight, have not evolved much in other ways in the past 60 million years, either, isbell added. reuters news online 20 july 2006 washington, d.c. state wildlife agent targets black market for turtles on internet box turtles are known for their lethargic pace and tough shells. but lately the alabama-native reptiles are becoming a fast-moving commodity on an illegal black market. experts say the animals are going to need more than shells to protect themselves from unlawful turtle-catchers. lt. michael bloxom is an alabama wildlife and freshwater fisheries division officer who is designated to help them. he spends part of every workday looking for turtles, deer, snakes, and other alabama animals for sale on the internet. recently, his efforts paid off, leading to the arrest of two couples in wedowee. according to randolph county assistant district attorney amy newsome, porsha and wayne price and daniel and rebecca smith of wedowee were arrested and convicted of possessing protected animals for sale earlier in july. police say the four had been selling endangered eastern box turtles (terrapene carolina carolina) online and mailing them to buyers around the country and possibly abroad. the two couples had no connection to each other that police can find and claimed they did not know selling the turtles is illegal. all four spent a short time in jail before being released to 24 months of probation, paying $100 fines, and forfeiting money they earned in the sales. the two wedowee couples are not the only people involved in the illegal capture and sale of turtles in alabama. bloxom said eastern box turtles mostly are being sold as pets at flea markets or shipped to “turtle farms” in louisiana and arkansas. farmers who want to breed the reptiles pick up other turtles. some farmers breed turtles to sell the eggs or hatchlings as pets, bloxom said. others breed the turtles for food.1 in louisiana and parts of asia, bloxom said, farmers inject the turtles with hormones and slaughter them like chickens every year. turtles are a traditional source of meat in cajun cuisine. “within a year they’ve got an eating-sized turtle,” bloxom said. for the farmers, capturing turtles in the wild makes economic sense. “when you want to start a turtle farm, where do you start?” bloxom asked. “you can get these little hatchlings and wait five or 10 years for them to mature or go into the wild and catch some breeding-sized turtles.” but turtle catching can create a strain on the environment, especially the evolution of snakes with mouths big enough to eat mammals may have forced primates to develop close-up vision to detect them. r o b er t po w el l n e w s b r i e f s 1 editor’s note: box turtles (genus terrapene) frequently consume poisonous fungi and may retain toxins that could be passed to anyone eating the meat. when the turtles are endangered like the box turtles, which have been on the federal endangered species list since 1973. bloxom said that in the late 1990s, the number of turtles in weiss lake declined dramatically because of turtle-catchers. turtle populations haven’t recovered, bloxom said. state lawmakers set a catch limit of 10 turtles per day after seeing the declining numbers in weiss lake. turtles can provide an important part of the ecosystems where they live, eating insects and decaying organic material, said kevin jenne, a biologist at the anniston museum of natural history. “they’re another link in the food chain,” he said. “if you get rid of them, there may be too many worms here or too many bugs there.” said bloxom: “just think if everyone thought ‘hey i can get on the computer and make a hundred bucks a turtle.’ there wouldn’t be any turtles left.” jenne said the reptile trade took off in the 1990s and has not slowed since. snakes and lizards have been imported into the u.s. from all over the world, leaving other areas with greatly reduced numbers of indigenous animals. “if something becomes a fad, some local will say ‘hey i can make some money off of this’ and go catch and sell native animals,” jenne said. turtle catchers typically bait partially submerged boxes or small, round fishing nets with dead fish and collect the turtles. once the turtles are caught, they usually are placed in burlap sacks with 30 or 40 other turtles and put on trucks to be hauled as far away as arkansas. “when you get them in there in june or july, it becomes like an oven in there for them,” bloxom said. box turtles first were placed on the federal list of endangered species in 1973 because the numbers of young turtles being found was lower than expected. since turtles often live much longer than humans, the plentiful numbers of adults still may be seen in 20 years. but when that generation dies out, biologists like jenne fear the younger turtles may not be able to replace them. all turtles have a “4-inch rule,” jenne said. turtles whose shells are less than 4 inches around cannot be bought or sold. this is to protect turtles that have not reached sexual maturity, jenne added. bloxom said box turtles are not the first species in alabama that the demands of the retail market have threatened. in the 1990s, freshwater mussels, which can be used for the production of cultured pearls, and paddlefish, sought for their caviar, were in such high demand that laws were passed to keep the species from being wiped out. recently, bloxom and his agents have learned of truckloads of bullfrogs and crawfish being shipped out of the state. “that’s not illegal, but it’s our job to find out if that is going to cause a problem,” he said. even deer have become a popular export for some traffickers. people in neighboring states will pay good money for live deer to stock their hunting reserves, bloxom said. “we may be worrying about turtles today and deer tomorrow,” he said. andy johns the anniston star (http://www.annistonstar.com/) 2 august 2006 first successful breeding of released blue iguanas in the salina reserve, grand cayman in december 2004, thirty-two grand cayman blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi) were released into the national trust salina reserve, inland from the queen’s highway. the iguanas had been reared in captivity to two years old. a year later, an additional 73 twoyear-olds were released in the same areas of the salina reserve. in the summers of 2005 and 2006, these released iguanas were monitored by teams of local and international volunteers, and this year, three females from the 2004 release were seen digging nests to lay their eggs. on 8 september, one of those nest sites had developed a hole, indicating that the eggs inside may have hatched, and the hatchlings dug to the surface. the nest has now been carefully excavated, and three perfect, hatched eggshells were recovered from the nest chamber a foot underground. the hatchlings have probably dispersed in search of safe retreats, and have not yet been sighted. iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 295newsbriefs populations of eastern box turtles (terrapene carolina carolina) in alabama have been declining due to illegal collection for sale at flea markets or to turtle farms in louisiana and arkansas. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi) bred successfully for the first time in the salina reserve since the blue iguana recovery program began restoring the population. fr ed b u r to n 296 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 newsbriefs this landmark event is the first time successful reproduction of blue iguanas in the salina reserve has been seen, since the blue iguana recovery program began restoring a population there. the other two nests, which were laid later in the summer, are still being monitored. butler’s garter snake and endangered species acts threatened by wisconsin legislature the wisconsin legislature, usually known for protecting the state’s natural resources, has recently taken significant action in regards to the butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri). in wisconsin, this species is listed as “threatened,” and is protected against take in areas were it is found. its very small range in the state exists primarily in the rapidly developing greater milwaukee area. the majority of existing habitat for the butler’s garter snake is on private land. efforts to protect and preserve the snake on these lands has resulted in a growing conflict with regional developers, supported strategically and politically by the milwaukee builder’s association and to a lesser degree by the real estate industry. two major efforts have been made to delist the snake, the second of which is pending. wisconsin’s legislative joint committee for the review of administrative rules (jcrar) voted to delist the snake as of 1 october 2006 if the department of natural resources (dnr) does not take significant steps to reduce the impact of protection on the development community. in their decision, the committee put forth no scientific evidence that the butler’s garter snake should have its threatened status removed. furthermore, the steps they required of the dnr were unreasonable and cannot be met in the time allotted. if the delisting takes effect, it will be the first time in the nation’s history that a listed species has been delisted for economic reasons and without sound scientific data driving the decision. such an action would set a dangerous precedent for species protected under both state and federal endangered species acts. horned lizard working group the horned lizard working group met 15–17 september 2006, at the windmill ranch, west of snyder, texas. the working group was formed in 2005 to bring together regional biologists and land managers and to discuss research priorities for the conservation of texas horned lizards (thl: phrynosoma cornutum). this year’s program expanded to include flat-tailed horned lizards (fthl: p. mcallii). we hope to see further expansion in the future. eleven speakers from texas, oklahoma, colorado, and arizona presented recent and ongoing research related to horned lizards (phrynosoma). topics included life history, seasonal and daily activity patterns in wild and urban populations of thl, effects of burning and grazing management regimes on thl, citizen monitoring program for thl, and captive care and husbandry of thl at the ft. worth zoo, conservation genetics of the fthl, gis model of niche evolution in horned lizards, and management of red harvester ants (pogonomyrmex barbatus). a round-table discussion of the importance, necessity, and difficulties of reintroducing thl to parts of its former range completed the primary activities of the meeting. abstracts for the 2006 meeting can be read online at the hlcs webpage: www.hornedlizards.org. attendees noted that service and support by the staff of the windmill ranch was impeccable. next year’s meeting was discussed with board members of the horned lizard conservation society to coincide with a larger national meeting in fort worth, texas, in mid to late summer. next year’s meeting will strive to include research efforts on additional species of phrynosoma and management and conservation issues related to these lizards. the hlcs also intends to provide small research grants for the 2007 field season, and an announcement should appear on the society’s web site in the near future. some of the participants at the horned lizard working group meeting at the windmill ranch in texas. representatives of universities (texas tech university, university of texas), the military (texas army national guard, moody air force base in oklahoma), the state (texas parks and wildlife), and a zoo (fort worth zoo) are shown, demonstrating the diversity of groups interested in the conservation of texas horned lizards (phrynosoma cornutum). a committee of the wisconsin legislature has voted to delist butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri), currently listed as threatened in the state. g a r y c a sp er conserving one of the rarest reptiles in north america: the louisiana pine snake the southeast and southwest regions of the u.s. fish and wildlife service are collaborating with several partners to conserve the louisiana pine snake (pituophis ruthveni), which inhabits longleaf fire forests in louisiana and texas. the species produces the largest egg (7.5–12.5 cm) and hatchling (46–56 cm) of any north american colubrid snake. a 2004 candidate conservation agreement provides a framework that is being used to develop a comprehensive cooperative plan for recovery, so that the species may not need to be listed. specific goals, strategies, and success metrics will be established for each conservation category, which includes: (1) ecosystem conservation; (2) habitat management; (3) monitoring and trapping; (4) captivebreeding; (5) research, (6) outreach and education, and (7) integration of public and private-land conservation efforts. based on the foundation established by the agreement, the 2006 annual louisiana pine snake meeting in early august fostered growing interagency and private-land owner cooperation. it provided an active forum that stimulated lively debate and discussion. the meeting was hosted by the u.s. forest service in nacogdoches, texas with strong support from arlington, texas and lafayette, louisiana field offices. participants included state wildlife agencies in louisiana and texas, the national forest of louisiana and texas, the u.s. forest service southern research station, the department of defense at fort polk, louisiana, the natural resource conservation service, the nature conservancy, the texas department of transportation, stephen f. austin university, texas a&m university, the ellen trout zoo of lufkin, texas, and private landowners that included temple-inland, international paper, and timberstar. video footage taken at the meeting of this multi-partner, two-state cca will be one of three agreements featured in a video on candidate conservation agreements that is in production by the u.s. fish and wildlife service’s national conservation training center in shepherdstown, west virginia. bolson tortoise returns to its historic range the endangered “tortuga grande,” as its known in the southern mexican states of chihuahua, coahuila, and durango, last week returned to its historical northern range on the armendaris ranch in eastern sierra county. “you have been invited to celebrate the return of the bolson turtle (gopherus flavomarginatus) to its native chihuahuan grassland; this is its habitat,” ladder ranch manager steve dobrott told a couple dozen visitors who gathered at the armendaris on 15 september to witness the reintroduction. the ladder ranch in western sierra county was originally identified as the reintroduction site, but the armendaris more closely resembles the turtle’s natural habitat. both ranches are owned by media tycoon and conservationist ted turner. the turner endangered species fund is spearheading the reintroduction, as it has for many an endangered species, including most recently the aplomado falcon (falco femoralis) last month at the armendaris. myles traphagen, biologist for the turner endangered species fund, said the bolson turtle enjoys the highest designation of endangered species internationally, but it has been a challenge keeping the species viable. for one, the scientific community didn’t identify the species until 1958, when a group of biologists from the university of illinois were visiting mexico on an unrelated project and encountered some locals who were using the turtle’s shell, or carapace, as a chicken feeder. asked about the shell, the villagers said it came from “la tortuga grande.” according to scientific documentation provided by traphagen, the bolson tortoise is the largest terrestrial turtle in north america. it is capable of obtaining carapace lengths between 14 and 16 inches, with undocumented reports of them reaching 39 inches in length and weighing 77 to 100 pounds. several factors contributed to the species’ decline. high on the list is their status as a food source. “it’s a big, slowmoving piece of meat,” traphagen noted, adding climate change and urbanization also are responsible for their declining numbers. the species also has a low suciguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 297newsbriefs louisiana pine snakes (pituophis ruthveni) inhabit longleaf fire forests in louisiana and texas. a 2004 candidate conservation agreement provides a framework that is being used to develop a comprehensive cooperative plan for recovery, so that the species may not need to be listed. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h the bolson tortoise (gopherus flavomarginatus) has returned to its native chihuahuan desert grassland habitat in new mexico. d a v id j . m o r a fk a 298 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 newsbriefs cess rate when it comes to reproduction. although a female tortoise is capable of laying about 10 eggs per year, the young are susceptible to a long list of predators, including rats, ravens, and snakes. on the plus side, turtles can live up to 100 years and can survive for up to a year without water. an initial population of seven tortoises will inhabit the eight-acre pens, which are enclosed by a knee-high fence. each pen contains 14 burrows that were constructed by cutting 18-inch plastic sewer pipes in half, digging a trench and building a quonset-hut-style enclosure angled into the ground. while the turtles are being reintroduced on the armendaris, a hatchery will be built on the ladder, according to traphagen. “this is a pretty historic event,” armendaris ranch manager tom waddell noted at the outset of the release. while biologists are certain that the bolson tortoise’s historical range extended all the way to the northern edge of the chihuahuan desert, no traces of the species have been uncovered at the armendaris. “i like to think they lived here at one time, but were buried by the sands of time and the ever-blowing winds of the jornada (del muerto).” tony a. archuleta herald reporter torc times, truth or consequences, new mexico rare finds: expedition uncovers caribbean plants a team of scientists from fairchild tropical botanic garden embarked on an expedition to jamaica’s rugged cockpit country to find some of the caribbean’s rarest plants, some of which have not been seen for 100 years. in three weeks of searching, the team rediscovered eight plants, found two species new to science, and began cataloging the rich biodiversity of the caribbean island, home to plants not seen anywhere else in the world. the remote area, with bowlshaped valleys surrounded by deceptively benign-looking hills, aside from its concentration of plant diversity, is the source of 40 percent of the water in jamaica. its tapestry of plants includes more than 1,000 species within 500 square miles. the entire florida peninsula — at 66,000 square miles — holds only about 4,000. among the targets of the six fairchild biologists and horticulturists: the eight-foot euphorbia alata, a poinsettia relative that hasn’t been viewed since 1906. rugged conditions have protected these hills, creating a refuge for ferns, lypanthes orchids, birds, the endangered jamaican boa, black-billed parrots, and a swallowtail butterfly with wings up to eight inches across. relatively isolated and without roads, the area nevertheless is coming under pressure as tons of sapling trees are cut every year for growing yams, weeds follow people who are pushing in from the edges, and aluminum companies prospect for bauxite mines. one of the team’s resources was botanist george proctor, who has lived in jamaica since 1949 and is the resident expert on the island’s plants. proctor, 86 and still working, surveyed the region 30 to 40 years ago. he accompanied the team for a few days and has a contract with fairchild to write a checklist of the plants of the cockpit country. although unable to climb with the team, proctor was able to tell the scientists exactly where to look. fairchild is working with florida international university, the university of puerto rico, the smithsonian institution, and the u.s. department of agriculture to catalog the caribbean’s plant diversity. through their research, fairchild scientists tallied 169 endemics in this biodiversity hot spot; cockpit country claims 64 of these. information collected on this expedition will assist jamaican environmental and forestry agencies with planning environmental protection policies. georgia tasker gtasker@miamiherald.com 18 october 2006 farmers lobby fda for overturn of long-time turtle ban citing new study on salmonella the food and drug administration is the target of a lobbying campaign by a handful of farmers to reverse a threedecade u.s. ban on selling baby turtles. the agency prohibited sales in 1975, after the then-popular pets were blamed for causing as many as 280,000 salmonella infections a year, mostly in children. the fda edict almost completely barred u.s. commerce in “animals commonly known as turtles, tortoises [or] terrapins” with shells less than four inches long. the size was selected largely because bigger turtles couldn’t easily be popped into children’s mouths. their efforts center on the redeared slider (trachemys scripta elegans), a turtle native to areas that include the mississippi delta and watery central and southern louisiana. as long ago as the late 1950s, growers began stocking manmade breeding ponds with adult turtles, which laid their eggs on the ponds’ sandy banks. farmers collected the eggs, hatched them, and, by the 1970s, were selling millions of quarter-size, green and yellow babies each year. the turtles, which can grow to a foot long and live for more than three decades, were typically sold in the u.s. as pets. that’s the problem, the fda says. turtles often carry salmonella in their digestive tracts. infected turtles can convey the bacteria to their eggs (the fda also restricts the sale of turtle eggs in the u.s.). although bacteria-carrying turtles may not show symptoms, they can spread salmonella to their handlers. ingesting it — typically after failing to wash hands after playing with a turtle — can lead to vomiting, fever, and cramps, even death in vulnerable patients. after the 1975 restriction, turtle-related infections nearly vanished. anna wilde mathews wall street journal 4 october 2006 turtle “farmers” are lobbying the food and drug administration to reverse a 1975 ban on the sale of turtles with shells less than four inches long. their efforts center on redeared sliders (trachemys scripta elegans). d a r r el l se n n ek e, w o r ld c h el o n ia n t r u st iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 1table of contents ircf international reptile conservation foundation table of contents f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) on the southern shore of lago enriquillo, dominican republic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ernst rupp, sixto incháustegui, and yvonne arias 2 species profile: hispaniolan lesser racer (antillophis parvifrons) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert w. henderson 7 studying a population of texas horned lizards (phrynosoma cornutum) in an urban/military environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . raymond w. moody, debora a. endriss, eric c. hellgren, and stanley f. fox 8 the gharial: going extinct again . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . romulus whitaker 24 h u s b a n d r y aspects of light and reptilian immunity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . henry brames 18 p r o f i l e been there, done that: a profile of james b. murphy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . david t. roberts 34 t r a v e l o g u e s a costa rican adventure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . janelle m. pansza 38 from here it’s possible: a texan visits the tropics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . kaela e. champlin 42 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e notes on iguanids and varanids in a mixed exhibit at dallas zoo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . james b. murphy 45 c o m m e n t a r y collecting animals from nature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 47 b o o k r e v i e w the reluctant mr. darwin: an intimate portrait of charles darwin and the making of his theory of evolution by david quammen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . nancy cervetti 52 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 natural history research reports: summaries of published reports on reptilian natural history . . . . . . . 56 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 obituary: alison haskell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 ircf on the move . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 critically endangered red-crowned roofed turtles (kachuga kachuga) occur primarily in the watershed of the ganges river, where they are affected by some of the same threats as the gharial (gavialis gangeticus; see story on p. 2). b r ia n h o r n e iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 1 iguana b&w text physiology and sociality: why banded geckos band aggregation may have important reproductive, ecological, and fitness implications. although studies of aggregating behavior have been conducted for many species, few have measured the benefits of lizard aggregation. lancaster et al. (2006. animal behaviour 72:199–207) conducted a study to determine the benefit of aggregation in the desert-dwelling banded gecko (coleonyx variegatus). geckos from borrego springs, san diego county, california were housed in groups of five and offered a surplus of retreats in an effort to test the hypothesis that geckos benefit from grouping by lowering rates of evaporative water loss. the authors also tested effects of humidity and scents of conspecifics and predators. geckos avoided predator-scented areas, supporting past work on other species, but did not band together to avoid predators. nor did lizards use conspecific scents to choose retreat sites, and no social or mating benefits were found. instead, the study showed that banded geckos benefit from aggregation by lowering rates of evaporative water loss. thus, aggregation provides physiological but no evident social benefits for coleonyx variegatus. foraging ecology of tokay geckos although individuals exhibited varied foraging behavior, aowphol et al. (2006. amphibia-reptilia 27:491–503) found no significant differences in foraging parameters (foraging period, time spent moving, foraging attempts, foraging success, prey size consumed, and foraging distance) among male, female, or juvenile tokay geckos (gekko gecko) in thailand. foraging occurred from 1800–0900 h, peak emergence was from 1800–2000 h, and peak retreat time from 0400–0700 h. food items were insects, most in the orders lepidoptera, orthoptera, and coleoptera. the lack of size differences in prey taken by geckos of different sizes reflected no prey size selection, possibly attributable to low insect availability. geckos mostly used a sitand-wait strategy, but foraged more widely when prey was relatively abundant. are snakes with narrow distributions more specialized? the italian aesculapian snake (zamenis lineatus) has a narrow distribution in southern italy and on sicily. capula et al. (2006. amphibia-reptilia 27:531– 537) examined the diet of this snake to test the hypothesis that species with narrow distributions will be more ecologically specialized than wide-ranging relatives. the diet of adult z. lineatus consisted of small mammals and birds, whereas that of juveniles was composed mainly of lizards. diets of males and females did not differ. the authors concluded that the feeding ecology of z. lineatus was very similar to that of the widespread ecological generalist, z. longissimus, indicating that the assump56 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 natural history research reports n a t u r a l h i s t o r y r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s desert-dwelling banded geckos (coleonyx variegatus) benefit from aggregating in groups because that lowers rates of evaporative water loss. je ff l em m tokay geckos (gekko gecko) are native to southeastern asia, but have been widely introduced in tropical and subtropical areas. a study in thailand indicated that adults of both sexes and juveniles were active at comparable times, used essentially similar foraging strategies, and ate the same types of prey. je ff l em m the feeding ecology of the italian aesculapian snake (zamenis lineatus) was very similar to that of the widespread ecological generalist, z. longissimus, indicating that narrowly distributed mediterranean snakes are not more specialized than their widely distributed counterparts. st ef a n m o el le r , w w w .e la ph e. in fo iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 56 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 57natural history research reports tion that narrowly distributed mediterranean snakes are more specialized than their widely distributed counterparts does not apply to the dietary ecology of these snakes. jump dispersal in introduced mediterranean geckos from 1962–1997, mediterranean geckos (hemidactylus turcicus) were intentionally introduced multiple times into a science building at the university of central oklahoma in edmond. in 2005, locey and stone (2006. journal of herpetology 40:526–530) recorded 365 captures of 305 individuals and estimated the population size to be 1005 geckos with at density of 478 lizards/ha. the population had dispersed a maximum of 200 m from the point of introduction, a diffusion dispersal rate of 20 m/yr. the wide distribution of this species across the southern united states since their introduction in key west, florida was recorded in 1910 suggests that expansion of the species’ range occurred as a consequence of multiple jump dispersal events instead of slow diffusion dispersal. population structure and density of leopard tortoises leopard tortoises (geochelone pardalis) are the largest tortoises in southern africa, where they are widely distributed in a variety of habitats. mcmaster and downs (2006. journal of herpetology 40: 495–502) studied leopard tortoises in semi-arid farmland in nama-karoo, central south africa. the sex ratio of 92 tortoises did not differ significantly from 1:1. adult females were larger than adult males, and adults were larger than conspecifics studied in more mesic habitats. a population estimate of 57.6 ± 4.0 tortoises translated to a very low density of 0.017 tortoises/ha, much lower than in more mesic situations. slow rates of diffusion dispersal in introduced mediterranean geckos (hemidactylus turcicus) suggest that the wide distribution of this species across the southern united states is a consequence of multiple jump dispersal events. d a w so n /w ik ip ed ia .o r g the population density of leopard tortoises (geochelone pardalis) was lower in dry south african habitat than in more mesic situations, but adults were larger. a n d er s g .j . r h o d in , c h el o n ia n r es ea r c h f o u n d a ti o n butler’s garter snake will remain on protected list a legislative committee in wisconsin that this summer had threatened to remove butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri) from a protected list that stops developers from killing it, reversed course and decided to allow the snake to remain on a list of threatened species. the decision was praised by state department of natural resources executive assistant mary schlaefer, who said protecting the endangered snake was vital to the overall health of the environment. critical steps need to be taken when there is a species like this snake that is in danger of disappearing, she said. with their habitat shrinking, the reptiles were placed on the threatened list in 1997 by the dnr, meaning that in most cases the snakes cannot be killed. the protected area encompasses about 405,000 acres in southeastern wisconsin. known for its colorful yellow stripes, the 1to 2-foot-long snake is generally found in marshes, prairies and fields, as well as in roadside grassy areas and in vacant lots. in addition to southeastern wisconsin, it can be found in ohio, indiana, michigan, and in southern canada. the republican-controlled joint committee for review of administrative rules decided in july to remove the snake from the dnr’s threatened list if the agency didn’t soften its regulations. the agency on tuesday outlined a number of changes it had made and was in the process of implementing, including reducing the time of review of proposed projects from 27 to seven days and coming up with more funding to reduce costs for homeowners to get needed surveys. those surveys can cost up to $10,000, said andy galvin, a consultation specialist in the dnr’s bureau of endangered resources. the agency also reduced the number of acres in the protected area by 500. it is working to identify as many as 65 protected sites for the snake. once those are established and stabilized, regulations on private landowners can be ended more quickly, schlaefer said. “our goal is to manage based on science, but in a way that minimizes impact on homeowners,” she said. the committee voted 7-2 not to take the snake off the protected list. one of the two no votes, state rep. debi towns, r-janesville, said she was concerned that the dnr was not setting a n e w s b r i e f s a legislative committee in wisconsin that this summer had threatened to remove butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri) from a protected list that stops developers from killing it, reversed course and decided to allow the snake to remain on a list of threatened species. g a r y c a sp er iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 57 iguana b&w text 38 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 pansza costa rican scarlet macaws (ara macao) squawk and litter the ground beneath the high trees in which they perch with rotting fruit and molted feathers. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 38 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 39travelogues during winter break 2005/2006, my sister and i traveled to costa rica. we were undergraduates in a class intended to experience three ecosystems: dry forest, cloud forest, and rain forest. our journey into this phenomenally biodiverse country began at the very small airport in liberia. open to the elements, humidity covered us like a thick blanket — but i could hear calls of exotic birds in the open rafters of the airport roof, and they reminded me why i was here. the drive to our first destination was bumpy and slow. the driver informed us that some of the locations we would visit had been inaccessible except by horseback or atv until the last few years. the scenery was spectacular, although patches had obviously been clear-cut; much cultivated land is devoted to tropical plants, especially bromeliads, which are exported to europe and the u.s. with a very pro-environmental democratic government, and a highly literate (including computer-literate!) populace, the standard of living in costa rica is among the highest in latin america. nevertheless, costa rica still has a relatively impoverished underclass. i observed houses made of pieces of tin and surrounded by naked children and livestock. alongside poverty, we also observed some large haciendas, mostly associated with cattle ranches, the primary cause for deforestation in costa rica. we first stayed at the base of the rincon de la viejo volcano, and had a terrific view of the crater on one side and unspoiled dry forest on the other. after dark, the croaking serenades of house geckos (hemidactylus frenatus) and cane toads (bufo marinus) were common. these species have adapted well to human-altered environments, and many a hotel pool in costa rica hosts toad parties well into the wee hours. a pre-sunrise concert of birds, interrupted periodically by raucous parrots, preceded zip-lining in the canopy. a huge male black iguana (ctenosaura similis) basking on a rock made the trip back worthwhile. black iguanas, known locally as “garrobos,” also seem surprisingly well adapted to human presence. these animals were abundant in many of the sites that we visited. an afternoon hike along the pailas trail was enlivened by black-handed spider monkeys (ateles geoffroyi) and our first close encounter with massive strangler figs (matapalo ficus), coatis (nasua narica), and an agouti (dasyprocta punctata). t r a v e l o g u e s a costa rican adventure janelle m. pansza department of biology, avila university, kansas city, missouri anoles (anolis sp.) were ubiquitous along the edges of forests. ja n el le m . p a n sz a in areas frequented by ecotourists, wildlife, such as this female whitecollared manakin (manacus candei) lose their fear of humans. ja n el le m . p a n sz a iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 39 40 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 pansza cattle ranching is the principal cause of deforestation in costa rica. ja n el le m . p a n sz a green iguanas (iguana iguana) often bask on branches overhanging forest waterways. ja n el le m . p a n sz a iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 40 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 41travelogues at the santa marta ranger station in guanacaste national park, we saw our first snake, a beautiful green vine snake (oxybelis fulgidus) drinking at a rainwater pool. the next ecosystem we visited was the cloud forest at monteverde. the hills were green to the very top of the mountains, and you could see all the way to the ocean. green iguanas (iguana iguana) were common in roadside trees. when we reached our lodge, the weather was rainy, cool, and windy. investigating munching noises in a nearby tree, we spotted a two-toed sloth (choloepus didactylus) mere meters from our balcoati mundis (nasua narica) have become proficient panhandlers. ja n el le m . p a n sz a zip-lining through the canopy provides a totally different perspective of the forest. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 41 clinging to the front seat of the “turismo” bus for dear life, i anxiously awaited certain death as the bus squeezed past cars on the winding, narrow road leading to the small town of atenas near san jose. i wanted to close my eyes but couldn’t sacrifice the view. within a half hour, the landscape had changed from crowded city to meandering emerald green hills and slopes. tropical trees draped over the serpentine road, and small houses littered the roadside, their occupants busy in the fields beyond. we spent some time at the school for field studies in atenas. drifting through town, i gazed into store windows and savored the sweet aroma of baking breads and empañadas. uniformed school children sat on the steps of a whitewashed church, and people were quietly strolling and relaxing on benches in a park that seemed to blend naturally into the greenery encompassing the town. three days later, we drove through mountain slopes patterned by a mosaic of coffee plantations, arriving at poás national park by mid-morning. fortunately, clouds had not yet risen over the crater, so the chamber was clearly visible. water gurgled and bubbled while sulphurous gases seeped out of the sides and a biting wind tried to steal my hat. within minutes, clouds wafted over the crater, covering it like a blanket. while walking up a trail to a crater lake, a poás squirrel (syntheosciurus poasensis), endemic to the park, tried to charm us in exchange for food. the lake’s deep blue water contrasted sharply with the tangled dark green forest around us. the next day, during an eight-hour drive over the central mountain range, we pulled off the road. the air was crisp, thin, and chilly. anxious to stretch our legs, we piled out of the bus and attacked a hill covered with sub-alpine páramo vegetation. huffing and puffing, i reached the top, almost 11,000 feet high and above the clouds. below me lay richly verdant mountain slopes and birds soaring in the distance. the view will be a snapshot in my memory forever. several hours of pouring rain and narrow, bumpy roads later, we arrived in the swampy town of sierpe, from were we were to visit the osa peninsula and corcovado national park, traveling through mangroves and out into the ocean. a threehour ride, weather permitting, would take us to sirena station. soon, the narrow river view opened to an endless vista of ocean stretching into an azure sky. the water turned from murky brown to a deep, transparent blue. the boat pulled into a cove where a waterfall cascaded into the ocean, and the boulders housed an array of tropical birds. later, a school of dolphins 42 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 pansza / champlin cony. our final day in the cloud forest was spent touring a reptile farm, the serpentarium, and the frog house. of 135 species of snakes found in costa rica, 17 are venomous. this information was not entirely academic. a girl on the same trip the year before was bitten by a fer-de-lance (bothrops asper) and had to spend several weeks in the hospital. during the rainforest portion of our trip, we saw a green and black dart frog (dendrobates auratus) and a smaller “blue jeans” dart frog (dendrobates pumillio). at the la selva biological station, we spotted several species of anoles (anolis spp.), more large green iguanas, and, down by the river, american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus) and spectacled caimans (caiman crocodilus). near the pacure river, we shared our cabins with many little geckos. anoles were all over the front porch, ground lizards (ameiva festiva) were common on the grounds, and basilisks (basiliscus spp.) basked on rocks along the riverbanks. we did see some individuals running on their hindlimbs but never saw one running on water, a skill for which they received the common name “jesus christ lizard.” our last stop was in san jose. half a day in the large, busy city was quite a culture shock after passing the previous few weeks in the green serenity of the forests. costa rica was an experience of a lifetime. although i had been forewarned, i was amazed to see such biodiversity in such a small geographical area. i recommend a visit to anyone with even a casual interest in nature — but make sure you bring a good camera. pura vida!!! from here it’s possible: a texan visits the tropics kaela e. champlin department of natural resource management, texas tech university, lubbock, texas insects, such as this katydid, often exhibit remarkable cryptic patterns and colors, in this instance, looking just like a leaf, scars and all. ja n el le m . p a n sz a iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 42 iguana 13.2 b&w text the national meeting on iguanas in méxico has been conducted annually since 1998 as the primary forum for the technical consulting subcommittee for the conservation, management, and sustained use of iguanas in méxico (sctiguanas). sct-iguanas is part of a broader national initiative for the recovery of priority species within the country. in addition to iguanas, priorities include crocodiles and sea turtles. last year, the meeting was held in the city of lázaro cardenas in the state of michoacán, west-central méxico, and, for the first time, our group was able to attract both authoritative speakers and private companies as sponsors. pre-event activities included a press conference with juan josé reyes, director of the forest commission of the state of michoacán, víctor ricardo aguilera, director of the morelia zoo in michoacán, and víctor hugo reynoso, then president of sct-iguanas. reports from the press conference were published in national and local newspapers. of major concern is the continued increase in the irrational exploitation of the pacific spiny-tailed (black) iguana, ctenosaura pectinata, which is used as a traditional food source by mexicans. this species lacks any formal means of protection, and the need to establish a viable conservation program at the local level is quite urgent. the balsas depression situated along the border of the mexican states of michoacán and guerrero is one of the larger areas used for illegal hunting and trading of black iguanas. this area also is one of the sites with less-developed programs to protect black iguanas, in contrast to places like the isthmus of tehuantepec in the southern state of oaxaca, méxico, where serious conservation efforts were initiated almost 10 years ago. hunting and trading black iguanas is illegal throughout the country. however, without local enforcement, current conservation legislation is largely ignored in many regions. local conservation authorities, business people, and academics in michoacán considered the meeting a good opportunity to raise local interest in iguana conservation. as the event progressed, we found that more people were interested in the captive management of iguanas for profit than in the conservation of the species per se. we also became aware that many more people were interested in farming green iguanas for sale as pets than in solving the problem of possible local extirpation of black iguanas due to overexploitation. this dichotomy of interests led to some very complicated interactions between presenters and public. in spite of this, the conference was successful. this meeting was also the first time we were able to attract the attention of central american environmental groups, speaking about similar conservation problems facing their endemic iguanas, as well as people doing iguana research internationally. the meeting the meeting included four main sections: (a) the plenary meeting; (b) the iguana captive management workshop; (c) the green iguana commercialization workshop; and (d) technical talks. the viii national meeting on iguanas in méxico, an overview víctor hugo reynoso1, laura briseño2, gerardo olmos3, and victor hernández4 1instituto de biología, unam <vreynoso@ibiologia.unam.mx> 2zoológico de morelia <laurabriseno@yahoo.com.mx> 3comisión forestal del estado de michoacán <golmos_69@yahoo.com> 4uma “los amatones” <serbiotac@hotmail.com> 130 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 reynoso, briseño, olmos, and hernández � poster promoting the viii national meeting on iguanas in méxico. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 130 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 131mexican iguana meeting during the plenary talks, the recent transfer of the priority species national committee from semarnat (the mexican natural resources management secretary, analogous to the u.s. fish and wildlife service) to the conanp (national commission for protected areas) was discussed extensively. the iguana group led by victor hugo reynoso and georgina gonzález-monfil (instituto de biología, unam and sctiguanas) clearly argued that this transfer was inappropriate because priority species are already protected within natural reserves, and special programs urgently need to be implemented in non-protected areas, outside the mandate of conanp. most of the distributions of listed species of iguanas (including seven species of ctenosaura as well as green iguanas) lie in areas vulnerable to exploitation and away from natural reserves, suggesting that a planned strategy carefully implementing sustained-use programs will preserve the species in a wider range of their distributions than a focus on conservation programs in the very limited areas of natural reserves. to our surprise, manelik olivera and co-workers (conanp) emphasized that jaguars, golden eagles, prairie dogs, and sea turtles deserve urgent attention; whereas the conservation needs of iguanas and 15 other priority species groups are of lesser priority. needless to say, this led to considerable discussion. plenary talks ended with the presentation of paul house and vanessa rodezano (crea, honduras) about the conservation status of the jamo negro (ctenosaura melanosterna) in honduras, a problem new to many of us and not previously covered at any of our meetings. this species of spiny-tailed iguana has been intensively hunted, almost to the point of extinction. the species, which is endemic to honduras, has a restricted distribution and has been practically extirpated from the aguan valley, where the last remaining very dry tropical rainforest is found. although this species is considered critically endangered by the iucn, local conservation efforts are only beginning. conservation plans include the implementation of a farm for the captive management and release of hatchlings within the 200-ha area of the centro regional de educación ambiental in arenal, honduras. the second and third meeting sections took place in tandem. during the management workshop, experts in different areas of iguana management and conservation from locations throughout méxico gave talks on the introduction of captive farming. these talks have been improved through seven years of iguana national meetings, and we now include a broad range of experiences from different farms, pointing out the benefits and shortcomings of the various techniques currently in use. this workshop has become the heart of the iguana national meetings. the workshop included talks on the biology and general issues on iguanas, enclosures and facilities, nests and incubation, feeding and growth, diseases and their treatment, and legal issues. the iguana commercialization workshop leaded by víctor hernández (uma los amatones) attempted to introduce farmers to the green iguana pet market. an important issue was the lack of sales due to the increasingly competitive nature of reptilian imports from central america. the group intended to provide knowledge, techniques for production, administration, use of optimum harvesting ratios for commercialization, quality of specimens, and packing. the workshop also identified national and international markets, and discussed the standardization of the national market to equally benefit farms throughout the country. four major problems faced by farmers trying to sell their products were identified: lack of market strategies, paperwork and legal issues, finances, and lack of production volumes. another issue discussed at the meeting was the importance of lobbying governmental environmental agencies to forbid the sale and importation of iguanas captured in the wild, even if considered legal in their country of origin. finally, the necessity of forming a national association of iguana farms was mentioned. the technical talks section included a broad spectrum of iguana-related themes. silvia abdala-romero (instituto de investigaciones antropológicas, unam) talked about the importance of iguanas in mexican culture, showing how iguanas figured in ancient civilizations ranging from mayans to aztecs. from post-colonial méxico to modern times, iguanas are featured in music, dance, paintings, literature, movies, fashion, handicrafts, cooking, festivals, and humor. abdala-romero pointed out how indelibly iguanas are imprinted upon our culture, yet sometimes this is less than readily apparent due the influence of the cultural elite on mainstream culture in méxico. presentations of a more technical nature followed. at this year’s meeting, for the first time spiny-tailed iguanas were the subject of major concern. jose luis arcos and co-workers (umar, puerto escondido) correlated changes in the reproductive apparatus with behavior during the reproductive period. several important reproductive parameters in captive black iguanas were compared with values reported in the literature for their wild conspecifics and led him to conclude that normal reproductive behavior is not altered for animals that are managed in captivity. jose luis contreras (uam-iztapalapa) and cesar casiano (uma iguanas, acapulco) discussed the importance of spontaneous seminal emissions in green iguanas to implement artificial insemination techniques for the enhancement of reproductive management in farms. ruben castro and guadalupe bustos (uaem, morelos) presented research showing a lack of clear evidence of rainfall (which influences food availability) affecting reproductive characters such as numbers of eggs, mean volumes of eggs, nest weight, nest total weight, and relative nest mass. martha pastrana and co-workers (uma los amatones) presented a new, low-cost rustic facility as a model the jamo negro (ctenosaura melanosterna) has been intensively hunted in honduras, almost to the point of extinction. jo h n b in n s. a n im a l c o u r te sy o f w es t c o a st ig u a n a r es ea r c h iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 131 for incubating green iguana eggs. the four-level wooden incubator is covered with transparent polyethylene and houses foam receptacles with a sand and vermiculite mixture. with no power source, incubation temperatures can reach 35–40 °c and the hatching success rate is 78%. pilar rueda and co-workers (instituto de biología, unam and colegio de posgraduados, texcoco) presented digestibility and growth rates in black iguana hatchlings fed commercial chicken and rabbit food. her research shows that higher food consumption rates, better food conversion, better growth and weight gain were achieved in iguanas raised on rabbit food. victor aguirre and co-workers (plymouth university, uk and instituto de biología, unam) presented a method to evaluate mortality rates caused by predation in hatchling black iguanas using wax models. wendoli medina and víctor reynoso (instituto de biología, unam) presented models evaluating population growth in a severely hunted population that could be applied to sustainable harvesting of black iguanas in tropical deciduous forest. eugenia zarza and co-workers (east anglia university, uk and instituto de biología, unam) showed the presence of genetically distinct clades within the distribution of ctenosaura pectinata, indicating that harvesting and releasing iguanas from site to site is not recommended. gabriela garcía besné and co-workers (instituto de biología, unam and durrell wildlife conservation trust, uk) discussed the nesting behavior of the threatened santa lucia green iguana at the only two beaches where this species is known to nest. jorge morales-mávil and co-workers (universidad veracruzana) presented the role of green iguanas in the regeneration of rainforest by comparing the germination success of seeds passing through iguana, toucan, and spider monkey guts. green iguanas were shown to be the best promoters of seedling growth. in another set of talks, juan antonio hernández (mundo iguana iguana, tabasco) indicated that illegal trade of juvenile green iguanas has decreased significantly in southeastern méxico; however, most iguanas sold in local pet stores are introduced by traders from méxico city, honduras, el salvador, or guatemala. he concluded that importation of green iguanas into tabasco is shameful, considering that this species naturally inhabits the area. the last two talks emphasized the importance of the use of new technologies to support conservation efforts. ubaldo guzmán (facultad de ciencias, unam) presented a data base designed to record all known iguana diseases caused by viruses, parasites, or bad management, and their treatments. silvia abdalá (instituto de investigaciones antropológicas, unam), on the other hand, showed the importance of internet technologies to communicate new findings, share data, provide support, and communicate among iguana groups. she emphasized the need to have a more active web page for sct-iguanas. technical talks were published in a 108-page volume (plus program and index). the abstracts, available only in spanish, can be downloaded from www.subcomitedeiguanas.org/publicaciones.htm, where abstracts of previous meetings can also be found. the meeting concluded with a field trip to cicarsa, an iron-manufacturing company that dedicates part of its land for species conservation. this company has been very interested in promoting safe areas for the conservation of green iguanas. the field trip was lead by experts who attempted to estimate the sizes of iguana populations at some sites. in 2006, the ix national meeting on iguanas will be held in the city of zihuatanejo in the state of guerrero from 18–20 may. more information is available on our web page (www.subcomitedeiguanas.org) or you may contact josé luis arcos-garcía (jarcos@colpos.colpos.mx). 132 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 reynoso, briseño, olmos, and hernández a workshop on green iguana (iguana iguana) farming included talks on the biology of iguanas, but also addressed enclosures and facilities, nests and incubation, feeding and growth, diseases and their treatment, and legal issues related to farming. th o m a s w ie w a n d t, w il d h o r iz o n s genetically distinct clades within the distribution of the mexican spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura pectinata) have been identified, indicating that harvesting and releasing iguanas at different sites is not recommended. jo h n b in n s. a n im a l c o u r te sy o f w es t c o a st ig u a n a r es ea r c h iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 132 iguana b&w text the ornate box turtle (terrapene ornata ornata) in colorado f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n the western or ornate box turtle (terrapene ornata ornata) is a widely distributed and familiar animal on the central plains of the united states, and is considered common throughout much of its range. the ornate box turtle’s approachability and charisma have made it a favorite of adults and children alike for many generations. unfortunately, its gentle demeanor has made it a target for the pet trade, its slow movements have made it an easy roadkill, and human activities have destroyed and fragmented its habitat. despite its perceived abundance, few extensive studies have been done on populations of t. o. ornata, and none have been conducted in colorado. scientific research on other populations and local anecdotal evidence point to rapidly declining populations. the colorado reptile humane society is launching the colorado box turtle project, a study of populations of t. o. ornata to better understand population dynamics, land use, and impacts of human activities, which include harvesting for the pet trade. as colorado’s eastern plains continue to be heavily developed, this information will aid in determining population viability and conservation needs for this species before it becomes too late to prevent extirpation. the colorado reptile humane society is currently seeking funding sources and equipment donations to support the colorado box turtle project. for more information, including a more detailed project description, please visit: www.corhs.org/boxturtleproject.html or contact boxturtleproject@corhs.org. e r ic g a n g l o f f iguana b&w text << /ascii85encodepages false /allowtransparency false /autopositionepsfiles true /autorotatepages /none /binding /left /calgrayprofile (dot gain 20%) /calrgbprofile (srgb iec61966-2.1) /calcmykprofile (u.s. web coated \050swop\051 v2) /srgbprofile (srgb iec61966-2.1) /cannotembedfontpolicy /error /compatibilitylevel 1.4 /compressobjects /tags /compresspages true /convertimagestoindexed true /passthroughjpegimages 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/leaveuntagged /untaggedrgbhandling /usedocumentprofile /usedocumentbleed false >> ] >> setdistillerparams << /hwresolution [2400 2400] /pagesize [612.000 792.000] >> setpagedevice iguana b&w text this panther chameleon (furcifer pardalis) in ankify was a highlight of a trip to madagascar. see article on p. 184. iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 14, number 3 september 2007 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess m ic h a el d . k er n this beautiful gold dust day gecko (phelsuma laticauda laticauda) was one of many encountered during an expedition to madagascar (see travelogue on p. 184). the splendid treefrog (cruziohyla calcarifer) is a seldom-seen, highly arboreal canopy frog found in the rainforests of honduras (see article on p. 172). this spectacular polychrus gutturosus from the rainforests of honduras was bright green when found, but changed to brown in the collecting bag (see article on p. 172). m ic h a el d . k er n ja m es r . m c c r a n ie the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) recently was elevated from cites appendix ii to i, affording it a higher level of legal protection (see related article on p. 152). d a n ie l a r ia n o ja m es r . m c c r a n ie yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) show high levels of sexual size dimorphism. here an approximately 2-m-long male courts an approximately 3-m-long female (see article on p. 160). an adult male green iguana (iguana iguana) on the edge of a pond in hollywood, broward county, florida (see article on p. 142). k ev in m . e n g e a le x a n d r e so u ll ie r iguana b&w text 94 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 aprill an effort to remove butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri) from the wisconsin list of threatened wildlife has been thwarted for the moment. b et h m it te r m a ie r after a contentious battle, a little garter snake has defeated opposition to its protection in wisconsin — for the time being. the butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri) was listed as a threatened species in 1997, based on an extremely limited range in the state, and rapid and ongoing habitat loss within that limited range. the snake lives in remnants of wetlands and grasslands (mesic prairies, marshes, roadside grassy areas, and vacant city lots) in the milwaukee area, where it is isolated from other members of its species, the closest of which are in michigan and indiana. these medium-sized snakes (total length = 38–51 cm) have a shorter, narrower head, a generally thicker body, and less of a constriction behind the head than other wisconsin garter snakes. dorsal ground color is brown, black, or olive with or without a double row of black spots between the stripes. distinct lateral stripes are on scale row three and adjacent rows two and four anteriorly and most of scale rows two and three posteriorly. stripes vary from light yellow to a rich orange-yellow color. the venter is green to yellow-green with dark spots along the lateral edges. the principal food is earthworms, but leeches are sometimes eaten as well. in captivity, they may consume fish or frogs. in wisconsin, they are active from mid-march through early november, and hibernate in underground retreats, especially crayfish burrows. males mature in their second spring, females in their third. mating occurs mostly from late march to late april. in wisconsin, an average of nine young are born between july and mid-september. many of the populations of this species have been isolated from each other due to wetland loss and habitat fragmentation. these snakes already have a limited range, so habitat destruction is especially detrimental to them. another concern is genetic swamping by the plains garter snake (t. radix); this closely related species moves into the range of t. butleri and breeds with them. only a handful of populations still exhibit only the characteristics of t. butleri , and most of those populations occur in milwaukee county, the most urbanized county in the state. politics and garter snakes on 18 july 2006, a majority republican faction within the wisconsin legislature’s joint committee for review of administrative rules (jcrar) voted along party lines to remove the little snake that could: butler’s garter snake in wisconsin howard aprill wehr nature center, milwaukee county parks photographs by gary s. casper except where noted. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 95butler’s garter snake � a female butler’s garter snake slithers across an access road at a central ozaukee county research site. co-occurring species at this site were eastern garter snakes (thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis) and eastern milksnakes (lampropeltis triangulum triangulum). butler’s garter snakes are sometimes killed in urban areas; this one along a trap line in a suburban neighborhood study site in north-central milwaukee county appears to have had its head stomped. usually this behavior is displayed by young boys, and is not likely to have significant impact on snake populations, although, in one instance, such indiscriminate killing persuaded a concerned citizen to capture approximately 300 butler’s garter snakes and move them “to a safe place” approximately 30 miles away. such translocations probably result in the demise of the transported individuals, but also may be responsible for unnatural gene flow between populations or even species or the establishment of new colonies outside the natural range. the species from the state’s list of threatened wildlife, a move which ignored all available science and which was at odds with recommendations from the state’s own department of natural resources (wdnr). whereas no official reasons were given for this move, opinions expressed were that the snake was impeding economic development, cost too much to protect, and supporters of de-listing did not believe the species was actually threatened. however, no economic analyses were presented to support the first of these contentions, no evidence that the species was secure to support the second, and no evidence or scientific opinion that would refute the findings that had led to the 1997 listing to support the third. the jcrar attached conditions to their ruling, specifying that the species would be removed from the threatened species list on 1 october 2006, unless: a. the department of natural resources (dnr) lowers its determination of the number of sites necessary to maintain the viability of the butler’s garter snake. b. dnr formulates a plan to mitigate further the amount of land affected by the conservation needs associated with the butler’s garter snake. c. dnr specifies parameters for the orderly delisting of the butler’s garter snake from the state’s threatened species list. the hearing was highly contentious. peter mckeever, reporting for the milwaukee county conservation coalition, noted: “to be generous, the science was ignored and ridiculed. it was an astounding and extraordinary demonstration of ignorance, arrogance, partisanship, bias, and lack of concern for the environment. it is shameful that the question of whether to de-list a species has become a partisan issue. the seven-hour hearing was largely a staged performance designed to satisfy a select group of political supporters. the politics were blatant: the committee clerk was observed exchanging hand signals with the lobbyist for the builders during the debate on the motion under consideration, à la nero giving the thumbs up or thumbs down to gladiators in the lion pit.” on 27 september 2006, the jcrar again took up the proposed de-listing. again along strict party lines, the jcrar approved a motion to rescind its earlier motion, and to make the rule suspension (i.e., de-listing) effective on 30 november 2006, unless the dnr “... updates its conservation strategy so that its policy relating to the butler’s garter snake is less burdensome on the private property owner.” the vote followed some compromises from dnr on the timing and cost of reviews and surveys, and a promise to reduce the amount of protected area for the species. however, no guid96 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 aprill crayfish burrows are heavily utilized by butler’s garter snakes as underground retreats. these, in northeastern waukesha county, probably are occupied by either devil crayfish (cambarus diogenes) or prairie crayfish (procambarus gracilis), the two most common burrowing species in southeastern wisconsin. the burrows descend to the water table, and offer snakes hibernating retreats in winter and drought refugia in summer. butler’s garter snakes appear to be especially abundant in areas of high crayfish burrow density. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 97butler’s garter snake high quality habitat is typified by this floodplain habitat along poplar creek in northeastern waukesha county. diverse grasses afford patchy sun penetration to ground level, so that snakes may cryptically bask partially hidden in clumped grasses, where they are less obvious to avian predators. the diverse wet meadows and grassland also provide variance in root densities, making it easier for burrowing crayfish to find places to dig. in contrast, thick monotypic stands of invasive plant species, such as reed canary grass (phalaris arundinacea), form tall (2 m) stands of uniform stem and root density, which do not provide basking opportunities for snakes and make digging very difficult for crayfish. the scrape in the center of the photo is periodically inundated during floods and spring snowmelt, and is riddled with crayfish burrows. labial scales (those forming the “lips”) of butler’s garter snakes typically have little or no black edging, as shown in this individual. ance was forthcoming from the jcrar as to what might be accepted as “less burdensome,” nor why this vague requirement should trump biological issues in maintaining the species as viable in wisconsin. members of the minority made efforts to find a compromise, and all were rejected on party line votes. in reference to the idea of basing species protections on “burden” instead of science, minority member rep. spencer black opined: “we can change the laws of the state of wisconsin, but we cannot change the laws of nature.” representatives of the dnr consistently defended the principle, which is also the law, that the only basis for de-listing a species is sound science that shows that it is no longer threatened. a strong majority of the public, including the wisconsin wildlife federation, came out against the de-listing. many expressed worry that de-listing without any regard for the science would set a dangerous precedent for endangered species recovery efforts, and would jeopardize wisconsin’s eligibility for federal wildlife funding. even the milwaukee metropolitan builders association, a hitherto strong critic of protecting the snake (which affects many of their members’ building projects), at this time opposed the de-listing, and supported the dnr position to revise its conservation strategy — perhaps recognizing that the loss of state protection and the consequent further decline of snakes might lead to even stricter state or federal regulations in the future. in the face of this overwhelming support for the snake and the endangered species law, the jcrar majority still voted to de-list. the postponement of the de-listing date was widely viewed as politically motivated, with several republican members up for re-election on 4 november. 98 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 aprill a butler’s garter snake-occupied development site in new berlin, wisconsin, where snakes were removed from the construction footprint. a former peat bog, adjacent habitat is being restored and managed for butler’s garter snakes as part of the development agreement. at this development site in south milwaukee, snakes were confined to a wetland while most of the upland habitat was developed. here, heavy rains have raised water levels beyond the limits of the snake fencing. under the existing regulations, the state has the authority to allow sites of less than 20 acres of suitable existing butler’s garter snake habitat to be completely developed, with only voluntary snake conservation measures. these smaller sites are considered to be less important to the species’ long-term conservation and survival. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 99butler’s garter snake finally, on 28 november 2006, the jcrar reconvened and voted 7–2 to not remove the snake from the protected list. what changed? the republicans lost their majority in the state senate in the 4 november election, and therefore their majority and co-chairmanship of the jcrar. any de-listing presumably would have been swiftly reversed when the new senate convened in 2007. many landowners are hostile toward both the snake and those who work with it, whereas others place high value on its conservation, especially parents whose children routinely play with this harmless urban species. some of the stories are comical, and illustrate some of the human tensions involved with achieving conservation in areas where land values are high. a herpetologist i know was retained to perform snake surveys by a private couple wanting to develop their property. the consultant set up his survey traps and the landowners, distrustful of all scientists, followed the consultant and his assistant each day, watching their every move. one day, the consultant received a call from his assistant, who was checking the traps that day. she said several traps smelled strongly of mothballs, but she couldn’t investigate too closely because the landowner was watching like a hawk. intrigued, the consultant sniffed the traps the next day, and also smelled mothballs. he then ordered some commercial “snake repellant,” and when it arrived — it too smelled strongly of mothballs! nevertheless, several butler’s garter snakes were eventually trapped on this site, and the landowners have since attended public meetings and legislative hearings where they accused the consultant of “planting” the snakes on their property. snake repellants are never mentioned. although the snake remains protected, the fact that the threat of de-listing was used to force a compromise in favor of development is troubling. the wisconsin dnr continues to work toward revising its protection plan, having promised to reduce protection for the snake to favor private landowners. they have retained the conservation breeding specialist group (apple valley, minnesota) to assist them with population viability analyses and plan revisions. web resources: http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/newssentinel/news/local/16116112.htm http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/land/er/herps/snakes/butlersgrt.htm butler’s garter snakes are still found in vacant lots in industrial and commercial areas. in this approximately 9-acre site in west-central milwaukee county, 64 butler’s garter snakes were trapped in two days in early october. to avoid and minimize “take” (a legal term meaning killing individual snakes), construction projects may use silt fencing to prevent snakes from moving into work areas. the fences must be placed between the upland and wetland portions of the habitat, while snakes are hibernating in the wetlands. when snakes emerge in the spring, they are prevented from dispersing into the upland habitat being developed. in this photo, a snake exclusion fence is in the foreground, a snake survey fence in the center, and another exclusion fence in the background, beyond which a new storm water retention pond has been graded and seeded. the storm water facility is designed as a “dry pond,” which will have standing water only for brief periods and be naturally vegetated. it therefore will continue to provide snake habitat after construction. currently a “no-net-loss” of snake habitat policy is in place, so many development projects may proceed by altering and then restoring snake habitat in this manner. a typical adult butler’s garter snake from pewaukee, wisconsin. iguana b&w text gila monsters (heloderma suspectum; illustrated) and beaded lizards (h. horridum) are the world’s only venomous lizards. populations of both species are declining, primarily as a consequence of habitat loss. see related articles on pp. 178, 184, and 212. iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 13, number 3 september 2006 h aw aiian g reen a noles (anolis carolinensis) are descendants of escaped pets. t hey occupy w hat w as once a vacant ecological niche and thrive in association w ith introduced plants in the low lands on all m ajor islands(see related article on p. 198). ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess robert powell th o m a s w ie w a n d t, w il d h o r iz o n s populations of the texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) have disappeared in eastern and central texas, and are decreasing in other areas (see “historical perspectives” on p. 224 and the “focus on conservation” on p. 240). green anoles (anolis carolinensis) were first reported on o‘ahu in 1950, and now occur on all of the major hawaiian islands. a recent introduction to coconut island (off o‘ahu) apparently failed (see article on p. 198). brown treesnakes (boiga irregularis) have caused the elimination of most of guam’s native forest birds, and decimated other birds, lizards, and mammals (see travelogue on p. 216). in march 2006, an adult female cuban iguana (cyclura nubila) in a population established on isla magueyes, puerto rico, chased, caught, and ate a conspecific hatchling (see article on p. 206). jo se ph b u r g es s n és to r f . p ér ez -b u it r a g o the critically endangered guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) is restricted to forest remnants in the motagua valley (see articles on pp. 178, 184, and 212). many aspects of the fijian crested iguana’s (brachylophus vitiensis) biology remain unknown, mostly because of the remoteness of the uninhabited iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba (see article on p. 192). zo o tr o pi c je ff s c h m a tz , m o d is , n a sa /g sf c ovulation in emerald treeboas (corallus caninus) follows some time after the cessation of breeding activity. during ovulation, many females hang grossly distended midbody loops off their perches (see article on p. 209). jo se ph m . p o la n c o g a d p er r y w en d y h o d g es mexican beaded lizard (heloderma horridum). th o m a s w ie w a n d t, w il d h o r iz o n s iguana 11.4 iguana • volume 11, number 4 • december 2004 251historical perspectives barbour and ramsden (1919, memoirs mus. comp. zool., harvard univ., 47[2]: 72–213) list six mainland localities for the cuban iguana, cyclura macleayi macleayi gray [= c. nubila nubila], and comment on the gradual extirpation of the species. their records represent all the cuban provinces with the exception of santa clara, now las villas. during september, 1955, mr. daniel lyons, of the natural history society of maryland, and the author observed a number of iguanas on the cuban mainland near the city of trinidad, las villas province. these observations add a new provincial record to the list of barbour and ramsden. five individuals were observed on the mainland in typical limestone associations as described by sutcliff (1952, notulae naturae, acad. nat. sci. philadelphia, 243 1–7) in his discussion of the species as observed on cayo de la piedra. in such areas dense vegetation occurs on a thin soil lying over a limestone base. prickly pear and trailing cactus are typical plants. iguanas occupying such areas live in natural cavities of the limestone. observations were made on cayo macho de tierra on september 12, 1955. the island is approximately one-quartermile long and reaches a width of 200 yards. it consists of a low, sandy hill almost completely surrounded by dense mangrove swamps. vegetation is sparse in the open, sandy central area and consists chiefly of beach grasses. besides the iguanas, numerous aquatic birds, land crabs, and anolis sagrei were distributed throughout the area. a small colony of ameiva auberi occupied a sandy beach on the west end of the island. a total of seven iguanas was observed between 10:00 a.m. and noon, five of which were captured. in all cases they were flushed from thick clumps of beach grass. there are apparently no accounts of cyclura macleayi macleayi entering water as a means of escape. two individuals entered burrows whereas the other island-dwelling iguanas sought escape by entering the sea. each one ran parallel to the shore, sometimes for more than one hundred yards, then, turning swiftly, entered the water, swimming out about twenty yards, and remaining motionless beneath eight to ten inches of water. one individual entered the water from an open beach, but in an area where heavy wave action was inhibited by a thick growth of seaweed. the others entered the mangrove swamps in which the water was clear and quiet. the island-dwelling iguanas inhabit long, shallow burrows similar to those dug by large land crabs. burrows were observed in the more elevated regions of cayo macho de tierra as well as on three small unnamed islands southeast of casilda, and could be distinguished from crab burrows by their larger size and the long groove-like tail marks at their entrances. of the three burrows opened, two contained iguanas. all ran downward at a moderate angle for about two feet and then continued parallel to the surface for six or eight feet. two ended blindly, whereas the third was found to have two entrances approximately eight feet apart. the actual dwelling place of its occupant was a small tunnel extending no more than two feet from one of the entrances. local observers insist that iguanas invariably leave the burrows tail first. this is perhaps true in view of the size and structure of the burrows, the diameters of which vary from four to eight inches throughout their length. in no case was an enlarged terminal room observed. both of the individuals found in burrows were facing down-burrow in very tight quarters and were collected by grasping the tail. adult male cuban iguanas facing off in a territorial dispute. photograph by glenn gerber. notes on the cuban iguana1 jerry d. hardy, jr. 1 reprinted with permission from herpetologica 12:323–324 (1956). iguana 13.2 b&w text 104 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 burton fire on the reserve side of the wetlands. jo h n b in n s iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 104 mid-may brought an unexpected threat to the bue iguana recovery program (birp) in the form of a large-scale fire that started in a small agricultural plot and swept out of control into the salina reserve’s sedge wetlands. there, it burned fiercely along the southern margins of the swamp, fueled by green cladium leaves, and then unexpectedly started to spread east into the dry forest where hurricane ivan had left large amounts of dead wood on the forest floor in 2004. local fire services are not equipped to deal with blazes in remote areas, and were initially inclined to let it burn, but when the flames worked around the east end of the salina wetland and started to threaten the blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) release site, action had to be taken. with considerable support from the department of environment (doe), birp managed to get permission for a helicopter to airlift staff and volunteers into the fire zone. this brought the fire services on board, and a joint team effectively tackled the blaze with a water bucket chain, shovels, and machetes. the main fire was doused quickly, and residual smoulderings were eventually extinguished using “water bombs” dropped from the government’s mosquito spray plane. the cayman islands' dry forests are not a fire-adapted ecosystem, and it is rare for fires to spread so far beyond the man-made grasslands where this fire began. ground-nesting birds, terrestrial and epiphytic orchids, and small reptiles are among the forest flora and fauna which are likely to have been impacted. in contrast, the sedge community around the margins of the salina wetland do burn once every few years, and the critically endangered endemic wildflower agalinis kingsii often thrives in the year after a major burn. the blue iguana habitat, fortunately, escaped all harm. fire in the salina reserve, grand cayman frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program national trust for the cayman islands iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 105fire in the salina reserve � west indian whistling duck (dendrocygna arborea) in the aftermath. jo h n b in n s jo h n b in n s fred burton, blue iguana recovery program, working toward the fire line to assess the situation. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 105 106 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 burton recent fire area aftermath. jo h n b in n s small hot spots often reignited in the heat of the day. jo h n b in n s map of the salina reserve showing extent of the fire in relation to the blue iguana release site. 1 = salina blue release site; 2 = area burned; 3 = wetlands. burned out area. jo h n b in n s iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 106 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 107fire in the salina reserve recently released blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) in the salina reserve. jo h n b in n s w en d y h o d g e h o r n e d l i z a r d w o r k i n g g r o u p m e e t i n g the next meeting of the horned lizard working group will be held september 15 17, 2006, on a private ranch near snyder, texas. the meeting will include presentations about recent research, discussions of management and research priorities, and a field trip. the meeting will be held at the windmill ranch (http://www.windmillranchpreserve.com/), which has accommodations for staying overnight, presentations and food service. additional accommodations are available in snyder, less than 10 miles away. we are currently working on the program for the meeting. if you would like to present or just participate, please contact dr. wendy hodges (hodges_w@utpb.edu) or dr. gad perry (gad.perry@ttu.edu), as soon as possible. if you would like to speak, please indicate so and provide a tentative title. hope you can make it. wendy hodges gad perry university of texas – permian basin texas tech university iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:19 pm page 107 iguana 13.1 b&w text 2 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 grismer cat geckos (aeluroscalabotes felinus) are most commonly found in shrubs and low trees in the vicinity of streams. although this is the most ancient of all living gecko lineages, these lizards bear a number of highly specialized features to accommodate their arboreal lifestyle. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 2 geckos are one of the largest and most distinctive groups of lizards in the world and, in some regions, are among the most conspicuous elements of the ecosystem. well over 800 currently recognized species of geckos are distributed worldwide, with the highest concentration occurring in tropical and subtropical regions. most geckos are nocturnal, thin-skinned, largeheaded with bulging, lidless eyes boasting extravagantly sculpted pupilary margins, and adept climbers. in fact, this latter characteristic, accompanied by its myriad of digital specializations, is the iconic trademark of geckos and a key feature of their overall success and diversity. the vast majority of geckos have varying degrees of digital specializations involving the modification of the scales beneath their toes. these enhance their ability to gain purchase on a wide range of substrates, be they vertical or inverted, rough or smooth. the most common specialization comes in the form of “toe pads.” the scales on the underside of the digits (subdigital lamellae) have become transversely expanded to increase their overall surface area and are adorned with microscopic structures that enhance adhesion to almost any substrate. toe pads may occur along the entire length of the digit, as in the majority of species, including the familiar tokay gecko (gekko gecko) and the common house gecko (hemidactylus frenatus), or they may involve only the terminal scales at the tips of the digits as in the many species of new world leaf-toed geckos (phyllodactylus spp.). still others have digits on which expanded scales occur only at the base and the remainder of the digit is slender and unmodified. in all of these digits, the claw may or may not be present. in the ancient, tropical lowlands of southern peninsular malaysia and the associated islands of the seribuat archipelago, which is cradled along its eastern shore, geckos are not only the most diverse group of lizards, but among the most conspicuous slender toes in southern malaysia l. lee grismer department of biology, la sierra university, riverside, california iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 3geckos of southern malaysia � many of the bent-toed geckos (cyrtodactylus spp.) have only recently been discovered and named; the article formally describing c. aurensis, which is endemic to aur island, was published in 2005. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 3 nocturnal elements in these rainforest ecosystems. although a number of the species have “typical” gekkonid fingers and toes, on which the toe pads extend along the length of the entire digit, the most speciose groups have a different type of digit — one where the digits are kinked or bent along their length, and the subdigital scales for the most part remain unmodified or are only slightly expanded at the base of the digit. this bend or inflection, which can occur in geckos with toe pads as well, results from modifications in the shapes of the phalanges (the bones in the digits) and the way they articulate with one another, resulting in yet another adaptation for climbing. the padless geckos with bent fingers and toes in this part of the world are the cat gecko (aeluroscalabotes felinus), the bent-toed geckos (cyrtodactylus ssp.), and the rock geckos (cnemaspis spp.). aeluroscalabotes felinus is a slow moving, catatonic species most commonly found in shrubs and low trees in the vicinity of streams. the species’ distribution extends from southern thailand south through peninsular malaysia and singapore to borneo. although this is the most ancient of all living gecko lineages (grismer, 1988), it bears a number of highly specialized features to accommodate its arboreal lifestyle. these include more forwardly directed eyes, a prehensile tail, and, of course, bent, padless digits. additionally, digits one and two are nearly parallel in arrangement and they oppose digits four and five, which also are parallel to one another, thus providing a. felinus with a chameleon-like grasp of the substrates on which it climbs. the bent-toed geckos, genus cyrtodactylus, comprise one of the largest groups of geckos in the world. this genus contains at least 90 species and ranges across all of asia and into the south pacific. it also is one of the fastest growing groups, with over 15 new species being discovered and described within the last five years. one-third of those came from southern peninsular malaysia and the seribuat archipelago: c. aurensis, endemic to aur island (grismer 2005); c. semenanjungensis, endemic to southern peninsular malaysia (grismer and leong 2005); c. seribuatensis, endemic to seven islands in the seribuat archipelago (youmans and grismer 2005); c. sworderi, endemic to southern peninsular malaysia and just recently rediscovered and redescribed (grismer et al. 2006); and c. tiomanensis, endemic to tioman island (das and lim 2001). in addition to these species, the more common and widely distributed c. consobrinus and c. quadrivirgatus also occur in the region. the bent-toed geckos are notorious for their climbing abilities, and each species seems content to spend the majority of its time in one type of microhabitat. for the smaller (65–75 mm svl) cyrtodactylus quadrivirgatus, c. semenanjungensis, and c. sworderi, this microhabitat usually consists of branches and leaves of the small trees in which they forage, and these species are most frequently encountered while they are precariously perched at the end of some small twig or on the surface of a leaf. the larger species (120–135 mm svl), such as c. consobrinus, c. tiomanensis, and, to some extent, c. aurensis, spend most of their time on tree trunks and boulders. the former two species are commonly seen as high as 15 m above the forest floor on the sides of trees, whereas c. aurensis is a bit more discriminating in that it is almost exclusively found on relatively small boulders that are partially concealed by overhanging vegetation. the most specialized species of all the bent-toed geckos in southern malaysia is the newly discovered and described cyrtodactylus seribuatensis of the seribuat archipelago. this remarkable endemic is restricted to the periphery of seven tiny islands, where it makes its living in the harsh, ever-changing interface between land and sea known as the intertidal zone. this is one of the most extreme environments in which a terrestrial vertebrate may choose to live and, not surprisingly, few species successfully exploit this microhabitat. making a living here means an individual must gauge its activities around a daily cycle of advancing and receding tides, which is further complicated by the fact that each episode dramatically alters the habitat. additionally, food can be scare and what is available is usually hypersaline because of its marine origin. the handful of lizards known to live in intertidal areas and feed exclusively (or nearly so) from such a salty menu have evolved some extraordinary anatomical and physiological adaptations for eliminating the excess salt they ingest (e.g., dunson 1976, grismer 1994, hazard et al. 1998). although our studies of c. seribuatensis have just begun, stomach content analyses and field observations confirm it is eating intertidal invertebrates — but we do not yet know how it deals with the excess salt load. during the day, these lizards remain hidden beneath surface debris such as coconut husks, palm fronds, and pieces of driftwood that accumulate on the beach. at night, they emerge to search for food, 4 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 grismer another bent-toed gecko (cyrtodactylus quadrivirgatus) is common and ranges widely across southeastern asia. smaller (65–75 mm svl) species of bent-toed geckos (cyrtodactylus spp.), such as c. sworderi, are most frequently encountered when precariously perched at the end of a small twig or on the surface of a leaf. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 4 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 5geckos of southern malaysia and lizards can be seen moving about, hopping from rock to rock, and foraging in the cobble at the water’s edge. the rock geckos (cnemaspis spp.) of southern malaysia are a curious, somewhat cartoonish looking group of lizards that, as their common name would suggest, spend the vast majority of their time on rocks — in this case, boulders. this is a relatively large group of nearly 50 species dispersed to areas as distant as eastern africa and india, although their highest diversity is in indochina and southeastern asia. the digits of rock geckos lack all traces of toe pads and, for the most part, appear completely unmodified — save for that same old bend, which, as in cyrtodactylus, is an adaptation to its bouldering lifestyle. this, however, is not the only specialization in this group. the digits are also very long, which is functionally complementary to their very long limbs and tails and flattened heads and bodies. all of this serves to bring the lizard’s center of gravity close to the substrate, which any good rock-climber will tell you, is essential to keep from falling. so, the flattened body with the long, splayed, limbs and elongate digits is the perfect morphology for moving about on vertical and inverted flat surfaces. attendant with this lifestyle and microhabitat preference, however, is the fact that many potential predators will be coming from “above.” as such, these lizards have evolved flattened heads with widened snouts, making them somewhat duck-like in appearance, and their eyes have moved inward toward the center of the head and have rotated slightly upward, enabling them to see “up” without having to raise their heads too far off the substrate. cnemaspis steps even further out of the typical gecko mold in that it does not have the weird looking eyes and elaborate pupils of most species, but instead has simple, round pupils, which, surprisingly, is in line with its other gecko-mold-breaking characteristic — it is diurnal. four species of cnemaspis occur in southern malaysia, three of which are some of the largest members of the group (90–100 mm svl) and endemic to their own island in the seribuat archipelago: c. baueri, an endemic of aur island (das and grismer 2003), c. lim, an endemic of tioman and tulai islands (das and grismer 2003), and c. pemanggilensis, which is endemic to pemanggil island (grismer and das 2005). a fourth and somewhat smaller species (c. kendallii) is widespread throughout malaysia. during the day, c. baueri, c. limi, and c. pemanggilensis can be observed moving about in their boulder microhabitat — but only in dark, shady areas where one boulder leans against another or in the deep recesses of large cracks. this would lead one to think that these species are nocturnal. however, at night they are hard to find unless you go deep into the cave-like boulder piles looking for them. cnemaspis kendallii, on the other hand, is commonly seen foraging on rocks and the trunks of large trees, darting to and fro in the green filtered sunlight beneath the canopy. in fact, this species is so obvious at times, it has evolved an anti-predator defensive display during which it curls its tail high above its back, showing off the brightyellow underside while wagging it slowly back and forth. at night, c. kendallii turns a ghostly white and can be found sleeping on rocks and the trunks of trees, or even clinging to the undersides of leaves as much as 20 m above the forest floor. unfortunately, some of these bent-toed denizens of malaysia are in danger of losing major tracts of their habitat. much of the lowland forest of southern peninsular malaysia, to which cyrtodactylus sworderi and c. semenanjungensis are endemic, is being converted into oil palm plantations (think of this the next time you order popcorn at the movies, the yellow coloration of which comes from palm oil). although our data larger species (120–135 mm svl) of bent-toed geckos (cyrtodactylus spp.), such as c. tiomanensis, spend most of their time on tree trunks and are commonly seen as high as 15 m above the forest floor. cyrtodactylus seribuatensis of the seribuat archipelago is the most specialized of all bent-toed geckos. this newly discovered species makes its living in harsh, ever-changing intertidal zones. the rock geckos, such as cnemaspis lim, are a curious, somewhat cartoonish looking group of lizards that, as their common name would suggest, spend the vast majority of their time on boulders. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 5 on the natural history of these two species comes only from anecdotal observations made during the collection of the type series, these geckos are clearly lowland rainforest specialists. in nearby mountainous regions, where we have been conducting field research, we have not yet found these species and believe the habitat there is inappropriate. nor is this habitat appropriate for the oil palm industry, which is rapidly replacing the extremely diverse flora and fauna of the lowland rainforests with a single species of palm. this will not only affect the species of cyrtodactylus, but every other species in the region. currently, these isolated mountain ranges amid a sea of oil palms are all that is left of the native rainforest in some areas. if not for the existence of the endau-rompin national forest in this general area, which thus far has resisted habitat conversion and has been host to a number of scientific expeditions (see wood et al. 2006 for summary), our knowledge of the natural history of this portion of southern peninsular malaysia would be all but lost. equally bleak is the future of the islands on which endemic cnemaspis baueri, c. limi, and c. pemanggilensis enjoy the safety of their shaded, rocky retreats. these are rapidly becoming popular tourist get-aways, with all the accoutrements of a growing tourism infrastructure — and they are beginning to make inroads into the forest. in fact, the villagers on tioman island and many of malaysia’s leading scientists and naturalist are struggling right now to halt the construction of a marina and a large airport along a portion of virgin, unspoiled coastline (grismer 2005). currently, none the species are listed on the iucn red list, although the endemic, insular species would clearly qualify (see http://www.redlist.org/info/categories_criteria.html). references das, i. and l.l. grismer. 2003. two new species of cnemaspis strauch, 1887 (squamata: gekkonidae) from the seribuat archipelago, pahang and johor states, west malaysia. herpetologica 59:546–554. das, i. and l.j. lim., 2000. a new species of cyrtodactylus (sauria: gekkonidae) from pulau tioman, malaysia. the raffles bulletin of zoology 48:223–231. dunson, w.a. 1976. salt glands in reptiles, pp. 413–445. in: a.c. gans and w.r. dunson (eds.), biology of the reptilia. vol. 5. physiology a. academic press, new york. grismer, l.l. 1988. phylogeny, taxonomy, classification, and biogeography of eublepharid geckos, pp. 369–469. in: r. estes and g. pregill (eds.), phylogenetic relationships of the lizard families. stanford university press, stanford, california. grismer, l.l. 1994. three new side-blotched lizards (genus uta) from the gulf of california. herpetologica 50:451–474. grismer, l.l. 2005a. a new species of bent-toed gecko (cyrtodactylus gray 1827) from pulau aur, johor, west malaysia. journal of herpetology 39:424–432. grismer, l.l. 2005b. tioman archipelago, evolution’s laboratory. malaysian naturalist 59:12–23. grismer, l.l. and i. das. 2006 (“2005”). a new species of cnemaspis (squamata: gekkonidae) from pulau pemanggil, johor, west malaysia. herpetological natural history 10: in press. grismer, l.l. and t.m. leong. 2005. a new species of cyrtodactylus (squamata: gekkonidae) from southern peninsular malaysia. journal of herpetology 39:64–71. grismer, l.l., p.l. wood, jr., and t.m. youmans. 2006. redescription of the gekkonid lizard cyrtodactylus sworderi (smith 1925) from southern peninsular malaysia. journal of herpetology 40: in press. hazard, l.c., v.h. shoemaker, and l.l. grismer. 1998. salt gland secretion by an intertidal lizard, uta tumidarostra. copeia 1998:231–234. wood, p.l., jr., l.l. grismer, t.m. youmans, b.s. jones, and b.n. nurolhuda. 2006. additions to the herpetofauna of endau-rompin, johor, west malaysia. hamadryad 30: in press. youmans, t.m. and l.l. grismer. 2006 (“2005”). description of a new species of cyrtodactylus (reptilia: squamata: gekkonidae) from the seribuat archipelago, west malaysia. herpetological natural history 10: in press. 6 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 grismer because many potential predators come from “above,” rock geckos, such as cnemaspis baueri, have evolved flattened heads with widened snouts, making them somewhat duck-like in appearance, and eyes that are rotated slightly upward, enabling them to see “up” without having to raise their heads too far. at night, cnemaspis kendallii turns a ghostly white and can be found clinging to the undersides of leaves as much as 20 m above the forest floor. the geckophile gathering 2006 will be held on 9–11 june 2006 in austin, texas (http://www.gathering.geckosunlimited.com/). if you are a geckophile, you shouldn’t miss this exciting event. some of the best-known gecko enthusiasts from around the world will speak. all proceeds from the charity banquet will be donated to the international reptile conservation foundation. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 6 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 7geckos of southern malaysia the geckos of southern malaysia occur in one of the most biologically diverse and complex terrestrial ecosystems in the world. lowland rainforests are renowned for their diversity, but, in southern malaysia, and especially on tioman island where 13 species of geckos make their home, the diversity is even more astounding. tioman is the largest island in the seribuat archipelago and is characterized by steep-sided mountainous terrain reaching 1038 m. it supports lowland rainforest on its alluvial foothills and hill forest above 300 m. the coastline and lowlying periphery are dominated by mangrove and coastal forests. exposed granitic outcroppings consisting of large boulders define much of the island’s rugged topography, and its hillsides are cut by a number of boulder-strewn, fast-flowing streams in both open and closed canopy forest. this environmental diversity supports nearly 100 species of amphibians and reptiles on this small island. these range from tree-hole nesting and stream-dwelling frogs such as the white-spotted treefrog (nyctixalus pictus) and the spotted stream frog (rana picturata), respectively, to strange looking lizards such as the chameleon anglehead lizard (gonocephalus chamaeleontinus). at least 44 species of snakes live on tioman island, with adaptive types ranging from tiny blind snakes in the family typhlopidae to king cobras (ophiophagus hannah), red-headed kraits (bungarus flaviceps), and reticulate pythons (python reticulatus). geckos are an intricate part of this diverse ecosystem and function as both predators and prey for many species. chameleon anglehead lizard (gonocephalus chamaeleontinus). white-spotted treefrog (nyctixalus pictus). spotted stream frog (rana picturata). king cobra (ophiophagus hannah). reticulate python (python reticulatus). the herpetological community iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:15 am page 7 iguana b&w text 300 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 ircf on the move ircf conservation champion award: stesha pasachnik stesha pasachnik is the first recipient of the new ircf conservation champion award. stesha received the award to allow her to travel to the iucn iguana specialist group meeting in pureto rico to present critical information about the status of ctenosaura and to generate conservation interest in the genus. stesha spent six months in honduras from feburary 2006 through july 2006 collecting data (see article on p. 264), and will return again next year to continue her efforts. project heloderma: meeting in guatemala city a project heloderma meeting was held at the zootropic office in guatemala city, guatemala on 26 september 2006 to discuss the next phase of the project and the distribution of funds collected from the daytona expo auction. attending the meeting were rodrigo botran, luis alvarado, and daniel ariano from zootropic, brad lock from zoo atlanta, and john binns from the ircf. action priorities discussed included: environmental education, research, land acquisition, and the in situ breeding facility. resolved were: (1) continuing support for educational material, such as 1000 t-shirts to be distributed to local schools in the motagua valley, an awareness poster, school supplies, and other handout materials. five hundred dollars was allotted, with additional funds covered by individual fundraising campaigns. (2) support for research equipment needs through 2007; $2,500– 3,000 was allotted to purchase 15 radiotracking transmitters, handheld gps units, and avid chips. not funded but discussed as a potential independent campaign was the need for a field vehicle and compensation for a local field assistant. (3) the major decision from the meeting was approval to purchase a 285acre plot of land ($30,000) as a reserve and breeding facility site. the remaining balance of auction funds ($12,500) was allocated toward this purchase. project heloderma partner san diego zoo has since contributed $5,000, and toronto zoo and jacksonville zoo also have promised contributions. the remaining funds needed to purchase this critical property amount to about $11,000. please visit ircf.org for more information. (4) the breeding facility was not discussed in any detail to avoid sidetracking the meeting’s purpose. some of the basic topics discussed were construction of the facility with the aid of local labor, facility location at the base of the property, on-going research to determine breeding strategies, long-term ideas about a visitor attraction such as the grand cayman blue iguana breeding and headstarting facility. the ircf, zoo atlanta, and zootropic once again thank all the contributors and volunteers from the daytona expo auction as well as the san diego zoo for contributions; together these have already made a significant impact on project heloderma’s progress towards saving the guatemalan beaded lizard. project ctenosaura palearis: a chance for survival while visiting guatemala, john binns, ircf, opened a separate discussion about ctenosaura palearis (the paleate spinytailed iguana, also known as the guatemalan black iguana), proposing the inclusion of a recovery action plan for this species under zootropic’s umbrella. ctenosaura palearis appears on the iucn red list as critically endangered, and its know distribution range lies within the same area of the motagua valley as that of the guatemalan beaded lizard. specifically, the recovery action plan would involve the inclusion of c. palearis in zootropic’s educational program, the development of a research component with the aid of college students, and a primary focus on utilizing the breeding facility to raise animals for repatriation as soon as possible. the proposal was unanimously accepted. since returning from guatemala, daniel ariano and field assistant gilberto salazar have located four males and one female c. palearis, and currently are monitoring these animals. paola coti, a guatemalan undergraduate college student, has already taken the initial steps to develop her research program (daniel ariano is her advisor) to determine distribution, ecology, and the conservation status of c. palearis. stesha pasachnik, university of tennessee, will be assisted by zootropic to obtain permits to take c. palearis tissue-samples during her 2007 visit to the motagua valley. stesha is working on ctenosaura genetics. within a short few months, zootropic has provided hope for this species’ future, after an extended period during which no action was being taken i r c f o n t h e m o v e stesha pasachnik, from the university of tennessee, will be working with zootropic collecting tissue samples of ctenosaura palearis for genetic analysis in 2007. stesha, the first recipient of the ircf conservation champion award is shown here holding a ctenosaura similis on the island of utila, honduras. m a r c r u n ft the project heloderma meeting ran late into the evening. pictured from left are brad lock, zoo atlanta, luis alvarado, zootropic, rodrigo botran, zootropic, and daniel ariano, zootropic. not shown, john binns, ircf. jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 301ircf on the move to save this species. currently this is an unfunded project, and the ongoing work is being conducted without compensation. the ircf website will soon have a section dedicated to the project in order to disseminate information and provide a port to receive contributions. if you are interested in contributing to this effort, please contact john binns (jfb@ircf.org). narbc, anaheim, california: ingenuity on 8–9 september, with the entire staff committed elsewhere, ircf didn’t have the human resources necessary to man a booth at the narbc in anaheim, california. improvising, desiree wong, ircf public relations, loaded up her messenger bag with ircf material, armed herself with a camera, and headed for anaheim. she secured five new members, including the well-known personality nigel marven, who praised ircf’s conservation efforts. indy reptile expo: ircf makes its debut kacie and joe ehrenberger and dee asbury manned the ircf booth at the indy reptile expo in indianapolis, indiana, on 4–5 november 2006. kacie, joe, and dee secured 15 new members and contributions towards our conservation programs. thanks guys! san jose reptile show: teaming-up our first convention in the san francisco bay area (san jose, california, 11–12 november) was manned by the binns family and joel and mason friesch. this show was a joint venture with michael kern (the gardens of eden; www.thekernfamilyzoo.com), who supported our efforts and donated the proceeds of his sales at the show to the ircf. thank you, michael! our cyclura ambassador “izzy” was on station for a total of 16 hours and drew massive crowds. sandy binns gave two presentations on conservation awareness. the show resulted in 11 new members and contributions towards our conservation efforts. kacie ehrenberger, center and dee asbury, right, assist a new ircf member in indianapolis. jo e eh r en b er g er ircf members tell hicks, left, bob ashley, center, and joe ehrenberger, right. jo e eh r en b er g er in their initial effort to locate the guatemalan black iguana (ctenosaura palearis), daniel ariano and gilberto salazar found four males and one female. the male depicted above is one of the individuals currently under observation. d a n ie l a r ia n o desiree wong poses with new ircf member, nigel marven. joel friesch (behind the table at left) and sandy binns (right) are assisted by joel’s son, mason (center). jo h n b in n s “izzy” was on display each day for eight hours delighting visitors, including members of this family getting their first look at an adult cuban iguana. jo h n b in n s the ircf booth attracted large crowds throughout the show. gang chen, a photojournalist and correspondent for the china news service (far left), interviewed staff about ircf conservation efforts. jo h n b in n s sandy and john binn’s son, don, and his fiancée kim claussen, took turns manning the booth. don (facing forward) discusses the problems faced by wildlife today. jo h n b in n s 302 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 ircf on the move member highlight: jake edmondson jake edmondson, an enthusiastic high school junior in virginia, aspires to be a herpetologist one day. he has joined the ircf and is promoting membership at his school and at reptile shows in his community. his passion for reptiles is matched by his energy to sign up new members. armed with copies of the journal, membership forms, and brochures, he has attended shows, made presentations to his class, and is trying to get the local paper to publish his ircf promotion efforts. going, going, gone? animals on the brink of extinction and how you can help. the clock is ticking: can it be stopped? many scientists believe that we are on the brink of a new mass extinction, with at least one million species in danger of not surviving to the end of the century. can we turn the tide, changing the way we live and giving these creatures a chance? in the very first book of its kind, 100 conservation organizations from around the world each nominate a species — animal or plant — that it believes is most threatened. every one selected received a two-page spread, with magnificent photography, fascinating facts, details on why it is endangered, and information on how we can save it. the book provides complete contact details for all featured organizations (including ircf, which featured the blue iguana recovery program). (think books, hardback, illustrated, 216 pp., isbn:1845250273). ircf staff announcement: michael kern, coo we are pleased to announce that michael kern has officially joined the ircf as chief operating officer. michael has spent the last 24 years as partner with the global technology management and consulting firm accenture, where he helped large fortune 500 companies apply technology to create business advantages. michael is also an accomplished wildlife photographer and writer. he won the 2005 nactus award and two international herpetological symposium best-in-show awards for his wildlife photography. additionally, his writing and photography have appeared in several leading nature and photography magazines. by adding michael’s fresh perspective, business acumen, ability to manage complex programs, and photographic and writing skills to the already strong team at ircf, the organization will be able to address even more efficiently the conservation needs of reptiles and the ecosystems that support them. michael, his wife yukie, and their two boys josh and alex reside in palo alto, california. sandy binns gave two conservation presentations during the san jose reptile show. jo h n b in n s jake edmondson, ircf member, displaying a recent issue of the journal and wearing the limited edition project heloderma t-shirt, has been actively promoting the foundation at his school and at local shows. iguana 13.2 b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 171ircf on the move governor’s reception in honor of the blue iguana recovery program, his excellency the governor of the cayman islands, mr. stuart jack, cvo, and mrs. mariko jack held a reception at the government house on grand cayman on 9 may 2006. in attendance were the blue iguana recovery program’s staff and volunteers, the national trust for the cayman islands, the cayman islands government’s departments of environment, tourism, education, and agriculture, local sponsors, and supporters. from the uk, quentin bloxam represented the durrell wildlife conservation trust, accompanied by dwct board members and supporters. representing the international reptile conservation foundation were john and sandy binns, and joel friesch. speeches by his excellency, governor jack, fred burton, and quentin bloxam expressed gratitude to all the people and organizations that have supported the program over the years. looking forward, bloxam indicated that protected status for the specialized habitat and the blue iguanas now residing in cayman’s east end is an important next step in the recovery plan and urged all those able to influence such a decision to provide support. the ircf acknowledges and is grateful for the accommodations supplied by teresa foster of the grand caymanian resort (www.grandcaymanian.ky). all speeches in their entirety will be available for download on the new ircf website in the weeks to come. project heloderma the ircf is proud to partner with zootropic, fundación defensores de la naturaleza, guatemala, conap, zoo atlanta, and the nature conservancy in supporting project heloderma (see conservation focus, p.176), which is focused primarily on the preservation of the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti). with fewer than 200 individuals remaining in a tiny amount of specialized habitat, this unique subspecies has become one of the most endangered reptiles in the world. the project is part of a conservation effort to i r c f o n t h e m o v e chris carr of the birp staff dressed elegantly for the governor's reception. jo h n b in n s john and sandy binns meet the governor. jo el f r ie sc h guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti). © 2 00 6 ph o to c o u r te sy o f st ep h a n ie s c a n li n / zo o a tl a n ta iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 171 172 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 ircf on the move preserve the remaining dry forest habitat of the motagua valley in guatemala. to support project heloderma, the ircf is developing a content-rich website to promote the project. this will include a donation-support program that will be a major tax-deductible donation port for u.s. donors. the site also features information on both species of heloderma plus a section dedicated to support of the upcoming 2006 national reptile breeder’s expo auction to benefit the guatemalan beaded lizard. rob dorson memorial trust the ircf has received a $6,500 donation from the rob dorson memorial trust to be applied toward the blue iguana recovery program. we are grateful to the friends and family of rob dorson, especially marilyn, lee, and jill dorson, for their ongoing support in honor of their son and brother who passionately loved blue iguanas. andros iguanas football club ricardo johnson, team coach, reports the andros iguana football teams did well in the nassau games, returning with many medals. “all of us came back with an experience that makes us proud to be iguanas,” he commented. ricardo reports that the team has expanded to 40 members and now has eight coaches on staff. the next phase is to start a 13-year-old and under team to launch into another dimension. to meet this expansion, the ircf and shedd aquarium, through the efforts of chuck knapp, are in the process of creating another shipment of team jerseys. those interested in contributing to this winning team, all of whom are iguana conservation-minded spokespeople on andros, please contact john binns at jfb@ircf.org ircf helps out this past march, the mid-michigan reptile rescue took in 27 assorted varanids (varanus), tegus (tupinambis), and rock iguanas (cyclura), many of them extremely thin and dehydrated. all had been in the possession of a detroit resident, who passed away without leaving any instructions or provisions for their placement. to help buffer the expense of caring for these rescued animals, the ircf donated $500 and rallied other ircf members for donations. answering the call for assistance, ircf members mark malfati (west coast iguana research), desiree wong (ircf public relations), kathryn tosney, ella marie poyner, and jerod rice amassed $1,065 in aid. thank you contributors! ircf poster used in dallas zoo interpretive display the dallas zoo incorporated the ircf remaining-numbers poster in a new interpretive display near their cyclura cornuta exhibit. joel friesch’s rhinoceros iguana sculpture is also a part of the display, but had not yet been erected when the photo was taken. prior to the nassau games, the ircf created this special poster for the event and printed a limited quantity for distribution. jo h n b in n s / j o el f r ie sc h interpretive sign at the dallas zoo, with remaining-numbers poster on right. k ir b y m et c a lf rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta) at the dallas zoo. k ir b y m et c a lf iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 172 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 173ircf on the move new addition to the blue iguana website the ircf has been developing an online sponsorship program for the blue iguana recovery program and it is now in the final testing stages and scheduled for launch very soon. the sponsorship program allows visitors to the blue iguana website (www.blueiguana.ky) to review catalogs of animals available for sponsorship on a yearly basis. once a selection (and optional items, such as naming the animal for life) has been made, the program generates an official personalized sponsorship certificate embedded with a photo of the sponsored blue iguana, a custom photograph, and other optional items, and sends the sponsor a download link for retrieval. the program tracks the sponsorship duration and automatically notifies the sponsor when renewals are due. new ircf website ircf software developers are creating an updated, dynamic, and informative website. development is progressing rapidly; we are now incorporating content and plan to launch soon. educational poster for the indianapolis zoo as part of the our commitment to support iguana conservation awareness, the ircf donated creative resources to assist indianapolis zoo’s ricord’s iguana conservation efforts in the dominican republic. in addition, the ircf sent 50 copies of volume 12, number 4, special emphasis on the dominican republic, to the dominican republic for distribution. poster about ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) conservation efforts at the indianapolis zoo. jo h n b in n s blue iguana recovery program sponsorship page. blue iguana sponsorship certificate. new ircf main page. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 173 iguana b&w text 252 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 relationships among west indian skinks (mabuya sp.) are poorly understood, and two or more species might occur in the lesser antilles. skinks may always have been rare on st. vincent, but diurnally active, ground-dwelling lizards are vulnerable to predation by mongooses. this lizard was photographed in the mongoose-free grenadines, where the species is more abundant. treglia m a r k d e si lv a iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 253 a note on conservation many of the world’s species of reptiles and amphibians are threatened with extinction. although most species discussed here remain abundant on st. vincent, many conservation issues need to be addressed. the chytrid fungus is decimating frog populations throughout central america, and at least some of the amphibians on st. vincent would be susceptible to this epidemic, if it were to reach the island. also, snakes on st. vincent are routinely killed by local people who believe they are dangerous. finally, while the introduction of anolis sagrei onto st. vincent does not appear detrimental to the native species at this time, other invasions, such as that of the mongoose (herpestes javanicus) have had dire consequences. public education is the most important preventative measure against these problems: travelers need to be taught about chytrid and how to avoid transporting it to uninfected areas; local people need to learn that all st. vincentian snakes are harmless; and everyone needs to learn about the problems that almost invariably accompany invasive species, and how to prevent and minimize invasions. “in the end we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand; and we will understand only what we are taught.” baba dioum, 1968 frogs (amphibia: anura) bufo marinus (linnaeus 1758). anura: bufonidae. cane toad (marine toad). probably introduced. this large toad (maximum female svl = 225 mm) is the only toad on st. vincent. it has a brown dorsum and “warts” all over its body. it was probably introduced intentionally to control insect populations in sugarcane plantations, but it could have arrived as a natural migrant from the mainland. these toads have been introduced throughout tropical regions of the world, and have become pests and an annotated checklist of the amphibians and reptiles of st. vincent, west indies michael l. treglia department of natural resources, cornell university, ithaca, new york 14853, usa amphibians and reptiles of st. vincent � st. vincent (29 x 18 km, 344 km2) is one of the volcanic windward islands of the lesser antilles. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . the cane toad (bufo marinus) was probably introduced intentionally on st. vincent to control insect populations in agricultural fields. jo h n s . p a r m er l 254 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 treglia major threats to native frogs, with which they compete and on which they feed. bufo marinus is found throughout the st. vincentian lowlands in a wide variety of habitats that include urban situations and various moist to dry low-elevation forests. this species is a generalist predator, feeding on nearly any animal it can fit in its mouth. during daylight hours they are commonly found under cover, but at night they can be seen in the open, along or on roads and under streetlights, foraging and calling. all toads secrete toxins from skin glands, especially the parotoid glands on the backs of their heads, and persons handling b. marinus should wash their hands thoroughly to mitigate the chance of adverse reactions. eleutherodactylus johnstonei (barbour 1917). anura: leptodactylidae. johnstone’s frog (lesser antillean frog). introduced. these small frogs (maximum female svl = 35 mm) have become established on many west indian islands (and elsewhere), largely as a consequence of human-mediated transport. dorsal coloration is generally some shade of brown, but other markings are highly variable. while generally occurring in mesic forests, e. johnstonei can be heard calling (a high-pitched whistle) throughout the night even in urban areas. during a threeweek stay in june 2006, we were never out of earshot of calling males. these frogs are most abundant in the lowlands, although they reach the island’s highest elevations, where they may pose a threat to endemic e. shrevei, which are absent from the lowlands (although we cannot say with any certainty whether or not e. johnstonei is responsible for their absence). eleutherodactylus shrevei (schwartz 1967). anura: leptodactylidae. saint vincent frog. endemic. these small frogs (maximum female svl = 40.1 mm; male = 28 mm) are morphologically similar to e. johnstonei, from which they can be readily distinguished by the presence of bright red color on the thighs and often on the belly. these frogs are generally found at higher elevations (> 300 m) and are abundant on the highest peaks (~980 m), even at the rim of la soufrière, a volcano active as recently as 1979. above the elevations where e. johnstonei is common, e. shrevei is nearly ubiquitous. it is primarily crepuscular and may be heard calling at dusk and into the early night. the call is comprised of short, loud clicks. although the range introduced lesser antillean frogs (eleutherodactylus johnstonei) are ubiquitous in the lowlands, although they reach the island’s highest elevations, where they may pose a threat to endemic e. shrevei. during a three-week stay in june 2006, we were never out of earshot of calling males. a lo n d r a d ía z r o b er t po w el l of e. shrevei prior to the introduction of e. johnstonei is unknown, e. shrevei may be restricted to higher elevations by anthropocentric habitat alterations combined with competition from the more fecund, invasive e. johnstonei. this species, found nowhere else, may be particularly vulnerable to the chytrid fungus, if it arrives on st. vincent. leptodactylus validus (garman 1888). anura: leptodactylidae. windward ditch frog. native. this moderately sized frog (maximum female svl = 51.5 mm; male = 42.9 mm) was recently separated from the more widely distributed l. wagneri and is endemic to the lesser antilles, where it occurs on the grenada and st. vincent island banks. considerably larger than the other anuran species on the island, it is easily distinguished from both species of eleutherodactylus by the lack of expanded toe-tips. leptodactylus validus is gray to brown with variable markings, and usually has a distinct fold of skin on either side of its back. as the common name suggests, these frogs often are associated with ditches (and small streams) throughout the lowlands, but its islandwide distribution is not well known. lizards (reptilia: squamata) ameiva ameiva (linnaeus 1758). squamata: teiidae. neotropical ground lizard. origin unknown. the origin of these relatively large lizards (maximum male svl = 149 mm; female = 141 mm) on st. vincent is uncertain. they are native to the grenada bank (which includes the grenadines) and much of the neotropical mainland. they are habitat generalists throughout the range, with a strong preference for open areas, where they exploit abundant sunlight to maintain high body temperatures during active periods. ameiva ameiva is known from only two sites on st. vincent (barrouallie on the leeward side of the island and georgetown on the windward coast). the history of populations on the island is unclear, with the unusual distribution a possible consequence of extirpation from other lowland habitats (possibly attributable to mongoose predation) or the result of separate introductions, probably from one of the grenadine islands, where the species is abundant. iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 255amphibians and reptiles of st. vincent saint vincent frogs (eleutherodactylus shrevei) may be particularly vulnerable to the chytrid fungus, if it becomes established on st. vincent. r o b er t po w el l windward ditch frogs (leptodactylus validus) are endemic to the lesser antilles, where they occur on the grenada and st. vincent island banks. r o b er t po w el l anolis griseus (garman 1888). squamata: polychrotidae. saint vincent tree anole. endemic. these large anoles (maximum male svl = 136 mm; female = 86 mm) are primarily arboreal and observed 2–8 m above the ground, with females and juveniles slightly lower than males. anolis griseus is widely distributed throughout the island, but rare or absent where vegetation is sparse. although habitats used by a. griseus overlap somewhat with those of the other native anole, a. trinitatus, it can be distinguished by its larger size. it is usually some shade of gray or gray-brown with a mottled dorsum and green or yellow tinges sometimes present on the limbs and face. the dewlap is dirty white or light gray. the diet of a. griseus is highly variable, and includes berries, small arthropods, and occasionally a. trinitatus. 256 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 treglia neotropical ground lizards (ameiva ameiva) are known from only two sites on st. vincent (barrouallie on the leeward side of the island and georgetown on the windward coast). the unusual distribution is a possible consequence of extirpation from other lowland habitats (possibly attributable to mongoose predation) or the result of separate introductions. d a v id s te in b er g jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . m a r k d e si lv a saint vincent tree anoles (anolis griseus) have a highly variable diet that includes berries, small invertebrates, and occasionally smaller anoles. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . r o b er t po w el l iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 257 anolis sagrei (dumeril and bibron 1837). squamata: polychrotidae. cuban brown anole. introduced. these moderately sized anoles (maximum male svl = 70 mm; female = 46 mm) are the only brown anole on st. vincent (although a. trinitatus is dichromatic and occasionally may be brown). they have stocky bodies, and a diamond or mottled dorsal pattern is usually present. dewlaps are a deep brick red. first documented on st. vincent in 2005, a. sagrei was presumably introduced within the previous two or three years with shipments of building materials from florida, where it is well-established. populations occur near the docks in kingstown and campden park and in the montrose neighborhood, where they presumably arrived with construction materials. all of these sites consist of dramatically disturbed, open habitats with sparse, generally low vegetation and rubble, which these lizards readily exploit. anolis sagrei does occur with the similarly sized a. trinitatus in many of these areas, amphibians and reptiles of st. vincent a le ja n d r o s á n c h ez recently introduced cuban brown anoles (anolis sagrei) currently are restricted to dramatically disturbed, open habitats with sparse, generally low vegetation and rubble. c h r is to ph er m a ll er y 258 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 treglia but the presence of a. sagrei has had little observable effect on native species to date, although a. trinitatus may be forced to use higher perches in the presence of a. sagrei (similar to the effects on a. carolinensis in the southeastern united states). long-term effects of the invasion of a. sagrei are not yet clear. anolis trinitatus (reinhardt and lütken 1863). squamata: polychrotidae. saint vincent bush anole. endemic. these moderately sized anoles (maximum male svl = 74 mm; females = 57 mm) are nearly ubiquitous throughout st. vincent, found in all but the most heavily disturbed, sparsely vegetated habitats. populations have become established on trinidad, primarily in suburban or urban gardens and similar artificial habitats. perches range from ground level to 2 m, with males often perching higher than females and juveniles. coloration varies from bright green to yellowish green, or even blue with occasional grayish mottling. dewlaps are usually yellow, but individuals at some locations have white dewlaps. these anoles primarily consume a variety of small invertebrates, often including a large number of ants. gymnophthalmus underwoodi (grant 1958) squamata: gymnophthalmidae. smooth-scaled worm lizard. presumably native. these small, ground-dwelling lizards (maximum svl = 43 mm) have smooth scales and are some shade of brown or grayish brown. they seem to prefer relatively dry, open habitats where they forage for small invertebrates in leaf litter. this is an all-female species, with eggs developing without fertilization (parthenogenesis). this reproductive mode can facilitate colonization of new areas, as only one individual is necessary to establish a population. populations occur on the neotropical mainland and are known from a number of lesser antillean islands. although some of the latter are undoubtedly attributable to human-mediated transport, others may have been established as a consequence of natural over-water dispersal, presumably on flotsam. these lizards are abundant in suitable habitats throughout the island. hemidactylus mabouia (moreau de jonnés 1818). squamata: gekkonidae. cosmopolitan house gecko. origin unknown, populations may represent a combination of animals that arrived naturally via over-water dispersal or human-mediated transport. these moderately sized geckos (maximum male svl = 68 mm) function as human commensals, and are essentially ubiquitous in buildings and other artificial structures, including piles of debris. because of their close association with humans, populations occur throughout the tropics as individuals accompany humans and their cargos. ancestors of house geckos originated in africa; american populations range throughout the neotropical mainland and the west indies, and the species has become established in florida and other regions. these nocturnal geckos feed on insects, and often forage around artificial lights (the “night-light niche”). the only species on st. vincent with which h. mabouia might be confused is thecadactylus rapicauda, which is much larger and generally lives in forested habitats. iguana iguana (linnaeus 1758). squamata: iguanidae. green iguana (common iguana). native. these large lizards (maximum svl = 500 mm) are found in varied habitats that include male saint vincent bush anoles (anolis trinitatus) are intensely territorial. the male (middle) responds to an intruder before the resident and intruder face-off (bottom). r o b er t po w el l r o b er t po w el l r o b er t po w el l xeric lowlands and mesic highlands, but their distribution is not well documented on st. vincent. where present, iguanas usually are found along forest edges that provide ready access to sunlight. although commonly called “green” iguanas, these lizards are quite variable in color, ranging from bright green to grayish brown or brownish orange, often with dark transverse stripes or bars. iguanas have large dorsal crests, and a dewlap that is typically green, but sometimes red or orange, or green with black streaks. green iguanas are hunted for food on st. vincent, and a defined season exists. the apparently localized concentrations of animals may reflect differential hunting pressure. mabuya sp. squamata: scincidae. lesser antillean skink (slipperyback). presumably native. relationships among west indian skinks are poorly understood, and two or more species might occur in the lesser antilles. until genetic studies are available to clarify the status of populations on different islands, assignments to species are at best tentative. these moderately sized lizards (maximum svl ~ 175 mm) have smooth, shiny scales, which are associated with small bones embedded in the skin. primary ground color is brown. little is known about st. vincentian populations, but skinks are generally associated with leaf litter and assorted debris, but also may be found along rock iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 259amphibians and reptiles of st. vincent smooth-scaled worm lizards (gymnophthalmus underwoodi) are all females. eggs develop without fertilization (parthenogenesis). this reproductive mode can facilitate colonization of new areas, as only one individual is necessary to establish a population. r o b er t po w el l m a r k d e si lv a cosmopolitan house geckos (hemidactylus mabouia) function as human commensals. because of this close association with humans, populations occur throughout the tropics as individuals accompany humans and their goods. r o b er t po w el l walls and buildings. these lizards eat insects and other small arthropods. their apparent rarity on st. vincent may be a natural phenomenon, but diurnally active, ground-dwelling lizards are vulnerable to predation by mongooses, which have apparently caused the extirpation of some insular populations. sphaerodactylus vincenti (boulenger 1891). squamata: gekkonidae. windward dwarf gecko. native. these small geckos (maximum svl = 40 mm) are locally abundant in leaf litter habitats that are generally moister than those occupied by gymnophthalmus underwoodi. primarily active by day, these diminutive predators feed on a variety of small invertebrates. windward dwarf geckos have a brown dorsum, sometimes with a reddish cast and often with dark flecks. the venter is pale gray to purple. light-blue rings often surround the eyes. thecadactylus rapicauda (houttuyn 1782). squamata: gekkonidae. turnip-tailed gecko. native. these large geckos (maximum svl = 121 mm) acquired their common name because regenerated tails resemble turnips. they occupy diverse habitats ranging from dry and mesic forests and plantations to urban situations, although they are much less abundant in the latter than hemidactylus mabouia. a mottled gray dorsum provides excellent camouflage against the lichens found on many forest trees. although sometimes encountered by day, when they may emerge from refuges to bask, like most geckos, they are primarily active at night, when they forage for insects. snakes (reptilia: squamata) chironius vincenti (boulenger 1891). squamata: colubridae. saint vincent racer. endemic. little is known about these long, slender snakes (maximum svl = 1070 mm). they appear to be associated primarily with rainforest habitats at moderate elevations (> 135 m), and are presumably semi-arboreal, which may provide some protection from predation by mongooses, which do not climb well. these snakes forage by day and presumably prey primarily on frogs and their eggs. this species is readily distinguished from others on the island by their uniform, slate black dorsum and a pale, dirty yellow venter. these snakes are rarely seen and may always have been rare, although predation by mongooses and habitat alteration may be responsible for their apparent scarcity. corallus cookii (gray 1842). squamata: boidae. saint vincent treeboa. endemic. these arboreal snakes (maximum svl = 1374 mm) are active at night and rarely seen during the day. a 260 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 treglia m a r k d e si lv a green iguanas (iguana iguana) usually occur along forest edges that provide ready access to sunlight. these lizards are hunted for food on st. vincent, and a defined season exists. the apparently localized concentrations of animals may reflect differential hunting pressure. c a r lo s r o d r íg u ez windward dwarf geckos (sphaerodactylus vincenti) are locally abundant in leaf litter habitats that are generally moister than those occupied by gymnophthalmus underwoodi. r o b er t po w el l iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 261amphibians and reptiles of st. vincent bright red reflection is elicited from their eyes when caught in a beam of light at night. dorsal ground color is variable, but generally ranges from reddish in juveniles, to taupe, gray, or dark brown in adults. an hourglass-shaped pattern is evident in nearly all individuals. the diet of small c. cookii consists almost exclusively of anoles, with larger snakes shifting to rodents. these snakes remain widely distributed in lowlands and to elevations of about 450 m. treeboas appear to have adjusted remarkably well to many human-mediated habitat alterations, and are very common in suburban gardens. one essential habitat feature is that tree canopies be contiguous. mastigodryas bruesi (barbour 1914). squamata: colubridae. windward racer. native. these long, slender snakes (maximum svl = 830 mm) are semi-arboreal, and generally are found in relatively dry habitats, which include forests and plantations. they are not infrequently encountered in gardens and other urban/ suburban situations. active by day, these snakes eat frogs and lizards, and sleep at night in trees and bushes to heights of about 5 m. the dorsal ground color is generally bluish-gray to brown, with light lateral stripes and dark eyelines. ventral color is much lighter, but varies from white to dirty yellow. their arboreal tendencies may protect these harmless snakes to some extent from mongoose predation, to which they are nevertheless vulnerable due to their diurnal activity. turtle (reptilia: chelonia) geochelone carbonaria (spix 1824). testudines: testudinidae. red-footed tortoise. origin unknown, populations may represent a mixture of animals that trace their ancestry to individuals arriving via natural over-water dispersal, human-mediated transport by amerindians or early european colonists, and recently escaped or released pets. tortoises are exploited for food and for the pet trade throughout much of their native range, which encompasses large portions of northern south america and many lesser antillean islands. these turtles (maximum shell length = 512 mm) are diurnal, and generally inhabit forests, although they may venture into adjacent grasslands. their highdomed shells are characteristic of terrestrial turtles (they seem to deter many predators and also serve to reduce surface areas through which moisture is lost to the environment). front limbs are powerful, spade-like, and capable of digging extensive burrows. hindlimbs are columnar. males have indented lower shells to facilitate mating. red-footed tortoises feed on a wide variety of plant matter, insects or other small invertebrates, and carrion. even on islands where tortoises are common, they are rarely encountered, rendering the determination of their abundance difficult. acknowledgments students and faculty of the 2006 avila university reu program helped in the field and shared insights and data. robert powell and robert w. henderson commented on earlier versions of the r o b er t po w el l the mottled gray dorsum of turnip-tailed geckos (thecadactylus rapicauda) provides excellent camouflage against the lichens found on many forest trees. r o b er t po w el l saint vincent racers (chironius vincenti) are rarely seen and may always have been rare, although predation by mongooses and habitat alteration may be responsible for their apparent scarcity. this is the first published photograph of a live animal. a m o s g la sg o w , s v g f o r es tr y d ep a r tm en t manuscript. permits to conduct research on st. vincent were issued by the department of forestry, st. vincent and the grenadines. brian johnson, director, department of forestry, cornelius richards, amos glasgow, and especially fitzgerald providence facilitated our efforts. fieldwork was funded by a grant from the national science foundation (u.s.a.) to robert powell (dbi-0242589). references accounts in the catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles provide extensive lists of pertinent references. corke, d. 1992. the status and conservation needs of the terrestrial herpetofauna of the windward islands (west indies). biological conservation 62:47–58. ernst, c.h. and t.e.j. leuteritz. 1999. geochelone carbonaria. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (690):1–7. frost, d.r. 2004. amphibian species of the world: an online reference. version 3.0 (22 august, 2004). electronic database. <http://research. amnh.org/herpetology/amphibia/index.html>. american museum of natural history, new york, usa. greene, b.t., r. powell, and r.w. henderson. 2003. mastigodryas bruesi. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (777):1–3. hedges, b. and r. powell. 2004. eleutherodactylus shrevei. in iucn 2004. 2004 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. henderson, r.w. 1993. corallus enydris. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (576):1–6. note that corallus cookii was considered a subspecies of c. enydris (= c. hortulanus) at the time this account was written. henderson, r.w. 1996. chironius vincenti. in iucn 2004. 2004 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. henderson, r.w. 2002. neotropical treeboas: natural history of the corallus hortulanus complex. krieger publishing co., malabar, florida. henderson, r.w. 2004. lesser antillean snake faunas: distribution, ecology, and conservation. oryx 38:311–320. henderson, r.w. and g.t. haas. 1993. status of the west indian snake chironius vincenti. oryx 27:181–184. 262 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 treglia r o b er t po w el l saint vincent treeboas (corallus cookii) remain widely distributed in lowlands and to elevations of about 450 m. they appear to have adjusted remarkably well to many human-mediated habitat alterations. r o b er t po w el l iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 263amphibians and reptiles of st. vincent henderson, r.w. and r. powell. 1996. chironius vincenti. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (635):1–2. henderson, r.w. and r. powell. 1999. west indian herpetoecology, pp. 223–268. in: b.i. crother (ed.), caribbean amphibians and reptiles. academic press, san diego, california. henderson, r.w. and r. powell. 2001. responses by the west indian herpetofauna to human-influenced resources. caribbean journal of science 37:41–54. henderson, r.w., r.a. sajdak, and r.m. henderson. 1988. the rediscovery of the west indian colubrid snake chironius vincenti. amphibia-reptilia 9:415–416. kaiser, h. and j.d. hardy, jr. 1994. eleutherodactylus johnstonei. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (581):1–5. powell, r. 2004. conservation of iguanas (iguana delicatissima and i. iguana) in the lesser antilles. iguana 11:238–246. powell, r., r.i. crombie, and h.e.a. boos. 1998. hemidactylus mabouia. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (674):1–11. powell, r. and r.w. henderson. 2005. conservation status of lesser antillean reptiles. iguana 12:62–77. powell, s.d., m.l. treglia, r.w. henderson, and r. powell. in press. treeboas in the west indies: responses of corallus cookii and c. grenadensis to disturbed habitats. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), biology of the boas and pythons. eagle mountain publishing, eagle mountain, utah. russell, a.p. and a.m. bauer. 2002. thecadactylus rapicauda. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (753):1–16. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. williamson, k.e. and r. powell. 2004. gymnophthalmus underwoodi. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (793):1–5. r o b er t po w el l the arboreal tendencies of windward racers (mastigodryas bruesi) may protect these harmless snakes to at least some extent from mongoose predation. r o b er t po w el l m a r k d e si lv a lesser antillean populations of red-footed tortoises (geochelone carbonaria) may represent a mixture of animals that trace their ancestry to individuals arriving via natural over-water dispersal, human-mediated transport by amerindians or early european colonists, and recently escaped or released pets. the individual in the lower photograph is a hatchling. r o b er t po w el l iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 115historical perspectives for some years i have been teaching that the tail appendage of the rattlesnake was not to be explained on the doctrine of natural selection, inasmuch as it could contribute in no way to the advantage of the animal. it seemed to me quite clear that it was rather calculated to hinder rather than to help the creature in the race of life by warning its prey of its presence. nor did it seem easy to account for its existence by supposing that it was used as a sexual call and had been brought up by natural or sexual selection for some such office. the burrowing habits of the serpents would seem to make sexual calls almost unnecessary and there is no evidence to make a reasonable basis for belief that rattlesnakes exercise any such choice in pairing as would lead to the development of this very singular appendage. last summer, however, i had a long desired opportunity of examining a little into the habits of the rattlesnake and obtained some results which have served to shake my confidence in the opinions i had held as to the usefulness of his rattle. the observations are, as it will be seen, rather insufficient for a determination of the points in question, but it may be long before i am able to add to them, so i give them now hoping that some one with better opportunities for studying the ways of this interesting creature may either confirm my opinion or refute it. the first and only living and active rattlesnake which i met on a carriage journey of some months’ duration made during the past summer through that part of the appalachian chain where these serpents most abound was in the middle of a road near the kishicoquillas valley, pennsylvania. as the sound of my carriage disturbed the surly fellow in his pleasant basking place in the dusty way, he begun to sound his warning when we were over a hundred feet from him. although quite accustomed to the sound, having had specimens captive for months at a time, i mistook it for that made by our “locust,” the cicada rimosa say, nor did i perceive the error until my companion, mr. a. r. crandall, called my attention to the serpent when we were within forty feet of it. my wife and child, a little girl of eight years, who were in the carriage also mistook the noise for that made by the cicada, which was abundantly familiar as it had been for a long time the most accustomed sound heard while we were traveling through the wooded mountain country. i have found that the note of the rattlesnake is recognized by many persons as indistinguishable from the sound made by the cicada. professor brewer, whose long experience in the service of the california geological survey gave him quite unrivalled opportunities for becoming familiar with the sound made by this reptile, tells me that he was on one occasion at least in great danger of being bitten by one of these animals on account of having supposed that its persistent rattle was only the whirring of a locust. the range in pitch in the rattling sound of the snake is quite great; it is even difficult to understand how sharp it can be from a study of the sound made by the animals tamed by captivity, but at the same time the note of the locust is also very variable so that one is not able to discriminate by this means. the reader will doubtless have caught the main point towards which these facts so plainly tend, namely, that the imitation of the note of the locust may possibly be of high value to the rattlesnake. the cicada furnishes the most satisfactory mouthful to many of our birds. almost every observer of the life of our h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s the rattlesnake and natural selection1 prof. n. s. shaler 1 reprinted from the american naturalist 6:32–37 (january 1872). prof. n. s. shaler suggested in 1872 that the purpose of the rattle was to attract prey, specifically birds searching for cicadas, the call of which was purportedly mimicked by the buzz of the rattle. his encounters were with timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus), which are widely distributed in the eastern united states (although extirpated by humans from many areas where they once were abundant). su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h the interlocking segments of the rattle generate a “buzz” when shaken rapidly, such as by this timber rattlesnake (crotalus horridus). although superficially similar to the call of a cicada, the likelihood that rattlesnakes mimic an insect to attract avian prey is very slim, and belied by the fact that rattlesnakes feed almost exclusively on mammals. ja c k g o ld fa r b , w w w .j a c k g o ld fa r b .c o m woods and fields, has seen a bird spying around a branch whence came the whirring of a locust; suddenly there would be an end of the monotonous sound, and a moment after the bird would be seen, beating the wings off the insect by pounding it against the ground. it is quite evident that any animal which preyed upon birds would gain a decided advantage from being able to imitate the sound made by the creatures on which the birds fed, so that we can well imagine that those snakes endowed with the power of attracting birds would be the best fed and multiply the most rapidly. from this point of view we can also understand how it is that birds have been seen fluttering around a rattlesnake without calling into play the unreasonable agency of fascination; the bird in this case being in search of his food and decoyed into the range of the serpent’s spring.2 it is a well known fact that birds, even those which have the best determined notes, are easily misled by sounds which approach, even though imperfectly, the calls of their species or the sounds of their prey, so that the imperfections in the note of a rattlesnake when considered as an imitation of the cicada cannot count much as an argument against this view. if this view be correct, then we must regard the rattle of the rattlesnake as a useful appendage, and not an instrument calculated to do it injury by warning its prey of its presence.3 but it is by no means so easy, even if we allow all that can be claimed for natural selection, to account for the development of this appendage. the following seems to me the most satisfactory conception of its evolution, looking at the matter from mr. darwin’s point of view. it is a fact well known, doubtless, to those who have observed serpents, though i find no mention of it in the works i have consulted, that many serpents, when in a state of excitement vibrate the end of their tail just as the rattlesnake does.4 this movement is likely enough the same in character as that which occurs in the hinder part of the spinal column among higher animals under excitement. the wagging of the dog’s tail is a rhythmical movement of essentially the same character as the movement of the rattlesnake. taking the same line of argument as that adopted by mr. darwin with regard to the monthly phenomena observable among the mammalia, it could be claimed that the tendency to move the tail was explicable on the following grounds. during more than half the lifetime of the group of vertebrates, from the point of their presumed origin at the close of the silurian down to the present day, the caudal portion of the body was used as a propelling agent. fishes, with slight exceptions, propel themselves with a reciprocating movement of the tail. all conditions of excitement at once manifest themselves in the violent movement of this part of the body. whether in flight or chase or under the influence of sexual excitement, this movement is the important element of success. it is by no means surprising that the motion which was for ages the point which natural selection operated most intensely, for those forms which had the capacity for making this alternate movement of the tail with the greatest rapidity would be most successful in flight or chase, should have survived its usefulness and remained as a mere feature of expression in most of our animals. it may be remarked in passing that the obstinate survival of the tail among the vertebrates may be accounted for by the intense bodily inertia, if we may so call it, which causes the energy of survival of useless structures to be proportionate to the length of time which they have been of use to the groups 116 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 shaler the anatomy of a rattlesnake rattle: a. a complete rattle showing the terminal “button.” b. a broken string of rattles showing a terminal rattle (but not the original button). c. & d. vertical and horizontal cross sections through interlocking rattles. adapted from klauber (1972. rattlesnakes: their habits, life histories, and influence on mankind. 2nd ed. 2 vols. university of california press, berkeley and los angeles). 2 i had an opportunity, recently, of seeing a living cobra de capello in a state of excitement. the first impression was how entirely unlike any other serpent it was. the broad, flat banner-shaped neck upon the slender staff of the body would readily lead one to suppose that it was something very different from a snake. i can readily imagine that animals which had learned, by selection or otherwise, to shun creatures shaped like serpents, would be easily misled by the strange shape of the cobra and fail to avoid it or even be attracted towards it by the curiosity which animals often show to see closely or even smell any strange object. 3 rattlesnakes of the genus crotalophorus [= sistrurus] make little or no noise with the imperfect rattles of the tail. in this genus, therefore, there could have been no advantage derived from imitation. it may be said, however, that the rattles which have little functional value in this genus, if making a sound be their real function, are even more irregular in number and shape than in the crotalus. the truth probably is that there is an inherent tendency to form rattles in this groups of serpents and these structures are seized upon by natural selection and made functional. 4 since the above matter was put in type, i have learned that prof. jeffries wyman made a communication to the boston society of natural history, concerning the occurrence of this movement in the tails of snakes other than the rattlesnake, some two or three years ago. i have failed to find any notice of the communication in the proceedings of the society, though there can be no doubt that this eminent naturalist should be credited with the priority on this point. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 117historical perspectives to which they belong. it is natural enough that a part of the body situated at one of the regions of manifold relations as the tail is, and unappropriated to any special function, should be put to use in various ways, as a prehensile instrument by some monkeys and other animals, or a building tool by the beavers, as a fly-brush by many others, etc. mr. herbert spencer has already suggested that the wagging of the dog’s tail and similar movements of that appendage is in fact an escape of nervous force restrained from other modes of expression at the moment. looking at the matter from this point of view, which is doubtless quite satisfactory, we may reconcile it perfectly with the views which have just been presented by supposing that the ancient and no longer functional channel of escape for nervous force, the tail, has remained the way of outlet for the suppressed energy of the animal. the older the channel the less easy it is to close it either by volition or by natural selection. be the cause of the persistence of the tail and its movement what it may, we are still justified in assuming as the starting point, that the progenitor of the rattlesnake had the alternating motion of the tail common among snakes. it is the opinion of some herpetologists that the rattles are the remains of the skins successively shed by the animal. the rate of development of the rattles, together with the fact that the skins of some serpents are more imperfectly detached from the region about the tail than at other parts of the body, makes this view very probable. let us suppose that we had a group of poison-fanged serpents, accidentally tending to keep the tail skin in the peculiar fashion of rattlesnakes and that in some of these it was persistent enough to make the whirring sound of the cicada when the tail was rapidly moved under excitement. these would survive and breed the most surely and so that feature would become hereditary. the great variability in the number of rattles in the different forms of rattlesnakes and the late time of their development, even among those which differ in no other regard, would seem to indicate that this structure has not yet been firmly fixed by long inheritance. the reader will please not suppose that because i have boldly followed the lead of the most advanced of the champions of natural selection that i am convinced of its sufficiency as an explanation of the great diversities which exist among animals or of its being sufficient basis for an explanation of the snake’s rattle. but having been driven step by step from a decided opposition of the whole theory and compelled to accept it as a vera causa, though i think one much more limited in its action among animals than mr. darwin believes, i feel it to be my duty to examine every one of those points upon which i have relied for evidence against it. it must be confessed that the case of the rattlesnake seems to me no longer the bar to the acceptance of the theory it once did. it seems that the singular structure from which the subject of these notes derives its name, was intended as a special stumbling block in the path of antidarwinists, or to intensify the “struggle for existence” which the darwinian theory, like all other theories must undergo. in most notices i have seen of the rattles of the rattlesnake, they have been mentioned as though they were of no advantage to the possessor, and that natural selection would never produce them but on the contrary would weed them out, if that theory were correct. it seems to me that the whole trouble in the matter arises from the assumption that the sound of the rattles, as a warcry, is a disadvantage to the reptile, by calling the attention of its enemies to it and thus inviting its own destruction, and that consequently the only way to reconcile the existence of the rattles with the theory of darwin, is to show that there is some other use made of them and that in striking the balance between the profit and loss sides of the ledger, the line falls on the side of the former and for that reason natural selection produced and retains the rattles. if i understand him rightly, this is the view of the matter taken by prof. n. s. shaler in his paper in the january naturalist. he says that for some years he has “been teaching that the tail appendage of the rattlesnake was not to be explained upon the theory of natural selection, inasmuch as it could contribute in no way to the advantage of the animal; that is seemed to him quite clear that it was rather calculated to hinder than to help the creature in the race of life by warning its prey of its presence.” but he intimates that he is now ready to say, that this appendage can be explained upon use of the rattles of the rattlesnake5 j. g. henderson 5 reprinted from the american naturalist 6:260–263 (may 1872). j. g. henderson, also in 1872, disputed shaler’s assumption that rattles were used to attract prey and proposed instead that they serve as a warning directed at potential predators. many of his observations were of western massasaugas (sisturus catenatus tergeminus), at that time placed in the genus crotalophorus. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana b&w text the beaded lizard (heloderma horridum) is one of only two species of venomous lizards (the other is the gila monster, h. suspectum). because of persecution motivated by fear of a dangerous animal and habitat alteration or destruction, beaded lizard populations are declining throughout the range of the species. this illustration of a juvenile appeared as a colored lithograph in some printings of albert c. l. g. günther’s biologia centrali-americana (reproduced with permission from the 1987 facsimile reprint in herpetology by the society for the study of amphibians and reptiles, ithaca, new york). see related information on p. 300. a nolis (n orops) johnm eyeri is a large anole found in c usuco n ational park, h onduras, that is unusual am ong anoles in that both m ales and fem ales have large dew laps w ith a blue central spot; fem ales, such as this individual, have the blue spot surrounded by yellow , w hereas in m ales, it is surrounded by red. t he bright red "dots" are ectoparasitic "chiggers" (larval trom biculid m ites). see article on p. 242. kevin enge iguana b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 283varanus prasinus natural history varanus prasinus, commonly known as the green tree monitor, is a gracile lizard reaching a total length of less than 1 m. ground color is light to emerald green with some black markings from nape to tail base, usually as lines or chevrons across the back. first described by schlegel in 1839, this member of the family varanidae is native to the cape york peninsula of australia, most of new guinea, and some surrounding islands. green tree monitors lay 2–5 eggs that hatch after 150–190 days. they are notorious for consuming their own eggs in captivity. in the wild, they inhabit the canopies of remaining lowland forests at elevations to 500 m. little is known of their habits in the wild. although highly arboreal, these animals are excellent swimmers with keen eyesight. varanus prasinus is reported to lay its eggs in arboreal termite nests. wild hatchlings probably eat termites or termite eggs. green tree monitors are very wary, nervous animals, fleeing for cover at the slightest disturbance. the prehensile tail is nearly twice the snout to vent length and is used for balance and as a stabilizer or fifth limb when moving through trees, on the ground, or in water. they will curl their tail tightly and flatten their necks dorsally and ventrally to appear larger when in defense mode. the tongue is long and forked, and is used to gather scent molecules, which are interpreted by using the jacobson’s organ in the upper palate. varanus prasinus has very sharp teeth that are used for subduing prey such as invertebrates, mice, lizards, frogs, birds, and bird eggs. teeth also are used for defense, as is the expulsion of fecal material. captive husbandry in 1998, the san diego zoo acquired a pair of unrelated v. prasinus. following two parasite treatments and two clean fecal checks in quarantine, the pair was brought into the zoo’s main reptile building. lizards are maintained at an ambient temperature of 24–29 °c (75–84 °f), with basking site temperatures reaching 35–38 °c (95–100 °f), using 250-w spotlights (philips‰ 250w reflector) above their enclosures. uvfluorescent (philips‰ f40t12/c50 colortone) and black fluorescent lights (sylvania‰ blacklight f40/350bl) also are used above the enclosures. the ambient lights are on from 0600–1800 h and basking lights from 0700–1700 h. the relative humidity averages 50–75%, and misters above the cages are on 3–4 times per week for 1–2 hours. the monitors are offered 5–10 gut-loaded and vitamin dusted crickets 2–3 times each week, 3–4 neonatal (pink) mice are offered 2–3 times per week, and ground turkey with supplemental vitamins mixed occasionally with a crushed, boiled egg also is provided 3–4 times a week. the san diego zoo has just recently switched from turkey to dick van patten’s natural balance zoo carnivore diet™ (pacoima, california). ovulating females are offered food daily. males feed very readily and can become obese if their diets are not carefully regulated. h u s b a n d r y successful care and reproduction of green tree monitors (varanus prasinus) at the san diego zoo brett baldwin herpetology department san diego zoo photographs by the author except where noted. rows of cages in the section of klauber-shaw reptile house where individual green tree monitors (varanus prasinus) are housed. enclosures are sink cages (plastic sinks without the detachable legs are designed and built by ed snow, naturally exotic, valley center, california). our versions are custom designed by the author. they have thin plastic walls with screen fronts and tops. the top half opens independently of the bottom half. dimensions are 220 x 57.6 x 63.5 cm in height, width and depth. the height allows for appropriate heat gradients and security. the cages have nest boxes attached to the sides that are 71.1 x 12.7 x 64.8 cm in size and 105.4 cm above the ground. access to the box is through a hole 8.9 cm in diameter. supersoil™ brand potting soil filled to a depth of 30.5–40.6 cm is used as nest box substrate. the door for outside access to the nest box is hinged and opens down with two latches on each top corner of the door, which is situated near the top and measures 25.4 x 64.8 cm. long branches are placed at angles from bottom to top of the cage, and another branch is screwed into the sides near the nest box opening. basking on this perch, the female can attain temperatures of up to 33 °c. during the day, temperatures at the bottom of the cage are around 24–26 °c (75–78 °f). at 61 cm above the bottom, temperatures climb to 26–29 °c (78–81 °f), and at 122 cm, temperatures range from 27–29 °c (81–84 °f). the highest temperatures (46–47 °c (114–117 °f)) are attained in the top corner under spotlights. the section of the building in which the monitors are housed has built-in skylights situated directly above the enclosure where the two males are on exhibit; the females have no direct access to the skylights. three of the skylights are opened during cool, rainy months and intermittantly throughout the year. the heating in the section is set at 29 °c (84 °f) at 0600 h and 27 °c (80 °f) at 2200 h. cooling is set at 30 °c (86 °f) at 0500 h, 31 °c (88 °f) at 0900 h, and 30 °c (86 °f) at 2200 h. reproductive history on 6 february 2003, a captive-bred male was introduced to the female and copulation was observed on the same day. four desiccated eggs were found in the enclosure on 10 march 2003. two were inside the nest box on top of soil and two were on top of the nest box. these eggs were incubated for two weeks but did not rehydrate. no further eggs were found and the female showed no obvious weight gain until 11 january 2004, when 284 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 baldwin a juvenile green tree monitor showing defensive posturing. a subadult male green tree monitor (varanus prasinus) signals defensive behavior by inflating its throat. iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 285varanus prasinus one egg was found in the nest box; it went bad early in the incubation. another two desiccated eggs were removed from the top of the soil in the nest box on 25 april 2004; these did not rehydrate. four eggs were removed from the bottom of the soil in the new nest box on 24 october 2004. a tunnel was dug down one side to the bottom and across to the other side of the nest box. these eggs went bad 2–3 weeks into incubation. on 5 july 2004, this female was moved into a new cage with the dimensions listed above. in 2005, she laid four eggs on 30 january, four eggs on 11 may, five eggs on 15 august, and five eggs on 11 november. on 27 february 2006, she laid two eggs in the water bowl. more soil was added to the nest box, increasing the depth from 10 in to 16 in. she laid two more eggs in the nest box the next day. on 17 may 2006, this female laid another clutch of five eggs that quickly went bad and displayed no signs of fertility. she had been with the male for only three days (23, 24, and 25 march) between 17 may 2006 and the last clutch. in august 2006, she laid one egg on the top of the soil in the nest box. the following day, she laid four more eggs in the bottom of the soil of the nest box. these eggs also were infertile. she had been with a male seven days in total since the last clutch on 17 may (11 and 12 june, and 16, 17, 25, and 26 july). copulation was observed on 25 july 2006. the male was introduced to her again on 22 and 23 august 2006. he still showed interest in her, chasing her around the cage. she laid the last clutch on 25–26 august 2006. the days between laying from march 2003 and may 2006 were 251 days, 105, 182, 98, 101, 96, 92, 104, 79, and 100 days. san diego zoo captive-hatched adult male green tree monitor feeding on carnivore diet. captive-hatched male green tree monitor (varanus prasinus) copulating with a wild caught female. when the time is right, male green tree monitors aggressively chase females, which quickly submit. all varanus prasinus are kept separately. other institutions report housing groups of two or more animals together, including more than one male with no problems. during 2005, a captive-bred male was introduced to the female at certain times during the year for no more than a week at a time, sometimes for only 1–2 days: 15 and 28 february, 15 march, 23 may, 26 july, 10, 17, and 23 august, 25 september, 23 november 2005, and 14 february 2006. on several occasions, the female ate 2–4 of her eggs. on 28 february 2005, the male showed interest, tongueflicking with jerky motions over her back and along her side, and pushing his vent area close to hers. on 23 may, he displayed similar behavior. on 26 july, the male chased the female around the cage while tongue-flicking and trying to copulate. on 27 july, the pair was observed in copula during both morning and afternoon. on 30 august, he also chased her, but both were observed later in the day basking on separate branches. on 23 november, the female was put on exhibit with a wild-caught male and removed the next day. on 11 january 2006, she was placed with a wild-caught male on exhibit, and they were observed copulating in the afternoon and on the following day. she was removed 16 january and placed back into her enclosure. this female has bred with a male and had clutches of eggs periodically beginning in 2000. successful hatches did not occur with this female until 2004, when two of four eggs laid 24 october 2004 hatched on 1 april 2005. the incubation period for this clutch was 151 days. the second successful clutch was five eggs laid 15 august 2005. these eggs hatched 14–17 286 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 baldwin all varanus prasinus successfully hatched at the san diego zoo have slit and fully emerged from their eggs within 24 hours. je n n a r a m se y green tree monitor (varanus prasinus) egg #1 slit just a few hours before fully emerging. je n n a r a m se y iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 287varanus prasinus january 2006 with an incubation period of 153–156 days. the third successful clutch consisted of four eggs laid 27 february 2006. two eggs arrested 2–3 weeks into incubation, but the other two hatched on 28 and 29 july 2006 with incubation periods of 152 and 153 days. a female v. prasinus no longer in the zoo’s collection laid three eggs in a log in her enclosure on 8 april 2000. one egg went bad, one went full-term but died, and one hatched on 10 september 2000 with a 153-day incubation period. this animal is the father of two successful clutches. he is an aggressive feeder of natural balance zoo carnivore diet™ and crickets, but refuses pink mice. eggs are incubated at 30 °c (86 °f) in a substrate with a 1:1 ratio of water to vermiculite. average mean egg weight is 9.8 g. average weight of the female over the last year was 238 g and average weight for the male was 414 g. husbandry of juveniles average mean weight for hatchlings is 8.5 g. about one week after hatching, juveniles can be enticed to eat two-week-old crickets by either releasing 2–3 into the cage or by tong-feeding. some individuals are more difficult to feed than others during the first 2–3 weeks. during the third week, they are offered natural balance zoo carnivore diet™ with vitamin supplements. they also may need to be tong-fed turkey or the carnivore diet if they are not taking it from a plate. in the third or fourth week, a pinky mouse chopped into four pieces is added to the turkey plate. this is offered about 2–3 times a week. three or four crickets are offered twice a week. once the hatchlings start eating regularly, they can gain from 0.25–0.50 times their body weight each month. all juveniles are maintained separately. the substrate in juvenile enclosures is wet sphagnum moss. branches are angled from top to bottom of the enclosure, a piece of bark is provided for cover, and a bowl of water, which is just large enough to accommodate the animal, is used. a 50-w spotlight (philips™ indoor flood), and fluorescent uvand black lights (sylvania™ blacklight f40/350bl) are situated above each cage. cages are custom glass tanks that are 45.7 x 25.4 x 50.8 cm in size and have sliding screen tops and fronts. references barker, d. 1984. maintenance and reproduction of green tree monitors, varanus prasinus, at the dallas zoo. eighth annual reptile symposium on captive propagation and husbandry. columbus zoo, columbus, ohio. bennett, d. 1998. monitor lizards natural history, biology & husbandry. edition chimaira, frankfurt am main. eidenmuller, b. 2003. warane: lebensweise, pflege, zucht. herpeton, offenbach. greene, h.w. 1986. diet and arboreality in the emerald monitor, varanus prasinus, with comments on the study of adapation. fieldiana, zoology (new series) 31:1–12. pianka, e.r., d.r. king, and r.a. king. 2004. varanoid lizards of the world. indiana university press, bloomington. sprackland, r.g. 1992. giant lizards. t.f.h. publications, neptune city, new jersey. newly hatched green tree monitor (varanus prasinus). je n n a r a m se y neonate green tree monitors at the san diego zoo have had wellabsorbed yolk sacs and few remnants of an umbilicus. je n n a r a m se y day-old green tree monitors are very quick and ready to disperse. je n n a r a m se y iguana b&w text colorado populations of the ornate box turtle (terrapene ornata) appear to be declining rapidly. see the “focus on conservation” (facing page) for more information. th o m a s w ie w a n d t, w il d h o r iz o n s a rgentine sand d une lizard (liolaem us m ultim aculatus). see article on p. 66. federico kacoliris iguana 13.1 b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 37corallus caninus ranging widely across northern and central south america, with the largest known range of any currently recognized species of boid on earth, the emerald tree boa (corallus caninus) is among the most recognizable species in herpetoculture. although broadly distributed, the species is nowhere common and, given the absence of empirical data to the contrary, we can only assume that population numbers are equivalent to those of the past. corallus caninus has long been a barometer species for biologists concerned with the ecological conditions in its natural environment. today, the species also can be seen as an indicator of how improvements in the basic understanding of the species and the development of specific tactical skills have led to dramatic advances in herpetoculture. secretive, totally arboreal, nocturnal, sometimes irascible, and armed with a formidable array of weaponry, emeralds were long considered a hands-off species fit only for professional zoologists. for decades, the species remained widely misunderstood. as eye-catching disposable acquisitions, they were used in the pet trade largely as an attention-getting loss leader, a fact that led to the premature death of many thousands of imported specimens. today, c. caninus is considered one of the pinnacles of modern herpetoculture. the same refinements in husbandry practices that have led to similar successes with other challenging species provide a bright and optimistic future for the emerald tree boa in captivity. with this two-part article, i present methods honed by years of observation and practical experience. these should give anyone considering the acquisition of this fascinating species a sound basis on which to build his or her own practical strategy for success. this first installment will provide a conceptual preparation and housing considerations. part two will present sound acquisition strategies along with the more technical aspects of husbandry and propagation, as well as a glimpse at some of the empirical data from which the suggested strategies were formulated. introduction once the decision to keep emeralds has been made, the best chances for success hinge on solid preparations. these preparations are designed to minimize the stress for keeper and the kept in order to assure a smooth and pleasurable transition for both. in nature, emeralds are exclusively arboreal primary rainforest dwellers that thrive within a relatively narrow range of conditions. until recently, this combination was quite challenging to recreate within a captive environment. maintaining moderate ambient heat, high relative humidity (rh), and continuous air circulation was difficult enough, but attempting to balance these elements to within the specifications of a neotropical rainforest habitat have traditionally proven all but impossible for the average herpetoculturist. as a result, even today, appropriate captive habitats are still relatively uncommon. interestingly, however, long before the advent of hi-tech gadgetry, horticulturists had h u s b a n d r y emerald gems (corallus caninus): captive husbandry and propagation part i: introduction and habitats joseph m. polanco photographs by the author except where indicated. the extent, continuity, and pattern of white markings in corallus caninus vary considerably in different parts of the species’ natural range (see also iguana 12:2–7). iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 37 refined techniques for the maintenance of precise atmospheric conditions in greenhouses, and these same strategies can be successfully applied to housing c. caninus. habitat: acquisition and preparation setting up an environment that reliably mimics conditions in the wild will minimize the stress involved in adapting your acquisition to a new habitat. the key ingredients — temperature, humidity, and air circulation — need to be brought into balance and proven to be continuously sustainable (around-theclock and throughout the year) prior to the introduction of any inhabitant. habitat selection is largely a matter of personal taste and practical affordability. although many types of caging exist, some materials are better suited to housing this species than others. plastics, such as acrylic and pvc, are ideal caging media in which to house tropical species. aside from being impervious to the ravages of moisture, these materials also are able to withstand the stresses of expansion and contraction resulting from constantly changing temperatures. additionally, many plastics are lightweight, and most forms are quite durable and easily customized. the latter quality is invaluable when making adjustments to fine-tune a newly acquired habitat. some plastic habitats offer exceptional visibility. others are virtually indestructible, but still manage to remain feather light. all in all, given the myriad forms and practical applications, plastics are the material best suited to the task both aesthetically and in terms of cost and availability. glass enclosures have long been an industry standard, providing keepers with the advantages of high visibility and invulnerability to moisture. these too are available commercially in a variety of styles and budget categories. however, glass has the disadvantages of being relatively heavy, less durable than plastics, and more difficult to maintain and to customize. wooden and melamine enclosures, while both popular in general herpetoculture, are less practical for use with tropical species. extensive moisture proofing of all unsealed interior surfaces, including joints, access ports, and vents is a necessity for those wishing to utilize these materials. wood, being inherently hygroscopic (readily absorbing moisture), attracts and absorbs moisture much like a sponge. even when covered in melamine, moisture will seep into joints, finding any chink in a unit’s waterproofing. once absorbed by the unprotected wood, moisture causes damage via swelling, and deformity, and ultimately rots the unit. additionally, the relatively high weights of these materials combined with their extreme vulnerability to the fluctuations in temperature and humidity required by tropical species are serious disadvantages that offset the benefits of low initial cost and high customizability. practical considerations useful in assessing the desirability of a particular unit are its overall dimensions, visibility, accessibility, and ventilation and thermal properties. • dimensions: corallus caninus requires little actual space in which to reside. vertical space should be the primary consideration when evaluating possible caging. large adult specimens rarely exceed 2 m in length, and even these rare giants can be comfortably housed in units with as little as 30% of their body length in height. however, any enclosure should be of sufficient volume to allow for perching at different levels, as this metabolically slow species requires nightly exercise in order to optimize its digestive processes. an average 1.8 mlong adult will be completely comfortable in a unit measuring 45 x 45 x 65 cm (approximately 18 x 18 x 25 in, with the greatest dimension in height). • visibility: the day/night cycle within the neotropical range of c. caninus varies little, and a year-round 12/12 formula will fulfill the species’ physiological needs. enclosures constructed of opaque materials may require in-cage lighting if ambient illumination is inadequate. some cage designs provide screened openings for above-cage lighting and heating, but such openings sacrifice some degree of heat and moisture retention. such units generally require modification in order 38 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 polanco facility for housing emerald tree boas showing vented enclosures, external lights, and pullout trays for easy maintenance. to n y n ic o li facility for housing emerald tree boas showing tall cages with large openings that allow ready access for maintenance. note the humidifier in the foreground; controlling the environment of an entire room precludes the duplication of control mechanisms for each enclosure. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 38 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 39corallus caninus to keep temperature and humidity levels within acceptable limits. • accessibility: cleanliness is of utmost importance when dealing with tropical habitats. fortunately, c. caninus is a very low-maintenance form when compared to many other commonly kept species. nevertheless, ease of maintenance should be evaluated seriously, especially for those planning on housing larger numbers of animals. ideal units will have large openings that provide unobstructed access to any part of the interior. fixtures such as perches and substrates should be easily accessible, and preferably removable. slide-out substrate trays provide for easy removal of water bowls and other cage furnishings with a minimum of disturbance to the unit’s inhabitant. • ventilation: proper air circulation is crucial to maintaining a balanced tropical habitat. too little exchange results in condensation, mold, and bacterial growth, whereas too high a rate may prevent adequate humidification and lead to respiratory issues and dysecdysis (shedding problems). the ability to easily modify a selected unit becomes most apparent in this context; the ventilation rule-of-thumb is that “the greater the inherent difficulty of modifying a unit, the greater the initial need for more than ample ventilation.” restricting airflow is always easier than creating it; therefore, glass units may need a vent as large as an entire exterior surface plane in order to assure proper airflow. units with the best design actively utilize thermodynamics to provide a proper balance. some units achieve this by virtue of their physical design, whereas others employ a system of fans, vents, and dampers. while both methods are effective, the latter is generally more versatile and better suited to a wider range of applications. • thermal properties: the thermodynamic properties (relationship between heat and other forms of energy, in this case, air circulation) of a unit are largely determined by the placement of ventilation ports. thermal gradients are essential in creating dynamic airflow as well as assuring a comfort zone for a unit’s inhabitant. because heated air rises, most units are provided with top or high-level exhaust vents. however, equally important is the supply vent through which fresh, cooler air will find its way into a unit. these “supply vents” should be located at lower levels of the unit. ideally, both the supply and exhaust ports will be equipped with a damper. once a unit has been selected, the next step is to consider the basic elements that will become a permanent part of the environment. appropriate hardware elements will be functional and durable. environmental controllers, fans, humidifiers, heat sources, lights, water bowls, perches, and even substrate materials and cover vegetation should all be given the same degree of earnest consideration previously focused on unit selection. whereas aesthetic considerations will influence the selection of cage furnishings to some degree, the most ergonomically efficient minimalist designs require less of virtually everything. focusing on the inhabitant as the primary attraction and minimizing the number of decorative items will minimize maintenance time and allow for greater budget flexibility, especially when considering larger colonies. by contrast, naturalistic enclosures mimicking the natural environment of the occupants provide stunning visual displays that enhance interest and promote an appreciation for the beauty and symbiotic nature of the species and its natural habitat. however, each additional layer of complexity in design adds to the level of maintenance required for both the inhabitant and the habitat to remain in optimal health. depending on the nature of the facility, minimalist habitats within environmentally controlled rooms may consist of as little as two perches and a water source. although such setups have proven ideal and are commonly parts of larger collections, the majority of herpetoculturists employ environmentally independent self-contained habitats. such units require additional hardware to achieve and sustain the continuous levels of temperature and humidity necessary to maintain neotropical adult male corallus caninus demonstrating the color and “personality” that causes these snakes to be so prized by hobbyists. adult male corallus caninus showing the slit pupils associated with nocturnal activity, the heat-sensitive pits that locate prey and direct strikes even in the absence of light, and the characteristic posture assumed by emerald tree boas. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 39 species. the use of either interior heating devices, such as radiant heat panels, or external heat sources, such as ceramic heaters, bulbs, or under-cage heating pads, are common. of necessity, this type of equipment must be regulated. thermostats, hygrostats, or the simple regulation of voltages via analog rheostats are all in common use, and all are known to be effective, although the latter is a far less reliable option. initial acquisition of only the most basic essentials is a costeffective and flexible position from which to begin testing the environmental properties of a chosen habitat. limiting initial purchases to just these items allows for options to be considered as specific need arises, as opposed to committing oneself to as yet unproven combinations. for example, one might begin with the acquisition of an enclosure, a radiant heat panel, and a proportional thermostat. after setting up the unit including any proposed cage furnishings, one can begin to stabilize the environment to within the tolerances recommended for the species. a target range of 29 ± 1 °c at 65 ± 5% rh (the maintenance section in part ii of this article will provide a full breakdown of the seasonal climatic cycles) stably maintained on a round-the-clock basis under both lighted and unlighted conditions is optimal. if temperatures within a unit are adequate but humidity levels are too low (the most commonly encountered situation), one can consider options for augmenting the rh according to the nature of the habitat. the addition of an under-cage heating unit (flexwatt, heat tape, heating pads) will help raise rh levels in any configuration in which water or a water container comes into contact with the cage floor or substrate. an ideal balance occurs when the under-cage heater is controlled by the same controller used to regulate the radiant heat panel, although this is not always possible. air stones, foggers, waterfalls, and even full-blown automated misting systems are all proven options for raising rh levels. various alternatives in all of these categories are commercially available and limited by the usual constraints of aesthetics and budget. 40 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 polanco a naturalistic enclosure for housing an emerald tree boa; note the low air intake, high vent, and large water bowl. fr a n k f u sa r o naturalistic enclosures can be striking, but the inhabitant is often less evident than in minimalist enclosures. r o la n d o b u r g o s naturalistic enclosures can provide a sense of the interactions that occur between a tropical snake and its natural environment. r o la n d o b u r g o s complex naturalistic enclosures require considerably more maintenance than minimalist habitats; prospective snake owners should consider the extra time and effort required before committing to such an endeavor. r o la n d o b u r g o s iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 40 iguana • volume 13, number 1 • march 2006 41corallus caninus another common scenario involves the formation of excessive levels of visible condensation when temperatures and humidity are sustained within the optimal range. in order to solve this problem, a basic understanding of why condensation forms is necessary. warmer air is able to hold a greater amount of moisture than cooler air. when warm, moist, slow-moving air inside an enclosure comes into contact with a relatively cool surface (such as the walls of the enclosure), it begins to cool. once that air cools below its capacity to hold its current moisture load, it “gives up the excess” in the form of condensation that subsequently forms on the cooler surfaces. since reducing the overall rh below neotropical standards is not an acceptable option, in order to prevent condensation, air circulation must be increased. augmenting the movement/exchange rate of air within the enclosure decreases the amount of time that any particular air mass is in contact with the afore-mentioned cooler surfaces. this reduced contact translates into a reduction in cooling and an increase in the evaporation rate within the enclosure, thereby decreasing the formation of condensation. air circulation within a habitat can be enhanced in many ways. these options, once again, are limited by considerations of aesthetics and affordability. the use of external ventilators, such as reciprocating fans or individual unit-specific exhaust fans (computer case fans are a commonly employed solution), is an extremely efficient and cost-effective strategy. habitat modifications that enhance the thermodynamic properties of a unit, such as the introduction of additional venting or the augmentation of existing vents with dampers, is likewise effective. in some cases, simply modifying or adjusting the balance or manner in which internal/external heat is applied (because warmer air rises, a reduction in heat at the upper levels of a cage will cause the warmed air at the bottom of an enclosure to rise and seek to escape, resulting in increased circulation) can be a very effective form of thermodynamic modification. once construction and setup have been completed and a habitat has been fully stabilized, the most time-consuming and nearly all of the most demanding work has been done. successfully accomplishing this goal prior to the acquisition of an actual animal will give you the best possible chance of keeping your prized acquisition in peak condition. in the next installment, i discuss how to acquire a healthy specimen and specifically how to go about giving it exactly what it requires throughout its life to thrive and even reproduce. i think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at just how little actual work is required — once you’ve completed the tasks that we covered in this installment. acknowledgements my thanks go out to john benz, rolando burgos, stan chiras, craig and karen clark, frank fusaro, robert henderson, john martin, al montejo, tony nicoli, and the entire online corallus community of readers and participants at http://www.thetreeboaforum.com for supplying and sharing their pictures, empirical data, anecdotal accounts, and tremendous passion for this species. minimalist enclosures work well and are easily maintained. easily modified, lightweight plastic enclosures with perches at several heights facilitate maintenance of proper temperature and humidity. minimalist enclosures appropriately emphasize the inhabitant. iguana 13.1 b&w text.qx6 3/3/06 7:16 am page 41 iguana b&w text editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx kaela e. champlin assistant editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. or canadian membership . . . . . 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questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. copyright © 2007 by the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. all rights reserved. no part of this journal may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without the publisher’s written permission. iguana, conservation, natural history, and husbandry of reptiles (issn 1098-6324) is published quarterly by the international reptile conservation foundation, a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca. periodical postage paid at san jose, ca. editors’ remarks although our focus remains on reptiles and their conservation, we will include from time-to-time references to amphibians (as indicated in this space in the previous issue). the plight of the earth’s amphibians is eloquently summarized in the “commentary” by jeffrey p. bonner (p. 122). faced with a host of perils that range from fungal diseases to habitat destruction and global climate changes, amphibians may well serve as indicators of human-mediated changes that threaten entire ecosystems. we would be wise to closely monitor the situation for the sakes of frogs and salamanders, all wildlife, and even our own futures. the editors of iguana ircf international reptile conservation foundation the st. vincent frog (eleutherodactylus shrevei) is listed on the iucn red list as “endangered,” primarily due to a very restricted range on a single island, where it appears to depend on increasingly threatened rainforest habitats. however, the discovery of the chytrid fungus in the west indies, its almost inevitable introduction onto st. vincent, and the fact that amphibians that occupy habitats at high elevations appear to be most vulnerable to its effects speak clearly and sadly to an uncertain future for this tiny frog. r o b er t po w el l iguana b&w text ircf on the move endangered blue iguana population doubles the blue iguana recovery programme, on the small caribbean island of grand cayman, has just doubled the wild population of the critically endangered grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi). a giant, turquoise blue lizard unique to a single island, the grand cayman blue iguana skirted with extinction in 2002 when its wild population sank to between 10 and 25 individuals. habitat loss and road kills are still compounding long-established pressures from feral cats and roaming dogs that attack and kill hatchling and adult iguanas, respectively. this magnificent reptile was once the cayman islands’ largest land animal, but has been in decline since the first years of human colonization. the blue iguana recovery programme has embarked on a large-scale population restoration effort for the iguanas, in grand cayman’s salina reserve. by 2006, two major releases of captive-reared blue iguanas had brought the reserve’s iguana population to 92 individuals, aged three and four years. some of the four-year-olds began to breed in the summer of 2006, when researchers documented three successfully hatched nests, and observed the first hatchling to be seen wild in the salina reserve for well over a decade. a group of international volunteers converged on grand cayman in late 2006, to help the programme’s staff release 103 more blue iguanas, which were available thanks to the programme’s highly successful captive-breeding and head-starting operation. dubbed “team blue 2007,” the volunteer team is the latest in a series that is coordinated by the programme’s main u.s. partner, the international reptile conservation foundation, which also underwrote a portion of the operation’s cost through a generous grant from a donor through the maine community foundation. primary funding for the release effort has come from the programme’s main british partner, the durrell wildlife conservation trust. team blue 2007 began work in late november, building artificial retreats based on a programme-developed design, which encourages the iguanas to stay in the areas in which they are released. made variously from wood and lightweight concrete, and weighing up to 35 lbs. each, the retreats were backpacked into the salina reserve, placed strategically in predetermined positions, and mapped precisely using gps. simultaneously, a team of veterinarians from the wildlife conservation society in new york, examined the 103 iguanas scheduled for release, checking blood smears, droppings, and growth rates, to ensure that no parasites or other diseases were being introduced from the captive population to the wild. by mid-december, the first retreats were ready for occupancy, and the iguanas were certified fit to go free. team blue then expanded into a local community affair, as christmas and new year holidays freed environmentally concerned residents from their day-to-day jobs. school students, staff from the department of environment, and staff from the national trust for the cayman islands were among those who risked the extraordinarily harsh terrain of the salina reserve to release the young blue iguanas into their designated retreats. as the release reached a peak, the governor of the cayman islands, mr. stuart jack, with his family and later his staff, also joined the team. by new year’s day 2007, the population of blue iguanas in the salina reserve had risen from 92 to 195. combined with the smaller numbers of blue iguanas the programme has released into the qe ii botanic park, the total wild population of blue iguanas now stands at approximately 214 individuals, an order of magnitude greater than only five years ago. the blue iguana recovery programme, which operates under the auspices of the national trust for the cayman islands, has a goal of restoring and maintaining at least 1,000 blue iguanas in the wild. that target will require acquisition and protection of additional dry shrubland habitat in eastern grand cayman, and will require the programme to develop ways to sustain itself financially for the long term. for more information, see the following websites: www.blueiguana.ky, www.nationaltrust.org.ky, www.ircf.org, and www.durrell.org. i r c f o n t h e m o v e iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 61 hrh prince edward, earl of wessex, visited the salina reserve trailhead on 4 february to see three young blue iguanas about to be released. here he responds to an adult blue (“pedro”) as birp director fred burton explains the threats that blue iguanas face in the wild. jo h n m a r o tt a some of the teamblue volunteers (from left): doug bell, fred burton, raffi (last name unknown), molly cavanaugh, andrew mcaffee, nick louis, memory mays, lorraine scotson, jude bryja, and kadie frasier. m ic h a el k er n iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 61 project palearis the initial phase of project palearis (see the focus on conservation, p. 64), which the ircf is undertaking in partnership with zootropic and zoo atlanta, will begin in may 2007. the ircf has purchased a vehicle and provided seed money for research investigating the distribution, ecology, and conservation status of the guatemalan black iguana, ctenosaura palearis. zootropic’s daniel ariano and an undergraduate student, paola coti, will bead-tag and release all animals that are captured. five males and two females are already under observation at the research site in the motagua valley of guatemala. thanks to the efforts of zootropic, c. palearis has been granted protection under guatemalan law, and animals may no longer be exported from the country. project heloderma a proposal to transfer the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) from cites (convention on international trade in endangered species of wild flora and fauna) appendix ii to appendix i has been submitted, with a decision scheduled for the fourteenth meeting of the conference of the parties to the cites agreement on 3–15 june 2007 in the hague, netherlands. if ratified, the transfer will confer a much higher degree of protection on this critically endangered species. project heloderma, the conservation program on behalf of h. h. charlesbogerti, is a joint undertaking of the ircf, zootropic, and zoo atlanta (see also iguana 13(2), p. 176 and 13(3), pp. 178–191). argentine sand dune lizard the ircf is providing equipment and funds for a research project on behalf of the argentine sand dune lizard (liolaemus multimaculatus). this small reptile is uniquely adapted to its sand dune habitat, able to “swim” in the sand in search of its insect prey and perfectly camouflaged by its matching coloration. the sand dune lizard and many other inhabitants of this fragile ecosystem in buenos aires province of argentina are endangered by habitat destruction. liolaemus multimaculatus will be featured in an article in the june issue of iguana. 62 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 ircf on the move guatemalan black iguana (ctenosaura palearis). d a n ie l a r ia n o guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti). d a n ie l a r ia n o argentine sand dune lizard (liolaemus multimaculatus). fe d er ic o k a c o li r is the ircf purchased this vehicle for use by personnel involved in projects palearis and heloderma. d a n ie l a r ia n o iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 62 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 213table of contents ircf international reptile conservation foundation table of contents f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s giants in the rainforest: a radiotelemetry study of the amethystine python in north queensland, australia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . alastair freeman and amanda freeman 214 ecology and conservation of the lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . charles knapp 222 predation on a tarantula (cyrtopholis bartholomaei) by a puerto rican ground lizard (ameiva exsul) . . . . . . luis o. nieves 226 m e e t i n g r e p o r t 2006 meeting of the iguana specialist group (isg) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228 blue iguana recovery program update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . fred burton notes on the distribution of cyclura ricordii and problems facing the species . . . . . . . . .ernst rupp, sixto incháustegui, and yvonne arias turks and caicos iguana, 2006 update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . glenn gerber, lee pagni, and allison alberts jamaican iguana recovery project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . byron wilson and rick van veen anegada iguana 2006 conservation and research update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . glenn gerber, lee pagni, and kelly bradley mona island iguana: reports on ecology, conservation, and blindness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .néstor pérez-buitrago, keysa rosas, stephan funk, miguel garcía, alberto álvarez, and owen mcmillan problem assessment and control of the introduced cuban iguana (cyclura nubila nubila) on isla magueyes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .alberto álvarez, néstor pérez-buitrago, maria andrade-núñez, and miguel garcía-bermúdez 2006 research update for allen cays iguanas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . john iverson preliminary diet analyses for cyclura cychlura inornata and cyclura cychlura figginsi: assessing potential impacts of tourist feeding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . kirsten hines taxon reports for cyclura cychlura and future research plans for iguana iguana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . charles knapp the conservation of iguana delicatissima in martinique and a future action plan for the french west indies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jean-francois maillard and michel breuil st. lucia iguana 2006 project update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . matthew morton fijian crested iguana update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . peter harlow evolution of spiny-tailed iguanas (genus ctenosaura): how identification of species groups and their relationships can help with conservation priorities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . larry buckley, katelyn pagel, and oscar flores villela molecular analysis of the ctenosaura melanosterna clade: insights into phylogeography, speciation, and conservation . . . .stesha pasachnik black iguana project 2006 update: genetics, demography, and feeding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . victor reynoso, eugenia zarza-franco, wendoli medina mantecón, and pilar rueda zozaya report on ctenosaura palearis in guatemala . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . john binns update on iguaninae phylogeography and phylogenetics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . catherine stephen using coalescent-based analyses of multilocus microsatellite data to estimate the past and recent population histories of three species of caribbean rock iguanas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . william modi, glenn gerber, . . . . . . . . .charles knapp, jennie lau, maggie reinbold, leona chemnick, oliver ryder, peter andolfatto, and catherine stephen a model for protecting island ecosystems using integrated regional conservation programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . brad keitt does education really help conservation? lessons from two cyclura conservation programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lee pagni indianapolis zoo reports first jamaican iguana breeding in the united states . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . richard reams and jan ramer h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s two early reports of intentionally released reptiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254 c o m m e n t a r i e s six wonders are enough . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . leonard krishtalka 256 the ongoing privatization of public universities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . gad perry, steve mackessy, jack sites, and neil ford 257 b o o k r e v i e w s herpetological history of the zoo and aquarium world by james b. murphy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . joseph r. mendelson iii 259 hispaniola: a photographic journey through island biodiversity by eladio fernández . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 260 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261 natural history research reports: summaries of published reports on reptilian natural history . . . . . . . 260 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263 obituary: peter vogel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271 ircf on the move . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276 iguana b&w text o b i t u a r y herpetologist peter vogel, a leading advocate for preserving jamaica’s wildlife, was found dead in his home on 19 july 2007. police are investigating his death as a homicide. to date, the crime remains unsolved. dr. vogel, who was swiss born, was the 2006 recipient of the gleaner honour award for science and technology. a major area of his work revolved around the discovery of the jamaican iguana (cyclura collei) in the hellshire hills of st. catherine. he also was a recipient of the institute of jamaica’s special silver award for science in 2001. vogel initially arrived in jamaica in 1979, spending a year at the university of the west indies collecting data on anoline lizards for the university of bochum, germany. he subsequently completed his ph.d. in animal behavior and ecology from the university of basel in switzerland. when he returned to jamaica in 1985 to conduct a two-year research project on anoline lizards, he was hired as a lecturer in the department of life sciences at a time when the country had been without a locally based herpetologist for several decades. this became especially critical in 1990, when the jamaican iguana was rediscovered in the remote hellshire hills. peter was the obvious person to become chairman of the rapidly formed jamaican iguana research and conservation group (jircg), and his speedy response to an emergency conservation issue probably served to avert the otherwise likely extinction of the island’s largest land animal. in addition to implementing critical conservation activities, peter kept the jircg going for many years, making it possible for other iguana conservationists to continue the effort. vogel’s research interests focused on the ecology and conservation of land vertebrates and their habitats. he was involved in various biodiversity projects, including studies of communities of amphibians, reptiles, and birds in the cockpit country, the blue and john crow mountains, and the dry forests of the southern coast. an important element of these projects was to assess threat factors, and to identify and implement conservation measures. dr. vogel also served extensively on boards of environmental ngos. he was an executive member of birdlife jamaica, the jamaican iguana research and conservation group, and the game bird research committee. peter’s quiet resolve and understanding of the conservation climate in jamaica inspired a generation of local conservationists, and the success of those efforts will ultimately be a fitting tribute to his love and concern for jamaica’s endemic reptiles. he is remembered by his widow, parlan, and three children. may he rest in peace. in memoriam: peter vogel1 peter vogel at the main camp in the rugged hellshire hills of jamaica in june 2002. jo h n b in n s 1 adapted from a news release and an obituary by byron wilson, current jircg director, that appeared in reptiles magazine. 272 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 obituary the survival of the jamaican iguana (cyclura collei) and the jamaican iguana research and conservation group are two of peter vogel’s ongoing legacies. b y r o n w il so n iguana b&w text 8 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 moody, endriss, hellgren, and fox a texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) in native grass at tinker air force base, oklahoma. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 8 agreat wealth of knowledge is beginning to unfold about the texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) through partnerships and contributions from many agencies, universities, and conservation groups. on the frontline of this research is the united states air force! tinker air force base (afb) is the largest single-site employer in the state of oklahoma and home to large-bodied aircraft such as the e-3 sentry, e-6a, and the kc-135 refueling studying a population of texas horned lizards (phrynosoma cornutum) in an urban/military environment raymond w. moody1, debora a. endriss, eric c. hellgren, and stanley f. fox 1 biologist, natural resources program 72nd abw/cevoe, 7701 arnold st, rm 109 tinker air force base, oklahoma, 73145-9100 usa (raymond.moody@tinker.af.mil) photographs and graphics by the senior author. abstract.–university researchers from southern illinois (siu), oklahoma state (osu), virginia tech (vt), and federal agencies have come together as partners to learn more about the texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) at tinker air force base (afb) in oklahoma. although listed as a state “threatened” species in texas, the lizard is a state “species of special concern” in oklahoma due to uncertainty regarding its status and lack of population data, making it a species of considerable conservation interest. researchers at tinker afb are using tools such as handheld computers, passive integrated transponder (pit) tags, global positioning systems (gps), radio-telemetry, and geographic information systems (gis) for gathering and interpreting biological data on texas horned lizards. over the last four years (2003–2006), 174 individual lizards have been captured and over 1700 capture locations and associated data have been recorded in the gis lizard-tracking database. these data are beginning to reveal aspects of morphology, distribution, habitat requirements, home ranges, and hibernation characteristics as well as details of its myrmecophagous (primarily ants) diet. population sizes (± 1 se) within tinker afb’s urban wildlife reserve are estimated to be 53 ± 11 individuals with a density of 5.0 ± 1.0 lizards/ha. utilization of these tools opens the door for different ways of studying horned lizard habitat requirements and population trends. they also provide powerful insights for better managing a sensitive species on a busy military installation as well as in an ever-changing urban setting. iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 9phrynosoma cornutum � military training on a busy air base. both the lizard and the military require access to the base’s resources. texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum), a species of special concern in oklahoma. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 9 tanker. it is one of the world’s largest aircraft depot maintenance facilities — but it is also home to the texas horned lizard, an oklahoma state species of special concern and a threatened species in texas (odwc 2006, tpw 2006). the lizard is experiencing declines throughout its range, particularly in texas (price 1990) but also in oklahoma (carpenter et al. 1993). how then is it possible for a highly industrialized air force base nestled within a major metropolitan area to have a population of texas horned lizards? a frequent comment heard in oklahoma is: “i used to see them all the time.” is this just a reflection of people not getting out these days? that seems unlikely, however, considering the increasing popularity of outdoor activities such as wildlife watching. u.s. fish and wildlife service (1999) surveys indicate that wildlife-related activities doubled between 1980 and 1995. from 1991–2001, no significant statistical change occurred in these types of activities (usfws 2001). so, could habitat loss and alteration from development be a more likely cause? carpenter et al. (1993) surveyed new landowners who reported seeing horned lizards when they first moved into a new housing development followed by quick disappearance of the lizards. or is the decline in populations a combination of other factors? many authors have suggested that insecticides (direct effects and prey base alteration), agricultural practices, irrigation, mowing, tilling, over-collection for the pet trade, increased predation, and roadkill (price 1990, carpenter et al. 1993, donaldson et al. 1994) are reasons for declines. interestingly, all of these factors are connected to urban development, which seems to be the common link. these factors and the fact that tinker afb has a healthy population of lizards raise many other questions for a natural resources biologist managing land resources on a busy military installation. that’s part of what the research at tinker is about — how can the lizard and the military mission coexist in harmony. study site and objectives the 2,000-ha tinker afb is situated in a transition area between oklahoma city and rural settings, with major metropolitan areas immediately north and suburban/rural areas to the south. this also is reflected on the base, with industrial and community settings concentrated in the north fading into airfield and fragments of developed and undeveloped land plots and relatively undisturbed greenways to the south. the focal point of the study is within and around a 15-ha wildlife reserve, part of the base’s urban greenway. the approximately 60-ha study site is characterized by prairie, patches of riparian vegetation, shrubs, and transitional woodlands. dominant native species at the site include little 10 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 moody, endriss, hellgren, and fox aerial view of tinker air force base and encroaching urban areas, a dark gray shaded area represents the 60-ha study site. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 10 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 11phrynosoma cornutum bluestem (schizachyrium scoparium), big bluestem (andropogon gerardii), indiangrass (sorghastrum nutans), and maximilian sunflower (helianthus maximiliani). other native species include side oats grama (bouteloua curtipendula), eastern red cedar (juniperus virginiana), and american elm (ulmus americana). prominent non-native species include oldworld bluestem (bothriochloa ischaemum) and tall fescue (lolium sp.), with some small patches of chinese lespedeza (lespedeza cuneata) usually associated with maximilian sunflower (dorr et al. 2003). the major focus of the study was to better understand the ecology of the texas horned lizard, particularly in fragmented urban type habitat. specific objectives of the study included: (1) determination of distribution, (2) determination of habitat requirements, (3) understanding behavior and demography, and (4) determination of population status and trends. materials and methods horned lizards were captured by hand during fortuitous encounters on trails, roads, along areas of bare ground and in the brush. morphological (sex, body mass, snout-vent length, and total length) and various habitat measurements were taken and if large enough, lizards were taken back to the lab for processing with tags and radio transmitters. passive integrated transponder (pit) tags were implanted for identification of individual lizards. one of two different sizes of transmitters (holohil inc., model: bd-2, 1.8 and 1.3 g) was mounted on the lizard’s back with superglue and an elastic collar (hellgren et al. 2004). over the last year silicone was substituted for superglue which seems to be less abrasive to the lizards and much easier to remove when exchanging transmitters. select lizards that were too small for transmitters were tracked using fluorescent powder. measuring the total body length of a texas horned lizard. texas horned lizard in hand showing an elastic collar and transmitter mounted on its back. biologist ray moody with debora endriss locates a texas horned lizard within wildlife reserve 3 using radiotelemetry. debora endriss records microhabitat data and gps coordinates for lizard locations. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 11 movements of individual lizards were monitored through radiotelemetry. lizards were relocated 1–5 times per week during the summer months and once per week or less during the fall until they entered hibernation. global positioning system (gps) coordinates and microhabitat characteristics (%–grass, forb, shrub, tree, bare ground, rock, litter) for each lizard location were determined and entered into the gis lizard tracking database. hibernation sites were also marked and data recorded for site characteristics (e.g., depth, soil type, slope, aspect). data were recorded using hand-held computers (ipaq and geoxt) equipped with gps (trimble gps pathfinder pocket receiver) and customized arcpad 6.02 software. data were differentially corrected and imported into arcmap 9.1 (arcgis version 9), which was used to develop a gis layer for the lizards at tinker. once lizards entered and stayed in hibernation sites, wire mesh cages were placed above them for capture and release with new transmitters when they emerged from hibernation in the spring (endriss 2006). results and discussion researchers collected data over four years starting in the summer of 2003, focusing on the active summer months and also tracking lizards into the fall and start of the hibernation period. population sizes (± 1 se) within tinker afb’s urban wildlife reserve are estimated to be 53 ± 11 individuals with a density of 5.0 ± 1.0 lizards/ha. the lizard gis layer has 174 individual lizards with over 1700 capture/relocation points, which readily portray macrohabitat use, home ranges, nesting and hibernation sites on high-resolution digital ortho-quad color aerial photographs (9 cm/pixel resolution). some observations that have potential management implications are starting to emerge. for instance, lizards at tinker were much smaller (average snout vent length for females was 68.4 mm; for males 59.4 mm) than those that have been studied farther south (hellgren et al. 2004). these findings contradict bergmann’s rule, which proposes an increase in animal body sizes with an increase in latitude (ashton and feldman 2003). 12 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 moody, endriss, hellgren, and fox expanded view of individual lizard locations at the study site; dots of different shades represent localities for individual lizards. many lizard locations are stacked on top of one another at this scale, which maps over 1700 locations. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 12 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 13phrynosoma cornutum texas horned lizard cooling itself on gravel nature trail. texas horned lizard peering over oldworld bluestem. texas horned lizard just prior to emergence from hibernation. texas horned lizard peering through native bluestem. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 13 14 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 moody, endriss, hellgren, and fox texas horned lizard resting in small tree. five texas horned lizards sluggish after removal from hibernacula on a cool spring morning. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 14 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 15phrynosoma cornutum stark (2000) and burrows et al. (2001) found lizards to utilize a mosaic of vegetation types from bare ground to areas densely vegetated with forbs and grasses. fair and henke (1998) and burrows et al. (2001) indicated that texas horned lizards require a mixture of open and vegetated habitats to meet thermoregulatory requirements. this was apparent in our study, with lizards using grasses, forbs, shrubs/small trees, and bare ground. when lizard locations where compared with gis vegetation layers, no preference was shown regarding vegetation type, other than an apparent avoidance of red cedar shrubland. in addition, some areas that were known to be more densely vegetated and isolated from bare ground and trails were lacking in lizard locations. gis layers also showed home ranges to be closely associated with graveled nature trails and paved walking/jogging trails (endriss 2006). vegetation structure and availability of bare ground seems to be more important to lizards than the vegetation species type (i.e., whether native or not). therefore, gravel and paved trails within the study site are likely very important for thermoregulation and movement between habitat resources. lizard home ranges were determined with the aid of the gis layer. they averaged 0.84 ha for adult females and 0.90 ha for adult males (95% fixed kernel method, arc view 3.3 extension). sixteen lizards were tracked to hibernation sites, where characteristics such as hibernation period (5.5–7.0 months), slope aspects (facing south-southwest), and soil depths (2–12 mm) were recorded. ten lizards were tracked to nesting locations, where nest depths of 5.0–7.5 cm were found (endriss 2006). characteristics such as these are important factors to consider for planning land management activities such as prairie restoration efforts (e.g., spraying, mowing, tilling, disking, and prescribed burning). land managers often use prescribed burning for prairie management. timing of these events is very important for texas horned lizard management. texas horned lizard with an old-style transmitter and pack at nest entrance. hatchling texas horned lizards emerging from nest site. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 15 capture locations and other documented historical sighting locations were used to construct a distribution layer for lizards. this was accomplished with the buffer tool in arcmap, creating 360-m (maximum home range length) buffers around all lizard locations, and then eliminating known unfavorable habitat. knowing distribution and potential habitat areas for the lizards allows for consideration in planning of base development, as well as the ability to prescribe mitigation when conflicts arise. populations of texas horned lizards often have a localized distribution, and thus can survive in protected areas within an urban environment (endriss 2006). for example, populations of horned lizards often are found in small city parks and vacant lots (carpenter et al. 1993, donaldson et al. 1994, stark 2000). military bases often find themselves with islands of relatively undisturbed habitat as urban development encroaches upon them. apparently, on tinker, all the right natural resources, including habitat and prey, are available to sustain a viable population of texas horned lizards. learning more about horned lizards and other sensitive species is important, and knowledge garnered is vital to proper management of these species, especially in highly dynamic environments such as an industrialized military installation. this unfolding of texas horned lizards life history and ecology at tinker afb may be key to understanding the lizard in other 16 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 moody, endriss, hellgren, and fox spraying herbicide on turf to restore the area to native grass. texas horned lizard distribution on tinker afb showing historical and recent survey locations. isolated sightings within potentially favorable habitat have occurred outside the main study area. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 16 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 17phrynosoma cornutum environments. we hope that this knowledge will foster informed management and decision-making regarding the species across its range. such management in return would promote more robust and stable populations. this would lessen the potential for federal or state listing as threatened or endangered species, thereby precluding potential land use and other restrictions on the military and private landowners. in this scenario, both humans and nature win. acknowledgements work on this study could not have been accomplished without the help of many partners. special thanks go to colleagues who have worked so hard in the field: joe hackler, vic bogosian, and matt johnson. jessica dorr and jennifer mccanne provided gis support and clark baker arranged field housing facilities. literature cited burrow, a.l., r.t. kazmaier, e.c. hellgren, and d.c. ruthven, iii. 2002. the effects of burning and grazing on survival, home range, and prey dynamics of the texas horned lizard in a thornscrub ecosystem, pp. 43–51. in: w.m. ford, k.r. russell, and c.e. moorma (eds.), the role of fire in nongame wildlife management and community restoration: traditional uses and new directions: proceedings of a special workshop. usda forest service northeastern research station general technical report ne288.syracuse, new york. carpenter, c.c., r. st. clair, and p. gier. 1993. determination of the distribution and abundance of the texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) in oklahoma. final report, federal aid project e-18, oklahoma department of wildlife conservation, oklahoma city, oklahoma. donaldson, w., a.h. price, and j. morse. 1994. the current status and future prospects of the texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) in texas. the texas journal of science 46:97–113. dorr j.l., p. swint, and v.r. emrick. 2005. tinker air force base vegetative communities map and vegetation classification system. conservation management institute – military lands division, college of natural resources, virginia polytechnic institute and state university. cmimld-2005-r-34. blacksburg, virginia. endriss d.a. 2006. ecology of an urban population of the texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) in central oklahoma. unpublished m.s. thesis, oklahoma state university, stillwater. fair, w.s. and s.e. henke. 1998. habitat use of texas horned lizards in southern texas. texas journal of agriculture and natural resources 11:73–86. hellgren e.c., s.f. fox, and d.a. endriss. 2004. ecology of the texas horned lizard on tinker air force base, oklahoma. annual report 2004 for tinker afb, oklahoma state university, stillwater. oklahoma department of wildlife conservation (odwc). 2006. (www.wildlifedepartment.com/endanger2.htm). price, a.h. 1990. phrynosoma cornutum. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (469):1–7. stark, r.c. 2000. habitat use, daily movements, and body size of the texas horned lizard in an urban environment in north-central oklahoma. unpublished m.s. thesis, oklahoma state university, stillwater. texas parks and wildlife department (tpwd). 2006. (www.tpwd.state.tx.us/ huntwild/wild/species/endang/animals/reptiles_amphibians/). united states fish and wildlife service (usfws). 1999. participation in fishing, hunting, and wildlife watching national and regional demographic trends. usfws report, september 1999. department of the interior, washington, d.c. united states fish and wildlife service (usfws). 2001. national survey of fishing, hunting, and wildlife associated recreation – national overview. usfws report, may 2001. department of the interior, washington, d.c. educational signs alert humans to lizards on the base. the white middorsal line of the texas horned lizard is cryptic, providing excellent camouflage in a native grass environment where the stripe mimics dead plant stems. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 17 iguana b&w text 100 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 echternacht, alberts, and gerber glenn releasing a re-captured cyclura pinguis after replacing the bead-tags used for individual identification (july 2001 at bones bight, anegada, british virgin islands). jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 101profile “what are you going to be when you grow up?” when a child is asked that by a favorite aunt, it’s just a question, a bit of small talk. by high school, the question takes on added weight, and by college, it can be a real source of stress for many students. students often jump from major to major, seeking something that excites them or in which they think they can excel. many students, for example, enter college with a career in medicine in mind, until an unfortunate experience in an organic chemistry or physics course suggests otherwise. the person who “knows” early in life what he or she wants to do with that life, and is able to follow through, is fortunate indeed. glenn gerber is such a person. born a long time ago in salt lake city, where his dad taught english at the university of utah, glenn was the youngest of three children. the family moved to san luis obispo, california while glenn was still a toddler. in california, he discovered reptiles. lizards were abundant, and glenn and his brother caught them and put them in shoeboxes for storage in the garage. glenn’s mom, gene, remembers that the boxes were always tipping over, resulting in a healthy population of lizards in the family woodpile. glenn decided, at that very young age, that he wanted to be a herpetologist, and he even knew what the word meant. being a cowboy or fireman just wasn’t good enough. after a move to vermillion, south dakota, in 1966, the family finally settled in brockport, new york, where glenn’s dad was a member of the faculty of the state university of new york at brockport. glenn started kindergarten in brockport and began to amass a library of books on reptiles and fish. he collected shells (labeling each with the common and scientific name), cacti, and fossils, and began to fill the house with aquaria and cages. he kept all sorts of animals that he had caught himself and any animal that didn’t respond well to life as an exhibit had to be returned to the exact spot where glenn had caught it. this meant that animals in glenn’s care tended to live to ripe old ages, but everything has to die eventually. when that sad event inevitably occurred, the carcass was relep r o f i l e glenn at age 4 in the spring of 1964 in san luis obispo, california; his preschool graduation and the beginning of a long career as a professional student. glenn p. gerber: doing it his way arthur c. echternacht1, allison c. alberts2, and gene gerber3 1university of tennessee, knoxville; 2conservation and research for endangered species, san diego zoo, san diego, california; 3brockport, new york childhood photographs by glenn’s parents unless otherwise indicated. glenn in 1965 holding two of his presents on his fifth birthday. his sister, vivien, looks on suspiciously. 102 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 echternacht, alberts, and gerber gated to the freezer, where it shared space with the ice cream until glenn performed the post-mortem on an old cutting board in the kitchen. he had arranged for a steady supply of mice to feed his snakes from the biology department at the university, but occasionally had to rely on a pet store when his usual source dried up. his mom often was delegated to pick up the unfortunate rodent, and, at least once, one escaped from its box on the way home and made driving difficult as it ran around on the floor and under the pedals. as he progressed through grammar school and high school, glenn developed an interest in art and photography, and he retains those interests today. in the field, he wouldn’t be caught dead without his camera, and he’s a wonderful photographer. glenn graduated from high school in 1979 and attended cornell university as an undergraduate, graduating in 1983 with a bachelor of science degree in biological sciences. following a year of working in the rocky mountains and grand teton national park, he enrolled as a graduate student in biological sciences at the state university of new york at brockport. the budding herpetologist’s master’s thesis was on the behavior and ecology of centrarchid and salmonid fish in lake ontario. the project had strong conservation overtones and, among other things, involved radiotracking fish from an airplane in all sorts of weather. graduating in 1987, he was probably happy to move to the warmer environs of knoxville, tennessee, where he enrolled in the doctoral program in ethology to study lizards. his dissertation research dealt with behavioral and ecological interactions between a native lizard, the green anole (anolis carolinensis) and an introduced relative, the brown (or cuban) anole (anolis sagrei). the brown anole had been introduced accidentally about 50 years earlier in southern florida and was expanding its range rapidly northward (it has now reached south carolina). upon the arrival of brown anoles in a new area that is occupied by green anoles, and especially if that area is disturbed in some way, the brown anole population flourishes while that of the green anole declines. glenn’s study was intended to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms by which an introduced species has such a negative effect on a closely related relative. the study had unanticipated consequences. glenn learned that brown anoles had been introduced to grand cayman, an island south of cuba. a small island, grand cayman is home to a unique anole, the grand cayman blue anole (anolis conspersus), and concern was expressed that the same fate suffered by green anoles in florida might affect the native lizard on grand cayman. glenn and his adviser just had to go to grand cayman to check this out — and that led to many trips and to an expansion of glenn’s dissertation topic. to cut the story short, the native anole on grand cayman apparently can hold its own against the invader. during one of these trips, glenn’s adviser took him to little cayman to see the rock iguanas (cyclura nubila caymanensis). glenn took an immediate interest in the iguanas. part of this was driven by the knowledge that the native iguana on grand cayman, the grand cayman blue iguana (then cyclura nubila lewisi; now thought to be a distinct species, cyclura lewisi) was nearly extinct, and efforts to develop recovery and management plans were hampered by a lack of information on the lizards’ ecology. nevertheless, the iguanas on grand cayman are closely related to the iguanas on little cayman, which were still fairly abundant. so an ecological study of the animal on little cayman might offer clues that would assist in developing plans to save the grand cayman population. glenn applied for and glenn at age 13 in his bedroom with a green iguana — a look to the future? capture! glenn on french cay, turks & caicos islands, another of the cays to which iguanas were translocated. to d d c a m pb el l iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 103profile was awarded a fulbright fellowship to study the iguanas on little cayman. he had completed the fieldwork associated with his dissertation research, and the plan was for him to spend nearly a year on little cayman studying iguanas while writing the dissertation. he headed off to the island with his computer and a library of books and papers on anoles, but he should have known better. the last thing one wants to do after spending all day under the tropical sun in intense heat is work on a dissertation. he learned a great deal about iguanas, and his efforts did contribute substantially to the conservation of the grand cayman blue iguana (he was given an award for his efforts by the national trust for the cayman islands), but completion of his doctoral program was delayed considerably — and, those puny little anoles seemed a lot less interesting than their relatively huge relatives. glenn was hooked on iguanas. not only was he hooked, he was an expert. that meant that, while still trying to finish his dissertation, he was being asked to take part in all sorts of fun and interesting field research on west indian rock iguanas. however, to the delight and relief of his research adviser (and his parents), finish he did. subsequently, he accepted a millennium postdoctoral fellowship with the center for conservation and research for endangered species (cres) at the san diego zoo. cres had a long history of working with rock iguanas, as well as monitor lizards, and had funded glenn's proposed reintroduction program for the critically endangered turks & caicos iguana (cyclura carinata carinata). his previous work surveying over 120 islands and cays in the turks & caicos islands (tci) had glenn holding one of the offspring of the original group of turks & caicos iguanas translocated to middle cay. su e k ea ll a little gps work to log iguana data on little water cay, turks & caicos islands (2004). su e k ea ll glenn weighing an egg on little water cay, turks & caicos islands, while doing a nesting study in 2004. tr ey g r a h a m prepared him well for designing a translocation program that would rescue and restore these remarkable animals to uninhabited islands on which they had once occurred. glenn quickly identified two source and four translocation islands that would serve as the basis for this ambitious program. he knew that big ambergris cay, a hidden jewel at the southeastern end of the caicos bank, was slated for extensive development in the near future. supporting over 18,000 iguanas by glenn’s estimation, big ambergris held key genetic diversity that could not be squandered. with a practiced eye, glenn selected six hills cay east and french cay as two islands that would be capable of supporting healthy populations of iguanas, but which had lost their populations in the recent past, most likely the result of predation by introduced species. at the same time, glenn had long appreciated the ecological and social importance of little water cay at the opposite end of the caicos bank. the turks & caicos national trust had successfully developed this small cay into an ingenious model ecotourism operation that was generating more than $100,000 per year for iguanas and other conservation endeavors. although the iguana population on little water was robust and healthy, glenn had documented the recent invasion of feral cats onto the island. knowing how quickly iguana populations can be decimated by these ruthless and efficient predators, glenn immediately realized that the valuable genetic diversity represented in the little water population must be safeguarded as well. he proposed moving a limited number of iguanas from little water to repopulate bay and middle cays, part of the five cays, a group of protected islets just offshore from the island of providenciales. the government quickly and wisely granted permission for both the big ambergris and little water translocations to take place the following year. now the real work began. the turks and caicos banks collectively support seven major islands and more than 200 smaller islands and cays. from a logistical perspective, the translocations could proceed only with a dedicated research vessel. finding the right boat wasn’t easy, but fortunately glenn knew exactly what he needed. after one false start that involved investigating the cramped and rough-water challenged gingerbread, glenn spied the 50’ catamaran aquanaut, and knew his search for the perfect research vessel was over. all she needed was a little work, right? a full year and a complete retrofit of water, electrical, and power systems (not to mention the addition of sleeping bunks, functional toilet, and customized iguana transportation roof rack) later, the project account was $70,000 poorer, but glenn had learned more than he had ever hoped to know about boats — and the program was up and running. 104 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 echternacht, alberts, and gerber glenn and joe burgess taking a blood sample from an iguana on little water cay, turks and caicos (2004). ta r r en w a g en er fighting male iguanas on a small cay in chalk sound, turks & caicos islands (1995). g le n n g er b er female iguana looking for flowers on a turk’s cap cactus, ambergris cay, turks & caicos islands. g le n n g er b er iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 105profile appropriately rechristened the cyclura, her maiden voyage to big ambergris under the unflappable captain gerber was a huge success. in a memorable experience, the cyclura’s first crossing of the caicos bank was marked by mirror-flat calm waters and an escort of dolphins. that was the first of many such voyages (some not nearly so calm and uneventful) that resulted in the successful repatriation of 218 iguanas over a twoyear period. by collecting samples both preand post-translocation from source and translocation islands, glenn spearheaded a groundbreaking study of the nutritional and physiological stress experienced by translocated animals. although evidence suggested initial stress and weight loss, glenn worked with a dedicated group of scientists, veterinarians, and stalwart volunteers to document full recovery within five months of translocation. the translocated iguana populations have grown at a phenomenal rate, and females as young as two years have reproduced, truly remarkable for a species in which the usual time to reproductive maturity is six to seven years. glenn continues to monitor the reintroduced populations, which have shown an astounding 95% survival rate. by all accounts, the program continues to be an unqualified success. in 2002, glenn was honored with the conservation award of the turks & caicos national trust for his many achievements related to iguana conservation in the tci. at one point, glenn’s work in turks & caicos had led to his own physiological stress. with a couple of other biologists, he was on the boat miles from a medical clinic in providenciales, the most populated island in the turks & caicos islands, when he became seriously ill. his colleagues, who were not exactly seasoned sailors, had to get the semidelirious glenn back to civilization. there, he was diagnosed as having pneumonia, and ultimately was flown to miami, where he had access to better medical care, but his condition was still misdiagnosed. not until months later did a suggestion by another cres biologist lead glenn to insist on the blood test that would confirm that he had dengue fever. always at home in the field, glenn has continued to mentor fellow iguanaphile kelly bradley in her studies of headstarted anegada iguanas (cyclura pinguis) in the british virgin islands. together, they designed an innovative experiment that would determine the optimal size at which to reintroduce headstarted juveniles back into the wild. their hard work has led to the successful repatriation of over 100 iguanas into their native habitat, a vastly improved captive management program, and the basis for a model educational campaign that teaches visitors and residents alike about the need to conserve iguanas and their habitats. this year, glenn will be working closely with the non-profit group island conservation to develop much needed invasive species management plans for both little water cay and anegada island. glenn continues to serve the iucn ssc iguana specialist group as a long-time steering committee member and to provide critical advice and assistance to iguana conservation programs worldwide. glenn’s postdoctoral fellowship ended in 2005, but the san diego zoo was fortunate to be able to keep him on as an expert consultant. soon thereafter, he became the full-time caribbean program head at cres, where he continues his work with iguanas. he recently founded the tci-based non-profit caribbean wildlife foundation, dedicated to the conservation of iguanas and other native wildlife throughout the caribbean. glenn is a gifted and dedicated colleague who has done more to advance the cause of science-based iguana field conservation than anyone we know, and we all owe him a tremendous debt of gratitude. he is a conservation biologist who has truly made a difference. although neither he nor his parents realized it at the time, his toddler’s interest in reptiles turned into an exciting career. male iguana on little water cay, turks & caicos islands (2003). g le n n g er b er fieldwork is hard work! a ll is o n a lb er ts iguana, june 2008 118 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 herpetofaunal use of riparian buffer zones in south africa habitat transformation is a growing threat to global biodiversity. many species in south africa, including reptiles and amphibians, are threatened by broad-scale habitat transformation as habitats are converted to agricultural uses. understanding how wildlife uses these landscapes is critical for effective land management and for predicting how populations might react to further changes in habitat quality. maritz and alexander (2007. african journal of herpetology 56:163–169) surveyed herpetofaunal species richness and abundance in riparian and non-riparian habitats to determine how these animals utilize different habitats within agricultural landscapes near mtunzini, kwazulunatal, south africa. riparian areas had a higher mean species richness and abundance than adjacent agricultural areas, and hosted 80% of all herpetofaunal species detected. ten species were unique to riparian areas, including snakes, lizards, and frogs. in contrast, non-riparian areas hosted only four unique species. these results indicate that conversion to agriculture is not desirable from a herpetological conservation perspective, and that preserved riparian areas can serve as corridors for herpetofaunal species to survive and migrate through otherwise less hospitable terrain. habitat disturbances affect growth rates in turtles disturbances often help structure ecological communities, and their effects may have consequences on population dynamics and long-term species persistence. should disturbances affect resources, a trade-off may result between reproduction and individual growth, which could affect the timing of sexual maturity in animals dependent on reaching a requisite size for the onset of maturation. dodd and dreslik (2008. journal of zoology 275:18–25) used a 14year mark-recapture dataset to determine the effects of catastrophic storms and the removal of nonindigenous vegetation on individual growth rates of a long-lived turtle, terrapene carolina bauri. adult male growth rates increased 19% after the disturbances, whereas female growth rates decreased by a similar percentage. juvenile growth rates briefly increased, but as these animals became subadults, their growth rates slowed after disturbance, a change more pronounced in females than males. after the disturbances, the onset of male sexual maturity decreased by about 1 year (from 10.8 to 9.5 years), female maturity was delayed by 2.5 years (from 8.5 to 11.0 years), and the subadult life stage was extended from 2 to 3.5 years. with resources and habitats similarly available to adults, the authors suggested that adult females diverted resources from growth to reproduction, whereas males allocated available resources to growth. subadult growth rates decreased regardless of sex, implying that fewer or lower quality prey were available to smaller turtles in the years following disturbance. the results of this study suggest that habitat disturbances affected individual growth rates differently according to sex and life stage, which affected the timing of maturation. in long-lived vertebrates, such perturbations on life-history traits such as growth rates likely affect population recovery, and may help to explain why turtle populations recover slowly following catastrophic disturbance, even when adult survivability is high. alligator snapping turtles in oklahoma and kansas alligator snapping turtles (macrochelys temminckii) historically occurred in the arkansas, caney, verdigris, neosho, and spring river drainages of northern oklahoma and southern kansas. high harvest rates in oklahoma and river impoundments in both states have greatly reduced turtle numbers by decimating populations and impeding dispersal routes. populations of m. temminckii are poorly studied in both states, but particularly so in kansas. management efforts for m. temminckii were initiated in oklahoma in 1997 with the collection of information on distribution, habitat use, and population structure, and establishment of a captive breeding/headstart program. management efforts in oklahoma c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s conservation research reports amblyodipsas polylepis, lycodonomorphus rufulus, and philothamnus hoplogaster (from top) were captured in riparian areas only, whereas mehelya nyassae (bottom) was detected in both habitat types. g r a h a m a le x a n d er after disturbances (catastrophic storms and removal of vegetation), the onset of male sexual maturity in florida box turtles (terrapene carolina bauri) decreased by about 1 year, female maturity was delayed by 2.5 years, and the subadult life stage was extended by 1.5 years. c . k en n et h d o d d , j r . b r y a n m a r it z g r a h a m a le x a n d er g r a h a m a le x a n d er iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 119conservation research reports could have positive repercussions for the species in kansas. riedle et al. (2008. transactions of the kansas academy of science 111:21–28) outlined current knowledge of the species in both states, provided information on management efforts for the species in oklahoma, and made recommendations for interstate collaboration for managing the species in kansas. ranching to conserve horsfield’s tortoises according to cites, ranching is a method based on the collection of eggs, incubation, and artificial hatching. since 1997, associates of zoocomplex (tashkent, uzbekistan) have studied hatching of horsfield’s tortoises (agrionemys horsfieldii) on farms at commercial levels. bykova et al. (2007. russian journal of herpetology 14: 232–236) obtained 20,000 eggs from tortoises kept in captivity, those temporarily kept in the nursery, and collected in the wild. egg lengths varied from 36.1–56.5 mm. survival rate of eggs was 75%. body sizes of hatched tortoises were positively correlated with egg sizes. the size of hatched tortoises was 25.2–48.6 mm and about 20 g. during seven months of rearing, 5% of hatched tortoises died (versus 70–90% in the wild). of 15,000 hatched tortoises, 29 twins (13 normal and 16 pairs asymmetrical) and four terato-twin abnormalities with varying levels of terato-duplication were recorded. conservation status of the ecuadorian snake dipsas andiana while studying the distribution and natural history of dipsas andiana, a littleknown snake endemic to ecuador, cisneros-heredia (2007. russian journal of herpetology 14:199–202) determined that the conservation status of d. andiana would classify for the iucn category “near threatened” (nt). the ecological distribution of the species is apparently related with seasonal forests of the west ecuadorian zone, a recently recognized biogeographic region between the very humid choco and the dry tumbesian zone. management efforts for alligator snapping turtles (macrochelys temminckii) in oklahoma could have positive repercussions for the species in kansas. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h ranching horsfield’s tortoises (agrionemys horsfieldii) in russia has been successful and may provide a hedge against extinction in nature. c éd r ic c o u ta r d , w w w .c h el o n io ph il ie .c o m dipsas andiana, a little-known dipsadid snake endemic to ecuador, is associated with seasonal forests of the west ecuadorian zone. h . m a u r ic io o r te g a -a n d r a d e serpents and dragons: finding the beauty in the beast limited edition press — now available! the photo book, serpents and dragons: finding the beauty in the beast has just been released by michael kern, an officer of the ircf. photographing in the field and studio, michael has been recognized worldwide for his ability to capture the beauty and personality of his natural subjects. the book contains striking images of many rare, exotic, and endangered creatures including two ircf-sponsored species, the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) and the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi). more information about the book and how to purchase it can be found on michael’s website <http://www.thegardensofeden.org/>. iguana b&w text connectivity and interpond movements of painted turtles because of the importance of facilitating movement of plants and animals between habitats, protecting the connectivity of isolated habitat patches has become an essential component of conservation biology. for a corridor to be successful, it must allow for increased movement, compared to the unconnected state. bowne et al. (2006. conservation biology 20: 780–789) studied the relationship between connectivity and population density in painted turtles (chrysemys picta) in northern virginia. they examined movement rates and movement probabilities in an agricultural landscape in order to determine persistence over a four-year period. the study area consisted of nine ponds, with intervening distances ranging from 110–2300 m. on occasion, more distant surrounding ponds were sampled to check for emigrants from the focal area. turtles were categorized into five classes: adult male, adult female, subadult male, subadult female, and juvenile. of those, adult females were the most sensitive to habitat quality, and would move to more distant ponds. habitat patch quality was influenced by interpatch distance and patch size and shape. the authors found that connectivity is a function of the behavior of individuals in relation to landscape features and habitat quality. thus, if the ecology of a species is not taken into account, structural connectivity by itself has little worth. for proper conservation planning, connectivity must consider known behavior of the target species as well as the quality of habitat. rat eradications using new zealand as a case study, towns et al. (2006. biological invasions 8:863–891) examined the effects of invasive pacific rats (rattus exulans), a small south-east asian species spread by polynesians throughout the pacific, and more recently introduced norway rats (r. norvegicus) and ship (roof) rats (r. rattus) on native species. rats suppress some forest plants, and are associated with extinctions or declines of flightless invertebrates, ground-dwelling reptiles, land birds, and burrowing seabirds. globally, ship rats were associated with declines or extinctions of the largest number of indigenous vertebrate species. effects of rats on forest trees and seabird populations are sufficiently pervasive to affect ecosystem structure and function. however, data are patchy, and deficiencies would be reduced by documenting distribution and abundance of indigenous species before and after eradications of rats on islands. conservation implications of sea turtle nesting beach loss historically, green (chelonia mydas) and hawksbill (eretmochelys imbricata) turtles nested in high densities throughout the caribbean. because of hunting by humans, turtle populations have been decimated and populations continue to decline. population declines and ecological changes have occurred over many centuries and historical and archeological data provide information that can be used to estimate early geographic ranges and population sizes of sea turtles. mcclenachan et al. (2006. frontiers in ecology and the environment 4:290–296) used historical data on use of nesting beaches to determine changes in population sizes for both species in 20 regions of the caribbean. historic data show that nesting sites supported large populations in the past, but that those are now extremely depleted. current green and hawksbill populations are 0.33% and 0.27% of their respective historic values, 20% of the historic nesting sites have been lost, and 50% of the remaining sites support very low populations. because historic data have not been used previously, the magnitude of population declines has been underestimated. protection efforts have resulted in increases in a few turtle populations, but long-term data are sparse. for successful conservation to occur, short-term data should not be used to infer long-term change. without proper protection, the remaining nesting beaches could soon be lost. protection and scientific research funding must be implemented in as many beaches as possible to help recover lost nesting beaches. invasion and displacement in pacific island geckos growing international travel and trade have amplified the spread of invasive species, which causes significant ecological and economic damage. invasives can alter successional patterns, mutualistic relationships, community dynamics, ecosystem function, and resource distributions. the common house gecko (hemidactylus frenatus) continues to expand its range and is displacing many 54 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 conservation research reports c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s adult female painted turtles (chrysemys picta) were more sensitive than adult males or subadults of either sex to habitat quality. ji m h a r d in g , w o r ld c h el o n ia n t r u st introduced rats (rattus spp.) suppress some forest plants, and are associated with extinctions or declines of flightless invertebrates, ground-dwelling reptiles, land birds, and burrowing seabirds. historically, green (chelonia mydas; above) and hawksbill (eretmochelys imbricata) turtles nested in high densities throughout the caribbean. because of hunting by humans, turtle populations have been decimated and populations continue to decline. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 54 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 55 other species, such as the ecologically similar but all-female indo-pacific gecko (h. garnotii) on a global scale. dame and petren (2006. animal behaviour 71:1165–1173) predicted that the presence of h. frenatus will cause h. garnotii to consume fewer resources and tested whether h. frenatus would respond to h. garnotii as they would to conspecific males or to conspecific females. the hypothesis that resource competition is the mechanism of displacement of h. garnotii received no support from the experiments. although geckos consumed fewer resources when they were in pairs, resource consumption of h. garnotii was not negatively affected by h. frenatus. the hypothesis that male aggression toward h. garnotii is the primary mechanism of invasion of h. frenatus was also rejected. male h. frenatus responded to h. garnotii as they did to conspecific females, and courted and copulated with them. however, male h. frenatus showed a preference for larger female h. garnotii, which suggested that sexual interference could be a mechanism for displacement of h. garnotii. tiger salamanders disappear in maryland: is this the fate of other non-game species of conservation concern? lee (2006. bulletin of the chicago herpetological society 41:217–224) documented the demise of the last maryland population of eastern tiger salamanders (ambystoma tigrinum) from a site that is owned and managed by the maryland dnr. this site was purchased by the nature conservancy specifically to protect this species and was sold to the state with the stipulation that this salamander be managed in perpetuity. the last breeding pond was not monitored, and, over time, silted in, ph and water depth changed, surrounding vegetation shaded the pond, and bluegills were introduced. despite warnings from people familiar with the needs of these salamanders and a decline documented by a private individual, the state refused to take action or listen to advice from local herpetologists. an agency boasting “everything we do is based on the best available science” failed to maintain a viable population under their stewardship since the early 1970s. an agency with a forestry division, wetland specialists, wetland restoration teams, a legal mandate to protect state endangered species, and a state herpetologist, was unable to oversee the wellbeing of a forest-dwelling creature on lands it owns and manages. one can only imagine how well other locally rare and endangered reptiles, turtles, and amphibians are doing under their care. the article raises the obvious question as to how other states oversee non-game species of conservation concern. survival and growth of artificially incubated american alligators temsiripong et al. (2006. journal of herpetology 40:415–423) compared artificially incubated and repatriated american alligator (alligator mississippiensis) hatchlings released within and outside the maternal alligator’s home range with naturally incubated hatchlings released within and outside the maternal alligator’s home range at three lakes in central florida. artificially incubated hatchlings released outside the maternal alligator’s home range had lower recapture probabilities than all other treatments, none of which differed significantly. artificially incubated hatchlings were about 6% shorter than naturally incubated hatchlings at about nine months of age. the authors concluded that repatriation of hatchlings might be an economical alternative to repatriation of older juveniles in efforts to restore populations, but that location of release may affect subsequent survival and growth. conservation research reports the common house gecko (hemidactylus frenatus; above) continues to expand its range and is displacing many other species, such as the ecologically similar but all-female indopacific gecko (h. garnotii) on a global scale. r o b er t po w el l the last known maryland population of eastern tiger salamanders (ambystoma tigrinum) has disappeared from a site that is owned and managed by the maryland department of natural resources. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h repatriation of american alligator (alligator mississippiensis) hatchlings might be an economical alternative to repatriation of older juveniles in efforts to restore populations, but the location of release may affect subsequent survival and growth. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 55 iguana b&w text 24 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 whitaker gharials (gavialis gangeticus) are massive crocodilians with long, slender snouts equipped with sharp teeth ideally suited for capturing fish in deepwater portions of riverine systems on the indian subcontinent. o li v ie r b o r n iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 24 the gharial (gavialis gangeticus) is a massive crocodilian, exceeded in size only by the saltwater crocodile (crocodylus porosus). historically, male gharials of up to 6 m (nearly 20 ft) were commonly encountered, but such large individuals are unknown today. the species is characterized by its elongated, narrow snout, which varies in shape as an animal ages, becoming proportionally shorter and thicker over time. the bulbous growth on the tip of a male’s snout, called “ghara” after the indian word meaning “pot,” is present in mature individuals, which utilize the structure to to modify and amplify “hisses” snorted through the underlying nostrils. the resultant sound can be heard for nearly a kilometer on a still day. the ghara also renders gharials the only visibly sexually dimorphic crocodilian. the well-developed laterally flattened tail and webbed rear feet provide tremendous maneuverability in the gharials’ deepwater habitat, where their diet consists primarily of fish. on land, however, an adult gharial can do little more than push itself forward and slide on its belly, and it will leave the water only to bask or to nest on sandy beaches. males will guard a territory in which several females live. mating usually occurs during december and january and nesting from march to may, which corresponds to the dry, low water season. females will excavate an egg chamber in the sandy banks above the flood line, depositing up to 60 eggs and carefully covering them. the eggs are the largest of any crocodilian species, weighing an average of 160 g. eggs hatch after 83–94 days. female gharials dig up the young in response to hatching chirps, but, unlike many other crocodilians, do not assist the hatchlings to the water. they will, however, guard the hatchlings for some time. although this remarkably gentle animal once thrived in the deep rivers of india, nepal, pakistan, bangladesh, bhutan, and myanmar, it is now virtually extinct in all but the first two of these countries, where it is limited to 2% of its former range. the gharial: going extinct again1 romulus whitaker and members of the gmtf gharial multi-task force, madras crocodile bank iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 25gharial � gharials were once distributed across approximately 20,000 km2 of riverine habitat of the indus, ganges, brahmaputra, and irrawady river systems. today populations are limited to a few refuges: (1) national chambal sanctuary; (2) katerniaghat sanctuary; (3) chitawan national park; (4) son river sanctuary; (5) satkosia gorge sanctuary. no breeding is occurring in the satkosia gorge sanctuary. scattered individuals are known to occur along other rivers in india and nepal, but no reproduction has been documented in decades. solid crosses indicate that populations are presumed to be extirpated, and outlined crosses mark populations that are extirpated. jo h n b in n s gharials basking on sand banks at the katerniaghat sanctuary. f. w il li a m z ei g le r iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 25 early records early records for the gharial are mainly anecdotal. old references indicate the gharial’s abundance: common in the indus river in pakistan (francis 1910, rao 1933); gandak river in nepal (i.a.k. 1921); jumuna river in uttar pradesh (hornaday 1885), and kosi river in bihar (shortt 1921). several authors mentioned seeing groups basking together. in 1885, hornaday wrote that he had counted 64 gharial in two hours on the banks of the jamuna. adams (1867) wrote: the gharial “abounds in all the great rivers of northern india … ten or twenty may be frequently seen together. hundreds of gharial were observed on the narayani river (nepal) prior to the construction of the gandak barrage … in 1964 and in the early 1950s about 235 gharial were counted along the narayani river between narayanghat and tribeni” (maskey 1999). with a historic range of thousands of river kilometers of habitat over an area of about 20,000 km2, from the indus to the irrawady, the gharial had an inferred population of 5,000 to ≥ 10,000. current status by 1976, the estimated total population of wild gharials had declined from an inferred 5,000–10,000 animals in the 1940s and throughout its huge former range (spanning the rivers of the northern part of the indian subcontinent from the indus in present-day pakistan 3000 km eastward across the gangetic floodplain to the irrawady in myanmar) to fewer than 200 (whitaker 1974), a decline of about 96%. the indian government subsequently accorded protection to the gharial under the wildlife protection act (wpa) of 1972. project crocodile began in 1975 under the auspices of the government of india with the aid of the united nations development fund (undp) and food and agriculture organization (fao). the project included an intensive captivebreeding and rearing program intended to restock habitats with low numbers of gharials. an acute shortage of gharial eggs was overcome by their purchase from nepal. a male gharial was flown in from the zoo in frankfurt, germany, to become one of the founding animals of the breeding program. sixteen crocodile rehabilitation centers and five crocodile sanctuaries (national chambal sanctuary (ncs), katerniaghat wildlife sanctuary (kws), satkosia gorge wildlife sanctuary, son gharial sanctuary, and ken gharial sanctuary) were established in india between 1975 and 1982. by 2004, 12,000 gharial eggs had been collected from wild and captive-breeding nests, and over 5,000 gharials reared to about a meter or more in length (roughly three years of age) and released into the wild. over 3,500 of these were released in ncs, the largest gharial reserve in the country, sprawling across 425 km2 in the states of uttar pradesh, madhya pradesh, and rajasthan. in 1982, a report by a wildlife biologist for the fao/undp listed project crocodile among the most successful conservation projects in the world. however, in 1991, the union ministry of environment and forests felt that the project had served its purpose, and stopped funds for its captivebreeding program. funds were also withdrawn for the egg-collection program. the thousands of crocodiles seen in various rearing stations and captive breeding centers clearly attested to the success of the project. however, little had been done to 26 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 whitaker the very sharp interdigitated teeth are well adapted for capturing fish, which are gharials’ primary prey. m a tt v a u g h a n , f o r t w o r th z o o many large males were killed by hunters from nepal or europe well into the 20th century. this hunt was in what was to become the royal chitwan national park and occurred just before the protected area was created. today, only four large, mature males like that in the photograph remain in the narayani and rapti rivers around the park. photograph courtesy of olivier born. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/28/07 9:08 pm page 26 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 27gharial involve the local communities in conservation, and that has been the key failure in securing the future of the species in nature. in 1997–1998, monitoring exercises by the forest departments of madhya pradesh, rajasthan, and uttar pradesh located over 1,200 gharials and over 75 nests in ncs — but no surveys occurred between 1999 and 2003. by 2006, the inferred mature gharial population in india had plummeted to fewer than 200 adult individuals (andrews 2006, sharma and basu 2004) and fewer than 35 adults in nepal (maskey 2006). the species is virtually extinct in pakistan (whitaker and basu 1983), bangladesh (whitaker 1976, khan 1979, faizuddin 1983), and bhutan (singh 1991). only two records for the species were recorded from myanmar in 1927, and it is presumed to be extinct in that nation. reasons for decline the drastic decline in the gharial population over the last 60 years (three gharial generations) can be attributed to over-hunting for skins and trophies, egg-collection for consumption, killing for indigenous medicine, and killing by fishermen. in addition, dams, barrages, irrigation canals, siltation, changes in river course, artificial embankments, sand-mining, riparian agriculture, and land-use changes to accommodate domestic and feral livestock have combined to limit the range of gharials as a consequence of excessive, irreversible loss of riverine habitat. these threats have not ceased, indeed have increased and continue to compromise the survival of the species. the misguided megaplan to interlink the major indian rivers will be the final nail in the coffin. gharial declines have gone hand-in-hand with declines of other riverine taxa once reportedly abundant and now endangered. these include the ganges river dolphin (platanista gangetica), smooth-coated otter (lutrogale perspicillata), and the mugger gharials, such as this adult female, are powerful swimmers but graceless on land. the laterally compressed tail serves both to propel the animal and as a base from which to strike at prey. o li v ie r b o r n the elongated, narrow snout reduces resistance as gharials snag fish. it varies in shape as an animal ages, becoming proportionally shorter and thicker over time. o li v ie r b o r n table 1. past and present numbers of adult gharials in the major river systems of the indian subcontinent. subpopulation three generations ago present (river systems) (1946 – inferred) (2006 – inferred) estimated reduction indus river nil ganges river < 200 mahanadi river 2 irrawady river nil totals 5,000–10,000 < 200 96% the ghara, a bulbous growth on the tips of snouts of mature males, is used to amplify the hiss produced by compressing the underlying nostrils. d o n b o y er , s a n d ie g o z o o illegal sand-mining operations have contributed to the irreversible loss of gharial habitat at the national chambal sanctuary. r o m w h it a k er iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 27 28 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 whitaker crocodile (crocodylus palustris), in addition to numerous waterfowl and well-known game and edible fish species such as the mahseer (tor sp.) and hilsa (hilsa illisha). gmtf is collaborating with wwf-india to form “riverwatch,” which will monitor all of these endangered river taxa. nest counts the mature gharial population was estimated by using nest counts, as they are easily visible and counted at well-known locations that have been monitored for decades. this is likely to be an accurate assessment for numbers of mature animals, because of the unknown number of immature males that are routinely counted as “adults,” before they grow a ghara at 12–15 years of age. females reach sexual maturity when they are around seven years old and about 2.4–2.7 m in total length. males do not mature until they are about 4 m in length at 15–18 years of age. using the only published data on ratios of males in the mature gharial population (14%) (hussain 1999), we inferred that a proportion of all ‘adults’ reported in censuses are actually subadult males. fishermen, who illegally set nets in the national chambal sanctuary, will cut off gharials’ snouts, leaving them to starve. r a ji v c h a u h a n ( to p) a n d h a r r y a n d r ew s (b o tt o m ) gharials quickly drown when they become enmeshed in illegal fishing nets at the national chambal sanctuary. r a ji v c h a u h a n iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 28 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 29gharial breeding populations the chambal river supports the largest breeding subpopulation and is the largest remaining protected area for gharials, with an estimated 48% of the total population. the total number of nests found in the national chambal sanctuary in 2006 was 68. the other large breeding population of gharials in india is in the katerniaghat wildlife sanctuary (kws), where 20 nests were found in 2006. the only other known breeding population in india is the son river sanctuary, where two nests were found in 2006 (for the first time in 30 years; andrews 2006). since many female gharials nest every year in captivity, the assumption that the above-cited nest counts indicate the presence of 90 reproducing female gharial in india is reasonable. consequently, the reported paucity of mature males (with their very conspicuous gharas) on the chambal in the surveys of 2005 and 2006 and the resulting drastically low estimate of mature males are likely to be accurate for that river (andrews 2006, rao, pers. comm.). however, a total of 20 nesting females and six mature males were counted in the kws by independent observers in 2006 (b.c. choudhury, h.v. andrews, r. whitaker, pers. obs.). the total inferred number of mature gharials in the three remaining wild breeding subpopulations in india is therefore 107, based on observed nest numbers and inferred numbers of mature males. other subpopulations two other small, non-reproducing populations of gharials are known to exist in india (ken river in madhya pradesh and mahanadi river in orissa). these have been supplemented by the reintroduction of captive-bred stock (as in all present gharial locations). a few scattered gharials may also remain in the brahmaputra river of northeastern india, but confirmed sightings date to 1993 (choudhury 1997). these other subpopulations in india contain a total estimated 40 mature animals (no mature males nor any breeding have been reported). the gharial is undoubtedly extinct in the indus (pakistan/india) and irrawady (myanmar) river systems. gharial declines have gone hand-in-hand with declines of other riverine taxa, such as the ganges river dolphin (platanista gangetica; above) and the mugger crocodile (crocodylus palustris; top right). the latter was photographed at the katerniaghat sanctuary along one of the ganges river tributaries. su sh a n t d ey , d o lp h in c o n se r v a ti o n p r o je c t f. w il li a m z ei g le r this female gharial has a fishing net tangled around her snout. if she cannot rid herself of the net, she will slowly starve to death over a period as long as a year. n ic k b a k er iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 29 30 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 whitaker gharials have been successfully bred in captivity; this group of hatchlings were produced at kukrail, india. d o n b o y er , s a n d ie g o z o o sexual dimorphism in gharials is readily apparent. only males develop the protuberance at the tip of the snout, the “ghara,” from which the species derives its name. m a tt v a u g h a n , f o r t w o r th z o o a captive gharial from st. augustine’s in florida. c o li n s te v en so n u.s. efforts to aid gharial conservation although the critical work to protect gharials from extinction in the wild is most needed in their native habitat, zoos in the united states support these efforts wherever possible. in 2004, the cleveland zoo and the san diego zoo started a fund to help support insitu conservation. since then, the two zoos have contributed $26,000 to the gharial multi-task force (gmtf). these funds are used for gharial surveys, ongoing monitoring of known populations, and operational expenditures by the local associates of the gmtf. although they do not keep gharials, the dallas zoo recognized the precarious position of the wild population and recently joined in contributing to the fund. a plea has been extended to other aza institutions to contribute to this important endeavor. another objective is to create a self-sustaining population to serve as a genetic reservoir for the species. to accomplish this, the current u.s. population of 21 animals would have to be supplemented by captive-reared animals from india. although no gharials have been born in captivity in the united states (possibly due to the fact that the potential breeders have yet to reach sexual maturity), over 4,500 animals have been raised in captivity and returned to the wild in india, proving that a self-sustaining captive population is attainable. a self-sustaining population of gharials in the united states would have the additional benefit of increasing the number of institutions that keep these alluring animals. this would help to raise awareness and funds for gharial conservation and create a broader base of support for pressuring the indian and other governments to act decisively to protect gharials in the wild. also, the actions of some conservation organizations that focus on species other than gharials have contributed to their conservation. one example is the turtle survival alliance. this coalition of zoos, institutions, and individuals with divisions in the united states, europe, and austral-asia, supports the protection of critical habitat for turtles such as the redcrowned roofed turtle (kachuga kachuga), which is sympatric with gharials in part of their range. asian turtles and gharials both are faced with the threats of habitat destruction, poaching, and high mortality due to illegal fish-netting practices. while the alliance focuses on turtles, other endangered species, such as gharials and the indus river dolphin, benefit from efforts to protect habitat and enforce laws that protect wildlife. lee pagni and don boyer zoological society of san diego u.s. institutions with gharials busch gardens, tampa cleveland metroparks ft. worth zoo honolulu zoo national zoo, washington, dc st. augustine alligator farm san antonio zoo san diego zoo iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/28/07 9:09 pm page 30 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 31gharial gharials in nepal six nests were counted in 2006 in nepal in chitawan national park (rapti/narayani river) and three other small, non-reproducing subpopulations are known (kosi, karnali, and babai rivers). the total number of mature gharials in all subpopulations in nepal is inferred to be 35 animals (maskey 1999, pers. comm.). how many gharials? unless additional research tells us otherwise, we have to assume that the maximum number of wild, mature gharials across the entire remaining range of the species (presently only india and nepal) is 182 in about eight non-contiguous, fragmented habitats. gharial declines in the past decade in 1997, the peak year with the highest numbers of wild mature gharials and nests recorded in the last 30 years, 226 mature animals and 81 nests were recorded in the chambal (sharma and basu 2004). although no nests were found in the son, about 10 mature individuals occurred there. we had no nest data for katerniaghat, where an estimated 30 mature animals were present. no nesting data from nepal exist for this period, with an estimated 36 mature gharials reported (maskey 1999). based on the available data (sharma and basu 2004, maskey 1999) and adding the 2006 estimated numbers of nonbreeding mature animals (in small subpopulations outside the three indian and one nepali breeding subpopulations — a total of 40 animals), the estimated total mature gharial population throughout its present range (india and nepal) in 1997 was 342. the decline from an estimated 342 adult gharials in 1997 to 182 in 2006 represents a 47% decline across the species’ range. this drastic decline occurred within a period of nine years, well within the span of one generation, qualifying the gharial, under criterion c1 of the iucn red list, to be listed as critically endangered, although the current status is listed as endangered (crocodile specialist group 1996). present distribution of the gharial the total extent of occurrence of the gharial was once on the order of about 20,000 km2 (including suitable areas of the indus, ganges, brahmaputra, and irrawady river systems). rao and singh (1995) reported a figure of 2,986 km2 (in india). in nepal, the total area of occupancy is now under 100 km2, whereas it once could have been close to 1,000 km2 (maskey, pers. comm.). current total area occupied in india and nepal is less than 250 km2, based on river length x width and occurrence of gharials within protected areas. table 2. adult gharial estimated population reduction within one generation. estimated decline subpopulation past present in one generation chambal 226 (1997) 78 (2006) 65% 68f/10m katerniaghat 30 (1997) 26 (2006) 13% 20f/6m son 10 (1997) 3 (2006) 66% others (india) 50 (2003) 40 (2006) 20% chitawan (nepal) 20 (1999) 8 (2006) 80% others (nepal) 100 (1994) 27 (2006) 73% totals 436 182 58% one hundred and ten sharp teeth line the slender snouts of gharials. m a tt v a u g h a n , f o r t w o r th z o o the proportionally shorter snout and large ghara are apparent in this adult male. m a tt v a u g h a n , f o r t w o r th z o o iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 31 summary of gharial restocking programs one perspective suggests that little has been accomplished other than throwing over 5,000 juvenile gharials into largely inhospitable habitats in indian and nepali rivers and leaving them to their fate. little was done to secure the habitat. banned from fishing in sanctuaries created for gharials, local communities were not offered alternative employment. combined with the lack of enforcement, gharials are at the mercy of embittered and disempowered local people. in chitawan national park (nepal), where 457 gharials were released, 16 nests were counted in 1977 and only six in 2006. reintroduction was not successful there (although one argument states that at least total extinction was averted by supplementation). the principal reasons for failure was growing and uncontrolled anthropogenic pressures, including the depletion of fish resources. in the girwa river (katerniaghat sanctuary), where 909 gharials were released (including 112 in 2006), four nests were recorded in 1977 and 20 in 2006, so 16 nesting females (2% of the total pre-2006 releases) comprised the result of 30 years of reintroductions. this seemingly poor achievement, considering the money and effort spent, suggests that enforcement is the key to gharial survival (although some argue that the carrying capacity may have been reached). in the third and most important remaining gharial breeding habitat, the chambal river (the tri-state national chambal sanctuary), where 3,552 gharials were released (whitaker and andrews 2003) (plus 224 in 2006), 12 nests were recorded in 1978 and 68 in 2006. while nesting has apparently increased by over 500%, these recruited mature, reproducing females represent only about 2% of the total number released. the linear, riverine habitat of the gharial presents a potentially insurmountable challenge with annual monsoonal flooding, when the newly hatched young are especially prone to being flushed downstream and out of the protected areas. 32 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 whitaker animals are measured and scales are removed for individual identification prior to release. o li v ie r b o r n large scales are used to weigh gharials prior to release. o li v ie r b o r n thousands of gharials were hatched and raised in captivity before being released into the wild. only a small number is thought to have survived. o li v ie r b o r n nursery facilities at kasara gharial breeding center (royal chitwan national park, nepal). dr. antoine cadi (noé conservation) and dr. samuel martin (sos crocodiles) check the hatchlings. o li v ie r b o r n table 3. rivers in india and nepal with suitable habitat harboring breeding and non-breeding gharial populations (habitat length x width = square kilometers of habitat; 0.3 km refers to overall average river width of 300 m). total gharial habitat (with gharials) remaining in india and nepal in 2006 is 240 km2. india chambal (national chambal sanctuary) 425 x 0.3 km =128.0 km2 girwa (katerniaghat wildlife sanctuary) 5 x 0.3 km = 1.5 km2 ken (ken gharial sanctuary) 45 x 0.3 km = 13.5 km2 son (son river sanctuary) 200 x 0.3 km = 60.0 km2 mahanadi (satkosia gorge wildlife sanctuary) 14 x 0.3 km = 4.2 km2 ramganga (corbett national park) 20 x 0.3 km = 6.0 km2 nepal rapti/narayani (chitawan national park) 60 x 0.3 km = 18.0 km2 karnali (royal bardia national park) 10 x 0.3 km = 3.0 km2 babai (royal bardia national park) 10 x 0.3 km = 3.0 km2 kosi 10 x 0.3 km = 3.0 km2 iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 32 n ot e: v ol 1 4 n um be r 1 c on ta in ed a c ol or c en te rf ol d (1 1x 17 in ch es ). d ue to a do be p d f re st ric tio ns , t he c en te rf ol d ne ed ed to b e re du ce d to fi t t he 8 .5 x1 1 in ch fo rm at . iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 33gharial with recruitment or retention of reintroduced gharials (plus natural recruitment) over the last 30 years as low as 0.02% (mahanadi river, orissa) and averaging 3–10% elsewhere, the entire reintroduction strategy needs to reassessed. scarce conservation funds and human resources need to be focused on habitat assessments, studies of gharial ‘migration,’ fisheries assessment/enhancement, and conflict mitigation. the latter, basically recruiting support of the river people, may be particularly critical if we are to improve the survival odds of gharial in their few remaining refuges. however, the four sites where gharials are still breeding all had residual populations when the restocking programs began. nowhere has restocking re-established a viable gharial population. references adams, a.l. 1867. wanderings of a naturalist in india. edmonton and douglas, edinburgh. andrews, h. 2006. status of the indian gharial (gavialis gangeticus), conservation action and assessment of key locations in north india. unpublished report to the madras crocodile bank trust. ballouard, j.m. and a. cadi, 2005. gharial conservation in the royal chitawan national park, nepal. sos crocodiles report, france. 19 pp. choudhury, a., 1997. status of gharial in arunachal pradesh. csg newsletter 16:1–8. crocodile specialist group. 1996. gavialis gangeticus. in: iucn 2006. 2006 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. francis, r. 1910. the broad-snouted mugger in the indus. journal of the bombay natural history society 20:1160. hornaday, w.t. 1885. two years in the jungle. charles scribner’s sons, new york. hussain, s.a. 1999. reproductive success, hatchling survival and rate of increase of gharial, gavialis gangeticus, in national chambal sanctuary, india. biological conservation 87:261–268. i.a.k. 1921. crocodile shooting in nepal. journal of the bombay natural history society 28:291. maskey, t.m. 1999. status and conservation of gharial in nepal, pp. 95–99. in: envis (wildlife & protected areas) l, vol. 2(1). wildlife institute of india, dehra dun. maskey, t.m. and r.p. yadav, 1978. unpublished report on gharial breeding to hmg, national parks and wildlife conservation office, nepal. rao, c.j. 1933. gavial on the indus. journal of the sind natural history society 1(4):37. rao, r.j., d. basu, s.m. hasan, b.b. sharma, s. molur, and s. walker (eds.). 1995. population and habitat viability assessment (p.h.v.a.) workshop for gharial. p.h.v.a. workshop, 16–18 january 1995. zoo outreach organization/cbsg, coimbatore, india. rao, r.j. and l.a.k. singh. 1995. status and conservation of the gharial in india. zoos’ print 10(2):1–5. shortt, w.h.o. 1921. a few hints on crocodile shooting. journal of the bombay natural history society 29:77. singh, l.a.k. 1991. distribution of gavialis gangeticus. hamadryad 16:39–46. singh, l.a.k. 1991. non-survival of gharial in river mahanadi, orissa. technical report, wildlife wing, forest and environment department, government of orissa. whitaker, r. and h.v. andrews. 2003. crocodile conservation, western asia region: an update. journal of the bombay natural history society 100:432–445. whitaker, r. and d. basu 1983. the gharial (gavialis gangeticus): a review. journal of the bombay natural history society 79:531–548. whitaker, r., v. rajamani, d. basu, and v. balakrishnan. 1974. preliminary survey of the gharial, gavialis gangeticus. unpublished madras snake park trust report, 16 pp. hatchling gharials are weighed and individually marked before release into the narayani river, a tributary of the ganges river. o li v ie r b o r n the situation is not futile follow these three “-fuses” to help save the gharial: infuse yourself with more information. learn more about gharials (www.nationalzoo.si.edu, www.flmnh.ufl.edu/ cnhc/csp_ggan.htm, www.ircf.org, www.gavialis.org). to stay current, sign up to receive updates from the gharial multi-task force through ircf. diffuse what you learn to your friends. a colleague recently saw a gharial while touring india, but had no idea they were so close to extinction. make sure everyone you know realizes that we are close to losing the few gharials remaining in the wild. effuse cash to funds that support gharial conservation. the ircf website allows you to donate online with 100% of the funds going directly to the gharial multitask force. you also can support other conservation funds that protect asian turtles, indus river dolphins, and even tigers, because all of them need the same riparian habitat as gharials. deirdre ballou and lee pagni zoological society of san diego iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 33 iguana b&w text 232 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 conservation research reports reproductive investment of a lacertid lizard in fragmented habitat díaz et al. (2005. conservation biology 19:1571–1577) studied the effect of habitat fragmentation on female reproductive investment in a widely distributed lacertid lizard (psammodromus algirus) in a mixed-forest archipelago of deciduous and evergreen oak woods in northern spain. they captured gravid females in fragments (≤ 10 ha) and forests (≥ 200 ha) and brought them to the laboratory, where they laid eggs. eggs were incubated and the first cohort of juveniles released into the wild in order to monitor survival. females from fragments produced a smaller clutch mass and laid fewer eggs (relative to mean egg mass) than females of similar body size from forests. lizards did not trade larger clutches for larger offspring, however, because females from fragments did not lay larger eggs (relative to their number) than females from forests. among the first cohort of juveniles, larger egg mass and body size increased the probability of recapture the next year. thus, fragmentation decreased the relative fecundity of lizards without increasing the quality of their offspring. reduced energy availability, increased predation risk, and demographic stochasticity could decrease the fitness of lizards in fragmented habitats, which could contribute to the regional scarcity of this species in agricultural areas sprinkled with small patches of otherwise suitable forest. results demonstrated that predictable reduction of reproductive output with decreasing size of habitat patches can be added to the already known processes that cause inverse density dependence at low population numbers. the conservation of brazilian reptiles: challenges for a megadiverse country about 650 species — 330 snakes, 230 lizards, 50 amphisbaenids, 6 caimans, and 35 turtles — comprise the known reptilian fauna of brazil. only 20 species are considered threatened. except for the marine and freshwater turtles, which suffer from overexploitation and habitat destruction, species are threatened because of rarity and extremely restricted ranges. despite its richness and diversity, research on brazil’s reptilian fauna remains largely restricted to alpha taxonomy. trefaut rodrigues (2005. conservation biology 19:659–664) suggested that surveys, an electronic database of all herpetological collections, and phylogeographic studies based on molecular genetic techniques are needed to improve our understanding of the biogeography of brazilian reptiles and to delineate effective conservation strategies to preserve the evolutionary potential of existing lineages. autecological, population, and community studies that monitor effects of habitat degradation, fragmentation and loss, pollution, and exploitation are needed for a better understanding of the effects of the widespread and ever-worsening degradation of brazil’s natural ecosystems. effect of vegetation matrix on animal dispersal: genetic evidence from a study of endangered skinks maintaining connectivity in fragmented landscapes is a key principle of biological conservation. although corridors are a widely accepted approach to connecting populations, their merits are still debated, and they may be impractical in many situations. a focus on management of the vegetation matrix between populations has been advocated as an alternative way to deal with habitat fragmentation and has theoretical support. berry et al. (2005. conservation biology 19:855–864) combined microsatellite dna and demographic data to provide an empirical account of how two forms of agricultural land use affect the connectivity of insular populations of an endangered skink in southern new zealand. the grand skink (oligosoma grande) lives in small populations (approximately 20 individuals) on rock outcrops separated from one another by 50–150 m of inhospitable matrix vegetation (either native tussock grassland or exotic pasture). skinks typically dispersed short distances, and the nature of the matrix both quantitatively and qualitatively affected dispersal dynamics. skink populations in pasture were significantly more genetically structured and had less genetic variation than similar populations in tussock, c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s the reproductive output of lizards (psammodromus algirus) from fragmented habitat patches was reduced when compared to lizards from forests. pa sc a l d u b o is the black caiman (melanosuchus niger) is a threatened species, but the conservation status of many of brazil’s other reptilian species is uncertain, a condition largely attributable to a paucity of information. r o b er t po w el l iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 232 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 233conservation research reports implying less dispersal between populations in pasture than tussock. furthermore, although female-biased dispersal was a feature of populations in tussock, no sex bias was evident in pasture. in addition, bayesian individual-based genetic assignment tests that incorporated prior mark-recapture information revealed that some populations produced many emigrants but received few immigrants, whereas other populations were relatively insular. patterns of dispersal and response to matrix vegetation were complex, and the causes of these patterns deserve attention in future studies of habitat fragmentation. managing the vegetation matrix may be a practical way to connect animal populations in some situations. disruption of a plant-lizard seed dispersal system and its effects on a threatened endemic plant the introduction of exotic species to an island can have significant effects on the population density and distribution of native species and on the ecological and evolutionary interactions among them (e.g., plant-animal mutualisms). the disruption of these interactions can be dramatic, significantly reducing the reproductive success of the species and even leading to their extinction. on menorca island (balearic islands, western mediterranean), traveset and riera (2005. conservation biology 19:421– 431) examined the consequences of the disruption of the mutualism between two endemic species: a perennial shrub (daphne rodriguezii) and a frugivorous lizard (podarcis lilfordi). the lizard became extinct from this island (as well as from mallorca) as a result of the introduction of carnivorous mammals, which has continued since roman times. the relict mutualism between d. rodriguezii and the lizard currently persists only in an islet (60 ha) where p. lilfordi remains abundant. the authors hypothesized that the absence of this lizard from most menorcan populations is the factor causing the regression of this plant, currently considered at risk of extinction. through observation and experimentation in the field and laboratory, they found strong evidence that a lack of seed dispersal in menorca is the main cause of the low seedling recruitment. first, the population with greatest seedling recruitment was that in the islet where lizards were abundant. second, lizards appeared to be the only dispersers of d. rodriguezii. lizards consumed large amounts of fruits, without affecting either germination or seedling growth, and moved seeds to sites suitable for plant establishment. seedlings in menorca, in contrast, recruited almost exclusively under the parent plants. third, the effect of other factors that may influence plant population growth (a low fruit set and a high postdispersal seed predation) was similar between the islet and the menorcan populations. these appear to be the first results to quantitatively show that a biological invasion can cause a disruption of a specialized plant-vertebrate mutualism that sets the plant partner on the road to extinction. predicting the impact of sea-level rise on caribbean sea turtle nesting habitat the projected rise in sea level is likely to increase the vulnerability of coastal zones in the caribbean, which are already under pressure from a combination of anthropogenic activities and natural processes. one of the major effects will be a loss of beach habitat, which provides nesting sites for endangered sea turtles. to assess the potential impacts of sea-level rise on sea turtle nesting habitat, fish et al. (2005. conservation biology 19:482–491) used beach profile measurements of turtle nesting beaches on bonaire, netherlands antilles, to develop elevation models of individual beaches in a geographic information system. these modthe lack of seed dispersal by a lizard (podarcis lilfordi) extinct on menorca (a balearic island in the western mediterranean) may be responsible for the decline in populations of a perennial shrub considered at risk of extinction. w ik ip ed ia : o r c h i the grand skink (oligosoma grande) of new zealand lives in small populations of approximately 20 individuals on rock outcrops separated from one another by 50–150 m of inhospitable vegetation. tr en t b el l hawksbill turtles (eretmochelys imbricata) often nest in dense beach vegetation. their nesting beaches as well as those of other caribbean sea turtles could be threatened by rising sea levels. photograph courtesy of the nature foundation of st. maarten (nafsxm). iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 233 234 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 conservation research reports els were then used to quantify areas of beach vulnerable to three different scenarios of a rise in sea level. physical characteristics of the beaches were also recorded and related to beach vulnerability, flooding, and nesting frequency. beaches varied in physical characteristics and therefore in their vulnerability to flooding. up to 32% of the total current beach area could be lost with a 0.5-m rise in sea level, with lower, narrower beaches being the most vulnerable. vulnerability varied with land use adjacent to the beach. these predictions about loss of nesting habitat have important implications for turtle populations in the region. burn regimes and tallgrass prairie reptiles the flint hills region of kansas is the largest contiguous area of tallgrass prairie remaining today. historically, the tallgrass prairie burned every 2–3 yr on average, but current land managers have altered burn regimes, resulting in a range of habitats from annually burned to long-term unburned. wilgers and horne (2006. journal of herpetology 40:73–84) used drift fence/funnel trap arrays and coverboards to estimate species richness, evenness, and diversity of herpetofauna within three different burn regimes: annual, 4-yr, and long-term unburned at konza prairie biological station, riley county, kansas. during the spring and fall of 2003–2004, 315 individuals from 20 species were captured across all burn regimes. herpetofaunal species richness, evenness, and diversity estimates were not different between the three burn treatments. however, because of species-specific responses to individual burn regimes, community composition was significantly different between the habitats. four species exhibited preferences among burn regimes, which differed significantly from independent assortment, with great plains skinks (eumeces obsoletus) and texas horned lizards (phrynosoma cornutum) preferring annual burn treatments, ground skinks (scincella lateralis) preferring 4-yr burn treatments, and ringneck snakes (diadophis punctatus) preferring longterm unburned treatments. speciesspecific responses were likely because of changes in vegetation structure and microhabitat (temperature and moisture content) created through different frequencies of fire disturbances. maximizing large-scale herpetofaunal diversity across the flint hills’ rangelands could be accomplished by creating a large number of small-scale habitat types through a mosaic style burning plan. alligator snapping turtles in southeastern louisiana, boundy and kennedy (2006. chelonian conservation and biology 5:3–9) trapped 200 alligator snapping turtles (macrochelys temminckii) at an average rate of 0.057 turtles per trap-night in all but 1 of 33 sites in southeastern louisiana. trap rate varied between sites, by harvest pressure levels at sites, and by season, but not by hydrology. perceived trap rate differences under different harvest regimes appeared to be a function of seasonal differences in trap rate. no differences in sex ratio or percentage of immature turtles were detected between sites, harvest regimes, seasons, or waterbody types. turtle weight varied between harvest regimes and hydrology. weight–length relations for turtles was highly correlated and similar between sexes, except that males continued to grow to larger sizes than females (males averaged 150% female weight and 118% female carapace length). sex ratio was 1:1, and immature turtles made up 48% of the total. average sizes of turtles were very similar between louisiana and turtles from surveys in several other states. population structure differed between surveys, with louisiana having a higher percentage of immature turtles and lower trap rate than elsewhere. population differences could not entirely be explained by differences in harvest regimes between states. large-scale turtle butchering operations in southern louisiana have closed, as has commercial harvest. anecdotal reports that alligator snappers were nearly extirpated from a heavily harvested site proved erroneous. the authors recommended resurvey of sites to determine current population trends. great plains skinks (eumeces obsoletus) were among four species of tallgrass prairie-dwelling reptiles that demonstrated a clear preference for a particular burn regime, favoring annual burn treatments. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h louisiana populations of alligator snapping turtles (macrochelys temminckii) included more immature turtles and exhibited a lower trap rate than populations surveyed in other southern states. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 234 iguana b&w text although the subspecies is listed as critically endangered on the iucn red list, very little is known about the sister isles iguana (cyclura nubila caymanensis) on little cayman or cayman brac. see article on p. 12. iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 15, number 1 march 2008 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess jo h n b in n s ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) occur only in the most xeric hispaniolan habitats, where their existence is threatened by human activities (see article on p. 2). the cayman sister isles iguana project seeks to establish baseline data on the status of cyclura nubila caymanensis, which is endemic to little cayman island and cayman brac, and about which very little is known (see article on p. 12). jo h n b in n s the labyrinthine corridors of guatemalan markets provide a wealth of cultural artifacts, including textiles, clothes, and statues, along with fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, shoes, and wedding dresses (see travelogue on p. 42). m ic h a el d . k er n the ircf is actively engaged in facilitating the conservation of guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma suspectum charlesbogerti) (see articles on pp. 20, 36, and 61). m ic h a el d . k er n strikingly colored hatchling ashy geckos (sphaerodactylus elegans elegans) provide ample rewards to keepers of these tiny, but hardy little lizards (see article on p. 36). ph il li p fr a n k jo h n b in n s american kestrels (falco sparvarius) are diligent hunters of west indian reptiles, this individual has captured a puerto rican ground lizard (ameiva exsul) (see article on p. 8). m ic h a el j . m o r el iguana, june 2008 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 65table of contents ircf international reptile conservation foundation although displaced from much of their natural habitat in peninsular florida by invasive cuban brown anoles (anolis sagrei), green anoles (a. carolinensis), such as this male from franklin county, florida, remain abundant throughout much of the southeastern united states. however, we should remember to appreciate and conserve common species, lest they become the passenger pigeons of tomorrow. see commentary on p. 105. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h table of contents f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s the seven blues of may . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . john binns 66 terrapins in the stew . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . chuck schaffer, roger wood, terry norton, and rick schaffer 78 conservation of the sonoran mountain kingsnake (lampropeltis pyromelana) . . . . . . . bryan hamilton and polly conrad 86 observations on the natural history of green anacondas: an ecotourism perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .césar l. barrio amorós and róger manrique 92 the thai endemic, miriam’s legless skink (davewakeum miriamae heyer, 1972) . . . . . . . . . . . . . olivier s. g. pauwels 102 c o m m e n t a r y let’s not be complacent about the obvious . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . j. whitfield gibbons 105 t r a v e l o g u e tales of a blue dragon tracker: grand cayman blue iguana fieldwork 2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . craig pelke 106 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .118 natural history research reports: summaries of published reports on reptilian natural history . . . . . . . . .120 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122 obituary: robert f. clarke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .128 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 231book review biology of gila monsters and beaded lizards. 2005. by daniel d. beck; photographs by thomas wiewandt. university of california press, usa, 211 pages. hardback isbn: 0-52024357-9 $49.95. upon learning that the ircf was partnering with project heloderma for the preservation of guatemalan beaded lizards, i realized that i needed a quick and thorough education in all things helodermatid. i knew little about gila monsters and beaded lizards beyond the fact that they were fascinating in appearance and just a little bit scary. daniel beck’s biology of gila monsters and beaded lizards proved to be authoritative, wellorganized, and as comprehensive as possible given the current state of research on the world’s only venomous lizards. the book’s 10 chapters begin with history and evolution, progress through the venom system and various aspects of ecology, and end with conservation and a look to the future. the first chapter, “monsters in our midst: history, humans and heloderma,” places gila monsters and beaded lizards into a sociological context. beck chronicles the history of investigations and presents some of the more colorful folklore and mythology. despite their fame (or infamy), heloderma has been one of the least-studied lizard genera — until recently. chapter 2, “evolution, distribution and systematics,” traces the complex evolutionary history of the monstersauria, the ancient group into which taxonomists place heloderma and six extinct genera. based on skull morphology, the six currently recognized species in the genus have changed very little over 23 million years, and qualify as living fossils. their closest living relatives include varanids (monitor lizards) and snakes. if humans require any rationale to preserve gila monsters and beaded lizards beyond the need to maintain biodiversity, the stimulus lies in chapter 3, “the venom system and envenomation.” while scientists continue to investigate whether heloderma venom is used to acquire prey or for defense, beck describes some of the many components of the venom, their physiological effects, and potential uses in treating human ailments as varied as diabetes, cancer, and alzheimer’s disease. chapters 4 through 7 discuss aspects of ecology, including physiology, habitat use, and population and foraging ecology. the chapter on population ecology is co-authored with brent e. martin and charles h. lowe. virtually every aspect of their ecology served to heighten my fascination with heloderma, from their astonishing energy efficiency to their complex refugedependent activity patterns and greater than 20-year-long life histories. even their diet is unique; these lizards prey largely on nests and nestlings of mammals, birds, and even other reptiles, a feeding niche exploited by few squamates. chapter 8 on “reproduction, behavior and heloderma in captivity” emphasizes the challenges involved with conducting research on these animals. the difficulties of enticing heloderma to reproduce in captivity lead into chapter 9 on “conservation.” gila monsters and beaded lizards are faced with habitat fragmentation and degradation, invasive plants and fire, illegal collection for the pet trade, and destruction by road traffic, domestic pets, and wanton killing due to fear and ignorance. the guatemalan beaded lizard, the conservation of which the ircf champions, is faced with precisely these threats, and habitat protection may provide its best opportunity to avoid extinction. in his final chapter, “future directions,” beck outlines some of the gaps in our current knowledge and suggests avenues for future research that involve technological advances in radiotelemetry, molecular biology, and pharmacological investigation. on the whole, the biology of gila monsters and beaded lizards satisfied my appetite for information about heloderma. information might have been organized by species, which would have facilitated the acquisition of insights into each taxon. this deficit, however, is not entirely the author’s fault; instead, the dearth of information about some taxa, including the guatemalan beaded lizard, leaves little to reveal. beck’s book will surely serve the animals well as it outlines current knowledge, suggests future research, and promotes an appreciation of a remarkable group of reptiles. aj gutman ircf gila monsters and beaded lizards b o o k r e v i e w iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 231 iguana 13.2 b&w text for direct volunteer and donation information please contact sandy binns at sb@ircf.org © 2006 photo courtesy of stephanie scanlin / zoo atlanta zoo atlanta and the international reptile conservation foundation proudly sponsor 2006 national reptile breeders expo auction to benefit the guatemalan beaded lizard of the motagua valley both zoo atlanta and the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf) are 501 (c)(3) not for profit corporations whose mission is to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the 2006 national reptile breeders expo auction proceeds will be awarded directly to conservation projects for the guatemalan beaded lizard. specifically, funding will go towards a natural history study that will help define critical habitat needs of the guatemalan beaded lizard; expansion of a successful education program to include the residents of villages surrounding the motagua valley, and towards construction of an in-country breeding facility. volunteers from the ircf and the zoo community will be available to pick up contributions from vendors on saturday, august 19 for the auction to be held that evening at the daytona hilton with dave barker hosting. receipts for your tax-deductible contributions will be issued at that time. to make a taxdeductible donation or view available items prior to the expo, please visit www.ircf.org/projectheloderma the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) is endemic to the motagua valley of guatemala and is one of the most endangered species of lizard on earth. its population numbers have been drastically reduced by human encroachment on their habitat. negative myths about the dangers posed by this venomous lizard have led to killing by local residents and a number of specimens have been collected illegally for the black market animal trade. estimates place the remaining wild population number at fewer than 200 individuals. the government of guatemala has just petitioned to have the status of this critically endangered species elevated to the protection afforded by cites appendix i. © 2006 ircf iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 174 editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. or canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 international membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $50.00 u.s. institutional subscription, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international institutional subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. www.ircf.org join online at: www.ircf.org/iguana membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2006 by the international reptile conservation foundation, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international reptile conservation foundation. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editor’s remarks as readers have hopefully noticed, iguana is constantly changing. over the past few issues, we have expanded our attention to all reptilian species while retaining a focus on conservation. we are committed to maintaining a strong interest in iguanas and will continue to present features such as ircf on the move in this and future issues. our expanded goal, however, is more ambitious: we hope to provide a bridge between reptile enthusiasts and herpetological professionals. after all, much of conservation is about people, who create the problems but also hold the solutions. without a broad base of committed public support and involvement, conservation will not happen. without access to information, the public cannot become interested or informed. we hope we can continue to address this need, but we need your input. if you have issues you would like to see covered, let us know. if you are working on a conservation project that affects reptiles, write an article for us — and, if you enjoy reading this magazine and share our mission, please see if you can get a friend to join the ircf. gad perry ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 175 iguana b&w text 242 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 townsend and wilson anolis (norops) johnmeyeri is a large anole found in the elfin forests of cusuco national park, honduras. k ev in m . e n g e with these words, archie carr introduced readers to a poorly known and intriguing vegetative formation that even he was rarely able to visit. shrouded in mist, atop the highest peaks of the sierra de omoa, lies a unique form of forest akin to that described by carr, a place as enchanting as it is mysterious. this forest is referred to by local residents as the bosque enano, meaning “dwarf forest” or “elfin forest” in spanish. those fortunate enough to experience it are forever enamored by the stunning vistas, crisp air, and the luxuriant carpet of epiphytic organisms that are characteristic of this unique mountaintop habitat. whereas the dwarf forest is home to only a handful of herpetofaunal species, those amphibians and reptiles that have managed to gain a foothold there include some of the more unusual and specialized species found anywhere in mesoamerica. the sierra de omoa is an isolated mountain range found in the northwestern corner of the central american republic of honduras. although one of honduras’s largest and fastest growing cities, san pedro sula, sits in an alluvial plain at the foot of the mountains, the upper regions of this range support a sizable cool cloud forest that is protected within the boundaries of cusuco national park, seemingly a world away from the heat and commotion of the country’s financial capital. cusuco national park is one of the herpetologically bestknown cloud forest reserves in honduras. seventeen species of amphibians and 33 species of reptiles have been recorded. of these, nine are found nowhere else in honduras (or the world for that matter), and another nine are found only in the sierra de omoa and the associated northwestern highlands of honduras and adjacent guatemala. the high degree of endemism demonstrated by the herpetofauna of cusuco national park indicates the critical conservation value of these forests, and the importance of the park as a framework for protecting the unique biota of the sierra de omoa. perhaps the most distinctive habitat formation found in these mountains is the dwarf forest, which is restricted to the denizens of the dwarf forest: the herpetofauna of the elfin forests of cusuco national park, honduras josiah h. townsend1 and larry david wilson2 1division of herpetology, florida museum of natural history, gainesville, florida 32611-7800, usa (jtownsend@flmnh.ufl.edu) 2department of biology, miami dade college, kendall campus, miami, florida 33176-3393, usa (lwilson@mdc.edu) it is hard to explain this transition to what looks like an arid-land flora on these high peaks which receive a maximum of water supply through condensation of moisture from the nearly continuous winds, unless it be that the stronger winds augment the hazard in a temporary failure of the moisture supply. these scant-leaved, dwarfed, and wind-tortured trees are often little more than framework for the support of masses of air plants, and a tree that at first glance appears to be alive may be nothing but a corpse, completely enshrouded by the epiphyte flora that killed it. archie f. carr, jr., 1953 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 243cusuco national park � honduras is located in central america; the general location of cusuco national park and the dwarf forests is marked with a circle. heather wind scrub formation, around 2000 m elevation, on top of cerro cusuco, july 2005. b r o o k e l. t a ll ey 244 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 townsend and wilson peak of cerro cusuco, about 2100 m elevation, as seen from cerro jilinco. jo si a h h . t o w n se n d hepatic or mossy forest formation, around 2050 m elevation, cerro jilinco, september 2004. d a n p u pi u s iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 245cusuco national park windswept upper slopes of cerro cusuco and cerro jilinco, the highest peaks in the sierra de omoa, above around 1950 m elevation. the term “dwarf forest” has been used to describe a variety of mountaintop vegetation formations in the neotropics. in the sierra de omoa, this term is used to refer to two formations: the hepatic or mossy forest and the heather wind scrub. these formations were broadly defined initially by archie carr in 1950 and later by d. mejía v. subsequent authors have applied the terms specifically to the dwarf forests of cusuco national park. both the hepatic or mossy forest and the heather wind scrub are typified by short vegetation (canopy <10 m high) and an overwhelming abundance of epiphytes, including giant grounddwelling bromeliads, arboreal bromeliads, mosses, hepatics, lichens, orchids, mistletoe, and fungi. the heather wind scrub is found on the highest peaks and exposed ridges of cerro cusuco and cerro jilinco. as the name indicates, this vegetation formation is dominated by heathers (ericaceae), with the tallest vegetation rarely exceeding 2 m in height. hepatic or mossy forest is found just below the heather wind scrub, and has more trees, which seem to have every available inch of their trunks and limbs occupied by epiphytic growth. these two formations occupy less than 1 km2 within the park, yet are so distinctive from the cloud forests below as to deserve special attention from researchers and conservation practitioners alike. not surprisingly, such a restricted high-elevation habitat that is at least 100 m in elevation above any permanent water source is home to a relatively small number of reptilian and amphibian species. studying the herpetofauna of the dwarf forest is rendered more complicated by the lack of suitable campsites and available drinking water, as well as by the remoteness and relative difficulty of accessing the peaks of these mountains. during 2004, 2005, and 2006, the authors or other herpetologists working as part of the operation wallacea honduras forests conservation project visited the cusuco dwarf forests seven times. most of these visits were made during the daytime and involved a two to four hour trek to a dwarf forest site, a few hours of searching for reptiles and amphibians, and the return trek. on two occasions, small campsites were set up below the dwarf forest to facilitate searches of the habitat at night. in addition to the results of our visits to the dwarf forest, two records were obtained by mario r. espinal during his work in cusuco national park. four species of lizards have been recorded in the dwarf forest: the anguid mesaspis moreletii, the anoles anolis johnmeyeri and a. amplisquamosus, and the spiny lizard sceloporus schmidti. the alligator lizard mesaspis moreletii is a terrestrial, viviparous lizard found at intermediate and high elevations in isolated highland areas from chiapas, mexico, to northwestern nicaragua. the ability to give birth to its young live rather than laying eggs heather wind scrub formation, around 2060 m elevation, on top of cerro jilinco, march 2006. jo si a h h . t o w n se n d flowers of an unidentified ericaceae on cerro jilinco, a dominant plant in the heather wind scrub. k en n et h l . k r y sk o hepatic or mossy forest formation, just below 2000 m elevation on cerro cusuco. b r o o k e l. t a ll ey 246 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 townsend and wilson is a hallmark of lizards that are adapted for life at high elevations, where ambient temperatures may not be high enough to naturally incubate eggs. anolis (norops) amplisquamosus is an anole known only from intermediate elevations of cusuco national park in the sierra de omoa of northwestern honduras, and is one of many species that are endemic to the park. it is easily recognized by having 8–10 rows of greatly enlarged scales along the middorsal line. anolis (norops) johnmeyeri is a large anole found only at moderate and intermediate elevations on the atlantic versant in western honduras. this striking species is unusual in that both males and females have large dewlaps with a blue central spot; males have the blue spot surrounded by red and in females it is surrounded by yellow. the emerald swift, sceloporus schmidti, is a spectacularly colored spiny lizard distributed at low, moderate, intermediate, and high elevations from western honduras to western panamá. this species is a common cloud forest inhabitant throughout its range, and can be found in exposed areas that receive the most exposure to sunlight, making the short vegetation of the dwarf forest an ideal habitat for this species. only two snakes are known from the cusuco dwarf forests, the colubrid ninia espinali and the montane pitviper cerrophidion godmani. ninia espinali is a small, semifossorial snake found at intermediate elevations from northwestern honduras southward to southwestern honduras; it is also known to occur in extreme northwestern el salvador. named for the honduran biologist mario r. espinal, a single specimen the senior author ducking through the dense vegetation at about 2000 m elevation, near the top of cerro cusuco, august 2005. d a n p u pi u s dougie fraser (left) and the junior author at a remote campsite below the dwarf forest on cerro cusuco, about 1870 m elevation. b r o o k e l. t a ll ey iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 247cusuco national park of n. espinali was collected by mario near the peak of cerro jilinco. cerrophidion godmani is a pitviper distributed at occasionally moderate to high elevations in disjunct populations in oaxaca and chiapas, méxico, guatemala, el salvador, honduras, northern nicaragua, central costa rica, and western panamá. this species is another that is typical of cloud forest habitats throughout its range, and can be locally abundant in areas where it is not persecuted by humans. two salamanders have been recorded in the cusuco dwarf forest, bolitoglossa diaphora and cryptotriton nasalis, both plethodontids. bolitoglossa diaphora is endemic to intermediate elevations in northwestern honduras and is another species restricted in distribution to cusuco national park. this species demonstrates a high degree of sexual dimorphism with respect to its color pattern; males are typically dark gray, whereas females are mottled orange, red, yellow, and brown. cryptotriton nasalis is endemic to moderate and intermediate elevations of northwestern honduras, and it is known from localities outside of cusuco national park in the sierra de omoa. these tiny salamanders derive their name from their large nostrils, which can approach the size of their eyes. in the dwarf forest, this species is found inside bromeliads. only one species of frog is known to occur in the dwarf forest, the recently described bromeliad-dwelling “hyla” melacaena. this species is endemic to the sierra de omoa. an adult female was discovered as it hopped from a bromeliad as a field crew brushed past, and these frogs are suspected to breed in the water-filled axils of arboreal bromeliads. although the known herpetofauna of the cusuco dwarf forests is extremely limited, it is also quite significant, inasmuch as five of nine species of amphibians and reptiles are endemic to honduras (anolis amplisquamosus, a. johnmeyeri, bolitoglossa diaphora, cryptotriton nasalis, and “hyla” melacaena) and another species (ninia espinali) is a near-endemic, having been otherwise found only in extreme northwestern el salvador. these nine species represent 18.0% of the 50 species known to inhabit cusuco national park. that such territorially limited yet interk ev in m . e n g e the alligator lizard mesaspis moreletii gives birth to live young rather than laying eggs, a hallmark of lizards that are adapted for life at high elevations. b r o o k e l. t a ll ey b r o o k e l. t a ll ey anolis (norops) amplisquamosus is one of many species that are endemic to cusuco national park. k en n et h l . k r y sk o 248 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 townsend and wilson jo si a h h . t o w n se n d anolis (norops) johnmeyeri is a large anole that is unusual in that both males and females have large dewlaps with a blue central spot; males (top) have the blue spot surrounded by red and in females it is surrounded by yellow (bottom). k ev in m . e n g e iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 249cusuco national park d a n p u pi u s the emerald swift (sceloporus schmidti) is a common cloud forest inhabitant throughout its range, and can be found in open areas that receive the most exposure to sunlight. jo si a h h . t o w n se n d esting habitat contains an equally limited yet interesting herpetofauna is fitting. what other secrets might be hidden in the windswept, cloud-drenched world at the top of the sierra de omoa? only further exploration of cusuco’s dwarf forests can provide any semblance of an answer to this question — but we can say with certainty that the dwarf forest is one of the most fascinating and endearing places in which we have had the privilege of working; a magical little world shrouded in clouds and mystery. acknowledgments makrín ramírez, rené alvarenga, danílo alvarenga, roger alvarenga, mino cortés, marina alvarenga, brooke l. talley, t. lynette plenderleith, dougie c. fraser, sara m. hughes, dan pupius, zia lewindson, kenney l. krysko, and kevin m. enge provided assistance in the field. our work was conducted under permits granted by conrado gonzáles, carla cárcamo, martha moreno, and ibrahim padilla of cohdefor and dapvs in tegucigalpa, honduras. funding for various trips to cusuco national park was provided by operation wallacea, the tropical conservation and development program at the university of florida, the herpetology division of the florida museum of natural history, and the reptile and amphibian conservation corps. we thank brooke talley, dan pupius, kevin enge, and kenney krysko for use of their photographs. references carr, a.f., jr. 1950. outline for a classification of animal habitats in honduras. bulletin of the american museum of natural history 94: 567–594. 250 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 townsend and wilson the colubrid ninia espinali is a small, semifossorial snake found at intermediate elevations. jo si a h h . t o w n se n d jo si a h h . t o w n se n d the pitviper cerrophidion godmani is another species that is typical of cloud forest habitats throughout its range, and can be locally abundant in areas where it is not persecuted by humans. the right-hand photo is a juvenile. k ev in m . e n g e iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 251cusuco national park carr, a.f., jr. 1953. high jungles and low. university press of florida, gainesville. mccranie, j.r. and f.e. castañeda. 2006. a new species of hylid frog from northwestern honduras. herpetologica 62: 318–323. mejía v., d.a. 2001. honduras, pp. 243–282. in m. kappelle and a.d. brown (eds.), bosques nublados del neotrópico. instituto nacional de biodiversidad, santo domingo de heredia, costa rica. townsend, j.h. 2006. inventory and conservation assessment of the herpetofauna of the sierra de omoa, honduras, with a review of the geophis (squamata: colubridae) of eastern nuclear central america. unpublished master’s thesis, university of florida, gainesville. townsend, j.h., and l.d. wilson. in press. guía de los anfibios y reptiles de parque nacional cusuco, honduras. guide to the amphibians and reptiles of cusuco national park, honduras. bibliomania, salt lake city, utah. townsend, j.h., l.d. wilson, b.l. talley, d.c. fraser, t.l. plenderleith, and s.m. hughes. 2006. additions to the herpetofauna of parque nacional el cusuco, honduras. herpetological bulletin 96: 29–39. wilson, l.d., and j.r. mccranie. 2004. the herpetofauna of parque nacional el cusuco, honduras. herpetological bulletin 87: 13–24. the recently described bromeliad-dwelling frog “hyla” melacaena is the only species of frog known to occur in the dwarf forest. this species is endemic to the sierra de omoa. this adult female was discovered as it hopped from a bromeliad as a field crew brushed past, and this species is suspected to breed in the water-filled axils of arboreal bromeliads. d a n p u pi u s jo si a h h . t o w n se n d bolitoglossa diaphora demonstrates a high degree of sexual dimorphism in color pattern; males are typically dark gray, whereas females are mottled orange, red, yellow, and brown. k en n et h l . k r y sk o tiny cryptotriton nasalis derive their name from their large nostrils, which can approach the size of their eyes. b r o o k e l. t a ll ey iguana b&w text american kestrels (falco sparvarius) have been documented as predators of 12 different species of west indian lizards. this kestrel has captured a puerto rican ameiva (ameiva exsul). see article on p. 8. m ic h a el j . m o r el guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) are found only in the motagua valley of guatemala. see article on p. 20, travelogue on p. 42, and “ircf on the move” on p. 61. m ic h a el d . k er n iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 189table of contents ircf international reptile conservation foundation table of contents f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s chasing bullsnakes (pituophis catenifer sayi) in wisconsin: on the road to understanding the ecology and conservation of the midwest’s giant serpent . . . . . joshua m. kapfer 190 the shared history of treeboas (corallus grenadensis) and humans on grenada: a hypothetical excursion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .robert w. henderson 198 r e s e a r c h a r t i c l e s the texas horned lizard in central and western texas . . . . . . . . emily henry, jason brewer, krista mougey, and gad perry 204 the knight anole (anolis equestris) in florida . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .brian j. camposano, kenneth l. krysko, kevin m. enge, ellen m. donlan, and michael granatosky 212 c o n s e r v a t i o n a l e r t world’s mammals in crisis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220 more than mammals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223 the “dow jones index” of biodiversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225 h u s b a n d r y captive care of the central netted dragon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . shannon plummer 226 p r o f i l e kraig adler: a lifetime promoting herpetology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . michael l. treglia 234 c o m m e n t a r y the turtles have been watching me . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . eric gangloff 238 b o o k r e v i e w threatened amphibians of the world edited by s.n. stuart, m. hoffmann, j.s. chanson, n.a. cox, r. berridge, p. ramani, and b.e. young . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 243 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245 natural history research reports: summaries of published reports on natural history . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252 the grand cayman blue-fanned anole (anolis conspersus) has been forced to assume higher perches due to competitive interactions with introduced brown anoles (a. sagrei). jo h n b in n s iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 141table of contents ircf international reptile conservation foundation table of contents f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s distribution, natural history, and impacts of the introduced green iguana (iguana iguana) in florida . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .kenneth l. krysko, kevin m. enge, ellen m. donlan, jason c. seitz, and elizabeth a. golden 142 notes on the distribution of the endangered lizard, heloderma horridum charlesbogerti, in the dry forests of eastern guatemala: an application of multi-criteria evaluation to conservation . . . . . . . daniel ariano and gilberto salazar 152 the management of yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) in argentina: from historical misuse to resource appreciation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .patricio alejandro micucci and tomás waller 160 herpetological fieldwork in the lowland rainforests of northeastern honduras: pleasure or how quickly we forget? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .james r. mccranie 172 t r a v e l o g u e the day geckos of madagascar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . michael d. kern 184 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s notes on butler’s garter snake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . leonhard stejneger 190 a statistical study of thamnophis brachystoma (cope) with comments on the kinship of t. butleri (cope) . . . a.j. barton 191 b o o k r e v i e w s biology and conservation of florida turtles by peter a. meylan (ed.) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . kenneth l. krysko 193 wild trees in the cayman islands by fred burton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell 194 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196 natural history research reports: summaries of published reports on reptilian natural history . . . . . . . 197 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198 obituary: george thomas mcduffie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205 special award: fred burton honored . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206 ircf on the move . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212 lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima) are critically endangered or have been extirpated on many of the islands where they occurred historically. principal threats are habitat destruction, exploitation of adults and eggs for food, contamination of the gene pool by hybridization with introduced green iguanas (iguana iguana), and invasive predators like cats, dogs, and mongooses. only on dominica do these lizards remain abundant. this young individual was feasting on leaves in a noni tree (morinda citrifolia) overlooking champagne beach, a favorite diving site. r o b er t po w el l iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 141 iguana 13.2 b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 133corallus caninus with the largest known range of any currently recognized species of boid and a fascinating and beautiful variety of morphologies, one might logically assume that the emerald tree boa (corallus caninus) would be among the most recognizable and widely kept species in herpetoculture. however, it is only recently that a broader understanding of the species has enabled prospective keepers to adapt and develop the environmental regimes necessary for this highly specialized snake to thrive in captivity. the first installment (iguana 13(1): 37–41) proposed a set of guidelines for the acquisition and preparation of enclosures appropriate for housing the species. part ii presents one sound strategy for the acquisition of healthy, viable specimens as well as some of the more technical details associated with husbandry. introduction preparation and forethought equal to that employed during the conceptualization, procurement, and setup of the enclosure should now be addressed to acquiring a snake. one of the best resources for today’s herpetoculturists is the internet. this interactive knowledge base provides access to reams of information, anecdotal experiences, and live response forums linking new keepers with those who have already had success with emerald tree boas. judicious use of the internet can help prospective keepers form realistic expectations, minimize the likelihood of unpleasant surprises, and provide a generous sounding board for those actively seeking answers to specific questions. researchers involved primarily with species classification and the study of natural history have long benefited from the publication and dissemination of scientific information. the information-sharing capabilities of the internet have resulted in an exponential increase in interest and success for herpetoculturists involved with the captive husbandry of this and other species. specimen acquisition as with habitat selection, personal taste and practical affordability are important factors during the selection of an animal. the uninitiated often tend to overlook the subtleties that differentiate individuals within any given species. for c. caninus, this can h u s b a n d r y emerald gems (corallus caninus): captive husbandry and propagation part ii: acquisition, maintenance, and diet joseph m. polanco photographs by the author. prospective purchase of an emerald treeboa (corallus caninus) should only be considered when the snake’s outward physical appearance conforms to criteria established for robust, healthy animals. a healthy emerald treeboa (corallus caninus) is robust, unblemished, brightly colored, and active, coiling tightly on elevated perches and responding quickly to stimuli. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 133 lead to an “all emeralds are more or less equal” mindset, which may place too much weight on the physical beauty of an individual specimen. this is one of the most common mistakes firsttime keepers are likely to make. as with icebergs, within the corallus complex, what lurks beneath the surface is what needs to be evaluated in order to make a wise decision. the temperament and physical condition of animals available on the open market varies widely and individuals inexperienced with the species do not have the odds in their favor. wild-caught animals, especially those that have not been in a stable, controlled environment for a minimum of one year, should never be considered by any but the most seasoned of veterans. acclimating wild-caught treeboas is no simple undertaking. any reputable dealer, even those with years of experience, will tell you that the mortality rate of imported specimens of this species is appallingly high. statistics indicate that more than 50% of captives of all ages die during the first year. for those specimens that do survive the initial acclimation period, chances of survival in the long term (> three years) are equally grim. although i have not been able to collect empirical data, my own numbers reflect a survival rate of just over 65% for adult treeboas and just over 70% for animals acquired prior to their ontogenetic change. therefore, as a rule, only captive-born and bred specimens (subsequently referred to as cbb), purchased from well-established, reputable sources should be considered. where c. caninus is concerned, “impulse buying” more often than not leads to an unfortunate experience. morphological conformation notwithstanding, prospective acquisitions should only be considered if and when their outward physical appearance conforms to the criteria describing a robust, healthy animal. animals that appear skinny, dehydrated, blemished, dull, sluggish, or gaping, or those that are loosely coiled or not perched at all should be dismissed out of hand. for the purposes of this article i will restrict all future references and recommendations to those applicable to cbb specimens. the above-mentioned physical conditions are often symptomatic of a variety of potentially serious pathologies. one of the few true challenges associated with this species is that even the most common ailments are often difficult to detect. devoid of compassion or sympathy for the infirm, nature provides many species, including c. caninus, with the instinct to mask illness. emeralds are so adept at this practice that by the time a problem becomes obvious the individual is often beyond salvage. for this reason, animals with a history of illness, however minor, should be dismissed from consideration. the previously mentioned statistics largely reflect the more commonly available “northern” variety of the species. although susceptible to the same maladies, stress-related illnesses, and parasitic infestations, the amazon basin variety appears to benefit from two factors that may be largely responsible for the differences seen between the two populations. first, the basin form is widely believed by those intimately familiar with both varieties to be hardier and more resilient. although this disparity itself is undocumented and remains largely unexplained, one popular belief is that this form’s larger geographic distribution has provided for an inherently wider set of environmental tolerances. the other more prosaic factor has been the lack of ready availability of basins to the export trade. local restrictions and the logistical challenges associated with their collection have kept the exported numbers of basins very low for over three decades and the prices charged for these rarely seen but highly prized exports have tended to be very high. with the laws of supply and demand keeping prices high, improved care at every stage of the importation process provides better returns for importers. currently, a relatively strong u.s. community of well known, reputable breeders is involved with the propagation and sale of both northern and basin varieties. on the whole, these 134 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 polanco wild-caught animals, especially those that have not been in a stable, controlled environment for a minimum period of one full year, should never be considered by any but the most seasoned of veterans. this individual, although superficially healthy, was dead on arrival at the facilities of a dealer in tropical reptiles. blister disease can be debilitating; acquiring an animal with the intent of nursing it back to health is a bad idea, even for an experienced keeper. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 134 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 135corallus caninus individuals happily offer support and guidance before, during, and sometimes after the sale. this type of networking acts as an invaluable safety net for those interested in keeping this species. by availing themselves of the knowledge and experiences of others, prospective keepers are able to tip the scales steeply in their favor, drastically reducing the duration of the c. caninus learning curve. husbandry basics the essentials of effectively keeping c. caninus in captivity can be broken down into three categories: environment, diet, and record keeping. the first installment discussed the importance of stabilizing environmental factors prior to the introduction of a live animal. although c. caninus is not an overly delicate species, keepers can be quickly overwhelmed with health issues when tolerances are violated. until such time as accurate dna-profiles of the species allow for a classification by which herpetologists can identify and differentiate individual populations, accurately fine-tuning individual environmental variables to specific animals remains impossible. locality data on imported specimens are non-existent, and morphological differentiation is far too imprecise to provide even the most remote hope of accuracy. therefore, today’s emerald specialists have chosen to employ a range of temperature and humidity standards derived from averages gathered from across the entire range of the species. tables 1 & 2 list average temperature and relative humidity levels from across the species’ natural range for periods ranging from 4–23 years. i have derived the following environmental maintenance schedule from these data. averaging the recorded temperature data and buffering them by 4 °f toward the median, provides a temperature range within which any individual, regardless of geographic origin, can thrive. recommended daytime high and nighttime low temperatures for captive c. caninus should be 84 °f (dtht) and 74 °f (ntlt), respectively. although some keepers use the same data to regulate relative humidity (rh) levels, years of experimentation have led me to depart from levels found in the wild. table 2 reflects daytime relative humidity highs (dtrh) and nighttime relative humidity lows (ntrh) averaged from eleven locations across the species’ range. the data from which these averages were derived were collected over periods from 2–21 years. the reason i choose to deviate from these natural averages is the negative effect of sustaining such high rh levels within enclosures. without the natural cleansing processes found in nature, black molds tend to grow in very high concentrations. these molds produce spores that become air-born and eventually settle on and adhere to every porous surface in an enclosed habitat. even over relatively short periods, such concentrations present an unnaturally high risk of infection or allergic reactions for both snakes and human handlers. therefore, over the years, i have adopted modified rh levels that have proven completely adequate, enabling me to mainthe “northern” variety of corallus caninus (left; this animal is from suriname) is more commonly available, although the amazon basin variety (right) appears to be hardier and more resilient. table 1. temperature (°f) and precipitation (inches) averages across the range of corallus caninus. portions of the species’ range are indicated by n (= north), s (= south), e (= east), and w (= west). rf = rainfall. area jan feb mar apr may jun jul aug sep oct nov dec n-hi 86 86 87 88 87 88 89 90 92 92 90 87 n-lo 72 72 72 73 74 73 73 74 74 74 74 73 rf 8.2 5.6 6.1 8.4 11.7 11.7 9.1 7.0 3.6 3.6 4.8 7.4 s-hi 91 91 90 90 88 88 90 92 93 93 91 90 s-lo 72 73 72 70 66 63 61 64 69 72 72 73 rf 10.0 8.6 8.1 4.0 2.2 0.5 0.3 1.1 1.8 5.2 6.0 8.1 e-hi 87 86 86 87 88 89 88 89 90 90 90 90 e-lo 76 76 75 75 75 75 75 75 76 76 77 77 rf 10.5 10.0 11.8 12.0 10.5 8.2 6.4 6.5 7.5 9.1 9.8 10.2 w-hi 88 87 87 87 86 85 85 87 88 88 88 88 w-lo 73 73 73 73 73 72 71 72 72 72 73 73 rf 10.5 10.0 11.8 11.9 10.5 8.2 6.4 6.5 7.5 9.1 9.8 10.2 iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 135 tain a healthy population of tropical species while minimizing the excessive formation of fungal pathogens. while actual rh numbers for each individual facility will vary according to the fundamental variables of area versus air circulation, dtrh levels from 65–75% and ntrh levels from 45–55% have proven ideal. diet like that of most opportunistic ambush predators, the natural prey of c. caninus in the wild is known to vary widely. for the purposes of captive maintenance, we deal with three major sources of nutrition, all rodents. rats, mice, and siberian dwarf hamsters are most commonly used. each species may be fed at various stages of a snake’s development. i use the following guidelines in my facility (species may vary, but approximate sizes should be watched closely): • siberian dwarf hamsters (live crawlers, ± 8 g): initiating the natural feeding response in neonate snakes. • pink rats (live or frozen/thawed, ± 8 g): neonate maintenance once a solid feeding response has been established. • fuzzy rats (frozen/thawed, ± 16 g): neonates > 60 g. • rat pups (frozen/thawed, ± 25 g): yearling snakes > 200 g. • weanling rats (frozen/thawed, ± 35 g): two-year old snakes > 350g. • small rats (frozen/thawed, ± 75 g): sub-adults > 500 g. • medium rats (frozen/thawed, ± 150 g): adult animals > 900 g. • large rats (frozen/thawed, ± 250 g): adult females > 1500 g. in an effort to promote optimum fitness while avoiding obesity, which may shorten lifespan and reduce reproductive productivity, feeding schedules and maintenance records on every individual should be meticulously maintained. such records are a crucial tool in managing these snakes, given their naturally low activity levels, which, exacerbated by captivity, are susceptible to a number of girelated maladies. avoiding these illnesses is relatively easy, given the proper tools and understanding their use. feeding frequency at my facility varies according to age and sex. younger specimens are fed most frequently, on a 10–14-day schedule from 30 days until approximately eight months of age. the latter frequently coincides with ontogenesis, which is signified in c. caninus by a change in ground color from neonatal red, green, or yellow to the familiar adult shade of green. however, this change, which is itself an energy-related process, is not inherently tied to age. neonates whose gi tracts are fully engaged at an early age, process meals and eliminate wastes on a fairly regular, predictable schedule. such individuals will benefit from being kept on a 10day feeding interval. animals with tendencies to process meals less quickly should be held to a longer 14-day period. under no 136 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 polanco frozen food size references. live siberian dwarf hamster (crawler) with dime for size reference. table 2. relative humidity table (%) averaged from across the entire range of corallus caninus. dtrh = daytime relative humidity highs; ntrh = nighttime relative humidity lows. jan feb mar apr may jun jul aug sep oct nov dec dtrh 94 94 94 95 95 93 92 91 91 91 91 93 ntrh 76 78 77 78 77 72 68 66 66 67 70 76 an 18-month-old corallus caninus on a scale for size reference. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 136 circumstances should a neonate be fed more than two meals without a bowel movement. a majority of neonates will eliminate the waste products from its previous meal within a few days. this waste is literally being moved out in order to make room for the wastes generated by the digestion of newly ingested prey. should an animal take two meals and fail to produce a bowel movement, one should induce elimination. this can be most easily accomplished by encouraging simple exercise on approximately day eight following the second meal. allowing the animal to crawl freely over one’s open fingers from hand to hand for a period of ten minutes is usually enough to produce the desired result within hours of the session. for animals from 8 months to three years of age, a 14-day interval between meals is appropriate. from this stage forward, no individual should be given more than three meals between bowel movements. once an animal has begun eating small rats weighing > 75 g, feeding frequency can be reduced from 14 to 18 or even 21 days. females can remain on this schedule, but males, having reached sexual maturity (at approximately four years of age) should be shifted to a monthly feeding routine. the one exception to these adult feeding schedules is made in preparation for breeding. because cessation of feeding is common for both males and females during different stages of the breeding process, “padding” the energy reserves of both during the weeks prior to the onset of the breeding season is prudent. for animals slated for breeding in a given calendar year, i reduce the number of days between feedings to the shortest periods mentioned previously for their respective sexes. males will be fed (offered food) every 21 days and females every 18 days beginning 60 days prior to introductions and lasting throughout the entire breeding season. many males will lose interest in feeding shortly after an initial introduction and may not feed again for the rest of the season. by contrast, females will usually feed ravenously throughout the season and stop only after ovulation. occasionally, males that are not actively breeding will also stop feeding during this period. for this reason, sexually mature, non-actively breeding males should be removed from the immediate area in which breeding pairs are being housed. acknowledgments for general help and sharing of information over the years, and for this particular project as well, i thank john benz, rolando burgos, stan chiras, craig and karen clark, frank fusaro, robert henderson, john martin, al montejo, tony nicoli, and the entire online corallus community of readers and participants at http://www.thetreeboaforum.com. your passion inspires and pushes the work forward. references henderson, r.w. 1993. corallus caninus. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (574): 1–4. stafford, p.j. and r.w. henderson. 1996. kaleidoscopic tree boas: the genus corallus of tropical america. krieger publishing co., malabar, florida. adult animals should receive food commensurate with their size; in this instance, an adult female boa consumes a large rat. iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 137corallus caninus highly arboreal treeboas rarely descend from elevated perches, even to consume large prey. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 137 iguana b&w text 206 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 special award natural scientist frederic james burton’s decision not to pursue a career in academia has proved to be a singular and far-reaching blessing for the cayman islands. mr. burton is this year’s queen’s birthday honors recipient of the member of the most excellent order of the british empire (mbe) award for “services to the conservation of endangered species in the cayman islands.” mr. burton’s unflagging efforts, characterized by his dedication, devotion, diligence, innate modesty, and unassuming approach, provide the backdrop for his contribution to conservation in general and endangered species in particular. he also has found time to write two books, bringing attention to native vegetation, some of which is in imminent danger of vanishing without protection. he also has coauthored a number of research papers in natural history journals. however, he is best known locally and internationally for his stellar work in ongoing attempts to save from extinction grand cayman’s largest land animal, the blue iguana (cyclura lewisi). he has been exceedingly effective and committed to conservation advocacy and education, fund-raising, and elevating public awareness. he has secured international funds and volunteers for ongoing initiatives to preserve the islands’ natural resources for present and future generations. he helped start several of these initiatives aimed at protecting and cataloging the flora and fauna on all three of the nation’s islands, as well as mapping vulnerable tracts of land and identifying native vegetation. “i felt very strongly that i wanted to make a difference in the world in some shape or form rather than sit in an academic ivory tower,” mr. burton recalled about his decision not to go for a doctoral degree. after he obtained a master’s degree in natural sciences from cambridge university, mr. burton, who was born in the picturesque lake district in england in 1957, rejected ph.d. prospects and took instead a position as research assistant in cayman’s mosquito research and control unit in 1979. spending much of his early life in kuwait, where his father was employed, translated into his acquiring a strong interest in reptiles and other fauna of the arabian desert. s p e c i a l a w a r d frederic james burton, shown here releasing a captive-bred grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) in order to augment wild populations, is this year’s queen’s birthday honors recipient of the member of the most excellent order of the british empire (mbe) award for “services to the conservation of endangered species in the cayman islands.” fred burton honored1 1 fred burton and the blue iguana recovery programme were featured in iguana 10(2):53–55 (2003). iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 206 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 207special award in 12 years’ service with mrcu, he became deputy director and sometimes single-handedly managed three roles as research officer, deputy head, and acting director. “it was a very difficult and stressful time,” he remembers. however, through his work he learned first-hand of the rapid destruction of his mangrove forest study sites, which succumbed to tourism and residential development, especially along the west bay corridor. when the national trust was established in 1988, he began volunteering until he was seconded by government fulltime to the trust in 1991. his important work in environmental conservation covering a number of areas began as a volunteer in 1990, and includes: (1) surveying the land given to the 624-acre salina reserve in the eastern districts of grand cayman and mapping its biodiversity; (2) coordinating work to start the qeii botanic park and being mainly responsible for the development of the park until its official opening in 1996; and (3) spearheading conservation efforts to help save the critically endangered grand cayman blue iguana from the brink of extinction. as a trust staff member, his main achievements include: (1) starting the acquisition of the mastic reserve; (2) a 10-year effort to fully protect the booby pond nature reserve in little cayman; and (3) acquisition of a block of land to start the cayman brac parrot reserve to help conservation of this endangered species, which is one of two parrot subspecies endemic to the cayman islands. “i am very proud to have been a part of that,” mr. burton says. he also led a public awareness campaign on the central mangrove wetlands. “a huge amount of work needs to be done there; we also need a policy on that.” of the award, he takes it in stride with his characteristic modesty, but hopes the recognition that it brings to environmental protection will lead to a better future for cayman. “i hope it helps bring some attention to the fact that environmental issues are becoming important,” he comments. “there are many others who like me are working way beyond the point of duty and equally deserving of this kind of recognition, especially my colleagues at the national trust and the department of environment. i hope that happens. for instance, doe has been working for years to modernize our environmental legislation. if one thing happens this year, i do hope it is the passage of the national conservation law,” he adds. currently, only about 6.5% of the entire cayman islands land is preserved. “it is generally accepted that at least 10% of unique habitats, and 20% or more of ecologically critical habitats, should be protected in all countries. we have a ways to go,” he notes. cayman is indeed distinct from many other caribbean islands in that much of its natural habitat is intact, albeit largely in private ownership. this is especially the case with the dry forests on all three islands, which manifest distinct characteristics. “dry forests are endangered worldwide, and the caribbean dry forests are in a dire state,” he observes. “it is in our national interest to save those forests.” on all three islands, and particularly on grand cayman, ongoing and potential development threatens the status quo, he says. it is against this backdrop that he hopes that the current development plan review will be successful in designating specific areas as protected after the previous two attempts failed, thereby futilely involving hours upon hours of involvement from the community seeking better conservation. cayman’s plus factors include our “charismatic flagship species,” our parrots and blue iguanas, which catch the eye of tourists. “there is no question that cayman’s natural environment and unique caymanian species are huge capital assets that underwrite our tourism marketing, both official dot’s and the private sector’s,” he comments. environmental sustainability will not be achieved “unless we are prepared to set aside areas to underpin our tourism product and maintain our national identity — or the reasons why the cayman islands are recognized as the cayman islands,” he posits. one such success story is the blue iguana recovery programme. credit for the success lies directly at mr. burton’s door, sometimes literally, such as when he had to play surrogate parent to young hatchlings housed in adequate, airy cages in his own backyard. over a half-dozen organizations in the us and uk have been directly involved in various aspects of the ongoing iguana conservation program, primarily through his efforts. the programme has seen a remarkable level of volunteerism, and local corporate financing has contributed as much as 50% of the funding. a number of hitherto innovative steps for cayman such as radio-tagging and micro-chip implanting became possible through mr. burton’s engagement of the international community. he started the blue iguana captive breeding program in 1990 from a pair obtained from florida to help boost the numbers of animals in the wild by releasing captive-reared iguanas into designated areas. with international volunteers, he undertook a census of the wild population that revealed a grim picture of a species teetering on the verge of extinction with a mere 10–25 animals clinging to life in 2002. since then, through controlled releases of two-year-old hatchlings at the botanic park and the salina reserve, the blue population has spurted to 250 following a recent release of two-year-old hatchlings. the day the captive breeding program ceases will be a day of rejoicing for all — and especially mr. burton. his first book, in collaboration with ms. penny clifford, titled wild trees in the cayman islands, first published in 1997, will be out in an expanded second edition with photographs in july. his second book, titled threatened plants of the cayman islands, is a red-list assessment, will also contain a number of photographs, and is close to publication. the style displayed in both the books is typical of his practicality and pragmatism. “there is no use creating information if people cannot access it,” he comments. mr. burton has a lot of work ahead in analyzing the huge body of information gathered over the last three years from radio-tracking blue iguanas released in the salina reserve. those data will guide the next steps in the conservation program. this is something to which he is looking forward with his customary incisiveness in the coming months. pat eubanks iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 207 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 7 a local group, “cielo,” in duvergé has been actively supporting our efforts. with their help, we mounted a teachers’ workshop in august. this program was developed in cooperation with the indianapolis zoo and zoodom (the national zoo in santo domingo). teachers have expressed considerable interest in units addressing the nation’s natural heritage, of which ricord’s iguana comprises an important element. establishing a local support group in jimaní and implementing additional workshops for teachers are critical if the local authorities are to become interested in conservation. acknowledgements we thank the international iguana foundation for its support of this work. references alberts, a.c., r.i. carter, w.k. hayes, and e.p. martins. 2004. iguanas: biology and conservation. university of california press, berkeley. arias, y., s.j. incháustegui, and e. rupp. 2004. cyclura ricordii on the barahona peninsula: a preliminary report. iguana 11:9–14. ottenwalder, j.a. 1999. ricord’s iguana, cyclura ricordi, pp. 51–55. in: a. alberts (comp. & ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn/ssc west indian iguana specialist group. iucn, gland, switzerland and cambridge, uk. ramer, j. 2004. a survey of ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) and rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta) in isla cabritos national park, dominican republic. 2003: a preliminary report. iguana 11:89–95. rupp, e., s.j. incháustegui, and y. arias. 2005. conservation of cyclura ricordii in the southwestern dominican republic and a brief history of grupo jaragua. iguana 12:223–233. cyclura ricordii in lago enriquillo certainly the most ubiquitous snake species on the greater antillean island of hispaniola (including many of its satellite islands) is the colubrid antillophis parvifrons. it is a slender snake with a maximum snout-vent length (svl) of 530 mm. dorsal ground color is variable (brown, black, gray, or bluish), and the dorsum may be patternless or with middorsal and dorsolateral stripes. the species occurs in habitats ranging from xeric scrub to rainforest. these snakes appear to be highly seasonal breeders in dry habitats, but may exhibit prolonged or even continuous breeding activity in moister situations at higher elevations. a fast-moving, ground-dwelling, diurnally active snake, it can be found in orchard and plantation situations (e.g., banana, breadfruit, cacao, coconut, coffee), where it may be observed cruising through leaf litter or concealed in coconut or banana trash. it appears to do well in greatly altered habitats and is often encountered near human habitations. antillophis parvifrons is an active forager that feeds on a wide array of frogs (osteopilus, eleutherodactylus) and lizards (sphaerodactylus, anolis, leiocephalus, celestus, ameiva), but anolis accounted for nearly 71% of all prey items in a sample of almost 200 snakes. in contrast, frogs of the genus eleutherodactylus accounted for only 12% of prey items. although small mammals (mus musculus) are occasionally taken, they are not typical fare (2.2% of the sample). groups of three to five individuals have been found together on île-de-la-gonâve (haiti), perhaps in a breeding situation. clutches of 2–15 eggs have been reported, and clutch size is positively correlated with female svl. when threatened, some individuals will raise the forepart of the body and the neck will become flattened dorsoventrally, reminiscent of some species of west indian racers (alsophis). references henderson, r.w., b.i. crother, t.a. noeske-hallin, a. schwartz, and c.r. dethloff. 1987. the diet of the hispaniolan snake antillophis parvifrons. journal of herpetology 21:328–332. powell, r., s.a. maxey, j.s. parmerlee, jr., and d.d. smith. 1991. notes on the reproductive biology of a montane population of antillophis parvifrons protenus (serpentes: colubridae) from the dominican republic. journal of herpetology 25:121–122. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e hispaniolan lesser racer (antillophis parvifrons) robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum, milwaukee, wisconsin the hispaniolan lesser racer (antillophis parvifrons) occurs in habitats ranging from rainforest to xeric scrub, such as that found in the area around lago enriquillo. ja m es d . f o r es te r iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:44 pm page 7 iguana b&w text 122 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 bonner kings play chess on fancy glass stools anyone know that sentence? it’s a mnemonic device, a shorthand way of remembering the categories scientists use to classify all life on earth. the first letters of each word are the keys: kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species now, if i said that half of an entire kingdom was going to become extinct in the next five years — say, the animal kingdom — there would be widespread global panic. little wonder, as it would be the end of life on this planet as we know it. on the other hand, if i told you that we just lost another species, you might shrug your shoulders. you might figure that losing a single species is a little like popping a rivet on an airplane. planes have oodles of rivets. you wouldn’t want to lose too many, and you wouldn’t want to lose an important one — like the last rivet holding the wing on. but losing an occasional rivet isn’t exactly catastrophic. where we have problems is toward the middle of our categories. for example, what if we only lose half a “class” of animals? a class isn’t as broadly encompassing as a kingdom or a phylum, but it takes in a lot more than a species or a genus. is losing half a class a catastrophe, or is it just another popped rivet? c o m m e n t a r y what do we lose if we lose the frogs?1 jeffrey p. bonner president, saint louis zoo st. louis, missouri 63110 the fire salamander (salamandra salamandra) is iucn-red-listed as being of “least concern” in view of its wide distribution, tolerance of a degree of habitat modification, presumed large population, and because it is unlikely to be declining fast enough to qualify for listing in a more threatened category. however, even such species need to be monitored carefully, as changes in status can occur rapidly. c a r o le s a u c ie r 1 reprinted with permission of the st. louis post-dispatch, copyright 2006. well, we’re about to find out. in the next five to ten years, about half of the different kinds of animals that make up the class known as amphibians probably will become extinct. there are about 6,000 known species in the class of amphibians: frogs, toads, and salamanders take in most of them. as i write this, 32 percent of those 6,000 are threatened, and another 23 percent are believed to be threatened (we don’t have quite enough data to make the call with absolute certainty). amphibians face many of the same problems that other threatened species face: habitat loss, climate change, pollution, and so on. but they also face a unique challenge. there is a fungus, which was born in africa, that is sweeping our planet. it’s called the chytrid fungus, and wherever it arrives, it kills about 80 percent of the amphibians in the area within a year. it is lethal only at certain altitudes, so it won’t destroy all of the world’s amphibians, but more than half is a pretty conservative estimate. scientists working with the st. louis zoo just confirmed that it’s here in missouri. the fungus cannot be stopped in the wild. our only hope is to get to the amphibians before the fungus arrives and bring them into zoos and aquariums for breeding and safe-keeping. the hope is that the fungus subsequently will run its course, after which the animals can be released again. call it “protective custody.” we do not know what the assault of the chytrid fungus means for the web of life that sustains us. frogs and their kin are both predators and prey. they are critically important in sustaining the delicate balance of nature. but are they just another rivet or do they keep the wings on the plane? the skin of amphibians is more permeable than ours — things pass through it fairly easily — so they have developed some unique biological strategies to protect themselves. for example, their skin produces a wide variety of substances that kill microbes and viruses. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 123commentary the southern bell frog (litoria raniformis) is endangered in australia and listed as such on the iucn red list. however, introduced populations in new zealand currently are doing well — but may be susceptible to the chytrid fungus, which has been documented in new zealand during the past decade. je n n if er m . g er m a n o je n n if er m . g er m a n o the maud island frog (leiopelma pakeka) is endangered in new zealand and listed as “vulnerable” on the iucn red list. je n n if er m . g er m a n o 124 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 last year, 14 of these substances, taken from just a handful of different frog species, were tested in a lab; three of the 14 showed a remarkable capacity to completely inhibit hiv infections. i was surprised that a discovery that shows such promise for inhibiting the mucosal transmission of aids didn’t make the news, but maybe i shouldn’t be: the fact that we’re going to have some very silent nights on this planet in just a few short years hasn’t attracted much attention, either. contemplating the silence that will replace the thunderous evening chorus of amphibians’ calls is bad enough. even worse is that with the loss of those species, we will lose so many cures for so many things. and it is worse still to imagine what losing half of the world’s species of amphibians may mean as we struggle to keep our living airplane from disintegrating. when i studied biology in high school, i had a delightful mental image of those kings playing chess while sitting on those fancy glass stools. now it turns out that we are very much like those kings: idling away our time when we should be responding to a horrible threat to our kingdom. it is not too late to save many — perhaps most, maybe even all — of the amphibians. they are comparatively easy to find and keep healthy in zoos and aquariums until it’s safe to release them back into the wild. the saint louis zoo, for example, has returned thousands of puerto rican crested toad (bufo lemur) tadpoles to the pools of their homeland. we also are working in ecuador to create a survival center in quito, and we have teamed up with other zoos to create a survival center in rural georgia for amphibians of north america. and right here, at one of the centers of the zoo’s wildcare institute, we are working to save missouri’s rapidly declining population of hellbenders (cryptobranchus alleganiensis). in this struggle, time is short, and we need your awareness and support. call us at the st. louis zoo, and we’ll tell you how you can help. bonner this juvenile ozark hellbender (cryptobranchus alleganiensis) at the st. louis zoo wildcare institute is part of an effort to save this species. declining populations throughout this “near-threatened” species’ range are attributable to habitat degradation, predation on eggs and larvae by exotic species, and agricultural run-off that might interfere with normal reproduction. captive-breeding programs, including that at the st. louis zoo, are working to reestablish the critically endangered puerto rican crested toad (bufo lemur) in its natural habitat. ja n p . z eg a r r a ja n p . z eg a r r a ja n p . z eg a r r a th er es a c r o w , m is so u r i s ta te u n iv er si ty iguana b&w text vegetation. together with previous work on acoustic communication, these data show that animals with very different sensory ecologies can face similar environmental constraints and adopt remarkably similar strategies to overcome those constraints. natural history of st. vincent dwarf geckos steinberg et al. (2007. journal of herpetology 41:326–332) documented population densities, microhabitat preferences, desiccation rates, and diets of sphaerodactylus vincenti on st. vincent, west indies. the authors predicted and observed high densities (to 5,625/ha) in moist, shaded leaf-litter. such microhabitats provide refuges, access to prey, and protection against water loss, as s. vincenti is vulnerable to high desiccation rates. they found significant differences in massspecific water-loss rates and body mass between conspecific populations at differing elevations, with larger geckos less resistant to water loss living in more mesic environments at higher elevations. stomach content analysis suggests that s. vincenti is a dietary generalist that feeds on a variety of small arthropods primarily by day. 132 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 natural history research reports virgin births at the london zoo four komodo dragons (varanus komodoensis) hatched at the london zoo were the result of parthenogenesis, the development of an egg without fertilization by a sperm. a clutch of dragon eggs laid in august 2005 fascinated reptile keepers. the female had arrived in london on loan from thoiry zoo in france in early 2005, and the clutch of eggs was laid more than two years after she had last lived with thoiry’s male. initially, keepers suspected sperm storage, but curator of herpetology, richard gibson, wasn’t entirely convinced and resolved to investigate further. genetic fingerprinting techniques at liverpool university confirmed that the four dragons were actually the result of parthenogenesis. the female later mated with the london zoo’s male and subsequently laid a second clutch of eggs from which a single, “normal” dragon hatched, demonstrating that komodo dragons can switch reproductive strategies depending on the availability of a mate. richard gibson said: “i am delighted that the mysterious parentage of our komodo dragon babies has been solved, and that we have discovered something new to science at the same time. knowing that the world’s largest lizard can reproduce like this suggests that many other reptiles may also do this more often than we thought, and may lead to changes in the way we manage this and other species in breeding programs. this discovery also raises important questions about the natural history of dragons in the wild, and will therefore help to safeguard the future of the species.” zoological society of london 21 december 2006 homing behavior in baby snakes we all know that children behave like their parents in many ways, especially as they grow older (even though many children deny it!) — and most of us suspect that the similarity is partly due to learning, and not just genetics. researchers from the university of sydney have discovered that baby snakes also behave like their parents, and probably for similar reasons as in humans. for more than a decade, drs. greg brown and rick shine have been studying the ecology of small non-venomous keelback snakes (tropidonophis mairii) on the floodplain of the adelaide river, on the outskirts of kakadu national park in the northern territory. n e w s b r i e f s puerto rican crested anoles (anolis cristatellus) increase the speed of body movements used in territorial signaling to improve communication in visually “noisy” environments. r o b er t po w el l four komodo dragons (varanus komodoensis) hatched at the london zoo were the result of parthenogenesis, the development of an egg without fertilization by a sperm. tr o o pe r w a ls h , n a ti o n a l zo o lo g ic a l pa r k populations of larger st. vincent dwarf geckos (sphaerodactylus vincenti) living in more mesic environments at higher elevations are less resistant to water loss. r o b er t po w el l one of their latest findings (just published in the journal biology letters) is that once they grow to adulthood and are ready to reproduce, female snakes return to the same area where they were hatched. so, many snakes probably lay their own eggs in the same nest as that from which they hatched, at least one year previously. professor shine said: “one of the reasons that we behave like our parents is that our behavior is strongly molded by our early experiences — and we have found that the same thing happens in snakes as well. we have known for many years that baby salmon somehow recognize the characteristics of water from the streams where they hatch, and return to the same stream many years later to breed. we’ve found exactly the same thing in snakes. even though a keelback snake wanders widely during the first year or two of her life, she returns to her original birthplace when it’s time to lay her own eggs.” why do snakes return to lay their eggs at the same place that their mothers did, years before? the answer is probably that the nest was a good one — otherwise no babies would survive to return. so, evolution has favored snakes that are able to remember where they hatched, and return there when the time comes to produce their own offspring. these results have strong implications for conservation, because if successive generations of snakes use the same “traditional sites” for nesting, any disturbance to those sites could be a major problem. the research also tells us that these small creatures, with brains about the size of a pea, can remember the exact location of their birth site for many months or years, and find their way back when it’s time to reproduce. also, the discovery of “traditional knowledge” in snakes casts yet more doubt on the belief that culture belongs only to humans. the university of sydney 20 february 2007 dogs sterilized to save endangered turtles stray dogs are being sterilized to protect many thousands of endangered olive ridley sea turtles (lepidochelys olivacea) that nest on beaches in orissa (india) every winter. dogs destroy nests and kill many baby turtles each year. at least 22 dogs were sterilized over the weekend at the devi river mouth, one of the three sites where the turtles come. amala akkineni, of the hyderabad-based environmental group blue cross said: “one pair of dogs gives rise to 2,000 in their lifetime. the operation will reduce the number of dogs in these areas, reducing the future destruction of turtle nests.” blue cross is conducting the sterilization program in collaboration with the department of fisheries and animal resources development and some ngos. said amala: “we will sterilize at least 2,500 dogs in the next six months in all three nesting sites to save turtle eggs and hatchlings. we will also provide training to 15 veterinary doctors to carry out the task.” until five years ago, the sea surrounded two tiny islands, where turtles come for mass nesting. as a result, no animal could reach the islands to destroy the eggs. at least half a million turtles lay eggs on these two islands. since 2002, however, the islands have become accessible from the neighboring wheeler island due to erosion. animalconcerns.org 30 january 2007 snake found in hawaii a worker at hilo harbor found and killed a chequered keelback snake (xenochrophis piscator), a species that is widely distributed in asia and the east indies. these non-venomous aquatic snakes are not usually considered to be pets. the carcass was flown to oahu, where a specialist from the bishop museum identified the snake. snakes are illegal in hawaii, where no natural means of control occur and many native species are potentially vulnerable to introduced predators. officials are concerned that invasive species can significantly hurt hawaiian ecosystems. thehawaiichannel.com 30 january 2007 american crocodile downlisted by u.s. government reclassified from endangered to threatened the u.s. fish and wildlife service announced tuesday that recovery efforts are making it possible to reclassify the american crocodile (crocodylus acutus) in florida from endangered to threatened under the endangered species act. “american crocodiles were a part of florida’s history for hundreds of years until human activities such as urban development, agricultural conversion and overhunting decimated their populations,” said sam d. hamilton, the service’s southeast regional director. “however, in the past 30 years, we have made great strides in protecting this species and conserving its habitat. today we can celebrate their comeback as a result of the recovery efforts by numerous dedicated professionals who are helping sustain a vital part of florida’s natural and cultural history.” iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 133newsbriefs female australian keelback snakes (tropidonophis mairii) return to the same area where they were hatched. so, many snakes probably lay their own eggs in the same nest from which they themselves hatched. g r eg c a lv er t, © j a m es c o o k u n iv er si ty a chequered keelback snake (xenochrophis piscator), a species that is widely distributed in asia and the east indies, was found and killed in hilo harbor. stray dogs are being sterilized to protect many thousands of endangered olive ridley sea turtles (lepidochelys olivacea) that nest on beaches in orissa, india. w w w .a m ig o sd o m a r n a es c o la .c o m .b r / b a n c o d ei m a g en s. ph p the service’s final reclassification decision comes after the completion of its five-year review required under the esa for all endangered and threatened species. an endangered species is defined as being in danger of extinction within the foreseeable future. a threatened classification means a species could become endangered. reclassifying a species from endangered to the less-critical threatened designation is often reflective of recovery efforts reducing imminent threats and allowing populations to increase. the american crocodile is being reclassified in southern florida, its only habitat within the u.s. this crocodilian will remain endangered in other countries, including belize, colombia, costa rica, cuba, dominican republic, ecuador, el salvador, guatemala, haiti, honduras, jamaica, nicaragua, mexico, panama, peru, and venezuela. the american crocodile in florida was originally listed as an endangered species in 1975. their numbers in florida have grown to an estimated 1,400–2,000, not including hatchlings. the species is one of two native crocodilians, the other being the american alligator (alligator mississippiensis), that are known to frequent the u.s. it can be distinguished from the american alligator by a relatively narrow, more pointed snout and by an indentation in the upper jaw that leaves the fourth tooth of the lower jaw exposed when the mouth is closed. in order to reclassify the american crocodile from endangered to threatened, the recovery plan requires a sustained breeding population of 60 females. about 95 percent of the remaining american crocodile habitat in southern florida has been acquired by federal, state, and county agencies. these protected areas should allow the population to expand and could provide additional nesting opportunities. miami, florida herpetologists honored for contributions to conservation the florida chapter of the wildlife society (fltws) announced the winners of the first annual paul moler herpetological conservation award. the recipients, mark bailey, kurt buhlmann, jeff holmes, and joe mitchell, were selected for producing the new partners for amphibian and reptile conservation publication, “habitat management guidelines for amphibians and reptiles of the southeastern united states.” featuring detailed, yet easy-to-understand ideas and methods to help landowners improve the conservation value of their land, the book has received excellent reviews from land managers and conservation professionals across the region. the guidelines effectively cover the wide variety of habitats and the diverse herpetofauna of the southeastern united states, both with text and exquisite photography. the book is available to the public and can be ordered at www.parcplace.org. the conservation award was presented during this year’s annual meeting of the fltws, 11–13 april 2007, in st. petersburg, florida. the award was established in honor of one of florida’s preeminent herpetologists, paul moler, who retired in 2006 after 29 years of service with the florida fish and wildlife conservation commission. “i am especially gratified to see this first herpetological conservation award go to the authors of parc’s outstanding southeastern habitat management guidelines,” moler said upon hearing the announcement. the fltws is made up of over 300 wildlife professionals dedicated to sustainable management of wildlife resources and their habitats in florida. for more information about the society, visit www.fltws.org. dinosaurs and birds a few years ago, michael crichton wrote a highly successful and purely speculative book titled jurassic park about extracting dna from dinosaurs. both the book and the subsequent movie were huge successes. now, crichton’s imagination has become reality (although, thankfully, not the recreation of living animals using frog-dna splices). scientists have long considered birds to be the closest living relatives of dinosaurs. this was based on bone characteristics, because no soft tissue had survived to confirm the link. now, protein extracted from a 68-million-year-old tyrannosaurus rex has provided convincing data. “it’s the first molecular evidence of this link between birds and dinosaurs,” said john asara, a harvard medical school researcher, whose results were published in the journal science. in 2005, mary higby schweitzer of north carolina state university found blood vessels and cells in a t. rex bone from the fossil-rich hell creek formation in montana. in another science article, schweitzer reported that extracts of that bone reacted with antibodies to chicken collagen, suggesting the presence of birdlike proteins in dinosaurs. 134 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 newsbriefs a jo e w a si le w sk il o r i o b er h o fe r the american crocodile (crocodylus acutus) in florida is being reclassified from endangered to threatened under the endangered species act. pa la is d e la d éc o u v er te , p a r is the paleontologist robert t. bakker once referred to tyrannosaurus rex as a “thunderchicken from hell.” new evidence provides strong support for his once controversial ideas. iguana b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 209corallus caninus the first two installments (iguana 13(1): 37–41; 13(2): 133137) proposed a set of guidelines for the habitat preparation, acquisition, maintenance, and diet of emerald tree boas. part three presents some of the more technical details associated with propagation. breeding and reproduction imported shipments of corallus caninus have been observed to contain gravid specimens most frequently during the months of march and april and again during september and october (the latter is considered the most common for parturition). for this reason, these snakes are thought to breed more or less opportunistically on a year-round basis. other possibilities for such an extensive birthing season might include sperm retention or the ability for females to delay ovulation until environmental conditions are optimal. september through november in the amazonian basin is the hottest and driest time of year. this also is when most herpetoculturists begin entering eligible animals into breeding trials. beginning in early to mid-october, two weeks prior to initial introduction, temperature cycling should be initiated. breeders should begin raising the daytime high (dth) and dropping the nighttime low (ntl) temperatures at a rate of 1 °f every third day, continuing until a 15 °f differential has been established. once these levels have been reached, but prior to introduction, misting should begin for all prospective breeders. those who regularly mist as part of their husbandry regime should increase the frequency and duration of each session by 50%. other keepers should initiate two daily misting periods of 3–5 minutes each at dawn and again at dusk. the sprayer setting should deliver a medium-sized water droplet, resembling rain. atomized droplets are not appropriate. misting should be maintained for three days, after which males should be introduced into a female’s enclosure, with lights on, on the morning of the fourth day. the pair should receive the first misting immediately. in cases where individual animals are unfamiliar to each other or are breeding for the first time, interest between prospective mates may take several days to develop. pairs should be allowed to remain together for a period of three days, separated again for another three, then re-introduced. these periods during which pairs are separated can be used to offer meals. ideally, animals should feed continuously throughout the season, although this rarely occurs for many males. the use of multiple males in breeding (polyandry) is believed to be beneficial. the presence of competitors may increase testosterone production levels, thereby augmenting instinctive breeding behavior. females may instinctively embrace h u s b a n d r y emerald gems (corallus caninus): captive husbandry and propagation part iii: propagation joseph m. polanco photographs by the author. an amazon basin female eating a still-born neonate.corallus caninus copulation. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 209 polyandry as a form of insurance against genetic incompatibilities. one study of a colubrid snake showed that females that practiced polyandry and subsequently produced multiple-sired litters, retained greater postpartum body weight and delivered larger overall litters. a less scientific personal observation suggests that not all males are created instinctually equal. in essence, it takes two to tango, and, if one of the dancers is unwilling, being able to call in an understudy may well increase the likelihood that the show will go on. in cases where multiple males are employed, the second male should be introduced immediately upon removal of the first. at the end of this pairs’ three day interval, the female should be allowed an equal period of recuperation prior to beginning the cycle anew. both temperature cycling and pair-rotation should be continued for as long as breeding activity is observed. however, actual breeding behavior may not be observed or recognized. in such instances, breeding trials should be continued throughout the season. one additional environmental stimulus reported to be effective at virtually any time of year is direct exposure to a drop in barometric pressure, such as those that often precede the onset of a thunderstorm. such exposure is commonly reported to evoke immediate breeding responses from males that had previously been slow to respond or shown little interested in breeding. i have personally observed virtually every sexually mature male in my colony begin cruising and scent-marking his perches at such times. may marks the end of the breeding season, and, at this time, pairs should be separated, misting stopped, and reverse temperature cycling initiated. the same cycling protocol is used in reverse until maintenance-level dth and ntl levels have been re-established. ovulation, parturition, and postpartum maintenance in the case of gravid females, the onset of ovulation (the discharge of mature ova from the ovaries) follows some time after the cessation of breeding activity. although no recognized timeframe seems to govern its onset, the peak of this activity is usually unmistakable. most often females appear to grow exceedingly uncomfortable and begin to display notable midbody swelling. less frequently, a female may go through the process unnoticed, but these instances are exceptional. in such cases, the subsequent behavior patterns associated with gravid females are often sufficient to tip the breeder as to what has occurred. during ovulation, which lasts anywhere from three to seven days, most females will continue to give an impression of extreme discomfort, often hanging grossly distended midbody loops off their perch. within 30 days of peak ovulation, females will become opaque, indicating the onset of the post-ovulatory shed (pos). from the date of actual sloughing, females average 138 days to parturition. some breeders prefer to provide females with a constant 90 °f-basking spot, while others, i for one, do not vary from the regular maintenance cycle. to date, experimentation with both methods has produced no apparent differences in resultant litter size, size or sex ratio of the offspring, or time from pos to parturition. because c. caninus is a livebearer, births tend to be somewhat messy affairs that rarely seem to occur at convenient hours of the day. therefore, i recommend that on pos day 125, the water bowls be removed from the birthing enclosure and that thricedaily misting be used instead to supply the female with water for drinking. directly spraying the animal’s body ensures that it will become aware of the moisture being provided and lessen the chance of it becoming dehydrated. rarely, an animal that is accustomed to using a drinking bowl may begin showing signs of dehy210 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 polanco a litter of neonate corallus caninus. neonate corallus caninus vary in color, but the green adult coloration appears only later. breeding behavior known as “barber-poling.” iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 210 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 211corallus caninus dration. in these instances, a large flat dish containing no more than 1/4" of water can be introduced. newborn emeralds not fully broken free from their egg sacs at birthing may be inadvertently dropped into water bowls and subsequently drown. litter sizes average between eight and eleven (as few as 1 and as many as 22 have been recorded) and newborns should be active and, in the best case scenario, have no sign of an external umbilicus. neonates should be gently wiped clean of amniotic fluid using a damp paper towel and clear 75 °f-tap water, and subsequently placed in small individual containers, supplied with a water dish and a perch no greater than 5/8" in diameter. most babies will enter into a shed phase within two weeks of birth. keepers should resist the urge to feed newly shed babies, as it takes as long as 30 days for a baby to deplete its supply of internal yolk. two weeks after the initial shed, feeding trials can begin. most breeders prefer to begin trials employing thawed pink rats that have been repeatedly dipped in hot water until they register a temperature of 115–120 °f, a process i refer to as “superheating.” my preference is to use live siberian dwarf hamster crawlers (approx. 8 g). to date, this method has never failed to inspire neonate emeralds to do what nature intended. their suitability for this task is unsurpassed in my experience and, when practical, i highly recommend their use. this is perhaps one of the most valuable tidbits of information that i can offer prospective c. caninus owners. when all else fails, these little guys will get the job done. current captive-born survival rates are thought to be the inverse of those found in the wild, meaning that over 80% of all babies conceived and born in captivity should survive long enough to be given an opportunity to reproduce. the reconditioning of postpartum females should begin immediately. females who have completed the cycle should be offered food the night after parturition. these animals must begin to regain their conditioning as quickly as possible in order to avoid the onset of illness triggered by opportunistic pathogens. since some females flatly refuse to feed from the onset of ovulation until after parturition, the sooner they are offered a meal and begin the process of recovering, the less susceptible they will be. females should be bred bi-annually, giving them a full year of recovery before beginning the process anew. in her lifetime, a properly maintained female can remain viable for many years and is capable of delivering over 100 babies. acknowledgements for general help and sharing of information over the years, and for this particular project as well, i thank john benz, rolando burgos, stan chiras, craig and karen clark, frank fusaro, robert henderson, john martin, al montejo, tony nicoli, and the entire online corallus community of readers and participants at http://www.thetreeboaforum.com. your passion inspires and pushes the work forward. references garner, t.w.j. and k.w. larsen. 2005. multiple paternity in the western terrestrial garter snake, thamnophis elegans. canadian journal of zoology 83: 656–663. laszlo, j. 1979. reproductive patterns of reptiles in relation to captive breeding, pp. 22–27. in: p.j.s. olney (ed.), international zoo yearbook. the zoological society of london, dorchester. lofts, b. 1978. reptilian reproductive system and environmental regulators, pp. 37–43. in: i. assenmacher and d.s. farmer (eds.), environmental endocrinology, springer verlag, berlin. olsson, m. and t. madsen, t. 1998. sexual selection and sperm competition in reptiles, pp. 503–564. in: t. birkhead and a. møller (eds.), sexual selection and sperm competition. academic press, cambridge, massachusetts. ross, r.a. and g. marzec g. 1990. the reproductive husbandry of pythons and boas. institute for herpetological. research, stanford, california. zeh, j.a. and d.w. zeh. 1996. the evolution of polyandry i: intragenomic conflict and genetic incompatibility. proceedings of the royal society of london b, 263: 1711–1717. breeding behavior in which the pair is tightly intertwined is called “cuddling.” parturition is frequently a messy affair in this live-bearing species. infertile ova are discolored and shrunken. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 211 iguana b&w text 238 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 ircf on the move ircf to sponsor team blue 2006 winter session the ircf has been awarded a $10,000 grant from the maine community foundation. these funds will be used to sponsor the blue iguana recovery program’s team blue 2006 winter activities, which represents a critical milestone in the program. specific projects undertaken by this year’s volunteers include assisting with the health screening of animals that are to be released, trail development in the salina reserve, mapping, construction and assembly of artificial retreats, placement of those retreats, and release of the next group of head-started blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi) in the salina reserve. the ircf expresses its gratitude and sincere appreciation to the donor and the maine community foundation for their continued support of the blue iguana recovery program. ircf nets $18,000 for guatemalan beaded lizard conservation1 the ircf and zoo atlanta raised $18,000 for project heloderma at this year’s national reptile breeders expo benefit auction. the money will be used to help preserve the endangered guatemalan beaded lizard, heloderma horridum charlesbogerti, by funding conservation research, environmental education, and land acquisition to secure critical habitat in the motagua valley, guatemala. the ircf extends its gratitude to all those individuals, organizations, and companies that donated goods and services for the auction. our heartfelt thanks go also to all of the wonderful people who volunteered in daytona to help solicit items from expo vendors and run the auction itself. a special thank you to our incomparable auctioneer, tattoo pete and to nrbe promoter wayne hill for his continuing support for reptile conservation. i r c f o n t h e m o v e in addition to the main auction, items on one of the many silent auction tables elicited the interest of attendees. “tattoo” pete gardiner, auctioneer (left) and chuck schaffer, auction facilitator, open the auction with a rare illustration of a beaded lizard (heloderma horridum). attendees begin to fill the room to capacity during the opening moments of the auction. 1 see the complete list of donors and volunteers on p. 191. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 238 iguana b&w text 264 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 natural history research reports escape behavior in cuban curly-tailed lizards several aspects of escape behavior are predictable by escape theory based on expected costs due to predation risk and escaping. although the function of pursuit-deterrent signaling is to dissuade predators from attack, relatively little is known about relationships between specific components of escape and the signaling behavior. cooper (2007. herpetologica 63: 144–150) studied effects of the risk factor distance from refuge on flight initiation distance, distance fled, probability of entering refuge, and the distance between predator (an approaching human) and prey when pursuit-deterrent display begins (display distance) in the cuban curly-tailed lizard (leiocephalus carinatus). the author also investigated whether starting distance (distance between predator and prey when approach begins) affects escape behaviors. as predicted by escape theory, flight initiation distance and distance fled were greater and refuge entry was less probable at greater distance from refuge, indicating that qualitative predictions of escape theory apply to pursuitdeterrent signalers. starting distance did not affect escape behaviors, presumably because it did not affect perceived risk, but might do so at a faster approach speed. display distance and flight initiation distance were identical in the data set analyzed, but individuals sometimes perform tail displays prior to fleeing. native predators may limit iguanas in florida known predators of green iguanas (iguana iguana) in florida include raccoons (procyon lotor), domestic dogs (canis familiaris), yellow-crowned night herons (nyctanassa violacea), florida burrowing owls (athene cunicularia floridana), and a hawk (buteo sp.). smith et al. (2007. journal of kansas herpetology 23: 7–8) report nest predation and attempted adult predation on green iguanas by a gray fox (urocyon cinereoargenteus) and suggest that avian and mammalian predators may potentially function as limiting factors on colonization patterns of exotic iguanas in florida. survival of timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus) juvenile survival is one of the least known elements of the life history of many species, in particular snakes. brown et al. (2007. copeia 2007: 656–671) conducted a mark-recapture study of timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus) from 1978–2002 in northeastern new york near the northern limits of the species’ range. they marked 588 neonates and estimated annual age-, sex-, and morph-specific recapture and survival rates. wild-caught neonates (fieldborn, n = 407) and neonates produced by captive-held gravid females (lab-born, n = 181) allowed comparison of the birthplace, or lab treatment effect, in estimated survival. recapture rates declined from about 10–20% over time while increasing from young to older age classes. estimated survival rates (s ± 1 se) in the first year were significantly higher among field-born (black morph: s = 0.773 ± 0.203; yellow morph: s = 0.531 ± 0.104) than among lab-born snakes (black morph: s = 0.411 ± 0.131; yellow morph: s = 0.301 ± 0.081). lower birth weights combined with a lack of field exposure until release apparently contributed to the lower survival rate of lab-born snakes. subsequent survival estimates for 2–4-yr-old snakes were s = 0.845 ± 0.084 for the black morph and s = 0.999 (se not available) for the yellow morph, and for > 5-yr-old snakes s = 0.958 ± 0.039 (black morph) and s = 0.822 ± 0.034 (yellow morph). the most parsimonious model overall tail-curling may serve as a pursuit-deterrent signal in cuban curly-tailed lizards (leiocephalus carinatus). jo h n b in n s a gray fox (urocyon cinereoargenteus) excavating a green iguana (iguana iguana) nest and eating the eggs at hugh taylor birch state park in broward county, florida. g a r y h . b u sc h n a t u r a l h i s t o r y r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s for young timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus) (ages 1 yr and 2–4 yr), survival tended to decline over the years for both “yellow” and “black” morphs, whereas for adult snakes (> 5 yr), survival was constant or even increased slightly. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 265natural history research reports contained an independent time trend for survival of each age, morph, and labtreatment group. for snakes of the first two age groups (ages 1 yr and 2–4 yr), survival tended to decline over the years for both morphs, whereas for adult snakes (> 5 yr), survival was constant or even increased slightly. these data on survival and recapture are among the first rigorous estimates of these parameters in a rattlesnake and among the few available for any viperid snake. these data are useful for analyses of the lifehistory strategy, population dynamics, and conservation of this long-lived snake. ringneck snakes are toxic to prey ringneck snakes (diadophis punctatus) are suspected of being venomous because their duvernoy’s gland secretions have high levels of phospholipase activity, which is characteristic of many viperid and elapid venoms, and because anecdotal reports of feeding behavior are consistent with the use of a venom. o’donnell et al. (2007. toxicon 50: 810–815) tested the toxicity of northwestern ringneck snake (d. p. occidentalis) oral secretions to a natural prey species, northwestern garter snakes (thamnophis ordinoides), by injecting 2–35 µl of oral secretions intraperitoneally. all doses were 100% lethal within 180 min. the dose significantly affected the time to loss of a righting response. neither injection of saline nor denatured oral secretions resulted in loss of a righting response or any visible detrimental effects. the authors suggested that northwestern ringneck snakes may have evolved venom to subdue larger prey items than the snake would otherwise be capable of taking. virginia herpetological society publications on-line the virginia herpetological society has digitized all of its publications from 1958 to 2005, providing easy access to almost 50 years worth of field notes, articles, and the history of the society. interested herpetologists are encouraged to access this resource at fwie.fw.vt.edu/ vhs/ (or publications specifically at fwie.fw.vt.edu/vhs/vhs_history.htm). fourth annual sonoran desert herpetological symposium the tucson herpetological society and its cosponsors are pleased to announce the fourth symposium on “current research on herpetofauna of the sonoran desert” from 11–13 april 2008. the goals of this meeting are: (1) presenting research on the herpetofauna of the sonoran desert (in the states of arizona, sonora, and on the baja california peninsula and gulf islands), and (2) bringing the interested community together to get better acquainted. invited speakers are harry greene, ed moll, and cecil schwalbe. the first three sonoran desert herpetofaunal symposia were an epiphany for many. these symposia revealed the wide variety of research being conducted in the area. for more information, see: http://tucsonherpsociety.org/. n e w s b r i e f s northwestern ringneck snake (diadophis punctatus occidentalis) oral secretions are toxic to a natural prey species, northwestern garter snakes (thamnophis ordinoides). su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h the tucson herpetological society and cosponsors announce the fourth symposium on “current research on herpetofauna of the sonoran desert.” th o m a s w ie w a n d t, w il d h o r iz o n s iguana 13.2 b&w text with great sadness i report the death of ron goellner, director of animal collections at the saint louis zoo. ron passed away early in the morning of 26 february 2006, in the comfort of his home and with his loving wife karen at his side. the entire saint louis zoo community is profoundly saddened by the loss of a man who touched the lives of so many, yet we know that ron would be the first to tell us to “keep smilin’.” you cannot conjure memories of ron and not follow his advice, because he sowed smiles wherever he went. born 4 november 1945, ron’s career at the saint louis zoo spanned 35 years. he started in the reptile house in 1970 as a keeper and, within a few years, was promoted to curator of reptiles, a position he held until 1995. for the past ten years, ron served as the director of animal collections for the zoo. although ron was intensely interested in all reptiles and amphibians, his true passions were tuataras and hellbenders. in 1980, ron traveled to stephen’s island in new zealand to collect environmental data that could be utilized in the construction of a new off-exhibit enclosure for the zoo’s tuatara group, which has been in the collection since 1973. in recent years, ron founded the center for hellbender conservation, which included the construction of a dedicated off-exhibit facility for captive propagation efforts. in addition, he established valuable links with the missouri department of conservation and researchers at universities in order to implement cooperative in situ initiatives for the hellbender in missouri. ron was an avid gardener and had built several ponds around his house to attract local amphibians. he enjoyed a wide array of outdoor activities and particularly loved camping in the big bend region of texas and the mountains of southeastern arizona. ron was my mentor and colleague, but most of all he was a dear friend whom i will miss very much. jeff ettling curator of herpetology saint louis zoo o b i t u a r y ronald goellner (1945–2006) ron goellner, here holding a hellbender (cryptobranchus alleganiensis), founded the center for hellbender conservation. photograph courtesy of the st. louis zoo. 170 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 newsbriefs “this was a red alert,” mr. burton said. the department of agriculture was contacted and officers took another dog trap to the park to go with the one already on the premises. on monday night the traps were set and mr. burton waited until the iguanas went into their retreats. slugger liked to spend the night under a plywood ramp leading to public toilets near the iguana facility and mr. burton saw him go there around sundown. it rained tuesday night and the bait probably washed out of the dog traps, he said. on tuesday morning, chris carr came early to check the traps. instead, he saw digging marks by the ramp. he checked more closely and saw two dogs under the toilet building with an iguana. mr. carr was able to retrieve the iguana. it was slugger, and he was dead. mr. burton said slugger would not have been afraid of the dogs, probably never having seen one before. “he was the dominant male in the area. he would have stayed and fought,” he said. although he was the largest iguana in the park at over 17 pounds, he was no match for the dogs. “if we succeed in catching the dogs, we’ll have to put them down,” mr. burton said. it was not clear whether they belonged to anyone. they did not have collars and did not act as if they had any training, he indicated. but along with the dogs, irresponsible pet owners are causing another monstrous problem for the wildlife in the park. “well-meaning people are bringing animals to the park and abandoning them, thinking park staff will be kind to animals. we have found kittens, fullgrown cats, puppies, and green iguanas (iguana iguana), and we have absolutely no option but to trap them and remove them. “they have no place here and they’re damaging the native wildlife we’re trying so hard to protect,” mr. burton said. especially worrisome are the green iguanas. people think they’re cute when they’re little. but then they grow into big lizards and the owner doesn’t want them any more. the green iguanas – with definite black stripes on the tail – are not native to cayman, he emphasized. they don’t belong here and they are a threat to the vulnerable blues. if anything good can come out of this experience, maybe it could be people’s increased awareness of what happens when they allow their pets to roam or when they drop off unwanted animals. “please don’t bring animals to the park. it’s not a home for them,” he urged. carol winker cayman webnet, 7 june 2006 iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 170 iguana b&w text 190 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 stejneger the garter snakes of north america constitute one of the most difficult group with which the ophiologist has to deal. the geographical variation is recognized to be excessive, while at the same time the individual variation is so great as to obscure the boundaries between the species. the result is that there is a great diversity of opinion among authors as to the number of species and the proper limitations of the forms, and while one is inclined to recognize a long series of species, another will only allow a very limited number indeed, though admitting numerous “varieties,” at least of some of the species. while undoubtedly many a slight variety, or even individual freak, has been designated as a species, on the other hand, some of the most distinct species have suffered degradation to mere varieties or subspecies. the thamnophis butleri of cope is an example of this. in 1889 prof. cope described a single specimen from richmond, ind., under the above name, dedicating it to amos w. butler. in describing it he stated expressly that “it is remarkably distinct from everything which occurs in the united states, and has only a superficial resemblance to the e. flavilabris2, cope, of mexico.” this statement alone should have prevented it from ever becoming associated with thamnophis sirtalis as a subspecies until additional material should establish the incorrectness of prof. cope’s standpoint, who, having himself endeavored to subordinate the various binomials under other forms as trinomials, would have been able to discover the relationship with t. sirtalis, if such relationship existed. but no such additional material has been forthcoming. it is therefore with great satisfaction that i announce that a second specimen has recently been obtained and added to the collection of the national museum. it was collected by mr. p. h. kirsch, of the u.s. fish commission, at cedar creek, waterloo, ind., on july 17, 1893. this specimen, no. 21692 u.s.n.m., corroborates everything prof. cope said about the species in the original description and substantiates the characters relied upon for its separation. the number and size of the temporals (1+1) is the same, and the lateral stripe involves distinctly the second, third, and fourth scale rows. the size and shape of the head is also quite characteristic, it being remarkably small and conical. moreover, the eye is proportionately much smaller than in any of our thamnophis species, with the exception of t. leptocephalus3 and t. vagrans4. this smallness of the eye is so striking, and it reminds one so much of the last-mentioned species, that i have a strong suspicion that the specimen which e. w. nelson collected near chicago, ill., in 1874, and identified with t. vagrans,* was, in reality, a third specimen of the rare t. butleri, about the geographical range of which we can at present only guess. it is almost needless to add that t. vagrans does not occur in illinois. for the sake of completeness i add the synonymy of the species which is the subject of the present article. 1889.—eutania butleri, cope, proc. u.s. nat. mus., xi, 1888, p. 399. 1892.—eutania butlerii, cope, proc. u.s. nat. mus., xiv, 1891, p. 651.—eutania butlerii, hay, batr. rept. indiana, p. 120 (1892). 1893.—tropidonotus ordinates var. butleri, boulenger, cat. snakes brit. mus., i, p. 212. h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s notes on butler’s garter snake1 leonhard stejneger butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri) serves as an effective illustration of the ever-changing nature of classification, but, in addition, has recently been the focus of a political controversy regarding the protected status of disjunct populations in wisconsin (see aprill. 2007. iguana 14: 94–99). g a r y s . c a sp er at one time, edward drinker cope, an esteemed herpetologist of the late 19th century, sought to subsume a number of garter snakes as subspecies of the common garter snake (thamnophis sirtalis), illustrated here. leonhard stejneger’s short note demonstrated that this approach was erroneous. b r ia n s . e d m o n d 1 reprinted from the proceedings of the u.s. national museum 17: 593–594 (1895). 2 eutania flavilabris is recognized today as a synonym of thamnophis eques. 3 thamnophis leptocephalus is recognized today as a synonym of thamnophis ordinoides. 4 thamnophis vagrans is recognized today as a subspecies of thamnophis elegans. * see davis and rice, bull. chicago acad. sci., i, iii, 1883, p. 30 [from original]. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 190 iguana b&w text this juvenile lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) is feasting on leaves of a noni tree (morinda citrifolia) in dominica. see article on p. 222. iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 14, number 4 december 2007 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess r o b er t po w el l efforts to conserve the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) involve releases of captive-bred and reared individuals (see isg reports on p. 228). the lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) survives on fewer than ten main islands in the northern lesser antilles (see article on p. 222). jo h n b in n s the amethystine or scrub python (morelia kinghorni) is the largest snake and arguably the largest terrestrial carnivore in australia (see article on p. 213). a la st a ir f r ee m a n jo h n b in n s one session of the 2006 iucn iguana specialist group meeting was devoted to ctenosaurs, such as critically endangered ctenosaura melanosterna (see isg reports on p. 228). the puerto rican ground lizard (ameiva exsul) actively roots in leaf litter and soil while searching for prey (see article on p. 226). lu is o . n ie v es jo h n b in n s, a n im a ls c o u r te sy o f w es t c o a st ig u a n a r es ea r c h iguana b&w text clinging to the front seat of the “turismo” bus for dear life, i anxiously awaited certain death as the bus squeezed past cars on the winding, narrow road leading to the small town of atenas near san jose. i wanted to close my eyes but couldn’t sacrifice the view. within a half hour, the landscape had changed from crowded city to meandering emerald green hills and slopes. tropical trees draped over the serpentine road, and small houses littered the roadside, their occupants busy in the fields beyond. we spent some time at the school for field studies in atenas. drifting through town, i gazed into store windows and savored the sweet aroma of baking breads and empañadas. uniformed school children sat on the steps of a whitewashed church, and people were quietly strolling and relaxing on benches in a park that seemed to blend naturally into the greenery encompassing the town. three days later, we drove through mountain slopes patterned by a mosaic of coffee plantations, arriving at poás national park by mid-morning. fortunately, clouds had not yet risen over the crater, so the chamber was clearly visible. water gurgled and bubbled while sulphurous gases seeped out of the sides and a biting wind tried to steal my hat. within minutes, clouds wafted over the crater, covering it like a blanket. while walking up a trail to a crater lake, a poás squirrel (syntheosciurus poasensis), endemic to the park, tried to charm us in exchange for food. the lake’s deep blue water contrasted sharply with the tangled dark green forest around us. the next day, during an eight-hour drive over the central mountain range, we pulled off the road. the air was crisp, thin, and chilly. anxious to stretch our legs, we piled out of the bus and attacked a hill covered with sub-alpine páramo vegetation. huffing and puffing, i reached the top, almost 11,000 feet high and above the clouds. below me lay richly verdant mountain slopes and birds soaring in the distance. the view will be a snapshot in my memory forever. several hours of pouring rain and narrow, bumpy roads later, we arrived in the swampy town of sierpe, from were we were to visit the osa peninsula and corcovado national park, traveling through mangroves and out into the ocean. a threehour ride, weather permitting, would take us to sirena station. soon, the narrow river view opened to an endless vista of ocean stretching into an azure sky. the water turned from murky brown to a deep, transparent blue. the boat pulled into a cove where a waterfall cascaded into the ocean, and the boulders housed an array of tropical birds. later, a school of dolphins 42 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 pansza / champlin cony. our final day in the cloud forest was spent touring a reptile farm, the serpentarium, and the frog house. of 135 species of snakes found in costa rica, 17 are venomous. this information was not entirely academic. a girl on the same trip the year before was bitten by a fer-de-lance (bothrops asper) and had to spend several weeks in the hospital. during the rainforest portion of our trip, we saw a green and black dart frog (dendrobates auratus) and a smaller “blue jeans” dart frog (dendrobates pumillio). at the la selva biological station, we spotted several species of anoles (anolis spp.), more large green iguanas, and, down by the river, american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus) and spectacled caimans (caiman crocodilus). near the pacure river, we shared our cabins with many little geckos. anoles were all over the front porch, ground lizards (ameiva festiva) were common on the grounds, and basilisks (basiliscus spp.) basked on rocks along the riverbanks. we did see some individuals running on their hindlimbs but never saw one running on water, a skill for which they received the common name “jesus christ lizard.” our last stop was in san jose. half a day in the large, busy city was quite a culture shock after passing the previous few weeks in the green serenity of the forests. costa rica was an experience of a lifetime. although i had been forewarned, i was amazed to see such biodiversity in such a small geographical area. i recommend a visit to anyone with even a casual interest in nature — but make sure you bring a good camera. pura vida!!! from here it’s possible: a texan visits the tropics kaela e. champlin department of natural resource management, texas tech university, lubbock, texas insects, such as this katydid, often exhibit remarkable cryptic patterns and colors, in this instance, looking just like a leaf, scars and all. ja n el le m . p a n sz a iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 42 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 43travelogues accompanied our boat. our arrival was abrupt. the refreshing breeze was replaced by intense humidity. we quickly disembarked. as the boat pulled away, i realized how isolated we were. i felt a surge of excitement and heard the first of many mysterious howls, hoots, and screeches emanating from the jungle. after the initial shock of the heat wore off, the osa peninsula became a paradise. sirena station consisted of a kitchen, screened rooms with bunk beds, and a lab frequented by researchers. surrounded by forest, you can sit on the porch and watch the wildlife pass. howler monkeys (alouatta sp.) served as alarm clocks, hooting and screaming as if they were right in the room. if you enter as a quiet visitor, the diversity is amazing. once my eyes adjusted, i saw leaf-cutter ants (atta sp.) hauling leaves to their massive mounds. bulging strangler figs (ficus sp.) eventually smothering the trees on which they grow. one cool morning on the bank of the río claro, i was sitting on a tree trunk watching a tiger heron (tigrisoma mexicanum), when a sudden american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus) basking along rivers are a common sight in conservation-minded costa rica. c li n t b o a l hot vents in the forest provide ample evidence of central america’s volcanic origins. ja n el le m . p a n sz a costa rican wildlife, such as this lesser anteater (tamandua tetradactyla), has become quite accustomed to humans. g a d p er r y iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 43 commotion in the nearby brush turned out to be a kinkajou (potos flavus), rarely seen by day. once, we stumbled onto a pack of javelinas or collared peccaries (tayassu tajacu) sifting through a mud pile. most of the activity during the day is in the canopy, where keel-billed toucans (ramphastos sulfuratus) call and spider monkeys (ateles sp.) swing. at night, the rainforest truly comes to life. insects come out in full throttle, and the bats soon follow. the catch-22 of walking at night was the choice of stumbling blindly through blackness or sacrificing my flesh to the hordes of mosquitoes and other bloodthirsty insects attracted to my flashlight. the hollow clicks of red-eyed treefrogs (agalychnis callidryas) echo from above, and tiny fluorescent-yellow palm treefrogs (hyla ebraccata) chirp happily on waxy leaves. wading through a swampy pond, we found sleeping basilisks (basiliscus sp.), cat-eyed snakes (leptodeira septentrionalis), a caiman (caiman crocodilus), and a treeboa (corallus ruschenbergerii). when not in the forest, i ventured onto the beach. at low tide, perfect conch shells washed ashore and melted into the black sand. although i longed to cool off in the water, the prospect of encountering a bull shark (carcharhinus leucas) restrained me. scarlet macaws (ara macao) flew overhead, squawking and littering the ground beneath the high tree in which they perched with rotting fruit and molted feathers. american crocodiles (crocodilus acutus) floated where the river met the ocean. eventually, we had to leave. coming back was a shock. tropical forest was replaced by small town, then by big city. from walking, cold showers, and occasional power, we went back to cars, electricity, and hot water. clothing could once again be washed, and we had options for food. eventually, we got on a plane and came back to the dry, flat landscape that surrounds lubbock, texas. i don’t miss the mosquitoes, but i do miss costa rica. i’ll be back... 44 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 champlin black iguanas (ctenosaura similis), locally known as “garrobos,” are abundant and amazingly tolerant of close approaches by humans. c li n t b o a l seventeen of costa rica’s 135 species of snakes are venomous. this is a light-brown eyelash viper (bothriechis schlegelii), named for the scales that protrude over the eyes. g a d p er r y iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 44 iguana b&w text 18 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 full-spectrum lighting and heat in the sandy and john binns vivaria are controlled electronically and equipped with safeguard alarms. the system above simulates three periods of light: morning sunrise, day, and sunset (moonlight is optional). temperature is electronically controlled to maintain two periods of a diurnal cycle that correspond to day and night. a ventilation system continually refreshes air quality. should the system fail and go into thermal-overload, a sensor kills lighting and heating and activates a fan to ventilate the enclosure. any system failure activates an audible alarm, and sends a coded message to a beeper or telephone. brames iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 18 effective reptilian husbandry is important to hobbyists and zoos, where many species are raised in captivity as a component of conservation projects, but also because reptiles are used as laboratory models in bioscience research and even in farming ventures that raise them for pets, food, and raw materials. reptilian biology and physiology are very different than those of endothermic vertebrates (birds and mammals). preventive reptilian medicine means improving human-reptile relationships and supporting a well-regulated reptilian immune system. light is an important factor in this effort, and light means something different to reptiles than to us humans. to illuminate the effects of light on reptilian immunity, we must examine the reptilian immune system, the properties of light, and reptilian light perception. the reptilian immune system reptiles are positioned phylogenetically between higher and lower vertebrates and, in terms of evolutionary development, their immune systems are similarly intermediate. immunologists distinguish between nonspecific defense mechanisms, such as barriers (skin and gut mucosa), protective bacterial flora, and natural resistance, and the complex immune system (is), within which we distinguish between paraspecific (innate) and specific components. the cellular/molecular agents of the paraspecific is include macrophages, cytokines, and toll-like receptors (which facilitate the recognition of a wide range of microbial molecules), whereas the specific is utilizes lymphocytes, immunoglobulins, and immunoglobulin-superfamily-receptors. “immunity” is much more than just antibodies (= immunoglobulins). the modern specific is is functionally based on the ancient paraspecific is; life without the paraspecific is is impossible. the reptilian paraspecific is is very well-developed, whereas their specific is is handicapped by the lack of lymph nodes and germinal centers, and by having a reduced variety of immunoglobulins that, in turn, have some functional limitations. furthermore, constraints imposed by reptilian ectothermy places a heavy reliance on the paraspecific is alone. in conclusion, the reptilian is is heavily paraspecific. overall, the reptilian is acts to permanently monitor the body’s integrity. it communicates with and regulates other functions, such as metabolism and neural and endocrine activities, and is affected by them in turn. these systems together form the immuno-neuro-endocrine network. for example, immune-cell cytokines trigger the hypothalamus, which responds by releasing hormones that regulate the immune cells. this scenario provides some idea of how light may influence the reptilian is. light light on earth is a continuous spectrum of electromagnetic radiation from the sun that has been filtered through kilometers of atmosphere. conceptually, we divide the “light” portion of this spectrum (= the photo-environment) into bands of different wavelengths (measured in nanometers = nm) that range from infrared to ultraviolet, with the portion of the spectrum visible to humans limited to red, green, blue, and the wavelengths in between (i.e., we see only red, green, and blue, and all other colors are mixed in our brain depending on wavelength composition and intensity). this view is heavily anthropocentric and based solely on human photoreceptor design (eyes, retina) and human information processing (brain). the infrared wavelengths that are invisible to us are perceived as heat, and the equally invisible uv-a spectrum tans our skin, while uv-b helps synthesize vitamin d3 within our bodies. the portions of the spectrum visible to humans supply color and contrast for habitat orientation. the hue that humans perceive depends on a variety of environmental and biological factors modulate an effective reptilian immune system. barriers include structures like skin and gut mucosa that prevent entry and retention of invasive pathogens. in addition to barriers, natural resistance against specific pathogens (an alligator, for example, is resistant to tetanus toxins) and defensive surface flora comprise the three parts of the unspecific defense system. the body’s paraspecific (innate) and specific (acquired) immune systems enable it to attack various dangerous substances, infectious pathogens, toxins, and transformed cells of the organism itself. these components form what we call the complex immune system. innate, inherited paraspecific components include macrophages (a type of white blood cell that consumes foreign material and releases substances that stimulate other cells of the immune system), their toll-like receptors (proteins sensitive to exposure to molecular substances that are associated with some pathogens), and cytokines (small proteins released by cells that affect interactions between cells; cytokines include a variety of agents that, among other things, trigger inflammation and respond to infections). specific components are cloned or activated only after exposure to a foreign dangerous substance (an antigen); these include lymphocytes (small white blood cells that produce antibodies [= immunoglobulins] that recognize and attach to bacteria and toxins or body cells that have been taken over by viruses or have become cancerous). these customized receptors are part of the body’s immunoglobulin-superfamily-receptors and enable lymphocytes to attack dangerous materials. hormones are chemical messengers secreted into blood by endocrine organs and transported to specific target cells, the functions of which are regulated in various ways. hormonal (endocrine) activities and neural and immune functions correspond closely and interact within the immuno-neuro-endocrine network. ectothermy is the ability to regulate internal body temperature behaviorally by exploiting environmental sources of heat. iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 19light and reptilian immunity h u s b a n d r y aspects of light and reptilian immunity henry brames reptile clinic, munich, germany iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 19 20 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 brames the “color temperature” of light (usually expressed in degrees kelvin [° k]), and that, in turn, depends on which wavelengths are filtered out by the atmosphere. “warm” reddish hues dominate when blue is filtered (about 3000° k) and reds are emphasized, such as at sunrise and sunset, when the sun is low on the horizon and light must travel a greater distance through the atmosphere. “cool’ bluish hues prevail when the red spectrum is filtered (to ~10000° k) by, for instance, cloud cover, and the blue spectrum is favored. sunny daylight lies at ~6000° k. another aspect of light is the intensity received (illuminance). illuminance depends on latitude, season, time of day, and degree of cloud cover, and is measured in lux, calculated as “adjusted watts”/m2 = lumens/m2 (watts weighted at human spectral sensitivity). is this the same for reptiles? how do reptiles see the world? what do reptiles perceive of the electromagnetic spectrum, the photo-environment? reptiles see hues and lux that we hardly can imagine. let’s take a “reptocentric” look at the “visible” spectrum to clarify some anthropocentric misunderstandings. reptilian light perception microanatomical studies of lateral eyes show that most mammals are dichromats (have two different types of cones [= receptor cells that respond to different wavelengths of light]). humans and old world primates are trichromats (three cone types with peak sensitivities in red, green, and blue, covering 400–700 nm). reptiles are tetrachromats with a fourth cone type for uv-a below 400 nm. additionally, the peak sensitivities of the red, green, and blue cones are shifted slightly when compared to those of humans. reptiles see in the uv-a range and use spectra differently. behavioral studies show that uvspectra and reptile-correct color rendering of artificial light settings is not only necessary for conspecific, interspecific, and intersexual recognition, but that brightness and contrast also are critical for motion perception and foraging, and probably also for maintaining a sense of well-being (“happiness”) in reptiles. the problem of providing an optimal reptilian photo-habitat with artificial light (non-continuous spectrum or lacking uv-a) is that they are optimized for human sensitivities rather than for those of reptiles. to illustrate what insufficient light might be doing to reptiles, notice the difference in the quality of this image (even in grayscale) when one of the three primary colors (in this case, blue) is deleted from digitized photographic images. light visible by humans is but a very small region of the entire spectrum. note that humans see only three colors (red, green, blue) and all other visible colors are mixed in our brain depending on wavelength composition and intensity. however, reptiles apparently see four colors, the same three that we see plus at least some wavelengths of ultraviolet (uv) light, and pitvipers and at least some boas and pythons can see five, those seen by other reptiles plus infrared (ir) light. consequently, the reptilian perception of the visible world is quite different from our own, something that must be considered when designing lighting systems capable of sustaining healthy animals. m a r k d e si lv a the parietal eye is a photosensory organ connected to the pineal body, active in triggering hormone production (including reproductive hormones) and thermoregulatory behaviors. it is sensitive to changes in light and dark, but does not form images, having only a rudimentary retina and lens. it is visible as an opalescent gray spot on the top of some lizard’s heads; the parietal eye also is referred to as a “pineal eye” or “third eye.” although the parietal eye of this grenada bush anole (anolis aeneus) is quite prominent, those of many lizards are difficult to see. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 20 this illustrates the difficulty of providing an optimal reptilian photo-habitat with artificial light. light fixtures providing a non-continuous spectrum or one lacking uv-a do not bother humans, but may dramatically affect reptiles. artificial lighting has been optimized for human sensitivities rather than reptilian demands. another photoreceptor present in reptiles is the so-called “third” or pineal eye and the associated pineal gland. pineal cells show the highest sensitivity to wavelengths of 600–750 nm, and are an effective light dosimeter with resulting thermal, immune, and reproductive regulatory consequences. additionally, some reptiles can see precisely even at night by exploiting the infrared portion of the spectrum. pit vipers and boid and pythonid snakes use infrared sensors and sophisticated signal processing that operates like an image-improvement algorithm to precisely monitor their surroundings from emitted infrared in the dark. humans use rods (receptor cells that are very sensitive to low light intensities) rather than cones for black and white vision under dim conditions. surprisingly, geckos, most of which are nocturnal, lack rods, but have instead very sensitive cones for night color vision. we do not know precisely nor can we really appreciate how reptiles see their environments, but we definitely know that the reptilian immune system can “see” the world. where is the connection between light and the immune system? light and its immune effects whole-body-mediated light immune effects.—reptiles are solar powered. as ectotherms, reptiles maintain their optimal body temperatures behaviorally. they depend directly on the infrared portion of the light spectrum as a source of heat (via basking) and indirectly on convection (from warm substrates and warm or cool burrows). warming light is a pivotal factor in regulating reptile microclimates and microhabitats. this solar energy is a critical underpinning for well-functioning reptilian immune metabolism. the specific is is more susceptible to temperature changes than the paraspecific is, due to simple chemical and more complex biochemical reasons (the hypothalamo-pituitaryadrenal axis and the hormone corticosterone). during winter and in other unfavorable conditions, when specific antibodies are depleted, reptiles have to rely solely on the paraspecific is. light also serves to dry the skin, providing a less comfortable surface for the growth of bacterial pathogens while promoting the growth of defensive bacterial flora. finally, uv light itself has a direct disinfectant action. body movements and gut peristalsis to prevent bacterial overgrowth are dependant on appropriate body temperatures and, last but not least, in combination with vision, light allows foraging and digestion to take place in order to supply the reptilian immune system with nutrients. eye-brain–mediated light immune effects.—in addition to the nonspecific radiation support to the reptilian defense system, other more sophisticated light effects influence reptiles’ complex immune systems. the lateral eyes transduce light signals to the brain vision center and, via an alternate pathway, to the hypoiguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 21light and reptilian immunity pitvipers, such as this timber rattlesnake (crotalus horridus, top), and boas and pythons, such as this emerald treeboa (corallus caninus), have heat-sensitive pits that extend vision into the infrared spectrum. although usually associated with targeting homeothermic prey, they also may function in precise predator shape detection and evaluation of habitats suitable for ambushing prey or use as refugia. b a r n ey o ld fi el d , w w w .l iz a r d sa n d la n d sc a pe s. c o m jo se ph m . p o la n c o most geckos are nocturnal, but surprisingly lack rods (which are most active in mammalian night vision), instead having extremely sensitive cones that also allow color vision. the series of pinholes visible in the eye of a turnip-tailed gecko (thecadactylus rapicauda) from st. vincent come into play only when the vertically slit pupil constricts when exposed to bright light. slit pupils, found in many nocturnally active animals, allow a greater range of light entry than a round pupil, because they are able to expand greatly in dim light. slit pupils are particularly useful in combination with aspherical lenses, as they allow an image to be focused properly regardless of width. when light is bright, the pinholes block out more light than even a very slender simple pupil, while still allowing the eye to focus effectively. r o b er t po w el l iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 21 22 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 brames thalamo-pituitary axis. from there, modified hormone patterns are created. these have a dramatic influence on reptilian immune systems. the pineal eye regulates serotonin and melatonin synthesis in the pineal gland depending on the degree and rhythm (daily or seasonal) of light exposure. both neuro-hormones modulate the reptilian immune system. skin-mediated light immune effects.—immune cells under the skin react directly to the deep-penetrating (red) portion of the spectrum and modify immune function. further, uv-b regulates vitamin d3 endosynthesis in the skin (the primary source of d3 in many reptiles), which then is hydroxylated to bioactive calcitriol (1,25-hydroxy-cholecalciferol). cytokines, such as interferons, trigger immune cells to d3 hydroxylation and immune cell populations (macrophages) are upregulated via calcitriol receptors. calcitriol also attaches to immune cells to stimulate production of antibacterial agents. that might also explain the anticarcinogenic side effects of d3. whereas calcitriol’s regulating capacity on calcium metabolism is often mentioned, the direct d3 immune effects are overlooked. also noteworthy is the fact that calcium itself plays an important role in long-distance immune cell communication via nanotubules. conclusions and summary for decades, herpetoculturalists have discussed the need for proper heating and lighting. preventative reptilian medicine emphasizes the importance of a well-regulated immune system, and has found a strong link to proper lighting. improving reptilian photo-environments (a combination of lamps, position, reflectors, control, and maintenance) is still and will continue to be a critical factor in the creation of appropriate habitats for captive reptiles. proper lighting is a process not a bulb! veterinarians engaged in preventative reptilian medicine are aware and appreciate the technological advances in reptilian lighting. the movement has been from incandescent and halogen lamps to fluorescent full-spectrum tubes, compact lamps, metal halide lamps, self and external ballasted mercury vapor lamps, or combinations thereof. the latter are capable of providing reliable uv-b, uv-a, visible light intensities, and color temperatures. led-lamps may hold promise for the future. properly controlled lighting systems and maintenance are necessary for reptilian enrichment, which should be a major concern for responsible herpetoculturists. given that over 9,000 repfull-spectrum light, monitored by eyes (paired and parietal) and infrared sensors (pit organs and heat receptors on the surface and in the interior of the body), can dramatically affect the efficacy of reptilian immune systems. proper lighting is a process, not a bulb. establishing lighting systems necessary for maintaining optimally regulated reptilian immune systems (= healthy reptiles) is a complex network of several processes involving initial choices, extensive planning, effective implementation, and ongoing monitoring, maintenance, adjustments, and improvements. jo h n b in n s iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 22 tilian species occupy almost as many varied microhabitats, no single form of illumination will address all needs. an upcoming topic of concern is the misinterpretation of geographic climate data versus microhabitat demands and the ensuing chronic overradiation. reptiles perceive light differently than humans and other mammals. they are tetrachromats with additional perception in the uv-a range below 400 nm and their red, green, and blue cones have shifted peak sensitivities when compared to those of humans. due to ectothermy and a consequent heavy reliance on the paraspecific immune system, light not only modulates but also provides pivotal support for reptilian immuno-neuroendocrine networks. endosynthesis of vitamin d3 via uv-b is important for mineral metabolism and also for immune regulation. veterinarians, technicians, scientists, and hobbyists must be aware of the many different aspects of light-dependent reptilian physiology, and they and their reptiles will benefit tremendously from further investigations in this area. proper lighting is a process not a bulb. references besedovsky, h.o. and a. del rey. 1996. immune-neuro-endocrine interactions, facts and hypotheses. endocrine review 17:64–102. carillo-vico, a., j.m. guerrero, p.j. lardone, and r.j. reiter. 2005. a review of the multiple actions of melatonin on the immune system. endocrine 27:189–200 chen, t.c., g.c. schwartz, k.l. burnstein, b.l. lokeshwar, and m.f. holick. 2000. the in vitro evaluation of 25-hydroxyvitamin d-3 and 19-nor-1 alpha, 25-dihydroxyvitamin d-2 as therapeutic agents for prostate cancer. clinical cancer research 6:901–908 else, p.l. and a.j. hulbert. 1981. comparison of the “mammal machine” and the “reptile machine,” energy production. american journal of physiology 241:350–356. feske, s., h. okamura, p. hogan, and a. rao. 2003. calcium/calcineurin signalling in cells of the immune system. biochemical and biophysical research communications 311:1117–1132. fleishman, l.j., w.j. mcclintock, r.b. d’eath, d.h. brainard, and j.a. endler. 1998. colour perception and the use of video. playback experiments in animal behaviour. animal behaviour 56:1035–1040. fleishman, l.j. and m. persons. 2001. the influence of stimulus and background colour on signal visibility in the lizard anolis cristatellus. journal of experimental biology 204:1559–1575. gombart, a.f., h. chen, l. brandi, k. olgaard, n. borregaard, j.s. adams, and h.p. koeffler. 2005. vitamin d3-mediated regulation of the antimicrobial peptides camp and defb4 is evolutionarily important for innate immunity in humans and primates. american society of hematology annual meeting abstracts 106:3079. guillette, l.j., a. cree, and a.a. rooney. 1995. biology of stress: interactions with reproduction, immunology and intermediary metabolism. in: c. warwick, f.l. frye, and j.b. murphy (eds.), health and welfare of captive reptiles. chapman & hall, london. hamasaki, d.i. and e. dodt. 1969. light sensitivity of the lizard’s epiphysis cerebri. pflügers archives 313:19–29. honkavaara, j., m. koivula. e. korpimaki, h. siitari, and j viitala. 2002. ultraviolet vision and foraging in terrestrial vertebrates. oikos 98:505–511. hunt, d.m., s.e. wilkie, j.k. bowmaker, and s.poopalasundaram. 2001.vision in the ultraviolet. cellular and molecular life sciences 58:583–598. loew, e.r., l.j. fleischman, r.g. foster, and i. provencio. 2002. visual pigments and oil droplets in diurnal lizards, a comparative study of caribbean anoles. journal of experimental biology 205:927–938. mayr, a. and b. mayr. 1999. a new concept in prophylaxis and therapy: paramunization by poxvirus inducers. pesquisa veterinária brasileira 19:91–98 (http://snipurl.com/xrbq). meissl, h. and m. ueck. 1980. extraocular photoreception of the pineal gland of the aquatic turtle pseudemys scripta elegans. journal of comparative physiology a, neuroethology, sensory, neural, and behavioral physiology 140:173–179. pichaud, f., a. briscoe, and c. desplan. 1999.evolution of color vision. current opinion in neurobiology 9:622–627. pough, f.h., r.m. andrews, j.e. cadle, m.l. crump, a.h. savitzky, and k.d. wells. 2003. herpetology. prentice-hall, upper saddle river, new jersey. ralph, c.l., b.t. firth, and j.s. turner. 1979. the role of the pineal body in ectotherm thermoregulation. american zoologist 19:273–293. roberts, j.e. 2000. light and immunomodulation. annals of the new york academy of sciences 917:435–445. roth, l.s.v. and a. kelber. 2004. nocturnal colour vision in geckos. proceedings of the royal society of london b 6:485–487. sillman, a.j., j.k. carver, and e.r. loew. 1999. the photoreceptors and visual pigments in the retina of a boid snake, the ball python (python regius). journal of experimental biology 202:1931–1938. sillman, a.j., v.i. govardovskii, p. rohlich, j.a. southard, and e.r. loew. 1997. the photoreceptors and visual pigments of the garter snake (thamnophis sirtalis), a microspectrophotometric, scanning electron microscopic and immunocytochemical study. journal of comparative physiology a 181:89–101. van hemmen, j.l. 2006. indeterminacy and image improvement in snake infrared “vision.” american physical society 2006 march meeting, baltimore, maryland. warr, g.w., k.e. magor, and d.a. higgins. 1995. igy: clues to the origins of modern antibodies. immunology today 16:392–398. watkins, s.c. and r.d. salter. 2005. functional connectivity between immune cells mediated by tunneling nanotubules. immunity 23:309–318. zapata, a.g. and c.t. amemiya. 2000. phylogeny of lower vertebrates and their immunological structures, pp. 67–110. in: l. du pasquier (ed.), origin and evolution of the vertebrate immune system. springer-verlag, heidelberg. iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 23light and reptilian immunity lighting necessary for the maintenance of healthy reptiles involves a sequence of processes that only begins with the choice of lights. not only must lighting provide the proper spectral range for vision, but intensities and photoperiods play important roles in regulating reptilian immune and endocrine systems. well-designed lighting systems, such as these in the sandy and john binns vivarium, require research, experimentation, and constant monitoring. proper lighting is a process, not a bulb! jo h n b in n s iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:45 pm page 23 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 117historical perspectives to which they belong. it is natural enough that a part of the body situated at one of the regions of manifold relations as the tail is, and unappropriated to any special function, should be put to use in various ways, as a prehensile instrument by some monkeys and other animals, or a building tool by the beavers, as a fly-brush by many others, etc. mr. herbert spencer has already suggested that the wagging of the dog’s tail and similar movements of that appendage is in fact an escape of nervous force restrained from other modes of expression at the moment. looking at the matter from this point of view, which is doubtless quite satisfactory, we may reconcile it perfectly with the views which have just been presented by supposing that the ancient and no longer functional channel of escape for nervous force, the tail, has remained the way of outlet for the suppressed energy of the animal. the older the channel the less easy it is to close it either by volition or by natural selection. be the cause of the persistence of the tail and its movement what it may, we are still justified in assuming as the starting point, that the progenitor of the rattlesnake had the alternating motion of the tail common among snakes. it is the opinion of some herpetologists that the rattles are the remains of the skins successively shed by the animal. the rate of development of the rattles, together with the fact that the skins of some serpents are more imperfectly detached from the region about the tail than at other parts of the body, makes this view very probable. let us suppose that we had a group of poison-fanged serpents, accidentally tending to keep the tail skin in the peculiar fashion of rattlesnakes and that in some of these it was persistent enough to make the whirring sound of the cicada when the tail was rapidly moved under excitement. these would survive and breed the most surely and so that feature would become hereditary. the great variability in the number of rattles in the different forms of rattlesnakes and the late time of their development, even among those which differ in no other regard, would seem to indicate that this structure has not yet been firmly fixed by long inheritance. the reader will please not suppose that because i have boldly followed the lead of the most advanced of the champions of natural selection that i am convinced of its sufficiency as an explanation of the great diversities which exist among animals or of its being sufficient basis for an explanation of the snake’s rattle. but having been driven step by step from a decided opposition of the whole theory and compelled to accept it as a vera causa, though i think one much more limited in its action among animals than mr. darwin believes, i feel it to be my duty to examine every one of those points upon which i have relied for evidence against it. it must be confessed that the case of the rattlesnake seems to me no longer the bar to the acceptance of the theory it once did. it seems that the singular structure from which the subject of these notes derives its name, was intended as a special stumbling block in the path of antidarwinists, or to intensify the “struggle for existence” which the darwinian theory, like all other theories must undergo. in most notices i have seen of the rattles of the rattlesnake, they have been mentioned as though they were of no advantage to the possessor, and that natural selection would never produce them but on the contrary would weed them out, if that theory were correct. it seems to me that the whole trouble in the matter arises from the assumption that the sound of the rattles, as a warcry, is a disadvantage to the reptile, by calling the attention of its enemies to it and thus inviting its own destruction, and that consequently the only way to reconcile the existence of the rattles with the theory of darwin, is to show that there is some other use made of them and that in striking the balance between the profit and loss sides of the ledger, the line falls on the side of the former and for that reason natural selection produced and retains the rattles. if i understand him rightly, this is the view of the matter taken by prof. n. s. shaler in his paper in the january naturalist. he says that for some years he has “been teaching that the tail appendage of the rattlesnake was not to be explained upon the theory of natural selection, inasmuch as it could contribute in no way to the advantage of the animal; that is seemed to him quite clear that it was rather calculated to hinder than to help the creature in the race of life by warning its prey of its presence.” but he intimates that he is now ready to say, that this appendage can be explained upon use of the rattles of the rattlesnake5 j. g. henderson 5 reprinted from the american naturalist 6:260–263 (may 1872). j. g. henderson, also in 1872, disputed shaler’s assumption that rattles were used to attract prey and proposed instead that they serve as a warning directed at potential predators. many of his observations were of western massasaugas (sisturus catenatus tergeminus), at that time placed in the genus crotalophorus. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h the theory of natural selection. he considers the idea that it might be used as a sexual call as untenable, but that the whirring sound of the rattles closely imitates the sound made by the cicada and for this reason is used as a call-note, as a hunter uses his boneturkey-caller, to induce the bird to come within the range of his weapon. now the first question which naturally arises is this: does the snake sound its rattles when seeking to capture its prey? i have always understood that it is only when it throws itself upon the defensive and prepares for battle that the rattles are sounded; that it is an alarm note, a war-cry, and not a gentle, deceptive invitation to the victim. i have never seen a rattlesnake, and know of course nothing personally of its habits. but if this use is not made of the rattles as suggested by prof. shaler, and the sound only serves to call the attention of its enemies and thus invite destruction, then indeed is the theory of natural selection nonplussed. but as i view the matter, instead of inviting his destruction by sounding the rattles, it is one of the most effective means of self protection and is as useful to it in the race for life as is the growl of the tiger when threatened with danger. the snake does not sound its rattles until it considers itself discovered, and not then unless it apprehends danger. it throws itself in position to strike and says in unmistakable language, “look out, i am ready for you!” if pushed upon, it makes its leap at its antagonist, and again throws itself in position to renew the conflict, and again sounds the note of defiance; a note calculated to alarm and, like the warwhoop of the indian, strike terror to the heart of the assailant; but it may be said that the indian only utters his yells when rushing on his enemy, or when actually engaged in the conflict, and the sounding of the rattles upon the first approach of danger is a disadvantage. now it seems to me, if this were true and if it be a piece of rashness upon the part of the snake thus early to exhibit his combatativeness, that natural selection would cure the matter by selecting and preserving the more timid, and that, eventually, rattlesnakes would only sound their tail-bells when it would best promote their interests. we are not to judge of the advantage or disadvantage of the rattles by their effect upon the nerves of man alone, though no doubt many a man has turned his back and been deterred from making an attack by the sound of these rattles and the defiant attitude of their possessor. the ability of the snake to defend itself does not consist in its strength or size, or in its power of overcoming its adversary by a prolonged conflict, for most of its enemies are its superior in size and strength. nor does its deadly poison act quickly enough to secure its own safety when it is attacked, but, in most cases, the victim, after the deadly stroke is given may still revenge 118 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 henderson this western massasauga (sisturus catenatus tergeminus) is initiating a strike from a coiled “ambush” position. rattlesnakes use a sit-and-wait foraging strategy, contradicting the contention that the rattles were disoperative because the sound would “warn” potential prey as the snake approached. instead, the distinctive “buzz” appears to serve as a warning directed not only at potential predators, but at large grazing mammals that might inadvertently step on an undetected snake. ja c k g o ld fa r b , w w w .j a c k g o ld fa r b .c o m iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 119historical perspectives itself by the destruction of the snake. but the certainty of the effect of the poison serves as a warning and is advantageous, not in defense after the attack is made, but in preventing an attack from being made. if, then, the color of the rattlesnake were different from all harmless snakes, so much so as to render it conspicuous, this would be beneficial to it, by the readiness with which all animals would recognize it, and thus protect the snake by this notice of the deadly character of its weapons. if then a conspicuous color would be of advantage, it seems to me that any other means which it may be able to use in making known its character to any animal that may come near it, would be advantageous, and would be increased and preserved by natural selection, and that the whirring noise which it produces, in this view of the matter, admirably serves its purpose. in effect it amounts to this, and by experience its enemies learn to understand its language, “i am a rattlesnake, armed with what will be death to you if you come too near; give me a wide berth!” prof. shaler remarks that it is a fact well known doubtless to those who have observed serpents, that many when in a state of excitement vibrate the end of their tail just as the rattlesnake does. this statement reminded me of a south american species described by darwin in his “voyage of a naturalist” (vol. i, p. 123, harper’s ed.), where he says:— “of reptiles there are many kinds: one snake (a trigonocephalus, or cophias), from the size of the poison channel in its fangs, must be very deadly. cuvier, in opposition to some other naturalists, makes this a sub-genus of the rattlesnake, and intermediate between it and the viper. in conformation of this opinion i observed a fact, which appears to me very curious and instructive, as showing how every character, even though it may be in some degree independent of structure, has a tendency to vary by slow degrees. the extremity of the tail of this snake is terminated by a point, which is very slightly enlarged; and as the animal glides along, it constantly vibrates the last inch; and this part striking against the dry grass and brushwood, produces a rattling noise, which can be distinctly heard at the distance of six feet. as often as the animal was irritated or surprised, its tail was shaken; and the vibrations were extremely rapid. even as long as the body retained its irritability, a tendency to this habitual movement was evident. the trigonocephalus has, therefore, in some respects, the structure of a viper, with the habits of a rattlesnake; the noise, however, being produced by a simpler device.” it was these remarks of darwin that first suggested the problem of the rattlesnake’s tail to my mind, and, as i had thought considerably about the matter, of course i was deeply interested in the paper by prof. shaler; but i must acknowledge that, while many of his suggestions are correct and highly valuable, i was disappointed to find that the only advantageous use, in his estimation, of this tail appendage of the rattlesnake, is an imitative call-note to allure birds within its reach, and that, otherwise, it is rather a disadvantage than an advantage to be preserved and perfected by natural selection. if it is useful for both purposes, then there is a double reason for the action of natural selection. if it is not used as an imitative call-note, but is useful in the manner i have pointed out, then i have shown that it is explained by natural selection. iwish to contribute my observations on the rattlesnake, having been specially favored in opportunities for the study of this reptile. of all the articles that have appeared on the subject in the naturalist that by mr. putnam appears to me to present the most satisfactory theory concerning the use of the rattles. i am satisfied that one of their uses is to bring the sexes together. in july, 1869, i was engaged in surveying along the logan river in wayne county, nebraska. after completing my contract i devoted a day to investigating the natural history of the neighborhood. while washing a collection of unios at the water’s edge, i heard the familiar rattle of the massasauga (crotalophorus the rattle of the rattlesnake6 professor samuel aughey 6 reprinted from the american naturalist 7:85–86 (february 1873). prairie rattlesnakes (crotalus viridis) were locally abundant across the great plains at the time these articles were written. many of the rattlesnake encounters reported by pioneers traversing the oregon and mormon trails were with this species. this snake is in a classic “defensive” position. ja c k g o ld fa r b , w w w .j a c k g o ld fa r b .c o m iguana b&w text the guatemalan black iguana (ctenosaura palearis), with a distribution limited to the motagua valley of guatemala, is categorized as “critically endangered” on the iucn red list. the actual number remaining in the wild is unknown. the ircf, in partnership with zootropic and zoo atlanta, has established “project palearis” in order to develop and implement a recovery action plan for this species. given that its distribution coincides with that of the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti), many of the concerns about ctenosaura palearis can be addressed in the recovery plan for “project heloderma.” specifically, c. palearis can be included in current environmental education programs for local communities, where citizens have hunted this reptile for food. the proposed captive-breeding facility for the beaded lizard also can be used to breed c. palearis for return to the wild. funding is urgently needed to provide equipment for investigations of distribution, behavior, general ecology, and reproductive biology of the species, as well as for educational programs, construction of the breeding facility, and for the purchase of land intended for the establishment of a conservation reserve for both species. for more information on the guatemalan black iguana and to make donations, please see www.ircf.org/palearis. f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n the guatemalan black iguana: critically endangered d a n ie l a r ia n o iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 64 iguana b&w text editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. or canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 international membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $50.00 u.s. institutional subscription, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international institutional subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. www.ircf.org join online at: www.ircf.org membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. iguana copyright ©2006 by the international reptile conservation foundation, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 usa. issn # 1098-6324. the contents of iguana, excluding research articles, research updates, and reprinted articles, may be reproduced for inclusion in the newsletters of other herpetological societies, provided the material is reproduced without change and with appropriate credits, and a copy of the publication is sent to the international reptile conservation foundation. occasional exceptions may be made to this policy. editor’s remarks our efforts to expand and diversify the content of iguana create an ever-increasing demand to obtain new and often rare photographs to enhance content and adorn covers. locating sources for this material is a daunting task that often takes months of searching just to obtain a single photograph. several generous photographers have consistently donated photographs in support of our efforts. their contributions have played a major part in shaping the new look of iguana. the ircf gratefully thanks: suzanne l. collins, cnah (www.cnah.org), a major contributor of many photographs over the past few years; thomas wiewandt, wild horizons (www.wildhorizons.com), for spectacular photographs that include this issue’s cover; l. lee grismer, la sierra university, for breathtaking photographs; joseph burgess, for photographs and other countless contributions; joseph wasilewski, natural selections (www.natselections.com), for crocodilian and iguana photographs; and glenn p. gerber, cres (http://cres.sandiegozoo.org) for photographs of west indian rock iguanas. john binns, ceo ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 239 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 177conservation research reports non-native fishes threatening hellbenders in missouri the introduction of non-native fishes often results in the local extinction of native amphibians due to a lack of evolutionary history and resultant minimallyadapted antipredator behaviors toward the introduced fishes. populations of hellbenders (cryptobranchus alleganiensis) in missouri have declined considerably since the 1980s, coinciding with a rapid increase in non-native trout introductions for recreational angling. gall (2008. unpubl. m.s. thesis, missouri state university, springfield) examined hellbender and fish predator-prey interactions by: (1) examining the foraging behavior of predatory fishes in response to a hellbender secretion; (2) comparing the number of secretion and controlsoaked food pellets consumed by trout; and (3) comparing the response of larval hellbenders to chemical stimuli from introduced (trout) and native fish predators. brown trout, walleye, and large banded sculpins responded to hellbender secretions with increased activity, whereas small banded sculpins responded by decreasing activity. in addition, brown trout ingested more hellbender secretion-soaked food pellets than control pellets, whereas rainbow trout expelled secretion-soaked food pellets. finally, larval hellbenders exhibited weak fright behavior in response to chemical stimuli from nonnative trout relative to their responses to native predatory fish stimuli. these combinations of responses indicate that predation by nonnative fishes may be a plausible hypothesis for the decline of hellbender populations in missouri. effects of converting dry tropical forest to agricultural mosaics suazo-ortuño et al. (2008. conservation biology 22: 362–374) explored the impact of forest conversion to agricultural mosaic on anuran, lizard, snake, and turtle assemblages in neotropical dry forests. over two years, the authors sampled six small watersheds on the western coast of mexico, three conserved and three disturbed. the disturbed watersheds were characterized by a mosaic of pastures and cultivated fields (corn, beans, squash) intermingled with patches of different successional stages of dry forest. in each watershed, they conducted 11 diurnal and nocturnal time-constrained searches in ten randomly established plots. we considered vulnerability traits of species in relation to habitat modification. eighteen anuran, 18 lizard, 23 snake, and three turtle species were recorded. thirty-six species (58%) occurred in both forest conditions, and 14 (22%) and 12 species (19%) occurred only in the conserved and disturbed sites, respectively. assemblages responded differently to disturbance. species richness, diversity, and abundance of lizards were higher in disturbed forests. anuran diversity and species richness were lower in disturbed forest, but abundance was similar in both forest conditions. diversity, richness, and abundance of turtles were lower in disturbed forest. the structure and composition of snake assemblages did not differ between forest conditions. species were considered disturbance-sensitive if their abundance was significantly less in disturbed areas. four anuran (22%), two lizard (11%), and three turtle (100%) species were sensitive to disturbance. no snake species was sensitive. the decline in abundance of disturbance-sensitive species was associated with the reduction of forest canopy cover, woody stem cover, roots, and litter-layer ground cover. anuran species with small body size and direct embryonic development were especially sensitive to forest disturbance. an important goal for the conservation of herpetofauna should be the determination of species traits associated with extinction or persistence in agricultural mosaics. reptilian road mortality in illinois roads have numerous negative ecological effects on terrestrial fauna, and vehicular mortality can have significant demographic consequences for some species. shepard et al. (2008. copeia 2008: 350–359) studied road mortality of reptiles around carlyle lake, clinton county, illinois, usa, from april 2000 through november 2002, to assess the impact of vehicular traffic and identify c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s populations of hellbenders (cryptobranchus alleganiensis) in missouri have declined considerably since the 1980s, coinciding with a rapid increase in non-native trout introductions for recreational angling. th er es a c r o w , m is so u r i s ta te u n iv er si ty ameiva undulata (illustrated) and sceloporus utiformis were the only two sampled species of lizards that were disturbance-sensitive. both are terrestrial and forage in the leaf litter. reduction of the litter may be responsible for the decline of these species in disturbed forests. r o b er t po w el l iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 177 178 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 conservation research reports influential factors. carlyle lake, a popular tourism/recreation area, is situated in a larger agricultural landscape and is home to the largest illinois population of the endangered eastern massasauga (sistrurus catenatus). the authors documented 321 cases of reptilian road mortality (84 individuals of six turtle species and 237 individuals of nine snake species) while driving the approx. 46-km study route roundtrip daily. turtle road mortality was highest in may and june, and positively associated with precipitation and minimum daily temperature. colubrid snake road mortality was highest in april and october, and positively associated with minimum daily temperature. we recorded 42 cases of road mortality of s. catenatus, with the highest number occurring from mid-august to mid-september. road mortality in s. catenatus was biased toward adult males, which show an increase in movement in august, coinciding with the peak of the mating season and a period of high tourist visitation. the traffic intensity on a road segment did not significantly affect the level of road mortality, but segments through high-quality habitats had higher levels of mortality than segments through lower quality habitats. refutation of traditional chinese medicine claims about turtles the chinese turtle trade is the primary threat to endangered turtle populations throughout asia, primarily because of the long tradition of consuming turtles in china. practitioners of traditional chinese medicine (tcm) promote nutritional and medicinal benefits from eating turtles, especially hardshell species. meiling et al. (2008. applied herpetology 5: 173–187) tested these claims by determining the nutritional value of turtle products (meat, fat and shell) in five species of geoemydid turtle, cuora trifasciata, c. mouhotii, mauremys mutica, m. sinensis, and geoemyda spengleri. the authors analyzed nutritional variables such as the composition of amino acids, fatty acids, and mineral elements to determine the relative nutritional quality of turtle products. their study refutes tcm claims about products made from hardshell turtles. alternative animal products should be substituted to obtain similar minerals, amino acids and fatty acids. balancing the cultural use of turtles with their conservation status remains a major challenge. a sixth mass extinction? many scientists argue that we are either entering or in the midst of the sixth great mass extinction. intense human pressure, both direct and indirect, is having profound effects on natural environments. the amphibians — frogs, salamanders, and caecilians — may be the only major group currently at risk globally. a detailed worldwide assessment and subsequent updates show that onethird or more of the 6,300 species are threatened with extinction. this trend is likely to accelerate because most amphibians occur in the tropics and have small geographic ranges that make them susceptible to extinction. the increasing pressure from habitat destruction and climate change is likely to have major impacts on narrowly adapted and distributed species. wake and vredenburg (2008. proceedings of the national academy of sciences 105: 11466–11473) showed that salamanders on tropical mountains are particularly at risk. a new and significant threat to amphibians is a virulent, emerging infectious disease, chytridiomycosis, which appears to be globally distributed, and its effects may be exacerbated by global warming. this disease, which is caused by a fungal pathogen and implicated in serious declines and extinctions of >200 species of amphibians, poses the greatest threat to biodiversity of any known disease. the authors’ data for frogs in the sierra nevada of california show that the fungus is having a devastating impact on native species, already weakened by the effects of pollution and introduced predators. a general message from amphibians is that we may have little time to stave off a potential mass extinction. road mortality of the endangered eastern massasauga (sistrurus catenatus) was biased toward adult males, which show an increase in movement in august, coinciding with the peak of the mating season and a period of high tourist visitation. m ic h a el r ed m er d o n s h ep a r d analysis of turtle meat from five species of chinese turtles, including cuora trifasciata, refuted claims about the nutritional value of eating hardshell turtles. to r st en b la n c k _w ik i.t if amphibian population declines, extirpations, and extinctions may be the first sign of an impending mass extinction. the status of the critically endangered mountain yellowlegged frog (rana muscosa) may be a harbinger of other declines in the united states. je ff l em m iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 178 iguana b&w text 86 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 flagle and stoops villagers at the high-elevation sites where boelen’s pythons (morelia boeleni) are found still use traditional methods to hunt. soaring mountains expand from the far east of papua new guinea (png) to west papua indonesia (irian jaya). this tropical island remains one of only a handful of the world’s preserved environments and undisturbed regions. here, nestled deep in the mountains of papua indonesia, hidden by the slowmoving mist of the clouds, dwells a creature discovered only fifty years ago and still living unchanged and unmolested by the outside world. the habitat of boelen’s python (morelia boeleni) is virtually unknown. access to the area is difficult and extremely dangerous due to the inhospitable topography, and locals are averse to guiding outsiders into remote areas. local inhabitants report tales of cannibalism, and, in the past ten years, several newspaper accounts seem to provide evidence that such practices still occur. so, traveling to the highlands of papua indonesia to search for morelia boeleni is not an adventure one chooses lightly, serpent in the clouds: research and conservation efforts for the boelen’s python (morelia boeleni) ari r. flagle and erik stoops center for reptile and amphibian research phoenix, arizona photographs by al baldogo and ari r. flagle. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 87boelen’s python � due to the rugged topography, the highlands of west papua indonesia (irian jaya) are among the most remote and unexplored regions in the world. jo h n b in n s but after eight years of hands-on experience with this species, i (ari) was determined to take the risk. in 1997, we developed the center for reptile and amphibian research (cfrar), which specializes in caring for a diverse selection of exotic and difficult-to-maintain species. captivated as we were by the beauty and mystery of morelia boeleni, it was at the top of our list. we began working with this snake during the winter of 1998. in 2004, we wrote the first comprehensive book (black python) dealing with the husbandry of the species. during the winter of 2006, eric proposed an idea for a television series called “reptile chronicles,” which would incorporate an animated reptilian host. as the subject for the first segment, we selected the boelen’s python and shortly thereafter left for the uncharted mountains of papua indonesia. from ari’s travel journal: there are many names for m. boeleni throughout indonesia; wallow, hitam wallow, or boelen. in java, the indigenous people call them “sanca bulan.” june 2: feels like i have been here for months. seven planes and three days traveling. armed soldiers all over. my bags were emptied of medication, food, tools, batteries, and other small items that momentarily appealed to the baggage handlers. the effort required to simply make the trip is strenuous work for both the body and the mind. i finally understand why most people do not come here: it is just too difficult. the journey by truck is indescribable and i find myself mesmerized by the culture and the physical environment. never having been in this part of the world, i am experiencing a sense of overwhelming sadness for the people. the economy is such that they have to work for little or nothing in order to survive. we really take for granted what we have. i am feeling morose; i look into the distance and see the mountains above and the clouds rolling over the jagged faces of a virtually untouched environment that is calling to me. no matter how tired i am. i cannot stop. this is why i am here. june 3: the squatters (toilets) have buckets of dirty water and ladles. you flush by pouring a ladleful of water into the hole. it’s taking me a little bit to get used to, but at least it’s a toilet. the sewer system is essentially a continuous ditch, five feet deep, that parallels the walking paths. it is filled with all the refuse and fecal matter in the village. it was shocking to witness a local man miss the path and swerve his bicycle into the squalid ditch. my instinct was to jump in after him, but my guide grabbed my arm and wouldn’t allow it. 88 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 flagle and stoops the unique natural habitat of morelia boeleni creates several obstacles when attempting to duplicate the environment in captivity. ari was quite a celebrity. villagers hunted, slaughtered, and pit-roasted a wild pig in his honor. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 89boelen’s python june 4: we arrived in irian or, as it is now called, west papua, indonesia. as soon as we landed, our little plane was swarmed by locals: people wanting handouts, selling trinkets, and trying to help us carry our bags for money. i let a man carry my gear and he asked me,“nama saya?” this means, “is your name mickey mouse?” i laughed and told him my name was donald duck and that i was grateful for his help. many people trying to be western-like — kind of sad. the culture is so rich — why change it? after an uncomfortable night’s sleep, we were met by the truck that would transport us to the mountains. june 5: the mountains are amazing! we arrived at our base village. the villagers hunted, slaughtered, and pit-roasted a wild pig in our honor. i don’t eat pork but felt compelled to show my appreciation for their hospitality. then we geared up and set off into the mountains — bad idea! this hike was like nothing i have ever done in my life. we climbed a 70% grade of slippery rock and vegetation. the path used by the indigenous people is very narrow. then, to top it off, i added 40–50 lb. with my backpack. i stepped off the path and my foot fell through the ferns. almost lost that one! as i anticipated, the temperature range is from 90 °f in the lowland areas to 75–85 °f in the high country. breathing is difficult due to the thin air. there is also some talk about another tribe that continues to practice cannibalism. june 6: after the rigorous climb, we arrived at the next village in late afternoon. set up my tent at the edge of the village, then passed out. i awoke shivering from the unexpected cold. came out of my tent, looked up, and was in awe. the mountains were dense with vegetation and thick clouds were slowly moving over them. it was truly breathtaking. we took temperature readings. they read 44 °f. june 7–8: scouting the mountains is extraordinarily exhausting. there is not much visible reptilian life. i found a huge spider web that spanned at least 12 x 12 ft., fishing-line thick. june 9: one of the villagers handed us a bag. “wallow, wallow,” he said. i looked in and sure enough... it was not just the snake, it was the man and the expression on all our faces. i felt an overwhelming shared connection with these people, their culture, their mountains, their wildlife, and fauna. my research and work at the center had not prepared me for this experience. yet, theoretically, the writings of worrell and brongersma provided me with a solid reference in schematics for identification of the boelen’s. this snake (male) was first observed in dimija on 25 december 1952 by a man named dr. k.w.j. boelen. on march 1955, the second and third animals (females) were collected in okito by r. den haan. the fourth animal was collected by r. den haan a substanial distance away at wissel lakes. the last animal observed and collected was by a man named dr. c.j. royer on 19 february 1963 west of lake paniai. prior to this discovery, l.d. brongersma (1953) described a new species of serpentes, boidae (pythons were at that time considered to be in the same family as boids). a portion of the description reads, “rostral as wide as high, visible from above, with a deep groove on each lat-villagers were proud of their prowess with traditional weapons. the mountains were dense with vegetation. 90 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 flagle and stoops eral side. internasals 1.2 times as long as wide. anterior prefrontal only very slightly longer than broad (length 12.2 mm, width 12.0 mm), 1.3 times as long as the internasals... a head uniformly black above. rostral black with the outer borders of the labials yellow. the yellow stripes do not reach past the under shield of the eye or nostril. the body is adorned with jet black and yellow stripes covering the lateral side and dorsum of the snake.” information from this original description confirmed that it was indeed the same species of snake, but classified by a different name. a specimen reported to have been collected from the lae territory of new guinea was described by eric worrell in 1958. the animal, named laisis toronga was by description a specimen of liasis boeleni (the species since has been reassigned to the genus morelia). it was collected from within a chain of mountains in the center of new guinea. both individuals described the same scalation and coloration. l.d. brongersma noted “possible differences in color of the chin and throat of the animals collected. this might be related to the sex of the animals captured, males possessing more black marking under the dorsum of the chin and females showing more yellow. they have been noted in the wild to reach lengths of 14 feet and the girth of a grown man’s leg.” in the early 1980s, when these pythons first appeared in the united states, they originated from eastern indonesia (png) and differed in length and girth from animals imported more recently. stripes were white, and the animals were heavier and more muscular. today’s captive-hatched and farm-bred animals in indonesia are primarily adorned with yellow bands. they are slim and fast. the areas where the nest sites are located were extremely dangerous and difficult to reach. the exterior nest areas were covered with shed and scat. steep slippery rocks and immense amounts of vegetation were everywhere. all climbers had to step carefully on a narrow path or risk falling 100 feet or more through underlying ferns. in order to survive, an animal must be able to navigate the deep, narrow rock crevices to reach shelin his original description of the species in 1953, l.d. brongersma noted “possible differences in color of the chin and throat of the animals collected. this might be related to the sex of the animals captured, males possessing more black marking under the dorsum of the chin and females showing more yellow. they have been noted in the wild to reach lengths of 14 feet and the girth of a grown man’s leg.” brongersma noted a “head uniformly black above. rostral black with the outer borders of the labials yellow. the yellow stripes do not reach past the under shield of the eye or nostril. the body is adorned with jet black and yellow stripes covering the lateral side and dorsum of the snake.” boelen’s pythons live at high elevations in the remote mountains of west papua indonesia (irian jaya). although lowland temperatures are around 90 °f, high country temperatures are 10–15 °f lower by day and drop into the 40s at night. breathing is difficult due to the thin air. locals mention another tribe that continues to practice cannibalism. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 91boelen’s python ter. in a captive setting, we know that these snakes are highly agitated even after acclimation to new environments. we have noticed that they are uncomfortable with large amounts of space, but are equally anxious with too little room. after experimenting, we found that an enclosure 6 x 3 x 3 ft. was most acceptable. in captivity, snakes appear to prefer isolation except during the breeding season from august to december. the area inhabited by boelen’s pythons is high in elevation; the clouds roll in during early morning and dissipate in late afternoon. in our center, we create conditions in which we incorporate low light with relatively high uv output. in the mountain areas, basking sessions occur throughout the day when the cloud cover breaks, allowing rocks to absorb heat. we maintain basking lights for up to two hours at 90 °f, at which time the automatic system shuts off, enabling the enclosures to cool slightly (80–85 °f). we repeat the cycle at midday. shortly after the last basking session, a simulated mist provides a light rainfall that generates the humidity calculated to reach between 40–60%. care must be taken when utilizing misting units to avoid excessive moisture. the enclosure must include at least one dry area. considerable speculation has surrounded the issue of what these snakes feed on in the wild; presumably their diet consists of small birds, bats, and small mammals. while inland, we did not see any ground-dwelling birds; however, our presence might have been enough to scare them away. we did notice an abundance of burrows. most of these burrows appeared to belong to bandicoots, small rabbit-like marsupials. in captivity, boelen’s pythons are fed primarily rodents. small, thawed chicks may induce stubborn snakes to feed. several individuals active in the reptile trade in indonesia regularly produce boelen’s pythons. why do the captive snakes in indonesia reproduce, but snakes imported from the same country do not? one important consideration has to do with natural factors that we can not replicate. among theses are elevation, climate, ultraviolet lighting, temperature, humidity,clouds roll over the jagged faces of a virtually untouched environment. the areas where snakes occur are extremely dangerous and difficult to reach. steep slippery rocks and immense amounts of vegetation were everywhere. we climbed a 70% grade of slippery rock and vegetation. moisture, soil, vegetation, and other wildlife. the uniquely remote habitat of m. boeleni creates several obstacles when attempting to duplicate the natural environment. research with captive-hatched offspring is necessary, because these animals are more likely to adapt to an artificial environment. breeding this snake is not difficult, but the process of actually producing eggs in captivity is quite challenging. to our knowledge, only two successful captive breeding records are known — and these were never recreated. animals that are imported into the country are usually dehydrated, infested with worms, and have suffered considerable stress from capture and transport. most animals perish within several months, and those that survive have a relatively short life in captivity. when two sexually mature animals (typically 2–3 years of age for females and less for males) copulate, they subsequently display all of the distinctive signs of becoming gravid. females will generally increase 92 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 flagle and stoops burrows were abundant and most appeared to belong to bandicoots, small rabbit-like marsupials. in captivity, boelen’s pythons are fed primarily rodents. their natural prey is unknown. to date, captive breeding of boelen’s pythons outside their native range has failed for reasons yet unknown, although captive-hatched or captivebred animals from indonesia regularly enter the wild animal trade. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 93boelen’s python the period of basking and gradually refuse to feed. females also gain in size and girth and display classic pre-lay shedding behavior. unfortunately, in captivity, after shedding takes place, the animals fail to deposit any eggs. why these animals fail to reproduce in a captive setting is unknown. of several hypotheses we have considered, one suggests that the compatibility of the pair is dependent on location. in the wild, biological markers such as shed skin hanging from nearby bushes and trees and feces around the nest site may allow snakes instinctively to recognize potential mates. we also think that a specific set of pre-breeding behaviors is necessary to stimulate proper egg development. for the past seven years, the cfrar has operated a privately funded research project the primary goal of which is to shed light on the unique behavior and captive propagation of boelen’s pythons. “project black python” emphasizes conservation efforts for both captive and wild boelen’s pythons. we prohibit the use of imported wild-caught adults as research subjects; only captivehatched or captive-bred animals from indonesia are allowed to be shipped. the indonesian government pays close attention to the high prices these animals fetch in private and black-market sectors, and a yearly limit on sales is carefully controlled. proof of a legitimate sale and appropriate paperwork are required before any of these rare snakes are permitted out of the country. we often wonder about the fate of these remarkable creatures as more and more land is lost to deforestation. is the only means of successful propagation the creation of farms in the species' natural habitat? will some individual come one step closer and produce viable eggs? when will we be able to raise these animals to adulthood and develop a lineage of true captive-bred black pythons? hundreds of species go extinct every day. in the case of boelen’s pythons, we sometimes wonder if we are meant to know more about them. not long after they were discovered, they vanished back to the clouds from which they had emerged. regardless, we intend to remain with them wherever the journey leads… acknowledgements special thanks to friend al baldogo for an adventure of a lifetime and jc2 animated for taking on a great project. the indonesian government pays close attention to the high prices that boelen’s pythons fetch in private and black-market sectors, and a yearly limit on sales is carefully controlled. proof of a legitimate sale and appropriate paperwork are required before any of these rare snakes are permitted out of the country. in captivity, these snakes remain highly agitated even after acclimation to new environments. captive-hatched and farm-bred animals in indonesia are primarily adorned with yellow bands. they are slim and fast. the striking black and yellow pattern of boelen’s pythons helps to break up their outline, making them more difficult to see for both predators and prey. iguana b&w text thirteen species of horned lizards (genus phrynosoma) occur in north america. ranges extend from southern canada to guatemala. horned lizards live in a variety of arid and semi-arid environments from oak-pine woodlands to thorn-scrub deserts. populations of several species throughout the range of the genus are in trouble. for example, populations of the texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) have disappeared in eastern and central texas, and are decreasing in northern texas. declines and disappearances also have been recorded in oklahoma and new mexico. the primary cause for population decline is the loss of habitat to agriculture and urban development. however, overharvesting for the pet and curio trades and invasions of exotic species are also implicated. some states protect horned lizards. in texas, both the texas and mountain short-horned (p. hernandesi) lizards are state-listed as protected, meaning that it is illegal for anyone to take, possess, transport, or sell them without a special permit. not only is it illegal to keep horned lizards in texas, but they are difficult to care for in captivity, and most captured animals eventually die from improper care. the horned lizard conservation society is dedicated to protecting horned lizards. the mission of the organization is to document and publicize the values and conservation needs of horned lizards, to promote horned lizard conservation projects, and to assist with horned lizard management initiatives. the society includes three existing chapters in texas, southern california, and oklahoma and emerging chapters in new mexico, utah, and nevada. if you would like to contribute to the society, you can help in many ways. we always welcome new faces, new ideas, and new inspiration. for further information contact: horned lizard conservation society p.o. box 122 austin, tx 78767 http://www.hornedlizards.org/ email: phrynosoma@hornedlizards.org f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n horned lizard conservation su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:04 pm page 240 iguana, june 2008 a mangrove diamondback terrapin (malaclemys terrapin rhizophorarum) pauses while navigating through the aerating roots (“pneumatophores”) of a black mangrove tree (avicennia germinans) on an island in the lower florida keys. see article on p. 78. iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 15, number 2 june 2008 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess b r ia n k . m ea le y, in st it u te o f w il d li fe s c ie n c es a fascination with giant snakes, such as this green anaconda (eunectes murinus), can fuel an ecotourism industry that may facilitate conservation efforts for this top predator in the venezuelan llanos. see article on p. 92. a brutal attack at the blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) breeding facility on grand cayman island resulted in the death of seven captive adult breeders. see article on p. 66. jo h n b in n s intentional and inadvertent trapping of diamondback terrapins (malaclemys terrapin), here in a crab trap, have decimated populations along the atlantic and gulf coasts of the united states. see article on p. 78. sh a n n o n t o m pk in s, h o u st o n c h r o n ic le although discovered nearly four decades ago, miriam’s legless skink (davewakeum miriamae) is still one of the least known thai skinks. see article on p. 102. o li v ie r s . g . p a u w el s little is known about the natural history of great basin reptiles. this is especially true of secretive species such as the sonoran mountain kingsnake (lampropeltis pyromelana). see article on p. 86. b r y a n h a m il to n c es a r l . b a r r io a m o r o s equipment that must be hauled into the rugged salina reserve to track free-living grand cayman blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi). see travelogue on p. 106. c r a ig p el k e iguana b&w text 184 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 kern this phelsuma klemmeri demonstrates a possibly symbiotic behavior with arthropods that we observed during the expedition. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 184 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 185travelogue during the summer of 2006, i was fortunate enough to join emmanuel van heygen and the exo terra expedition to explore remote areas of madagascar in search of phelsuma (day geckos). specifically, the team sought to better understand the habitat and behavior of the species in this genus and, if lucky, repeat the success of the 2004 expedition to the same region, discovering and documenting a new species. phelsuma, or day geckos, as the common name implies, are among the few gecko genera that are almost completely diurnal. because they also can be fantastically colored in vibrant greens, yellows, reds, and blues and have been successfully bred in captivity, they make for a good show in a home terrarium. phelsuma can be found throughout the islands of the west indian ocean, although madagascar is home to the greatest diversity of species. our focus was on the northwestern region of the country, specifically the ambasidava peninsula, an area that still contains a reasonable amount of primary forest and bamboo thickets, excellent phelsuma habitat. plus, due to the difficulty of access to the region, it has not been heavily explored and is rarely visited by tourists — making it an ideal area to search for a new species. once in madagascar, we had to travel by boat, because no roads lead to the places we wanted to explore. within a day of landing in nosy be, we were on the water heading toward the mozambique channel hugging the northwestern coast, entering rivers and heading as far upstream as possible to the target areas that had been identified through knowledge gained from previous trips, data gleaned from maps, discussions with people who had recently visited or lived in the area, and satellite images downloaded from google earth. two members of the four-member team, emmanuel van heygen and achim lerner, had journeyed to this region in 2004 and had discovered and documented a new day gecko species, phelsuma vanheygeni. within the last decade, a new species of lemur also had been discovered in this area, bolstering our hopes that another new species of phelsuma could be found. at the very least, we knew we would learn more about the herpetology of this relatively unexplored region. our first sighting of phelsuma occurred immediately after our arrival in nosy be, an island north of the madagascan mainland. here we found both the abundant and beautiful p. laticauda laticauda as well as p. dubia. the hunt was not particularly difficult, as p. laticauda readily exploited human habitats. within a few t r a v e l o g u e the day geckos of madagascar michael d. kern photographs by the author. children take advantage of the low tide to hunt for seafood along the southern coast of nosy be. emmanuel van heygen and achim lerner plot the course for the expedition using maps, gps, and pictures from google earth. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 185 186 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 meters, we also found a hatchling p. dubia shedding, possibly for the first time. the vibrant blue dots only seen in juveniles were readily apparent beneath the shedding skin. we had only just arrived, and were already surrounded by exotic geckos! our first stop on the mainland was ankify, which has roads that lead to large areas covered by untamed bamboo thickets. after only about an hour of searching, we found the boldly colored p. klemmeri, which we were able to confirm lives mostly in and on the dead brownish-yellow bamboo. at the time of the first sighting, several expedition members were trying to capture a madagascan hognose snake (leioheterodon madagascariensis), for which they had set aside a magnificently colored caterpillar. with the discovery of the phelsuma, however, the snake was stashed in a backpack for later study, the caterpillar quickly forkern the floor of the bamboo jungle presents a number of challenges and surprises including this madagascan hognose snake (leioheterodon madagascariensis). what this oustalet’s chameleon (furcifer oustaleti) lacks in size, it makes up in beauty. a baby phelsuma madagascariensis grandis perches on a leaf to survey its surroundings. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 186 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 187travelogue gotten. emmanuel’s father, guy, was filming the adventure while i was happy taking still shots as the action unfolded. we also found several species of chameleons, including a distinctively marked furcifer pardalis and the giant f. oustaleti. ankify was the last contact with civilization we would have for the next ten days. our next major stop was outside the small village of besovana. while seeking a suitable place to set up camp, we found the first phelsuma vanheygeni. a campsite near a small stream gave us an opportunity to clean up and cool down from the hot and humid equatorial climate. better yet, the campsite was surrounded by unspoiled bamboo. our frequent treks from camp to the field were short — and almost immediately productive. we would venture out in the morning as animals began to bask, return and rest while geckos retreated from the extreme midday heat, hike out again during the later afternoon as temperatures began to drop, and journey out again after nightfall in search of nocturnal creatures. we spent four days in this region because of the density of day geckos. species sighted included p. vanheygeni, p. klemmeri, p. seippi, p. laticauda laticauda, and p. madagascariensis grandis. we also saw geckos in the genus the recently discovered phelsuma vanheygeni lives on green bamboo stalks. when threatened it retreats into thickets of branches to hide. three members of the team relax at our besovana campsite. although we did not realize it at the time, this forest night snake (ithycyphus perineti) was on the hunt. note the frog hiding in the bamboo in the lower right corner of the upper frame. the snake completely ignored us during the hunt and throughout his meal. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 187 188 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 kern lygodactylus and tree frogs of the genus mantidactylus. a phelsuma fantasy come true! also, we observed an unusual behavior in phelsuma. many individuals of several species were found positioned directly below a moth or cicada, almost touching them, and lying perfectly still as if in a trance. we suspected some form of symbiotic behavior, which will require additional study to fully understand. additionally, we confirmed that p. vanheygeni, unlike p. klemmeri, which makes its home on dead bamboo, prefers living on green bamboo. typically, p. vanheygeni also is found higher in the denser vegetation of the bamboo stalks. before we left the area, the team was treated to a display of the hunting tactics of a local colubrid snake, ithycyphus perineti, that ignored us as it moved from branch to branch on its way to a frog hiding in a broken bamboo branch. only after the snake quickly struck the unsuspecting frog did we realize that it was “hiding” in plain sight right in front of us. while camping in besovana, i finally learned to appreciate the unique local climate and moisture patterns. as nighttime temperatures drop substantially, the atmospheric humidity is converted into water droplets. the result is so dramatic that, on many nights, i thought rain was falling on my tent. by morning, everything is soaked. drops of moisture have formed on each leaf of every tree, giving the chameleons, geckos, and other wildlife a plentiful and renewable source of drinking water. hunting phelsuma in dense bamboo thickets is an adventure in itself. the floors of the thickets are covered a foot deep in leaf litter and broken bamboo stalks. each step could startle any creature away or, worse yet, the stalker could be impaled on one of the many spear-sharp bamboo stalks standing upright at knee to waist height, resulting in an injury that could prove lethal in such a remote part of the world. so, you move slowly, quietly, and as carefully as you can. teams of two are best to quickly trace each stalk and branch up and down and side to side, alert for slight movements, flashes of color, or anything that appears abnormal. most geckos will see you first and quickly a pair of camouflaged leaftail geckos (uroplatus henkeli) sleep, well hidden in the primary forests of madagascar. this madagascan leaf-nosed snake (langaha nasuta) was one of the most interesting snakes found on the expedition. the morning dew forms on a bamboo plant showing how geckos, chameleons, and other creatures get the water on which they depend. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 188 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 189 hide but, if you wait quietly for a few minutes, they often return to their previous basking spots and into clear view. the journey continued to ambaleha, a large river village of around 100 huts. here we would climb to an elevation of nearly 400 m to get to a part of the remaining primary forests of madagascar. since our arrival time had been dictated by mother nature’s tides rather than our comfort, the grueling hike took place during the heat of the day. the climb was worth it, however, for not only did we find primary forest where we were excited to find a sleeping pair of leaftail geckos (uroplatus henkeli), but we also found more bamboo! at this campsite, we found several species of snakes, including the always-interesting leafnose snake (langaha nasuta) and over seven different species of geckos. we also were pleasantly surprised to find a pink panther chameleon, a unique variant of furcifer pardalis. our final campsite was by a river in the village of jungua, where we were presented with an idyllic scene. some men were readying the large village fishing boat, while others paddled upstream in their one-person pirogues. women were washing clothes, men and women were bathing, and children were running, playing, and splashing under the morning sun. for all its simplicity, the village had generator power; so, at the end of the day, we could venture over for a slightly cooled drink. we found many of our old friends (phelsuma vanheygeni, p. klemmeri, p. seippi, p. madagascariensis grandis, and p. laticauda laticauda), but were unable to identify and document another new species of phelsuma. we did, however, gain new insights into the lives of geckos in the genus phelsuma. we learned more about the distributions of several species and developed a better understanding of the natural history and behavior of others. sadly, the ongoing loss of primary forest probably will affect the viability of many of madagascar’s endemics, but we take some solace in the fact that the many species of phelsuma that live in the bamboo are safe for now and appear to be reasonably abundant. much still remains to be learned and the team plans to return to the region in hopes of identifying new species before they are gone and find answers to questions that will lead to a better understanding of these rare and beautiful creatures. for more information, including additional photos and video from the expedition, visit the exo terra website (www.exo-terra.com). travelogue we found several rare “pink panther chameleons” (furcifer pardalis) during this trip. the jungua river is a major resource and center of activity for this small village in madagascar. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 189 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 85conservation of green anacondas henderson and r. powell (eds.), biology of the boas and pythons. eagle mountain publishing company, eagle mountain, utah. struhsaker, t.t. 1998. a biologist’s perspective in the role of sustainable harvest in conservation. conservation biology 12:930–932. thorbjarnarson, j.b. 1999. crocodile tears and skins: international trade, economic constraints and limits to sustainable use of crocodilians. conservation biology 13:465–470. thorbjarnarson, j.b., h. messel, f.w. king, and j.p. ross. 1992. crocodiles, an action plan for their conservation. iucn, gland, switzerland. thorbjarnarson, j.b. and a. velasco. 1999. economic incentives for management of venezuelan caiman. conservation biology 13:397–406. vickers, w.t. 1991. hunting yields and game composition over ten years in an amazon indian territory, pp. 53–81. in: j.g. robinson and k.h. redford (eds.), tropical wildlife use and conservation. university of chicago press, chicago, illinois. waller, t., p.a. micucci, m. mendez, and e. alvarenga. 2007. the management and conservation biology of yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) in argentina. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), biology of the boas and pythons. eagle mountain publishing company, eagle mountain, utah. world bank. 1992. world development report. oxford university press, new york. world bank. 2001. adjustment lending retrospective: final report operation policies and country services. world bank, washington, d.c. (http:// siteresources.worldbank.org/projects/resources/alr06_20_01.pdf). yunus, m. 1994. preface: redefining development, pp. ix–xii. in: k. danaher (ed.), 50 years enough: the case against the world bank and the international monetary fund. south end press, boston, massachusetts. the most geographically and ecologically widespread of the eight currently recognized species of the neotropical treeboa genus corallus, c. hortulanus ranges from amazonian colombia and venezuela, through the guianas, throughout amazonian brazil, ecuador, peru, and bolivia, and south into brazil’s atlantic forest to about 26º 08’ south latitude, and on ilha grande (off southeastern brazil). it occurs in diverse habitats, including primary and secondary rainforest, mixed forest, second growth, palm forests, swamp forest, cerrado, caatinga (where it is probably confined to gallery forests), and savanna/grassland with stands of trees. it is often associated with edge situations and may be especially common in trees at the margins of bodies of water (rivers, lagoons, lakes). it also exploits heavily disturbed situations, such as fruit orchards (bananas, cacao), and will enter human edifices (outbuildings, homes), likely seeking shade, a diurnal retreat, or a human commensal rodent. altitudinal distribution is from sea level to about 915 m, although it is uncommon above 300 m. few snake species worldwide can compete with corallus hortulanus when it comes to variation in color and pattern. dorsal ground color of the boas may be various shades of yellow, orange, gray, taupe, and/or brown. they may be virtually patternless yellow or orange, or have an ellipse-like shape that may be a shade of the ground color or in sharp contrast to it, or it may appear extremely mottled (but close inspection usually reveals the ellipse shape). amazon treeboas are nocturnal and, as the name implies, largely arboreal. their bodies are laterally compressed, and snakes may attain snout-vent lengths (svl) over 1.6 m, and can reach svls of 1.8–1.9 m. both active and ambush foraging strategies are employed, and the diet consists almost entirely of endotherms. when young (<750 mm svl), birds (and, to a lesser degree, bats) comprise a significant portion of their diet (likely captured via active foraging while the birds are at roost) but, with increasing size, mammals (especially rodents) become their principal prey. frogs and lizards are taken infrequently by c. hortulanus. references henderson, r.w. 2002. neotropical treeboas: natural history of the corallus hortulanus complex. krieger publishing co., malabar, florida. pizzatto, l., o.a.v. marques, and m. martins. 2007. ecomorphology of boine snakes, with emphasis on south american forms, pp. 35–48. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), biology of the boas and pythons. eagle mountain publishing, eagle mountain, utah. s p e c i e s p r o f i l e amazon treeboa (corallus hortulanus) robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum although corallus hortulanus demonstrates tremendous color and pattern variation throughout its range, this individual exhibits a much higher percentage of white scales than typically observed. it was captured in a small section of bamboo forest near the rio cristalino in northern mato grosso, brazil. the habitat is transitional between southern amazonian rainforest and the vast savanna-like cerrado to the south. a second snake with similar coloration was found several days later. whether these individuals are just variants of an extremely variable species or a color pattern anomaly is unknown. la u r ie j . v it t iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 205newsbriefs mal immune system functions, diseases, injury, and death of frogs and salamanders. studies by dr. tyrone hayes at the university of california have strengthened the case for banning atrazine, a potent chemical that is the most common contaminant of ground, surface, and drinking water nationwide. dr. hayes demonstrated that atrazine is an endocrine disruptor that “assaults male sexual development,” interfering with reproduction by chemically castrating and feminizing male frogs. atrazine has also been linked to increased prostate cancer, decreased sperm count, and high risk of breast cancer in humans. thousands of pounds of atrazine are used each year in the bay area in close proximity to habitat for the red-legged frog and tiger salamander. the bush administration has attempted to undercut endangered species act protections by changing how pesticide impacts on wildlife are evaluated and making it easier for pesticide manufacturers to ignore the effects of their products on endangered plants and animals. the epa proposed new regulations in 2004 that would have removed input from expert wildlife agencies in determining whether pesticides threaten endangered species, but a federal court overturned these new rules in 2006. the lawsuit, report on pesticide impacts to bay area species, maps of pesticide use, and information about the listed species are available at: www.biologicaldiversity.org/swcbd/programs/science/pesticides/bay-area.html freshwater and wetlands habitat used by the endangered san francisco garter snake (thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia) has been contaminated by pesticides. a lawsuit seeks to prevent further applications until a thorough review of the effects of potentially harmful agents has been properly assessed. ?? ? o b i t u a r y george mcduffie, a well-known ohio herpetologist, passed away on 15 april 2007. born in cincinnati, ohio, on 25 august 1927, george received his bachelors (1952), masters (1956), and doctoral degrees (1960) from the university of cincinnati, the latter doing research on the natural history of copperheads in the buckeye state. his research on these snakes was published in 1963 [studies on the size, pattern, and coloration of the northern copperhead (agkistrodon contortrix mokasen daudin) in ohio. journal of the ohio herpetological society 4: 15–22]. he was one of the founding members of the ohio herpetological society, which evolved into the society for the study of amphibians and reptiles. during the 1950s and 1960s, george mentored many young herpetologists in southwestern ohio, and most of them experienced their first real snake hunt under his watchful eye. he is remembered for his sense of humor, and on field trips to shawnee state forest in southern ohio, many students and colleagues on their first field trip listened in stunned silence to the plethora of risqué limericks that he sang with gusto (and which they eventually memorized and sang also). more importantly, he took the time and made the effort to teach them how to find amphibians and reptiles, and much of what they know today about field herpetology can be traced directly back to george. at the first shawnee herpetological weekend held at shawnee state forest in may 2006, keynote speaker joseph t. collins (who grew up in cincinnati and was mentored by george during his teenage years) dedicated the event to george mcduffie, and spoke fondly of his influence. memorial contributions should be sent to the torch lake protection alliance, p.o. box 706, bellaire, mi 49615. george thomas mcduffie (1927–2007) george mcduffie with a western diamondback rattlesnake (crotalus atrox) ca. 1960. photograph courtesy cnah files. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 205 iguana b&w text 184 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 the distribution of guatemalan black iguanas (ctenosaura palearis), also known as paleate spiny-tailed iguanas, is restricted to the motagua valley. populations are known to be sparse and the species stands to benefit from the preservation of this unique ecoregion. nájera acevedo jo h n b in n s. a n im a l c o u r te sy o f w es t c o a st ig u a n a r es ea r c h iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 184 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 185 the semi-arid region of the motagua valley in northeastern guatemala has been classified as an ecoregion in the classification developed by the world wildlife fund (wwf) (dinerstein et al. 1995) based on its biodiversity and high degree of endemism, among other unique qualities. because the region is also highly threatened, the guatemalan ngo fundación defensores de la naturaleza (fdn), with the support of the nature conservancy (tnc) and dutch cooperation, are leading a participatory and interinstitutional conservation program. description of the area the small (approx. 200,000 ha), semi-arid region of the motagua valley is in the departments of el progreso, zacapa, and chiquimula, and contains two habitat zones: subtropical thorn scrub and subtropical dry forest (tnc and fdn 2003). the valley is surrounded by the sierra las minas, with peaks reaching to 3000 m above sea level creating a natural barrier to the conservation of thorn scrub and dry forest habitat in the motagua valley, guatemala: promoting the protection of a unique ecoregion1 andrea nájera acevedo fundación defensores de la naturaleza, city of guatemala (anajera@defensores.org.gt) photographs by author unless otherwise indicated. habitat conservation in the motagua valley � the semi-arid region of the motagua valley is seriously threatened. despite its importance and singularity, it is barely represented in the guatemalan protected areas system. 1 translated by aj gutman iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 185 186 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 nájera acevedo the moisture originating from the atlantic (tnc and fdn 2003). with annual precipitation of approximately 500 mm per year, the area has the lowest annual precipitation recorded for any part of central america (powell and palminteri 2001), whereas the surrounding mountains receive up to 3000 mm of annual precipitation (powell and palminteri 2001). precipitation data indicate a rainy season extending from may to september. the average relative humidity ranges from 60–72%, and the average temperature varies from 22–28 °c (castañeda 1997), reaching a maximum of 45 °c during the warmest months of march and april, and a minimum of 7 °c in december (valle et al. 1999). vegetation the climatic conditions of the region have resulted in the development of caducous vegetative communities, in which leaves fall at the beginning of the dry season and appear at the beginning of the rainy season (tnc and fdn 2003). thorn-bearing species make up approximately 50% of the plant life, hence the descriptive habitat name of “thorn scrub” (castañeda and ayala 1996). with the exception of the gallery forests, in which the constant flow of water permits the development of very different and much greener vegetative communities, which provide a refuge to many animal species, the lower elevations of the region are dominated by thorny species such as the cactaceae, acacia, and leguminous shrubs (powell and palminteri 2001). recent studies of the thorn scrub in the motagua valley have documented the presence of 107 families and 598 species of plants, of which 140 are trees, 89 shrubs, 273 grass, 74 lianas, several bromeliads and species of cacti, such as this melocactus, are threatened by illicit extraction. geographic location of the semi-arid region of the motagua valley, guatemala. jo h n b in n s jo h n b in n s iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 186 12 epiphytes, 4 parasitic species, and 3 aquatic species (véliz et al. 2005). the most diverse families are asteraceae and euphorbiaceae with 46 species each, fabaceae with 41, poaceae with 39, mimosaceae with 28, caesalpiniaceae with 20, convolvulaceae with 18, and boraginaceae, cactaceae, and solanaceae with 15 species each. geologic processes affecting the region have created isolation that has favored plant speciation, producing a number of new species with distributions restricted to the motagua valley, for example, various cactaceae, euphorbiaceae, and mimosaceae (castañeda 1997, valle et al. 1999, morales 2003). the endemic bromeliad, tillandsia xerographica, is in danger of extinction. it, along with species of cacti in the genera mammillaria and melocactus, are extracted illegally for the ornamental plant trade. among the most common and typical species in the thorn scrub of guatemala are guaiacum coulteri, caesalpinia velutina, cassia emarginata, cassia skinneri, haematoxylon brasileto, leucaena collinsii, ximenia americana, bursera schlenthendali, b. graveolens, acacia farnesiana, prosopis juliflora, juliania adstringens, stenocereus pruinosus, pereskia lychnidiflora, nopalea guatemalensis, pilosocereus leucocephala, cordia dentata, and cordia truncatifolia (véliz et al. 2005). many important tree and shrub species are used by the local inhabitants for firewood, wood for small and mediumsized industry or crafts, and as a source of medicinal plants, food, and ornamentals (castañeda 2004). the main species that make up the cover in the thorn scrub, recognizing the limitations of the zone, are the ceibillo (ceiba aesculifolia), orotoguaje (acacia deamii), yaje (leucaena diversifolia), aripín (caesalpinia velutina), mountain oak (bucida macrostachya), jiote (bursera simarouba), caraño (juliana adstringens), guayacán (guaiacum sanctum), and the barreto (plocosperma buxifolium) (castañeda 2004). the barreto and the endemic motapino (mimosa zacapana) also have ornamental uses (castañeda 2004). fauna the semi-arid region of the motagua valley is home to a greater diversity of species in some groups of vertebrates compared with other types of forest, largely due to the interactions between the riverine and semi-arid forests (tnc and fdn 2003). the presence of 48 species of mammals and 101 species of birds has been reported (valle et al. 2003), some of which make use of the gallery forest that provides them with food and sites for reproduction (tnc and fdn 2003). the bird families columbidae, tyrannidae, icteridade, and fringilidae are sufficiently abundant iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 187habitat conservation in the motagua valley gallery forest and dry forest in the motagua valley, showing the river basin during the dry season and the gallery forest that remains green. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 187 188 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 nájera acevedo as to be considered characteristic of the region (land 1970). the valley is the only site in central america where the russet crowned motmot (momotus mexicanus) is found, a species that is considered to be a reliable indicator of high-quality habitat. nevertheless, recent studies (perez 2003, nájera 2004) indicate that most bird species whose presence was recorded in the valley are habitat generalists and little affected by disturbed habitat. the threatened mammalian species in the region include the bats pteronotus dhabi, p. parnelli, and leptonycteris curasoae, the armadillo (dasypus novemcinctus), which is endangered due to hunting, the skunks (conepatus semistriatus, mephitis macroura) due to exploitation for medicinal uses, cacomistle or bassarisk (bassariscus sumichrasti), and the water possum (chironectes minumus), which is threatened by the advance of the agricultural border (valle et al. 2003). sixteen species of amphibians and 54 reptiles have been reported in the motagua valley (acevedo 2004). the frog, craugastor inachus, that was only recently described (campbell and savage 2000) is endemic, and the salamander, oedipina taylori, is a regional endemic (acevedo 2004). among the reptiles is the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti), an endemic subspecies that is in serious danger of extinction. recent studies of this species (masaya 2005, ariano 2003) report that, even in the most optimistic scenario, the surviving population of h. h. charlesbogerti is only around 174 individuals (masaya 2005). the conservation plan in 2003, the fdn and tnc undertook the task of creating a conservation plan for the semi-arid region of the motagua valley, in view of the importance of biodiversity in this area and of the urgency to initiate formal actions for its preservation. in 2005, the plan was updated based on new findings and lessons learned during the first years of work in the motagua valley (fdn and tnc 2005). the conservation plan is based on the methodology of planning for the conservation of areas (pca), proposed by tnc (tnc 1999) and which takes into account all available ecological and social data on the area in question. the methodology is based on the identification and selection of conservation elements, and an analysis and prioritization of the threats and advantages affecting those elements. the next step is the definition of strategies to reduce the threats and maximize advantages. the final step is to define indicators that can be used to measure the success of the proposed strategies. the application of this methodology to the region permits an approach to the initiative from a local perspective, recognizing the region’s inhabitants as stakeholders in the conservation process. to date, the fdn has focused on promoting the declaration of both private and municipal protected areas, environmental education, incentives for forest conservation, ecotourism, and the enforcement of existing conservation legislation. conservation elements the conservation elements identified for the semi-arid region of the motagua valley are: (1) thorn scrub and dry forest, (2) tillandsias and cacti threatened by extraction, (3) guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti), (4) gallery forests, and (5) the fluvial system. these five elements and the key ecological processes by which they are connected are the focus of the conservation efforts undertaken since 2004 at the field level. threats and advantages the most serious threat identified to date is agricultural practices inconsistent with conservation. areas of thorn scrub and dry forest converted for agricultural use have led to the destruction of 60,000 ha (ca. 30% of the land in the region; secaira 2004). also considered serious threats are incompatible forestry cacti in the valley are threatened by extraction. the russet crowned motmot (momotus mexicanus) is a species that is considered to be a reliable indicator of high-quality habitat. c es a r q u em e iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 188 practices, the elimination and extraction of h. h. charlesbogerti, and non-sustainable selective forest product extraction. the most threatened elements within the thorn scrub and dry forest ecosystem are the beaded lizards and the fluvial system, because the factors threatening them are severe and could eliminate them entirely in the near future if no action is undertaken. investigations in the area have identified further factors leading to the degradation of the ecosystem, including decreases in the amount of forest, an overall reduction in biodiversity, and contamination of the rivers. another element to consider is the implementation of monoculture systems and the pressures that the impoverished human populations exert on the local flora and fauna (valle et al. 1999). nevertheless, factors also exist that favor the conservation of biodiversity in the motagua valley. among the most significant of these is the presence of diverse institutions and local governments that are actively increasing awareness of the importance of the region and of conservation projects centered on the thorn scrub and dry forest. also, since the formal implementation of the pca in 2004, an increasing interest in scientific research and ecotourism in the motagua valley has served to directly and indirectly promote the conservation of biodiversity. strategic objectives and advances the strategic objectives for the reduction of threats and an increase in the positive factors affecting the conservation elements are set for a term of five years from the update of the conservation plan in 2005. one of the main objectives is to establish formal conservation mechanisms in at least 10% of the present natural cover, which amounts to having at least 10,000 ha of thorn scrub and dry forest under protection by 2010. with the collaboration of local governments, communities, and private landowners, the first protected areas have been established in the region adding up to a total of 934 ha, comprised of municipal regional parks and private natural reserves. disputes over land ownership have inhibited further progress on this objective. in some instances, well-preserved areas with cooperative and enthusiastic owners could not be declared as protected areas due to the lack of property registries. in many other cases, a lack of realization of the importance of the ecosystem on the part of local property owners, communities, and governments works against the creation of new protected areas, thus the intense focus on environmental education for adults and children in the region. one factor stimulating efforts to conserve thorn scrub and dry forest has been the recent inclusion by the guatemalan national forest institute of these types of habitat into their forest incentives program (programa de incentivos forestales, pinfor). this program provides economic incentives to private and municipal owners to maintain the existing natural vegetative cover on their properties or to reforest them with native species. to date, five private owners have been provided with economic assistance for choosing to conserve the forest on their property. the goal for 2010 with regard to heloderma horridum charlesbogerti is to maintain existing population numbers iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 189habitat conservation in the motagua valley guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) are endemic to the motagua valley. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 189 190 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 nájera acevedo (masaya 2005, ariano 2003). beaded lizards are seriously threatened by destruction of their habitat, elimination due to false suppositions regarding the dangers posed by this venomous animal, and illegal extraction for the exotic pet trade. various institutions have initiated their own environmental education programs to sensitize the local population to the need for protection. recently, the national strategy for heloderma conservation was developed (zootropic and tnc 2005), and work moves forward on the telemetry studies initiated in 2004 (masaya 2005), as well as environmental education efforts within the distribution of heloderma to ensure the protection of the remnant population of this species. the strategic objectives for the gallery forests and the fluvial system are largely the purview of the fdn team that works in the adjacent sierra de las minas biosphere reserve (smbr). since the water supply of the motagua valley comes almost entirely from the sierra de las minas, in which 63 permanently flowing rivers originate, an initiative for the integrated management of the water supply has been created (“fondo del agua” = water fund). the objective of this project is to ensure the volume and quality of the water originating in the smbr for the long term by providing technical and financial assistance to improve water management and the river basins (fdn 2004). for the semi-arid region of the motagua valley, the strategic objective for 2010 is to maintain the quality and volume of water produced annually by the smbr, and to ensure the preservation of the gallery forests of three high-priority river basins between the motagua valley and the smbr. work toward these objectives has been accomplished primarily through the water fund project with the formation of river basin committees and through education emphasizing the importance of sustainable usage of hydro resources in the region. to improve progress towards the fulfillment of the proposed objectives, a plan for the conservation of cultural patrimony has been developed and integrated into the existing pca in an effort to take advantage of synergies between nature and culture to increase local and institutional support, education, and the promotion of sustainable tourism. this natural and cultural conservation plan (fdn and tnc 2005) tries to integrate the diverse stakeholders and local institutions through the formation of an “alliance for the conservation of the semi-arid region of the motagua valley.” the objective of this alliance is to promote and coordinate activities for the conservation of the natural and cultural resources of the region, and to extend management support to national and international organizations for the implementation of the pca. the alliance also seeks to generate political support and to establish strategic alliances with participating institutions and local governments, to continue working on the application of effective environmental legislation, the conservation and recovery of high-priority areas, social organization, and environmental education, with the purpose of promoting and consolidating mechanisms likely to preserve the natural and cultural resources of the motagua valley. since early 2004, we have made discernible progress on all proposed strategic objectives, and have learned many lessons. one of the latter is the necessity and importance of a combination of interinstitutional alliances and local support to develop a more integrated and sustainable long-term initiative. promoting conservation in this region of guatemala has been a challenge, but the participating institutions truly hope that the conservation efforts that are being implemented will ensure the permanence of this important ecosystem, as well as fortify and consolidate diverse areas of conservation in the semi-arid region of the motagua valley. acknowledgements i thank the staff of the defensores de la naturaleza, all of whom have worked and continue to work directly and indirectly for the conservation of this region. i also thank the communities, municipal governments, private landowners, participating institutions, and donors, who have provided incalculable assistance. colleagues from tnc have provided us with technical and planning support since the very beginning. references acevedo, m. 2004. herpetofauna de la región semiárida del valle del motagua. seminario de investigaciones para la conservación de la región semiárida del valle del motagua. fundación defensores de la naturaleza y the nature conservancy. guatemala. ariano, d. 2003. distribución e historia natural del escorpión, heloderma horridum charlesbogerti campbell y vannini (sauria: helodermatidae) en zacapa, guatemala y caracterización de su veneno. tesis departamento de biología. universidad del valle del guatemala. castañeda, c. 1997. impacto de los diferentes sistemas de producción en la biodiversidad de las regiones semiáridas de guatemala. universidad de san carlos de guatemala. dirección general de investigación. programa universitario de investigación en recursos naturales y ambiente, facultad de agronomía. castañeda, c. 2004. ecología del bosque seco y muy seco. seminario de investigaciones para la conservación de la región semiárida del valle del motagua. fundación defensores de la naturaleza y the nature conservancy, guatemala. castañeda, c. y h. ayala. 1996. vida en la región semiárida de guatemala. cuadernos chac. no. 3. facultad de agronomía. universidad de san carlos de guatemala. dinerstein, e., d.m. olson, d.j. graham, a.l. webster, s.a. primm, m.p. bookbinder, y g. ledec. 1995. una evaluación del estado de conservación delas ecoregiones terrestres de américa latina y el caribe. banco mundial. fondo mundial para la naturaleza. fundación defensores de la naturaleza. 2004. sistema de organización por cuencas hidrográficas. fondo del agua del sistema motagua-polochic. fundación defensores de la naturaleza, guatemala. the archaeological sites of the motagua valley, such as this one called guaytán, are among the cultural elements in need of conservation. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 190 fundación defensores de la naturaleza & the nature conservancy. 2005. plan de conservación del patrimonio natural y cultural de la región semiárida del valle del motagua. fundación defensores de la naturaleza. guatemala. land, h. 1970. birds of guatemala. livingston publ. co., narberth, pennsylvania. masaya, l. 2005. ecología, ámbito de hogar y abundancia de una de las fuentes de alimento de heloderma horridum charlesbogerti en cabañas, zacapa, guatemala. 2005. tesis, departamento de biología, universidad del valle de guatemala, guatemala. morales, j. 2003. segundo informe de vegetación. línea base para el monitoreo de la subcuenca del río colorado, cuenca del río hondo, zacapa. fundación defensores de la naturaleza. nájera, a. 2004. avifauna en cuatro sitios de la región semiárida del valle del motagua: palo amontonado, san agustín acasaguastlán, río hondo y uyús. fundación defensores de la naturaleza, guatemala. pérez, s. 2003. aves del valle semiárido del motagua. propuestas para monitoreo de las fluctuaciones en las poblaciones a largo plazo como investigación deductiva. fundación defensores de la naturaleza, guatemala. powell, g. and s. palminteri. 2002. terrestrial ecoregions. motagua valley thornscrub (nt1312). wwf, http://www.worldwildlife.org. secaira, e. 2004. plan de conservación de la región semiárida del valle del motagua. seminario de investigaciones para la conservación de la región semiárida del valle del motagua. fundación defensores de la naturaleza y the nature conservancy. guatemala. the nature conservancy. 1999. planificación para la conservación de sitios. un proceso para la conservación de sitios prioritarios. the nature conservancy, arlington, virginia. the nature conservancy y fundación defensores de la naturaleza. 2003. plan de conservación de la región semiárida del valle del motagua. fundación defensores de la naturaleza y the nature conservancy. guatemala. valle, l., r. soto, p. negreros, s. pérez, y c. castañeda. 1999. áreas prioritarias para la conservación en el sector norte del monte espinoso del valle del río motagua, guatemala. fundación defensores de la naturaleza, programa ambiental regional para centroamérica/central american protected areas system, guatemala. véliz, m., m. garcía, a. cóbar, y f. ramírez. 2004. diversidad florística del monte espinoso. universidad de san carlos de guatemala. dirección general de investigación, guatemala. zootropic y the nature conservancy. 2005. estrategia nacional de conservación del heloderma horridum charlesbogerti. zootropic y the nature conservancy, guatemala. iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 191habitat conservation in the motagua valley dear donors and volunteers, on behalf of zoo atlanta and the ircf, we extend our sincere gratitude to you for your help in making this year’s nrb expo auction to benefit the guatemalan beaded lizard a tremendous success. thanks to your generosity and hard work, we raised $18,000 to help this deserving species. these funds will help save some of the most critically endangered lizards in the world. our sincere thanks to each of you. brad lock, zoo atlanta, and john binns, ircf zoo atlanta and ircf acknowledge the following donors and volunteers: collette adams; alan bosch reptiles; alligator adventures; alligator farm; luis alvarado; amazing blue reptiles; anacafe; jeremy anderson; animal zone; aquarium at moody gardens; daniel ariano; ars caging; artscard – jennifer langley; paul auerbach; al baldago; andy balk; ball python club; ball room pythons; david and tracy barker; bci joe; silas beach; dan beck; daniel benbo; marvin bennett; bhb enterprises; jane billette; john binns; sandra binns; boamaster.com; rodrigo botran; tina bouse; carl peiter brest van kempen; bright albino; brock’s (jason) hippie herps; bronx zoo; will brown; joe burgess; burke reptiles; alitha butler; bynum family, michelle bynum; bill cagle reptiles; camlon reptiles; john campbell; jason cantos; marc cantos; capitalcolor.com; marty capron; captive born creatures; john chapo; nancy chretien; bob clark; ben cole; columbus zoo; darry and ted conner; constrictors unlimited; cornutopia; creative pet; sandra cruz; cryptic creatures; maurice cullen; custom reptile enclosure; cutting edge herps; cypress creek; d & m breeders; dallas world aquarium; andy daneault; renee diresta; disney’s animal kingdom; doug dix; donna doherty; tonydongarra; dragon attack; dragons 4 you; east coast reptiles; ebclosion s.a.; eco; eco uninterupted; ectotherms; kevin enright; everybody loves albinos; exoterra; richard fife; greg fleming; flora & fauna; ardith fowler; joel friesch; silas gatewood; geckos unlimited; geiselle; glades herp; glynn & jerry’s; gourmet rodents; karen graham, sedgwick county zoo; graziani reptiles; aminah grefer; griselle; aj gutman; happy hollow park & zoo; hbh pet products; h-d p qilippon/b. mccord; john heidecker; herp hobby shop; herps limited; heuman solar reptiles; tell hicks; high plains herpetoculture; mae hill; wayne hill and peggy smith; hogle zoo – utah; pat holman; eric holt; horridumangeli reptiles; houston zoo; rick hudson; incredible pets; indian river reptiles; ircf; andy kaukainen; kingsnake.com – jeff barringer; kim klausen; kobylka reptiles; bert langerwerf; david lee; lenay at sirata; lll reptile; brad lock; lowry park zoo; lucky lure crickets; donald macaulay; nicole macaulay; douglas mader; marathon vet hospital; karen mcadams; meco/samsonite; jeff meyer; mfezi.com; michael kern photographer; mid-atlantic morphs; mid-michigan reptile rescue; theresa moran; vic morgan; natural selections; nerd; rob nimmo; north american reptile connection; north carolina zoo; nys; ogleby zoo; oklahoma city zoo; chris olson reptiles; osborne exotics; outback steakhouse; sam passcucci; richard cary paul; russell pearl, m.d.; dan pearson; jen periat; prestige products; ricardo pusey; quality first pets; ralph curtis publishing; ralph davis reptiles; rare geckos; rbm reptles by mac; regal reptiles; repcal; reptigreens; reptile wearables; reptiles magazine – bowtie publishing; reptileuv.com – bob maccargar; reptilian dreams; ridgeway reptiles; rj reptiles; ken robertson; richard rooker; russ gurley living art; s+m reptiles; sallas; san diego zoological society; sandfire dragon ranch; carole saucier; russ saucier; chuck schaffer; albert scholl; alex seiss; selective origins; seneca park zoo; mark seward; shedd aquarium; shelby reptile ranch; wade sherbrooke; bob shumaker; bruce shwedick; simply natural dart frogs; six flags; daniel slagel; michelle smith; snake arts.com; society for the study of amphibians and reptiles; sooner state reptiles; ssnakes; tom stevens; sticky tongue farms; sunshine serpents – daniel parker; susquehanna reptiles; tattoo pete; taylor & assoc; the rainforest room; the rep room; the snake keeper; theraphosid; timerberline; toronto zoo; kathryn tosney; t-rex; tim trout; craig trumbower; turtle hospital; dennis uhris; unaka; underground reptiles; upscale reptiles; paul vanderschouw; george vesper; w worp; joe wasilewski; waterland tubs; george waters; don wheeler; white oak conservation center; randy whittington; wholesale vivarium supply; wide mouth herps; jim widows; wild horizons – tom wiewandt; wildlife design by linda; byron williams; linda williams; brad wilson; desiree wong; world chelonian trust; xtreme reptiles; zeigler bros.; zoo atlanta; zoo books; zoomed; zootropic. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 191 iguana, june 2008 120 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 natural history research reports foraging mode and locomotion foraging mode has molded the evolution of many aspects of lizard biology. from a basic sit-and-wait feeding strategy, several lizard groups have evolved a wide foraging strategy, slowly moving through the environment using their highly developed chemosensory systems to locate prey. mcelroy et al. (2008. journal of experimental biology 211:1029–1040) studied locomotor performance, wholebody mechanics, and gaits in a phylogenetic array of lizards that use sit-and-wait and wide-foraging strategies to contrast the functional differences associated with the need for speed versus slow continuous movement during foraging. sit-andwait species used only fast speeds and trotting gaits coupled with running (bouncing) mechanics. different wideforaging species independently evolved slower locomotion with walking (vaulting) mechanics coupled with several different walking gaits, some of which have evolved several times. most wide foragers retain the running mechanics with trotting gaits observed in sit-and-wait lizards, but some wide foragers have evolved very slow running mechanics. in addition, three evolutionary reversals back to sitand-wait foraging are coupled with the loss of walking mechanics. these findings provide strong evidence that foraging mode drives the evolution of biomechanics and gaits in lizards and that several means of evolving slower locomotion exist. in addition, the different gaits used to walk slowly appear to match the ecological and behavioral challenges of the species that use them. is melanism adaptive in sea kraits? ontogenic melanism (progressive darkening of the skin) has been documented in snakes. black coloration of the skin often compromises the cryptic effects associated with other patterns (e.g., zigzags) and exposes individuals to predation; however, the mortality risk presumably can be balanced, for example, by a thermoregulatory advantage during basking. such adaptive context has been proposed to explain the appearance and the maintenance of melanism in snake populations. based on a very large capture/recapture sample (>8000 observations) gathered on two species of sea kraits (laticauda saintgironsi and l. laticaudata in new caledonia), lorioux et al. (2008. amphibia-reptilia 29:1–5) observed that melanism occurred in only one species (l. laticaudata), was infrequent, and affected only adult snakes. none of three adaptive hypotheses respectively linked to thermoregulation, predation, or protection against sun radiation, provided a satisfactory account for the occurrence of melanism in the study populations. therefore, the authors suggest that melanism was a fortuitous phenomenon. signal for mating success and survival many species of lizards have colored spots on the flanks that may function as ornaments. salvador and veiga (2008. amphibia-reptilia 29:117–120) investigated the between-years stability of the blue patch color saturation and the relationships between color saturation, mating success, and survival in males of the lizard psammodromus algirus. saturation values of the anterior blue patch of males were significantly repeatable across years. survivors had more saturated patches than non-survivors among paired males but not among non-paired males. the positive relationship between blue patch saturation and survival suggests that this morphological trait acts as a reliable signal of male quality measured by adult survival. n a t u r a l h i s t o r y r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s anoles, such as this anolis stratulus (top) from the british virgin islands, are classic sitand-wait predators that use elevated perches to scan the area below for prey. in contrast, dominican ground lizards, ameiva fuscata (bottom), employ a wide-foraging strategy, slowly moving through the environment using their highly developed chemosensory systems to locate food. r o b er t po w el l melanism in black-banded sea kraits (laticauda laticaudata) is not linked with thermoregulatory efficiency, protective coloration, or protection against solar radiation. a m a n d a l a n e iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 121natural history research reports courtship behavior in four-eyed spotted turtles liu et al. (2008. amphibia-reptilia 29:185–195) recorded 168 courtship sequences from 12 male and 18 female adult captive four-eyed spotted turtles (sacalia quadriocellata) and described 30 male and four female discrete motor patterns. male display patterns involved tactile and visual signals to induce female receptivity to mating. in response, females may emit olfactory signals for gender recognition. female rejection of male suitors resulted in a male success rate of 4.17%. only seven copulations were observed. copulation occurred only when a female became quiescent and relaxed her tail for coition. reproduction and sexual dimorphism in a night lizard ramírez-bautista et al. (2008. amphibia-reptilia 29:207–216) studied reproductive characteristics of the night lizard, lepidophyma sylvaticum (xantusiidae) from cloud forest in tlanchinol, hidalgo, mexico. males reached sexual maturity at a snout-vent length (svl) of 55 mm, and females reached sexual maturity at a svl of 56 mm. males and females were not sexually dimorphic in svl, but males had significantly larger heads and limbs than females. reproduction in males and females was seasonal. testicular mass increased in july and august, reaching maximum size in september. minimum testes size occurred in march. follicles of females began to increase in size in september when vitellogenesis was observed. follicles in some females increased in mass during january–march, whereas other females ovulated during that period. late embryonic stages (35–40) were observed in july with parturition likely occurring in july and august, coincident with maximum rainfall. litter size averaged 4.7 ± 0.4 neonates, and was not correlated with female size. similarities in reproductive characteristics between l. sylvaticum and other xantusiids (viviparity, long gestation period) suggest that some reproductive characteristics have a historical origin. predation by brown anoles on spiders in taiwan norval et al. (2007. russian journal of herpetology 14:191–198) analyzed stomach contents in 502 brown anoles (anolis [norops] sagrei) from an area surrounding a plant nursery in santzepu, taiwan. the stomachs of 166 lizards contained spiders, which were removed for identification to establish a basis upon which future studies on spider predation by n. sagrei in taiwan can be based. these spiders comprised 298 individuals from 13 families. unlike other studies, which found that these lizards prey mainly on web spiders, the majority of the spiders in this study are grounddwelling species. the results from this study suggest that this exotic invasive species is predominantly terrestrial at this locality. microhabitat characteristics for reptiles in latvia ceirans (2007. russian journal of herpetology 14:172–176) examined vegetation characteristics of reptilian microhabitats using 280 circular plots throughout latvia. the lizard lacerta agilis preferred xeric sites, and, at the other end of the gradient, both snake species (natrix natrix and vipera berus) preferred mesic sites with a tall herbaceous layer and shrubs. the legless lizard anguis fragilis often was associated with relatively intact pine forest, whereas the other reptiles were associated mainly with disturbed sites and grass cover. reproduction in the tropical night lizard lepidophyma sylvaticum is seasonal, with young born during periods of maximum rainfall. ti m b u r k h a r d t brown anoles (anolis sagrei) in taiwan often are highly terrestrial and feed heavily on ground-dwelling spiders. g er r u t n o r v a l the slow worm (anguis fragilis) was more frequently associated with intact pine forest than other latvian reptiles. g u n th er k ö h le r courtship of male four-eyed spotted turtles (sacalia quadriocellata) involves tactile and visual signals. in response, females may emit olfactory signals. d a v id l ee color saturation of the anterior blue patch of male psammodromus algirus was an “honest” signal of a male’s quality. pa sc a l d u b o is iguana b&w text editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx kaela e. champlin assistant editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. or canadian membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 international membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $50.00 u.s. institutional subscription, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international institutional 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print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. copyright © 2007 by the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. all rights reserved. no part of this journal may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without the publisher’s written permission. iguana, conservation, natural history, and husbandry of reptiles (issn 1098-6324) is published quarterly by the international reptile conservation foundation, a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca. periodical postage paid at san jose, ca. editors’ remarks in addition to feature articles and regular pieces that address responsible husbandry of reptiles, profiles of herpetologists and conservationists, travelogues to herpetologically fascinating destinations, historical perspectives, commentaries on issues relevant to reptilian biology and conservation, and book reviews, iguana has presented short summaries of news items (“newsbriefs”) that feature reptiles and efforts to conserve them and their habitats. with volume 12 in 2005, we also included summaries of research articles concerning the conservation of reptiles (“conservation research reports”). in this issue, in light of our other focus on natural history, we inaugurate a new section devoted to summaries of research articles dealing with reptilian natural history (“natural history research reports”). the purpose of these short summaries is to create and maintain an awareness of current events and ongoing research addressing issues that readers of iguana should find interesting and educational. the research reports in particular are usually extracted from technical journals written with other researchers in mind. however, the investigations represent the cutting edge of our knowledge about conservation and natural history of reptiles, and often present critical information that can lead to new insights and additional research. we have been approached about the possibility of expanding the scope of iguana to include amphibians. as a rule, we have resisted those temptations in spite of the reality that global amphibian declines may very well represent the results of events that affect reptiles and other animals in an equally dramatic fashion. however, we frequently do include amphibians in herpetofaunal surveys or travelogues. on occasion, we also may include newsbriefs or research reports about amphibians if the topic is relevant to reptilian natural history or conservation. ircf members represent a vast cross-section of persons with an interest in reptiles. included are perspectives from throughout the world, interests in many different kinds of reptiles, and experiences that may range from occasional encounters with animals in nature and concerns about a treasured pet to lives dedicated to developing a better understanding of the world around us. consequently, we eagerly solicit input from subscribers who have found items in the news or in journals that they think may be of broad interest to other readers. if you find such a piece, please submit a copy to an editor or alert us to a source (publication or link). the editors of iguana ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 63 iguana b&w text 160 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 micucci and waller the senior author with a yellow anaconda (eunectes notaeus) just captured in la estrella marshes. to m á s w a ll er iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 160 introduction many developing nations are attempting to convert unmanaged and often illegal wildlife exploitation to sustainable utilization programs. such projects seek to instill economic value in components of natural ecosystems threatened primarily by traditional land-use patterns. in many instance, a lack of scientific data has been used to defend the status quo and to boycott a sustainable use approach. however, recent history (webb, 2002) suggests that management decisions rarely emerge from pure research; instead, long-term research can be a beneficiary of sustainable use plans. effective wildlife management results from a strong commitment by governmental agencies, users, pro-active ngos, and other stakeholders. a well-planned management program should provide for an optimum allocation of resources, meaning that revenues have to be reasonably distributed among stakeholders, balancing the different economic levels, investments, risks taken, and responsibilities. moreover, the main beneficiaries should return part of the income to the community. if funds are applied directly to the management plan, it will generate income and promote conservation. harvesting wildlife has received increasing attention and criticism in recent years. biocentric views (singer 1976, callicot 1980) have been exacerbated in a media-dominated culture that promotes antipathy regarding the killing of charismatic animals. although arguments against species exploitation are valid when based on solid scientific or even philosophical criteria, much of the criticism (e.g., rivas, 2007) reflects emotional, political, or ideological perspectives. the yellow anaconda (eunectes notaeus cope 1862) is the largest snake in argentina. it is distributed in the river paraguay drainage in brazil, bolivia, and paraguay to northeastern argentina, where its range covers 120,000 km2 across six provinces (henderson et al. 1995, dirksen 2002, micucci et al. 2006a). it is largely aquatic, a dietary generalist, and its range is restricted mainly to wetlands and floodplains. the management of yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) in argentina: from historical misuse to resource appreciation patricio alejandro micucci and tomás waller fundación biodiversidad, san martín 945 piso 3 # 23, buenos aires, argentina, c1003aas iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 161yellow anacondas in argentina � abstract.—herein we describe a program for the sustainable utilization of yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) that was implemented in 2002 in the province of formosa, argentina. the management plan was conceived to manage an activity that had been misusing a valuable wildlife resource with no regard for existing regulations. delimited hunting areas were assigned to a restricted number of local skin buyers (lsb). a lsb is authorized to acquire hides from enrolled hunters living or working in his assigned territory; overlapping areas among buyers is discouraged and regulated. a minimum size limit of 230 cm was established for skins, while annual changes in skinning patterns ensure that hunters or lbs do not stockpile hides from one year to another. sustainability is regulated by examining hunting effort in relation to catch-per-unit effort (cpue) and monitoring traditional parameters like sex, origin, and size structure of the skins harvested. about 15% of the program’s gross revenues return to cover program costs, whereas 13% goes to community members. quantitative harvest data from the first five years are presented and discussed. a yellow anaconda (eunectes notaeus) from formosa province, argentina. to m á s w a ll er iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 161 anaconda skins, like those of other boas and pythons, are considered a valuable resource and are highly prized for the manufacture of exotic leather goods (jenkins and broad 1994). in argentina, trade in snake hides probably began earlier, but peaked during the 1940s. an estimated 60,000 boa constrictor (boa constrictor) and yellow anaconda hides were exported from argentina during each year of that decade (gruss and waller 1988, micucci et al. 2006a). from 1980 through 1999, about 320,000 yellow anaconda skins were exported mainly from argentina and paraguay, primarily to the usa and europe (micucci et al. 2006a). as with practically all squamates (dodd 1993, scott and seigel 1992), the exploitation of yellow anacondas was carried out informally, without management guidelines or any regard to the species’ biology (waller et al. 2007). our recent study shows that yellow anaconda populations from argentina exhibit favorable ecological attributes, with high scores in six broad scale categories that “enhance” (shine et al. 1998) the species’ ability to withstand decades of intense harvesting (waller et al. 2007). hunting of yellow anacondas diminished abruptly when trade was effectively banned in 1999; however, in several locations in formosa, anacondas were opportunistically captured and their hides smuggled to paraguay for export. in 2001, we carried out a study in the province of formosa, argentina, for the purpose of analyzing the feasibility of harvesting yellow anaconda skins in a sustainable manner (micucci et al. 2002). research focused on social and ecological aspects, and involved experimentation with innovative management policies. in 2002, as a direct result of that research, the cites national authority (national coordination for biodiversity, environment, and sustainable development secretariat) asked us to design a management program for the species. the yellow anaconda management program we conceived the yellow anaconda management program (yamp), seeking to reconcile the traditional utilization of a resource with its long-term conservation, and with the additional goals of promoting biological research on anacondas, avoiding resource misuse and waste, and maximizing local income favoring resource and habitat appreciation (micucci et al. 2006a). from a conceptual perspective, we followed the adaptive management approach (ama; holling 1978), which was adopted due to the fact that we faced a system with high levels of uncertainty, and because it provides the ideal conceptual framework for exploited species for which research and population monitoring by standard methods becomes unfeasible in practical terms. the ama works on a step-by-step basis, monitoring the effects of actions taken through specific control variables and promoting changes, when appropriate, in a feedback fashion to progressively reduce uncertainty. anaconda populations are actually managed on the basis of “sustained yield” harvest theory (caughley and sinclair 1994, webb 2002). specifically, we tested surplus-yield production models (i.e., schaefer 1954, fox 1970), which have been used mainly in fisheries, but also for terrestrial fauna. from a methodological perspective, a harvest can be controlled either by placing a quota or by controlling hunting effort (setting a hunting season or limiting the number of people or the amount of time they are harvesting a population; caughley 162 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 micucci and waller the dorsolateral position of nostrils and eyes reflects the aquatic habits of yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus). to m á s w a ll er iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 162 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 163yellow anacondas in argentina and sinclair 1994). the yamp follows the latter approach, making no effort to control directly the number of animals harvested. controlling effort usually is a safer mean of regulating a harvest than imposing a quota. harvesting a constant number of animals each year is risky, particularly when the population is affected by environmentally induced swings in abundance (caughley and sinclair 1994) or when conducting a census of populations is a major constraint, both situations we knew or expected to occur in yellow anacondas inhabiting highly seasonal savannas. fundación biodiversidad (fb) was appointed by agreement with the federal government to lead and execute the program. annual tasks and budgets are outlined in operative plans submitted annually for approval by the federal and provincial wildlife authorities. seven major reptile skin exporters finance the program under a mechanism controlled by the central government. federal regulations state that project benefactors will distribute benefits (i.e., snake hides) among themselves in proportion to the funds that each has contributed. funds are received from donors by an administrative ngo (fundación argeninta), bonded by the federal authority, and then transferred to fb as needed. the province of formosa, in northeastern argentina, was selected for implementing the experimental harvest program due to the abundance of anaconda habitat, a long-standing hunting tradition, and a favorable governmental predisposition. formosa (wildlife agency, ministry of production) has the responsibility for establishing and controlling procedures and guidelines for executing the program at the local level. the floodplain of the pilcomayo river in northeastern argentina, locally known as “bañado la estrella,” covers approximately 3,000 km2 and harbors a large population of yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus). this savanna exhibits drastic seasonal changes, from complete flooding in autumn (shown) to almost complete drought in early summer. yellow anacondas take advantage of rodents and concentrations of birds during both periods. to m á s w a ll er operative scheme of the yellow anaconda management program. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 163 164 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 micucci and waller the setting the 72,066-km2 province of formosa lies entirely within the chaco region. for the purpose of our work, we divided the area into two regions: (a) eastern formosa, a 35,000-km2 plain with meandering rivers and creeks, palm savannas, mesic forest patches, and swamps; and (b) la estrella marsh, a 250-km long seasonal floodplain covering nearly 3,000 km2 in the otherwise dry west of the province. this very unstable wetland originates from the pilcomayo riverbed; the original river inundated vast dry woodlands during its progressive regression to the west. large grasslands, palm savannas, and standing dead chaco forest patches, with tree stumps covered with climbing plants (locally called “champales”) during the flood season, combine to form a singular landscape matrix. formosan anaconda populations are comprised mainly of adults. females are larger than males, occasionally reaching a maximum size of 335 cm svl, whereas males rarely exceed 250 cm. average animals are about 180 cm, and very large specimens are uncommon (< 5%). males exhibit larger cloacal spurs than females, allowing the determination of sex even on skins. growth and maturity are quite rapid, with males capable of breeding at 128 cm svl and females at 147 cm, during the third year of life, depending on food availability, genetics, and individual life history traits. courtship lasts from the beginning of september to early november (local spring), and pregnant females are found during the summer months. parturition in formosa occurs from late march to the end of april (local autumn). anacondas reproduce on average every two years, depending on the female’s fat reserves. fecundity is positively correlated with female size, with an overall mean value of 24 offspring per clutch. newborns are large (49 cm svl), very aggressive, and fast growers (waller et al. 2007). anacondas are abundant everywhere in formosa, with the eastern provincial plains providing the most extensive habitat (>6,000 km2 of scattered tropical wetlands) and harboring potentially the largest populations. however, yamp has received particularly strong support from the local communities yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) do not breed every year; however, clutch mass can equal half the weight of a female. here, an individual from san juan poriahu ranch, loreto, corrientes, argentina, is giving birth. d a n ie l g o m ez map of formosa province, argentina, showing the areas with suitable yellow anaconda (eunectes notaeus) habitat. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 164 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 165yellow anacondas in argentina living around la estrella marsh, where a subsistence economy of rural and indigenous people prevails. eastern formosa is more socially complex, with a different land tenure scheme, more jobs, and demanding a different approach. because 90% of the harvest takes place at la estrella marsh (micucci et al. 2006a), most of the analysis and conclusions presented here pertain to that region unless indicated otherwise. harvest control procedures the harvest of yellow anacondas is strictly confined to three elements: hunters, local skin buyers, and exporters. middlemen (sub-local buyers and transporters) are not allowed. in the past, middlemen increased the value of the skins to the detriment of hunters. anaconda collectors are rural and mostly indigenous (pilagá, toba). they rely on livestock breeding, hunting, and fishing. some 250–450 families are involved in anaconda hunting, mostly (80%) from the area surrounding la estrella marsh. the local skin buyer (lsb) also serves as a food supplier or market-man, and can manage the logistics of transporting and stockpiling snake hides. ten to 13 lsbs participate in a harvest, with a mean number of 35 hunters per buyer. according to yamp guidelines, the exchange of goods for skins is forbidden, unless it is at the specific request of an indigenous community. to ensure compliance, at the end of each harvest season, we randomly survey hunters, collecting data on prices and payout modalities. each lsb serves a designated area, defined in the local buyer’s license. if the buyer reaches beyond his area, this could conflict with other lsbs, who will consequently report it to relevant authorities. the infringer could suffer confiscation of his goods, among other penalties. the rationale is to generate a local socio-economic impact, equitably including as many families as possible. during april and may, a series of trips are organized to register and inform lsbs of any modifications to program guidelines. these activities are intended to regulate the hunting effort, although the program places no limit on the number of hunters (in practice they represent a finite number), actual numbers are closely tied to the number of skin buyers for economic and cultural reasons. during the last week of may, and immediately before the beginning of the harvest (june), we notify the lsbs of the skinning pattern to be used in the forthcoming season. in some cases, hides must bear both spurs on one side, in other cases, one on each side. this, in combination with leaving the entire head attached to the skin or not, for instance, allows us to select from a large array of different skinning specifications from one year to the next in order to minimize the incidence of illegal hunting and stockpiling. burn scars on the head of a yellow anaconda from la estrella marshes. the grasslands and dry wetlands are burned during the dry season to facilitate removal of domestic pigs. snakes are sometimes injured or killed. to m á s w a ll er yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) are most vulnerable to collection during the winter when they are cold and leave the water to bask. em il io w h it e patricio micucci (left) and collaborators from the paraguayan cites office measuring yellow anaconda skins seized in asunción, paraguay in 1996. to m á s w a ll er emergent logs and logs covered by climbing plants, locally known as “champas,” are preferred basking sites of eunectes notaeus in la estrella marshes in northeastern argentina. snakes seek these microhabitats during the winter, when water temperatures drop to 15 °c or lower. both males and females need warmer temperatures to complete gonadal cycles before the onset of the mating season in spring. em il io w h it e iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 165 the minimum size of hides is 230 cm from the neck to the anal scale, corresponding to a live specimen measuring approximately 200 cm svl (live svl = 11.71 + 0.66 � skin length + 1.59 � skin width, r2 = 0.93, p < 0.01; micucci et al. 2003). because females mature at an average of 165 cm svl (waller et al. 2007), this precautionary provision is intended to allow anacondas a reproductive opportunity before hunted. the harvest takes place from june to august (local winter), a period when yellow anacondas do not exhibit any reproductive behavior. the cool weather and the wide range of winter temperatures promote thermoregulatory behavior, allowing hunters to find and capture snakes by hand. snakes, depending on program research requirements, are killed in place or transported live to the hunter’s home for data collection. most of the conditions imposed on the hunters are enforced when they bring their skins to the lsbs for sale. skins that do not comply with program standards are worthless. furthermore, lsbs are visited periodically by a representative of the exporters (purchasing agent), a provincial wildlife officer, and a program team member for the purpose of buying skins. anaconda hides are checked for compliance to the year-specific skinning pattern and minimum size guidelines. at this time, skins that conform to program standards are individually tagged for control and future tracking; non-compliant hides are seized and, according to program provisions, destroyed. these visits occur at intervals of about three weeks. these procedures and a gradual decrease in flexibility criteria have reduced the number of undersized skins from 1,109 hides in 2002 to 142 hides in 2006. during the sale, the lsb fills out an “effort form,” a legal document that records the number of skins, the name of the hunter, and the date and place of harvest. this document is needed for the hides to be legally transported within formosa. the contents of the document are crosschecked against the results from periodic hunter surveys. in case of irregularities, a buyer could be penalized by the cancellation of his license. tagged hides obtained through the prescribed process are transported periodically to a warehouse in the city of formosa. the representative of the exporters is the only person authorized to transport anaconda hides. once they arrive, skins are inventoried. at the end of the season, but before leaving the province, hides are sexed (by spurs and bone remnants), measured, and field tags are replaced by export tags that comply with federal regulations. the export tag is required before a cites export permit is issued and the skins can be transported out of the province. wildlife inspectors from formosa, and eventually from the central government, as well as a representative of yamp supervise this procedure. once skins are tagged and all valuable data gathered, the skins are released for distribution among the seven exporters. in order to transport the hides to tanneries or export ports, formosan authorities must issue a transport guide to each exporter. this document is enclosed with the shipment and is required by cites management authorities in order to issue the pertinent cites export permit. harvest sustainability monitoring we monitor the impact of the harvest on anaconda populations through traditional indicators (i.e., capture per unit effort vs. effort, size and sex structure of the harvest). hunting effort is closely checked by means of the aforementioned effort forms, on which basic data are recorded. the model assumes that each batch of skins sold by a hunter to his local buyer (lsb) represents a short and measurable hunting period or event. in case of suspicious data, we compare hunting effort information from hunters among different years to detect possible changes in pattern due to involuntary or intentional errors. for instance, since the lsbs are the only middlemen approved to stockpile skins, an excessive number of skins (above average values) sold by a hunter is considered suspect and is investigated. most of our energy is invested in reducing data errors and uncertainty. for example, since the beginning of the program in 2002, we have been able to reduce uncertainty progressively from about 15% to 5% with regard to the number of hunters that are effectively collecting snakes in a given year. since current uncertainty values are stabilized and are acceptable, we can check and recalculate weak hunting effort estimates from the first year. hunting effort values depend not only on the number of hunters, but also on the time invested in that activity. because we cannot closely monitor the time each of the 350 hunters invests in collecting snakes, we record the gross time (or total days) a lsb and its hunters are operative as a valid approximation of actual time invested. this is easily accomplished since each hunting season is precisely framed by start and end dates: 166 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 micucci and waller table 1. yellow anaconda (eunectes notaeus) harvest monitoring indices for la estrella marsh, formosa. year hunters effort capture cpue2 mean (dh-1) (u.)1 autumn t 2002 305 24,779 3,973 0.14 18.0 °c 2003 303 37,000 3,327 0.08 20.7 °c 2004 313 22,407 4,275 0.15 16.6 °c 2005 301 22,187 3,834 0.12 20.0 °c 2006 213 16,051 2,346 0.11 18.7 °c 1 skins >230 cm 2 see text for cpue estimation an excavation used by hunters in la estrella marshes to keep the snakes alive for biological studies. to m á s w a ll er iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 166 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 167yellow anacondas in argentina (1) the day the skinning pattern is distributed to hunters (harvest opening day), and (2) the day the last skins are retired from a local buyer’s facility (harvest closing day). capture per unit effort (cpue = capture/hunters * total days), the first of our indicators, is calculated at the end of the harvest season. cpue is an affordable and inexpensive estimator of population trends and can be assessed at different spatial scales from local to provincial. from a theoretical perspective, rather than presenting estimates for a specific location or for the entire province, calculating cpue values for an ecologically uniform and delimited area is desirable. from a management perspective, our resolution level should be the management unit (mendez et al. 2007). la estrella marsh, aside from being our main management unit for anacondas in formosa, has a clear landscape homogeneity delimited by definite natural boundaries and exhibits no particular internal barriers to the dispersal of the snakes. annual cpue values for la estrella marsh were calculated from the slope of the “catch versus effort” regression line for each year, using the catch and effort data from the different buying centers (micucci et al. 2007). the effective hunting area (the cumulative territory of all the hunters) encompasses 20,000–30,000 ha of wetlands, depending on number of hunters. if we know the area for which the cpue value has been calculated, we can estimate other demographic parameters, such as anaconda population density (micucci et al. 2006b). to carry out this analysis, we made several assumptions that render the estimate very preliminary and without statistical significance, but nevertheless of great utility in providing an idea of abundance. for instance, we considered that a hunter always follows the same trail, which we know is not entirely true. however, we also assumed that collecting areas do not overlap among hunters, and again this is not realistic, although it compensates for errors caused by the previous assumption. we assumed that all anacondas are removed in a given year or season within a hunter’s territory, which could not possibly be true, given the striking landscape complexity and current rudimentary methods of hunting. consequently, density values are presumed to be greatly underestimated. a calculated density value for yellow anacondas of approximately 30–60/km2 of wetland is consistent with our subjective perceptions of abundance based on years of field observations. cpue values for the first five years of harvest show an oscillating system tightly related to late autumn average temperatures table 2. yellow anaconda (eunectes notaeus) density at la estrella marsh compared to other large snakes for which data are available. snake species s/km2 locality and source python regius 234 southern ghana, africa (gorzula et al. 1997) naja melanoleuca 212 reserva natural abuko, gambia, africa (starin and burghardt 1992) dendroaspis viridis 120 reserva natural abuko, gambia, africa (starin and burghardt 1992) python sebae 67 reserva natural abuko, gambia, africa (starin and burghardt 1992) eunectes notaeus 30–60 this article bitis arietans 42 reserva natural abuko, gambia, africa (starin and burghardt 1992) eunectes murinus 36 hato el catedral, venezuela (rivas 1999) a yellow anaconda skin nailed to the soil with palm spines, which are used for this purpose in eastern formosa. in la estrella marshes, spines from a local bush (prosopis ruscifolia) are used for the same purpose. to m á s w a ll er the button marks used to identify skins prior to export (ar: argentina, ya: yellow anaconda, and the number). to m á s w a ll er a hunter extracting prosopis ruscifolia spines for use as “nails” to stretch skins. to m á s w a ll er iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 167 (may–june). the harvest takes place mostly during the cool winter (june–august), when anacondas need to bask to raise their body temperatures. in this sense, the relationship between cpue and temperature is an expression of vulnerability: when autumn temperatures are high, fewer anacondas will bask and cpue values in the subsequent season are expected to diminish. a predictive model between cpue and average autumn temperatures was inferred by calculating the following linear regression: cpue = -0.015 � t ºcmeanm,j + 0.40 (r2: 0.78; micucci et al. 2007).. appraisals of harvest intensity are derived from yield curves, analyzing capture volumes in relation to applied effort. these curves can be obtained from effort and cpue data but, for this to be accurate and have some predictive value, large temporal series are needed in order to deduce the maximum sustainable yield. our data do not represent a large temporal series (only five years); thus they do not yet exhibit the broad diversity of effort values needed to present conclusive results for a particular surplus-yield model. total capture values are certainly useless to predict population trends if they are not considered in relation to hunting effort. while reductions in capture volumes should catch our attention, data misinterpretation could lead to incorrect conclusions. because the rationale of sustained yield models implies that a harvest represents a specific proportion of the total population, a reduction of the crop would be expected, for instance, in the case of a population decline caused by natural conditions (i.e., drought, fires), but this does not mean over-harvesting in that year (caughley and sinclair 1994). as temperatures play a significant role in anaconda vulnerability, captures will vary from year to year. actual harvest monitoring also takes into consideration the significant correlation between number of hunters and gross capture. more hunters usually implies more effort, more capture, and vice versa: gross capture = 17 � hunters – 1.280 (r2: 0.97) (micucci et al. 2007). 2006, for example, was a “bad” year for captures because of the low number of hunters, which meant that the effort for that year diminished in relation to previous harvest seasons. in this sense, a gradual but permanent drop in the number of hunters has not influenced cpue values in a significant manner (table 1). this drop was in response to an increased demand for labor and an indiscriminate distribution of unemployment benefits to hunters and their families since 2003. in other words, if yamp does not increase skin prices in order to compensate for currency depreciation (as we are constantly striving to do), the system tends to stabilize in such a way that exporters’ actual profits are in consonance with actual structure. if exporters are reluctant to increase skin price as a means of avoiding hunter desertion, evidence strongly suggests that, in this effort-mediated system, a commercial collapse will precede the biological collapse of the resource. although a substantial reduction in active hunters inevitably leads to a drop in gross capture, the time variable is also a significant component for estimating hunting effort. the difference between hunters and effort is the sum of gross time invested by each local buyer. this is evident from the capture and cpue values for 2003. the harvest season was extended for two weeks due to exceptionally warm conditions, and, with the same number of hunters compared to other seasons (2002 and 2005), both capture and cpue diminished. in this way, we deduced a preliminary maximum sustained yield (msy) value for la estrella marsh of about 4,350 hides, with an ideal effort of approximately 28,000 dh-1. monitoring sustainability must assess the evolution of the sex ratio of the harvested population. both sexes, due to low temperatures, are equally vulnerable to capture (waller et al. 2007). however, because females attain larger size than males, the established size limit (> 200 cm svl) was expected to result in the harvest of more females than males, presumably in a fairly constant and predictable proportion. consequently, the actual harvest sex ratio (ca. 75% females) reflects only the established minimum size limit. the harvest sex ratio was relatively 168 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 micucci and waller to m á s w a ll er drying yellow anaconda skins “nailed” to the dry chaco soil using spines of a local bush (prosopis ruscifolia). to m á s w a ll er the yellow anaconda management program observed yield curve. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 168 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 169yellow anacondas in argentina similar season after season, with only a small increase in females in later years. we consider this increase a mathematical artifact. eight percent of the skins in the first two years were classed as “unknown” sex. subsequently, sex determination became much more accurate by also examining the attached limb bone remnants rather than just the spurs, and the undetermined proportion of skins diminished to 1.3%, although the proportion of females increased, whereas the proportion of males remained constant. prior to the introduction of the sustainable use program, anaconda exploitation was not permitted and illegal hunting took place with total disregard of size. according to traders and local dealers, formosa’s annual production was approximately 20,000 skins with widths > 15 cm (micucci et al. 2002, 2006a). this hide width, according to our data, would correspond to a skin length of 150 cm and a live anaconda of about 135 cm svl (micucci et al. 2002). many of the 500 or so seized paraguayan skins that we measured confirmed that the minimum size of skins taken during illegal harvests were of that size. that translates to practically all (90%) anacondas of either sex older than 1.5 years of age (waller et al. 2007) being vulnerable during that market-driven hunting period. that current harvest policy has been able to substantially reduce female hunting, both in terms of juveniles and adults, is indisputable. current production, without mediation of quotas, represents a management-derived reduction of harvest to a quarter of formosa’s historical values (5,000 vs. 20,000 skins), and a 40% reduction of female vulnerability to hunting. so, the program has been very conservative in establishing a minimum size limit despite the fact that, upon initial consideration, it appears to promote the hunting of females. what ultimately matters, however, is the overall number, not the proportion of females. if our harvest represents 5% of the total population, a crop that is 75% female equates to an overall female extraction of 3.75%, which is sustainable. hunters do not seek anacondas of specific sizes, but collect serendipitously the snakes available in a given area (waller et al. 2007). during the first years of the program (2002–2003), different prices were paid for skins of three different size classes (230–290 cm, 291–390 cm, > 391 cm), stemming from industry traditions aimed at promoting the harvest of larger snakes. we were aware that such guidelines were unlikely to produce the desired results for traders. in fact, in 2002 and 2003, instead of encouraging the harvest of large animals, this approach promoted the hunting of undersized snakes and severe skin deformation attributable to hunters stretching skins. importers complained because stretched skins would inevitably shrink considerably when tanned. in 2004, we established a single price and demanded that all anaconda hides conform to a standard represented by the effects of skin minimum size limits on female anaconda harvest: (a) natural size distribution of anaconda populations in formosa, females in black (waller et al. 2007); (b) expected proportion of females in the harvest at different size cut-off limits; (c) proportion of potentially harvestable females in a natural population at different size cut-off limits. table 3. main parameters for yellow anaconda (eunectes notaeus) skins harvested at la estrella marsh, formosa. year 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 average skin length (cm)1 271 268 264 263 263 number of skins < 230 cm 1,109 1,075 420 343 142 � coefficient2 -4.0% -5.5% -0.4% +1.2% +0.4% females (%) 70.5 69.9 75.8 75.4 76.3 males (%) 21.3 22.1 20.7 23.1 22.4 unknown sex (%) 8.2% 8 % 3.5% 1.5% 1.3% 1 average size of hides >230 cm after correcting for deformation (see text). 2 skin deformation coefficient (see text for explanation). iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 169 equation: skin width at midbody = 0.10 � skin length. in order to correct hides for hunter-induced deformation and be able to perform demographically sound interpretations of population structure for any year, we developed the following formula to convert rough skin length values to corrected skin length values: skin lengthc = (skin length + (skin width � 10))/2. this formula assumes (due to the cross pattern of skin fibers) that, for any increment in one dimension, a reduction in the other will compensate. to control for skin deformation, we also devised a stretching coefficient that permits us to determine the degree of bias (%) of a harvested skin (uncorrected length) from its “real” (corrected length) shape. when we compared sizes of harvested skins corrected for length, we found no significant difference in population size structures for prior years that may have been attributable to the stratified price scheme, confirming our views on the stochastic nature of hunting. if a population is overexploited, we would expect to see a reduction in the average size of skins harvested. instead, we see an oscillating pattern, partly attributable to changes in the skinning guidelines since 2004 and to a progressive reduction of small skins due to the imposition of intensive controls. because no significant consistent reduction in the average size of snakes (i.e., skins) has been noted (micucci et al. 2007), we suggest that current harvest guidelines are appropriate for continued sustainable management of the anaconda populations. harvest economics the economic structure of yamp includes government (federal and provincial), exporters (7), hunters (about 350), local buyers (10–13), and the ngo in charge of the technical program. the government sector receives the smallest portion (4.2%) of partitioned benefits. in fact, the government delegates the administration of the program to an ngo in order to encourage prompt and direct allocation of funds for research and monitoring (14.8%). hunters and local buyers collectively earn 13.3%, but three-fourths of this amount goes into hunters’ pockets. consequently, about one-third of the international value of a skin remains in the region. although actual earnings at the local community level represent a three-fold increase over prices paid by illegal traders just a few years ago, we strongly encourage higher prices to enhance the local allocation of benefits. conclusions the yellow anaconda management program has been in operation for five years. aside from the beneficial local economic impact, it has generated intense research on aspects of the species’ biology (waller et al. 2007) and population genetics (mendez et al. 2007). the conservation biology of this species had been completely ignored until the establishment of yamp, and ongoing results are being incorporated into the model to reduce uncertainty levels. no discernible negative, harvest-related population trend has been detected. cpue values, as well as the descriptive sta170 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 micucci and waller size distribution of a shipment of yellow anaconda skins that were seized and measured in 1996 in asunción, paraguay (n = 539). table 4. yellow anaconda management program benefit partitioning (based on a us $50 skin price). stakeholder us $ % provincial and export taxes 2.1 4.2 program running costs (ngo) 7.4 14.8 hunters and local buyers 6.7 13.3 stockpiling logistic expenses 3.1 6.2 total expenses per skin 19.3 38.5 exporters income 30.7 61.5 size distributions of skins harvested from 2002–2006 (columns in order). only skins above 230 cm are included. hide sizes are corrected for intentional stretching (see text). the cloacal region of a yellow anaconda skin with spurs (insert) that allow sexing of the skin (in this case, a male). to m á s w a ll er iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 170 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 171yellow anacondas in argentina tistics for harvested skins, exhibit an oscillating but safe pattern of variation. cpue values responded in direct relation to environmental factors that affect anaconda vulnerability (i.e., autumn temperatures). observed differences in average skin size or sex ratio during this period relate to changes in the skinning guidelines and sexing procedures since 2004, and to an improvement in the control of undersized hides. yield is determined by the number of active hunters, showing that controlling effort is a viable method of monitoring and limiting the harvest. the program impacts about 20–30 thousand ha of wetlands, representing 2–3% of suitable habitat available in formosa, which is relatively insignificant if we consider the species’ total distribution. assuming that current controls are maintained, the sustainable management of formosa’s anaconda populations is possible. the tools applied to control and monitor for harvest sustainability have been effective, and could be replicated in other developing nations with marketable wildlife resources at a very low cost. considering the economic constraints that developing countries face in implementing sound wildlife management practices, our experiences are encouraging. wildlife management must consider sociology, economics, and a generous dose of psychology in addition to biology (webb 2002). in this broader context, whether the management procedures presented herein are optimal and the methods by which yellow anacondas can be successfully managed for the longterm benefit of local communities are appropriate questions that will require more than five seasons to be answered. acknowledgements we express our deep thanks to victoria lichtschein (biodiversity national coordination agency), obdulio menghi and guillermo a. puccio (fundación biodiversidad) for their constant support throughout the years; to carlos a. micucci for his help with data management; also to current and past program team members: ernesto alvarenga, emilio buongermini, emilio white, and martín mendez; and to juan carlos orozco (wildlife agency director) and luis basterra (ministry of production) in formosa for trusting in us. literature cited callicot, j.b. 1986. on the intrinsic value of nonhuman species, pp. 138–172. in: b.g. norton (ed.), the preservation of species, the value of biological diversity. princeton university press, princeton, new jersey. caughley, g. and a.r.e. sinclair. 1994. wildlife ecology and management. blackwell scientific publications, boston, massachusetts. dirksen, l. 2002. anakondas. monographische revision der gattung eunectes wagler, 1830 (serpentes, boidae). natur und tier-verlag, münster. dodd, c.k., jr. 1993. strategies for snake conservation, pp. 363–393. in: r.a. seigel and j.t. collins (eds.), snakes: ecology and behavior. mcgraw hill, new york. fox, w.w. 1970. an exponential surplus-yield model for optimizing exploited fish populations. transactions of the american fisheries society 1: 80–88. gorzula, s., w.o. nsiah, and w. oduro. 1997. survey of the status and management of the royal python (python regius) in ghana. unpublished report, cites secretariat, gland, switzerland. gruss, j.x. and t. waller. 1988. diagnóstico y recomendaciones sobre la administración de recursos silvestres en argentina: la década reciente. traffic sudamérica, wwf, secretaría cites, buenos aires, argentina. henderson, r.w, t. waller, p.a. micucci, g. puorto, and r.w. burgeois. 1995. ecological correlates and patterns in the distribution of neotropical boines (serpentes: boidae): a preliminary assessment. herpetological natural history 3: 15–27. holling, c.s. 1978. adaptive environmental assessment and management. j. wiley & sons, london. jenkins, m. and s. broad. 1994. international trade in reptile skins. a review and analysis of the main consumer markets, 1983–1991. a traffic network report, traffic international, cambridge, united kingdom. mendez, m., t. waller, p.a. micucci, e. alvarenga, and j.c. morales. 2007. genetic population structure of the yellow anaconda (eunectes notaeus) in northern argentina: management implications, pp. 405–415. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), biology of the boas and pythons. eagle mountain publishing lc, eagle mountain, utah. micucci, p.a., t. waller, and e. alvarenga. 2006a. programa curiyú. para la conservación y aprovechamiento sustentable de la boa curiyú (eunectes notaeus) en la argentina. etapa experimental piloto 2002–2004, formosa, pp. 77–92. in: m.l. bolkovic and d. ramadori (eds.), manejo de fauna silvestre en la argentina. programas de uso sustentable. dirección de fauna silvestre, secretaría de ambiente y desarrollo sustentable, buenos aires, argentina. micucci, p.a., t. waller, and e. buongermini p. 2002. programa para la conservación y aprovechamiento sustentable de la boa curiyú (eunectes notaeus) en argentina. estudio de prefactibilidad. ). informe técnico # 1. unpublished report, fundación biodiversidad argentina, buenos aires. micucci, p.a., t. waller, e. alvarenga, and g.e. lerea. 2006b. programa para la conservación y aprovechamiento sustentable de la boa curiyú (eunectes notaeus) en argentina. formosa. informe técnico # 4 (2005). unpublished report, fundación biodiversidad argentina, buenos aires. micucci, p.a., t. waller, e. alvarenga, and g.e. lerea. 2007. programa para la conservación y aprovechamiento sustentable de la boa curiyú (eunectes notaeus) en argentina. formosa. informe técnico zafra 2006. unpublished report, fundación biodiversidad argentina, buenos aires. micucci, p.a., t. waller, e. white, and e. alvarenga. 2003. programa para la conservación y aprovechamiento sustentable de la boa curiyú (eunectes notaeus) en argentina. etapa experimental piloto. año i (2002). formosa. informe técnico # 2. unpublished report, fundación biodiversidad argentina, buenos aires. rivas, j. 2007. conservation of green anacondas: how tylenol conservation and macroeconomics threaten the survival of the world’s largest snake. iguana 14: 74–85. schaefer, m.b. 1954. some aspects of the dynamics of populations important to the management of the commercial marine fisheries. bulletin of the inter-american tropical tuna commission 1(2): 27–56. scott, n. j. (jr.) and r. a. seigel. 1992. the management of amphibian and reptile populations: species priorities and methodological and theoretical constraints, pp. 343–368. in: d.r. mccullough and r.h. barrett (eds.), wildlife 2001: populations. elsevier science publishers ltd., oxford, united kingdom. shine, r., p.s. harlow, ambariyanto, boeadi, mumpuni, and j.s. keogh. 1998. monitoring monitors: a biological perspective on the commercial harvesting of indonesian reptiles. mertensiella 9: 61–68. singer, p. 1976. animal liberation. avon books, new york. waller, t., p. a. micucci, and e. alvarenga. 2007. conservation biology of the yellow anaconda (eunectes notaeus) in northeastern argentina, pp. 340–363. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), biology of the boas and pythons. eagle mountain publishing lc, eagle mountain, utah. webb, g. 2002. conservation and sustainable use of wildlife: an evolving concept. pacific conservation biology 8: 12–26. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 171 iguana b&w text 272 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 perry, powell, and watson puerto rican bank endemic species like this saddled anole (anolis stratulus) are found on nearly all of the islands in the region. however, transporting even native species from island to island may dilute unique gene pools that have evolved on individual islands that have been separated for thousands of years. r o b er t po w el l only habitat loss is a bigger threat to native species than invasive species, which are found in increasing numbers in both terrestrial and aquatic habitats and cause over $100 billion in estimated economic damage every year in the united states alone (pimentel et al. 2000). such species often arrive via the transportation network (reviewed in ruiz and carlton 2003), whether voluntarily (intentional introductions) or involuntarily (accidental immigrants). that has been the case of the cuban treefrog (ctf), osteopilus septentrionalis, which has been spreading in the caribbean, primarily as a stowaway in ornamental plants and construction materials (e.g., townsend et al. 2000, powell et al. 2005, powell 2006). in recent years, one of us has documented its ongoing expansion in the british virgin islands (bvi), where it is now known from breeding populations on tortola, virgin gorda, beef island, and peter island (owen et al. 2005, 2006). single individuals have been documented on necker island and guana island, but searches of both in 2006 revealed no breeding populations, adults, or tadpoles. this frog is of concern for several reasons: it appears to cause the decline of native frogs, at least partially by direct predation; it also feeds on lizards, snakes, birds, and — primarily — invertebrates. in addition, it invades the water cisterns that are the main source of drinking water for many bvi residents, raising human health concerns. even before the collection of a ctf on guana island, a private wildlife preserve, the owners and management have been committed to keeping these frogs off the island. over the years, they have fumigated plants and construction materials with vehicle exhaust, but the frogs appear remarkably resistant to long exposures to the toxic fumes, and this practice has been stopped. nursery staff is supposed to inspect all plants for frogs before loading. in addition, all arriving nursery and construction materials are individually inspected before they are allowed onto the island. so far, these searches have resulted in the capture and destruction of three ctfs, two in a single shipment in 2005 (s. western, pers. comm.) and one in 2004 (h. watson, unpublished). here, we report on one such search. on 12 october 2006, the barge deriece-w, normally based on beef island, delivered over 220 potted plants to guana island: ficus microcarpa, clusia guttifera, bougainvillea “helen johnson,” pandanus utilis, jatropha integerrima, suriana maritima (bay cedar), and coccoloba uvifera (seagrape). as with many ornamental plants used throughout the caribbean, they originated in florida, usa, which is inundated with invasive reptiles and amphibians (e.g., meshaka et al. 2004). prior to being loaded on the barge, plants were housed at minine’s plants, a nursery on beef island that is heavily infested with ctfs (owen, 2005). some of the material (clusia and jatropha) had arrived from florida 10 days previously, while other plants had been on beef island for up to 18 months. in addition to the plants, the barge carried soil and several vehicles, including a truck loaded with additional plants. thus, we were concerned about both frogs (either arriving directly from florida or acquired at the nursery) and other organisms that might have arrived from either location. one species of particular concern was the brown anole, anolis sagrei, which also has invaded florida and is spreading in the caribbean (e.g., greene et al. 2002, henderson and powell 2005), often to the detriment of native species (kolbe et al. 2004). so far, it has not been found in the bvi. the search was conducted by a team of eight, including the authors, and lasted approximately one hour. each plant was individually searched, with both foliage and soil being sifted for invasive organisms. those found were recorded and removed. we removed from the plants inspected five juvenile anoles, later identified as the native crested anole (anolis cristatellus), keeping invasive species off guana island, british virgin islands gad perry1, robert powell2, and howard watson3 1 department of natural resource management, texas tech university, box 42125, lubbock, texas 79409-2125, usa (email: gad.perry@ttu.edu). 2 department of biology, avila university, kansas city, missouri 64145, usa. 3 guana island, british virgin islands. iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 273invasive species on guana island � b r ia n w h it e a cuban treefrog (osteopilus septentrionalis) on an ornamental plant at the beef island nursery. 274 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 perry, powell, and watson a cistern on beef island, the source of water for a household, is teeming with dozens of cuban treefrogs (osteopilus septentrionalis). b r ia n w h it e guana island, like the many other islands of various sizes that comprise the british virgin islands, is separated from other islands only by short distances across intervening channels. as part of the greater puerto rico bank, these islands were once connected when sea levels were much lower than today. at least those populations of plants and animals with limited abilities to disperse across water have evolved separately on individual islands, and efforts should be made to avoid diluting potentially unique gene pools by transferring even common species from island to island. r o b er t po w el l iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 275invasive species on guana island and sighted at least one other that was not recovered. in the soil of the planters, we collected one dwarf gecko, later identified as a native sphaerodactylus macrolepis. in addition, we recovered one immature spider (an unidentified member of the genus selenops; catalog number ttu-z 31,098) and three individual snails, zachrysia provisoria (mcz 356974). this species originates in cuba, but has been reported in florida and elsewhere in the caribbean, including the u.s. virgin islands (a. baldinger, pers. comm.; kraus 2005). the soil in two pots contained nests of the imported red fire ant (solenopsis invicta), and had to be fumigated. this species is not listed among those the barge, with its gate down, is ready to disgorge its load of plants and soil on guana island. g a d p er r y the cuban brown anole (anolis sagrei) is an aggressive invader originating in cuba. these lizards thrive in habitats altered by human activity. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . g a d p er r y james lazell and howard watson inspecting the leaf axils of pandanus utilis for stowaways. located by miller (1994), who searched a similar barge at the same location, but looked for invertebrates. in addition to these cargo-related species, we recovered two juvenile ground lizards, later identified as the native ameiva exsul, which appeared to have been resident on the barge. when chased, the lizards behaved in a manner we have never previously encountered or seen described. both lizards used a drain hole on the edge of the deck to launch themselves into the sea, about 3 meters below. once in the water, they swam as a crocodile or marine iguana would, tucking their limbs against their bodies and undulating the body and tail. swimming occurred both under and on the surface of the water and lasted about 1 minute in each case. the lizards then swam back to the boat and climbed up its side. this ability may help explain why ground lizards are found on so many islands. we are happy to report that the owners of guana island, in keeping with their longterm policy of protecting the island, have now decided to suspend such shipments. none of the reptiles collected were invasives, nor were ctfs found during our search, but some of the invertebrates collected were, similar to the findings of miller (1994). both the number of organisms discovered on this barge and their diversity is alarming for two reasons. first, they indicate that a broad range of organisms can and is transported in such shipments, which are not uncommon. in the last few years, guana island, which is not a major consumer of nursery plants, typically received 2–3 shipments of similar magnitude a year, as well as several smaller ones (h. watson, unpublished). the potential for arrival of invasive species, such as the fire ants (already established on guana) or ctf (which has not been noted this year, despite repeated surveys of all freshwater locations on the island) is alarmingly high. second, transporting native species between 276 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 perry, powell, and watson r o b er t po w el l this dwarf gecko, sphaerodactylus macrolepis, is common in the british virgin islands. g a d p er r y a juvenile crested anole (anolis cristatellus) on a nursery plant on top of a truck loaded on the barge. the animal escaped before it could be captured. iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 277invasive species on guana island islands is not a benign activity. it swamps local genetic specializations that have evolved after the islands separated, leaving populations less well-adapted to local conditions. for example, water loss rates vary among islands in a manner related to their aridity (dmi’el et al. 1997), and this variation has at least some genetic basis (perry et al. 2000). bringing in foreign genetic material could make an island population less capable of surviving a drought. in addition, such translocations make research into the biological history of the islands much more difficult. for example, an ongoing study of the genetic differences among crested anole populations and their relationship to other biogeographic patterns would be severely hampered if animals are regularly transported among islands. bvi law offers little guidance about inspecting and sanitizing shipments arriving from other locations, such as florida. we support the recommendation of perry and gerber (2006) that additional measures are needed to prevent the arrival of invasive species and eradicate those already in the bvi. in addition, however, we also recommend that internal biosecurity measures be established to reduce the risk of native species being accidentally moved among islands. such measures are clearly needed to reduce the spread of invasives already found in the bvi, such as the fire ant or ctf, to new locations. we are not aware of such regulations being in effect in any island-based nation. attempts at quarantines of mainland invasives, such as the fire ant in the usa, often have failed because the volume of transport is high and inspection is lax, but the isolation provided by an islandbased system offers some hope of success. acknowledgements we thank b. best, c. boal, j. lazell, s. valentine, and t. willard for assistance in inspecting the cargo, and j. cokendolpher and a. baldinger for identifying the invertebrates. financial support for this work was provided by the conservation agency through a grant from the falconwood foundation. this is manuscript t-9-1117 of the college of agricultural sciences and natural resources, texas tech university. references dmi’el, r., g. perry, and j. lazell. 1997. evaporative water loss in nine insular lizard populations of the anolis cristatellus group in the british virgin islands. biotropica 29:111–116. greene, b.t., d.t. yorks, j.s. parmerlee, jr., r. powell, and r.w. henderson. 2002. discovery of anolis sagrei in grenada with comments on its potential impact on native anoles. caribbean journal of science 38:270–272. henderson, r.w. and r. powell. 2005. geographic distribution: anolis sagrei. herpetological review 36:467. kolbe, j.j., r.e. glor, l. rodríguez schettino, a.c. lara, a. larson, and j.b. losos. 2004. genetic variation increases during biological invasion by a cuban lizard. nature 431:177–181. kraus, f. 2005. the land snails, pp. 247–249. in: j. lazell (ed.), island: fact and theory in nature. university of california press, berkeley. meshaka, w.e., jr., b.p. butterfield, and j.b hauge. 2004. exotic amphibians and reptiles of florida. krieger publishing company, melbourne, florida. miller, s.e. 1994. dispersal of plant pests into the virgin islands. florida entomologist 77:520–521. owen, j. 2005. the cuban tree frog: distribution, diet, and reproduction of an invasive species in the bvi. unpublished m.s. thesis, texas tech university, lubbock. owen, j., g. perry, j. lazell, and j. egelhoff. 2005. osteopilus septentrionalis (cuban tree frog). distribution. herpetological review 36:76. owen, j., g. perry, j. lazell, c. petrovic, and j. egelhoff. 2006. osteopilus septentrionalis (cuban tree frog). colonization of the british virgin islands. herpetological review 37:74–75. perry, g., r. dmi’el, and j. lazell. 2000. evaporative water loss in insular populations of anolis cristatellus (reptilia: sauria) in the british virgin islands iii: a common garden experiment. biotropica 32:722–728. perry, g. and g.p. gerber. 2006. conservation of amphibians and reptiles in the british virgin islands: status and patterns. applied herpetology 3:237–256. pimentel, d., l. lach, r. zuniga, and d. morrison. 2000. environmental and economic costs associated with non-indigenous species in the united states. bioscience 50:53–65. powell, r. 2006. conservation of the herpetofauna on the dutch windward islands: st. eustatius, saba, and st. maarten. applied herpetology 3:293–306. powell, r., r.w. henderson, and j.s. parmerlee, jr. 2005. reptiles and amphibians of the dutch caribbean: st. eustatius, saba, and st. maarten. st. eustatius national parks foundation, gallows bay, st. eustatius, netherlands antilles. ruiz, g.m. and j.t carlton. 2003. invasion vectors: a conceptual framework for management, pp. 459–504. in: g. m. ruiz and j.t. carlton (eds.), invasive species: vectors and management strategies. island press, washington. townsend, j.h., j.m. eaton, r. powell, j.s. parmerlee, jr., and r.w. henderson. 2000. cuban treefrogs (osteopilus septentrionalis) in anguilla, lesser antilles. caribbean journal of science 36:326–328. g a d p er r y ameiva exsul swimming in the sea after leaping from the deck of the barge. g a d p er r y one of two juvenile ground lizards (ameiva exsul) encountered on the barge. iguana b&w text 190 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 kapfer bullsnakes (pituophis catenifer sayi) are arguably the most impressive snakes in the upper midwestern united states. when herpetologists weigh their options for new study locales, the upper midwestern united states (umus) does not leap to mind. this is particularly true of wisconsin, which might evoke visions of holstein cattle and knee-high snow for six months out of the year. to those who were born in warm climates, the “badger state” might as well be the north pole — certainly not a destination for herpetofaunal research. also for this reason, graduate students in herpetology searching for tiny bits of space or funding to eke out an academic existence do not first cast their eyes northward. in addition to the cold, they perceive a lack of herpetofaunal diversity, which is true when compared to the tropics. however, the umus has a nice number of native species (i like to say a “manageable” number1), about many of which surprisingly little is known. couple this with the fact that, for many of these species, the umus represents the periphery of their geographic distributions and an intersection of various habitat communities, interesting research questions start coming to mind. therefore, conducting herpetological research in the umus (or, specifically, wisconsin) can be a rewarding endeavor for those who pursue it. snakes are the most speciose group in this region, with slightly over 20 native species occurring here. of these, the subfamily colubrinae is largest, represented by six species: smooth greensnakes (opheodrys vernalis), racers (coluber constrictor), eastern milksnakes (lampropeltis triangulum triangulum), western foxsnakes (pantherophis vulpinus), gray ratsnakes (pantherophis spiloides), and bullsnakes (pituophis catenifer sayi). among the true constrictors in this sub-family, bullsnakes are arguably the most impressive in stature, often exceeding 5 ft (~150 cm) in snout-to-vent length (but i’ve received unconfirmed reports of 8 ft, or 240+ cm, individuals in wisconsin). while this may not sound impressive to those who are fortunate enough to study boas and pythons, in a region where people mostly encounter gartersnakes that are less than a foot (~30 cm) in length, a five-foot plus snake is impressive. the distribution of the bullsnake in north america once was vast. in fact, members of the genus pituophis have a historic range that covers much of the united states, from the eastern to western coasts, north into canada, and south into mexico. bullsnakes are the most widely distributed species within this group, and their range encompasses most of the great plains region and a portion of the midwest. the great plains region once was dominated by prairies and grasslands, and this habitat has become synonymous with bullsnakes and gophersnakes. much of this habitat has been converted to agriculture since the time of european settlement, and, because of this, bullsnakes now are most often associated with agriculture and the rural landscapes where they persist. in fact, the bullsnake is often referred to as a “friend of the farmer” because of the voracity with which it consumes rodents. as early as 1926, hisaw and chasing bullsnakes (pituophis catenifer sayi) in wisconsin: on the road to understanding the ecology and conservation of the midwest’s giant serpent joshua m. kapfer senior environmental scientist and wildlife biologist natural resources consulting, inc. 209 commerce parkway cottage grove, wi 53527 photographs by the author except the facing page and where indicated. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 191bullsnakes in wisconsin � a map outlining habitat types available to radio-tagged bullsnakes within the author’s southwestern wisconsin (usa) study area from 2003 to 2005 (permission to use copyrighted material granted by the american society of ichthyologists and herpetologists). 1 wisconsin has 22 species of snakes, 11 species of turtles, four species of lizards, and 19 species of frogs, toads, and salamanders. gloyd reported on this species’ ability to control “injurious” rodents and, more recently, rodríguez-robles (2002) reported that mammals such as pocket gophers, mice, and ground squirrels make up 75% of the diet. unfortunately, this association with agricultural habitats often leads to mortality, as bullsnakes spending an appreciable amount of time in agricultural fields often are killed inadvertently by farm equipment (see below and kapfer et al. 2008a). despite their nearly pan-geographic distribution in north america, their importance in rodent control, and reported declines in several midwestern states, relatively little research has been conducted on members of this genus. although some studies have focused on habitat selection and movement patterns of great basin gophersnakes in utah, california, and british columbia (parker and brown 1980, shewchuk 1996, rodríguez-robles 2003) and the northern pinesnake in tennessee and florida (gerald et al. 2006a, 2006b; burger and zappalorti 1998), the bullsnake has received less attention. until recently, the most thorough research on habitat associations and movements of this species had been conducted by fitch (1999), who spent 50 years studying an entire snake assemblage in kansas, and an unpublished report from nebraska by fox (1986), whose goal was to control snakes that were eating waterfowl eggs on a wildlife refuge. with the exception of moriarty and linck (1998), no studies of their ecology in the midwest had been conducted. although interesting, this study focused on the movement patterns of transplanted bullsnakes that had been re-introduced into a recreated prairie, and the results may not be indicative of natural populations. in wisconsin, bullsnakes are known primarily from disjunct populations in the southern and western parts of the state. many factors are believed to have contributed to the decline of this species in the umus. likely explanations include loss of preferred habitat via conversion to agriculture or encroachment of woody vegetation and mortality due to anthropogenic causes. only a handful of bullsnake sites in wisconsin are found on public land, to which access for research is easily granted. few of these sites control vegetative succession (invasion of grasslands by woody vegetation resulting from fire suppression), and the persistence of bullsnake populations at such locations remains uncertain. this, coupled with their rarity in the state, makes them a difficult species to study if one hopes to achieve the large sample sizes necessary for conclusive results. the evolution of a graduate student project in 2002, my master’s research at the university of wisconsin-la crosse was drawing to a close. at that time, i remember becoming intensely interested in the colubrine snakes of wisconsin. prior to that, i had focused my attention on the survival of tadpoles in agricultural ponds. however, even while collecting data for that research, i recall spending a substantial amount of time digging through piles of debris and flipping cover-boards in hopes of finding a snake or two at my study sites. although i had enjoyed my research on frogs, my interests obviously were shifting. soon, i was scouring literature databases for published information on colubrine snakes in the upper midwest … and finding very little beyond what was contained in field guides. clearly, this was the avenue i wanted to pursue as a researcher. most snakes in this group were interesting ecologically, research on them was uncharted territory in the umus, and, most importantly, they were big constrictors (and big equals more fun in my book). of species native to the region, the biggest (and therefore, likely to be the most fun to research) was the bullsnake. looking back, i realize that i had been fortunate as a graduate student. i wanted to conduct research on bullsnakes, but that was only half the battle. i needed a home at a university, a graduate advisor, and funding (for my research and to pay my bills). luckily, i was able to convince dr. james coggins at the university of wisconsin-milwaukee that, although he was a parasitologist by trade, he really needed to take on a wannabe herpetologist as a grad student. i also had the support of the wisconsin department of natural resources, bureau of endangered resources herpetologist bob hay (an outstanding field herpetologist), who proved a source of excellent advice on countless occasions. in addition, dr. erik wild, a herpetologist i had known for several years from the university of wisconsinstevens point, agreed to be an adjunct member of my graduate committee, for which i am forever grateful. had these three individuals not been willing to be a part of my research, it would not have happened. on the downside, i would have to conduct my research on a very tight budget. i was able to acquire small grants that covered transmitters and implantation, pit tags, and a gps 192 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 kapfer this male bullsnake was the first snake captured and implanted with a transmitter. this bullsnake was the only female that survived all three years of radio-telemetry research. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 193bullsnakes in wisconsin unit. the rest was borrowed or out-of-pocket, but i didn’t care — i was going to conduct research. in the spring of 2003, i began work in southwestern wisconsin, an area associated with the “lower wisconsin river valley.” at the time, i decided that radio-telemetry, a well-established method for studies of snake ecology, would be employed to track snakes for three years. prior to this research, i had been involved in a usgs radio-telemetry study on leopard frogs (lithobates pipiens) in minnesota, and had learned the subtleties of using the technology, which seemed (and still seems) to be the best possible option for elucidating detailed information about the habitat selection and movement of such secretive critters. with help, by april of ’03 i had found a site likely to yield enough snakes to make good use of the transmitters i could afford (approximately 20). the first day of fieldwork was quite an experience. bob (hay) and i went to the study site in late april, hoping that the snakes had started to emerge from hibernation. we began walking across the prairie on a cloudy day and after only 15 or 20 minutes, i heard bob say, “there’s one, right there!” sure enough, moving across the edge of a sandblow was a beautiful male bullsnake. we were both pretty excited. those who study amphibians and reptiles know that you can spend hours or days searching for some species and not find a single individual. with our first snake in the bag, we split up. i went west, scouring brushy hillsides, and bob went straight ahead, toward a more open hillside. as i worked over the slope, i occasionally glanced over at bob to see if he was having any luck, but never got the feeling that he was finding anything. “that’s alright,” i remember thinking to myself, “if i can catch one snake every time i come out here, i’ll still have a decent sample by may.” about an hour later, we met in the middle on a large open hillside, with exposed rocky shelves and outcroppings around us. for a few minutes, we considered quitting. what we didn’t realize was that things were about to get very busy. after deciding that we shouldn’t give up so easily, we both started poking around brushpiles on the hillside where we had met. within minutes we found another snake — a big one, then another. a few minutes later, we found yet another. i was amazed at how our luck had changed! we could hardly get the pillowcases ready fast enough to hold one snake before finding another. all in all, our day ended with eight bullsnakes captured and ready for transmitter implantation. what a great start for the research project! at that time, i had no idea how fortunate we had been. later i was to learn just how difficult these snakes are to find. bullsnake populations and sources of mortality that first year (2003), i ended with 21 adult bullsnakes with implanted transmitters. this included the eight found on the first day of the study and four found with help from a uw-madison vertebrate zoology class of approximately 50 students. this would be my most productive year for finding new snakes. in 2004 and 2005, i found 20 and 15 individuals, respectively. the most troublesome part of this decline in the number of new snakes was that females were encountered less frequently than males. in general, despite the large number of snakes caught that first day, bullsnakes were not very abundant at this site, and i estimated a density of only 0.42 adults per hectare at the end of the study. recapturing snakes without the aid of telemetry equipment also was very difficult. the low number of recaptures with only one surveyor present (i.e., me) made it unlikely that an adequate estimate of population size could be made. only with the help of the uw-madison students was i able to get recaptures within a reasonable amount of time. my only consolation was that low recapture rates in snakes of this genus are not uncommon (fox 1986, diller and wallace 1996, shewchuk 1996, fitch 1999). bullsnakes face numerous daily pressures in addition to the long-term loss of suitable habitat. traffic, farm equipment, wanton killing by unknowing landowners, and (i found during my research) predators all pose significant threats (kapfer et al. 2008a). when i began tracking bullsnakes in ’03, i felt confident that few, if any, natural predators would consider taking an adult snake. i was fairly certain that birds of prey probably consumed juveniles and numerous predators likely ate hatchlings. however, i never believed that mammalian predators (such as coyotes) would be much of an issue, thinking that more abundant prey would result in a greater caloric payoff per unit effort than snakes. in fact, on numerous occasions, i saw coyote kill sites containing the remains of rabbits, turkeys, pocket gophers, and even deer. however, my assumptions were incorrect. in one year (2004), nearly all of the snakes consumed were taken by coyotes. most of this mortality corresponded with heavy spring the author holds a male bullsnake, the largest individual tracked during the study. unfortunately, it was killed and eaten by a coyote. this female was killed by a plow during the crop harvest in early fall 2005. rains, which jackson (1961) suggested could result in higher than normal leveret (= baby rabbit) mortality due to exposure. could this have caused coyotes to shift from a preferred prey of rabbits to snakes? possibly, but without having examined prey availability more closely, i can’t say for certain. in 2003 and 2005, farm equipment was, by far, the greatest cause of mortality in radio-tagged snakes, with females invariably experiencing higher mortality rates than males. in fact, in all three years pooled, the mortality rate for females with implanted transmitters was nearly 44%, compared to 14% in males (and nearly 27% for all snakes). furthermore, most of the females taken by coyotes were gravid and likely killed prior to egg deposition, which is not a good omen for the persistence of these snakes in the region. i did find that, despite equipment-related mortality, most local farmers were sensitive to this species. many actually liked having bullsnakes around, due to their effectiveness as rodent predators. several of the local landowners actually accompanied me when i tracked my test subjects, hoping to get a look at them and see exactly what i was doing. yet, agricultural equipment posed a definite threat to bullsnake survival at this site. i found it strange that, despite the presence of suitable non-agricultural habitat readily available to the snakes i was tracking, many ventured into agricultural fields and often died. considering my low bullsnake density estimates compared to apparently abundant prey, competition for food seemed an unlikely reason for them to enter agricultural fields. regardless, the tendency of this species to enter a burrow when danger approached did not save them from the digging tines of equipment used to harvest crops. although most of the local farmers would not actively harm bullsnakes, snakes hidden in burrows below crops were inadvertently killed by plows on several occasions. preferred habitat and movement patterns aside from determining sources of mortality, a principal goal of my research was to document movements and habitat selection. the best available information on preferred habitat of this snake in wisconsin was anecdotal, and came from richard c. vogt’s (1981) field guide, natural history of amphibians and reptiles in wisconsin (milwaukee public museum press). because bullsnakes are considered rare or declining in several states in the umus (i.e., minnesota, iowa, and wisconsin), a rigorous study on preferred habitats and movement patterns was necessary to facilitate their conservation. generally, this species is reported to prefer open canopy, short-grass prairie, or grassland habitats. i believed that these would be the habitats selected by the snakes i was tracking as well. the result of my research, however, was not so cut-anddried. throughout the year, i located individuals in habitats that i would never have imagined them using. for example, on more than one occasion, i followed individuals through dense underbrush in closed canopy hardwood forests on bluff sides (not a desirable task in the high humidity, 90°-days of july or august). i found later that these habitats were not preferred when their availability was considered (combined with agriculture, they equaled nearly 65% of the available habitat). this was not terribly surprising. what did surprise me, however, was that the traditional bullsnake habitat (i.e., prairie and grassland) also was not preferred when based on its availability. the habitat that was preferred by males and females in all three years of the study was open canopy, southor west-facing bluffs. this was despite the fact that this habitat comprised only ~3% of available habitat (kapfer et al. 2008b). communal denning sites often are found on exposed bluff slopes such as these, so i had previously believed this habitat would be important to the bullsnakes only immediately before and after winter dormancy. i had not anticipated that it would be used by snakes more than other available habitats in every season. what i believe is important regarding my results on habitat preferences is that most long-term plans for prairie habitat management with which i have experience seem to focus mostly on eliminating woody vegetation (even native species, such as oaks) in flatland habitats. while helping native herbaceous 194 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 kapfer snakes frequently came into contact with humans. this individual was found near a farmhouse and might have been killed if the landowner had not been sympathetic toward snakes. d a n n ed r el o table 1. comparison of the percentage of the study site comprised of different habitats and proportion of total snake locations occurring in each habitat type. habitat type percent snakes percent availability in habitat types of habitat types bluffside forest 10 37 row crop 7 28 flatland forest 4 5 pasture 3 5 roadside 2 2 edge (ag/nat) 6 3 open grassland 13 7 oak savanna 15 6 open bluff 33 3 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 195bullsnakes in wisconsin prairie vegetation proliferate is obviously important, a habitat with greater structural heterogeneity might be of greater value to wildlife — including reptiles, for which the elimination of woody vegetation tends to eliminate thermoregulatory opportunities. ground temperatures on sand prairies are very high and often exceed 50 °c (pers. obs.). although some reptiles may be able to tolerate such temperatures, i found that the average ground temperature where i observed bullsnakes ranged from 29.8–30.7 °c (with body temperatures of 25.2–26.7 °c; kapfer et al. 2008c). very open, short-grass habitats also contain fewer types of refugia from predators. bullsnakes, for example, often were observed seeking shelter in fallen oak trees, brushpiles, or tangles of native woody vegetation (e.g., raspberry). if large expanses of such open flatland habitat are the goal for habitat managers, maintenance of edges or savanna-type habitats should also be considered. these can create refuges and movement corridors for wildlife. regardless, in the umus, open southor west-facing bluffs are critical habitats for this species. therefore, clearing these slopes, if they are present on a particular site, may be necessary for the persistence of these snakes. understanding the spatial ecology of this species is also important for their conservation. for example, knowing the distances that individuals travel or the areas they typically patrol during the active season can provide insights into the critical sizes of habitats that should be preserved. something that became apparent early in the study was that these snakes are capable of moving long distances. on average, individuals moved nearly 35 m/day (kapfer et al. 2008b). they also patrolled large home ranges. i measured home range using two different methods: (1) minimum convex polygons are determined by simply connecting the outermost locations of an individual on a map, which then becomes the boundary of its homerange; and (2) kernel estimates use the density and spread of location points for a radio-tagged individual as if they were plotted on a histogram, resulting in a greater proportion of the home range centered around areas where the highest density, or intensity, of locations occurs. isopleth lines are generated, based on relative intensity of point concentrations, which allows core areas of the home range to be delineated. with this method, one can estimate the area that the animal is likely to patrol, while eliminating locations determined to be outliers. minimum convex polygon home ranges ranged from 20 to nearly 50 hectares in tracked snakes, whereas kernel estimates for the same snakes ranged from 40–95 hectares. both methods, however, indicated that these snakes moved about in large areas, suggesting that very large habitat preserves might reduce travel into agricultural fields or across roads, where mortality is high. although i rarely found snakes in the same location in subsequent observations, they often returned to the same locations after varying periods of time, resulting in a high fidelity for specific spots within their home ranges. this has obvious conservation and management implications: (1) snakes that return to the same spots frequently may be accidentally killed during intense management practices (i.e., burning or cutting of undesirable vegetation that are conducted at the same locations annually); and (2) unscrupulous snake collectors can have a profound effect on bullsnake populations by checking the same locations annually. finale the following example of this species’ tendency to end up in strange places also illustrates how the unpredictable nature of field research generates a need for future exploration of observed phenomena. this particular event came on a day when a friend of mine (tim muehlfeld) and i were tracking a male bullsnake around a farmhouse. i had heard the snake’s signal in the vicinity two days prior, but had not yet been able to ask the landowner for permission to enter his property. on this day, however, we did talk to the gentlemen who owned the property, and he was very willing to let us track the snake. i told him that it might be near his house and he seemed to become even more eager, wanting the snake moved so it would not scare his wife. we obliged and began searching for this snake’s signal around the house’s foundation, but i was surprised to find that the signal was very weak unless i pointed the antenna almost straight up. at first i thought the snake might have moved to the backyard, and the signal became slightly stronger when we made our way around to the back of the house and into the entrance to his garage. i wondered if the snake was in the garage, behind the snakes might be attracted to agricultural fields because winter-wheat fields look like grasslands in early spring. tim muehlfeld is an enthusiast and a good friend who assisted the author on numerous occasions. bullsnakes have a unique pattern unlike that of any other snake in the midwestern united states. garbage cans, or in a corner hunting rodents, but the signal seemed to be overhead. not only was it overhead, it grew stronger as we moved toward the entrance to his house from the garage. i could tell that the landowner was uncomfortable with the thought of the snake being in his house. he looked at us and said, “do you want to go inside the house?” within minutes, and after removing our dirty field shoes, we were cautiously moving about his living room in our stocking feet (i have to admit, it felt strange having to worry about breaking ornamental glassware with a telemetry antenna, which was something i never thought i would have to consider during my research). the signal strength quickly guided us to the upper level of the house, down a hallway, and into the bathroom. my first thought was “you’re kidding! this snake is actually going to be in the toilet — the urban legend will come to life before our eyes!” fortunately, that was not the case. what we did determine was that the signal was higher still, and strongest in a small area of the ceiling directly above the shower. the landowner immediately turned to me and asked, “do you want to go into the attic?” so, with him as our guide, the three of us marched to a ladder that led to a small rectangular opening in the ceiling of his home. upon entering the attic, tim and i shared the same feeling of dread. it was incredibly hot and not at all what i imagined a place where i would find a bullsnake to be like. my first thought was that the animal had been eaten by a raccoon, which had swallowed the transmitter and was now in this man’s attic. looking back on it, such a scenario was as unlikely as us finding a sasquatch, but strange things come to mind when you’re in bizarre situations. the next problem was that the attic was pitch black and not a “finished” room. we had to walk across cross beams between which insulation had been packed. wearing only socks, balancing on narrow wooden beams in the dark, and holding a large telemetry antenna, i attempted to locate the snake in the beam of two small flashlights. the increasingly strong transmitter signal told us that the snake (or at least its transmitter) was somewhere in the attic. trying to get my bearings in the dark, i swung the antenna to the left and the signal got stronger. “it’s somewhere over there,” i said. “we’ve got to get this snake out of here before my wife gets home,” the landowner replied uncomfortably. so, carefully stepping on crossbeams and grabbing anything overhead that we could use to stabilize ourselves, we moved in that direction. as the roof sloped downward, we noticed a long crack that allowed a small amount of light into that corner of the attic and, upon our arrival, saw a small group of birds make a hasty exit through the crack. at that point, i knew if that crack was large enough for birds to get in, it was large enough for a snake — and maybe we weren’t looking for a dead snake after all. then tim spoke up: “i see it,” as the beam of his flashlight rested on a bullsnake coil, barely visible in the insulation. “can you grab him?” i asked, as my hands were full and tim was closest to the snake. he leaned against a nearby support beam so that he was almost vertical and snatched up the visible coil. he later confessed to me that he was certain the snake would be “mush” in his hand when he grabbed it (i.e., he’d be grabbing the decaying body of a dead snake). on the contrary, the second he laid a finger on the animal, it instantly curved its neck into a defensive posture and hissed loudly. it was alive and, we determined later, in perfect health. the man asked me to remove the snake from his property. although i was reluctant to do this, as it would confound the data i was collecting, he had been pretty understanding about the whole incident. so, i moved the snake nearly half a mile (0.8 kilometers) away and released it within its normal home range. a few days later, however, i discovered that the snake had obviously known where it wanted to be. it had returned to this specific property again, and was resting comfortably in the hollow of a maple tree along the landowner’s driveway. i’ve always wondered what that snake was doing in that hot, stuffy attic. eating baby birds? it was too dark to see if any nests were present. what was a “prairie” snake species that is not thought to be very arboreal doing in the attic of a farmhouse? how did it find enough purchase on the house’s exterior to climb up there? was the attic part of its normal home range (it never did return to the attic)? i have no answers to these questions, but a desire to find such answers (in other words, curiosity) drives 196 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 kapfer an open bluff used by bullsnakes in the upper midwest. note also the extensive agriculture in the adjacent flatlands. although snakes used this incredibly thick understory vegetation under a dense canopy, it was used infrequently compared to its prevalence at my study site. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 197bullsnakes in wisconsin those of use who choose to engage in science. fortunately for me, snakes seem particularly effective in raising new questions. acknowledgments i thank jim coggins, peter dunn, linda whittingham, jerry kaster (uw-milwaukee), erik wild (uw-stevens point), robert hay (wdnr), mike pauers (medical college of wisconsin), craig berg (milwaukee county zoo), and rich sajdak for advice regarding experimental design, field methodology, and help with data analyses. colin bennell, chad hopper, max kapfer, tom kessenich, tim muehlfeld, greig and bjorn stanton, nick schiltz, vannessa torti, and scott craven’s vertebrate zoology class (uw-madison) provided field assistance. steve richter and paul west at the nature conservancy (madison, wi) and numerous private landowners allowed access to their property. jean pare, joanne paul-murphy, chris hanley, kurt sladky, anne stewart, and their students at the uw-madison school of veterinary medicine surgically implanted radio transmitters. john laedlein (wdnr), shawn weick (usgs), and chris pekar (natural resources consulting) provided gis assistance. travis livieri, eric anderson (uw-stevens point), and brian cade (usgs) provided advice on movements and site fidelity analyses. pat gregory, karl larsen, and the crescent lake wildlife refuge (nebraska) provided copies of unpublished reports and theses on pituophis catenifer. funding was provided by the society for the study of amphibians and reptiles grants in herpetology program, the milwaukee zoological society, the wisconsin academy of sciences lois almon foundation, the prairie biotic research, inc. small grants program, the chicago herpetological society, the university of wisconsin-milwaukee, department of biological sciences ruth walker memorial fund, and the wisconsin department of natural resources-bureau of endangered resources. permission was granted from the wisconsin department of natural resources to work with a protected wild animal, and research was conducted under animal care and use protocol (02-03 #145) issued by uw-milwaukee. literature cited diller, l.v., and r.l. wallace. 1996. comparative ecology of two snake species (crotalus viridis and pituophis melanoleucus) in southwestern idaho. herpetologica 52:343–360. fitch, h.s. 1999. a kansas snake community: composition and changes over 50 years. krieger publishing co., malabar, florida. fox, j.j. 1986. ecology and management of the bullsnake, pituophis melanoleucus sayi in the nebraska sandhills: final report. crescent lake national wildlife refuge, nebraska. gerald, g.w., m.a. bailey, and j.n. holmes. 2006a. habitat utilization of pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus (northern pinesnakes) on arnold air force base in middle tennessee. southeastern naturalist 5:253–264. gerald, g.w., m.a. bailey, and j.n. holmes. 2006b. movements and activity range sizes of northern pinesnakes (pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus) in middle tennessee. journal of herpetology 40:503–510. hisaw, f.l. and h.k. gloyd. 1926. the bullsnake as a natural enemy of injurious rodents. journal of mammalogy 7:200–205. jackson, h.t. 1961. mammals of wisconsin. university of wisconsin press, madison. kapfer, j.m., j.r. coggins, and r. hay. 2008a. estimates of population size, measurements of sex ratios, and reported mortality rates for bullsnakes (pituophis catenifer sayi) at a site in the upper midwestern united states. journal of herpetology 42:265–269. kapfer, j.m., j.r. coggins, and r. hay. 2008b. spatial ecology and habitat selection of bullsnakes (pituophis catenifer sayi) at the northern periphery of their geographic range. copeia 2008:815–826. kapfer, j.m., m.j. pauers, d.m. reineke, j.r. coggins, and r. hay. 2008c. environmental, behavioral and habitat variables influencing body temperature in radio-tagged bullsnakes, pituophis catenifer sayi. journal of thermal biology 33:174–179. moriarty, j.j. and m. linck. 1998. reintroduction of bullsnakes into a recreated prairie. in: j.j. moriarty and d. jones (eds.), minnesota’s amphibians and reptiles, their conservation and status: proceedings of a symposium. special publication of the minnesota herpetological society. serpent’s tale, lansboro, minnesota. parker, w.s. and w.s. brown. 1980. comparative ecology of two colubrid snakes, masticophis t. taeniatus and pituophis melanoleucus deserticola, in northern utah. milwaukee public museum publications in biology and geology 7:1–104. rodríguez-robles, j.a. 2002. feeding ecology of north american gopher snakes (pituophis catenifer, colubridae). journal of the linnean society 77:165–183. rodríguez-robles, j.a. 2003. home ranges of gopher snakes (pituophis catenifer, colubridae) in central california. copeia 2003:991–995. shewchuk, c.h. 1996. the natural history of reproduction and movement patterns in the gopher snake (pituophis melanoleucus) in southern british columbia. unpublished master’s thesis, university of victoria, british columbia. vogt, r.c. 1981. natural history of amphibians and reptiles in wisconsin. milwaukee public museum press, milwaukee, wisconsin. in addition to open grasslands, management should consider preservation of oak savanna and other habitats that are structurally heterogeneous and could provide refugia for wildlife. the infamous “attic snake” nearly scared a local landowner and his wife to death! iguana b&w text 192 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 harlow and morrison adult fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis). jo e b u r g es s iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:02 pm page 192 just 30 minutes earlier, we had left the fijian village of denimanu on yadua island in totally calm weather, but with heavily overcast skies, and were now skimming over gray waters. first stop on the 8-km boat trip to yadua taba island is always to get fresh water from the only permanent stream on yadua, in the small bay of waisevu (fijian for “welcoming water”). because the creek near the village only flows during the wet season, the 120 inhabitants have to rely on tank or well water for most of the year and rarely have enough to spare. on the smaller island of yadua taba, no permanent fresh water exists, probably the main reason it has remained uninhabited. as we left waisevu bay with our five precious water containers full to the brim, a strong wind suddenly arrived from nowhere and instantly whipped the sea into angry whitecaps. ten of us were in ranger pita biciloa’s overloaded 18-foot fiberglass boat, national trust staff, a few of us visiting researchers, and a scattering of helpers from the village. we squatted precariously around a huge mound of camping gear, boxes of food, and now enough fresh water to last the first week on the uninhabited iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba. unlike our previous trips to yadua taba during the long dry season when rain never falls, this was our first wet-season trip and we could expect heavy tropical downpours at least several times a week. sure enough, as we motored the last 5 km to yadua taba, a huge angry front of heavy black clouds moved rapidly toward us, while the wind increased and the crests of the small, sharp waves exploded over the boat’s bow to soak us all. luckily the high tide allowed us to motor all the way to the beach on yadua taba and we quickly began unloading and moving the huge mound of gear to our campsite just inside the forsoaking wet in a fijian dry forest peter s. harlow1 and suzi morrison2 1manager, herpetofauna division, taronga zoo, mosman, nsw, 2088, australia (pharlow@zoo.nsw.gov.au) 2school of botany & zoology, australian national university, canberra, act, 0200, australia (suzfm@yahoo.com.au) photographs by peter s. harlow unless otherwise indicated. iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 193fijian dry forest � b . t h a m a n the yadua taba crested iguana sanctuary island is surrounded by coral reefs. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 193 est. a wall of rain could be seen a few hundred meters out to sea, moving quickly toward us, and the rush to complete the unloading increased. the gear was thrown into a pile in a central clearing and covered with a large tarpaulin just as the rain struck, a gentle roar in the forest canopy above us at first, but within seconds so heavy that we had to shout to hear each other speak. we stood around laughing, and were all totally soaked in just a few seconds. even if we had them, umbrellas and raincoats are useless in the hot tropics, so we ignored the rain and began to erect our largest tarpaulin, which would be the center of the camp, our kitchen, and the only dry area for eating and working. erecting a large plastic sheet with only one rope on each corner would seem to be a simple proposition. this task was clearly up to our fijian hosts, and, even though our suggestions were politely considered, everyone seemed to have a different plan. a lengthy discussion that considered the pros and cons of where, how, and when continued as the first wall of rain diminished to a steady, heavy downpour and the wind suddenly dropped. since both the rain and the tarpaulin discussions could continue indefinitely, rather than stand around in the rain looking useless and bedraggled, we headed into the forest. we were both eager to look for signs of nesting iguanas, so we walked toward an area that we knew had the greatest density of crested iguanas (brachylophus vitiensis). the forest on yadua taba is classified as “tropical dry forest.” the canopy is low, usually 6–10 m. the island receives less than 200 cm of rain per year, nearly all during the 3–4 month 194 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 harlow and morrison tima, one of our field assistants, up early and making “babakau” (fijian fried bread) for breakfast. a fijian crested iguana watches from a low branch. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 194 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 195fijian dry forest wet season. this dry forest plant community is the most endangered in fiji. on most islands, it has been burned and cleared for farming, coconut plantations, or cattle and goat grazing, while remnant patches on other islands have been overtaken by exotic invasive plant species. yadua taba island is the single exception, and it is the only small island example of dry forest remaining in fiji. to add to its lucky isolation, it has no introduced cats, mongooses, or exotic rat species (only the endemic pacific rat, rattus exulans), which is probably why it supports at least 6,000 crested iguanas. even the remnant grasslands and patches of invasive plants on the ridges of yadua taba are reverting to native forest since burning stopped in 1980 and the last few goats were removed in 2004. the national trust for fiji is carefully monitoring, poisoning, and removing the most invasive of the island’s exotic plant species in an effort to maximize the native forest available to the critically endangered iguanas. the first obvious differences from our dry season experiences in the forest were the small purple fruits and white flowers of the cevua trees littering the ground, a carpet of tiny green seedlings, and abundant recent soil diggings. these diggings, however, were from land crabs, not gravid iguanas. the main reason for our february visit was to document crested iguana nesting biology, as no records document nesting in the wild for either species of pacific iguana. previous field trips to yadua taba in months from may to december over seven years had not located a single gravid or nesting female. however, we had seen hatchlings appear toward the end of november in several years — but when and where the eggs are laid remained a mystery. do female crested iguanas migrate to communal nesting areas, and do they guard their nest sites like many iguanas? these are just some of the questions that suzi wants to answer during her ph.d. project on the species. because eggs laid in captivity take the fruiting cevua tree (vavaea amicorum) is important in the wet season diet of crested iguanas on yadua taba island. only the soft and ripe purple fruit will be selected and eaten during this season of plenty. the authors processing captured crested iguanas in the forest on a dry night. z. p ie r c e iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 195 between 6 and 9 months to hatch (depending on incubation temperatures), and hatching starts in late november on yadua taba, we assumed that nesting had to occur during the middle of the wet season, from february to april. john gibbons, who described this species after first finding it on yadua taba in 1979, suggested that females nest between april and may, but he never saw a nesting female. yadua taba is a small (70 ha), rocky, volcanic island with steep slopes and many cliffs. as we slipped and slid our way up a muddy slope in the pouring rain, we were pleased to see a ravine, which we had only seen dry, flowing like a river between pools of fresh water. although we were soaked to the skin, the possibility of a regular wash was not lost on us, as on previous dry season trips, the lack of fresh water had meant that the salty pacific was our only bath for weeks at a time. perhaps our normally precious fresh water supply could be relegated to backup for this trip. deep in the forest, land crab diggings are less common and, as we walked farther, we began seeing excavations that were more like the agamid lizard nesting burrows with which we are familiar in australia. then we saw one — a fat, green, mud-covered crested iguana frozen to the ground, watching us, a neat burrow at her snout, and a pile of muddy soil at her side. she was heavily gravid, the eggs could be seen as large lumps inside her. we stood in silence, certainly not the first to observe this, but knowing that we were the first to record it. we marked the site with colored tape and left quietly, hoping not to disturb her nesting. in less than half an hour on the island, we had found what we had come to see. the next day, as the rain continued and we began to reminisce fondly of the dry season, we returned to that same site. 196 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 harlow and morrison suzi and mata in the village on nearby yadua island. the first crested iguana nest located; excavated to show the three large eggs. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 196 iguana • volume 13, number 3 • september 2006 197fijian dry forest the female and the burrow were gone, the site camouflaged to look like it had never been disturbed. we carefully excavated the soil with a spoon, took measurements and photos, added a tiny temperature data-logger to the clutch of three huge eggs, and refilled the nesting burrow. in the weeks that followed, as our never-to-dry-again t-shirts slowly rotted off our backs with the continued rain, we found another 13 nests. surprisingly, many other aspects of the crested iguana’s biology also remain unknown, mostly because of the remoteness of yadua taba and the expense and difficulty of working there. yadua taba is not open to the public, and only researchers are issued permits to visit. with the exception of a visiting u.s. botanist, the last foreign visitors before us were the iucn iguana specialist group, who visited for one day in november 2004 after their annual meeting in suva, fiji’s capital. for most of the year, the island remains solely the realm of the iguanas, interrupted only by short visits of the national trust ranger, pita, to monitor invasive plant species and patrol for uninvited guests. crested iguanas probably will be translocated from yadua taba to other iguana-free islands in fiji in the next few years. before this can happen, however, we need to understand not just their breeding biology, but a host of other important ecological attributes such as diet, population dynamics, and basic biology. the information from this field season, added to the growing knowledge base on the biology and habitat requirements of crested iguanas, will be integral to future reintroduction or translocation efforts. in november of this year, we will return to yadua taba to witness the emergence of hatchlings from the monitored nests. knowing a little more this time of what to expect from a wet season in a dry forest, we’ll be sure to bring along a few spare t-shirts! suggested reading gibbons, j.r.h. 1981. the biogeography of brachylophus (iguanidae) including the description of a new species, b. vitiensis, from fiji. journal of herpetology 15:255–273. gibbons, j.r.h. 1984. iguanas of the south pacific. oryx 18:82–91. gibbons, j.r.h. and i.f. watkins. 1982. behavior, ecology, and conservation of south pacific iguanas, brachylophus, including a newly discovered species, pp 419–441. in g.m. burghardt and a.s. rand (eds.), iguanas of the world: their behavior, ecology and conservation. noyes publ., park ridge, new jersey. harlow, p.s. and p.n. biciloa. 2001. abundance of the fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis) on two islands. biological conservation 98:223–231. harlow, p.s. 2004. lost in the south pacific: the pacific iguanas (genus brachylophus). iguana 11:198–205. suzi explaining to the children in the village on yadua why she is working on crested iguanas on yadua taba. iguana 13.3 b&w text.qx6 9/17/06 3:03 pm page 197 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 261conservation research reports traditional maori knowledge of tuatara traditional ecological knowledge can be highly informative and integrated with complementary scientific knowledge to improve species management. this is especially true for abundant species with which indigenous peoples have frequent interactions (e.g., through harvest), but has been studied less frequently in isolated or declining species. ramstad et al. (2007. conservation biology 21: 455–464) examined maori traditional ecological knowledge of tuatara (sphenodon spp., reptiles that resemble lizards, but are the last living representatives of the order sphenodontia) through semi-directed interviews of elders of te atiawa, ngati koata, and ngati wai iwi (similar to tribes), the guardians of several islands currently inhabited by tuatara. maori are indigenous to new zealand, having settled 800–1,000 years ago. tuatara are endemic to new zealand, have declined in numbers since human settlement, and are now restricted to 37 offshore islands. the detail and volume of tuatara traditional ecological knowledge were less than that recorded in studies of more abundant or accessible species. in addition, traditional knowledge of the cultural significance of tuatara was more common and detailed among the elders than traditional knowledge of tuatara biology or ecology. the traditional knowledge collected, however, provided the first evidence of seven former sites of tuatara occupation, suggested five additional sites tuatara may currently occupy, contained novel hypotheses for scientific testing, and described tuatara cultural roles that have not been reported previously. the authors concluded that, in at least some cases, traditional ecological knowledge may persist as species decline and may serve as a valuable source of ecological information for conservation. changes in tropical forests affect the herpetofauna plantation forests and second-growth forests are becoming dominant components of many tropical forest landscapes, but little information is available concerning the consequences of different forestry options for biodiversity conservation in the tropics. gardner et al. (2007. conservation biology 21: 775– 787) sampled the leaf-litter herpetofauna of primary, secondary, and eucalyptus plantation forests in the jari river area of northeastern brazilian amazonia. they used four complementary sampling techniques, combined samples from two consecutive years, and collected 1,739 leaflitter amphibians (23 species) and 1,937 lizards (30 species). they analyzed the data for differences among forest types regarding patterns of alpha and beta diversity, species-abundance distributions, and community structure. primary rainforest harbored significantly more species, but supported a similar abundance of amphibians and lizards compared to adjacent areas of second-growth forest or plantations. plantation forests were dominated by wide-ranging habitat generalists. secondary forest faunas contained a number of species characteristic of primary forest habitat. amphibian communities in secondary forests and eucalyptus plantations formed a nested subset of primary forest species, whereas the species composition of the lizard community in plantations was distinct, and was dominated by open-area species. although plantation forests are relatively impoverished, naturally regenerating forests can help mitigate some negative effects of deforestation for at least some herpetofaunal species. nevertheless, secondary forest does not provide a substitute for primary forest. in the absence of further evidence from older successional stands, we caution against the optimistic claim that natural forest regeneration in abandoned lands will provide refuges for the many species that are currently threatened by deforestation. invasive green iguana roadkills smith et al. (2007. journal of kansas herpetology 22: 14–16) examined 11 years of reptilian roadkill data from cape florida state park (cfsp), a vegetatively restored, urban state park in southern florida that was largely destroyed by hurricane andrew in 1992. the survey recorded 135 individuals of eight reptilian species, of which three were exotics. native southern black racers (coluber c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s although traditional maori ecological knowledge of tuatara (sphenodon spp.) was less than that recorded in studies of more abundant or accessible species with which the maori were more familiar, interviews with elders revealed new information about areas formerly inhabited by tuataras and cultural roles not previously reported. je n n if er m . g er m a n o a mid-level view through a costa rican rainforest. recent studies in belize revealed that primary rainforest harbored significantly more species, but supported a similar abundance of amphibians and lizards compared to adjacent areas of second-growth forest or plantations. r a y r o pe r invasive green iguanas (iguana iguana) often cross roads and even pause to bask on them, and consequently comprised 30.4% of the total number of roadkills in cape florida state park. g a r y b u sc h constrictor priapus) and invasive green iguanas (iguana iguana) each comprised 30.4% (n = 41) of the total number of roadkills. the other exotics were giant ameivas (ameiva ameiva; n = 7) and a red-eared slider (trachemys scripta elegans). the three exotic species collectively accounted for 36.3% of records. roadkilled iguanas were first recorded in 2001 and peaked in frequency in 2003 (n = 13) and 2004 (n = 12), which coincided with periods of greatest density recorded at cfsp. results underscore the threat of exotic species faced by protected areas and the need for data necessary for making sound management decisions. unintended consequences: racoon removal helps invasive green iguanas meshaka et al. (2007. herpetological conservation and biology 2: 149–156) examined the demographic responses of green iguanas (iguana iguana) to the removal of raccoons in an urban maritime state park in southern florida. the rapid growth of iguanas to sexual maturity in an underexploited, if not vacant, niche contributed to rapid recruitment during the 4.5 years since removal of the limiting predator. the authors propose that at sites where green iguanas and high-density raccoons are syntopic, raccoon removal programs should be concurrent with equally concerted efforts to remove green iguanas. by replacing one limiting predator with another, a population explosion can be prevented. american crocodile (crocodylus acutus) in florida when the american crocodile (crocodylus acutus) was classified as endangered in 1975, few data were available upon which to base informed management decisions. monitoring programs focusing on nesting ecology, growth, and survival show that crocodiles have responded positively to protection. the u.s. fish and wildlife service is now considering downgrading the species from endangered to threatened. despite the progress, crocodiles are facing new problems, such as the continuing degradation of ecosystems in florida and biscayne bays. mazzotti et al. (2007. journal of herpetology 41:122–132) reviewed results of research and monitoring programs that have been used as a basis for reclassifying c. acutus. they found that, despite greater numbers of crocodiles and a broader range in which reproduction is occurring, crocodiles are still threatened by land and water use modifications to adjacent habitat. to enhance habitat conditions and prey production and availability for crocodiles, freshwater flows to estuaries need to be restored to a natural pattern. a final concern is that, as crocodiles continue to recover and expand their habitat in coastal areas, interactions with humans will increase in frequency, posing additional challenges to the recovering population. investigating natural population dynamics of new zealand’s cryptic diurnal geckos habitat losses resulting from human settlement and introduction of mammalian predators have had a significant impact on new zealand’s threatened diurnal geckos. approximately one-third of new zealand’s reptiles are restricted to mammal-free offshore islands, three species of lizards are extinct, and many others have dramatically reduced ranges. clearly, new zealand’s terrestrial vertebrates are in need of effective conservation management. the endemic marlborough green gecko (naultinus manukanus) is confined to the marlborough sounds region of new zealand. naultinus manukanus is arboreal and diurnal. potential threats include habitat fragmentation, loss of successional shrubland habitat, and competition with introduced species for habitat and food. unfortunately, the behavior of these diurnal geckos makes conservation of this species a challenge. few studies have been conducted on their reproductive biology, ecology, and behavior, because they are cryptic and difficult to detect. accurate biological information about this species is vital for proper conservation management. hare et al. (2007. journal of herpetology 41:81–93) analyzed the population dynamics of n. manukanus as a model for understanding the ecology of other threatened diurnal geckos of new zealand and to generate data necessary for the conservation of these species. studies spanned 25 years, providing essential information about natural population dynamics, habitat use, and daily movement patterns. by analyzing sex ratios and reproductive rates, the authors found that the low reproductive output of n. manukanus renders them vulnerable to predation by invasive mammals. although long-term prospects for n. manukanus appear good on stephens island, populations on the mainland are at high risk of declines because of habitat destruction, predation, and competition with exotic species. the k-selected lifehistory strategies of these unusual geckos require intensive management of competitors and predators to allow population trajectories on the mainland to become more stable. an adult male green iguana (iguana iguana) fends off a raccoon (procyon lotor) attack at hugh taylor birch state park in southern florida. g a r y h . b u sc h despite greater numbers of american crocodiles (crocodylus acutus) in florida and a broader range in which reproduction is occurring, crocodiles are still threatened by land and water use modifications to adjacent habitat. jo e b u r g es s mainland populations of the new zealand endemic marlborough green gecko (naultinus manukanus) are at high risk of population declines because of habitat destruction, predation, and competition with exotic species. je n n if er m . g er m a n o 262 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 conservation research reports iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 263conservation research reports frog-human interactions from human popular culture to drug development and biological research, frogs have been model organisms to which most people readily relate. tyler et al. (2007. applied herpetology 4:1–18) explored interactions between frogs and humans. they focused on the major declines in frog populations and the increasing evidence for the role of humans in habitat destruction and introductions of invasive species. human uses of anurans are discussed, including the wide range of chemical compounds found in anuran skin, some of which have led to the development of drugs for human and veterinary use. cultural uses of anurans (e.g., food and entertainment) also are described. some human modifications to environments, such as run-off aggravated by development, may provide breeding sites for certain species and could be seen as a benefit. overall, however, the effects are negative. although human use for scientific purposes may have had some negative impact on anurans, these are scant in comparison to numbers lost from habitat destruction and large-scale environmental degradation. better enforcement of regulations in the food and pet trade could improve the status and chances of long-term survival of frog populations. introduced boa constrictors threaten the native biota of cozumel island invasive species can upset the delicate balance in island ecosystems. understanding the biological effects of exotics on a native biota is important. in 1971, boa contrictors (boa constrictor) were introduced to cozumel island, méxico, and they have negatively affected native (some endemic) prey species. in order to develop strategies to reduce boa pressure on the native biota, romero et al. (2007. biodiversity conservation 16:1183–1195) studied changes in boa abundance over time. in addition, they used nocturnal road transect sampling and data from boa encounters during fieldwork to estimate distribution, abundance, and habitat use. the study found that boas are widely distributed across cozumel and occupy all vegetation types. however, snakes were most abundant in areas uninhabited by humans, and boa mortality was relatively common in humaninhabited areas. boas are habitat generalists, and control or eradication will pose challenges. public education on the control of boas and the negative effects on native species is very important for a well-planned management program on cozumel. prevention of similar introductions elsewhere is also imperative. herpetofauna of a national superfund site gray (2007. bulletin of the maryland herpetological society 43: 129–133) surveyed the herpetofauna of the harper drive hazardous waste area, a national superfund site in erie county, pennsylvania, between 1995–1999. he observed two salamander, six frog and toad, three turtle, and four snake species, including the spotted turtle (clemmys guttata), a species of special concern in pennsylvania. the base-line data presented in this report, along with any future surveys at the site, may be useful in evaluating the effects of remedial action on the area herpetofauna. roads threaten galápagos lava lizards galápagos lava lizards (microlophus albemarlensis) are heavily impacted by roads. tanner et al. (2007. bulletin of the chicago herpetological society 42:125–132) measured mortality on santa cruz island and found that fatalities averaged 0.4 mature males and 1.8 juveniles per km/day. lizard population models that considered but were not limited to impact from roads suggested that the lizard population is on the path to local extirpation. boa contrictors (boa constrictor) introduced to cozumel island, méxico, have negatively affected native (some endemic) prey species. je ff l em m the spotted turtle (clemmys guttata), a species of special concern in pennsylvania, was among 15 herpetofaunal species observed at a national superfund site in erie county. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h galápagos lava lizards (microlophus albemarlensis) are heavily impacted by roads. frog-human interactions are almost inevitably detrimental to frog populations. better enforcement of regulations in the food (this is a frog/fish market in myanmar) and pet trade could improve the chances of longterm survival of frog populations. iguana b&w text yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) harvested as part of the yellow anaconda management program (yamp) in formosa province, argentina. snakes are held alive for biological studies before being killed and skinned. see article on p. 160. to m a s w a ll er t he g reen b asilisk (b asiliscus plum ifrons) is a large, arboreal, bright-green lizard found along stream s throughout low land c entral a m erica. see article on p. 172. james r. mccranie << /ascii85encodepages false /allowtransparency false /autopositionepsfiles true /autorotatepages /none /binding /left /calgrayprofile (dot gain 20%) /calrgbprofile (srgb iec61966-2.1) /calcmykprofile (u.s. web coated \050swop\051 v2) /srgbprofile (srgb iec61966-2.1) /cannotembedfontpolicy /error /compatibilitylevel 1.4 /compressobjects /tags /compresspages true /convertimagestoindexed true /passthroughjpegimages true /createjdffile false /createjobticket false /defaultrenderingintent /default 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/leaveuntagged /untaggedrgbhandling /usedocumentprofile /usedocumentbleed false >> ] >> setdistillerparams << /hwresolution [2400 2400] /pagesize [612.000 792.000] >> setpagedevice iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 137 michigan members represent ircf at chicago’s reptile fest the ircf was represented at the chicago herpetological society’s largest public event of the year, reptile fest, by several michigan members. fest is an educational family event that draws thousands of spectators over the course of the weekend. chs has helped to raise awareness of endangered reptiles and been supportive of ircf-sponsored conservation projects for many years. ircf materials were incorporated into the “iguana squad” display, which is always a star attraction. several species of cyclura and ctenosaura were on hand to represent the various endangered members of their genera. many people were unaware of the critical status of some of these species, and were especially moved by a photo of the blue iguana slugger and the story of his death by feral dogs. caribsea donates over $7,000 toward ircf-supported programs caribsea, a leading manufacturer of tropical aquarium products, has integrated conservation into the marketing strategy for its new reptile division, blue iguana products. the new products feature the name and image of the grand cayman blue iguana, helping raise awareness of the plight of one of the ircf’s core initiatives, the blue iguana recovery program. additionally, caribsea has created marketing campaigns to raise money for other ircfsupported programs, including project heloderma and project palearis. the “buy your own discount” program, for example, encourages caribsea customers to donate money to the ircf. the customer receives substantial discounts on caribsea products, and caribsea matches funds donated by its customers. to date, over $7,000 has been raised. caribsea also is undertaking the innovative “survivor program” to raise awareness and funds for the american cancer society and the blue iguana recovery program. featuring sabrina k. carpenter, an office manager at caribsea and a cancer survivor, the program features a poster of sabrina and her artfully crafted blue iguana tattoo. the poster is available to individuals who donate $25 or more to either the american cancer society or the ircf in care of the blue iguana program. “i am a cancer survivor and, much like the grand cayman blue iguana, we are both endangered species. survival is a team effort. people’s donations and volunteerism can make a difference,” says sabrina on her motivation for both the tattoo and the program. for more information about these programs, caribsea and its blue iguana line of products, or simply to see a great example of how conservation can be successfully incorporated into a “go-to-market” strategy, visit caribsea’s website at www.carib-sea.com. meeting of project heloderma and project palearis partners a meeting was held on 4 april 2007 in las vegas, nevada for the partners engaged in projects heloderma and palearis for the preservation of the guatemalan beaded lizard and the guatemalan black iguana, respectively. in attendance were john binns (ircf), luis alvarado (zootropic), and brad lock (zoo atlanta). discussions addressed the acquisition of land in jane billette and her eight-year-old blue iguana hybrid, azul. this female guatemalan black iguana (ctenosaura palearis) was the first female to be located and remains under observation by project palearis staff. michigan ircf members (from left) include chris niezgucki, jane billette, dr. jen periat, karen niezgucki, and stephanie beiser. a young attendee takes a moment to read the ircf informational posters. ircf on the move i r c f o n t h e m o v e d a n ie l a r ia n o st ep h a n ie b ei se r st ep h a n ie b ei se r st ep h a n ie b ei se r guatemala for the proposed reserve and breeding facility; funds are in hand and final arrangements are being made. initial ideas for the construction of the breeding facility were put forward as were plans for the upcoming field season. project palearis received a boost with a new donation of $1,000 from the ircf. further funding is being sought for project heloderma. update from guatemala daniel ariano of zootropic has sent photos and observations from his recent trip to the motagua valley of guatemala. beaded lizards continue their hibernation in the same shelters. they will be taken from their shelters soon for health checks and to have transmitters replaced. individual ctenosaura palearis under observations also are due for health checks. this year is one of the hottest years ever in the motagua valley, with recorded temperatures as high as 45 °c (113 °f) during january and february (usually a cold period). the predictions are that this is going to be a dry year with a high probability of no rainfall at all. sand dune lizard the ircf is sponsoring conservation work in argentina for the endangered sand dune lizard, liolaemus multimaculatus (see article on p. 66). principal investigator, federico kacoliris, who is conducting his doctoral research on these lizards, reports that sand dune lizards are beginning to wind down their activity during the months of april and may in anticipation of their winter brumation during june through august. based on field data collected to date on the sand dune lizards and the vegetation in their natural habitat, the government of buenos aires province is enacting legislation to create a new coastal dunes reserve, a critical first step toward conservation of the species. data also have been used to develop an educational campaign aimed at the residents of several coastal cities within the species’ distribution. equipment donated by the ircf is crucial for carrying out studies slated for the upcoming year. the goal of the program is to produce a long-term conservation and management plan for liolaemus multimaculatus and its habitat. volunteers sought for team blue 2007 the ircf staff has been busy constructing a robust online volunteer section to facilitate signup for this year’s team blue activities in support of the blue iguana recovery program. opportunities are available for people with all levels of physical ability, from providing care for the blues at the captive breeding facility in the queen elizabeth ii botanic park, to performing fieldwork in the salina reserve, and participating in a population census for sister isles iguanas on little cayman island. check out www.ircf.org/volunteer.html and sign up for the experience of a lifetime. 138 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 the research site in the motagua valley, normally green during january and february, is parched and brown, with temperatures reaching 45 °c. an adult sand dune lizard, liolaemus multimaculatus. volunteers can sign up at the ircf web site for volunteer opportunities on grand cayman or little cayman, cayman islands. ircf on the move connecticut iguana sanctuary in need of support for the past ten years, the connecticut iguana sanctuary has been rehabilitating and placing reptiles and providing shelter for many others that are elderly or disabled. in order to continue providing such services to the public, the sanctuary is very much in need of financial support. for further information and opportunities to sponsor rehabilitated animals and long-term residents, please see www.reptilecare.com/ctiguana.htm or contact aj gutman at aj@ircf.org. r e p t i l e u v m e g a r a y u v l i g h t i n g w w w. r e p t i l e u v. c o m fe d er ic o k a c o li r is d a n ie l a r ia n o iguana 13.2 b&w text turtle survival alliance — 4th annual conference the turtle survival alliance (tsa) is pleased to announce their 4th annual conference, hosted by the st. louis zoo on 10–13 august 2006 in st. louis, missouri. expanding to a full three-day format, this will be a joint conference with the iucn tortoise and freshwater turtle specialist group (tftsg). in addition to oral presentations, a special poster session/social will allow greater involvement of participants. to encourage participation by students, the chelonian research foundation will award $250 prizes for best student presentations. attendance and presentations at the conference are open to all interested individuals. the keynote speaker will be ed moll, co-author of the book ecology, exploitation, and conservation of river turtles; co-author and brother don moll also will speak. ed is recognized as one of the foremost leaders in turtle conservation, and “sounded the alarm” years before the asian turtle crisis was widely publicized. he was also the first chairman of the tftsg. peter pritchard will be the banquet speaker. additional speakers will be posted on the tsa web site as the program develops. registration information is available on the tsa website (http://www.turtlesurvival.org/). public outraged at assault on sea turtle protection public comments received by the pacific fisheries management council about its 9 march final vote to allow drift gillnets, also known as “curtains of death,” and longlines back into vast protected areas along the pacific coast expresses overwhelming public opposition to industry efforts to gut successful conservation measures that protected critically endangered leatherback sea turtles. by the close of the 15 february public comment period, the council received comments at a ratio of about 2,200 to 1 not to proceed with the expansion of these two destructive fishing practices that injure and kill large numbers of sea turtles, marine mammals, seabirds, and valuable non-target fish. in addition, a unique coalition of ten recreational fishing, animal welfare, and marine conservation groups with about 9 million members are working to oppose the measure. “it’s time for the council and noaa fisheries to listen to the public and enforce their mandate to protect the public interest,” said robert ovetz, ph.d., save the leatherback campaign coordinator with the sea turtle restoration project, “and the public interest is keeping leatherback sea turtles and other marine species from going extinct and prevent overfishing.” the united nations banned driftnets on the high seas in 1991 and the u.s. has followed with recent closures to large areas in u.s. waters, including the time and area closures along the pacific coast. since 2001, areas north of point conception to an intersect with the oregon coast have been closed to drift gillnet fishing from 15 august through 15 november in order to protect endangered leatherback and loggerhead sea turtles. during the past three years of closure, this fishery, which targets swordfish with drift gillnet gear, has had no recorded takes of leatherback sea turtles. longline fishing, which is also one of the main threats to leatherback sea turtles, was banned along the u.s. west coast in 2004. since 2002, 64 dolphins, whales, seals, and sea lions have been killed by the drift gillnet fishery in the west coast areas still open to gillnetting. additionally, seabirds including northern fulmars and cassin’s auklet have been injured or killed. the proposed exemption would allow as many as two-thirds of the remaining 36 drift-gillnet vessels and between 71 and 131 longline vessels into the closed areas. “drift-gillnet and longlines are subsidized unprofitable industries looking for a hand-out at the expense of endangered species like leatherback sea turtles, humpback whales, and sharks. the public has spoken. it’s time for the government to listen,” added ovetz. resources include the scientist letter (http://www.seaturtles.org/pdf/___scient. ltr.pfmc.final.pdf), the ngo coalition letter (http://www.seaturtles.org/pdf/ _ngo.letter.2.final.pdf), and information about the pacific fisheries management council meeting (http://www. pcouncil.org/bb/2005/bb1105.html). robert ovetz (robert@seaturtles.org) sea turtle restoration project 2 march 2006 n e w s b r i e f s iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 167newsbriefs the indian red-crowned roofed turtle (kachuga kachuga) is one of many asian turtle species that will be discussed at the august tsa conference. b r ia n h o r n e iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 167 168 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 newsbriefs roti island snake-necked turtles all but extinct the roti island snake-necked turtle (chelodina mccordi) is a small, longnecked turtle found only in the wetlands of roti island in eastern indonesia. since this endemic turtle was described as a new species in 1994, international demand for it has intensified to the point where the species has become all but extinct in the wild. no legal trade of this species from indonesia has been allowed since 2001. prior to its description, it was exported illegally as another species, the new guinea snake-necked turtle (c. novaeguineae), which has been protected in indonesia since 1980. a new traffic report determined that the capture and trade of these animals has not been carried out in accordance with relevant indonesian laws. despite national quotas set for harvest and export of c. mccordi between 1997 and 2001, no licenses for collection or transport permits have been issued to date. all specimens of c. mccordi that have been exported since 1994 have been illegally acquired. in 2000, the iucn red list categorized the species as “critically endangered,” and the roti island snakenecked turtle was assessed as commercially extinct that same year. the species is listed in appendix ii of cites, which requires any international trade to be carried out under a permitting system. however, the continuing international demand from hobbyists and collectors in europe, north america, and eastern asia is pushing this endemic species toward extinction. even if c. mccordi is added to the indonesian list of protected species, monitoring and enforcement of existing laws are lacking and, in some places, non-existent. if these laws, such as those governing capture and transport of wildlife, are not enforced, this species will surely become extinct in the wild in the very near future. chris r. shepherd www.traffic.org jakarta, indonesia 2 february 2006 fear for the turtle worried that a growing market for the meat of diamondback terrapins may wipe out a symbol of maryland, some state legislators are proposing to outlaw harvesting the turtle in the chesapeake bay. but watermen and the state department of natural resources are fighting an outright ban, arguing that terrapins are not endangered and that more modest state regulations restricting the catch would make more sense. “i think this subject is important because the terrapin is in decline once again,” said del. virginia p. clagett, an anne arundel democrat who is one of 18 sponsors of house bill 980, which would prohibit the catching of terrapins. “any species lost is a real loss, but this also happens to be the state icon.” clagett said she finds it frustrating that neighboring virginia — which does not feature the “terp” as the proud mascot of its state university — outlaws the commercial harvest of terrapins, but maryland does not. “if they can do it, we can do it,” she said. at the center of the debate, which flared before the house environmental matters committee recently, is the unanswered question of how many terrapins still swim in the bay, and whether their numbers are really falling or rising. the shy reptiles — up to 9 inches long, with distinctive diamond-shaped growth rings on their shells — live in coastal waters from massachusetts to texas, but historically have been found in greatest numbers in the chesapeake bay. considered a delicacy in soup, they were harvested nearly to extinction at the end of the 19th century. howard king, director of fisheries at the dnr, said that perhaps hundreds of thousands of terrapins remain in the maryland portion of the bay. local watermen, who often catch them in their fishing nets by accident, sell between 5,000 and 12,000 pounds of the turtles every year, king said. the turtles weigh between 1 and 4 pounds each. more than 2,000 watermen have licenses from the state that allow the catching of the turtles, as well as other marine life. but only five to nine watermen specialize in catching terrapins, mostly around smith island and tangier sound, king said. the state imposes no limit on the number of terrapins that a person with a license can catch, and the season lasts roti island snake-necked turtles (chelodina mccordi) are found only in the wetlands of roti island in eastern indonesia. b o n g g i i b a r r o n d o b o n g g i i b a r r o n d o c h r is r . s h ep h er d a trap used to capture chelonia mccordi in a freshwater swamp on roti island. b o n g g i i b a r r o n d o iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 168 three-quarters of the year, from 1 august through 30 april. as an alternative to a moratorium imposed by legislation, the department of natural resources may propose limiting the season, capping the catch or reducing the number of watermen with terrapin licenses, king said. “it’s hard to tell if they are declining or not,” king said. “the terrapin issue is certainly not critical. they deserve conservation, but the population is not at a critically low level.” marguerite whilden, a former dnr fisheries manager who now directs a nonprofit conservation organization called the terrapin institute, says a growing market for terrapin meat among chinese restaurants and consumers in asia is a threat to the turtles. she estimates that as many as 20,000 terrapins have been netted in the chesapeake bay in the last two years, and that perhaps only 35,000 remain. “we used to be called the terrapin state. it’s an embarrassment that we’ve been so complacent, and that they are much more concerned about the terrapin in virginia,” whilden said. “it’s a very persistent creature, but once it’s gone, it’s gone. it can’t be raised from the dead.” her organization is offering to buy terrapins from watermen at market rate — which is about $4–6 per turtle — so she can return them to the bay. if the state bans terrapin harvesting altogether, whilden said, her organization would pay to compensate the watermen. larry simns, president of the maryland watermen’s association, said he would support capping terrapin harvests at current levels, but not outlawing catching them. “i think terrapins have been doing better the last five or six years. they’re not threatened at all,” simns said. “every time you lose part of your paycheck, it hurts.” tom pelton baltimore sun 21 march 2006 dogs kill blue iguanas two cayman blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi) were killed at the queen elizabeth ii botanic park this week, a pregnant female has been mauled, and a fourth iguana is missing. wild dogs caused the casualties. fred burton, director of the blue iguana recovery program, identified the dead iguanas as slugger and sapphire, both pioneers in the program to help bring the blues back from near-extinction. “these two were the most photographed iguanas on the planet,” mr. burton said. he explained that they were both born in captivity in 1997 and released into the 65-acre park in 1999. “they were not tame, but they were not afraid of people. they were like ambassadors. thousands of visitors admired them and took their pictures, which are now all over the world,” mr. burton said. another 26 blue iguanas roam freely in the park, he indicated. the deaths highlight what could be a long-term problem for the park and a situation with irresponsible pet owners. slugger was buried tuesday morning while park staff and iguana volunteers continued to look for his mate, yellowblue, who was not in her nesting area. she came back late tuesday, badly injured but determined to finish nesting, mr. burton said. she is missing half of her tail and her back right foot. she is expected to lay her eggs in the next few days. until then, mr. burton is reluctant to interfere. iguanas have an amazing immune system and the risk of infection is not great, he said. after she finishes preparing her nest, she will go underground for a few days. when the eggs are laid, she will come out and go on a feeding spree and mr. burton will look at her more closely then. right now, it’s better to let nature take its course. but a fourth iguana, santa, has been missing for several weeks and mr. burton wonders if he was an earlier victim to the dogs. the problem was realized in earnest monday morning, when a staff member was checking the grounds before the park opened to the public. he noticed two dogs down by the lake and went to chase them away. they ran into the bush in the east and it was then he found sapphire. she was badly bitten and died a couple of hours later. iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 169newsbriefs fred burton examines slugger on the botanic park facility's porch where slugger was observed regularly. marguerite whilden, a former dnr fisheries manager who now directs a nonprofit conservation organization called the terrapin institute, estimates that as many as 20,000 diamondback terrapins (malaclemys terrapin) have been netted in the chesapeake bay in the last two years, and that perhaps only 35,000 remain. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 169 with great sadness i report the death of ron goellner, director of animal collections at the saint louis zoo. ron passed away early in the morning of 26 february 2006, in the comfort of his home and with his loving wife karen at his side. the entire saint louis zoo community is profoundly saddened by the loss of a man who touched the lives of so many, yet we know that ron would be the first to tell us to “keep smilin’.” you cannot conjure memories of ron and not follow his advice, because he sowed smiles wherever he went. born 4 november 1945, ron’s career at the saint louis zoo spanned 35 years. he started in the reptile house in 1970 as a keeper and, within a few years, was promoted to curator of reptiles, a position he held until 1995. for the past ten years, ron served as the director of animal collections for the zoo. although ron was intensely interested in all reptiles and amphibians, his true passions were tuataras and hellbenders. in 1980, ron traveled to stephen’s island in new zealand to collect environmental data that could be utilized in the construction of a new off-exhibit enclosure for the zoo’s tuatara group, which has been in the collection since 1973. in recent years, ron founded the center for hellbender conservation, which included the construction of a dedicated off-exhibit facility for captive propagation efforts. in addition, he established valuable links with the missouri department of conservation and researchers at universities in order to implement cooperative in situ initiatives for the hellbender in missouri. ron was an avid gardener and had built several ponds around his house to attract local amphibians. he enjoyed a wide array of outdoor activities and particularly loved camping in the big bend region of texas and the mountains of southeastern arizona. ron was my mentor and colleague, but most of all he was a dear friend whom i will miss very much. jeff ettling curator of herpetology saint louis zoo o b i t u a r y ronald goellner (1945–2006) ron goellner, here holding a hellbender (cryptobranchus alleganiensis), founded the center for hellbender conservation. photograph courtesy of the st. louis zoo. 170 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 newsbriefs “this was a red alert,” mr. burton said. the department of agriculture was contacted and officers took another dog trap to the park to go with the one already on the premises. on monday night the traps were set and mr. burton waited until the iguanas went into their retreats. slugger liked to spend the night under a plywood ramp leading to public toilets near the iguana facility and mr. burton saw him go there around sundown. it rained tuesday night and the bait probably washed out of the dog traps, he said. on tuesday morning, chris carr came early to check the traps. instead, he saw digging marks by the ramp. he checked more closely and saw two dogs under the toilet building with an iguana. mr. carr was able to retrieve the iguana. it was slugger, and he was dead. mr. burton said slugger would not have been afraid of the dogs, probably never having seen one before. “he was the dominant male in the area. he would have stayed and fought,” he said. although he was the largest iguana in the park at over 17 pounds, he was no match for the dogs. “if we succeed in catching the dogs, we’ll have to put them down,” mr. burton said. it was not clear whether they belonged to anyone. they did not have collars and did not act as if they had any training, he indicated. but along with the dogs, irresponsible pet owners are causing another monstrous problem for the wildlife in the park. “well-meaning people are bringing animals to the park and abandoning them, thinking park staff will be kind to animals. we have found kittens, fullgrown cats, puppies, and green iguanas (iguana iguana), and we have absolutely no option but to trap them and remove them. “they have no place here and they’re damaging the native wildlife we’re trying so hard to protect,” mr. burton said. especially worrisome are the green iguanas. people think they’re cute when they’re little. but then they grow into big lizards and the owner doesn’t want them any more. the green iguanas – with definite black stripes on the tail – are not native to cayman, he emphasized. they don’t belong here and they are a threat to the vulnerable blues. if anything good can come out of this experience, maybe it could be people’s increased awareness of what happens when they allow their pets to roam or when they drop off unwanted animals. “please don’t bring animals to the park. it’s not a home for them,” he urged. carol winker cayman webnet, 7 june 2006 iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 170 iguana b&w text editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 institutional u.s. subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international membership (including canada) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55.00 international institutional subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $60.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. www.ircf.org join online at: www.ircf.org membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. copyright © 2007 by the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. all rights reserved. no part of this journal may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without the publisher’s written permission. iguana, conservation, natural history, and husbandry of reptiles (issn 1098-6324) is published quarterly by the international reptile conservation foundation, a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca. periodical postage paid at san jose, ca. editors’ remarks the mission of the ircf is working “to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them.” this journal is a part of that effort, but with the additional goal of educating our readers. because our readers represent considerable diversity, ranging from academic researchers and agency and zoo professionals to hobbyists, education must be equally diverse, using various “tools” such as articles presenting new information about reptiles, ecosystems, and conservation efforts, and features about people (profiles), places (travelogues), and ongoing conservation efforts (ircf on the move and focus on conservation). in addition, we try to broaden the range of what we can cover with the inclusion of historical perspectives, book reviews, short summaries of previously published material (conservation research reports and natural history research reports) and “newsbriefs.” although we frequently receive feedback about specific articles or features, we would be most interested in hearing from readers about the kinds of items they most enjoy and, maybe more importantly, things they would like to see us include in future issues. please feel free to contact any of the editors at any time. we’d like to hear from you. the editors of iguana ircf international reptile conservation foundation the giant montserrat galliwasp (diploglossus montisserrati), featured in a 2006 newsbrief, is one of the most endangered lizards in the world. threatened by an active volcano, the species was thought to be extinct until recently. this is an example of information that is educational for all readers of iguana, regardless of experience, education, or profession. d u rr el l w il d li fe c o n se rv a ti o n t ru st iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:58 pm page 211 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 265natural history research reports contained an independent time trend for survival of each age, morph, and labtreatment group. for snakes of the first two age groups (ages 1 yr and 2–4 yr), survival tended to decline over the years for both morphs, whereas for adult snakes (> 5 yr), survival was constant or even increased slightly. these data on survival and recapture are among the first rigorous estimates of these parameters in a rattlesnake and among the few available for any viperid snake. these data are useful for analyses of the lifehistory strategy, population dynamics, and conservation of this long-lived snake. ringneck snakes are toxic to prey ringneck snakes (diadophis punctatus) are suspected of being venomous because their duvernoy’s gland secretions have high levels of phospholipase activity, which is characteristic of many viperid and elapid venoms, and because anecdotal reports of feeding behavior are consistent with the use of a venom. o’donnell et al. (2007. toxicon 50: 810–815) tested the toxicity of northwestern ringneck snake (d. p. occidentalis) oral secretions to a natural prey species, northwestern garter snakes (thamnophis ordinoides), by injecting 2–35 µl of oral secretions intraperitoneally. all doses were 100% lethal within 180 min. the dose significantly affected the time to loss of a righting response. neither injection of saline nor denatured oral secretions resulted in loss of a righting response or any visible detrimental effects. the authors suggested that northwestern ringneck snakes may have evolved venom to subdue larger prey items than the snake would otherwise be capable of taking. virginia herpetological society publications on-line the virginia herpetological society has digitized all of its publications from 1958 to 2005, providing easy access to almost 50 years worth of field notes, articles, and the history of the society. interested herpetologists are encouraged to access this resource at fwie.fw.vt.edu/ vhs/ (or publications specifically at fwie.fw.vt.edu/vhs/vhs_history.htm). fourth annual sonoran desert herpetological symposium the tucson herpetological society and its cosponsors are pleased to announce the fourth symposium on “current research on herpetofauna of the sonoran desert” from 11–13 april 2008. the goals of this meeting are: (1) presenting research on the herpetofauna of the sonoran desert (in the states of arizona, sonora, and on the baja california peninsula and gulf islands), and (2) bringing the interested community together to get better acquainted. invited speakers are harry greene, ed moll, and cecil schwalbe. the first three sonoran desert herpetofaunal symposia were an epiphany for many. these symposia revealed the wide variety of research being conducted in the area. for more information, see: http://tucsonherpsociety.org/. n e w s b r i e f s northwestern ringneck snake (diadophis punctatus occidentalis) oral secretions are toxic to a natural prey species, northwestern garter snakes (thamnophis ordinoides). su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h the tucson herpetological society and cosponsors announce the fourth symposium on “current research on herpetofauna of the sonoran desert.” th o m a s w ie w a n d t, w il d h o r iz o n s 266 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 newsbriefs officials warn ‘beware the snakes’ three experts and an eye witness launched kayaks into the hanalei river on kaua‘i to try to track down a snake spotted on 25 june — the fourth reported sighting there since march. “a snake flew out of the tree and splashed into the water,” said 16-year-old paulina michel, of princeville. “then we started paddling really hard to get away.” demonstrating with her hands outstretched about 3-feet apart, 8-year-old pearl cuevas described her version of what she saw. “it was about this big,” she gestured. although hawaiian officials scour aircraft for the invasive species and take other, serious precautions to keep the state snake-free, the threat of the existence of the brown tree snake (boiga irregularis) on kaua‘i is a real one. the brown tree snake is a nocturnal and arboreal snake that, after world war ii, was introduced to guam, probably via military cargo returning from use in the war in new guinea. the species’ rapid spread throughout the island resulted in the extinction of nine of the island’s 12 forest birds and half of its lizards. with that in mind, department of agriculture officials are taking action to prevent what could be a drastic change to the fragile balance of kaua‘i’s ecosystem. michel and cuevas said they were about a mile from hanalei bay on their return to the kayak kaua‘i port when they saw the snakelike creature slither away under the water. the pair — along with michel’s 8-year-old sister jolene, who was trailing in a kayak with her father — reported the sighting to authorities immediately upon their return. state officials from the hawai‘i department of land and natural resources and agriculture, ed pickop and al silva, with invasive species committee member eric twedt, arrived later at the kayak kaua‘i office. they brought with them a “snake sighting interview kit.” the experts asked the witnesses questions using different sizes of polyvinyl chloride pipe, rope, and pictures in an attempt to identify the snake. rain hampered efforts to kayak to the spot where the girls saw the snake, but paulina said she was eventually able to show the experts the approximate location. “they got out and looked for tracks but didn’t find anything,” she said. the officials plan to return soon to further investigate. “we’re not messing around. we take this very seriously,” pickop said. after an alleged snake was spotted two weeks previously, dlnr officials posted signs on the kayak kaua‘i office in hanalei asking all sightings be reported. “it was a very interesting, action-packed day,” paulina said. “beware the snakes.” in an ongoing effort to keep the snakes from hitchhiking to hawai‘i in military planes, ships, and cargo, sen. daniel inouye has been working to include a guam-based snake inspection process in the annual defense spending bill. nathan eagle the garden island 26 june 2007 a major victory for gopher tortoises incidental take is all but history! thousands of citizens have been emailing, writing, attending meetings, and demonstrating a wish to conserve gopher tortoises (gopherus polyphemus) and all the species that live with them. private landowners, developers, and others are working together to take the next important step, namely to make sure that the florida wildlife commission (fwc) gopher tortoise management plan is based on the management and monitoring practices that insure sustaining the species and its habitats in perpetuity. danger signs are rising all over the place that indicate that what is now a good foundation may not meet the criteria that will insure tortoise conservation for generations to come. more than twenty years ago, fwc staff assured those of us with concerns about the details of how relocation and incidental take were going to be handled that those details would be changed. more than 10 years later, fwc responded to the science that expressed concern about upper respiratory tract disease (urtd) and proposed requirements that some kind of testing for urtd be incorporated in relocation efforts, but then did not respond to new information acquired during those 10 years that showed urtd was not the problem originally believed. had, however, the original urtd concerns been correct, far more tortoises would have died than ever were taken by incidental take due to the 10year response time. the gopher tortoise council (gtc) is preparing a review of the plan. one important issue still being ignored is the “single-family-home” or “five-tortoises-or-fewer” permits. a university of florida study recently indicated that 187,000 single-family homes were built in 2006 alone. plots ranged from less than one to several hundred acres in size. meanwhile, in the history of the current permitting system, around 7,000 permits have been issued for this category. if only one tortoise per unit (not acre) is affected, the number far exceeds the losses reported by fwc. without the general public’s concern and constant reminders to the fwc and county commissions around the state, this and other key issues will be overlooked or ignored in the final plan. establishing an economically sustainable program that will support relocation monitoring and management can be done in such a way that developers, agricultural interests, and large landowners will support the effort. an introduction of brown tree snakes (boiga irregularis) on kaua‘i is a real threat. g a d p er r y private landowners, developers, and others are working to insure that the florida wildlife commission gopher tortoise management plan is based on management and monitoring practices that sustain the species and its habitats in perpetuity. jo e b u r g es s iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 267newsbriefs gtc appreciates the work done by the fwc, hoping that it inaugurates a new era in which the staff uses science and public interest to develop real workable policies — but a few more months are necessary in order to get it done right. after twenty years of waiting, these changes will seal the fate of this keystone species, and if it takes another ten or twenty years to correct mistakes, no tortoises or commensals may be left to save. the gopher tortoise council litigation looms on 30 august 2007, the center for biological diversity, headquartered in tucson, arizona, filed a formal notice of intent to sue the department of the interior for political interference with 55 endangered species recommendations in 28 states. the notice initiates the largest substantive legal action in the 34-year history of the endangered species act. the full list of species is available at www.biologicaldiversity.org/swcbd/press/ interference-08-28-2007.html. north american reptiles faring better than expected a newly completed assessment of the conservation status of north american reptiles (class reptilia) shows that most of the group is faring better than expected, with relatively few species at severe risk of extinction. the comprehensive international assessment was carried out by zoologists from natureserve, working in partnership with reptile experts from universities, the world conservation union (iucn), and conservation international. the study covered 721 species of lizards and snakes found in mexico, the united states, and canada. about one in eight lizards and snakes (84 species) was found to be “threatened” with extinction, with another 23 species labeled “near threatened.” for 121 lizards and snakes, the data are insufficient to allow a confident estimate of their extinction risk, while 493 species (about two-thirds of the total) are at present relatively secure. when viewed in comparison with the perils facing other animals, this is reasonably good news for north america’s squamate reptiles. a comparable recent global assessment of amphibians, for example, found nearly one-third of the planet’s amphibians to be at risk of extinction. the results of the two-year assessment were announced today as a key component of the 2007 iucn red list of threatened species. widely recognized as the most definitive tally of the planet’s threatened wildlife, the red list is a joint effort led by iucn and its species survival commission, working with official red list partners birdlife international, conservation international, natureserve, and the zoological society of london. publication of the conservation status assessments for north american reptiles is a major step toward completion of the first-ever global reptile assessment, an ongoing effort by the red list consortium to assess the status of all reptiles worldwide. the north american effort was funded primarily by the regina bauer frankenberg foundation for animal welfare, a new york-based foundation dedicated to the care and conservation of the world’s animals. grand cayman blue iguanas hatch at the san diego zoo the san diego zoo’s conservation and research for endangered species (cres) is pleased to announce the hatching of three grand cayman blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi). the hatchlings emerged from their eggs over a three-day period from 17–19 september 2007. the mother, who weighed only 550 g, nested four eggs in the soil of a potted hibiscus plant at cres. the nesting and hatching dates are similar to those for iguanas in grand cayman. average weight and size of the eggs was 56.5 g and 66 x 45 mm. the eggs were placed on a mixture of vermiculite and water at a ratio of 1:1 by weight, and incubated at a temperature of 30 °c. the first animal pipped after 83 days of incubation. average weight and snout-vent length of the hatchlings was 44.2 g and 97 mm. the grand cayman blue iguana is considered by many to be the most endangered lizard in the world. threats include severe habitat loss and fragmentation, road traffic, and intense predation from non-native feral and domesticated animals. the blue iguana recovery program was developed with several international collaborators to reverse the iguana’s path to extinction by headstarting, breeding, and releasing iguanas within protected reserves on grand cayman. to date, over 250 iguanas have been released and the prospect for species survival is slowly improving. one of the many program goals is to develop a selfsustaining ex-situ captive population that mirrors the genetic diversity of the remaining wild population and provides a hedge against catastrophic loss in grand cayman. the dam hatched in 2001 at the headstart and breeding facility in grand cayman. she and the sire (hatched 2002) were brought to cres in 2005 the alameda striped racer (masticophis lateralis euryxanthus) is one of two reptiles included in the list of species for which the department of the interior is accused of exerting political interference with endangered species recommendations. the mexican garter snake (thamnophis eques megalops) is the other. g a r y n a fi s the two-legged worm lizard (bipes biporus) of baja california is listed as “least concern” on the iucn red list in view of its wide distribution, tolerance of a degree of habitat modification, presumed large population, and because it is unlikely to be declining fast enough to qualify for listing in a more threatened category. th o m a s w ie w a n d t, w il d h o r iz o n s with eight other juveniles representing five founder pedigrees new to the united states captive population. this is the first breeding of this species at san diego; only two other zoos (gladys porter and indianapolis) have bred blue iguanas in the united states in the last decade. cres has been an integral part of the aza’s cyclura ssp since its inception, and is a collaborator in the blue iguana recovery program. jeff lemm research animal coordinator applied animal ecology division cres, zoological society of san diego bootmaker for world leaders arrested a bootmaker to world leaders, including president bush and vicente fox, is in a colorado jail, charged with money laundering and conspiring to illegally smuggle the skins of protected animals into the united states to provide exotic footwear for high-end clients. the arrest of martin villegas — and mexico’s raid of a warehouse filled with hundreds of cowboy boots and belts made from endangered species — has raised questions about how much fox knew of the scheme and whether the former mexican president purchased illegal boots himself. before fox left office in december, villegas created a special brand of cowboy boot named after him, which was manufactured in mexico’s shoemaking capital, leon, in fox’s home state of guanajuato. the mexican bootmaker also produced footwear for fox’s bodyguards, cabinet members, relatives and friends — including bush, a fellow lover of ranchwear, who accepted a pair of ostrich-skin cowboy boots as a gift during a visit to fox’s ranch in 2001. villegas was arrested 6 september along with two other mexican nationals and two u.s. residents following a threeyear undercover operation by u.s. fish and wildlife service agents. the five allegedly made 25 illegal shipments of banned skins into the u.s. since 2005, the department said. days later, mexican federal agents raided the canada grande factory and warehouse in leon, which is owned by one of the other mexican suspects, esteban lopez estrada. they found about 400 pairs of cowboy boots and 150 belts made of the skins of endangered sea turtles, as well as products made illegally from the hides of crocodiles, lizards, and cobras. the seized boots, belts, shoes, and skins are being stored in an environmental protection agency office in guanajuato, where a chain-link cage is filled with more than 200 cardboard boxes with drawings of ostriches and serpents. “exotic boots ... export quality,” is written in red lettering on the boxes. a pair of turtle-skin cowboy boots sells on the black market in mexico for about $70. across the border, they can fetch as much as $500. turtle skins, which sell for about $9 in mexico, go for about $80 in the u.s. any commercial trade in sea turtles is prohibited under the convention of international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora. smuggling endangered iguanas in a prosthetic leg a california resident was indicted on federal smuggling charges for bringing into the united states several extremely rare iguanas after stealing them from a nature preserve in the republic of the fiji islands and concealing them in his prosthetic leg. the smuggling charge, which carries a penalty of up to five years in federal prison, alleges that jereme james stole three hatchling fiji island banded iguanas (brachylophus fasciatus) and brought them to the united states in violation of federal and international law. the fiji island banded iguana is threatened with extinction and is protected under an international treaty known as the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora. while on a trip to fiji in september 2002, james apparently abducted three young iguanas from an ecological preserve. he then allegedly brought them into the united states by concealing them in a special compartment he had constructed in a prosthetic leg that he uses. after receiving a tip that james possessed several specimens of the endan268 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 newsbriefs a prominent bootmaker is in a colorado jail, charged with money laundering and conspiring to illegally smuggle the skins of protected animals into the united states to provide exotic footwear for high-end clients. a california resident was indicted on federal smuggling charges for bringing into the united states several extremely rare fiji island banded iguanas (brachylophus fasciatus) after stealing them from a nature preserve and concealing them in his prosthetic leg. jo h n b in n s hatchling grand cayman blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi) at the center for the reproduction of endangered species (cres) at the san diego zoo. je ff r ey m . l em m iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 269newsbriefs gered species, the united states fish & wildlife service opened an undercover investigation. during the investigation, james told an undercover operative that he sold a trio of fiji island banded iguanas four years ago for $32,000. after a series of meetings with the defendant, fish & wildlife service agents executed a search warrant at james’s house in july and recovered four of the endangered iguanas. andros iguana outreach in october, an outreach project utilizing workshops and outreach materials was initiated on andros island, bahamas. the objective of this project is to advance efforts to protect the endangered andros iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura). the san diego zoo’s education department and conservation and research for endangered species (cres) collaborated with the bahamas ministry of education and the bahamas national trust (bnt) to hold two two-day workshops for andros island educators. thirty-four educators (teachers, administrators, and resource specialists) representing all 19 public schools on andros participated in the events. the workshops were supported by a united states fish and wildlife service “wildlife without borders” grant. the workshops were designed to improve the educators’ understanding of andros iguanas, their habitat, and their conservation. participants gained valuable knowledge and experience through a variety of activities, discussions, and a fieldtrip. the groups received training on the use of a portable education kit with three complementary lessons and associated materials. two of these kits will travel throughout the andros school system during the year. educators also received resource materials including an iguana conservation poster, wildlife identification posters, and a pine forest resource book produced by the bnt. participants also received custom t-shirts to help promote pride in andros iguanas and their conservation. the project also supports diffusion of iguana related information through youth sports and civic clubs. a series of trading cards was created as a fun way to inform youths and their families about andros iguana natural history, threats, and conservation. the central andros iguanas football club, the governor general youth awards program, and the bahamas national trust will distribute the cards as prizes to members and participants in community events. the 70member football club also received sports backpacks and water bottles printed with the club’s logo and a conservation message. the success of the workshops has already led to plans for further collaboration and activities. a subsequent evaluation of the effects of the activities and materials will help improve future conservation outreach activities on andros and other islands. start them young the countdown to choosing the nation’s top young scientist began several months ago by discovery communications and one of the 40 finalists is herpetologist-intraining, rick schaeffer, a junior chelonian scientist with a science fair project on the asian giant tortoise, manouria emys. over 7,000 students won a nomination at their local, regional, or state science fairs, of which approximately 2,000 were considered for the award and 400 were chosen as semifinalists. in spring 2007, while an 8th-grade student in jacksonville, florida, rick schaffer placed first in zoology at the florida state science fair, receiving the discovery channel young scientist award at both the regional and state competitions. rick presented his findings from a previous science fair project at the university of florida herpetology conference in spring 2006. this summer, he presented his first place awardwinning current project at the 2007 annual symposium on the biology and conservation of tortoises and fresh water turtles in atlanta, georgia. he has also presented his research at the gopher tortoise council annual meeting. he was the youngest speaker ever at both the university of florida herpetology conference and the annual symposium on the biology and conservation of tortoises and fresh water turtles. protection a shell can’t provide their short tails beat back and forth faster as their noses concentrated on a pile of rotting wood, wet leaves, and rick schaeffer presenting his award-wining talk: “a comparison of the activity levels of different age cohorts of the asian giant tortoise, manouria emys, by photoperiod.” c h u c k s c h a ef fe r thirty-four educators representing all 19 public schools on andros island (bahamas) participated in a two-day workshop using materials that focused on andros iguanas (cyclura cychlura cychlura). b il l to o n e 270 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 newsbriefs thorny brush in the dense montgomery county forest. “look, look,” said john rucker, a turtle activist from tennessee, pointing at his three boykin spaniels. “think they found one.” sure enough, sparky brought his snout out of the brush with a yellow-spotted eastern box turtle (terrapene carolina carolina) carefully clutched in his teeth. the half-dozen turtle hunters were combing the woods yesterday along the planned route for maryland’s intercounty connector, which could replace the turtle-friendly habitat with a six-lane toll highway. the aim is to catalogue and fit the turtles with transmitters so they can be rounded up and evacuated from the area when, or if, construction begins. state highway administration officials are heeding the advice of their box turtle advisory committee with an “environmental stewardship” campaign to save the turtles from being crushed under bulldozers or trapped under the asphalt, said robert shreeve, the connector’s environmental manager. the campaign, which began about a month ago, is estimated to cost up to $20,000. unlike deer, birds, and other woodland and wetland creatures in the area, turtles “are slow-moving and have a very difficult time getting out of the way,” shreeve said during a news conference in the woods yesterday morning. major construction on the longdelayed highway was set to begin october 16th but has been put on hold as a federal judge considers two lawsuits alleging that maryland officials did not properly evaluate the highway’s environmental impact. the 18-mile highway would run north of the capital beltway connecting interstate 270 in gaithersburg and interstate 95 in laurel. u.s. district judge alexander williams, jr. began hearing arguments monday and is expected to rule this month. while the lawsuits are pending, highway officials and activists are continuing with turtle relocation plans. they have found 90 turtles and hope to bring that number to 150. some of the creatures were tagged with donated transmitters and released in the spots where they were found, but most are being held in a pen until the transmitters the highway administration ordered arrive. if the judge rules in the state’s favor and major construction begins, officials will locate the turtles, which will probably be hibernating under four to six inches of dirt and leaves. the best way to move “pretty much comatose” turtles is to work on a cold day and keep the turtles at a constant low temperature, said christopher w. swarth, a committee member and director of jug bay wetlands sanctuary in anne arundel county. they will then place the turtles in a new hibernation hole on the other side of the highway construction fence, which will be reinforced with thin mesh so the turtles can’t crawl back. shreeve said construction workers also will be trained on what to do if they spot a turtle: pick it up and alert the environmentalists. the activists involved said none of them has ever moved this many turtles before — and they aren’t sure whether it will work. “just because we’ll pick up buckets of turtles doesn’t mean they’ll still be around in a few years,” swarth said. eastern box turtles can be found in many spots in the region, the activists said, but their population is slowly dwindling for a number of reasons: low egg counts, collisions with fast-moving cars, dwindling habitats, pesticides and, yes, children with sticks. moving a whole population of turtles, even a few miles, could be enough for that species to disappear from the area. turtles hardly ever venture more than a few miles from their home, said susan hagood of the humane society of the united states. turtles that are transplanted usually don’t settle down, she said, and instead keep wandering in search of home. plus, the little guys might not be happy being pulled out of hibernation. “we’re trying something that history has said doesn’t work,” she said. “but with a declining species, we can’t do nothing.” although the activists said they were glad the highway administration has publicly supported saving the turtles, they worry that the support came too late. committee member sandy barnett, a longtime herpetologist, said that the panel formed nearly a year ago and that highway officials should have started the process in june so they could mark the turtles before they started their fall hibernation routine. she is also upset that the transmitters have not arrived and will be too large for some of the baby turtles. “it’s a $2.4 billion [highway] project,” she said. “they have all of these funds to allocate, and they can’t take care of these turtles?” jenna johnson washington post biodiversity: exotic pet collectors drive extinction in an ironic twist, officially listing a species as endangered drives up its value to collectors and consumers, putting it on an even faster track to extinction, researchers in paris reported tuesday. a perverse human penchant for possessing the last remaining member of a species increases its value so that collectors will spend thousands of dollars and go to any length, legal or illegal, to obtain them. this triggers a positive feedback loop between exploitation and rarity that drives a species into an extinction vortex, franck courchamp and colleagues write in the scientific journal plos biology. “it can be dangerous for a species to announce that it has become rare if it cannot be protected from exploitation,” courchamp said. “even inconspicuous species can suddenly become valuable just because they are rare.” hobby collectors, the exotic pet trade, trophy hunters, traditional medicine, and luxury goods made from rare species are among the forces pushing rare species into extinction — and the scientific literature is often used to identify the next hot maryland state highway administration officials are heeding the advice of their box turtle advisory committee with an “environmental stewardship” campaign to save eastern box turtles (terrapene carolina carolina) from being killed during construction of a six-lane toll highway. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 271newsbriefs species. immediately after an article recognized the small indonesian turtle (chelodina mccordi) and chinese gecko (goniurosaurus luii) as rarities, their prices soared on the exotic pet market. the turtle is now nearly extinct and the gecko can no longer be found. exotic pet traders covet a wide range of creatures, including orangutans, monkeys, reptiles, birds, and wild cats, as well as arachnids, insects, and fish. the internet is a major factor in driving species into extinction faster than ever, says ernie cooper, director of wildlife trade at the world wildlife fundcanada. “the internet makes it very easy for sellers to connect with buyers,” cooper said. a seller can easily and quickly sell 200 exotic salamanders on the net, which would have been very difficult to do a decade ago. “it’s just scary how fast a species can be depleted,” cooper noted. two years ago, he found out that 50 kaiser’s spotted newts (neurergus kaiseri), a threatened species endemic to iran, were for sale in canada. he traced the canadian dealer to a ukrainian dealer who was offering up to 200 kaiser’s spotted newts for sale. “there are less than 1,000 kaisers left in only a few small streams in iran,” cooper said. although protected in iran and collected illegally, it is not illegal to sell the kaisers on the many amphibian collector websites. “if i hadn’t stumbled on to the trade in kaisers, it would have gone extinct before anyone knew.” the iucn world conservation union’s “red list” of threatened species now considers kaisers to be a “critically endangered” species — just one of nearly 16,000 plants and animals known to face a high risk of extinction. not surprisingly, the collector’s price for kaisers has jumped from $200 to $400 dollars, and some are still for sale today. the pre-eminent scientific authority on species at risk, the iucn red list offers no legal protection for species, says peter galvin of the centre for biological diversity, an environmental group in california. instead, each country should establish laws to protect species and to list a species under the convention on international trade in endangered species (cites) to make it illegal to trade endangered species. “if there are no legal protections, then it might be a good idea to keep secret the fact that a species has become rare,” he said. however, in many cases a widely publicized announcement that a species is threatened with extinction is the only way to motivate governments to pass laws and take other measures to protect them. china adopted stringent measures to protect the giant panda only after worldwide public outcry following published scientific reports showing that the species was in trouble. “most countries are embarrassed to let one of their species go extinct,” galvin pointed out. in the united states, species have only been protected after lawsuits forced the government to put them on the u.s. e n d a n g e r e d species list — or at least that is the way it has been under the george w. bush administration, he says. “no species has been put on the list without a court order,” galvin said. that process can take years, leaving a species known to be rare without any legal protection — but keeping quiet doesn’t work either, since species are going extinct at record rates. “publicly listing a species as threatened cuts both ways,” cooper agreed. however, he believes there are cases when it would be better to keep a species’ status secret. it is probably already too late for the kaisers. even if iran wanted to make it illegal to trade the newts internationally, the cites process can take two or more years — and the looming extinction of kaisers is not a top priority for iran, cooper said. educating collectors on the consequences of their hobby — driving species into extinction — doesn’t work for some because they tend to be obsessive personalities. “they are often experts who know a species has been collected into extinction but they must have it in their collection,” he explained. courchamp has conducted experiments on this human compulsion for rarity. “people are always interested in the rare,” he said. “even if two objects are identical, if you tell them one is rare, that one becomes their focus. it is a very strong tendency.” stephen leahy ips-inter press service immediately after the chinese leopard gecko (goniurosaurus luii) was formally described as “rare,” its prices on the exotic pet market soared. the gecko can no longer be found in its natural habitat. l. l ee g r is m er iguana b&w text 260 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 book reviews were in place for mammals and birds while herp departments remained unable to determine the gender of their charges and had standing orders with people who poached rattlesnake dens! however, murphy repeatedly makes the point that the transition is still far from complete — especially in the case of amphibians, which remain an afterthought in all but a very few programs. nevertheless, the current respectable state of zoo herpetology is attributable to individuals like roger conant, james oliver, and, of course, james b. murphy. murphy reminds us of times when representatives of zoos were not really welcome at scientific conferences, when research papers by zoo personnel or those based on work at zoos were not considered worthy of publication, and when the animals themselves were not considered worthy of conservation. with such a dramatic conceptual turn in their histories, zoos are fortunate that murphy places this remarkable transition in an appropriate perspective. a nice touch also is that this transition figures heavily in the foreword by the late roger conant. how appropriate that this book provides us with one more bit of wisdom from the undisputed “godfather” of zoo herpetology. murphy relates, with great pride, the progress zoo herpetology programs have made, mainly by emphasizing their very real contributions, including their leading role in the development of important conservation programs such as the declining amphibian population task force. reading this book made me proud of our profession — and that’s a nice feeling. thanks, jim! joseph r. mendelson iii curator of herpetology zoo atlanta hispaniola. a photographic journey through island biodiversity. bioversidad a través de un recorrido fotográfico. 2007. by eladio fernández. the belknap press of harvard university press, cambridge, massachusetts. xx + 374 pp. hardcover — isbn10: 0-674-02628-4 — $ 60. my first trip to the west indies was to the dominican republic. i’ve since spent considerable time on other islands, but when i’m asked which is my favorite, i always come back to hispaniola. rather than attempt to explain (usually in vain) why the island is so enticing, i now can direct anyone to eladio fernández’s profusely illustrated book that so eloquently defines the island’s natural beauty through the discerning eyes of a knowledgeable naturalist and gifted photographer. a total of 375 color photographs, many of them covering two facing pages in this coffee-table volume, show flowers, landscapes, insects, birds, and, of particular interest, amphibians and reptiles. better yet, in many instances, the reader is not just greeted with portraits, but is immersed into natural habitats as pollinators visit flowers, predators consume prey, and anoles fan their dewlaps intent on attracting a mate or dissuading a rival. even the vistas emanate life in a way seldom experienced through photographs. this is a volume of images, some subtle, many powerful, all beautiful. the text is almost an afterthought, yet no less valuable — once one finds the strength to turn away from the photographs. all text is bilingual (english and spanish), from the title to the acknowledgments. the foreword by noted naturalist edward o. wilson deftly provides the context that makes the volume so appealing — that the beauty portrayed is ephemeral, all the more so for lack of a human commitment to treasure and preserve it. philippe bayard, of the société audubon haïti, states explicitly how effectively art can promote conservation. the photographer’s note by fernández includes a somewhat wistful wish that this book may “raise awareness and spark an interest in preserving [his] island’s natural heritage.” additional “essays” by a virtual who’s who of neotropical biologists address the diversity of hispaniola’s birds (steven c. latta and christopher c. rimmer), mammals (charles a. woods and josé a. ottenwalder), amphibians and reptiles (s. blair hedges), insects (brian ferrell), vegetation (milcíades mejía and ricardo garcía), and fungi (timothy j. baroni and sharon a. cantrell). all are eloquent, concise, and consistent in acknowledging both the unique nature and perverse fragility of the island’s habitats and their denizens. the book effectively surprises, entertains, and pleases on each subsequent page. only the all-too consistently dark images (undoubtedly attributable to cost-cutting decisions on the part of the publisher, otherwise not known to pinch pennies) detract — but fortunately not to the point where the grandeur of the subject or the gift of the artist are compromised. i only wish i could have avoided this one criticism of what is otherwise one of the best packages under one cover to come along in many, many years. anyone who has experienced the islands or who wishes to do so some day should buy a copy, curl up in a warm chair on a cold night, and dream of paradise — before it’s too late. robert powell department of biology, avila university kansas city, missouri island paradise iguana b&w text 238 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 gangloff a male ornate box turtle (terrapene ornata ornata) approaches a tasty spiderwort (tradescantia bracteata) for breakfast. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 239commentary the turtles have been watching me for two years now. each week during their active season, from late march until early october, i’ve been visiting these ornate box turtles (terrapene ornata ornata) in eastern colorado. while i’m there, the turtles observe me, if not eagerly then diligently, as i patiently patrol the sandhills. by now, they are surely quite familiar with my habits, where i park the car, the circuitous routes i roam, the regular visits to a puddle from an overflowing stocktank, and the intensity of my groundward gaze. occasionally, the turtles may allow themselves to be spotted, although most of the time they use their camouflage and silence to regard me without being detected, confounding my best efforts to find them. they are better at this than i am. i visit these sandhills to study the turtles. this is a scientific investigation, conducted only after extensive literature reviews, the receipt of permits from the state, and time spent with other researchers learning the art and skill of chelonian studies. we’re using sound methods and working hard to produce data that will inform scientists and the public alike (should we draw such distinctions). we hope to better understand how turtles use the land, how they find mates, and what it is, exactly, that they do all day. ideally, this information will be used to influence decisions and policy, both private and public, that impact these animals and the stark landscapes to which they belong. hopefully, roads will not be built, strip-malls won’t be constructed, and animals won’t be stolen for the pet trade. we know, of course, that we don’t want these things to happen, that turtles don’t want these things to happen — but, to convince others, we’ll need numbers and facts, charts and graphs. the reason we founded the colorado box turtle project is simple; we love these animals and we want to protect them. does this passion obfuscate our science? of course not. ardor is the impetus for science. too often, animals, plants, and ecosystems are intensely studied so that they can be efficiently exploited: how do we best clear-cut a forest? dam a river? herpetologists, thankfully, seem to operate largely outside this questionable paradigm. the study of reptiles and amphibians offers little in the way of economic benefits. we are not providing data to increase the bottom line of major corporations or, for that matter, ourselves. we dedicate ourselves for other reasons — we care about these fascinating animals, their well being, and their future. as field researchers, we must recognize that our studies are a mutual exchange; just as we are collecting data about turtles, they are doing the same on us (although most likely in less quantifiable terms). my intention on the sandhills is not merely to accrue scientific data about turtles, but to build a relationship with these animals and the place they call home. this summer, partly due to expensive gasoline and partly due to my preference for sleeping under the stars, i timed my visits to make the best of the turtles’ activity periods. i worked in the evening once the air had cooled, spent the night in the company of the rising moon and curious beetles, then worked again in the morning before the heat of midday became thick and tangible. i wanted to know this place in a way beyond what can be garnered with calipers and gps units. i hoped to at least become a welcome visitor in a place to which i’ll never fully belong. i learned that not finding a turtle for hours on end was not a waste of time, but a valuable endeavor in itself. i watched the different plants and noted their blooming schedules: the early-summer ubiquity of spiderwort (tradescantia bracteata) and the delicate, late blooms of the sand lily (mentzelia nuda), the spinsters of the sandhills who wait until midsummer to display their magnificence. i learned to distinguish the three species of opuntia cactus (o. macrorhiza, o. fragilis, and o. polyacantha) and how the sand verbena’s (abronia fragrans) deliciously sweet scent earned it a fitting latin name. i watched wide-eyed as miniature lizards, the lesser earless lizards (holbrookia maculata) and the prairie and plateau lizards (sceloporus undulatus), scurried across open sand at remarkable speeds, despite emerging from eggs only days earlier. while rewarding in itself, these interactions also helped me to better understand the turtles i sought. to really get to know someone, sometimes it’s best to ask the neighbors. occasionally, however, my visits were not well received. one july evening, as i was driving through the expansive ranch and farm on which our study site sits, i approached a red-tailed hawk (buteo jamaicensis) perched on a fencepost. she flew parc o m m e n t a r y the turtles have been watching me eric gangloff colorado box turtle project & colorado reptile humane society (eric@corhs.org) photographs by the author. a male turtle tells us very politely that he’d prefer not to be bothered today — thank you very much. allel with the car for a few moments, as if in greeting — or that’s what i thought at the time. several hours later, after finding a fresh road-killed turtle (the first i’d observed on the ranch), and a frantic hour spent in search of a new and expensive camera i thought was lost, i realized that she was not greeting, but warning. now when i see a red-tailed hawk, it’s a great reminder to drive slowly and keep my head on straight. other birds are less 240 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 gangloff the fragrant sand verbena (abronia fragrans) in bloom. a male turtle in the long shadows of morning. yucca (yucca glauca) in bloom. the morning sun reflects off the grasses of the sandhills, mostly thread-and-needle grass (stipa comata). a female turtle enjoys the morning sun amidst the grasses of the sandhills. apt to remind me of anything other than the fact that i don’t entirely belong here. mourning doves (zenaida macroura) can explode with frightening rapidity from a nearby sagebrush (artemisia filifolia) and the killdeer (charadrius vociferus) make it clear, in no uncertain terms, that i should leave. their perfection of the art of distraction, via shrill warning cries and ridiculous antics, have earned them, even more than the sand verbena, the perfect latin name. less dramatic but no less prescient, the prairie rattlesnake (crotalus viridis) provides its own alarm, so unique and poignant it is, thankfully, impossible not to heed. while i have thoroughly enjoyed this intimacy with the sandhills and their residents, it is the turtles who have brought me here. each time i spot one, usually from an embarrassingly close distance from which the turtle has been observing me for several minutes, i feel a burst of delight. here’s a turtle! in the wild! it’s healthy! and living where it should! i stop and photograph the animal where it is before doing anything else, noting direction and vegetation. sometimes, i pause and watch for a time to see what the turtle will do. the answer, invariably, is the same — nothing. the turtle has long since stopped its task at hand and waits, patiently, for me to move on so it can resume. when processing the animals, i can’t help but be enamored of the vibrant and distinctive sunbursts on each carapace scute, the deep, patient gaze of the wizened females and the showy greenblue-orange of a male’s head and forelegs. sometimes, i must abashedly admit, i talk to the turtles. no, i must be honest, i always talk to the turtles. i call them “sweetie” and “handsome” and “beautiful” or other terms of endearment usually reserved for children and spouses. once, an intern from the local univeriguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 241commentary a male chows on a box turtle favorite (spiderwort, tradescantia bracteata). an exuberant stand of prickly poppy (argemone polyanthemos). sity sarcastically commented, “that’s real scientific, eric.” of course it’s not, but it doesn’t hurt the scientific. for science to be pertinent and powerful in the dire circumstances of our world, the days of dispassion must be over. if we do not care about the objects of our study, we risk perpetuating the damage of past endeavors done in the name of science. i recently read a book that beseeched us humans to start listening to the natural world, not in a metaphorical sense but in the literal sense. we had much to learn, the author claimed, from the trees and coyotes and rivers. the book was unscientific and, at times, proudly so. i don’t see this as a shortcoming compared to the rigors of scientific investigation, only a difference of approach to the same quest for knowledge and understanding. i’ve also read countless papers and journal articles about box turtles and sandhill ecosystems, all facts and figures and irrefutable numbers. i’ve learned a great deal from these as well, and do not grow bored from their lack of personal voice or narrative. they help me better understand an animal to which i’ve dedicated a great deal of my life’s energy. these differing approaches should not be held in opposition; rather, we must rededicate ourselves to serving this world around us, our friends and neighbors, with both inquiry and passion, hard facts and endearing nicknames. derrick jensen, author of the aforementioned book, stated that the question we should be asking is, “what can i learn from this forest [or sandhill] community that will teach me to better serve it?” i am lucky to have learned what i have about these turtles, activity periods and size-to-mass ratios and habitat preferences. hopefully, we can put this knowledge to use in service of these turtles and their fellow sandhill residents. i am also lucky to have learned from these turtles to stop walking when i want to look around and to be patient when coming or going, valuable lessons that are applicable beyond the sandhills. this learning is at once quantifiable and profound. it is meticulous. it is fueled by passion. science, in these times, cannot afford to be otherwise. 242 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 gangloff a male turtle begins his morning rounds. a female turtle walks off after a morning drink at the stock tank overflow puddle. a male turtle watches the sunrise over his beloved sandhills. a male turtle strikes a frightening pose to ward us off; he was unsuccessful. a lesser earless lizard (holbrookia maculata) pauses in ready curiosity. iguana 13.2 b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 163conservation research reports dietary shifts of turtles in pristine and oil-polluted habitats of the niger delta in southern nigeria luiselli et al. (2004. herpetological journal 14: 57–64) examined the diets of sympatric freshwater turtles at two study areas in the niger delta (southern nigeria). one site was unpolluted and the other was polluted by an oil spill, but both areas were otherwise similar. four species of turtle (trionyx triunguis, pelusios castaneus, pelusios niger, and pelomedusa subrufa) were captured in the unpolluted area, whereas only two species (pelusios castaneus and pelusios niger) were captured in the polluted area. in the unpolluted area, the taxonomic composition of the diets of pelusios castaneus and pelusios niger was similar, whereas the diets of pelomedusa subrufa and trionyx triunguis were very different from the other two species and one another. in the polluted area, the taxonomic composition of the diet of pelusios castaneus was significantly different from that of conspecifics in the unpolluted area, and consisted mainly of plant matter, annelids (earthworms and leeches), and gastropods. the taxonomic composition of the diet of pelusios niger was also significantly different from that of conspecifics at the unpolluted area, and consisted mainly of annelids and gastropods, and secondarily of plant matter. amphibian prey (eggs, tadpoles, and adults), which were one of the main food types for all turtles in the unpolluted area, practically disappeared from the diet of turtles at the polluted area. the two species that survived the oil spill obviously shifted their dietary preferences. in both species, an obvious reduction in the breadth of the trophic niche was apparent. such a reduction in trophic niche breadth may reflect the reduced availability of most food sources (particularly amphibians, fish, and environmentallysensitive invertebrates) in the polluted area, despite over 10 years of restoration operations at the site. the reduction in trophic niche breadth also may reflect shifts in habitat use by the surviving turtles, which tended to concentrate into single habitat types in the polluted area, compared to the unpolluted area where they were more habitat generalists. biology of endangered ploughshare tortoises successful conservation requires a good understanding of both the direct and indirect causes of any decline in population size. harvests of wild populations often target the largest, oldest individuals that have the greatest economic value. if these individuals contribute disproportionately more to recruitment than conspecifics, the harvest will cause a greater reduction in population viability than initially anticipated. the ploughshare tortoise (geochelone yniphora), endemic to madagascar, has been reduced to <600 individuals due to exploitation and habitat loss. a trial release of captive-bred juveniles has been carried out but the relative suitability of individuals for release, in terms of body size, was not considered. using data from a long-term mark-recapture study of an unharvested wild population of ploughshare tortoises, o’brien et al. (2005. biological conservation 126: 141–145) found that larger juveniles were significantly more likely to survive their first year of life than smaller tortoises. juveniles that survived beyond their first year of life generally grew at the same rate, but had a significantly larger hatch size (mean = 41.7 mm), compared with juveniles that did not survive (mean = 39.3 mm). the conservation implications of these results are that release of captivebred ploughshare tortoises is likely to be more successful if larger individuals are released. previous studies have reported larger female ploughshare tortoises laying larger eggs which hatch larger juveniles. this study shows individuals with a larger hatch size retain their size advantage over smaller conspecifics and are more likely to survive their first year of life. this suggests a harvest that targets the largest females in the ploughshare tortoises population could be highly detrimental to population viability. herpetofaunal diversity in southeastern national parks the southeastern united states supports about half of the nations species of amphibians and reptiles, of which about 20% are endemic to the region. because few areas have been formally inventoried, c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s pelomedusa subrufa was restricted to unpolluted areas in the niger delta (nigeria). c h u c k s c h a ff er the ploughshare tortoise (geochelone yniphora), endemic to madagascar, has been reduced to fewer than 600 individuals due to exploitation and habitat loss. lo r a s m it h iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 163 164 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 conservation research reports turberville et al. (2005. southeastern naturalist 4:537–569) conducted biological inventories at 16 parks in the national park service’s southeast coast network. using a variety of standard field techniques and surveys of museum collections, the authors documented the presence of 123 native species of amphibians and reptiles in the 16 parks, with numbers of species ranging from 6–64 per park. increasing leatherback numbers linked to long-term nest protection the leatherback turtle (dermochelys coriacea) is considered to be at serious risk of global extinction, despite ongoing conservation efforts. intensive long-term monitoring of a leatherback nesting population on sandy point (st. croix, us virgin islands) offers a unique opportunity to quantify basic population parameters and evaluate effectiveness of nesting beach conservation practices. dutton et al. (2005. biological conservation 126: 186–194) reported a significant increase in the number of females nesting annually from ca. 18–30 in the 1980s to 186 in 2001, with a corresponding increase in annual hatchling production from ca. 2000 to over 49,000. they then analyzed resighting data from 1991 to 2001 with an open robust-design capture-markrecapture model to estimate annual nester survival and adult abundance for this population. the expected annual survival probability was estimated at ca. 0.893 (95% ci: 0.87–0.92) and the population was estimated to be increasing ca. 13% pa since the early 1990s. taken together with dna fingerprinting that identify mother-daughter relations, their findings suggest that the increase in the size of the nesting population since 1991 was probably due to an aggressive program of beach protection and egg relocation initiated more than 20 years ago. beach protection and egg relocation provide a simple and effective conservation strategy for this northern caribbean nesting population as long as adult survival at sea remains relatively high. impact of deforestation on lizards, small mammals, and birds in southern madagascar madagascar is a global biodiversity hotspot threatened by forest loss, degradation, and fragmentation, all of which are detrimental to the future survival of forest-dwelling organisms. for conservation purposes, determining how species respond to habitat disturbance, specifically deforestation, is essential. scott et al. (2006. biological conservation 127: 72–87) investigated the impacts of deforestation on three vertebrate communities, lizards, small mammals, and birds, in an area of spiny forest subjected to anthropogenic forest clearance. spiny forest has high levels of endemism, but conservation in this unique ecosystem is hindered by the lack of research. the authors assessed species richness, species abundance, and community composition of lizards, small mammals, and birds in six areas of ‘forest’ and six ‘cleared’ areas. from surveys and opportunistic sightings, they recorded a total of 70 species of birds, 14 species of leatherbacks (dermochelys coriacea) are critically endangered. beach protection and egg relocation provide a simple and effective conservation strategy for nesting populations as long as adult survival at sea remains relatively high. r o ze n n l e sc a o oustalet’s chameleon (furcifer oustaleti) is one of the world’s largest chameleons and is one of the many unique species of lizards that inhabit the spiny forests of madagascar. m ic h ie l d e b o er alligator snapping turtles (macroclemys temminckii) and american alligators (alligator mississippiensis) are but two of 123 native species of amphibians and reptiles found in 16 national parks in the southeastern united states. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h where gopher tortoises (gopherus polyphemus) are present, their burrows are used for shelter by many other animals. c h u c k s h a ef er iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 164 mammals, and 38 species of reptiles and amphibians. they found forest clearing to have a negative effect on species richness and community structure of all groups and identified loss of canopy cover as a driving factor. however, the response and sensitivity to clearing varied between groups and species. lizards (50%) and small mammals (40%) had the greatest decline in species richness in response to clearing as compared to birds (26%), although birds showed the greatest shift in community structure. the community in cleared areas contained more generalist and introduced species than species unique to the spiny forest. the first species to suffer from forest clearance were those of high conservation priority due to their restricted geographic range. roads and snake movements roads affect survivorship and behavior and can act as barriers to movement, which exacerbates habitat fragmentation and disrupts landscape permeability. andrews and gibbons (2005. copeia 2005: 772–782) conducted field experiments that demonstrated interspecific differences in snakes of the southeastern united states that encountered roads. smaller species exhibited higher levels of road avoidance, venomous species crossed more slowly than nonvenomous forms, and three species responded to traffic by becoming immobile, which prolonged crossing times and magnified susceptibility to road mortality. all species crossed roads at perpendicular angles. models using crossing speeds indicated that some species couldn’t successfully cross roads with high traffic densities. conservation and reptilian diversity on the guiana shield the guiana shield region is a biologically rich area that includes much of northeastern south america. it is strictly defined by the underlying geological formation of the same name. total area is approximately 1,520,000 km2 and portions or all of five nations are included. in their introduction to the “checklist of the terrestrial vertebrates of the guiana shield,” editors hollowell and reynolds (2005. bulletin of the biological society of washington (13): x + 98 pp.) addressed conservation: with the exception of a few populated localities, the environment of the guiana shield has benefited from limited access and low population densities, although this same isolation has hindered biodiversity research. estimates vary, but much of the vegetation is still relatively undisturbed by human activities. recently, however, the pace of disturbance has greatly increased. current threats include large-scale logging, largeand small-scale gold and diamond mining, oil prospecting, bauxite mining, hydroelectric dams, wildlife trade, and population-related pressures such as burning, grazing, agriculture, and the expansion of amerindian villages. taken together, these impacts have begun to take their toll, with vast areas vulnerable to increasing disturbance. the status of conservation efforts varies by country. throughout the guiana shield, many areas that are designated as protected are often only “paper” parks, because a lack of infrastructure and funds fails to protect the areas. over the last four decades, venezuela has established seven national parks, 29 natural monuments, and two biosphere reserves covering about 142,280 km2, more than 30% of its share of the guiana shield. in guyana, the progress of conservation efforts has been slower, with only one iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 165conservation research reports larger individuals of timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus) were more likely than smaller snakes to avoid roads. however, 50% of snakes on the road froze for up to a minute even before vehicles passed, prolonging crossing times and magnifying susceptibility to road mortality. r ic h a r d d a n ie l number of reptilian species known to occur on the guiana shield: total numbers of species listed by family, species with broadly endemic distributions within the area, and species with sitespecific endemic distributions. shield-wide site-specific family species endemics endemics colubridae 104 6 15 gymnophthalmidae 45 7 18 iguanidae (sensu lato) 32 2 9 gekkonidae 16 4 1 elapidae 13 4 1 teiidae 12 1 1 amphisbaenidae 10 3 5 leptotyphlopidae 8 2 1 boidae 8 1 viperidae 8 1 chelidae 8 1 podocnemididae 6 1 crocodylidae 5 1 anomalepididae 4 1 cheloniidae 4 scincidae 3 1 typhlopidae 3 testudinidae 2 dermochelyidae 1 kinosternidae 1 bataguridae 1 aniliidae 1 iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 165 national park of 627 km2, about 3% of the country’s area, although additional reserves are under consideration. guyana’s 3,710 km2 iwokrama forest is dedicated to sustainable use. surinam’s protected areas system includes one national park and a network of 11 reserves, totaling almost 20,000 km2, over 12% of its total area. this includes the recently created 16,000 km2 central surinam nature reserve, a unesco world heritage site that joined and expanded three existing reserves. french guiana has no officially designated protected areas, but 18 proposed sites total 6,710 km2, about 7.5% of it area. the natural areas of venezuela and guyana are currently under the most anthropogenic pressure, while those of french guiana are probably less threatened. cooperation among the nations with areas on the guiana shield is sometimes hampered by border disputes and illegal cross-border transportation of gold and wildlife. the implementation of conservation practices is further complicated by many issues concerning the indigenous peoples of the region. all of these challenges will have to be overcome on the way to designing and maintaining a viable reserve system. ávila pires (2005. reptiles, pp. 24–40. in: bulletin of the biological society of washington (13): x + 98 pp.) listed 295 species of reptiles currently known from the guiana shield (see table). when only species endemic to the region are considered, the proportion of lizards and amphisbaenians increases, whereas the proportion of snakes decreases. these differences may be real or sampling artifacts. amphisbaenians are difficult to sample and ranges of several species could be wider than presently known, decreasing the number of species considered to be guiana shield endemics. in contrast, ranges of widely distributed species of snakes are well-known and probably real, unless most currently recognized species turn out to be species complexes. many new species remain to be discovered, especially in the highlands. variability in brachylophus most iguanas are found in the americas, but the genus brachylophus occurs in fiji and tonga in the south pacific. effective conservation relies on understanding the relationships among the populations on various islands, which have previously been poorly understood. burns et al. (2006. pacific conservation biology 12:64–77) analyzed dna samples from 35 individuals from 10 islands. they identified three forms, of which the tonga animals were the most genetically distinct. fijian and tongan populations have each evolved following their separation at least 7 million years ago. the authors suggest a need to reassess conservation strategies to better reflect the greater degree of differentiation identified by this study. most populations are small and vulnerable to introduced predators, especially cats and mongooses. both onsite and zoo-based measures are urgently recommended. 166 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 conservation research reports fijian iguanas in the genus brachylophus, like this b. vitiensis, may include more genetically distinct entities than previously thought. jo e b u r g es s three species from the guiana shield: phimophis guianensis (left) and siphlophis compressus (center) are colubrid snakes, and anolis (norops) nitens nitens (right) is an iguanian lizard. © p h il ip pe k o k , r o y a l b el g ia n in st it u te o f n a tu r a l sc ie n c es iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:21 pm page 166 iguana b&w text 152 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 ariano and salazar with powerful limbs and claws, the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) is well equipped to climb trees in search of nestling prey. m ic h a el k er n iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 152 the helodermatidae belong to the reptile clade possessing toxin-secreting oral glands (fry et al. 2006). lizards of this family are specialized vertebrate nest predators (pianka 1966). the two species of heloderma that comprise the helodermatidae are heloderma suspectum and h. horridum (campbell and lamar 2004). the former is commonly known as the “gila monster,” whereas the latter is known as the “beaded lizard,” “scorpion,” or “sleeping baby” (ariano 2003, beck 2005). the coloration of h. horridum is both cryptic and aposematic (beck 2005). this species reaches an average total length of about 650 mm (beck and lowe 1991), and the tail is short in relation to the size of the rest of the body (álvarez del toro 1982). the average weight of an adult is around 800 g (beck and lowe 1991). four subspecies of h. horridum have been described: h. h. horridum, h. h. exasperatum, h. h. alvarezi (bogert and martín del campo 1956), and h. h. charlesbogerti (campbell and vannini 1988). heloderma h. charlesbogerti, the guatemalan beaded lizard, represents an isolated and distinctive population at the southern limit of the species’ distribution (beck 2005). heloderma h. charlesbogerti differs from the other subspecies in body proportions and color patterns (campbell and vannini 1988). recent molecular studies suggest that this taxon (in conjunction with h. h. alvarezi) may actually represent a distinct species (douglas et al. 2003). the guatemalan beaded lizard inhabits the dry forests of the semiarid region of the motagua valley in eastern guatemala (ariano 2003) at elevations of 300–900 m above sea level (campbell and vannini 1988, ariano 2003). studies have revealed that the species can be found along rocky hills with steep slopes associated with dry forest vegetation including bucida macrostachya, pereskia autumnalis, moringa oleifera, licania hypoleuca, cephalocereus maxonii, bursera simarouba, leucaena diversifolia, and bursera bipinata (ariano 2003). the holotype of h. h. charlesbogerti is in the vertebrate collection of the university of texas, arlington (uta r-15000), and comes from the region of espíritu santo, el jícaro, el progreso. most of the paratypes also are in the uta collection, and others in the collection of vertebrates at the university of costa rica (uta r-15001–3, uta r-18693, ucr 9602–3). these were collected in 1984 and 1985 in the region of gualán, zacapa, and from the region of espíritu santo in the motagua valley (campbell and vannini 1988). the distribution of the guatemalan beaded lizard in zacapa has been reduced drastically in recent years as a result of extensive loss of forest cover, persecution by local people afraid of its venom, and extraction from the wild for illegal trade (ariano 2006). notes on the distribution of the endangered lizard, heloderma horridum charlesbogerti, in the dry forests of eastern guatemala: an application of multi-criteria evaluation to conservation daniel ariano1,2 & gilberto salazar2 1postgrado de biología, universidad de costa rica, san pedro-san josé, costa rica (darianosanchez@gmail.com) 2asociación zootropic, 12 calle 1-25 z. 10. edif. geminis 10, torre sur nivel 18, of. 1801, ciudad guatemala, guatemala iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 153heloderma horridum charlesbogerti � guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) in the wild. d a n ie l a r ia n o iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 153 geographic information systems (gis) have been useful tools for identifying conservation priorities for species in changing landscapes (bojorquez et al. 1995). multiple criteria frequently need to be evaluated as part of this process. such procedures are called “multi-criteria evaluation” (mce; carver 1991, eastman et al. 1995). mce is most commonly achieved by boolean overlay. in this approach, all criteria are reduced to logical statements of suitability and then combined by means of one or more logical operators such as intersection (logical and) or union (logical or) (gutierrez and gould 2000). this study seeks to determine the potential distribution of h. h. charlesbogerti in the semiarid region of the motagua valley in order to prioritize conservation areas and develop better conservation strategies for this population. methods study site.—the analysis was conducted in the semiarid region of the motagua valley (rsavm) in northeastern guatemala. dry forests are among the most endangered ecosystems in the world (janzen 1988). this region comprises about 200,000 ha in the departments of el progreso and zacapa; it has the lowest average annual rainfall in central america (500 mm) and is characterized by many endemic species (nájera 2006). currently, the region is heterogeneous, characterized by agricultural lands, grass lands, thornscrub, and very dry deciduous forest remnants, and includes zones of tropical thorn scrub, very dry tropical forest, and dry tropical forest (holdridge 1967). the meteorological records of this area indicate that average maximum and minimum temperatures are 34.1 ºc and 17.9 ºc, respectively, absolute maximum and minimum temperatures are 45.0 ºc and 4.4 ºc, average annual precipitation ranges from 400–1200 mm, and average relative humidity ranges from 60–80% (insivumeh 2006). elevations in the region range from 180–900 m, with some peaks reaching 1,200 m. the area is hot and is characterized by seasonal rains; but, in general, the evaporation-transpiration is greater than the total rainfall (nájera 2006). the rare combination of conditions occurring in rsavm has contributed to its designation as a “unique ecoregion of the world” in the classification developed by the wwf (dinerstein et al. 1995). multi-criteria evaluation.—seven digital maps were used for the multi-criteria evaluation. these maps represented conditions of forest cover, actual land use, geology, average rainfall, human population centers, life zones, and slopes of the semiarid region of the motagua valley in northeastern guatemala. the maps were in utm coordinates with nad 27 zone 16 datum in raster system (maga 2002). the multi-criteria analysis used a boolean approach of the type “and,” employing the macro-modeler interface of idrisi 32 version i32.2. this means that only the pixels that have all of the specific characteristics defined in the analysis will be chosen as potential distribution pixels. the decision rules for this mce were based on the 2004–2006 collecting sites of h. h. charlesbogerti. categories chosen for each specific layer taking into account these collecting sites were: deciduous forest, shrubscrops, and shrubs for the forest-cover layer; forest-shrubs for the land-use layer; below 800 mm for the average rainfall layer; pzm, pi, and i categories for the geology layer; thorn scrub and dry forest for the life-zone layer; and above15% for the slopes layer. a buffer zone of 500 m was defined around each human population center. the final mce (suitability map of potential distribution of h. h. charlesbogerti) was constructed by overlaying all the boolean maps obtained for each layer, and then adding the constraint that the suitable areas not be within the human population centers and the 500-m buffer zone. the area of the resultant polygons was measured and classified as: < 100 ha; > 100 but < 500 ha; > 500 but < 1000, and > 1000 ha. the patches greater than 1000 ha were defined as the extant populations of the species in its natural habitat. the characteristics of collecting sites were obtained from base maps (a, b), for which a boolean transformation was made, assigning value 1 to pixels with the desired characteristics, and value 0 to pixels without those characteristics. then, all the resultant boolean maps (c, d) were overlaid to obtain a final potential distribution map (e). map a represents forest cover and map b represents hill slopes. finally, the suitability map was tested by overlaying the historical collecting sites of h. h. charlesbogerti from 1984–2001. these historical collecting sites were obtained by reviewing the literature (campbell and vannini 1988, ariano 2003) and the data for specimens in local guatemalan collections (both live and preserved animals), such as that of the natural history museum of the universidad de san carlos de guatemala, national natural history museum “jorge ibarra,” “la aurora” national zoo, zootropic collection, and the collection of universidad del valle de guatemala. the accuracy of the suitability map was measured as the percentage of historical locations predicted correctly by the suitability map. additionally, each area was visited and surveys were distributed to local inhabitants asking them about the presence of h. h. charlesbogerti in surrounding forests. as proposed by ariano (2003), they also were asked to distinguish the species from a set of six photographs depicting the species ctenosaura similis, coleonyx mitratus, aspidoscelis managuae, ctenosaura 154 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 ariano and salazar semiarid region of the motagua valley in northeastern guatemala (from nájera 2006). jo h n b in n s iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 154 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 155heloderma horridum charlesbogerti palearis, hemidactylus tuberculosus, and heloderma horridum charlesbogerti. results the analysis generated a total of 60 polygons of potential distribution of h. h. charlesbogerti. polygons were aggregated according to geographic proximity in seven areas of potential distribution of the species. these 60 polygons made up a total area of about 25,108 ha of suitable habitat. of these 60 polygons, only 23 are in the > 100 but < 500 ha category, seven areas are in the > 500 but < 1000 category, and only three areas are > 1000 ha. the resultant suitability map has an accuracy of 100% because all historical collecting points (1984–2001) were within the polygons predicted by the mce analysis as potential habitat for h. h. charlesbogerti. also, surveys confirmed the presence of the species in these seven major areas. for these reasons, we believe that the resultant suitability map is a good predictor of the actual distribution of the species according to actual land use, forest cover, rainfall, slopes, and distance to human population centers. area #3 contains the collecting sites of the holotype of the species (uta r-15000) and one paratype (ucr 9602) (campbell and vannini 1988). area #4 contains the more recent collecting sites (ariano 2003) and is the study site in which six individuals of the species have been radio-tracked. data from these localities were the basis for determining conditions and constraints established for the boolean type mce. this area also contains the collecting sites of the six individuals kept in captivity in the national natural history museum “jorge ibarra,” the pair of individuals kept in the “la aurora” national zoo, and one of the two individuals kept in captivity in the natural history museum of universidad de san carlos de guatemala. area #7 contains the collecting sites of five paratypes (uta-r-15001–3, uta-r-18693, ucr 9603) and the collecting sites of the individual in the zootropic collection and one of the individuals in the natural history museum of universidad de san carlos de guatemala. according to the definitions of this study, we identified only three extant populations of h. h. charlesbogerti. these populations were in areas #4 (cabañas-el jícaro), #5 (san jorgezacapa), and #7 (gualán-la cartuchera-los jutes), all areas > 1000 ha of continuous potential habitat. the presence of h. h. charlesbogerti in these areas was confirmed by the surveys and by sightings in the wild by the authors. discussion the three areas > 1000 ha are conservation priority areas for the species. according to ariano (2003), the most relevant threats for the guatemalan beaded lizard are loss of forest cover, illegal extraction for collectors, and persecution by local people, who consider it to be dangerous. as a means of mitigating these threats, we propose the development of strong environmental education programs for the human populations in the surrounding areas and promotion of the establishment of private natural reserves within these areas. these actions may help to eliminate the persecution of this species by local people and diminish the loss of forest cover in the area. the present study will help to prioritize the human communities that need to be targeted by an educational program promoting the conservation of the species. this is a way to optimize the effectiveness of scarce resources (human and monetary) available for developing any educational program in the area. it also may be of great value in directing overall land conservation efforts to ensure that the protected areas proposed for the region d a n ie l a r ia n o schematic representation of boolean mce for determining the potential distribution of heloderma horridum charlesbogerti in the semiarid region of the motagua valley, guatemala. a: shades of gray represent the different types of vegetative cover found in the semiarid region of the motagua valley. a2: gray areas represent portions of the same region that match the vegetative cover suitable for heloderma (deciduous forest, shrub-crops, or shrubs) based on heloderma collection sites from 2004–2006. b: shades of gray indicate the degree of incline of slopes in the semiarid region of the motagua valley. b2: gray areas represent slopes that correspond to 2004–2006 heloderma collection sites (slopes > 15°). c: this map is the final product of the mce showing the entire potential distribution area of heloderma horridum charlesbogerti. gray areas represent the cumulative overlay of all boolean maps for each of the selection criteria (forest cover, actual land use, geology, average rainfall, human population centers, life zones, and slopes) appropriate for heloderma according to actual collection sites from 2004–2006. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 155 also preserve thorn scrub-very dry forest habitat and the extant populations of h. h. charlesbogerti. excluding the areas < 100 ha from the analysis, the potential habitat for the species extends across only 17,534 ha. these data illustrate the critically endangered status of this taxon in its natural habitat, which is threatened by a considerable and ongoing loss of forest cover. for these reasons, the implementation of conservation policies and prompt short-term action are critical to ensure the conservation of the guatemalan beaded lizard. the historical distribution of h. h. charlesbogerti extended across the dry forests of the semiarid region of the motagua valley in northeastern guatemala (campbell and vannini 1988), an area of about 200,000 ha (nájera 2006). presently, only about 0.01% (25,108 ha) of the natural habitat remains. our data suggest that h. h. charlesbogerti is one of the most endangered species in guatemala. all but one of the polygons of potential distribution were along the southern bank of the motagua river. this lends support for the hypothesis proposed originally by stuart (1954) that a pacific subhumid corridor was the route by which h. horridum gained access into the middle motagua valley. this hypothesis has been considered the most plausible explanation for the present distribution of h. horridum and many other xeric-adapted species of reptiles in the motagua valley (campbell and vannini 1988). if true, we would expect that the major distribution of h. h. charlesbogerti in the motagua valley would be along the southern bank of the motagua river, because the river has proven to be an effective biogeographic barrier for other taxa (schuster et al. 2003). the only way to ensure the conservation of this taxon in its natural habitat is by protecting the last forest remnants harboring populations, and by implementing an educational program for the human populations that inhabit the towns surrounding these areas. the conservation efforts made along the southern versant of the motagua valley have to be strengthened, because almost every conservation effort so far has been made along the northern versant of the motagua valley. fortunately, these actions are now in progress, principally through the efforts of the guatemalan ngo zootropic and its partners, the international reptile conservation foundation and zoo atlanta (ariano 2006). the governmental authority for biodiversity conservation, the national council of protected areas (conap) also has a strong interest in promoting the conservation of the last dry forest remnants in the motagua valley, and in developing national policies for the conservation of h. h. charlesbogerti. an educational program was initiated recently by zootropic, with the financial support of the national fund for nature conservation (fonacon). these actions provide reasonable hope for the conservation of the guatemalan beaded lizard. another positive is the first successful captive breeding of this species after years of failed attempts (owens 2006). taking into account that most of the suitable habitat for the species is made up of patches of forest < 100 ha in a highly fragmented matrix of crops and cattle lands, the area should be managed at a landscape level to ensure the conservation of the species within its habitat (bennet 2004, ferrier et al. 2004). only with a combination of education, land protection, and landscape management will the conservation of h. h. charlesbogerti be ensured for the long term. acknowledgments we thank the community in the cabañas region, zacapa, guatemala for their willingness to preserve this species for future generations. thanks to luis alvarado and rodrigo botrán of zootropic for supporting this project since its inception in 2002. thanks to juan aguilar, priscilla zamora (in memoriam), alejandro muñoz, blanca arauz, sabrina amador, ana guzmán, and juan palavicinni of the universidad de costa rica for their help in the early attempts to digitize the base maps. conap provided permits to conduct this project. thanks to zootropic, ircf, zoo atlanta, and universidad de costa rica for support. financial assistance for this part of the project was provided by the german academic exchange service (daad), zootropic, idea wild, and the nature conservancy. special thanks to brad lock (zoo atlanta) and john binns (ircf) for their support of “project heloderma.” the present paper is part of d. ariano’s master of science thesis in the department of biology of universidad de costa rica. literature cited álvarez del toro, m. 1982. los reptiles de chiapas. instituto de historia natural, tuxtla gutiérrez. méxico. ariano, d. 2003. distribución y historia natural del escorpión heloderma horridum charlesbogerti campbell y vannini (sauria: helodermatidae) en zacapa, guatemala y caracterización de su veneno. licenciatura thesis. universidad del valle de guatemala. 156 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 ariano and salazar santa rita espiritu santo el rosario el arenal gualán los jutesla cartucherazacapa motagua r iver potential distribution areas cities, towns, and villages a b c northgrid historical collecting locations (1984—2001) actual collecting locations (2002—2006) potential distribution areas cities, towns, and villages potential distribution areas greater than 1000 ha of suitable habitat. northgrid historical and recent collecting localities and potential distribution of the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) in the semiarid region of the motagua valley. d a n ie l a r ia n o iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 156 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 157heloderma horridum charlesbogerti ariano, d. 2006. the guatemalan beaded lizard: endangered inhabitant of a unique ecosystem. iguana 13: 179–183. beck, d. 2005. biology of gila monsters and beaded lizards. university of california press, los angeles. beck, d. and c.h. lowe. 1991. ecology of the beaded lizard, heloderma horridum, in a tropical dry forest in jalisco, mexico. journal of herpetology 25: 395–406. bennet, a. 2004. enlazando el paisaje: el papel de los corredores y la conectividad en la conservación de la vida silvestre. uicn, san josé, costa rica. bogert, c. and r. martín del campo. 1956. the gila monster and its allies. bulletin of the american museum of natural history 109: 1–238. bojorquez, l. i. azuara, e. ezcurra, and o. villela. 1995. identifying conservation priorities in mexico through geographic information systems and modeling. ecological applications 5: 215–231. campbell, j. and w. lamar. 2004. the venomous reptiles of the western hemisphere. volume i. comstock publishing associates, ithaca, new york. campbell, j. and j. vannini. 1988. a new subspecies of beaded lizard, heloderma horridum, from the motagua valley of guatemala. journal of herpetology 22: 457–468. carver, s. 1991. integrating multi-criteria evaluation with geographical information systems. international journal of geographical information systems 5: 321–339. dinerstein, e., d. olson, d. graham, a. webster, s. primm, m. bookbinder, and g. ledec. 1995. una evaluación del estado de conservación de las ecoregiones terrestres de américa latina y el caribe. banco mundial & fondo mundial para la naturaleza, méxico, d.f. douglas, m., r. douglas, g. schuett, d. beck, and b. sullivan. 2003. molecular biodiversity of helodermatidae (reptilia: squamata). abstract. program, joint meeting of ichthyologists and herpetologists, manaus, amazonas, brazil. eastman, j., w. jin, p. kyem, and j. toledano. 1995. raster procedures for multi-criteria/multi-objective decisions. photogrammetric engineering and remote sensing 61: 539–547. guatemalan beaded lizard habitat in the motagua river valley during winter and spring (left) and during the summer (right). d a n ie l a r ia n o d a n ie l a r ia n o this guatemalan beaded lizard is part of the captive breeding program at zoo atlanta. m ic h a el k er n iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 157 ferrier, s., g. powell, k. richardson, g. mannion, j. overton, t. allnut, s. cameron, k. mantle, n. burgess, d. faith, j. lamoreux, g. kier, r. hijmans, v. funk, g. cassis, b. fisher, p. flemons, d. lees, j. lovett, and r. van rompaey. 2004. mapping more of terrestrial biodiversity for global conservation assessment. bioscience 54: 1101–1109. fry, b., n. vidal, j. norman, f. vonk, h. scheib, s. ryan, s. kuruppu, k. fung, s. blair, m. richardson, w. hodgson, v. ignjatovic, r. summerhayes, and e. kochva. 2006. early evolution of the venom system in lizards and snakes. nature 439: 584–588. gutierrez, j. and m. gould. 2000. sig: sistemas de información geográfica. editorial síntesis, madrid. holdridge, l. 1967. life zone ecology. tropical science center, san josé, costa rica. insivumeh. 2006. climatic registers for zacapa and el progreso departments in guatemala. electronic data. janzen, d. 1988. tropical dry forests: the most endangered major tropical ecosystem, pp. 130–137. in: e. wilson and f. peter (eds.), biodiversity. national academy press, washington, d.c. maga (ministerio de agricultura, ganaderia y alimentación). 2002. atlas temático de la república de guatemala. electronic data. nájera, a. 2006. the conservation of thorn scrub and dry forest habitat in the motagua valley, guatemala: promoting the protection of a unique ecoregion. iguana 13: 185–191. owens, t. 2006. ex situ: notes on reproduction and captive husbandry of the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti). iguana 13: 213–215. pianka, e. 1966. convexity, desert lizards and spatial heterogeneity. ecology 47: 1055–1059. schuster, j., e. cano, and p. reyes-castillo. 2003 proculus, giant latin-american passalids: revision, phylogeny and biogeography. acta zoologica mexicana (n.s.) 90: 281–306. stuart, l. 1954. a description of a subhumid corridor across northern central america, with comments on its herpetofaunal indicators. contributions from the laboratory of vertebrate biology, university of michigan 65: 1–26. 158 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 ariano and salazar guatemalan beaded lizard elevated to cites appendix i at the 12-day meeting of the 171 signatory nations of the convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora (cites) in the hague (the netherlands), the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) was elevated from appendix ii to i, affording it a higher level of legal protection. the committee considering species proposals requires a two-thirds vote of those present and voting to list a species initially, transfer, or delist a species. appendix i lists species that are the most endangered and threatened with extinction. cites prohibits international trade in these species except when the purpose of the import is not commercial, for instance for scientific research. in these exceptional cases, trade may be permitted — provided that it is authorized by the granting of both an import permit and an export permit (or re-export certificate). the proposal leading to the change in status summary: heloderma horridum charlesbogerti is a subspecies of the beaded lizard, a large, venomous lizard that occurs in mexico and guatemala. this subspecies is endemic to the motagua valley in eastern guatemala, where it is restricted to small, dispersed patches of forest in semi-arid areas. the species h. horridum was categorized as “vulnerable” in the iucn red list in 1996. the range of the subspecies has been reduced to 24,000 ha, its wild population is currently estimated at 170–250 individuals, and it is regarded as threatened with extinction due to loss of its habitat, collection for local and foreign collectors, the effects of hurricanes, and persecution by local people, who fear it because of its poisonous nature. a national conservation strategy has been developed and will attempt to counteract the threats. the subspecies has apparently been traded, both nationally and internationally, and, although the numbers are small, they are significant in relation to the total population. collection and trade in this subspecies is illegal in guatemala. four subspecies of h. horridum are recognized, and h. h. charlesbogerti differs from the others in various details of morphology and coloration, making it relatively easy to distinguish live animals when adult, although juveniles are said to be difficult to tell apart. heloderma suspectum, the only other species in the genus, is very distinctive. captive-breeding has so far been unsuccessful, despite many attempts. heloderma species have been included in appendix ii since 1975. the proposal seeks to transfer the population of the subspecies of heloderma horridum charlesbogerti from appendix ii to appendix i. analysis: heloderma horridum charlesbogerti appears to meet the biological criteria for listing in appendix i. its habitat has been severely reduced, it is restricted to dispersed patches of forest, the population is very small and localized, and a population decline can be inferred from the difficulty in finding the species currently, compared with the 1980s. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 158 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 159 iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 159 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 47commentary the deleterious effects of wholesale destruction of populations and habitats as a consequence of development have been amply documented (e.g., tilman et al., 2002), as have those of uncontrolled collection (e.g., cosaewic, 2004). here i focus on efforts to govern personal, educational, and scientific collection. my discussion is based on personal experiences, exchanges with colleagues, postings over the past several years on the parc (partners in amphibian and reptile conservation: www.parcplace.org) listserver, and comments by responsible hobbyists. individuals in each of those categories will see comments below that reflect their input and sometimes their very words. personal collection young people love to collect. although an early enthusiasm for reptiles may be responsible for the development of many professional herpetologists, many others become hobbyists or merely pass through such a stage. nearly every coveted salamander, frog, turtle, lizard, or snake they encounter makes its way into a cage. this can be a learning experience leading to an increased awareness of nature and the myriad interactions that keep it going. however, the mortality of captured animals, many of them not well suited to captivity, is almost invariably high, especially during early attempts at husbandry. c o m m e n t a r y collecting animals from nature robert powell department of biology, avila university, kansas city, missouri “could we be going in the direction that eventually zoos and researchers will be denied access to wildlife?” al winstel naturalist and environmental educator, cincinnati, ohio despite better and more frequently enforced regulations and a burgeoning captive-breeding industry, the sale of wild-caught animals persists. locals in the dominican republic offering for sale wild-caught male and female rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta) to a tourist in 1975. the snouts of the iguanas were tied with wire or rope to prevent biting. international and domestic laws now help protect iguanas in the dominican republic and many other nations. large expos offer for sale both captive-bred and some wild-caught animals. sellers are required to have permits, a regulation that is strictly enforced by responsible organizers of reputable expos and the u.s. fish and wildlife service (vendor names are intentionally blurred in this photograph). jo h n b in n s th o m a s w ie w a n d t, w il d h o r iz o n s iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 47 such losses might be accepted as the price that must be paid to attract the next generation of herpetologists, except that the number of people engaged in personal collection has increased dramatically in recent years. for evidence, one need only to look at the phenomenally profitable business that provides housing, lighting, food, supplements, and more for captive reptiles and amphibians. some of that increase has been met by captive breeding, but the sale of wild-caught animals persists. even if only a tiny fraction of enthusiasts buy or collect wild animals, some populations, especially in and around dense human concentrations, will inevitably become depleted. as the numbers of people engaged in such activities increase, even casual collecting can become significant. on the other hand, discouraging children from collecting animals may alienate them from the natural world. richard louv, in his recent book (last child in the woods: saving our children from nature-deficit disorder), argued that sensationalist media coverage and paranoid parents have “scared children straight out of the woods and fields,” while promoting a litigious culture of fear that favors “safe,” regimented sports over imaginative play and exploration. well-meaning elementary school curricula may teach students everything they need to know about the amazonian rainforest and dna, but do little to encourage personal relationships with the world outside their own doors. educational collection a dearth of knowledge on the part of most people about amphibians and reptiles is a considerable deficiency in promoting reasonable and effective herpetological conservation. those of us with experience, especially we who bill ourselves as “professionals,” have a vested responsibility to teach others — and that requires access to live animals. scientific collection scientific collection has not been implicated directly in the extinction of any species. although historically common meth48 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 powell catching and keeping wild-caught animals has been responsible for the development of many budding herpetologists. b r ia n s . e d m o n d educating the public about amphibians and reptiles is most effective when live animals are used. here, a cuban iguana is featured in a program for military and civilian personnel and their families at the u.s. naval base at guantanamo bay. a ll is o n c . a lb er ts , z o o lo g ic a l so c ie ty o f sa n d ie g o . although scientists historically used “markets,” in which locals catch and offer animals for a small fee, the number of specimens taken are invariably limited to those needed to address specific questions. this stands in stark contrast to actions of indiscriminate commercial collectors, who often take every animal hoping that enough survive to ensure a profit. here, children bring lizards caught with grass nooses to a researcher studying inter-island evolution in the lesser antilles. ph o to g r a ph c o u r te sy o f g eo r g e c . g o r m a n . researchers today rarely collect large numbers of animals from any one population. more and more studies involve mark-and-release methods. here, a scientist weighs an animal in the field prior to releasing it at the original site of capture. ph o to g r a ph c o u r te sy o f el le n j . c en sk y . iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 48 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 49commentary ods (e.g., “markets) may well have caused declines of some populations, most scientists now seek to minimize the numbers of individuals taken. unfortunately, attitudes of agencies and current regulations frequently reflect abuses of the past instead of today’s reality. instances of “scientific imperialism” (e.g., removal of important materials from the nation of origin, failure to share results with local agencies, and a lack of willingness to collaborate with resident scientists or students) by north americans or europeans may be cited by governmental agencies in developing nations to deny or restrict collection of specimens by scientists from those regions. although the events are real, very few are recent. almost all cases of exploitative collection within the past 50 years are attributable to collectors feeding the ever-growing commercial trade in amphibians and reptiles. regulatory issues the acquisition of animals from the wild for personal, educational, and scientific purposes is subject to a plethora of regulations governing collection. attempts to abide by these rules are frequently rendered difficult by fees or procedures that appear to exist primarily in order to discourage such activities. in sharp contrast, few regulations effectively address wholesale destruction of entire populations or even habitats as a consequence of economic development, which is responsible for the decline or disappearance of most populations. often further complicating this issue is the lack of regulatory distinction between commercial collectors, whose activities are often driven solely by a desire for short-term profits, and those who are motivated by a sincere interest in animals, such as hobbyists, educators, and scientists. regulations prohibiting personal collection of native wildlife often exclude “game” animals (e.g., bullfrogs, snapping turtles, green iguanas) that are covered by hunting or fishing permits. this inevitably leads to situations in which possession of an animal as a pet is illegal, yet thousands can be legally “harvested,” kept in inhumane conditions, killed, and sold as food when “in season.” complicating matters even more is the fact that “snake hunting” can create revenue. local businesses in west texas for example, love snake hunters, who stay in their motels, buy their gas, eat at their restaurants, and pay texas taxes. educational collecting in some states requires a permit to keep and display native wildlife, often imposing additional restrictions on dangerous species such as venomous snakes or large constrictors. some governmental agencies limit animals used in education to non-releasable, rehabbed individuals or those confiscated from illegal keepers. such constraints would, for example, preclude individual teachers from collecting tadpoles for their classrooms, forcing them to rely instead on scientific supply houses that provide such resources by collecting and shipping large numbers of animals — with inevitably high levels of mortality. similarly impacted are individuals, often associated with local or regional herpetological societies, who are knowledgeable and willing to conduct educational programs for the public, but are discouraged from using native species that might be most effective in developing an environmental ethic in their audience. restricting scientific collections of animals that are threatened or potentially threatened in the wild can lead to lack of sufficient knowledge to develop effective management programs or develop appropriate protocols for rearing them in captivity. the latter may make the difference between extinction and survival. for example, isolation and captive propagation of frogs with populations in nature that are vulnerable to the chytrid fungus may be the only way to salvage a species and the sole means of reestablishing a wild population should the risk ever be remediated. without captive animals, refining husbandry and breeding techniques is impossible, and methods based on experiences with presumably similar species may or may not apply. ironically, lack of information is frequently cited as justification for restricting collection. at the same time, some individuals have suggested that gaps in knowledge should not exist, considering the number of educational institutions and individuals who have been studying amphibians and reptiles for many years. unfortunately, those who hold these views often rely on anecdotal observations, as opposed to reliable research, to support their contentions. in reality, we know far less than we should about most species and populations. the only way to address this deficiency is to encourage more research, even if this entails the collection of some animals. restrictions that preclude accurate scientific assessments are shortsighted and ultimately place more populations and communities at risk of extirpation or extinction. common themes three issues are relevant to all forms of collecting: (1) collecting animals in the wild can and does affect the viability of populations and their habitats; (2) little or no information is available on the status of most populations; and (3) prohibition (or severe restriction) of all forms of collection is easier than regulating case-specific situations. that all forms of collecting arguably cause less harm to animal populations than development is an unpleasant reality. i was once questioned about the number of several common species i sought to collect until the point was made that a 100-m extension of a planned road into the area would kill far more individuals than i sought to remove from the population. however, using the “bulldozer” justification for unregulated collecting is disingenuous. developmental pressures on habitats and their inhabitants do not absolve commercial and casual or even scientific collectors from their collective share of the responsibility for snake hunting can create revenue. local businesses in west texas, for example, love snake hunters, who stay in their motels, buy their gas, eat at their restaurants, and pay texas taxes. photograph courtesy of apnm.org iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 49 the many thousands of specimens that they remove purposefully from the wild gene pool. even if such activities are legal, that does not mean that they should be. private collectors often argue that they are doing more good for species than bad. once animals are bred in captivity in sufficient numbers, prices will drop until buying them from breeders or pet shops is cheaper than collecting them from the wild. some breeders have also argued that occasional collection is necessary to get “new” blood into captive populations, needed as a safety net against extirpations and extinctions in the wild. many are not convinced by these arguments. does anyone really need 20 snakes of a single species from a single locality? of course not — but too many individuals, especially those engaged in commercial operations, cannot seem to stop collecting. a recent article in the kansas city star (3 july 2006) featured rodney wittenberg, a graduate student studying timber rattlesnakes in an old quarry where efforts are in place to clean up discarded tires that had accumulated over many years. he is trying to keep workers and snakes from harming one another. the article did not reveal the actual site. wittenberg said: “i don’t want to alert rattlesnake poachers or even thrill-seekers. next thing you know, you can kiss [the snakes] good-bye,” noting that they could end up as somebody’s hatband or in a rattlesnake roundup. as for captive breeding, private individuals allowed to breed endangered and threatened species should have to submit to regulation and inspection to assure compliance with the need to maintain breeding lines and proper use of husbandry techniques. collection should be strictly regulated to conform to detailed breeding plans, not individual whim. contentious issues one really important point divides those who engage in collection of animals from the wild. many conservation biologists would favor bans on collection until hard data show that collecting causes “no real threat” for a given species, but many others would favor collection until data show that collecting poses a “real threat.” such extreme positions typically preclude compromise. decisions based on data that are fragmentary or inconclusive might be acceptable in situations during which populations are being affected by other factors. for example, because development is ongoing and often inevitable, building permits should include provisions that require collection for scientific assessments, or even allow personal collection of species from the area destined to be altered. on the other hand, bans on all but responsible — and limited — scientific collection may be appropriate for species about which essentially nothing is known (on the presumption that lack of knowledge may be indicative of few opportunities to study the relevant species) or under circumstances involving fragile ecosystems (or even habitats) that deserve complete protection. because a deficiency of information is often responsible for conservative measures (e.g., protect until we have data that assures us that some collection is reasonable), investigations into the natural history of as many species (populations or even communities) as possible should be encouraged and funded. that would presumably lead to regulations based on reliable (rather than anecdotal) data and applicable specifically to targeted species and populations. because the drawback to this approach is frequently fiscal, designated funds might be made available by charging substantial fees for collecting permits other than for scientific investigations. individuals seeking to harvest animals for personal pleasure or profit would ultimately benefit if more data suggest that more species could be managed on a basis of sustained yields. however, research capable of determining the effects of collection is inevitably difficult due to the many confounding factors (e.g., complexity of interactions and local effects that may or may not apply to other populations of even the same species). the implications of that reality have profound effects on management decisions. in the interim, then, until more and better data slowly accrue, such decisions must and undoubtedly should be made on the basis of factors that may merely reflect the sub50 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 powell a graduate student is studying timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus) in an old quarry where efforts are in place to clean up discarded tires that had accumulated over many years. he is trying to keep workers and snakes from harming one another. he will not reveal the actual site, noting: “i don’t want to alert rattlesnake poachers or even thrillseekers. next thing you know, you can kiss [the snakes] good-bye.” portrayed here is a rarely seen but apparently not particularly rare instance of arboreal activity in timber rattlesnakes. r o d n ey d . w it te n b er g isolation and captive propagation of frogs with populations in nature that are vulnerable to the chytrid fungus may be the only way to salvage a species and the sole means of reestablishing a wild population should the risk ever be remediated. here, an eleutherodactylus euphronides sits on eggs in the breeding facility of the milwaukee county zoo. one recent estimate of this endangered species’ restricted distribution in the highlands of grenada was only 18 km2. c r a ig p el k e iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 50 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 51commentary jective judgment of “designated experts.” i would have to think that anyone sincerely interested in amphibians and reptiles would prefer that over decisions made by uninformed bureaucrats and based largely on the financial interests of a few fiscally influential citizens. recommendations collection for personal use, whether by individual or commercial collectors, almost invariably diminishes population health or habitats. private collectors should be restricted to small numbers of common species — those for which we have enough information to safely conclude that removal of a few individuals will not be deleterious. although individuals enamored with rarities will object and may on occasion circumvent regulations, no justification exists for allowing unconstrained collection of any species for which we lack definitive information. captive breeding should compensate for the imposition of restrictions on collecting. taxon-specific caresheets and books are available for many species, often via the internet. collection for educational purposes should be similarly restricted. developing a conservation ethic does not require the use of rare and threatened species. however, reason should prevail. restrictions on the possession of wild-caught animals should not preclude the use of common native species (e.g., the afore-mentioned tadpoles) in classrooms or in presentations by conscientious educators, be they professionals or hobbyists. in stark contrast, restrictions on scientific collection should be streamlined and limited to steps necessary to confirm the legitimacy and identities of scientists seeking to remove any animals from the wild. numbers to be collected should be determined by circumstances unique to each situation and the needs of the investigation rather than any arbitrary limit established by bureaucrats, even those with the best of intentions. the apparent health of a population frequently is based on counts of organisms, which do not necessarily indicate whether a population is healthy. for example, do we know how many individuals are required to make the population viable? what is the level of mortality? recruitment? is this adequate for maintaining numbers? how vulnerable is the habitat to destructive effects of collection? only by studying animals will we ever learn enough about natural populations to manage them effectively, much less relieve restrictions on collecting animals from nature for purposes other than research and conservation. finally, the loopholes that allow massive losses to habitat destruction must be closed. the fiction that natural areas can be “developed” without the loss of the animals dwelling there must be abandoned. because development is ongoing and often inevitable, building permits should include provisions that require and fund collection for scientific assessments, or even allow personal collection. ultimately, any decision to restrict collection should be determined by considering all possible effects on populations of species affected. when data are insufficient for reasonable consideration, short-term bans should be implemented, but are to be accompanied by efforts to promote acquisition of necessary data by qualified individuals. in today’s world, changes are occurring at such a rapid pace that laissez faire management of wild populations cannot be justified, lest we lose them forever. acknowledgements robert w. henderson and gad perry commented on earlier drafts of this manuscript. s. blair hedges has voiced and published concerns about undue constraints on scientific collection, many of which i have incorporated into this commentary. a number of individuals posted relevant comments on the parc listserver, including many whose views differ considerably from those expressed herein. i have shamelessly exploited their insights and expertise. references cosewic (committee on the status of endangered wildlife in canada). 2004. cosewic assessment and update status report on the spotted turtle clemmys guttata in canada. cosewic, ottawa (www.sararegistry.gc.ca/status/status_e.cfm). hansen, e. 2000. orchid fever: a horticultural tale of love, lust, and lunacy. pantheon books, new york. note: although this book does not address the collection of amphibians and reptiles, its coverage of orchid collecting and breeding documents many of the same problems. hedges, s.b. and r. thomas. 1991. the importance of systematic research in the conservation of amphibian and reptile populations, pp. 56–61. in: j.a. moreno (ed.), status y distribución de los reptiles and anfibios de la región de puerto rico. publicación científica miscelánea no. 1. departamento de recursos naturales de puerto rico, san juan, puerto rico. tilman, d., r. m. may, c. l. lehman, and m. a. nowak1. 2002. habitat destruction and the extinction debt. nature 371:65–66. 1 abstract of tilman et al. (2002): habitat destruction is the major cause of species extinctions. dominant species often are considered to be free of this threat because they are abundant in the undisturbed fragments that remain after destruction. here we describe a model that explains multispecies coexistence in patchy habitats and which predicts that their abundance may be fleeting. even moderate habitat destruction is predicted to cause time-delayed but deterministic extinction of the dominant competitor in remnant patches. further species are predicted to become extinct, in order from the best to the poorest competitors, as habitat destruction increases. moreover, the more fragmented a habitat already is, the greater is the number of extinctions caused by added destruction. because such extinctions occur generations after fragmentation, they represent a debt — a future ecological cost of current habitat destruction. because development is ongoing and often inevitable, building permits should include provisions that require collection for scientific assessments, or even allow personal collection of species from the area destined to be altered. st es h a p a sa c h n ik iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 51 iguana, june 2008 editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 institutional u.s. subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international membership (including canada) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55.00 international institutional subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $60.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. www.ircf.org join online at: www.ircf.org membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. copyright © 2008 by the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. all rights reserved. no part of this journal may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without the publisher’s written permission. iguana, conservation, natural history, and husbandry of reptiles (issn 1098-6324) is published quarterly by the international reptile conservation foundation, a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca. periodical postage paid at san jose, ca. editors’ remarks all of us who have had the privilege of working for and with the grand cayman blue iguanas as members of the various team blue crews and in other roles know that caring for these animals has the capacity to bring out the best in us: compassion, generosity, and devotion to a cause greater than ourselves. the individuals that were murdered were beloved by people around the world. they each had their own histories, habits, and endearing quirks. sara, jessica, eldemire, yellow, digger, pedro, and matthias had learned to trust their caretakers and were unprepared to expect anything from humans other than kindness. acts as wanton and merciless as these murders are beyond comprehension, and i find that i feel pity for the people who committed them. how small must be their hearts and how closed their minds that they could not recognize the nature of the creatures they were brutalizing, that they could not appreciate them and be enriched by that experience as many of us have. aj gutman erratum: in iguana 15(1): 20–23, brad lock stated that he hoped that this breeding season would result in the first fertile eggs of the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) produced “in captivity” instead of at zoo atlanta. guatemalan beaded lizards have been bred successfully on two occasions at the san diego zoo (see iguana 13(3): 212-215). ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 13.2 b&w text the isg expresses its appreciation to chuck knapp (university of florida/shedd aquarium), sandra buckner, and the bahamas national trust for the extensive planning and organization of a successful isg meeting and species management workshop for the andros island iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura). special thanks also go to mike and petagay hartman, of tiamo resort, for the fabulous accommodation, gourmet food, deeply discounted rate, and warm welcome. it was a truly wonderful meeting that was enjoyed by all. blue iguana recovery program fred burton national trust for the cayman islands fourteen months have now passed since hurricane ivan, a category 4–5 hurricane, tracked along the southern coast of grand cayman causing catastrophic damage to human property and livelihoods, and delivering dramatic impacts to natural environments. aerial photographs eight months after the storm show the iguana specialist group meeting 6–7 november 2005 south andros, bahamas 116 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 2005 isg meeting reports � resident male cyclura cychlura cychlura at tiamo resort, andros. jo e b u r g es s th o m a s w ie w a n d t, w il d h o r iz o n s participants in the 2005 isg meeting and species management workshop (left to right): rick hudson, peter tolson, kirsten hines, steve conners, tom wiewandt, stesha pasachnik, joe burgess, quentin bloxam, ricardo johnson, jeff lemm, byron wilson, karen graham, john iverson, allison alberts, catherine stephen, bruce weissgold, miguel garcia, jan ramer, fred burton, tandora grant, samantha addinall, tarren wagener, joe wasilewski, sandra buckner, and chuck knapp. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 116 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 1172005 isg meeting reports island’s once extensive black mangrove forests shattered and scarcely beginning recovery, while the dry forests are beginning to regenerate a closed canopy despite extensive treefall. the xerophytic shrubland communities that are habitat for the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) were only lightly impacted and appear fully recovered. the captive-breeding and head-starting facility for the grand cayman blue iguanas, in the qeii botanic park, is now fully restored and has been further expanded and enhanced since the hurricane. twenty-three two-year-old cyclura lewisi, originally slated for release at the time the hurricane struck, were finally released in december 2005, and were radiotracked with assistance from a team of international volunteers for two months after release (december 2004–january 2005), and for a further two months in may and june 2004. after a period of weight loss immediately post-release, the iguanas established home ranges and foraging patterns which were characterized in the summer tracking period. survival over the first seven months was at least 91%. summer usage areas of females was 0.6 acres, surprisingly similar to summer usage areas determined by goodman et al., for larger, mature, free-roaming females in the qeii botanic park, and a single wild adult female tracked by the program in summer 2005. the released males in the salina reserve occupied an average of 1.4 acres each, with much more extensive overlap in usage areas. spacing and overlap of the usage areas indicates the iguanas chose to maintain a population density of 4–5 iguanas per hectare in this unnatural setting of a single age class surrounded by unpopulated habitat. a second release, of 70 individuals, is scheduled for december 2005, into the same areas currently occupied. this release will bring the restored population in the salina reserve to approximately 91 individuals, with representation from ten different founder lines. subsequent releases will require access to the salina’s southernmost soil zones. the studbook continues to be maintained to a high standard by tandora grant (san diego zoo/cres), and is now informing the program’s release strategy with a goal to reach representation by at least 20 different founder lines in each restored subpopulation by the time each reaches its anticipated carrying capacity. progress to date is on target towards this goal. three new founders bred in captivity for the first time in 2005. a high infertility rate was observed in nests laid in the southern sector of the qeii botanic park, where a new dominant male had taken over a territory of five females, four of which were his siblings. as a result of this unusual infertility, only 92 eggs were initially viable from a total of 166 eggs laid in both the captive and free-roaming populations. the dominant park male was taken back into captivity to allow unrelated males to claim this territory for the 2006 breeding season. one hundred new hatchling cages were prefabricated and flat-packed in the usa as the result of a three-month ircf campaign to secure funds and a manufacturer capable of a customized design in time for the august hatch. these cages were subsequently assembled in grand cayman by volunteers from the rotary club of grand cayman central. these lightweight grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi). jo h n b in n s iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 117 cages are holding the 2005 hatch until the next iguana release in december frees cage space at the facility. again, with ircf assistance, funds are currently being sought to complete a security fence around the facility, which will also serve to secure tour income to the program. a custom non-profit company, tours for nature ltd., has been formed and has secured a contract with royal caribbean cruise lines and celebrity cruises to operate cruise passenger tours to the blue iguana facility with all profits going to the program. tours are now operational and are expected to generate useful revenue for the first time in the coming winter tourist season. tours are also being expanded to cater to on-island bookings for guests at major hotels. the program is collaborating with the fort worth zoo in a project to characterize the physical, climatic, and dietary environment in the successful captive-breeding facility on grand cayman, and to compare this to enclosures at gladys porter (brownsville, texas) and indianapolis zoos, where captive breeding has been less successful to date. results are intended to guide ex-situ captive managers in efforts to improve breeding success, which is currently one constraint on achieving ex-situ population goals for this species. the first species recovery plan for c. lewisi (2001–2005) has now run its course. achievements were reviewed and a new plan developed in a workshop hosted by the grand caymanian resort on grand cayman in september 2005. local participants represented the birp staff, the national trust for the cayman islands, and the cayman islands department of environment. visiting participants came from durrell wildlife conservation trust, san diego zoo, isg/iif, and ircf. the workshop was facilitated by simon hicks. review of the 2001–5 plan showed that the protected area goals were substantially not met, but that all other goals in the plan (population restocking, captive breeding, education and awareness, and resource development) have been met and in some cases surpassed. over the period 2002–5, while the blue iguana recovery program has been fully operational, considerable funds have been raised and substantially expended in implementing this plan. these reflect both the ambitious scope of work achieved, and the often unavoidably high cost of doing business in the cayman islands. the majority was contributed by corporate donors within the cayman islands. other leading sources of project financing were raised and channeled through the durrell wildlife conservation trust, the international reptile conservation foundation, and the international iguana foundation. income from commercial activity (retail products and tours) has been relatively insignificant, but is now targeted to expand. volunteerism has expanded greatly. notable volunteer resources have been recruited internationally via ircf, and locally through service clubs and individual long-term volunteers. the program now has three full time staff: a volunteer director and two salaried wardens. ircf continues to provide extensive free services equivalent to additional program staff, as well as consistent contributions from other overseas participants who made commitments in the 2001–5 srp. the cumulative effect has been a massive savings on the cash cost of the work achieved. the new species recovery plan 2006–2010 calls for 300–500 acres of xerophytic shrubland on grand cayman to be protected in order to support a restored population of at least 1,000 blue iguanas. plans have been extended to breed and rear sufficient genetically optimal iguanas for release, to safeguard the species via an ex-situ captive population, to continue education and awareness activities, and to further build the financial, human, and technical resources that will be essential to save this species. ricord’s iguana jan ramer indianapolis zoo grupo jaragua, zoodom, and indianapolis zoo have been working together to develop a ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) curriculum directed toward the 3rd grade classroom. this work is funded by grants from the u.s. fish and wildlife service wildlife without borders latin america and caribbean program, and aza’s conservation endowment fund. the curriculum includes a booklet with natural history information about the species and its habitat, vocabulary words, maps, etc. resource kits consist of a plastic bin that students will fill with sand. plastic eggs, cacti, thermometers, light bulbs, etc. allow students to pretend to incubate eggs and take sand temperatures. a game board with iguana questions and a poster are provided for every classroom. teacher workshops will be held in santo domingo, and in the towns closest to ricord’s iguana habitat this spring, and the curriculum will be implemented this fall. the 118 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 2005 isg meeting reports ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) at zoodom. jo h n b in n s iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 118 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 1192005 isg meeting reports dominican department of education is helping fund these workshops! zoodom’s four ricord’s iguana juveniles that hatched during the isg meeting in 2002 are all doing very well, and the ten hatchlings from 2004 received pit tags and physical exams in april when jan ramer was there with a group of indianapolis zoo members. the breeding pair was also examined and found to be in good health. ernst rupp, grupo jaragua, has been working hard in the pedernales habitat, recording hundreds of hatchlings last year. grupo jaragua has worked tirelessly on local education and involvement in the conservation program, and also in developing ecotourism opportunities in the area. ernst received emergency funds last fall from the international iguana foundation to conduct survey work on the southern shore of lago enriquillo, when he learned that one of the local senators was planning to bulldoze a prime ricord’s iguana habitat to build houses. indianapolis zoo, grupo jaragua, and durrell wildlife conservation trust recently submitted a proposal to the u.s. fish and wildlife service to continue population and habitat analysis in all three known ricord’s iguana habitats and to conduct workshops for biology students and department of wildlife technicians. if funded, this work will continue through 2007. jamaican iguana recovery project byron wilson and rick van veen university of the west indies, mona a grant for $20,000 (us) was recently obtained from the disney wildlife conservation trust (submitted through the iif). additional funds to support work over the past year were obtained from the international iguana foundation, the international iguana society, conservation international, and the miami metrozoo. two new gps units were purchased with funds from a new initiative grant awarded to byron wilson (bsw) from the university of the west indies, mona. research and outreach activities.—we continued to encourage protection of the hellshire hills ecosystem through the participation of other researchers and interested parties. in the past year, we initiated a new project focusing on the intestinal parasites of wild pigs (with professor ralph robinson and postgraduate student chinedu okoro from uwi). ms. tamia harker has just begun a postgraduate program (with bsw) that will involve sea turtle work along the hellshire coast, and dr. dave miller (geography and geology, uwi) has been conducting research on the beach profile dynamics of manatee bay. other notable visitors included dr. william cooper and dr. karl rollings. in addition, we coordinated camping field trips for three different uwi courses (two in conservation biology, one in forest ecology). we also recently hosted an overnight excursion for the jamaican geographical society, and assisted with a children’s show for local television, “hello world jamaica” on cvm-tv. in short, we are trying to get as many people involved and interested in conserving the hellshire hills as possible. pitfall trapping experiment.—this field experiment, examining the impact of mongoose control on the terrestrial herpetofauna of the hellshire hills, proceeded into its ninth year. the 2005 results were not remarkable in terms of faunal abundance. 2006 should be an interesting year due to anticipated increases in faunal abundance resulting from high levels of productivity jamaican iguana (cyclura collei). b y r o n w il so n iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 119 spurred by high levels of rainfall. in addition, removal trapping of mongooses and other mammalian predators from control plots will be conducted during the period of pitfall trapping assessments, to remove the confounding influence of predators tampering with traps or trapped specimens. headstart and release.—in conjunction with the fort worth zoo, in february 2005, we released 15 headstarted c. collei into the core iguana conservation zone. three uwi undergraduate students also participated in the release, which brought the total number of repatriated headstarters to 75. 2005 nesting season.—the first nest was deposited on 24 may, and the last nest was deposited on 20 june. a total of 14 nests were recorded from the two known communal nesting sites (i.e., “upper” and “lower”). dawn fleuchaus and stephanie wicker assisted with nest watches, as they did during the 2004 nesting season. iguanas attempted to nest at the two new nesting areas identified in 2004, but abandoned the effort after the areas were disturbed by wild pigs. one new nesting area was discovered in a rock hole, with eggshell fragments indicating that seven hatchlings emerged in the 2005 season; additional evidence of nesting from previous year(s) was also noted. south camp reconstruction.—our primary research station (“south camp”) was severely damaged during hurricane ivan in september 2004. using discounted and salvaged materials, south camp was re-built in june 2005 with major assistance from brian and stephanie wicker and larry and dawn fleuchaus. in particular, brian and larry, both professional tradesmen, put in several days of hard labor and saw the reconstruction effort through to near completion. we are indebted to them all for their hard work, good company, and donations of tools and other camp toys. invasive predator control.—predator-control efforts continue to make the core iguana area a safer place for young iguanas and other threatened wildlife species. in addition to the 55–60 small mammal traps that are operated continuously, we also expanded our wild pig and dog control efforts through the deployment of additional snares. catch totals for the period include: 7 cats, ~85 mongooses, 25+ pigs, ~50 rats, and 0 dogs. the main problem with our anti-invasive effort continues to be the difficult nature of cat control. some individuals are simply not trappable by our current methods. because leg-hold traps and poisons would pose a risk to native wildlife species, the only solution is to obtain a small caliber rifle outfitted with a spotlight and a silencer. this piece of equipment is at the top of our wish list, but the legal (and illegal) gun situation in jamaica is not conducive to making this a reality. we would also like to expand our present trapping grid to include a loop trail outside the existing trapping loop. recent radio-telemetry results indicate that such an expansion would enhance post-natal dispersal in c. collei (see below). the current trapping program remains a major effort, owing primarily to the difficulty of accessing the remote interior hellshire location, not to mention the logistical obstacles posed by the transport of equipment and traps to remote sites. however, continuous removal of mammalian predators is arguably the only conservation activity that is improving conditions for wild iguanas in hellshire. we thank other members of the trapping team for their efforts, especially marlon osborne and edwin duffus. 2005 hatching season.—the 2005 hatching season was extraordinarily successful, with a minimum of 157 hatchlings recorded for the season (2.5 times as many as 2004). interestingly, and probably attributable to wetter incubation conditions, the average svl and mass of hatchlings in 2005 was notably greater than in 2004. twenty hatchlings were taken to the hope zoo for headstarting, 41 participated in a radio-telemetry study (see below), and the remainder were marked and released. radio-telemetry of hatchlings.—forty-one hatchlings were outfitted with radio transmitters, of which six slipped out of their harnesses almost immediately; hence, data were collected for 35 individuals. activity patterns and hide-site selection were similar to patterns observed in 2004, although dispersal distances were greater. high mortality attributable to mongoose and cat predation was also noted. preliminary analysis of mortality data indicates that hatchlings that disperse out of the predator-controlled area are doomed. direct observation of mongoose predation on a transmittered hatchling was also observed, and one hatchling was tracked to the stomach of a young jamaican boa (epicrates subflavus). detailed data on dispersal, post-dispersal settling, and subsequent behavior were also obtained. still on-going, the study will conclude in early december 2005. goat islands.—two reconnaissance trips were made to the goat islands in 2005. the habitat still looks relatively intact, but a rumored organized charcoal operation on great goat island is of great concern. as always, the critical impediment to a goat islands rehabilitation program concerns the delegation of management authority. recently, however, the urban development corporation (udc) has finally been delegated management authority for both of the goat islands, as well as for most of the hellshire hills (the organization also owns those areas). we are presently in discussions with udc that should result in the signing of an mou with the durrell wildlife conservation trust (dwct) and the department of life sciences (uwi), so we can initiate fund-raising activities and begin the restoration project. 2006 objectives: (1) continue existing initiatives (e.g., predator control, headstart and release, monitoring iguana population); (2) radio telemetry of post-partum iguanas; (3) biological surveys of the goat islands; (4) assessment of “western” and “eastern” hellshire iguana populations; (5) consolidation of c. collei data sets; (6) advocacy for management capacity (udc); (7) formalization of goat island restoration agreements (dwct); (8) initiation of genetic studies of jamaican iguanas; (9) new postgraduate student to undertake gis-based habitat assessment of hellshire; (10) revision of species recovery program (summer 2006?); (11) iguana project facility — port royal marine laboratory; (12) fund-raising… turks and caicos iguana glenn gerber and allison alberts zoological society of san diego translocations.—the recently established populations of cyclura carinata on french, six hills east, bay, and middle cays were last visited in april/may 2005. all of these populations have exhibited excellent adult survivorship and growth rates. average adult sizes on all the translocation cays are now larger than those documented for the source cays, big ambergris and little water. successful reproduction has occurred on all translocation cays 120 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 2005 isg meeting reports iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 120 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 1212005 isg meeting reports each year since establishment (january 2002 for french, bay, and middle cays; january 2003 for six hills east cay). all animals captured in april/may 2005 from the first cohort of juveniles produced on the cays were determined to be reproductively mature, based on published size at maturity data (iverson 1979). compared to the source populations, this represents a reduction in age at maturity on the translocation cays from 6–7 years to 1.5–2.5 years. accelerated growth rates on the translocation cays are occurring despite significantly lower plant diversity than on the source cays, and are attributed to low levels of intraspecific competition on these cays relative to the dense source populations. growth trajectories are expected to decrease as population densities increase. big ambergris cay.—development activities on big ambergris cay have increased dramatically in the past year due to new partnerships with outside developers and resulting in establishment of the turks and caicos sporting club. irreparable damage to native habitats was already underway in april 2005 during our last visit, and recent reports from big ambergris by tci-based colleagues are extremely grim. heavy machinery of all kinds is in daily use and no visible effort is being made with regard to iguanas or other wildlife. little water cay.—cats, which first crossed the sandbar connecting this cay to water and pine cays in 2000, are still the major concern for this otherwise protected population. a smallscale cat-trapping program that was initiated last year resulted in the capture and removal of three cats from the island’s southern end, but this program was suspended in the spring of 2005 and has not yet been reinstated due to a shortage of tcnt staff. no sign of cats was seen during my last visit at the southern boardwalk study site in may 2005, and recent reports from bryan manco of the tcnt suggest that this is still the case. cats were still in evidence at the northern boardwalk study site in may, and their impact on this population (most notably juveniles) is gradually becoming evident. gerber will accompany a team from island conservation to little water, water, and pine cays in march 2006 to assess the situation and begin the preparations necessary for full-scale cat and rat eradications. in collaboration with engineers at johnston’s international, efforts are underway to produce and price a fence design that will stretch across the sandbar and isolate little water cay from water and pine cays. johnston’s has offered to install the fence for free. caribbean wildlife foundation.—the zoological society of san diego is helping to establish a non-profit conservation organization in the tci through the donation of boats and equipment that have been dedicated to the tci iguana project for the past five years, and by covering legal fees associated with incorporation. the new non-profit (tentatively called the “caribbean wildlife foundation”) should be functional by mid-2006. operation will depend on securing outside funding through grants, donations, and other sources. while much of the initial focus will undoubtedly be on iguanas and the tci, the organization will not be bound to these taxonomic or geographic restrictions. as a non-profit based in a caribbean country, the foundation will be eligible for a variety of funding sources closed to usor uk-based non-profits. cyclura cychlura figginsi charles r. knapp john g. shedd aquarium and university of florida iguana populations in the exumas were monitored briefly in may 2005 by the shedd aquarium. the translocated c. c. figginsi population on pasture cay (see past isg reports for historic details) was visited for 1.5 days, but only six adult iguanas were seen or captured. pasture cay is inhabited by rats, and this population is being used to investigate the potential impacts of rats on the growth of iguana populations. sixteen iguanas were translocated originally in 2002. three iguanas (two in 2003 and one in 2005) have been confirmed dead and six alive. the others remain missing. the lack of adults is a strong concern but mitigated slightly by the presence of hatchlings and juveniles. we have documented extraordinary growth rates in recaptured juveniles. the unintended translocation of a male-biased propagule is suspected as the reason for the apparent loss of adult iguanas. intensive monitoring of the population is needed to study the long-term effects of the male-biased translocated colony. bitter guana and gaulin cays were monitored for a total of four days resulting in 45 iguana captures (18 recaptures). the goats reported previously on gaulin cay were not seen; however, we documented the larvae of cactoblastis cactorum for the first time on an opuntia cactus pad. the iguana education signs posted originally in 1998 have fallen and must be replaced. bitter guana cay was surveyed briefly and two goats were observed. our concern is the substantial increase in tourist traffic on the two cays, especially gaulin cay. over the past decade, we rarely observed tourists on gaulin cay. however, tourists were observed on the cay each day. the visitors come from staniel cay located immediately north of the cays. the tourists are being told to visit the island and feed the iguanas. this is a concern because visitorturks and caicos rock iguana (cyclura carinata). jo h n b in n s iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 121 traffic in the exuma cays has been increasing substantially over the past decade. many of these tourists land on cays inhabited by iguanas. for example, the allen cays in the northern exumas experience up to 600 people each week from one-day nassau excursions. the islands in the southern exumas also receive highimpact visitors from great exuma aboard one-day excursion tourist trips. consequently, few iguana populations in the exumas remain free from visitor impacts. visitors purposely feed the iguanas, thus altering their natural behavior and potentially their health. a study should be initiated to investigate the potential impacts of visitor traffic on iguana populations in the exumas. the exuma island iguana occurs on only seven cays in the archipelago, and the total population does not exceed 1500 individuals. protection offered in the form of isolation is being eroded as more yachtsmen cruise the exumas and islands are leased. humans bring with them their dogs, cats, and unwittingly deleterious behavior of feeding the lizards. i have become increasingly concerned for the exuma iguanas over the last two years because of elevated human activity on the cays they inhabit. more protection in the form of signs with rules should be offered to the few populations remaining throughout the exumas. 25-year overview for cyclura cychlura inornata john iverson earlham college we continued our study of the allen cays rock iguana with fieldwork in may 2005. analysis of the mark-recapture data for subadults and adults (>25 cm snout-vent length) over the first 25 years of field work (1980–2004) using program mark (courtesy gary white at colorado state university) demonstrated that: (1) the two natural populations of leaf and u cays have more than doubled over those 25 years (total populations on leaf and u cay now number about 600 and 300, respectively, excluding young of the year); (2) the sex ratio on both islands has shifted from about two males per female in the early 1980s to one-to-one currently; (3) annual adult survivorship has averaged about 90% (although higher in the shy females than the bolder males, and higher on u cay than leaf cay, where tourist visitation and feeding is much higher); and (4) population growth has slowed to near zero over the last few years. our analysis suggests that the two populations are approaching or have exceeded the 122 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 2005 isg meeting reports exuma island rock iguana (cyclura cychlura figginsi). jo h n b in n s allen cays rock iguana (cyclura cychlura inornata). c h a r le s r . k n a pp iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 122 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 1232005 isg meeting reports carrying capacity (k) of their respective islands (with standing crop biomass exceeding 100 kg/ha on leaf cay). the fact that adult survivorship is higher on leaf than u cay and yet annual population growth rate on leaf cay has exceeded that on u cay seems antithetical. however, we believe this pattern is a result of higher juvenile mortality on u than leaf cay. preliminary data on nest survivorship for two years (2001–2002) support this hypothesis. nesting areas on u cay are less than one meter above sea level, and have wetter, more easily saturated soils. storms during hatching season in september can cause the suffocation of late-stage eggs or hatchlings in the nest. during our fieldwork in may 2005, we also visited two other islands onto which iguanas were apparently introduced, and we discovered a third. one of these islands had no iguanas in 1996, but now has at least 40, representing all size classes. fieldwork in march 2006 will focus on more rigorous surveys of these translocated populations, as well as the exploration of many other small cays in the northern exumas to which iguanas may also have been introduced. cyclura pinguis kelly bradley1 and glenn gerber2 1dallas zoo and 2zoological society of san diego the anegada iguana headstart and release program is going very well, with a consistently high rate of survival. the first 24 headstarted iguanas to be returned to the wild were released in october 2003 and ranged in size from 2050–750 g. survival after two years has been 79%, with 19 animals still alive. the 24 animals released in 2004 ranged from 1540–600 g. after one year, this group has experienced an 88% survival rate with 21 animals still living. because the smallest animals from the 2003 and 2004 releases survived, we decided to further reduce animal size for the october 2005 releases. this past fall, an additional 24 iguanas were released, ranging in size from 1055–415 g. the same release strategy was used as in years past. twelve animals (6.6) of equivalent sizes were released at each of two study sites: rocky woodland on middle cay and sandy scrub in bones bight. the eight smallest iguanas ranged in size from 612–415 g and received internal transmitters to insure our ability to monitor them long-term. dr. bonnie raphael and nina palmer from the wildlife conservation society conducted the health screenings and transmitter implantation surgeries. the 16 remaining iguanas were fitted with external transmitters attached to the nuchal crest with nylon coated stainless steel wire and crimping tubes. all of the animals were released into the wild during the first week of october. the iguanas were tracked daily for the first month, after which survival was 100%. the first follow-up monitoring trip took place in december 2005. after 60 days, 22 animals were still alive, representing a 91% survival rate. additional follow-up trips will take place in february, may, july, and october 2006. conservation outreach for the anegada iguana lee pagni zoological society of san diego conservation education continues to play an important role in the recovery of the anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis). with momentum building from previous years’ activities, 2005 saw numerous conservation education activities related to the recovery program. the program received a grant from the iucn’s sir peter scott fund for creating outreach materials to include an interpretive guide to the headstart facility, a poster, and complementary brochure to raise local awareness about recovery efforts. these materials will be produced and distributed in 2006. funding was also received from the world association of zoos and aquariums for capacity building of local educators. these funds were used to cover travel expenses for a group of 12 educators from the bvi to attend a one-day workshop on environmental education coordinated by the virgin island network of environmental educators (vine), based in st. thomas, usvi, the bvi national parks trust, and the san diego zoo. a grant from the institute of museum and library services helped fund outreach for a genetic analysis of the san diego zoo’s captive group of anegada iguanas. the outreach activities include a secondary-level lesson on microsatellite dna that is posted on the san diego zoo’s website. an annual highlight is the release of headstarted iguanas back to the wild. this year, 11 members of the anegada community took part in the october releases. besides bringing more awareness to the headstart program, local involvement in these types of activities is important to improving local support for other recovery efforts that include protecting key habitat and controlling feral predators.anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis) from anegada. je ff l em m iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 123 finally, outreach efforts were not restricted to the caribbean. middle-school students from the san diego zoo’s zoocorps program took part in important outreach activities. first, the group learned about anegada iguana conservation, produced a display about what they learned, and educated visitors to the zoo about the recovery program. zoocorps members also created “genetic jewelry” based on a sequence of an anegada iguana gene. these colorful and genetically accurate beaded necklaces were given to students on anegada during an outreach presentation by kelly bradley of the dallas zoo. fijian iguana update peter harlow taronga zoo thanks to the 18 iguana specialist group members and all the other international specialists who made the long and expensive trip to fiji for the “conservation and management plan workshop for fijian iguanas” in november 2004. the species recovery plan from the workshop should be finalized and printed in early 2006. several of the recommendations from the workshop have already been completed or are currently being implemented. two reports recommended by the workshop have been completed: the first, titled “survey techniques and data analyses for estimating fijian iguana abundance” (by peter harlow and pita biciloa), has been printed and distributed to all potential users in fiji. this is a user-friendly description of how to conduct line-transect surveys and analyze the data using distance-survey techniques to obtain abundance estimates for both species of fijian iguanas. the second report, “invasive plant assessment and weed management plan for the fijian crested iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba” (by jennifer taylor, peter harlow, and jone niukula) has been printed and distributed. four species of invasive plants were identified as needing intervention to control and eventually remove from yadua taba: rain tree, wedelia trilobata, guava, and lantana. these species are continuing to spread on yadua taba and thus decrease the amount of dry forest habitat available for crested iguanas (brachylophus vitiensis). over 300 rain trees have so far been poisoned, which is more than half of the estimated total on the island. the report includes a five-year plan for the removal of these four invasive species by the sanctuary ranger. this project began in july 2003, and by september 2005, wedelia trilobata or “trailing daisy,” as it is also called, had been totally eradicated from the island by intensive hand removal. this species is native to the caribbean, but is highly invasive in the pacific, covering the forest floor with a foot-thick layer of interconnected plants and choking potential iguana nesting habitat. the successful removal of this species from yadua taba is the first record of an invasive plant species being removed from any island in fiji. in september 2005, clare morrison, isaac rounds, nunia thomas (university of south pacific), pita biciloa and jone niukula (fiji national trust), and peter harlow (taronga zoo) 124 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 2005 isg meeting reports fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis). jo e b u r g es s iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 124 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 1252005 isg meeting reports completed the first of four two-week field trips to yadua taba crested iguana sanctuary. we collected tree-use data and buckets of iguana fecal material (for later analyses) to obtain a better picture of crested iguana diet across all seasons. six permanent transects were established and complete vegetation and iguana surveys along each transect were completed. knowledge of the dietary requirements of this herbivorous species across all seasons is needed to assess potential islands suitable for future translocation of fijian crested iguanas, or for forest restoration on degraded islands. the second trip took place in december 2005, and the fourth and final field trip is scheduled for july 2006. in september 2005, craig morley (university of south pacific) and peter harlow, with local assistance, completed a rapid survey of crested iguanas on the 40-ha island of macuata, where crested iguanas were re-discovered in 2004. based on 22 nighttime sightings along 800 m of transect, an average of 25 iguanas per hectare of forest occur on the island, and almost half this island is currently covered in regenerating forest. this island is one kilometer off the northern coast of viti levu, fiji’s largest island, and about two hours by road from the capital of suva. it is privately owned, and was heavily burned and goat grazed until 1994, when goats were removed. the forest is now recovering, and most of the iguana’s favorite food tree species are present but in low abundance. this island is second in importance after yadua taba for the long-term conservation of the crested iguana, and together with yadua taba, these are the only crested iguana populations in fiji where numbers are stable or increasing. doctoral student suzie morrison from the australian national university (canberra) began her field research on yadua taba in september 2005. suzie and her partner, zach pierce, will be using mark-recapture and radio-tracking techniques to gather basic biological data on reproduction, juvenile recruitment, and habitat requirements of crested iguanas. other projects include seed dispersal by iguanas and rats, the effects of the introduced invasive “crazy ant” on crested iguanas and their habitat, and dry forest restoration projects. see their project website at: http://www.fijiancrestediguana.com/ mona island iguana, cyclura cornuta stejnegeri miguel garcía puerto rico department of natural and environmental resources the endemic mona island iguana, cyclura cornuta stejnegeri, has been listed as endangered under the endangered species act and the regulation to govern the endangered and threatened species of the commonwealth of puerto rico. this is because the species exhibits a limited distribution, relatively low population numbers, and reduced recruitment of juveniles into the breeding stage. therefore, a head-start program was started in 1999 and is conducted by the department of natural and environmental resources (prdner), the toledo zoo, and the university of puerto rico. by october 2005, 87 headstarted iguanas had been released and 33 animals had been recaptured. we have recorded dispersal data for nine individuals and found relatively large home ranges, ranging from 2.4–22.2 ha. the average home range (mcp) for all individuals was 19.8 ha. all of the headstarted iguanas observed are active and in good health, indicating the success of this management strategy. mona island rock iguana (cyclura cornuta stejnegeri). r o b er t po w el l iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 125 in summary: (1) no released iguanas have been found dead; (2) relatively large home ranges; (3) survivorship data are still being recorded by active searching of marked individuals (with or without radios); (4) population and habitat viability assessment is needed to determine number of released iguanas necessary to obtain a positive and sustained population growth. cyclura nubila on isla magueyes, puerto rico miguel garcía puerto rico department of natural and environmental resources the introduced population of cuban iguanas on isla magueyes has become a problem. these lizards are very charismatic, but the commonwealth of puerto rico has a strict public policy against exotic biota. only researchers, students, and field workers (no tourists) are allowed on the island, but the animals have been fed and are now aggressive and numerous (~500 on 7.2 ha). a discussion of this issue was held among isg members and key points are listed below. a sub-group was formed to help the puerto rico department of natural and environmental resources find an acceptable solution to this dilemma. issues include: (1) the population is exempt from the u.s. esa rules because it is an introduced population. legally, the animals could be moved from the island to the pet trade within the u.s. placing the animals in the u.s. pet trade poses serious risks that include improper care, undesirable precedent, and potential release and conversion to a new feral population. (2) this is a cites i-listed species, so trade within the u.s. is not regulated. translocating iguanas back to cuba would involve u.s. export and cuban import permits. translocation back to cuba is zoonotically risky to other herpetofauna. (3) the cuban government should be contacted by the puerto rico department of natural and environmental resources to assess their interest and involvement in the future of this population. (4) the isg is concerned about stating a policy in the event of backlash, preferring instead to have the puerto rican government decide policy and the isg then advising on the potential problems of any action. (5) the establishment of colonies on mainland puerto rico is unlikely because of many predators even though the over-water distance is short. (6) a control plan is needed with an analysis of harvesting of adults through relocation (outside puerto rico), stopping population growth (nest destruction), and euthanasia (last resort). molecular analysis of the ctenosaurs of nuclear central america: insights into speciation, conservation, and management stesha pasachnik university of tennessee mesoamerica has been defined as one of the earth’s biodiversity hotspots. the ctenosaura group exemplifies this pattern because it is an incredibly species-rich clade; however, it has received little attention thus far in scientific research. in order to evaluate plausible explanations for speciation within this clade, i plan to: (1) construct a molecular phylogeny of the iguanas of the ctenosaura melanosterna complex inhabiting the caribbean borders and islands of honduras, the heart of mesoamerica (using 126 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 2005 isg meeting reports honduran black-chested spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura melanosterna). jo h n b in n s. a n im a l c o u r te sy o f w es t c o a st ig u a n a r es ea r c h iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 126 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 1272005 isg meeting reports the c. quinquecarinata complex as an outgroup); (2) investigate the colonization by c. bakeri, c. similis, c. melanosterna, and c. oedirhina of the bay islands, cayos cochinos, and various caribbean islets bordering honduras; and (3) document the degree and directions of hybridization, between endemic c. bakeri and a wide-ranging congener, c. similis, on the island of utila, bay islands, honduras. this study will provide insight into diversity, species status, and the conservation and management strategies that are necessary to preserve species in the ctenosaura melanosterna complex. genetic studies update catherine stephen utah valley state college iguana phylogeography.—iguana consists of two species, i. iguana and i. delicatissima. whereas i. delicatissima historically has a very limited range restricted to the lesser antilles, i. iguana is found throughout the neotropics and the lesser antilles (burghardt and rand 1982). iguana iguana is unlikely to constitute a single interbreeding population, given the enormous physical distances and barriers to gene flow. we are using nuclear and mitochondrial dna-sequence data to explore the phylogeographic history of this species. samples included in the preliminary analysis have been collected from 17 different countries. results from both data sets show a congruent, deep lineage divergence between the central american populations and the south american plus lesser antillean populations of green iguanas. the topology of the phylogeny indicates that iguana iguana arose on the south american continent and radiated much more recently into central america. subfamily iguaninae phylogenetics.—iguaninae is an ancient group with eight modern genera distributed throughout the western hemisphere and the fijian archipelago. previous morphological and molecular studies of iguanine relationships have relied on incomplete sample sets that yielded conflicting topologies. the subfamily collectively spans thousands of miles across multiple geographical boundaries and exhibits a high degree of regional and island endemism. because of its age and distribution, the group is uniquely suited to test biogeographic hypotheses, such as suggested occurrences of past refugia or relictual fragments, as well as allow empirical evaluation of molecular clock models. in order to generate a robust phylogeny, we have collected dna-sequence data at four loci (two nuclear and two mitochondrial) for all eight genera, including 28 of the iguanine species. phylogenies generated from maximum likelihood analysis of separate data sets result in congruent phylogenies with varying levels of resolution. preliminary analyses strongly support dipsosaurus as the most basal lineage in the subfamily, followed by an early dispersal of brachylophus to the fijian archipelago and a subsequent divergence of the cyclura lineage. a sister relationship between sauromalus and iguana is supported by the combined analysis, and this clade is sister group to the rest of the subfamily (ctenosaura, amblyrhynchus, and conolophus). interestingly, ctenosaura defensor falls outside of the ctenosaur clade in the three data sets in which it was included. booby cay study.—cyclura carinata, a bahamian rock iguana, currently has two recognized subspecies. cyclura c. carinata is found on several islands and cays throughout the turks and caicos islands. the second subspecies, c. c. bartschi, is now bartsch’s rock iguana (cyclura carinata bartschi) from booby cay. jo e w a si le w sk i iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 127 known only to exist on booby cay, a small island off mayaguana island, bahamas, which is also within the subspecies’ historic range. support for subspecific status is weak. geographic isolation appears to be the only strong indicator of genetic isolation. recent conservation attempts made on the species’ behalf have raised questions regarding the taxonomic status of the subspecies. we used mtdna-sequence data to ask whether any genetic variation distinguishes c. c. bartschi from several sampled populations of c. c. carinata. our findings show that the booby cay population of c. carinata is fixed for a common mtdna haplotype found in caicos island populations of c. carinata. in contrast, four different haplotypes were found among populations designated c. c. carinata. we conclude that evidence is insufficient to support c. c. bartschi as a subspecies and recommend that the booby cay population of c. carinata be included in ongoing conservation efforts currently focused on the turks and caicos islands. bartsch’s rock iguana, (cyclura carinata bartschi) steve conners, joe wasilewski, joe burgess, and john bendon the population of cyclura carinata bartschi found only on booby cay, mayaguana, bahamas has been monitored annually since 1998. repeated observations by a core group of team members indicate that the population has remained healthy and stable over this time period. all size classes and sexes have been seen during each visit despite the continued presence of introduced goats, rats, and a strong hurricane. human activity (periodic camping by fishermen) on the island has had no negative impact on the iguanas. interviews with local residents indicate that harvesting of goats may be increasing, which would reduce their population, and thus their impact on the vegetation. currently, 50 individual iguanas are marked, but few recaptures have been made. iguanas were observed foraging on seagrass during extremely low tides. a set of transect surveys has been completed, resulting in a conservative population estimate of 14.5 lizards/ha, or a total population of 558 animals on the cay. we recommend that annual monitoring of this population continue. international iguana foundation report rick hudson fort worth zoo the international iguana foundation (iif) currently has 14 board members representing zoos, ngos, corporations, and foundations; the group is largely u.s.-based with one foreign partner (durrell wildlife conservation trust). to date (december 2005), nearly $400,000 has been raised through a combination of annual board pledges, grants, and donations. the iif has received and administered over $120,000 in grants from a number of sources including aza conservation endowment fund, morris animal foundation, ssc sir peter scott conservation action fund, conservation international, and a host of zoos. one of the iif’s most generous sponsors has been the disney wildlife conservation fund (dwcf), which has awarded $68,750 to the iif for iguana programs in grand cayman (2002–2003), turks and caicos islands (2004), and jamaica (2005). 128 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 2005 isg meeting reports resident male cyclura cychlura cychlura at tiamo resort, andros. jo e b u r g es s iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 128 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 1292005 isg meeting reports where have these funds gone? the iif has awarded just over $170,000 over four grant cycles (including the recent 2005 awards) to support iguana conservation work in grand cayman, jamaica, anegada, st lucia, dominican republic, isla mona, the bahamas, and fiji. funds also have been raised to support major projects that include emergency relief efforts for hurricane ivan damage ($17,000), hope zoo iguana facility renovations ($9,000), and the development of a feral mammal control plan for anegada ($11,000, thanks to san diego zoo). highlights of some of the projects and programs that iif has supported include: • salary support for manager of the blue iguana headstart and breeding facility on grand cayman • support for the release and monitoring of 23 blue iguanas in grand cayman’s salina reserve in 2005–6 • support for biologist rick van veen’s salary to conduct fieldwork in jamaica’s hellshire hills, where he is solving many mysteries on the life (and death) of the jamaican iguana • support for the ongoing predator control effort in hellshire hills and studying the impact of their removal • support for the repatriation of 28 headstarted jamaican iguanas (2003 and 2005) • provided support to the ongoing iguana headstart program at jamaica’s hope zoo • support for field surveys and conservation research for the anegada iguana recovery effort • funding for the pre-release health screening, repatriation, and follow-up monitoring for 72 anegada iguanas (2003–2005) • assistance with the purchase of a dedicated project vehicle for the anegada field researchers (split with ircf funds from daytona nrba auction) • training and technical support for the anegada iguana headstart program • funding of signage for the protected nesting area for the st. lucia iguana • funding for research on the nesting ecology and hatchling survival of the st. lucia iguana • funding to the ngo grupo jaragua to conduct field research that led to the discovery of a major hotspot of ricord’s iguana habitat in the pedernales region of the dominican republic • funding for the translocation of ten san salvador iguanas from green to cut cay in the bahamas in 2005 • funding for a new iguana population field assessment technique for the mona iguana • support for an ongoing natural history study for the fiji crested iguana on yadua taba the iif faces a number of major challenges in 2006; these include the development of a strategic business plan, identification of corporate partners, ramping up fund-raising efforts, increasing visibility and exposure, and expanding content on the iif web site. the iif board of directors met on 9–10 november 2006 following the isg meeting in south andros, bahamas. the board reviewed five proposals requesting a total of $53,473. due to funding constraints, the board was able to award $31,864 to the following five programs, four of which provide direct support to iguana species ranked critically endangered by the iucn red list (brachylophus vitiensis, cyclura lewisi, c. collei, and c. pinguis). subsequent to the meeting, emergency funds were awarded for conservation of c. ricordii, also critically endangered. ircf report john binns international reptile conservation foundation in december, ircf was granted $36,400 by the dart foundation toward improvements to the blue iguana recovery program’s captive breeding and head-starting facility on grand cayman. ircf’s 501c3 status facilitated this grant, which will be transferred to the blue iguana conservation fund on grand cayman, where it will be utilized to refurbish and subdivide an oversized breeding pen, complete a storage shed and food preparation area, install piped water throughout the facility, and supplement funds already being raised by an ircf web appeal to erect a security and tour management fence for the facility. aerial view of andros island. jo e b u r g es s iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 129 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 157dominican racers agriculture & the environment, commonwealth of dominica, was instrumental in issuing permits to conduct research in dominica and facilitated our efforts in myriad ways. fieldwork was funded by a grant from the national science foundation (usa) to robert powell (dbi-0242589). literature cited henderson, r.w. and r. powell. 2009. natural history of west indian amphibians and reptiles. university press of florida, gainesville. perry, g. and r.n. fisher. 2006. night lights and reptiles: observed and potential effects, pp. 169–191. in: c. rich and t. longcore (eds.), ecological consequences of artificial night lighting. island press, washington, d.c. perry, g. and j. lazell. 2000. liophis portoricensis anegadae (ncn). night-light hunting. herpetological review 31:247. alsophis antillensis sibonius is endemic to dominica, lesser antilles. although schwartz and henderson (1991) described adults, thorough descriptions of juveniles have not been published. during a june 2008 study conducted primarily at cabrits national park, we made >160 observations of an undetermined number of snakes. included in the observations were five juveniles, for four of which we collected and recorded pattern data. the only previous description of the juvenile pattern was by parker (1933): “… an undulating dark vertebral stripe, a narrow lateral line, and dark spots on the flanks and hinder parts of the belly.” the top of the head in juveniles is uniformly brown, darkening laterally, with very dark brown to black lines extending from the snout and through the eyes before blending into the darker elements of the body pattern. supralabials are white, sometimes with faint specks of light brown or gray. faint to moderately distinct stippling occurs on infralabials, chin, and throat. juveniles have distinct brown middorsal “saddles” faintly outlined in black on a white to pale gray or tan ground color. most saddles on any one individual are in contact, forming a continuous middorsal line with paired lateral extensions. these saddles may be obliquely situated or offset, forming a wavy (“zigzag”) line along at least portions of the dorsum. at least a few saddles on each animal are isolated by pale ground color extending across the middorsal line. on all juveniles examined, juvenile pattern and ontogenetic pattern changes in dominican racers lauren a. white1 and peter j. muelleman2 1environmental science program, oklahoma state university, stillwater, oklahoma 74078, usa (lauren.a.white@okstate.edu) 2department of biology, truman state university, kirksville, missouri 63501, usa (pjm563@truman.edu) � a dominican racer (alsophis antillensis sibonius) in a foraging position at the base of a light such as that illustrated on the facing page. this foraging posture, with the anterior portion of the body elevated at the base of the light, is essentially similar to that observed in snakes at the bases of tree trunks in more “natural” habitats (l.a. white and p.j. muelleman, pers. comm.).r o b er t po w el l iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 157 the dorsal saddles are most distinct anteriorly, where they alternate laterally with patches of light ground color. saddles become progressively less sharply outlined posteriorly and onto the tail, where the lateral patches of light ground color fuse to form vague lateral stripes that disappear completely on the tail. faint ventrolateral brown or gray blotches alternate with the dorsal saddles anteriorly and fade into vague stippling posteriorly. the venter is white with faint tan to gray stippling increasing in density and becoming darker toward the vent. as snakes grow, the dark elements of the pattern expand and fuse (= abundism), to the extent that the light ground color is increasingly obscured, in many instances leaving as remnants only light lateral patches. the smallest juvenile examined (186 mm svl) had 65 pairs of distinct dorsolateral light patches between saddles. these were more obvious, even posteriorly on the body and on the tail, than in larger snakes. two juveniles of intermediate length (240 mm svl and a slightly smaller individual that was released before measurement, although the pat158 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 white and muelleman juvenile dominican racers (alsophis antillensis sibonius) (186 mm svl, ~230 mm svl, and 290 mm svl, respectively) with the distinct pattern characteristic of small snakes. r o b er t po w el l iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 158 lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) are almost exclusively herbivorous (the yellow color on the iguana’s face is from eating mangos) and largely arboreal, descending to the ground to forage or defend territories for only short periods each day. dominican ground lizards (ameiva fuscata) are almost entirely terrestrial and are opportunistic foragers that feed mostly on small invertebrates, but will eat fruits when available. these two individuals came into close proximity to bask in a small patch of sunlight. see article on p. 130. je ff r ey w . a c k le y martinique frogs (eleutherodactylus martinincensis) are ubiquitous on dominica. this individual has an unusually distinct middorsal “racing” stripe, a pattern element sometimes seen in the dominican frog (e. amplinympha), which is restricted to higher elevations on the island. see article on p. 130. r o b er t po w el l male lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima) avidly defend territories. on the grounds of the sunset bay club on dominica’s leeward (western) coast, the population density is very high, resulting in frequent contact between males with neighboring territories. the beads are permanent markers allowing for individual recognition in a long-term study of dominican iguanas (see iguana 14(4), p. 222). see article on p. 130 and travelogue on p. 162. je ff r ey w . a c k le y proud sponsor of the ircf and this centerfold the katerniaghat wildlife sanctuary is a secure refuge and the best hope for protecting gharials (gavialis gangeticus) from extinction. in april of this year, 26 females laid eggs in a soft and secure sand bar on an island in the girwa river where nesting had been facilitated by clearing grasses and softening sand by digging. about 1000 gharials hatched this year at one location along the river, but many were swept away by monsoon floods, for which protective measures will have to be developed in the future. see article on p. 150. o li v ie r b o r n in sharp contrast to the successful reproduction in the katerniaghat wildlife sanctuary, more than 100 gharials (gavialis gangeticus) died in the chambal river wildlife sanctuary this year. an unidentified toxin is suspected of causing kidney damage and failure. see article on p. 150. su r es h c h a u d h a r i iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 159dominican racers tern was recorded in photographs) had 33 and 52 distinct dorsolateral light patches, with darker pattern elements blending posteriorly. the largest of the three juveniles (290 mm svl) had 50 distinct pale dorsolateral light patches and the darker dorsal saddles were discontinuous near midbody, where 3–4 pale blotches extended middorsally through the saddle pattern. posteriorly, the darker elements condensed into a middorsal stripe, and virtually all indications of the anterior pattern of saddles and patches were lost. when juveniles are compared with larger adults and subadults, the head pattern may be retained essentially unchanged in some individuals or the tops of heads may become increasingly dark to the extent that the distinct juvenile ocular lines are subsumed into the uniformly dark dorsal and lateral head coloration. the light labial line is variously invaded by darker pigment. in larger snakes that retain some vague semblance of the juvenile pattern, the line may extend posteriorly onto the body. the darker elements of the body pattern expand, often become darker, and outlines become increasingly indistinct, resulting in what appears to be a dark ground color with a series of variously defined white, cream, or yellowish lateral patches that vary in number and in how far posteriorly they extend onto the body. parker (1933) described the adult pattern as “… posterior part of the body is almost entirely black, but anteriorly the dorsal stripe is broken up into a series of large oval spots narrowly separated from one another; the light interspaces may be fused on the sides of the neck to form a fairly distinct light stripe.” schwartz and henderson (1991) described it as “anteriorly large white to tan blotches on brown to black ground, sometimes alternating to form lateral zigzag, posterior solid black.” we observed adult “ground colors” ranging from dark taupe through milk chocolate to very dark brown, dark slate gray, and jet black. “blotches” of adults ranged from a few lateral light spots restricted to the anteriormost portion of the body to series of patches extending to midbody and, in a few individuals, the full extent of the body. the chin, throat, and anterior portion of the venter remain light, but variously stippled. stippling becomes increasingly prominent posteriorly. the posterior ventrals and subcaudals are uniformly dark brown or slate gray. the transition from stippling to uniform dark color may occur as early as one-fourth the length of the body to well beyond midbody. the apparently ontogenetic changes in pattern are suggestive of progressive but variable abundism (= pseudomelanism). acknowledgements we thank our mentors, bob henderson (milwaukee public museum) and robert powell (avila university), for guidance and support. they and john s. parmerlee, jr. made invaluable comments on earlier drafts of this manuscript. we thank adam mitchell, ruthie carter, and seth rudman for their help in the field. mr. arlington james, forest officer, forestry, wildlife, and parks division, ministry of agriculture & the environment, commonwealth of dominica, was instrumental in issuing permits to conduct research in dominica and facilitated our efforts in myriad ways. fieldwork was funded by a grant from the national science foundation (usa) to robert powell (dbi0242589). literature cited parker, h.w. 1933. some amphibians and reptiles from the lesser antilles. annals and magazine of natural history 10:151–158. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. an adult dominican racer with an abundistic pattern in which the dark pattern elements have expanded, with only a few light patches remaining of the juvenile ground color. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . an adult dominican racer showing the white labial line extending onto the body. r o b er t po w el l iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 159 iguana b&w text touted as the most successful conservation story in india for decades, the gharial (gavialis gangeticus) conservation program is in the doldrums today. gharials are specialists in choice of habitat (only deep rivers) and prey (only fish), limiting the species’ ability to survive in disturbed and marginal areas. only about 200 reproducing gharials remain in the wild in india and nepal. formerly found in almost every river system in the northern indian subcontinent, today these large crocodilians are found only in a few protected areas disconnected by hundreds of kilometers. gharials have been extirpated in pakistan, bhutan, bangladesh, and myanmar. poaching is a major threat, and fishing depletes the prey base and gharials quickly drown when enmeshed in nets. fishermen are not sympathetic to the plight of gharials, which they view as rivals. many riverbanks are seasonally taken over by farmers to grow cucumbers and others are destroyed by sand mining. either deprives gharials of basking and nesting sites. water siphoned from rivers for irrigation creates extensive shallow areas that gharials will not use. turtle poachers use longlines with up to 1000 fishhooks that ensnare young gharials. once before, in the mid-1970s, the number of wild gharials had approached 200, triggering the much-publicized project crocodile. a head-starting program was so successful that it was touted as the most successful conservation project ever conducted in india and one of the most successful in the world — but little was done to involve local communities and to secure wild habitats. today we are reaping the results of that incomplete conservation strategy. how can you help? the gharial taskforce at the madras crocodile bank is lobbying for the resumption of the gharial rehabilitation program and for the protection of riverine habitats, coordinating conservation and education efforts, and conducting surveys on thousands of kilometers of rivers. a donation to the madras crocodile bank will be instantly acknowledged and will entitle you to receive periodically the task force’s gharial conservation update. the gharial needs your help now! you can support the madras crocodile bank trust through the ircf (www.ircf.org/gharial). note: the madras crocodile bank trust is a registered charitable trust established in 1976 for the conservation of india’s three species of crocodiles. it is also an international crocodile gene bank with 2500 crocodiles representing 14 of the 23 species. the crocodile bank has administered and operated numerous conservation programs throughout india and is highly regarded as the premier herpetological institution in india. f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n the gharial: back on the brink m a tt v a u g h a n iguana b&w text which was hidden under the litter, we moved a leaf and accidentally startled the alsophis, which struck at us several times before releasing the hawk and moving into the litter, revealing a superficial head wound as it fled. after release, the hawk stumbled on an apparently numbed right leg and seemed unable to flex its right wing; upon returning to the site approximately three hours later, however, we observed the bird, seemingly unharmed, flying between trees. acknowledgements we thank bob powell and bob henderson for providing comments on this note. this observation was made while conducting research on iguana delicatissima in dominica. that project is funded through the center for conservation and research for endangered species (cres) at the zoological society of san diego. literature cited birdlife international 2004. buteo platypterus. in: iucn 2007. 2007 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. malhotra, a. and r.s. thorpe. 1999. reptiles & amphibians of the eastern caribbean. macmillan education, ltd., oxford and london, uk. normally diurnal west indian anoles (polychrotidae: anolis) are known to exploit insects attracted to artificial lights well into the night (e.g., perry and fisher 2006, henderson and powell 2009). secondary exploitation of nocturnal anoles by a typically diurnal predator, the puerto rican racer (alsophis portoricensis), has been reported on hotel grounds on guana island, british virgin islands (perry and lazell 2000). at 1915 h (transition to full dark) on 18 june 2008, we observed a male dominican racer (alsophis antillensis sibonius; svl 525 mm, tail 247 mm) in a foraging position at the base of a light frequently used by a nocturnally active dominican anole (anolis oculatus). the observation occurred on the grounds of the sunset bay club at batali beach, on the leeward coast of dominica, lesser antilles. based on our experiences, exploitation of the night-light niche has become commonplace among west indian anoles associated with urban areas and other situations in which artificial lighting is prevalent at night (e.g., hotels, resorts). however, both situations in which snakes have been observed exploiting the night-light niche (guana island, batali beach) have been “snake-friendly”; that is, guests and personnel of the hotels are instructed not to harm snakes that enter areas frequented by humans. under more typical circumstances (i.e., where snakes would be killed or, at least, removed from the area), we doubt that snakes would have the opportunity to learn to exploit this potentially productive trophic niche. acknowledgements marcella and roger dutrieux cools, owners of the sunset bay club tolerated our eccentricities. mr. arlington james, forest officer, forestry, wildlife, and parks division, ministry of 156 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 powell and henderson a dominican anole (anolis oculatus) exploiting the night-light niche on the grounds of the sunset bay club at batali beach, dominica. r o b er t po w el l exploitation of the night-light niche by a dominican racer robert powell1 and robert w. henderson2 1department of biology, avila university, kansas city, mo 64145, usa (robert.powell@avila.edu) 2section of vertebrate zoology, milwaukee public museum, milwaukee, wi 53233, usa (henderson@mpm.edu) � iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 156 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 157dominican racers agriculture & the environment, commonwealth of dominica, was instrumental in issuing permits to conduct research in dominica and facilitated our efforts in myriad ways. fieldwork was funded by a grant from the national science foundation (usa) to robert powell (dbi-0242589). literature cited henderson, r.w. and r. powell. 2009. natural history of west indian amphibians and reptiles. university press of florida, gainesville. perry, g. and r.n. fisher. 2006. night lights and reptiles: observed and potential effects, pp. 169–191. in: c. rich and t. longcore (eds.), ecological consequences of artificial night lighting. island press, washington, d.c. perry, g. and j. lazell. 2000. liophis portoricensis anegadae (ncn). night-light hunting. herpetological review 31:247. alsophis antillensis sibonius is endemic to dominica, lesser antilles. although schwartz and henderson (1991) described adults, thorough descriptions of juveniles have not been published. during a june 2008 study conducted primarily at cabrits national park, we made >160 observations of an undetermined number of snakes. included in the observations were five juveniles, for four of which we collected and recorded pattern data. the only previous description of the juvenile pattern was by parker (1933): “… an undulating dark vertebral stripe, a narrow lateral line, and dark spots on the flanks and hinder parts of the belly.” the top of the head in juveniles is uniformly brown, darkening laterally, with very dark brown to black lines extending from the snout and through the eyes before blending into the darker elements of the body pattern. supralabials are white, sometimes with faint specks of light brown or gray. faint to moderately distinct stippling occurs on infralabials, chin, and throat. juveniles have distinct brown middorsal “saddles” faintly outlined in black on a white to pale gray or tan ground color. most saddles on any one individual are in contact, forming a continuous middorsal line with paired lateral extensions. these saddles may be obliquely situated or offset, forming a wavy (“zigzag”) line along at least portions of the dorsum. at least a few saddles on each animal are isolated by pale ground color extending across the middorsal line. on all juveniles examined, juvenile pattern and ontogenetic pattern changes in dominican racers lauren a. white1 and peter j. muelleman2 1environmental science program, oklahoma state university, stillwater, oklahoma 74078, usa (lauren.a.white@okstate.edu) 2department of biology, truman state university, kirksville, missouri 63501, usa (pjm563@truman.edu) � a dominican racer (alsophis antillensis sibonius) in a foraging position at the base of a light such as that illustrated on the facing page. this foraging posture, with the anterior portion of the body elevated at the base of the light, is essentially similar to that observed in snakes at the bases of tree trunks in more “natural” habitats (l.a. white and p.j. muelleman, pers. comm.).r o b er t po w el l iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 157 iguana b&w text 208 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 ircf on the move pharmaceutical manufacturer eli lilly and company has awarded a $24,000 grant to project heloderma partners zootropic, ircf, and zoo atlanta for the preservation of the guatemalan beaded lizard, heloderma horridum charlesbogerti. the project will receive $8,000 a year for the next three years. lilly has developed and marketed a medication for the treatment of type ii diabetes under the trade name “byetta.” the drug is a synthetic version of the exendin peptides found in heloderma venom. a $19,600 grant from the disney wildlife conservation fund has also been awarded to project heloderma, specifically to cover the cost of the local environmental education program. the program reaches 6,000 school children and 4,000 local farmers from 20 mayan chorti and ladino communities in the motagua valley, home to the remnant population of the guatemalan beaded lizard. the grant will help cover the cost of personnel and equipment, as well as providing environmental awareness tshirts, posters, and interactive magazines for students from june 2007 through july 2008. project heloderma/project palearis the late model suzuki samurai donated by the ircf to project heloderma/ project palearis has just received a custom graphic treatment featuring the logos of partners zootropic, ircf, and zoo atlanta. the vehicle graphics complement the project heloderma/project palearis environmental education program theme, which is recognized by thousands of local school children and farmers. wild trees in the cayman islands the ircf recently published wild trees in the cayman islands, 2nd ed. (see book review, p. 194). the book will be distributed in the cayman islands; however, limited quantities will be available through the ircf. the ircf contributed time and resources with the intention of providing revenue for the blue iguana recovery program. ircf id cams the ircf recently fabricated cases and assembled ten customized battery-operated cctv camera units to help the blue iguana recovery program assess survival and dispersal of blue iguanas released into the salina reserve on grand i r c f o n t h e m o v e iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 208 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 209 cayman. based on a commercial indoorgrade surveillance unit, the cameras have been mounted in airtight dry cases with an optical window for the lens. the cameras will be placed in front of rock holes where they will be used to determine if the holes are in use as iguana retreats, and to identify occupants by their bead-tag combinations. team blue 2007 is currently laying out 20 x 40 m sampling areas and counting active iguana retreats in them; the cameras will substitute for constant human monitoring. the results will be used to estimate the population of released blues surviving and still occupying the protected release areas. volunteers sought for fieldwork on little cayman, cayman islands sister isles rock iguana (cyclura nubila caymanensis). two or three little cayman fieldworkers are required to work with the project leader during october–november. primary tasks (in three phases) include (instructions provided): (1) mapping nest sites in various habitats, (2) conducting a structured population assessment using distance sampling methods, and (3) excavating hatched nests to measure nest fecundity in key habitats. please visit www.ircf.org/volunteer.html, and select sister isles rock iguana. skills and challenges: demands extreme physical exertion in tropical heat and humidity, off-trail in densely vegetated terrain. expect thorny plants and extremely hostile rock in some areas. a high level of physical fitness and stamina is essential. color vision (to distinguish red, orange, green, blue, yellow, and white glass beads through binoculars) is important. aptitude for recording quantitative data (gps, data entry forms, etc.). exposure to toxic plants may cause allergic reactions. scratches, cuts, and bruises are to be expected! rewards: learning and practicing wildlife conservation research techniques; exploring the cayman islands’ least populated, most natural island, teeming with wildlife; working with a healthy, abundant wild iguana population. what we expect: that you will be available to carry out tough fieldwork involving long hours on at least a threedays-on, one-day-off schedule; that you will carefully follow guidance and instructions from the group leader while on duty; and that you will commit to collecting the most accurate and highest quality information possible. what we offer: free shared accommodations (probably project-rented space with bedding, etc. provided), local transportation, and access to the specialized equipment and information you need to be effective and productive. team blue volunteers sought for the blue iguana facility year-round team blue volunteer opportunities are available at the blue iguana breeding facility in the queen elizabeth ii botanic park on grand cayman. please visit www.ircf.org/volunteer.html to learn more. ircf on the move iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 209 210 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 ircf caribsea michael d. kern susan solomon joel friesch jim schauf (fast) desiree wong marianne lee ivan schwab miki england virginia huang atla brewer ron greenberg horned lizard conservation society alex jones richard and victoria burt david friant project heloderma disney wildlife conservation fund eli lilly zoological society of san diego wildlife discovery center oklahoma city zoo jacksonville zoo vin foundation bowtie, inc. (reptiles magazine) sandy quinn erik anderson sterling williamson blue iguana maine community foundation animal behaviour management alliance robert dorson trust greater cleveland aazk len goldberg happy hollow zoo deborah slotpole nora fahlber jean dorson point defiance zoo ae nash/johnathan sculpin mary j. hausherr david o. price stephen urban matthew ackley claes martenson milwaukee county zoo valerie lewallen pat shipman molly mccoy tricia jiang keiko mizumoto gharia l mult i task force john brueggen matthew wightman andros iguana shedd aquarium scott monroe t he ircf expresses sincere gratitude and appreciation to the many individuals and organizations whose support and contributions help further the foundation’s mission of preserving endangered reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. iguana 14.3 b&w text 8/12/07 10:48 pm page 210 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 51commentary since 2002, fundación biodiversidad (fb) has conducted a management program for yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) in formosa province, argentina. the main objective of the program has been to establish a sustainable-use model that ensures equity among users while promoting research and conservation of the resource. recently, rivas (2007. iguana 14(2): 74–85) criticized the program in the context of his opinions regarding the impact of global economic development on the conservation of green anacondas (eunectes murinus). although we provided a detailed review of the argentine program (micucci and waller. 2007. iguana 14(3): 160–171), we believe a more specific response to his comments is appropriate and necessary. rivas’s views are based almost entirely on a brief visit he made during september 2002 to formosa, at the end of the first experimental hunting season. he was seeking images of yellow anacondas for a national geographic channel (ngc) documentary. two years later, fb was invited to review the “objective anaconda” script with a commitment of “… not putting on-air the documentary until all comments were taken into consideration” (v. linares, in litt., ngc — research, standards, & practices, 30 march 2004). since the most questionable opinions were made by rivas on-the-air, this apparent compromise was not adequately addressed, and the final product was, at least, controversial. in reviewing his recent article in iguana, we quickly came to the conclusion that, in these subsequent years, he has chosen not to inform himself properly regarding the basics of the program, which would have allowed him to support his position with facts instead of errors and misconceptions. specifically, rivas stated that the argentine program promotes the hunting of specimens larger than 2.3 meters, not specifying if this size relates to skin size, snout-vent length (svl), or total length. he also mentioned that hunting takes place “... at the beginning of the warm season...,” when, in fact, the program allows local people to harvest snakes above 2 m svl during the local winter (june–august). additionally, rivas stated that the skin minimum size limit established (2 m svl = 2.3 m skin length) responds to a commercial requirement for large skins. on the contrary, the current skin size limit was established as a control variable (micucci et al. 2006). historically, specimens over 1.3 m svl were hunted with no additional considerations, affecting all size classes in the population; the 2-m limit reduced by half the snakes vulnerable to hunters. logically, the international markets prefer large hides (this is true of all reptilian species in the skin trade); the coincidence between market preferences and program requirements is circumstantial but advantageous because it warrants economic sustainability. further, rivas provided a simplistic analysis of the program’s economics by referring to what he called “the lion’s share” of the income going to the private sector. however, on the ‘cost’ side of his analysis, he only took into consideration the price of the skins paid to hunters (in 2002), but forgot to mention the other costs that are paid by the private sector (e.g., program research and running expenses, logistics, freight, state and national taxes). rivas’s logic falls apart if we apply the same criteria to other examples, such as comparing the price of a valued fish on a fancy restaurant menu to the cost of that fish paid at c o m m e n t a r y anaconda conservation: a reply to rivas tomás waller and patricio alejandro micucci fundación biodiversidad, san martín 945 piso 3 #23, buenos aires, argentina c1003aas yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) harvested as part of the yellow anaconda management program (yamp) in formosa province, argentina. snakes are held alive for biological studies before being killed and skinned. to m á s w a ll er 52 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 acquisition from the fisherman. rivas implied that the program failed to ensure resource (land and snakes) protection without providing any evidence — and based only on a weekend-trip during the first year of the program! he ignored the realities that the la estrella marsh is an area protected by law since 2005 and that the anaconda harvest program is the only operation permitted in that wetland. another misconception occurred when he proposed that “... the program was less of an effort to manage anacondas than an economic enterprise using anacondas as a capital commodity...” we see no contradiction in managing anaconda populations for selling skins to benefit local people and committed investors, similar, for example, to programs that ranch and harvest alligators in the united states, crocodiles in cuba, or caimans in venezuela. this author also stated that the program resulted solely from a proposal by the private sector in formosa in response to the 2002 breakdown suffered by argentina. this is, to say the least, false and absurd. fb conceived and proposed the yellow anaconda program as an alternative to the historical misuse of this living resource that had been exploited without restrictions for more than 60 years! rivas chose to ignore decades of tradition of argentina as a wildlife exporter (e.g., up to 1 million tegu lizard hides/year and 300,000 fox hides/year) and demonstrated considerable naivety by suggesting that the impact of the harvest of 5,000 yellow anacondas per year would modify the course of the nation’s or even the province’s, economy! in addition, his interpretations of national or provincial competence at managing natural resources are simplistic. since the yellow anaconda waller and micucci emergent logs and logs covered by climbing plants, locally known as “champas,” are preferred basking sites of eunectes notaeus in la estrella marshes in northeastern argentina. snakes seek these microhabitats during the winter, when water temperatures drop to 15 °c or lower. both males and females need warmer temperatures to complete gonadal cycles before the onset of the mating season in spring. em il io w h it e yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) are most vulnerable to collection during the winter when they are cold and leave the water to bask. em il io w h it e iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 53commentary is a cites (convention on international trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora) appendix-ii species, the government’s only responsibility is to assure compliance with article iv (non-detriment finding) of the convention. rivas affirmed that the program harvests mainly female snakes. although 75% of the animals harvested are females, the rationale for this practice does not correspond to his unsophisticated deductions. instead, this proportion results from the interplay of a minimum size limit, the species’ natural size distribution, and a pronounced female-biased sexual size dimorphism (micucci and waller 2007). if the minimum size were reduced in an effort to reduce the proportion of females versus males taken (presumably because more males would be hunted), the actual result would be an increase in the absolute numbers of females harvested, since allowing smaller animals to be taken would inevitably entail the sacrifice of young and small adults of both sexes that currently are protected by the program. ultimately, what matters is the actual proportion of females taken from the population, which we estimate to be less than 5%. rivas also erroneously stated that pregnant females are differentially affected by the harvest, on the assumption that gravid females are most visible when basking. however, at our latitude the harvest occurs during the cool winter months, exactly when the species is not reproducing, a fact that he as an anaconda specialist should not ignore. at the end of his article, he affirmed that local hunters “... anticipated a sharp decline in anacondas...” this comment, aside from a lack of scientific rigor, is far from reality, since, five years after his visit, the 2007 harvest season generated record results — without significant changes in skin size or sex structure of the population. we consider that rivas’ article was fostered by an exaggerated concern for anacondas. according to cites statistics, current volume in trade is null or negligible compared to historical records and aquatic habitat destruction has been slight on a global scale, especially when compared to the fate of terrestrial ecosystems. consequently, we believe that rivas exploited these “tv-fashionable” animals in order to express his personal views on the world economy and his prejudices against wildlife-utilization policies that he rejects for subjective reasons. for example, his statements that management under sustained yield models (i.e., yellow anacondas in argentina, most fisheries) demands a previous assessment of a species’ population size and intrinsic rate of increase and that obtaining basic biological data is a prerequisite for management are both readily disputable. sustained-yield models were devised to manage non-easily assessable populations (like most fisheries) and, due to the feedback that management provides, estimates of basic demographic parameters like abundance and rates of increase are then possible (caughley and sinclair 1994). in fact, management decisions rarely result from pure research (webb 2002), and the “adaptive management” concept (hollings 1978) evolved to overcome the usual insurmountable difficulties that represent acquisition of basic demographic parameters as a prerequisite for wildlife management. rivas opined that some practical conservation initiatives are laudable, but that conservationists would be more effective in achieving conservation goals by subscribing to anti-globalization movements is non-realistic. predicting the outcome of changing economic policies that are not expected to be realized for 25–50 years is impossible (wallerstein 1999). moreover, opposition to economic changes does not provide solutions for wildlife conservation, as the main concerns of such movements are socio-economic in nature, and have little to do with human population growth and its effects on wildlife and habitats. although we totally agree that the world’s emphasis on development at all costs fails to address many crucial issues, we are simultaneously convinced that practitioners of conservation should address actual problems with available tools and technologies in order to be effective. boycotting current conservation strategies in favor of ideological utopias is both ineffective and discouraging. if i suffer from a smokingrelated illness, even though i believe it would be laudable for my physician to support anti-tobacco movements, i still need his medical expertise right now in order to preserve my life. in conclusion, we emphasize that “care must be taken to assure that subjective criteria about what the natural world should look like are not confused with objective management goals” (sinclair 1997). references caughley, g. and a.r.e. sinclair. 1994. wildlife ecology and management. blackwell scientific publications, boston, massachusetts. holling, c.s. 1978. adaptive environmental assessment and management. j. wiley, london. micucci, p.a. and t. waller. 2007. the management of yellow anacondas (eunectes notaeus) in argentina: from historical misuse to resource appreciation. iguana 14: 160–171. micucci, p.a., t. waller, and e. alvarenga. 2006. programa curiyú. para la conservación y aprovechamiento sustentable de la boa curiyú (eunectes notaeus) en la argentina. etapa experimental piloto 2002–2004, formosa, pp. 77–92. in: m.l. bolkovic and d. ramadori (eds.), manejo de fauna silvestre en la argentina. programas de uso sustentable. dirección de fauna silvestre, secretaría de ambiente y desarrollo sustentable, buenos aires. rivas, j.a. 2007. conservation of green anacondas: how tylenol conservation and macroeconomics threaten the survival of the world’s largest snake. iguana 14: 74–85. sinclair, a.r.e. 1997. carrying capacity and the overabundance of deer, pp. 380–394. in: w.j. mcshea, h.b. underwood, and j.h. rappole (eds.), the science of overabundance — deer ecology and population management. smithsonian institution press, washington, dc. wallerstein, i. 1999. the end of the world as we know it: social science for the twenty-first century. university of minnesota press, minneapolis. webb g. 2002. conservation and sustainable use of wildlife: an evolving concept. pacific conservation and biology 8: 12–26. yellow anaconda (eunectes notaeus) skins (>230 cm) harvested between 2002 and 2007. average: 3,800 (dotted line). *definitive value pending. iguana, june 2008 to p pr ed at or s i n th e v en ez ue la n ll an os a re in cr ea sin gl y th re at en ed , e m ph as iz in g th e ne ed to c on se rv e re m ai ni ng p op ul at io ns o f g re en a na co nd as (e un ec te s m ur in us ). se e ar tic le o n p. 9 2. cesar l. barrio amoros annual surveys are attempting to shed light on the natural history and conservation status of sonoran mountain kingsnakes (lampropeltis pyromelana) in the great basin. see article on p. 86. b ry a n h a m il to n iguana b&w text editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 institutional u.s. subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international membership (including canada) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55.00 international institutional subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $60.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. www.ircf.org join online at: www.ircf.org membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. copyright © 2008 by the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. all rights reserved. no part of this journal may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without the publisher’s written permission. iguana, conservation, natural history, and husbandry of reptiles (issn 1098-6324) is published quarterly by the international reptile conservation foundation, a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca. periodical postage paid at san jose, ca. meet the editors michael ripca, the art director for iguana, has been “the hands behind the journal” since the early days of the iguana times. he joined the international iguana society in march 1992 to learn more about his newly acquired green iguana. mike and his wife offered to redesign iguana times, and to take over layout, design, and print coordination. over the years, they also contributed editorial, advertising, and promotional assistance. mike sat on the iis board of directors and helped bring the iis into the computer age by converting the original paper membership list into a database and mailing list, and by building the original iis website. he has worked for the american college of physicians in philadelphia for over 16 years as a graphic designer and technical administrator, and lives in southern new jersey with his wife, janet, and their 14-year-old daughter, olivia. besides an obsession with macintosh computers, classic films, and rock concerts, mike enjoys sharing his home-brewed beer with friends and family. ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 187 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 173commentaries how would you like to find out that a 15-foot-long burmese python was a permanent resident in your neighborhood? add to this report that someone has found a clutch of 50 recently hatched python eggs, which means that pythons are breeding and that the juveniles have dispersed into the area. this exact scene has not been documented yet in suburban areas of south florida, but the possibility exists. a recent book (the exotic amphibians and reptiles of florida, 2004, krieger publishing company, malabar, fl) by walter e. meshaka, jr., brian p. butterfield, and j. brian hauge gives cause for the human residents of florida to address the issue of introduced species of herpetofauna that have now become their new neighbors in the state. the book provides an account of 40 species of reptiles and amphibians that are now believed to be established residents in the state. in other words, they have breeding populations that will continue to persist, often to the detriment of native species. most of the exotic reptiles that now thrive in florida are lizards and include species from asia, africa, india, and tropical america. introduced species often do well in a new region because their population sizes are no longer controlled by natural predators. one of the ways that exotic species can eliminate native species is by outcompeting them for food, or in many cases just by eating them. for example, the knight anole from cuba will eat other lizards and reaches twice the size of most native lizard species. c o m m e n t a r i e s a burmese python could be more than a pest1 j. whitfield gibbons savannah river ecology lab, aiken, south carolina 1 reprinted with permission from the author and partners in amphibian & reptile conservation (http://www.parcplace.org/). most burmese pythons (python molurus bivittatus) encountered in southern florida are adults, presumably former pets released by owners when they become too large to accommodate easily in captivity. r o y w o o d , e v er g la d es n a ti o n a l pa r k iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 173 many of the exotic reptiles in florida have been introduced as a consequence of the pet trade. pet snakes are notorious for escaping from cages, even from professional herpetologists, and then getting out of a building. pet trade facilities can be damaged or destroyed by high winds or trees, resulting in the escape of animals. for example, the book notes that the brown mabuya skink, a lizard from southeast asia, became noticeably more abundant around coconut grove in dade county after hurricane andrew. but some releases have been intentional. for example, in 1985 people living around a golf course in ft. myers released jamaican giant anoles, which now have an established colony. one of the paradoxes of the invasive plant and animal problem is that intuitively a person might think that adding new species increases biodiversity. if biodiversity is a good thing, why would it not be good to add more species to the ones already present in a region? one of the simple explanations is that when an introduced species becomes dominant in an area, native species can decline in numbers and eventually disappear. although the animal pet trade is the ultimate source of most introduced exotic species, the majority of the specimens themselves are released into the environment by pet owners who are ordinary citizens. getting a baby python that is only a couple of feet long may seem like a good idea until you notice that you have to feed it a full-grown chicken every couple of weeks. the size differential would be like getting a red setter puppy and realizing a few months later that it was the size of a cow. not much smarter, but a lot bigger. according to the book, the largest burmese python found wild in florida so far was less than 8 feet long, slightly smaller than the largest indigo snakes native to florida. but these pythons are known to reach a length of 20 feet, which is more than twice the size of any snake native to the united states. with a warm climate and the availability of plenty of food, pythons should do well in south florida. young pythons will eat rats, mice, and small birds, and larger ones will fare well on possums, raccoons, dogs, cats, and larger birds. burmese pythons can swim, climb trees, and creep through thick underbrush, so they should find plenty to eat. we may soon hear floridians complaining that a resident species other than native alligators is eating pets and is perceived as a threat to children. ironically, in contrast to alligators, which lived in the state long before people, pythons were brought to florida by the people themselves. 174 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 commentaries interactions between introduced and native species are unpredictable. however, in southern florida, both a native (american alligator, alligator mississippiensis) and an invasive species (burmese python, python molurus bivittatus) may pose a risk to pets and small children. lo r i o b er h o fe r iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 174 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 45historical perspective numerous attempts are made by zoological gardens to display resident populations of iguanids and varanids, but often these meet with little success. many species of the two families are imported annually; yet surprisingly, few exhibit the characteristic alertness and activity associated with wild specimens. after a few months in captivity, their lethargy and obvious lack of health is depressing even to the casual zoo visitor. since november 1966, we have maintained an exhibit centred around these two families. rhinoceros iguanas cyclura cornuta, andros island iguanas cyclura b. baealopha [cyclura cychlura cychlura], exuma island iguanas cyclura b. figginsi [cyclura cychlura figginsi], cayman island iguanas cyclura macleayi caymanensis [cyclura nubila caymanensis], green iguanas iguana i. iguana2, and the mexican false iguana ctenosaura hemilopha live in complete harmony with a large water monitor varanus salvator and a lace monitor varanus varius. they are exhibited in a large glass-fronted display area, measuring 4.6 x 2.4 x 3 m, the top being screened with wire. a concrete pool, 2.4 x 1.2 m, is in the centre of the cage. the monitors are often seen swimming or resting in the water. because the natural temperature of the area is only 27 °c (80 °f), an auxiliary heat source is needed so that normal metabolic functions can proceed. a bank of six 250-w/11o-v infrared heat lamps (ken-rad) and two 275-w/11o-v ‘sun lamps’ (ken-rad) are directed to a ‘hot spot’ at the front of the cage where the temperature reaches 41 °c (106 °f). the value of these lamps cannot be underestimated, for the lizards are most healthy when they are in operation. common or green iguanas iguana iguana with paralysed hindlimbs and in generally poor health are often brought in as donations. in many cases, their condition has improved after a few months under the sun lamps. for a natural effect, plastic foliage, rocks, and tree limbs are used. the plants must be chosen carefully to withstand the constant prowling and climbing of the lizards. the limbs are arranged at an angle one meter from the ground, so the lizards may retire to them during the heat of the day. gravel that will pass through a 1-cm screen is used for the substratum, as this tends to hold the warmth well. it also gives a firm footing for the constantly scurrying lizards, which seem to feel insecure if placed on material that gives way under their weight. to ensure the health of the saurians, a proper diet must be offered and they are fed three times a week. two large aluminium trays are filled with diced fruits and vegetables. oranges, apples, bananas, grapes, lettuce, spinach, kale, tomatoes, beets, carrots, papaya, and cantaloupe are used according to season. once a week, strips of lean horsemeat and freshly killed mice are included in the tray. a multiple vitamin preparation (pervinal) and steamed bone meal or oyster shell flour are the only additives. care is taken to avoid overfeeding, and we judge this by observing the girth of the hind limbs and proximal portion of the tail. the photoperiod and temperature remain relatively constant day by day and the relative humidity is about 40%. the lights are turned on at 0800 hours, and the lizards begin to emerge almost immediately. usually, after basking in the heat for the first 30 minutes or so, they begin to leave the ‘hot spot’ and return only periodically to maintain their temperature level. they are fed between 1500 and 1600 hours. after the meal they return to the ‘hot spot’ and remain there for some time. this apparently aids digestion. the lights are turned off at 1700 hours, and this is the period of greatest activity. flattening themselves dorsoventrally, they remain on the ‘hot spot’ area until it cools. during this time, the sunlight that shines through the skyh i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e notes on iguanids and varanids in a mixed exhibit at dallas zoo1 james b. murphy supervisor of reptiles, dallas zoo, dallas, texas, usa 1 this article is adapted with the kind permission of the international zoo yearbook (international zoo yearbook 9: 39–41; 1969), which is published by the zoological society of london. additional information about the izy can be found at http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0074-9664&site=1. 2 note that subspecies of green or common iguanas (iguana iguana) are, for the most part, not currently recognized. extensive studies of genetic relationships among populations from different regions are underway (e.g., see “isg reports” in iguana 13(2): 127–128). iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 45 light above the cage gradually fades. the only variation in this routine is during the introduction of new animals when, if they are shy and feeding diffidently, the lights will be left burning after visiting hours so they will emerge and feed. newly acquired animals are quarantined in fibreglass holding cages for at least 30 days. upon arrival, they are washed in a prophylactic solution of oxytetracycline hydrochloride (cosaterramycin) for 24 hours. food is presented daily until a pattern of feeding can be determined. maintenance of the exhibit is remarkably uncomplicated considering the number of reptiles involved. daily, the keeper enters the cage before the lights are turned on, drains the pool and scrubs it with a disinfectant (roccal), cleans faecal matter from the gravel, and polishes the glass. the cage is completely dismantled bi-monthly and the gravel and walls are thoroughly disinfected. the plastic plants, rocks, and gravel are also cleaned and disinfected. rudimentary ‘grooming’ by the exuma island iguana has been observed. as the lizards shed their superficial epidermis in fragments, pieces adhere to the body. individuals of the same species will investigate the body of the shedding lizard and consume the skin whenever possible. not only are the dorsal and lateral areas checked, but the shedding iguana will lift its leg and allow the others to pull the skin from beneath the leg. occasionally, more than one ‘grooming’ lizard will be involved in this process. hopes for future successful breeding with this arrangement are based on the numerous copulations we have observed; although, unfortunately, the only eggs discovered were broken. the male iguanas display vigorously in typical head bobbing fashion and territories are rigorously defended. for such a large and varied population, the mortality in the cage has been remarkably low. since its inception, only one nile monitor varanus niloticus has died. 46 iguana • volume 14, number 1 • march 2007 murphy editor’s remarks this is the complete, edited text (e.g., capitalized formal common names, insertion of current scientific names when they differ from the original) of the first major publication by james murphy of the dallas zoo, whose profile appears elsewhere in this issue. although relatively recent compared to other studies we have highlighted in this section, this article was an important milestone. zoos used to be dismal places. they began as places of entertainment, and animal welfare, conservation, and research were not a part of their missions. that eventually began changing, but reptile departments were not at the forefront of this process. the 9th issue of the international zoo yearbook (izy), in which this article appeared, was the first to have a herpetological focus. other articles examined thermal requirements of captive reptiles (following on the work of cowles and bogert, which we featured in iguana 13(1): 53–61), reported on lighting and humidity, and described captive reproduction and incubation techniques. species covered were primarily large: crocodilians, tortoises, constrictors, iguanas, and monitor lizards. most articles were shorter than murphy’s, and few had references. zoos were beginning to emphasize scholarship, and murphy was a leader in applying this to herpetological collections. things have changed dramatically over the ensuing decades. the izy has had a number of herpetologically themed issues over the years, and these reflect the increasing sophistication of zoo research. some leading zoos (including the dallas zoo, whose herpetological publications can be seen at http://www.dallaszoo.com/oth/oth.asp?page=spubs#reptiles), now include studies of natural habitats and their conservation in their mission. this modest paper led that change. gad perry texas tech university products mentioned in the text: ken-rad, owensboro, kentucky, usa; pervinal, us vitamin and pharmaceutical corporation, veterinary products division, new york, usa; cosa-terramycin, charles pfizer and company inc., new york, usa; roccal, winthrop laboratories, new york, usa. readers should recognize that combining different species in one enclosure is a risky proposition. behavioral triggers that cannot be anticipated may result in aggression leading to injury or death of some animals. with very few exceptions, such practices are not recommended. iguana 14.1 b&w text.qx6 2/25/07 10:46 pm page 46 iguana b&w text editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx kaela e. champlin assistant editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 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info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. copyright © 2007 by the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. all rights reserved. no part of this journal may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without the publisher’s written permission. iguana, conservation, natural history, and husbandry of reptiles (issn 1098-6324) is published quarterly by the international reptile conservation foundation, a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca. periodical postage paid at san jose, ca. editors’ remarks readers will notice that many of the pages in this issue are devoted to reports from the 2006 iucn/ssc iguana specialist group (isg) meeting. we’ve done this in the past (and hope to continue doing so in the future). our intent is two-fold: (1) iguana conservation reflects the heritage of iguana. as many long-time readers will remember, the journal began as the iguana times (journal of the international iguana society), focusing entirely on conservation and natural history of iguanas. although we expanded the scope of the journal to all reptiles with volume 12 in 2005 (shortly after the international reptile conservation foundation became the publisher of iguana), the plight of iguanas continues to serve as a model for the conservation of reptiles and their habitats throughout the world. (2) the isg remains a phenomenally active agency for promoting iguana conservation, and the meetings of that organization effectively chronicle ongoing efforts at habitat preservation, captive breeding and reintroduction and relocation to historically occupied sites, and educational efforts to promote conservation at the grass roots level. by reprinting the meeting reports, we seek to more widely disseminate this valuable information. the editors of iguana ircf international reptile conservation foundation mona island iguana (cyclura stejnegeri) jo e b u r g es s iguana b&w text 12 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 goetz adult sister isles rock iguana (cyclura nubila caymanensis) in the interior shrubland of little cayman. among the world’s most endangered reptiles, west indian rock iguanas of the genus cyclura have attracted considerable attention from the conservation community. monitoring, captive-breeding and reintroduction efforts, or translocation projects have been initiated for many species. the numbers of cuban rock iguanas (c. nubila nubila) are relatively large (perera 2000), but monitoring the status and assessing numbers of the subspecies, c. n. caymanensis, endemic to the islands of little cayman and cayman brac, has been neglected. whereas the subspecies is listed as critically endangered on the iucn red list (gerber, 1996) due to the small area of occupancy and the fact that only about 40 animals are believed to survive on cayman brac (burton, pers. comm.), surveys never have been conducted on little cayman. little cayman is a small island the cayman sister isles iguana project: identifying the conservation needs of cyclura nubila caymanensis matthias goetz herpetology department, durrell wildlife conservation trust photographs by the author except where noted. iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 13cyclura nubila caymanensis � adult male cyclura nubila caymanensis at the west end of little cayman (top), and an adult female (bottom). (28 km2) inhabited by fewer than 200 residents. most of the land is in private ownership, and the rate of development increasing steadily. in the mid-1990s, about 1,500–2,000 iguanas were thought to live on the island, although declines were projected (gerber 1996). what little knowledge we have concerning the population since then, its status and current threats, is the result of irregular trips by fred burton, head of the blue iguana recovery program on grand cayman, over the past decade and unpublished research conducted by glenn gerber in 1993. a population update, status assessment, and determination of the longterm conservation needs of c .n. caymanensis are long overdue. aims in 2007, in close collaboration with the cayman islands government department of environment and the national trust for the cayman islands, the durrell wildlife conservation trust initiated the multiyear cayman sister isles iguana project. the overall goal is to provide the caymanian government and little cayman and cayman brac residents with the knowledge and tools to preserve this subspecies in the long-term. without any reliable and current figures on the overall population size and its status, the first task for field researchers was to try to determine the existing population size, distribution, and genetic heterozygosity. future research will investigate aspects of nesting ecology applicable to conservation, and identify the factors limiting distribution and density with a view towards their amelioration. 14 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 goetz the author and volunteer adam mitchell taking blood samples for genetic analysis from a juvenile iguana. m ic h a el v a ll ee the author measuring and flagging a sample quadrat in the shrubland of little cayman. y v es l a c o m b e iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 15cyclura nubila caymanensis fieldwork 2007 from the beginning of october until the end of november 2007, an estimate of the current population size was made by plot sampling using randomly allocated 20 x 40 m quadrats, as other methods (e.g., distance sampling) are unsuitable for cyclura spp. in the types of habitat present in the cayman islands (burton, pers. comm.). each quadrat was visited on three consecutive days to allow occupancy modeling of rock holes (i.e., occupied retreats were counted rather than visible iguanas). the third visit to each quadrat included a four-hour observation period beginning at sunrise and conducted by three people and additionally using five ircf id cameras (see iguana 14(3): 208–209). using this method, we visited 22 quadrats, but surprisingly could detect only a single occupied retreat. with this very small sample size, our population estimate is a total of 1,800 individuals on little cayman; however, this is only reliable to an order of magnitude. the problem is that the method was designed for randomly or evenly distributed populations or population patches, but, in suitable natural habitats on the island (i.e., dry scrubland and less dense forest — we did not include the abundant mangroves and wetlands, as iguanas are not present in these habitats), a disturbingly low number of iguanas were encountered. in fact, hiking through the bush almost daily for two months to reach the sample quadrats, we encountered or heard only another five individuals. the statement that iguanas reach their maximum densities in the interior shrubland (“bushland” — brunt 1994, in gerber 2000) therefore cannot be confirmed. the situation was very different along roads or in otherwise disturbed areas, mostly around areas of human habitation. adult iguanas were encountered frequently along roadsides in the south and east, and around houses in the west, giving residents and tourists the impression of a fairly healthy population. disturbingly, younger age classes were very rarely seen. this clustering of adult iguanas in disturbed areas and its potential effects on the population, whether detrimental or beneficial, will be addressed further in future field trips. similarly, typical shrubland habitat in the interior of the island. whether iguanas reach their maximum populations densities in such habitat cannot be confirmed at this time. “disturbed“ habitat is not necessarily inhabited by people. a landfill near the site of the attempted but until now abandoned new airport. one adult pair and three hatchling iguanas have been observed at this locality. with appropriate survey methodologies, we will be able to obtain more accurate data on the population sizes in clustered areas, as well as a better understanding of the apparently very low density in undisturbed habitats. in addition to the population study, we opportunistically recorded gis positions of all 90 iguanas we encountered. we were able to catch 52 of these, which we marked with pit-tags and color-coded bead tags on their dorsal crests. morphometric data also were taken from all captured individuals and blood samples were collected from 48 for genetic analysis, the results of which are pending. glenn gerber marked approximately 200 iguanas in his 1993 study (gerber, pers. comm., gerber 2000) but, as pit tags were not widely available at the time, no reliable long-term tag data were available for reference purposes. threats the most imminent threats to c .n. caymanensis on little cayman seem to be feral cats and road mortality. during our stay in october and november, we found three freshly killed adult iguanas on the road, but residents advised us that many more road deaths occur during the breeding season. this is to be expected, as males roam more widely in search of mating partners around may, and gravid females migrate to nesting sites on the beaches beginning in june. taking this into account, as well as the fact that not all road deaths will be detected or reported, we are estimating that the population might lose 40–50 breeding adults per year as a consequence of road mortality. to establish more accurate numbers and involve the entire community, we initiated a collaborative plan with the department of environment to record road deaths while also providing public education and opportunities for public involvement. as on many other islands, feral cats present a huge danger to hatchling iguanas and small juveniles. this now has been recognized by the cayman islands government, and we were involved in an initial cat eradication program run by the department of environment, the results of which are pending. encouragingly, a public education campaign indicated that residents are aware of threats to “their” iguanas and enthusiastic about protecting them from decline or extinction. 16 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 goetz volunteer michael vallee and the author taking measurements. a d a m m it c h el l freshly road-killed adult female cyclura nubila caymanensis. iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 17cyclura nubila caymanensis development presents a threat that often is less immediately noticeable but potentially very significant. as one of the least developed caribbean islands, little cayman is about to lose its unique natural character as more and more of the beachside lots are offered for sale. numerous additional retirement homes and resorts already are in the planning stages. a harbinger of the pressure by investors is the new road crossing the island from south to north in an area not associated with any immediate benefit to the existing human population. the relatively higher density of c. n. caymanensis around houses and resorts might indicate at first glance that the species could cope well with development and could survive on an intensively developed little cayman. maybe the iguanas are indeed attracted out of their natural habitats toward human settlement, possibly because of better and more abundant retreat and basking sites, or perhaps because of additional food resources provided by residents. however, cats and dogs, whether feral or not, and road mortality are likely to act as negative forces in those population clusters. also, as beach lots are the author with a recently run-over and partially paralyzed adult female on the north road. a d a m m it c h el l a typical sight along the coastal roads, where most land is advertised for sale. the newly constructed third road dissecting little cayman is clear evidence of the continuing development. developed, the continuous disturbance and sealing of the ground there will prevent sufficient recruitment as nesting locations vanish and hatchlings are killed by pets. the difficulties inherent in assessing recruitment (i.e., reliably detecting hatchlings and juveniles) present a major problem. until this can be overcome, a seemingly healthy co-existence of (adult) iguanas in and around human settlements needs to be viewed with great caution. cayman brac the population of c. n. caymanensis on the slightly larger island of cayman brac (38 km2), which is 7.5 km from little cayman and, with approximately 1,000 residents, much more densely populated, is estimated at no more than 40 iguanas (burton, pers. comm.). again, accurate data are missing and no thorough study has been undertaken. development on “the brac” is much more advanced than on little cayman, and feral cats and dogs are abundant (burton, pers. comm., cottam, pers. comm.), so that extirpation of the iguana population there seems to be only a matter of time. we will visit cayman brac during the next field seasons to collect genetic material for comparison. if funding can be generated, a status assessment will be conducted, but without the local commitment to tackle introduced predators, conservation resources may preferentially be focused on little cayman. the future in 2008, fieldwork is planned for the nesting season to allow identification of coastal nesting areas and possible female migration routes to those areas. the focus will be on locating possible communal nesting sites, which would then be a priority for protection. little is known about the location of available nesting sites in the interior of little cayman or where the females nesting on the beaches have their territories. therefore, identifying migration routes would not only be of conservation concern, but following females back to their original territories after nesting could show us where to look for populated natural habitat in the island’s interior. to facilitate this, we will fit as many as 30 female c. n. caymanensis caught on the beach after nesting with radio transmitters, and then locate them several times a day until they have been stationary for a number of days. funding provided, in 2009 we will continue with more radio-tracking during the mating season, when following roaming males could lead us to other iguanas, allowing a more accurate estimation of overall population size. another focus from 2009 onward will be determining population sizes in the more densely populated areas, as well as research into habitat parameters and what might attract iguanas from natural habitats into disturbed areas (if this proves to be the case). the results may well indicate whether this situation could be halted or even reversed to attract a viable population into protected areas, enhancing chances for the long-term survival of this subspecies on little cayman despite increasing development. acknowledgements thanks are due to adam mitchell, michael vallee, and jude bryja for their invaluable help in the field, and fred burton for 18 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 goetz adult cyclura nubila caymanensis in the interior shrubland of little cayman. iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 19cyclura nubila caymanensis his immense support and continued collaboration. the cayman islands government’s department of environment provided the necessary permits and provided considerable support, as did the national trust for the cayman islands and its members on little cayman. durrell wildlife conservation trust provided in-kind support through professional time, and the balcombe trust generously provided all financial support. the international reptile conservation foundation facilitated the recruitment of volunteers. the manuscript was greatly improved by comments from kay bradfield. references gerber, g. 1996. cyclura nubila ssp. caymanensis. in: iucn 2008. 2008 iucn red list of threatened species. www.iucnredlist.org. gerber, g. 2000. lesser caymans iguana, cyclura nubila caymanensis. in: a. alberts (ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn/ssc west indian iguana specialist group, iucn, gland, switzerland and cambridge, uk. perera, a. 2000. cuban iguana, cyclura nubila nubila. in: a. alberts (ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn/ssc west indian iguana specialist group, iucn, gland, switzerland and cambridge, uk. other endemic species will benefit by sharing habitat conserved for iguanas. two examples are this juvenile little cayman trope (tropidophis parkeri; top) and this cayman galliwasp (celestus maculatus; bottom). the slender glass lizard (ophisaurus attenuatus) is a limbless denizen of the midwestern grasslands. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h ecology and conservation of grassland vertebrates the sutton avian research center, a unit of the oklahoma biological survey and the oklahoma chapter of the nature conservancy are hosting a conference titled “ecology and conservation of grassland vertebrates.” the conference will be held at the university of oklahoma in norman on 15–19 april 2008. for more information, please see <www.suttoncenter.org/ecgv.html>. brenda d. smith-patten sam noble oklahoma museum of natural history iguana b&w text 142 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 an adult male green iguana (iguana iguana) basking on a dock in hollywood, broward county, florida. krysko et al. a n th o n y f la n a g a n iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 142 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 143 introduction the green iguana, iguana iguana (linnaeus 1758), was first reported in the 1960s in florida as occurring, but not breeding, on the southeastern coast from hialeah, coral gables, and key biscayne in miami-dade county. over the next few decades, many residents enjoyed watching these large exotic lizards, allowing them to roam unmolested on their properties, and at times even feeding them. by the mid-1990s, however, many residents’ attitudes changed as iguana populations exploded, often becoming a nuisance to humans and having a negative impact on the environment. although many authors have documented the occurrence of i. iguana populations in florida, none fully illustrate this species’ expansive geographic distribution or remark on its potential effects. herein, we document the current geographic distribution using voucher specimens and field observations, potential ecological impacts, and nuisance value of this non-native species in florida. materials and methods locality records of iguana iguana were obtained from the literature and from systematic collections throughout the united states. fieldwork was conducted from may 1992 through december 2006; i. iguana were collected by hand, noosing, and shooting small tapered corks from a blowgun (for neonates only). in addition, photographs were taken and used as vouchers. specimens were deposited in east tennessee state university (etmnh), indiana state university vertebrate collection (isuvc), florida museum of natural history, university of florida (uf), united states national museum (usnm), and yale peabody museum (ypm). all records with locality data were plotted using arcview v. 3.2 (esri). distribution and history of introductions the native range of iguana iguana extends from southern mexico to central brazil and bolivia (lazell 1973, savage 2002), distribution, natural history, and impacts of the introduced green iguana (iguana iguana) in florida kenneth l. krysko1, kevin m. enge2, ellen m. donlan3, jason c. seitz4, and elizabeth a. golden5 1florida museum of natural history, division of herpetology, university of florida, dickinson hall, museum road, gainesville, florida 32611-7800, usa (kenneyk@flmnh.ufl.edu) 2florida fish and wildlife conservation commission, wildlife research laboratory, 4005 south main street, gainesville, florida 32601, usa (kevin.enge@myfwc.com) 3vegetation management, south florida water management district, 3301 gun club road, west palm beach, florida 33406, usa (edonlan@sfwmd.gov) 4creative environmental solutions, inc., 1425 nw 6th street, gainesville, florida 32601, usa (floridasawfish@yahoo.com) 5bill baggs cape florida state park, 1200 south crandon boulevard, key biscayne, florida 33149, usa (elizabeth.golden@dep.state.fl.us) abstract.—in this article, we document the geographic distribution, reproduction, potential ecological impacts, and nuisance value of the non-native green iguana (iguana iguana) in florida. we further provide management recommendations for control of this species in florida. locality records of i. iguana were obtained via the literature and both photographic and specimen vouchers, and also from the field, where specimens were collected and observations made from may 1992 through december 2006. we compiled 3,169 records of i. iguana in florida. iguana iguana was first reported (but not breeding) in florida in 1966 from miami-dade county; however, it is now reproducing and established in much of southern florida, including many florida keys. we observed i. iguana mating as early as december and as late as april. ovipositioning usually takes place in sandy areas. females were found to have vitellogenic follicles in november, december, and february; carried oviducal eggs between february and april; and we found a single clutch of 41 eggs that was oviposited in april. neonates were observed from may through august. iguana iguana feeds on a variety of vegetation, as well as insects, tree snails, and possibly small mammals. this species causes considerable damage to landscape vegetation and often is considered a nuisance by land managers and property owners. burrowing by green iguanas causes erosion and undermines sidewalks, foundations, seawalls, berms, and canal banks. they also force vehicular traffic to brake; deposit unsightly and unhygienic defecations on moored boats, seawalls, docks, porches, decks, pool platforms, and inside swimming pools; potentially act as seed dispersers for invasive plant species; and may transmit salmonella to humans. a number of steps can be taken by florida landowners to help control i. iguana in the state: first, vegetation selected for landscaping should lack the showy flowers and colorful fruits that are eaten preferentially by iguanas. second, trapping and removing live lizards can be undertaken using live traps (e.g., havahart, tomahawk), snare traps, and nooses. third, artificial nesting sites can be easily constructed and monitored during the reproductive season so that iguana eggs can be removed and destroyed. finally, before purchasing pet iguanas, prospective owners should be educated on the life history details (e.g., large adult size, potential to inflict painful wounds, etc.) and complex husbandry requirements of this lizard, and be made aware that releasing this or any other non-native animal into the wild is illegal in florida. green iguana in florida � iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 143 144 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 krysko et al. including the caribbean islands of cozumel (j.c. seitz, pers. obs.), san andrés and providencia, roatán, utila, swan island, cayo icacos, curaçao, st. vincent and the grenadines, grenada, îles des saintes, montserrat, saba, st. lucia, and trinidad and tobago (bakhuis 1982, murphy 1997, schwartz and henderson 1991). green iguanas have been introduced in grand cayman (seidel and franz 1994), guadeloupe (lever 2003), st. martin/st. maarten (powell et al. 2005), puerto rico (thomas 1999), hawaii (mckeown 1996), the southern rio grande valley in texas (meshaka et al. 2004a, bartlett and bartlett 2006), and florida (wilson and porras 1983). the origin of the u.s. virgin islands population has been disputed for some time (lazell 1973), with some authors contending that iguanas were introduced by man (see thomas 1999). we compiled 3,169 records of i. iguana from southern florida; 1,088 of these represent preserved specimens and photographic vouchers collected between 1965 and 2006 (appendix) and 2,081 represent field observations. the species is widely established along the atlantic coast in broward, martin, miami-dade, monroe, and palm beach counties, and along the gulf coast in collier and lee counties. although i. iguana has been found farther north in alachua, highlands, hillsborough, indian river, and st. lucie counties, no voucher specimens exist for these scattered localities (except alachua, uf 122514) and these individuals are unlikely to represent established populations due to low winter temperatures. king and krakauer (1966) recorded the first florida voucher specimen (uf 22910, table 1) collected in 1965 from coral gables, and subsequently reported i. iguana as an established, but non-breeding species from four separate areas in miami-dade county: east 7th avenue and west 27th street in hialeah, caballero boulevard and hardee road in coral gables, southwest corner of miami international airport, and key biscayne. more than 300 individuals were released between may and september 1964 at the hialeah site (king and krakauer 1966). wilson and porras (1983) reported i. iguana from the miami seaquarium on virginia key, and butterfield et al. (1997) speculated that this species had probably been breeding in miami since around 1980. although i. iguana is occasionally observed in everglades national park (e.g., nine sightings in 1995–2004), a population has apparently not become established, possibly because of the presence of potential predators and competitors, and the lack of suitable nesting sites (meshaka et al. 2000, 2004a, 2004b). iguana iguana was first documented from broward county in davie (townsend et al. 2002), and palm beach county in loxahatchee national wildlife refuge and palm beach gardens (krysko et al. 2005). we photographed this species in 2006 in port mayaca, martin county. bartlett (1980) first observed i. iguana in southwestern florida in collier county, but did not identify a specific locality. krysko et al. (2005) documented the first voucher specimens from collier county (collected as early as 1998) in golden gate. iguana iguana has been established for at least a decade on marco island (n. richie, pers. comm.), and in 2005 this species was observed along the mangrove fringe between goodland and goodland bay (k. laakkonen, pers. comm.), the florida panther national wildlife refuge (d. giardina, pers. comm.), copeland (within fakahatchee strand preserve state park), and in naples. in lee county, i. iguana has been reported from cape coral (bartlett and bartlett 1999, krysko et al. 2005), and bonita springs between williams road and the imperial river since about 2000 (spinner 2005). duquesnel (1998) first observed i. iguana in the upper florida keys at john pennekamp coral reef state park, key largo. krysko et al. (2005) documented this species in the lower florida keys from (east to west) little torch and sugarloaf keys, and stock island. more recently, these findings have been augmented with voucher specimens from key largo, windley key, big pine key, vaca key, and key west; and with observations only from plantation, duck, little crawl, bahia honda, middle torch, summerland, cudjoe, lower sugarloaf, big coppitt, and boca chica keys. food habits and predators neonate and juvenile iguana iguana feed on vegetation (i.e., new shoots, leaves, blossoms, and fruits) and insects such as grasshoppers (hirth 1963). in addition to these items, adults have been reported to feed on bird eggs (lazell 1973) and carrion (loftin and tyson 1965). in florida, neonates and juveniles feed on vegetation, insects, and tree snails (townsend et al. 2005), whereas adults are primarily herbivorous, but may take additional items as well. a juvenile i. iguana appeared to be feeding on firebush (hamelia patens) fruits in a naples garden (j. schmid, pers. comm.). fecal contents of a homestead, florida individual included flowers, leaves, and fruits from non-native jasmine (jasminum sp.) and washington fan palms (washingtonia robusta; meshaka et al. 2004b). at bill baggs cape florida state park (bbcf) on the southern tip of key biscayne, we have observed i. iguana feeding on nicker bean (caesalpinia bonduc), records (n = 3,169) of green iguanas (iguana iguana) in southern florida. open circles indicate preserved specimens and photographic vouchers (n = 1,088) collected between 1965 and 2006, circles with central dots indicate observations (n = 2,081). a circle may represent more than one record. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 144 and we have collected specimens that had eaten tree snails (drymaeus multilineatus; see townsend et al. 2005) and an adult (uf 137405) found dead-on-road (dor) with mammal hair in its mouth. at crandon park on key biscayne, i. iguana eats cracked corn supplied to captive waterfowl, and adults removed from an overbrowsed area defecated rat (rattus sp.) hair (g. ward, pers. comm.). two green iguanas were observed feeding on a spanish stopper (eugenia foetida) just before basking on a strangler fig (ficus aurea; j.g. duquesnel, pers. comm.). in its native range, i. iguana is preyed upon by a variety of reptilian, avian, and mammalian species. in venezuela, juveniles that had emerged by the thousands over a 14-day period were preyed upon by three crocodilian, two snake, three teiid lizard, nine accipiter, four falcon, one owl, three heron, three cuckoo, two passerine, and six mammalian species, including domestic dog (canis familiaris) and cat (felis domesticus; antonio rivas et al. 1998). some of the predators identified in its native range also occur in southern florida: boa constrictor (boa constrictor), spectacled caiman (caiman crocodilus), american crocodile (crocodylus acutus), giant ameiva (ameiva ameiva), barn owl (tyto alba), broad-winged hawk (buteo platypterus), swallowtailed kite (elanoides forficatus), white-tailed kite (elanus leucurus), osprey (pandion haliaetus), american kestrel (falco sparverius), crested caracara (caracara cheriway), great egret (ardea alba), and smooth-billed ani (crotophaga ani; antonio rivas et al. 1998, greene et al. 1978, swanson 1950, wunderle 1981). cats, caracaras, and kestrels are among the most common predators in venezuela (antonio rivas et al. 1998). juvenile green iguanas in florida are eaten by the florida burrowing owl (athene cunicularia floridana), yellow-crowned night-heron (nyctanassa violacea), yellow rat snake (elaphe obsoleta), and domestic dog (engeman et al. 2005b, mckie et al. 2005, meshaka et al. 2004b). potential predators of iguana eggs are the raccoon (procyon lotor), spotted skunk (spilogale putorius), fish crow (corvus ossifragus), black (coragyps atratus) and turkey (cathartes aura) vultures, feral pig (sus scrofa), and domestic dog (hirth 1963, sexton 1975). eggs and young green iguanas possibly are eaten by a variety of native wildlife species in florida, and they might provide an important source of food, particularly in areas with dense iguana populations and few remaining native prey species. neonate i. iguana are frequently found on the ground, in shrubs, or low in trees (henderson 1974, hirth 1963, swanson 1950), exposing them to different predators than adults, which are usually high in trees. in florida, once i. iguana reaches about 60 cm tl, it has few adversaries except humans, possibly domestic dogs, american alligators (alligator mississippiensis; see kern 2004), and american crocodiles, and is frequently found in open areas. green iguanas of all sizes are collected by humans for the pet trade, nuisance control, and human consumption. reproduction in its native range, adult male green iguanas have larger home ranges (up to 9,000 m2) than females and juveniles (rand et al. 1989). in costa rica, mating occurs in october–november (possibly december in tortuguero) during the dry season (hirth 1963). females are known to travel up to several kilometers to reach suitable nesting sites, where they nest either alone or communally (alvarez del toro 1960, rand 1968, rand and dugan 1983). nesting sites are usually in sandy open areas, such as riverbanks, islands, or beaches (burghardt et al. 1977, campos 2004, haller and rodrigues 2005, hirth 1963), and females exhibit nesting site fidelity (bock et al. 1985). in panama, i. iguana sometimes shares nesting sites with american crocodiles, whose nest defense behavior may disrupt iguana nesting activities (bock and rand 1989); similarly in honduras, iguana eggs have been uncovered in a spectacled caiman nest (carr 1953). female i. iguana typically dig an egg chamber 10–120 cm deep and 100–463 cm long (haller and rodrigues 2005, rand 1968, rand and dugan 1980), but complex nests shared by multiple females may have a system of interconnecting tunnels up to 24 m long (rand and dugan 1983). female i. iguana plug the nest tunnel, which is 10–15 cm wide and 7–10 cm high, with substrate using the snout (rand 1968). ovipositioning of 10–71 eggs (campos 2004, fitch 1985, haller and rodrigues 2005, hirth 1963, rand 1968, swanson 1950) occurs in late afternoon (rarely in the morning) between early february and april in mexico and central america (alvarado et al. 1995, alvarez del toro 1960, bock and rand 1989, hirth 1963, swanson 1950). nesting iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 145green iguana in florida a juvenile green iguana (iguana iguana) on a non-native golden dewdrop (duranta erecta) in naples, collier county, florida (photographic voucher uf 146274). this iguana appeared to be foraging on fruit from an adjacent firebush (hamelia patens). je ff r ey r . s c h m id two green iguanas (iguana iguana) on a strangler fig (ficus aurea) on key largo, monroe county, florida (photographic voucher uf 149986). these iguanas were observed feeding on adjacent spanish stopper (eugenia foetida). ja m es g . d u q u es n el iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 145 may take place from december to february in the lesser antilles (lazell 1973), from late january to march in colombia (muñoz et al. 2003), and september to december in brazil (campos 2004, haller and rodrigues 2005). incubation of eggs takes approximately three months (alvarez del toro 1960; swanson 1950). in southern florida, we observed green iguana mating behavior, including male combat, as early as december and lasting through april. ovipositioning usually takes place in sandy areas, but one known female nested in a mulch pile on key largo (j. duquesnel, pers. comm.). we collected: (1) four females with vitellogenic follicles (mean = 30.2 ± 4.5 mm, 20–42 mm) from november, december, and february; (2) 22 females with oviducal eggs (mean = 35.5 ± 2.9 mm, 12–62 mm) between february and april; and (3) a single clutch of 41 eggs oviposited in april. neonates are observed from may to august in both the southern peninsula and florida keys. nuisance problems in florida from the 1960s through the 1980s, many residents in miami enjoyed watching the large exotic iguana iguana, allowing them to roam unmolested on their properties and at times even feeding them. prior to hurricane andrew in 1992, i. iguana was not generally considered a nuisance species, but populations exploded in the 1990s in many areas of southeastern florida. in 1992, a large reptile dealer in hollywood, broward county, purchased few i. iguana that were captured locally (r. van nostrand, pers. comm.); now this species can be captured by the hundreds in this county and in adjacent palm beach county to the north. according to newspaper articles since 2003, i. iguana populations have increased markedly to nuisance levels in pompano beach, pembroke pines, dania beach, plantation, davie, delray beach, and boca raton. in the past few years, i. iguana began appearing in large numbers in the keys, sometimes crossing roads and forcing traffic to brake along u.s. 1, which prompted the florida keys invasive species task force to solicit advice from the florida fish and wildlife conservation commission and florida museum of natural history on how to control or eradicate these populations. on key biscayne, the post-hurricane andrew i. iguana population explosion was possibly due to opening up of the canopy, subsequent replanting of non-native landscape vegetation favored as food by iguanas (see meshaka et al. 2004a), and creation of suitable nesting areas. this aggressive replanting of ornamental vegetation occurred throughout southeastern florida after the widespread destruction caused by the hurricane. before the hurricane, bill baggs cape florida state park (bbcf) was extensively vegetated by non-native australian pines (casuarina equisetifolia), thus iguana food and iguanas were scarce. after most of the australian pines were destroyed by the hurricane, bbcf park staff eventually began efforts to restore natural habitats and native vegetation. fallen trees and other hurricane debris at bbcf and the county-owned crandon park to the north on key biscayne were mulched and bulldozed into piles, creating exposed, well-drained mounds that served as ideal sites for i. iguana to dig nesting burrows. iguana iguana became so common at bbcf that, in 2003 alone, 824 iguanas were removed, mostly by one of us (emd; see also townsend et al. 2003), who also compiled these records into the park database. meshaka et al. (2004a) attempted to illustrate increasing and high population densities of i. iguana at bbcf based solely on records maintained in the park database from 1 july 1998 through 30 june 2003 (reported therein as 0, 0, 1, 12, 384, respectively); however, the park database records are incomplete. although we also believe that i. iguana has increased there (and other areas) since the late 1990s, the values reported for 2003 are elevated solely because of the collecting effort by emd, who focused on removing non-native wildlife beginning in 2003 and ending upon leav146 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 krysko et al. two adult male green iguanas (iguana iguana) fighting on 24 february 2004 on a dock in hollywood, broward county, florida. a n th o n y f la n a g a n two green iguanas (iguana iguana) being fed by humans on a dock on sugarloaf key, monroe county, florida (photographic voucher uf 131549). k en n et h l . k r y sk o green iguanas (iguana iguana) basking on a dock in hollywood, broward county, florida. note iguana feces covering the deck. a n th o n y f la n a g a n iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 146 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 147 ing bbcf in march 2004. if one were to calculate and expand on the actual numbers of i. iguana removed from bbcf from 1998 through 2006 (0, 0, 0, 9, 57, 824, 265, 189, and 89, respectively), after the point in which emd left bbcf, this would erroneously illustrate a severe population crash. iguana iguana can cause considerable damage to residential and commercial landscape vegetation and is now often considered a nuisance by land managers and property owners, who sometimes have to install wire mesh or even electric fences around herbs, shrubs, and trees to protect them from these voracious lizards. vulnerable young trees, and older trees with foliage or flowers particularly attractive to iguanas, can be protected from climbing lizards by encasing part of their trunks with sheet metal, as long as other trees are not within leaping distance. for many years, staff at fairchild tropical botanic garden in miami tolerated i. iguana and prohibited their removal, until escalating populations started eating prized orchids (orchidaceae) and the historic hibiscus (hibiscus spp.) garden was overgrazed to the ground and had to be relocated to a safer location. other favored food plants include impatiens (impatiens spp.), rose (rosa spp.), nasturtium (tropaeolum majus), caladium (caladium spp.), purple heart (tradescantia [setcreasea] pallida), bougainvillea (bougainvillea spp.), and hong kong orchid tree (bauhinia blakeana; see kern 2004, johnson 2006). iguana iguana will eat most fruits (except citrus) and flowers, tender new growth, and almost anything planted in a vegetable garden (kern 2004). in the 2000s, i. iguana ate most of the recently planted butterfly garden at the key deer national wildlife refuge on big pine key (c. bergh, pers. comm.). iguana iguana also is considered a nuisance by homeowners in part due to unsightly and unhygienic defecations on docks, moored boats, seawalls, porches, decks, pool platforms and inside swimming pools. iguana iguana can transmit the infectious bacterium salmonella to humans through their feces, which conceivably could occur if iguanas defecate in swimming pools or on food while people are eating outside. some i. iguana dig burrows that are used as refugia, which can be accompanied by erosion that undermines sidewalks, foundations, seawalls, berms, and canal banks (kern 2004, johnson 2006). although i. iguana usually uses burrows only as temporary refugia when away from water, over 100 iguana burrows (up to 4.5 m long) were observed in a seasonally flooded borrow pit in venezuela; these were used as nocturnal refugia despite the presence of numerous trees (rodda and burghardt 1985). in treeless habitats in florida, such as cleared canal banks and vacant lots, normally arboreal lizards seek shelter in burrows, culverts, drainage pipes, and rock or debris piles. large i. iguana basking on airport runways could pose a hazard to planes. at least five known records document airplanes colliding with iguanas at the international airport in san juan, puerto rico, where this species was introduced, and large iguanas would have a relative hazard score equivalent to ducks and pelicans (engeman et al. 2005a). iguana iguana also can be observed basking and grazing on golf course fairways in florida, but these lizards generally do not pose a hazard to golfers. iguana iguana is responsible for more complaints to the fwc than any other non-native reptilian species in florida. numbers of complaints continue to increase as iguanas expand their range into new areas, and additional homeowners experience the dubious thrill of having the reptilian version of a sheep devouring their landscape. although many people enjoy watching i. iguana as long as they do not damage valued plants or property, many other people are afraid of these large lizards, especially visitors or new residents, who are not accustomed to such large prehistoric-looking animals living in their neighborgreen iguana in florida residence on big pine key, monroe county, florida, with wire mesh installed around flowering plants to protect against green iguanas (iguana iguana). k en n et h l . k r y sk o adult male green iguana (iguana iguana) above a culvert on a canal bank along u.s. 27 in medley, miami-dade county, florida (photographic voucher uf 150123). k ev in m . e n g e iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 147 hood. neighbors who were once friendly to each other have even become rivals and no longer speak, as some families decide to feed and protect iguanas while other families want to rid these lizards from their properties (c.d. may, pers. comm.). nonetheless, i. iguana will continue to be a common sight in neighborhoods because of the tolerance of some residents who feed them, coupled with a scarcity of predators, abundance of palatable ornamental vegetation (some vegetation with thorns may ward off potential predators), sunny nesting sites, and the presence of canals, lakes, and swimming pools for drinking water and escape cover. furthermore, the profusion of man-made canals serve as dispersal corridors that allow iguanas to colonize new areas. potential impacts on other species on marco island, iguana iguana occasionally uses burrows of the florida burrowing owl (n. richie, pers. comm.), a “species of special concern” in florida. at crandon park, i. iguana sometimes shares the same burrow as another non-native species, the black spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura similis), but most green iguanas utilize trees, particularly those in and around ponds and canals. the stomach of a juvenile i. iguana from key biscayne contained 12 tree snails (drymaeus multilineatus), suggesting that it had selectively eaten them (townsend et al. 2005). this snail species is common; however, iguanas could potentially impact other more rare tree snails (townsend et al. 2005). the species composition of the plant community might eventually be altered in areas with dense populations of i. iguana due to excessive grazing and defoliation of vegetation, resulting in death or lack of reproduction. in mexico, i. iguana helps maintain forest diversity by consuming and dispersing seeds of many tree species (morales-mávil 1997). iguana iguana is selective in its diet, and ingested seeds typically have higher germination rates than uneaten seeds (benítez-malvido et al. 2003). in florida, i. iguana may be an important seed disperser of nonnative invasive plant species, carrying seeds from people’s yards into adjacent natural areas and hindering invasive vegetation control efforts. iguana iguana at bbcf feed on nicker bean, an important food plant for larvae of the endangered miami blue butterfly (hemiargus thomasi bethunebakeri). population control in florida iguana iguana is now common in many urban areas of the southern peninsula and florida keys, and may be flourishing in larger natural areas of coastal florida. green iguanas are extremely popular in the pet trade and sometimes escape or are intentionally (and illegally) released by owners when they grow too large. many pet enthusiasts are unaware (or unwilling to accept) that releasing non-native animals, including i. iguana, in florida is illegal and potentially detrimental to the environment. future illegal introductions of non-native animals can be ameliorated by incorporating pet owner education into the invasive species management process. prospective iguana owners should be educated on the life history details (e.g., large size of adults, potential for inflicting painful wounds) and the complex husbandry requirements of this species before a purchase. in an attempt to facilitate disposal of unwanted exotic pets, the fwc now allows people to return animals (as long as they do not 148 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 krysko et al. two non-native green iguanas (iguana iguana) and a non-native redeared slider (trachemys scripta elegans) on non-native melaleuca (melaleuca quinquenervia) along a canal in opa-locka, miami-dade county, florida (photographic voucher uf 150122). two discarded automobile tires and other debris litter the man-made canal bank. k ev in m . e n g e juvenile green iguana (iguana iguana) on a non-native silk floss (chorisia speciosa) tree in lake worth, palm beach county, florida (photographic voucher uf 149868). c a r l m a y adult male green iguana (iguana iguana) at the front door of a residence in fort worth, palm beach county, florida. c a r l m a y iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 148 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 149green iguana in florida profit from the transaction by receiving more money than what was originally paid) to the pet store where purchased without requiring a costly license to sell wildlife. iguana iguana populations at the northern extent of their introduced range in florida, as well as individual escapees farther north, are controlled by cold winter temperatures, except when thermal refugia or urban heat islands are available. when temperatures drop below 10 °c (50 °f), sluggish iguanas can be easily plucked from trees or collected after falling from trees, especially at night or on overcast days when basking does not increase body temperature quickly. well-established populations in southern florida appear to have exceeded the point of human control, and many animal control officers and nuisance trappers no longer respond to iguana complaints. even if removal of i. iguana is successful, more lizards will repopulate the site from adjacent areas or when eggs hatch. some private trappers charge upwards of $100 to visit an iguana-infested site, and they usually will not guarantee success in catching and removing lizards. however, david johnson, “the iguana trapper,” claims to specialize in removing i. iguana from overpopulated residences and subdivisions (johnson 2006). during the past four years in his pelican harbor neighborhood along the c-15 canal in southern palm beach county, johnson (2006) has removed 406 iguanas, and during one week in april 2006, he caught 54 iguanas at one residence in pompano beach. some residents have taken matters into their own hands; because i. iguana is a non-native species, it is not afforded protection in florida, and it is legal to catch, trap, and humanely kill these lizards. however, permits or permission must be obtained before collecting wildlife, including non-native species, from a county, state, or national park and other public land. once a green iguana is captured, it cannot legally be released again in florida, limiting the captor to choose between killing the iguana humanely, keeping it in captivity, or selling it. selling iguanas is no longer lucrative due to the availability of inexpensive farm-raised iguanas from latin america; some pet stores sell imported neonate iguanas for less than $10 each. wild-caught adult green iguanas seldom become tame, but zoos and other exhibits are sometimes interested in acquiring large individuals (especially orange-colored males) for display purposes, and foreign buyers may pay up to $300 for exceptional specimens (g. ward, pers. comm.). trapping methods for i. iguana include the use of live traps (e.g., havahart, tomahawk) baited with fruit, such as bananas or mangoes, or locking snares that can be set during the daytime at burrow entrances, at holes under fences, or along seawalls (kern 2004), canals, and ponds. johnson (2006) used a semicircular mesh trap with a snare at each end (d-i-y trap) and bait in the center. however, the most common capture method is by noosing with a long pole, especially while lizards are sleeping at night or torpid during cold weather. some commercial i. iguana catchers use boats to noose lizards from trees at night, sometimes stretching out nets to catch iguanas jumping from trees to the water below (g. ward, pers. comm.). persistent harassment may encourage i. iguana to move to the next-door neighbor’s yard; this can be accomplished by launching pebbles or palm fruits at them using a slingshot (kern 2004), spraying them with a hose, or through the use of loud vocalizations on the part of a person or a dog combined with quickly approaching the lizard. shooting firearms is outlawed in residential areas. over the past few years, we have established a cooperative effort with personnel at crandon park on key biscayne to reduce their abundant i. iguana population. despite our efforts and those of commercial collectors, who have additionally removed hundreds of iguanas annually, this species is still a common sight. people have been caught illegally releasing their pet iguanas at crandon park because they thought it was an “iguana nursery.” “iguana crossing” signs were once posted on key biscayne to advise motorists of a potential driving hazard. over time, heavily harvested i. iguana populations can be expected to have lower densities, smaller individuals, and smaller clutch sizes than unharvested populations (muñoz et al. 2003). female green iguanas are known to travel up to several kilometers to nest (see alvarez del toro 1960; rand 1968; rand and dugan 1983), suggesting that females return to the same suitable nesting sites year after year. desirable nesting sites can be heavily used by females. a clearing about 6 x 7 m in size on a 0.3-ha islet (not normally inhabited by i. iguana) in a panamanian lake attracted as many as 150–200 females annually (burghardt et al. 1977). in the florida keys, where i. iguana is expanding its range and is a nuisance, limestone is often near the surface, and nesting sites are usually limited to sandy microhabitats along beaches or soil and mulch piles brought in from the mainland for landscaping. besides removing i. iguana from the wild whenever possible, in areas where suitable nesting areas are limited, we recommend establishing artificial nesting sites and removing the eggs. suitable nesting mounds using sand, soil, or mulch can be placed in key problem areas for the express purpose of luring female iguanas. monitoring these sites during the nesting season might help control the population, but care must be taken to locate and remove all iguana eggs. an easier solution than laboriously searching a mound of dirt for eggs would be to construct a small artificial nest box that would concentrate iguana eggs. werner and miller (1984) designed a simple but successful nest box using six concrete blocks 40 x 20 x 10 cm (15 x 8 x 4 in) and two clay tubes 30 cm long x 20 cm outside diameter (12 x 8 in). the interior of the nest chamber is 40 cm long, 20 cm wide, and 10 cm high (15 x 8 x 4 in) and filled with loose soil. the 60-cm (24 in) long entrance tube, which has a 15-cm (6 in) interior diameter, is one-third to half adult male green iguana (iguana iguana) basking on a fallen tree during a cool day at crandon park on key biscayne, miami-dade county, florida (photographic voucher uf 150121). non-native senegal date palms (phoenix reclinata) can be seen in the background. k ev in m . e n g e iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 149 filled with a 7-cm (2.75 in) layer of dirt; iguanas will fill this tube while excavating the nest chamber, indicating that nesting females or eggs are present and can be removed. this nest box is set on the surface of the ground and covered with 3 cm (1 in) of dirt; and the nest chamber is checked for eggs by removing one or both of the concrete blocks that form the roof. in an artificial nesting chamber, werner and miller (1984) believed that substrate composition is relatively unimportant (iguanas have been observed nesting in different mixtures of soil and sand, and even in ashes and refuse in garbage dumps), but solid walls and a roof are essential. these artificial nest sites should be monitored during the nesting season and all eggs or iguanas removed before refilling the nest chambers with displaced dirt from the entrance tubes. we recognize that this type of artificial nest box cannot be moved easily once constructed. thus, we suggest using lighter-weight materials such as a similarly sized plastic, rubber, or fiberglass shell (for the chamber) and pvc tube (for the entrance), which will allow the nest box to be moved easily to different sites. furthermore, these artificial boxes can be used to remove adult green iguanas as well as spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura spp.), as both species utilize burrows throughout the year. acknowledgements we thank a. nichole hooper, anthony t. reppas, todd s. campbell, julian c. lee, andy p. borgia, rick rego, steve a. johnson, kurt w. larson, esther m. langan, larry d. wilson, sean b. thompson, debbie t. townsend, steve h. townsend, bill love, f. wayne king, chris s. samuelson, brooke l. talley, kristen l. bell, brian j. camposano, lorraine p. ketzler, david g. cook, thomas m. cravens, ronald st. pierre, george j. ward, and mark a. flowers for assistance in the field; stan chrzanowski, jim duquesnel, keith laakkonen, mike owen, thomas owen, carl may, jeffrey r. schmid, and anthony flanagan for providing photographs and information; jim and janice duquesnel, bill love, chris bergh, dennis giardina, nancy richie, raymond goushaw, ray van nostrand, carl may, kenyatta k. nichols, and j.h. altman for information of iguana populations in florida; and audrey k. owens for illustrating the artificial iguana nest box. literature cited alvarado, j., l. ibarra, i. suazo, g. rodriguez, and r. zamora. 1995. reproductive characteristics of a green iguana (iguana iguana) population of the west coast of mexico. southwestern naturalist 40:234–237. alvarez del toro, m. 1960. los reptiles de chiapas. instituto zoología estado. tuxtla gutierrez, chiapas, mexico. 248 pp. antonio rivas, j., ramon molina, c., and t. manuel vila. 1998. iguana iguana (green iguana). juvenile predation. herpetological review 29:238–239. bakhuis, w.l. 1982. size and sexual differentiation in the lizard iguana iguana on a semi-arid island. journal of herpetology 16:322–325. bartlett, r.d. 1980. non-native reptiles and amphibians in florida. indigo, news bulletin of the florida herpetological society 1:52–54. bartlett, r.d. and p.p. bartlett. 1999. a field guide to florida reptiles and amphibians. gulf publishing company, houston, texas. 278 pp. bartlett, r.d. and p.p. bartlett. 2006. guide and reference to the crocodiles, turtles, and lizards of eastern and central north america (north of mexico). university press of florida, gainesville, florida. 344 pp. benítez-malvido, j., e. tapia, i. suazo, e. villaseñor, and j. alvarado. 2003. germination and seed damage in tropical dry forest plants ingested by iguanas. journal of herpetology 37:301–308. bock, b.c. and a.s. rand. 1989. factors influencing nesting synchrony and hatchling success at a green iguana nesting aggregation in panama. copeia 1989:978–986. bock, b.c., a.s. rand, and g.m. burghardt. 1985. seasonal migration and nesting site fidelity in the green iguana. contributions to marine science 27:435–443. burghardt, g.m., h.w. greene, and a.s. rand. 1977. social behavior in hatchling green iguanas: life at a reptile rookery. science 195:689–691. butterfield, b.p., w.e. meshaka, jr., and c. guyer. 1997. nonindigenous amphibians and reptiles, pp. 123–138. in d. simberloff, d.c. schmitz, and t.c. brown (eds.), strangers in paradise: impact and management of nonindigenous species in florida. island press, washington, d.c. campos, z. 2004. iguana iguana (sinimbu, green iguana). reproduction. herpetological review 35:169. carr, a. 1953. high jungles and low. university of florida press, gainesville, florida. 226 pp. duquesnel, j. 1998. keys invasion by alien lizards continues. florida department of environmental protection, florida park service, resource management notes 10:9. engeman, r.m., h.t. smith, and b. constantin. 2005a. invasive iguanas as airstrike hazards at luis muñoz marín international airport, san juan airport, puerto rico. journal of aviation/aerospace education and research 14:45–50. engeman, r.m., e.m. sweet, and h.t. smith. 2005b. iguana iguana (green iguana). predation. herpetological review 36:320. fitch, h.s. 1985. variation in clutch and litter size in new world reptiles. university of kansas museum of natural history, miscellaneous publication no. 76. 76 pp. greene, h.w., g.m. burghardt, b.a. dugan, and a.s. rand. 1978. predation and the defensive behavior of green iguanas (reptilia, lacertilia, iguanidae). journal of herpetology 12:169–176. haller, é.c.p. and m.t. rodrigues. 2005. iguana iguana (green iguana). nests and nesting. herpetological review 36:319–320. henderson, r.w. 1974. aspects of the ecology of the juvenile common iguana (iguana iguana). herpetologica 30:327–332. hirth, h.f. 1963. some aspects of the natural history of iguana iguana on a tropical strand. ecology 44:613–615. johnson, d.f. 2006. the iguana trapper. (http://www.iguanatrapper.com/). kern, w.h., jr. 2004. dealing with iguanas in the south florida landscape. fact sheet eny-714, entomology and nematology, florida cooperative extension service, institute of food and agricultural science, university of florida, gainesville, florida. 7 pp. king, w. and t. krakauer. 1966. the exotic herpetofauna of southeast florida. quarterly journal of the florida academy of sciences 29:144–154. krysko, k.l., k.m. enge, j.h. townsend, e.m. langan, s.a. johnson, and t.s. campbell. 2005. new county records of amphibians and reptiles from florida. herpetological review 36:85–87. 150 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 krysko et al. an artificial nest box constructed using concrete blocks and clay tubes (illustrated after werner and miller 1984). note that the tubes are originally half filled with a layer of dirt; the layer of dirt (observable by looking into the tube from the outside) will exceed the half-full mark when female iguanas excavate a nest chamber inside the box. illustration by audrey k. owens. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 150 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 151green iguana in florida lazell, j.d., jr. 1973. the lizard genus iguana in the lesser antilles. bulletin of the museum of comparative zoology 145:1–28. lever, c. 2003. naturalized reptiles and amphibians of the world. oxford university press, new york, new york. 318 pp. loftin, h. and e.l. tyson. 1965. iguanas as carrion eaters. copeia 1965:515. mckie, a.c., j.e. hammond, h.t. smith, and w.e. meshaka, jr. 2005. invasive green iguana interactions in a burrowing owl colony in florida. florida field naturalist 33:125–127. mckeown, s. 1996. a field guide to reptiles and amphibians in the hawaiian islands. diamond head publishing, los osos, california. 172 pp. meshaka, w.e., jr., w.f. loftus, and t. steiner. 2000. the herpetofauna of everglades national park. florida scientist 63:84–103. meshaka, w.e., jr., r.d. bartlett, and h.t. smith. 2004a. colonization success by green iguanas in florida. iguana 11:154–161. meshaka, w.e., jr., b.p. butterfield, and j.b. hauge. 2004b. the exotic amphibians and reptiles of florida. krieger publishing company, malabar, florida. 155 pp. morales-mávil, j.e. 1997. viabilidad de semillas ingeridas por la iguana verde (iguana iguana l.) en la zona de la palma, region de los tuxtlas, veracruz. m.s. thesis, instituto de neuroetología, universidad veracruzana, xalapa, veracruz, mexico. muñoz, e.m., a.m. ortega, b.c. bock, and v.p. páez. 2003. demography and nesting ecology of green iguana iguana iguana (squamata: iguanidae), in two exploited populations in depresión, momposina, colombia. revista de biología tropical 51:229–240. murphy, j.c. 1997. amphibians and reptiles of trinidad and tobago. krieger publishing company, malabar, florida. 245 pp. powell, r., r.w. henderson, and j.s. parmerlee, jr. 2005. reptiles and amphibians of the dutch caribbean: st. eustatius, saba, and st. maarten. st. eustatius national parks foundation, gallows bay, st. eustatius, netherlands antilles. rand, a.s. 1968. a nesting aggregation of iguanas. copeia 1968:552–561. rand, a.s. and b. dugan. 1980. iguana egg mortality within the nest. copeia 1980:531–534. rand, a.s. and b. dugan. 1983. structure of complex iguana nests. copeia 1983:705–711. rand, a.s., e. font, d. ramos, d.i. werner, and b.c. bock. 1989. home range in green iguanas (iguana iguana) in panama. copeia 1989:217–221. rodda, g.h. and g.m. burghardt. 1985. iguana iguana (green iguana). terrestriality. herpetological review 16:112. savage, j.m. 2002. the amphibians and reptiles of costa rica: a herpetofauna between two continents, between two seas. university of chicago press, chicago, illinois. 954 pp. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville, florida. 718 pp. seidel, m.e. and r. franz. 1994. amphibians and reptiles (exclusive of marine turtles) of the cayman islands, pp.407–434. in m.a. brunt and j.e. davies (eds.), the cayman islands: natural history and biogeography. kluwer academic publishers, netherlands. sexton, o.j. 1975. black vultures feeding on iguana eggs in panama. american midland naturalist 93:463–468. spinner, k. 2005. bonita area becoming a haven for iguanas. naples daily news. (http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2005/may). swanson, p.l. 1950. the iguana iguana iguana iguana (l). herpetologica 6:187–193. thomas, r. 1999. the puerto rico area, pp. 169–180. in b.i. crother (ed.), caribbean amphibians and reptiles. academic press, san diego, california. townsend, j.h., k.l. krysko, a.t. reppas, and c.m. sheehy, iii. 2002. noteworthy records for introduced reptiles and amphibians from florida, usa. herpetological review 33:75. townsend, j.h., k.l. krysko, and k.m. enge. 2003. introduced iguanas in southern florida: a history of more than 35 years. iguana 10:111–118. townsend, j.h., j. slapcinsky, k.l. krysko, e.m. donlan, and e.a. golden. 2005. predation of a tree snail drymaeus multilineatus (gastropoda: bulimulidae) by iguana iguana (reptilia: iguanidae) on key biscayne, florida. southeastern naturalist 4:361–364. werner, d.i. and t.j. miller. 1984. artificial nests for female green iguanas. herpetological review 15:57–58. wilson, l.d. and l. porras. 1983. the ecological impact of man on the south florida herpetofauna. university of kansas museum of natural history, special publication no. 9. 89 pp. wunderle, j.m., jr. 1981. avian predation upon anolis lizards on grenada, west indies. herpetologica 37:104–108. appendix. voucher specimens of iguana iguana examined from florida counties. alachua: uf 122514; broward: uf 123126–27, 134066, 146556, 149568–69, 149979–81, 150124; collier: uf 141486, 146036, 146067, 146273–74, 149612; lee: uf 133209–10; miami-dade: etmnh-cc 418–32; isuvc 3846–47, 3849–53, 3855–92; uf 22910, 131544–47, 131556–60, 131764–66, 132864–83, 133838–41, 134203–10, 134231, 134910, 135083–91, 135093–94, 135294, 135470–71, 135485–89, 135494–500, 135538–63, 135616–22, 135624, 135896, 135907–23, 135925–46, 137405, 140562–65, 140579–82, 140740, 141040–41, 141098, 141101–03, 141109–19, 141220–23, 141225–27, 141230–31, 141233–34, 141236–39, 141248–49, 141487–96, 141498, 141609–17, 141766–68, 141897–99, 141902–03, 141953, 142317, 142333–42, 142344–54, 142551–74, 142591–95, 142625–80, 142722–24, 142731, 142812, 142817–19, 142897–904, 143602, 143605, 143607–08, 143946–48, 144060, 144239–41, 144261–65, 144268–97, 144310, 144312–23, 144343–471, 144575, 145202–14, 145218–333, 145335–57, 149715–32, 149734–810, 149873, 149892–978, 149982, 150002–13, 150121–23; usnm 245339; ypm 13950–52; monroe: uf 131549, 133862, 134836, 137214, 141212, 145524, 149864, 149985–86, 150065, 150093; palm beach: uf 137086, 137183, 146557–72, 149863, 149868–70, 150079. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:56 pm page 151 iguana, june 2008 66 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 binns archie a few days before i left; although his health was much better, he was still disoriented and moved about his pen cautiously. sunday is a day of the week that typically provides peace and quiet, time to catch up on the work accumulated during the previous week. sunday, 4 may 2008, started off no differently. the day would be dedicated to editing material for the june issue of iguana, and replying to an assortment of emails, particularly one regarding the new signs that had just arrived at the docks in grand cayman for the blue iguana facility. downstairs, sandy was taking advantage of the day to evaluate new web design templates for the blue iguana website, conferring with her developers on enhancements, functionality, and ease of maintenance. the decision to give the blue website a new face had been made months before, but very recent activity with the european union (eu) grant, discussion of a new protected area, and facility signage enhancements were making the website upgrade a priority. some 2,733 miles away, fred burton, director of the blue iguana recovery program, was enjoying the weekend break, the warm, tranquil early morning only occasionally interrupted by the crowing of a rooster intent on being a nuisance. sipping on a mug of coffee, fred was immersed in polishing the details of a eu grant that would consume the better part of his attention during the coming week. sam hicks, personal assistant to fred, and her partner, giles shaxted, had been out the night before celebrating their anniversary. they’d gotten in late and planned to sleep in. in george town, john marotta, head warden at the facility, was leisurely enjoying his first day off in a month. john had his ateam of regular local volunteers, stu petch, gary redfern, and sheilagh rickard, set to manage the day’s work at the facility. all that peaceful orderliness was about to change. stu, gary, and sheilagh converged at the qe ii botanic park at 0900 h when the park entrance gate was to be unlocked. the seven blues of may1 john binns international reptile conservation foundation photographs by the author except where indicated. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 67seven blues � this photograph was taken as fred burton and john marotta entered the main facility pen area. eldemire (lower left) is lying on his side, his left leg missing; jessica (upper right) lies motionless although still alive. fr ed b u r to n 1 this story will serve as an account of these events in the archives of the blue iguana recovery program. they drove down the road leading to the facility, parked, and, once the gate to the old wire-fenced cages and the gate leading into the large pen area were unlocked as customary, they began a walk-around to check on the iguanas. at 0910 h, john’s cell phone rang; caller id indicated it was gary. the call could only be one of a few things, john thought to himself, either gary couldn’t join the team today, a key to the facility gates was lost, or the iguana food he had collected the day before couldn’t be found. what john wasn’t prepared for was the tone of gary’s question and what followed: “does eldemire have bead tags?” a pause, then: “eldemire is out of his pen and dead.” before the words could be fully fathomed, john instinctively asked if any other iguanas had been injured. in the background, he could not quite make out what stu was telling gary, but he realized then that something insanely wrong had occurred. after a slight delay, gary said: “jessica is out of her pen and injured, and sara is dead.” it was enough for john; he blasted out the door heading to the facility. john was aware that fred’s car was in for repairs and knew he’d have to detour to pick him up. gary then called fred. fred struggled to hear the soft-spoken clipped south african accent, but what got fred’s attention were the words: “we’ve got a problem.” gary continued his update in a state of shock as he, stu, and sheilagh walked the facility, uncovering the enormity of the situation. fred knew he had to get to the facility quickly but he was without a car. the phone rang almost immediately; it was john saying he’d be there momentarily. as they drove toward the park, fred called mat cottam of the department of environment to inform him of the horror and to discuss who needed to be alerted immediately. unable to concentrate as they made their way through traffic, fred left that for mat to decide. by the time they arrived, carl edwards from the department of environment enforcement office was already there. fred and john made their way into the facility, already engulfed in emotion and working hard to get their heads around the scene. as they neared the main area, john recalled looking between the slats of the facility fence and seeing a large male blue lying on its side with his left rear leg missing. not far away was jessica. john quickly recognized the large male as eldemire. over the past three years, john had taken a special liking to this iguana with his gnarly old-man looks and missing spines. something special about his appearance and demeanor had captured john’s heart. by the time fred, john, and carl arrived, gary and stu had completed their inspection of the grounds and had a tally of fatalities, injured, and missing. fred transcribed the list into his notebook. sheilagh had taken it upon herself earlier to break away to feed and water the iguanas. despite the mayhem surrounding her, she worked silently in background taking care of what needed to be done. fred, john, and the others walked the grounds taking in the unimaginable horror as well as anyone could. eldemire, sara, yellow, and digger were dead. pedro’s entrails were found just outside the entrance to his pen; his body was missing. jessica was clearly injured, although she was alert and able to walk. she was carefully moved back into her pen. billy, appearing disoriented, had sustained a huge gash on his right front leg and had a large hematoma over his right rib cage. deborah, billy’s mate was first thought to be missing, but an intensive search revealed that she was underground nesting. archie was beaten and almost unconscious. all but eldemire, jessica, and pedro were found in their pens. 68 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 binns billy stationary in his pen with a large gash on his right front leg. fr ed b u r to n iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 69seven blues the slaughter of the captive blues immediately raised fears that the free-ranging blues in the park may have been hit as well. the search began. biter, whose retreat is located next to the fence outside of sara’s pen, was okay. mad max too was okay. one by one, each animal was found and all were healthy. while john continued his inspection, fred took the opportunity to text-message me with the news and to update mat, who had been working feverishly contacting others on the island. shortly, dr. colin wakelin, department of agriculture veterinarian, gina ebanks, director of environment, mat cottam, senior research officer for the department of environment, carla reid, chair of the national trust for the cayman islands, and a forensic team from the royal cayman islands police arrived at the scene. dr. wakelin immediately began suturing the gash in billy’s leg. he then examined jessica, who at that moment appeared hurt but not seriously injured. dr. wakelin advised fred to keep a close watch on her condition and notify him immediately should her condition change. next he examined archie, advising that he also be monitored closely. aside from eldemire and billy, the rest had no obvious external signs of injury. the speculation was that all of the affected animals had suffered internal injuries either from being stepped on or beaten. this raised the question of how many other captive iguanas had been brutalized and had yet to display any symptoms. i was deeply entrenched in photo editing when the phone chimed to alert me of a text message. the screen read: fred burton: “the dead list… eldemire. sara. digger. yellow. pedro. what can i say…” confused, i messaged back to fred: “what dead list????” knowing my reply would take time to reach him, i returned to editing, but the oddness of fred’s message made me review it again. at that point, i realized that i had received three messages and had only read the last. the first message sent at 0913 h pst read: “juan, we have a catastrophe at the facility. four igs are dead. police are on the case. looks clearly like human agency. we are all in shock and still s...” the message was cut off and followed by a second garbled message: “??? 7??g=.” in alarm, i messaged back: “oh crap i just read the previous messages.” then i immediately dialed his cell. in a matter of seconds, i was getting a complete rundown on what had happened. fred was having a difficult time as he spoke and was noticeably shaken, as was i listening to the account of the carnage. as with all things blue, i let fred know that whatever support he needed, the ircf was standing by. he requested that we get the news out as well as we could. distressed, i sent out the broadcast messages. sandy and i then began to prepare and organize for the firestorm that was sure to follow. as the police and department of environment enforcement people took control of the crime scene, fred and the others gathered under the visitors’ tent in the main compound. talk centered around how best to handle the media. fred had been taking photographs for potential use in the investigation since he’d arrived on the scene; some of those and others he was yet to take would meet the media requirements. john and fred struggled to decide which of them should call sam; it had to be done and both knew it would hit her hard. in the end, john made the call. sam’s downstairs phone rang some time after 1100 h. sensing that the call might be important, she made her way down the stairs in a race with the answering machine. she didn’t make it. the caller id indicated it was john. not unusual for him to call given the small size of the team. she hit redial. john answered and came right to the point: “i’m at the park. someone hit the captive facility and some of the animals are dead.” sam flashed on digger and she prayed his name wouldn’t be mentioned. john continued: “yellow, sara, and eldemire are dead. pedro is dead,” a pause… “digger is dead.” the news pierced her heart. as she drove toward the park, she recalls her mood being fatalistic. concerned that she’d have an accident in her haste to get to digger, she was hoping all the time that this was some crime scene evidence markers. samantha hicks in a cherished moment with digger. fr ed b u r to n huge mistake. she arrived before noon. as she made her way to digger, stu and gary followed. by this time both of them were mentally fatigued and emotionally drained, but their concern for sam took precedence. coming to terms with the fact that the iguanas were gone was hard, and sam needed proof — which came all too quickly. for a time, sam crouched next to the pen wall devastated, weeping uncontrollably — but she needed to be closer. asking the attending policeman for permission and without waiting for an answer, she jumped the wall. she recalls digger being hot, not looking broken but not right, not a mess but certainly the lifeless body was not digger anymore. she recalls: “if i ever needed affirmation that such a thing as a soul exists, there it was. i crouched over this animal that i had spent so many hours with and i knew that were it not for the location and the unassailable circumstances, i would have never known him to be digger. the particular cheeky slant to his eyes was hidden because he had squeezed them tightly shut, he looked too big and his body too long, so i suppose in life he had carried himself tall, but there is no great surprise there.” she stayed with him clutched gently in her arms. once the police had finished gathering the forensics, the bodies were moved to the tent for a more thorough examination. when dr. wakelin completed his work, he handed the four bodies over to a policewoman for transport; they would be x-rayed and then placed in cold storage. dr. wakelin left the park shortly thereafter. by this time john had resumed caring for the blues; less burdened thanks to sheilagh’s earlier efforts, he had more time to monitor health status and look for signs that any of the others had been injured. john noted that matthias was acting mildly sluggish, possibly due to the weather, but since he was up in his tree he couldn’t have been seriously injured. fred called carol winker of the caymanian compass to break the news. he then made his way back to check on jessica. she had stopped responding to touch, and her breathing was shallow. fred then realized she was mortally wounded. carol arrived about the same time. fred was on the phone with dr. wakelin preparing to transport jessica to his office; carol snapped the shot. carol’s front-page story and photograph of fred on the phone with his hand on jessica was the beginning of the weeklong media frenzy of front-page news and radio broadcasts as the associated press distributed the news to the worldwide media. jessica was lying on the clinic table as dr. wakelin did everything he could to bring her back, but it was hopeless. how she survived for as long as she did was anyone’s guess. the decision was made to let her live her last hours away from the clinic, and no place was more appropriate than fred’s home. i received a message from him shortly thereafter: “jessica is now fading. the vet has done all he can with bonnie’s2 advice. she is on my lap with minimal life signs only.” jessica’s final moments were witnessed by a small group of people who stopped by fred’s house. present were luigi moxam, one-345 clothing line, selita ebanks, a caymanian supermodel, orneil galbraith, a former birp warden, and team blue volunteer clara lawrence. by day’s end, the death toll had risen to six. by monday morning (5 may), news of the murders was spreading like wildfire. after a sleepless night, fred was up early. the phone was ringing, and incoming email already numbered in the hundreds, just as it did for us in california. sam arrived 70 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 binns after the initial crime scene investigation was completed, the bodies of the four blues were moved under the tour tent prior to being transported for radiographs. from the top, yellow, sara, eldemire, and digger. fr ed b u r to n 2 bonnie raphael, dvm, dipl. aczm, senior veterinarian, global health programs, wildlife conservation society, bronx, new york. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 71seven blues to relieve fred so he could address official matters from law enforcement and government officials. sam established her workspace in the corner of fred’s office that came equipped with an outdated and temperamental pc, which i replaced when i arrived with one of fred’s upgraded computers that i had serviced. another makeshift table was assembled in the middle of the room to act as central depository for printouts and other documents that would be needed. with a phone in place, her workstation neatly organized and computer humming, she began what would be a weeklong nightmarish test of every administrative skill imaginable under conditions for which none of us were prepared. throughout the crisis, sam did as sam does; she entrenched herself, focused unemotionally, and met the challenges that under normal circumstances would have taken an office full of people to manage. park security, at a level no one had ever imagined necessary, was an immediate concern to ensure that the perpetrators would not hit again. the blue program operates meagerly on funds derived from local and international contributions, and relies heavily on a volunteer base. no funds existed for any level of security. so, john, fred, and volunteers from birp and the national trust for the cayman islands took it upon themselves to guard the facility until a solution could be found. john was up early and slept no better than the rest of us. with emotions high and a growing anger, he still had to manage the facility’s daily operation. the work was complicated by having to monitor all the iguanas for possible signs of injury, as well as by the almost constant barrage of interruptions from police inspectors, department of environment personnel, and the press — but, like all others committed to the program, he reached deep and found the inner strength to expertly manage the task. in california, we too were deluged with incoming email and phone calls. of paramount importance was the creation of a new section on the blue iguana website to centralize and disseminate information on the unfolding story. offers of assistance and donations, as well as letters of condolence for the fallen, started pouring in from around the world. ironically, this outpouring provided fred burton on the phone with dr. colin wakelin discussing jessica’s declining health. c o u r te sy o f th e c a y m a n f r ee p r es s dr. colin wakelin, department of agriculture veterinarian, gives artificial respiration to jessica as fred burton looks on. at this time, jessica was fading and not responding to care. d r . m a t d a c o st a c o tt a m confirmation that our years of effort to bring attention to the plight of the blues had been successful. people obviously cared, but what a horrible price to pay for such attention. sarah agnolin and a group of her friends were exploring some of grand cayman’s caves near the park when she received a call from one of her coworkers at the ritz-carlton tearfully informing her of the murders. sarah works for the ritz-carlton’s ambassadors of the environment program taking children and adults to visit the blue facility as a part of their program. in her free time, she and other naturalists from the ritz, like kirsten werner and taya maki, regularly volunteer at the facility. she called john to get more details on what had happened and to offer assistance. over the days to follow, the girls from the ritz dedicated every available hour to assisting john. however, their largest contribution to the crisis was a parallel fundraising effort. sarah and her colleague kurt christian conceived, negotiated, and set up donation tables outside grand cayman’s busiest stores with the goal of collecting $3,000. with 50 volunteers and tables with nothing more than 5-gallon plastic water jugs with taped-on labels, they reached their goal the first day and, after three days, had amassed over $16,000 in walk-by donations. the news had deeply touched and outraged everyone on the island from top government officials to the old folks on the east end, and everyone wanted to help. behind the scenes, the police and other enforcement officials were working feverishly to put together the pieces of the crime. to facilitate identification of the perpetrators, talk of creating a reward quickly gained support. by the end of monday, enough funds had been secured to target the reward at ci $10,000. crime stoppers would handle the promotion, and local security companies were offering to install security systems at the facility and in the park. on tuesday (6 may), the blue team hit the ground running, operating at full efficiency. john had the security watch at the facility the night before, but was nevertheless up at first light. at the top of john’s priority list was checking on billy, archie, and matthias. he and fred were closely monitoring any new symptoms or signs of health issues. female blues were laying their eggs about a month early, which also would have an impact on his schedule. fred was tireless. he was interviewed for four different morning shows prior to attending the autopsies conducted by dr. wakelin at the st. matthew’s veterinary school’s facility at lower valley. at days end, fred’s final email to me read: “nuts here too, juan, i am so exhausted i am about to drop. four different shows in the morning, the autopsy, on radio cayman after that, back to the park, and on the phone since i got home. i am humbled by the effort that others are putting in at the same time, yourselves included, sam, john, the national trust, department of environment, and the community at large. i’m going to have to close down, shower, go out for some food, and a quiet drink to plan the burial ceremony. i simply can’t keep focused without something a little restful and a decent night’s sleep, perhaps. thanks so much juan. fred.” on wednesday (7 may), john arrived early at the park. to save time, he decided to take the shortest route and check on matthias before checking the others. he found matthias dead in his retreat; he had died sometime during the night. john had reached his breaking point. his eyes welled with tears of rage, angered that anyone could conceive and carry out such a hideous crime on such magnificent and unique creatures. the 72 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 binns aerial photograph identifying pen locations for the dead and those that survived. the circle “e” marks the location where eldemire was found, and circle “j” where jessica lay when the murders were discovered. fr ed b u r to n ; g r a ph ic s b y j o h n b in n s iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 73seven blues death toll was now at seven. he composed himself before calling fred. with the news of matthias, and fearing that archie and billy’s condition might decline, fred called dr. bonnie raphael, senior veterinarian, global health programs at the wildlife conservation society (wcs) in bronx, new york to ask for emergency veterinary assistance. that afternoon, fred gathered with others at the department of environment to attend a debriefing on the autopsies. results indicated that besides humans, canines were involved, adding to the horror to which these poor creatures had been subjected. the decision was made to keep information specific to the investigation from the media and the public at large. news of the murders reached dr. stephanie james, senior veterinarian, global health programs, wcs, who recalls staring at the message for five minutes wondering how something so awful could happen. over the next few days, treating gorillas, frogs, deer, and pheasants, she monitored what was unfolding in grand cayman. the news of matthias’ death reached dr. james in the midst of packing for a trip to anegada, british virgin islands, to perform health assessments on pre-release captive anegada iguanas at the headstarting facility. dr. raphael asked her if she would be willing to travel to grand cayman to assist with billy and archie. she agreed without a moment’s hesitation and immediately began working on necessary paperwork. to practice veterinary medicine in the cayman islands, she needed to be licensed, requiring approval from the department of agriculture and the cayman islands veterinary board. in grand cayman, the senior government officers present took exceptional steps to facilitate the request so that she could start work on billy and archie as soon as she arrived. within six hours of the initial call, she had her license, a process that normally takes weeks. she packed for the unknown (antibiotics, fluids, analgesics, vitamins, syringes, a blood gas analyzer, and other potentially useful supplies), and she was scheduled on the first flight out of jfk the next morning. later that same afternoon, fred went to the park, and, with the help of john and cameron richardson, a regular volunteer, carefully captured billy and archie so they could be taken to st. matthew’s veterinary school for radiographs. knowing dr. james was due to arrive the next day, he subsequently took billy and archie home, which would better facilitate and expedite dr. james’ examination and minimize the stress imposed on the iguanas. fred called that evening to ask if sandy and i would travel to grand cayman to attend the burial tentatively scheduled for 11 may, and to assist with the crisis. we agreed. giles shaxted, sam’s partner, worked miracles organizing flight arrangements, and securing free lodging for us at compass point dive resort and ocean frontiers diving, east end, grand cayman. the next day and a half was a blur as we made arrangements to leave. by thursday (8 may), news of the murders had gained international attention and it dominated the news in grand cayman. the influx of condolences, offers of assistance, blue sponsorships, and contributions were reaching epic proportions. the team was completely inundated trying to respond. things were no different for john at the park. the department of environment enforcement and police inspectors again were looking for any evidence they may have missed. at about 1130 h, they left and stu arrived to catch up on any developing news and to give john a hand. at noon, john received a call from carl edwards, department of environment enforcement; “i think we have found pedro, and i need you to come take a look.” john and stu followed carl’s directions. along the botanic park road leading to the park’s entrance is a rather obscure side road that leads to a group of three homes. as they arrived, they saw carl, police, and other investigators standing near what appeared to be a dead blue iguana in the apron of the driveway. what was odd about the location was that a police officer had been there the day before asking questions, and he could not have missed seeing a dead iguana. they had returned only to ensure that no details had been overlooked in the investigation. the body was decomposing. john recalls that the body appeared to have been skinned rather than torn by a dog or other animal. he scanned the remains with a pit-tag reader even though the tissue where the tag is routinely placed was missing — no id response was obtained. then john noticed the right eye had burst. pedro suffered from a thinning cornea in the right eye, leading to the tentative assumption that this was pedro. at that point, carl took the remains to the department of agriculture for examination and identification. later, fred confirmed that the remains were those of pedro by using photographs to identify pedro’s unique scale pattern. dr. james arrived at noon and was escorted quickly through customs with the help of an employee from the department of agriculture. she and fred immediately headed to the house to evaluate billy and archie. the radiographs taken by dr. elisabeth broussard, veterinarian, island veterinary service, the day before demonstrated that billy had fractured ribs and archie had fluid in his lungs. the physical exam and blood work indicated that both iguanas had some internal bleeding, but whether the bleeding was into the lungs or the coelomic cavity was unclear. dr. james considered the factors needed to develop a treatment plan. both iguanas were large breeding males unaccustomed to being handled; both had internal bleeding and muscle trauma, so handling would have to be minimized. such severe injuries required heat to help the iguanas metabolize some of the the circle marks the area in which pedro’s remains were found. toxic by-products of the trauma, minimize their stress levels, and allow their immune systems to function optimally. dr. james and fred discussed the cases and decided billy and archie should be placed back in their pens. being in their established territories would reduce stress and allow them to thermoregulate, which would facilitate immune functions. once husbandry was decided, a treatment regimen was determined. pain medications, antibiotics, and vitamins could be administered orally, but oral medication could disturb their normal gastrointestinal flora and curb eating habits. if the iguanas stopped eating, determining if anorexia was attributable to worsening conditions or because they didn’t like the taste of medication in the food would be difficult. also, because iguanas don’t like to soak and rarely drink, increasing their fluid intake would be problematic. the decision was made to manually restrain them every three days and administer the treatments. billy and archie received their initial treatment and were moved back to their pens. later that afternoon, fred and dr. james went to st. matthew’s veterinary facility to examine and review details of the autopsies. some of the post-mortem samples would have to be sent to the u.s. for further forensic evaluation. cyclura lewisi are protected under cites appendix i, which meant dr. james had a mountain of paperwork ahead of her to obtain the necessary permits, all of which needed to be completed before she departed in 74 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 binns radiographs of billy (left) and archie that dr. stephanie james reviewed at fred’s house after her arrival. r a d io g r a ph s b y is la n d v et er in a r y s er v ic e dr. stephanie james, senior veterinarian at wcs wildlife health services (right) and dr. elisabeth broussard discuss treatment procedures for billy and archie. dr. stephanie james injects fluids into the posterior flank of billy, while dr. elisabeth broussard injects other meds into his left front leg. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 75seven blues less than a week. fred was on the phone contacting the cayman island officials, and dr. james contacted wcs so they could start filing paperwork for exporting/importing the samples. within 48 hours, the cites export permit was delivered to fred’s door as was a document from the u.s. fish and wildlife service allowing the samples to be brought into the u.s. by friday (9 may), responding to the aftermath of the crisis had become routine. sandy and i were airborne when fred learned that the remains of the seven could not be buried and would have to remain in cold storage as potential evidence for any legal proceeding. john marotta continued his vigilant monitoring of billy and archie, both of whom appeared to be responding to the treatment, and began to focus his efforts on the females who were already or about to begin nesting. fred remained preoccupied with the criminal investigation, media, and incoming contributions. dr. james visited the facility to monitor treatment, and worked on obtaining the cites permits. sam, and now sandy and i, worked to keep the website updated and to respond to contributions both in the cayman islands and in the u.s. enforcement continued their investigation. from friday until i left the island on 20 may, the daily routine remained constant. sandy left for home on the 13th after reaching a point where remaining didn’t make sense, and my efforts became divided between assisting fred, sam, or john and working on photographic assignments for the program. dr. james continued treating billy and archie until she left on 14 may, handing the responsibility to dr. elisabeth broussard, who continued the treatment every three days until completion. billy and archie have largely recovered and continue to improve. as the days passed, our focus shifted to the nesting females. nests had to be excavated and eggs gathered. dr. stephanie james working on obtaining cites permits for export/import of forensic materials. vials containing samples of the remains that were exported for further examination. dr. caroline mckinney, st. matthew’s veterinary school (left), fred burton, dr. stephanie james, and shana chin, scientific assistant, cayman islands department of agriculture preparing samples for export and crosschecking the chain of custody forms for each of the samples. the crisis center in fred burton’s home office. samantha hicks (far left) and john and sandy binns work to respond to the barrage of incoming correspondence and website updates. st ep h a n ie j a m es one act of insanity killed 17.5% of our captive adults. the program is extremely fortunate that the seven lost iguanas had produced large numbers of offspring and are well represented genetically. one heartbreaking note is that we had already been discussing the release of these individuals. they had served the program well, and were largely responsible for helping to replenish the population. it only seemed right, the royalty that they were, that they should live their remaining years free in the kingdom we are working so hard to protect. this heinous crime and the loss of these animals have scarred the fiber of our souls. none will be forgotten, and each will be cherished and remembered for the special creatures they were. rest in peace. acknowledgements thanks to my wife, sandy binns, for her constant support and encouragement. i am grateful and thank those who contributed information for this story: fred burton, john marotta, samantha hicks, dr. stephanie james, and sarah agnolin. thanks also to giles shaxted for his assistance in providing our accommodations, and to the compass point dive resort and ocean frontiers diving east end, grand cayman, which supplied wonderful accommodations during our 11-day stay. i commend and thank team blue volunteers: stu petch, gary redfern, sheilagh rickford, kirstyn werner, rachel hamilton, and all team blue volunteers who make this program possible. thanks to the doctors who gave their full support during this crisis: dr. colin wakelin, dr. elisabeth broussard, dr. caroline mckinney, and dr. stephanie james; shana chin for her efforts and assistance with the export samples; island veterinary service for radiographs; the organizations that continue to support the efforts of the blue iguana recovery program: national trust for the cayman islands, the department of the environment, the department of agriculture for the cayman islands, and st. matthew’s veterinary school, and the wildlife conservation society. thanks also to aj gutman and bob powell for their review and comments. 76 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 binns the name signs for pedro, digger, and sara that once adorned their pens, later moved to the facility shed. john marotta (back), sarah agnolin (left), rachel hamilton (center), and kirstyn werner (right); the latter three naturalists, who work as ambassadors of the environment at the ritz carlton (by jean-michel cousteau), worked for days looking for deborah’s nest chamber. this was billy’s first successful mating. john marotta loading freshly collected eggs into a box for incubation. while fred burton searches for vegas’s nest, archie looks on inquisitively. archie had already been receiving treatment for over a week when this photograph was taken, and he was clearly regaining mobility in his severely injured rear left leg. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 77seven blues in memory of the seven blues samantha hicks blue iguana recovery program sara’s service to the program began in 1992. she had been caught in the east end as a youngster several years before and we estimate that she was born in 1985. sara was the first founder female in the program and had bred successfully with many males, producing 49 young. she was the grand dame of the captive facility. dignified and self-contained, she was never aggressive yet never overtly friendly, just warily tolerant of our presence. sara’s contribution to the program and the survival of her species was invaluable. she was digging a nest when she was set upon and beaten to death. jessica, born in 1993, was the daughter of sara and zadok. like her brother pedro, she developed minor eye problems that rendered her a little slower than most iguanas. this factor added to the impression that she was the gentlest and sweetest of creatures. she bred successfully with daniel and digger and produced 23 young. she was always ready for attention and very responsive to voices, making her an easy target for her attackers. jessica somehow managed to survive the initial attack and fought for her life for over 24 hours before she succumbed. eldemire was born to mr. blue and qe in 1990. he was a big beast, but gentle, easily identifiable by the underbite that showed off his sharp upper teeth, ironic for such a meek soul. with his long dorsal spines and gargoyle-like features, eldemire looked like a scraggly old man and never failed to attract attention from touring visitors. although not filled with machismo like his younger brother digger, eldemire did sire five young with sara in 1995. he was dignified despite his peculiarities, and had warmed to humans in recent years, unfortunately making him all the easier to target. eldemire’s remains were mutilated and discarded. digger touched thousands of people’s lives. he was naturally friendly and was our greatest ambassador. he was born in 1994, the offspring of mr. blue and qe. his first keepers named him digger because he used to dig into a plant pot in his cage and hide from them. digger was the most loving and inquisitive iguana; he would do almost anything for anybody, especially if there was a flower or a noni fruit involved in the bargain. his great love for people likely contributed to his death. rather than being afraid of strangers with evil intent, he probably welcomed their company. pedro was the son of sara and brother to jessica and was born in 1993. pedro was a crowd pleaser. he was capable of flushing up to the most vivid and beautiful shades of blue, so that one of the most common comments made about him was that he didn’t look real. like jessica, he had minor eye issues. he adored being stroked. he was totally unable to defend himself and completely unprepared for violence from trusted human beings. pedro was very proudly sponsored by kenrick webster and was such a gentle role model for his species that he was chosen to meet the earl of wessex on his last visit. matthias didn’t succumb to his terrible injuries for several days, behavior typical of this proud little blue. matthias was larger than life and we would have been interested in seeing if he would have achieved great physical size; born in 2001, at seven years he was a mere youngster and should have had at least 60 more years to grow. son of nathanial and ruth, matthias was very handsome, a perfectly formed animal with a row of very neat spines and a bright blue flush. he appeared to know his own worth and cockily taunted much larger iguanas from inside his earlier wire enclosure. he spent many happy hours dangling his legs from his favorite perch on a smokewood branch. yellow was our movie star and cover boy. he was born to dempster and a wild male in 1995. his eager and sometimes rather aggressive style earned him the botanic park’s southern kingdom, where he dominated 35 acres, intersecting with the territories of six females, until he was deposed by forrest in 2004–5. his favorite mate, sapphire, used to walk far from her territory to visit him, but he fell on hard times as a king-in-exile, and was eventually returned to the captive facility for a chance to recuperate. he was just beginning to look like his former self when his life was violently ended. we like to think that he has joined sapphire, who was taken from us by dogs in 2006. jo h n b in n s jo h n b in n s sa m a n th a h ic k s c r a ig p el k e sa m a n th a h ic k s sa m a n th a h ic k s fr ed b u r to n iguana b&w text 8 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 powell and henderson many west indian birds not normally associated with predation on vertebrates will eat lizards when the opportunity for a high-energy meal presents itself. this hispaniolan trogon (priotelus roseigaster) has captured a hispaniolan twig anole (anolis singularis). el a d io f er n á n d ez on continents, birds that regularly prey on vertebrates are usually raptors (birds of prey) that exploit abundant and prolific rodent populations. although other mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and even fish are taken, they rarely comprise the focus of a predator’s attention, and are instead taken opportunistically or when seasonally abundant, such as during migration periods. on tropical islands, however, reptiles — especially lizards — often are the most abundant and visible vertebrates, and constitute the principal quarry of raptors and many other birds not usually associated with hunting vertebrates. in our forthcoming compilation of data pertaining to the natural history of west indian amphibians and reptiles, we cited 36 references that recorded avian predation on reptiles. these constitute 37 species of birds and 58 species of reptilian prey. in addition, many published accounts speak of avian predation affecting population sizes of lizards, especially on very small islands with minimal cover, or of birds taking anoles (anolis spp.), for example, but without identifying the species of lizard. others note that a number of large, insectivorous birds were observed eating anoles, but do not identify the predators. those accounts are not included in the totals above or in the accompanying table, which lists only records of known predators and prey. particularly in light of the reality that recorded observations are mostly anecdotal (except for a few studies of raptor diets that are included), those listed must reflect but a small percentage of actual predation events. nevertheless, the number of such records testifies eloquently to both the ability of predatory birds (obligate or facultative) to exploit an abundant and prolific resource and the ability of their prey to maintain population numbers in the face of substantial but obviously sustainable losses. acknowledgments we thank michael j. morel (whose photographs also grace the inside front and back covers of this issue), eladio fernández, and brenda s. and r. duncan kirby for the use of photographs. that by eladio fernández previously appeared in hispaniola. a photographic journey through island biodiversity. bioversidad a través de un recorrido fotográfico (2007; reviewed in iguana 14(4): 260), and those by brenda s. and r. duncan kirby in the reptiles and amphibians of the dutch caribbean: st. eustatius, saba, and st. maarten (2005; reviewed in iguana 12(4): 273–274). avian predators of west indian reptiles robert powell1 and robert w. henderson2 1avila university, kansas city, missouri 2milwaukee public museum, milwaukee, wisconsin iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 9avian predators of west indian reptiles � american kestrels (falco sparvarius) are small raptors that frequently take insects, especially when abundant and concentrated, as well as small vertebrates. they have been documented as predators of 12 different species of west indian lizards (ten of them species of anoles). the puerto rican kestrel illustrated on the inside front and back covers is eating a puerto rican ameiva (ameiva exsul). these birds are eating a statia bank tree anole (anolis bimaculatus; left) and a statia bank bush anole (a. schwartzi; right). b r en d a s . a n d r . d u n c a n k ir b y table. avian predators on west indian reptiles. predators are listed alphabetically by scientific name in four categories: (1) raptors (birds of prey that regularly or exclusively take vertebrate prey); (2) seabirds (primarily marine birds that feed mostly on fish, but may opportunistically take terrestrial vertebrates); (3) egrets and herons (wading birds that regularly take aquatic and terrestrial vertebrates); and (4) birds not usually considered to be predators on vertebrates, although several species in this list are known to forage opportunistically for lizards and small snakes, and reptiles may constitute a major component of their diets. avian predator prey raptors red-tailed hawk (buteo jamaicensis) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) common iguana (iguana iguana) puerto rican crested anole (anolis cristatellus) puerto rican giant anole (anolis cuvieri) puerto rican emerald anole (anolis evermanni) yellow-chinned anole (anolis gundlachi) puerto rican spotted anole (anolis stratulus) puerto rican racer (alsophis portoricensis) broad-winged hawk (buteo platypterus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) puerto rican giant anole (anolis cuvieri) grenada tree anole (anolis richardii) leeward groundsnake (liophis juliae) ridgway’s hawk (buteo ridgwayi) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .dominican giant anole (anolis baleatus) northern green anole (anolis chlorocyanus) w-headed racer (ialtris dorsalis) hispaniolan lesser racer (antillophis parvifrons) sharp-nosed treesnake (uromacer oxyrhynchus) hispaniolan trope (tropidophis haitianus) american kestrel (falco sparvarius) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .stout iguana (cyclura pinguis) juveniles lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) juveniles common iguana (iguana iguana) juveniles statia bank tree anole (anolis bimaculatus) cuban giant anole (anolis equestris) anguilla bank tree anole (anolis gingivinus) anguilla bank bush anole (anolis pogus) cuban green anole (anolis porcatus) saba anole (anolis sabanus) cuban brown anole (anolis sagrei) statia bank bush anole (anolis schwartzi) les saintes anole (anolis terraealtae) cuban ameiva (ameiva auberi) hispaniolan giant ameiva (ameiva chrysolaema) puerto rican giant ameiva (ameiva exsul) dominica ameiva (ameiva fuscata) anguilla bank ameiva (ameiva plei) cuban pygmy owl (glaucidium siju vittatum) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .cuban ameiva (ameiva auberi) puerto rican screech owl (otus nudipes) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .puerto rican gracile boa (epicrates monensis) osprey (pandion haliaetus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .central bahamas rock iguana (cyclura rileyi) barn owl (tyto alba) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .jamaican giant anole (anolis garmani) slender cliff anole (anolis lucius) haitian giant anole (anolis ricordii) jamaican croaking gecko (aristelliger praesignis) hispaniolan giant ameiva (ameiva chrysolaema) seabirds magnificent frigatebird (fregata magnificens) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .anguilla black ameiva (ameiva corax) laughing gull (larus atricilla) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .cuban iguana (cyclura nubila) eggs and hatchlings anguilla black ameiva (ameiva corax) royal tern (sterna maxima) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .cuban iguana (cyclura nubila) eggs and hatchlings brown booby (sula leucogaster) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .anguilla black ameiva (ameiva corax) egrets and herons cattle egrets (bubulcus ibis) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .st. croix anole (anolis acutus) grenada bush anole (anolis aeneus) puerto rican eyespot sphaero (sphaerodactylus macrolepis) snowy egret (egretta thula) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .mona blindsnake (typhlops monensis) yellow-crowned night heron (nyctanassa violacea) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .anguilla bank ameiva (ameiva plei) puerto rican gracile boa (epicrates monensis) american crocodile (crocodylus acutus) hatchlings 10 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 powell and henderson american kestrel with a crested anole (anolis cristatellus) on puerto rico.lu is o . n ie v es red-tailed hawks are large raptors capable of taking lizards as large as iguanas.d a n ie l c a r d if f although primarily nocturnal, barn owls occasionally take diurnally active lizards.g r a em e pu r d y iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 11avian predators of west indian reptiles birds not usually considered predators of vertebrates puerto rican parrot (amazona vittata) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .puerto rican giant anole (anolis cuvieri) west indian woodpecker (centurus superciliaris) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .cayman islands sphaero (sphaerodactylus argivus) brown trembler (cinclocerthia ruficauda) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .dominica anole (anolis oculatus) mangrove cuckoo (coccyzus minor) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .dominica anole (anolis oculatus) bananaquit (coereba flaveola) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .caymans blue-fanned anole (anolis conspersus) smooth-billed ani (crotophaga ani) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .caymans blue-fanned anole (anolis conspersus) jamaican giant anole (anolis garmani) les saintes anole (anolis terraealtae) cuban blackbird (dives atroviolaceus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .cuban brown anole (anolis sagrei) zapata wren (ferminia cerverai) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .cuban brown anole (anolis sagrei) domestic chicken (gallus gallus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .smooth-scaled worm lizard (gymnophthalmus underwoodi) southern green anole (anolis coelestinus) hispaniolan stout anole (anolis cybotes) jamaican gray anole (anolis lineatopus) pearly-eyed thrasher (margarops fuscatus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .common house gecko (hemidactylus mabouia) statia bank tree anole (anolis bimaculatus) puerto rican giant anole (anolis cuvieri) puerto rican emerald anole (anolis evermanni) anguilla bank tree anole (anolis gingivinus) yellow-chinned anole (anolis gundlachi) dominica anole (anolis oculatus) anguilla bank bush anole (anolis pogus) saba anole (anolis sabanus) statia bank bush anole (anolis schwartzi) puerto rican spotted anole (anolis stratulus) anguilla bank ameiva (ameiva plei) guadeloupe woodpecker (melanerpes herminieri) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .guadeloupe anole (anolis marmoratus) la sagra’s flycatcher (myiarchus sagrae) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .caymans blue-fanned anole (anolis conspersus) house sparrow (passer domesticus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .cuban green anole (anolis porcatus) neotropical clawed gecko (gonatodes albogularis) hispaniolan trogon (priotelus roseigaster) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .hispaniolan twig anole (anolis singularis) carib grackle (quiscalus lugubris) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .grenada bush anole (anolis aeneus) greater antillean grackle (quiscalus niger) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .cuban iguana (cyclura nubila) eggs and hatchlings caymans blue-fanned anole (anolis conspersus) cuban brown anole (anolis sagrei) puerto rican lizard cuckoo (saurothera vieilloti) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .puerto rican giant anole (anolis cuvieri) puerto rican emerald anole (anolis evermanni) yellow-chinned anole (anolis gundlachi) puerto rican spotted anole (anolis stratulus) cuban lizard cuckoo (saurothera merlini) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .cuban giant anole (anolis equestris) cuban white-fanned anole (anolis homolechis) western giant anole (anolis luteogularis) spotted brown trope (tropidophis pardalis) jamaican lizard cuckoo (saurothera vetula) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .jamaican giant anole (anolis garmani) red-legged thrush (turdus plumbeus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .cuban giant anole (anolis equestris) loggerhead kingbird (tyrannus caudifasciatus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .caymans blue-fanned anole (anolis conspersus) jamaican giant anole (anolis garmani) gray kingbird (tyrannus dominicensis) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .dominica anole (anolis oculatus) pearly-eyed thrashers are effective, albeit opportunistic predators of small vertebrates.r o b er t po w el l cuckoos are opportunists, feeding on a variety of arthropods, some surprisingly small for such relatively large birds. they often concentrate on seasonally abundant prey, such as caterpillars, for which they frequently function as biological controls. on west indian islands, however, many cuckoos selectively forage for small reptiles, especially anoles, and may run along the ground “chasing” lizards as well as picking them off arboreal perches. although species such as this yellowbilled cuckoo (coccyzus americanus) may occasionally take small reptiles, a focus on reptilian prey has led to many island forms with the common name of “lizard cuckoo.”r o b er t po w el l iguana b&w text wild trees in the cayman islands. 2nd ed. 2007. by fred burton, illustrated by penny clifford. international reptile conservation foundation (ircf), san jose, california, on behalf of the national trust for the cayman islands. 240 pp. softcover – isbn 987-1-4276-2168-9 – $ 20. copies may be ordered from the national trust (www.nationaltrust.org.ky) or from the ircf (www.ircf.org). i once defined biology as the study of animals and their food, when an acquaintance, who happened to be a botanist, corrected me by saying that biology was really the study of plants and their parasites. regardless of whose definition you favor, the reality is that all life forms on earth are inextricably intertwined, which explains in a round-about fashion how the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf) came to publish a book about trees. in fact, the foundation’s statement of purpose says that the organization works both for the conservation of reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems on which they rely. so, a book about trees, especially “wild” trees is not such a bizarre concept, particularly when one considers that the book also is about the cayman islands, home of the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi), the conservation of which the ircf has supported from the organization’s inception. in fact, all proceeds from the book are earmarked for the blue iguana recovery programme. the most obvious purpose of a book about the trees of the cayman islands is to help the reader identify the myriad different species found on the three islands that comprise the nation. how well does it work? i’m not sure, but am inclined to think it does quite well. unfortunately, i could not put it to a real test, since i haven’t had the good fortune to visit the islands in several years. however, using photographs of trees and leaves and some material gleaned from herbaria that contained caribbean species, the keys worked reasonably well, even for a biologist more inclined toward animals than their food. the only problems i encountered involved specimens from other west indian islands, which might well have represented different varieties than those found in the caymans (common, cosmopolitan species were easily and accurately identified). regardless of my success, the choices were obvious, the language clear (even to one not entirely familiar with botanical jargon), and the options provided at each step generally corrected mistakes before venturing too far along the wrong path. the individual descriptions were plants and the animals that eat them suitable for either amateurs or professional herpetologists, and the price is eminently affordable. kenneth l. krysko florida museum of natural history, division of herpetology university of florida, gainesville, florida contributors matthew j. aresco, ray e. ashton, jr., william j. barichivich, joan e. berish, michael bresette, kurt a. buhlmann, joseph a. butler, c. kenneth dodd, jr., michael a. ewert, terence m. farrell, j. whitfield gibbons, margaret s. gunzburger, george l. heinrich, richard herren, john b. iverson, dale r. jackson, kevin p. jansen, chris johnson, peter g. may, earl d. mccoy, brian k. mealey, walter e. meshaka, jr., anne meylan, peter a. meylan, paul e. moler, henry r. mushinsky, larry h. ogren, peter c. h. pritchard, anthony redlow, anders g. j. rhodin, jeffrey r. schmid, richard a. seigel, robert m. shealy, kelly stewart, r. brent thomas, george e. wallace, dawn s. wilson, blair witherington, robert t. zappalorti. 194 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 book reviews iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 194 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 195book reviews adequate to confirm (or deny) a proper identification, with drawings of the most critical features nicely complemented by the same clear language i found in the keys. an additional feature is that the bark of all species covered is illustrated in color. in some instances, bark can be definitive, but in many others, one looks just like the next. i might have preferred color photographs of flowers or fruits to those of the bark, but that’s quibbling over a minor point. in the end, the tool worked, at least to the extent that i could test it. maps and indices to common and scientific names round out the utilitarian features of this volume. a less obvious purpose of the book, especially if you skip the introduction and go directly to the key and species descriptions, is to promote an appreciation of nature and stress its value to an island nation. as in so many other west indian nations, the impact of european settlement was felt much earlier here than on the mainland, and ongoing development to accommodate population growth and a burgeoning tourism industry is threatening the few remaining wild places. as the governor of the cayman islands stated in the preface to this second edition, nature “will become increasingly valuable, only if it is conserved.” the destruction caused by hurricane ivan in 2004 clearly illustrated how an appreciation of trees is most intense when no trees are standing. consequently, however, ivan renewed interest in propagating native species, which generally are more tolerant of the hurricanes with which they evolved than more recent arrivals that never had to cope with 150-mph winds. a very brief section on propagation acknowledges that interest, less with detailed instructions than by pointing readers to resources available at the queen elizabeth ii botanic park. aside from the principal functions, i very much enjoyed the historical perspectives presented in the introduction (presumably frustrated by impenetrable forests and an inability to find water in 1586, the men in sir francis drake’s fleet set fire to the woods and sailed away, beginning the deforestation that continues today). i laughed at the inclusion in the instructions on how to use this book the very prominent warnings about those trees that can cause considerable discomfort to those foolish enough to handle them (maiden plum, manchineel, and, if you’re on little cayman, poison tree). the reason for my wry humor is that many west indians fear reptiles, especially snakes, but i’ve never encountered anyone who fears trees. apparently, people distinguish between trees that can inflict pain and those that don’t, but do not make the same distinction for animals… i also sympathized with the need to explain the use of names. despite an effort to use local names when possible, that just didn’t work in all cases. sometimes a name applied to several species, sometimes a species had several names, and sometimes a species was so insignificant (no obvious utility and/or rare and inconspicuous) that it had no name at all. having encountered similar situations that apply to animals, i long for the day when we all learn only the scientific names of species. could that be so much harder? as a child learning to speak, i can only guess that one name is as good as another. i realize that scientific names sometimes change when we reclassify plants or animals to accommodate new information about their relationships, but at least each species generally has only one name. i also appreciated the necessary subjectivity of having to distinguish between trees and shrubs, which represent a continuum in which some species straddle the line (like lizards, trees and shrubs apparently don’t read the textbooks that tell them what they are and how they should behave). criticisms essentially boil down to a single issue. i understand the reasons for including only wild trees (endemic and native species along with several “naturalized” forms, such as coconut palms, mangos, and tamarind, that are reproducing and sustaining populations in the wild), and i can relate to the desire to push people onto trails and into the bush where they can encounter and maybe learn to appreciate nature. however, i also face the reality that the animals i study often associate with introduced orchard or ornamental species in the less than pristine habitats in gardens and on the grounds of hotels and businesses. to truly understand these associations, i need also to identify the “real” interlopers in paradise. including all introduced forms might quickly have become unwieldy, but the most common ornamentals surely could have been accommodated for those of us who often work along the boundaries between nature and artifice. maybe in the third edition… robert powell department of biology, avila university kansas city, missouri iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 195 iguana b&w text 2 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 the critically endangered ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) has a very limited geographic distribution in the southwestern dominican republic and an adjacent area in haiti. rupp, incháustegui, and arias ja n r a m er iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 3 ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) is one of the most specialized iguanas of the endemic caribbean genus cyclura. the species, which is sympatric with the rhinoceros iguana (cyclura cornuta), has a very limited geographic distribution in the southwestern dominican republic. three known subpopulations are within the dominican jaragua–bahoruco–enriquillo biosphere reserve. a fourth population has been discovered recently in anse-à-pitres, haiti. the species is included as critically endangered in the iucn red list, and is the subject of a recovery plan produced by the iucn iguana specialist group (isg) in 2003 and reviewed in 2004. grupo jaragua, a dominican not-for-profit conservation organization, has been working for biodiversity conservation in the area for the last 15 years. it is a member of a consortium of national and international organizations that has been working for the recovery of the species under the leadership of the international iguana foundation and the iguana specialist group. conserving cyclura ricordii 2007 ernst rupp, sixto j. incháustegui, and yvonne arias grupo jaragua inc. el vergel # 33 santo domingo dominican republic (jaragua@tricom.net) photographs by ernst rupp except when otherwise indicated. conserving cyclura ricordii � ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) survive today only in the most xeric hispaniolan habitats. the known distribution of ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) on hispaniola. 4 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 rupp, incháustegui, and arias the recovery of c. ricordii is part of grupo jaragua’s program to conserve biodiversity in the biosphere reserve in the southwestern part of the dominican republic, thought to be one of the most diverse sites in the insular caribbean. work is conducted in close coordination with the dominican government, integrating community-based local municipalities, national, and international organizations. during 2007, grupo jaragua continued to survey nesting activities of cyclura ricordii. a land tenure study in the pedernales region was undertaken, and we began the investigation of population densities. we are presently working on the translation of the iguana teaching manual from spanish into french for haitian schools. nesting after the 2007 season, we now have four years of data on the nesting of c. ricordii and c. cornuta in the pedernales area. the study includes the four major nesting zones of c. ricordii, which are fondo de la tierra, fondo de la malagueta, fondo de robenson, and fondo de la jinagosa. two nesting sites where only c. cornuta is present (puente arriba and puente abajo) also are included in the study. nests were marked with flags and their coordinates taken with gps. hatched nests are easily identified by the escape holes hatchlings excavate when digging their way out of the nests. the nesting season for c. ricordii starts in early to midmarch and extends for roughly three months until early to midjune. hatching occurs from the second half of june to the later half of september. the nesting season for c. cornuta starts in mid-june and ends in mid-july. hatchlings appear from midseptember to mid-october. the nesting season for c. ricordii spans three months, but that for c. cornuta lasts barely a month. the nesting seasons of the two species do not overlap. the main nesting efforts of ricord’s iguana are in april and may, which usually coincides with the spring rainy season, and hatching occurs during the drier part of the year. for c. cornuta, the situation is reversed. nesting occurs during the dry parts of june and july, and hatching coincides with the heavy autumn rainy season. hatchling c. ricordii may have a harder time finding sufficient food resources when hatching during a period with little fresh vegetation, whereas hatchling c. cornuta usually are able to feast on lush new growth. a total of 194 nests were found and marked during the 2007 nesting season. hatching success for marked nests in all study areas combined was 92.4%. adding non-marked hatched nests found during hatching season, a total of 219 hatched nests were encountered. when examining the nesting results for the last four years, the number of “total nests hatched” fluctuates around 200 nests per year. nesting success has been relatively constant. localities in the pedernales region where the presence of cyclura ricordii has been confirmed. multiplying 200 nests by the average of 12.5 eggs per nest provides an estimate of ~2,500 hatchlings/year for all study areas combined. a new record was set for the number of eggs in a single nest. one nest in the fondo de la tierra contained 20 hatched eggs. the old record was 19 eggs. the fondos, with their deep, well-drained soils, seem to provide the perfect nesting medium for c. ricordii. cyclura cornuta also uses these fondos for reproduction, but seems to confine nesting activities to the fringes of the fondos close to the surrounding rocky areas. the fondos with c. ricordii nests support a low number of c. cornuta nests. in contrast, the two small fondos of puente arriba and puente abajo, where ricord’s iguanas are not known to nest, show a high concentration of c. cornuta nests. the number of hatched c. cornuta nests dropped sharply from 101 in 2006 to 38 in 2007. we attribute this reduction to iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 5conserving cyclura ricordii table 1. nesting and hatching seasons of rock iguanas in the southwestern dominican republic. species year cyclura ricordii cyclura cornuta nesting hatching nesting hatching 2003 apr/may jul/aug — — 2004 19 mar 2 jun 29 jun 12 sep 16 jun 16 jul 02 sep* 20 oct 2005 08 mar† 16 jun 10 jun 19 sep 22 jun 17 jul 14 sep 17 oct 2006 15 mar 09 jun 11 jul 19 sep 15 jun 17 jul 10 oct 15 oct 2007 12 mar 08 jun — 19 sep 13 jun 10 jul 14 sep 19 oct * hatchlings dug out of nest † first nest outside study area on 28 feb table 2. nesting records for cyclura ricordii in 2007. 1 = fondo de la tierra; 2 = fondo de la malagueta; 3 = fondo de robenson; 4 = fondo de la jinagosa. site size transect nests nests escape marked percent nontotal nests (ha) area marked not hole not and nests marked nests hatched (ha) found found hatched hatched hatched hatched per ha 1 10.3 — 89 2 8 79 88.8 24 103 10.0 2 47.1 4.2 83 1 5 77 92.8 10 87 20.7 3 25.1 4.3 15 — — 15 100.0 4 19 4.4 4 0.6 — 7 — — 7 100.0 3 10 16.7 total — — 194 3 13 178 92.4 41 219 11.3 nest with a new record of 20 hatched eggs in the fondo de la tierra excavated by students gerson feliz and josé luis. table 3. total cyclura ricordii nests hatched in the four major study areas (see text). year nests nests not escape hole marked and percent non-marked total nests nests hatched marked found not found hatched nests hatched hatched hatched per ha 2004 208 5 20 183 88.0 15 198 10.2 2005 166 1 14 151 91.0 27 178 9.2 2006* 214 5 23 186 86.9 51 227 11.7 2007 194 3 13 178 92.4 41 219 11.3 * vegetation was destroyed in fondo de la tierra before nesting season the presence of a band of feral dogs that rampaged through the nesting grounds at puente arriba and puente abajo. fourteen mutilated c. cornuta carcasses were found in those areas. during the c. ricordii nesting season, we also found three mutilated ricord’s iguana females in the fondo de la malagueta. the estimated number of dogs ranges between 5 and 15 according to different witnesses. these animals are extremely shy and seem to have a very large activity range. we are trying to capture them in order to avoid further disasters. we have surveyed the area around anse-à-pitres in haiti now for the second year without finding any nests. land tenure in the pedernales region, cyclura ricordii is found mainly in an area of limestone terraces northeast of “los olivares,” a flat plain of roughly 12 km2 characterized by well-drained, deep soil of reddish color. it is currently subject to intensive agricultural use, which includes an elaborate irrigation system. residents mention that los olivares had a dense population of c. ricordii before being converted into agricultural land. the rocky outcrops of the limestone terraces where ricord’s iguanas still exist do not offer the same soil conditions as those found in los olivares. soil occurs only in depressions within the rocks, which are called “fondos.” these are the sites where females nest. the fondos constitute less than 5% of the area where the species is still extant. they thus represent a limited resource, in sharp contrast to former times when the flat plain of los olivares provided many suitable nesting sites. in order to provide ricord’s iguanas a future, special attention must be given to the protection of the fondos, especially the larger ones like fondo de la malagueta, fondo de robinson, fondo de la tierra, and fondo de la jinagosa. the creation of the municipal protected area by the municipality of pedernales in 2004, which covers most ricord’s iguana living space and includes all four of the major fondos, was a huge step in providing legal protection for the species. part of the area also is within the limits of jaragua national park. in february 2006, a powerful land baron claimed to have bought the fondo de la tierra and started to remove the vegetation with bulldozers with blatant disregard for its legal protected status. alerted by our field assistant salvador, grupo jaragua, in cooperation with the municipality of pedernales, was able to intervene and the destruction was stopped. however, considerable damage had already been done. about 40 active ricord’s iguana retreats had been destroyed. although nesting activities later in the same year were not affected, we decided to fence the entrance to the fondo to prevent further unwanted access. unfortunately, the danger of intrusion remains. the fondo de la tierra and other minor nesting areas are bordered closely by agricultural land. without a buffer, the desire of farmers to extend their property into iguana territory is an ever-present threat. in the southwest of the country, government-owned land traditionally has been regarded as no man’s land that could be 6 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 rupp, incháustegui, and arias carcass of gravid female ricord’s iguana killed by feral dogs. table 4. cyclura cornuta nests hatched where c. ricordii is present (four major study areas combined). year nests nests not escape hole marked and percent non-marked total nests nests hatched marked found not found hatched nests hatched hatched hatched per ha 2004 23 0 0 23 100.0 5 28 1.4 2005 25 0 3 22 87.0 2 24 1.2 2006* 17 0 2 15 88.2 3 18 0.9 2007 32 0 3 29 90.6 3 32 1.6 * vegetation was destroyed in fondo de la tierra before nesting season table 5. cyclura cornuta nests hatched where c. ricordii is not present (puente arriba and puente abajo combined). year nests nests not escape hole marked and percent non-marked total nests nests hatched marked found not found hatched nests hatched hatched hatched per ha 2004 — — — — — 124 124 1,851 2005 — — — — — 101 101 1,507 2006* — — — — — 101 101 1,507 2007 — — — — — 38 38 567 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 7 claimed and possessed by simply putting it to agricultural use or fencing it. although the legal picture regarding ownership has changed in recent years, some people cling to this practice. especially during periods prior to elections — and 2008 will see another presidential election — when vigilance is less effective, this practice takes its toll, even in protected areas. the ricord’s iguana areas are not immune. aware of this imminent danger, grupo jaragua proceeded with a study to determine land tenure in and around the critical habitats. the study itself is somewhat tricky as hardly any ownership is actually recorded with a land title in the official government registry. so, we had to go to the field to survey the area plot by plot to determine the actual owners. fieldwork has been completed and a final report, with legal conclusions, will be available by the end of the year. the idea of the exercise is to pinpoint critical areas where a clash between agricultural use and conservation could potentially occur. viable solutions for these areas must be resolved. means of defusing smoldering conflicts should probably include some combination of the following strategies: (1) the purchase of land for a buffer zone around sensitive areas, especially the nesting areas (in contrast to the lack of respect for governmentowned land, private ownership is generally acknowledged in the community). (2) the promotion of land use with minimal impact on the iguanas (bee keeping, agroforestry systems with native species). (3) vigilance in close coordination with the applicable government agencies to prevent further fencing of critical iguana habitat. population studies ongoing fieldwork is providing preliminary results for the pedernales region, and we will address the southern shore of lago enriquillo during the next few months. ideally, we will combine forces with the crew from the indianapolis zoo in april. they are planning to do population studies on isla cabritos, which will facilitate a coordination of methods and an exchange of information. translation of iguana manual the spanish version of the iguana manual has been translated into french and is being proofread in canada. we are looking forward to cooperating with the ircf on the layout for the manual. john binns of the ircf has designed t-shirts promoting ricord’s iguana conservation and is polishing our reports for publication. the manual is of great importance in a country where printed material is scarce. it will be used by schoolteachers as a teaching aid. acknowledgements we thank the iif for financial support, and also express our gratitude to the ministry of environment and natural resources and the municipalities of pedernales and duvergé for collaboration in the project. references arias, y., s.j. incháustegui, and e. rupp. 2004. cyclura ricordii on the barahona peninsula: a preliminary report. iguana 11:9–14 ottenwalder, jose. 1999. ricord’s iguana, cyclura ricordi, pp. 51–55. in: a. alberts (comp. & ed), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn/ssc west indian iguana specialist group. iucn, gland, switzerland and cambridge, uk. ramer, j. 2004. a survey of ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) and rhinoceros iguanas (cyclura cornuta) in isla cabritos national park, dominican republic 2003: a preliminary report. iguana 11:89–95. conserving cyclura ricordii field assistants pirín and salvador at the entrance of the municipal protected area. surveyor téudis perez and student josé luis mapping fenced areas within ricord’s iguana habitat. iguana b&w text n a t u r a l h i s t o r y r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 131natural history research reports asian snake stores toad toxins the asian snake rhabdophis tigrinus possesses specialized defensive glands on its neck that contain steroidal toxins known as bufadienolides. hutchison et al. (2007. proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america 104:2265–2270) hypothesized that r. tigrinus does not synthesize these defensive steroids, but instead sequesters the toxins from toads it consumes as prey. to test this hypothesis, the authors conducted chemical analyses on the glandular fluid from snakes collected in toadfree and toad-present localities and performed feeding experiments in which hatchling r. tigrinus were reared on controlled diets that either included or lacked toads. they demonstrated that the cardiotonic steroids in the nuchal glands of r. tigrinus are obtained from dietary toads. hatchling snakes had bufadienolides in their nuchal glands only if they were fed toads or were born to a dam with high concentrations of these compounds. because geographic patterns in the availability of toxic prey are reflected in the chemical composition of the glandular fluid, snakes in toad-free regions are left undefended by steroidal toxins. the ability to sequester dietary toxins underlies geographic variation in antipredatory behavior in this species. male scents signal a better immune system despite the importance of chemoreception in sexual selection of lizards, few studies have examined the composition of chemical signals, and whether and how chemicals provide honest information is unknown. chemical signals might be honest if they indicated a trade-off between sexual advertisement and the immune system. lópez and martín (2005. biology letters 1:404–406) showed that proportions of cholesta-5,7dien-3-ol in femoral secretions of male iberian wall lizards (podarcis hispanica) were related to their t-cell-mediated immune response. thus, only males with a good immune system may allocate higher amounts of this chemical to signaling. furthermore, females selected scents of males with higher proportions of cholesta-5,7-dien-3-ol and lower proportions of cholesterol. thus, females might base their mate choice on the males’ quality as indicated by the composition of their chemical signals. lizards “shout” in noisy habitats many acoustically communicating animals compensate for background noise by using acoustic properties that enhance the transmission of vocalizations in noisy habitats. ord et al. (2007. proceedings of the royal society b: biological sciences 274:1057–1062) showed that visual noise from windblown vegetation has an equally important influence on the production of dynamic visual displays. they found that two species of puerto rican lizards, anolis cristatellus and a. gundlachi, increase the speed of body movements used in territorial signaling to improve communication in visually “noisy” environments of rapidly moving hatchling asian grass snakes (rhabdophis tigrinus) have toxins in specialized defensive glands only if they consume toads or were born to a dam with high concentrations of poisonous compounds. n ik b r o u n ta s, h tt p: //g d im en si o n .t y pe pa d .c o m female iberian wall lizards (podarcis hispanica) might base their mate choice on male “quality” as indicated by the composition of their chemical signals. m in is te r io d e ed u c a c ió n y c ie n c ia d e es pa ñ a vegetation. together with previous work on acoustic communication, these data show that animals with very different sensory ecologies can face similar environmental constraints and adopt remarkably similar strategies to overcome those constraints. natural history of st. vincent dwarf geckos steinberg et al. (2007. journal of herpetology 41:326–332) documented population densities, microhabitat preferences, desiccation rates, and diets of sphaerodactylus vincenti on st. vincent, west indies. the authors predicted and observed high densities (to 5,625/ha) in moist, shaded leaf-litter. such microhabitats provide refuges, access to prey, and protection against water loss, as s. vincenti is vulnerable to high desiccation rates. they found significant differences in massspecific water-loss rates and body mass between conspecific populations at differing elevations, with larger geckos less resistant to water loss living in more mesic environments at higher elevations. stomach content analysis suggests that s. vincenti is a dietary generalist that feeds on a variety of small arthropods primarily by day. 132 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 natural history research reports virgin births at the london zoo four komodo dragons (varanus komodoensis) hatched at the london zoo were the result of parthenogenesis, the development of an egg without fertilization by a sperm. a clutch of dragon eggs laid in august 2005 fascinated reptile keepers. the female had arrived in london on loan from thoiry zoo in france in early 2005, and the clutch of eggs was laid more than two years after she had last lived with thoiry’s male. initially, keepers suspected sperm storage, but curator of herpetology, richard gibson, wasn’t entirely convinced and resolved to investigate further. genetic fingerprinting techniques at liverpool university confirmed that the four dragons were actually the result of parthenogenesis. the female later mated with the london zoo’s male and subsequently laid a second clutch of eggs from which a single, “normal” dragon hatched, demonstrating that komodo dragons can switch reproductive strategies depending on the availability of a mate. richard gibson said: “i am delighted that the mysterious parentage of our komodo dragon babies has been solved, and that we have discovered something new to science at the same time. knowing that the world’s largest lizard can reproduce like this suggests that many other reptiles may also do this more often than we thought, and may lead to changes in the way we manage this and other species in breeding programs. this discovery also raises important questions about the natural history of dragons in the wild, and will therefore help to safeguard the future of the species.” zoological society of london 21 december 2006 homing behavior in baby snakes we all know that children behave like their parents in many ways, especially as they grow older (even though many children deny it!) — and most of us suspect that the similarity is partly due to learning, and not just genetics. researchers from the university of sydney have discovered that baby snakes also behave like their parents, and probably for similar reasons as in humans. for more than a decade, drs. greg brown and rick shine have been studying the ecology of small non-venomous keelback snakes (tropidonophis mairii) on the floodplain of the adelaide river, on the outskirts of kakadu national park in the northern territory. n e w s b r i e f s puerto rican crested anoles (anolis cristatellus) increase the speed of body movements used in territorial signaling to improve communication in visually “noisy” environments. r o b er t po w el l four komodo dragons (varanus komodoensis) hatched at the london zoo were the result of parthenogenesis, the development of an egg without fertilization by a sperm. tr o o pe r w a ls h , n a ti o n a l zo o lo g ic a l pa r k populations of larger st. vincent dwarf geckos (sphaerodactylus vincenti) living in more mesic environments at higher elevations are less resistant to water loss. r o b er t po w el l iguana b&w text 50 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 tinue for a while, with pauses in between, during which the opponents display frontally. the struggle ends when one of the rivals is pushed from the rock or when he gives up by assuming a submissive posture (lying flat on his belly). the winner then stops fighting and waits in threat display for the rival to leave. the fight is a highly ritualized tournament in the course of which the stronger wins, without hurting the loser. only if one introduces a male artificially into the territory of another male, can damaging fights be observed. then the territory owner rushes at the introduced individual, which does not show the introductory ceremonies that normally release ritualized fighting. the introduced individual is bitten as a consequence. females fight in some places of the archipelago for the rare egg-laying sites. in contrast to the males, their fighting is far less ritualized. it begins with threat display and head-pushing, but soon they bite and shake each other viciously. they have less developed hornlike scales than the males. ritualized fighting is fairly widespread in animals that are capable of inflicting serious damage to conspecifics. poisonous snakes never bite each other, but the rivals wrestle according to the fixed rules. cichlid fishes have developed various forms of mouthfighting, and thus avoid mutual damage. in a number of species (e.g., in wolves), fighting starts as a damaging fight, but ends by a submissive posture of the loser, which inhibits further aggression (lorenz 1963). the existence of ritualized combats shows clearly that the killing of a conspecific is generally avoided in vertebrates. only animals without weapons or animals that can easily retreat after the exchange of bites have no such social inhibitions. this is, for example, true for the hamster (cricetus cricetus), where the loser has no difficulty in running away. the winner never follows far. in captivity, species of this type often kill each other. from the fact that ritualized fighting occurs, we can learn furthermore that strong selection favors aggression. otherwise aggression would have been counterselected in species that can do damage to conspecifics. however, they developed the most complicated fighting techniques instead, in order to permit fighting, as a mechanism for spacing-out (eibl-eibesfeldt 1951, 1961). references eibl-eibesfeldt, i. 1955. der kommentkampf der meerechse (amblyrhynchus cristatus). zeitschrift der tierpsychologie 12: 49–62. eibl-eibesfeldt, i. 1961 the fighting behavior of animals. scientific american 205(6): 112–122. lorenz, k. 1963. das sogenannte böse, zur naturgeschichte der aggression. borotha-schoeler verlag, wien. in july, 1913, i was hunting in the cove’s river ranges with two companions-andrew and john duncan, of megalong. we found a black-and-yellow banded monitor lizard about five feet long concealed in a crevice on the face of a wall. we had no intention of injuring him, but out of mischief andrew duncan suggested that we should make him yell. i was sceptical, but both men assured me that the lizard could, and would yell under persuasion. on condition that there should be no cruelty, i consented to a demonstration. they laughed at the idea of cruelty. andrew picked up a stick and began poking the reptile in the ribs and tickling him under the arm. it stood it for a while, merely squirming closer down in the crevice, then, having had enough of it, blew himself out and emitted a most comically doleful bellow that could be heard several hundred yards away. this he did repeatedly until we had laughed ourselves tired. it was funny, on looking back after we had gone fifty yards, to see the lizard stick his head around the corner to make sure that we had really departed. i have had for the last four years at my hunting-box on the naltai river, a tame monitor whom i have called “joseph” on account of his coat of many colors, and who is the interesting companion of my solitude and incidentally keeps the snakes away. with the above in my mind, i experimented on him. i found him camped under the bench beneath the window, and irritated him with the end of a stick. he did as the other had done — filled himself with wind and then emitted it in a prolonged bellowing groan. by the way, our “bookbook owl” does much the same thing. he fills himself nearly to bursting in a succession of gasps, and then says “hoo-hoohoo” till he has no more breath, then fills up again. eibl-eibesfeldt 1 originally published in science 52: 273 (1920). the booming lizard of australia1 walter h. bone linnzan society of new south wales, sydney “black-and-yellow banded monitors” (= lace monitors, varanus varius) can be loudly vocal when disturbed. ph il m o r le y iguana b&w text 106 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 reza the dangerously venomous spectacled cobra (naja naja) is the main attraction for snake charmers in bangladesh. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 107travelogue ibegin my story in dhaka, the swirling and chaotic mega-city capital. the metropolitan area houses 11 million, making dhaka the largest city in bangladesh, and one of the most populous cities in the world. one does not enjoy a casual stroll through dhaka. a trip to the city’s center means bushwhacking through throngs of garishly decorated rickshaws, buses held together by bondo putty, and taxis that belch and wheeze around the clock. dhaka also is not a pleasant-smelling city; a hint of sewage and humanity always hangs in the hot and sticky air. city people are generally very friendly, but many speak only bangla. therefore, having a local guide is advisable if not familiar with the language, culture, and customs. however, just miles away from frenzied, industrialized dhaka, the landscape changes dramatically and reveals a verdant flatland covered by handtended rice fields and palm trees waving lazily in the heat. bangladesh is situated between the indo-himalayan and indo-chinese subregions of the orient. with 147 million people occupying roughly the same area as iowa, bangladesh is among the most densely populated nations on earth, but this mostly agricultural country rarely makes the news in the west. within its nearly 144,000 km2, the country contains a number of diverse ecosystems supporting roughly 113 species of mammals, 628 birds, 126 reptiles, 22 amphibians, 708 species of freshwater and marine fish, about 400 species of mollusks, and 140 bees and wasps, many of them on the nation’s list of threatened animals. few systematic studies have been conducted on the biodiversity of the country (formerly east pakistan) since british scientists published their last book in 1943. the current species list of bangladesh, produced by iucn bangladesh in 2000, was prepared broadly based on collections made by british researchers a century ago. the country has neither a natural history museum nor a long-term biodiversity cont r a v e l o g u e destination bangladesh: from the himalayas to the bay of bengal ahm ali reza1 department of natural resources management, texas tech university, lubbock, texas 79409, usa photographs by the author. bangladesh is situated between the indo-himalayan and indo-chinese subregions of the orient. 1 permanent address: department of zoology, jahangirnagar university, savar, dhaka 1342, bangladesh. e-mail: wild_reza@yahoo.com a trip to dhaka’s newmarket area in the center of the nation’s largest city means bushwhacking through throngs of garishly decorated rickshaws, buses held together by bondo putty, and taxis that belch and wheeze around the clock. 108 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 servation strategic plan. thus, this mainly muslim, impoverished, overpopulated, and poorly explored country is now drawing attention from researchers and conservationists around the globe. as a native, i wanted to initiate a research and conservation program on the herpetofauna of bangladesh, the least known and most neglected group of animals in the country. my research goals included the production of an updated species list, a set of gis-based distribution maps, and estimates of species composition and richness in various habitat types. based on various geographic, biological, and logistical factors, i selected seven permanent sampling sites (psss) in five different forest types: evergreen, semi-evergreen, deciduous, mangrove, and swamp forest, and three study sites in urban and suburban areas. i planned to spend at least one week in each of my psss, which required a lot of paperwork. worth mentioning here is that bureaucracy in a developing country is sometimes very frustrating, and is the main obstacle to conducting research. nonetheless, the summer of 2006 found me exploring hot and humid tropical forests with some graduate students from the department of zoology, jahangirnagar university and other assistants. jahangirnagar, one of 28 public universities in bangladesh, is in the district of the capital city, dhaka. we headed northeast into the lawachara national park, a 1,250-hectare, highly diverse evergreen forest. the park is the home to several primate species, including the only ape of the country, the hoolock gibbon (hylobates hoolock). a bus ride of about six hours got me to the nearby township of srimangal. this was not a peaceful journey, bangladeshi drivers are not known for staying in their lanes. from there, we made our way to the national park headquarters in a “rickshaw,” a locally-made three-wheeled vehicle pulled by a human, only to be informed that my team would not be allowed to use the hilltop forest rest house, the only place to stay overnight in the park. this meant we had to walk in each night, a journey of about 10 miles. on the way out from the forest around midnight, we found leptobrachium smithii, a dark frog that had not been recorded from the park. two lizards that had not previously been reported from the country were also recorded: scincella reevesii, a common ground-dwelling skink, and ptyctolaemus gularis, a relatively uncommon calotes-like agamid lizard that we found about 2 m high on a tree-trunk. undulating red soil and sal (shorea robusta) forest are the main ecological features of madhupur national park, my next pss. sal forests are relatively dry and have been dramatically reduced during the last few decades, but a few older stands remain and provide a home for serpents. nocturnal and deadly venomous, the banded krait (bungarus fasciatus) is considered “endangered” in bangladesh. normally, these snakes are very reza brightly colored and noisy tokay geckos (gekko gecko) are common in most old buildings. lawachara national park is a 1,250-hectare, highly diverse evergreen forest. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 109travelogue secretive and very difficult to locate, but i found several fresh roadkills on the road that meanders through the 8,438-hectare deciduous forest in north-central bangladesh. we recorded a brightly colored microhylid, kalophrynus orangensis, which has recently been proposed to be synonymous with k. interlineatus, for the first time in bangladesh. kaloula taprobanica, another dark, painted microhylid also was collected from a head-high the green fan-throated lizard (ptyctolaemus gularis) was recorded for the first time in bangladesh. we found a sri lankan painted frog (kaloula taprobanica) in a headhigh tree-hole. undulating red soil and sal forest are the main ecological features of the deciduous forest. reeves’s ground skink (scincella reevesii), another first record for bangladesh. 110 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 reza tree-hole. this is the first voucher specimen of this species from the country. many asian ranids have been subjected to a long taxonomic debate. we recorded an abundance of the noisy rana leptoglossa (the recently revised name of which is now sylvirana leptoglossa) from the park, and this also was a first record of the species from the region. we noticed the berdmore’s narrowmouthed frog (microhyla berdmorei) in great abundance during late-june. my next destination was comilla tipperah hills, a degraded sal forest habitat in east-central bangladesh that experiences flash floods during the rainy season. most of the hilly areas are already clear-cut, and considerable development occurred during the last couple of decades. we did not find any old trees or a good patch of forest, and decided to conduct surveys in the agricultural fields nearby, from which we recorded mostly common species. we did find two new skink species of the genus sphenomorphus (s. maculatus and s. indicus) that had not been recorded from bangladesh. among several other skink species, lygosoma bowringii was a new record for the country, considerably extending its range from the nearest know populations in myanmar. we also observed breeding ranids, sylvirana leptoglossa, which also represented a new record of the species outside madhupur national park in north-central bangladesh. three mountainous districts occur in southeastern bangladesh: khagrachari, bandarban, and rangamati. these are covered in forests that extend from myanmar and northeastern india, and are highly diverse, mostly intact, and poorly explored. getting there required an eight-hour bus journey from dhaka to chittagong, then a three-hour bus ride to bandarban, and finally a “chander gari,” a locally produced four-wheel-drive jeep-like vehicle. my western friend had to get special permission, as foreigners are not normally allowed to visit these politically restless districts. while looking for amphibians and reptiles in the area, local people were constantly providing us information on sightings of frogs, snakes, and lizards. in response to such information, we were able to capture a cat snake (boiga we recorded the sticky frog (kalophrynus interlineatus) for the first time in bangladesh from madhupur national park. like many other asian ranids, sylvirana leptoglossa has been subjected to prolonged taxonomic debates. uncommon berdmore’s narrow-mouthed frog (microhyla berdmorei) is found frequently in madhupur national park. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 111 ochracea) and a very fast-moving trinket snake (coelognathus radiatus), inside our “well-protected” hillside resort campus. we also collected several species of skinks, the most important of which were lygosoma lineolatum, which had not been described in earlier records, sphenomorphus maculatus, which we had found already in the camilla tiperah hills, and eutropis macularia, which was quite common in the area. we spent more than an hour capturing a calotes versicolor sleeping high in a tree at night inside the resort. mountain streams are quite common in these three hill districts, and we recorded a megophryid frog, xenophrys parva, by one such stream. haor is an internationally important seasonal wetland that includes numerous rivers, streams, irrigation canals, and large areas of seasonally flooded cultivated plains. situated in northeastern bangladesh, the haor basin is one of the most remote areas of the country. the tanguar haor is a 97.3 km2 unesco “world heritage site,” and an important wintering and breeding ground for migratory birds. water depths in the haor vary from 5–10 m during the wet season and 1–4 m in some shallower wetland areas. we hired a boat especially designed to cruise in shallow water, but could not conduct a thorough survey this year because of logistical problems. we are planning to do so in the coming years. we did, however, record several species of common frogs and aquatic snakes (e.g., enhydris enhydris, xenochrophis piscator, etc.). we also found a few softshell turtles (aspideretes gangeticus and a. hurum) that had been captured by local turtle hunters who we encountered on the way to local fish markets. we collected tissue samples for dna analyses. travelogue we recorded bowring’s supple skink (lygosoma bowringii) for the first time in bangladesh. spotted litter skinks (sphenomorphus maculatus) are common, but were recorded for the first time from comilla tipperah hills. the khagrachari, bandarban, and rangamati hill districts are covered in evergreen forests. 112 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 reza the mildly venomous nocturnal tawny cat snake (boiga ochracea) was only found in the bandarban hills. this small bronze grass skink (eutropis macularia) is widely distributed in plains and hilly areas throughout the country. common smooth water snakes (enhydris enhydris) are common in most wetlands in bangladesh. local people often were a good source of information for finding amphibians and reptiles in unfamiliar areas. iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 113travelogue indian softshell turtles (aspideretes gangeticus) are still common in large rivers like the brahmaputra and its tributaries. indian roofed turtles (pangshura tectum) are popular in pet markets in dhaka. my final destination was the sundarbans, the largest chunk of productive mangrove forest in the world, and another world heritage site that extends through both india and bangladesh. at the mouth of the mighty ganges, this wide area of impenetrable mangroves supports a varied and fascinating array of natural and anthropological treasures. the bangladeshi sundarbans covers an area of about 5,770 km2, of which 4,016 km2 is land and the rest is composed of rivers, canals, and creeks. only a couple of centuries ago, the sundarbans was twice its current size, but much of it has been altered. it is a crucial conservation area hosting bengal tigers (panthera tigris tigris) and many other species, including the world’s largest venomous snake, the king cobra (ophiophagus hannah), and the world’s largest living reptile, the estuarine crocodile (crocodylus porosus). this mangrove area also is one of the world’s most effective cyclone barriers, and also serves as a food factory capable of feeding our children in perpetuity. transport in the sundarbans is difficult and dangerous, especially during the cyclone months. we rented a boat and launched from khulna, the last human habitation in the northern part of the sundarbans, and spent most of the time onboard. our little “titanic” carried several thousand gallons of freshwater and enough food for the whole team to eat, drink, and take showers for an entire week. i end my story on katka beach, situated south of the sundarbans mangrove forest, on a crisp and gorgeous day, with no one else to enjoy the wide swath of powdery white sand beach that stretched from horizon to horizon. the earth’s biodiversity is being lost at a frightening rate, and we must act now to conserve our life support system. we humans, who have been given the power and wisdom to achieve so much, should recognize that protecting ecosystems and wildlife will ultimately ensure our own survival. bangladesh is an impoverished, overpopulated, beleaguered, and mostly forgotten country, but those of us from southern asia have a headstart on the rest of the world because of our positive attitude towards nature. we respect other life forms and are grateful for the gifts nature bestows upon us. acknowledgements a very special thanks to my academic advisor dr. gad perry, who encouraged me to write this article and reshaped the very first draft, and to dr. aaron m. bauer, who critically reviewed the manuscript. financial support for my project was provided by the rufford small grants for nature conservation, the conservation research small grants of cleveland zoological society and cleveland metroparks zoo, turtle survival alliance (tsa), and texas tech university. finally, i thank my field crew, stephen mahoney from ireland, dr. peter praschag from austria, md. abdul aziz, md. kamrul hasan, and kamal hossain from jahangirnagar university, for their help and companionship in the field. 114 iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 reza a good population of king cobras (ophiophagus hannah) remains only in the sundarbans mangrove forest. the dangerously venomous spectacled cobra (naja naja) is the main attraction for snake charmers in bangladesh. iguana b&w text m ic h a el a . p o w el l 226 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 nieves the puerto rican ground lizard (ameiva exsul) is most frequently observed in relatively open areas actively rooting in leaf litter and soil. the puerto rican ground lizard, ameiva exsul (teiidae) is the most widely distributed ground lizard on the puerto rican bank, which includes puerto rico, many satellite islands, and the virgin islands (but excluding saint croix, desecheo, and islas mona and monito, which are on their own island banks). although mainly coastal in their distribution, these lizards can be found at elevations >360 m above sea level in puerto rico and have been observed at ~525 m on sage mountain, tortola, british virgin islands. male puerto rican ground lizards can exceed 20 cm in snout-vent length; females are smaller. these lizards are strictly diurnal and are most frequently observed in relatively open areas actively rooting in leaf litter and soil, using their tongues to probe for food. puerto rican ground lizards have a rather catholic diet, and are known to eat many arthropods, snails, frogs, other lizards and lizard eggs, as well as fungi, fruits, and even carrion. the largest and most visible of the virgin island tarantulas is the ground tarantula (cyrthopholis bartholomaei). these spiders build their nests in dry soil. with legs spread, they can span 10–13 cm. predation by a puerto rican ground lizard on a ground tarantula occurred at exactly 1029 h on 14 october 2007 in leaf litter associated with a rocky area along the road to the pier at white bay on guana island, british virgin islands. an adult ameiva exsul (svl ~11 cm) was observed tongue-flicking what i later identified as a tarantula burrow. initially, the lizard jumped back from the burrow, but it quickly reentered and emerged with the tarantula grasped by its abdomen. the lizard then proceeded to dismember and eat the spider. the entire episode lasted about two minutes. subsequently, the ameiva recommenced foraging. acknowledgements i thank james lazell of the conservation agency for providing the opportunity to visit guana island and the guana island staff for their support. enrique hernández and neftalí ríos, department of biology, university of puerto rico at humacao, and alejandro sánchez provided valuable comments on an earlier draft of this manuscript. references cooper, w.e., jr. 1990. prey odor detection by teiid and lacertid lizards and the relationship of prey odor detection to foraging mode in lizard families. copeia 1990:237–242. lazell, j. 2005. island: fact and theory in nature. university of california press, berkeley. lewis, a.r. 1989. diet selection and depression of prey abundance by an intensively foraging lizard. journal of herpetology 23:164–170. rivero, j.a. 1998. los anfibios y reptiles de puerto rico. the amphibians and reptiles of puerto rico. 2nd ed. editorial de la universidad de puerto rico, san juan. predation on a tarantula (cyrtopholis bartholomaei) by a puerto rican ground lizard (ameiva exsul) luis o. nieves department of biology, university of puerto rico at humacao, humacao, puerto rico 00791 photographs by the author except where noted. iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 227puerto rican ground lizard � a puerto rican ground lizard (ameiva exsul) devours a ground tarantula (cyrtopholis bartholomei). the ground tarantula (cyrtopholis bartholomei) can grow quite large, spanning as much as 10–13 cm. iguana b&w text sometimes i wonder whether i have chosen the wrong profession. how many english professors, after all, have a 6foot-long reproduction of rudolph zallinger’s “the age of reptiles” mural from yale’s peabody museum hanging in their home office above cabinets full of fossils, butterflies, and seashells? as a child, i was, like many kids, fascinated by dinosaurs. one of my most powerful early memories is of visiting the great hall of philadelphia’s academy of natural sciences: an enormous 19th-century gallery decorated, as i recall, with wrought iron, entablatures, oak, and marble. i remember my footsteps echoing as i walked toward the polished railing behind which stood the hadrosaurus, more than 20 feet tall and impossibly ancient. the mounted skeleton — brown, lacquered, and crackled, like a rembrandt painting — revealed itself gradually as my eyes adjusted to the light. dinosaur hall was a temple dedicated to the wonder of creation, the aspirations of science, and the smallness of humanity in the context of geologic time. i kept that faith, earning top grades in science courses, until my junior year of high school, when the rigors of trigonometry and physics — the empirical fetish — more or less put an end to my scientific ambitions, if not to my love of science. it surprises some people when i say that the closest cousin to science, for me, was english, because it, too, was about the cultivation of wonder and imagination. nowadays, when a scholarly conference brings me to philadelphia, new york, chicago, or washington, i try to make a trip to their natural-history museums. but i rarely find what i am looking for. i suppose i am trying to relive my childhood. i know the past is easy to glorify, but i do not think my disappointment comes only from my tendency toward nostalgia and old-fogeyism. i think natural-history museums have changed for the worse in the last 30 years. the solitude, silence, and quasireligious awe that i remember have been banished by throngs of screaming, barely supervised children on school trips, who pay less attention to the exhibits than they do to the gift shops and food courts. no doubt, the museums were forced into that situation by economic necessity and political demands that they cater to the broadest possible segment of the public. that means museums simplify their exhibitions rather than expect visitors to aspire to a higher level of appreciation for something outside the normal range of experience. i remember, even as a 10-year-old, not liking the new children’s annexes that were first installed back in the 70s. i felt a little insulted, as if i was being made to watch sesame street, or spend time in a day-care center. clearly, these “please touch” museums have to cater to a wide age range, but, just as it often does in the classroom, that seems to mean aiming at an everlowering median of knowledge, interest, and common civility. my 7-year-old daughter also loves natural history. she likes being able to handle real fossils and touch exotic animals, but she does not like being crowded and trampled by other children who often reduce museums to something approximating life in the hobbesian state of nature. so we have learned to avoid the so-called children’s sections, even though the behavior they encourage seems to have spilled out to the rest of the museum. unfortunately, the academy of natural sciences was a victim of the imperialism of the juvenile back in the mid-80s. dinosaur hall, no longer a chapel, is now brightly lit and painted in “kid-friendly” colors. the architectural details are concealed beneath wall-to-wall carpeting and plaster board. iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 175commentaries the decline of the natural-history museum1 thomas h. benton2 the barosaurus at the american museum of natural history, rearing up and defending its young from an advancing allosaurus, is perhaps the greatest mounted dinosaur exhibit in the world. 1 copyright © 2008, the chronicle of higher education. reprinted with permission. 2 thomas h. benton is the pseudonym of an associate professor of english at a midwestern liberal-arts college. he writes about academic culture and welcomes reader mail directed to his attention at careers@chronicle.com. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 175 toward the back of the hall, a dated “high tech” video installation inserts kids into a picture with dinosaurs in it, as if they were starring in jurassic park, a movie that today’s children are no more likely to have seen than the old tv show, land of the lost. the kids make ugly faces and dance while watching themselves on screen until the next group comes in and shoves them out. never mind that dinosaur hall was one of the most important sites in the institutional history of paleontology. discovered in 1858, the academy’s hadrosaurus was the first mounted dinosaur skeleton in the world. dinomania started in philadelphia. now the towering hadrosaurus is hunched over — in deference to current theory — and banished to an inconspicuous corner to make room for a gathering of fossil replicas designed as photo-ops. instead of gazing up at a relic of the heroic era of victorian science, people ignore the hadrosaurus and get their picture taken with their head beneath the jaws of the scary giganotosaurus, a sort of tyrannosaurus rex on steroids, before going to the gift shop to buy a “sharp toothed” plush toy. see, kids, science can be fun! but programmed “fun” is not necessarily pleasure, nor is entertainment the only means of sparking an interest in science. the people who run museums these days seem to think that children cannot enjoy quiet reflection. i suppose they think that would be elitist. as a result, decorum — once one of the key lessons of the museum for children — is replaced by the rules of the schoolyard, the serious is usurped by the cute, and thought is banished by the chatter of last decade’s high-tech gizmos. in stuffed animals & pickled heads: the culture and evolution of natural history museums (oxford, 2001), stephen t. asma quoted one curator from the field museum in chicago: “the sad fact is that many quieter people, who put in years of good work at the field museum, have recently lost their jobs to more dynamic but less educated competitors. the nature of the work, hunched over tiny bugs or fossils in a hidden-away cubicle, for example, traditionally drew introverts to the curator and staff jobs. and the museum nurtured them.” instead, the curator laments that “the current trend is for museum trustees and administrators to ignore the internal, albeit quirky, talent when staffing positions of power and go outside for m.b.a.’s who frequently don’t know anything about the nuances of the subject matter.” fortunately, it is still possible in some of the larger museums and the more obscure ones to find older exhibits — silent corridors of glass cases filled with specimens — that have not been ruined by the addition of push-button tv sets, cuddly mascots, and other contemporary affectations. in particular, i enjoy the animal dioramas created from the 1920s through the 1940s. those are not mere scientific displays; they are among the most interesting and underrated art works of the 20th century. some of them are the three-dimensional equivalents of audubon’s birds of america. successful museum installations need not always require huge expenditures for blockbuster attractions like the field museum’s $8-million t-rex, “sue,” the most expensive fossil in the world (the conspicuous cost being the real attraction). i remember that the second-best thing about the academy of natural sciences, back in the 70s, was something called the “trading post.” it was a large display counter full of rocks, fossils, and bones. kids could bring in specimens from their own collections and trade them for something new. i once brought in a box of ordinary seashells from the jersey shore and exchanged them for two skulls: a cat and a rabbit, as i recall. the trading post always gave kids the better end of the bargain, and it kept me exploring the creeks and vacant lots in my neighborhood, discovering that nature even existed inside the city. (those specimens are still in my cabinets, and my daughters are starting to add their own findings to the collection.) there are also a few museums that have been preserved by benign neglect, such as the wagner free institute of science, also in philadelphia, and the harvard museum of natural history. and, i think, foremost in the united states, the american museum of natural history in new york has preserved, expanded, and updated itself without sacrificing too much of its history and grandeur. in the american museum, for example, the curators took the risk of having their enormous barosaurus rear up, with its head 50 feet in the air, defending its young from an advancing allosaurus. set amid the marble columns of roosevelt memorial hall, the display is awe-inspiring, perhaps the greatest mounted dinosaur in the world. the museum’s barosaurus is probably bad science, but it is also an important work of public art that expresses the obligations of one generation to another in a medium that a child can appreciate as well as an adult. natural-history museums are not just about science. why couldn’t the academy in philadelphia leave dinosaur hall alone? were the memories associated with that setting not worth anything to the curators? no doubt for the hard pressed natural-history museum, an alliance between science and business — i.e., entertainment, tourism, and merchandising — seems more sustainable than the old linkage between science and the humanities — i.e., art, history, and even religion, and their combined power to cultivate wonder and imagination. on the other hand, i do admire the efforts of many natural-history museums — in particular, the american museum in new york and the smithsonian institution’s national museum of natural history in washington — to challenge their visitors, to stand up against the pressure to expunge evolution, and to defend the ideas that led to their founding. if museums could keep in the foreground their complex, contentious, and interdisciplinary histories — while avoiding the tendency to turn themselves into theme parks and shopping malls — they might rediscover a way to honor the past and embrace the complexity of science as a social institution in a manner that respects the intelligence of visitors, old and young, from every kind of background. in the process, they might make some political enemies, jeopardize some corporate donations, and sell fewer plush toys. they might also demand more from their current audience of captive schoolchildren. and that might be a good thing, if they aren’t bankrupted in the process. from the perspective of a long-time lover of natural history, it’s a risk worth taking. 176 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 commentaries iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 176 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 247natural history research reports pitvipers in the sea envisioning how terrestrial vertebrates could invade the sea is difficult, and little is known about the transitional evolutionary processes that produce secondarily marine animals. the utilization of marine resources in the intertidal zone is likely to be an important first step for invasion. lillywhite et al. (2008. bioscience 58:947–955) described marine scavenging by the florida cottonmouths (agkistrodon piscivorus conanti) that inhabit gulf coast islands. these snakes principally consume dead fish that are dropped from colonial nesting bird rookeries, but they also scavenge beaches for intertidal carrion, consuming dead fish and marine plants, and occasionally enter seawater. thus, allochthonous marine productivity supports the insular cottonmouth population through two pathways, and one of these pathways connects the snakes directly to the sea. the trophic ecology and behaviors of this unusual snake population suggest a requisite evolutionary scenario for the successful transition of vertebrates from a terrestrial to a marine existence. female promiscuity insures against nest failure female bibron‘s toadlets (pseudophryne bibronii) distribute their eggs between the nests of as many as eight different males. such sequential polyandry may have evolved as an insurance mechanism to reduce the risk of choosing a mate that is infertile, closely related, genetically inferior, or genetically incompatible, but polyandry also might insure against nest failure in unpredictable environments. most animals are oviparous, and in species where males provide nest sites with substantial and unpredictable variations in quality, polyandrous females might insure offspring success by distributing their eggs across multiple nests. byrne and keogh (2008. proceedings of the royal society b biological sciences 276: 115–120) tested this hypothesis in a wild population of an australian terrestrial toadlet, a polyandrous species in which males construct nests and remain with broods. the authors found that females partitioned their eggs across the nests of two to eight males and that more polyandrous females gained a significant increase in mean offspring survivorship. these results provide evidence for the most extreme case of sequential polyandry yet discovered in a vertebrate and also suggest that insurance against nest failure might favor the evolution of polyandry. the authors proposed that insurance against nest failure might be widespread among oviparous taxa and might provide an important explanation for the prevalence of sequential polyandry in nature. a 100-million year-old gecko preserved in amber arnoldi and poinar (2008. zootaxa 1847: 62–68) described a new genus and species of gecko from a posterior lower limb and foot and a partial tail preserved in lower cretaceous amber from myanmar that is 97–110 million years old. it appears to be the oldest unequivocal fossil gecko, predating fragmentary skeletal remains from the upper cretaceous and being 43–56 million years older than yanatarogecko from the lower eocene, previously the oldest known gecko preserved in amber. it also provides firm evidence that gekkotans and possibly gekkonids were in asia at this time. the myanmar specimen shows that the distinctive foot proportions and sophisticated adhesive mechanism involving pads on the toes with transverse lamellae, probably bearing numerous hairlike setae found in many modern geckos, had already evolved around 100 million years ago. the specimen is very small, even compared with juveniles of the smallest living geckos. however, the high numbers of lamellae on its toe pads suggest it is from a juvenile of a species with relatively large adult body size. chuckwallas in metropolitan phoenix understanding the responses of reptilian populations to habitat fragmentation and degradation due to urbanization has generated considerable interest. sullivan and sullivan (2008. herpetological conservation and biology 3:149–154) surveyed populations of the common chuckwalla (sauromalus ater) in preserves of the phoenix mountains and adjacent areas near the phoenix metropolitan region during the spring of 2008. fecal dropping counts were used to assess the current populations in relation to those sampled in 1995. the results revealed a strong correlation between estimates gathered in 1995 and 2008. additionally, one intensively sampled site established that, although estimates could vary somewhat in relation to the number of individuals conducting n a t u r a l h i s t o r y r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s female bibron‘s toadlets (pseudophryne bibronii) distribute their eggs between the nests of up to eight different males. w ik ip ed ia an amber fossil, from 97–110 million years ago in the tropical forests of myanmar, contained the foot and partial tail of the world’s oldest known gecko: cretaceogekko burmae, named for its age (cretaceous) and origin (burma is the traditional name for myanmar). o r eg o n s ta te u n iv er si ty florida cottonmouths (agkistrodon piscivorus conanti) on gulf coast islands feed on dead fish dropped from colonial nesting bird rookeries and scavenged intertidal carrion, and occasionally enter seawater. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h the survey, they were stable over a 13year period. the survey results suggest that common chuckwalla populations are stable in these island preserves in a sea of urban development. hurricane katrina and mississippi turtles the yellow-blotched sawback (graptemys flavimaculata) is a riverine turtle that is endemic to the pascagoula river system of southern mississippi. population declines led to federal listing as a threatened species in 1991, with the most robust population inhabiting the lower pascagoula river near vancleave (~24 river km from the pascagoula river mouth). selmani and qualls (2008. herpetological conservation and biology 3:224–230) conducted a mark-resight survey of this population during the spring and summer of 2005–2006. on 29 august 2005, hurricane katrina entered the mississippi gulf coast, the location of their study site. on 13 october 2005, they conducted a onehour preliminary visual survey by boat through the study area and identified eight individuals that had been marked prior to katrina’s landfall, demonstrating that at least some of the 49 previously marked individuals remained in the study area. in october 2005–2006, the authors conducted more extensive markresight surveys within the same section of river. the population estimate for 2006 was significantly lower than the 2005 population estimate for the same stretch of river, suggesting that numbers substantially decreased during the year following the hurricane. of the plausible explanations for this pattern, the available evidence most strongly supports a real decline in population, presumably due to the long-term impact of hurricane katrina. possible reasons for such a long-term effect include hurricane induced saltwater intrusion and low levels of dissolved oxygen with direct effects on individuals or indirect effects on the prey populations (e.g., gastropods and other aquatic macroinvertebrates). 248 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 natural history research reports california tiger salamander moves closer to protection the california state appeals court ruled that the california fish and game commission must consider a petition to list the california tiger salamander (ambystoma californiense) as an endangered species under the california endangered species act. in a decision with potential implications for other poorly monitored species, the court ruled that the fish and game commission must consider a listing petition if the information would “lead a reasonable person to conclude there is a substantial possibility” that the species could be listed. “the fish and game commission ignored the multitude of known threats to the tiger salamander and dismissed the petition, falsely claiming it did not contain all of the data necessary to prove the salamander population may deserve protection,” said brian nowicki of the center for biological diversity. “today’s ruling should set the listing process back on the right track and ultimately result in the tiger salamander getting the stateprotected status it deserves.” the california tiger salamander is now set to advance to the status of candidate for state listing. the santa barbara county salamander population has been listed as endangered under the federal endangered species act since 2000, as has the sonoma county population since 2003. the central california population has been federally listed as threatened since 2004. the california tiger salamander depends on ephemeral vernal pools for breeding, but in recent decades, 95% of california’s vernal pools have already been lost, and at least 75% of the salamander’s habitat throughout the state has been eliminated. in sonoma county, 95% of the fragmented and minimal remaining salamander habitat is threatened by development; the santa barbara population also is on the verge of extinction. n e w s b r i e f s common chuckwalla (sauromalus ater) populations appear to be stable in islands of suitable habitat in a “sea” of urban development. population sizes of yellow-blotched sawbacks (graptemys flavimaculata) dropped during the year following hurricane katrina, probably due to saltwater intrusions and low dissolved oxygen levels affecting turtles directly or their prey. b il l lo v e the california state appeals court ruled that the california fish and game commission must consider a petition to list the california tiger salamander (ambystoma californiense) as an endangered species under the california endangered species act. g a r y n a fi s iguana b&w text editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor bloomfield, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx jackie forbus assistant editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and amphibians and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 institutional u.s. subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international membership (including canada) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55.00 international institutional subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $60.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. www.ircf.org join online at: www.ircf.org membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact sandy at 408-270-3886, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. copyright © 2008 by the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. all rights reserved. no part of this journal may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without the publisher’s written permission. iguana, conservation, natural history, and husbandry of reptiles (issn 1098-6324) is published quarterly by the international reptile conservation foundation, a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca. periodical postage paid at san jose, ca. editors’ remarks changes are coming to iguana, some of them big and most of them in response to comments from you. for one thing, our name will be changing in 2009! to better reflect the ircf statement of purpose (see below), the name of the journal will become conservation and natural history of reptiles. although many of our regular features will continue, a new section called “conservation alert” begins with the issue you are now holding. the exquisite photographs we feature will continue — in this issue, photographs by michael kern grace the centerfold and back cover. in addition, because many of you who responded to our recent questionnaire indicated that more color photographs would enhance the journal, we are pleased to announce that, beginning with the first issue of 2009, we will feature color throughout. finally, we will be expanding our focus to include more information about amphibians. we hope you appreciate these changes. please don’t wait until we send another questionnaire to let us know how you feel about our efforts, to suggest improvements, and — as always — to provide content that educates, entertains, and promotes the study and conservation of reptiles and amphibians and their habitats. the editors of iguana ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 59newsbriefs pseudoscience used to deny protection for salamanders the u.s. fish and wildlife service determined that siskiyou mountains (plethodon stormi) and scott bar (p. asupak) salamanders do not warrant protection under the endangered species act. the finding relies heavily on studies conducted by timber products company, a major regional landowner who stands to profit from a lack of habitat-based logging restrictions, to argue that the salamanders do not need old-growth forests to survive. “the decision to deny the siskiyou mountains and scott bar salamanders protection flies in the face of sound science,” stated noah greenwald, conservation biologist with the center for biological diversity. “the bush administration has become infamous for suppressing science to support resource extraction and this decision is no exception.” the finding admits that the only peer-reviewed science on the habitat requirements of the salamanders found that they were closely associated with old-growth forests. indeed, the study conducted by forest service researchers concluded: “… mature to late-seral-forest attributes provide optimal habitat for the siskiyou mountains salamander” and “… stands of mature and older forests evenly distributed and interconnected across the geographical range of this species would likely best insure its long-term viability.” yet in their finding, fish and wildlife repeatedly discounted these conclusions by relying on unpublished timber industry studies to conclude that the salamanders “persist in a wide variety of habitat conditions.” they rely on these studies despite acknowledging that they were not based on systematic unbiased sampling, were never peerreviewed, and were conducted by the timber industry. this kind of selective reliance on science has become all too characteristic of the agency under the bush administration. “the bush administration has slammed the door on protection of endangered species,” said joseph vaile, campaign director for klamathsiskiyou wildlands center. “the siskiyou mountains and scott bar salamanders need the safety net of the endangered species act to survive.” to date, the bush administration has protected just 58 species, which is the fewest number in the history of the endangered species act, and hardly compares to the 522 species protected under the clinton administration or 231 protected under bush sr.’s administration. the administration has not listed a single species for 625 days — by far the longest drought in the history of the act — and has denied or delayed protection for literally hundreds of imperiled species, including these two salamanders. denial of protection for these rare salamanders comes at a time when federal land managers and the state of california are weakening protections. the forest service has eliminated the survey and manage program, which required surveys and protection for the salamanders, the bureau of land management is in the process of revising their land management plans for western oregon to eliminate reserves created by the northwest forest plan, and the california fish and wildlife commission is considering removing protection for the salamanders, which are currently listed as threatened species under the california endangered species act. “we’re just beginning to understand these unique salamanders that breathe through their skin and primarily live under the cover of old-growth forests,” stated scott greacen, public lands coordinator for the environmental protection information center. “yet, despite the fact that protections for the salamanders are highly uncertain, fish and wildlife has refused to even conduct a status review to determine if federal protection is necessary.” n e w s b r i e f s the u.s. fish and wildlife service determined that the scott bar salamander (p. asupak) does not warrant protection under the endangered species act. a la n b a r r o n additional background information the endangered species act is one of america’s most important environmental laws, providing a safety net for wildlife, fish, and plants that are on the brink of extinction. the law requires the u.s. fish and wildlife service to protect the places these species call home, and to use the most rigorous science available when making management decisions. the endangered species act has prevented the extinction of the american bald eagle, coho salmon, the gray wolf, and hundreds of other animals and plants. endangered species act protections for the salamanders are necessary, in part, because the administration has eliminated other environmental safeguards. the salamanders were formerly protected under a provision of the northwest forest plan called the “survey and manage” program, which required the forest service and blm to conduct surveys for the salamander and protect its habitat. the bush administration eliminated the survey and manage program on 23 march 2004 to expedite logging of old-growth forest. hundreds of northwestern wildlife species are threatened by the administration’s jettisoning of survey and manage protections (see www.endangeredearth.org/library/nwfp-saving-the-pieces.pdf). the survey and manage program has been reinstated by court order, but the bush administration is in the process of conducting the necessary environmental review to again eliminate the important protections provided by the program. 60 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 newsbriefs st. catherine’s island sea turtle program the st. catherine’s island sea turtle program (scistp) is dedicated to the study of the interactions of coastal geology, biology, and human development on the nesting ecology of loggerhead sea turtles (caretta caretta). the website (created in 1995, revised in 2007) presents an overview of marine turtle nesting habitat and ecology, classification, and reading of georgia loggerhead nests, morphology of sea turtle nests deposited in georgia, protocols used in nest conservation by the scistp, a summary of traces and trace fossils left by nesting loggerhead sea turtles, including a description of the world’s only described fossilized sea turtle nest from the cretaceous of colorado, and models, activities, and downloadable products for science education based on sea turtle conservation. created in 1990, the program contributes to better understanding and management of loggerhead sea turtle nests in georgia through “conservation, research, and education.” for more information, visit the web site at www.scistp.org. natural areas protected in the british virgin islands the system plan for the bvi has passed cabinet review and will be approved at the next convenient sitting of the house of assembly. a formal announcement will be made by the government in the near future. the document provides the context and sets aside a number of natural areas for protection throughout the bvi. all areas as proposed in the document (marine and terrestrial) were approved. its ultimate passage in the house of assembly will allow for the expansion of the network of protected areas for the natural and economic benefit of virgin islanders. the national trust congratulates and expresses a heartfelt thanks to all who in some way aided in assessing areas and subsequently mapping them, collaborating in various meetings with government and the public, who drafted or revised the multiple versions of the document, who lobbied for its passage and met with various officials, and who provided support for the 27 years it took to pass the system plan. this is a major achievement of which we should be proud and which we should celebrate. rare victory for madagascar tortoises the ploughshare tortoise (geochelone yniphora) is the rarest tortoise in the world. conservationists are celebrating a double victory over tortoise smugglers in madagascar. earlier this month, a nigerian man was arrested with 300 tortoises and another 20 have been returned to their habitat after being seized on a neighboring island. but campaigners’ relief might not last long. the live animal trade, particularly in reptiles, is big business. the island’s unique wildlife also attracts financial interest. the haul of 300 seized from a house after a tip-off may be the largest in the world, conservationists say. collectors could have netted as much as $200,000 (£100,000) for them in exotic pet markets. eight of the tortoises saved were of the rarest species in the world. conservationists believe that only about 1,000 ploughshare tortoises (geochelone yniphora) remain. they live in a small area of northwestern madagascar, and the loss of even a small number would be devastating. according to the durrell wildlife conservation trust, the ploughshare will be extinct within 10 years if they continue to disappear at the current rate. it is a global trade. the nigerian man, who faces up to 10 years if convicted, was found with three passports with three different names from three different countries. the reptiles could have been bound for rare animal markets in bangkok, thailand. although tortoises are protected, some species are still eaten in parts of the country, but the real risk is from international collectors. to buy a tortoise to eat might cost $10 (£5). to buy one as a pet might cost you $10,000 (£5,000). “why do people do it? if you’re talking about malagasy people, they are poor, so they can easily be attracted by big bucks from the smugglers,” says hasina randriamanampisoa of the durrell wildlife trust. “as far as foreigners are concerned, well i can imagine, some people are so rich they just want something rare in their possession.” felicitee rejo fienena, who works for the government in southern madagascar, wants more to be done to protect wildlife. “if buyers continue to exist on the international market, then collectors will continue to exist in madagascar,” she says. the game of cat-and-mouse between collectors and the authorities continues. people trying to protect the tortoises here are wary of advertising the sheer value of the trade for fear of attracting even more fortune hunters to the island. on the other hand, if they do not draw attention to the threat, the desirability of certain species may lead to their extinction. jonny hogg bbc news, antananarivo the st. catherine’s island sea turtle program (scistp) is dedicated to the study of the interactions of coastal geology, biology, and human development on the nesting ecology of loggerhead sea turtles (caretta caretta). sc is tp ploughshare tortoises (geochelone yniphora) are among the rarest tortoises in the world, with an estimated 1,000 remaining. m ic h a el o g le iguana b&w text 154 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 mitchell and prince dominican racers (alsophis antillensis sibonius) may use either active foraging or sit-and-wait foraging strategies. r o b er t po w el l iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 154 alsophis antillensis is a diurnally active snake found on the islands of guadeloupe, monserrat, and dominica in the lesser antilles. the subspecies a. antillensis sibonius is found on dominica, the most southerly of the three islands, where it is widely distributed, particularly in dry forests on the leeward slopes and coast (malhotra and thorpe 1999). buteo platypterus (broad winged hawk) is a small (ca. 34–45 cm tall), forest-dwelling hawk found throughout eastern north america, northern south america, and the caribbean basin, where it feeds on a wide variety of small vertebrates (birdlife international 2004). while radio-tracking iguana delicatissima on dominica in june 2008, we encountered a b. platypterus struggling on the forest floor in the batali river valley. upon closer inspection, we discovered a large a. antillensis sibonius defensively constricting the bird’s neck, right leg, and right wing. after several minutes of watching, the hawk’s struggles became weaker and it could no longer stand. in an attempt to observe the head of the snake, a predation attempt gone awry: defensive constriction of a predator by a dominican racer adam mitchell1 and lyndon prince2 124 london road, widley, portsmouth, hampshire, u.k., po7 5bs (adammitchell23@hotmail.com) 2salisbury village, commonwealth of dominica, west indies iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 155dominican racers � a large alsophis antillensis sibonius defensively constricting the neck, right leg, and right wing of a young broad winged hawk (buteo platypterus). a d a m m it c h el l iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 155 which was hidden under the litter, we moved a leaf and accidentally startled the alsophis, which struck at us several times before releasing the hawk and moving into the litter, revealing a superficial head wound as it fled. after release, the hawk stumbled on an apparently numbed right leg and seemed unable to flex its right wing; upon returning to the site approximately three hours later, however, we observed the bird, seemingly unharmed, flying between trees. acknowledgements we thank bob powell and bob henderson for providing comments on this note. this observation was made while conducting research on iguana delicatissima in dominica. that project is funded through the center for conservation and research for endangered species (cres) at the zoological society of san diego. literature cited birdlife international 2004. buteo platypterus. in: iucn 2007. 2007 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. malhotra, a. and r.s. thorpe. 1999. reptiles & amphibians of the eastern caribbean. macmillan education, ltd., oxford and london, uk. normally diurnal west indian anoles (polychrotidae: anolis) are known to exploit insects attracted to artificial lights well into the night (e.g., perry and fisher 2006, henderson and powell 2009). secondary exploitation of nocturnal anoles by a typically diurnal predator, the puerto rican racer (alsophis portoricensis), has been reported on hotel grounds on guana island, british virgin islands (perry and lazell 2000). at 1915 h (transition to full dark) on 18 june 2008, we observed a male dominican racer (alsophis antillensis sibonius; svl 525 mm, tail 247 mm) in a foraging position at the base of a light frequently used by a nocturnally active dominican anole (anolis oculatus). the observation occurred on the grounds of the sunset bay club at batali beach, on the leeward coast of dominica, lesser antilles. based on our experiences, exploitation of the night-light niche has become commonplace among west indian anoles associated with urban areas and other situations in which artificial lighting is prevalent at night (e.g., hotels, resorts). however, both situations in which snakes have been observed exploiting the night-light niche (guana island, batali beach) have been “snake-friendly”; that is, guests and personnel of the hotels are instructed not to harm snakes that enter areas frequented by humans. under more typical circumstances (i.e., where snakes would be killed or, at least, removed from the area), we doubt that snakes would have the opportunity to learn to exploit this potentially productive trophic niche. acknowledgements marcella and roger dutrieux cools, owners of the sunset bay club tolerated our eccentricities. mr. arlington james, forest officer, forestry, wildlife, and parks division, ministry of 156 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 powell and henderson a dominican anole (anolis oculatus) exploiting the night-light niche on the grounds of the sunset bay club at batali beach, dominica. r o b er t po w el l exploitation of the night-light niche by a dominican racer robert powell1 and robert w. henderson2 1department of biology, avila university, kansas city, mo 64145, usa (robert.powell@avila.edu) 2section of vertebrate zoology, milwaukee public museum, milwaukee, wi 53233, usa (henderson@mpm.edu) � iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 156 iguana, june 2008 m a r k h a ze l 86 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 hamilton and conrad most lampropeltis pyromelana activity occurred under cloud cover or topographic shade. for such a strikingly colored animal, l. pyromelana can be surprisingly cryptic. the great basin is north america’s largest desert, spanning an area of 190,000 square miles. located in the rain shadow of the sierra nevada, the region is arid, mountainous, and cold, with most precipitation falling as snow. climate varies dramatically, and higher elevations are cooler and wetter than lower elevations. such climactic variability produces vegetative complexity. plant communities from valley floor to mountain peak include salt desert, sagebrush, piñon and juniper, mountain mahogany, mixed conifer, riparian, and alpine vegetation. as the most remote region of the contiguous united states, only three cities in the great basin have populations over 100,000. these cities, salt lake, reno, and provo are located on the region’s eastern and western fringes. due to the vast area, vegetative and topographic complexity, and extreme remoteness, great basin reptilian communities have historically received little attention (but see linsdale 1940, tanner 1941, hirth et al. 1969, parker and brown 1974a, 1974b, brown and parker 1982, setser et al. 2002). voucher specimens are sparsely distributed throughout the great basin and entire mountain ranges and valleys lack collection data. as a consequence, reptilian distributions, natural history and ecology are poorly understood. this is especially true of secretive species such as the sonoran mountain kingsnake (lampropeltis pyromelana). first documented from the central great basin in eastern nevada in 1932 (linsdale 1940), l. pyromelana has since been considered rare due to the low frequency of observations, isolated populations, and the location of nevada on the extreme northwestern limit of the species’ distribution (see stebbins 2003 and hubbs 2004 for distribution information). fewer than ten museum specimens are known from nevada, and relatively little ecological information on its status has accrued since its first documentation in the state. great basin populations are isolated on mesic mountain ranges separated by xeric valleys. these montane habitats are relicts of cooler and wetter pleistocene climates, which allowed the expansion of woodlands and forests across great basin valleys. populations expanded under these favorable conditions. as climates became warmer and drier during the holocene, suitable habitat contracted, isolating l. pyromelana to its present mountain chain distribution (grayson 1993; tanner and cox 1981). research needs for l. pyromelana in nevada include basic natural history information such as distribution, abundance, and habitat requirements. the nevada department of wildlife and great basin national park surveyed cooperatively to address these data gaps. the primary objectives of these surveys were to document the natural history and ecology of great basin reptilian communities, with a particular focus on l. pyromelana. methods study site the snake range is the largest mountain range in the central great basin. located in eastern nevada, the southern portion of the range is encompassed by great basin national park (grba). elevations range from 1,585 m in snake valley to 3,982 m at the summit of wheeler peak. the park is mountainous and dissected by multiple deep canyons. snowmelt-fed perennial streams support a diverse assemblage of plant and animal communities, resulting in ideal habitat for l. pyromelana. surveys surveys occurred in may of 2006 and 2007. surveyors included a diverse mix of professional biologists and volunteers, includthe sonoran mountain kingsnake (lampropeltis pyromelana) in the great basin bryan hamilton1 and polly conrad2 1great basin national park, 100 great basin national park, baker nv 89311 (bryan_hamiton@nps.gov) 2nevada department of wildlife, 4747 vegas drive, las vegas nv 89108 photographs by the authors unless otherwise indicated. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 87sonoran mountain kingsnake � reptilian distributions, natural history, and ecology are poorly understood for many species in the great basin. this is especially true of secretive species such as the sonoran mountain kingsnake (lampropeltis pyromelana). ing personnel from the national park service, nevada department of wildlife, southern nevada water authority, brigham young university, utah state university, utah herpetological society, and u.s. geological survey. to maximize reptilian encounters and increase the probability of encountering l. pyromelana, we used nonrandom, targeted surveys, which are superior to randomized methods in documenting secretive or rare species and maximizing species richness (campbell and christman 1982, persons and nowak 2007). survey protocols followed the visual encounter surveys of scott (1994), and survey sites were exhaustively searched on the surface and under cover objects. to further maximize the likelihood of l. pyromelana encounters, survey locations were chosen based on historic localities, anecdotal reports, and sight records. habitats surveyed included canyons, riparian areas, rocky uplands, and talus. reptilian diversity search effort, weather conditions, survey location, and reptilian observations were documented. to permanently document reptilian diversity, a single physical voucher specimen of each reptilian species per location was collected and preserved according to simmons (2002). for l. pyromelana, photographs and tissues rather than physical specimens were collected. lampropeltis pyromelana activity to document the seasonal activity pattern of l. pyromelana in the great basin, we compiled vouchers, observations, and anecdotal reports from the range of the subspecies l. p. infralabialis (tanner 1953), an area that includes nevada, utah, and northern arizona. data were taken from museum searches, anecdotal reports, and sight records from the period of 1932–2007 and included observations from these surveys. natural history each lampropeltis pyromelana was photographed, measured, weighed, sexed via probing, and uniquely marked by ventral scale clipping (brown and parker 1976). location, ambient temperature, and substrate temperature were recorded and a tissue sample collected. habitat characteristics such as geomorphology, surface water, vegetation, elevation, and substrate were recorded at capture sites. all l. pyromelana were subsequently released at their exact capture site. results reptilian diversity we surveyed six localities during may of 2006 and 2007. search effort over both years totaled 424 person hours. a total of 366 88 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 hamilton and conrad the great basin, snake range, and great basin national park. the study site encompassed the entire snake range and included great basin national park. the boundary of the great basin is defined biologically by contiguous sagebrush plant communities (grayson 1993). iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 89sonoran mountain kingsnake individuals of 12 species were observed in the course of the surveys and 59 voucher specimens were collected. lizard diversity exhibited a typical right-skewed pattern with two abundant species (sceloporus occidentalis and s. graciosus), an intermediately abundant species (plestiodon skiltonianus), and three rare species (uta stansburiana, aspidoscelis tigris, crotaphytus bicinctores). snake diversity was more uniform. one species (thamnophis elegans) was abundant, four (crotalus oreganus, coluber taeniatus, lampropeltis pyromelana, pituophis catenifer) were of intermediate abundance, and one (hypsiglena chlorophaea) was rare. lampropeltis pyromelana activity fifty-three l. pyromelana voucher specimens and observations were tallied, which included 10 from this project. activity occurred from april through october, peaked during may and june, and rose again slightly in august. these results suggest that the optimal survey window for l. pyromelana surface activity in the great basin is during may and june, a typical activity pattern for reptiles in the great basin (fautin 1946, shelford 1963), and a pattern partially explained by regional climate. in the great basin, most precipitation falls during the winter as snow (trimble 1989). spring snowmelt increases available soil moisture and plant production peaks in the spring, concurrent with weather conditions favorable for reptilian surface activity. as available soil moisture is depleted in the early summer, plant production ceases and little precipitation is available to replenish soil moisture. during the summer, diurnal weather conditions are also generally too hot and dry for reptilian surface activity until the arrival of monsoonal moisture, which brings cooler temperatures in august. we suggest the august activity spike is due to the influence of a summer monsoon rain regime. natural history ten l. pyromelana were documented during our surveys, nine males and one female, which suggested a male-biased sex ratio; (χ2 = 3.8, d.f. = 1, p = 0.051). male-biased sex ratios are commonly observed in snake populations due to sampling bias, detectability differences, differential sex ratios at birth, and differential survival (burger and zappalorti 1988, iverson 1990, most lampropeltis pyromelana surface activity occurred at relatively low ambient temperatures, high humidity, and under cloud cover. jo h n b . f r ee lizard diversity for visual encounter surveys in the snake range during 2006 and 2007. snake diversity for visual encounter surveys in the snake range during 2006 and 2007. monthly observations of lampropeltis pyromelana infralabialis. data are from voucher specimens and sight records from nevada, utah, and northern arizona from 1932 to 2007 and include data from the present surveys. madsen and shine 1992, shine and bull 1977). male l. pyromelana may be more detectable than females due to more frequent movements and surface activity while searching for mates or due to earlier emergence from hibernation than females. alternatively, survival of l. pyromelana may be higher in males than females due to higher costs associated with reproduction in females. mean svl was 64.8 cm and mean mass was 96.6 grams (n = 10), sizes within the range reported by stebbins (2003) and hubbs (2004). our surveys confirmed a relationship between l. pyromelana surface activity and weather (hubbs 2004). activity was observed at relatively low ambient temperatures (mean = 22.4 ºc, n = 10), high humidity (mean = 19.4%), and high cloud cover (mean = 39%). cloud cover seemed to be a key variable associated with surface activity. cloud cover filters direct sunlight, lowers substrate temperatures, and is associated with higher humidity. although four l. pyromelana were observed under conditions of zero cloud cover, all snakes were shielded from direct sunlight by topographic shade. searching for l. pyromelana in shaded canyons in the morning or evening is a search strategy often employed successfully in arizona (r. legere, pers. comm.). topographic shade mimics cloud cover by lowering substrate temperature and providing favorable thermal conditions for surface activity. lampropeltis pyromelana was observed at intermediate elevations (mean = 6,354 ft), in the lower reaches of canyons, and utilized three major habitat types: piñon/juniper woodland, riparian, and mixed sagebrush shrubland. no specific plant species or combination of species was noted that would serve as an indicator of suitable l. pyromelana habitat. although not measured, the availability of cover, either in the form of vegetation, litter, or rocks appeared to be an important habitat component. lampropeltis pyromelana is only occasionally active on the surface due to its elongate body shape, high surface-to-volume ratio, and thin, porous skin. high cover and abundant refugia facilitate the semi-fossorial habits of l. pyromelana and provide suitable subsurface environmental conditions. lampropeltis pyromelana was generally found close to perennial water (mean distance =186 m) in association with riparian vegetation. one locality lacked surface water and riparian vegetation, but was characterized by more mesic upland vegetation such as skunkbrush (rhus trilobata) and squaw apple (peraphyllum ramosissimum). surface water often is considered an important component of the l. pyromelana habitat template (ernst and ernst 2003). however, many ectotherms are capable of completing their life cycle with minimal access to surface water provided that enough cover is present to provide access to suitable subsurface environmental conditions and food is relatively high in water content (congdon et al. 1982, gans 1979, greene 1997, karasov and martinez del rio 2007, meyer 1966, pianka and vitt 2003, pough 1980, rubio 1998, schmidtnielsen 1991). our observations of two l. pyromelana at a location lacking surface water suggest that, while surface water is not a requirement for nevada l. pyromelana, it is an important component of their habitat, as the other eight individuals were observed in close proximity to streams. we suggest that riparian vegetation provides the link between l. pyromelana and water. lampropeltis pyromelana was generally found in close proximity to riparian vegetation. riparian vegetation provides cover, moderates microclimate, and is more productive than uplands in providing a greater prey base (lizards and small mammals). although the exact details of the relationship between l. pyromelana and riparian areas remain unclear, a combination or interaction between factors such as surface water, prey base, cover, and microclimate are almost certainly responsible. conclusion prior to these surveys, fewer than ten l. pyromelana were documented from nevada. these surveys doubled that number, documented natural history and ecology of the species, and further documented reptilian diversity through collection of voucher specimens. partnerships facilitated these results. the partnership between nevada department of wildlife and great basin national park was critical in this effort, as were the efforts of the academic, professional, and amateur herpetologists who provided the bulk of the observations and data. although this is the largest dataset on nevada l. pyromelana, it is quite limited (10 observations over a two-year period). lampropeltis pyromelana is a sensitive species in great basin national park, a species of conservation priority in nevada’s wildlife actions plan, and is protected from collection in 90 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 hamilton and conrad lampropeltis pyromelana habitat in the snake range varied from open sagebrush shrubland to piñon/juniper woodland. habitats were generally close to perennial riparian vegetation and had high cover in the form of rocks or vegetation. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 91sonoran mountain kingsnake nevada. further surveys will be conducted. with continued data and voucher collection, the resolution of our understanding of reptilian communities in the great basin continues to improve. for more information on surveying, please contact the authors. acknowledgements surveyors who provided much of the data for this work: aaron ambose, gretchen baker, joann blalack, rosaleen conrad, neal darby, alan de quieroz, brian eagar, jenny hamilton, mandy harmon, stephanie harris, mark hazel, meg horner, john hurst, rayjean layland, neil marchington, nichole marchington, dan mulcahy, erika nowak, ryan o’donnell, ben roberts, travis smith, harry sweet, dave syzdek, shawn thomas, ryan thomas, fran thompson, jen ward, becky williams, and jason williams. literature cited brown, w.s. and w.s. parker. 1976. a ventral scale clipping system for permanently marking snakes (reptilia, serpentes). journal of herpetology 10:247–249. brown, w.s. and w.s. parker. 1982. niche dimensions and resource partitioning in a great basin snake community. in: n.j. scott (ed.), herpetological communities. wildlife research report #13. u.s. fish and wildlife service, washington, d.c. burger, j. and r.t. zappalorti. 1988. effects of incubation temperature on sex ratios in pine snakes: differential vulnerability of males and females. the american naturalist 132:492–505. campbell, h.w. and s.p. christman. 1982. field techniques for herpetofaunal community analysis, pp. 193–200. in: n.j. scott (ed.), herpetological communities. wildlife research report #13. u.s. fish and wildlife service, washington, d.c. congdon, j.d., l.j. vitt, r.c.v. sels, and r.d. ohmart. 1982. the ecological significance of water flux rates in arboreal desert lizards of the genus urosaurus. physiological zoology 55:317–322. ernst, c.h. and e.m. ernst. 2003. snakes of the united states and canada. smithsonian books, washington and london. fautin, r.w. 1946. biotic communities of the northern desert shrub biome in western utah. ecological monographs 16:251–310. gans, c. 1979. momentarily excessive construction as the basis for protoadaptation. evolution 33:227–233. grayson, d.k. 1993. the desert’s past. smithsonian institution press, washington and london. greene, h.w. 1997. snakes: the evolution of mystery in nature. university of california press, berkeley, los angeles, london. hirth, h.f., r.c. pendleton, a.c. king, and t.r. downard. 1969. dispersal of snakes from a hibernaculum in northwestern utah. ecology 50:332–339. hubbs, b. 2004. mountain kings: a collective history of california, sonoran, durango, and queretato mountain kingsnakes. tricolor books, tempe, arizona. iverson, j.b. 1990. sex ratios in snakes: a cautionary note. copeia 1990:571–573. karasov, w.h. and c. martinez del rio. 2007. physiological ecology. princeton university press, princeton, new jersey. linsdale, j.m. 1940. amphibians and reptiles in nevada. proceedings of the american academy of arts and sciences 73:197–257. madsen, t. and r. shine. 1992. sexual competition among brothers may influence offspring sex ratio in snakes. evolution 46:1549–1552. meyer, d.e. 1966. drinking habits in the earless lizard, holbrookia maculata, and in two species of horned lizards (phrynosoma). copeia 1966:126–128. parker, w.s. and w.s. brown. 1974a. mortality and weight changes of great basin rattlesnakes (crotalus viridis) at a hibernaculum in northern utah. herpetologica 30:234–239. parker, w.s. and w.s. brown. 1974b. notes on the ecology of regal ringneck snakes (diadophis punctatus regalis) in northern utah. journal of herpetology 8:262–263. persons, t.b. and e.m. nowak. 2007. inventory of amphibians and reptiles at mojave national preserve. unpublished u.s. geological service report: 1–73. pianka, e. and l.j. vitt. 2003. lizards: windows to the evolution of diversity. university of california press, berkeley, los angeles, london. pough, f.h. 1980. the advantages of ectothermy for tetrapods. the american naturalist 115:92–112. rubio, m. 1998. rattlesnake: portrait of a predator. smithsonian institution press, washington, d.c. schmidt-nielsen, k. 1991. animal physiology: adaptation and environment. cambridge university press, new york. scott, n.j. 1994. complete species inventories, pp. 78–84. in: w.r. heyer, m.a. donnelly, r.w. mcdiarmid, l.c. hayek, and m.s. foster (eds.), measuring and monitoring biodiversity: standard methods for amphibians. smithsonian institution press, washington, d.c. setser, k., j.m. meik, and d.g. mulcahy. 2002. herpetofauna of the southern snake range of nevada and surrounding valleys. western north american naturalist 62:234–239. shelford, v.e. 1963. the ecology of north america. university of illinois press, urbana. shine, r. and j.j. bull. 1977. skewed sex ratios in snakes. copeia 1977:228–234. simmons, j.e. 2002. herpetological collecting and collections management. herpetological circular 31:1–153. stebbins, r.c. 2003. a field guide to western reptiles and amphibians. houghton mifflin company, boston, new york. tanner, w.w. 1941. a study of the variation on the less common snakes of utah. great basin naturalist 2:16–28. tanner, w.w. 1953. a study of taxonomy and phylogeny of lampropeltis pyromelana cope. the great basin naturalist 13:47–66. tanner, w.w. and d.c. cox. 1981. reproduction in the snake lampropeltis pyromelana. great basin naturalist 41:314–316. trimble, s. 1989. the sagebrush ocean: a natural history of the great basin. university of nevada press, reno and las vegas. cooperative surveys by great basin national park and ndow brought together a diverse mix of surveyors from volunteers to academic and agency biologists. these cooperative efforts doubled the available information on lampropeltis pyromelana in nevada. iguana, june 2008 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 105commentary last week in alabama, i took my friend andrew on a field trip. he wanted to catch a snake and other reptiles and amphibians, so we turned over logs in the forest, waded up streams, and slogged along the shorelines of lakes. among our captures were slimy salamanders, green anoles, fence lizards, and cricket frogs. we even caught a large yellow-bellied watersnake. anyone who spends time looking for these creatures in the southeast would eventually find them also, as all are relatively common in many areas. but i do not take these species for granted. just because they are prevalent today gives no guarantee for the future. now-extinct plants and animals have included some that were once very abundant. revisiting the passenger pigeon saga is always a good way to make us realize we should appreciate and protect what we have. early in the 20th century the last surviving passenger pigeon — a species claimed by some to have occurred in greater numbers than any other bird or mammal for which we have records — died in captivity. numbers offered little protection from extinction, and environmental protection laws came too late to help. passenger pigeons looked similar to mourning doves, but one distinction, communal nesting, ultimately led to their downfall as a result of uncontrolled hunting by humans. the abundance of passenger pigeons was documented in many ways. john james audubon reported an enormous migrating flock in kentucky that was more than a mile wide, closely compact, and passed overhead during the daylight hours for three full days. he estimated that more than a billion birds were in the flock. the largest known nesting site for passenger pigeons was petoskey, michigan, where almost every tree limb had at least one nest. campsites were set up each year by hundreds of people who exploited the communal nesting area. in 1878, the nesting colony was 28 miles long and 4 miles wide. thousands, maybe millions, of pigeons were sold during the late 1800s. most passenger pigeons were used for food, but people also found other uses for them. more than 20,000 of the docile and cooperative birds were used as shooting gallery targets on the coney island midway. passenger pigeons, despite their millions, dwindled away over the years as the onslaught continued. everyone took the abundant and commonly seen birds for granted. one way to capture pigeons was to lure them to a wouldbe feeding spot with a decoy, a tame pigeon sitting on a stool. upon seeing the “stool pigeon,” passing flocks would land, only to be captured in a net trap. according to one authority, approximately 10 nettings of about 1,200 passenger pigeons each were made in a day, more than 80,000 being captured in some weeks. the actual toll was even greater when trapping occurred during the nesting season, because countless nestlings lost their parents and starved in the nest as a result. the extinction of the passenger pigeon is a commentary on a persistent and dangerous attitude of that era, the belief that we could exploit any natural system to the fullest, without regard for long-term sustainability. unfortunately, the attitude exists even today. the approach of squeezing everything we can out of natural areas for fast financial gain may be the most costly feature of free enterprise. the final payment may be far more costly than anyone anticipated. by the late 1800s, some people, including a few legislators, realized that americans had overextended their exploitation of the passenger pigeon. by the 1900s, laws were being passed to prevent wholesale killing and trapping of the once most common of birds. but as is true with many of today’s environmental laws, the rulings were passed too late, were not stringently enforced, and left too many loopholes. no one can be sure when and where the last passenger pigeon died in the wild. but the last known lonely passenger pigeon died in captivity on september 1, 1914, in the cincinnati zoo. the next time you hear a bullfrog, smell a wax myrtle, or see a tiger swallowtail butterfly, stop and appreciate it. although they are common today, let’s not let them become the passenger pigeons of tomorrow. let’s support protection of natural habitats. c o m m e n t a r y let’s not be complacent about the obvious1 j. whitfield gibbons savannah river ecology lab, aiken, south carolina 1 reprinted with permission by the author and partners in amphibian & reptile conservation (www.parcplace.org). iguana b&w text 56 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 prescribed fire and the herpetofauna of mississippi pine savanna few of us have not encountered smokey the bear and his anti-fire message over the years. research over the last few decades, however, consistently shows that fire is important to many ecosystems, and that preventing it leads to both ecological consequences and more severe fires. because of the historical importance of fire in some ecosystems, prescribed burning has become a common and important tool for ecosystem management. the southeastern united states is one of the most fire-dependent ecosystems. however, past research has typically focused on plants, mammals, and birds. research in historic pine savanna communities led to the conclusion that frequent fire is necessary to prevent hardwood encroachment and remove understory vegetation associated with anthropogenic fire exclusion. little information exists on the effects of prescribed burning on amphibians and reptiles. langford et al. (2007. herpetological conservation and biology 2: 135–143) examined the effects of a restoration burn on an amphibian and reptile community within a wet pine savanna in grand bay national estuarine research reserve and surrounding u.s. fish and wildlife service’s grand bay national wildlife refuge. prescribed fire was predicted to have a positive effect on the herpetofaunal community. to test this hypothesis, the authors recorded abundance, species diversity, evenness, and species richness of amphibians and reptiles. they found 429 individuals and 29 species during the study period. although species diversity was equal between burned and unburned treatments, the authors found greater numbers in burned than in unburned areas. climate change and lizards in the genus uma global climate change is likely to affect diverse aspects of our lives over the next century or more. concerns are growing about its biological impacts on other species as well, including reptiles. according to the intergovernmental panel on climate change, the warming trend is expected to continue at even higher rates during the 21st century, and is likely to affect species with higher environmental specialization and more restricted distributional ranges. to address this, ballestteros-barrera et al. (2007. journal of herpetology 41: 733–740) studied two species of fringe-toed lizards, uma exsul and uma paraphygas, in coahuila, mexico. habitat conversion by humans has had an impact on both species, resulting in a reduction of population sizes and leading to a high degree of inbreeding. both species exhibit low genetic variation, reduced vagility, and low effective population sizes. strong climatic changes are projected to occur in the central chihuahuan desert, particularly in the period 2020–2050. the combination of anthropogenic habitat transformation and climate change is expected to be severe for both species. one model predicts a 40% reduction in the range of u. exsul and 60% in that of u. paraphygas by 2020. by 2050, the ranges of both species are expected to be completely eliminated. both species may be extinct in our lifetimes. fungal and viral pathogens in costa rican amphibians amphibians are declining globally at rates far above historical levels, leading to major concerns about both the taxonomic group and what its ongoing disappearance may presage for other taxa. two hypotheses for enigmatic declines in neotropical c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s conservation research reports anthropogenic habitat transformations and climate change could result in a 40% reduction of the range of uma exsul by 2020. h ec to r g a d sd en e sp a r za the rough green snake (opheodrys aestivus) was one species found only in mississippi savanna habitats that had been subjected to prescribed burns. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 57conservation research reports amphibians include disease and climate change. one amphibian pathogen, batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (often abbreviated bd), has been detected at many sites of declines, and is implicated as the main cause of enigmatic central american amphibian declines. picco and collins (2007. journal of herpetology 41: 746–749) examined amphibian declines attributable to bd, as well as another implicated pathogen called “ranavirus,” which has also been suspected to cause amphibian population declines. bd was detected in amphibian populations at two costa rican study sites with histories of amphibian declines. of the 16 species tested in this study, five (hyla ebraccata, centrolenella prosoblepon, hyla pseudopuma, eleutherodactylus underwoodi, and duellmanohyla rufioculus) were positive for bd infection. ranaviruses were not detected at either study site. amphibians and reptiles in madagascar madagascar is a center of herpetological diversity, but little research has been conducted in the montagne des français. d’cruse et al. (2007. herpetological conservation and biology 2: 87–99) surveyed the amphibians and reptiles of the area in order to document the geographical, ecological, and seasonal distribution of the species found within the massif, highlight the herpetological importance of this area and reinforce the need for its protection, and create an effective management plan. research conducted over one year consisted of four sampling periods (two wet and two dry seasons). of the 61 species found, 37 (61%) occurred only in relatively undisturbed forest. human-dominated landscapes contained only five species. because most of the species appear to be dependent on undisturbed forest habitat, conservation of this area is crucial. post-nesting migrations of leatherback turtles the leatherback turtle (dermochelys coriacea) has the largest geographic range of any living marine reptile. protecting these turtles requires a better understanding of their movement patterns. benson et al. (2007. chelonian conservation and biology 6: 150–154) tracked nine leatherback turtles from one of the largest remaining western pacific leatherback nesting beaches in jamursba-medi, papua, indonesia. satellite-linked transmitters were attached to nesting females to track distances traveled over 111–695 days. turtles moved into tropical waters of the philippines and malaysia, into the sea of japan, and across the equatorial pacific to temperate waters off north america, providing the first record of a trans-pacific migration by a leatherback. the longest distance traveled by a single turtle was 12,744 miles. the track between new guinea and shelf waters off oregon (usa) may represent the longest known migration between breeding and foraging areas of any marine vertebrate. the golden palm treefrog (hyla ebreccata, recently reassigned to the genus dendropsophus) was one of five of 16 sampled species that tested positive for the chytrid fungus (batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) in costa rica. d ev o n e d m o n d s leatherback turtles (dermochelys coriacea) may complete extensive migrations in both the atlantic and pacific oceans. d o u g p er r in e, s ea pi c s. c o m the panther chameleon (furcifer pardalis) is one of only 16 (of 52) species recorded from both relatively undisturbed forests and anthropogenically disturbed habitats in northern madagascar. m ic h a el d . k er n iguana b&w text central netted dragons (ctenophorus nuchalis) from australia are popular in captivity due to their striking appearance and great temperament. see article on p. 226. iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 15, number 4 december 2008 known variously as peters’ forest dragon, doria’s anglehead lizard, or abbott’s anglehead lizard (depending on subspecies), gonocephalus doriae is known from southern thailand, western malaysia, and indonesia west of wallace’s line (a biogeographic division between islands associated with asia and those with plants and animals more closely related to those on australia). they live in remaining forested areas to elevations of 1,600 m (4,800 ft), where they spend most of their time high in trees near streams, either clinging to vertical trunks or sitting on the ends of thin branches. their conservation status has not been assessed. ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess m ic h a el k er n sh a n n o n p lu m m er populations of the caspian seal (pusa caspica) have declined by 90% in the last 100 years due to unsustainable hunting and habitat degradation. see “conservation alert” on p. 220. newly hatched texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) on the face of a watch. see article on p. 204. k r is ta m o u g ey grenada treeboas (corallus grenadensis) remain abundant on many of the grenadine islands despite the fact that virtually all forested portions of the islands were cleared for agriculture during colonial times. this individual is from mayreau. see article on p. 198. m a r k d e si lv a w ik ip ed ia .o r g of the snakes that occur in the upper midwestern united states, bullsnakes (pituophis catenifer sayi) are arguably the most impressive in stature and may be rewarding subjects of research. see article on p. 190. jo sh u a m . k a pf er green iguanas (iguana iguana) are frequently edificarian on grand cayman. these abundant invasives often are confused with critically endangered endemic grand cayman blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi), complicating efforts to protect the latter. jo h n b in n s invasive knight anoles (anolis equestris) should be removed when encountered in the wild. see article on p. 212. k en n et h l . k r y sk o iguana b&w text 204 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 henry et al. inserting a pit tag into a texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) allows for individual recognition during the entire study. ju a n c a r lo s d ía z the genus phrynosoma contains 13 species inhabiting the grasslands and deserts of the central and southwestern united states and much of mexico. horned lizards are characterized by a flattened body and enlarged spines surrounding the head. their shortened legs and broad body leave them ill suited for speed over longer distances. as protection against potential predators, they depend primarily on their cryptic coloration. when threatened, a horned lizard’s first line of defense is to flatten itself against the substrate. if pressed further, it will run a short distance and then “freeze” to reestablish its camouflage or seek cover under nearby vegetation. horned lizards are well known for another defense mechanism employed primarily against canids, the ability to squirt blood from the eye socket. they are considered dietary specialists, with ants comprising 50% or more of their diet and the remainder of other small arthropods (sherbrooke 2003). the suite of characteristics mentioned above makes horned lizards unique among north american lizards. that many of these species have experienced declines in recent years (fisher et al. 2002, mathies and martin 2008, wone and beauchamp 2003) is disturbing. the texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) is listed as threatened in the state of texas and as a species of special concern in both oklahoma and colorado. several studies have shown a reduction in both its range and numbers over the last 40–50 years. habitat conversion for agriculture and urbanization appears to be the leading cause (donaldson et al. 1994). activities associated with farming, such as plowing and pesticide use, also may harm horned lizards. the destruction and fragmentation of habitat for urbanization seems to have a negative effect, but lizards are consistently found in suburban areas and even remnant habitats within urban areas (stark 2000, endriss et al. 2007, moody et al. 2007). the introduction and spread of imported red fire ants (solenopsis invicta) also has been linked to the decline of the texas horned lizard (price 1990). eradication efforts aimed at the invasive fire ant have included widespread use of insecticides. although this is not likely to produce direct mortality in horned lizards, it does harm populations of harvester ants (pogonomyrmex spp.) and other insects on which the lizards feed. moreover, the invader effectively competes with native ants. lastly, collection for the pet industry may have contributed in the past to the texas horned lizards’ dwindling numbers (price 1990). since 2005, we have been part of an effort to understand the ecology of this species, determine the proximate causes of its overall decline, and develop management strategies to enhance its long-term survival. as a part of this effort, we have been studying two populations of p. cornutum in texas, one near post and the other outside of brownwood. the texas horned lizard in central and western texas emily henry, jason brewer, krista mougey, and gad perry department of natural resource management, box 42125, texas tech university, lubbock, tx 79409-2125, usa photographs by emily henry except where noted. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 205texas horned lizard � although horned lizards usually rely on crypsis to avoid detection by a predator, if discovered, they fill their bodies with air to look as large and fierce as possible. study sites a portion of this study was conducted on the beach ranch, a 3,636-ha private ranch located 21 km east of post, in garza county, texas. garza county averages 48 cm of rain annually, most of which falls in thunderstorms during may and june. the average minimum temperature in january is just below freezing, and the average maximum in july is 35.0 °c. soils at the site are primarily clay and fine sandy loams (richardson et al. 1975). the major vegetation communities are mesquite grasslands and desert scrub. the dominant woody species is mesquite (prosopsis spp.). grasses such as buffalograss (buchloe dactyloides) and sideoats grama (bouteloua curtipendula) and cactus species such as prickly pear (opuntia spp.) and cholla (opuntia imbricata) are common. the rolling grasslands are fragmented by rocky valleys, artificial stock ponds, and a fork of the brazos river. the beach family leases this land for cattle grazing, but also works hard to restore and maintain it as good habitat for wildlife. no controlled burns have been conducted on the site in recent years, but a recent wildfire burned a large swath of the ranch. an additional study site was located at camp bowie, a military training facility outside of brownwood, brown county, texas. precipitation in the area follows a bimodal pattern with a large peak in may–june and a smaller peak in september–october. annual precipitation for brownwood averages 72 cm (noaa 2008). the climate is characterized by hot summers and cool, dry winters. soils on the site are mostly fine sandy loams with clay subsoils (nrcs soil data mart). camp bowie is situated in a transition zone between the western cross timbers and rolling plains ecoregions (omernik 1995). as a result, the vegetation varies from wooded areas of post oak (quercus stellata) and blackjack oak (quercus marilandica) with an understory of greenbrier (smilax spp.) and grasses to grassland areas with mesquite (prosopis glandulosa) scrub. the base is managed primarily for national guard training activities, but some hunting and fishing is allowed by permit. livestock grazing is currently suspended, but was historically a common practice. 206 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 henry et al. jason brewer measuring the snout-vent length (svl) of an adult horned lizard. g a d p er r y horned lizard habitat at the beach ranch, post, texas (top and middle) and camp bowie, brownwood, texas (bottom). g a d p er r y iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 207texas horned lizard materials and methods each field season began shortly after horned lizards emerged from hibernation in april or early may. throughout the activity season, we captured lizards by hand and recorded data on collection location, morphology, and weather conditions. lizards over 20 g were implanted with a passive integrated transponder (pit tag) for attaching radio-transmitters to horned lizards: to prevent the radio transmitter from becoming separated from the lizard during shedding, a plastic zip tie collar was put around the neck of the lizard and fishing line was used to attach the transmitter to the collar (top); krista mougey attaching the radio transmitter to the collar using fishing line (middle); kelly bollin sealing a transmitter with silicone (bottom). ju a n c a r lo s d ía z ju a n c a r lo s d ía z after transmitters were attached (top), the transmitter was covered with silicone pressed into dirt to act as camouflage (bottom). ju a n c a r lo s d ía z g a d p er r y recording data on a juvenile texas horned lizard. future identification. these tags work somewhat like a barcode; each has a unique number that can be read with a specialized scanner. we fitted each lizard over 40 g with a radio transmitter, attached between the shoulder blades using silicone adhesive, so that it could be located again over the rest of the season. the lizards were re-located at least three times per week during the spring and summer and once or twice per week during the fall, when activity declined greatly. we repeated the morphological measurements once a week to keep track of growth and identify when a female had deposited a clutch. we plotted the location information onto satellite images of the study sites and calculated home range size for each animal using the minimum convex polygon method. in 2008, we also characterized habitat use at both study locations, using digital photographs to quantify the availability of bare ground, rocks, grass, and other plants. results and discussion we observed a total of 442 lizards at the beach ranch from 2005–2008 and 26 at camp bowie during 2007–2008. as expected, females were significantly larger than males in both populations. montgomery et al. (2003) suggested that this species follows the reverse of bergmann’s rule and decreases in body size with an increase in latitude (contrary to what is typical of mammals and birds), presumably because the shorter warm season does not allow animals to grow as large. compared to the mean sizes found in other studies (stark 2000, henke 2003, montgomery and mackessy 2003, moeller et al. 2005, endriss et al. 2007), the lizards at the post site were somewhat larger than expected and those at camp bowie were somewhat 208 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 henry et al. because the effect of radio-transmitters on lizards has been debated in previous studies, during the 2008 season at the beach ranch, we fitted lizards with transmitters of varying sizes and weights (top: small; bottom: large). rocks were added to some for additional weight. calculations of home range sizes of these lizards will be used to evaluate the impact of different weights. ju a n c a r lo s d ía z once the transmitters were firmly attached (top), animals were released (middle). emily henry uses a handheld receiver and antenna to track a lizard (bottom). g a d p er r y g a d p er r y iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 209texas horned lizard smaller than expected. we suspect that the larger adult size observed on the beach ranch indicates superior habitat; although grazing occurs, the prairie remains mostly in its natural state. a substantial harvester ant population has been observed, perhaps because the site is not treated with pesticides. sex ratios at the two sites were similar, with females slightly outnumbering males at both locations. previous studies suggest that this may be caused by differences in capture rates, rather than true differences in numbers between the sexes (sherbrooke 2002). according to capture numbers, adults outnumbered juveniles at both sites. once again, however, we suspect that this is at least partially a result of differences in detectability; hatchlings are very small, highly cryptic, and very difficult to see in the field. mating was observed at both study sites during may and june, with oviposition dates from mid-may to late july. we repeatedly observed double clutching (an instance of a female laying two clutches over a single summer) at the post location. hatchlings were generally first seen in early august, but, in 2008, we observed hatchlings at post in early july. survivorship at post ranged from 19–53%, and similar values were noted at camp bowie. we have noted mortality resulting from predation by birds (especially roadrunners and shrikes), mammals (especially coyotes and rodents), and snakes (especially coachwhips and diamondback rattlesnakes). in some cases, death was caused by management actions such as road maintenance during the winter; for others the cause of mortality could not be determined. horned lizards were most active when temperatures were between 27 and 35 °c. as in previous studies, activity remained high from april through july and then tapered off, although we we characterized habitat by using digital photographs to quantify the availability of bare ground, rocks, grass, and other plants. ju a n c a r lo s d ía z radio-transmitter-equipped lizards among native grasses and forbs. noted minor variations between the sexes and among years (henke and montemayor 1998, fair and henke 1999, montgomery and mackessy 2003). based on movement levels, previous studies have noted that lizards remained active throughout the day during the spring and then exhibited a strong bimodal pattern during the summer, with peaks occurring in the cooler hours of morning and evening (montgomery and mackessy 2003). we prefer a broader definition of activity, and classified lizards as active if they were engaged in behavior such as moving or foraging, similar to previous researchers, but also if they were stationary but alert, with open eyes and clearly responsive to the environment. using that definition, lizards on our study sites were indeed active all day during spring, but their activity did not decline much during the summer. based on stark’s findings that male lizards moved considerably longer distances than females during the mating season (stark 2000, stark et al. 2005), males would be expected to have correspondingly larger home range sizes. our results do not support this hypothesis; male and female horned lizards had home ranges of similar sizes at both of our study sites. the variation among individual lizards was much greater than that between the sexes, years, or even between sites. texas horned lizards at beach ranch were often found in close proximity to each other and had overlapping home ranges. at both study sites, lizards frequently used dirt roads, cattle trails, and adjacent areas. in 2007, lizards at both sites were almost exclusively found on or in the immediate vicinity of roads, presumably because this was an unusually wet year and the vegetation was particularly dense. in years with low summer rainfall, however, we noticed lower overall activity and found considerably fewer lizards along roadsides. as observed at other locations (burrow et al. 2001, fair and henke 1998) lizards at both of our study sites made use of all 210 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 henry et al. when mating, the male holds the female’s horn in his mouth and wraps his tail around hers. in addition to casting shade, forbs and grasses provide lizards with a way to elevate their bellies off the hot substrate. a female horned lizard emerging from her overnight burrow. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 211texas horned lizard habitat categories except embedded rock. open areas allow the animals to increase their body temperatures and also facilitate movements. litter and vegetation shelter them during the hottest parts of the day and provide protection from predators. this mosaic is critical in providing suitable habitat for this species. conclusions studies carried out on native range habitat such as the beach ranch, even in remnant pockets within urban areas (stark 2000, endriss et al. 2007, moody et al. 2007), have shown healthy and stable populations of texas horned lizards. this suggests that loss of habitat is the most important factor in this species’ decline, and other factors may have more localized effects. this makes preservation and proper management of remaining habitat especially critical. common land management practices can have both beneficial and harmful effects on horned lizards. low to moderate levels of grazing appear to improve the habitat for horned lizards, perhaps by increasing open space at ground level. fire is likely to have a similarly positive effect on habitat. an increase in mortality from vehicles and maintenance activities can result because lizards often frequent roads and other disturbed areas, but this was minimal at our low-traffic sites. acknowledgments we thank the beach family, the national guard, and the taylor family for allowing us to conduct this work on their land. our gratitude goes out to the colleagues and assistants who helped in the field: jacob goldfarb, juan carlos diaz, kelly bollin, alan sosa, and jacqueline forbus. funding for this project came from the texas national guard, the horned lizard conservation society, and prairie biotic research. this is manuscript t-91151 of the college of agricultural sciences and natural resources, texas tech university. literature cited burrow, a.l., r.t. kazmaier, e.c. hellgren, and d.c. ruthven iii. 2001. microhabitat selection by texas horned lizards in southern texas. the journal of wildlife management 65:645–652. donaldson w., a.h. price, and j. mosre. 1994. the current status and future prospects of the texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) in texas. texas journal of science 46:97–113. endriss, d.a., e.c. hellgren, s.f. fox, and r.w. moody. 2007. demography of an urban population of the texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) in central oklahoma. herpetologica 63:320–331. fair, w.s. and s.e. henke. 1998. habitat use of texas horned lizards in southern texas. texas journal of agriculture and natural resources 11:73–86. fair, w.s. and s.e. henke. 1999. movements, home ranges, and survival of texas horned lizards (phrynosoma cornutum). journal of herpetology 33:517–525. fisher, r.n., a.v. suarez, and t.j. case. spatial patterns in the abundance of the coastal horned lizard. conservation biology 16:205–215. henke, s.e. 2003. baseline survey of texas horned lizards, phrynosoma cornutum, in texas. southwestern naturalist 48:278–282. henke, s.e. and m. montemayor. 1998. diel and monthly variations in capture success of phrynosoma cornutum via road cruising in southern texas. herpetological review 29:148–150. moeller, b.a., e.c. hellgren, d.c. ruthven iii, r.t. kazmaier, and d.r. synatzske. 2005. temporal differences in activity patterns of male and female texas horned lizards (phrynosoma cornutum) in southern texas. journal of herpetology 39:336–339. montgomery, c.e. and s.p. mackessy. 2003. natural history of the texas horned lizard, phrynosoma cornutum (phrynosomatidae), in southeastern colorado. southwestern naturalist 48:111–118. montgomery, c.e., s.p. mackessy, and j.c. moore. 2003. body size variation in the texas horned lizard, phrynosoma cornutum, from central mexico to colorado. journal of herpetology 37:550–553. moody, r.w., d.a. endriss, e.c. hellgren, and s.f. fox. 2007. studying a population of texas horned lizards (phrynosoma cornutum) in an urban/military environment. iguana 14:8–17. national oceanic and atmospheric administration. 2003. united states climate normals, 1971–2000. national climate data center, asheville, north carolina <www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/normals/usnormals.html>. omernik, j.m. 1995. ecoregions: a spatial framework for environmental management, pp. 49–62. in: w.s. davis and t.p. simon (eds.), biological assessment and criteria: tools for water resource planning and decision making. lewis publishers, boca raton, florida. price, a.h. 1990. phrynosoma cornutum. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (469):1–7. richardson, w.e., d.c. grica, and l.a. putnam. 1975. soil survey of garza county, texas. united states department of agriculture soil conservation services, washington, d.c. sherbrooke w.c. 2002. seasonally skewed sex-ratios of road-collected texas horned lizards (phrynosoma cornutum). herpetological review 33:21–24. sherbrooke, w.c. 2003. introduction to horned lizards of north america. california natural history guides, no. 64. university of california press, berkeley. stark r.c. 2000. habitat use, daily movements, and body size of the texas horned lizard in north-central oklahoma. unpublished master of science thesis, oklahoma state university, stillwater. stark, r.c., s.f. fox, and d.m. leslie, jr. 2005. male texas horned lizards increase daily movements and area covered in spring: a mate searching strategy? journal of herpetology 39:169–173. wone, b. and b. beauchamp. 2003. movement, home range, and activity patterns of the horned lizard, phrynosoma mcallii. journal of herpetology 37:679–686. even with transmitters providing information, well-camouflaged lizards were sometimes hard to find. g a d p er r y iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 243book review threatened amphibians of the world. 2008. edited by s.n. stuart, m. hoffmann, j.s. chanson, n.a. cox, r. berridge, p. ramani, and b.e. young. lynx ediciones, with iucn the world conservation union, conservation international, and natureserve. barcelona, spain. xv + 758 pp. hardback – isbn: 84-96553-41-8. $124.00. declining amphibian populations have received considerable attention in recent years, largely due to the unexplained causes responsible for those declines. increasing evidence suggests that many species are already extinct and many others are on the verge, leading to a growing concern that amphibians are the canaries in the coal mine — indicators of problems that soon will affect other, momentarily more resilient forms of life, including us. this massive, profusely illustrated tome provides a comprehensive assessment of the conservation status of the world’s amphibians, with descriptions of distributions (with maps), habitats, natural histories, threats, and current or needed conservation plans for the ~1,900 species known to be threatened with extinction — and color photographs are provided for most of them. forewords by noted conservationists julia marton-lefèvre (director general of the iucn), russell a. mittermeier (president, conservation international), mary l. klein (president and ceo, natureserve), and holly t. dublin (chair, iucn species survival commission) paint a gloomy picture, with mittermeier saying that we should “hope that a second edition of this book does not require two volumes….” prefaces by scientists karen r. lipps and joseph r. mendelson iii and claude gascon and james p. collins (co-chairs, iucn-ssc amphibian specialist group secretariat) provide a bit more detail, but the tone is equally dour. acknowledgements to contributors, donors, and conservation partners round out the introductory section. following are “introductory” chapters on amphibians, why we should save them, the history, objectives, and methods of the global amphibians assessment (gaa), the current state of amphibians, and a series of chapters organized by zoogeographb o o k r e v i e w threatened amphibians of the world st. vincent frogs (pristimantis shrevei) occur only at higher elevations on st. vincent in the lesser antilles. the species is listed as “endangered” because of a limited extent of cccurrence, all individuals are in fewer than five locations, and the extent and quality of the habitat continues to decline. r o b er t po w el l windward ditch frogs (leptodactylus validus) are listed as being of “least concern.” although the extent of occurrence is limited, the species is common and adaptable, the population is presumably large, and it is unlikely to be declining fast enough to qualify for listing in a more threatened category. r o b er t po w el l 244 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 book review ical realms (essentially corresponding to the continents), followed by a concluding chapter summarizing the necessary responses to the global declines of these animals. chapters are overflowing with data, maps, charts, graphs, tables, and photographs illustrating species representative of varying responses to myriad concerns and a selection of people actively engaged in their conservation. most of the chapters are supplemented by “essays” written by experts on more detailed aspects of the problems facing amphibians or on geographic areas of particular concern within the broader regions addressed by the relevant chapter (e.g., california within the nearctic realm). these, too, are profusely illustrated. next comes the heart and soul of the volume, ten pages devoted to accounts of species known to have gone extinct in historical times, 464 pages to accounts of species threatened with extinction (“critically endangered,” “endangered,” or “vulnerable” in terms of iucn red list criteria), and another 36 pages to species considered to be “near threatened.” individual accounts vary in length, but most provide only short statements about geographic range, population, habitat and ecology, major threats, conservation measures, a short bibliography, and the names of the “experts” who provided the data. a few accounts of species that have received considerable attention are much longer — but the small number of such accounts speaks eloquently to the sad reality that very little is known about many of these animals. every account is accompanied by a distribution map and most by a color photograph (a very few by colored illustrations) of the species in question. a 48-page bibliography of cited references, a phenomenally valuable tool for anyone seeking information on the current state of the world’s threatened amphibians, precedes 15 appendices that provide iucn red list categories, a summary of the criteria used to evaluate the status of species, definitions of the regions for which data were collected, a summary of iucn red list status by genus, species listed by territory, the declaration of an amphibian conservation action plan, the scale of conservation needs, the nature of required landscape-scale conservation action, a list of critically endangered and endangered species for which captive breeding is an essential need, lists of species in each of the iucn red list categories (including “data deficient”), differences in status listed for some brazilian species, a glossary, and a list of websites and related resources. an index to species accounts completes the book. this volume represents a critically important step in the conservation of one group of animals that can and will serve as a model for future volumes addressing other groups. i found little to criticize. the inevitable time lag between the gaa, which commenced in 2001, and the publication of the book resulted in some instances of out-of-date taxonomy (changes published during the period devoted to compilation, editing, and printing). although biologists working with amphibians will have no difficulties tracking the species in which they are interested, conservationists less familiar with these animals might be confused by generic or even familial assignments that differ from those in the current literature. in the chapters and accounts dealing with taxa with which i am conversant i found only one error in content (a statement that a species had not been encountered since 1991, although my students and i had studied a population of that species in the late 1990s — the error undoubtedly attributable to the difficulty in compiling information on so many taxa and communicating with an almost equal number of biologists). i noticed no typographical errors, which reflects the efforts and expertise of the editors. testament to a biological catastrophe that may have progressed far enough to preclude preventative or even mitigating efforts in many instances, this is not a happy book. however, it is a phenomenally valuable and authoritative resource for herpetologists and conservation biologists, but one so rich in information that anyone with an interest in these animals and the state of our world would benefit from reading it. although the large format (~9.5 x 12”) replete with color is suggestive of a coffee-table volume, the depressing topic and plethora of data will probably cause it to be relegated to the bookshelves of those concerned about the future of amphibians and our world. robert powell department of biology avila university, kansas city, missouri cane toads (bufo marinus [rhinella marina]) are of “least concern.” not only is the species extremely adaptable, it has been introduced widely (ostensibly to control insect pests in sugarcane fields), where it may threaten native species by competition or predation. r o b er t po w el l cuban treefrogs (osteopilus septentrionalis), like cane toads, are of “least concern,” voracious predators, and have been widely introduced. unlike most amphibians, which are sensitive to environmental changes, these two species may one day be part of a circumtropical herpetofauna composed of a few extremely adaptable species. jo h n m a g o r iguana b&w text 234 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 treglia kraig in a section of his massive library, where he can often be found working. jo h n o lt h o ff iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 235profile the society for the study of amphibians and reptiles (ssar) has been an important herpetological institution for more than half a century. kraig adler has been involved from the beginning and has helped make the society what it is today. he has been an enormous influence in modern herpetology, as one of the founders of the ssar, as a major contributor to our knowledge of amphibians and reptiles, and as a source of inspiration for future herpetologists. kraig was born in lima, ohio, and moved to columbus when he was nine. columbus is where his interest in herps blossomed, and where, only three years later, he met dave dennis while herping at the o’shaughnessy dam on the scioto river. upon meeting, each had a bag full of snakes, kraig with northern watersnakes found under rocks, and dave with queen snakes found on tree branches — an early lesson in microhabitat selection. the two used roger conant’s reptiles of ohio as their “bible,” reading and re-reading it, marking the maps with their own records, in a quest to fill the large gaps that existed in distributional information. in their undergraduate years (dave at ohio state university and kraig at ohio wesleyan university), they met dr. barry valentine at osu, who opened his lab to the two, guiding them down the road to real science. during those early years, kraig and dave met ray ashton, joseph t. collins, corson hirschfeld, from the cincinnati area, and somewhat later, jim murphy. as the “columbus boys,” kraig and dave were “refined gentlemen” according to jim murphy, whereas the “cincy boys,” as kraig would call them, were “always suspect in polite society.” in 1957, kraig, at 16 years old and dave at 17, officially formed the ohio herpetological society (ohs), with kraig as the president. he was already a walking encyclopedia of herpetology, had already started building his massive library (now among the largest private herpetological libraries in the world), and was always out herping. the entire group formed a sort of herpetological dead poets society, and comprised a major component of the ohs. whoever was in columbus would attend “stapling parties” in dave’s basement, where they would print the ohs journals, p r o f i l e kraig adler: a lifetime promoting herpetology michael l. treglia department of wildlife and fisheries sciences texas a&m university college station, tx 77843-2258 kraig (in the foreground) and dave dennis working with barry valentine at ohio state university. d a v e d en n is kraig showing off his billiard skills while socializing at the 1998 joint meeting of the ssar, herpetologists league, and the american society of ichthyologists and herpetologists. to the left is dr. john moriarty, university of minnesota (and editor of the ssar herpetological circulars program) and to the right is dr. michael bernard as an undergraduate, now an assistant professor at case western university. mike is one of many of kraig’s students to continue with a successful career in biology. ja c q u el in e g r a n t and set the pages around the room. practically every horizontal surface in the room had pages on it, and everyone went around collating and stapling the pages. every stapling party would be accompanied by dave’s guitar-playing and singing, and closed with a bottle of madeira wine, which could not be uncorked until they were finished. in 1967 the ohs became the ssar (to represent its rapid growth into an international organization), and throughout his career, kraig has remained an important figure, filling various roles in the society. for example, in 1979 he started the book series, “contributions to herpetology”, in which 22 volumes have been published, with more to come. kraig was also elected the secretary-general of the first world congress of herpetology, which was held in 1989 in canterbury, u.k. this was the first major international meeting of herpetologists, and the largest gathering of herpetologists held to date (1,600 persons). kraig also has had a very productive academic career, spending most of it at cornell university. he received his ph.d. at the university of michigan in 1968, and spent four years in a faculty position at notre dame before moving to cornell in 1972. he has written over 150 technical articles and nine books, among them the popular encyclopedia of reptiles and amphibians, co-authored with tim halliday, and the renowned herpetology of china, with ermi zhao. in his publications, kraig was the first to describe important principles of amphibian behavior such as magnetic, extraocular, and polarized light perception for navigation, as well as kin recognition in tadpoles. he has also published extensively on zooarchaeology, particularly with regard to turtles, as well as on amphibian systematics, describing a dozen new species of frogs and salamanders, mostly from northern mexico. as a faculty member in the department of neurobiology and behavior at cornell, he has served as department chair (currently for the third time), and, during 1998–2000, was cornell’s vice-provost of life sciences, where he oversaw 500 professors and was responsible for hiring 60 new faculty members. in this position, kraig also was instrumental in funding and breaking ground for the construction of $300 million of new research facilities on campus. many of kraig’s activities illustrate his commitment to the future of herpetology, particularly through the recruitment of new members to the discipline. even while in college, he taught summer herpetology courses at culver military academy in 236 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 treglia a group of students from the cornell herpetological society enjoying a lunchtime chat with kraig during a field trip to the parker nature preserve of the finger lakes land trust. b et sy d a r li n g to n on the most recent trip to observe hellbenders, kraig (bottom right) with cornell undergraduate and graduate students, led by ken roblee, new york state dec biologist, near olean, new york. jo h n o lt h o ff iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 237profile indiana, from which he graduated in 1957. one story many of his students have heard him tell refers to a favored field site, lake maxinkuckee. juvenile turtles would bask on a mat of aquatic vegetation and get stuck while trying to retreat to the water. the group would sit watching turtles from just over a small hill, and students would take turns picking one to catch. every student, no matter how out of shape, could reliably experience the joy and excitement of catching one. continuing in that vein, since 1993, almost from its inception, kraig has served as faculty advisor to the undergraduate-founded cornell herpetological society (chs). this is where i and many others first met him. although the chs is entirely student-run, kraig provides valuable assistance, using his professional network to help arrange trips to zoos and universities, bring in guest lecturers, and generally enhance the experience of participating students. he attends virtually every event, and gets to know the students, often serving as an informal, if not a formal academic advisor. he facilitates students’ involvement in herpetology collectively and individually, in part by helping them develop a network of contacts through participation in professional meetings and research internships. one of the favorite annual chs events is a trip to western new york to see hellbenders. these trips have been unique opportunities to observe these awesome amphibians, and they also provided occasions for students to interact with herpetologists like ken roblee of the new york state department of environmental conservation and the late dr. richard bothner from st. bonaventure university. kraig always strives to achieve the highest quality in all that he does. although we all make mistakes, finding as much as a typo in any of his work is rare. he tends to expect the same quality of work from everyone else, and many of us are undoubtedly better for it. kraig’s close colleagues sometimes regard him as an atypical herpetologist. at a meeting, some of them realized he was the only one who was “married once, did not have long hair or facial hair, never cussed (well almost never), and was never into rockand-roll or anything fun — only herps and herp books.” however, kraig does have a sense of humor, albeit herp-based, seen in his secret weakness for inaccurate (and sometimes ridiculous) herpetologically oriented movies (e.g., anaconda and anaconda 2: search for the blood orchid), an obsession few ever see. kraig’s humor also is evident in a story he often tells about a trip to mexico with dave dennis while he was at notre dame. while at dinner, upon seeing a gecko on the ceiling, kraig instinctively stunned it with a rubber band, knocking it onto another occupied table. these rubber-banding skills have gone a long way, from disturbing the patrons at this restaurant, to impressing people in various parts of the world (including china and mexican police at a traffic stop), and, of course, they have contributed immensely to the collection of museum specimens. kraig is an amazing biologist, teacher, mentor, and person. herpetology is lucky to have him, and the field certainly would not be the same without him. the cornell herpetological society on their most recent fall trip to the reptile house of the philadelphia zoo. on the same trip, they also visited with drs. aaron bauer and todd jackman at villanova university. as per usual on these trips, kraig is wearing his red cornell hat. other faculty members often participate in chs events, evident here in the form of professor emeritus of veterinary medicine, dr. howie evans (on kraig's left) and howie’s wife, erica (far left). jo h n o lt h o ff kraig with a hellbender in hand in 2006. as always, when in the field, he is a representative of cornell university, to which his “big red” hat clearly testifies. ia n s h el le y iguana 13.2 b&w text iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 145historical perspective below. finally, hans klingel (1965) set forth the results of some interesting experiments on the method of gliding in draco; parts of his paper are summarized below. from these reports it is obvious that draco is able to glide and is, indeed, an accomplished glider. in spite of the observations by the several authorities who have described the gliding aptitudes of the oriental “flying dragon,” there have been no analyses of its anatomical adaptations for gliding. there are no introduction in connection with the detailed description of a triassic reptile, obviously adapted for gliding because of the presence of enormously elongated and curved ribs, it became apparent that a comparative study of the modern gliding lizard draco was in order. various pertinent publications were examined, with the surprising discovery that, until recently, very little attention has been given to the gliding activities of this lizard. in fact, some authors have expressed doubts as to the ability of draco to glide at all. other authors have, however, given definite proof of gliding ability in this reptile. two good descriptions are those of hairston (1957) and herre (1958), quoted in part below. dr. john r. hendrickson of honolulu, hawaii, has made excellent observations of the gliding behavior of draco, of which one account, taken from a letter to the present writer, is also quoted h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e adaptations for gliding in the lizard draco1 edwin h. colbert 1 permission to reprint this article is courtesy of the american museum of natural history library, new york, new york. the article was originally published as american museum novitates no. 2283, 10 march 1967. this and other museum herpetological publications can be downloaded in full, free of charge, at http://research.amnh.org/herpetology/pubindex/. lizards in the genus draco are accomplished gliders. the “wings” of this nesting d. sumatranus are clearly visible. m a r c u s n g iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 145 146 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 descriptions of the muscles involved in the control of the wings (the word “wing,” as used herein, designates the gliding membrane of draco), no measurements based on wing shapes and areas and body weights, and no correlative interpretations of relationships between wing areas and body weights. the purpose of the present paper is to correct, in some small way, this deficiency in our knowledge of gliding by draco. this paper has been inspired not only by curiosity about gliding in draco but also by the evidence gained from the study of the fossil reptile, mentioned above, as well as from closely related fossils found within recent years in the triassic fissure fillings of the bristol channel area of england, that the draco mode of gliding, whereby a wing is formed of a membrane stretched between greatly elongated, free ribs, is geologically probably the oldest attempt at aerial locomotion among the backboned animals. reptiles that were able to glide on a rib-supported wing, with the four legs completely free for landing and for running about on the trunks and limbs of trees or on cliffs and rocks, were living in the northern hemisphere during late triassic times some 200 million years ago perhaps 20 million years or more before the first true flying reptiles, the pterosaurs, and 60 million years or more before the first birds. here we see the first experiment among the vertebrates in aerial locomotion, and as such it is important in the long perspective of aerial locomotion among animals and by man. gliding flight of draco four eyewitness accounts of flight in this lizard are presented [editor’s note: two of these have been omitted here]. these descriptions, all by herpetologists, show that its gliding abilities are more extensive and subtle than is generally realized. colbert in these lizards, elongated ribs on each side support the wing membranes. historical drawing from dover’s animals. editor’s remarks elsewhere in this issue, an article by lee grismer focuses on the “flying” reptiles found in southeastern asia. to accompany that piece, we chose to include a classic paper on a similar topic by edwin h. colbert, whose rich biography is summarized after the article. this piece was published in 1967, the year that saw the world’s first successful human heart transplant. the dna molecule, today fodder for endless tv whodunits and real-life courtroom dramas, was fully decoded just the year before. biological exploration of some parts of the world was in full swing, but the main involvement of the united states in asia stemmed from the ongoing war in vietnam. by the time that war ended in the early 1970s, over 2.5 million americans had served and almost 50,000 had died there, but few of them had had the time to engage in scientific research. our understanding of the biology of the region was extremely poor. thus, it is not surprising that edwin colbert begins his paper by discussing what even amateur herpetologists now take for granted: that lizards of the genus draco have “wings” and can effectively glide between trees. a paleontologist first, colbert became interested in the issue because of his focus on flight in dinosaurs. this paper provided some of the earliest descriptions of reptilian “flight” and the mechanisms that support it. it is, in many ways, far ahead of its times, bringing a mechanistic, engineering approach that would not become common in herpetology until many years later. this paper is still frequently cited in studies of reptilian gliding in general and the biology of the genus draco in particular. parts of asia remain remote and poorly studied even today. just a few weeks ago, in early 2006, reports emerged in all the major media of the results of an expedition to a previously unexplored part of indonesia. despite the brevity of the visit, the work yielded many new species and biological insights. just imagine how much less accessible the world was only a few decades ago, before travel became so commonplace. gad perry texas tech university, lubbock iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 146 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 147historical perspective “draco volans is an accomplished glider. ten flights ranged from 4.5 to 12 meters, and averaged 8 meters in length. the distances were doubtless conditioned by the fact that coconut trees are ordinarily planted 8–10 meters apart. mertens (1930) recorded flights of 15 to 20 meters, and no doubt longer ones are possible, although a habitat in which such flights were necessary would probably be unattractive to the species. in two observations the angle of the glide was estimated. for the first, the estimate was between 200 and 300 degrees from horizontal; for the second, the starting and ending heights were estimated as 6 meters and 3 meters, respectively, and the horizontal distance measured 7.6 meters. thus, the angle is close to 220 degrees, and is in agreement with the more subjective first estimate. draco would therefore qualify for a gliding animal by the definition of oliver (1951), who distinguishes ‘gliding’ from ‘parachuting’ when the angle is greater than 450 degrees from vertical. the flight appeared rather slow, as though being maintained at close to the stalling point, an observation that agrees with the slight amount of upturn at the end of the glide (see also schmidt, 1935, on d. spilopterus)” (hairston, 1957, p. 262). finally, the recent experiments and observations by klingel are described. these, seemingly the first carefully controlled experiments, are particularly interesting in that they corroborate the field observations of hairston, herre, and hendrickson. to measure the distance of flights and their elapsed times, klingel erected vertical poles, 3.25 and 10 meters high, in an open area, and placed targets, consisting of artificial trees, 20 centimeters wide and 3 meters high, at varying distances from the central poles. according to klingel: “usually the animals would immediately run to the top of the pole and within a few minutes would jump off spontaneously.” the length of each flight and the height of the landing point on the target were measured. some of the flights were timed. in some cases the lizards did not fly to the targets, and these targetless flights were also recorded. in another set of experiments, to determine the control of flight directions, klingel used a room 4.25 meters square, painted white, and lit by a centrally placed electric bulb. in the middle of one wall was placed a black paper strip, 30 centimeters wide, to serve as a target. the lizards were then thrown upward toward the ceiling, beneath the light, and their flight directions and methods of controlling these directions were observed. klingel found that the flight pattern in draco is clearly divisible into three phases. the first phase is the dive flight, in which the lizard launches itself from a tree. in this phase there is a steep downward glide. the kinetic energy developed during the dive flight is then utilized for the second phase of the flight pattern, the glide flight, which can be quite extended. finally, the third phase of the flight pattern is the ascent flight, or landing phase, in which the trajectory of the lizard rises from the glide flight so that the animal swoops upward as it lands on the target. klingel recorded flights of as long as 60 meters for animals taking off from a 10-meter pole and flying toward a target. in such flights there was a loss of altitude during the long glide flight of as much as 2 meters, but some of this was recovered during the upward landing. the recovery of altitude at landing was not great, however, because of the slow speed of the glide flight as it reached its end. anatomy of the wing in draco draco is an oriental lizard of the family agamidae, ranging from the philippines, through the east indies, to indo-china and portions of india. there are perhaps as many as 14 or 15 species of draco, varying in size from rather small or moderate-sized lizards, with body weights in an adult of 5 or 6 grams, to the relative giant, draco maximus, in which the body weight may be as much as 30 grams. in these lizards there are five, six, or seven free and elongated ribs on each side, for the support of the wing membranes. apparently the first of the elongated ribs belong to the eleventh presacral vertebra and thus are situated well behind the pectoral girdle, a position that gives the forelimbs complete freedom of movement. the most posterior of the elongated ribs, whether there be five, six, or seven on a side to support the wing membrane, are likewise at some distance in front of the pelvic girdle, again allowing for freedom of movement of the hind limbs. each membrane, however, has a free edge, extending from the tip of the last supporting rib to a position just lateral to the cloaca. thus the posteromedial segments of the membranes are in part beneath the upper segments of the hind legs, but this posterior attachment of the membranes apparently does not limit the movements of the hind limbs when the animal is walking or running. in a normal resting or walking pose the wings are folded back against the body. but when the animal launches itself into diagram to show the general arrangement of muscles and ligaments, and their direction of force, in the wing of draco. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 147 148 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 colbert a glide, the wings are expanded to their full extent, making a large gliding surface relative to the size and weight of the body. wing area and body weight if wings for gliding are to be truly functional, they must be of such size, as well as of such form, as to permit the animal to glide through the air at a relatively low horizontal angle. as mentioned above, oliver defined gliding, as distinct from parachuting, as descent at an angle greater than 45 degrees from the vertical (or, conversely, less than 450 degrees from the horizontal). it is obvious from the descriptions of flight in this lizard that the conditions for true gliding are fulfilled. indeed, it appears that, if there are any air currents, draco is able to take advantage of them and rise through the air during its forward flight. what are the relations of wing areas to body weight that make the rather astonishing flights of draco possible? how are the ratios of wing areas as related to body weight to be compared with the same ratios in birds of similar size? careful measurements were made of the wing areas in draco, and for each specimen so measured the weight was recorded. several species of draco were used, but the present discussion is based largely on draco whiteheadi, of which a considerable series, consisting of 54 specimens ranging from small individuals to full adults, was available. a single specimen of draco maximus, kindly lent to the author by hendrickson, is also included, because it is the giant among these lizards. from a comparison of the weight of certain preserved lizards with their live weight, as determined in the field, it was established that the weight of the pickled animal should be, on the average, about nine tenths of its live weight. consequently, the weights of the specimens as preserved were increased by a factor of one-tenth. each specimen was then placed on a board covered with paper, with the wing on one side stretched to its maximum extent. as can be seen from the figure, in the series of draco whiteheadi the wing area increases more or less directly as body weight increases, but there is a great deal of individual variation in wing area as related to body weight. it thus appears that there is no very crucial weightwing-area relationship among these animals, which is to say that a lizard may have a wing area of almost a half less than another individual of approximately the same weight, yet presumably is nonetheless able to glide perfectly well. perhaps many of these animals have wing surface “to spare,” i.e., that they have more wing than is absolutely required for their flights. a comparison of draco with birds shows that wing loadings in the lizard are similar to those of the large soaring birds (the hawks and vultures) rather than to those of the small birds that approach draco in size. the very low wing loading of draco is probably necessary to offset the relatively inefficient shape of the wing. it is semicircular, as seen from above, not a conventional transversely elongated wing like that in birds or airplanes. thus in effect it has no well-defined leading or trailing edges. both of these regions merge into what might be considered as the tip or lateral edge of the wing, this constituting by far the largest part of the border of the flying surface. it seems that the problem of weight and wing area is rather different from that in birds; one might expect solutions to this problem also to be different. conclusions this study of draco demonstrates that gliding, so efficiently performed by the several species belonging to the genus, is simply weights, in grams, and corresponding wing areas, in square centimeters, of 54 individuals of draco whiteheadi. outlines of the wings. a. draco whiteheadi, a.m.n.h. no. 30905 (smallest individual). b. draco whiteheadi, a.m.n.h. no. 30917 (largest individual). c. draco maximus, john r. hendrickson no. 5338. d. draco sp., newly hatched, john r. hendrickson no. 2228. a and b show the comparative wing areas in the smallest and largest individuals available of one species. c shows the wing area of an individual of the largest known species, and d shows that of an individual recently hatched. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 148 iguana • volume 13, number 2 • june 2006 149historical perspective effected. the spreading of the flight membrane, which is supported by five, six, or seven elongated ribs, is accomplished by the use of a few muscles, particularly the iliocostalis and the intercostals, while the arching and the stiffening of the ribs are performed by the very long, slender muscle slips that run along the length of each rib. the wings in draco, when expanded, provide a flight surface that is very similar in relative extent, and thus of wing loading, to that in the large soaring birds. perhaps this similarity is due to the fact that the lizards and the birds in question, though quite dissimilar in size, have similar problems of aerodynamics. the significance of the adaptation for gliding in draco is twofold. first, it represents the one example among modern reptiles for aerial locomotion through considerable distances. second, although in itself perhaps comparatively recent in reptilian evolution, it seems to represent the earliest type of aerial locomotion to be adopted by the vertebrates. recent studies of fossil lacertilians of triassic age show adaptations for gliding that are remarkably similar to those in draco. hence it is probable that the first aerial vertebrates were reptiles equipped to glide from tree to tree on expanded membranes supported by elongated ribs, leaving all four limbs free for arboreal and terrestrial locomotion. apparently such adaptations for flight preceded by several million years the first attempts at true flight, attained by the pterosaurs. thus, looking at draco, we are, in effect, looking back through some 200 million years, to view the manner in which backboned animals first took to the air. my grandfather, edwin harris (ned) colbert, had a long and distinguished career in vertebrate paleontology. much of this was at the american museum of natural history (amnh) in new york, where he started as a graduate research assistant, and wound up as chairman of the department of fossil vertebrates. he made good use of the museum’s world-class fossil collections and was involved in a number of great fossil discoveries around the world. one of the most significant was the late triassic ghost ranch quarry of new mexico, where he recovered multiple skeletons of the early dinosaur coelophysis, a discovery that profoundly influenced our understanding of early dinosaur evolution. these global travels also took him on a pioneering trip to antarctica, where his fossil finds supported emerging plate-tectonic theories. his outstanding publication record includes more than 300 published papers and two textbooks. he also wrote a number of popular books on dinosaurs (including a few targeted at young readers), on plate tectonics, a biography, and two autobiographies. in many ways, his legacy to the field of paleontology was as much a consequence of his efforts at reaching out to the general public, as was his scientific output. rather than summarize this remarkable career, i here attempt a more intimate portrait using the excavation of coelophysis at ghost ranch as a vignette to better understand his life. when i knew him, my grandfather’s research focused on triassic terrestrial vertebrate faunas from around the world. this research program incorporated newly emerging plate-tectonic theories to explain the distribution of ancient faunas. you can imagine my surprise to find that he wrote a couple of papers on fossil tapirs, a group i now study and one that didn’t originate until the cenozoic! to compound the somewhat inbred feeling that gave me, one of these papers actually reinterprets an earlier tapir-paper by my namesake, great-grandfather william d. matthew, whose daughter my grandfather had married. only then did i come to realize the extent of grandfather’s work in the middle to late cenozoic, the study of which was the focus of his ph.d. dissertation and early career. my earliest memories of my grandparents predate grandfather’s retirement from the amnh in 1969. my family lived in b i o g r a p h i c a l s k e t c h ned colbert in his office at the american museum of natural history, ca. 1940s. remembrances of edwin h. colbert, paleontologist matthew colbert university of texas, austin (www.digimorph.org and www.ctlab.geo.utexas.edu) photographs courtesy of the author except where indicated. iguana 13.2 b&w text.qx6 6/26/06 1:20 pm page 149 iguana, june 2008 the kingdom of swaziland is a small southern african country with an extremely rich reptilian biodiversity. a new revolution in herpetology has begun in swaziland with the opening of a new reptile park to serve as the home base for new and exciting work. genetic work on many species is already under way and a new telemetry study on black mambas (dendroaspis polylepis) is slated to begin in the near future. many residents of swaziland, who previously knew very little about their indigenous herpetofauna, have developed a newfound respect for local snakes. one new initiative is to educate people in identification and, in some circumstances, even handling of venomous snakes. some individuals around the country have been trained to handle calls and efficiently manage residential reptile removals. snakes are killed less frequently than they were in the near past. locals are even collecting dead snakes found on roads and bringing them in for their scientific value. this movement started just two years ago when a local woman developed a strong interest in snakes. with the help of her husband, clifford koen, thea litschka’s new passion grew at an amazing rate. in response, residents are now identifying the snakes they once feared, differentiating between those that are harmless and those that are potentially dangerous. although most still stay clear of reptiles, they will call an expert instead of just killing a snake. one result is that many lives are saved, as many human bites occurred when snakes were confronted. this new initiative recently opened its doors to international internships. a select few individuals with some experience will have an opportunity to experience the many african species in swaziland. interns will work with the captive collection in the reptile park, assisting with breeding efforts and studies of indigenous species. they also will conduct extensive field research and provide educational outreach to local communities. the country is alive with reptiles! range extensions and new species records for the country are reported with some regularity, and ongoing genetic work may reveal new discoveries leading to taxonomic changes. the geographic diversity of the nation has isolated many populations, and swaziland still harbors many locations that have yet to be explored. for further information please contact donald schultz at don@mfezi.com. f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n new respect for the snakes of swaziland devon massyn thea litschka shows rangers at a swazi game reserve a black mamba (dendroaspis polylepis) just before release. now, instead of killing them, many mambas found in residential areas are captured and relocated into protected areas. d ev o n m a ss y n philani and linda, seen here with a black mamba, have been working with snakes for about two years and now regularly conduct venomous snake captures and relocations. blood is taken from snakes prior to release to support genetic research. d o n a ld s c h u lt z iguana, june 2008 dr. robert f. clarke, emporia, kansas, passed away on 2 april 2008. he was born 18 october 1919 in portsmouth, virginia. he married elaine mcnabb of melvern, kansas, in 1947. in 1948, he and elaine moved to emporia, kansas, where he was a stationary engineer for the santa fe railroad and a freelance illustrator. dr. clarke always had a passion for reptiles and amphibians, and had amassed a large collection. after a rain, one of the biology professors from kansas state teachers college (now emporia state university) found him collecting frogs in a ditch and encouraged him to begin college to pursue his passion, which he did in 1952 at the age of 33. he completed his bachelors degree in 1955 and masters degree in biology in 1957 at emporia state university. he received a prestigious national academy of science fellowship to complete his doctorate in zoology at the university of oklahoma in 1963. the family returned to emporia and he taught at roosevelt high school on the emporia state university campus, then became a biology department faculty member at emporia state university in 1968. he was chairman of the department of biology at emporia state university from 1972 to 1979. as assistant to the vicepresident of academic affairs from 1969 to 1970, he helped initiate sabbatical leave and tenure policies. he retired from emporia state university in 1985. as a naturalist/educator, robert clarke taught several areas of biology for more than 30 years, published over 50 works on herpetology, established cpr training programs in emporia, was instrumental in starting the chickadee check-off program to assist non-game research in kansas, was a frequent speaker at colleges and universities as part of the american institute of biological scientists, and was the editor, editor emeritus, and one of the creators of the kansas school naturalist. as an artist/naturalist, he was ranked in the top ten of kansas wildlife artists. he designed and illustrated numerous association conference covers and illustrated several covers of the kansas school naturalist. he developed and illustrated over 100 cartoon-like panels entitled “something wild” that appeared in over 25 kansas newspapers. dr. clarke held the office of president for the following organizations: southwest association of naturalists (1971), kansas herpetological society (1972), and kansas academy of science (1981). he was co-founder of the kansas conservation forum and held over 20 professional memberships. dr. clarke received the following awards: the robert l. packard outstanding educator award by the southwestern association of naturalists (1989), kansas wildlife federation conservation communicator award (1991), the governor’s kansas conservationist of the year award (1982). he was a distinguished alumnus in 1991 from emporia state university, emeritus professor (1986), and xi phi outstanding graduate student in biology from the university of oklahoma (1961). in his primary profession of herpetology, the pinnacle of his long and productive career was being invested as a distinguished life member of the kansas herpetological society. robert is survived by a daughter, linda clarke (emporia), son, john clarke (wichita), and four granddaughters, jessica, lacy, tara, and kristi clarke (wichita). his wife, elaine preceded him in death. he loved his family, lizards and nature, his art and friends, his model a, making jokes, and laughter. his smile and virginia accent will be missed. modified from an obituary published in the topeka capital-journal on 4 april 2008 126 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 obituary o b i t u a r y robert f. clarke (1919–2008) la r r y l . m il le r iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 191historical perspectives the short-headed gartersnake has had a stormy taxonomic history. originally described by cope in 1892 from franklin, venago county, pennsylvania, the name brachystoma was suppressed by ruthven (1908), who, while noting that he lacked sufficient specimens to reach any position of certainty, considered it to be a synonym for thamnophis butleri (cope) 1889. albert g. smith reviewed the butleri complex in 1945 and decided that two distinct species were recognizable. for the more eastern of these he resurrected cope’s name brachystoma. conclusions application of fisher’s “t” test to comparable sets of data from butleri and brachystoma demonstrates conclusively that the two constitute separate populations. the question as to whether they be two discrete species, or merely two races of a single species having discontinuous ranges is a moot point. it is clear that two races of one single species can exist with definite gaps separating their geographical ranges. indeed, if our present concept of the mechanics of speciation is correct, it is inescapable that such a the northwestern garter snake (thamnophis ordinoides; top) and the western terrestrial garter snake (thamnophis elegans; bottom) are two species of garter snakes that share the relatively small eyes of butler’s garter snake. however, their distribution and a suite of other dissenting characters preclude any assumptions of close relationships, suggesting that small eyes evolved independently in these lineages. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h a statistical study of thamnophis brachystoma (cope) with comments on the kinship of t. butleri (cope)5 a. j. barton 5 extracted from barton (1956. proceedings of the biological society of washington 69: 71–82). iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 191 condition must sometimes exist. during the long period of time following the isolation of one segment of a population from others of its kind, while the gradual accumulation of changes in its genetic pattern is developing to the point where they are great enough to render it a recognizably distinct species, that population must of necessity belong to the species from which it has been isolated. the position of the final point of departure in such a situation, that point where the isolated population ceases to be conspecific with the parent stock, depends ultimately upon a subjective evaluation by the reviewer, colored by his own species concept. while caution must be exercised in the erection and continued recognition of species, it seem advisable in the absence of concrete contrary evidence to allow the present practice of regarding butleri and brachystoma as distinct species to continue unchanged. 192 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 barton the shorthead garter snake (thamnophis brachystoma) is another species that was historically confused with butler’s garter snake. a. j. barton’s short note clearly showed them to be distinct at the species level. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h editor’s remarks these two perspectives illustrate nicely the ongoing uncertainty and evolving definition of what constitutes a species (for non-technical reviews, see powell. 2004. species and subspecies: what do they mean and why should we care? iguana 11: 108–113 and 2002. understanding animal classification. iguana times 9: 18–26). at the time of stejneger’s article (1895), the scientific community was still adjusting to a classification based on relationships rather than mere similarities in appearance, although today’s taxonomists still rely extensively on anatomical features. by the time of barton’s study (1956), the transition in philosophy had been completed, only to be replaced by disputes over varying applications of different species concepts. our understanding of evolution and the role of dna was still tentative (the structure of the molecule had been described only in 1953), and this remains an ongoing issue. however, the disagreements regarding the utility and relevance of different concepts of what a species is, which occasionally descend into lively debates, mean nothing to the organisms themselves. still, the labels serve science and humanity by allowing us to identify groups of organisms in order to facilitate communication and to better understand evolutionary relationships and the complexities of nature. that the subject of the selected pieces is butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri) is no accident. this small snake (maximum known total length = 737 mm) not only serves as an effective illustration of the ever-changing nature of classification, but, in addition, has recently been the focus of a political controversy regarding the protected status of disjunct populations in wisconsin (see aprill. 2007. iguana 14: 94–99). using modern tools, studies of the wisconsin populations may yet reveal them to represent a species distinct from t. butleri in the rest of the species’ currently defined range, which extends from central ohio and indiana north through eastern michigan and the extreme southern tip of ontario. from a biological perspective, genetically unique populations deserve the same consideration by conservationists as recognized species. however, protection of the latter is certainly easier to justify to politicians, who may know little and care less about biology, but do understand the popular appeal of organisms — even snakes — found nowhere else but in their state. iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 192 iguana b&w text anegada island iguana (cyclura pinguis) in order to determine the genetic suitability of the san diego zoo’s six adult (3.3) anegada iguanas for a captive breeding program, relatedness within the captive population was examined by comparing their microsatellite variation to that observed for two groups of wild anegada iguanas, one known to be closely related (clutchmates from marked nests) and one presumed to be randomly related (haphazardly captured adults and juveniles). a cyclura pinguis dna microsatellite library was constructed using 23 of 48 candidate loci screened for polymorphism and found to be useful for analysis. dna was extracted from a total of 178 anegada iguanas: 12 captives at the san diego zoo (the six adult founders and their six offspring) and 166 wild individuals (68 haphazardly captured animals assumed to be randomly related, and 98 hatchlings from eight nests assumed to represent eight sibling groups). genotypes were obtained for all individuals and the average number of alleles observed across the 23 loci in the captive and wild populations was 2.8 and 4.3 respectively, with observed heterozygosity determined to be 0.61 in the captive group and 0.53 in the wild population. a maximum likelihood statistical approach, using the six captive founders and most of the wild individuals sampled, was used to infer relatedness among the captive adults. results of this analysis suggest the six captive adults contain three related pairs (one pair of males, one pair of females, and one male and female pair) and that each related pair is unrelated to the other pairs. the statistical approach used requires more markers to estimate specific relationships, such as determining whether two iguanas are likely to be siblings, half-siblings, parent-offspring, etc. for this reason, we can only generally state whether each pair is likely to be related or not. the molecular data compiled to infer relatedness of the six adult founders was also used to correctly assign parents to a captive offspring with a questionable pedigree. the adults that were believed to be the parents of the offspring were excluded at 7 out of 23 loci. of the four other possible adult candidates, microsatellite allele data revealed that only one male and female qualified as parents of the offspring at all 23 loci. the microsatellite data have also provided important information about the genetic diversity of the wild population on anegada. although population estimates suggest that the wild population contains fewer than 300 individuals, the microsatelwest indian iguanas: an update1 278 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 gerber, hines, iverson, and knapp � to determine the genetic suitability of the san diego zoo’s adult anegada iguanas (cyclura pinguis) for a captive breeding program, relatedness in the captive population was compared to that observed for two groups of wild iguanas. g le n n g er b er 1 reprinted with permission from the iucn iguana specialist group newsletter 9(1), summer 2006. iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 279west indian iguanas lite data suggest that the population is genetically healthy (observed heterozygosity is 0.53) and that subpopulations are not significantly subdivided (fst is 0.153). the genetic data also support the presence of partial sibling relationships across multiple field seasons for hatchlings captured on the tiny islet of windberg cay (0.26 ha) in red pond, suggesting that females return to this cay year after year to lay their eggs. this work was jointly undertaken by the genetics and applied conservation divisions of cres and was funded by a grant from the institute for museum and library services and with a van ness research fellowship at cres. glenn gerber san diego zoo ggerber@sandiegozoo.org allen cays iguana (cyclura cychlura inornata) two separate research trips were made to the allen cays area in the northern exumas, bahamas, one from 18–26 march 2006 and one from 16–21 july 2006. the march trip consisted of an alumni team that surveyed cays in and around the allens harbour for potential migrant iguanas and for the collection of blood samples. this expedition replaced the normal may trip for current earlham college students that involves intensive mark-recapture work on leaf and u cays. the july trip focused on nesting activity on flat rock reef cay (frrc) just northeast of leaf cay. we hoped to compare nesting parameters in this rapidly growing population with those observed in 2001 and 2002 on leaf and u cays, where populations are presumed to be at or near carrying capacity. march survey trip.—as early as 1995, jbi (author) began hearing reports that iguanas were seen on islands around leaf and u cays, where they had not been previously observed. by 2001, populations had been confirmed on allen cay and frrc (ca. 1 km ne of leaf cay), both of which contained individuals previously marked on leaf or u cays. our assumption was that people were relocating iguanas. in 2005, two iguanas and a carcass, none of which were marked, were discovered on a tiny islet just north of leaf cay that had yielded no sign of iguanas when surveyed in 2001. in order to better understand the issue, 13 earlham alumni and associates spent six days in march 2006 in the allen cays area to survey islands and to collect blood samples for future dna work. a total of 12 cays were visited during this trip. u cay and leaf cay were visited long enough to collect blood samples, but no other work was conducted on either cay. allen cay and frrc were extensively sampled and blood was collected at each location. total population estimates for each now stand at 20 (total marked) and 100 (based on 38 captures this trip that included five recaptures and a total of 45 marked for the island), respectively. to date, neither juveniles nor adequate nesting sites have been observed on allen cay. frrc, which had no evidence of iguanas in 1994, now has a thriving, growing population and the estimate of 100 iguanas includes a subjective count of 30 elusive juveniles. eight other cays between the allen cays and robert’s cay just south of ship channel cay, most of which had never been surveyed before, were also visited during this trip. a total of seven iguanas was seen on three of these islands and a fourth island had iguana scat and tail drags. of the observed iguanas, two were captured and blood was collected from each. one of these iguanas was unmarked and the other was a female originally from u cay that had clearly been relocated sometime after 2001, when it had been included in our nesting study on u cay. july nesting study.—jbi and knh returned to frrc for five days after the presumed nesting season (mid-june to mid-july on leaf and u cays). a total of ten potential nest sites were identified based on mound presence, soil and vegetation disturbance patterns, and female attendance. all ten sites were excavated and egg clutches were uncovered at seven of the sites. unlike on leaf an adult female allen cays iguana (cyclura cychlura inornata) in the northern exumas, bahamas. k ir st en h in es and u cays, female nest defense was minimal and it took some time to determine which nests had associated females. nonetheless, seven nesting females were identified and six were matched with precise clutches. one female was associated with a potential nest site, but the eggs were never uncovered. at one nest where eggs were found, no female was observed. two of the identified sites yielded no eggs nor associated females, indicating that our initial nest identification may have been incorrect for those sites. in addition to a lack of strong nest defense, the most important differences between the young population on frrc and the older populations on leaf and u cays tentatively appear to be a higher clutch frequency (40–50% on frrc; ~33% on leaf and u cays) and more rapid growth rate (32 cm svl = 10 years on frrc; 32 cm svl = 18–23 years on leaf and u cays) on frrc. the latter apparently results in female sexual maturity being attained in less than a decade on frrc rather than the 12 or more years necessary on the other cays. other nesting parameters, including clutch size, egg size, and distance between closest nests, do not appear to differ significantly between frrc and leaf and u cays. as a follow-up to the march survey, jbi and knh revisited one of the cays where four iguanas had been observed and the previously unmarked individual had been captured. we observed a total of five individuals and captured two. as with the march capture, these were unmarked, adult females. the captured females demonstrated site fidelity suggestive of nesting, and digging was observed, but soil appeared to be too sparse for actual nest construction. no juveniles were observed, reinforcing the notion that these individuals may be unable to nest on this island. conclusions.—our research this year leads us to wonder whether this might be an optimal time for the bahamian government to formally protect the allen cays iguana area. the discovery of a u cay female as far away as robert’s cay (6 km to the north) verifies that unauthorized persons are relocating iguanas from leaf and u cays. the presence of unmarked adult iguanas on at least two new cays also suggests a wider natural distribution than previously known. for example, at least three of the five iguanas on the newly surveyed cay appear to be long-term natural inhabitants. aside from leaf, u, and frr cays, however, the other cays appear to lack nesting habitat, potentially rendering the iguana populations there biologically dead. results of dna analyses from collected blood and future survey work should help clarify relationships among these island-separated populations. in the meantime, preliminary nesting results from frrc verify that populations can establish quickly given appropriate nesting habitat. in addition, the island with five iguanas offers a potential experimental site to study the demographic effects of adding nesting soils to an island. launching an educational campaign that includes informational kiosks on leaf and u cays is essential to the long-term well-being of the allen cays iguana. leaf cay and its iguanas support a booming tourist industry, but the latter depends on a vulnerable species that is made even more so by increased 280 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 gerber, hines, iverson, and knapp john iverson exhumes an allen cays iguana (cyclura cychlura inornata) nest in the northern exumas, bahamas. k ir st en h in es iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 281west indian iguanas human involvement. well-meaning tourists may be creating some of these biologically dead populations. too many islands support only single sex individuals or may not have sufficient nesting soil. furthermore, preliminary observations suggest that tourist feeding has dramatic effects on a subset of the populations. we have yet to understand the implications this may have on the health of individuals and the population as a whole. education, combined with a cooperative agreement among the owners of leaf and u cays and the bahamian government, could go far in ensuring the long-term existence of the allen cays iguana, the indigenous endangered audubon’s shearwater, and other flora and fauna in that area of the exumas. kirsten n. hines the institute for regional conservation hines@regionalconservation.org and john b. iverson earlham college johni@earlham.edu exuma island iguana (cyclura cychlura figginsi) surveys in the exuma island chain were conducted from 6–11 april 2006. the surveys were part of the john g. shedd aquarium’s citizen-scientist iguana research program and included the islands of leaf (northeast of normans pond), white bay, north adderly, noddy, and pasture cays. objectives for 2006 were to: (1) survey iguana populations in the southcentral exuma chain because they have not been visited since 1998, (2) translocate iguanas from leaf cay (northeast of normans pond) to pasture cay in the exuma cays land and sea park to augment the initial colony that was translocated in 2002, and (3) collect preliminary diet and body condition data for comparative studies of iguana populations inhabiting exuma cays visited by tourists versus un-visited cays. in addition to the april surveys, gaulin, bitter guana, and pasture cays were visited by ck (author) between 26 may and 4 june 2006. the surveys were part of a bahamas ecology course that included undergraduate students to help collect data from each cay (gaulin: 27, 28 may and 4 june; bitter guana: 27 may; pasture: 26 may and 2, 3 june). research on gaulin and bitter guana cays is part of an annual monitoring project initiated in 1998. approximately 2.5 days were spent on gaulin cay, one day on pasture cay, and three hours on bitter guana cay. general surveys and morphometrics.—during the april surveys, we captured and processed 123 iguanas from five cays (leaf, n = 19; north adderly, n = 33; noddy, n = 14; white bay, n = 51, pasture, n = 6). this was the first year that iguanas were all marked with pit tags on these cays (except pasture cay) for long-term identification. during the may/june surveys, we captured an additional two founder iguanas from pasture cay, one iguana from bitter guana, and 51 iguanas from gaulin cay. of the 51 gaulin captures, 27 were recaptures dating back as long ago as 1998. no differences existed in body mass, snout-vent length, or ectoparasite load between the north adderly, white exuma island iguanas (cyclura cychlura figginsi) populations in the south-central exumas were surveyed for the first time since 1998. jo h n b in n s bay, and gaulin cay iguana populations (all p > 0.05). leaf and pasture cays were excluded from statistical analyses because they represent translocated populations with low densities and thus exceptional large body sizes. noddy and bitter guana cays also were excluded from analyses because of small sample sizes. the southern end of bitter guana cay was surveyed by ck and l. roth on 27 may. twelve iguanas representing multiple age classes were observed, but only one large male was captured because of the extreme wariness of the iguanas and our short time on the island. additionally, while at anchor on 26 may off of bitter guana cay, four iguanas were observed foraging on the north beach. these observations represent an increase in recorded iguanas over the past nine years. although speculative, annual increases in observations coincide with the informative/protective signs posted on the island in 1998. on 10 april, we set sherman live rat traps on white bay (n = 28 traps) and leaf cays (n = 30 traps). we trapped six rats from white bay and none from leaf cay. to date, rats have been confirmed from white bay, gaulin, bitter guana, and pasture cays. north adderly, noddy, and guana cays (not visited in 2006) still need to be surveyed for rats. translocation.—the original translocation from leaf cay [northeast of normans pond] to pasture cay in the exuma cays land and sea park was conducted as a necessity because of a land sale dispute that required the removal of as many lizards as possible in two days. the translocated colony was heavily male-biased (11.5) resulting in an initial loss of large males. since december 2002, three male iguana carcasses have been recovered, while the fate of four (2.2) iguanas remains uncertain. one of the male carcasses was discovered in december 2002 washed up on compass cay located approximately 5 km south of pasture cay. interestingly, two large iguanas have been spotted this year on the north beach of a private cay (little halls pond) located 1.5 km north of pasture cay (tom barbernitz, personal communication). we were not granted permission to land on the island, so we were unable to determine if those iguanas came from pasture cay. however, no iguana-inhabited islands are in the area, so, if the iguanas did not originate from pasture cay, they were purposely put on the island from a distant iguana-inhabited cay. seven (5.2) of the founder iguanas remaining were recaptured on pasture cay and all appeared healthy and had gained body mass since last capture. two additional founder iguanas (1.1) were observed but not captured. one subadult that hatched on the island was recaptured and increased its body mass by 302 g and svl by 5.9 cm (bm = 420 g; svl = 19.6 cm) since it was last captured in 2004. two other subadults were observed but not captured. evidence of exploratory dig activity was observed on the north beach, and two iguanas appeared to have nested. one female was aggressive toward male and female conspecifics in her nesting area and chased iguanas away from the area if they approached too closely. a snake (alsophis vudii) was captured on the island in april. high predation rates of iguana hatchings by these snakes on andros island warrant future investigations concerning predation effects on pasture cay. dietary comparisons.—visitor traffic in the exuma cays has been increasing significantly over the past decade. many of these tourists land on cays inhabited by iguanas. for example, the allen cays in the northern exumas experience up to 600 people each week from one-day nassau excursions. the islands in the southern exumas also receive high-impact visitors from great exuma aboard one-day excursion tourist trips. previously undisturbed populations in the more remote central exumas also are becoming subjected to more frequent visits by tourists due to increased traffic from the staniel cay yacht club. consequently, few iguana populations remaining in the exumas are free from visitor impact. visitors purposely feed the iguanas, thus altering their natural behavior and potentially their health. in order to assess the impact of tourist feeding on populations of rock iguanas in the exumas, general dietary data were collected for comparative analyses between disturbed and undisturbed islands. we collected 131 scat samples from six cays in the central and southern exumas (white bay, north adderly, pasture, noddy, leaf [northeast of normans pond] and guana). in march 2006, kh (with john iverson) collected 84 scat samples of c. c. inornata from seven cays in northern exumas (leaf [east of allens], southwest allens, flat rock reef, roberts, and three unnamed cays just north of allens). scat samples were collected in different habitats and areas that included wooded interior, rocky areas, and beach habitat. preliminary results indicate that prolonged, high rates of feeding do alter iguana diets. of the islands sampled, leaf cay (allens) has by far the longest history and greatest rate of food provisioning by tourists. scat samples from the main tourist beach on leaf cay contained high levels of ooid sand grains (six of 19 samples), remnants of grapes (seven of 19), and fresh samples with more of a loose/liquid consistency than fresh samples found on other parts of the island (sand in two of 17 samples; grapes in one of 17; no loose/liquid samples). to a much lesser extent, other sampled iguana populations experience food provisioning by tourists (e.g., white bay cay, southwest allens cay), but no distinct differences were evident between samples from these islands and samples from populations with minimal or no food provisioning by tourists. more data are needed to make meaningful conclusions, but we now have a working hypothesis for future studies. future work will also focus on blood chemistry and behavioral comparisons. further reinforcing the timeliness of this work, we documented an increase this year in tourists visiting gaulin and pasture cays, thereby stressing the need for signs advertising the protected status of the iguanas. additionally, dialogue needs to be initiated to prohibit the feeding of iguanas on selected cays to prevent potential perturbations or preserve selected “natural” populations. charles knapp san diego zoo and john g. shedd aquarium cknapp@ufl.edu and kirsten hines the institute for regional conservation hines@regionalconservation.org 282 iguana • volume 13, number 4 • december 2006 gerber, hines, iverson, and knapp iguana, june 2008 92 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 barrio amorós and manrique the senior author with a green anaconda (eunectes murinus). “it is of unsightly body, the size of a pine beam. it can be as long as eight varas [6.4 m; each vara is 0.8 m]. just seeing it is frightening. knowing the range of its pestilent breath spurs one to flight. in response to a noise, the snake lifts its head one or two varas and fires a breath at tiger, lion, calf, deer, or man that stops cold, stuns, and turns immobile the animal that was poisoned. it then approaches and swallows it. i said that it swallows because it lacks teeth. it can open its mouth widely and may spend days consuming its prey…” father josé gumilla el orinoco ilustrado. 1741 during the past seven and 12 years respectively, we have been accumulating data on the natural history of the green anaconda (eunectes murinus) in the venezuelan llanos. we are wildlife guides who lead tours to this remarkable area called los llanos (flat lands), an extensive region of venezuela and colombia consisting of savannas north of the orinoco river. some of the most impressive rivers of south america flow through los llanos, leaving the plains flooded for half of the year. the landscape is mainly grassland with scattered trees and palms (more forested areas to the northwest are called llanos altos), but also dry gallery forest along rivers, many lagoons, and palm forests (morichales). we base our activity in the small village of san vicente, on the shore of the apure river, although both of us have had experience in other areas as well. our tour groups are taken into the field in search of the typical fauna of the zone: capybaras, giant anteaters, giant amazon otters, pink river dolphins, hundreds of species of birds (raptors, egrets, herons, screamers, terns, skimmers, parrots, toucans, woodpeckers, ducks, storks, etc.), piranhas, spectacled caimans, green iguanas, mata-mata turtles, and, of course, the indisputable star of los llanos, the giant serpent, the green anaconda. a tour in the dry season is not complete if we are unable to find at least one of these snakes. among the stunning wildlife and the impressive landscapes of the region, anacondas are perhaps the most emblematic natural element and the most intriguing to foreign visitors. the reactions of tourists to this star of myriad tales range from fascination to fear. herein we address the myth, the fantasy, the scientific reality, the natural history, interactions with humans, folklore within the local culture (indigenous people and descendants of europeans), and the economic importance of this giant serpent. the family boidae the family boidae includes some of the most beautiful and wellknown of all snake species. the colorful rainbow boa (epicrates cenchria), the elegant emerald boa (corallus caninus), the slender tree boa (corallus rushenbergerii), the red-tailed boa (boa constrictor), and the impressive green anaconda (eunectes murinus) are all members of this family of non-venomous snakes. all boas (subfamily boinae) are known for killing their prey by constriction. the subfamily is widely distributed in the americas (where pythons are absent), ranging from the southern united states to the lowlands of bolivia and northern argentina. real boas also occur in madagascar and new guinea, and the south pacific. boas are a complex family of snakes that includes terrestrial, aquatic, burrowing, and arboreal species and which consume a wide variety of prey. all boas are live-bearers. most boas observations on the natural history of the green anaconda (eunectes murinus linnaeus, 1758) in the venezuelan llanos: an ecotourism perspective césar l. barrio amorós1 and róger manrique fundación andígena, apartado postal 210, 5101-a, mérida, venezuela (www.andigena.org) 1corresponding author: cesarlba@yahoo.com; atelopus@andigena.org photographs by the authors unless otherwise indicated. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 93green anacondas in the venezuelan llanos � a large female green anaconda with a total length of 5.6 m. are nocturnal, but some neotropical species, including the boa constrictor and the famous anacondas, may hunt by day as well as during the night. in addition to the green anaconda, three other anaconda species are currently recognized. both are similar, albeit much smaller. the yellow anaconda (eunectes notaeus cope) reaches a maximum size of 4 m and lives in the paraguay-paraná river basin (northern argentina, paraguay, bolivia, southwestern brazil). the brazilian anaconda (eunectes deschaunseei dunn and conant) reaches a maximum length of only 2.5 m and is known from the mouth of the amazon to french guiana, were it is sympatric with e. murinus. recently, a third species has been described from bolivia as e. beniensis (dirksen 2002; dirksen and böhme 2005). it also is small (maximum length 4 m). another name applied to an anaconda, e. barbouri, was proven to be a synonym of e. murinus by strimple et al. (1997) and dirksen and böhme (1998). the green anaconda eunectes murinus, the green anaconda, is known as serpiente de agua, culebra de agua, caribita, madre de agua, güio, petaca, matatoro, sucurí, yacu mama, camudi, and by many more names throughout its range, which extends from trinidad and venezuela to bolivia. the species is the largest of the anacondas, and the heaviest serpent in the world, its weight surpassing that of other giants like the reticulated python. green anacondas can reach 200 kg (227 kg is the record taken from the guinness book of world records 2004). which species of snake is the longest is a question that engenders an ongoing debate — but the green anaconda is indisputably in the mix. a maximum length of 8.3 m is widely accepted (murphy 1997), and no documented voucher specimen of greater size is available (although the guinness book of world records 2004 lists a total length of 8.45 m, but fails to cite a source). people, especially in los llanos, commonly speak of anacondas measuring dozens of meters, but like many fishing stories, sizes tend to be exaggerated. a skin that was allegedly 12 m long proved to be only 6 m in length when accurately measured; most surprised (and disappointed!) was the owner of the skin, who had been quite certain that it was longer (murphy and henderson 1997). many of the historical cases (murphy and henderson 1997) of “scientists” reporting animals as long as 14 m and even 50–60 ft are considered unreliable as the claimants had been unable to measure the animals in question and estimates were entirely subjective. the most prominent case is that of emmett dunn, an important herpetologist in colombia, who believed the seemingly accurate report from an oil geologist of an anaconda captured in the río meta that reportedly measured 11.5 m (35.5 ft). in any event, the zoological society of new york is still offering a prize of $50,000 for an anaconda longer than 30 ft! only females can reach the largest size; the longest males do not surpass 4 m (pers. obs.). of interest, however, are reports of enormous anaconda skins, such as one allegedly 29 ft in length (robertson 1998) or those reported in murphy and henderson (1997). snakeskins, once separated from the flesh, salted, and stretched, can increase in length by as much as 30%, giving the impression that the snake was considerably longer than it actually was when alive. the ground color of green anacondas typically is olivegreen, with round black spots and yellow ocelli surrounded by black on the flanks. the belly is yellow with black checks. one red and one black stripe immediately behind the eyes are distinguishing features that help differentiate species of anacondas. taxonomy the northern green anaconda was long known as eunectes murinus gigas (latreille), the largest of all anacondas. differences 94 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 barrio amorós and manrique the green anaconda is the largest boa (family boidae, subfamily boinae) and the heaviest snake in the world. the ground color of green anacondas typically is olive-green, with round black spots and yellow ocelli bordered by black on the flanks. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 95green anacondas in the venezuelan llanos distinguishing this race included a lighter postocular region and slight differences in scale counts. however, as dirksen and böhme (1998) indicated, this color pattern is widespread throughout the range of e. murinus, and scale counts do not differ consistently. consequently, eunectes murinus (linnaeus 1758) is now recognized as a single monotypic species. distribution the green anaconda has a continuous distribution from northeastern venezuela and trinidad to bolivia, through the orinoco and amazon basins. it is currently unknown west of the andes (but see below). in venezuela, it is found throughout the lowlands in the states of sucre, monagas, anzoátegui, bolívar, amazonas, apure, barinas, guárico, cojedes, portuguesa, and probably the southern parts of aragua and carabobo. lake maracaibo is a large brackish venezuelan lake connected to the gulf of venezuela by a 55-km strait. the presence of green anacondas in lake maracaibo has not been confirmed, although local people are familiar with a “madre de agua” living in the deep pools of associated rivers and lagoons. they fear the animal, but respect it because they believe that these giants protect the rivers. two guides who have worked with us report road-killed anacondas. although these men are not trained herpetologists, they lead wildlife tours to los llanos and are capable of identifying the species. no vouchers exist, however, and so we cannot confirm the presence of these snakes until we have more solid evidence. habitat anacondas are aquatic snakes. they prefer to keep the entire body under water, with only the eyes and nares above the water line. when basking, they rarely range more than one meter from water. anacondas living in rivers have continuous water access, but those living in swamps are subjected to the risk of drought during the dry season. they sometimes remain burrowed in mud for months until the swamp refills in the rainy season. however, we have observed dead anacondas in dried swamps far from any permanent water. coiled anacondas are commonly seen basking in the sun on riverbanks or even in the shadow of overhanging vegetation. they may seek refuge in burrows and natural holes, where they are easy to find along rivers during the dry season. in the rainy season, they move throughout the flooded savannas, and are almost impossible to find. green anacondas have a continuous distribution from northeastern venezuela and trinidad to bolivia, through the orinoco and amazon basins. in venezuela, the species is known from throughout the llanos. anacondas are not arboreal, but we have on occasion found individuals resting in trees as high as 4 m above the ground. these are likely to be subadult females or adult males rather than heavy adult females. abundance although snakes in the tropics are never as common as they are depicted in the movies, given the proper conditions and habitat, anacondas can be quite numerous. in the rainy season, when the plains are flooded, anacondas, like many animals, are widely distributed throughout the savannas and difficult to locate. in the dry season, however, when the water evaporates from the lagoons and the rivers are at minimal flow, animals cluster around the remaining rivers and lagoons. at this time, los llanos provides spectacular views of thousands of spectacled caimans, birds, turtles, and capybaras together on the shore of a single body of water. in these conditions, anacondas, although not as visible as other animals, can be extraordinarily abundant. along one fivekm stretch of the apure river, our record is 16 anaconda sightings in three days. the average is always lower, from one to four. in swampy areas, they can be even more concentrated. the summer dry season also coincides with the breeding season, and females may be accompanied by several males. reproduction one legendary aspect of anacondas is their size… no llanero will admit that anacondas can only reach 8, perhaps 9 m in length. all of them have seen at least once in their lives anacondas of 15, 20, or even 40 m. and it is impossible to claim otherwise! they are right, and you are a “gringo” who does not know anything! on one occasion, a llanero came to us, and said that he had seen 96 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 barrio amorós and manrique anacondas are aquatic. typically, the entire body is under water, with only the eyes and nares emergent. despite their large size, green anacondas may be hard to locate. for example, the presence of the species in lake maracaibo has not been confirmed despite reports from reliable sources, and no voucher specimens have been taken. coiled anacondas are commonly seen basking in the sun on riverbanks or even in the shadow of overhanging vegetation. they may seek refuge in burrows and natural holes, where they are easy to find along rivers during the dry season. in the rainy season, they move throughout the flooded savannas, and are almost impossible to find. a green anaconda resting by day in vegetation along a riverbank. a r a ss a r i t r ek anacondas are not arboreal, but smaller, lighter individuals may bask in trees to heights of 4 m. the green anaconda (eunectes murinus) is one of the longest and certainly the heaviest snake in the world. c es a r l . b a r r io a m o r o s as one of the remaining top predators of the venezuelan llanos, effective conservation of green anacondas may depend on education and the benefits provided through ecotourism. see article on p. 92. c es a r l . b a r r io a m o r o s c es a r l . b a r r io a m o r o s c es a r l . b a r r io a m o r o s last chance for the yangtze giant softshell turtle? the world’s rarest and most endangered turtle, rafetus swinhoei, may be getting a reprieve from impending extinction. with only four known living individuals (two in china, two in vietnam) and only one of these a female, the odds couldn’t be much worse. in early may 2006, the turtle survival alliance (tsa), in conjunction with the wildlife conservation society, coordinated the successful transport of the lone female from the changsha zoo to the single male (estimated to be 100 years old) at suzhou zoo, for a desperation captive breeding attempt. “team rafetus” breathed a collective sigh of relief when the pair first met and gently began a courtship process that culminated with breeding attempts. the female, affectionately known as china girl, is shown here basking with the male watching her from the water. fingers are crossed that she will lay fertile eggs in june. for more information on this historic event, go to the tsa web site at <www.turtlesurvival.org>. see also the newsbrief on p. 124. g er a ld k u c h li n g proud sponsor of the ircf and this centerfold the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) remains one of the world’s most endangered lizards. a brutal attack at the breeding facility on grand cayman resulted in the death of seven captive adults. local and international efforts continue to support the blue iguana recovery program. see article on p. 66 and travelogue on p. 106. jo h n b in n s ground lizards, such as the dominican ground lizard (ameiva fuscata, left), and anoles, such as the grand cayman blue anole (anolis conspersus), are among the most abundant and visible species on west indian islands. however, ground lizards have become rare or extirpated on islands where introduced mongooses (herpestes javanicus) are established, and the native anole on grand cayman shifted its structural niche when it came into competition with introduced cuban brown anoles (a. sagrei). see commentary about an appreciation of “common” species on p. 105. jo h n b in n s r o b er t po w el l iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 97green anacondas in the venezuelan llanos a huge anaconda of at least 20 m, and that he knew where it was. so we ran to the site and, after some hours in the swamps, we actually saw an amazing ball of anacondas — probably 20 m long — but not one, instead 14 anacondas — 13 males trying to mate with one huge female! this is representative of anaconda mating. in the dry season, large females release pheromones that attract males from many kilometers. the first male to find the female is likely to remain for days (or even weeks) coiled around her. inevitably, other males are attracted as well, all of them surrounding the female and competing to introduce one of their hemipenes into the female’s cloaca. this orgy is essentially a patient battle among the males who are not aggressive toward each other (rivas et al. 2007). an interesting feature of anacondas, and many other boids, is the presence of small “spurs” adjacent to the cloaca, with those of males larger than those of females. the spurs are mobile, and may assist in mating by stimulating the female’s cloaca for reception (rivas et al. 2007). after 6–7 months of pregnancy, the female gives birth to 8–82 baby anacondas (usually 20–40). newborn anacondas usually are 60–80 cm in length, lighter in color (bright yellow) than the adults, and very aggressive. prey one of the most fascinating aspects of large serpents is their feeding habits. what do huge snakes eat? a green anaconda may wait for hours, sometimes days or weeks, hidden underwater, with only nostrils and eyes above the surface. when prey approaches, it will attack at close quarters with lightning speed, wrapping its coils around the prey animal and killing it. prey items vary according to the size of the snake. juveniles prey on small mammals, frogs, and large invertebrates, gradually taking larger items as they grow. a giant female of 6 m can swallow a capybara or a pig. although stories abound of anacondas swallowing cows and bulls, no such instances have been documented in venezuela. enemies adult anacondas are at the top of the feeding pyramid, but the young are eaten by many birds (e.g., storks, raptors, herons), spectacled caimans (caiman crocodilus), and a wide variety of carnivorous mammals. the notion of a fight between a giant anaconda and a jaguar is purely a hollywood fantasy. we cannot imagine that any jaguar would be stupid enough to attack a giant serpent, but smaller anacondas make easy prey for experienced big cats. one of the most striking features of many anacondas of all sizes is the number of wounds, old and recent, on their bodies. many are attributable to piranhas (serrasalmus sp. or pygocentron sp.), which apparently bite and release, leaving a nasty wound. others are from spectacled caimans, powerful predators that can put up a good fight when the tables are turned. anacondas usually heal well, and most show old scars in the form of a halfmoon or a complete circle from piranha bites or parallel linear wounds from caimans. some snakes, however, can die of such bites. other common injuries include incomplete tails. some of these short-tailed anacondas are easy to recognize even when recaptured years later. one unusual wound observed in an adult female was the absence of the left eye, with the area almost completely covered with scales. anacondas can be cannibalistic. rivas and owens (2000) documented three cases, two of them females eating smaller males at the end of the breeding season. they speculated that the females ate the males immediately after mating. the primary enemy of anacondas is humans. in almost any encounter between the two, snakes are systematically killed. we see them dead on the road (cars never stop or go around), killed by campesinos when encountered in the field, and, on one sad occasion when it was too late to intervene, we saw a fisherman pouring fuel and setting fire to a complete ball of breeding anacondas. attitudes, at least in areas with a strong tourist presence, after 6–8 months of pregnancy, females give birth to 8–82 (usually 20–40) baby anacondas. newborn anacondas are 60–80 cm long, lighter in color than adults, and very aggressive. show signs of change, but fear of snakes is very deep-rooted in the human psyche and rational appeals proceed at a limited pace. do anacondas attack humans? like any other animal in the world, anacondas do not like to be bothered by annoying guides who want to show them to tourists. predictably enough, anacondas will defend themselves energetically, biting and voiding their bowels when handled. an anaconda bite is not venomous, and, depending on the size of the snake, can be like a cat scratch or a rottweiler bite. since the snakes are aquatic, their mouths contain bacteria that can infect a wound. in some cases, anaconda teeth can break off and become embedded in a wound, only to surface months later. anacondas longer than 5 m can cause severe injuries, and the long teeth can penetrate to the bones of a hand, for example. an infected bite can also be quite serious and require hospital care. a few cases reported in the literature describe apparent attacks by anacondas. one in murphy (1997) involved a young girl caught by her bathing suit and saved by her sisters. the size of the snake is not mentioned. rivas (1998) mentioned two attacks on his helpers during field surveys in swamps. one of the anacondas measured 5.04 m and the other 4.45 m, and rivas indicated that both attacks appeared to be predation attempts. an anaconda of 6 m could easily swallow a child or a small adult, and an animal of 8 m could swallow an adult of any size. to be caught, a person would have to be exceedingly careless, asleep, or drunk. as with prey of a similar size, the snake would take several hours to swallow its meal and weeks or even months to digest it. sensational stories of anacondas attacking humans have cropped up in popular literature for centuries. some of these epic and not very realistic accounts were addressed by murphy and henderson (1997). fortunately, no reports of such incidents exist from venezuela, although rumors of missing persons suspected of having run afoul of anacondas can be heard from local llaneros. capturing anacondas: defensive behavior, bites, and other annoyances when observed along the river during the day, anacondas usually are resting, basking in the sun on the shore completely exposed, or, more commonly, concealed to some extent in tall grass, in paleras (floating mats of logs and branches), or submerged with only the nares and eyes exposed. they are more active at night, when they move along shorelines or swim in the shallow water near the riverbank. capturing an anaconda is never easy. we first try to catch a glimpse of the neck. if the animal is resting and the neck exposed, our task is much simpler. 98 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 barrio amorós and manrique one of the most striking features of many anacondas of all sizes is the number of wounds, old and recent, on their bodies. many are attributable to piranhas (serrasalmus sp. or pygocentron sp.). the principal enemy of anacondas is humans. in almost any encounter between the two, snakes are systematically killed. we see them dead on the road (cars never stop or go around) and killed by campesinos when encountered in the field. green anacondas select prey according to size. juveniles prey on small mammals, frogs, and large invertebrates, gradually taking larger items as they grow. a giant female 6 m in length can swallow a capybara or a pig. this juvenile killed a small common caiman (caiman crocodilus); note the wounds inflicted during an earlier battle with another prospective meal. a la n h ig h to n iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 99green anacondas in the venezuelan llanos the snake will allow a close approach, and usually the catch is successful. if the head is hidden, we must touch the animal until it starts to move. once we see the head, we can catch it. if the animal is in the water and the head submerged, we usually grasp the body, and risk being bitten. especially the smaller, more agile, and aggressive males will turn quickly and strike — but generally we manage to restrain the animal. some guides use gloves, which are useful to avoid bites, but we tend to be somewhat masochistic and always try to capture the animals by hand. anacondas can bite underwater, and, on occasion, we have been surprised by an angry male biting our feet. we have received dozens of bites, some severe. a bite is inevitably painful and bloody. teeth of large individuals can penetrate to the bone. only rarely have we decided to leave the anaconda catching for another day due to the severity of injuries. females are bigger but also calmer and quieter than males, and easier to catch. once one of us has the neck, we can move or lift the animal depending on its weight. males are lighter, and we can deal with adults to 3 m in length without too much difficulty. an adult male of 3 m can weigh 5–7 kg. females are a different question. a subadult female of the same size can weigh twice as much, depending on its girth and whether it has prey in the stomach. usually females of more than 4 m are difficult or impossible for a single person to lift. the senior author recently captured an impressive female of 5.5 m, so thick that it was impossible for three people to move it! we estimate that it weighed more than 100 kg! an animal of more than 6 m requires at least four people to move it out of the water, and at least 10 people are necessary to lift it. other than striking, an anaconda, when secured by the neck, releases a horribly offensive musk from its cloaca. if it splatters skin or clothing, the odor can persist for hours! the stench is truly vile. we quickly wash the cloacal region of any recently captured anaconda, until it releases all the musk into the water. once an individual has been shown and photographed by all interested parties, it is released in the same spot where it was captured. after handling, some anacondas become very calm and will remain for a while in the same position in which we leave them. others disappear quickly. a few adopt a balling defensive posture (dirksen et al. 1998), in which the snake coils into a ball to protect the head. myths anacondas are said to produce a powerful and poisonous vapor (gumilla 1741) capable of stunning victims. similar beliefs are common to several cultures throughout the world, and especially strongly ingrained in spain and all of latin america. many llaneros are particularly fervent believers. another common legend tells of a giant anaconda (invariably much more than 6 m in length) coiled in a tree overhanging a pool of water with its tail securely wrapped around a branch, waiting patiently until a cow or bull arrives to drink at the pool. once the snake catches the snout of the ruminant, the anaconda will firmly grip it while stretching out elastically to an incredible length. when the prey is exhausted, it is killed and the snake will release its tail and proceed to swallow the animal. another myth refers to finding an immense anaconda resting and digesting with the horns of a prey animal (either a whitetailed deer or a cow) sticking out of its mouth. according to llaneros, the anaconda will wait until the horns drop naturally as the rest of the animal is digested. murphy and henderson (1997) gave little credence to these tales (although horns of prey are known to have survived digestion by pythons in africa). conservation little is known about the roles of the top predators in los llanos. in addition to the anacondas, top predators include jaguars, pumas, orinoco crocodiles (crocodylus intermedius), when handled, anacondas will defend themselves energetically, biting and voiding their bowels. an anaconda bite is not venomous; however, the snakes are aquatic and their mouths contain bacteria that can infect a wound. in some cases, anaconda teeth can break off and become embedded in a wound, only to surface months later. note also the round “hole,” the opening of the glottis, which can be extended between the lower jaws, allowing the snake to breathe when swallowing large food. capturing large anacondas is a risky proposition. spectacled caimans, pink river dolphins, and giant amazon otters. the two biggest predators, the jaguar and the orinoco crocodile, have almost totally disappeared, and pumas and giant otters have become very rare, leaving anacondas and spectacled caimans as the principal top predators. the vast llanos ecosystem depends mostly on these two predators and the scavengers (piranhas, vultures, and other raptors) to keep the environment clean and healthy. of course, alterations by humans have changed the natural interactions between prey and predators by introducing cattle, hunting deer and capybaras, and over-fishing. some almost untouched llanos ecosystems remain in national parks, but most private preserves have been substantially altered, although no hunting is allowed. to protect cattle, large predators are exterminated, and then natural prey, such as capybaras and deer, increase in numbers well beyond the natural carrying capacity. anacondas thus fulfill a very important role — if they are not killed. advocating protection for snakes is always difficult, but attitudes show signs of changing. we see fewer anacondas killed now than we did years ago. people use them less for natural medicine (although some still believe that the fat is miraculous for rheumatism). on one occasion, we rescued a huge anaconda of 4.5 m that was kept by a local fisherman who wanted to extract the fat and sell it for a high price. anacondas remain quite common in some areas. endless swamps are not amenable to humans, yet provide ideal habitat for giant serpents. also, big rivers and small tributaries offer many opportunities for anacondas to live and hide with little disturbance. the most important aspect of conservation is to convince llaneros to value and protect their natural heritage. educational campaigns, posters, lectures in local schools, and demonstrations show that anacondas are not dangerous and can be economically important as an attraction for tourists. can ecotourism protect anacondas? in the past ten years, we have shown hundreds of anacondas to tourists from all over the world. we believe that personal contact with anacondas is necessary to convey the conservation message. we generally capture one specimen per group (and usually show many more), and make everyone feel the power of its muscles, feel its skin, see the colors, and even experience the terrible smell. when a tourist is faced with an anaconda, even if held by one of us, reactions are diverse, ranging from excitement, fascination, and admiration to abject fear. even many who are scared at first will eventually agree to touch or even to hold one of these animals and, in the process, perhaps reconsider the idea that all serpents are evil. having at hand one of nature’s most powerful predators and seeing it in its own habitat is a unique experience, which we hope will give visitors an idea of the importance of preservation. when these people return to their cold homes in sweden, england, or canada, and tell incredible stories to their friends, some of them in turn want to see the show live! this as much as any other single factor has led to an increase in ecotourism in los llanos — with the primary objective of seeing, among the other spectacular animals, anacondas. ecoor bio-tourism operators (at least the most serious) offer work to many people in los llanos, boatmen, local guides, cooks, etc. they and the people around them (family, friends, neighbors), all fishermen, and other potential enemies of anacondas and other animals in time will see the value of protecting these animals, recognizing that they attract tourists and thus, money for the village. what are the negatives? during the rainy season, when los llanos are flooded, the huge concentrations of birds and caimans, turtles and piranhas disperse into the flooded savannas and become difficult to see. in venezuela, the rainy season extends from mid-may to midnovember. anacondas also are much harder to locate and, although we advertise this fact, tourists may be disappointed. inevitably, entrepreneurial llaneros will capture any anaconda they can find (and keep it in a bag for weeks or until it dies or is too weak or thin to be interesting) and offer to show it for a price. others tie a rope around the neck of a big snake and keep the animal in a swamp until the tourists arrive with a local guide, at which time the giant suddenly appears (always with neck injuries) to the delight of tourists unaware of the fraud. such dishonest practices can penalize “honest” guides, but is this truly negative? the impact is not pronounced; only a few anacondas serve as bait, and the educational aspect for the tourists can be more positive than if they do not see any snakes. nevertheless, it presents a false image of nature, and we do not engage in or approve of such dishonesty. 100 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 barrio amorós and manrique the two largest predators of the venezuelan llanos, the jaguar and the orinoco crocodile, have almost totally disappeared, and pumas and giant otters have become very rare, leaving anacondas and spectacled caimans as the principal top predators. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 101green anacondas in the venezuelan llanos some tourists do not want to touch snakes, only observe them, not out of fear, but because they claim that we stress the animals. yes, this is likely true. however, reptiles do not stress like birds or mammals, due to their slower metabolism. usually, big snakes like anacondas, but also smaller boids, iguanas, and caimans, fight for a short period when captured and then cease to move, as if in a trance… this is the perfect moment to show them to people, to take pictures, and in a few minutes, the animal is free again, at the same location. only a few animals are caught and used as live teaching material, always with concern for the well-being of both captor and captive. they always are released quickly, and often become wary of being captured again (minimizing any potential stress). some anacondas, however, have been recaptured several times, and they always seem to be in perfect shape. future perspectives much remains to be learned about the natural history of anacondas and we would like to do our part. we have the ability to follow populations of anacondas at little cost. we can mark, photograph, measure, and release anacondas whenever we take tourists to los llanos. attaching radio transmitters to some of these animals and tracking them, especially during the rainy season when the savanna is flooded and the anacondas disappear from the river shores, would surely provide much insight into the lives of these intriguing serpents. acknowledgements we are indebted to arassari trek (www.arassari.com), the company for which we have been working for many years. they have made it possible for us to develop our interest in nature directly in los llanos. we also are grateful to the many llaneros who have worked with us for more than 10 years: azael, carlos andrés, dixon güiza, luison, asdrúbal, and many others. robert henderson and lutz dirksen provided valuable information and helped correct our english, improving the manuscript dramatically. literature cited dirksen l. 2002. anakondas: monographische revision der gattung eunectes wagler, 1830 (serpentes, boidae). natur und tier verlag, münster. dirksen, l. and w. böhme. 1998. studien an anakondas ii: zum taxonomischen status von eunectes murinus gigas (latreille, 1801)(serpentes: boidae), mit neuen ergebnissen zur gattung eunectes wagler, 1830. salamandra 34: 1–16. dirksen, l. and w. böhme. 2005. studies on anacondas iii: a reappraisal of eunectes beniensis dirksen 2002, from bolivia, and a key to the species of the genus eunectes wagler, 1830 (serpentes, boidae). russian journal of herpetology 12: 223–229. dirksen, l., e. buongermini, c. strüssmann, and t. waller. 1998. protective balling-posture behavior in the genus eunectes wagler, 1830 (serpentes: boidae). herpetological natural history 6: 151–155. gumilla, j. 1741 (1999). el orinoco ilustrado. los libros de el nacional, colección ares, caracas, venezuela. robertson, m.m.k. 1998. côro de sucurí (anaconda snake skin). reptiles 6(9): 36–39. murphy, j.c., 1997. amphibians and reptiles of trinidad and tobago. krieger publishing co., malabar, florida. murphy, j.c. and r.w. henderson. 1997. tales of giant snakes: a historical natural history of anacondas and pythons. krieger publishing co., malabar, florida. rivas, j. a. 1998. predatory attacks of green anacondas (eunectes murinus) on adult human beings. herpetological natural history 6: 157–159. rivas, j. a., m. c. muñoz, g. m. burghardt, and j. b. thorbjarnarson. 2007. sexual size dimorphism and the mating system of the green anaconda (eunectes murinus), pp. 313–325. in: r. w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), biology of the boas and pythons. eagle mountain, ut: eagle mountain press. strimple, p.d. 1993. overview of the natural history of the green anaconda (eunectes murinus). herpetological natural history 1(1): 25–35. strimple, p.d., g. puorto, w.f. holstrom, r.w. henderson, and r. conant. 1997. on the status of the anaconda eunectes barbouri dunn and conant. journal of herpetology 31: 607–609. when a tourist is faced with an anaconda, even if held by one of us, reactions are diverse, ranging from excitement, fascination, and admiration to abject fear. we believe that personal contact with anacondas is necessary to convey the conservation message. we generally capture one specimen per group and let everyone feel the power of its muscles, feel its skin, see the colors, and even experience the terrible smell. iguana b&w text while walking over a dry mesa, yesterday, i noticed a small snake slowly crawling to the shelter of a mesquit bush. on capturing it, i found it to be of a very dark olive-green color, in large, square pattern, the lines between the plaids being of lighter green; underneath, white, with very dark-green blotches. its head was very dark green, and rather small; it had small fangs. the length of the snake was nineteen inches. noticing that the body seemed much distended, i opened it, and found, nicely packed away inside, the body of an ordinary, brown, striped “grass snake,” as we call them here, twenty-two inches long. this green snake may be a new species of snake-eating serpent. the grass snake is very swift, and i am puzzled to know how the green snake caught it; it was swallowed head-first. 170 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 historical perspectives h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s snake eats snake1 c.w. kempton oro blanco, arizona apropos of the interesting notes on snakes, lately published in your columns, i would like to relate the following:— i think it was about the middle of last june that our little boy, who is interested in collecting various natural history objects, brought home a full-grown water-snake. he procured a box of generous dimensions, one whole side of which he covered with wire-screen, such as is used in windows. a small slide was made in the top of the box, so that the porcelain tray (such as photographers use for developing trays), which he placed within, could be kept filled with water, and also for the introduction of food. this box was thenceforward “the snake den,” and here the snake passed the remainder of its existence. a small frog, several grasshoppers, and various insects were dropped through the opening in the top of the box from time to time, but we are not sure whether the snake ever deigned to taste a morsel during her entire captivity; certain it is, however, that if she did finally taste the frog, she did not find it a very appetizing meal, for the little frog hopped about in the box for days and days without any food itself. it was just as apt to rest upon the body of the snake as anywhere else, each seemingly indifferent to the presence of the other. the grasshoppers also were entirely ignored. the snake was left in the box, in the back-yard, during the months of july and august, with no care whatever, we being absent during that time, and the little boy who had agreed to look after it having deserted it. what was our surprise, after our return early in september, to find one day that mrs. snake had giv[en] birth to thirteen little ones. such a little, writhing, squirming, snaky mass! the little snakes were about five inches long, and soon became quite active. in the course of a few weeks they were much more ready to take their own part than their mother seemed to be. she had probably learned by experience that it was of little or no avail to “fight back,” and contented herself with running out her forked tongue when irritated, and then trying to creep out of harm’s way. the little ones, on the contrary, would crawl up the screen as far as possible, and when pushed off, with a straw or wire introduced through the screen, they would at once crawl up again, run out their little tongues, and show all the rashness of youth. wondering how far the maternal instincts were developed in the mother snake, whether she would try to defend or protect them, the young snakes were frequently irritated, in order to arouse, if possible, her defensive propensities; it was all to no purpose; she seemed a heartless mother, ignoring wholly that her offspring were in danger. a long wire was often thrust into the box, and under a little snake, which could thus be dangled before the old snake in a most irritating manner. but, whether from fear on her own part, or utter indifference to the welfare of her young, she paid no attention whatever to the provocation. the mother snake lived until the middle of october, when she succumbed to the white frosts of autumn. a few weeks later two of the young snakes fell asleep; one of them was given to a little schoolmate, who put it in his pocket and took it to school, when, 1o! and behold! the warmth from his body resuscitated it, and the “bad boy” played with it in school. to the teacher’s question as to what he had, he replied, “a shoestring!” learning thus that possibly the remaining little snakes might sleep (hibernate) through the winter, soil, small stones, dead leaves, etc., were placed in the box, and they crept away out snake story2 mrs. w.a. kellerman columbus, ohio 2 originally published in science, vol. 21, no. 520 (20 january 1893), pp. 36–37. 1 originally published in science, vol. 20, no. 498 (19 august 1892), p. 107. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 170 iguana b&w text 142 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 cotí and ariano-sánchez the guatemalan black iguana (ctenosaura palearis) is one of five species of spiny-tailed iguanas found in guatemala. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 142 the semiarid region of the motagua valley (srmv) is one of the few regions of mesoamerica in which the unique tropical dry forest and thorn scrub ecosystem still remains. one of the principal characteristics of this region is the presence of many endemic species (nájera 2006), such as the guatemalan black iguana (ctenosaura palearis). the genus ctenosaura is represented by five species in guatemala: c. alfredschmidti (northern guatemala), c. flavidorsalis (eastern guatemala), c. similis (general distribution), c. acanthura (nentón valley), and c. palearis (köhler 2003, acevedo 2006). ctenosaura palearis was described by stejneger in 1899. since then, few studies have addressed the species. buckley and axtell (1997) studied populations of c. palearis in guatemala and honduras, and described the honduran population as ctenosaura melanosterna. ctenosaura palearis is believed to have a total distribution range of less than 100 km2. total population size is unknown, but may consist of fewer than 2,500 mature individuals in the wild (köhler 2004). the males of this species have been reported to attain a total length of 56.5 cm, and the females 48.5 cm (köhler 2003). ctenosaura palearis is included in the iucn red list as critically endangered (cr), but the lack of ecological information makes developing conservation strategies difficult. to facilitate that process, we herein describe some ecological aspects and traditional uses of the guatemalan black iguana in the dry forest of the motagua valley. material and methods the srmv is located in northeastern guatemala. this region has the lowest average rainfall in central america (500 mm) and comprises an area of about 200,000 ha, covering portions of the departments of el progreso, zacapa, and chiquimula. fieldwork was conducted in the mountains of el arenal village, cabañas, and zacapa. cabañas is located 150 km from guatemala city at the geographic coordinates 14º56'32" n and 89º48'24.9" w. the vegetation in this area is composed mainly of mimosaceae, cactaceae, fabaceae, euphorbiaceae, and burseraceae. representative species include zacapan oak (bucida macrostachya), quebracho (licania hypoleuca), palo de jiote (bursera simaruba), yaje (leucaena sp.), zarza blanca (mimosa platycarpa), manzanote (pereskia autumnalis), cactus cabeza de viejo (pilosocereus albocephalus), stenocereus spp., subín (acacia spadicigera), opuntia sp., naranjillo (jacquinia spp.), and piña de coche (hechtia guatemalensis) (arianosánchez 2003). ecology and traditional use of the guatemalan black iguana (ctenosaura palearis) in the dry forests of the motagua valley, guatemala paola cotí1 and daniel ariano-sánchez2 1 biology department, universidad del valle de guatemala (paoniz@gmail.com) 2 research and conservation projects direction, zootropic organization (dariano@zootropic.com; darianosanchez@gmail.com) photographs by the authors. iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 143guatemalan black iguana � hatchling ctenosaura palearis observed in june 2007. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 143 to determine the actual use of c. palearis by local villagers, we visited different areas of the motagua valley and surveyed inhabitants of the local communities. we used the quadrant point method to determine if iguanas select any particular microhabitat. the quadrants were established in areas with known iguana shelters and each one was assigned a random replicate in a zone without known shelters. the location of random replicates was determined by using a computerized random number generator. quadrants were 10 x 10 m in size and centered on the iguana shelter. in the random quadrants, the largest tree in the quadrant was designated as the center. quadrants were oriented from north to south. we measured tree height and diameter at breast height (dbh). a wilcoxon test was used to evaluate differences in dbh and tree height within areas with and without iguana shelters. we used jmp version 5 (sas institute, cary, north carolina) for statistical analyses. the general location, exact position, and date were recorded for each iguana captured. each iguana also was weighed and the following measurements were taken: snoutvent length (svl), tail length (tl), head length, head width, and total length. we used a mark-recapture technique to determine the population size in the study area, using the jolly (1965) method. captures took place from may 2007 to march 2008. iguanas were marked with bead tags (binns and burton 2007), using seven different colored beads in a unique identification code. the sequence for each iguana was recorded for the next capture. also, we permanently marked each individual with pit tags, using avid microchips. to evaluate feeding habits, we collected fecal samples and stored them in 80% propanol. contents of the samples were classified and identified using reference collections of plants and insects. we also considered direct observations of animals eating. results traditional use a large percentage (88%) of the people surveyed indicated that they had eaten iguanas in the past, but only 38.6% of them eat them currently. no preferred hunting season exists, but some people hunted preferentially in february–april during the egglaying season. the number of iguanas killed ranged from two to five and as high as 60, depending on whether hunting is for consumption or trade. twenty percent of people who make personal use of iguanas use them strictly for meat, 58% use the meat and egg yolks, and 22% use the meat, egg yolks, and skin. locals have a marked preference for the consumption of c. palearis meat over that of c. similis. the guatemalan black iguana is not used for any traditional handicrafts because of its small size. hunting is the primary method for obtaining iguanas (84%); some people buy iguanas (8%) or combine both methods (8%). iguanas are hunted primarily for food for local families; however, we detected two areas in the department of el progreso where c. palearis is hunted for the illegal pet trade. local people will collect 60 or more animals and sell them to random buyers who then sell them to international illegal traders. guatemalan black iguanas, especially soup made from their meat, are believed to have medicinal properties. people say it is used to heal eye problems and cancer (especially if the meat is consumed), and the fat is used to relieve swellings and for healing earaches. habitat characterization using 22 quadrants and their respective replicates, we sampled a total of 6,400 m2 (0.64 ha). trees in quadrants with c. palearis shelters are significantly larger (p = 0.0002) and taller (p = 0.0001) than trees in the replicates. mean dbh of tree in areas with c. palearis shelters was 8.84 ± 6.68 cm, whereas those in the randomly chosen areas had a mean dbh of 7.84 ± 6.37 cm. tree height averaged 4.96 ± 2.5 m in areas with c. palearis shelters, whereas mean height in replicate quadrants was 4.53 ± 2.5 m. the range of c. palearis included areas of dry forest and thorn scrub at elevations of 350–700 m above sea level. the predominant species in areas with iguanas were tree cacti (stenocereus pruinosus, ximena americana, tecoma stans, and licania hypoleuca). for randomly defined replicates, predominant species were bucida macrostachya, mimosa zacapana, lonchocarpus rugosus, psidium sp., and stenmadenia obovata. population size and habitat use we captured 70 individuals (36 males and 34 females). the estimated total population size for the study area was 99 individuals. maximum estimated population size for the entire study site (3,000 ha) was 651 individuals with a 95% level of confidence. this works out to an average density of one individual every 1.69 ha. most iguanas were found in trees, confirming that this species is primarily arboreal. the tree cactus stenocereus pruinosus was the species most frequently used by c. palearis (n = 33), followed by l. hypoleuca (n = 4), t. stans (n = 5), x. americana (n = 3), and a few other species selected only once. three individuals used fallen logs. actual shelters were usually hollow trunks or branches. iguanas in shelters used their spiny tails to block the entrances. lizards leave shelters as daytime temperatures rise. during the day, they use the crowns of trees and the highest parts of cacti for basking and displaying. they return to their shelters at 1600–1700 h. individuals demonstrate fidelity to a set of shelters, which are used as refugia. one adult male used five shelters covering an area of 475 m2 (0.047 ha). a juvenile male used two sites 144 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 cotí and ariano-sánchez the dry forests of el arenal village in the motagua valley of guatemala. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 144 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 145guatemalan black iguana hollow tree stumps and branches used by ctenosaura palearis. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 145 within a distance of 200 m. two females were recorded making use of only two shelters. feeding habits we examined 19 fecal samples (9 from females and 11 from males). the diet consists mainly of insects (47.83%) and plant material such as flowers (15.37%), fruits (7.69%,), and leaves (26.92%). the most frequently represented insects were ants (19%) and crickets (15.38%). one fecal sample contained large numbers of fly larvae that may have been ingested adventitiously with fruit. species recognized in the plant material were leaves of licania hypoleuca, flowers of cochlospermum vitifolium, and the fruits and seeds of stenocereus pruinosus. we also found stones and resin. we frequently have seen c. palearis feeding on fruits of s. pruinosus. faces and forelimbs colored by the red pigment of this cactus fruit are a common site. we captured three individuals with evidence of residual pulp and seeds stuck to their faces. these fruits are available from march through early may. food varied by season. the samples from may to september were composed mainly of leaves, fibers, and ants. in contrast, samples from november to december had smaller quantities of fiber and an increased number of leaf sprouts. samples from february to march contained flowers, beetles, crickets, and ants (and other hymenopterans). sample sizes were too small to determine if observed seasonal differences were significant. reproduction female c. palearis have an annual reproductive cycle. copulation occurs during january and february, and gravid females are found in february and march. females dig sand tun146 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 cotí and ariano-sánchez evidence of the feeding habits of guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti). the crushed eggshell on the right was found inside the nest of an iguana. also found in the same nest were skin remnants from a guatemalan beaded lizard. a male ctenosaura palearis on the branch of a timboque tree (tecoma stans) displays his dewlap. biologist paola coti with her first-ever captured ctenosaura palearis. the male in the photo was the first marked with pit tags for the project.jo h n b in n s iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 146 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 147guatemalan black iguana nels in which they lay their eggs. nests were in banks of dry streams and gullies and in sandy patches within the dry forest. six to twelve eggs are deposited from late march to late april. eggs begin hatching in late may, which coincides with the beginning of the rainy season. both males and females lose weight during the reproductive season. we also found evidence that guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) are predators of c. palearis nests. discussion traditional use local villagers use c. palearis primarily as a protein source. the species is heavily hunted in some areas, especially during the breeding season when the killing of gravid females has a substantial impact on the survival and viability of wild populations. although iguanas have been eaten by humans for many generations, the impact is exacerbated today by habitat loss, illegal trade, and non-sustainable hunting practices. habitat loss is due primarily to the increasing amount of land used for watermelon cultivation and the construction of new residential zones within the valley. local people say they have seen a dramatic diminution in wild iguana populations compared to 20 years ago. hunting of gravid female iguanas is non-sustainable. animals are consumed or hunters make an incision to remove eggs, sew the iguanas up and let them go free. these individuals soon die in the wild from bacterial infections and internal hemorrhages. illegal trade is proving to be a much more serious threat to the species than hunting. people who catch iguanas for meat usually catch six a month, while illegal traders often catch 50–60 iguanas a month. web and market surveys have shown that this species is sold in countries such as greece, germany, and the united states for an average price of $25.00 per individual. all ctenosaura palearis sold outside guatemala are illegal, as governmental biodiversity authorities in guatemala have not issued any export permit for this species (conap 2008). these factors seriously affect the viability of the extant populations of c. palearis. subsistence hunting as currently practiced may cause long-term depletion of this species unless we develop a sustainable extraction plan accompanied by legislation that regulates the use of this species for such purposes. farming iguanas may be a way of meeting the demand for iguana meat and eggs within the valley. the more important threat at this time is the illegal trade of this species on the international market. this may be diminished by incorporating c. palearis in appendix ii of the cites convention. this iguana species certainly meets the criteria for inclusion. habitat characterization habitat selection may be determined by the availability of food resources or the availability of trees providing suitable refugia and basking sites (valenzuela 1981, lara-lopez and gonzales 2002). our results indicate that species composition, average height, and dbh of trees are important factors in habitat selection by c. palearis. the tallest trees provide appropriate sites for males’ territorial displays (werner 1987). they also are used for thermoregulation. trunk diameter is an important factor in shelter selection, mainly for the adults that require larger cavities for use as refugia. for example, in the cactus stenocereus pruinosus, the species most frequently used by c. palearis as shelters, we have found evidence of the feeding habits of ctenosaura palearis (from left to right): fruits of the cactus stenocerus pruinosus, iguana with seeds adhering to the throat, and fruit pulp of s. pruinosus staining the throat of another individual. searching for ctenosaura palearis inside a hollow trunk using a bore scope funded by the san diego zoo. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 147 females, subadult males, and juveniles. however, in licania hypoleuca, which is thicker, we have found only adult males. the composition of the vegetation also predicts the presence of c. palearis. in areas where iguanas occur, the more abundant species were s. pruinosus, ximena america, tecoma stans, and l. hypoleuca. the first three species provide food and the last one offers shelters for adult males. feeding habits ctenosaura palearis is omnivorous and this may be a function of the species’ size. unlike other ctenosaurs, such as c. similis or c. pectinata, that are large enough to feed on small vertebrates (krysko et al. 2000, alvarez del toro 1960, campbell 1998, suazo and alvarado 1994, valenzuela 1981), we have not found any vertebrate remains in the fecal samples of c. palearis. fecal samples were taken only from adults, and these contained an abundance of insect remains. these data suggest that the consumption of arthropods corresponds to the dry season, when trees shed their leaves. at this time, adults must regain body mass lost during the breeding season, so the consumption of insects, flowers, and fruits contributes significantly to the rebuilding of body condition. evidence from fecal samples indicates that ants are the insects most commonly ingested. iguanas presumably take opportunistic advantage of the abundance of social insects that are associated with the trees in which they live, similar to other lizards that consume large numbers of ants (e.g., phrynosoma spp. and moloch horridus; pianka and pianka 1970, pianka 1966). alternately, ants may be inadvertently ingested with fruit. however, the great frequency and quantity of ants consumed is strongly suggestive of intentional consumption. ecological role of ctenosaura palearis iguanas are important pollinators and seed dispersers (godínez 2004, olsen and valido 2003, traveset and riera 2005). ctenosaura similis is one of the main seed dispersers for some plants in the deciduous forests of costa rica (traveset 1990). ctenosaura palearis is one of the most important species that feeds on fruits of the cactus s. pruinosus, suggesting that it could serve as a seed disperser of this endangered cactus, and consequently contribute to forest cover regeneration. seeds of s. pruinosus have been found in the feces and also attached to the gular region of iguanas. also significant is the fact that iguana eggs are an important food source for heloderma horridum charlesbogerti (arianosánchez 2007). we have found a c. palearis nest with remnants of shredded heloderma skin. the latter species is in extreme danger of extinction (ariano-sánchez 2006, ariano-sánchez and salazar 2007). therefore, maintaining a stable population of c. palearis might be important for conserving wild populations of h. horridum charlesbogerti. these data suggest that c. palearis might be a keystone species for the dry forests of the motagua valley (mills et al. 1993). more detailed studies, especially on the diet of the iguana, are crucial in determining the role the species plays in seed dispersal and germination. conservation status the conservation status of c. palearis is better than previously believed. however, threats to this endemic species are increasing, making the development of conservation strategies an imperative. the promotion of sustainable hunting practices should become part of the existing program of environmental education conducted in the region. nest monitoring and further research into the demographic status and the effectiveness of the guatemalan black iguana as a keystone species are also important. data from such studies will provide more information about the ecology of c. palearis and might allow us to develop an ecologically sustainable harvest for local villagers. other techniques, such as radio-tracking, could significantly help scientists learn more about the activities of these ctenosaurs. no species of ctenosaura is included in the cites appendices. however, limited protection is provided by certain countries. for example, in mexico, the majority of species of ctenosaura are cataloged as threatened or under special protection (alvarado and suazo 1996). in guatemala, c. palearis is considered a threatened species on the red list of endangered flora and fauna of the national council of protected areas (conap). however, the lack of a regulatory entity for the international trade makes it difficult to control illicit commerce in this species. inclusion in the cites appendices would provide a tremendous impetus for the conservation of these animals, both nationally and internationally. however, if this position is not supported by the countries with native populations of ctenosaurs, the inclusion of the guatemalan endemic ctenosaura palearis in appendix ii of cites could still contribute to diminishing the threat of commercial trade on international markets. acknowledgments we thank gilberto salazar and pedro mejia for their invaluable field assistance. zootropic, the international reptile conservation foundation, and zoo atlanta provided financial and technical support for the present study. conap issued permits for the research. special thanks to luis alvarado, john binns, brad lock, jack schuster, elfriede pöll, cesar castañeda, mario véliz, and doris carbonell. the present paper is part of the biology degree thesis of p. cotí at universidad del valle de guatemala. 148 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 cotí and ariano-sánchez researchers and the field vehicle (financed by the ircf and zoo atlanta) used for the research project. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 148 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 149guatemalan black iguana literature cited acevedo, m. 2006. anfibios y reptiles de guatemala: una breve síntesis con bibliografía. in: e. cano (ed.), biodiversidad de guatemala. universidad del valle de guatemala. álvarez del toro, m. 1960. los reptiles de chiapas. instituto zoológico del estado tuxtla gutiérrez, chiapas, méxico. ariano-sánchez, d. 2003. distribución e historia natural del escorpión, heloderma horridum charlesbogerti campbell y vannini, (sauria: helodermatidae) en zacapa, guatemala y caracterización de su veneno. biology degree thesis, universidad del valle de guatemala. ariano-sánchez, d. 2006. the guatemalan beaded lizard: endangered inhabitant of a unique ecosystem. iguana 13:178–183. ariano-sánchez, d. 2007. distribución potencial, ámbitos de hogar y patrones de comportamiento del lagarto escorpión heloderma horridum charlesbogerti (sauria: helodermatidae) con notas sobre el primer reporte de caso de envenenamiento por esta especie en guatemala. master of science thesis, universidad de costa rica. ariano-sánchez, d. and g. salazar. 2007. notes on the distribution of the endangered lizard, heloderma horridum charlesbogerti, in the dry forests of eastern guatemala: an application of multi-criteria evaluation to conservation. iguana 14:152–158. binns, j. and f. burton. 2007. beads tags. international reptile conservation foundation and blue iguana recovery program, usa. buckley, l. and r.w. axtell. 1997. evidence for the specific status of the honduran lizards formerly referred to ctenosaura palearis (reptilia: squamata: iguanidae). copeia 1997:138–150. campbell, j. 1998. amphibians and reptiles of northern guatemala, yucatán and belize. university of oklahoma press, norman. conap. 2008. wildlife and cites department database. electronic data. godínez, h. 2004. pollination and seed dispersal by lizards: a review. revista chilena de historia natural 77:569–577. köhler, g. 2003. reptiles de guatemala. herpeton, frankfurt. köhler, g. 2004. ctenosaura palearis. in: iucn 2008. 2008 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. krysko, k., f.w. king, k. enge, and a. reppas. 2000. distribution of the introduced black spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura similis) in the southwestern coast of florida. biological science 66:74–79. lara-lópez, m.s. and a. gonzáles. 2002. alimentación de la iguana verde iguana iguana (squamata: iguanidae) en la mancha, veracruz, méxico. acta zoológica mexicana 85:139–152. mills, s., m. soule, and d. doak. 1993. the keystone-species concept in ecology and conservation. bioscience 43:219–225. nájera, a. 2006. the conservation of thorn scrub and dry forest habitat in the motagua valley, guatemala: promoting the protection of a unique ecoregion. iguana 13:185–191. olsen, j. and a. valido. 2003. lizards as pollinators and seed dispersers: an island phenomenon. ecology and evolution 18:177–181. pianka, e. 1966. convexity, desert lizard, and spatial heterogeneity. ecology 47:1055–1059. pianka, e. and h. pianka. 1970. the ecology of moloch horridus (lacertilia: agamidae) in western australia. copeia 1970:90–103. scott, n.j. and s. limerick. 1983. reptiles and amphibians. in: d. janzen (ed.), costa rican natural history. the university of chicago press, chicago, illinois. suazo, o.i. and j. alvarado. 1994. iguana negra: notas sobre su historia natural. universidad michoacana de san nicolás de hidalgo, ecotonica, a.c. stejneger, l.c. 1899. description of a new species of spine-tailed iguana from guatemala. proceedings of the united states natural history museum 21:381–383. traveset, a. 1990. ctenosaura similis gray (iguanidae) as a seed disperser in a central america deciduous forest. american midland naturalist 123:402–404 traveset, a., and n. riera. 2005. disruption of a plant-lizard seed dispersal system and its ecological effects on a threatened endemic plant in the balearic island. conservation biology 19:421–431. valenzuela, l.g. 1981. contribución al conocimiento de la biología y ecología de ctenosaura pectinata e iguana iguana (reptilia: iguanidae) en la costa de jalisco. degree thesis, universidad nacional autónoma de méxico, méxico, d.f. werner, d. 1987. manejo de la iguana verde en el bosque tropical. interciencia 12:226–229. guatemala supports a phenomenally diverse flora and fauna, which we will feature in an upcoming issue. the northern tamandua (tamandua mexicana) is a slow-moving anteater that inhabits the dry and tropical forests of guatemala. it feeds exclusively on ants and termites. the prehensile tail is well-adapted to a semi-arboreal lifestyle, as are the claws, which also are used for defense and tearing open termite nests. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 149 iguana b&w text 222 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 knapp the commonwealth of dominica is believed to support the largest single population of lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima), largely because of its expansive, undisturbed coastal habitats. r o b er t po w el l the lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) survives on fewer than 10 main islands in the northern lesser antilles. historically, these iguanas probably were common on every island from anguilla in the north to martinique in the south. the contemporary range reductions are associated with european colonization. hunting and introduction of exotic predators and competitors threaten lesser antillean iguanas with extinction across their range. the genetic integrity of the species also is in jeopardy on some islands because of hybridization with the introduced green iguana (i. iguana). finally, in tropical island systems such as those in the caribbean, road construction and subsequent development occurs primarily along coastal areas to accommodate the tourism industry. as coastal roads and development projects expand, i. delicatissima becomes increasingly susceptible to road mortality during terrestrial movements. often such terrestrial movements are to historic coastal nesting habitats, many of which have been severely degraded or completely destroyed. decades of neglect and lack of appropriate conservation efforts have placed the lesser antillean iguana in jeopardy of extinction. in fact, populations ecology and conservation of the lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) charles knapp conservation research postdoctoral fellow conservation and research for endangered species zoological society of san diego iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 223iguana delicatissima � many extant populations of lesser antillean iguanas have been reduced to extremely low numbers and restricted to remaining “natural” areas, causing concern about the long-term viability of the entire species. r o b er t po w el l have already been extirpated from several islands (barbuda, st. christopher, nevis, antigua, les îles des saintes, marie-galante, and st. martin/st. maarten. moreover, many extant populations have been reduced to extremely low numbers and restricted to remaining “natural” areas, causing concern about the long-term viability of the entire species. lesser antillean iguanas are listed as “vulnerable” to extinction by the iucn (hilton-taylor, 2000). however, individual populations on several islands are critically endangered and only one population (petite terre) is considered stable (powell, 2004). conservation and research for endangered species (cres) at the zoological society of san diego has initiated a multiyear study of i. delicatissima in order to acquire ecological information that can be used to make informed conservation management decisions throughout the species’ range. our aim also is to raise community awareness about the plight of the iguana, because the long-term survival of the species will require local stewardship and pride. our focal study population is on the island of dominica. the commonwealth of dominica is believed to support the largest single population of i. delicatissima, largely because of its expansive, undisturbed coastal habitats (day et al., 2000). this population provides an opportunity to study the species under natural conditions prior to catastrophic declines and the subsequent cascading demographic perturbations that are occurring elsewhere in the lesser antilles. this study focuses initially on investigating coastal populations of i. delicatissima. specifically, we are investigating life-history variation between disturbed and undisturbed iguana populations. study variables include clutch size, age to reproduction, nest-site selection, hatching rate, juvenile and adult survival, and diet. because coastal features on many lesser antillean islands are similar, data from “control” undisturbed and disturbed sites can be used to predict the fate of populations on dominica and other islands where coastal development is increasing — primarily to address the demands of tourism, which has become the economic mainstay of many regional island nations. road surveys will be conducted to quantify current levels of road-kill 224 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 knapp lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima) are susceptible to road mortality during terrestrial movements, which may be associated with historic coastal nesting habitats. c h a r le s k n a pp the population of lesser antillean iguanas on dominica provides an opportunity to study the species under natural conditions prior to catastrophic declines and the subsequent cascading demographic perturbations that are occurring elsewhere in the lesser antilles. r o b er t po w el l iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 225iguana delicatissima mortality and identify its impact on population sustainability and demography. in addition to investigating life histories, we are radio-tracking adults to acquire movement data, which will help evaluate the impact of migrations to coastal nesting areas and possibly mitigate concomitant road mortality. surveys also will be used to identify and qualify attributes of important crossing points characterized by high-frequency mortality events. lastly, we will be radio tracking hatchlings from nests to record dispersal and survival, and document significant natural and invasive predators. working with coastal i. delicatissima populations on dominica provides a means to close the gap in connecting different landscapes using charismatic species as conservation flagships. currently on dominica, parrots are seen as flagships for inland mesic forests, whereas sea turtles represent beach habitat. however, the coastal scrub areas lack such a focal species, and i. delicatissima has charisma and conservation appeal. additionally, dominica is one of the last strongholds for i. delicatissima and the methodologies used and results garnered during this study could be used as a model for other lesser antillean islands. furthermore, we hope to establish a conservation footprint to spin off and replicate on other islands, using our results as leverage elsewhere. finally, iguanas are charismatic conservation ambassadors and we expect to work with local educators to develop programs focusing on iguanas and their importance to the island. educational opportunities will include the provision of handson field-research experiences with students and teachers. with permission and assistance from the division of forestry, we will engage students in the classroom with educational lectures involving study animals. presently, life-history information about the lesser antillean iguana is limited. this project offers an excellent opportunity to study the iguana comprehensively in its one remaining stronghold, use the data to educate dominicans about its importance, and devise conservation and management strategies for iguana habitat throughout the region. references day, m, m. breuil, and s. reichling. 2000. taxon account: lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima), pp. 62–67. in: a. alberts (ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn–the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. hilton-taylor, c. 2000. 2000 iucn red list of threatened species. iucn–the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. powell, r. 2004. conservation of iguanas (iguana delicatissima and i. iguana) in the lesser antilles. iguana 11:238–246. life-history data about lesser antillean iguanas are limited. r o b er t po w el l although largely arboreal, lesser antillean iguanas readily forage and bask on the ground. r o b er t po w el l hatchlings were abundant in june. r o b er t po w el l iguana b&w text 222 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 knapp the commonwealth of dominica is believed to support the largest single population of lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima), largely because of its expansive, undisturbed coastal habitats. r o b er t po w el l the lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) survives on fewer than 10 main islands in the northern lesser antilles. historically, these iguanas probably were common on every island from anguilla in the north to martinique in the south. the contemporary range reductions are associated with european colonization. hunting and introduction of exotic predators and competitors threaten lesser antillean iguanas with extinction across their range. the genetic integrity of the species also is in jeopardy on some islands because of hybridization with the introduced green iguana (i. iguana). finally, in tropical island systems such as those in the caribbean, road construction and subsequent development occurs primarily along coastal areas to accommodate the tourism industry. as coastal roads and development projects expand, i. delicatissima becomes increasingly susceptible to road mortality during terrestrial movements. often such terrestrial movements are to historic coastal nesting habitats, many of which have been severely degraded or completely destroyed. decades of neglect and lack of appropriate conservation efforts have placed the lesser antillean iguana in jeopardy of extinction. in fact, populations ecology and conservation of the lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) charles knapp conservation research postdoctoral fellow conservation and research for endangered species zoological society of san diego iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 223iguana delicatissima � many extant populations of lesser antillean iguanas have been reduced to extremely low numbers and restricted to remaining “natural” areas, causing concern about the long-term viability of the entire species. r o b er t po w el l have already been extirpated from several islands (barbuda, st. christopher, nevis, antigua, les îles des saintes, marie-galante, and st. martin/st. maarten. moreover, many extant populations have been reduced to extremely low numbers and restricted to remaining “natural” areas, causing concern about the long-term viability of the entire species. lesser antillean iguanas are listed as “vulnerable” to extinction by the iucn (hilton-taylor, 2000). however, individual populations on several islands are critically endangered and only one population (petite terre) is considered stable (powell, 2004). conservation and research for endangered species (cres) at the zoological society of san diego has initiated a multiyear study of i. delicatissima in order to acquire ecological information that can be used to make informed conservation management decisions throughout the species’ range. our aim also is to raise community awareness about the plight of the iguana, because the long-term survival of the species will require local stewardship and pride. our focal study population is on the island of dominica. the commonwealth of dominica is believed to support the largest single population of i. delicatissima, largely because of its expansive, undisturbed coastal habitats (day et al., 2000). this population provides an opportunity to study the species under natural conditions prior to catastrophic declines and the subsequent cascading demographic perturbations that are occurring elsewhere in the lesser antilles. this study focuses initially on investigating coastal populations of i. delicatissima. specifically, we are investigating life-history variation between disturbed and undisturbed iguana populations. study variables include clutch size, age to reproduction, nest-site selection, hatching rate, juvenile and adult survival, and diet. because coastal features on many lesser antillean islands are similar, data from “control” undisturbed and disturbed sites can be used to predict the fate of populations on dominica and other islands where coastal development is increasing — primarily to address the demands of tourism, which has become the economic mainstay of many regional island nations. road surveys will be conducted to quantify current levels of road-kill 224 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 knapp lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima) are susceptible to road mortality during terrestrial movements, which may be associated with historic coastal nesting habitats. c h a r le s k n a pp the population of lesser antillean iguanas on dominica provides an opportunity to study the species under natural conditions prior to catastrophic declines and the subsequent cascading demographic perturbations that are occurring elsewhere in the lesser antilles. r o b er t po w el l iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 225iguana delicatissima mortality and identify its impact on population sustainability and demography. in addition to investigating life histories, we are radio-tracking adults to acquire movement data, which will help evaluate the impact of migrations to coastal nesting areas and possibly mitigate concomitant road mortality. surveys also will be used to identify and qualify attributes of important crossing points characterized by high-frequency mortality events. lastly, we will be radio tracking hatchlings from nests to record dispersal and survival, and document significant natural and invasive predators. working with coastal i. delicatissima populations on dominica provides a means to close the gap in connecting different landscapes using charismatic species as conservation flagships. currently on dominica, parrots are seen as flagships for inland mesic forests, whereas sea turtles represent beach habitat. however, the coastal scrub areas lack such a focal species, and i. delicatissima has charisma and conservation appeal. additionally, dominica is one of the last strongholds for i. delicatissima and the methodologies used and results garnered during this study could be used as a model for other lesser antillean islands. furthermore, we hope to establish a conservation footprint to spin off and replicate on other islands, using our results as leverage elsewhere. finally, iguanas are charismatic conservation ambassadors and we expect to work with local educators to develop programs focusing on iguanas and their importance to the island. educational opportunities will include the provision of handson field-research experiences with students and teachers. with permission and assistance from the division of forestry, we will engage students in the classroom with educational lectures involving study animals. presently, life-history information about the lesser antillean iguana is limited. this project offers an excellent opportunity to study the iguana comprehensively in its one remaining stronghold, use the data to educate dominicans about its importance, and devise conservation and management strategies for iguana habitat throughout the region. references day, m, m. breuil, and s. reichling. 2000. taxon account: lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima), pp. 62–67. in: a. alberts (ed.), west indian iguanas: status survey and conservation action plan. iucn–the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. hilton-taylor, c. 2000. 2000 iucn red list of threatened species. iucn–the world conservation union, gland, switzerland. powell, r. 2004. conservation of iguanas (iguana delicatissima and i. iguana) in the lesser antilles. iguana 11:238–246. life-history data about lesser antillean iguanas are limited. r o b er t po w el l although largely arboreal, lesser antillean iguanas readily forage and bask on the ground. r o b er t po w el l hatchlings were abundant in june. r o b er t po w el l iguana b&w text 186 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 ircf on the move i r c f o n t h e m o v e many of us had exactly this same facial expression when we saw our first cyclura. this is one of the younger attendees at the extreme green reptile show in san jose, california, on 9–10 august 2008. the ircf secured 25 new members. the show was manned by sandy binns, mike kern, and john binns. m ic h a el k er n the ircf booth at the san diego reptile super show, 28–29 june 2008. this show generated a record 54 new members. seated is sandy binns, talking with dr. russell pearl of park ridge, illinois. jo h n b in n s the ircf booth at the san diego reptile super show was manned by (from left): mike kern, john binns, sandy binns, desiree wong, limey, and izzy. u n k n o w n iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 186 iguana b&w text notes on heloderma suspectum and iguana tuberculata1 pennoyer f. english on april 2, 1923, the writer received a poisonous lizard, heloderrna suspectum, from wheelock, robertson county, texas. this village lies in the southeast part of the county on no highway and about twelve miles from the nearest railroad. this animal had been killed by a farmhand as it was crawling about on his land, and was brought by a student to the department of biology of the agricultural and mechanical college of texas. the finding of this reptile in robertson county so far from its native home is indeed interesting. ditmars [“reptiles of the world,” 1922], gadow [“amphibia and reptilia,” cambridge natural history, volume 8], hegner [“college zoology,” revised edition, 1926], hornaday [“the american natural history,” 1904] and pratt [“manual of the vertebrates of the united states,” 1923], limit the distribution of these animals to arizona, new mexico and northern mexico. only one other occurrence of the gila monster in texas is recorded in the literature available to the writer. cope [“the crocodilians, lizards and snakes of north america,” report u.s. national museum, 1898] lists a specimen taken at fort mcdowell, texas. this single find was referred to by strecker [“reptiles adn amphibians of texas,” 1915] who comments somewhat skeptically on the report and states that he made careful search in favorable localities for these reptiles, but failed to find them in texas. any attempt to explain how this lizard found its way to wheelock, some four or five hundred miles from its native haunts, would be mere guesswork. the writer has lately received from mr. l. t. hunter, county agent, childress county, texas, another most interesting find — the common iguana, iguana tuberculata. this reptile was killed on a roadside near childress and was sent to the agricultural and mechanical college of texas on december 20, 1926. childress county lies close to the eastern border of the panhandle of texas, touching the southwest corner of oklahoma. this find is even more remarkable than the former, since the iguana was much farther from its native home — tropical america. the specimen measures three feet, nine and one half inches in length and apparently is only partly grown. gadow states that iguana tuberculata attains a length of five or six feet. ditmars, gadow, hegner and hornaday give the distribution as central and south america and the west indies, where it lives in trees. how such a reptile could find its way from its tropical and arboreal habitat in the jungles to the almost treeless plains of childress, texas, is an interesting speculation. heloderma suspectum, automobile tourists and animal distribution2 charles t. vorhies in a note in science, mr. p. f. english [“notes on heloderma suspectum and iguana tuberculata,” science, vol. lxvi, no. 1697, p. 37] records two instances of the finding of large lizards at considerable distances from their known native habitats. one of these occurrences is that of heloderma suspectum, the gila monster, concerning which the author remarks that “any attempt to explain how this lizard found its way to wheelock [texas], some four or five hundred miles from its native haunts, would be mere guesswork.” concerning the other, an iguana tuberculata from central america taken in texas, admittedly a still more difficult occurrence to explain, he says, “how such a reptile could find its way from its tropical and arboreal habitat in the jungles to the almost treeless plains of childress, texas, is an interesting speculation.” the present writer heartily agrees to the interesting character of the speculation induced, but believes that an explanation for the first, if not the second instance, may be offered which will be much better than “mere guesswork.” incidentally a new, or if not new, little considered, factor in animal distribution may be given point. 254 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 historical perspective h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e two early reports of intentionally released reptiles 1 originally published in science, new series, vol. 66, no. 1697, 8 july 1927, p. 37. 2 originally published in science, new series, vol. 68, no. 1756, 24 august 1928, pp. 182–183. gila monsters (heloderma suspectum) showing up far from their original range in the 1920s was attributed to intentional transport and release by humans. r u st y d o d so n iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 255historical perspective during the course of a dozen years in my present location i have received from interested and curious persons many specimens of the peculiar or unique animals of the southwest; and there have passed through my hands, mainly from these sources, probably nearly one hundred gila monsters. during that period of time, though my work has taken me afield frequently, i have in person come across barely a half dozen of these conspicuous and not very swift lizards. this indicates, first, the extent to which people gather up specimens of animal life that excite their curiosity, and transport them in a spirit of helpfulness, curiosity or cupidity. (i have been asked to pay ten dollars for a very ordinary gila monster, and been solemnly assured that they were worth one hundred dollars.) secondly, the modern auto tourist is likely to tire of and release his “specimen” unless he can dispose of it to advantage. i have been the recipient of two helodermas, each of which had been carried for some time by auto touring parties, and for distances of not less than two hundred miles. further, such a specimen is frequently carried tethered somewhere on the outside of the car by an insecure noose about its neck or leg. tourists in this region often express a desire to take a “gila” “back home,” anywhere from five hundred to fifteen hundred miles from here — and no doubt many of them attempt to do so. a certain dealer in live animals sells surprising numbers of them for this very purpose. the finding of the specimen in texas is no surprise to me. it seems much more certain than “guess work” to assume that such an animal, or any interesting animal of readily transportable size, found even hundreds of miles from its native home, has been carried most of the distance by rail or auto, especially the latter. the heloderma mentioned might easily have wandered from the nearest main highway, even though the distance be considerable, for this lizard is tenacious of life, and that locality would not, i believe, be a particularly unfavorable environment for it. the principles involved in the foregoing statements have many and various illustrations, as every inspector at a horticultural inspection station on a main auto highway in the southwest can testify. the auto tourist carries everything interesting from where he finds it to some other place; anything from a “horned toad” to an entire cotton plant, leaves, bolls, boll weevils and all. the iguana tuberculata record is, to be sure, somewhat less likely to be the result of transfer by auto, but not unlikely to have come up by train. i have now a live iguana sp. which recently arrived in tucson in a bunch of bananas by rail from the west coast of mexico. a few years ago i was the recipient of a live five and one-half foot boa imperator, picked up by an autoist just beyond the border town of nogales, sonora. this, i should judge, came up from central america nearly to the united states by train, thence it certainly came another seventy miles by auto. mr. roy mccain, of tucson, relates that, while hunting a few miles northwest of pantana, a station about thirty miles east of tucson, in the foothills of the rincon mountains, he met a large lizard which he killed with a stick. this measured three feet in length and must have been an iguana sp., though unfortunately it was not saved. this was in october, 1927. i have now alive in my laboratory an opossum, carried into this new (and probably unfavorable) environment from arkansas. its captor chanced to tire of it just at this point, but might equally well have elected to turn it loose in some favorable looking spot in the state — or in california. it is known that opossums have previously been released in this region. arizona (likewise california) has a cordon of horticultural inspectors stationed at strategic points for intercepting and inspecting autos coming into the state. the findings of these inspectors, plus the other instances cited, have served to emphasize for us here the possibilities of auto traffic as a factor in animal distribution in a manner which, perhaps, has not come forcibly to the attention of biologists in many other states. the cotton plant incident is a fact from the experiences of the inspectors. editor’s remarks invasive species are a major problem that conservation biologists face on a regular basis. in recent years, we have been seeing more and more reports of reptiles and amphibians appearing far from their natural ranges. traditionally, introduced species were thought to arrive in “foreign” destinations mostly by accident. a recent note (2006. iguana 13:272–277) described an attempt to prevent such arrivals on guana island in the british virgin islands. recent research, however, has shown that a large number of these invasives are intentionally released by pet owners and others. the two brief reports that follow clearly show that this is not a new phenomenon: some eighty years ago, large lizards and snakes were being noted hundreds of miles from their native ranges. p.f. english found this confusing, but c.t. vorhies identified people as the primary vector long before others became aware of the issue. these fascinating early notes are a strong reminder to never release a captive animal — we now unerstand the potentially disastrous consequences of such irresponsible behavior. gad perry texas tech university although green iguanas (iguana iguana) have been widely introduced in recent years, their appearance in texas in the 1920s was difficult to explain. ja m es h o d g in s iguana b&w text croizat’s skink (mabuya croizati) is endemic to the turimiquire massif, an isolated mountain in northeastern venezuela. these lizards are restricted to elevations above 2,000 m. this species recently was listed as vulnerable in the red list of venezuelan fauna. aspects of its population status and ecology remain enigmatic, mainly because few specimens have been collected since its initial discovery in the 1930s (although the species was not formally described until 1973). the known geographic distribution of mabuya croizati consists of only three localities, all of which have elevations above 2,000 m and comprise a total area of 8,000 ha. however, the species has been extirpated in two of these locations (including the type locality). on the other hand, at least 35 areas above 2,000 m on the massif have yet to be surveyed for the presence of this species, but, in the last six years, only a single population was found in the “cerro el guamal.” this locality consists of approximately 17 km2 and has undergone substantial human-mediated changes, associated primarily with deforestation and the installation of radio and telecommunication antennas and their maintenance. deforestation and agricultural activities affect 60–70% of the turimiquire massif. since 2005, venezuelan researchers (gilson rivas, tito barros, and césar molina), walter schargel (university of texas at arlington), and aurelien miralles (paris museum) have been working intensively to discover new populations. their investigations include multidisciplinary evaluations of ecology, natural history, and evolutionary history. preliminary molecular analyses are intriguing and suggest that the turimiquire massif was previously connected with the lowlands of the guiana shield. investigators are continuing their research on the population at guamal, with the intent of proposing to environmental officials in venezuela that the guamal area be set aside as a natural reserve and that radio-telecommunications activities be relocated. if you are interested in supporting this project, contact the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf). f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n the mountain lizard of the turimiquire massif: natural history and conservation of croizat’s skinks1 g il so n r iv a s (m a b u y a c r o iz a ti pr o je c t. p r o v it a , c a r a c a s) 1 text reviewed by carl j. franklin iguana b&w text iguana b&w text 54 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 snakes of the southeast. 2005. by whit gibbons and mike dorcas. the university of georgia press, athens. 253 pp., 300+ color illustrations. softcover — isbn 0-8203-2652-6 — $22.95. having grown up about a 2.5-hour car ride from the “frozen tundra” of storied lambeau field in green bay, wisconsin, my boyhood daydreams focused on snake hunting in much warmer places. i was especially taken with the american tropics, and devoured books by bates, wallace, barbour, ditmars, and carr — but i was also fascinated with the southeastern united states and, compared to southeastern wisconsin, its diverse and exciting snake fauna: indigos, yellow and red rat snakes, scarlet snakes, water moccasins, and eastern diamondbacks. kauffeld’s snakes and snake hunting became an instant favorite, especially the chapter entitled “okeechobee.” when my parents agreed to allow me to keep snakes in my bedroom, i chose species that were native to florida, including an eastern diamondback, a red rat snake, and my favorite, a yellow rat snake. so, it was with much anticipation that i read snakes of the southeast. the stated goal of the book is “to teach people about snakes and to foster appreciation of them as valuable components of our natural heritage.” this book easily accomplishes the first goal; only time will tell if the authors were successful with the second. neither gibbons nor dorcas are “armchair” herpetologists; rather, both have devoted their careers to studying snakes in the habitats where they live. this, alone, makes their book desirable, as it is based on firsthand experience with snakes in nature, and not on information gleaned only from secondary sources or from captive animals. geographic coverage of the book includes virginia, tennessee, the carolinas, louisiana, mississippi, alabama, georgia, and florida. the book begins with a heavily illustrated, clearly presented 24-page primer of snake biology divided into various topics (e.g., diversity, food and feeding, locomotion, predators, temperature biology). a five-page section on identifying the snake species of the southeast includes traditional morphological characters (scale type, body shape), but also geographic location, habitat, and when the snake is active. the heart of the book, however, is the 182-page section devoted to the species accounts. this section is divided into smaller sections dealing with “small terrestrial snakes” (13 species; e.g., virginia, storeria, tantilla), “mid-sized terrestrial snakes” (10 species; e.g., opheodrys, thamnophis, heterodon), large terrestrial snakes (8 species; e.g., pituophis, elaphe, drymarchon), “watersnakes” (15 species; e.g., regina, nerodia, farancia), “venomous snakes” (6 species; e.g., agkistrodon, crotalus, micrurus), and “introduced species” (2 species; python, rhamphotyphlops). the last sections of the book include one on “people and snakes,” a table for determining what species occur in which states, a map illustrating the distribution and diversity of venomous snakes in the southeast and another for all snake species in the area, a useful glossary, a short list of “further reading,” and an index to common names. each species account includes a brief description of the adult, a description of babies of that species, other common names, distribution and habitat, behavior and activity, food and feeding, reproduction, predators and defense, and conservation. each account has a kind of sidebar that provides a thumbnail key for identifying that species (e.g., scales keeled or smooth, anal plate single or divided, body shape, body pattern and color, distinctive characters, and size). also included is a map delineating the species’ distribution in the southeast and throughout the us. if multiple subspecies occur in the area (e.g., elaphe obsoleta, lampropeltis getula), photographs of the subspecies are color-coded with the distribution map. multiple color photographs accompany each account, and these range in quality from adequate to excellent. i have a strong feeling that a great deal of thought went into the content and design of this book. it is extremely user-friendly. the writing is clear and concise, the species accounts provide useful and interesting information, maps are clear and attractive, and virtually every page includes at least one color photograph of a snake (usually in a natural setting). one of my favorite features, however, is the “did you know?” spots (described as providing “interesting or anomalus facts”). the 15 pages addressing people and snakes are as important as anything in the book. they provide information to a young person who may be interested in a career in herpetology, including the importance of following state and federal laws, snakes that might be encountered in one’s backyard or other places in close proximity to human activity, as well as what one can do to encourage snakes to take up residence in their yards. this section goes on to provide the pros and cons of keeping snakes as pets, but stresses the importance of choosing a captive-bred snake as opposed to one from the wild. a section on conservation discusses the roles of snakes in nature, their importance as bioindicators or biomonitors of environmental integrity, and threats to snakes (with habitat destruction being the primary conservation concern). the authors feel that public education is the best hope for protecting snake habitats and preventing malicious killing. i really can’t recommend this book strongly enough. nothing in it will be particularly eye-opening to professional herpetologists, except, perhaps, the enlightened design and layout. the photographs, of course, will be enjoyed by everyone, although the only possible shortcoming of the book is the absence of photographs depicting different habitats. however, b o o k r e v i e w s enamored with snakes book reviews iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 55book reviews as the authors’ introductory remarks state, the book is aimed more at young people and adults who may not yet appreciate snakes and their place in nature. this book makes a valiant and, i hope, successful effort to “develop an acceptance of — better yet, an admiration for — snakes that equals that expressed for many other wild creatures.” i still think of the southeast as a herpetological paradise, but friends who grew up in florida suggest that it ain’t what it used to be. nevertheless, at least from a distance, it seems very exotic, and, despite having cumulatively spent years in the neotropics studying many wonderful snakes, the snake fauna of the southeastern united states still has a romantic quality — and i’d still like to have another yellow rat snake for a pet someday. robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum lizard love. 2008. by wendy townsend. front street, boyds mill press, honesdale, pennsylvania. 196 pp. hardcover — isbn-10: 1932425349 — $ 17.95. wendy townsend is a newly minted graduate of the vermont college mfa program in writing for children and young adults, but she has been writing all her adult life and has long been a personal hero of mine. fifteen years ago, when i was struggling to understand green iguanas well enough to rehabilitate seriously damaged individuals, wendy’s writing (much of which appeared in early issues of the iguana times) was an inspiration — not only could she write a clear and concise technical description of iguana husbandry, she also spoke eloquently of her detailed behavioral observations, delineating complex group dynamics, as well as the personality differences and moods of the various individuals in her charge. with dr. frederic frye, wendy co-authored the pioneering iguanas: a guide to their biology and captive care in 1993. in that same year, she, sadly, predicted that ill treatment at the hands of the pet trade would lead green iguanas down the same path as “dime-store turtles and county fair anoles, doled out as token prizes, like [so many other] valueless objects.” wendy brings all her love of nature, her sympathetic touch with language, and her observational skills to bear in her delightful debut novel for young adults. the book’s protagonist, a young mammalian female named grace, appears in the prologue as a six-year old at her grandparent’s country home. her best friends are the local birds and insects and the denizens of the garden and the local pond, which include the beloved bullfrog that she blissfully hugs to the party dress she has worn to her aunt’s wedding. we next encounter grace as an adolescent living with her mother far from her childhood eden in the gray concrete metropolis of new york, replete with dim winter light, constant mechanical chatter, and oppressive odors. grace finds her haven at a local pet shop, “fang and claw,” where she meets an amphibian surrogate in the form of walter. “he was chubby, with soft-looking skin almost as white as the t-shirt he wore. across the front it said bronx zoo reptile house. his shaggy hair was a pale color. he made me think of the tree frog who blends in with silvery lichen on tree trunks.” she also meets spot, a wonderful creature with a “great spiky crest and a black banded tail,” his head covered with colorful jewel-like scales. grace learns about reptiles while helping the gentle walter rehabilitate damaged animals. just as walter provides a hide box in order to help a frightened monitor adapt to her surroundings, spot the iguana helps grace adapt to the unfamiliar environment of the city, her love for her pet bolstering her self-esteem as she crawls through the school year. back at her grandparent’s house with spot for the summer, grace finds that even eden is not eternal. grandpa has given up gardening to avoid spending so much time in the sun, and all of the habitat provided by the unruly blackberry brambles has been uprooted by “helpful” neighbors from the newly built houses along the now much busier roadway. nevertheless, spot enjoys his time in the summer sun, gradually becoming more and more orange even as grace succumbs to the physiological changes inherent with the onset of adolescence. by the time she’s due to head back to the city, grace finds herself so much altered that she desperately wishes she were more reptilian and less pronouncedly mammalian. teased mercilessly at school and even subject to a “love bite” from spot, grace struggles to come to grips with her changed physical self. experiencing the sexual maturity of the iguanas, snakes, and monitors in her world, grace finally has some measure of success at adapting with the help of her animal and human friends, especially the kind and “naturally” wise walter. townsend makes excellent use of her natural history knowledge to elaborate, yet not overwhelm this charming coming-ofage tale. many of her animal characters are taken from real life. spot the iguana, for instance, lived a remarkable 24 years, and, having been privileged to tour “backstage” at the bronx zoo reptile house, i suspect that much of the detail from that part of the story is also very real. young readers, especially animal lovers, will empathize with the embattled grace and her coping mechanisms. older readers/animal lovers (who enjoy young adult fiction as i do) are liable to see their youthful selves reflected. aj gutman ircf reptile-assisted coming of age iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 2 • june 2007 65table of contents ircf international reptile conservation foundation table of contents f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s natural history and conservation of the sand dune lizard (liolaemus multimaculatus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . federico kacoliris 66 conservation of green anacondas: how tylenol conservation and macroeconomics threaten the survival of the world’s largest snake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jesus rivas 74 species profile: amazon treeboa (corallus hortulanus) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert w. henderson 85 serpent in the clouds: research and conservation efforts for the boelen’s python (morelia boeleni) . . . . . . . . ari r. flagle 86 the little snake that could: butler’s garter snake in wisconsin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . howard aprill 94 p r o f i l e glenn p. gerber: doing it his way . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . arthur c. echternacht, allison c. alberts, and gene gerber 100 t r a v e l o g u e destination bangladesh: from the himalayas to the bay of bengal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ali reza 106 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s the rattlesnake and natural selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . n.s. shaler 115 use of the rattles of the rattlesnake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . j.g. henderson 117 the rattle of the rattlesnake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . samuel aughey 119 c o m m e n t a r y what do we lose if we lose the frogs? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jeffrey p. bonner 122 b o o k r e v i e w biology of the boas and pythons by robert w. henderson and robert powell (eds.) . . . larry david wilson and josiah h. townsend 125 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 natural history research reports: summaries of published reports on reptilian natural history . . . . . . . 131 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132 obituary: hy marx . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .harold k. voris and alan resetar 135 ircf on the move . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140 critically endangered ctenosaura melanosterna is known only from the rio aguan valley in northern honduras and cayos cochinos off the caribbean coast of honduras. extent of occurrence and area of occupancy are both estimated at less than 100 km2. the total population size is not known, but is thought to be fewer than 2,500 mature individuals. the population is severely fragmented, with an estimated 10–15 isolated subpopulations. main threats to the species are habitat loss and collecting for the international pet trade. a future population decline of at least 30% is probable if current rates of habitat loss continue. jo h n b in n s iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 179natural history reports morphology and diet of two sympatric snakes pinto et al. (2008. amphibia-reptilia 29:149–160) described the morphometry and diet of two sympatric species of chironius (c. flavolineatus and c. quadricarinatus) from brazilian cerrado. the two species differ in external morphology, with c. flavolineatus longer and c. quadricarinatus heavier. each species also showed marked sexual size dimorphism. both species feed exclusively on frogs with a heavy preference for hylids, and may have a tendency to eat small prey. these two species have brownish ground colors and exhibit no ontogenetic variation, suggesting that juveniles and adults use similar substrates. chironius flavolineatus and c. quadricarinatus are semiarboreal, forage actively, and usually feed on the ground. chironius flavolineatus uses higher vegetation for resting and, based on morphological results, seems to be more arboreal than c. quadricarinatus. a unique life history among tetrapods: an annual chameleon living mostly as an egg the ~28,300 species of tetrapods (fourlimbed vertebrates) almost exclusively have perennial life spans. karsten et al. (2008. proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america 105:8980–8984) discovered a remarkable annual tetrapod from the arid southwest of madagascar: the chameleon furcifer labordi, with a posthatching life span of just 4–5 months. at the start of the active season (november), an age cohort of hatchlings emerges; larger juveniles or adults are not present. these hatchlings grow rapidly, reach sexual maturity in less than 2 months, and reproduce in january–february. after reproduction, senescence appears, and the active season concludes with population-wide adult death. consequently, during the dry season, the entire population is represented by developing eggs that incubate for 8–9 months before synchronously hatching at the onset of the following rainy season. remarkably, this chameleon spends more of its short annual life cycle inside the egg than outside of it. a review of tetrapod longevity (>1,700 species) found no others with such a short life span. these findings suggest that the notorious rapid death of chameleons in captivity may, for some species, actually represent the natural adult life span. consequently, a new appraisal may be warranted concerning the viability of chameleon breeding programs, which could have special significance for species of conservation concern. world’s smallest snake islands are viewed as natural evolutionary laboratories for terrestrial organisms because they have boundaries that limit dispersal and often reveal evolutionary patterns and mechanisms. one such pattern is that the smallest and largest species of different types of tetrapod animals are frequently found on islands. hedges (2008. zootaxa 1841: 1–30) described two new diminutive species of n a t u r a l h i s t o r y r e p o r t s both chironius flavolineatus (top) and c. quadricarinatus (bottom) are semi-arboreal, forage actively, and usually feed on the ground, but the former is more slender and elongate, suggesting that it is more arboreal. la u r ie j . v it t furcifer labordi from madagascar spends most of its life inside an egg. c h r is to ph er j . r a x w o r th y the barbados threadsnake (leptotyphlops carlae) may be the world’s smallest species of snake. s. b la ir h ed g es iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 179 snakes of the genus leptotyphlops from the lesser antilles: one from saint lucia (l. breuili) and the other from barbados (l. carlae). the species from barbados is the world’s smallest snake, with a total adult length of approximately 100 mm. limited evidence indicates a clutch size of one and a greatly elongated egg shape. comparison of egg shapes in snakes indicates that the shape is a packaging phenomenon, related primarily to the shape of the available body cavity and clutch size. the body shape of snakes also varies and influences the shape of snake eggs. the smallest snakes are typically stoutbodied, whereas the longest snakes usually are more slender. the allometry of organ size also affects clutch size and shape, because the smallest snakes have the smallest proportion of body cavity space available for reproduction. the best explanation for the observation of body size extremes on islands is that colonizing species have adapted to open ecological niches that would otherwise be occupied on the mainland. island colonists encounter novel environments and reduced interspecific competition, allowing species to evolve physical traits, including extremes in size, not normally seen on continents. however, the lower limit of adult size appears to be constrained by the allometry of morphology, physiology, and reproduction. the smallest tetrapods have small clutches, usually one egg or young, and offspring that are relatively large. in the smallest snakes, offspring are one-half of the length of adults, compared with 10% adult length in the case of large species of snakes. thus the evolutionary tradeoff between number and size of offspring appears to have reached a size boundary in these species, limiting the evolution of yet smaller species. niche relationships and interspecific interactions in antiguan lizard communities anolis lizards are the focus of most caribbean lizard community ecology studies, with few studies including other common species that might influence community structure. to study niche relationships and interspecific interactions in antiguan lizard communities, kolbe et al. (2008. copeia 2008: 261–272) used five offshore islands with varying combinations of three diurnal lizards: ameiva griswoldi, anolis leachii, and anolis wattsi. the authors collected data on perch height, substrate, thermal microhabitat, body size, head length, daily activity, and abundance to characterize the ecological niche of each species. ameiva griswoldi was more similar to a. leachii in size and daily activity, but more similar to a. wattsi in perch height, and a. leachii and a. wattsi were more similar in thermal microhabitat. this pattern of niche differentiation was consistent with niche complementarity, where species are similar on some niche axes but differ on others. using the same niche characteristics as in species comparisons, we tested for a niche shift among islands for a. wattsi. in the absence of a. griswoldi, a. wattsi used lower perches, sunnier microhabitats, and was found more often on the ground. in contrast, with a. leachii absent, a. wattsi perched higher, more often in the shade, and on trunks. furthermore, a. wattsi was most abundant when with a. leachii only, but least abundant when alone with a. griswoldi. these results suggest interspecific interactions, most likely due to competition and intraguild predation, are important for structuring antiguan lizard communities. 180 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 natural history reports the antiguan ground lizard, ameiva griswoldi, affected habitat use and abundance of anolis wattsi on small islands near antigua. je n n if er d a lt r y the barbuda bank tree anole (anolis leachii) also affected habitat use by smaller anolis wattsi on antiguan satellite islands. c a r lo s a . r o d r íg u ez g ó m ez iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 180 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 273ircf on the move ircf participation in reptile shows and conservation events brings it’s message of conservation directly to reptile enthusiasts. “these events are great because we are able to meet people who share a common interest with the ircf — a love for reptiles,” says john binns, founder and ceo of the ircf. “this is also a great place to find new members who are willing to join the fight to help save endangered reptiles.” unfortunately, due to logistical constraints, the ircf has been able to attend events only on the west coast. if you are interested in helping represent the ircf at a show close to your home, please contact sandy at sb@ircf.org. 7–9 september, narbc, anaheim, california the ircf expresses its gratitude to bob ashley and brian potter, narbc promoters, who provided the exhibit space. the ircf also is grateful to ircf member nigel marvin, who donated the proceeds from his autographing session to our conservation efforts. this is the first show at which the ircf employed wireless technology for membership signup and payment processing. manning the booth were sandy binns, desiree wong, michael kern, joel friesch, john binns, and izzy (cuban rock iguana). also, narbc-sponsored auctions in anaheim, california, chicago, illinois, and chantilly, virginia donated a portion of the proceeds to the ircf. thank you bob ashley and brian potter for your generosity and assistance in helping our conservation efforts. i r c f o n t h e m o v e “slim,” one of the ircf’s awareness ambassadors, was recently filmed and photographed at tippett studio in berkeley, california, as a reference model for “chico,” a computer-generated iguana character in disney’s new movie “south of the border,” which is scheduled for the second half of 2008. “baby,” another ircf awareness ambassador, now appears on the label of zoomed’s recently released adult iguana food product. jo h n b in n s im a g e c o u r te sy o f zo o m ed booth at the narbc. jo h n b in n s desiree wong speaks with a young attendee about the importance of protecting species in the wild. jo h n b in n s ircf-branded stress figures (complements of desiree) were offered with a small donation. jo h n b in n s avery friesch (joel’s daughter) demonstrates her skill at riding ircf’s blue dragon. fifteen blue dragon sculptures are distributed across grand cayman, making up the blue dragon trail. this is the only blue dragon in the united states. jo h n b in n s 274 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 ircf on the move 28–30 septembe, upscale reptiles, sacramento, california 6 october, wcn san francisco, california the ircf participated in the 6th annual wildlife conservation (wcn) expo, which brought together over 600 guests and 48 wildlife conservation organizations. the keynote speaker this year was dr. jane goodall, dbe. this event is a unique opportunity for the public to learn about conservation projects from around the globe, meet world-class conservationists in person, and learn about their work, their challenges, and hopes for the future. the ircf expresses its gratitude to the wildlife conservation network for the space and electricity they provided. 2–4 november, upscale reptiles san jose, california this year’s san jose show drew a moderate but consistent flow of attendees to our exhibit. the show broke our old record for signing new members and renewals. manning the ircf booth were sandy binns, desiree wong, michael kern, and joel friesch. from the left, michael kern, desiree wong, sandy and john binns, and izzy in the forefront. central area of the wcn show. jo h n b in n s the large ircf exhibit just prior to the show’s opening. d es ir ee w o n g from left to right: ircf member stephanie marshall, sue solomon, ircf member and longtime supporter, john binns, and desiree wong. the ircf thanks sue solomon for her very generous donation. m ic h a el k er n basketball star mikki morore and john binns discuss conservation issues while being videotaped for later airing at various basketball games. d es ir ee w o n g ircf ambassador izzy, a cuban rock iguana, is kept warm prior to the opening of the show. d es ir ee w o n g as with every show, izzy is the star attraction. d es ir ee w o n g iguana b&w text according to the world conservation union, at least one-third of the world’s estimated 6,000 amphibian species are threatened with extinction. many of these amphibians reside in the united states, and two critically endangered species, the mountain yellow-legged frog (rana muscosa) and the california red-legged frog (rana draytonii), reside in california. in close partnership with the u.s. fish and wildlife service, the u.s. forest service, the u.s. geological survey, and california department of fish and game, the san diego zoo’s conservation and research for endangered species (cres) is participating in the recovery of the critically endangered mountain yellow-legged frog (rana muscosa). in august 2006, cres received 82 mountain yellow-legged frog tadpoles. these animals were salvaged from a drying streambed in southern california’s san jacinto mountains. the tadpoles were brought to the applied animal ecology lab at cres, where they were housed in spacious aquaria. as of august 2008, the remaining 62 frogs are all nearing adult size and are showing breeding behaviors. some frogs will be moved to other aza institutions for breeding, and all progeny will be released within the historical range of the species in a project designed to monitor the fate of released frogs and develop an optimal release strategy. the project will end when the conservation partners determine that captive propagation is no longer useful for recovery efforts, an outcome expected to be more than 10 years in the future. california populations of the mountain yellow-legged frog were listed as endangered by the u.s. fish and wildlife service in 2002. despite this protection, these frogs continue toward extinction, with only seven known populations remaining in southern california, each ranging in size from seven to no more than 75 adults. while habitat loss historically has been the leading cause of amphibian decline, the most immediate threat is from the chytrid fungus. in addition to recent fire and drought damage, the decline of the frog is further compounded by non-native predators such as bullfrogs and trout, and possibly by airborne and aquatic contaminants. jeff lemm research coordinator applied animal ecology division cres, zoological society of san diego f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n conserving southern california’s mountain yellow-legged frog (rana muscosa) iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 188 iguana b&w text 28 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 schaffer and schaffer many early illustrations of exotic species were presented in anthologies of the natural world, often figured and described by europeans who never saw the animals in life. this page, with the iguana at the bottom, is from l’abbé bonaterre’s 1789 “encylopedia of nature.” although europeans were certainly not the first people to find (and consume) iguanas, they were the first to commit images to paper. several depictions appeared in the 16th century, and the number grew over time. however, iguanas were celebrated in clay, island names, and dinner far earlier than that. the name given to the island of st. lucia by the kalinago, the last group of indigenous native people before european arrival, was “where the iguana is found.” the kalinago name ioüanálao is derived from the arawak for iguana (yuwána) as recorded by pére raymond breton, a dominican missionary, who composed a dictionary of the amerindian languages in the 1660s. iguana also is thought to stem from the taino word “higuana.” part of the word itself may be significant, as the taino words for gold, parrots, fire, and many of their chiefs contain “gua.” utilization of iguanas as food has been documented from as early as 2,700 bp in the caribbean, but earlier records probably will be found. archaeologists have excavated iguana and marine turtle bones in middens from throughout the caribbean and central america. images of the marine turtle, another common dietary item, have been immortalized in pottery, along with those of iguanas, as seen below in the three tolita-tumaco culture (2,600 and 1,600 bp) pottery effigies from southwestern coastal colombia and northwestern coastal ecuador. this culture is well known for its figurines made from light gray clay. many of these effigy heads are fragments of earthenware. in tolita culture, the iguana symbolizes the male reproductive organ and the spikes of its tail are associated with communication and positive interaction. other new world traditions correlate the iguana with water and rain. in his popular pieces, journal articles, and earthwatch expedition reports from grand turk, dr. william keegan of the florida museum of natural history reported a number of faunal finds, many of them of iguana material. the coralie site on grand turk is the oldest archaeological site in the bahamian archipelago, with artifacts dated from 1,330–1,100 bp. it is also the only site from this period excavated outside of puerto rico. the site is archaeologically significant, as its occupation occurred during a period when sea level was lower and the climate extremely arid. both of these factors contributed to better faunal preservation. additionally, the remains are virtually unique when compared to other sites that show significant disturbance. this site was pristine. from the excavations to date, dr. keegan has concluded that this site must have been an early colony. the faunal assemblage included sea turtles, iguanas, fishes (many of them very large), and birds. analyses of these bones suggest that iguanas were once up to a meter or more larger than extant forms. one hearth contained an entire sea turtle carapace together with large fish and iguana bones. other food items apparently were cooked in the turtle shell along with the turtle itself. an italian navigator also wrote of iguanas. although the exact site is debated, many authorities believe that, on 12 october 1492, the lucayo were the first native americans to iguanas: early european impressions and illustrations chuck schaffer1 and rick schaffer2 1turtle and tortoise newsletter, jacksonville, forida 2stanton college preparatory school, jacksonville, florida iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 29iguanas � tolita-tumaco culture (2,600 and 1,600 bp) pottery effigies from southwestern coastal colombia and northwestern coastal ecuador (illustrations after brezzi). come in contact with cristoforo columbo. most history books state that the meeting occurred on the island of guanahani (meaning iguana in their language), which he renamed san salvador. columbus wrote of iguanas in his journal of the first voyage of colon. presumably on watling’s island, he noted, “[t]here are no indigenous quadrupeds larger than a rat, and few reptiles, the largest being the iguana,” which he mentioned later. “the sailors killed an iguana here, which they called a serpent … at a spot now called frenchman’s wells.” between 1492 and 1535, the first natural history of the new world was written and subsequently published in seville by gonzalo fernandez de oviedo y valdez. titled historia general y natural de las indias occidentales, it sought to compile both the social and natural history of the “indies,” as the new world was then known. in this work, the iguana was first described and illustrated by europeans. oviedo noted that the indigenous people ate iguanas, keeping them in the villages for extended periods without food or water until they were eaten. some spaniards enjoyed eating iguana, but they found its appearance repugnant. peter martyr d’anghera, a contemporary of oviedo, recorded the taino cooking method: stewed and served with pepper! “thirty-two caciques were assembled in the house of anacauchoa, where they had brought their tribute. in addition to what had been agreed upon, they sought to win favour by adding numerous presents, which consisted of two kinds of bread, roots, grains, utias, that is to say, rabbits, which are numerous in the island, fish, which they had preserved by cooking them, and those same serpents, resembling crocodiles, which they esteem a most delicate food. we have described them above, and the natives call them iguanas. they are special to hispaniola. up to that time none of the spaniards had ventured to eat them because of their odour, which was not only repugnant but nauseating, but the adelantado, won by the amiability of the cacique’s sister, consented to taste a morsel of iguana; and hardly had his palate savoured this succulent flesh than he began to eat it by the mouthful. henceforth the spaniards were no longer satisfied to barely taste it, but became epicures in regard to it, and talked of nothing else than the exquisite flavour of these serpents, which they found to be superior to that of peacocks, pheasants, or partridges. if, however, they are cooked as we do peacocks and pheasants, which are first larded and then roasted, the serpent’s flesh loses its good flavour. first they gut them, then wash and clean them with care, and roll them into a circle, so that they look like the coils of a sleeping snake; after which they put them in a pot, just large enough to hold them, pouring over them a little water flavoured with the pepper found in the island. the pot is covered and a fire of odorous wood which gives very little light is kindled underneath it. a juice as delicious as nectar runs drop by drop from the insides. it is reported that there are few dishes more appetising than iguana eggs cooked over a slow fire. when they are fresh and served hot they are delicious, but if they are preserved for a few days they still further improve. but this is enough about cooking recipes. let us pass on to other subjects. … they are not neglectful, however, of hunting, they have, as we have already said, utias, which resemble small rabbits, and iguana serpents, which i described in my first decade. these latter resemble crocodiles and are eight feet long, living on land and having a good flavour.” the next time that images of an iguana would appear was not until the 1580s, when watercolors were painted by john white. another image of a “hiogane” (iguana) appeared about 1590 in an anonymous manuscript now known as histoire naturelle des indes: countenant les arbres, plantes, fruits, animaux, coquillages, reptiles, insectes, oyseaux, &c. qui se trouvenant dans les indes… or the drake manuscript. the original is housed in the pierpont morgan library, although it has been reproduced in book form in two printings. white’s original watercolors have been reproduced by the british museum. they are significant, as numerous early sources based their illustrations on them. these included hariot, de bry, bigges & croftes, and catesby. the boazio plates, which are included in bigges and croftes in two sizes in the two editions, made one later contemporary appearance, in de bry’s grands voyages, part viii. (1618, 1619). those engravings are derived from the smaller engravings (keyed in numerals rather than letters). the figures of the iguana are after drawings by john white, and are in fact the first publication of any of white’s illustrations. john white’s drawing is likely the first english illustration of the iguana. an early elizabethan description stated that they are 30 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 schaffer and schaffer illustrations of iguanas from oviedo (1535; top) and ramusio (1550; bottom). iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 31iguanas “caught by the indian people who sell them to the spaniards. they are a sad dull green colour, their body of the bigness of a cony (rabbit) in fact bigger. they are eaten by the indians and spaniards and so likewise by us for a very delicate meat. in the breeding time the female is full of eggs in great number, and they of all the rest are esteemed the most delicate.” when alonso de ojeda and his crew reached columbian shores, the indians fled. the spanish followed them inland and came upon an indian settlement where strange animals were being prepared for a feast. among the items on the menu were “horrible snakes with feet and wings” (iguanas). this image appeared in de bry’s grand voyages, part x (1618 in german and 1619 in latin). the fanciful tales of philoponus (1627) contained a liberal mix of history and fantasy and told the tale of the benedictine missionaries who accompanied columbus on his second voyage to hispaniola in 1493, and also included descriptions and depictions of iguanas. quaint copperplate engravings in the style of de bry (whom the author despised) depicted a variety of scenes ranging from attacks on the spanish crew by cannibals to the “igwano” of white executed in the 1580s (lorant 1946) and the “hiogane” (anonymous 1590). instances of indigenous hospitality, such as feasts depicting local fruit and an iguana served on european silver. for nine months in 1725, mark catesby visited the bahama islands during which time he was the guest of governor george phenney and stayed at the government house. while there, he visited the islands of eleuthera, abaco, and andros. in the natural history of carolina, florida and the bahama islands, he detailed the harsh lifestyle of the early settlers, barely surviving through the collection of ambergris, subsistence farming, fishing, turtling, and hunting birds and iguanas. his text provided most of what we know regarding life at that time, and included descriptions of the iguana and also the crocodiles that once lived in the bahamas. a number of his illustrations, such as the iguana, are obvious plagiarisms of white. however, the earliest iguana illustration found to date was produced by gonzalo fernandez de oviedo y valdes in historia general y natural de las indias. islas y tierra firme del mar océano. he wrote of the iguana: “this is a serpent or dragon, or such terrestrial animal (or aquatic), that for those who do not know it, is of ugly and frightful view, strange lizard, big, with four feet; furthermore it is larger than the lizards of spain, because the head is bigger than the fist or closed hand of a man, the neck is short, the body longer than two hand spans, and other two in circumference, and the tail of three and four hand spans long. these measurements are for the larger animals; many of them have shorter tails, i do not know if it is due to cut tails from bites among each other, or if they shed it. (...) they have on the dorsal midline a line of spines that by itself appears fierce. it has sharp teeth and a dewlap that is long and wide that goes from the chin to the chest, like the ox. and so it is such a quiet animal, that neither shouts, nor moans, nor makes any sounds, and it stays anywhere that they put him, without causing damage nor making any noise, ten or twenty days and more, without eating and drinking any thing, even if you offer it, also it eats a little bread or grass or similar thing, according to what some say. but i have had some of these animals tied in my house some times, and i never saw them eat, and i have watched. and in short, i have not known nor been able to understand what they ate while in my house, and everything that was offered was left whole. in the field i do not know what they eat. the arms, feet, hands, and the nails, all these are like of lizard, and the long nails, but skinny and not of grasping. it is in as much way of terrible appearance, that no man would venture to wait for this animal, if he were not of great spirit, and to eat of it none, unless he was of bad sense or beastly (i say not knowing its being, tameness, and good taste)” ( translation courtesy of dr. sam rivera). another aspect of oviedo’s work was the extremely ambitious task of assigning names to the american flora and fauna found in spanish territories. this was by no means a smooth process, and during the course of this endeavor, he came into conflict with spanish scientists and administrators. oviedo attempted to develop a local, rather than imperial approach, undertaking it in the manner of pliny by telling it as the narrative of a traveling naturalist, often mixing fact with fiction, science with myth. “escribió plinio treinta e siete libros en su natural historia, e yo en aquesta mi obra e primera parte della, veinte, en los cuales, como he dicho, en todo cuanto le pudiere imitar, entiendo hacerlo” (pliny wrote thirty-seven books in his natural history, and i in my work … will attempt to imitate him). oviedo the man was more straightforward. he was a spanish historian, who was born in madrid in 1478 and died in valladolid in 1557. he was familiar with the explorations, had met columbus, his sons, and some of the third voyage’s crew, but did not actually reach the caribbean until 1513, after which he made a number of journeys. he was appointed governor of la antigua in 1526 and commander of the castle of santo domingo in 1535, remaining in that position until 1545. at that time, he returned to spain with the appointment of “historian of the spanish indies.” he continued the history that he had begun in 1515, of which a summary had appeared under the title of “la historia de las cosas sucedidas en mi tiempo en america” (1526). the first substantial portion appeared as historia general y natural de las indias occidentales (1535), and the revision of the entire work was finished in 1548. its publication, begun in valladolid in 1550, was interrupted by the author’s death, and the first complete edition was printed by order of the royal historical academy in madrid in 1851. this work has been judged harshly due to a number of inaccuracies in the historical portion, and a strong underlying prejudice against columbus. however, that it is one of the most profound and significant early accounts has become evident, and it certainly qualifies as the first work on the natural history of 32 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 schaffer and schaffer plate 4 from de bry (1618 & 1619) and philoponus (1627). iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 33iguanas america. in that respect, the author was eminently qualified. during his journeys in the new world, oviedo compiled detailed descriptions and illustrations, many of which might serve as examples to modern naturalists, of products and goods. he introduced europe to america’s natural history, and was the first european to describe iguanas, manatees, and pineapples. he oviedo’s text page with plate (fernández de oviedo gonzalo, historia general y natural de las indias, selección, ed. bruño, 1991, libro xii, capitulo vii. p. 122). also presented an enormous variety of previously unheard of “exotica,” including canoes, smoking tobacco, tamales, and hammocks. along with pedro mártir de anglería and bartolomé de las casas, oviedo was one of the first european “chroniclers of the indies,” having written two comprehensive works on america, including the rare historia. partial translations of oviedo’s work appeared in italian by giovanni battista ramusio (1550) and in english by richard eden (1577). two works, also translated by ramusio without giving the author’s name, “tratado del palo guayacan y del palo santo como antidoto contra la sifilis” and “navegación del rio marañon,” also are attributed to oviedo. ramusio, who was born on 20 july 1485 in treviso, republic of venice (italy) and died on 10 july 1557 in padua, was an italian geographer who compiled an important collection of writings on various travels in his delle navigationi et viaggi (some voyages and travels, 1550–1559). the book contained works by over fifty other authors. ramusio was assisted by the artist gastaldi in the monumental task of engraving the maps that illustrated the accounts. oviedo’s work is quite rare and no recent auction records have been found for the original editions. later versions (1851–1855) command prices in the range of $5,000. the work also was reprinted in 1959, 1978, 1986, 1989, 1992, and 2002. even these editions sell for as much as $250. references alexander, m. (ed). 1976. discovering the new world. harper and row, new york. anon. ~1590. histoire naturelle des indes: countenant les arbres, plantes, fruits, animaux, coquillages, reptiles, insectes, oyseaux, &c. qui se trouvenant dans les indes… (ms. pierpont morgan library). 34 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 schaffer and schaffer page 64 & facing plate. “lacertus indicus, senembi & iguana dictus: the guana” and “anona maxima, foliis latis fructu maximo luteo conoide, cortice glabro” (pp. 64–t 64, from catesby 1754). this illustration is considered by most authorities to be taken from white. the associated text was on a separate page in english and french (not shown). iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 35iguanas anon. 1996. histoire naturelle des indes. norton, new york. anon. 1996. the drake manuscript. andre deutsch, london. bigges, w. d. 1586. a svmmarie and trve discovrse of sir frances drakes west indian voyage. wherein were taken, the townes of saint iago, sancto domingo, cartegena & saint augustine. london. bigges, w. and m. croftes. 1588. expeditio francisci drake equitis angli in indias occidentales. fr. raphelengius, leyden. bonaterre, l’a. 1789. tableau encyclopédique et méthodique des trios règnes de la nature. chez panckouche, paris. brezzi, a. 2007. tulato: window to the prehistory of america. 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(cavehill.uwi.edu/bnccde/stlucia/ conference/papers/honychurch.html). hulton, p and d.b. quinn. 1964. the american drawings of john white, 1577–1590. in: d.b. quinn (ed.), the roanoke voyages. vol. i, pp. 243–313. the hakluyt society, london jesse, rev. c. 1963. the spanish cedula of december 23, 1511 on the subject of the caribs. caribbean quarterly 9(3). mona, jamaica. keegan, w.f. 1995. history begins on grand turk. times of the islands: the international magazine of the turks and caicos. summer 1995. (www.flmnh.ufl.edu/caribarch/tciarchaeology.htm). keegan, w.f. 1996. grand turk. earthwatch expedition report. february 1996. (www.flmnh.ufl.edu/caribarch/grandturk.htm november 2007). keegan, w.f. 1997. grand turk. earthwatch expedition report. march 1997. (www.flmnh.ufl.edu/caribarch/grandturk97.htm november 2007). keegan, w.f. and b. carlson. 1997. the coralie site, grand turk. times of the islands: the international magazine of the turks and caicos. summer 1997. (http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/caribarch/coralie.htm). keegan, w.f. and b. carlson. 2007. talking taino: lizards and snakes. times of the islands: the international magazine of the turks and caicos. (www.timespub.tc/index.php?id=356). kraus, h.p. 2005. sir francis drake: a pictorial biography by hans p. kraus. (www.loc.gov/rr/rarebook/catalog/drake/drake-catalogue.html november 2007). lorant, s. 1946. the new world: the first pictures of america. duell, sloan, & pearce, new york. martyr, p. 1533. de rebus oceanicis & orbe novo decades tres. joannes bebelius, basel. milton, g. 2000. big chief elizabeth, how england’s adventurers gambled and won the new world. sceptre/hodder and stoughton, london. oviedo y valdez, g.f. de. 1526. la historia de las cosas sucedidas en mi tiempo en america. toledo. oviedo y valdez, g.f. de. 1535. historia general y natural de las indias occidentales. seville. oviedo y valdez, g.f. de. 1547, 1557. historia general y natural de las indias. islas y tierra firme del mar océano. seville. oviedo y valdez, g.f. de. 1851. historia general y natural de las indias. islas y tierra firme del mar océano. imprenta de la real academia, madrid. oviedo y valdez, g.f. de. 1978. historia general y natural de las indias. islas y tierra firme del mar océano. espasa-calpe, madrid. oviedo y valdez, g.f. de. 1986. historia general y natural de las indias: la provincia de venezuela. fundacion de promoción cultural de venezuela, caracas. oviedo y valdez, g.f. de. 1992. historia general y natural de las indias. islas y tierra firme del mar océano. biblioteca de autores españoles, madrid. philoponus, honorius (pseudonym of caspar plautius, o.s.b.). 1627. nova typis transacta navigatio. novi orbis indiae occidentalis. linz. ramusio, g.b. 1606–1613. delle navigationi et viaggi ... giunti, florence. porter, c.m. 1992. the scientific cosmos of columbus: an overview. proteus 9(1):1–10. smith, h. 1990. john white and the earliest (1585–1587) illustrations of north american reptiles. brimleyana (16):119–131. iguana b&w text 24 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 rivas black iguanas (ctenosaura similis) are among the most visible of costa rican reptiles, occurring in various habitats throughout the country. reptiles can be exposed to various ectoparasites, some of which carry diseases or otherwise negatively affect their populations (hanley and stamps 2002, wikelski 1999). conventional wisdom suggests that animals with high parasite loads must be in worse physical condition than animals with lower infestations, but this assumption has not been documented in many reptiles. in the united states, a number of exotic ectoparasites have been introduced with their reptilian hosts (burridge and simmons 2003). predicting the fates of these reptile-associated introductions is difficult without greater knowledge of the parasite-host systems. data presented here on tick infestations of free-ranging black iguanas (ctenosaura similis) from palo verde national park, costa rica will add to the general body of knowledge for these kinds of systems. in july 1996, i caught 20 c. similis (mean = 873 g, 240–2,080 g) near the organization of tropical studies (ots) palo verde biological field station (10°21'n, 85°21'w; elevation ~10 m) by noosing them on branches or capturing them by hand in holes. each animal was measured (svl, to nearest cm), weighed (to nearest g), and the ticks on each were counted and classified visually into three size classes: small (< 2 mm), medium (2–4 mm), and large (> 4 mm). i also classified the shedding status of the iguana as recently shed, old shed, or shedding, depending on whether they had bright new skin without remnants of an old shed, some remnants of shed at the joints, or widespread larger patches of shedding epidermis, respectively. i used a non-parametric kruskall-wallis test to compare the effects of the shedding status on the number of ticks. the fulton ticks (amblyomma spp.) on black iguanas (ctenosaura similis) in costa rica jesus a. rivas department of mathematics and natural sciences, somerset community college, somerset, kentucky iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 25ticks on black iguanas � even heavy tick infestations on free-ranging black iguanas (ctenosaura similis) in costa rica seem to have little effect on the lizards’ body conditions. r o b er t po w el l index (bolger and connoly 1989) is a condition index that is calculated by dividing the mass of an individual by the cubic power of its length. i used spearman correlation tests to assess the effects of tick infestations on the condition of the ctenosaurs and the effects of body size on the number of ticks present per individual. i recorded two tick species on c. similis: amblyomma scutatum and a. dissimile. amblyomma scutatum was more abundant than a. dissimile. the mean number of ticks per animal was 56 (0–217). only one animal did not carry ticks. i found no significant relationship between the total number of ticks 26 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 rivas number of ticks in each size class found on the different sizes of ctenosaura similis in palo verde national park, costa rica. ticks (amblyomma scutatum, top; a. dissimile, bottom) embedded in the skin of black iguanas. j. m a u r ic io g a r c ía -c . percentage of each tick size class found on the different sizes of ctenosaura similis in palo verde national park, costa rica. and the size of individual ctenosaurs (r = 0.18, p = 0.46; n = 20), but smaller c. similis seemed to have more small ticks, and medium-sized ticks seemed to be more abundant on larger ctenosaurs. large ticks occurred in relatively low numbers across all sizes of ctenosaurs. four animals had shed recently, seven were in the process of shedding, and eight had old skins. i found no significant differences in the number of ticks among the three shedding categories (kruskall-wallis test; �2 = 0.69, p = 0.71). most of the study animals had a heavy tick load, but heavily infested animals did not appear to be in poorer physical condition. no correlation existed between the number of ticks and the condition of the animal as estimated with fulton’s index (r = -0.38, p = 0.10; n = 20), suggesting that ticks may not be a burden to healthy ctenosaurs. both this lack of relationship and the lack of relationship between shedding status and the number of ticks were unexpected. both findings could be explained by a fast turnover of ticks on individual ctenosaurs, where each tick may spend but a short time on a given animal before attaching itself to another animal that has just shed. in view of the large number of exotic animals moving across national boundaries due to the pet trade, we must consider the potential effect of seemingly healthy animals introducing their parasites as well. acknowledgments data were collected during the ots course 96-3. james keirans identified the tick, eric olson and members of the ots course helped in the field, and sarah corey provided helpful editorial comments. references bolger, t. and p.l. connoly. 1989. the selection of suitable indices for measurement and analysis of condition. journal of fish biology 34: 171–182. burridge, m.j. and l.a. simmons. 2003. exotic ticks introduced into the united states on imported reptiles from 1962 to 2001 and their potential roles in international dissemination of diseases. veterinary parasitology 113: 289–320. hanley, k.a. and j.a. stamps. 2002. does corticosterone mediate bidirectional interactions between social behaviour and blood parasites in juvenile black iguanas, ctenosaura similis? animal behaviour 63: 311–322. wikelski. m. 1999. influences of parasites and thermoregulation on grouping tendencies in marine iguanas. behavioral ecology 10: 22–29. sonoran mountain kingsnake survey the nevada department of wildlife and great basin national park are pleased to announce the 3nd annual great basin sonoran mountain kingsnake survey on 12–16 may 2008. for more information contact: bryan hamilton (bryan_hamilton@nps.gov). iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 27ticks on black iguanas ticks frequently found on black iguanas (ctenosaura similis) in costa rica: amblyomma scutatum (left) and a. dissimile (right). unlike ctenosaurs in palo verde national park, those in the dry forest in puntarenas often are free of parasites. this individual had sought shelter in the hollow core of a fallen tree. j. m a u r ic io g a r c ía -c . the sonoran mountain kingsnake (lampropeltis pyromelana) inhabits rocky mountain habitats from 850–2,800 m in the western united states and adjacent regions in mexico. b r y a n h a m il to n iguana b&w text saving grand cayman’s blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n the strategic plan to save grand cayman’s blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) has been updated for the third time and provides hope that the long-term goal of the blue iguana recovery program (birp) can be achieved. the newest version of the plan hinges on promised action by the cayman islands government to grant protected status to an area of crown land in the east interior of grand cayman. the renewed species recovery plan calls for continued education and awareness, as well as captive breeding and iguana releases along with establishment and management of protected areas. many aspects depend on the new protected area proposal, including an eu-funded project to build a visitor center and shrubland education center within the reserve, forming a major new nature tourist attraction in the east end. birp director fred burton believes the program to restore a viable population of 1,000 blues in the wild is at a pivotal stage. “we have over 100 hatchings this year that will be ready for release by 2010, and unless we can secure some more protected shrubland habitat, these animals will have nowhere to go.” specifically, the iguanas require 300–500 acres of shrubland, a rugged, almost harsh, landscape where they can be safe and the population can expand unthreatened. two potentially suitable parcels of land exist, both supporting unique plant life found nowhere else in the world. with development in the eastern districts proceeding at an exponential rate, the time to secure appropriate habitat is now. the blue iguana recovery program is supported by the department of environment and the national trust of the cayman islands along with international partners, the durrell wildlife conservation trust (jersey, uk), and the international reptile conservation foundation (california). for more information or to make a donation to help save the grand cayman blue iguana, see the ircf website or www.blueiguana.ky. jo h n b in n s iguana b&w text the survey, they were stable over a 13year period. the survey results suggest that common chuckwalla populations are stable in these island preserves in a sea of urban development. hurricane katrina and mississippi turtles the yellow-blotched sawback (graptemys flavimaculata) is a riverine turtle that is endemic to the pascagoula river system of southern mississippi. population declines led to federal listing as a threatened species in 1991, with the most robust population inhabiting the lower pascagoula river near vancleave (~24 river km from the pascagoula river mouth). selmani and qualls (2008. herpetological conservation and biology 3:224–230) conducted a mark-resight survey of this population during the spring and summer of 2005–2006. on 29 august 2005, hurricane katrina entered the mississippi gulf coast, the location of their study site. on 13 october 2005, they conducted a onehour preliminary visual survey by boat through the study area and identified eight individuals that had been marked prior to katrina’s landfall, demonstrating that at least some of the 49 previously marked individuals remained in the study area. in october 2005–2006, the authors conducted more extensive markresight surveys within the same section of river. the population estimate for 2006 was significantly lower than the 2005 population estimate for the same stretch of river, suggesting that numbers substantially decreased during the year following the hurricane. of the plausible explanations for this pattern, the available evidence most strongly supports a real decline in population, presumably due to the long-term impact of hurricane katrina. possible reasons for such a long-term effect include hurricane induced saltwater intrusion and low levels of dissolved oxygen with direct effects on individuals or indirect effects on the prey populations (e.g., gastropods and other aquatic macroinvertebrates). 248 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 natural history research reports california tiger salamander moves closer to protection the california state appeals court ruled that the california fish and game commission must consider a petition to list the california tiger salamander (ambystoma californiense) as an endangered species under the california endangered species act. in a decision with potential implications for other poorly monitored species, the court ruled that the fish and game commission must consider a listing petition if the information would “lead a reasonable person to conclude there is a substantial possibility” that the species could be listed. “the fish and game commission ignored the multitude of known threats to the tiger salamander and dismissed the petition, falsely claiming it did not contain all of the data necessary to prove the salamander population may deserve protection,” said brian nowicki of the center for biological diversity. “today’s ruling should set the listing process back on the right track and ultimately result in the tiger salamander getting the stateprotected status it deserves.” the california tiger salamander is now set to advance to the status of candidate for state listing. the santa barbara county salamander population has been listed as endangered under the federal endangered species act since 2000, as has the sonoma county population since 2003. the central california population has been federally listed as threatened since 2004. the california tiger salamander depends on ephemeral vernal pools for breeding, but in recent decades, 95% of california’s vernal pools have already been lost, and at least 75% of the salamander’s habitat throughout the state has been eliminated. in sonoma county, 95% of the fragmented and minimal remaining salamander habitat is threatened by development; the santa barbara population also is on the verge of extinction. n e w s b r i e f s common chuckwalla (sauromalus ater) populations appear to be stable in islands of suitable habitat in a “sea” of urban development. population sizes of yellow-blotched sawbacks (graptemys flavimaculata) dropped during the year following hurricane katrina, probably due to saltwater intrusions and low dissolved oxygen levels affecting turtles directly or their prey. b il l lo v e the california state appeals court ruled that the california fish and game commission must consider a petition to list the california tiger salamander (ambystoma californiense) as an endangered species under the california endangered species act. g a r y n a fi s iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 249newsbriefs proposal to increase critical habitat for california frogs under scrutiny for political corruption regarding numerous endangered species decisions and facing a lawsuit over improper tampering with protected critical habitat, the u.s. fish and wildlife service is proposing to restore significant areas of critical habitat for the california red-legged frog (rana draytonii). the service has proposed quadrupling the protected areas by designating approximately 1,804,865 acres of critical habitat for the frog in 28 california counties. “no endangered species can survive without its habitat intact, and the redlegged frog desperately needs protection of adequate wetlands habitat throughout its former range,” said jeff miller, conservation advocate with the center for biological diversity. “today’s proposal is step toward biologically meaningful protections for the frog, but unfortunately numerous other endangered species still have inadequate habitat protections because bureaucrats have illegally slashed millions of acres from proposals by agency scientists.” in november 2007, under pressure brought about by the center and the media highlighting interior department corruption, the service announced the reversal of six illegal endangered species act decisions, including the california red-legged frog’s 2006 critical habitat designation. the service listed the redlegged frog as a threatened species in 1996. it published a proposed rule to designate 4,138,064 acres of critical habitat in 2004. in response to a lawsuit by developers, the service revised the proposal in 2005 to only 737,912 acres, and finalized the rule in 2006 with just 450,288 acres — a reduction of 90% from the original proposed rule. this proposal would increase the critical habitat by approximately 1,354,577 acres. “even with the announced increase in acreage, the redlegged frog will receive habitat protection for less than half the areas that agency biologists have identified as essential for the recovery of the species,” said miller. “under the bush administration, the fish and wildlife service has consistently slashed the size of proposed critical habitats, so we will be watching the final designation closely. made famous in the mark twain story, “the celebrated jumping frog of calaveras county,” the california redlegged frog has lost more than 70% of its historic habitat. frog populations have declined due to habitat loss from urbanization and introduction of exotic species such as bullfrogs. the red-legged frog is believed to be extinct in the central valley and is extirpated from 99% of its sierra nevada range. currently, the strongest breeding populations remaining are found along the coast from san mateo to san luis obispo counties. the red-legged frog prefers ponds, marshes, and creeks with still water. it requires riparian and upland areas with dense vegetation and open areas for cover, aestivation (summertime hibernation), food, and basking. undisturbed riparian vegetation also is necessary for female frogs to attach their egg masses, which float on the surface until they hatch in 5–7 months. agreement protects native fish and amphibians from fish-stocking the pacific rivers council and the center for biological diversity reached an agreement with the california department of fish and game on interim measures to limit harm to native species caused by fish-stocking. the intent is to minimize the harm that hatchery-raised fish inflict on sensitive native fish and amphibian species while the department prepares an environmental impact report under the california environmental quality act. the agreement was spurred by a tentative order issued by sacramento superior court judge patrick marlette finding that stocking could cause irreparable harm to native species. “interim measures limiting stocking are needed to help save california’s native fish and frogs from extinction,” said noah greenwald, biodiversity program director for the center for biological diversity. “fish and game will still be able to stock hatchery fish, but mainly in places where they won’t harm native species.” florida turtles need a reprieve several of the world’s leading turtle scientists have called on the governor of florida to end the commercial hunting of turtles which supplies eastern asia. the experts, brought together by the tortoise and freshwater turtle specialist group of iucn’s species survival commission, made their plea in a letter to governor charlie crist. “florida’s freshwater turtles are being harvested at an unsustainable rate to supply east asian food and medicinal markets,” the letter said. “new rules recently implemented by the florida fish and wildlife conservation commission (fwc) do not resolve this issue.” on 17 september 2008, the fwc had voted to allow commercial fishermen to catch 20 softshell turtles a day. “although this was an improvement, as the cascades frog (rana cascadae; top), northern leopard frog (lithobates [rana] pipiens; middle), and oregon spotted frog (rana pretiosa; bottom) are among the amphibian species that will benefit from a new agreement limiting the stocking of nonnative fish to many california waters. d im it a r b o ja n tc h ev sh a u la h ed w a ll w a lt er s ie g m u n d the california red-legged frog (rana draytonii) has lost more than 70% of its historic habitat. frog populations have declined due to habitat loss from urbanization and introduction of exotic species such as bullfrogs. g a r y m . f el le r s, u sg s previously there were no catch limits, the limit is still too high,” says anders rhodin, chair of iucn’s tortoise and freshwater turtle specialist group. “two fishermen working five days a week could take 200 animals or three-quarters of a ton of turtles a week. that is not adequate protection for florida’s wild turtle populations.” the 32 turtle experts recommended that the fwc make a rule that allows individuals to take no more than one turtle a day from the wild and two turtles a day per group of individuals. they called on governor crist to ask the commission to enact this rule. the fwc had argued that most turtles exported from florida are farmraised, but according to the experts the numbers are misleading. although 90% of the individual turtles exported from florida are from farms, these are nearly all tiny hatchlings, they say, and the bulk of shipments by weight appear to be wild-caught adult turtles. “an fwc law enforcement intelligence bulletin from march 2008 reported 1,600–3,000 lbs of live turtles flown out of tampa weekly,” says matt aresco, a spokesperson for the iucn tortoise and freshwater turtle specialist group. “it seems unlikely that these are all farmed hatchlings, which only weigh about one third of an ounce each.” the experts said their best guess is that these are mostly adult florida softshell turtles (apalone ferox), but added they don’t know for sure because fwc does not collect data on the species, sizes, or numbers of turtles that are being sent out of state. they recommended a permanent end to the commercial harvest of turtles in florida. in a welcome and strong demonstration of political support for wildlife protection, governor crist responded to the letter by urging the fwc to consider moving toward a complete ban on harvesting of wild turtles in florida. iucn, 25 november 2008 don’t muddy ohio waters the ohio environmental protection agency should be in charge of protecting the state’s waterways from pollution, whether that pollution comes from a factory pipe, a large-scale farm, or the byproducts of mining coal. a proposed bill to put state mining officials in charge of granting water-pollution permits for coalmines is a bad idea. state senator timothy j. grendell (r-chesterland) is behind the bill to switch authority from the epa to mining bureaucrats in the ohio department of natural resources. this proposal is similar to a 2001 state law — also a bad idea — that transferred the state epa’s authority to regulate large-scale livestock farms to the department of agriculture. that transfer still isn’t final, because the u.s. epa, which has ultimate responsibility for enforcing the 1972 federal clean water act, hasn’t approved it. in a recent public-comment meeting, opponents of the farm-regulation switch pointed out that the department of agriculture’s mission is to promote farming in ohio, not to be a watchdog. the same potential for conflict of interest exists in putting odnr’s division of mineral resources management in charge of water-pollution permits for mines. the timing of the bill lends weight to the suspicion that the real goal is to allow an end run by a major mine company that has been denied a permit by the epa. murray energy corp., owner of ohio’s largest underground coalmines, wants to bury casey run, a 2-mile-long stream in eastern ohio, under a 1.85-billion-gallon coal-slurry lagoon. slurry is water contaminated with coal dust after it has been used to wash coal. in 2005, a broken slurry pipeline from a murray energy-owned mine blackened 2,300 feet of belmont county’s captina creek, killing thousands of fish in a habitat that supports the endangered hellbender salamander. casey run is a tributary of captina creek. epa scientists, in recommending denial of the permit for the massive lagoon, said it would pose “insurmountable” environmental concerns for the high-quality water resource. murray officials say they’ll have to close two mines employing about 1,000 people if they can’t build the slurry lagoon, but epa and odnr officials said the company could find other ways to dispose of its waste. murray energy’s checkered track record of multiple environmental and safety violations in ohio and elsewhere, including the crandall canyon mine cave-in that killed six men in utah in august 2007, argues against easing regulation of the company. regardless of one company’s history, safeguarding ohio’s waterways should remain with the agency for which environmental protection is the core mission. columbus dispatch 3 december 2008 250 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 newsbriefs endangered hellbenders (cryptobranchus alleganiensis) occur in ohio streams affected by pollution from coalmines. a d a m l . c r a n e most of the 1,600–3,000 lbs of live turtles flown out of tampa each week probably are florida softshell turtles (apalone ferox) destined for east asian food and medicinal markets. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana b&w text 162 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 ackley lauren white (oklahoma state university) was quick to find an anolis oculatus exploiting the complex structural habitat on the grounds of the sunset bay club. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 162 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 163travelogue we go through life with all kinds of things covering our eyes. although some are self-imposed, many can be attributed to outside sources. time is a prime example, and i was never more aware of just how little was available than during a three-week trip to dominica. nine students from across the u.s. and puerto rico had been accepted to the avila university research experiences for undergraduates (reu) program. these national science foundation funded programs last about 10 weeks, and most are based in labs at u.s. universities. needless to say, fieldwork on a tropical island was an attractive perk of the avila program. spending the entire three weeks fixated on a subset of the fauna or even a single species, collecting data for projects that we were expected to complete and submit for publication, often interfered with commonplace activities like showers and sleep. it certainly got in the way of exploring one of the most wellregarded diving and ecotourism destinations in the west indies. this issue of iguana includes several articles about the dominican herpetofauna, and at the risk of offending those researchers with the dedication required to ignore much of what surrounds them, the following is devoted to aspects of the island experience that might otherwise have eluded my attention. our first day in paradise held several surprises. the most notable was that our accommodations at sunset bay were far more civilized than those that field biologists usually experience. also, our immediate surroundings, a complex of ornamental plants in a well-maintained garden, provided a diverse assortment of cover and perching sites that was readily exploited by a number of dominican lizards (along with occasional frogs and snakes). amazingly, during my survey, i found that the hotel grounds were home to the highest herpetofaunal diversity we encountered on the island — no doubt facilitated by the hotel t r a v e l o g u e most by land, some by sea: photographing the obscure in dominica jeffrey w. ackley department of natural sciences, eckerd college, st. petersburg, florida 33711, usa photographs by the author except where noted. this sunset at the sunset bay club heralded our arrival. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 163 164 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 ackley ruthie carter studied microhabitat associations of frogs. because we shared a need to cover much of the island, she became my travel partner. while searching for eleutherodactylus amplinympha on morne macaque a kilometer above the ocean, she looks out over what would have been freshwater lake had the cloud forest not been, well, cloudy. these pillars support the grandstands of windsor park stadium in the capital of roseau. although usually host to cricket matches, we took a very rare night off to experience the national military band and a steel drum group playing everything from hip-hop to mozart and the theme from snow white. such intensely developed areas are rare on dominica, and are largely limited to the very centers of roseau and the larger villages on the island. high elevations, rugged topography, and hundreds of streams produce myriad waterfalls. here, the students enjoy some downtime beneath trafalgar falls. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 164 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 165travelogue management and staff, who thoroughly enjoyed (or at least tolerated) the animals, not to mention putting up with us and our antics. the area was densely planted with exotic vegetation, lacked a full tree canopy, and despite omnipresent humans and a great deal of concrete, we saw as many reptilian species here as at any other single place on the island. this situation is not unique, and is actually predicted by the intermediate disturbance hypothesis. for example, if you build a swimming pool in the middle of the forest, it will probably not prevent any of the previous inhabitants from living nearby. meanwhile, however, aquatic species, which normally would not live in a dry forest, now have suitable habitat and may occupy a new niche that was previously unavailable, thus increasing the local diversity. of course, the risk exists that the magnitude, frequency, or type of disturbance may make an entire area uninhabitable for some or all of the species currently present. the seemingly optimal environment offered at sunset bay was certainly a local phenomenon. however, the ubiquity of iguana delicatissima was approached only at another moderately altered environment at champagne bay (where we went snorkeling). the characteristics of habitats that promote diversity could exist or be emulated elsewhere, and conservation by coexistence with tolerant humans should not be overlooked as an option. this is particularly true in areas where patches of human habitation are smaller than the natural areas surrounding them, and invasive species are less of an issue. for those of us who do not live in a tropical paradise, “going herping” certainly should not be limited entirely to arduous treks through secluded areas — we might just encounter more animals and species near human habitation. less enchanting was getting around the island. on the drive from the airport on day one, we encountered a tourist who was forced off the road by an oncoming vehicle on a stretch of road reduced to barely one lane by the island’s rugged topography. although i was told that “traffic” on dominica is not at all comthis dead bat had been hanging unnoticed from a branch during much of our stay; its discovery on our last day was attributable to the smell. named by the french for a 1674 killing of carib indians by the english, massacre is a coastal town north of the capital roseau. a member of our group commented on how this would read if “vandals” were to add an “s” after christian… pj muelleman (truman state university) and a school of fish at champagne bay, a dominican national marine sanctuary. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 165 parable to that on more developed islands, searching for appropriate field sites was occasionally problematic. my specific project involved traveling across much of the island at all elevations and times of day to evaluate the herpetofaunal diversity at eleven sites. these areas were characterized by varying degrees of human activity, and formed a gradient from natural forests to bustling towns. considerable travel was involved, and our limited time frame and dominica’s lack of superhighways led to an appreciation for why local residents regularly ignore posted speed limits. in many ways, dominica has remained the island it was when europeans first arrived. intimidating mountain ranges and near total absence of intervening flatlands that precluded the development of extensive sugar plantations during the colonial era are largely responsible. the roads to several of our study sites, which were at elevations over 500 m, alternately revealed expansive ocean vistas and views of the extensive old-growth forests that still cover much of the island. in sharp contrast, the frogs, lizards, and snakes we sought were often quite miniscule. being a bit of a camera nut who dabbles in underwater photography, i was well-equipped with a wide-angle lens for the vistas and a macro lens for the critters. the blessings and curses of carrying a camera abound. leaving behind this piece of steal-able, bulky, breakable, temperamental, and valuable scientific equipment is almost guaranteed to result in missed photographic opportunities — yet the burden is not unlike that of taking responsibility for a child in the field. another curse is the almost inevitable reality that you’ll have the wrong lens in place when faced with a fleeting image you wish to preserve. however, when properly wielded, a good camera allows you to record memories of one-time experiences like no other tool. for example, we were walking under the majestic 20-m forest canopy along the trail to kachibona lake, and i had my fisheye lens attached when a small frog scampered across the path. 166 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 ackley turning around when we ran out of passable road was a common occurrence. this foreboding sign required us to back down 50 m of steeply pitched asphalt. the entrance we eventually used to access the trail to kachibona lake was just to our left, although we took another two days to discover it. the sea and shore on the windward (eastern) coast of dominica is framed by banana leaves. although spared the ravages imposed on most islands by the sugar industry during the colonial era, banana plantations proliferated during the 20th century and, unlike sugar, these extend high into the mountains. however, with falling banana prices in recent years, forest is reclaiming some former plantations. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 166 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 167travelogue this lens has a viewing angle wider than a human eye, and distorts straight lines into curves (note the trees in wide angle shots). however, small objects can be emphasized against a large background, and thus given a context that a normal lens would not allow. much of my work was done at night, and operating a camera while dodging raindrops and attempting to take field notes became quite a challenge. flashes operate just fine without ambient light, but that’s not true for the autofocus feature. thankfully, we had solutions strapped to our heads. our nighttime activities were all conducted with headlamps. usually, a colleague was available to shed enough light on a subject to give our cameras a chance to focus, but working alone required more appendages than the number typically allotted to people (admittedly, a tripod would have helped, but data collection almost invariably precluded its use). a solution was to frame a picture, then move my head away from the camera to angle the light on a subject just in front of the lens. autofocus makes a distinctive noise when it stops “hunting” for the subject and finds a focal point. depressing the shutter immediately after this happens without looking at the viewfinder is hardly a foolproof method, but was sometimes the only option. fortunately, most of the animals we encountered at night were asleep or happily ensconced on a stable perch and could be readily approached. some of these provided a wonderful excuse to take off the blinders we wore to anything not related to amphibians or reptiles. unfortunately, many of these creatures were mobile, and some insect pictures were possible only because biological urges (sex and food) kept them from scuttling out of the frame. because i too was fixated on frogs and lizards, i often needed a few moments to realize what i was seeing when encountering insects at night. one of our first nocturnal hikes involved a narrow trail along a 45° slope in the midst of organic plastic-wrapped banana trees. what first seemed to be a walking stick a few feet from my head turned out to have considerably more than the usual number of legs and antennae. after counting more than 12 appendages, i eventually located two heads of animals engaged in an aerial ballet of significant sexual dexterity. cannibalism was another activity well suited to macro photography. after completing an uneventful survey along a trail behind the syndicate nature centre, we again encountered an animal with too many legs. this time, however, only enough limbs to account for one and a half insects were present. a large few living things can make you feel smaller or younger than oldgrowth forests. this open semi-dry region was near the beginning of a treacherous three-hour hike to kachibona lake. a martinique frog (eleutherodactylus martinicensis) and craig berg’s intimidating hands are only a few centimeters from the fisheye lens. this was taken without a flash, using only the patchy light filtering through the canopy. this grasshopper is feasting on another of its species. the genders involved and what events led to this macabre spectacle are unknown. sexual cannibalism is rare in insects outside of mantids, but is known to occur in crickets. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 167 grasshopper was cannibalizing another, and we arrived after most of one creature had been ingested by the other. for those of us with a penchant for water, an investment in an underwater housing adds another weight-limit-grazing bag — but also can provide opportunities for tripling the difficulty of land-based photography (along with boatloads of fun). considering dominica’s reputation for diving, i found myself carrying my total body weight in equipment, and had to resort to washing my limited clothing supply by swimming. when i could sneak in the two hours required to set up, dismantle, and clean the aluminum housing, i spent much of my time freediving with a snorkel. the housing and external strobe are about the size and weight of a toddler, although they achieve near-neutral buoyancy in the ocean with the aid of foam floats and displaced water. towing the bulk with flippers is not difficult. however, like approaching land animals with a camera, sea creatures capable of fleeing are far more inclined to do so when presented with a clunky light emitting black object. on land, the solution is to use zoom lenses that allow the photographer to capture a subject from a distance, but that’s impractical underwater. color is distorted by wavelengths of light absorbed by the water, and distant objects often have a drab, flat blue appearance. the solution is in the words of a war photographer named robert capa (who, incidentally, died by stepping on a landmine): “if your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough.” the need to be close to the target results in many shots of fish posteriors, and stalking anything that can move underwater will often include the childhood games of hide-and-seek or sit-and-wait. wandering through a forest of spiky soft corals in the midst of an untouched rocky patch reef, i encountered a number of evocatively named creatures including gold spotted snake eels, flying gurnards, and bearded fire worms. 168 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 ackley these walking sticks were engaged in midair coitus. the insect on top is hanging onto a leaf with two feet (top of frame), whereas the lower individual is hanging onto the head of the first. a trumpetfish is camouflaged amid the limbs of a feather duster worm, blown back by the swells from which the feathers sift food particles. the polychaete worm is actually the more skittish of the two, and responds to any disturbance by quickly withdrawing into the mineralized cylinder it secretes. never more than a few inches long, blennies sit atop corals next to holes no larger than themselves, into which they all-too readily disappear. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 168 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 169travelogue dominica has much to offer a naturalist, not only in terms of diversity, but in sheer quantity of flora and fauna. a national park system is in place, and a mix of international and indigenous conservation efforts have established public education programs. however, new threats, such as an outbreak of the chytrid fungus among amphibian populations, are of increasing concern. development on the scale of that on many other caribbean islands is certainly within the realm of possibility. economic needs may yet trump the “nature isle.” however, the current level of coexistence between the flora and fauna and humans and their needs has resulted in a unique destination for those of us who enjoy a natural experience. acknowledgements marcella and roger dutrieux cools and their staff at the sunset bay club beach hotel were gracious hosts. our mentors, robert powell (avila university), robert w. henderson (milwaukee public museum), john s. parmerlee, jr. (johnson county community college), and craig s. berg (milwaukee county zoo), provided transportation and guidance. mr. arlington james, forest officer, forestry, wildlife, and parks division, ministry of agriculture & the environment, commonwealth of dominica, was instrumental in issuing permits to conduct research in dominica and facilitated our efforts in myriad ways. fieldwork was funded by a grant from the national science foundation (usa) to robert powell (dbi0242589). one visible sign of the nation’s commitment to conservation consists of educational signs posted along many of the major roads. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . a “hairy” crustacean retreats under the swaying arms of a protective sea anemone. a two-meter high starburst of soft coral rises above the ocean floor at night. “boa” bob henderson demonstrated his snake-wrangling skills to the displeasure of this boa nebulosa. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 169 iguana b&w text 214 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 the atherton tablelands is a 700–900-m high plateau in north queensland, australia. prior to european settlement, the region was covered largely by upland rainforest interspersed with areas of more open sclerophyll forest. large-scale clearing for agriculture began in the early part of the 20th century and continued for a number of decades. logging was in decline by the time most of the remaining rainforest was incorporated into the wet tropics world heritage area in the late 1980s. freeman and freeman iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 215 chasing big snakes the ping from the receiver indicated the amethystine python (morelia kinghorni) was very close; judging by the volume it was less than two meters in front of me. once again, i am amazed at how these large snakes manage to “melt” into the forest floor. after some frustration and muttered curses, like a switch coming on in my head, i see him. stretched out in the leaf litter is the large muscular predator right where i had been looking for the last minute or so. at 3.5 m, this male is larger than average, which is slightly less than 3 m in length (a.b. freeman, unpubl. data; fearn et al. 2005). we have been following him for over two years now and he has become like an old friend. he watches me cautiously as i quietly withdraw a short distance to start data collection. five minutes later, he decides giants in the rainforest: a radiotelemetry study of the amethystine python in north queensland, australia alastair freeman and amanda freeman school for field studies, center for rainforest studies, yungaburra, queensland 4883, australia (alastair.freeman@epa.qld.gov.au) photographs by the senior author except where indicated. amethystine python in north queensland � amethystine pythons (morelia kinghorni), such as this large male, appear to “melt” into the forest floor. 216 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 freeman and freeman that i am no threat and turns to continue on his way. after two and a half years and many hours spent studying these magnificent animals in the wild, the sight of this large reptile moving over the forest floor still gives me a buzz of excitement. we started the radiotracking project in april 2004. for the preceding two years, we had been collecting roadkill data and incidental records for this species on the atherton tablelands in north queensland. we came to the conclusion early that radiotracking individuals would be necessary to really understand more about the ecology of this species in the wild. in particular, we had become interested in how this large predator uses a landscape that is highly modified by land clearance and agricultural development. where and how do you study big snakes? the atherton tablelands is a mid-elevation plateau (700–900 m), situated southwest of the city of cairns in north queensland, australia. prior to european settlement, the region was covered largely by upland rainforest interspersed with areas of more open sclerophyll forest (winter et al. 1987). large-scale clearing for agriculture began in the early part of the 20th century and continued for a number of decades (winter et al. 1987). logging was in decline by the time most of the remaining rainforest was incorporated into the wet tropics world heritage area in the late 1980s. today, the area is a mosaic of pasture, crops, and small towns. interspersed among these are rainforest fragments ranging in size from a few trees to 600 ha, many dissected by major and minor roads. small areas of secondary growth are common, particularly along riparian corridors. large areas of continuous forest are confined to the slopes of hills that surround the tablelands. our study area is situated on the eastern edge of the tablelands, centered on the school for field studies centre for rainforest studies. in the immediate vicinity are all of the main habitat types known to occur in the atherton tablelands, everything from cattle pastures to world heritage rainforests that have never been cleared. the amethystine or scrub python is the largest snake in australia. it is also arguably the largest terrestrial carnivore in australia. surprisingly, very little is known about its ecology in the wild. most accounts of this species have been observations of specific events (fearn and sambono 2000; turner 2001; catching a large python is often a collaborative effort. here the authors chase a telemetered snake. el le n r ei d the amethystine or scrub python (morelia kinghorni) is the largest snake and arguably the largest terrestrial carnivore in australia. surprisingly, very little is known about its ecology in the wild. fearn 2002), valuable in themselves but far from the detail needed to get a complete picture of this species’ ecology. scientific studies have been few and far between (martin 1995; fearn et al. 2005). the radio transmitters are surgically inserted into the body cavity of the snake near the vent. because of the body shape of snakes, this is the only practical way one can “attach” a transmitter to them. after about 9–11 months, pythons are recaptured and the transmitter is removed or replaced before the batteries expire. over a period of 27 months, we have radiotracked six individual pythons for varying lengths of time. the snakes are located on average twice a week. when located, detailed notes are made of the habitat in which they were found, their exact locality is recorded using a handheld gps, and air and ground temperatures and a range of behavioral variables are recorded. if at all possible, we try to visually locate the snakes, but many times, particularly when they are in the canopy and emergent layers of the forest, they are impossible to see. iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 217amethystine python in north queensland map of the atherton tablelands in north queensland, australia. today, the atherton tablelands of north queensland, australia is a mosaic of pasture, crops, and small towns. interspersed among these are rainforest fragments ranging in size from a few trees to 600 ha, many dissected by major and minor roads. small areas of secondary growth are common, particularly along riparian corridors. large areas of continuous forest are confined to the slopes of hills that surround the tablelands. some preliminary results the tracking so far indicates that amethystine pythons on the atherton tablelands are strongly but not exclusively forest dwellers. the majority of sightings of radiotracked snakes (around 75%) have been in forest habitats, either rainforest or rainforest regrowth, with around 20% of sightings of animals in clearings or along the forest edge. the remaining sightings are in sclerophyll forest. one of the most interesting findings to emerge from the study is knowledge of the snakes’ behavior during the cool misty winters of the tablelands. radiotracking has shown that during the coldest part of the year, amethystine pythons spend most of their time in large epiphytic basket ferns (drynaria sp.) in the canopy and emergent layers of the forest. similar behavior was documented on the atherton tablelands in the late 19th century by the explorer carl lumholtz, who described how in winter his aboriginal guides would climb high into ferns to catch pythons for food. although he referred to those snakes as morelia variegata (lumholtz 1889), judging by their size, they could only be amethystine pythons. studies in neotropical rainforests have shown that temperatures are significantly higher in the canopy and above it than below it (madigosky 2004). these very large epiphytes (most are larger than 1 m in width) in the canopy and in emergent trees therefore serve as ideal basking platforms. far from being a big, slow sluggard of a snake, the amethystine python can move far and relatively quickly when necessary. in many ways, these pythons, with their gracile bodies, long tails, and slender necks, are built more like an arboreal colubrid or treeboa than a large python. one of the males has a home range of over 200 ha, whereas another male moved over 800 m in a 24-hr period. they seem to apply both “sit-and-wait” and “active-foraging” strategies for prey capture. during the warmer months, we have come across 218 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 freeman and freeman although most frequently encountered lying motionless on the forest floor or in the canopy, one male amethystine python (morelia kinghorni) had a home range of over 200 ha, and another male moved over 800 m in a 24-hr period. a m a n d a f r ee m a n radiotracked snakes were located on average twice a week. detailed notes document the habitat in which they were found. here the senior author is radiotracking the snake visible on the ground. iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 219 individual snakes displaying what can only be called active “exploratory” behavior in the middle of the day. in one case, a large male was observed moving systematically over the forest floor, his tongue constantly flicking, pushing his head into holes and then withdrawing it. active foraging by amethystine pythons, while seldom observed, is fairly well known because of the number of pythons that are trapped in chicken coops after eating their fill and then being unable to squeeze back out through the wire mesh. more commonly, these pythons have been found in a sit-and-wait foraging stance, often next to obvious mammalian trails through dense grass or undergrowth. while we have never observed an animal “in the act” of swallowing prey, we have obtained some information on diet in the study area from droppings, regurgitated samples, and the contents of one dissected stomach. so far, the amethystine pythons have shown a preference for bandicoots (isoodon macrourus and parameles nasuta) and red-legged pademelons (thylogale stigmatica). the former are small marsupial omnivores similar in appearance to a large rat; the latter is a medium-sized forest macropod. other food items that we have recorded from pythons in the study area and elsewhere include spectacled flying foxes (pteropus conspicillatus), rats (rattus sp.), cats (felis catus), and birds. the most unusual item we have found is reptilian eggs that were in the droppings of one of the radiotracked females. how these came to be in the snake we have no idea, and we have yet to identify the species to which the eggs belong. sadly, we have collected almost no data on reproductive behavior. no observations have been made of fighting behavior in males or of mating, and none of the three tracked females has attempted to brood a clutch. amethystine python in north queensland rainforest canopy from below. during the coldest part of the year, amethystine pythons (morelia kinghorni) spend most of their time in large epiphytic basket ferns (drynaria sp.) in the canopy and emergent layers of the forest. amethystine pythons (morelia kinghorni), such as this female, can move far and relatively quickly when necessary. in many ways, these pythons, with their gracile bodies, long tails, and slender necks, are built more like an arboreal colubrid or treeboa than a large python. b r u c e to m so n other reptiles in the study area in addition to the amethystine python, another boid present in the area is the smaller and more common carpet python (m. spilota). two subspecies of this species are thought to occur on the atherton tablelands: the specialist rainforest-inhabiting “jungle carpet” and the more widespread “coastal carpet” (barker and barker 1994). however, from roadkill and incidental data that we have collected, no consistent pattern of habitat use differentiates the two supposed subspecies (freeman and bruce 2007). consequently, we believe that the presence of two subspecies on the atherton tablelands is unlikely. other snakes that have been observed in the study area include brown treesnakes (boiga irregularis), common treesnakes (dendralaphis calligastra), yellow-faced whipsnakes (demansia psammophis), small-eyed snakes (cryptophis nigrescens), eastern brown snakes (pseudonaja textilis), and the impressive red-bellied black snake (pseudechis porphyriacus). however, perhaps the most spectacular and unlikely sighting in the area was of a coastal taipan (oxyuranus scutellatus). this species is generally thought to be a snake of dry open areas. one of us (abf) came across a 1.8-m animal on an old logging track in thick rainforest. this highly venomous species tends to have a bad reputation among the general public, but, in this case, the snake sat quietly for 30 seconds or so while it was photographed before moving off into the forest. lizards in the study area include a number of wet tropics endemics. the chameleon gecko (carphodactylus laevis) and spectacular northern leaf-tailed gecko (salturus cornatus) are regularly observed at night during the warmer months, while the more secretive boyd’s forest dragon (hypsilurus boydi) is less frequently seen. the skink fauna numbers eight species, ranging from the diminutive saproscincus tetradactylus with a svl of 33 mm to the impressive pink-tongued lizard (cyclodomorphus gerrardii) with head-body lengths to 200 mm. other more widely distributed species that occur in the area include eastern water dragons (physignathus lesueurii lesueurii) and the imposing lace monitor (varanus varius). this large varanid can reach lengths of 2 m elsewhere in australia, and we have observed individuals over 1.5 m in our study area. where to from here? the radiotracking is about to finish, the last two snakes will be caught soon and their transmitters removed before they are released back into the wild. while the radiotracking will finish, we will continue to collect feeding observations for this species. also, some circumstantial evidence suggests that amethystine pythons may suppress the densities of browsing folivores such as opossums and tree kangaroos in some rainforest fragments. perhaps that will be our next research project. 220 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 freeman and freeman coastal taipans (oxyuranus scutellatus) are generally thought to be snakes of dry open areas. this highly venomous species tends to have a bad reputation among the general public, but, in this case, the snake sat quietly for 30 seconds or so while it was photographed before moving off into the forest. amethystine pythons (morelia kinghorni), such as this female, use both “sit-and-wait” (seen here) and “active-foraging” strategies for prey capture. a m a n d a f r ee m a n bandicoots, small marsupial omnivores similar in appearance to a large rat, are favored prey for amethystine pythons (morelia kinghorni). a m a n d a f r ee m a n iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 221amethystine python in north queensland acknowledgements a number of people have assisted with this project. rick shine, sydney university, and andrew krockenberger, james cook university, provided radiotransmitters. wendy bergan and carol esson provided veterinary assistance with insertion and removal of transmitters. radiotracking equipment was made available by the queensland parks and wildlife service threatened species group. logistical support was provided by the school for field studies centre for rainforest studies. financial assistance was provided by australian geographic. a special thanks goes to all the students and staff at the school for field studies centre for rainforest studies, particularly maggie vinson, pierson hill, and kyle pias. references barker, d.g., and t. m. barker. 1994. pythons of the world. volume 1. australia. advanced vivarium systems, lakeside california. fearn, s.l. 2002. morelia amethistina (scrub python). diet. herpetological review 31:58–59. fearn, s.l. and j. sambono. 2000. some ambush predation postures of the scrub python morelia amethistina (serpentes: pythonidae) in north east queensland. herpetofauna 30:39–44. fearn, s.l., l. schwarzkopf, and r. shine. 2005. giant snakes in tropical forests: a field study of the australian scrub python, morelia kinghorni. wildlife research 32:193–201. freeman, a.b. and c. bruce. 2007. the things you find on the road: roadkill and incidental data as an indicator of habitat use in two species of tropical pythons, pp. 152–165. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), biology of the boas and pythons. eagle mountain publishing lc, eagle mountain, utah. lumholtz c.s. 1889. among cannibals: account of four years travels in australia, and of camp life with the aborigines of queensland. j. murray, london. madigosky, s.r. 2004. tropical microclimate considerations, pp. 24–48. in: m.d. lowman and h.b. rinker (eds.), forest canopies. 2nd ed. elsevier academic press, san diego. martin, r. 1995. field observation of predation on bennet’s tree-kangaroo (dendrolagus bennettianus) by an amethystine python (morelia amethistina). herpetological review 24:74–76. turner, g. 2001. fatal ingestion of a large prey item in the scrub python (morelia kinghorni). herpetofauna 31:112–115. winter, j.w., f.c. bell, l.i. pahl, and r.g. atherton. 1987. the distribution of rainforest in northeastern queensland, pp. 223–226. in: g.l. werren and a.p. kershaw (eds.), the rainforest legacy: australian national rainforest study: the nature, distribution and status of rainforest types. vol. 1. australian government publishing service, canberra. wet tropics endemic northern leaf-tailed geckos (salturus cornatus) are regularly observed at night during the warmer months. adult lace monitors (varanus varius) are seen regularly in the study area. these large varanids can reach lengths of 2 m. iguana, june 2008 102 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 pauwels biotope of davewakeum miriamae at sakaerat experimental research station, showing the rocks on which lizards were found. although discovered nearly four decades ago, miriam’s legless skink (davewakeum miriamae) is still one of the least known thai skinks. we “rediscovered” it and provide the first picture of a live specimen with illustrations of its biotope. in 1972, dr. william ronald heyer described a new genus and species of skink from dry evergreen forest in northeastern thailand, davewakeum miriamae. the new taxa were dedicated respectively to dr. david b. wake (university of california, berkeley) and to miriam harriet muedeking, ron heyer’s wife, the latter having collected the very first specimen of the type series. the holotype was collected by the late sukhum pongsapipatana, a promising thai herpetologist who tragically died too young, hit by a car in 1974. as mentioned in the original description, the 17 types were originally deposited at the field museum of natural history (fmnh, chicago); however, four paratypes were later sent on exchange to other institutions (fmnh 18542–545, sent respectively to the museum of comparative zoology, harvard; los angeles county museum of natural history, los angeles; the british museum, london; and the thailand institute of scientific and technological research, bangkok) (a. resetar, pers. comm., january 2008). the distinctiveness of the taxon at the generic level, mainly justified on cranial and scalation features, has always been accepted. brandley et al. (2005) and greer (2002) stressed the morphological similarities between davewakeum and the other southeast asian genus brachymeles, but recognized these genera as clearly distinct from each other. the genus davewakeum remains monotypic. the thai common name of davewakeum is ching-laenduang pakthongchai (nabhitabhata et al. 2004, thirakhupt 2000). its english name is miriam’s legless skink. we suggest the french name scinque apode de miriam and the dutch/flemish name miriam’s pootloze skink. the holotype of miriam’s legless skink was collected at “khao saton, 300 m. above the kasetsart university forestry station, 60 km. s of nakhon ratchasima on highway 304, amphoe [= district] pak thong chai, changwat [= province] nakhon ratchasima, thailand”; the paratypes all came from this locality with the exception of one that was collected at “sakaerat experiment station, amphoe pak thong chai, changwat nakhon ratchasima.” nabhitabhata et al. (2004) listed the species from sakaerat and wang nam khieo (subdistrict), both in pak thong chai district in nakhon ratchasima province, the only district and province from which the species is known. ron heyer’s team found specimens in dry evergreen forest (partially cleared in the case of the sakaerat paratype). they were found by daytime underground (1–15 cm deep), often along tree buttresses or under rocks (heyer 1972, heyer and berven 1973, inger and colwell 1977). in contrast, one specimen (sakaerat’s paratype) was found active at 2140 h on the forest floor less than a meter from a stream. whether the species is diurnal or active at night remains unknown, although the latter observation alone suggests a nocturnal cycle. at one site in khao saton, as many as ten individuals were found in a 4-m2 area, in syntopy with the semi-fossorial skink riopa bowringi (günther, 1864) (heyer 1972). the diet of davewakeum is totally unknown, but most probably includes various small leaf litter invertebrates. its reproductive biology is also unknown. during an afternoon in november 2004, in dry evergreen forest at tham jong ang (“king cobra cave”; altitude ca. 400 m asl), sakaerat experimental research station (sers), we dug the thai endemic, miriam’s legless skink, davewakeum miriamae heyer, 1972 olivier s. g. pauwels département des vertébrés récents, institut royal des sciences naturelles de belgique (osgpauwels@yahoo.fr) photographs by the author. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 103miriam’s legless skink � live adult davewakeum miriamae from sakaerat experimental research station. a large hole in a boulder filled with humus, and found two adult davewakeum miriamae a few centimeters from each other. as soon as they were exhumed, they became extremely excited and crawled surprisingly quickly; one even managed to escape by letting itself fall from the boulder and disappearing into a rock crevice, the other was caught but immediately lost its tail (voucher irsnb 17009). the species is very common at sers, where it is encountered frequently when gardening and digging (t. artchawakom, pers. comm., november 2004). the biotope of davewakeum miriamae, the dry evergreen forest of sakaerat, was described in detail by lamotte et al. (1997). despite an apparently localized distribution, the species does not appear to be threatened. thirakhupt (2000: 163) briefly reviewed its conservation status, qualified its commercial value as low, and its biology and ecology as unknown and thus not sufficient to clearly establish its status (“data deficient”). the species is listed as “near-threatened” in the thailand red data list by nabhitabhata and chan-ard (2005), who forgot to indicate its endemicity to thailand; however, no information was provided to justify this near-threatened status. the species is not included in the 2007 iucn red list of threatened species (iucn 2007). we have not seen or heard about the species in the thai or international reptile pet trade. its fossorial habits, small size, and dull coloration make it unappealing for hobbyists. at the time of its discovery, the species appeared to be locally common (heyer 1972) in dry evergreen forest, and it remains common at least in sakaerat. the sakaerat site was nominated as a unesco-mab biosphere reserve and hence benefits from some protective status. investigators may yet be able to document the presence of the species in thap lan national park (nakhon ratchasima province), just south of the known localities, and in adjacent khao yai national park to the west and part of the same low mountain range (the southern part of the phetchabun mountain range) that separates the khorat basin from the central valley of thailand. acknowledgements we are grateful to taksin artchawakom, director of sers, for his kind hospitality and support, to chucheep teak chimsunchart (phetchaburi) for her help with the translation of thai herpetological literature, to dr. lawan chanhome (thai red cross society), kirati kunya (korat zoo), and montri sumontha (ranong fisheries station) for companionship in the field, and to dr. ron heyer (smithsonian institution, washington, d.c.), pascal a.r. pauwels (brussels), alan resetar (fmnh), and dr. surachit waengsothorn (thailand institute of scientific and technological research, bangkok) for useful information. literature cited brandley, m.c., a. schmitz, and t.w. reeder. 2005. partitioned bayesian analyses, partition choice, and the phylogenetic relationships of scincid lizards. systematic biology 54:373–390. greer, a.e. 2002. the loss of the external ear opening in scincid lizards. journal of herpetology 36:544–555. heyer, w.r. 1972. a new limbless skink (reptilia: scincidae) from thailand with comments on the generic status of the limbless skinks of southeast asia. fieldiana zoology 58:109–129. heyer, w.r. and k.a. berven. 1973. species diversities of herpetofaunal samples from similar microhabitats at two tropical sites. ecology 54:642–645. inger, r.f. and r.k. colwell. 1977. organization of contiguous communities of amphibians and reptiles in thailand. ecological monographs 47:229–253. iucn 2007. 2007 iucn red list of threatened species. the iucn species survival commission, gland, switzerland. <www.iucnredlist.org>. lamotte, s., j. gajaseni, and f. malaisse. 1998. structure diversity in three forest types of northeastern thailand (sakaerat reserve, pak tong chai). biotechnology, agronomy, society and environment 2:192–202. nabhitabhata, j. and t. chan-ard. 2005. thailand red data: mammals, reptiles and amphibians. office of natural resources and environmental policy and planning, bangkok. nabhitabhata, j., t. chan-ard, and y. chuaynkern. “2000” 2004. checklist of amphibians and reptiles in thailand. office of environmental policy and planning, bangkok. thirakhupt, k. 2000. amphibians and reptiles, pp. 149–171. in: review of biodiversity research in thailand. biodiversity research and training program, bangkok (in thai). 104 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 pauwels overview of the dry evergreen forest at sakaerat experimental research station. miriam and ron heyer at the smithsonian institution (washington, d.c.) in december 2007. iguana b&w text 20 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 lock detail of the external appearance of one hide area constructed for guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) at zoo atlanta. the plastic tube connects to the deep shelter surrounded by flat stones. in the ongoing effort to reproduce potential founder animals at zoo atlanta, we have recently modified an outdoor enclosure to hold our guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti). the captive reproduction of these specimens is an important part of the overall “project heloderma” program for zoo atlanta and its partners, the international reptile conservation foundation and zootropic. our lone female and our three males were wild-caught adults when brought into captivity and are of unknown ages. thus, with every year that goes by, they get that much closer to being nonreproductive. in addition, the female has had two surgeries to remove cystic (fluid filled, non-viable) follicles from her ovaries. the good news is that prior to the surgeries that removed the diseased follicles she had not produced any eggs — but has since ovulated successfully. in 2005, she produced six yellow, non-calcified, and non-viable eggs, and, in 2006, she produced four similar eggs. to no one’s surprise, when the lizards were placed outside in the sun, their behavior changed to more closely reflect that of their wild counterparts. with that information, all five animals the guatemalan beaded lizard breeding program at zoo atlanta brad lock zoo atlanta photographs by jason brock, zoo atlanta iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 21guatemalan beaded lizard � outdoor habitat for guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) at zoo atlanta. were placed outside this past june. the enclosure and the hide areas were designed to “resemble” some of the structures we had seen in their native habitat in guatemala. the hide areas were dug into the ground so that a cool, dark, humid environment was created. logs and grasses were placed in the enclosure for security and to provide climbing structures. after a very short 22 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 lock male guatemalan beaded lizard taking advantage of a sunny patch for basking on a cool morning. the outdoor guatemalan beaded lizard enclosure showing the hide areas and logs used for climbing. iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 23guatemalan beaded lizard (2–3 day) exploration period, during which the lizards were constantly on the move, tongue-flicking every inch of the enclosure and the structures within it, they settled into a routine. this routine, however, was much different than the behaviors observed in their indoor enclosures. inside, lizards moved very infrequently and were very docile in interactions with the staff. outside, they would lie at the entrances to their hide areas until the sun struck the enclosure, and then they would bask for a few hours, especially on cool mornings. if a person entered the enclosure when a lizard was out exploring, that animal would “run” very quickly to a shelter and “dive in.” in addition, if the entrance to a hide was blocked, the animal would rear up and give an open-mouthed hiss. all of these new behaviors were great! in september the males began to fight, and were observed copulating with the female. soon, she was evidently gravid and ultrasound revealed large follicles, but without the extra fluid usually seen in her coelomic cavity. in the previous two years, when she had large follicles or eggs present, she retained a large amount of fluid along with them. this time, however, she did not. an ultrasound a few weeks later revealed six shelled eggs. over a fourweek period in late september and november, she laid six eggs, and four appeared viable. those four were very white in color and had nicely calcified shells. unfortunately, none of the eggs had the blood spot that is present within a day or two and signifies viability. over the next three to four weeks, no development was observed and the eggs contracted. during the upcoming breeding season, we will place all of the animals in outdoor enclosures in the early spring and leave them there until fall. we are very excited that this year will be the year during which the first fertile eggs are produced in captivity. stay tuned.detail of the hide area. they are dug into the ground to provide a cool, humid, and dark shelter. guatemalan beaded lizards have relatively small eggs. this is an egg from 2007 that is the normal white color with a nicely calcified shell. iguana b&w text 226 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 plummer male and female central netted dragons (ctenophorus nuchalis). iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 227husbandry with their easy-going temperament and unusual color combinations, central netted dragons (ctenophorus nuchalis) have become increasingly popular pets. central netted dragons are small, energetic agamid lizards with a calm temperament that allows them to be handled easily. one of the reasons these lizards are so popular is their striking appearance. a dark reticulated pattern overlays a body color of pale brickbrown with a pallid unpatterned belly. they have a rounded head with a row of enlarged scales curving under both eyes and above each exposed ear, and small spines made up of soft skin around their head and nape. central netted dragons are sexually dimorphic. adult males average 250–280 mm (9–11") in total length and 100 mm (4") from snout to vent (svl). females are usually smaller. males also have larger heads in relation to their bodies. habitat central netted dragons inhabit a vast area of central australia, occurring throughout the desert plains of western australia, the northern territory, and also in western queensland and parts of new south wales. they are abundant in open sandy areas with sparse vegetation, increasing substantially in number in areas artificially cleared of vegetation. these lizards are diurnal and terrestrial, spending their days basking on logs, stones, and termite mounds. predators include birds of prey, larger reptiles such as monitors and snakes, and mammals such as foxes and feral cats. when the desert temperh u s b a n d r y captive care of the central netted dragon1 shannon plummer new farm, queensland 4005, australia (centralnetteddragon@mac.com) photographs by the author except where noted. two females (left) are distinctly smaller than the two males (right). about the author shannon plummer is a wildlife photographer. her style of fine art photography caught the attention of the international photography community where she won several prestigious international awards and acclaim from her peers. she is also a wildlife rehabilitator for sick, injured, and orphaned australian wildlife, specializing in reptiles. shannon has a deep interest in dragons, monitors, and pythons, which she keeps and breeds along with various other reptiles needing rehabilitation. a dark reticulated pattern overlays a body color of pale brick-brown with a pallid unpatterned belly. 1 this article is excerpted from captive care of the central netted dragon by shannon plummer. for more complete and detailed care information, you can obtain a copy through selected pet stores or by logging onto www.centralnetteddragon.com. atures peak during the middle of the day, central netted dragons retreat into their cool burrows. they are known to have several burrows, usually found at the base of spinifex shrubs or stumps. life span although the life expectancy of most wild reptiles is difficult to estimate, the general consensus is that central netted dragons are relatively short-lived. captive lizards are expected to live around 6–7 years; however, some have been reported to live more than nine years. in the wild, where they are subject to predators, disease, and lack of food and water, they generally survive only 2–3 years. outdoor housing if you live in an area with a climate similar to that of the australian regions inhabited by the central netted dragon, an outdoor enclosure is ideal, as it mimics the lizards’ natural environment. you should add several retreats, basking areas, and shade, while providing a balanced diet and clean water. the walls will need to be high enough to prevent escape attempts, and enclosure design should take into account the height and position of potential basking areas such as shrubs or stumps. these lizards have very strong limbs and are quite capable of jumping a considerable height. walls of the enclosure should be smooth to avoid injury, as your lizard will initially spend a lot of time trying to escape (rubbing its snout on the walls and trying to climb out). you can also cover the enclosure with wire or shade cloth to keep predators out. the enclosure should be as large as possible to allow your lizards adequate space to run and dig. position your enclosure where it will receive the maximum amount of sunlight, but remember that adequate shade must be available at all times. even though the central netted dragon is a desert-dwelling lizard, fresh water must always be provided, either from a water dish changed daily or a pool at ground level. make sure the sides of the pool have a gradual descent to allow easy access. alternatively, a large rock or branch set in the pool gives the lizard something to cling to while submerged or drinking. central 228 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 plummer typical ctenophorus nuchalis habitat. is to c k ph o to .c o m the natural distribution of central netted dragons. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 229husbandry netted dragons are capable swimmers, but prefer to be touching something in the water if they cannot reach the bottom. the water quality can be maintained by the addition of a “waste degrader” such as exo terra’s® biotoze™, a probiotic waste digester that contains natural, healthy bacteria that eliminate organic waste. water still needs to be changed at least once a week, and, if feces can be seen in the water, it must be changed immediately and the container cleaned and sanitized. heavy rain can flood an outdoor enclosure, so sufficient drainage is important. this also provides a shady area protected from the elements. elevated features such as stumps, logs, or stones will provide a retreat should water accumulate. if the enclosure is positioned to take full advantage of the sun, no extra heat or light is needed. however, if the enclosure is not in an ideal location, providing an additional basking spot by using a heat lamp or ceramic heat emitter is beneficial. indoor housing an indoor enclosure provides the most versatile housing for keepers in any climate and provides a good opportunity to observe your lizard. keep in mind that central netted dragons are terrestrial and are best kept in the largest enclosure you can afford. a guide for minimum sizing is 100 x 40 cm (40 x 16") with a reasonable height of at least 400 mm (16"). an enclosure of this size will accommodate as many as three lizards. if you want to keep more than one lizard, don’t house males together. central netted dragons are highly territorial, and battles for dominance will result in stress and possible injury. house a male with one or more females, or keep only females if you don’t want to breed them. ventilation is important and best provided by using some form of mesh for the top or even for part of one side of the enclosure. if you choose to vent one side, make sure you install the mesh at the “cool” end of the cage. however, be careful when using wire mesh or screens — if the reptiles can reach the wire they will rub their snouts trying to escape and injure themselves. with this in mind, position any side ventilation about halfway up the enclosure. an open-mesh top is critical for allowing the passage of light and heat. the enclosure should be easy to clean, ideally with smooth, watertight surfaces. the substrate should be selected to replicate the lizards’ natural environment, which for central netted dragons means sand. many varieties of sand are available, from reptile-specific sands purchased at a pet store to sand from your local hardware store. an economical option is bulk sand such as that used in children’s sandboxes. be sure to choose sand that can be used for water filtration; this is a safer option than sand that has been heavily bleached or chemically treated. central netted dragons are avid diggers, so provide as much sand depth as possible to allow them to engage in natural behavior. the most important features in an enclosure are retreats that give lizards a place to hide when they feel threatened. some dragons also like to sleep in a protected area, so a retreat is essential for minimizing stress levels. when housing more than one lizard, each animal should have an individual retreat. because these lizards love to dig, features should be positioned so they are steady and won’t tumble onto your lizard if it digs under or around them. as a general rule, try to place heavy items so their bases are in contact with the bottom of the enclosure and surrounded by packed sand so that your lizard cannot get stuck under them and subsequently be injured or suffocate. the addition of some plants will add a finishing touch and make it feel more like home for your lizards. plants like spinifex or succulents can be used as long as they don’t have spikes that can cause injury. you also can choose from a variety of artificial silk or plastic plants. make sure the water you provide is in a solid container that cannot be spilled. the container must be cleaned and water replaced daily. when using tap water, condition the water by using a reptile water conditioner that will remove chlorine and chloramines as well as ammonia. if you see any feces in the water, you need to empty the container and clean and sanitize it before putting it back in the enclosure. i recommend using a veterinary grade disinfectant such as chlorhexidine for cleaning features and the enclosure itself. heating and lighting a temperature gradient allows your dragon to thermoregulate by shuttling between low and high temperature areas in the example of an outdoor enclosure design. comparing femoral pores is one way to determine sex. enclosure. the ambient daytime temperature should be around 25 °c (77 °f) at the cold end of the enclosure, whereas the hot end and basking areas should be maintained at 35–40 °c (95–104 °f). these temperatures should be constant with minimal fluctuations. place a thermometer in the basking area to make sure the temperature does not exceed a maximum temperature of 43 °c (109 °f). depending on the size of the enclosure, the light generated from the basking area may be enough for the entire enclosure; however, if you feel the cooler end is not bright enough, use a low-wattage fluorescent or halogen globe positioned so that it will not affect the minimum temperature range. make sure you have a second thermometer placed in the cold end to monitor the gradient. lights in summer should generally be on from 0500–1830 h. this provides at least 13 solid hours of uv light and closely replicates a summer day. during winter, the photoperiod should be reduced to 8–10 hours a day, and overall temperatures reduced. because central netted dragons are desert-dwelling lizards, lighting is one of the most important aspects of caring for your dragons. providing ideal lighting is absolutely critical for their physical and psychological health. in the wild, the sun fulfils all the dragons’ heat and light requirements. reptiles are tetrachromatic, meaning that their eyes possess four types of cones (light receptors that respond to different wavelengths or colors of light). this gives them the ability to view a portion of the uva range. studies show that correct reptile color rendering of artificial light is not only necessary for intersexual recognition, but also for motion perception during foraging and for maintaining an animal’s sense of well being. the immune system is as dependant on the correct heat and light as it is on nutrients derived from diet. while no artificial light can replicate the full benefits of direct sunlight, current technology can fulfill a dragon’s needs. this cannot be done with a single lamp and must be accomplished with a combination of specific bulbs. while i don’t have the opportunity to go into fine detail in this article about the pros and cons of various lamps and how to use them appropriately, note that my book, from which this article is extracted, does explore this subject in much greater detail. ultraviolet light is very important to your dragon’s health, in particular that portion in the spectrum known as uvb. uvblight allows lizards to synthesize vitamin d3 in their skin, which in turn mediates the absorption of calcium and the development of strong, healthy bones. vitamin d3 also is needed for the health of the immune system and of muscles, including those of the gut and reproductive system. without uvb, dragons of any age can develop metabolic bone disease (mbd). however, uvb light will not prevent mbd without adequate levels of calcium. vitamin d3 allows a reptile’s body to absorb the calcium needed for bone strength. central netted dragons are mainly insectivorous and are susceptible to mbd since most insects are not rich in calcium. this is why a calcium supplement is vital. uva and uvb can be obtained through the provision of a mercury vapor lamp or fluorescent tube; however, not all brands are alike and making the right choice will greatly affect the health of your dragon. i recommend researching www.uvguide.co.uk, a website dedicated to testing and publish230 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 plummer an indoor habitat showing proper heat and lighting. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 231husbandry ing information on various brands of uv-emitting bulbs. replace mercury vapor bulbs every 12–18 months and fluorescent bulbs every 6–12 months. mark the installation date on the bulb so you remember when to replace it. diet central netted dragons wait for insects to pass before striking, often leaving an elevated basking spot to feed on a passing insect before returning to bask. an 18-month field study of central netted dragons in 1970 in alice springs and the simpson desert investigated stomach contents from 156 individuals over all seasons. the study found that the diet of dragons in natural habitats was composed of 71.9% insect prey, 24.3% vegetation, and 3.7% sand and debris. the remaining 0.1% was a lizard in one of the 156 stomachs. a safe and healthy diet is crucial for optimal heath. use only live insects that have not been exposed to insecticides or chemicals. feed adult dragons two or three times a week and allow them to eat as much as they want over the course of about 20 minutes. some authorities suggest feeding small reptiles like central netted dragons more frequently, as many as five times a week. however, if not very carefully monitored, this can result in an overweight dragon with health problems such as a fatty liver. however, growing juveniles should be fed as many as five times a week. the most popular choices for a staple diet are crickets and cockroaches (also known as “woodies”), but dragons also love mealworms and silkworms, which can be used occasionally to add variety. whether you choose crickets or woodies, they should always be “gut loaded” before feeding them to your dragon to provide the highest nutritional value. to prepare the insects, you can feed them vegetables and fruit as well as cat or dog food, moist or dry. i use pieces of oranges, apples, and carrots sprinkled with a vitamin supplement for insectivores, as well as a calcium powder. the fruit keeps the insects well hydrated without having to use additional water sources. to avoid impaction, feed your dragon only insects that are equal to or smaller than the width of the dragon’s head. if in doubt, go smaller. no crickets or woodies should be left in the enclosure after each dragon has finished feeding. these insects are experts at hiding until nightfall, when they come out and harass and bite your dragons. aside from interrupting their sleep, bites can result in open sores, especially in young dragons. dragons should receive a balance of vitamins and minerals, such as a multi-vitamin supplement, to avoid common deficiencies. too much can also be harmful, so don’t use the multi-vitamin more than once a week. some dragons will enthusiastically eat certain leaves and flowers, while others will refuse. for dragons that accept them, fresh leaves and flowers should be offered on a regular basis. some plants can induce diarrhea, and others are toxic or provide little or no nutritional value (e.g., iceberg lettuce), so be careful what you offer. the most popular plant is the dandelion, and for good reason. dandelion leaves are high in calcium and vitamin central netted dragons relish small insects such as crickets and woodies. central netted dragons are sexually dimorphic as seen here with the smaller female in front. a, and dragons usually love the young flower buds. bok choy also is high in calcium and vitamin a and seems to be accepted by dragons that enjoy dandelions. hibiscus flowers also are a favorite, but be sure they have not been exposed to pesticides or insecticides. breeding for breeding purposes, your dragons need to be healthy and maintained in as natural an environment as possible in order to encourage mating. the sex of a central netted dragon can be determined by comparing the following characteristics: (1) males have a larger head-to-body ratio compared to females; (2) males have larger and more distinct femoral pores (located on the underside of hind thighs; known as pre-anal pores when situated above the vent); (3) a male’s tail will taper gradually to the end, whereas a female’s tail will start out thick at the vent and then rapidly taper for the remainder of the tail length. accurately determining the sex of younger dragons is difficult, and the only certain way is to take the lizard to a reptile veterinarian to be probed. like many other lizards, central netted dragons demonstrate very interesting courtship behaviors. when a male and female are housed together, the male will display his dominance 232 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 plummer a male ctenophorus nuchalis bites a female’s nape while attempting copulation. a hatchling may take several hours or even more than a day to fully emerge from the egg. a hatchling breaks through the soft egg and takes its first breath. hatchling ctenophorus nuchalis are tiny (seen here next to an australian 20-cent piece). the enlarged abdomen of this female indicates that she is gravid and due to lay soon. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 233husbandry by vigorous head bobbing and chasing the female around the enclosure. the female will respond with subdued head bobbing and slow arm waving as signs of submission. the male will attempt to bite the female at the back of the neck and then mate with her. females are oviparous (= egg laying), laying 2–3 clutches of 2–6 eggs during spring and summer. gravid females need warm summer temperatures to effectively develop eggs. a specific covered area filled with moistened sand or vermiculite is most appropriate as a nesting site. the same medium is used during the incubation process. covering the nesting area enables the female to feel less vulnerable, especially if she is still housed with the male. be careful if you have water bowls in the enclosure, as gravid females may use these for nesting areas, which will spoil the eggs. they may want to drink regularly, so providing regular access to water is important, although this should be supervised until eggs are deposited. the female will become quite restless prior to laying her eggs and will dig all over the enclosure looking for the perfect spot. a gravid female usually will stop eating during the weeks prior to laying. you will notice that after she has laid, she will seem to have suddenly lost a substantial amount of weight. this is the best indication that the enclosure needs to be searched carefully for eggs. when you locate the eggs, they should be carefully excavated without being turned. the soft leathery white eggs should be handled with care and placed in the incubation medium in the same orientation in which they were found. eggs should be incubated at temperatures of 28–32 °c (82–90 °f) and will take 8–11 weeks to hatch. hatchlings require considerably more care than juveniles or adults. they should not be housed with older dragons, as they will be seen as food and quickly killed. keep them in a very simple set-up at first. use damp paper towel as flooring and provide a basking area and several retreats in various temperature ranges. keep the paper towel moist by misting with filtered water several times a day for the first week or so, and once a day thereafter. offer food immediately. suitable prey includes small crickets and tiny woodies, as well as access to fresh, finely chopped dandelion leaves. hatchlings quickly establish a hierarchy. central netted dragons (ctenophorus nuchalis) will reward proper housing and care with a calm temperament, a willingness to interact with the keeper, and, if desired, a disposition to reproduce in captivity. iguana b&w text 198 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 henderson an adult female grenada treeboa (corallus grenadensis) from pearls, grenada. this individual has a dorsal ground color of dingy yellow and olive green dorsal markings. r ic h a r d s a jd a k studying reptiles under pristine conditions in the west indies is virtually impossible today. that said, and because of previous and ongoing development in the antilles, investigating reptilian ecology in the context of human activity has become increasingly important. although we can now document how a particular species is responding to an altered environment, we can make only educated guesses as to how it responded pre-historically. here, based on 20 years of observing grenada bank treeboas (corallus grenadensis), i offer largely hypothetical suggestions regarding the impact of humans on c. grenadensis throughout their shared history. when i have data (e.g., on human population density, land use, treeboa natural history) i include it, but much of what follows is conjecture. pearls, a site close to the windward (eastern) coast in st. andrew parish, has been important archaeologically and, by chance, as a primary source of information on the natural history of treeboas, so i focus on that site for some of my hypothetical history. pre-human habitation and pre-columbian period typically associated with forest edges, the distribution of corallus grenadensis on grenada prior to the arrival of humans probably was restricted to natural margins of lakes, rivers, coastlines, and other natural breaks in the distribution of forests, including those resulting from hurricanes and other natural disturbances. these snakes fed largely on native lizards, especially anolis aeneus and a. richardii, both of which also are most abundant along edges, and murid rodents of the genus oryzomys, and were preyed upon by raptors (e.g., buteo platypterus). treeboas on grenada have had a shared history with humans for at least 4,000 years, and possibly longer. caribbean archaic sites (ca. 3000–400 bc) are rare and relatively small. these early arrivals were primarily fisher-foragers with an emphasis on marine foods (newsom and wing 2004). treeboa distribution on grenada likely changed little during this period. if small forest clearings were made, suitable edge habitat may have increased, thereby providing additional treeboa habitat. treeboas did, however, gain a new enemy, and they almost certainly were killed when encountered by human invaders. ceramic-age (400 bc–1500 ad) people established permanent settlements, planted crops, and managed animals. as they probably practiced shifting cultivation to create agricultural plots for manioc and other crops, this “would have resulted in the first major anthropogenic disturbance and disruption of the natural forests and vegetation…” (newsom and wing 2004). this presumably would have increased treeboa habitat by increasing the abundance of edge situations. during 0–500 ad (haviser 1997), the shared history of treeboas (corallus grenadensis) and humans on grenada: a hypothetical excursion robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum milwaukee, wisconsin 53233 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 199treeboas on grenada � a treeboa (corallus grenadensis) with an essentially patternless yellow dorsum from pearls. r ic h a r d s a jd a k with a dorsal ground color of taupe, this treeboa exhibits the predominant dorsal color that occurs at pearls. k y h en d er so n pearls was a large, 60.7-ha site (newsom and wing 2004) on rich agricultural land (bullen 1964) and a center of saladoid culture on ceramic-age grenada. although early human activity at pearls probably altered habitats, large-scale deforestation was unlikely. likely, a large area would have been cleared for the village with gardens surrounding it. they would have been cleared and planted for 4–5 years, and then allowed to return to secondary forest before they were cleared again (perhaps 20 years later) using a slash-and-burn technique (w. keegan, in litt., 6.xi.2008). thus, a waxing and waning of potential treeboa habitat would have been associated with early settlements. evidence of opossums (didelphis marsupialis) has been recovered from cultural contexts at ceramic-age sites (pregill et al. 1994). they were likely introduced during this period, and are known to prey on c. grenadensis (henderson 2002). the 15th–17th centuries at the time of “discovery,” the human population density of the lesser antilles was estimated to be about 5/km2 (newsom 1976). initial attempts at colonization of grenada by the french occurred in 1609 and again in 1638; both were unsuccessful, due largely to the hostile behavior of island caribs (brizan 1984). the first successful attempt was in 1650, also by the 200 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 henderson the smaller of the two anole species that are native to grenada, anolis aeneus is virtually ubiquitous on the island. r o b er t po w el l when foraging for anoles, corallus grenadensis will cruise slowly over leaf and branch surfaces while tongue-flicking, presumably in order to locate the scent of a now-sleeping lizard. r ic h a r d s a jd a k like its smaller congeneric, anolis richardii is also widespread on grenada, occurring from sea level to the highest elevations on the island. r o b er t po w el l french. ultimately, the island was ceded to england in 1763. large-scale deforestation on grenada was unlikely prior to the first successful colonization, and c. grenadensis distribution may not have been significantly different than during pre-discovery or late ceramic periods. although the arrival of europeans may not initially have had a negative effect on the habitat and distribution of c. grenadensis, it did have a potentially deleterious impact on the boa’s trophic ecology. the earliest arrivals from europe were certainly responsible for the introduction of black rats (rattus rattus), consequently contributing to the extinction/extirpation of the two species of native rice rats (likely oryzomys), almost certainly the primary pre-discovery prey for adult treeboas. rice rats have been recovered from ceramic-age cultural sites on grenada, indicating that humans also included them in their diets (pregill et al. 1994) — and this too may have contributed to their disappearance. to date, however, no evidence indicates that rice rats and black rats co-existed on grenada. mona monkeys (cercopithecus mona) were introduced to grenada sometime between the late 17th and 18th centuries during the height of the slave trade (glenn 1998); the monkeys are known to at least molest treeboas. the 18th and 19th centuries the 18th century saw the onset of the plantation system and large-scale deforestation, wherein forests were largely eliminated on all but the steepest slopes of grenada (beard 1949). by the middle of that century, the proliferation of estates for the production of sugarcane and other crops had turned low to midelevations on grenada into a mosaic of cleared land and forest patches. in 1700, with a human population of 835 (2.7/km2; brizan 1984), three plantations were dedicated to sugar. by 1753, the population density was 43/km2. by 1772, 125 of 334 estates were devoted to sugar cultivation (brizan 1984), and those 125 estates extended over nearly 13,000 ha, accounting for 42% of grenada’s surface area (311 km2). based on those figures, the average sugar estate was 104 ha, or roughly equivalent to the size of about 230 american football fields. not all of grenada is suitable c. grenadensis habitat. treeboas are uncommon or absent at elevations much above 500 m. if roughly 15% of grenada lies above 500 m, approximately 50% of potential c. grenadensis habitat was lost to sugarcane cultivation by 1772. boas were still restricted to edge situations on the extraordinarily altered island, but the sugar industry had to have had a dramatic impact on treeboa distribution. in 1824, of 342 estates, 123 were devoted to sugar. the number and distribution of estates clearly speaks to the impact they may have had on treeboa distribution. st. andrew parish (the site of pearls) alone supported 91 estates, of which 40 were devoted to sugar. at the peak of sugar production, when the amount of land devoted to sugarcane was at its highest, treeboa numbers may have been at their lowest and their distribution the most contracted. alternatively, if cane fields were surrounded by trees, even by a tree line one-tree-wide with contiguous crown vegetation, edge habitat may have increased and provided additional habitat for c. grenadensis. emancipation of slaves on grenada occurred in 1838, and many became farmers. with emancipation, many new towns and villages were established, and, eventually, many estates were partitioned into small holdings for former slaves. during his surveys of natural vegetation, beard (1949) attributed the contemporary lack of rainforest tree species diversity on grenada to the fact that most of the original forests had been eliminated during the 19th century (but certainly a great deal of deforestation had occurred during the 18th century as well). iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 201treeboas on grenada this narrow tree line at westerhall (st. david parish), grenada, was surrounded by sugarcane in april 1993, but c. grenadensis was nevertheless encountered in the trees. a l w in st el in 1824, 342 estates dotted the landscape of grenada. the map shows the distribution of estates by parish (the number of estates in each parish is in parentheses). the solid dots represent estates devoted to sugar, and the open dots those that opted for other forms of produce (e.g., coffee, cotton, cocoa, wood). the placement of the dots has no geographic significance other than to indicate how many estates occurred in each parish, and to convey the impact that agriculture likely had on the distribution and ecology of corallus grenadensis. during the 1850s (human population density 104/km2), the economy was shifting from sugar cultivation toward cocoa, and, by 1878, the land area devoted to cacao trees surpassed that for sugarcane. by abandoning sugar for cocoa, more land was devoted to habitat that could be exploited by arboreal snakes. nutmeg was introduced into grenada in 1843, but not until 1860 was commercial cultivation seriously considered (brizan 1984). nutmeg, like cacao, provided new arboreal habitat for treeboas. bananas also provided arboreal habitat during the 1800s, but not until the 20th century did their cultivation, along with nutmeg, really escalate. today, orchard trees (e.g., mango, citrus, breadfruit, cacao, nutmeg) often are among the most productive habitats in which to encounter treeboas (e.g., henderson 2002, powell et al. 2007). if a near-optimum situation regarding the habitat for c. grenadensis ever existed, it might have occurred during the late 19th century when estates were prevalent on the landscape, edge habitat was likely at its peak, orchard trees were widespread, and the human population was still relatively low. mongooses (herpestes javanicus) were introduced to grenada midway through the second half of the 19th century (hoagland et al. 1989). as they will ascend into trees, they are likely at least occasional predators of treeboas. the 20th and 21st centuries in 1901, the population density on grenada was 204/km2 (brizan 1984). in 1961, 67,100 farmers cultivated land on grenada (ifad 2007); in 1962, 7,870 of 8,430 cocoa farmers managed 4 ha or less (brizan 1984); in 1995, the number of farmers had declined to 43,400 (ifad 2007), and 6,828 holdings of 0.4 ha or less produced bananas (anderson et al. 2003). in 2008, approximately 7,000 farmers will produce nutmeg. in 1958, 84% of nearly 5,300 ha were committed to interplanting of banana, nutmeg, and cacao trees, with the banana plants providing temporary shade for young cacao and nutmeg plants. these figures provide some indication of the number of people involved in agriculture during the 20th century, and of the scale at which most agricultural holdings existed. the island may be best envisioned as a mosaic of small towns and villages, fields devoted to various forms of agriculture, patches of forest of one kind or another and of varying expanses, and, when flying over the island, that is exactly how it looks. although corallus grenadensis occurs over much of the island at elevations below 500 m, it occurs in enclaves separated from each other by treeless expanses. the landscape of grenada has changed substantially over the past half-century. based on satellite image-based mapping, helmer et al. (2008) calculated that between approximately 1945 and 2000, 9,784 ha were dedicated to herbaceous agriculture and mixed and woody agriculture, a 65% decrease from 1945, when 27,661 ha were devoted to the same types of cultivation — but deciduous forest, semi-deciduous forest, forest/shrub, and shrubland had increased by 716% and evergreen forest and forest/shrub (seasonal evergreen, evergreen, and cloud forest) had increased by 83%, all indications that agriculture is being abandoned and natural vegetation is reclaiming some of what was lost. in general, these numbers would seem to bode well for c. grenadensis, but abandonment of certain types of agricultural activity actually might decrease available treeboa habitat. during the late 1990s and early 2000s, i often encountered 20 or more treeboas in an hour of searching at pearls. numbers (especially of adults) have decreased significantly over the past five years, 202 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 henderson aerial photo of the pearls area. treeboas were at one time abundant in the tree-filled areas north of the abandoned runway. the patchwork nature of the landscape is conspicuously evident. g o o g le e a r th iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 203treeboas on grenada and this might be attributable to the decrease in human activity at the site. the absence of human activity results in trails becoming overgrown (= loss of edge habitat) and reduction in the population density of the human commensal rattus rattus (the primary prey species of adult c. grenadensis). every species of frog and reptile on grenada has, to one degree or another, been impacted by the activities of humans. nevertheless, corallus grenadensis has demonstrated an admirable ability to adapt to potentially devastating changes attributable to the relentless activity of humans devoted to altering nature. in 2007 (human population 290/km2), tourismrelated development, manufacturing, and residential housing were on the increase, while farming and, i believe, optimum treeboa habitat, were in decline. urban or built-up land or areas devoid of vegetation have increased by 1,458% between 1945 and 2000 (helmer et al. 2008). yet, c. grenadensis still persists on the grounds of upscale resorts (including foraging at the edges of lighted parking lots), still enters homes and outbuildings, and still utilizes power lines to cross from one side of a road to the other in small towns. although c. grenadensis may not be as widespread or abundant as it was a century ago (or 10 years ago), one can still go out on virtually any night and eventually find one or more in one or several types of habitat. — during my first visit to pearls 20 years ago, a young boy approached me and asked if i wanted to buy a pottery artifact that he had found. i told him no thanks, but i did briefly handle the delicate pottery figure (likely an adorno) before handing it back to him. that fleeting encounter with the small figurine provided a physical and emotional connection, albeit distant in time, with the maker of the adorno, one of pearls’ ceramic-age inhabitants who, like me, surely had memorable encounters with corallus grenadensis more than 1,000 years before my visit. acknowledgments i thank the various friends and colleagues who have worked with me at pearls and elsewhere on grenada over a span of 20 years: c.s. berg, j. friesch, k. henderson, r. henderson, r.a. sajdak, a. savit, and r.a. winstel. forestry division personnel on grenada have been accommodating and supportive of my work. w. keegan provided insights into the impact of early (saladoid) humans on the pearls site. recent fieldwork in grenada has been funded by the windway foundation. literature cited anderson, r., t. taylor, and t. josling. 2003. the caribbean and the banana trade, pp. 123–150. in: t.e. josling and t.g. taylor (eds.), banana wars: the anatomy of a trade dispute. cabi publishing, oxfordshire, united kingdom. beard, j.s. 1949. the natural vegetation of the windward & leeward islands. clarendon press, oxford. brizan, g. 1984. grenada: island of conflict. zed books, ltd., london. bullen, r.p. 1964. the archaeology of grenada, west indies. florida state museum, social science contribution 11:1–67. glenn, m.e. 1998. population density of cercopithecus mona on the caribbean island of grenada. folia primatologica 69:167–171. haviser, j.b. 1997. settlement strategies in the early ceramic age, pp. 59–69. in: s.m. wilson (ed.), the indigenous people of the caribbean. university press of florida, gainesville. helmer, e.h., t.a. kennaway, d.h. pedreros, m.l. clark, h. marcano-vega, l.l. tieszen, t.r. ruzycki, s.r. schill, and c.m.s. carrington. 2008. land cover and forest formation distributions for st. kitts, nevis, st. eustatius, grenada and barbados from decision tree classification of cloud-cleared satellite imagery. caribbean journal of science 44:175–198. henderson, r.w. 2002. neotropical treeboas: natural history of the corallus hortulanus complex. krieger publishing co., malabar, florida. hoagland, d.b., g.r. horst, and c.w. kilpatrick. 1989. biogeography and population biology of the mongoose in the west indies, pp. 611–633. in: c.a. woods (ed.), biogeography of the west indies: past, present, and future. sandhill crane press, gainesville, florida. ifad. 2007. international fund for agricultural development. rome, italy. newsom, l. 1992. pre-columbian settlement and population, pp. 128–132. in: s. collier, t.e. skidmore, and h. blakemore (eds.), the cambridge encyclopedia of latin america and the caribbean. 2nd ed. cambridge university press, new york. newsom, l.a. and e.s. wing. 2004. on land and sea: native american uses of biological resources in the west indies. university of alabama press, tuscaloosa. powell, s.b., m.l. treglia, r.w. henderson, and r. powell. 2007. treeboas in the west indies: responses of corallus cookii and c. grenadensis to disturbed habitats, pp. 375–386. in: r.w. henderson and r. powell (eds.), biology of the boas and pythons. eagle mountain publishing, eagle mountain, utah. pregill, g.k., d.w. steadman, and d.r. watters. 1994. late quaternary vertebrate faunas of the lesser antilles: historical components of caribbean biogeography. bulletin of the carnegie museum of natural history 30:iii + 51 pp. the range of the grenada endemic pristimantis euphronides continues to contract (now less than 18 km2) due to habitat alterations and potential competition with introduced eleutherodactylus johnstonei. c r a ig b er g exo terra is a global leader in innovative naturalistic terrarium products and a proud supporter of many reptile-related conservation endeavors, including those of the ircf (www.eco-terra.com/ en/explore/conservation.php). iguana, june 2008 106 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 pelke once it began to rain daily, grand cayman anoles (anolis conspersus) were visible everywhere in the branches and rummaging through leaf litter on the ground. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 107travelogue 3 may 2007 i left milwaukee on an early morning flight to georgetown, grand cayman. despite a half-hour delay leaving charlotte, i arrived and slipped through customs with ease, primarily due to a special letter from the national trust detailing the electronic “toys” i was bringing for use in our fieldwork. fred burton, director of the blue iguana recovery program (birp), and doug bell, my partner in the field, met me at the airport. after a quick trip to west bay for some business, we were off to fred’s home in newlands. after unloading the “toys” at fred’s house, doug and i were off to boddentown to set up house for the next 13 days. we made a quick trip to the grocery store for two weeks worth of “creative” cooking (cost of groceries and lack of energy at the end of the day make me a less-than-vigorous chef ), followed by a stop at a local spirits store to stock up on red stripe and rum. these went down well over good conversation while doug and i got to know each other. 4 may 2007 fred had prior commitments at the blue iguana recovery program (birp) captive facility in the queen elizabeth ii botanic park (qeiibp) as a large group of volunteers were due to arrive to assist with some “gardening” tasks in the adult iguana pens. the volunteers included employees from the governor’s office escaping the grind of the office for a day, and mariko jack, the governor’s wife. the main task was to remove unwanted vegetation, mainly grasses, from the pens, where they choke out other desirable (i.e., edible) species of plants. removing the largely dried grasses now would allow the coming rains to reach the remaining food plants more easily. the enthusiastic group vigorously cleared the pens, and an added bonus was the donation of numerous new and incredibly useful tools, such as garden forks, shovels, pruners, loppers, and rawhide gloves. birp staff greatly appreciates such tools to assist t r a v e l o g u e tales of a blue dragon tracker: grand cayman blue iguana fieldwork 2007 craig pelke milwaukee county zoo photographs by the author unless otherwise indicated. the completed nest mound constructed by chris carr, doug bell, and the author. gg, a handsome adult male grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) strikes a pose. with regular enclosure maintenance as well as other tasks necessary for the husbandry of the blue iguanas. another important task on our list was the construction of a nesting site for one of the park’s free-ranging females. in 2006, her eggs had been spoiled by rainwater pooling in the spot where she had chosen to lay her clutch. the nest-building crew was made up of chris carr (birp warden), doug, and me, and involved relocating (shoveling!) 1.5 pick-up beds full of soil into this female iguana’s preferred nesting area. this upgrade should improve the chances for survival of her next clutch. after lunch, fred and doug started preparations for the first day of fieldwork in the salina reserve. aside from the normal planning, fred and doug introduced themselves to some of the new electronic equipment i had brought for the numerous research endeavors. that evening, we attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony in boddentown to commemorate the rebuilding of the boddentown mission house. after decades of decay, this culturally significant early 20th century historic building had been destroyed by hurricane ivan in 2004. although the evening was typically warm by grand cayman standards and i was required to wear pants instead of shorts (in wisconsin, i start wearing shorts once it hits 45 °f), witnessing some of the cultural history of the island and touring the rebuilt house was a great experience. 5 may 2007 after an early rise, we were off to the salina reserve. as eager as i was to begin our fieldwork, i still felt some hesitation approaching the treacherous beauty of the salina. the thought of seeing individuals of one of the world’s rarest iguanas roaming through the bush as they should is quite the incentive. on a more personal note, seeing some of the “children” growing up and doing well is also very rewarding. this is my fifth tour of duty on grand cayman to assist with the recovery of the species, and besides watching the many released iguanas grow and mature, the fieldwork provides me with a bit of professional sanity. 108 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 pelke ryb, a four-year-old female blue iguana was our first and easiest capture. ryb felt quite comfortable alongside members of team blue ’07 in the central zone base camp. ryb modeling her newly attached antenna accessories. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 109travelogue our goal was to collect tracking data for a group of 20 grand cayman blue iguanas of varying demographics (males and females, two to five-year-old age classes) to add to the data bank fred has been building over three years of tracking in the salina’s central zone (cz). first, we needed to catch iguanas to which we would attach the radio antennas. our first capture was almost expected and would have been a very safe bet. ryb, or “rib,” as we like to call her (officially she is known as red-yellow-blue, which are her bead colors read from outside in), a four-year-old female with a history of being a “trap magnet,” was trapped almost immediately after she was seen. she very casually sidestepped a lizard noose, and actually oversaw the setting of her own trap from two meters away! the traps used were the common metal live animal traps in three sizes. overall, we had a very successful first day, with six iguanas trapped and “processed.” processing consists of verifying identity (beads, pit, and sex), checking/noting physical condition (sheds, injuries/scars, missing toes or tail tips, etc.), measuring snout-vent length and tail length, weighing, and applying a radio antenna. fred diligently takes all notes for his data stores on the population. when females are captured, we also palpate for early signs of egg production. finally, we release the iguana where we trapped it, and reset the trap in a spot where another iguana was seen or “rumored” to be traveling. the process of trapping can be very challenging. if you check the trap too soon, you could inadvertently chase away an interested iguana, but if you do not check soon enough, the iguana could perish in the severe tropical sun/heat (it was in the mid-90s with matching humidity). traps are baited with a tasty iguana treat, incredibly overripe banana. very disgusting! i have a fairly strong stomach due to the great variety of animal feces i have cleaned up in my zoo career, but this was a tough one. however, to an iguana searching for food, this is intoxicating, and almost 100% irresistible. some iguanas were caught multiple times. while checking the circuit of traps, i took the time to reacquaint myself with the system of paths we had hacked out of the bush in previous sessions. i find it interesting how quickly the terrain and vegetation types can change from visit to visit while the author baiting a trap with pieces of banana that are hard to resist (if you’re an iguana). geckos known locally as woodslaves (aristelliger praesignis praesignis) were frequent guests at our lodging in boddentown. hiking through the network of paths. the paths also take on a different look as shadows change through the day. the grand cayman banana orchid (schomburgkia thomsoniana var. thomsoniana) was sending up new flower spikes, and many of the paths were in need of trimming. aside from looking for more iguanas to trap, i also look for other indigenous wildlife, especially reptiles. on one round, i spotted a large gecko (aristelliger praesignis praesignis), sometimes called a “woodslave,” and a large male grand cayman anole (anolis conspersus lewisi). this subspecies differs from the more common nominate species as it tends to have a whiter ground color with a paler pattern. fred mentioned that they are rather tough to find and, of course, i had chosen not to tote my cumbersome camera on that particular round. my “tough find” proceeded to position himself head down and perform his territorial ritual, complete with extensive head bobbing and dewlap extension. must carry the camera at all times! we exited the salina after 6 pm, exhausted, extremely warm, sweaty, quite smelly (!), and in need of cool drinks and a functioning shower. however, we were quite satisfied with our catch for the day, which would allow us to begin radio-tracking the next day. 6 may 2007 once again we were off to the salina. we try to begin radiotracking at 8 am, so we needed to be at the roadside entrance no later than 7:30 am to begin our hike to the cz “base camp.” fred began tracking the six iguanas that we had trapped the previous day while doug and i began setting up traps. doug devised a plan for trap placement based on some of his observations the previous afternoon and they paid off immediately. by 10:30 am, we had three iguanas caught and processed, including a two-year old (all iguana ages used in this writing were based on how old they would be as of august 2007). at that point, fred began training doug in the fine art of tracking blues through the salina. i continued trapping. 110 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 pelke essential equipment (minus the trap) to be hauled through the bush on every tracking round. a male grand cayman anole (anolis conspersus). iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 111travelogue one particular iguana managed to continuously elude my attempts to nab her. at one point, she was actually in the trap eating the banana bait while i watched. when she finished the banana, she casually walked out of the trap, and then, with a quick burst, vanished behind an agave. another iguana that had been “playing” with me for the last two days was “wiggly worm,” more officially known as wgw (white-green-white). once again, he had the last laugh of the day. he was analyzing the large trap specifically set for him by the large manchineel tree (hippomane mancinella) while i went on my final round to check and close traps. he then casually inspected another trap i had just shut down. the only thing that made me feel better is that he probably would not have fit into that one, as he is growing into quite a hulking specimen. i believe tomorrow he will be in our hands. throughout these exercises, i had noticed that i did not seem to be handling the tropical temperatures and humidity as well as i have on past trips. at noon, i took a reading of a palm frond that was elevated about 4 in off the ground, and had been in shade all morning beneath our newly constructed whitesheet canopy. now i know why i felt so poorly. my tempgun informed me that it was 96.4 °f; the ground in the shade was 98.4 °f. at 4:30 pm, the same palm frond was down to 88.4 °f. that was a far cry from the mid-50s with a lake wind that my wife had reported that day for milwaukee, wisconsin. spring in wisconsin this year was actually more like prolonged winter, so my body was not used to anything approaching tropical temperatures. 7 may 2007 once again we were on our way into the salina. doug and fred really set a pace this morning. fred believes it’s like riding a bike, the faster you go, the easier it is to balance. doug concurred. i prefer to set my own pace to avoid premature crucifixion on the dreaded razor-sharp karst rock. today i was trapping more iguanas while fred and doug shared radio-tracking responsibilities. trapping started off pretty slow, and my confidence was on the brink until fred called with good news. after some mild tweaking of my trap placement, ogo had been apprehended. after processing him, i moved the trap to the southwestern part of the cz where a small iguana hovered while i set and baited the trap — and started moving in as i walked away. i decided to wait on this one, and was not disappointed. not more than five minutes later the trap was sprung and iguana #2 was caught. by the end of the day, two more were caught, including a valuable two-year old. iguanas in this age class, the youngest presently in the salina, are so far underrepresented in our data. the only disappointment was my continuing inability to nab “wiggly worm.” i believe i would have had the big male if he hadn’t been trying to get some noni fruit (morinda citrifolia) from a trap that was too small for him. he apparently triggered the trap, but backed himself out, and was spooked for the day. we’ll get him tomorrow. noni fruit really stinks! rotting blue cheese comes to mind, yet the iguanas flock to it, and other animals enjoy it as well. fred said that a juice made out of it is supposed to cure all that ails you, and is thought to enhance sexual prowess. i can’t help but think, based on the smell, that it would have the opposite effect on me. hard to believe, but it actually was hotter today. my 12:30 pm reading was 97.4 °f in the shade. i am handling the tropical weather better today, having drunk water like a camel this morning. my real nemesis now appears to be the dreaded maiden plum (comocladia dentata). i feel i have been doing quite well in avoiding it, yet i have the tell-tale red itchy blotches all over my forearms. after an incredibly refreshing shower, i realize i must have rubbed some maiden plum sap inadvertently around my right eye. this is only my third day in the salina with many more to go, and i already have a serious case of plant poisoning and a bit of heat rash as well. the author found the noni fruit (morindra citrifolia), with its rotten cheese smell, incredibly repulsive, but the blue iguanas found it to be an irresistible bait. tracking data sheets, zone map, and data code descriptions. 8 may 2007 a new task for me in the salina today; aside from trapping, i was going to begin some rounds of iguana tracking. while this is rigorous, i was eagerly anticipating it, as the busy pace makes the day go faster. because of my trapping duties, i was only responsible for tracking three iguanas, while noting any other iguanas seen, antenna or not. most of the excitement occurred right in the base camp as prp (pale blue-red-pale blue), a five-year-old dominant male, made his first advances on ryb (red-yellow-blue), who is large enough to breed for the first time. prp’s advances were typical of male rock iguanas. he bobbed his head, jaws gaping, and colored as bright blue as he could get. ryb was not receptive, but this did not thwart prp as he continued to chase, bite, and appear very threatening as we observed the spectacle from front row seats. 112 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 pelke prp, a five-year-old male, introduces ryb to the rough and tumble world of cyclura courtship with a nuchal bite. ryb (foreground) guarded by her mate prp (background). prp, a five-year-old dominant male. during one of prp’s many advances, ryb exhibits the “no” posture. prp catching the early morning sun. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 113travelogue dark clouds had begun accumulating and thickening, by 11 am we heard thunder in the distance. by 11:30 am, the salina and its inhabitants were receiving a much-needed soaking as the sky poured forth, leaving us scrambling to cover nonwaterproof items and equipment. i hastily cut numerous fan palm fronds to use as mini-umbrellas for backpacks and gear. when the rain let up, fred placed a call to get a weather report for the rest of the day — bad news for tracking. aside from cooling temperatures, which caused iguanas to seek shelters, carrying large metal antennae during a storm is rather risky. we packed our gear, and beat a soggy retreat from the salina. 9 may 2007 the salina was absolutely beautiful today. the vegetation was still beaded with rain drops. the temperature was a pleasant 81.1 °f, but the humidity had to have been 100%. after the long stretch of dry weather, you could almost hear the salina sucking it up. the real beauty of the morning was from the sounds that were heard, and the sounds that were not. with no wind rustling dry palm fronds, we could hear the birds so much more clearly. the most prominent was the call and response of northern flickers (colaptes auratus). the stillness of the air also improved our ability to hear iguanas for tracking. the rains brought out the anoles, which could be heard as they bounced from plant to plant, sometimes fooling us into thinking they were passing iguanas (yes, they can sound that loud). i witnessed a pair of male grand cayman anoles (a. conspersus), one brown, the other gray, act out a territorial ritual of headbobbing and full extension of their bright blue dewlaps. i frequently have seen black crabs (gecarcinus ruricola), but today was the first time i saw the land crab (cardisoma guanhumi), which is considerably bigger and more menacing. i don’t startle easily, but this crab got me good as it sidestepped across the path where i was not expecting anything but an iguana. everything was coming alive after a refreshing drink of water. tracking was fairly uneventful due to the previous day’s storm, with cooler temperatures and only partly sunny skies. many of the iguanas spent the night where they were caught in the rain yesterday, instead of returning to their normal retreats. then the rains came again. as the skies opened up, we were discussing our exit plan after another half-day of data collecting. as i closed traps for the day, i did see “wiggly worm” duck into the rocks where he had been hanging out. i followed his trail and at last discovered the location of his retreat, a large fissure in a mound of karst rock. this will be priceless knowledge as we continue our attempts to trap him for the radio-tracking study. the day was not a total loss! another great discovery was the sight of “egypt” (gyp, green-yellow-pale blue) as we slogged our way from the cz to the north zone (nz) on our way to the queen’s highway. fred had been wondering where this male had been. was he displaced by “wiggly worm” or did he just not make it? now we know. he casually crossed the trail in front of us during the downpour, barely acknowledging us, but providing us ample chance to visuprp patrolling his territory. prp courting ryb just outside the central zone’s base camp. this pair was completely unconcerned by human presence. a spectacular cuban tree frog (osteopilus septentrionalis) that inhabited the garden outside the boddentown residence. ally check his proportions and to breathe a sigh of relief on seeing this guy alive and clearly doing well. 10 may 2007 today was not a banner day. equipment shortages and losses slowed us down. i was the designated trapper today, and came up with a goose egg. the only other days during which i was skunked could be attributed to the weather (and were not my fault!). a ten-hour day in the salina seems never-ending when you are hot, sweaty, and feel like you are not contributing. we had a “guest” in the salina today, a master’s degree student from exeter university who was shadowing us to learn some of the basics of radio-tracking animals. his project will involve the introduced monk parakeet (myiopsitta monachus) on grand cayman. he handled the terrain fairly well for his first time, but i think he managed to develop a healthy respect for what we do. one of the few positives of the day was the return of other forms of wildlife to the salina after the recent rains. the anoles came out in force, with many large adult males displaying to their rivals. the bush seemed alive with birds, and for the first time i heard grand cayman parrots (amazona leucocephala caymanensis) chattering in large numbers. they inhabit the thicker forests in the salina, but today they were heard throughout the xerophytic scrub. i also heard one of my favorites, the croaking of the cuban tree frog (osteopilus septentrionalis), which reminds me of some of the carbonation-generated noises produced by my son. 11 may 2007 i was going to be tracking all day along with my trapping duties. things were not looking good in the morning, when a large gray cloud seemed to literally cover the salina reserve. i went to rebait my traps around 11:30 am to give them something fresh during the “dead hours” of the day. while i was engineering a “chute” for a young iguana, grw (small green-small red-white), to go directly from its retreat to a trap, i received a call from fred that i had an iguana in another trap. it was yby (yellow-blueyellow), a male we had yet to see during our jaunts through the salina, and a needed candidate for the study. i carefully (more for my health than the iguana’s) removed him from the trap and carried him back to the processing center at base camp when i received another call from fred that i had yet another iguana! it was the trap i had just baited with the engineered chute! things were rolling now. fred and i rapidly processed the pair of iguanas so we could get back to our tracking rounds, but all were pleased with the trapped pair, especially another much-needed two-year old. another interesting result of recent rains seemed to be the hatching of anoles. very small hatchlings were everywhere, leapthe “engineered” trap created to catch wiggly worm (wgw), a very large and cunning male blue iguana. 114 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 pelke grw displaying the beadwork that helps trackers with binoculars to easily identify individual iguanas. a racer (alsophis cantherigerus) captured by the author at qeii botanic park. d o u g b el l ing from branch to branch like monkeys. sightings of racers (alsophis cantherigerus) also began to increase. these are beautiful snakes that are opportunistic feeders, which unfortunately includes young iguanas. interestingly, if you are fast enough to catch one of these snakes, they never bite, unlike their cousins in north america in the genus coluber. however, you will be generously coated with some nasty smelling musk. tracking was fairly uneventful today due to the large gray cloud that continued to hover over us. the exception was doug’s iguanas, which continued to have him running madly through the bush. we actually had a cool ocean breeze hitting us in the afternoon, which is wonderful for us endothermic bipeds, but not so good for iguanas. temperatures in the mid80s make them want to head for shelter. we continued to track wiggly worm, the big old male we had yet to trap, monitoring him visually as well as we could. he seemed more interested in cruising his territory than eating the “treats” we left for him. we also believe he may be trap-shy as he may have triggered a smaller trap, wiggling his way out unharmed but full of newfound wisdom. fred decided that we needed to engineer a chute that would give him no option but to be funneled into a trap when he heads out in the morning. we were optimistic for tomorrow as we started our long trek out of the salina. to cap our day, fred found the gps unit we had lost the day before. 12 may 2007 saturday morning, and doug and i feel as though we have been hit by a truck (possibly the same one). this would be our eighth straight day in the salina. other than two days cut short by storms, we had no time off to lick our wounds. even on the half days, we had to hike in and out of the salina, which is half the battle. however, we are eager to see if we caught ourselves a wiggly worm. we did our first round of tracking at 8 am. afterwards, i set some traps and checked wiggly worm’s status. no iguana in the overnight trap — but, while i was nearby setting a mid-sized trap, i heard the distinct sound of claws on metal coming from his retreat. we set out again for our 9 am round, and, when i returned, there he was looking quite sedate in his metal trap. i immediately phoned fred so that he could meet me at base camp after his current round and help process the big male — and big he was, measuring in at almost 1.5 kilos. he was the biggest iguana we had processed, and i actually put on a leather glove to remove him from the trap for fear of having my hands and wrists shredded by powerful claws as he struggled to free himself. meanwhile, in the west end, doug continued to observe fascinating inter-iguana social dynamics among the several resident males and females. imagine blue iguanas playing the parts on the “bold and the beautiful.” one of the iguanas on my circuit, ogo (orange-green-orange), decided to explore a new “frontier,” which left me doing a lot of bush-whacking to find him. i traversed a specific route so many times that in the process i inadvertently started a new trail, breaking numerous branches to get to him. i heard a new bird call today, which sounded quite bizarre. it was the mangrove cuckoo (coccyzus minor), which sounded more like a frog call than a bird. fred said that they are often called “rain birds,” since many caymanians believe that you hear them before it rains, but he believes that they are more likely to call after the rain. today, however, they called before the rain, although we received only a light sprinkle at midday. nevertheless, storm clouds were within sight (and sound). a major thunderstorm north of us brought clouds and cooler weather in the afternoon, leading to an early bedtime for most iguanas, so we called it quits an hour early to avoid the collection of unimportant data points. we decided that the next day iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 115travelogue the author and wiggly worm (wgw) just before his post-processing release. whitewood flowers, a natural food source and bait item for blue iguanas. would be a day of rest, as both doug and i needed to give our aching feet and ankles a break from the razor-sharp karst rock. 13 may 2007 a day of rest in boddentown gave me a chance to relax and enjoy some of the local wildlife not found in the salina. the beach is well-populated with curly-tailed lizards (leiocephalus carinatus varius) or “lion lizards,” which offer a great deal of entertainment during daylight hours. last year when i stayed in boddentown, a pair inhabited a large concrete structure in the middle of the beach. sure enough, another pair (possibly the same pair?) was residing in the same location. this time, however, many neighboring curly-tails caused the dominant male to be constantly on the alert to defend his territory. once he took a break to breed the female, who, judging by her reaction, was quite receptive to his advances. another distraction came from a horde of hatchling black crabs. they are everywhere, crawling on the floors and walls of structures, and likely in the dried grass outside. i even found some in my clothes and hair! i couldn’t help but think of the enjoyment my son would have with all of these baby crabs. a major storm moved through in the afternoon, extinguishing any pangs of guilt at not being in the salina. unfortunately, it put a damper on our plans to take an afternoon snorkeling trip to smith’s cove, because the rough water persisted for the rest of the day. by the end of the afternoon, i noticed that the swelling in my feet and ankles had subsided, and my numerous maiden plum spots were starting to fade. this day off was just what i needed to build up some vigor for my last two days of fieldwork. 14 may 2007 back to the salina, where the number of iguanas in the study now stood at 18, so we decided to divide them into groups of six based on their apparent territories. of course, some of the dominant breeding males travel all over the cz, so the divisions didn’t always help a tracker’s hourly rounds as much as one might hope. doug especially can attest to this unfortunate reality. the clouds stayed away for the most part, allowing the iguanas to toast up for the day’s activities. for the trackers, it was another story. the humidity was higher than normal, especially after the rain the day before. the strong breeze that occasionally blew cool air off the ocean was bitter-sweet, as it felt refreshing but also stirred our stench. regardless, we all collected a great deal of data for fred’s research. one of my four-year-old females, gop (green-orange-pale blue, “the republican”), was out and about, which was nice, as she seems always to be hunkered down in her rocky retreat. unfortunately, her adventures were interrupted by a hormonedriven wiggly worm, who was intent on either breeding or mate-guarding her. the nervous gop quickly made for another hole, and didn’t reappear for the rest of the day. amazingly, i caught my first anole as we began our last round of the day. on all of my previous visits, i could never catch one, but i caught a large male as he was displaying to another. i think i was more shocked than he was, but he quickly answered with a loud squeak and surprisingly strong bite to the palm of my hand. luckily, doug was there to capture the moment with his camera. 15 may 2007 today is my last day in the salina, so i am trying to soak it all in as i hike into the cz. fred has a bruised knee, so for once we get there before him. the leaves have finally dried from sunday’s heavy rain, but the humidity is still much higher than normal, and the continuous stream of sweat has my shirt completely soaked by the time i get to base camp. because we are early, i am able to set a trap before my 8 am round of tracking. today turns out to be a very odd day of tracking, as we all get many peculiar readings. a lot of this is expected and attributable to signals bouncing off the large blades of karst rock, but some new problems are cropping up. the antennae and the worn cords on the receivers are starting to show some wear and tear. at one point, fred is getting a 99% reading, which would indicate that the iguana is just under your nose, but instead i see the iguana around 10 m away in the opposite direction. similar conflicting signals have me going the wrong way quite frequently, which proved very frustrating. 116 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 pelke a nesting test hole at qeii botanic park. the author releasing yoy after the iguana was trapped and processed. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 117travelogue doug calls us with good news. he has byb (blue-yellowblue), a five-year-old male who has joined the already interesting behavior dynamics of 2.2 iguanas in the western part of the cz. he was originally released in the nz and has migrated south, putting our study group at 19, one shy of the goal of 20. interestingly, doug did not trap the large male, but instead, simply grabbed him. apparently, byb was so focused on breeding opy (orangepale blue-yellow) that he did not even notice doug moving in. very impressive on doug’s part (nice grab, mate!), but this set fred and me back as we had to take the time to process byb, and then do our own round of tracking. because the middle of the day is when iguanas are most active, this had us running straight for about two hours in the tropical steam of the salina. our clear blue skies turned to storm clouds in mid-afternoon, which sent the iguanas into their retreats for the day. we finished our last round at 3:30 pm as it started to sprinkle, so we cut our day short and began what would be my last hike out of the salina during this tour of duty. i couldn’t help but have mixed feelings of relief and sadness as we trekked out. i spent my last night at sunset house, a dive resort in southern georgetown on the edge of the sea. doug, fred, and i enjoyed a great meal while watching the sea swallow the sun. 16 may 2007 i am now sitting at owen roberts international airport, awaiting my departure from grand cayman and left to contemplate the past two weeks. i’m always excited about escaping my job at the zoo to take in some fieldwork. i like to think of it as great therapy for my “professional sanity reclamation project.” playing a role in a field project such as that run by birp is also very rewarding. i’m proud to have been part of a great team that is working to save an endangered species, especially one as beautiful and charismatic as the grand cayman blue iguana, the blue dragon of the caribbean. can you see the iguana? iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 223conservation alert are fully protected but vulnerable to fires. the species was first described this year and has been listed as “vulnerable.” however, the study also shows that conservation can bring species back from the brink of extinction, with 5% of currently threatened mammals showing signs of recovery in the wild. the black-footed ferret (mustela nigripes) moved from “extinct in the wild” to “endangered” after a successful reintroduction by the u.s. fish and wildlife service into eight western states and mexico from 1991–2008. similarly, the wild horse (equus ferus) moved from “extinct in the wild” in 1996 to “critically endangered” this year after successful reintroductions started in mongolia in the early 1990s. the african elephant (loxodonta africana) moved from “vulnerable” to “near threatened,” although its status varies considerably across its range. the move reflects the recent and ongoing population increases in major populations in southern and eastern africa. for the moment, these increases outweigh any decreases taking place elsewhere. “the longer we wait, the more expensive it will be to prevent future extinctions,” says dr. jane smart, head of iucn’s species program. “we now know what species are threatened, what the threats are and where — we have no more excuses to watch from the sidelines.” the project to assess the world’s mammals was conducted with help from more than 1,800 scientists from over 130 countries. it was made possible by the volunteer help of iucn species survival commission’s specialist groups and the collaborations between top institutions and universities, including conservation international, sapienza università di roma, arizona state university, texas a&m university, university of virginia, and the zoological society of london. the grey-faced sengi or elephant-shrew (rhynchocyon udzungwensis) was first described this year. known from only two forests in the udzungwa mountains of tanzania, the species has been listed as “vulnerable.” fr a n c es c o r o v er o cuba’s little earth hutia (mesocapromys sanfelipensis) has not been seen in nearly 40 years and is considered “critically endangered-possibly extinct.” li n d a f le u r en the black-footed ferret (mustela nigripes) moved from “extinct in the wild” to “endangered” after a successful reintroduction by the u.s. fish and wildlife service. m ik h a il y ep is h in overall, the iucn red list now includes 44,838 species, of which 16,928 (38%) are threatened with extinction. of these, 3,246 are in the highest category of threat, “critically endangered,” 4,770 are “endangered,” and 8,912 are “vulnerable.” new groups of species have appeared on the iucn red list for the first time, increasing the diversity and richness of the data. indian tarantulas (poecilotheria regalis), highly prized by collectors and threatened by the international pet trade, have made their first appearance on the iucn red list. they face habitat loss due to new roads and settlements. more than mammals “no other tool is as valuable for conservation as the red list, which provides scientists and decision makers with an important set of information, freely available to the public, to improve the effectiveness of our conservation efforts.” dr. russell mittermeier, chair of iucn’s primate specialist group and president of conservation international. the rameshwaram parachute spider (poecilotheria hanumavilasumica) has been listed as “critically endangered” as its natural habitat has been almost completely destroyed. 224 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 conservation alert costa rica’s holdridge’s toad (incilius holdridgei) moved from “critically endangered” to “extinct,” as it has not been seen since 1986. b lo g s. 20 m in u to s. es the squaretail coral grouper (plectropomus areolatus) is listed as “vulnerable;” it is fished unsustainably at its spawning aggregations. ph il ip p m a it z indian tarantulas (poecilotheria regalis) are highly prized by collectors and threatened by the international pet trade. the species has made its first appearance on the iucn red list due to habitat loss. jo h n b el l the la palma giant lizard (gallotia auaritae) from the canary island of la palma was thought to be extinct, but was rediscovered last year and is now listed as “critically endangered.” the cuban crocodile (crocodylus rhombifer) moved from “endangered” to “critically endangered” because of illicit hunting. iu c n for the first time, all 161 species of groupers have been assessed, revealing that 20 of them are threatened with extinction. the squaretail coral grouper (plectropomus areolatus) from the coral reefs of the indo-pacific has been listed as “vulnerable.” the fish is seen as a luxury live food, and is fished unsustainably at its spawning aggregations, a major threat for many grouper species. amphibians are facing an extinction crisis, with 366 species added to the iucn red list this year. a total of 1,983 species (32%) are either threatened or extinct.2 in costa rica, holdridge’s toad (incilius holdridgei), an endemic species, moved from “critically endangered” to “extinct,” as it has not been seen since 1986 despite intensive surveys. new reptiles assessed this year include the la palma giant lizard (gallotia auaritae). found on the canary island of la palma and thought to have become extinct in the last 500 years, it was rediscovered last year and is now listed as “critically endangered.” the cuban crocodile (crocodylus rhombifer) is another “critically endangered” reptile, moved from “endangered” because of population declines caused by illicit hunting for its meat and skin, which is used in clothing. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 225conservation alert 2 see also the book review on p. 243. the iucn sampled red list index (srli) is a new initiative of the iucn red list, developed in collaboration with the zoological society of london. it is set to revolutionize our understanding of the conservation status of the world’s species. the approach takes a randomized sample of species from a taxonomic group to calculate the trends in extinction risk within that group, in much the same way that an exit poll from a polling station can be used to calculate voting trends. this means that tracking the fate of these species is possible, in the same way as the dow jones index tracks the movement of the financial markets. although species coverage on the iucn red list has increased in number each year, assessments have in general been restricted to the better-known species groups such as birds and mammals. as a consequence, until recently, the conservation status of less than four percent of the world’s described biodiversity has been known. basing conservation decisions on such a restricted subset of species can no longer be considered appropriate, and the srli, which is more representative of global biodiversity, can be used to provide a broader picture. “we are now emerging from the dark ages of conservation knowledge, when we relied on data from a highly restricted subset of species,” says dr jonathan baillie, director of conservation programs at the zoological society of london (zsl). “in the future we will expand the scope of our species knowledge to include a far broader range of groups, thus informing and assisting policy makers in a hugely more objective and representative manner.” designed to broaden the types of species covered in the iucn red list, the srli uses a sample of at least 1,500 species from selected groups to show trends in extinction risk. all the world’s birds, amphibians, and mammals have now been assessed for the iucn red list. the first results from the srli were revealed this year. they include results for reptilian species, giving us a clearer indication of the status of terrestrial vertebrates, as well as other less well-known groups such as freshwater crabs. one of the newly assessed freshwater crab species, the purple marsh crab (afrithelphusa monodosa) from western africa, was almost completely unknown to science until recently. the first living specimen was found in 2005, and the species has been listed as “endangered” because of habitat disturbance and deforestation from agriculture in all parts of the upper guinea forest. in the future, the srli will sample other lesser-known groups such as beetles, molluscs, mushrooms, lichens, and plants like mosses and liverworts, as well as flowering plants. over the coming years, this new approach will enable us to build a clearer picture of the status of all the world’s species, not just the furry and feathered. “over the years, the rigor of the iucn red list process has built it into the ‘global gold standard’ for monitoring the conservation status and trends of species and the threats they face worldwide,” said dr. holly dublin, chair of iucn’s species survival commission (ssc). “the ssc is the largest and oldest iucn commission, its members are proud to contribute their knowledge and expertise to delivering this amazing conservation tool to the world.” the “dow jones index” of biodiversity the first living specimen of the purple marsh crab (afrithelphusa monodosa) from western africa was found in 2005. the species has been listed as “endangered” because of habitat disturbance and deforestation from agriculture in all parts of the upper guinea forest. iu c n iguana b&w text dominican anoles (anolis oculatus) are ubiquitous on dominica, but populations on different parts of the island vary consistently in color and pattern — to the extent that they were considered to be different species or subspecies until recently. see article on p. 130. iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 15, number 3 september 2008 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess je ff r ey w . a c k le y dominican racers (alsophis antillensis sibonius) are locally abundant on dominica. three short notes (beginning on p. 154) describe a failed foraging attempt, nocturnal activity, and color changes. critically endangered guatemalan black iguanas (ctenosaura palearis) still are hunted for meat, eggs, and skins (see article on p. 142). jo h n b in n s mountains meet the sea on the atlantic coast of dominica, which bills itself as the “nature island” (see travelogue on p. 162). jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . little is known about the biology of dwarf geckos, presumably because of their small size and secretive nature. the elevated head and tail of this male south leeward dwarf gecko (sphaerodactylus fantasticus) probably indicate arousal, triggered by concern over the presence of the photographer (see article on p. 130). n el so n j . v el ez e sp in et je ff r ey w . a c k le y about 800 gharials (gavialis gangeticus) hatch each year in the katerniaghat wildlife sanctuary in india, but many were washed away by monsoon floods this year (see article on p. 150). su r es h c h a u d h a r i iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 55book reviews as the authors’ introductory remarks state, the book is aimed more at young people and adults who may not yet appreciate snakes and their place in nature. this book makes a valiant and, i hope, successful effort to “develop an acceptance of — better yet, an admiration for — snakes that equals that expressed for many other wild creatures.” i still think of the southeast as a herpetological paradise, but friends who grew up in florida suggest that it ain’t what it used to be. nevertheless, at least from a distance, it seems very exotic, and, despite having cumulatively spent years in the neotropics studying many wonderful snakes, the snake fauna of the southeastern united states still has a romantic quality — and i’d still like to have another yellow rat snake for a pet someday. robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum lizard love. 2008. by wendy townsend. front street, boyds mill press, honesdale, pennsylvania. 196 pp. hardcover — isbn-10: 1932425349 — $ 17.95. wendy townsend is a newly minted graduate of the vermont college mfa program in writing for children and young adults, but she has been writing all her adult life and has long been a personal hero of mine. fifteen years ago, when i was struggling to understand green iguanas well enough to rehabilitate seriously damaged individuals, wendy’s writing (much of which appeared in early issues of the iguana times) was an inspiration — not only could she write a clear and concise technical description of iguana husbandry, she also spoke eloquently of her detailed behavioral observations, delineating complex group dynamics, as well as the personality differences and moods of the various individuals in her charge. with dr. frederic frye, wendy co-authored the pioneering iguanas: a guide to their biology and captive care in 1993. in that same year, she, sadly, predicted that ill treatment at the hands of the pet trade would lead green iguanas down the same path as “dime-store turtles and county fair anoles, doled out as token prizes, like [so many other] valueless objects.” wendy brings all her love of nature, her sympathetic touch with language, and her observational skills to bear in her delightful debut novel for young adults. the book’s protagonist, a young mammalian female named grace, appears in the prologue as a six-year old at her grandparent’s country home. her best friends are the local birds and insects and the denizens of the garden and the local pond, which include the beloved bullfrog that she blissfully hugs to the party dress she has worn to her aunt’s wedding. we next encounter grace as an adolescent living with her mother far from her childhood eden in the gray concrete metropolis of new york, replete with dim winter light, constant mechanical chatter, and oppressive odors. grace finds her haven at a local pet shop, “fang and claw,” where she meets an amphibian surrogate in the form of walter. “he was chubby, with soft-looking skin almost as white as the t-shirt he wore. across the front it said bronx zoo reptile house. his shaggy hair was a pale color. he made me think of the tree frog who blends in with silvery lichen on tree trunks.” she also meets spot, a wonderful creature with a “great spiky crest and a black banded tail,” his head covered with colorful jewel-like scales. grace learns about reptiles while helping the gentle walter rehabilitate damaged animals. just as walter provides a hide box in order to help a frightened monitor adapt to her surroundings, spot the iguana helps grace adapt to the unfamiliar environment of the city, her love for her pet bolstering her self-esteem as she crawls through the school year. back at her grandparent’s house with spot for the summer, grace finds that even eden is not eternal. grandpa has given up gardening to avoid spending so much time in the sun, and all of the habitat provided by the unruly blackberry brambles has been uprooted by “helpful” neighbors from the newly built houses along the now much busier roadway. nevertheless, spot enjoys his time in the summer sun, gradually becoming more and more orange even as grace succumbs to the physiological changes inherent with the onset of adolescence. by the time she’s due to head back to the city, grace finds herself so much altered that she desperately wishes she were more reptilian and less pronouncedly mammalian. teased mercilessly at school and even subject to a “love bite” from spot, grace struggles to come to grips with her changed physical self. experiencing the sexual maturity of the iguanas, snakes, and monitors in her world, grace finally has some measure of success at adapting with the help of her animal and human friends, especially the kind and “naturally” wise walter. townsend makes excellent use of her natural history knowledge to elaborate, yet not overwhelm this charming coming-ofage tale. many of her animal characters are taken from real life. spot the iguana, for instance, lived a remarkable 24 years, and, having been privileged to tour “backstage” at the bronx zoo reptile house, i suspect that much of the detail from that part of the story is also very real. young readers, especially animal lovers, will empathize with the embattled grace and her coping mechanisms. older readers/animal lovers (who enjoy young adult fiction as i do) are liable to see their youthful selves reflected. aj gutman ircf reptile-assisted coming of age iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 129table of contents ircf international reptile conservation foundation table of contents f e a t u r e a r t i c l e s an annotated checklist of the amphibians and reptiles of dominica, west indies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .esther a. daniells, jeffrey w. ackley, ruth e. carter, peter j. muelleman, seth m. rudman,patrick a. turk, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .nelson j. vélez espinet, lauren a. white, and natalie n. wyszynski 130 ecology and traditional use of the guatemalan black iguana (ctenosaura palearis) in the dry forests of the motagua valley, guatemala . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . paola cotí and daniel ariano-sánchez 142 gharial reproduction and mortality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . suresh chaudhari 150 a predation attempt gone awry: defensive constriction of a predator by a dominican racer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . adam mitchell and lyndon prince 154 exploitation of the night-light niche by a dominican racer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . robert powell and robert w. henderson 156 juvenile pattern and ontogenetic pattern changes in dominican racers . . . . . . . . lauren a. white and peter j. muelleman 157 spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura similis) in venezuela: a preliminary report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .césar luis barrio-amorós and gilson rivas-fuenmayor 160 t r a v e l o g u e most by land, some by sea: photographing the obscure in dominica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jeffrey w. ackley 162 h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s snake eats snake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . c.w. kempton 170 snake story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . mrs. w.a. kellerman 172 a salamander-snake fight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . j.s. diller 172 c o m m e n t a r i e s a burmese python could be more than a pest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . j. whitfield gibbons 173 the decline of the natural-history museum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . thomas h. benton 175 conservation research reports: summaries of published conservation research reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .177 natural history research reports: summaries of published reports on reptilian natural history . . . . . . .179 newsbriefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .181 ircf on the move . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .186 editorial information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .187 focus on conservation: a project you can support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .188 notice! 2008 guatemalan fieldtrip and excursion 10–17 october visit the ircf website for details: www.ircf.org/projectheloderma/fieldtrip2008.php iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 129 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 193book reviews biology and conservation of florida turtles. 2006. by peter a. meylan (ed.). chelonian research monographs, no. 3, 376 pp. hardcover edition – isbn: 0-9653540-2-4 – $ 60. softcover edition – isbn 0-9653540-3-2 – $ 48. conant and collins (1998. a field guide to the reptiles & amphibians of eastern and central north america. 3rd ed., expanded. houghton mifflin co., boston) provided the last scientific-based field guide of the amphibians and reptiles of eastern and central north america. although that guide is utilized more frequently than any others by the scientific community as a single source for herpetofaunal information, it has become somewhat outdated. at last, peter meylan completed his long-awaited book that covers a single group (the turtles) from the state of florida. contributions by 40 authors are arranged into seven main headings: contributors, dedication, foreword, introduction, habitats and ecosystems utilized by florida turtles, family and species accounts, and epilogue. this volume is dedicated to the late dr. walter auffenberg (1928–2004), former curator of herpetology at the florida museum of natural history, university of florida. the foreword illustrates the association between turtles and humans, and also provides detailed information on turtle diversity, density, endemism, threat levels, and conservation priorities throughout the world. the exceedingly informative introduction includes the ecological history of a few selected species, taxonomic arrangements of turtles and their correlation to the fossil record, and lists of florida turtles accompanied by notes on geographic distribution and protection status (if any). the next section relates turtle conservation to habitat protection, specifically uplands, freshwater wetlands and aquatic ecosystems, coastal ecosystems, and artificial man-made habitats. the majority of this volume (32 chapters, including 25 species accounts) falls under family and species accounts. species accounts are arranged by family and begin with an introductory chapter to each family. each introduction consists of family content, systematic placement, fossil record, extant geographic distribution, and ecological status. species accounts are quite comprehensive and include a summary and coverage of conservation status, species recognition, taxonomic history, distribution, habitat relations, growth and reproduction, population biology, threats, ecological status, conservation options and solutions, and literature cited, along with numerous color photographs and range maps. the florida map on page 32 is useful, especially for those not familiar with county names. referencing of voucher specimens in systematic collections is important and further illustrates the considerable amount of effort invested in these accounts. although flmnh is the correct acronym for the florida museum of natural history, the recognized institutional code for this collection is incorrectly stated and should be uf (university of florida). on a positive note, the use of updated molecular techniques and changing philosophical points of view (i.e., evolving species concepts) may well lead to a number of unique turtle populations being recognized as full species in the near future. unfortunately, a well-documented threat common to many species of turtles is their ongoing exploitation by humans for merchandise or food, not to mention the accidental toll of automobiles. a number of photographs (e.g., figs. 2–7, 2–8, 5–16, 7–7, 20–11, 23–13, 23–14, 24–10, 25–8, 25–9) are particularly appalling. concluding the book with the poem “dead turtle” is particularly appropriate. as the “summer sun tanned him to leather,” this volume clearly demonstrates how humans have affected our beloved turtles. the majority of illustrations, figures, maps, and photographs throughout this book are of high quality. although including the number of records (i.e., sample size) in the figure heading of the geographic distribution for each species would have been beneficial, the amount of time and effort it took to compile these data using gis is obvious. despite these few criticisms, i highly recommend this book to anyone interested in north american turtles. it was written (and edited) in a style conserving florida’s turtles b o o k r e v i e w s iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 193 wild trees in the cayman islands. 2nd ed. 2007. by fred burton, illustrated by penny clifford. international reptile conservation foundation (ircf), san jose, california, on behalf of the national trust for the cayman islands. 240 pp. softcover – isbn 987-1-4276-2168-9 – $ 20. copies may be ordered from the national trust (www.nationaltrust.org.ky) or from the ircf (www.ircf.org). i once defined biology as the study of animals and their food, when an acquaintance, who happened to be a botanist, corrected me by saying that biology was really the study of plants and their parasites. regardless of whose definition you favor, the reality is that all life forms on earth are inextricably intertwined, which explains in a round-about fashion how the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf) came to publish a book about trees. in fact, the foundation’s statement of purpose says that the organization works both for the conservation of reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems on which they rely. so, a book about trees, especially “wild” trees is not such a bizarre concept, particularly when one considers that the book also is about the cayman islands, home of the grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi), the conservation of which the ircf has supported from the organization’s inception. in fact, all proceeds from the book are earmarked for the blue iguana recovery programme. the most obvious purpose of a book about the trees of the cayman islands is to help the reader identify the myriad different species found on the three islands that comprise the nation. how well does it work? i’m not sure, but am inclined to think it does quite well. unfortunately, i could not put it to a real test, since i haven’t had the good fortune to visit the islands in several years. however, using photographs of trees and leaves and some material gleaned from herbaria that contained caribbean species, the keys worked reasonably well, even for a biologist more inclined toward animals than their food. the only problems i encountered involved specimens from other west indian islands, which might well have represented different varieties than those found in the caymans (common, cosmopolitan species were easily and accurately identified). regardless of my success, the choices were obvious, the language clear (even to one not entirely familiar with botanical jargon), and the options provided at each step generally corrected mistakes before venturing too far along the wrong path. the individual descriptions were plants and the animals that eat them suitable for either amateurs or professional herpetologists, and the price is eminently affordable. kenneth l. krysko florida museum of natural history, division of herpetology university of florida, gainesville, florida contributors matthew j. aresco, ray e. ashton, jr., william j. barichivich, joan e. berish, michael bresette, kurt a. buhlmann, joseph a. butler, c. kenneth dodd, jr., michael a. ewert, terence m. farrell, j. whitfield gibbons, margaret s. gunzburger, george l. heinrich, richard herren, john b. iverson, dale r. jackson, kevin p. jansen, chris johnson, peter g. may, earl d. mccoy, brian k. mealey, walter e. meshaka, jr., anne meylan, peter a. meylan, paul e. moler, henry r. mushinsky, larry h. ogren, peter c. h. pritchard, anthony redlow, anders g. j. rhodin, jeffrey r. schmid, richard a. seigel, robert m. shealy, kelly stewart, r. brent thomas, george e. wallace, dawn s. wilson, blair witherington, robert t. zappalorti. 194 iguana • volume 14, number 3 • september 2007 book reviews iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:57 pm page 194 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 223conservation alert are fully protected but vulnerable to fires. the species was first described this year and has been listed as “vulnerable.” however, the study also shows that conservation can bring species back from the brink of extinction, with 5% of currently threatened mammals showing signs of recovery in the wild. the black-footed ferret (mustela nigripes) moved from “extinct in the wild” to “endangered” after a successful reintroduction by the u.s. fish and wildlife service into eight western states and mexico from 1991–2008. similarly, the wild horse (equus ferus) moved from “extinct in the wild” in 1996 to “critically endangered” this year after successful reintroductions started in mongolia in the early 1990s. the african elephant (loxodonta africana) moved from “vulnerable” to “near threatened,” although its status varies considerably across its range. the move reflects the recent and ongoing population increases in major populations in southern and eastern africa. for the moment, these increases outweigh any decreases taking place elsewhere. “the longer we wait, the more expensive it will be to prevent future extinctions,” says dr. jane smart, head of iucn’s species program. “we now know what species are threatened, what the threats are and where — we have no more excuses to watch from the sidelines.” the project to assess the world’s mammals was conducted with help from more than 1,800 scientists from over 130 countries. it was made possible by the volunteer help of iucn species survival commission’s specialist groups and the collaborations between top institutions and universities, including conservation international, sapienza università di roma, arizona state university, texas a&m university, university of virginia, and the zoological society of london. the grey-faced sengi or elephant-shrew (rhynchocyon udzungwensis) was first described this year. known from only two forests in the udzungwa mountains of tanzania, the species has been listed as “vulnerable.” fr a n c es c o r o v er o cuba’s little earth hutia (mesocapromys sanfelipensis) has not been seen in nearly 40 years and is considered “critically endangered-possibly extinct.” li n d a f le u r en the black-footed ferret (mustela nigripes) moved from “extinct in the wild” to “endangered” after a successful reintroduction by the u.s. fish and wildlife service. m ik h a il y ep is h in overall, the iucn red list now includes 44,838 species, of which 16,928 (38%) are threatened with extinction. of these, 3,246 are in the highest category of threat, “critically endangered,” 4,770 are “endangered,” and 8,912 are “vulnerable.” new groups of species have appeared on the iucn red list for the first time, increasing the diversity and richness of the data. indian tarantulas (poecilotheria regalis), highly prized by collectors and threatened by the international pet trade, have made their first appearance on the iucn red list. they face habitat loss due to new roads and settlements. more than mammals “no other tool is as valuable for conservation as the red list, which provides scientists and decision makers with an important set of information, freely available to the public, to improve the effectiveness of our conservation efforts.” dr. russell mittermeier, chair of iucn’s primate specialist group and president of conservation international. the rameshwaram parachute spider (poecilotheria hanumavilasumica) has been listed as “critically endangered” as its natural habitat has been almost completely destroyed. 224 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 conservation alert costa rica’s holdridge’s toad (incilius holdridgei) moved from “critically endangered” to “extinct,” as it has not been seen since 1986. b lo g s. 20 m in u to s. es the squaretail coral grouper (plectropomus areolatus) is listed as “vulnerable;” it is fished unsustainably at its spawning aggregations. ph il ip p m a it z indian tarantulas (poecilotheria regalis) are highly prized by collectors and threatened by the international pet trade. the species has made its first appearance on the iucn red list due to habitat loss. jo h n b el l the la palma giant lizard (gallotia auaritae) from the canary island of la palma was thought to be extinct, but was rediscovered last year and is now listed as “critically endangered.” the cuban crocodile (crocodylus rhombifer) moved from “endangered” to “critically endangered” because of illicit hunting. iu c n for the first time, all 161 species of groupers have been assessed, revealing that 20 of them are threatened with extinction. the squaretail coral grouper (plectropomus areolatus) from the coral reefs of the indo-pacific has been listed as “vulnerable.” the fish is seen as a luxury live food, and is fished unsustainably at its spawning aggregations, a major threat for many grouper species. amphibians are facing an extinction crisis, with 366 species added to the iucn red list this year. a total of 1,983 species (32%) are either threatened or extinct.2 in costa rica, holdridge’s toad (incilius holdridgei), an endemic species, moved from “critically endangered” to “extinct,” as it has not been seen since 1986 despite intensive surveys. new reptiles assessed this year include the la palma giant lizard (gallotia auaritae). found on the canary island of la palma and thought to have become extinct in the last 500 years, it was rediscovered last year and is now listed as “critically endangered.” the cuban crocodile (crocodylus rhombifer) is another “critically endangered” reptile, moved from “endangered” because of population declines caused by illicit hunting for its meat and skin, which is used in clothing. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 225conservation alert 2 see also the book review on p. 243. the iucn sampled red list index (srli) is a new initiative of the iucn red list, developed in collaboration with the zoological society of london. it is set to revolutionize our understanding of the conservation status of the world’s species. the approach takes a randomized sample of species from a taxonomic group to calculate the trends in extinction risk within that group, in much the same way that an exit poll from a polling station can be used to calculate voting trends. this means that tracking the fate of these species is possible, in the same way as the dow jones index tracks the movement of the financial markets. although species coverage on the iucn red list has increased in number each year, assessments have in general been restricted to the better-known species groups such as birds and mammals. as a consequence, until recently, the conservation status of less than four percent of the world’s described biodiversity has been known. basing conservation decisions on such a restricted subset of species can no longer be considered appropriate, and the srli, which is more representative of global biodiversity, can be used to provide a broader picture. “we are now emerging from the dark ages of conservation knowledge, when we relied on data from a highly restricted subset of species,” says dr jonathan baillie, director of conservation programs at the zoological society of london (zsl). “in the future we will expand the scope of our species knowledge to include a far broader range of groups, thus informing and assisting policy makers in a hugely more objective and representative manner.” designed to broaden the types of species covered in the iucn red list, the srli uses a sample of at least 1,500 species from selected groups to show trends in extinction risk. all the world’s birds, amphibians, and mammals have now been assessed for the iucn red list. the first results from the srli were revealed this year. they include results for reptilian species, giving us a clearer indication of the status of terrestrial vertebrates, as well as other less well-known groups such as freshwater crabs. one of the newly assessed freshwater crab species, the purple marsh crab (afrithelphusa monodosa) from western africa, was almost completely unknown to science until recently. the first living specimen was found in 2005, and the species has been listed as “endangered” because of habitat disturbance and deforestation from agriculture in all parts of the upper guinea forest. in the future, the srli will sample other lesser-known groups such as beetles, molluscs, mushrooms, lichens, and plants like mosses and liverworts, as well as flowering plants. over the coming years, this new approach will enable us to build a clearer picture of the status of all the world’s species, not just the furry and feathered. “over the years, the rigor of the iucn red list process has built it into the ‘global gold standard’ for monitoring the conservation status and trends of species and the threats they face worldwide,” said dr. holly dublin, chair of iucn’s species survival commission (ssc). “the ssc is the largest and oldest iucn commission, its members are proud to contribute their knowledge and expertise to delivering this amazing conservation tool to the world.” the “dow jones index” of biodiversity the first living specimen of the purple marsh crab (afrithelphusa monodosa) from western africa was found in 2005. the species has been listed as “endangered” because of habitat disturbance and deforestation from agriculture in all parts of the upper guinea forest. iu c n iguana b&w text although the subspecies is listed as critically endangered on the iucn red list, very little is known about the sister isles iguana (cyclura nubila caymanensis) on little cayman or cayman brac. see article on p. 12. iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 15, number 1 march 2008 ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess jo h n b in n s ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) occur only in the most xeric hispaniolan habitats, where their existence is threatened by human activities (see article on p. 2). the cayman sister isles iguana project seeks to establish baseline data on the status of cyclura nubila caymanensis, which is endemic to little cayman island and cayman brac, and about which very little is known (see article on p. 12). jo h n b in n s the labyrinthine corridors of guatemalan markets provide a wealth of cultural artifacts, including textiles, clothes, and statues, along with fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, shoes, and wedding dresses (see travelogue on p. 42). m ic h a el d . k er n the ircf is actively engaged in facilitating the conservation of guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma suspectum charlesbogerti) (see articles on pp. 20, 36, and 61). m ic h a el d . k er n strikingly colored hatchling ashy geckos (sphaerodactylus elegans elegans) provide ample rewards to keepers of these tiny, but hardy little lizards (see article on p. 36). ph il li p fr a n k jo h n b in n s american kestrels (falco sparvarius) are diligent hunters of west indian reptiles, this individual has captured a puerto rican ground lizard (ameiva exsul) (see article on p. 8). m ic h a el j . m o r el iguana b&w text 212 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 camposano et al. knight anoles (anolis equestris; uf 151376) mating on 1 july 2007 in bonita springs, lee county, florida. c is c u r ti n -h a r r el l florida is home to a diverse array of amphibian and reptilian species, many of which have been introduced by humans from their native or other donor regions. the florida herpetofauna currently contains at least 52 recognized species of lizards, 36 (69%) of which are nonindigenous (krysko et al. 2006, smith and krysko 2007). sixteen (30%) of the total lizard species are classified in the superfamily iguania (sensu frost et al. 2001), and only one of the nine anolis (family polychrotidae), the green anole (anolis carolinensis voigt 1832), is native to florida. the nonindigenous knight anole, anolis equestris merrem 1820, is the largest and most ornate established representative of the genus anolis in florida. in its native cuban range, where it is known as a “chipojo,” this species can measure up to 179 mm snout-vent length (svl) in males and 167 mm svl in females (schwartz and ogren 1956, garrido and schwartz 1972, schettino 1999). in its introduced range in miami-dade county, florida, males typically are 100–190 mm svl and females 90–160 mm svl, with individual masses of 16–84 g (dalrymple 1980). anolis equestris has large, flat and smooth, non-imbricate (i.e., non-overlapping) dorsal scales that are separated by small, granular interstitial scales; small, circular and smooth ventral scales; digits with widened, smooth subdigital lamellae; a pinkish-white dewlap present in both genders; and a large head with distinct canthal and frontal ridges (especially in adults). both juveniles and adults are bright green, with yellow stripes below the eyes and others extending onto the shoulder. these lizards are capable of metachromatic color change (pers. obs., schwartz and garrido 1972, schwartz and henderson 1991, schettino 1999). however, hatchlings and juveniles have cream-colored transverse bands along the body. because of its green body coloration and large size, a. equestris is occasionally mistaken for the green iguana (iguana iguana linnaeus 1758) the knight anole (anolis equestris) in florida brian j. camposano1, kenneth l. krysko1, kevin m. enge2, ellen m. donlan3, and michael granatosky1 1florida museum of natural history, university of florida, gainesville, florida 32611, usa (biscuit1@ufl.edu, kenneyk@flmnh.ufl.edu, and mgranato@ufl.edu) 2florida fish and wildlife conservation commission, 1105 sw williston road, gainesville, florida 32601, usa (kevin.enge@myfwc.com) 3vegetation management, south florida water management district, 3301 gun club road, west palm beach, florida 33406, usa (edonlan@sfwmd.gov) abstract.—in this paper, we discuss the likely modes of introduction of the knight anole (anolis equestris) into and around florida, provide data on its current geographic distribution, and summarize life history data in both its native and introduced florida range. our field data consist of collections made from 1992 through 2008 and locality data taken from the literature and systematic collections throughout the united states. anolis equestris was first introduced in miami-dade county in 1952. the subsequent spread of this species in florida has been both natural and assisted by human translocations to 10 additional counties, including brevard, broward, collier, highlands, lee, martin, monroe, palm beach, polk, and st. lucie. because this species is nonindigenous and known to consume a wide variety of items, including small vertebrates, it should be removed when encountered in the wild. a comprehensive study detailing its effects on the environment is needed. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 213knight anole in florida � the nonindigenous knight anole (anolis equestris) is the largest and most ornate established anolis in florida. this specimen (uf 137459) is from allapattah flats, st. lucie county, florida. k ev in m . e n g e (see meshaka et al. 2004), and people in miami often refer to them as “iguanas” or “iguanitos” (bartlett and bartlett 1999). since the species’ introduction into florida during the 1950s, a. equestris has been confined mostly to southern peninsular florida. herein, we discuss likely modes of introduction of this species into and around florida, provide data on its current geographic distribution, and summarize life history data in both its native cuban and introduced florida range. materials and methods in order to determine the current geographic distribution of anolis equestris in florida, we made field collections from 1992 through 2008. specimens were collected opportunistically by hand, with nooses (strong et al. 1993), blowguns shooting tapered corks (krysko et al., in press), and fishing rods using invertebrates (mainly dead insects found on the radiators of vehicles, and live domestic crickets) for bait (krysko 2000). nooses were made out of dental floss loops tied onto the ends of poles and extended upwards to reach lizards that were high in the tree canopy or on tall structures. when nooses were ineffective, we used a fishing rod to cast a food item as close as possible to a lizard. lizards typically moved quickly from high on perches or within dense vegetation to eat the bait, and were then easily reeled in and collected. specimens were deposited in the 214 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 camposano et al. anolis equestris (uf 131449) from port mayaca, martin county, florida, illustrating the large head with distinct canthal and frontal ridges, pinkish-white dewlap, and yellow stripes below the eye and extending onto the shoulder. k ev in m . e n g e juvenile anolis equestris (uf 131530) from port mayaca, martin county, florida, found sleeping on low vegetation. k ev in m . e n g e neonate anolis equestris from miami, miami-dade county, florida, hatched in captivity from an egg found at the bottom of a collecting bag. k ev in m . e n g e iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 215knight anole in florida florida museum of natural history (flmnh), university of florida (uf collection). we also obtained locality data from the literature, systematic collections throughout the united states, photographs sent to us for identification purposes, and personal communications from reliable sources. source acronyms for collections follow leviton et al. (1985), with the addition of everglades national park (ever), from which the entire collection is now accessioned into the uf collection (appendix). all records with locality data were plotted using arcgis ver. 9.3 (esri). results and discussion native distribution and natural history.—anolis equestris is native to cuba and is common throughout much of its natural range (schettino 1999, schwartz and henderson 1991). it occurs at elevations from 0–1,000 m above sea level in many types of mesophilic and occasionally xerophilic habitats, including forests and mangroves, caves, savannas, cultivated areas, and groves or gardens in urban areas (schwartz and ogren 1956, schettino 1999). anolis equestris is a member of the crown-giant ecotype, which is associated with living high in the canopy of large trees (diameter at breast height [dbh] > 30 cm), including mangoes and palms (williams 1969, 1972; schwartz and henderson 1991; butterfield et al. 1997). as an arboricolous (tree-dwelling) species, anolis equestris perches on trunks and high branches of trees (sometimes > 10 m high), spending the greater part of its time in the crown (collette 1961, ruibal 1964, schettino 1999). during the warmest part of the day, a. equestris will descend the trunks of trees in an apparent thermoregulatory behavior to avoid excessive sunlight (schettino 1999). when startled, this species will “squirrel” (move to the opposite side of the tree trunk) and quickly ascend to the canopy (schettino 1999). anolis equestris is an aggressive species that will attempt to bite an attacker when disturbed, opening its mouth and extending its dewlap in a defensive posture (schettino 1999). it also is capable of inflicting a painful but harmless bite, and will defend its territory by extending its pinkish dewlap and bobbing its head (schettino 1999, schwartz and henderson 1991). little information is known on the reproductive cycle of anolis equestris in its native range. males typically establish territories high in the canopies of trees, with territorial battles between males occurring frequently. large groups are uncommon, except in large groves of trees that may support many individuals (schettino 1999). courtship and mating generally take place high in the tree canopy, and ovipositioning occurs in burrows excavated by females in the ground or in pre-existing tree cavities (schettino 1999). anolis equestris is an omnivorous, opportunistic species that feeds on a wide range of items, including large amounts of fruit and seeds, insects (especially moths, butterflies, and their larvae, beetles, crickets and grasshoppers, and ants, bees, and wasps), and small vertebrates such as frogs, lizards (including its own species), and small birds (schettino 1999, schwartz and henderson 1991). although anolis equestris is a sit-and-wait predator and is generally territorial, adults are known to move across phone lines or use open ground to move from tree to tree (schettino 1999, schwartz and henderson 1991). small vertebrates usually are captured and firmly bitten before consumption (schettino 1999). the dentition of this species includes small, dead dragonflies (odonata) found on the radiators of vehicles and used to collect anolis equestris. k en n et h l . k r y sk o anolis equestris from miami, miami-dade county, florida, perched high above the ground on vegetation. jo se ph p . b u r g es s anolis equestris (uf 144334) perched on palm tree in lake worth, palm beach county, florida. k r is ti n c h il d conical, blunt teeth that do not secrete any toxins or venom (schwartz and henderson 1991, schettino 1999). its relatively large size, appearance, and biting habits are the basis of the false belief that its bite causes fever in humans (schettino 1999). small juveniles and subadults are susceptible to predation by birds or even other lizards, which suggests why these size classes are found on low shrubs during both the day and night. individuals living higher in tree crowns are most easily captured by sparrow hawks (falco sparverius), effective canopy predators that often “specialize” in lizards in the west indies (schettino 1999). florida distribution and modes of introductions.—we compiled 216 vouchered records of anolis equestris from florida collected between april 1957 and september 2007 (appendix), 60 of which were collected during our field surveys. we documented a. equestris in 11 florida counties: brevard, broward, collier, highlands, lee, martin, miami-dade, monroe, palm beach, polk, and st. lucie. neill (1957) first reported the introduction of anolis equestris from an unspecified locality in “southern florida”; however, king and krakauer (1966) stated that the original introduction occurred in 1952 at the university of miami’s old north campus in coral gables, miami-dade county, by a student in their department of biology. the original population was centered in a 20-city-block area in coral gables, from coral way south to bird and lejuene roads west to segovia avenue, in the middle of which were the main buildings of the university of miami’s old north campus (f.w. king, pers. comm.; king and krakauer 1966). although the old north campus site is now occupied by university park, the ficus trees along segovia street (north side of campus) north of anastasia avenue were loaded with a. equestris in the 1960s (f.w. king, pers. comm.). the first known voucher specimen (lacm 61680) was collected in coral gables on 5 april 1957 by d.r. paulson, supporting king and krakauer’s (1966) hypothesis. 216 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 camposano et al. geographic distribution of the knight anole (anolis equestris) in florida. the star represents the first known voucher specimen (lacm 61680) collected in coral gables, miami-dade county, on 5 april 1957. circles with solid dots represent records consisting of voucher specimens and photographs (n = 218). open circles represent unverified observations (n = 3; see text) in the previously undocumented counties of orange and volusia. anolis equestris (uf 137039) from naples, collier county, florida, illustrating its small, conical, blunt teeth. despite the belief that a bite causes fever in humans, its teeth do not secrete toxins or venom. k en n et h l . k r y sk o iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 217knight anole in florida the subsequent spread of this species in florida has been both natural and assisted by human translocations (lever 2003). in 1972, anolis equestris was reported from elliott key (brown 1972) and the miami seaquarium on virginia key, miamidade county (dalrymple 1980). crowder (1974) reported that a. equestris was secondarily transferred by reptile hobbyists to other areas of miami-dade county, including coral gables (fairchild tropical gardens; see also dalrymple 1980), coconut grove, sunset park, and peters. brach (1976) reported that a. equestris was further expanding its range by human-assisted means in suburban southern florida, and wilson and porras (1983) reported that a. equestris was becoming widespread in miami-dade county. in the early 1990s, a single collector caught 50–115 a. equestris per day in miami, especially on black olive trees (bucida buceras) in swales, and sold them in the pet trade (r. st. pierre, pers. comm.). in 1996–1998, a. equestris was recorded at 4013 douglas road, kampong national tropical garden (meshaka 1999b), as well as 5530 sw 72nd street, doc thomas house (meshaka 1999c). butterfield et al. (1997) reported an observation of a. equestris on parachute key in everglades national park. our miami-dade county vouchers indicate that a. equestris has expanded its range throughout the county, especially in heavily planted suburbs. these locality records include perrine (1959); coral gables (1960–68, 1970, 1973–74, 1976–77, 1987–88, 1994, 1996); south miami (1964, 1975); miami (1965, 1986); us 1 & sw 126th street, miami serpentarium (1970); 8500 sw 87th terrace (1984); sw 57th avenue along snapper creek canal (1991, 1996, 2001); sw 173rd street & old cutler road (1996); 7711 camino real (1996); sw 88th street & sw 80th avenue (1996); sr 997 & sw 304th street, homestead (1997); sr 997 & ne 16th street, homestead (1998); sr 997 & ne 18th street (1998); sw 64th avenue (1999); sw 296th street & sw 197th avenue, homestead (1999); 5815 suncrest drive (2000); sw 69th street & sw 63rd court (2000); sw 69th street & sw 64th avenue, all american park (2000, 2002); parachute key, everglades national park (2000); 7440 sw 162nd street (2001); c-111 & c-113 canals (2001); key biscayne, bill baggs cape florida state park (2002–03, 2005); ne 204th street & ne 12th avenue, hialeah (2002); sw 134th street & 122nd avenue, kendall (2002); 801 swan avenue, miami springs (2003–04, 2006–07); sw 70th street & sw 98th avenue (2004–05); 16701 sw 72nd avenue, charles deering estate at cutler (2005); key biscayne, crandon park (2005); and 6660 sw 117th avenue (2005). northern range expansion into other counties was first documented in 1974, when the first known voucher specimen (uf 86714) was collected at 7530 plantation road, fort lauderdale, broward county. by 1992, numerous a. equestris were being collected locally and brought into strictly reptiles, hollywood, for sale in the pet trade (r. van nostrand, pers. comm.). we have another broward county record from 3468 pierce street, hollywood (2003–04). range expansion northward into martin county occurred in 1986, when numerous a. equestris were intentionally released at 19121 sw conners highway, port mayaca, on the northeastern side of lake okeechobee (j. watt, pers. comm.). our martin county vouchers (uf 131449, 131530) illustrate that this population has been established for more than 20 years despite cold weather and intense commercial collecting pressure (krysko et al. 2005). hailman et al. (2005) reported at least one a. equestris from stuart in 2004 and 2005. despite its close proximity to broward county, the first known voucher specimen (tcwc 80508, boca raton) was not collected from palm beach county until 1997 (krysko et al. 2005). hailman et al. (2005) reported an anolis equestris from ocean drive, jupiter inlet colony, in 2004. our other palm beach county vouchers include 11 rennie street, west palm beach (2003); lake worth (2004); 5233 arbor glen circle, lake worth (2005); 485 cleary road, west palm beach (2006); 3301 gun club road, west palm beach (2006); us 1 & dixie highway, delray beach (2006); and north 123 trail, and 0.06 mi south of north 169 court, jupiter (2007). range expansion also occurred on the southwestern florida coast, as evidenced by the first voucher specimen (uf 141841, a neonate), collected in 1979 in fort myers, lee county. our other lee county vouchers include 5207 palm beach boulevard; fort myers (2005); 8880 colonnades court, bonita springs (2007); and morse place and browning drive, fort myers (2007). in 1995, the first known voucher specimen (uf 100104) for collier county was collected at 3480 10th street north, naples (noonan 1995), which consists only of an anole head because it was killed and partially eaten by a domestic cat. our other collier county vouchers (all from naples) include parkview way (2001); gulf shore boulevard north (2003); and west boulevard, south of pelican bay boulevard (2003). the first voucher specimen (uf 52748) from the florida keys, monroe county, was collected in 1981 at mile marker 87.5, overseas highway, plantation key (achor and moler 1982). another monroe county voucher specimen (uf 151192) collected in 2007 at 323 whitehead street, key west, represents the southernmost locality in the united states (krysko and borgia 2007). along the atlantic coast, additional northward range expansion is believed to have occurred more recently than in other areas in peninsular florida. in 2003, the first known voucher specimen (uf 137459) from st. lucie county was collected in the allapattah flats, east of carlton road and 1.0 mi north of glades cutoff road (krysko et al. 2005). a reptile dealer in the area was likely responsible for this population of anolis equestris (see enge and krysko 2004), which inhabited both citrus groves and pine flatwoods habitat, where they could be spotted at night high up in large slash pines (pinus elliottii). in 2004, a. equestris could be found in trees along hickock terrace, port st. lucie (r. goushaw, pers. comm.). in 2007, two a. equestris were found in brevard county at 4310 mactavish street, cocoa (enge and coben 2007). in 1995, an adult male anolis equestris was intercepted in an agricultural shipment sent from miami to lake placid, highlands county (meshaka et al. 2004). in 2003, the first known voucher specimen (uf 153968) from highlands county was collected at 101 green dragon drive, lake placid (parker and krysko, in press). in 2000, four a. equestris fell out of a tree during a cold front in bartow, polk county (c. trumbower, pers. comm.). in 2007, the first known voucher specimen (uf 153967) from polk county was collected at 3832 avenue q ne, winter haven (parker and krysko, in press); another a. equestris was accidentally run over with a lawn mower at this site a few weeks earlier (d.j. parker, pers. comm.), suggesting that an established population may be present. unverified reports of anolis equestris are known from two other previously undocumented florida counties, including two adults that fell out of trees during a cold front in december 1994 on katherine street, daytona, volusia county (a.t. reppas, pers. comm.), and several individuals brought to gatorland in 2004 from a neighborhood in orlando, orange county (f. morrissey, pers. comm.). natural history in florida.—in florida, anolis equestris is a diurnally active, heliothermic species that is most frequently observed from may through october (meshaka and rice 2005). its active season generally coincides with mean ambient air temperatures of >29 °c (wilson and porras 1983, meshaka et al. 2004). peak activity occurs from mid-morning until late afternoon, with activity ceasing around sunset (meshaka et al. 2004). however, diel activity is unimodal, and ambient temperature better explains activity patterns than such factors as cloud cover, wind velocity, and relative humidity (meshaka et al. 2004). during diel activity in miami-dade county, individuals generally perch above 3 m from the ground during the late morning hours, retreating to the canopies of trees later in the afternoon and into the evening, where they reside until daybreak (meshaka et al. 2004). dalrymple (1980) noted that population sizes in southern florida can range from 3.3/ha in wild tamarind (lysiloma latisiliquum) groves to 29.5/ha in a tropical garden. on 4 june 2003, klk collected by hand seven adults on trees in less than 15 minutes along gulf shore boulevard north, naples, collier county, illustrating the potential abundance of a. equestris in a relatively small area. anolis equestris is seen most frequently on trunks of several different tree species (king and krakauer 1966, wilson and porras 1983), including ficus (ficus benjamina), umbrella (schefflera actinophylla) (krysko 2000), mahogany (swietenia mahagoni), black olive, wild tamarind, and mango (mangifera indica) trees (meshaka 1993, meshaka et al. 2004), smaller vegetation (brach 1976), and edificarian structures. anolis equestris is omnivorous and feeds on a wide range of invertebrates, fruits and seeds, and small vertebrates, including frogs, lizards, and caged birds (brach 1976, dalrymple 1980, nicholson and richards 1999, meshaka 1999a, meshaka et al. 2004). copulating pairs are most frequently observed from april through august (meshaka et al. 2004, meshaka and rice 2005). we were provided with photographs of anolis equestris mating in the wild on 1 july 2007 in bonita springs, lee county. neonates typically are <4 cm svl, and development to sexual maturity (100–110 mm svl) is rapid in males and females (12–13 months, 8–9 months, respectively) (meshaka 1999a, meshaka et al. 2004). populations turn over in about seven years, but adults may live over 10 years in homestead (meshaka and rice 2005). schettino (1999) reported an individual living over 13 years in captivity. anolis equestris is slowly becoming widespread in the state of florida. since its initial introduction from cuba to the university of miami’s old north campus, 55 years have passed for it to expand its range and be detected in 13 florida counties. anolis equestris is a large, robust anole with the potential to avoid predation and survive cold winters. therefore, we believe that the range of this species in florida will continue to expand, likely with humans being a major factor. because anolis equestris is nonindigenous to florida and known to consume a wide variety of items, including small vertebrates, it should be removed whenever encountered in the wild. additionally, a comprehensive study detailing its effects on the environment is needed. acknowledgments we thank kristen l. bell, andrew p. borgia, joseph p. burgess, thomas g. donlan, kelly b. frisco, elizabeth a. golden, steve a. johnson & wis 4545 class, f. wayne king, bill love, daniel j. parker, anthony t. reppas, chris s. samuelson, jason c. seitz, brooke l. talley, dan thayer, sam b. thompson, and josiah h. townsend for help with fieldwork; bill blanchette, joseph p. burgess, kristin child, diane m. coben, jake coker, cis curtin-harrell, mark a. flowers, jeff herod, walter e. meshaka, jr., daniel j. parker, stuart v. nielsen, scott strandberg, george j. ward, and todd wessling for donating lizards and photographs; raymond goushaw, flavio morrissey, daniel parker, anthony t. reppas, ron st. pierre, craig trumbower, ray von nostrand, and j. watt for information. literature cited achor, k.l. and p.e. moler. 1982. geographic distribution: anolis equestris (knight anole). herpetological review 13:131. bartlett, r.d. and p.p. bartlett. 1999. a field guide to florida reptiles and amphibians. gulf publishing company, houston, texas. brach, v. 1976. habits and food of anolis equestris in florida. copeia 1953:63. brown, l.n. 1972. presence of the knight anole (anolis equestris) on elliott key, florida. florida naturalist 45:130. butterfield, b.p., w.e. meshaka, and c. guyer. 1997. nonindigenous amphibians and reptiles, pp. 123–138. in: d. simberloff, d.c. schmitz, and t. c. brown (eds.), strangers in paradise. island press, washington, d.c. collette, b.b. 1961. correlations between ecology and morphology in anoline lizards from havana, cuba and southern florida. bulletin of the museum of comparative zoology 15:137–162. 218 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 camposano et al. six of seven adult anolis equestris collected in less than 15 minutes in naples, collier county, florida. k en n et h l . k r y sk o parker’s tree frog (leptopelis parkeri) is “vulnerable” to extinction because its distribution is severely fragmented and the extent of its forest habitat in the eastern arc mountains of tanzania (africa) is declining. it cannot survive in seriously disturbed habitats and is threatened by expanding human settlements, agriculture, deforestation, and illegal gold mining. it breeds in slow-flowing streams, although its eggs are laid in a nest on land close to water. m ic h a el k er n african coral cobras (aspidelaps lubricus lubricus) are native to southern africa. these snakes are nocturnal and fossorial, spending the day underground in rodent burrows, although they have been found in rock crevices and in abandoned termite mounds. they eat small rodents, lizards, and possibly other snakes, and have been known to eat reptilian eggs. m ic h a el k er n rough knobtail geckos (nephrurus amyae) are large, robust lizards that occur in rocky outcrops in the northern territory of australia. they are dietary generalists, eating virtually any small animal they can fit in their mouths. even juveniles respond to threats by elevating their bodies, gaping, and hissing. like most true geckos, they lack eyelids and use their tongues to clean the scales that cover the eyes. m ic h a el k er n jackson’s chameleon (chamaeleo jacksonii) is native to the cooler humid uplands of kenya and tanzania in eastern africa. an introduced population in hawaii served as the primary source of animals for the pet trade until exportation was prohibited in an effort to prevent the introduction and misuse of other species for commercial purposes. chameleons use crypsis and very deliberate movements to approach prey (mostly insects) that they capture with an extensible tongue. males have horns that may be used in slow-motion pushing and shoving matches to establish dominance and defend territories. unlike most chameleons, which lay eggs, jackson’s chameleons give birth to live young. m ic h a el k er n proud sponsor of the ircf and this centerfold jackson’s chameleon (chamaeleo jacksonii) is native to the cooler humid uplands of kenya and tanzania in eastern africa. an introduced population in hawaii served as the primary source of animals for the pet trade until exportation was prohibited in an effort to prevent the introduction and misuse of other species for commercial purposes. chameleons use crypsis and very deliberate movements to approach prey (mostly insects) that they capture with an extensible tongue. males have horns that may be used in slow-motion pushing and shoving matches to establish dominance and defend territories. unlike most chameleons, which lay eggs, jackson’s chameleons give birth to live young. m ic h a el k er n proud sponsor of the ircf and this centerfold parker’s tree frog (leptopelis parkeri) is “vulnerable” to extinction because its distribution is severely fragmented and the extent of its forest habitat in the eastern arc mountains of tanzania (africa) is declining. it cannot survive in seriously disturbed habitats and is threatened by expanding human settlements, agriculture, deforestation, and illegal gold mining. it breeds in slow-flowing streams, although its eggs are laid in a nest on land close to water. m ic h a el k er n african coral cobras (aspidelaps lubricus lubricus) are native to southern africa. these snakes are nocturnal and fossorial, spending the day underground in rodent burrows, although they have been found in rock crevices and in abandoned termite mounds. they eat small rodents, lizards, and possibly other snakes, and have been known to eat reptilian eggs. m ic h a el k er n rough knobtail geckos (nephrurus amyae) are large, robust lizards that occur in rocky outcrops in the northern territory of australia. they are dietary generalists, eating virtually any small animal they can fit in their mouths. even juveniles respond to threats by elevating their bodies, gaping, and hissing. like most true geckos, they lack eyelids and use their tongues to clean the scales that cover the eyes. m ic h a el k er n iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 219knight anole in florida crowder, j.p. 1974. the exotic vertebrates of south florida. south florida environmental project ecological report no. di-sfep-74-30. 45 pp. dalrymple, g.h. 1980. comments on the density and diet of a giant anole, anolis equestris. journal of herpetology 14:412–415. enge, k.m. and d.m. coben 2007. geographic distribution: anolis equestris (knight anole). herpetological review 38:481. enge, k.m., and k.l. krysko. 2004. a new exotic species in florida, the bloodsucker lizard, calotes versicolor (daudin 1802) (sauria: agamidae). florida scientist 67:226–230. frost, d.r., r. etheridge, d. jaines, and t.a. titus. 2001. total evidence, sequence alignment, evolution of polychrotid lizards, and a reclassification of the iguania (squamata: iguania). american museum novitates (3343):1–38. garrido, o.h. and a. schwartz. 1972. the cuban anolis spectrum complex (sauria, iguanidae). proceedings of the biological society of washington 85:509–521. hailman, j.p., e.d. hailman, and b. scherer. 2005. knight anoles (anolis equestris) in eastern palm beach and martin counties following the september 2004 hurricanes. florida field naturalist 33:130–131. king, w. and t. krakauer, 1966. the exotic herpetofauna of southern florida. quarterly journal of the florida academy of sciences 29:144–154. krysko, k.l. 2000. a fishing technique for collecting the introduced knight anole (anolis equestris) in southern peninsular florida. caribbean journal of science36:162. krysko, k.l. and a.p. borgia. 2007. geographic distribution: anolis equestris (knight anole). herpetological review 38:351. krysko, k.l., k.m. enge, j.h. townsend, e.m. langan, s.a. johnson, and t.s. campbell. 2005. new county records of amphibians and reptiles from florida. herpetological review 36:85–87. krysko, k.l., k.w. larson, d. diep, e. abellana, and e.r. mckercher. in press. diet of the nonindigenous black spiny-tailed iguana, ctenosaura similis (gray 1831)(sauria: iguanidae), in southern florida. florida scientist. krysko, k.l., j.c. seitz, j.h. townsend, and k. m. enge. 2006. the introduced brown basilisk, basiliscus vittatus wiegmann 1828, in florida. iguana 13:24–30. lever, c. 2003. naturalized reptiles and amphibians of the world. oxford university press, oxford and new york. leviton, a.e., r.h. gibbs, jr., e. heal, and c.e. dawson. 1985. standards in herpetology and ichthyology: part i. standard symbolic codes for institutional resource collections in herpetology and ichthyology. copeia 1985:802–832. meshaka, w.e., jr. 1993. hurricane andrew and the colonization of five invading species in south florida. florida scientist 56:193–201. meshaka, w.e., jr. 1999a. research and thoughts on the knight anole (anolis equestris) in southern florida. the anolis newsletter v:86–88. meshaka, w.e., jr. 1999b. the herpetofauna of the kampong. florida scientist 62:153–157. meshaka, w.e., jr. 1999c. the herpetofauna of the doc thomas house in south miami, florida. florida field naturalist 27:121–123. meshaka, w.e., jr. 2004. species profile: the knight anole, anolis equestris, in southern florida. iguana 11:162–163. meshaka, w.e., jr., b.p. butterfield, and j.b. hauge. 2004. the exotic amphibians and reptiles of florida. krieger publishing company, malabar, florida. meshaka, w.e., jr. and k.g. rice. 2005. the knight anole: ecology of a successful colonizing species in extreme southern mainland florida, pp. 225–230. in: w.e. meshaka, jr. and k.j. babbitt (eds.), amphibians and reptiles: status and conservation in florida. krieger publishing company, malabar, florida. neill, w.t. 1957. historical biogeography of present-day florida. bulletin of the florida state museum 2:175–220. nicholson, k.e. and p.m. richards. 1999. observations of a population of cuban knight anoles, anolis equestris. the anolis newsletter v:95–98. noonan, b. 1995. geographic distribution: anolis equestris (knight anole). herpetological review 26:209. parker, d. and k.l. krysko. in press. geographic distribution: anolis equestris (knight anole). herpetological review. ruibal, r. 1964. an annotated checklist and key to the anoline lizards of cuba. bulletin of the museum of comparative zoology 130:473–520. schettino, l.r. 1999. the iguanid lizards of cuba. university of florida press, gainesville, florida. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville, florida. schwartz, a. and l.h. ogren. 1956. a collection of reptiles and amphibians from cuba, with the descriptions of two new forms. herpetologica 12:91–110. smith, c. a. and k.l. krysko. 2007. distributional comments on the teiid lizards (squamata: teiidae) of florida with a key to species. caribbean journal of science 43:260–265. strong, d., b. leatherman, and b.h. brattstrom. 1993. two new methods for catching small fast lizards. herpetological review 24:22–23. wilson, l.d. and l. porras. 1983. the ecological impact of man on the south florida herpetofauna. university of kansas museum of natural history, special publication (9):vi + 89 pp. williams, e.e. 1969. the ecology of colonization as seen in the zoogeography of anoline lizards on small islands. the quarterly review of biology 44:345–389. williams, e.e. 1972. the origin of faunas. evolution of lizard congeners in a complex island fauna: a trial analysis. evolutionary biology 6:47–89. appendix. specimens examined from florida counties. note that everglades national park (ever) specimens are now accessioned into the florida museum of natural history (uf) collection. brevard: uf 150871. broward: uf 86714, 137715, 140586, 141120, 142894–96, 145031–34. collier: uf 100104, 137037–42; usnm 547963. lee: uf 141841, 144191, 145694, 151376, 152335. martin: uf 131449, 131530. miami-dade: amnh 89355; aum 35823; ever 302917–18, 302961–75, 303151–58, 303509, 303996-00, 306531, 306539, 307138, 308170, 308776, 39977; ku 172917, 220258; lacm 61680–86, 74878–80; lsumz 24010, 30725, 42087, 56737; mcz 85093, 85564, 93445, 131609, 140112, 142470, 143901–09, 171444–47, 174816, 175020–21, 182994; mpm 19142–44, 25669; mvz 214996–99; uf 21908–09, 22022–37, 40618, 42432, 63077–82, 66920–21, 74958, 80343, 83799, 89569–74, 90925, 99187, 99674, 100104, 121125, 121425, 121445–48, 122474–75, 130653, 130685, 131449, 131477, 131489, 131530, 132727, 134839, 134916, 137037–42, 137714, 138394, 141229, 141576, 141841, 144135, 144191, 144220, 145027–29, 145216, 145359–61, 145694, 150534, 150732, 151359, 151376, 152322, 152335; ummz 225093–97, 227717; usnm 194847, 245588–89, 252596–99, 523789, 547963; uta 35597; ypm her.r. 7023, 7028; monroe: tcwc 80508; uf 52748, 137015, 141949, 144334, 149862, 150533, 150535, 151192, 151601; st. lucie: uf 137459. iguana b&w text fe r d in a n d r eu s 220 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 conservation alert the status of a few mammalian species has improved in recent years. for example, the african elephant (loxodonta africana) moved from “vulnerable” to “near threatened,” although its status varies considerably across its range. iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 221conservation alert the most comprehensive assessment of the world’s mammals has confirmed an extinction crisis, with almost one in four at risk of disappearing forever. according to the iucn red list of threatened species, the new study assessing the conservation status of the world’s mammals shows at least 1,141 of the 5,487 mammals on earth are known to be threatened with extinction, and at least 76 mammals have become extinct since 1500. “within our lifetime, hundreds of species could be lost as a result of our own actions, a frightening sign of what is happening to the ecosystems where they live,” says julia marton-lefèvre, iucn director general. “we must now set clear targets for the future to reverse this trend to ensure that our enduring legacy is not to wipe out many of our closest relatives.” the real situation could be much worse, as 836 species are listed as “data deficient.” with better information, more species may well prove to be in danger of extinction. “the reality is that the number of threatened mammals could be as high as 36%,” says jan schipper, of conservation international and lead author of a forthcoming article in science. “this indicates that conservation action backed by research is a clear priority for the future, not only to improve the data so that we can evaluate threats to these poorly known species, but to investigate means to recover threatened species and populations.” the results show 188 mammals are in the highest threat category (“critically endangered”), including the iberian lynx (lynx pardinus), which has a population of just 84–143 adults and has continued to decline due to a shortage of its primary c o n s e r v a t i o n a l e r t world’s mammals in crisis1 1 adapted from a 06 october 2008 iucn press release. the iucn red list of threatened species (www.iucn.org/redlist) classifies species according to their extinction risk. it is a searchable online database containing the global status and supporting information on 45,000 species. its primary goal is to identify and document the species most in need of conservation attention and provide an index of the state of biodiversity. the iucn red list threat categories are, in descending order of threat: “extinct” or “extinct in the wild,” “critically endangered,” “endangered,” and “vulnerable” (all for species threatened with global extinction), “near threatened” (species close to the threatened thresholds or that would be threatened without ongoing specific conservation measures), “least concern” (species evaluated with a low risk of extinction), and “data deficient” (species not assessed because of insufficient data). “critically endangeredpossibly extinct” is not a new red list category, but is a flag developed to identify those critically endangered species that are in all probability already extinct but for which confirmation is required (for example, through more extensive surveys being carried out and failing to find any individuals). “reliable data are the foundation for conservation planning that hopes to drive effective conservation action on the most endangered species and sites. for the first time, good data, contributed and validated by the best experts on earth, show the patterns and extent of the pressures on the viability of mammal species. this trend is particularly dramatic for southeast asia which suffers from increasing human activities, deforestation being the major issue.” prof. luigi boitani, sapienza università di roma. the iberian lynx (lynx pardinus) is “critically endangered,” and has continued to decline due to a shortage of its primary prey, the european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus). g io r g io p er b el li n i w ik ip ed ia prey, the european rabbit (oryctolagus cuniculus). china’s père david’s deer (elaphurus davidianus), is listed as “extinct in the wild.” however, the captive and semi-captive populations have increased in recent years, and truly wild populations could be reestablished soon. the time may already have passed to save the additional 29 species that have been flagged as “critically endangered-possibly extinct,” including cuba’s little earth hutia (mesocapromys sanfelipensis), which has not been seen in nearly 40 years. nearly 450 mammals have been listed as “endangered,” including the tasmanian devil (sarcophilus harrisii), which moved from “least concern” to “endangered” after the global population declined by more than 60% in the last 10 years due to a fatal infectious facial cancer. the fishing cat (prionailurus viverrinus), found in southeastern asia, moved from “vulnerable” to “endangered” due to habitat loss in wetlands. similarly, the caspian seal (pusa caspica) moved from “vulnerable” to “endangered.” its population has declined by 90% in the last 100 years due to unsustainable hunting and habitat degradation — and numbers continue to decline. habitat loss and degradation affect 40% of the world’s mammals. it is most extreme in central and south america, western, eastern, and central africa, madagascar, and in southern and southeastern asia. over-harvesting is wiping out larger mammals, especially in southeastern asia, but also in parts of africa and south america. the grey-faced sengi or elephantshrew (rhynchocyon udzungwensis) is known from only two forests in the udzungwa mountains of tanzania, both of which 222 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 conservation alert china’s père david’s deer (elaphurus davidianus) is listed as “extinct in the wild.” however, the captive and semi-captive populations have increased in recent years, and truly wild populations could be re-established soon. w ik ip ed ia the fishing cat (prionailurus viverrinus) of southeastern asia moved from “vulnerable” to “endangered” due to habitat loss in wetlands. a li c ia h ig g in s “this assessment establishes a platform from which all future conservation efforts can be measured. it captures data on the mammal fauna of the world in a unique database that has been structured to highlight conservation, and which is designed to be a living database to incorporate future data and trends on mammals. this effort will hopefully spur greater attention on the conservation of mammals and the habitats they occupy, for the benefit of all biodiversity.” dr. andrew smith, school of life sciences, arizona state university. the tasmanian devil (sarcophilus harrisii) moved from “least concern” to “endangered” after the global population declined by more than 60% in the last 10 years. w a y n e m c le a n iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 223conservation alert are fully protected but vulnerable to fires. the species was first described this year and has been listed as “vulnerable.” however, the study also shows that conservation can bring species back from the brink of extinction, with 5% of currently threatened mammals showing signs of recovery in the wild. the black-footed ferret (mustela nigripes) moved from “extinct in the wild” to “endangered” after a successful reintroduction by the u.s. fish and wildlife service into eight western states and mexico from 1991–2008. similarly, the wild horse (equus ferus) moved from “extinct in the wild” in 1996 to “critically endangered” this year after successful reintroductions started in mongolia in the early 1990s. the african elephant (loxodonta africana) moved from “vulnerable” to “near threatened,” although its status varies considerably across its range. the move reflects the recent and ongoing population increases in major populations in southern and eastern africa. for the moment, these increases outweigh any decreases taking place elsewhere. “the longer we wait, the more expensive it will be to prevent future extinctions,” says dr. jane smart, head of iucn’s species program. “we now know what species are threatened, what the threats are and where — we have no more excuses to watch from the sidelines.” the project to assess the world’s mammals was conducted with help from more than 1,800 scientists from over 130 countries. it was made possible by the volunteer help of iucn species survival commission’s specialist groups and the collaborations between top institutions and universities, including conservation international, sapienza università di roma, arizona state university, texas a&m university, university of virginia, and the zoological society of london. the grey-faced sengi or elephant-shrew (rhynchocyon udzungwensis) was first described this year. known from only two forests in the udzungwa mountains of tanzania, the species has been listed as “vulnerable.” fr a n c es c o r o v er o cuba’s little earth hutia (mesocapromys sanfelipensis) has not been seen in nearly 40 years and is considered “critically endangered-possibly extinct.” li n d a f le u r en the black-footed ferret (mustela nigripes) moved from “extinct in the wild” to “endangered” after a successful reintroduction by the u.s. fish and wildlife service. m ik h a il y ep is h in overall, the iucn red list now includes 44,838 species, of which 16,928 (38%) are threatened with extinction. of these, 3,246 are in the highest category of threat, “critically endangered,” 4,770 are “endangered,” and 8,912 are “vulnerable.” new groups of species have appeared on the iucn red list for the first time, increasing the diversity and richness of the data. indian tarantulas (poecilotheria regalis), highly prized by collectors and threatened by the international pet trade, have made their first appearance on the iucn red list. they face habitat loss due to new roads and settlements. more than mammals “no other tool is as valuable for conservation as the red list, which provides scientists and decision makers with an important set of information, freely available to the public, to improve the effectiveness of our conservation efforts.” dr. russell mittermeier, chair of iucn’s primate specialist group and president of conservation international. iguana b&w text 150 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 chaudhari the gharial (gavialis gangeticus) is a critically endangered species endemic to the indian subcontinent. m a tt v a u g h a n iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 150 in april of this year, 26 female gharials (gavialis gangeticus) laid eggs on an island in the girwa river in the katerniaghat wildlife sanctuary. in addition, a few mugger crocodiles (crocodylus palustris) nested there. as in previous years, mr. ramesh pandey, divisional forestry officer at the sanctuary, facilitated nesting by providing a soft and secure sand bar. in march, grasses on the island were cleared and the sand softened by digging. trial nesting by female gharials was observed during the last week of march. actual nesting began on 1 april and hatchlings emerged in june. two years ago, only 6–8 nests were located. this year about 1000 hatchlings were counted at one location along the river. the katerniaghat wildlife sanctuary is a secure refuge and the best hope for protecting gharials from extinction. about 800 gharials hatch each year. however, this year, monsoon rains during the last week of june led to flooding of the girwa river, gharial reproduction and mortality suresh chaudhari katerniaghat foundation, lucknow, india photographs by the author except where noted. iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 151gavialis gangeticus � gharial nesting site on an island in the girwa river in the katerniaghat wildlife sanctuary, india. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 151 and nearly all of the hatchlings were swept away. additional protective measures will have to be developed in order to prevent a recurrence in future years. early this year, more than 100 gharials died in the chambal river wildlife sanctuary. investigators have ruled out the possibility of any infection or parasite as the cause of the deaths. dead gharials were diagnosed with kidney damage and failure, significant gout within the body cavities and around internal organs (visceral gout), and gout within the joints (articular gout). a toxin is suspected of causing the kidney damage and failure, although neither a toxin nor a potential source has been identified. further investigations will focus on fish inhabiting the river, as well as industrial and other human activities in the region. for more information, see www.gharials.org. the recently established katerniaghat foundation is working for conservation of gharials and other wildlife species in the sanctuary. these include bengal tigers, leopards, asian elephants, indian rhinoceros, deer, pythons, gangetic dolphins, various turtles, and many species of resident and migratory birds. 152 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 chaudhari gharial hatchlings in the katerniaghat wildlife sanctuary are vulnerable to monsoon flooding, necessitating the development of a conservation strategy to address this threat in future years. an adult gharial patrolling a sandy area where hatchlings are basking. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 152 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 153gavialis gangeticus early this year, more than 100 gharials died of unknown causes in the chambal river wildlife sanctuary. www.gharials.org iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 153 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 181newsbriefs canada’s roadkill hot spot the fourth deadliest road in the world for turtles just got a little safer. work crews finished laying 2,500 meters of temporary fencing this week to prevent turtles and other creatures from wandering out of their marshlands onto the long point (ontario) causeway. “it’s just an attempt to stop the carnage right now,” said reptile biologist scott gillingwater, shortly after finding a midland painted turtle (chrysemys picta marginata) squashed into the pavement on which 10,000 animals die each year. long point, extending into lake erie south of brantford, defines one of the most biologically diverse regions in canada. the united nations recognizes the peninsula and its neighboring wetlands as one of the country’s 13 world biosphere reserves, with multitudes of birds, animals, and reptiles, including eight types of turtles and 18 kinds of snakes — but the wetlands lie between the mainland and the peninsula. in 1927, authorities built a 3.5-km causeway to allow car access to cottages, fishing spots, and public beach areas that later developed into a provincial park. they created a killing field. “my father and his dad often talk about their trips to their cottage on long point ...,” area biologist paul ashley wrote two years ago in birdwatch canada. “my grandfather reminisces that back then the turtles and snakes were so thick that you couldn’t help but run over a few.” now population numbers are dropping noticeably. “the northern map turtle [graptemys geographica] is a species of special concern,” reptile biologist gillingwater said, as he stepped through the marshes to examine nesting sites. “the blanding’s turtle [emydoidea blandingii] is threatened, and the eastern fox snake [elaphe gloydi] has recently been upgraded ... from threatened to endangered.” with warm weather, turtles begin roaming widely in search of mates or places to lay eggs. skunks, foxes, and possums will eat most of the eggs. birds and bullfrogs will go after hatchlings. only a few turtles will survive to adulthood. several years ago, canadian wildlife service researchers estimated that between april and october the causeway handles 2,250 car trips a day. on summer weekends the number quadruples. the same study found that 10,000 animals a year die on the road — mostly leopard frogs (rana pipiens), but 99 other species as well. another canadian wildlife service study showed that some drivers run over turtles and snakes for sport. “working from existing literature, u.s. conservationist matthew aresco of northern florida named long point causeway the world’s fourth-worst road for turtle mortality after three u.s. roads. area residents decided enough was enough. two years ago, some 20 local groups came together to rebuild the causeway. they decided that permanent barriers to the roadway and underground passages must be created for animals. waterways must be opened for spawning fish. a $40,000 feasibility study by a kitchener, ontario, firm recently put renovation costs at $14–20 million. provincial and national bodies would need to get involved. in the meantime, the ontario species at risk stewardship fund has paid $30,300 to erect 2,500 m of plastic fencing toward the south end of the causeway. sand is also being dumped inside the fences as temporary turtle nesting areas. a modest start, perhaps, but the efforts should save a few turtles. john goddard, toronto star snake-handling pastor arrested the pastor of a kentucky church that handles snakes in religious rites was among ten people arrested by wildlife officers in a crackdown on the venomous snake trade. undercover officers purchased more than 200 illegal reptiles during the investigation. more than 100 snakes, many of them deadly, were confiscated in the undercover sting after thursday’s arrests, said col. bob milligan, director of law enforcement for kentucky fish and wildlife. most were taken from the middlesboro home of gregory james coots, including 42 copperheads (agkistrodon contortrix), 11 timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus), three cottonmouth water moccasins (a. piscivorus), a western diamondback rattlesnake (c. atrox), two cobras and a puff adder (bitis arietans). handling snakes is practiced in a handful of fundamentalist churches across appalachia, based on the interpretation of bible verses saying true believers can take up serpents without being harmed. the practice is illegal in most states, including kentucky. coots, 36, is pastor of the full gospel tabernacle in jesus name in n e w s b r i e f s a midland painted turtle (chrysemys picta marginata) makes the trek across the treacherous causeway. g le n n l o w so n , t o r o n to s ta r danger zones the top five sites for turtle roadkill per mile are: 1. u.s. highway 27 at lake jackson near tallahassee, florida. 2. u.s. highway 441 at payne’s prairie preserve state park near gainesville, florida. 3. u.s. highway 93, mission valley, montana. 4. long point causeway, ontario. 5. cape may, new jersey. matthew aresco, lake jackson ecopassage alliance iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 181 middlesboro, where a tennessee woman died after being bitten by a rattlesnake during a service in 1995. her husband died three years later when he was bitten by a snake in northeastern alabama. coots was charged thursday with buying, selling, and possessing illegal reptiles. he had no listed telephone number and could not be reached for comment. the snakes, plus one alligator, were turned over to the nonprofit kentucky reptile zoo in slade. most appeared to have been captured from the wild, with some imported from asia and africa. zoo director jim harrison said some of the animals would likely have become exotic pets had they not been seized. “there’s been a large trade in exotics for years,” he said. “some people are just fascinated with them.” “you can purchase anything off the internet except common sense,” harrison said. “a venomous snake isn’t a pet. you don’t play with it. if you do, you’re an idiot.” butler’s garter snake in trouble the wisconsin department of natural resources (dnr) is changing the way it interprets its authority and definition of “take” under the wisconsin endangered species law, and is proposing a new “regulatory framework” for the butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri). these changes would remove most protections for habitat utilized by endangered and threatened species, substantially reducing the department’s regulatory jurisdiction. the new butler’s garter snake “framework” would allow unregulated development of most upland habitat utilized by the snake for its life cycle. the department has begun implementing these changes without public notice. the proposed “regulatory framework” is based on a new legal interpretation of “take” and the department’s jurisdiction, which suggests that if no animals are immediately and obviously killed by an action, a “take” is avoided and the department has no authority, even if the actions result in significant harm to the resource, or deaths that are not immediately observed. this new interpretation does not acknowledge that destroying a species’ habitat harms individuals of the species, and does not acknowledge that a “take” occurs when mortality results when individuals return to a lost habitat area and cannot find food or shelter, and through loss of reproductive potential and increased mortality from overcrowding in remaining habitat (if any remains). such mortality would be a direct result of the unregulated habitat loss. the department also takes no account of cumulative harm, jeopardy, or viability of the resource resulting from these habitat and population losses. this new interpretation essentially removes protections for all endangered and threatened species in many, if not most, situations. it allows a person to simply shoo an animal off, or wait for it to walk, crawl, or fly away, perhaps to get a drink of water, and then destroy the habitat upon which it depends. for the butler’s garter snake, which feeds almost exclusively on earthworms (which do not occupy saturated wetland soils), upland habitat is crucial for obtaining food and shelter, and incubating embryos. the snakes depend on grasses and other vegetation for shelter from predators. pregnant females seek warm upland sunlit areas adjacent to grasses (to which they flee when disturbed). such basking sites are crucial to embryonic development in this ectothermic species so proper temperatures can be achieved. loss of upland habitat would crowd snakes into wetlands, where many would succumb to lack of food and shelter from the elements, overcrowding, and increased predation. snakes hidden within upland soil and duff retreats at the time of grading, where they take shelter for the night, sit out periods of hot dry weather, and hibernate, would simply be crushed by heavy equipment. the dnr has issued a “regulatory framework” for selected (stakeholder) public review. they are holding meetings about it with stakeholders, and state they will develop a new broad authorization based on it after comments are received. the new broad authorization will be public noticed and vetted by the natural resources board (nrb). if similar to the “framework” being distributed, this broad authorization will automatically approve the “take” that results from projects that follow certain minimization measures, such as snake fencing, snake removals, and staying 300 feet away from wetland boundaries. however, the department, by a form letter being distributed to parties currently in the butler’s garter snake approval process, appears to be implementing the substance of the proposed new broad authorization before it is public noticed or reviewed by the nrb. the “regulatory framework” lists a number of measures that minimize “take” of snakes. the draft regulatory framework correctly refers to these as avoidance measures that minimize “take,” but the form letter contradicts this and states that these measures actually avoid “take.” as a point of fact, these measures do not avoid “take,” they only minimize it. the department’s own research, for example, documented that snakes occupy habitat more than 300 ft from a wetland boundary (joppa and temple. 2005. use of upland habitat by butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri). bulletin of the chicago herpetological society 40:221–227), and ample evidence exists of snakes crossing fence lines and over-wintering in uplands. the incorrect portrayal of minimization measures as complete avoidance is the basis for the removal of protections, and unsupported by science. 182 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 newsbriefs copperheads (agkistrodon contortrix) are frequently handled in a small number of fundamentalist churches who trust that true believers can take up serpents without being harmed. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h the wisconsin department of natural resources (dnr) is proposing a new “regulatory framework” for the butler’s garter snake (thamnophis butleri) that would remove most protections for habitat utilized by this and other endangered and threatened species. g a r y c a sp er iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 182 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 183newsbriefs if any of these measures are implemented, the draft framework allows the project to proceed with no further review, ceding its authority to require conservation measures to avoid cumulative harm and jeopardy. this will result in nearly complete loss of the upland habitats on which the species depends, with no mitigation required. the “regulatory framework” uses an unsupported definition of “over-wintering habitat,” essentially equating it with wetlands. this is repeated in the form letter. however, ample evidence indicates that snakes hibernate in certain upland situations, such as crayfish burrows, rotted tree root channels, loose fill, and old foundations. the department acknowledges this by claiming that they will study the matter. the assertion that butler’s garter snakes only hibernate in wetlands is not supported by a single scientist, and the “take” associated with developing upland overwintering sites is being allowed without regulation. the “regulatory framework,” if approved as a new broad authorization, would provide a path leading to essentially no protections for the upland habitat portion of butler’s garter snake critical habitat (in most cases), clearly resulting in significant harm to the resource, with no jeopardy analysis performed. the current “regulatory framework” does not acknowledge this, takes no account of cumulative harm, and cedes the department’s authority and obligation to protect the resource. the san francisco airport aims to boost the population of endangered san francisco garter snakes the peninsula’s most tenacious population of endangered san francisco garter snakes (thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia) is about to make a major comeback in a little-known urban canal system steps away from a concrete jungle of airport runways, highway on-ramps, and railroad tracks. san francisco international airport’s team of planners and environmental engineers is in the final stages of preparing for a 10year, $4 million project to redesign two urban storm water canals that also happen to be prime habitat for the san francisco garter snake. the construction project, begining in mid-august, is designed to dredge four miles’ worth of canals that provide flood control for the airport while creating a veritable snake paradise of burrows, swimming holes, and hunting sites for prey. motorists southbound on highway 101 would never suspect they were speeding by this little oasis of willow and acacia plants along the banks of a channel that stays wet through the summer. this is the place — cupid’s row canal in san bruno, along with the south lomita canal in millbrae — to which san francisco garter snakes have been restricted for the last 50 years as the surrounding land has been filled with malls and subdivisions. the habitat enhancement project, which is seeking an environmental permit from san francisco and several state agencies, evolved out of an incident in 2003 when a storm flooded the neighborhood around the cupid’s row canal. both canals suffer from silt buildup and require regular dredging, but dredging can be tricky because of potential impacts to the garter snake and the california red-legged frog (rana aurora draytonii), its main source of food. the solution on which airport officials settled was to re-engineer the canals, creating sediment traps that would minimize the need to dredge as often, and widening the canals to create still pools where the frogs could lay their eggs. the next time they have to maintain the canal a decade hence, officials hope the snake and frog populations will have rebounded so strongly that getting a permit won’t be quite so complicated. “it’s like expanding their subdivision. there’s more space for them to set up their burrows close to the water,” said ernie eavis, deputy airport director and chief engineer. the san francisco garter snake has been listed as endangered since 1967, its wetland habitat threatened by development while its prey, the red-legged frog, became correspondingly rare (it is now listed as a threatened species). by 2004, the snake was so scarce that state officials were asking the public to help find the remaining population so it could be protected. in 2005, five pairs of snakes were transported from the netherlands to san francisco. a few pockets of the distinctive blue-and-brown snake remain, mostly in coastal areas, such as mori point in pacifica, and in parts of coastal santa cruz county. scientists believe they originated in the flatlands around what is now highway 280. however, the largest known population in the bay area now exists in the narrow “west of bayshore” area owned and maintained by san francisco international airport. the u.s. fish and wildlife service has been aware of their presence there since the 1970s, but was under the impression that their numbers had dwindled in recent years. the service was proven wrong by a study, conducted this spring, that found between 400 and 500 san francisco garter snakes. “it’s hard to tell how long the snakes have been there. it’s completely surrounded by development, so it’s like a little island population. that population is going to be isolated from all the others, but at one time they were probably able to go up the watershed and communicate with all the others,” said david kelly, a fish and wildlife service biologist familiar with the project. the snakes’ survival becomes even more impressive considering how close they came to being wiped out by development. only the fact that the airport bought the land in the 1920s spared their habitat. julia scott, bay area news group the bush administration seeks to kill the endangered species act parts of the endangered species act may soon be extinct. the bush administration wants federal agencies to decide for themselves whether highways, dams, mines, and other construction projects might harm endangered animals and plants. new regulations, which do not require the approval of congress, would reduce the mandatory, independent reviews government scientists have been performing for the largest known population of endangered san francisco garter snakes (thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia) in the bay area exists in an area owned and maintained by san francisco international airport. m ic h a el k er n iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 183 35 years, according to a draft first obtained by the associated press. interior secretary dirk kempthorne said late monday that the changes were needed to ensure that the endangered species act would not be used as a “back door” to regulate the gases blamed for global warming. in may, the polar bear became the first species declared as threatened because of climate change. warming temperatures are expected to melt the sea ice on which the bear depends for survival. the draft rules would bar federal agencies from assessing the emissions from projects that contribute to global warming and its effect on species and habitats. “we need to focus our efforts where they will do the most good,” kempthorne said in a news conference organized quickly after ap reported details of the proposal. “it is important to use our time and resources to protect the most vulnerable species. it is not possible to draw a link between greenhouse gas emissions and distant observations of impacts on species.” if approved, the changes would represent the biggest overhaul of endangered species regulations since 1986. they would accomplish through rules what conservative republicans have been unable to achieve in congress: ending some environmental reviews that developers and other federal agencies blame for delays and cost increases on many projects. the chairman of the house natural resources committee, which oversees the interior department, said he was “deeply troubled” by the changes. “this proposed rule ... gives federal agencies an unacceptable degree of discretion to decide whether or not to comply with the endangered species act,” said rep. nick rahall, dwv. “eleventh-hour rulemakings rarely if ever lead to good government.” the new regulations follow a pattern by the bush administration not to seek input from scientists. the regulations were drafted by attorneys at both the interior and commerce departments. scientists with both agencies were first briefed on the proposal last week during a conference call, according to an official who asked not to be identified. last month, in similar fashion, the environmental protection agency surprised its scientific experts when it decided it did not want to regulate greenhouse gases under the clean air act. the rule changes unveiled monday would apply to any project a federal agency would fund, build, or authorize that the agency itself determines is unlikely to harm endangered wildlife and their habitat. government wildlife experts currently participate in tens of thousands of such reviews each year. the revisions also would limit which effects can be considered harmful and set a 60-day deadline for wildlife experts to evaluate a project when they are asked to become involved. if no decision is made within 60 days, the project can move ahead. “if adopted, these changes would seriously weaken the safety net of habitat protections that we have relied upon to protect and recover endangered fish, wildlife, and plants for the past 35 years,” said john kostyack, executive director of the national wildlife federation’s wildlife conservation and global warming initiative. under current law, federal agencies must consult with experts at the fish and wildlife service or the national marine fisheries service to determine whether a project is likely to jeopardize any endangered species or to damage habitat, even if no harm seems likely. this initial review usually results in accommodations that better protect the 1,353 animals and plants in the u.s. that are listed as threatened or endangered, and determines whether a more formal analysis is warranted. the interior department said such consultations are no longer necessary because federal agencies have developed expertise to review their own construction and development projects, according to the 30-page draft obtained by the ap. “we believe federal action agencies will err on the side of caution in making these determinations,” the proposal said. the director of the fish and wildlife service, dale hall, said the changes would help focus expertise on “where we know we don’t have a negative effect on the species but where the agency is vulnerable if we don’t complete a consultation.” responding to questions about the process, hall said, “we will not do anything that leaves the public out of this process.” the new rules were expected to be formally proposed immediately, officials said. they would be subject to a 30day public comment period before being finalized by the interior department. that would give the administration enough time to impose the rules before november’s presidential election. a new administration could freeze any pending regulations or reverse them, a process that could take months. congress could also overturn the rules through legislation, but that could take even longer. the proposal was drafted largely by attorneys in the general counsel’s offices of the commerce department’s national oceanic and atmospheric administration and the interior department, according to an official with the national marine fisheries service, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the plan hadn’t yet been circulated publicly. the two agencies’ experts were not consulted until last week, the official said. between 1998 and 2002, the fish and wildlife service conducted 300,000 consultations. the national marine fisheries service, which evaluates projects affecting marine species, conducts about 1,300 reviews each year. the reviews have helped safeguard protected species such as bald eagles, florida panthers, and whooping cranes. a federal government handbook from 1998 described the consultations as “some of the most valuable and powerful tools to conserve listed species.” in recent years, however, some federal agencies and private developers have complained that the process results in delays and increased construction costs. “we have always had concerns with respect to the need for streamlining and making it a more efficient process,” said joe nelson, a lawyer for the national endangered species act reform coalition, a trade group for home builders and the paper and farming industry. sen. barbara boxer, d-ca, chairwoman of the environment and public works committee, called the proposed 184 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 newsbriefs current proposals to alter regulations regarding enforcement of the endangered species act would have undermined efforts to protect endangered species, such as the gray whale (eschrichtius robustus). g eo ff s h es te r iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 184 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 185newsbriefs changes illegal. “this proposed regulation is another in a continuing stream of proposals to repeal our landmark environmental laws through the back door,” she said. “if this proposed regulation had been in place, it would have undermined our ability to protect the bald eagle, the grizzly bear, and the gray whale.” the bush administration and congress have attempted with mixed success to change the law. in 2003, the administration imposed similar rules that would have allowed agencies to approve new pesticides and projects to reduce wildfire risks without asking the opinion of government scientists about whether threatened or endangered species and habitats might be affected. the pesticide rule was later overturned in court. the interior department, along with the forest service, is currently being sued over the rule governing wildfire prevention. in 2005, the house passed a bill that would have made similar changes to the endangered species act, but the bill died in the senate. the sponsor of that bill, then-house natural resources chairman richard pombo, r-ca, told the ap that allowing agencies to judge for themselves the effects of a project will not harm species or habitat. “there is no way they can rubber stamp everything because they will end up in court for every decision,” he said. however, internal reviews by the national marine fisheries service and fish and wildlife service concluded that about half the unilateral evaluations by the forest service and bureau of land management that determined that wildfire prevention projects were unlikely to harm protected species were not legally or scientifically valid. those had been permitted under the 2003 rule changes. “this is the fox guarding the hen house. the interests of agencies will outweigh species protection interests,” said eric glitzenstein, the attorney representing environmental groups in the lawsuit over the wildfire prevention regulations. “what they are talking about doing is eviscerating the endangered species act.” for more information see the fish and wildlife service (www.fws.gov/ endangered), national marine fisheries service (www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/laws/esa/), and the national wildlife federation (www.nwf.org/news). dina cappiello, associated press man bitten by gila monster on 25 june, a 24-year-old homeless man who had wandered into the saguaro national park found a gila monster (heloderma suspectum) and picked it up because — as he later told rangers — “it wanted to be friends.” the man then placed the lizard on his shoulders, whereupon it promptly bit him on the neck. while trying to shed the animal, it bit him once more on the hand. he then picked it up and wrapped it in a piece of clothing. a park volunteer encountered the man walking on a roadway adjacent to the park and asked if he needed help. the man told the volunteer what had happened, then showed him the lizard. rangers were summoned; when they arrived, they found the man vomiting and complaining of difficulty breathing. he was transported by ambulance to a tucson area hospital, where he was admitted for treatment of the bites, heat exhaustion, and severe dehydration. the gila monster appeared uninjured, and was returned to the park. this was the park’s second gila monster incident this year. gila monsters are native to the american southwest and northern mexico, and are the only venomous lizard native to the united states. these heavy, slow-moving lizards can grow to two feet in length and can weigh up to three pounds. because of their slowness, they rarely present a threat to humans. bob love, chief ranger, saguaro national park gila monsters (heloderma suspectum) are the only venomous lizard native to the united states, but they rarely present a threat to humans. to m w ie w a n d t iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 185 iguana, june 2008 122 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 newsbriefs ray ashton receives award ray e. ashton, jr., president of the ashton biodiversity research & preservation institute, inc., in newberry, florida, and one of the founders of the activist group, the gopher tortoise conservation initiative, was awarded the 2008 citizen’s award at the 14th annual public interest environmental conference held at the university of florida law school on 28 february 2008. the award was presented for his outstanding contributions on behalf of florida environmental and land use policy. some of the contributions that ashton has made include work with local county governments in developing policies that support local conservation of gopher tortoises and their habitats. over the past two years, he has worked with 17 counties to establish programs that will help protect tortoises. meanwhile, over the past ten years, he has been a strong voice attempting to change the old policies of the florida fish & wildlife conservation commission from incidental take to one of long-term management and protection through uplisting the tortoise to threatened status in florida and to encourage relocation of tortoises to wellmanaged and protected lands. he has proposed reasonable financing of tortoise management that would insure perpetual monitoring and management for generations to come. he and members of the gopher tortoise conservation initiative proposed a tax exemption to landowners that maintain natural lands. today, farmers cannot maintain their agricultural exemptions on these lands and pay the highest taxes on them. thanks to the florida wildlife federation and other stakeholders, this tax bill and many changes have been brought forward to create an entirely different way of conserving a species. although ashton is not totally pleased with the current rules being presented to the florida fish & wildlife conservation commission in april 2007, he supports the direction in which they are going and hopes that the commission will follow-up on promises to strengthen what is being presented in the near future. if they do not, we will see a continued decline of gopher tortoises and the need for them to be federally listed. petition to end commercial harvest of freshwater turtles in four southern states conservation and health groups are seeking to end unsustainable commercial harvests of freshwater turtles in four southern states and to stop the exportation of contaminated turtles to international food markets. the center for biological diversity filed emergency petitions with the states of florida, georgia, oklahoma, and texas to ban commercial turtle harvesting in public and private waters, to prevent further population declines of native southern turtle populations, and to protect public health. turtles collected in these states and sold as food are often contaminated with mercury, pcbs, and pesticides. wildlife exporters and dealers are commercially harvesting massive and unsustainable numbers of wild freshwater turtles from oklahoma, florida, and georgia, the few southern states that continue to allow unlimited and unregulated take of turtles. herpetologists have reported drastic reductions in numbers and even the disappearance of many southern species of map turtles (genus graptemys) in georgia and florida, especially in the panhandle. recent surveys by oklahoma state university show depletions and extinction of freshwater turtles in many oklahoma streams, and commercial turtle buyers in oklahoma reported purchasing almost 750,000 wild-caught turtles from 1994 to 1999. over a quarter million wild-caught adult turtles captured in texas were exported from the dallas-fort worth airport to asia for human consumption from 2002 to 2005. “unregulated commercial trappers are capturing appalling numbers of freshwater turtles in southern states, including rare map turtle species that are so depleted they may need protection under the endangered species act,” said jeff miller, conservation advocate with the center for biological diversity. “collectors could legally harvest every non-protected turtle that exists in the wild under the inadequate regulations that currently exist in florida, georgia, and oklahoma. these turtles are an important part of aquatic ecosystems and should not be allowed to be wiped out.” most wild turtles harvested in the southern united states are exported to supply food markets in asia, primarily china, which has depleted or driven most of its native freshwater turtles to extinction in the wild. numerous southeastern turtles are sold to asian seafood markets in the united states as well. many of these turtles are harvested from streams under state and federal fish advisories and bans that caution against and prohibit human consumption due to aquatic contaminants that are carcinogenic or harmful to humans such as ddt, pcbs, pesticides, mercury, and other heavy metals. turtles live longer and bioaccumulate considerably greater amounts of aquatic contaminants than fish, particularly common snapping turtles (chelydra serpentina) and softshells (apalone spp.) that burrow in contaminated sediments. “hundreds of thousands of wild-caught turtles are sold locally as food or exported to international food markets from southern states each year, many contaminated with dangerous levels of mercury, pcbs, and pesticides,” said miller. “the potential health implications are staggering.” because freshwater turtles are longlived (some may reach 150 years of age), breed late in life, and have low reproductive and survival rates, they are highly sensitive to over-harvesting. stable turtle populations are dependent on sufficient numbers of long-lived breeding adults to offset natural mortality and human n e w s b r i e f s drastic reductions in numbers of map turtles (genus graptemys) have been reported in georgia and florida. graptemys barbouri is confined to the apalachicola river system of florida, georgia, and alabama. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 123newsbriefs impacts. removal of just two adult turtles from a wild population could halve that population in as few as 50 years, since for each adult turtle removed, the reproductive potential of that animal is eliminated over a breeding life that may exceed 50 years. commercial collecting of wild turtles intensifies the effects of water pollution, road mortality, incidental take from fishery devices, and habitat loss, which are already contributing to turtle declines. scientists warn that freshwater turtles cannot sustain any significant level of harvest from the wild without leading to population crashes. adult turtles also are harvested from the wild to breed hatchlings in captivity for the international pet trade. turtle dealers solicit huge numbers of wild turtles from american sources on the internet. a single dealer can employ a virtual army of hundreds of interstate turtle collectors to conduct unlimited turtle harvests in states where commercial harvest is still legal. oklahoma, florida, and georgia continue to allow unlimited commercial take of all sizes and ages of most species of turtles, using an unlimited quantity of hoopnets and box traps in public and private waters. in these states, many state and federally protected freshwater turtles are incidentally harvested and sold since turtle traps do not distinguish the species captured. collectors often capture and misidentify protected species that appear similar to non-protected turtles. hoopnets and box traps also capture, maim, kill, and drown protected turtle species, non-target fish, mammals, migratory birds, and sensitive species such as the federally threatened american alligator (alligator mississippiensis). state wildlife agencies in tennessee, mississippi, north carolina, and alabama have prohibited commercial take of freshwater turtles from the wild. wildlife biologists from states with bans have advised neighboring states to ban harvests, since wildlife traffickers illegally collect turtles in states where they are protected and claim they were collected in states where harvesting is still legal. texas, oklahoma, florida, and georgia do not survey to determine densities of turtle populations nor do they require commercial collectors to report the quantity and species of turtles harvested from the wild. in 2007, the texas parks and wildlife commission voted to end commercial harvests of turtles in public waters but continued to allow unlimited harvests of some native turtle species from streams and lakes on private lands. an emergency petition was submitted today to the texas department of health to ban all commercial turtle harvests in texas, due to significant public health risk from consumption of contaminated turtles. because of their brilliant topographical patterns and colorations, all 12 species of map turtles from the southeastern united states are highly sought by the international pet trade, despite being protected under the convention on international trade in endangered species. some species of map turtles fetch more than $150 per adult on commercial internet websites. map turtles are drainage specific; each watershed that drains into the gulf of mexico produces a brilliant, unique geophysical pattern and striking coloration on the shell and skin. many map turtles in texas, alabama, mississippi, florida, and georgia warrant federal protection under the endangered species act, and two species, the yellowblotched map turtle (graptemys flavimaculata) and ringed map turtle (g. oculifera), that occur in mississippi are already listed under the act due to overcollection for the pet trade. also signing onto the petition are the st. john’s riverkeeper (florida), satilla riverkeeper (georgia), altamaha riverkeeper (georgia), oklahoma chapter of the sierra club, lone star chapter of the sierra club (texas), pineywoods group of the sierra club (texas), and the center for food safety. the petitions and background information on the commercial harvest of freshwater turtles can be found on the center for biological diversity web site at: http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/ campaigns/southern_freshwater_turtles/ index.html the center for biological diversity is a nonprofit conservation organization with more than 40,000 members dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places. jeff miller center for biological diversity rudy komarek, rattlesnake poacher in early march 2008, rudy komarek (aka “cobra king”), a notorious timber rattlesnake poacher and sometime showman, suffered a fatal heart attack at the age of 79. apart from several well-known bounty hunters who took thousands of timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus) at taxpayers’ expense in three northeastern new york counties and one western vermont county (see jon furman’s timber rattlesnakes in vermont and new york, university of new england press, 2007), no single individual had a detrimental impact on northeastern populations of this species as great as that of komarek. during the second half of the 20th century, komarek’s extensive commercial collecting of reptiles in new york, massachusetts, connecticut, new jersey, pennsylvania, and west virginia flourished in a career that spanned four decades. in 1994, brown, jones, and stechert (bulletin of the chicago herpetological society 29:74–79) detailed komarek’s federal felony conviction for interstate trafficking, describing him as a “nefarious hominid” who single-handedly caused severe depletion or extirpation of many populations of timber rattlesnakes in the northeast. using stechert’s long-term monitoring data of many of the same rattlesnake dens that komarek is known to have exploited, brown et al. (1994) estimated that komarek accounted for over 2,900 timber rattlesnakes taken from 27 dens in eight counties in new york. we now believe that this estimate is overly conservative. since our report was published, stechert has continued to conduct detailed status surveys in new york, the results of which — in conjunction with the poacher’s own admissions in recent rudy komarek single-handedly caused severe depletion or extirpation of many populations of timber rattlesnakes (crotalus horridus) in the northeastern united states. b a r n ey o ld fi el d 124 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 newsbriefs years — now allow us to provide an improved estimate of komarek’s take. our revised estimate suggests that, over a lifetime of collecting, komarek took or killed approximately 4,000–6,000 (best median estimate 5,000) timber rattlesnakes in new york, as well as hundreds in adjoining states. over the past 25 years, the timber rattlesnake has been legally protected as a threatened species in new york. before komarek fled the state (settling for several years in pennsylvania and finally retreating to semi-retirement in florida), he is believed to have had about a fourteen-year period of taking the species following its listing and protection in new york. although an era of outright depletion of timber rattlesnakes may have slowed considerably due to komarek’s demise, we must take note of a variety of new and continuing threats to this snake’s habitats and populations caused by greatly expanded urban sprawl in the form of housing and commercial developments. randy stechert narrowsburg, new york 12764 and william s. brown department of biology skidmore college saratoga springs, new york last chance for the yangtze giant softshell turtle? with only four individuals of rafetus swinhoei known to exist worldwide (two in china and two in vietnam), and only one of these a female, the stakes could not be much higher. a historic effort is now underway in china to move the lone female, currently at the changsha zoo, to the suzhou zoo for breeding with their captive male. a collaborative effort between the turtle survival alliance (tsa) and wildlife conservation society (wcs), the team responsible for the move arrived in china on 1 may. led by dr. gerald kuchling (university of western australia), the world’s leading chelonian reproductive physiologist, the team consists of paul calle, dvm (bronx zoo), scott davis (manager of the largest collection of giant softshell turtles outside of asia), nimal fernando (ocean park hong kong veterinarian), alex grioni (kadoorie farm and botanic garden veterinarian), and mitch kalmanson, who was contracted by the tsa to insure the female during transport and to handle transportation logistics. a pbs nature film crew will be on hand to document this incredible event for an upcoming special on efforts to breed critically endangered species in captivity. chinese media attention promises to be intense as well. the plan is for dr. kuchling and lu shunquing (wcs china) to inspect the recently modified breeding facilities at suzhou zoo; then, if approved, the female will undergo an ultrasound exam to determine her reproductive status. a 2007 exam indicated that she would likely ovulate in mid-may, so the plan is to have her with the male before then. the female will tentatively be driven to suzhou, a 620-mile trip, on 5 may. the breeding pond at suzhou zoo has been subdivided to allow the pair to see and smell each other and gauge their reaction before the introduction occurs. if mating is successful, the male will be removed and the female left alone to nest. “i hate to call this a desperation move, but it really is,” rick hudson, cochair of the tsa said. “the risks are certainly there, but doing nothing is much riskier.” the tsa is growing accustomed to high-pressure situations — such is the case when working with critically endangered species — but nothing of this magnitude. the planning that has been involved to get us to this point has been intensive and has produced a remarkable partnership based on the strengths of both the tsa global network and wcs china. this move has required major financial support (at least $25,000 and the total could increase) and the following organizations are recognized for their contributions: turtle conservation fund, batchelor foundation, kadoorie farm and botanic garden, ocean park conservation foundation, and walter sedgwick. should this move go through as planned look for a media storm to follow. and keep your fingers crossed that this goes well. we may not get a second chance. turtle survival alliance 5 may 2008.—history is being made today — and tsa is leading the way. the last known female yangtze giant softshell turtle (rafetus swinhoei) is on her way to join the last captive male at the suzhou zoo in china. the team transporting the turtle left changsha this morning about 2 am cst, a 3-van caravan (including a pbs nature film crew) starting an 1,100-km trip. dr. gerald kuchling has inspected the modified breeding pond at suzhou and recommended some last-minute changes before returning to changsha, where he performed a reproductive ultrasound exam on the female. the good news is that she has not yet ovulated and has 11 pre-ovuwith only four known individuals, the yangtze giant softshell turtle (rafetus swinhoei) is likely the most endangered species on earth. g er a ld k u c h li n g iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 125newsbriefs latory follicles and good fat deposits. the move appears to be right on time. 6 may 2008.—a call last night from “team rafetus” announced that, amid great fanfare, they had just put the female in the breeding pond at suzhou zoo. she headed down the ramp into the pool, and surfaced a few seconds later and began looking around. the pond is divided with fencing into three sections. today, the male will be allowed into that adjacent to the female to allow and assess interaction. phase 1 of this historic operation is complete, and the team is upbeat about the chances of a successful introduction. fort worth zoo announces significant hatchings a forsten’s tortoise (indotestudo forsteni) hatched on 2 april 2008, and four eggs from other clutches are still incubating. the zoo’s group of 4.2 was assembled in late 2005 for inclusion in the conservation-based collection at the animal outreach and conservation center (arcc) that opened in march 2006. the zoo also reported the hatching of 13 roti island snakeneck turtles (chelodina mccordi) with another 30 eggs still incubating. this species also is included in the arcc collection. turtle survival alliance death-dealing frogs are bullfrogs a four-legged version of typhoid mary, spreading a lethal plague among their fellows but remaining unaffected themselves? that’s one of the newer hypotheses for a global die-off of frogs and other amphibians, which may already have led to the extinction of more than 100 species since the 1980s. other hypotheses include increased ultravioletb radiation, pesticides, habitat loss, and a mystery parasite. “it’s never going to be one single cause,” cautions purnima govindarajulu, a biologist who has been tracking the exploding bullfrog (rana catesbeiana) population on vancouver island for the past decade. a fungus known as bd may be a major reason that bullfrogs are supplanting common island denizens such as the western toad (bufo boreas) and the red-legged frog (rana aurora). bd is short for batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, a fresh-water mold identified in 1998 as responsible for a disease that’s deadly to many amphibians, but not to bullfrogs, which all carry bd. govindarajulu began investigating the island’s bullfrog explosion in 1997 for her ph.d. at the university of victoria, supervised by evolutionary ecologist brad anholt. now a herpetofaunal specialist with the b.c. environmental ministry, she is coordinating amphibian collections across the province, but keeping an eye on bd and bullfrogs as an adjunct professor at uvic. “we’ve found bd in places here where there are no bullfrogs. for instance, rough-skinned newts (taricha granulosa) also carry it, and they are native to vancouver island,” she says. the province is now appealing to all biologists to report dead frogs to get a better handle on the extent of the problem. meanwhile anholt’s lab is preparing molecular family histories of both bullfrogs and the bd fungus. “if the two family histories are congruent then there’s a good chance that bullfrogs are the carriers,” says anholt. peter calamai toronto star 2008 gopher tortoise council meeting the annual meeting of the gopher tortoise council will be held at the oceanside inn and suites, jekyll island, georgia on 3–4 october 2008. the meeting will feature a special session on friday of presentations on wildlife and ecosystem health, with confirmed presentations by elliot jacobson, sonya hernandez divers, charles innis, steven h. divers, terry norton, john maerz, scott connelly, nancy stedman, lori wendland, matt aresco, kimberly andrews, and greg lewbart. on saturday, the scientific program continues with contributed presentations and posters on any topic relating to the gopher tortoise and the longleaf pine ecosystem. a tour of the georgia sea turtle center will be offered friday evening. for more information and registration information, please visit the gopher tortoise council’s website at www.gophertortoisecouncil.org/events. php. hatchling forsten's tortoise (indotestudo forsteni), the other rare turtle bred at the forth worth zoo. r ic k h u d so n introduced bullfrogs (rana catesbeiana) have displaced native amphibians from large areas of southeastern vancouver island in canada — and may be carriers of a deadly fungus. s. p r ic e, b c fr o g w a tc h @ v ic to r ia 1. g o v .b c .c a the scientific program of the gopher tortoise council will focus on the gopher tortoise (gopherus polyphemus) and the longleaf pine (pinus palustris) ecosystem. su za n n e l. c o ll in s, c n a h hatchling roti island snakeneck turtle (chelodina mccordi), one of two rare turtles successfully bred at the fort worth zoo. to m m y o w en s, s a n d ie g o z o o iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 49historical perspective the marine iguana (amblyrhynchus cristatus) is a species endemic to the galapagos islands. it lives in large aggregations along the rocky shorelines throughout the archipelago. it is the only iguanid specialized for feeding on marine algae, which they crop at low tide from the exposed rocks or even by diving down to the bottom of the sea. the animals are extremely gregarious and sometimes hundreds of iguanas bask on the lava rocks in bodily contact with each other. besides this mutual attraction, however, no specific forms of social interaction like grooming, mutual feeding rituals, etc. are to be observed. this is in striking contrast to the social behaviour of birds and mammals that use such patterns for bond formation. these bond-forming behaviour patterns are mainly derivates of maternal behaviour, which seem to be preadapted for this purpose. reptiles lack maternal behaviour and this may in part explain their inability to form a closer bond between adults. during the breeding season the male marine iguanas become territorial. they defend a small area of lava rock against other males, whilst females are allowed to stay. if a male rival approaches the territory, its owner displays. he opens his mouth, nods with the head, and walks stiff-leggedly up and down in front of the rival, showing his lateral aspect. the dorsal crest is erected and the gular regions extended. if the rival answers by the same display, fighting is initiated. the opponents rush at each other. however, in spite of the biting intentions shown during the display, they never bite each other, but instead lower their head and butt. the hornlike scales on the roof of the head interlock and the animals try to push the other away. this can conh i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s the fighting behaviour of marine iguanas1 i. eibl-eibesfeldt max-planck-institut, seewiesen 1 adapted from the original publication in the philosophical transactions of the royal society of london. series b, biological sciences, vol. 251, no. 772, a discussion on ritualization of behaviour in animals and man (29 december 1966), pp. 475–476. the threat display of a marine iguana (amblyrhynchus cristatus). m a x im p o m et u n 50 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 tinue for a while, with pauses in between, during which the opponents display frontally. the struggle ends when one of the rivals is pushed from the rock or when he gives up by assuming a submissive posture (lying flat on his belly). the winner then stops fighting and waits in threat display for the rival to leave. the fight is a highly ritualized tournament in the course of which the stronger wins, without hurting the loser. only if one introduces a male artificially into the territory of another male, can damaging fights be observed. then the territory owner rushes at the introduced individual, which does not show the introductory ceremonies that normally release ritualized fighting. the introduced individual is bitten as a consequence. females fight in some places of the archipelago for the rare egg-laying sites. in contrast to the males, their fighting is far less ritualized. it begins with threat display and head-pushing, but soon they bite and shake each other viciously. they have less developed hornlike scales than the males. ritualized fighting is fairly widespread in animals that are capable of inflicting serious damage to conspecifics. poisonous snakes never bite each other, but the rivals wrestle according to the fixed rules. cichlid fishes have developed various forms of mouthfighting, and thus avoid mutual damage. in a number of species (e.g., in wolves), fighting starts as a damaging fight, but ends by a submissive posture of the loser, which inhibits further aggression (lorenz 1963). the existence of ritualized combats shows clearly that the killing of a conspecific is generally avoided in vertebrates. only animals without weapons or animals that can easily retreat after the exchange of bites have no such social inhibitions. this is, for example, true for the hamster (cricetus cricetus), where the loser has no difficulty in running away. the winner never follows far. in captivity, species of this type often kill each other. from the fact that ritualized fighting occurs, we can learn furthermore that strong selection favors aggression. otherwise aggression would have been counterselected in species that can do damage to conspecifics. however, they developed the most complicated fighting techniques instead, in order to permit fighting, as a mechanism for spacing-out (eibl-eibesfeldt 1951, 1961). references eibl-eibesfeldt, i. 1955. der kommentkampf der meerechse (amblyrhynchus cristatus). zeitschrift der tierpsychologie 12: 49–62. eibl-eibesfeldt, i. 1961 the fighting behavior of animals. scientific american 205(6): 112–122. lorenz, k. 1963. das sogenannte böse, zur naturgeschichte der aggression. borotha-schoeler verlag, wien. in july, 1913, i was hunting in the cove’s river ranges with two companions-andrew and john duncan, of megalong. we found a black-and-yellow banded monitor lizard about five feet long concealed in a crevice on the face of a wall. we had no intention of injuring him, but out of mischief andrew duncan suggested that we should make him yell. i was sceptical, but both men assured me that the lizard could, and would yell under persuasion. on condition that there should be no cruelty, i consented to a demonstration. they laughed at the idea of cruelty. andrew picked up a stick and began poking the reptile in the ribs and tickling him under the arm. it stood it for a while, merely squirming closer down in the crevice, then, having had enough of it, blew himself out and emitted a most comically doleful bellow that could be heard several hundred yards away. this he did repeatedly until we had laughed ourselves tired. it was funny, on looking back after we had gone fifty yards, to see the lizard stick his head around the corner to make sure that we had really departed. i have had for the last four years at my hunting-box on the naltai river, a tame monitor whom i have called “joseph” on account of his coat of many colors, and who is the interesting companion of my solitude and incidentally keeps the snakes away. with the above in my mind, i experimented on him. i found him camped under the bench beneath the window, and irritated him with the end of a stick. he did as the other had done — filled himself with wind and then emitted it in a prolonged bellowing groan. by the way, our “bookbook owl” does much the same thing. he fills himself nearly to bursting in a succession of gasps, and then says “hoo-hoohoo” till he has no more breath, then fills up again. eibl-eibesfeldt 1 originally published in science 52: 273 (1920). the booming lizard of australia1 walter h. bone linnzan society of new south wales, sydney “black-and-yellow banded monitors” (= lace monitors, varanus varius) can be loudly vocal when disturbed. ph il m o r le y iguana b&w text 42 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 kern shopping in guatemala is a treat, with shops loaded with handcrafted cultural artifacts. iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 43travelogue this past december, i had the opportunity to travel to guatemala with members of the project heloderma team that included brad lock of zoo atlanta and john binns and desire wong from the international reptile conservation foundation. the purpose of the trip was simple, team up with our partner zootropic and consummate a land deal in the motagua valley. this land would be used to establish a reserve, breeding facility, and research and education center to help protect the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti), the guatemalan black iguana (ctenosaura palearis), and the unique ecosystem in which they live. the trip was short, lasting only one week. the primary focus was the land transaction, but we also visited a few of the many guatemalan tourist sites. specifically, we flew into guatemala city and toured for a day. in the evening, we visited our host, zootropic’s headquarter building, and conducted the land transfer ceremony. the next day, we headed into the motagua valley, where we visited the land just purchased and got a first-hand look at the rare ecosystem that supports these amazing creatures. we also reviewed the development plans for establishing the breeding, research, and education complex to be established on the property. after that trip, we wound down by t r a v e l o g u e the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) makes its home on the steep mountainsides bordering the motagua valley. the guatemalan black iguana (ctenosaura palearis) also occurs in and around the motagua valley. both the beaded lizard and the black iguana will benefit from the newly established reserve. surprising guatemala: a journey with a cause michael d. kern palo alto, california photographs by the author except where noted. spending a few days in antigua guatemala, the country’s ancient capital city. finally, we traveled back to guatemala city to catch our flights home. although this was my first trip to central america, i have traveled and worked in over 30 countries around the world and pretty much thought i knew what to expect from a developing country, namely, amazing natural beauty under siege from bustling cities living on a decaying infrastructure. so, i set my expectations accordingly…. boy, was i ever wrong. first of all, unlike journeying to many expedition destinations, traveling to guatemala from the united states is quite easy. instead of having to travel through the international date line on a journey of consecutive daylong plane flights, this was a mere five-hour flight from los angeles, resulting in a rather pleasant overnight journey. we left la in the evening and arrived at dawn the following day in guatemala city. for brad lock, the trip was even easier, a three-hour flight within the same time zone. although we battled long lines at the airport, once inside the plane, all was good — and the flight was short, sweet, and uneventful. we arrived in guatemala city and were greeted at the newly renovated airport by members of the zootropic team who would serve as our hosts during this visit. we checked into the charming hotel otelito, which was once a private mansion. it’s modern, open, and intimate design could easily have been featured in the pages of architectural digest. we freshened up and started our tour. in the old town center, we visited one of the largest markets i have seen. during all of my travels, i have learned that the best place to determine how culturally different you are from the country you are visiting is in the markets and the churches. i already had been pleasantly surprised by the easy 44 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 kern aerial view of guatemala city. jo h n b in n s one of the many exotic vendor stands in the central market in guatemala city. iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 45travelogue trip and the quality of our hotel, but this market made me drool at what i saw. the colors — no, i should say the colors were out of this world. the labyrinthine corridors of this indoor/outdoor market presented us with a wealth of cultural artifacts including textiles, clothes, and statues along with fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, shoes, and wedding dresses. the people, a mix of indian and european descent, were happy, warm, and responded to our amazement with laughter — without a doubt a unique and unforgettable sensory experience. next, we visited the zootropic facility where many of the indigenous reptiles used to support the research and educational programs are kept. this was like a private tour through an amazing zoo. a diversity of indigenous snakes, lizards, and arachnids was on display. we were able to take pictures of some of the most beautiful vipers in the world, including bothriechis aurifer, b. bicolor, and b. schlegeli — and, of course, several of the few captive guatemalan beaded lizards in the world were there too. these rare animals are slated to become genetic founders at the proposed breeding facility. during our visit, we learned from the zootropic field personnel about the different species and their native habitats. that evening, we walked the few blocks from our hotel to the zootropic office. the meeting between the paiz family who sold the land, zootropic, zoo atlanta, and ircf personnel was quite interesting. mr. paiz talked about the history of the land and the hopes of his family to establish a foothold for conservation in this unique area. we learned how, over time, the area had changed and about the current challenges facing the people and animals that live there. clearly, life in this region is out-of-balance, with humans rapidly converting all available area into farmland. the meeting was rather emotional, mainly because everyone felt strongly that this transaction was the first major salvo in the battle to protect this critically endangered area and its native species. everyone shared perspectives over a few glasses of guatemala’s famous ron botran, which happens to be produced by the family of zootropic’s president, rodrigo botran. after the meeting, we returned to our hotel exhausted, content, the palm pit viper (bothriechis aurifer) is an attractive but venomous pitviper found in guatemala and mexico. project heloderma team members from zootropic, zoo atlanta, and the ircf presenting a check for the land. from left: daniel ariano, zootropic, brad lock, zoo atlanta, mr. paiz, previous landowner, john binns, ircf, and rodrigo botran, zootropic. and anxiously awaiting tomorrow’s journey into the motagua valley, the remarkable area we had been working to protect for the past two years. the trip from guatemala city to the motagua valley in the department (state) of zacapa took a few hours by car, and then another hour or so before we reached the property itself. by this time, we were off the paved roads and traveling by car “upstream” in a dry riverbed. you can read all you want about why this area is unique, but being there helped me understand its singular place in our world. where to begin? first of all, the motagua valley is located at the foot of the sierra de las minas, which rise to 3,000 m above sea level. these mountains create a natural barrier to the moisture that originates over the atlantic, resulting in the uniquely xeric region. the area also is interesting from a geological perspective, since the motagua valley sits over the junction of the caribbean and north american plates, an area rich in earthquakes and volcanoes attributable to the intense geological pressure caused by the two plates grinding against one another. the region also produces some of the best translucent blue jade in the world, which was mined by mayans at the peak of their reign over middle america. the motagua valley contains two unique habitat zones, a subtropical thornscrub and a subtropical dry forest. the dry forests are of the greatest interest to project heloderma, because that’s where the guatemalan beaded lizard resides at elevations of 300–800 m. not so coincidently, this is exactly the terrain and elevation where the purchased property lies. to find the site, zootropic had conducted a number of studies to determine the land best suited for this purpose using a method called “multicriteria evaluation.” simply stated, this process examines the intersection of appropriate vegetation, temperature, slope, and elevations within a region to determine the potential distribution of a given species. the data for this study are generated by the conditions at sites where animals were actually sighted. the team is excited about this property specifically because it is in the center of the largest contiguous geographic area that matches the unique requirements of the beaded lizard. this means that the reserve potentially can expand. already, discussions are 46 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 kern the motagua river cuts through the motagua valley, providing a rare source of moisture. the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) is amazingly agile and can easily climb trees in search of food or safety. the motagua valley is rapidly being converted into farmland, which reduces the native habitat needed for the survival of many critically endangered indigenous species. iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 47travelogue underway with neighboring landowners who are considering that sale of adjacent lands to project heloderma. for me, the most unique aspect of the land is the admixture of thornscrub and dry forest in a single area. i was used to seeing areas of thornscrub and i was used to seeing dry forests, but never in the same place. the difference is subtle but noticeable. i mean, how often can you find cactus in the middle of a forest? when we finally arrived at the property, we were greeted by members of the zootropic field team, who happened to have with them a recently captured juvenile ctenosaura palearis that they were measuring. we also brought with us one of zootropic’s breeding beaded lizards, so we could take photographs of the rare species in its natural habitat. after a few hours of hiking and photography, we returned to the property gate to talk about the future plans for the site. we then headed into el arenal, one of the major villages in the area. here we met with gilberto salazar, who is zootropic biologist daniel ariano’s field assistant and the village liaison to project heloderma. while in the village, we talked to many local the thornscrub terrain of the motagua valley. john binns and desiree wong survey the newly acquired land in the motagua valley. removing the mystery and fear surrounding the beaded lizard and educating local villagers on the value of conservation of endangered species is a critical component of project heloderma. antigua is considered to be one of the best-preserved colonial cities in spanish america. unesco has declared it a world heritage site. people about why we were there, and, since we had a beaded lizard with us, conducted some impromptu educational sessions with both the young and old, helping them understand the value and unique qualities of the creature and the land surrounding them. through these educational sessions, the project seeks to dispel old fears and habits that more often than not, resulted in the killing of any lizard found by residents. especially by working with the children, the project hopes to create a more conservation-friendly generation. these ongoing educational efforts appear to be working. recently, a villager happened to catch a beaded lizard and was offered a large amount of money to sell it into the illegal exotic pet trade, but he instead offered the animal to zootropic to help establish the necessary stock required for the breeding facility being constructed on the recently purchased land. with the business of the trip complete and less than two days before we returned stateside, we headed to antigua guatemala (i.e., “old guatemala,” often just called antigua), the country’s erstwhile colonial capitol. considered by many to be the best-preserved colonial city in spanish america, it is a well-kept secret in the international tourist world. simply put, antigua is beautiful, and the spanish influence can be seen everywhere. at an elevation of 1,500 m, it lies in the shadow of three majestic and active volcanoes that provide a unique and unmistakable landscape. antigua also is a cultural shopper’s mecca well known for its crafts. store after store present wares ranging from silver and jade jewelry, wooden sculptures, traditional costumes, textiles, and weavings to crafts made from terracotta, ceramics, and/or wrought iron. if you’re not interested in shopping, simply stroll down the cobblestone streets and among the pastel buildings. visit one of the many churches or sit in the town square and watch the people go about their daily routines. a number of great restaurants grace the town, and the hotels fit right into the architectural/historical landscape. a visitor really feels like he’s in an old spanish colony. antigua was the last of many pleasant surprises on this trip. after two days of enjoying the slow pace of colonial guatemala, we returned to guatemala city and caught our flights home. what a magical week it had been. after all, this was supposed to be a working trip and we were going to a developing country that was bursting at its seams. i couldn’t have been more wrong — and the most amazing thing? we hadn’t even visited many of the most famous tourist sites that the country has to offer, notably the mayan ruins at tikal or quetzaltenango, beautiful lake atitlán, or the tropical rainforests in the northern lowlands. certainly, i will return to guatemala to see how the reserve matures and the breeding programs develop, but also to renew friendships made and to see the many wonders of this beautiful country. 48 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 kern the beautiful spanish colonial city of antigua is surrounded by three active volcanoes. iguana b&w text iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 259book reviews herpetological history of the zoo and aquarium world. 2007. by james b. murphy. krieger publishing company. xv + 327 p. isbn 1-57524-285-0. $79.50 (hardcover). this is a remarkable volume of work that is as notable for its depth and thoroughness as for its warm celebration of a history of institutions and individuals that could only be told by jim murphy. murphy’s time in the special collections library at the smithsonians’s natural history museum is evident. the book is loaded with wonderfully incisive and ironic quotes from obscure sources and images from throughout the history of the profession. in separate sections, murphy recounts the stories and traditions of the discipline from the various perspectives that define zoo and aquarium herpetology — taxa, individuals, programs, and institutions. this approach leads to some redundancy, but, somewhat ironically, is simultaneously efficient and highly readable. the approach is appropriate, for example, because one cannot truly understand the inestimable impact of roger conant soley from the perspectives of the toledo or philadelphia zoos. likewise, the remarkable contributions of those institutions cannot be appreciated only through their associations with dr. conant. similarly, describing the historical importance of crocodilians in the bestiary–menagerie–modern zoo transition would be impossible by simply listing which institutions had published the most papers or successfully bred which species. this neat multifaceted approach is broadened by the inclusion of a unique chapter entitled “historical vignettes” that highlights programs, twist-of-fate stories, or simple but important ideas. here, murphy’s story-telling style works well in relating a series of compelling tales that expand the confines of biographical or institutional sketches. these are labeled with interest-catching titles, such as “why galápagos land iguanas from baltra island are not extinct.” the chapter entitled “evolution of a discipline” is built around a taxonomic framework that highlights major advances in the field in terms of, for example, simply getting snakes to eat in captivity or the remarkable insights into snake behavior that could only have been gathered from healthy, captive individuals. what really struck me in this review was the lack of effort on the part of zoo herpetologists in the realms of taxonomy and morphology. this is a shame, given the access to countless specimens and variants that typifies the discipline. in this vein, i believe i may have detected the only oversight in this otherwise terrific book, as i found no references to the seminal papers on reptilian morphology and evolution by george rabb (brookfield zoo) and his colleague hymen marx (field museum of natural history). this chapter, as important as it is, is a bit difficult to read, as murphy was forced to include as many references to published works as possible (one of his stated metrics of a zoo’s historical impact) and, given the uneven spread of such papers taxonomically and topically, the chapter varies greatly in its depth of coverage. while perhaps a clumsy read, i shudder at the thought of having to organize and write such a review. the chapter “pioneers in zoo herpetology” and the closing chapters highlighting significant institutions from throughout the world are the heart and soul of the book. these could have been dull accounts of persons, places, dates, and disciplinefirsts, except that murphy personalizes each topic with his own experiences and perceptions. for an author to inject so much of himself into a work like this is always a bit risky. if poorly done, it reeks of arrogance. however, with his usual story-telling eloquence and his famously self-effacing personality, murphy succeeds. few curators or keepers in the field today have heard of the inimitable joe laszlo of the san antonio zoo, but thanks to murphy his legend lives. the chapter “evolution of an idea” was my favorite. murphy takes the reader on a historical (and highly personal) journey through the remarkable transition through which zoo herpetology passed in a time span shorter than a single career. murphy helps us realize that zoo-based conservation programs b o o k r e v i e w s herpetology in the zoo and aquarium world 260 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 book reviews were in place for mammals and birds while herp departments remained unable to determine the gender of their charges and had standing orders with people who poached rattlesnake dens! however, murphy repeatedly makes the point that the transition is still far from complete — especially in the case of amphibians, which remain an afterthought in all but a very few programs. nevertheless, the current respectable state of zoo herpetology is attributable to individuals like roger conant, james oliver, and, of course, james b. murphy. murphy reminds us of times when representatives of zoos were not really welcome at scientific conferences, when research papers by zoo personnel or those based on work at zoos were not considered worthy of publication, and when the animals themselves were not considered worthy of conservation. with such a dramatic conceptual turn in their histories, zoos are fortunate that murphy places this remarkable transition in an appropriate perspective. a nice touch also is that this transition figures heavily in the foreword by the late roger conant. how appropriate that this book provides us with one more bit of wisdom from the undisputed “godfather” of zoo herpetology. murphy relates, with great pride, the progress zoo herpetology programs have made, mainly by emphasizing their very real contributions, including their leading role in the development of important conservation programs such as the declining amphibian population task force. reading this book made me proud of our profession — and that’s a nice feeling. thanks, jim! joseph r. mendelson iii curator of herpetology zoo atlanta hispaniola. a photographic journey through island biodiversity. bioversidad a través de un recorrido fotográfico. 2007. by eladio fernández. the belknap press of harvard university press, cambridge, massachusetts. xx + 374 pp. hardcover — isbn10: 0-674-02628-4 — $ 60. my first trip to the west indies was to the dominican republic. i’ve since spent considerable time on other islands, but when i’m asked which is my favorite, i always come back to hispaniola. rather than attempt to explain (usually in vain) why the island is so enticing, i now can direct anyone to eladio fernández’s profusely illustrated book that so eloquently defines the island’s natural beauty through the discerning eyes of a knowledgeable naturalist and gifted photographer. a total of 375 color photographs, many of them covering two facing pages in this coffee-table volume, show flowers, landscapes, insects, birds, and, of particular interest, amphibians and reptiles. better yet, in many instances, the reader is not just greeted with portraits, but is immersed into natural habitats as pollinators visit flowers, predators consume prey, and anoles fan their dewlaps intent on attracting a mate or dissuading a rival. even the vistas emanate life in a way seldom experienced through photographs. this is a volume of images, some subtle, many powerful, all beautiful. the text is almost an afterthought, yet no less valuable — once one finds the strength to turn away from the photographs. all text is bilingual (english and spanish), from the title to the acknowledgments. the foreword by noted naturalist edward o. wilson deftly provides the context that makes the volume so appealing — that the beauty portrayed is ephemeral, all the more so for lack of a human commitment to treasure and preserve it. philippe bayard, of the société audubon haïti, states explicitly how effectively art can promote conservation. the photographer’s note by fernández includes a somewhat wistful wish that this book may “raise awareness and spark an interest in preserving [his] island’s natural heritage.” additional “essays” by a virtual who’s who of neotropical biologists address the diversity of hispaniola’s birds (steven c. latta and christopher c. rimmer), mammals (charles a. woods and josé a. ottenwalder), amphibians and reptiles (s. blair hedges), insects (brian ferrell), vegetation (milcíades mejía and ricardo garcía), and fungi (timothy j. baroni and sharon a. cantrell). all are eloquent, concise, and consistent in acknowledging both the unique nature and perverse fragility of the island’s habitats and their denizens. the book effectively surprises, entertains, and pleases on each subsequent page. only the all-too consistently dark images (undoubtedly attributable to cost-cutting decisions on the part of the publisher, otherwise not known to pinch pennies) detract — but fortunately not to the point where the grandeur of the subject or the gift of the artist are compromised. i only wish i could have avoided this one criticism of what is otherwise one of the best packages under one cover to come along in many, many years. anyone who has experienced the islands or who wishes to do so some day should buy a copy, curl up in a warm chair on a cold night, and dream of paradise — before it’s too late. robert powell department of biology, avila university kansas city, missouri island paradise iguana b&w text 58 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 natural history research reports trophic ecology of a spiny-tailed iguana animals respond to changes in food quality, resource availability, and patterns of food dispersion by modifying foraging behaviors. in species such as the cape spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura hemilopha), predation pressure also may affect escape behavior, habitat use, and foraging behavior. blázquez et al. (2007. biotropica 39: 496–501) studied the diet of adult spiny-tailed iguanas in the desert of southern baja california. their goals were to determine if spinytailed iguanas behave as food generalists or specialists, to evaluate the role of iguanas in seed dispersion, and to evaluate whether iguanas modify their diets as a function of predation risk. iguanas consumed mostly plants, consuming at least 22 of the 83 species occurring in the study area. the mainstay of their year-round diet consists of the leaves of three legumes, as well as flowers and fruit when available. spinytailed iguanas use leafy trees, such as p. articulate and l. candida, and the selection of those trees as habitat allows them to access food and refuges at the same location, reducing predation risk. although iguanas could move around to feed, they rarely did. intense predation by raptors and mammals may be the strongest factor influencing iguana foraging behavior. genetic variation in introduced anolis lizard populations invasive species usually are established with a small number of founders, and therefore are expected to have relatively low genetic diversity. even when numbers increase, reduced within-population genetic variation is expected when compared to the native range. the increased relatedness among individuals can cause inbreeding depression, limiting population growth and increasing the probability of extinction of a population. in contrast, some recent studies have shown that invasive populations can have higher genetic variation than native populations and experience rapid evolution because they are formed by multiple introductions from different portions of the species’ native range. recently, kolbe et al. (2007. conservation biology 21: 1612–1625) used mitochondrial dna sequence data to examine the molecular genetics of ten introduced populations belonging to eight species of anolis lizards. evidence indicates that 80% of anolis lizard introductions originated from multiple source populations. seven of eight introduced species of anolis in florida were derived from multiple native-range sources, and one of two introductions to the dominican republic had multiple sources. the results suggest that multiple introductions from several sources, followed by admixture, is the norm rather than the exception in this genus. gila monsters in california the gila monster (heloderma suspectum), widely distributed in parts of the mojave, sonoran, and chihuahuan deserts of the southwestern united states and northwestern mexico, is rare in california. habitat in which the species has been observed in california is characterized by rocky, deeply incised topography, in most cases associated with large and relatively high mountain ranges. most localities are in riparian areas (including the lower colorado river) and range from near sea level to over 1,200 m. all records except one (mojave river) occur east of about 116° longitude. the distribution of the species in california suggests an invasion into the high mountain ranges of the northeastern mojave during the last interglacial via the colorado river corridor. lovich and beaman (2007. bulletin of the southern california academy of sciences 106: 39–58) explored the hypothesis that climate patterns shaped the current distribution of the gila monster in california. warm season precipitation data from recording stations closest to gila monster localities are almost identical for those in western arizona, where the species is more common. summer precipitation may be important in the foraging ecology of the species. gila monsters were probably already rare in california long before the arrival of europeans due to changes in climate and landforms that delimited the marginal location of california in the range of this species. fortunately, most of the habitat for this species in california is protected or relatively free from human disturbance. most gila monster (heloderma suspectum) habitat in california is protected or relatively free from human disturbance. m a r k s ew a r d seven of eight introduced species of anolis in florida, including a. distichus (illustrated here), were derived from multiple nativerange sources. k ev in e n g e n a t u r a l h i s t o r y r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s although cape spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura hemilopha) can move around to feed, they rarely do. w il li a m k a tz iguana b&w text k ei th b in n s 160 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 barrio-amorós and rivas-fuenmayor black iguanas (ctenosaura similis) range from southern mexico through central america to panama. the species was not known to occur in south america until now. other introduced populations are known from florida and the colombian islands of malpelo and san andres. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 160 ctenosaura similis is a large iguanid (see the excellent description in savage 2002) that ranges from southern mexico through central america to panama. the species is unknown in south america, but has been introduced in florida (krysko et al. 2003) and the colombian islands of malpelo and san andres (forero-medina et al. 2006). around 1998, eduard asens (pers. comm.) noticed large iguanids in the barcelona area. only two large lizards with distinctly different shapes, tupinambis teguixin and iguana iguana, are known from coastal venezuela. these lizards were identified from photographs as ctenosaura similis. because the area is a port, the assumption is that the species arrived with cargo shipped from central america. the area where the iguanas occur is heavily developed, and is centered around a storage and market center named lecherías along the road from barcelona to puerto la cruz in the state of anzoátegui, where they occur in gardens, parking lots, and parks, but the population has expanded into adjacent natural dry habitats. because only a few adult males have been seen, the sex ratio of this population appears to be female-biased, or perhaps composed largely of subadults. in the developed areas, they are quite tolerant of people. no specimens have been collected; consequently, the photographs presented herein are the only vouchers for the presence of c. similis in venezuela. ctenosaura similis is known to produce clutches of 12–88 (mean 43) eggs (fitch and henderson 1978). this species is mainly herbivorous but may feed opportunistically on invertebrates and small vertebrates such as lizards, birds, eggs, and mammals. on central american caribbean islands, c. similis is known to prey on beach-nesting birds and marine turtle hatchlings (krysko et al. 2003). if the venezuelan population expands to the east toward mochima national park or reaches the paria peninsula, it might pose a threat to nesting sea turtles (chelonia mydas and dermochelys coriacea). although presumably subject to the same predators as green iguanas in the region, the population appears to be reproducing effectively. a study investigating the extent and impact of c. similis in venezuela is necessary to identify the possible threat this species poses to native plants and animals. the venezuelan ministerio del ambiente, with the assistance of venezuelan and international herpetologists with expertise in invasive populations of iguanas, should address the situation before control measures are no longer possible. acknowledgments we thank eduard asens pagés, diego flores padrón, piero abbondanza, and jose alfredo iglesias for sharing data. gunther köhler identified the species based on photographs. references forero-medina, g., o.v. castaño-mora, and m. rodríguez-melo. 2006. ecología de caiman crocodylus fuscus en san andrés isla, colombia: un studio preliminar. caldasia 28:115–124. savage, j.m. 2002. the amphibians and reptiles of costa rica. a herpetofauna between two continents, between two seas. university of chicago press, chicago, illinois, usa. fitch, h.s. and r.w. henderson. 1978. ecology and exploitation of ctenosaura similis. university of kansas science bulletin 51: 483–500. krysko, k., f.w. king, k.m. enge, and a.t. reppas. 2003. distribution of the introduced black spiny-tailed iguana (ctenosaura similis) on the southwestern coast of florida. biological sciences 66:74–79. spiny-tailed iguanas (ctenosaura similis) in venezuela: a preliminary report césar luis barrio-amorós and gilson rivas-fuenmayor fundación andígena, apartado postal 210, 5101-a mérida, venezuela (cesarlba@yahoo.com) iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 161spiny-tailed iguanas � ctenosaurs in the barcelona area occur in heavily modified habitats such as gardens, parking lots, and parks, but the population has expanded into adjacent natural dry habitats. this is one of the few adult males observed. ed u a r d a se n s pa g és females are difficult to distinguish from subadult males. most individuals fall into one of these classes, suggesting that the barcelona population either is composed largely of adult females or is reproducing rapidly, and the rising cohort of young males has yet to fully mature. ed u a r d a se n s pa g és iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 161 iguana b&w text populations of the caspian seal (pusa caspica) have declined by 90% in the last 100 years due to unsustainable hunting and habitat degradation. see “conservation alert” on p. 220. newly hatched texas horned lizard (phrynosoma cornutum) on the face of a watch. see article on p. 204. k r is ta m o u g ey grenada treeboas (corallus grenadensis) remain abundant on many of the grenadine islands despite the fact that virtually all forested portions of the islands were cleared for agriculture during colonial times. this individual is from mayreau. see article on p. 198. m a r k d e si lv a w ik ip ed ia .o r g of the snakes that occur in the upper midwestern united states, bullsnakes (pituophis catenifer sayi) are arguably the most impressive in stature and may be rewarding subjects of research. see article on p. 190. jo sh u a m . k a pf er green iguanas (iguana iguana) are frequently edificarian on grand cayman. these abundant invasives often are confused with critically endangered endemic grand cayman blue iguanas (cyclura lewisi), complicating efforts to protect the latter. jo h n b in n s invasive knight anoles (anolis equestris) should be removed when encountered in the wild. see article on p. 212. k en n et h l . k r y sk o central netted dragons (ctenophorus nuchalis) from australia are popular in captivity due to their striking appearance and great temperament. see article on p. 226. iguana international reptile conservation foundation www.ircf.org volume 15, number 4 december 2008 known variously as peters’ forest dragon, doria’s anglehead lizard, or abbott’s anglehead lizard (depending on subspecies), gonocephalus doriae is known from southern thailand, western malaysia, and indonesia west of wallace’s line (a biogeographic division between islands associated with asia and those with plants and animals more closely related to those on australia). they live in remaining forested areas to elevations of 1,600 m (4,800 ft), where they spend most of their time high in trees near streams, either clinging to vertical trunks or sitting on the ends of thin branches. their conservation status has not been assessed. ccoonnsseerrvvaattiioonn,, nnaattuurraall hhiissttoorryy,, aanndd hhuussbbaannddrryy ooff rreeppttiilleess m ic h a el k er n sh a n n o n p lu m m er iguana b&w text 36 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 ashy geckos (sphaerodactylus elegans elegans), native to cuba and hispaniola, have been introduced in the florida keys. heagy and frank iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 37husbandry formerly considered a subfamily, sphaerodactylinae, of the cosmopolitan lizard family gekkonidae, these small and unique geckos, confined to the western hemisphere, have recently been elevated to familial level as the sphaerodactylidae, a clade distinct from all other geckos. in addition to sphaerodactylus, other genera in the family include aristelliger, coleodactylus, gonatodes, lepidoblepharis, and pseudogonatodes. four species have been recorded as part of the fauna of the united states. however, three and possibly all four of these are thought to have been introduced. little is known of the status of one species, the yellow-headed gecko (gonatodes albogularis), beyond the fact that populations were in apparent decline. further consideration of this possibly extirpated species is beyond the scope of this paper. the remaining three species are known collectively as “reef geckos,” and all are in the genus sphaerodactylus, the ashy reef gecko (s. elegans), the ocellated reef gecko (s. argus argus), and the florida reef gecko (s. notatus notatus), which is considered by some to be the only gecko native to florida. the beautiful coloration of the reef geckos is often cryptic and their behavior is both bizarre and fascinating. based on observations in the field, supplemented with information on captive maintenance gleaned from our own experience, we describe the husbandry of the three species known to occur in the florida keys. when compared with most lizards, those in the genus sphaerodactylus are true dwarves. the world’s smallest known land vertebrate is s. ariasae, found on beata island off the coast of hispaniola. adults of this species average only 16 mm in snout-vent length (svl). however, the majority of species are larger, with the “giant” of the genus, s, torrei from cuba and the bahamas, reaching a svl of 39 mm. however, their diminutive size should not discourage husbandry of these hardy and engaging geckos. they are easy to accommodate and are surprisingly robust. also, unlike many other geckos, many sphaerodactyls are h u s b a n d r y ashy geckos prefer moist areas, and can be found in leaf litter and other detritus, wood and rock piles, and under bark. reef geckos (sphaerodactylus notatus notatus) range from extreme southwestern mainland florida, through the florida keys, the dry tortugas, cuba, and the bahamas. they may be the only geckos native to the united states. the reef geckos of florida tom heagy1 and phillip frank2 1apple valley, minnesota 2field associate, california academy of sciences, san francisco photographs by phillip frank except where indicated. sphaerodactylus ariasae, from beata island off the southern tip of hispaniola, is the world’s smallest amniote (which includes reptiles, birds, and mammals, vertebrates with embryos surrounded by fluidfilled membranes). adults of this species average only 16 mm in snoutvent length. s. b la ir h ed g es active during the day. one major concern in keeping these species in captivity is aggressive behavior among individuals of the same sex. for the potential sphaerodactylus owner, we suggest that only groups of two should be kept together, as even females can become overtly aggressive toward each other, often resulting in the death of the subordinate animal. in their native habitats, sphaerodactyls are secretive. they typically are found in leaf litter, under old boards and trash piles, inside walls, and under rocks and logs, in fact, anywhere offering suitable cover, food, and security from predators. they can occur communally in high population densities, and communal egg laying has been observed. on some of the florida keys, all three species occur in sympatry. ashy geckos (sphaerodactylus elegans elegans) the ashy reef gecko was introduced into florida. the species is native to cuba and hispaniola, with the nominate subspecies (that in florida) endemic to cuba. this is the largest of the three species, with a maximum svl to 39 mm. ground color varies from golden tan to dark rusty brown in adults. the entire dorsum is covered by tiny whitish-cream to yellow spots, conjoining on the head and tail to form a worm-like pattern. males and females both exhibit similar patterns, but sexing can be accomplished by visual inspection of adults. males generally have welldeveloped preanal pores and hemipenial bulges. also, as with most sphaerodactyls, males exhibit a shiny, reflective patch of scales (“escutcheon patch”) just anterior to the vent where the two rows of preanal pores meet. by holding an animal in a clear glass container and examining the ventral area, individuals can be sexed without being harmed (or the eyes of the keeper being unduly strained). hatchlings and juveniles are strikingly colored. interspersed black and yellowish-tan bands on a purplish-gray head and a green body with a crimson tail and red legs make them one of the most beautiful geckos. as they grow, the colors diminish, with the banding fading into the adult pattern in just a few short months. these shy animals often are found near human habitation. they are diurnal and crepuscular. they prefer moist areas, and can be found in leaf litter and other detritus, wood and rock piles, and under bark. although predominately terrestrial, they are the most arboreal of the group and can be observed in search of food on fences, and high in trees under bark or on walls near lights at night. this is a hardy and adaptable species. a standard 2.5-gallon aquarium is suitable for a pair of these animals. keeping this species in larger groups is not recommended. the cage should be furnished with a 2-inch substrate composed of equal parts topsoil and sand. cover in the form of overturned plant crocks, bark, and rocks should be provided. loose, dry leaves offer additional security. live plants are useful for cover and to help maintain proper humidity levels. branches for climbing may be beneficial, and, if the back wall of the terrarium is covered with pieces of bark or similar material, this will increase the surface area of the terrarium and provide additional hiding places by more accurately simulating natural habitat. a water dish will rarely be used. the animals get plenty of water from daily sprayings of half of the terrarium, which should keep half of the terrarium substrate moist — but not wet. temperatures in the terrarium should range from 24–30 °c 38 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 heagy and frank sphaerodactyls are secretive. they typically are found in leaf litter, under old boards and trash piles, inside walls, and under rocks and logs, in fact, anywhere offering suitable cover, food, and security from predators. in the florida keys, they often are associated with humans and their debris. ground color on the ashy gecko varies from golden tan to dark rusty brown in adults. the entire dorsum is covered by tiny whitish-cream to yellow spots. iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 39husbandry (75–85 °f). a small, slightly warmer area should be provided to allow for proper thermoregulation, which helps encourage reproduction. lighting for the enclosure is not necessary; enough indirect light to allow the animals to differentiate the photoperiod is sufficient. if lighting is desirable, fluorescents and low-wattage spots should be considered. be careful to avoid overheating a small enclosure. as insectivores, geckos are best fed appropriately sized prey items such as small crickets, roaches, wax worms, fruit flies, isopods, house flies, and field sweepings. prey items should be dusted with calcium and/or vitamin supplements at every feeding. feed every other day, although breeding and gravid females may require daily feedings to maintain proper body weight. breeding this species is not problematic. instead of spraying once a day, regularly spray twice a day for a period of up to several weeks to ensure that at least half of the substrate stays moist. this is an important factor in initiating breeding activity. raising the average temperature in the terrarium also may help, as this further increases the lizards’ activity levels. after fertilization, a female will lay within 18–30 days. she can produce a single hard-shelled oblong egg every two weeks for over two months after the initial pairing. gravid females carry one very large egg easily seen through the ventral skin. eggs are usually deposited in a concealed area directly on the substrate, in crevices, or under other objects. they frequently deposit their eggs in the transition zone between the wet and dry areas in the terrarium. in situ incubation is possible, and young can be reared with the parents until sexual maturity. at that time the males will begin engaging in aggressive behavior toward one another. we prefer to remove the eggs for incubation on a dry substrate in a bottle cap or similar container placed in a cup filled with saturated perlite or vermiculite. the ambient humidity will provide all the moisture the eggs require, but direct contact with moisture can be fatal to the embryo. fruit-fly mesh lids are applied to prevent the tiny hatchlings from escaping while allowing proper ventilation. suitable temperatures for incubation are in the 25–30 °c (78–85 °f) range. the brightly colored young hatch in 50–85 days. young can be reared in jars, small terraria, or our preferred method, in 32-ounce deli cups outfitted with a fruit fly mesh lid. an inch or so of soil is placed in the bottom of the cup, with egg cartons torn and crumpled and set into stacks inside the cup to provide cover and access to both moist and dry areas. provide similar care as for the adults; however, young animals should be fed every day, with supplements used at every feeding. by 5–8 months of age, the young have lost their striking juvenile colors, and the males are now sexually identifiable. we suggest holding animals back from breeding until at least one year of age. these shy animals (sphaerodactylus elegans) often are found near or on human habitation. female ashy geckos usually deposit eggs in a concealed area directly on the substrate, in crevices, or under other objects. at 5–8 months of age, young ashy geckos lose their striking juvenile colors (left), but bands may remain apparent for a little longer. ocellated geckos (sphaerodactylus argus argus) this species has been introduced into the florida keys and is native to cuba and jamaica. ocellated geckos are a rare find in the florida keys, found only on two islands and just recently rediscovered after a 26-year hiatus between sightings! these diminutive geckos have a svl to 33 mm. ground color ranges from all shades of brown to olive, and, as the name suggests, tiny white ocelli occur above the shoulders and nape and on the head, collectively forming four broken stripes that start at the nose and fade about mid-body. the body has many single-scaled white spots. juveniles have a pattern similar to that of adults, but with an orange wash, which may persist into adulthood, predominately on the tail. adult patterning appears at about four months of age. mature males exhibit clearly defined preanal pores and hemipenial bulges. this is easily the most cryptic of our resident sphaerodactyls. these geckos are found in leaf litter and debris around buildings. they are more moisture-dependant than the other florida reef geckos, and prefer habitat with ready access to freshwater, such as gardens and mulched areas near buildings. a terrarium designed for these animals should incorporate all of the aspects listed for s. elegans elegans, but particular attention to adequate cover must be addressed. a thick substrate consisting of a 50–70% sand and black topsoil mixture is a preferred choice. leaf litter cover is a must. use dry, sanitized maple or oak leaves, and cover a majority of the cage floor, piling the leaves against the cage walls and objects to increase the number of hiding places. provision of a background of rock when dealing with these species seems beneficial, although they are primarily terrestrial. a structural focal point, such as a cork flat or overturned plant crock, is a necessity as well. the terrarium should be sprayed daily, enough to keep half of the floor substrate moist — but not wet. suitable temperature values are 27–30 °c (80–85 °f), with a small “hot spot” for thermoregulation. a temperature drop at night can be tolerated if it is less than 6 °c (~10 °f). these insectivorous lizards should be fed appropriately sized crickets, roaches, isopods, fire brats, wax worms, and fruit flies every other day. breeding or laying females should be offered food daily, as should hatchlings. dust prey items at every feeding with vitamin and/or mineral supplement. slightly raising ambient temperatures and increasing sprayings to twice a day is the tried-and-true method for inducing breeding. be careful not to over-saturate the terrarium substrate. the second spraying of the day is needed only to spike the relative humidity. eggs are incubated at temperatures of 25–30 °c (78–85 °f), with humidity levels of 60–90% appearing adequate. young will hatch in 40–70 days and thrive under similar conditions as the parents. house them in small terraria, jars, or large deli cups. feed daily with supplement-dusted prey items. reef geckos (sphaerodactylus notatus notatus) reef geckos range from extreme southwestern mainland florida, through the florida keys, north along the southeastern florida coast to fort lauderdale, and across the dry tortugas, cuba, and the bahamas. these small geckos attain a maximum svl of 34 mm. their most striking feature is the strongly keeled, overlapping scales, which are reminiscent of fish scales. the colors are deep earth tones, with the ground color generally a rich shade of brown. body and tail are covered in dark spots. this species exhibits sexual dimorphism, with females having three broad 40 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 heagy and frank upward-directed eyes, clearly evident in this ocellated gecko (sphaerodactylus argus argus), facilitate detection of predators from within leaf litter. ocellated geckos are native to cuba and jamaica but have become established in the florida keys. leaf-litter cover is a must for housing sphaerodactyls such as this ocellated gecko. use dry, sanitized maple or oak leaves to cover a majority of the cage floor. like most sphaerodactyls, ocellated geckos produce a single oblong egg. iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 41husbandry stripes on the head and a pair of white “eye” spots on the shoulders. males are essentially spotted all over, including the head. they possess hemipenial bulges and preanal pores. reef geckos are leaf-litter dwellers by preference, but also can be found in rock piles and under debris around human habitation. for captive maintenance, a 2.5-gallon terrarium is adequate for a pair of this species. a thick substrate should consist of black topsoil and sand in a 1:1 ratio. the terrarium should be planted with live plants, such as pothos, philodendron, or any other good ground cover. an overturned, broken crock or piece of cork bark should be provided for cover. scatter dried, sanitized maple or oak leaves over a majority of the terrarium floor. indirect lighting is sufficient, if proper temperatures can be maintained. the gradient inside the terrarium should be 24–30 °c (75–85 °f) during the day, with a drop of 2–3 °c (~5–6 °f) at night. animals should be misted at least once a day, with more than 50% of the terrarium floor kept moist — but not wet. a water dish is unnecessary as sphaerodactyls are strictly droplet drinkers, although it might serve to maintain proper humidity. reef geckos are insectivorous. feed appropriately sized fruit flies, crickets, roaches, wax worms, fire brats, and isopods every other day. breeding or laying females and hatchlings should be offered food daily. dust with a vitamin and/or mineral supplement at every feeding. as with the other sphaerodactyls, reproduction can be initiated with a slight temperature increase and by increasing the number of sprayings per day. be careful not to soak the substrate too much; if moisture levels are adequate, spray only enough to raise the relative humidity. a female will produce a single oblong egg about 14–21 days after impregnation, and will continue to produce 2–4 more every 14–28 days. eggs are generally laid directly on the surface, in a crack or fissure, or in curled leaves. be extremely careful when searching for them. eggs can be incubated in situ, but we recommend removal for incubation. incubation is the same as for s. elegans, except the young hatch in 45–60 days. newly hatched s. notatus are extremely large, often 25 mm in total length. house them separately in deli cups or small terraria under conditions like those of the adults. they begin to lose juvenile coloration at 3–4 months of age, with males beginning to develop noticeable preanal pores and hemipenial bulges at 5 months. they are sexually mature by 8–10 months under captive conditions, but we suggest holding animals back until 12 months of age for breeding purposes. summary the small size and undemanding nature of these animals, coupled with an inherent hardiness, wide array of behaviors, and attractive appearance make them worthy of attention. whether you’re a serious herpetoculturist or an inexperienced hobbyist, they are well suited for those with limited time and space availability, and are very economical as well. they require very little lighting or heating. the only regular investment for keeping these animals healthy is a reliable supply of small insects. additionally, they are prolific under captive conditions, making them a fun and educational terrarium subject. furthermore, the frustration of acquiring these animals is coming to an end. groups of dedicated hobbyists and researchers are working to ensure a solid understanding of husbandry needs and an ability to provide a captive-bred supply of these animals. as more hobbyists learn about their husbandry and ease of care, reef geckos will soon become commonly available species. acknowledgments special thanks to yuri huta and jay sommers for breeding information and photographs. references henkel, f.w. and w. schmidt. 1995. geckoes: biology, husbandry, and reproduction. krieger publishing co., malabar, florida. henkel, f.w. and w. schmidt. 2003. professional breeders series: geckos – all species in one book. edition chimaira, frankfurt am main, germany. krysko, k.l. and k.j. daniels. 2005. a key to the geckos (sauria: gekkonidae) of florida. caribbean journal of science 41:28–36. meshaka, w.e., jr., b.p. butterfield, and j.b. hauge. 2004. exotic amphibians and reptiles of florida. krieger publishing co., malabar, florida. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. reef geckos (sphaerodactylus notatus notatus) exhibit sexual dimorphism, with females (right) having three broad stripes on the head and a pair of white “eye” spots on the shoulders. males (left) are essentially spotted all over, including the head. reef geckos are leaf-litter dwellers by preference, and dried, sanitized maple or oak leaves should cover the majority of the terrarium floor. iguana b&w text sonoran mountain kingsnake (lampropeltis pyromelana) f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n the sonoran mountain kingsnake (lampropeltis pyromelana) inhabits rocky montane habitats from 850 m to almost 2800 m (2800–9100 ft) in the western united states and adjacent regions in mexico. in nevada, the documented distribution of the species is limited to isolated populations in mountain ranges along the state’s eastern border. however, due to the remoteness of this area and the secretive habits and low densities of the species, the distribution of the sonoran mountain kingsnake is unknown. data on distribution, population trends, and genetics of nevada populations are needed to properly manage the species. sonoran mountain kingsnakes are protected in nevada and also are listed as a “species of conservation priority” in the state’s wildlife action plan (www.ndow.org). the nevada department of wildlife and great basin national park have formed a partnership to conduct surveys to determine the species’ distribution, abundance, and habitat preferences. genetic samples are collected for comparisons with other populations to determine what relationships exist between nevada kingsnakes and the closest metapopulations. the results of these surveys and genetic analyses will aid greatly in the management of this protected reptile. in addition to the local conservation efforts, the southwest chapter of partners in amphibian and reptile conservation (parc) is addressing the conservation of the sonoran mountain kingsnake on a regional — or range-wide — level. partners from a wide range of organizations representing management, education, research, non-governmental and not-for-profit organizations, native american tribes, the pet trade, zoos, and hobbyists are working together to identify and implement the conservation needs of this species throughout its range. polly conrad, nevada department of wildlife, las vegas nv 89108 bryan hamilton, great basin national park, baker nv 89311 p o ll y c o n r a d p o ll y c o n r a d iguana 14.3 b&w text 7/28/07 9:58 pm page 212 iguana b&w text heat-loving dominican ground lizards (ameiva fuscuta) are often abundant in forested areas. this adult male takes advantage of a patch of sun to bask. r o b er t po w el l the andros island iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura) has been the focus of conservation and educational efforts. see isg reports on p. 228. the andros island iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura) has been the focus of conservation and educational efforts. see isg reports on p. 228. jo e b u r g es s iguana b&w text editors robert powell executive editor avila university, kansas city, mo aj gutman editor west hartford, ct gad perry associate editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx kaela e. champlin assistant editor texas tech university, lubbock, tx michael ripca art director atco, nj john binns graphics/photography international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca sandy binns services coordinator international reptile conservation foundation, san jose, ca editorial board allison c. alberts zoological society of san diego frederic j. burton blue iguana recovery program arthur c. echternacht university of tennessee l. lee grismer la sierra university robert w. henderson milwaukee public museum john b. iverson earlham college charles r. knapp zoological society of san diego gunther köhler senckenberg museum kenneth l. krysko florida state museum of natural history jan ramer indianapolis zoo thomas wiewandt wild horizons statement of purpose the international reptile conservation foundation works to conserve reptiles and the natural habitats and ecosystems that support them. the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. is a non-profit 501 c(3) california corporation. membership information iguana, the journal of the international reptile conservation foundation, is distributed quarterly. annual rates: individual u.s. membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 individual membership, digital (adobe pdf)* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $25.00 institutional u.s. subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $30.00 international membership (including canada) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $55.00 international institutional subscription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $60.00 additional copies are available upon request at $6.00 each plus postage. *the adobe pdf is optimized for web publishing and does not provide the quality and resolution of the archival printed version, especially noticeable in photographs and complex graphics. www.ircf.org join online at: www.ircf.org membership questions? email: info@ircf.org, or contact aj at 860-236-8203, or write to: ircf, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135 solicitations the ircf encourages contribution of articles, letters to the editor, news items, and announcements for publication in iguana. general articles can deal with any aspect of reptilian biology, including conservation, behavior, ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. submission of photographs to accompany articles is encouraged. manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to aj@ircf.org). authors of one page or more of print will receive a free copy of the journal in which their contribution appears, and will receive a pdf file of their article for distribution. donations for any donations, please include your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. advertising policy we advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). for advertising rates and options contact sandy binns, advertising director, at sb@ircf.org or 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca 95135. copyright © 2008 by the international reptile conservation foundation, inc. all rights reserved. no part of this journal may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without the publisher’s written permission. iguana, conservation, natural history, and husbandry of reptiles (issn 1098-6324) is published quarterly by the international reptile conservation foundation, a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, 3010 magnum drive, san jose, ca. periodical postage paid at san jose, ca. editors’ remarks if you have read “ircf on the move” (p. 61), you know that exo terra has become a general sponsor of the ircf. you also know that the first concrete expression of that sponsorship will be a full-color “centerfold” in iguana beginning with the june issue (we used a centerfold once previously, in iguana 14(1) to highlight the conservation of gharials). we hope that this new feature will be but a first step toward the use of more color in future issues. we believe color is important, not for its own sake (although we enjoy pretty pictures as much as the next person), but because we hope that it will serve to attract more readers, which in turn will provide more funds for conservation. again, if you haven’t already, look at “ircf on the move” for mention of the many conservation efforts currently supported by the ircf. the editors of iguana erratum: some of the photographs used in ali reza (travelogue: destination bangladesh: from the himalayas to the bay of bengal. iguana 14(2): 106–114) should have been attributed to stephen mahoney rather than the author. the following images were not credited properly: tokay gecko (p. 108), sal forest and reeve’s ground skink (p. 109), sticky frog (top), asian ranid and berdmore’s narrow-mouthed frog (p. 110), bowring’s supple skink and spotted litter skink (p. 111), and tawney cat snake and bronze grass skink (p. 112). ircf international reptile conservation foundation iguana b&w text one hundred million votes transmitted over cell phones and the internet have chosen seven new wonders of the world. like the seven old wonders, they honor ancient architectures, each magnificent in its art: the great wall of china; petra, the pink ruins of a jordanian city; mexico’s chichen itza, the ruins of a mayan city; peru’s machu picchu, the remains of an incan city; rome’s colosseum; india’s taj mahal; and the statue of christ blessing rio de janeiro. but is the measure of a world wonder more than ancient bricks and mortar? in the end, built things are ephemeral. they demand a pilgrimage to a place. perhaps more wondrous is the pilgrimage to an idea, one that endures, sustains, and is embodied in our sense of place. first, for me, among world wonders is the biosphere, the earth as a breathing, pulsing planet. it alone in our solar system has a wealth of plants, animals, and microbes, some 15 million species, that provide our food, fuel, fiber, and pharmaceuticals; that clean our air, water, and soil; that buffer against drought and floods; that make the planet blue, looking down from space or up from earth. the life of the planet is priceless and irreplaceable. second is our place in the universe. the discoveries of galileo, copernicus, darwin, and einstein freed humans from being at the center of all things. indeed, there is no center of all things. the earth is not at the center of the solar system. it is in a galaxy that is hurtling away from all other galaxies. humans are not the center of creation. our biological origins, more than 3 billion years in the making, are shared genetically and geologically with all of life on earth. relativity theory tells us that gravity defines the shape of space and time. without earth’s mass, which induces gravity, space and time have no meaning. this sounds like magic and, in a way, it is. if humans are special, it is because we can discover this magic about the universe and our place in it. third is freedom of expression. in architecture, art, prose, poetry, song, symphony, dance, science, and speech, lives the freedom of the mind to think and create across the human registers. from monet’s “water lilies” to serrano’s “piss christ,” from beethoven’s fifth to gangsta rap, from machu picchu to rio’s shanty town, human expression is free to be structured or unstructured, to engender beauty or revulsion, inquiry or apathy. fourth is freedom of communication. what made humans human is our ability to gather information, manage it, store it, make it into knowledge, and tell it to everyone else. the information age did not begin in the 1990s. it began four million years ago, ever since we sensed our environments, natural and cultural, and passed on what we learned through stories, rock carvings, print, and now the internet. the web is today’s ultimate democratization of knowledge, communicating what we think and what we think we know. fifth is freedom of equality under the law. neither nature nor nurture can take credit for “all men are created equal,” but the law can. in fact, nature guarantees an inequality of genes among individual humans — it’s why six billion people on earth are each different from one another. 256 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 krishtalka c o m m e n t a r i e s six wonders are enough1 leonard krishtalka biodiversity institute at kansas university, lawrence, kansas rome’s colosseum was chosen as one of the seven new wonders of the world. unlike structures of bricks and mortar, the biosphere alone in our solar system has a wealth of plants, animals, and microbes, some 15 million species, that provide our food, fuel, fiber, and pharmaceuticals; that clean our air, water and soil; that buffer against drought and floods; that make the planet blue, looking down from space or up from earth. the life of the planet is priceless and irreplaceable. 1 originally published in the lawrence (kansas) journal-world & news on 19 july 2007. nurture guarantees an inequality of “memes,” the cultural and social attributes people learn from other people, beginning with their parents. the law, imperfect as it might be in practice, levels nature and nurture for rich or poor, tall or short, white or black or any color, educated or not. sixth is the mayan calendar. a year should be elegant. but with 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, 46 seconds, it’s mathematically deranged. same for months. some have 30 days, some 31, and one has 28 when it doesn’t have 29. a 7-day week isn’t celestially special either. it makes for 52.1428 weeks in a solar year and 50.571 weeks in a lunar year. lunacy. our calendar is out of kilter because the earth’s orbit of the sun (a year), the moon’s orbit of earth (a month), and the earth’s rotation (a day) are badly out of sync. the solution is an ancient wonder of the world, the mayan calendar. it has 60 six-day weeks for an even 360 days in the year. that leaves an untidy 5 days and change in the solar year after week 60, which, if i were in charge, would be the only period allowed for electioneering. there is no seventh wonder. frankly, we need to be freed from the number seven. seven has become the cardinal sum of our species, the most resonant number on earth. it is consecrated biblically: seven days of creation, seven years of plenty, seven lean years, seven deadly sins, seven sacraments. geography wanders the seven seas and the seven hills of rome. history recounts the seven years war, the seven-day war, and the “seven against thebes.” and the media gives us “seven samurai,” “the magnificent seven,” and “the seven year itch.” even the human head rests atop seven neck vertebrae. six wonders of the world are enough. we have recently returned from a herpetological society meeting in st louis. this is an annual event that we highly recommend to anyone who has not experienced it yet. for a week or so, hundreds of herpetologists from around the world meet, talk, eat, and party. for a week, one is surrounded by enthusiastic people who share a similar passion and can tell tales of places you haven’t been and species you have not seen. three such major events will be held in the americas in 2008: the latin american herpetological congress will be held in cuba, the north american joint meetings will be in montreal, and the world congress of herpetology will meet in manaus, brazil. one of the often-discussed issues was the status of higher education. many of the attendees are students or faculty at public universities, and this is an issue about which they care deeply. a common complaint in recent years has been the ongoing privatization of american public education. according to florida international university, per-student funding was 16% lower in 2003 than it was four years earlier. the percent of total public university revenues provided by state governments, according to the national center for education statistics, declined from over 45% in 1980–81 to about 36% in 2000–01. in 2003, an alarmed wall street journal reported that state aid accounted for the discoveries of galileo (pictured), copernicus, darwin, and einstein freed humans from being at the center of all things. the ongoing privatization of public universities gad perry, texas tech university steve mackessy, university of northern colorado jack sites, brigham young university neil ford, university of texas at tyler iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 257commentaries iguana b&w text exo terra supports the protection of threatened reptiles and their habitats by becoming a general sponsor of the international reptile conservation foundation exo terra, a global market leader in terrarium products, has become a strategic sponsor of the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf). “exo terra is committed to conservation and, after a long search, we felt that the ircf was by far the conservation organization most closely aligned with our goals,” says emmanuel van heygen, lead product developer of exo terra. “our products tend toward more realistic and naturalistic terrarium designs, but nothing can replace the amazing beauty of the natural world. we all need to do our part to help preserve it.” “exo terra’s investment in the ircf will help the ircf by reaching out to a larger community of supporters and in turn expanding our ability to help species and habitats in need,” says michael kern, ircf chief operating officer. “corporate investment is a strategic component of how the ircf operates, and we are happy to see exo terra join us in our cause.” as a general sponsor, exo terra will make a cash donation to the ircf that will be used to enhance iguana, the quarterly journal distributed to all ircf members. specifically, the journal will incorporate a four-page color spread sponsored by exo terra. “the more color in the journal, the larger the audience we can reach. since most of our money is raised through memberships, the more members we can attract, the more money we can raise, the more ecosystems we can help protect,” says sandy binns, ircf chief financial officer. additionally, exo terra and its parent company, hagen inc., will look for opportunities to use its market-leading presence in the reptile and pet communities to increase awareness of the ircf and the conservation needs of reptiles and amphibians around the world. says rolf hagen, president and ceo of rolf c. hagen, inc.: “we believe we can help the ircf get its conservation message out to a broader audience. whether through web-site linkage, trade show presence, or strategic product labeling, we believe this relationship creates great opportunities for exo terra and the ircf, and, most importantly, supports the fragile reptile-rich ecosystems of the world.” “we are happy to have exo terra as a sponsoring partner of the ircf,” says john binns, ircf founder and ceo. “exo terra is truly an innovative company with market-leading products and a unique philosophy of aligning its market activities to the natural world.” the june 2008 issue of iguana will be the first to incorporate the exo terra-sponsored color enhancements. about the ircf the principal aim of the ircf is to support conservation and research programs that contribute to the survival of threatened reptiles and their habitats. ircf support may include fundraising, land acquisition, logistical support, communications and promotion of species awareness, publications, and volunteer coordination. programs supported to date include project heloderma (guatemala), blue iguana recovery program (grand cayman), project palearis (guatemala), gharial multi task force (india), argentine sand dune lizard, fijian crested iguana, chinese alligator fund, jamaican iguana recovery, an iif-supported program, anegada iguana recovery program (british virgin islands), ricord’s iguana (dominican republic), conservation project utila iguana (honduras), turtle survival alliance, rhinoceros iguana (dominican republic), and the turks and caicos iguana relocation program. the ircf is a 501 (c)(3) not-for-profit organization. about exo terra exo terra, a global leader in terrarium products, is a brand division of rolf c. hagen inc. exo terra’s product line caters to almost any species of reptile or amphibian from almost any specialized habitat. thanks to exo terra’s natural approach, the terrarium hobby has evolved tremendously over the past few years. all exo terra products and components have been designed to work together, helping hobbyists create and establish a harmonized natural-looking microhabitat. about rolf c. hagen inc. rolf c. hagen inc. has its international headquarters in montreal, quebec, canada and has wholly owned subsidiaries in the united states, england, france, germany, and malaysia. the company has joint ventures in spain, japan, korea, thailand, and south africa, and additional long-standing partnership agreements in mexico, italy, australia, russia, poland, czech republic, portugal, and new zealand. rolf c. hagen inc.’s distribution capacity spans the globe to provide the very best in pet supplies. � critical conservation foothold established in guatemala’s motagua valley surrounded by the sierra de las minas, guatemala’s motagua valley receives the least rainfall in all of central america. the lack of moisture is responsible for one of the world’s unique ecosystems. with its distinctive thornscrub and semi-arid forest zones, this area is home to many indigenous plants and animals. unfortunately, it is also under intense pressure from human development, and has been identified as critically endangered by the world wildlife federation. until now, the region has had no conservation protection and much of the area has already been converted into farmor ranchland. in december 2007, a consortium of zootropic, zoo atlanta, and the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf) purchased a tract of land known to be the home of two of the most critically endangered endemic reptilian species: the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) and the guatemalan black i r c f o n t h e m o v e iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 61ircf on the move 62 iguana • volume 15, number 1 • march 2008 ircf on the move iguana (ctenosaura palearis). this land deal is intended to provide a strategic foothold for the protection of this unique region’s flora and fauna. leading to this point and working under the moniker of “project heloderma,” the three partners, zootropic, zoo atlanta, and the ircf initially focused their conservation efforts on the guatemalan beaded lizard. conservation synergies were soon identified with the guatemalan black iguana. the combined emphasis continues today through the efforts to conserve both species and the habitat in which they live. initial conservation activities were directed toward the education of the local population, who had regarded the lizards as either dangerous, a food source, or an opportunity to engage in illegal trade in exotic animals. concurrently, fundraising efforts were initiated, and the species studied in order to establish an effective conservation and educational program. early in 2007, the project team identified a critical piece of property. the owner, sympathetic to the conservation cause and project heloderma, came to terms and a land deal for 139 acres was consummated in december of that year. although considerable work has already been invested, the land purchase isn’t an end in itself. for project heloderma, it is simply the end of the beginning — for now, real conservation work can begin: the establishment of protected areas for the animals, building of a breeding facility to help reestablish the diminished populations of these species, and an education/research center to facilitate both ongoing research into the species and the education of the local human population regarding the benefits and importance of these creatures and the land in which they live. ideally, protection of these species will require more land, so fundraising and the search for additional strategic parcels continues. in time, project heloderma believes that the motagua valley can become an important eco-destination, one that serves to build additional support for the species and provide economic benefits to the region, together encouraging a path of conservation instead of exploitation. set against the diverse color, customs, and culture of the region, this ideal is clearly attainable. in december 2007, project heloderma acquired critical habitat for the conservation of the guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti) and the guatemalan black iguana (ctenosaura palearis). from left: daniel ariano, zootropic, luis alvarado, zootropic, brad lock, zoo atlanta, mr. paiz, previous landowner, rodrigo botran, zootropic, and john binns, ircf. m ic h a el k er n the subtropical dry forests of the motagua valley provide habitat for critically endangered guatemalan beaded lizards (heloderma horridum charlesbogerti; right) and guatemalan black iguanas (ctenosaura palearis; not illustrated). m ic h a el k er n m ic h a el k er n iguana b&w text while walking over a dry mesa, yesterday, i noticed a small snake slowly crawling to the shelter of a mesquit bush. on capturing it, i found it to be of a very dark olive-green color, in large, square pattern, the lines between the plaids being of lighter green; underneath, white, with very dark-green blotches. its head was very dark green, and rather small; it had small fangs. the length of the snake was nineteen inches. noticing that the body seemed much distended, i opened it, and found, nicely packed away inside, the body of an ordinary, brown, striped “grass snake,” as we call them here, twenty-two inches long. this green snake may be a new species of snake-eating serpent. the grass snake is very swift, and i am puzzled to know how the green snake caught it; it was swallowed head-first. 170 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 historical perspectives h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e s snake eats snake1 c.w. kempton oro blanco, arizona apropos of the interesting notes on snakes, lately published in your columns, i would like to relate the following:— i think it was about the middle of last june that our little boy, who is interested in collecting various natural history objects, brought home a full-grown water-snake. he procured a box of generous dimensions, one whole side of which he covered with wire-screen, such as is used in windows. a small slide was made in the top of the box, so that the porcelain tray (such as photographers use for developing trays), which he placed within, could be kept filled with water, and also for the introduction of food. this box was thenceforward “the snake den,” and here the snake passed the remainder of its existence. a small frog, several grasshoppers, and various insects were dropped through the opening in the top of the box from time to time, but we are not sure whether the snake ever deigned to taste a morsel during her entire captivity; certain it is, however, that if she did finally taste the frog, she did not find it a very appetizing meal, for the little frog hopped about in the box for days and days without any food itself. it was just as apt to rest upon the body of the snake as anywhere else, each seemingly indifferent to the presence of the other. the grasshoppers also were entirely ignored. the snake was left in the box, in the back-yard, during the months of july and august, with no care whatever, we being absent during that time, and the little boy who had agreed to look after it having deserted it. what was our surprise, after our return early in september, to find one day that mrs. snake had giv[en] birth to thirteen little ones. such a little, writhing, squirming, snaky mass! the little snakes were about five inches long, and soon became quite active. in the course of a few weeks they were much more ready to take their own part than their mother seemed to be. she had probably learned by experience that it was of little or no avail to “fight back,” and contented herself with running out her forked tongue when irritated, and then trying to creep out of harm’s way. the little ones, on the contrary, would crawl up the screen as far as possible, and when pushed off, with a straw or wire introduced through the screen, they would at once crawl up again, run out their little tongues, and show all the rashness of youth. wondering how far the maternal instincts were developed in the mother snake, whether she would try to defend or protect them, the young snakes were frequently irritated, in order to arouse, if possible, her defensive propensities; it was all to no purpose; she seemed a heartless mother, ignoring wholly that her offspring were in danger. a long wire was often thrust into the box, and under a little snake, which could thus be dangled before the old snake in a most irritating manner. but, whether from fear on her own part, or utter indifference to the welfare of her young, she paid no attention whatever to the provocation. the mother snake lived until the middle of october, when she succumbed to the white frosts of autumn. a few weeks later two of the young snakes fell asleep; one of them was given to a little schoolmate, who put it in his pocket and took it to school, when, 1o! and behold! the warmth from his body resuscitated it, and the “bad boy” played with it in school. to the teacher’s question as to what he had, he replied, “a shoestring!” learning thus that possibly the remaining little snakes might sleep (hibernate) through the winter, soil, small stones, dead leaves, etc., were placed in the box, and they crept away out snake story2 mrs. w.a. kellerman columbus, ohio 2 originally published in science, vol. 21, no. 520 (20 january 1893), pp. 36–37. 1 originally published in science, vol. 20, no. 498 (19 august 1892), p. 107. iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 170 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 171historical perspectives of sight. whether they are dead, or only sleeping, we do not know. they lived, however, some seven or eight weeks, were active, seemed well and happy and, as far as we know, never ate a mouthful of anything during the entire time. i neglected to mention that the old snake shed her skin once during her captivity, unfortunately, it was during our absence, and we did not witness the operation. it certainly seems strange that, with so much fasting, they none of them should look thin and poor, but should apparently grow and increase when having consumed nothing. apparent cannibalism in puerto rican racers (alsophis portoricensis). this snake (top) died in an effort to cannibalize another individual and this apparent effort to kill and consume another snake ended with humans “rescuing” the intended victim (bottom). a pr il b a te s g a d p er r y editor’s comments: three snake stories those of us living in the age of the internet often forget how fast and far science has come. the journal science is published by the american association for the advancement of science and was established in 1848. the journal has come out weekly since 1880, leaving a record of what was considered noteworthy for the past 130 years. among other topics, the current issue (vol. 320, no. 5877) discussed climate change, quantum dots, nanotubes, and dna extracted from fossilized feces left by pre-clovis humans — none of which would have made sense to the original authors and readers of the journal. organismal biology has been featured in science throughout its existence. here we feature three short pieces that discussed snake biology. the oldest and shortest, from 1892, described a snake found in the stomach of another snake. the descriptions of the animals are so vague that we have been unable to determine what species are described. we know a lot more about snake diets today, yet notes such as this still appear and convey new information. for example, a report due to be published soon in herpetological review describes, for the first time, cannibalism in alsophis portoricensis. although the lack of specific information would make the kempton piece unacceptable in any journal today, we still need good natural history observations. the second piece, published a year later, also is anecdotal: the author’s son got a snake, which gave birth. the author, clearly a layperson, was astounded by how long it took the poor animals to die in the absence of food, and how lacking in maternal instincts the mother was in the face of continued harassment of her offspring. today, none of this would be news. at the time, it was deemed worthy of publication. the final piece, now just over 100 years old, is the only one penned by a scientist, albeit a geologist. clinton hart merriam, named in the article, was one of the giants of natural history during his lifetime (1855–1942). although his focus was on birds and mammals, his many contributions are still recognized in scientific names such as the canyon lizard (sceloporus merriami), found in texas and mexico. the other professional mentioned, leonhard hess stejneger, was curator of herpetology and later the head curator for biology at the smithsonian. in the late 1800s, another herpetological giant, edward drinker cope, described in his honor zamenis stejnegerianus (now included in coluber constrictor, the black racer) and eleutherodactylus stejnegerianus, stejneger’s rain frog, a name still recognized today. gad perry iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 171 iguana b&w text 228 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports the mona iguana (cyclura cornuta stejnegeri) is characterized by low density compared to c. c. cornuta on hispaniola and other species of cyclura, and by an age pyramid strongly biased toward large individuals, which indicates low levels of juvenile recruitment into the breeding population. jo e b u r g es s iguana specialist group meeting 10–12 november 2006 lajas, puerto rico iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2292006 isg meeting reports � participants in the 2006 isg meeting (left to right, standing): hugh and sandra buckner, ivan and katarina rehak, tarren wagener, samantha addinall, allison alberts, fred burton, lee pagni, rex mcaliley, karen graham, jan ramer, stephan funk, john kunna, larry buckley, stesha pasachnik, bill modi, rick hudson, john kinkaid, victor reynoso, ernst rupp, (sitting): alberto puente, georgina kenyon, john bendon, alberto álvarez, chuck knapp, candee ellsworth, tandora grant, catherine stephen, byron wilson, joe burgess, miguel garcía, bonnie raphael, gustavo olivieri, john iverson, kirsten hines, and glenn gerber. not pictured: néstor pérez and peter tolson. to m á s w a ll er 230 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports this large male grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) in the qeii botanic park is testament to the progress achieved by the blue iguana recovery program (birp). jo h n b in n s this grand cayman blue iguana (cyclura lewisi) bears beads that permit individual identification after release in the salina. jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2312006 isg meeting reports blue iguana recovery program update fred burton national trust for the cayman islands salina reserve releases.—shortly after last year’s isg meeting, the blue iguana recovery program (birp) geared up to release 68 two-year-old blues (cyclura lewisi) into the salina reserve, adding to the 25 that were released in late 2004. this involved manufacturing 68 release retreats, which were built locally by the rotary club of grand cayman central. bolstered by local volunteers, the birp then had them airlifted by helicopter into two central points in the north and central release zones. craig pelke (milwaukee county zoo) then joined the team to distribute the retreats to their final locations, which required an extension of the existing trail system. the 68 two-year-old iguanas designated for release were health screened by dr. paul calle and kate mcklave (wcs, bronx). jessica hite (university of tennessee) assisted with the release, and continued to accurately map the locations of all the release retreats by averaging multiple gps readings. all 68 iguanas were free in the salina reserve by the end of december 2005, along with four more that were released to the qeii botanic park. the following may through july, we recaptured as many of the 2004 and 2005 releases as possible to assess their growth. we recaptured or at least observed 84% of the 2004 release, and 50% of the 2005 release. this should not be regarded as evidence of lower survival rate for the second group, but rather that the population is now so large that we should not expect to see and catch them all in the time frame of our summer field season. also, the younger animals were more cryptic in the presence of older individuals. we are moving past the point where total population censuses are realistic, and we will need to shift to sampling techniques for ongoing population monitoring. in 2006, we observed three of the 2004-release females nesting, and at least one had hatchlings emerge successfully. this is the first documented breeding in the salina reserve since the restoration began. so far, we’ve seen little evidence of rats in the salina, but fresh cat scat was found at one location and one feral cat was trapped. to date, we have never seen dogs in the release zone, and we probably won’t, as long as the trail access is not improved too much. chuck knapp and jeff lemm (san diego zoo) created a trail to the southernmost soil zone in the salina reserve, expanding the area available for future releases. immediately following the 2006 isg meeting, team blue 2006 volunteers will be arriving and gearing up to release 114 more blues to the salina. this time, we plan to release some yearlings as well as two-year olds, with the aim of comparing survival rates by analyzing recapture or census data over a number of years. genetically speaking, we won’t want to release anything like this number in coming years — the focus now needs to switch to breeding under-represented genetic lines and making sure we have at least 20 different founders well represented in the released population. we still haven’t completed data entry and analysis of the summer tracking data. this, and perhaps one more summer’s work, should be enough to allow us to quantify the carrying capacity of the salina reserve for blue iguanas with a reasonable degree of confidence. qeii botanic park hatchlings.—the population release in the qeiibp has been on a much smaller scale than the population restoration in the salina, but it has been the engine for headstarting large numbers of hatchlings for release. since enough genetic representation from the qeiibp is present in the salina reserve now, eggs were left in the ground to hatch naturally this year. seven nests were corralled in september and two hatched by early november. those hatchlings were pitand bead-tagged along with a number of others from uncorralled nests that were found running around in the park. over the following weeks, we caught and scanned 29 alsophis cantherigerus snakes, but didn’t pick up any hatchling pit-tag signals. we managed to monitor several hatchlings for fairly long periods without using radiotransmitters. they all spent most of the time high in trees, and showed no interest in the hatchling retreats we so carefully prepared for them. dog predation.—at the height of the nesting season, two wild dogs (abandoned after the hurricane?), entered the park and killed adult free-roaming blue iguanas known as “slugger” and “sapphire,” and also maimed the nesting female “yellow blue.” this is a harsh reminder that we still haven’t solved the problems that led to the decline of this species in the first place. captive facility.—last year, mike fouraker and colleagues from the fort worth zoo built a storage and food preparation shed, battling extraordinarily wet and windy weather to meet an improbable deadline. with funding from the dart foundation, we have subdivided the original large wwf pen into four, effectively gaining three new pens. we still need to build more, as our young potential founders mature and grow, and the emphasis switches from needing juvenile cages to large pens for spacehungry adults. we’ve secured the captive facility with a fence, both for security and to control tours for income. we are also starting conceptual plans for a visitor center and research center at the facility. as a result of this december’s release, the stock of captives will drop considerably, and we are not recruiting nearly as many hatchlings to the captive facility since we need to focus now on different genetic lines. we hope to focus more resources on quality of care, since the program will not be quite so overwhelmed with quantity. resources.—major donor channels were the international reptile conservation foundation (27%), durrell wildlife conservation trust (24%), and local corporate sponsors (18%). the national trust for the cayman islands (birp’s parent organization) assisted with warden salaries for several months. sales and general donations comprised 12% of the budget, and a small grant from the international iguana foundation contributed a further 6%. matching that, we have been making very heavy use of local and international volunteers. the local press has been giving us extensive coverage, ircf is keeping the news current on our web site, and internationally we’ve broken into some big name publications: new scientist, bbc wildlife, and the bbc news website. on christmas day, the travel channel will air a story on our blue iguana safari tour. ircf continues to help us with merchandise. bobbleheads were this year’s hot item. also, we are very close now to being able to offer blue iguana sponsorships online. tours are beginning to generate a little income, with potential to make a lot 232 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports more. the fcca conference in grand cayman gave us an opportunity to bid for business with all the major cruise operators, and we already have seasonally good business from several hotels. protected areas.—the birp, the national trust for the cayman islands, and the cayman islands department of environment are still working on the key issue of securing more protected land. we are currently investigating two parcels, both of which include some areas of crown land. pending a key meeting with government ministers, which we are trying to schedule, we may be launching a major local and international bid for land purchase funds over the next two years. iguana iguana on grand cayman.—iguana iguana continues to spread as an invasive species on grand cayman, where it is developing a reputation as a pest. thankfully, it has not yet reached the sister isles. local government is paralyzed in any kind of response, because local legislation is out-of-date and fails to distinguish between species of iguanas. pending passage of a draft national conservation law, green iguanas and blue iguanas have the same legal status. cyclura nubila caymanensis.—on the sister isles (cayman brac and little cayman), many years have now passed since glenn gerber completed a year-long study. that work remains unpublished, and we are long overdue for an updated population and status assessment. durrell wildlife is considering funding for matt goetz to survey the region in 2007 or 2008. notes on the distribution of cyclura ricordii and problems facing the species ernst rupp, sixto incháustegui, and yvonne arias grupo jaragua ricord’s iguana (cyclura ricordii) is endemic to hispaniola. its population is divided into two isolated ranges in the southwestern dominican republic. on the barahona peninsula, the species has been dislodged from its historic natural habitat, which consists of flat alluvial plains around the town of pedernales. it survives in the surrounding marine terraces, where it depends on depressions filled with soil (“fondos”) for reproduction. four fondos have been monitored over the last three years for nesting results. a municipal protected area has been created to protect the remnant habitat occupied by the species. in the neyba valley, the species is still found in its historically known range, which consists of isla cabritos and the southern shore of lago enriquillo. while isla cabritos is within the enriquillo national park, the southern shore of the lake does not have any legal protection. habitat alteration by charcoal production and hunting are threatening the species in this area. in spite of these problems, evidence exists of ongoing recruitment of hatchlings into the extant population, and reproduction does not seem to be limited by ground conditions. high concentragrand cayman blue iguana bobbleheads supplied by the ircf were this year’s hot merchandizing item supporting the blue iguana recovery program. jo h n b in n s only a portion of the range of critically endangered ricord’s iguanas (cyclura ricordii) is protected. ja n r a m er iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2332006 isg meeting reports tions of ricord’s iguana dens can be found in dry creek beds. the rare natural occurrence of flooding may represent a real threat to the animals living in these creeks. a small population of c. ricordii has been spotted in a marine terrace near the town of anse-a-pitres, haiti. this is the first report of the species in this country. the population is threatened by extreme habitat alteration due to charcoal production as well as hunting. despite intensive searching during the nesting season, no nests were found and recruitment may be a severe problem for the species in this area. turks and caicos iguana, 2006 update glenn gerber, lee pagni, and allison alberts zoological society of san diego in march 2006, a team from island conservation (ic) and cres (san diego zoo’s conservation and research for endangered species) visited the turks and caicos islands (tci) to conduct a feral mammal assessment of little water, water, and pine cays, and investigate the feasibility of eradicating cats and rats from these interconnected islands. in addition to fieldwork, meetings were held with stakeholders for these cays, including the turks and caicos national trust (tcnt), the department of environment and coastal resources (decr), the pine cay home owners association (hoa), and a representative for the water cay development. ic made a second trip to the tci in april 2006 to make a presentation to the pine cay hoa at their annual meeting. the pine cay hoa has committed $50,000 toward the eradication of cats, which is estimated to cost $155,000. ic also wrote a proposal for submission by the tcnt and decr to the turks and caicos conservation fund for an additional $50,000 for this project, and negotiations are underway with the water cay developers to provide the final $50,000 needed. feral cat eradication is expected to commence in july 2007. eradication of rats will be much more expensive and is not currently anticipated. a collaborative genetic study examining the subspecific status of the booby cay population of cyclura carinata in the bahamas was completed and submitted for publication. five mtdna haplotypes at the nd4 locus were identified for populations within the tci, and the booby cay population was found to be fixed for the most common of these haplotypes. based on this finding, and the lack of significant morphological variation between booby cay and tci populations, we propose sinking the subspecies c. carinata bartschi. several educational projects were completed in 2006, including the production of six traveling conservation awareness kits for tci primary schools, and a set of three graphic panels for the new tci national environmental center that describe the iguana conservation and research program. in addition, we wrote our third popular article on iguana conservation and research for the popular in-flight magazine, discover turks and caicos. two used 190-horsepower diesel engines were purchased for the tci-based research vessel, cyclura, and installation of these engines, as well as other needed upgrades and repairs, will be completed in early 2007. a research trip is planned for march/april 2007 to monitor iguana populations translocated feral mammal assessments of little water, water, and pine cays were conducted in order to investigate the feasibility of eradicating cats and rats from these interconnected islands in efforts to conserve the turks and caicos iguana (cyclura carinata carinata). jo h n b in n s in 2002/2003, and to conduct surveys of iguana populations on little water, water, and pine cays to provide baseline data prior to cat eradication. to safeguard the existing iguana populations on little water, water, and pine cays during the cat eradication process, an isg representative will be on site when the project commences to verify that iguanas are not being harmed and to help modify methods if needed. establishment of the non-profit caribbean wildlife foundation (cwf) in the tci is underway, awaiting completion of articles of incorporation and bylaws. this will be followed by transfer of ownership for the cyclura, its tender, and associated research equipment to the cwf from the zoological society of san diego. the cwf will be run by a three-member board (initially) and its mission will be the preservation of biodiversity in the wider caribbean region. jamaican iguana recovery project byron wilson and rick van veen university of the west indies 2006 was a very productive year for the project, but also one that presented some serious challenges to our capacity and resolve. in particular, illegal tree cutters encroached into the “core” iguana (cyclura collei) area and brought habitat destruction and security issues to the forefront of our concerns. field assistance was provided by dawn fleuchaus, leon samson, brian and stephanie wicker, rhonda pike, tom biltoft, and university of the west indies students. mark gold, our superlative boatman and field companion, continued to provide safe and reliable transport, as well as help with land-based aspects of the field effort. funding was provided by grants from conservation international, the disney wildlife conservation trust, the international iguana foundation, the international reptile conservation foundation, and by a new initiative grant from the university of the west indies, mona. new iguana conservationist.—a most exciting development for the project has been the addition of a talented and highly reliable field worker in the form of leon samson. with 234 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports based on a genetic study and the lack of morphological variation between booby cay and turks and caicos islands populations, the booby cay iguana (cyclura carinata bartschi) is no longer recognized as a distinct subspecies. jo e w a si le w sk i after post-hurricane ivan reconstruction of “south camp,” the field station that serves as the base for studies of the jamaican iguana (cyclura collei), additional improvements have increased capacity and improved livability. jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2352006 isg meeting reports close ties to the port royal marine laboratory (the uwi life sciences facility that provides boat transport for the project), leon joined the recovery effort in january 2006. with funding from uwi new initiative and conservation international grants to byron wilson, leon has been making a significant contribution to our efforts. training of leon to assume additional field duties is ongoing. this training, together with his high level of enthusiasm, should produce a long-term project member who will ultimately take over the reins of field coordinator from rick van veen. south camp renovations.—having completed a major post-hurricane ivan reconstruction of our field station, further improvements to “south camp” have been ongoing. in 2006, the team constructed two large wooden platforms to serve as bases for tents, which increases the field worker capacity. other improvements included the acquisition of four deep-cycle batteries, additional electrical components, and the subsequent establishment of a functioning wind generator for supplying power to camp. a two-burner gas stove was obtained for a dramatically remodeled kitchen and additional cement work was also completed. habitat protection advocacy and support.—one positive development is that management capacity for the hellshire hills may finally become a reality. the national environment and planning agency (nepa) has apparently delegated management authority to the urban development corporation (udc). encouragingly, the first ever “no tree cutting” signs were posted along the periphery of hellshire in the vicinity of hillrun and coquar bay. significantly, the udc has hired a new environmentalist and a new environmental officer, whose work will focus on implementing the udc’s hellshire environmental management plan (hemp). 2006 nesting season.—the two main nesting areas in central hellshire (“upper nesting site” [uns] and “lower nesting site” [lns]) were monitored from newly constructed observation hides during the month of june. in total, 13 females were confirmed as having deposited nests in these two areas. these communal nesting areas were surrounded with metal flashing prior to the hatching season in september eanbling the collection and enumeration of over 100 hatchlings. several other successful nests also were discovered during the hatching season. fourteen hatchlings emerged from a secondary nest near the lns, and a minimum of six hatchlings (1 + 5) emerged from two small “rock-hole” nests. another rock-hole nest southwest of the main nesting areas was also discovered, but this nest was flooded by heavy rains, as it had been in 2005. one other potential rock-hole nest was noted but was not accessible and therefore could not be examined to determine whether it had produced hatchlings. finally, “stumpy,” a head-start release from 2001, deposited eggs in the camp vegetable garden; these eggs did not hatch. overall, a minimum of 21 potentially successful nests and 23 nesting attempts were recorded. in total, we documented the successful production of 125 hatchlings. 85 were pit-tagged and released, 20 were taken to the hope zoo for head starting, while the remainder were enumerated based on the discovery of hatched eggs. jamaican iguana (cyclura collei) communal nesting areas were surrounded with metal flashing prior to the hatching season in september enabling the collection and enumeration of over 100 hatchlings. b y r o n w il so n radiotelemetry.—starting from the nesting season, rick van veen began attaching small (bp-2) radio transmitters to postpartum female iguanas and other adult or subadult animals. the main objectives of the exercise were to determine the distances females were traveling to access the two known communal nesting areas, to map their non-nesting season home ranges, and to gather additional information on habitat-use patterns. in total, 15 females and 11 males were radiotagged. several of the transmitters failed almost immediately or became detached from the lizards. in all, reliable data were obtained for 20 animals. as expected, females have smaller home ranges than males, but somewhat surprisingly, these females apparently live quite close to the nesting areas. we had expected that, given the paucity of suitable nesting sites (i.e., dirt areas), some of them would have traveled considerable distances. this study revealed some interesting aspects of iguana behavior and habitat use that may have important conservation implications. for example, well-worn iguana trails (“pads”) leading to and from particular fruiting trees were noted during radiotelemetry efforts. these pads appear to have been used by iguanas for decades (or longer), and point to the critical importance of these resources. this, of course, underscores the imperative of curtailing tree cutting in the hellshire hills. population inferences.—during the course of live-trapping iguanas to obtain subjects for the telemetry study, a total of 34 adult or subadult animals were captured. of those, nine were previously pit-tagged wild adults, four were “new” wild subadults or young adults, and 21 were headstarters. hence, 62% of the trapped sample were headstarters, further suggesting the importance of headstarting/augmentation to the remnant population residing in the very central part of the iguana area. pitfall trapping experiment.—this field experiment, examining the impact of mongoose control on the terrestrial herpetofauna of the hellshire hills, proceeded into its tenth year. although we have not seen the increase in ground-reptile abundance that was anticipated, this long-term trapping exercise represents a novel monitoring program for a caribbean dry forest, and certainly represents the most useful gauge of biotic patterns within the hellshire hills. predator control.—we continued to operate and expand our predator trapping program in 2006. trapping capacity was enhanced by the addition of 30 new mongoose/cat traps and 120 new snares obtained through a grant to the pig project being conducted by professor r. robinson and the iguana team. numbers of invasive predators caught and removed were similar to previous years: around 100 mongooses, half a dozen cats, and over 30 pigs. also removed were substantial numbers of rats and cane toads (bufo marinus). no dogs were trapped during 2006, although they were an occasional presence in the forest. goat islands restoration.—as always, interest in a rehabilitation program for the goat islands has been high, but awaits higher-level management activity before it can become a reality. at present, the udc is working on the development of an mou with the durrell wildlife conservation trust, which is a necessary prerequisite for dwct to embark on a fundraising campaign to fund the restoration effort. in addition to continuing interest from the iucn-isg and the iif, island 236 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports of jamaican iguanas (cyclura collei) trapped for a telemetry study, 62% were headstarters, reinforcing the importance of headstarting and augmentation to the remnant population residing in the very central part of the iguana area. b y r o n w il so n iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2372006 isg meeting reports conservation has also expressed an interest in participating in the eradications of invasive species on the goat islands. tree cutting crisis.—in november 2005, we discovered cut lignum vitae trees well within the “core” iguana conservation zone. occasional incursions continued until october 2006, during which lignum were cut within 150 m of the lower nest site. ground reconnaissance revealed that the incursions were emanating from a trail ~100 m west of our historical trail. large commercial charcoal operations were also noted within the iguana area and a subsequent jamaica defense force helicopter trip confirmed both the extent of charcoal operations in central hellshire and their proximity to our research and conservation activities. police operations also resulted in the confiscation of charcoal, both in the vicinity of hillrun and along the coast. one arrest was apparently made at a charcoal-burning site east of manatee bay. what level of legal action was taken against coal burners along the northern edge of hellshire is unclear. unfortunately, the public education program to be launched by the udc lagged behind police activities, and rumors of coal-burner anger directed at iguana researchers have emerged. armed police escorts have been used in special cases, but having iguana workers accompanied by the police during every activity is not practical. accordingly, we are now continuing activities as before, albeit with a heightened sense of unease. should these security problems remain unaddressed or worsen, the viability of the iguana recovery effort must certainly be viewed as tenuous. residential and tourism development.—the udc has revised the original plans for residential expansion in the hellshire area. old plans for a large development in the central hellshire area have apparently been shelved; at present, ongoing and future development will be limited to the eastern portion of the peninsula, adjacent to existing development in the vicinity of the hellshire beach community. these new plans provide for the protection of most of the remaining hellshire forest, including what we consider to be the core iguana area in central hellshire. however, a densely populated community located deeper in hellshire, with an increase in human and other species incursions (especially dogs and cats), is of concern. a more insidious threat is the potential for tourism interests to overwhelm conservation concerns and result in the construction of large hotels along hellshire’s remaining white sand beaches. local and foreign development interests have turned their eyes on every undeveloped beach remaining on the island. the combination of government ineptitude, personal greed, and the temptation of foreign investment have already proven disastrous in jamaica. the general pattern is as follows: a foreign entity pledges support, political will overrides the country’s environmental legislation, the project starts without a proper eia, ground is broken and suddenly hundreds of new workers are employed. because taking jobs away from desperately poor people is something that “can’t be done,” the project then attains a momentum that is impossible to halt. therefore, ensuring that these projects never get off the ground is imperative. anegada iguana 2006 conservation and research update glenn gerber,1 lee pagni,1 and kelly bradley2 1zoological society of san diego 2dallas zoo headstarted iguana releases.—twenty-four headstarted anegada iguanas (cyclura pinguis) fitted with radiotransmitters were released in october 2005. as with previous releases in october 2003 and 2004, 12 animals, six males and six females, comprising similar size ranges, were released at each of two sites: middle cay, with rocky woodland habitat, and windlass bight, with sandy scrub habitat. in 2005, we continued the trend of releasing slightly smaller animals than the year before, in an attempt to determine the minimum size at which iguanas can survive with cats. the smallest iguanas released in 2005 were 450 g, as opposed to 600 g in 2004, and 750 g in 2003. unlike previous interest in a rehabilitation program for the goat islands is high, but higher-level management activity is necessary before it can become a reality. twenty-four headstarted anegada iguanas (cyclura pinguis) fitted with radiotransmitters were released in october 2005. k el ly b r a d le y releases, when all 24 animals were fitted with internal transmitters, only the eight smallest animals released in 2005 (those between 450 and 600 g) received internal transmitters. the largest 16 iguanas were fitted with external transmitters attached to the nuchal crest. iguanas released in 2005 were tracked for a total of 15 weeks, over a one-year period (october–october), to monitor survival, growth, habitat use, behavior, and home range. in addition, iguanas released in 2004 and 2003 continued to be monitored whenever possible. despite releasing a range of differently sized animals each year, decreasing the minimum size of released animals, and releasing animals in two very different habitat types, we have observed no differences in survival between years or study sites one year after release (overall mean = 86% survival), and no associations between animal size and survival. in october 2006, the fourth annual release of iguanas took place. all animals in the headstart facility that weighed 450 g or more (29 individuals) were released, bringing the total count for animals released since 2003 to 101. 2006 was the first year animals were released without radiotransmitters. based on previous work, we feel confident these animals will experience survival rates similar to prior release groups. of the 29 iguanas released, 15 were released at windlass bight and 14 at middle cay. sex ratios and size ranges of released animals were balanced between the two sites, as with earlier releases. health screening.—in october 2006, a veterinary team from the wildlife conservation society (robert moore and kate mcclave) performed prerelease health screens on iguanas at the headstart facility. all of the animals slated for release were found to be in good physical condition with acceptable blood chemistry and hematology profiles. feral mammals.—in march 2006, a team from island conservation (brad keitt and bill wood) and cres visited the british virgin islands (bvi) to conduct a feral mammal assessment of anegada and investigate the feasibility and cost of eradicating cats, livestock, and rats from the island. in addition to fieldwork, meetings were held with local stakeholders, including representatives from the bvi national parks trust (npt), the conservation and fisheries department, and the agriculture department. island conservation’s recommendation is to first eradicate feral cats and livestock. eradication of rats will be much more expensive and is not currently a priority. nests and hatchlings.—during the first half of july 2006, a team of five volunteers (joe burgess, george waters, tina bouse, and todd and kym campbell) traveled to anegada to help with the annual nest search and other fieldwork. four nests were located: one at cooper rock on the northeastern shore, and three at windlass bight along the north-central coast in the core iguana area. as in years past, temperature data-loggers were placed in each nest, and a fence of metal flashing was erected around each nest site to contain the hatchlings upon emergence and to exclude feral mammals. in october, hatchlings emerged and were collected from each of the four nests found in july. the number of hatchlings emerging from individual nests was 14 for the cooper rock nest, and nine, nine, and six for the windlass bight nests. despite attempts to excavate all nest sites after emergence, only the egg chamber for the cooper rock nest could be located. it contained 14 empty eggshells (100% hatching rate). in addition to recovering 37 of the 38 hatchlings known to have emerged from our four marked nests, an additional five hatchlings were captured during the course of other fieldwork, and one hatchling was captured in the settlement, bringing the number of hatchlings placed in the headstart facility to 43 this year. headstart facility.—the anegada headstart facility, maintained and operated by the bvinpt, presently consists of 12 large cages with 66 iguanas (41 hatchlings collected in october, and 25 older juveniles weighing < 450 g) housed in groups of similarly sized individuals. in addition, 29 animals weighing greater than 450 g were released in october, as described above. four deaths have been documented at the facility in the past year. however, two of these were animals with extenuating conditions: one animal from the 2005 hatch with severe spinal deformities and a 2006 hatchling from the settlement that sustained a substantial injury to its tympanum before being brought to the facility. growth of animals in the facility, including the 29 iguanas released in october, was generally good and showed considerable improvement in the last six months. this is attributed to improved care by facility staff (alex varlack, michael young, and rondel smith) and the addition of samantha addinall, with prior experience at 238 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports in october, anegada iguana hatchlings (cyclura pinguis) emerged from each of the four nests discovered during fieldwork in july. k el ly b r a d le y the anegada headstart facility presently consists of twelve large cages that contain a total of 66 iguanas. r ic k h u d so n iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2392006 isg meeting reports the iguana facility on grand cayman, to oversee operations on anegada for the bvinpt. in the coming year, the bvinpt hopes to improve the headstart facility by adding 56 smaller cages (to begin housing animals individually) and constructing a building with facilities for food preparation, equipment storage, and office space. genetics.—in 2006, in addition to the routine collection of blood samples from all new captures on anegada (n = 47), blood sampling materials and protocols were shared with researchers on guana island. as a result, 29 samples from the translocated population on guana (founded by eight adults from anegada between 1984 and 1986) and five samples from the translocated population on necker (founded by four offspring from guana in 1995) were added to our sample collection for the species. vitamin d study.—in an effort to fill gaps of our knowledge of baseline physiological values, we initiated a new blood chemistry study this year. we collected blood samples to measure serum 25-hydroxy-vitamin d3 (25-oh-d3), calcium, and parathyroid hormone (pth) concentrations in wild, released, and captive iguanas throughout the year. we collected 20 samples each month for may, july, and october. by taking serial samples, we hope to demonstrate seasonal changes in these variables over time. bill gehrmann and gary ferguson, from texas christian university, and michael holick, from boston university of medicine, are participating in this study. education.—thanks in part to the ircf, several educational projects were completed in 2006, including the production of laminated headstart facility guides, and 500 posters and 1000 brochures promoting anegada, its native wildlife, and the iguana conservation and research program. in addition, with partners at the bvi national parks trust, a hands-on educational program for the public was held in conjunction with the release of headstarted iguanas in october. participants included anegada school children and their teachers, ecology students and instructors from stout community college on tortola, and adult residents of anegada. new field initiatives.—in july, with the help of our volunteer field team, we began a new initiative to put permanent id markers at all known retreat sites, and collect spatial and ecological data for these sites using a data-logging differential gps. this work was continued in october, and we presently have over 100 retreats mapped and marked in the core iguana area. we will continue this work in 2007, and anticipate mapping and marking at least another 50 retreats. we also are beginning a trapping program to capture, measure, and mark as many wild iguanas on anegada as possible, in an effort to better estimate population size and other demographic parameters. we experienced good success using live-traps to recapture released headstarted iguanas during the past year and also trapped a handful of wild adults in the process. we now have 14 live-traps on anegada and, in 2007, will begin a concentrated trapping effort focused on the wild population, by systematically trapping animals associated with marked retreats. in may 2007, we plan to begin attaching two-year external radiotransmitters to adult male and female iguanas at our windlass bight and middle cay study sites, to determine home range and movement patterns of resident adults in these areas and for comparison to our radiotelemetric studies of released headstarted iguanas at these sites. in addition, as opportunities arise, we hope to use radiotelemetry to track: (1) females leaving coastal nesting sites and returning to their territories; (2) juveniles dispersing from windberg cay, a small islet in red pond that appears to serve as a natural headstart facility; and (3) the movements and survival of hatchlings following emergence from nests. funding.—in july 2006, cres received a two-year grant of 70,000 euros from the nando peretti foundation for the anegada project. funds will be used for the new field initiatives outlined above, continuation of fieldwork associated with the headstart and release program, educational needs, and the construction of additional cages at the headstart facility. in addition, $3,000 from henry jarecki (the owner of guana island) and $1,000 from gad perry (texas tech university) have been pledged to cres for the analysis of dna samples from the guana and necker iguana populations. anegada srp.—the anegada species recovery plan, originally drafted in 2004, has been finalized and submitted for layout and publication. copies should be available in early 2007. mona island iguana reports on ecology, conservation, and blindness néstor pérez-buitrago, keysa rosas, stephan funk, miguel garcía, alberto álvarez, and owen mcmillan university of puerto rico and puerto rico department of natural and environmental resources the rhinoceros iguana, cyclura cornuta cornuta, is widely distributed throughout hispaniola (haiti and dominican republic), whereas the mona iguana, c. c. stejnegeri, is endemic to the remote island of mona (puerto rico). mona is located in a deep-sea channel between hispaniola and puerto rico and no evidence is indicative of a historic connection between mona and either puerto rico or hispaniola. the mona iguana is characterized by low density compared to c. c. cornuta and other species of cyclura, and by an age pyramid strongly biased toward large individuals, which indicates low levels of juvenile recruitment into the breeding population. these two traits have led to the conclusion that the mona population “is abnormally small.” in order to investigate the factors determining the demography of mona iguanas and to strategically plan conservation management, the center of applied tropical ecology (crestcatec) at the university of puerto rico and the natural resources department (drna-pr) started an intensive research program in 2003. research focuses on three study sites representing three environments (vegetation structure and composition) and different levels of human disturbance (from none to high disturbance). to date, we have captured, measured, sampled, and marked 235 iguanas in the three study areas. captured animals continue to demonstrate “vision problems.” nine of 28 animals captured in 1998–99 appeared to be blind, lending credence to earlier anecdotal reports of “vision problems” (tim reichard, toledo zoo). however, the causes for the condition remain unknown, in particular whether it is based on environmental/climatic factors, nutrition and condition of iguanas, or genetic predisposition. a total of 42 iguanas were marked with radiotransmitters and radiotracked during the reproductive and non-reproductive seasons. iguanas occupy home ranges with little to no overlap among animals of the same sex, indicating sex-specific territoriality. during the mating period, some females “visit” neighboring males, with which they do not interact during the nonreproductive season. during the nesting period, females seek a place for nesting and either go directly to a specific nesting location or visit many potential nesting areas. females appear to exhibit strong competition for nesting sites in communal nesting areas that are already in use by other females. the maximum distance traveled was by a young female that visited many nesting areas before reaching the final spot after moving 12.8 km. hatching success varied from 55–89% during the study period. in 2003 and 2004, we captured hatchlings either for marking with pit-tags (n = 163) and immediate release or for the headstarting program. so far, only one pit-tagged hatchling was recaptured between 2005 and 2006. the headstarting program was launched in 1999 and employs the drna-pr captive facilities on mona island. hatchlings collected in 1999 and 2000 were released in 2002 and 2003. hatchlings collected in 2003 and 2004 are awaiting release. in 2003, we implemented an intensive mark-recapture program in order to estimate population density and to quantify survival and growth rates of wild and headstarted iguanas. we are utilizing molecular genetic tools in order to quantify reproductive success of males and to assess multiple paternity. after testing 20 microsatellite primers developed for cuban iguanas, c. nubila, failed to produce interpretable results, we developed a microsatellite library for the mona iguana. from 29 primer pairs for mona iguana-specific microsatellite loci, we have optimized 19 primer pairs resulting in scorable genotypes. ten loci exhibit three or more alleles (range 3–16, mean = 5.0) in a subset of 55 adults. the marker set has low probability of identity and high exclusion power even for highly related individuals, thus the marker set is highly suitable for studies of paternity, social organization, and relatedness. initial parentage analyses for three nests of one female suggest both single and multiple paternity within clutches of different years, different males between years, and sharing of the same nest site by two or more females. currently, we are confirming and extending these preliminary results by further genotyping. the mona island population is ideal for assessing the economic costs, reliability, and precision of different methodologies for the estimation of population size because iguanas have been easily observed during the intensive monitoring of the three study areas over the last years. direct observations, mark-recapture, and radiotracking suggest that all resident animals have been individually marked. using information obtained between 2003 and 2005 (mark-recapture and home range sizes) as baseline data, we currently are comparing costs (time, manpower, and resources) and density estimates of mark-recapture, distance sampling, non-invasive genetic tagging using fecal samples. in addition, we monitor communal nesting areas during the short hatching season (only three weeks in october) in order to investigate whether the method allows the estimation of population trends. in 2006, we counted 680 hatchling emergence holes in the coastal nesting areas, which comprise ~74% of the suitable areas available for iguana nesting on mona island. 240 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports mona island iguanas (cyclura cornuta stejnegeri) occupy home ranges with little to no overlap among animals of the same sex, indicating sex-specific territoriality. this gravid female is radio-collared to track movements. n es to r p ér ez iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2412006 isg meeting reports problem assessment and control of the introduced cuban iguana (cyclura nubila nubila) on isla magueyes alberto álvarez, néstor pérez-buitrago, maria andradenúñez, and miguel garcía-bermúdez university of puerto rico and puerto rico department of natural and environmental resources the exotic cuban iguana (cyclura nubila nubila) was introduced in the mid-1960s to isla magueyes (southwest of puerto rico) as part of an erstwhile zoo exhibition (rivero 1978). the island (7.2 ha) harbors the facilities of the department of marine sciences–university of puerto rico (dms-upr), mayagüez campus. anecdotal information suggests that the actual cuban iguana population in magueyes comes from one founding pair. in 1986, an estimate of population size was 167 individuals (23.2 iguanas/ha). since then, the population has showed a noticeable increase in density (55–70 iguanas/ha), an effect attributed to a cat and rat-removal program implemented in the mid-1990s. the most recent census in november 2005 estimated the population at 422 individuals. this abnormal iguana abundance has become a nuisance for some members of the university community in magueyes, who claim that they are frequently harassed and occasionally bitten by iguanas, creating an unsuitable environment and posing potential legal implications for dms. in contrast, other people view the presence of this iguana as having a cultural and sentimental value for magueyes. this situation motivated the administration of dms to request dner action to manage/control or eradicate this population. several options have been under scrutiny since this request: extirpation (donations to zoos, ngos, and/or private entities), translocation to other known populations of this species, and eradication as a last resource. in-situ activities were also considered such as the destruction of nest areas after oviposition. to address this issue, dner’s division of wildlife personnel, along with students from upr department of biology (rio piedras campus), started a mark-recapture program in june 2006 as an initial effort to expand our knowledge of this population relevant to making appropriate management decisions; an initiative endorsed by the iguana specialist group (iucn-isg). this information would be critical from the perspective of ongoing ecological/genetic processes that this unplanned introduced population is having and how they have changed compared to “normal” cyclura populations. in addition, this group offers a unique opportunity to develop research into processes that, although documented for populations of cyclura, are difficult to quantify, such as frequency of cannibalism and the effect of exotic predators on the population and demography of the species on the island. finally, a major priority of this research is to establish the genetic identity of the population, since its origin is uncertain. an agreement between dner and dms granted a 1.5year period (ending december 2007) to conduct research on the population before decisions concerning its management are executed. by november 2006, we have collected tissue samples, gathered morphometric data on 135 individuals, plus collected some demographic information. our plan is focused on two major aspects: (1) ecological research, which includes demography, nesting ecology, and diet; and (2) genetic research aimed at establishing the genetic identity of the species and the level of inbreeding in the population. we also intend to develop an experimental design to quantify the impact of cats on a highdensity iguana population. 2006 research update for allen cays iguanas john iverson earlham college fieldwork in march (one week) and july (one week) focused on surveys of islands in the vicinity of the two natural populations of allen cays iguanas (cyclura cychlura inornata) on leaf cay and u cay in the allen cays (exumas, bahamas). we surveyed eight of these cays, and found iguanas on six of them (0.25–14 ha); however, reproduction is occurring on only one of those islands. the latter cay had no iguanas present in 1996, but now has a population of over 100 individuals. in july, we confirmed that at least eight females had nested on the cay. some individuals on at least three of the cays were originally marked on leaf or u cay, and subsequently translocated to those cays by humans. we believe that tour boat operators may be relocating aggressive iguanas from the leaf and u cay beaches, where people are allowed to feed the iguanas. blood samples were drawn from animals from all islands for a study of the origin of the introductions. additional survey work is planned for 2007, as well as additional study of the nesting ecology of the iguanas on the two cays with introductions. allen cays iguanas now occur the exotic cuban iguana (cyclura nubila nubila) was introduced in the mid-1960s to isla magueyes (southwest of puerto rico) as part of an erstwhile zoo exhibition. this individual was the first female captured and marked. at present, morphometric data have been collected for over 180 iguanas. n es to r p ér ez 242 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports leaf cay (allen cays, exumas, bahamas), home to the largest population of the endangered allen cays iguana (cyclura cychlura inornata), is the most popular iguana feeding location, receiving an ever-growing number of tourists, easily exceeding 100 visitors on an average day. jo h n b in n s k ir st en h in es k ir st en h in es k ir st en h in es of eight cays surveyed in the allen cays (exumas, bahamas), allen cays iguanas (cyclura cychlura inornata) were found on six, but reproduction is occurring on only one. ly n n e pi ep er iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2432006 isg meeting reports on at least nine separate islands, although only four of these have substantial, reproducing populations. the total world population has increased from about 150 in 1970 to perhaps 1300 today. preliminary diet analyses for cyclura cychlura inornata and cyclura cychlura figginsi: assessing potential impacts of tourist feeding kirsten hines the institute for regional conservation tourism is a staple of the bahamian economy and over half the workforce is employed in tourism-related industries. in an attempt to compete in this market, tour operators have turned to eco-tourism. airline magazines now tantalize visitors with flashy ads that promise remote beaches in the exumas and a chance to feed sharks, stingrays, and iguanas. leaf cay (allen cays), home to the largest population of the endangered allen cays iguana (cyclura cychlura inornata) and the most popular iguana feeding location, receives an ever-growing number of tourists, easily exceeding 100 visitors on an average day. the industry has been so successful that the concept has spread to the southern exumas, affecting populations of endangered exuma island iguanas (cyclura cychlura figginsi). in order to assess potential impacts of tourist grape offerings on iguana diet, 92 c. c. inornata fecal samples were collected from seven cays in the northern exumas and 131 c. c. figginsi fecal samples were collected from six cays in the southern and central exumas over the past year. while samples at most locations consisted of native vegetation, preliminary analyses indicate a dietary shift on leaf cay (allen cays), primarily at the tourist-feeding beach. about 30% of fecal samples from this beach contained high concentrations of grapes and sand (compared to < 10% for other areas on leaf cay and 0% on other cays), and one sample contained only grapes and sand. this beach also was the only area with a high incidence of diarrhea that dried to a cement-like tube instead of the natural cigar-style wrap of leaves. initial observations suggest that minimal or infrequent food supplementation may not affect iguana diet, but prolonged periods of regular feeding appear to alter diet composition. this dietary shift may be limited to individuals that frequent feeding beaches, but as eco-tourism expands globally, more individuals of these species and others may be affected. prohibiting the expansion of this industry seems unrealistic and maybe even unnecessary, but we must understand its impact to minimize potential damage. future research will focus on quantifying differences among scat samples; establishing a pre-tourist expansion baseline by analyzing samples collected across the exumas by john iverson in the 1980s, examining the health impacts of a dietary shift, and recording behavioral differences between areas with tourist feeding and those with none. taxon reports for cyclura cychlura and future research plans for iguana iguana charles knapp zoological society of san diego andros iguana (cyclura cychlura cychlura).—some aspects of the conservation and management plan for the andros iguana that were identified as priority projects in november 2005 have been initiated or completed. lee pagni, deirdre ballou, and i (san diego zoo) received a $10,000 usfws wildlife without borders grant for conservation education initiatives for andros island that focus on raising awareness of the iguana. the grant includes provisions for teacher workshops, mobile outreach education kits, and funding for ricardo johnson’s soccer club. in june 2006, the nature conservancy organized a rapid ecological assessment of the marine and terrestrial ecosystems on the western side of andros island. this assessment was conducted, in part, to fill information gaps on the distribution of high-profile endangered species such as flamingos, sea turtles, and iguanas. objectives for the iguana rapid assessment were to: (1) locate areas of relatively high iguana density; (2) survey within the existing central andros national park boundary on north andros; and (3) conduct general herpetofaunal surveys to produce species distribution lists. in general, few, if any iguanas inhabit the western side of north andros island. additionally, the existing national park on north andros island is not adequate to ensure the long-term survival of the andros iguana. in june 2006, the nature conservancy organized a rapid ecological assessment of the marine and terrestrial ecosystems on the western side of andros island. this assessment was conducted, in part, to fill information gaps on the distribution of high-profile endangered species such as flamingos, sea turtles, and andros iguanas (cyclura cychlura cychlura). jo e b u r g es s exuma islands iguana (cyclura cychlura figginsi).—surveys in the exuma island chain were conducted in april 2006. objectives for 2006 were to: (1) survey iguana populations in the southcentral exuma chain; (2) translocate iguanas from leaf cay (northeast of normans pond) to pasture cay in the exuma cays land and sea park to augment the initial colony that was translocated in 2002; and (3) collect preliminary dietary and body-condition data for comparative studies of iguana populations inhabiting exuma cays visited by tourists versus unvisited cays. in addition to the april surveys, gaulin, bitter guana, and pasture cays were visited 26 may–4 june 2006. during the april surveys, we captured and processed a total of 123 iguanas from five cays. during the may/june surveys, we captured an additional two founder iguanas from pasture cay, one iguana from bitter guana, and 51 iguanas from gaulin cay. of the 51 gaulin captures, 27 were recaptures dating back as far as 1998. on 10 april, we set sherman live rat traps on white bay (n = 28 traps) and leaf cays (n = 30 traps). we trapped six rats from white bay and none from leaf cay. to date, rats have been confirmed from white bay, gaulin, bitter guana, and pasture cays. north adderly, noddy, and guana cays still need to be surveyed for rats. the translocated seven (5.2) founder iguanas recaptured on pasture cay all appeared healthy and had gained body mass since last capture. two founder iguanas (1.1) were observed but not captured. three subadults that were hatched on the island were either captured or observed. evidence of exploratory digging activity was observed on the northern beach and two iguanas appeared to have nested. green iguana (iguana iguana).—a 2007 study will be conducted to test the locomotor effects of transmitter burdening on hatchling green iguanas (iguana iguana) in the laboratory and then correlate performance with survival of hatchlings in the field. specific objectives will include: (1) measuring maximal sprint speed of i. iguana hatchlings affixed with radio transmitters that equal 2.5, 5.0, and 7.5% of body mass; (2) measuring jump speed of hatchlings affixed with radiotransmitters varying in the same ratios; and (3) releasing and radiotracking a subset of 30–40 hatchlings in the gandoca-manzanillo wildlife refuge on the caribbean coast of costa rica to test for survival differences between the three different treatment groups. specific conservation goals for this study include quantifying the effects (if any) of transmitter burdening on lizards. because radiotransmitter studies will be required to answer conservation-oriented questions on multiple lizard taxa (including the genus cyclura), having information pertaining to the effects of transmitter burdening is imperative in order to establish quantitative guidelines and recommendations for future ecological studies. in addition, green iguana populations are becoming threatened in parts of the species’ range, therefore, survival and dispersal data stemming from this work will be used to guide future management strategies for the species. 244 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports exuma islands iguanas (cyclura cychlura figginsi) translocated from leaf cay to pasture cay in the exuma cays land and sea park in 2002 appeared healthy and had gained body mass since the previous survey. c h a r le s r . k n a pp the conservation of iguana delicatissima in martinique and a future action plan for the french west indies jean-francois maillard1 and michel breuil2 1agency of hunting and wildlife, martinique 2natural history museum, paris iguana delicatissima has been protected in the french west indian islands of martinique and guadeloupe since 1989. the french ministry of ecology and sustainable development, with the strategy for biodiversity, is responsible for preserving the endemic fauna and flora of the french tropical areas. since early 2006 on martinique, a new project has been undertaken to conserve and enhance populations of i. delicatissima. the french agency of hunting and wildlife (office national de la chasse et de la faune sauvage, oncfs) is collaborating with dr. michel breuil from the french natural history museum of paris (musée national d’histoire naturelle, mnhn) to facilitate this two-year scientific and technical project, which is financially supported by the european union, the french ministry of ecology, and the oncfs. in martinique, populations of iguanas are scarce. at least two populations are known to inhabit the northern portion of the island, but demographic data are sparse because the mountainous areas are difficult to access. a second population inhabits islet chancel, a 70-ha island in the bay of robert on the atlantic coast. the objectives of the oncfs project are to assess the demography of i. delicatissima on islet chancel, to augment the iguana population by introducing iguanas to islet ramier in the bay of fort de france, and to remove individuals of i. iguana, which were released from a zoo and are rapidly reproducing. from april–july, 168 adult iguanas have been captured, measured, pit-tagged, and released on islet chancel. using capture/recapture methods, we estimate the population size at 600 individuals with a sex ratio of 1:1.3. we are waiting to publish our results because we need to complete our database and want to compare spatial distribution of the two sexes between the breeding and non-breeding seasons. additionally, m. breuil has captured and marked adult iguanas since 1993, and we will be analyzing individual growth rates. iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2452006 isg meeting reports male lesser antillean iguana (iguana delicatissima) on islet chancel (top), an adult female captured for radiotagging (lower left), and a female on islet chancel fitted with a radiotransmitter for tracking movements (lower right). o ff ic e n a ti o n a l d e la c h a ss e et d e la f a u n e sa u v a g e (o n c fs ) on chancel, the physical parameter limiting the growth of the population appears to be poor conditions for nest-burrow excavation. this limiting abiotic condition was first recognized in 1994 by the french forestry agency (onf). in 2006, we improved the nesting area on top of the islet by removing rocks, which were impeding burrow construction. the results were immediately evident, as many females came to the site and burrow excavation was observed. other nest sites will be improved by the end of the year. with the help of the french navy and with permission of the owner of islet ramier (2 ha), a new population of i. delicatissima was introduced on the islet in july 2006. nine adults from islet chancel were pit-tagged and affixed with radiotransmitters. after four months, the iguanas appear to have established normal home ranges and movement patterns. the green iguana (i. iguana) population has been growing at an alarming rate on martinique, and the objective of the ministry of ecology in martinique is to reduce and eliminate this species to avoid contact between the two species of iguanas. negative effects of these contacts have been well documented in guadeloupe. a new law on martinique now allows i. iguana to be killed by the french agency of hunting and wildlife police. st. lucia iguana 2006 project update matthew morton durrell wildlife conservation trust as in previous years, work on st. lucia iguanas (iguana iguana) was a collaboration between the durrell wildlife conservation trust and the st lucia ministry of agriculture’s forestry department, with assistance from volunteer overseas biologists. iguana nesting.—nests were monitored for 44 days at louvet (36 days between 1 february–30 april) and 38 days at grand anse (34 days between 1 february–30 april). as in 2004 and 2005, nesting activity was greater at louvet than at grand anse. the mean tail-drag count for both beaches was lower in 2006 than in either 2004 or 2005. we cannot infer any population trends from just three years of data. this index, as planned, will have to be measured over a number of years; however, evidence is suggestive of a decline. these data have yet to be analyzed (using generalized linear modeling as in 2005), but linear regression indicates no significant trend to date. average clutch size was 23 eggs/female (14–28, sd ± 4.4, n = 14), including an additional five clutches from 2004. all eight nests opened in 2006 were reopened post-hatching, and an average of 63% of eggs were confirmed hatched: 15% seemed infertile (no skeletal remains in egg), 7% fertile but unhatched (skeletal remains), and 15% were missing when nests were reopened. increasing tourism pressure.—in early 2006, louvet estate was sold to fm properties. at initial meetings with the new owners, they made clear their intentions for development, projected to include a hotel, golf course, and condominiums. we were able to present the new owners with preliminary suggestions for zoning the site to take wildlife sensitivities into account. these areas are primarily littoral vegetation behind the beach, in which iguanas use sandy patches to nest, and ‘ravine’ areas 246 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports studies of st. lucia iguanas (iguana iguana) are collaborations between the durrell wildlife conservation trust and the st lucia ministry of agriculture’s forestry department, with assistance from volunteers. the individual illustrated was captured shortly after this photograph was taken and barbequed by local residents. © e li za b et h c o r r y , d u r r el l w il d li fe c o n se r v a ti o n t r u st (buffers around stream courses), which appear to have higher densities of iguanas (and other species of interest such as the white-breasted thrasher, ramphocinclus brachyurus), and hopefully can be used by iguanas as migration corridors onto and away from the nesting area. management of additional areas (such as the open beach at night during turtle nesting) would also be needed. fm properties seemed responsive to these suggestions and showed us a conceptual plan that avoided development in the sensitive zones (including relocating the hotel behind the beach, with footpaths for tourists through the littoral vegetation belt maintained as a nature reserve). however, to the best of our knowledge, no planning application has been submitted. the forestry department is expected to be consulted on terms of reference for any environmental impact assessment, and durrell will be able to contribute to these terms of reference and, as with the praslin bay development, review the eia with other referral agencies. non-native predators.—kills of adult iguanas by dogs increased at louvet this year, with six nesting females (of which we are aware) killed, most if not all over a period of two to three days. no evidence of cats was found at or near the nesting sites this year, although one was caught about a kilometer from the beach and euthanized. our main effort at invasive predator control this year targeted the introduced small indian mongoose (herpestes javanicus). mongoose control research comprised the bulk of fieldwork in 2006, using a 72-ha trapping grid of 90 live traps at louvet. we attempted to test the hypothesis that a small effort in mongoose control could keep an area at a reduced population of mongooses for an extended period. unfortunately, this test of mongoose response to an area cleared of mongooses was compromised by much-lower-than-predicted captures in the culling grid (10 individuals compared with >80 in 2005, albeit the latter over a slightly larger trapping area). this is positive insofar as it suggests that mongoose culling has an even longerlasting effect than we had anticipated. the large data set from this work has yet to be analyzed, but we believe that we will have a robust population density estimate. a preliminary estimate of pre-culling captures estimated the population at 69 mongooses (54–124 mongooses, 95% confidence limits; huggins closed captures model, implemented in program mark), or a density of roughly 0.6 mongooses/ha. for the culling traps only the estimate was 21 mongooses (19–34, 95% cl) or 0.5/ha, compared with the 2005 estimate of mongoose density on the culling grid of 0.8/ha. relatively low-level culling apparently has an ongoing effect (reduction in mongoose activity) even a year later (i.e., from 2005–2006), which bodes well for iguana nest protection. trapping data also provide an indication of average intertrap movement distances and some data on mongoose habitat preferences (e.g., more captures closer to rivers). preliminary compositional analysis using fixes and home ranges indicate significant non-random habitat use by mongooses with habitats ranked (from most to least preferred) as: riverine > forest > scrub > grazed > sand. these findings will help to guide optimal trap placement in future years. capacity building.—to maximize the chances of successfully detecting population trends in the st. lucia iguana, the forestry department needs to be able to monitor both grand anse and louvet beaches for 30 days from 1 february–30 april, with a minimum of two monitoring days per beach per week during this period. we designated 120 people-days (equivalent to two people per beach over 30 days) for iguana monitoring to assess the forestry department’s capacity to conduct such a monitoring program. we used three measures of success in achieving this objective: (1) attendance showed a marked improvement compared with attendance in 2005, although it still fell short of our objective; (2) time-keeping was less successful, particularly at the louvet site, and needs to be addressed as this will compromise future chances of the monitoring program’s success; and (3) count performance was to a high, consistent standard. this capacity now clearly exists within the forestry department. a number of recommendations were made, although impending development at louvet (see above) might require monitoring protocols to be reassessed. durrell has developed a proposal to pilot an alternative baseline (using occupancy probability) in 2007 to address this contingency. awareness raising.—community and one-on-one meetings, television broadcasts, including “jingles” in advertising slots, and a documentary produced by the ministry of agriculture on wildlife conservation, which was presented from louvet and grand anse by contestants in the miss earth beauty pageant, were all used to raise awareness of iguana conservation issues, in particular the threat from uncontrolled dogs at nesting sites. fijian crested iguana update peter harlow taronga zoo research continues on the fijian crested iguana sanctuary island of yadua taba. suzie morrison has just completed her first year’s research on yadua taba where she captured and pit tagged 270 resident iguanas (brachylophus vitiensis) in a 0.25-ha dry forest quadrant containing 591 trees. this forest site will be the basis for her long-term mark-recapture project to collect data on growth rates, movement, reproduction, survivorship, diet, st. lucia iguana (iguana iguana) nest monitoring provided evidence suggestive of a decline in activity. these hatchlings were photographed in 2005. © m a tt h ew m o r to n , d u r r el l w il d li fe c o n se r v a ti o n t r u st iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2472006 isg meeting reports and social structure. this year suzie recorded the first-ever data on the nesting habits of this species in the field. several other projects are running simultaneously, including work on the phenology of important food tree species and the effect of the introduced exotic ‘crazy ant’ and pacific rats (rattus exulans) on iguana nest and hatchling survivorship. clare morrison (university of the south pacific) and her team of post-graduate biology students and fiji national trust staff recently completed the last of four field trips to investigate seasonal changes in crested iguana diet on yadua taba. iguana tree-use data from six permanent 250-m transects, as well as analyses of fecal material have given a good indication of diet. tree-use data were collected on 1,425 iguana sightings, and 26 plant species were identified in the scats of 233 iguanas. the invasive plant and weed management plan for yadua taba continues to be carried out by the iguana sanctuary ranger pita biciloa (national trust for fiji islands) and men from the nearby village on yadua island. on the 40-ha island of macuata, where crested iguanas were rediscovered in 2004, craig morley (university of the south pacific) and students, with local assistance, recently completed the last rapid iguana survey. over 40 crested iguanas have been pit-tagged and both rattus exulans and r. rattus have been identified, making this the first crested iguana population known to co-exist with r. rattus. ctenosaura session evolution of spiny-tailed iguanas (genus ctenosaura): how identification of species groups and their relationships can help with conservation priorities larry buckley,1 katelyn pagel,1 and oscar flores villela2 1rochester institute of technology 2instituto de biología, unam, méxico the most diverse group of iguanas (15/37 species) is the spinytailed iguanas, genus ctenosaura, with 15 currently recognized and at least two unrecognized species. members of the genus inhabit primarily lowland (< 1200 m elevation) tropical dry and arid forests on both coasts of mexico and central america. all species fall within one of seven strongly supported clades (species groups). clade distributions show a strong geographic component and are associated with well-established biogeographic areas. closely related species (within species groups) are characterized by allopatry, whereas sympatry is common among species from divergent clades. the relationships among these clades have been the focus of a study using morphological characters and multiple genetic loci (one mtdna and two nucdna) in order to establish the branching topology of their evolution in the region. these results contrast significantly with current morphological interpretations, and point to several instances of convergence in morphological characters commonly used in systematic studies of the genus ctenosaura. 248 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports researchers studying the fijian crested iguana (brachylophus vitiensis) on the sanctuary island of yadua taba recorded the first-ever data on the nesting habits of this species in the field. jo e b u r g es s molecular analysis of the ctenosaura melanosterna clade: insights into phylogeography, speciation, and conservation stesha pasachnik university of tennessee the genus ctenosaura, overlapping in range with the mesoamerican hotspot, exemplifies the “hotspots” reasoning, brought forth by myers et al. in 2000, in that it is diverse, is threatened with extinction, and lacks sufficient means of protection. four of the five critically endangered species of ctenosaura make up the c. melanosterna clade, which occurs in honduras and guatemala. due to the current status of these species, an immediate evaluation of this clade is imperative in order to facilitate critical management decision-making and direct future research. preliminary molecular analysis has been performed on species in the c. melanosterna clade and the wide-ranging congener, c. similis. the results from two mitochondrial markers and three nuclear markers suggest that this clade has gone through rapid speciation resulting in four narrow-range endemics that occur in both insular and continental habitats. evidence of hybridization between the island endemic, c. bakeri, and c. similis on utila has been documented using a single nuclear marker. additional analysis is needed in order to evaluate the status of each species, date the colonization events associated with these species, and define the degree and direction of introgression that is occurring between c. bakeri and c. similis on utila. black iguana project 2006 update: genetics, demography, and feeding victor reynoso, eugenia zarza-franco, wendoli medina mantecón, and pilar rueda zozaya instituto de biología, unam, méxico recent research (since 1998) on black iguanas (ctenosaura pectinata) at the instituto de biología (unam, méxico) has been coordinated by dr. víctor hugo reynoso and has addressed: (1) phylogeography and population genetics, (2) demography, and (3) the effect of food, temperature, and sex on growth and digestion efficiency. genetics and phylogeography of the black iguana are part of eugenia zarza-franco’s ph.d. project in the laboratory of molecular ecology in the centre for ecology, evolution, and conservation at the university of east anglia, uk, with dr. brent emerson. this project intends to evaluate genetic differentiation among populations of c. pectinata to establish the geographic history using mitochondrial and nuclear dna. dr. emerson also aims to understand the species limits, history, structure, and genetic variation to promote countrywide conservation strategies. until now, c. pectinata has been considered a single species with a broad distribution; however, data suggest that the species actually consists of several well-differentiated genetic clades. because of the existence of different human cultures throughout the distribution of the black iguana, each clade is subject to different human impacts and needs a specific conservation effort. for example, northern clades are less threatened than southern clades, since black iguanas are not eaten in the north as they are in the south. however, hatchlings in southfour of the five critically endangered species of ctenosaura make up the c. melanosterna clade, which occurs in honduras and guatemala. this is c. melanosterna. jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2492006 isg meeting reports ern clades have better survival conditions compared to the more extreme conditions in which northern clades live. the study involves a very detailed sampling of several individual black iguanas distributed among more than 50 sites. nd4, cyt-b, alpha enolase, and od dna sequences will be compared, as will external morphology. simultaneously, eugenia zarza-franco is analyzing the genetic structure of c. pectinata and c. macrolopha in the contact zone where hybrids have been found. projects still in progress concern the phylogeography and identity of clades in the c. hemilopha-macrolopha complex and the phylogeography of c. acanthura and c. oaxacana. the project “demography of the black iguana” is conducted in the instituto de biología, unam, as a bachelor and master’s thesis by wendoli medina-mantecón under direction of víctor reynoso and associated with ernesto vega of the instituto nalcional de ecología, semarnat, méxico. this project aims to solve the over-exploitation problem of the black iguana as a food source and establish local management programs based on new demographic models such as sensibility and elasticity analyses. the species is listed in the mexican red list nom-059-2001 as threatened, and hunting is currently illegal. however, our results suggest that, if iguana populations are exploited carefully in accordance with certain very well-established rules, natural populations can be hunted without decreasing population size. new precise models testing several management strategies are being developed, and future work will model possible scenarios to promote the best hunting strategy to achieve iguana sustainability. as an alternative to hunting, the mexican wildlife agency semarnat is promoting intensive farm production as the best strategy to maintain black iguanas as a traditional food supply. the project, entitled “growth plus digestion efficiency of ctenosaura pectinata: effect of food, temperature, and sex,” is being developed by pilar rueda-zozaya under the direction of víctor hugo reynoso in association with germán mendoza of the universidad autónoma metropolitana, xochimilco, méxico, this study seeks to estimate the effect of commercial food, incubation temperature, and sex in the growth and digestion efficiency of the black iguana by evaluating chicken and rabbit pellets as a low-cost captive food option. food consumption and digestion variables such as dry matter intake, digestible dry matter intake, neutral detergent fiber intake, digestible neutral detergent fiber intake, dry matter digestibility, neutral detergent fiber digestibility, weight gain, food conversion, and food intake as a percentage of animal mass were estimated. this research has suggested that pellet food can be used successfully in iguana farms. report on ctenosaura palearis in guatemala john binns ircf ctenosaura palearis, variously known as the guatemalan black iguana or paleate spiny-tailed iguana, is the only member of the c. melanosterna clade with a distribution outside honduras. found exclusively in the semi-arid motagua valley of guatemala, the species is listed as critically endangered on the iucn red list based on the limited size of its range. recent investigations reveal that, while c. palearis was intensively hunted as a protein source in the past in preference to the sympatric c. similis, the species is now extremely rare in some areas. the international reptile conservation foundation (ircf), in partnership with zootropic and zoo atlanta, has initiated project palearis in order to develop and execute a recovery action plan for c. palearis. this project will be able to leverage many of the components of project heloderma, designed to preserve the sympatric guatemalan beaded lizard (heloderma horridum charles250 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports black iguanas (ctenosaura pectinata) have been the subject of considerable research at the instituto de biología (unam, méxico). jo h n b in n s iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2512006 isg meeting reports bogerti). specifically, c. palearis will be included in zootropic’s educational program for heloderma, and will be able to utilize the facility proposed for breeding h. h. charlesbogerti. the ircf has provided a vehicle and seed money for research investigating the distribution, ecology, and conservation status of c. palearis beginning in may 2007. zootropic’s daniel ariano, and university of guatemala undergraduate student, paola coti, will be bead-tagging and releasing all animals located. five males and two females are already under observation at the research site in the motagua valley. thanks to the efforts of zootropic, c. palearis has been granted protection under guatemalan law and animals may no longer be exported from the country. genetics session update on iguaninae phylogeography and phylogenetics catherine stephen utah valley state college iguana phylogeography.—iguana consists of two species, i. iguana and i. delicatissima. whereas i. delicatissima historically has a very limited range restricted to the lesser antilles, i. iguana is found throughout the neotropics and the lesser antilles. that i. iguana constitutes a single interbreeding population is highly unlikely, given the enormous physical distances and barriers to gene flow. we are using nuclear and mitochondrial dna sequence data to explore the phylogeographic history of this species. samples included in the preliminary analysis have been collected from 17 countries. results from both data sets show a congruent, deep lineage divergence between the central american populations and the south american plus lesser antillean populations of green iguana. the topology of the phylogeny indicates that i. iguana arose on the south american continent. iguaninae subfamily phylogenetics.—iguaninae is an ancient group with eight modern genera distributed throughout the western hemisphere and in the fijian archipelago. previous morphological and molecular studies of iguanine relationships have relied on incomplete sample sets that yield conflicting topologies. the subfamily collectively spans thousands of miles across multiple geographical boundaries, and exhibits a high degree of regional and island endemism. because of its age and distribution, the group is uniquely suited to test biogeographic hypotheses, such as suggested occurrences of past refugia or relictual fragments, as well as allowing empirical evaluation of molecular clock models. in order to generate a robust phylogeny, we have collected dna sequence data at four loci (two nuclear and two mitochondrial) for all eight genera, including 28 of the iguanine species. phylogenies generated from maximum likelihood analysis of separate data sets result in congruent phylogenies with varying levels of resolution. preliminary analysis strongly supports dipsosaurus as the most basal lineage in the subfamily followed by an early dispersal of brachylophus to the fijian archipelago and a subsequent divergence of the cyclura lineage. a sister relationship between sauromalus and iguana is supported by the combined analysis, and this clade is sister group to the rest of the subfamily (ctenosaura, amblyrhynchus, and conolophus). interestingly, ctenosaura defensor falls outside the ctenosaura clade in the three data sets in which it is included. critically endangered guatemalan black iguanas (ctenosaura palearis) are the only members of the c. melanosterna clade with a distribution outside honduras. this species is found exclusively in the semi-arid motagua valley of guatemala. d a n ie l a r ia n o results of genetic studies of green iguanas (iguana iguana) show a congruent, deep lineage divergence between central american populations and those from south america plus the lesser antilles. efforts to conserve these unique genetic lineages are complicated by the wide and indiscriminate introduction of iguanas outside their natural ranges. this individual was photographed on grand cayman, where the species does not occur naturally and the origin of the population is unknown. jo h n b in n s using coalescent-based analyses of multilocus microsatellite data to estimate the past and recent population histories of three species of caribbean rock iguanas william modi,1 glenn gerber,1 charles knapp,1 jennie lau,1 maggie reinbold,1 leona chemnick,1 oliver ryder,1 peter andolfatto,2 and catherine stephen3 1zoological society of san diego 2university of california, san diego 3utah valley state college although the significance of recent anthropogenic activity on the census sizes of insular populations is relatively easy to determine, the concomitant impact on genetic diversity is less obvious. assessing genetic diversity is important for predicting the future fitness and long-term survival of endangered species. the genetic architecture of most species has been molded by population contraction and/or expansion following historical climatic changes, and this tends to obscure the effects of more recent, humanmediated activity. however, the development of bayesian computational methods allows for sophisticated statistical modeling of population histories. specifically, coalescent simulations can calculate the likelihood of observed data under the stationary distribution of a specific demographic model. if the influence of recent anthropogenic events has been significant enough, it can be teased apart from earlier paleoclimatic effects. four events have potentially influenced iguana populations: last glacial maximum (15,000 years ago), first humans (4,000 years), arrival of europeans (500 years), modern society and domestic animals (50 years). microsatellite data for cyclura pinguis (133 individuals, 23 loci) are currently being analyzed. additionally, 600 dna samples are available each for c. cychlura and c. carinata from over 50 islands, and will be genotyped in the near future. general reports a model for protecting island ecosystems using integrated regional conservation programs brad keitt island conservation introduced mammals are one of the greatest threats to island ecosystems. this is because most island ecosystems historically lacked mammalian predators and herbivores and therefore many islands’ flora and fauna lack defenses necessary to compete against these invasions. removing introduced mammals from islands can protect island ecosystems, and we believe this can be done effectively by regional island conservation organizations that integrate: (1) applied research and priority setting; (2) public education and policy work; (3) capacity building; (4) conservation action; and (5) monitoring and evaluation. in northwestern mexico, we developed such an organization to protect the region’s 230+ islands. these islands have 26 species of breeding seabirds and over 210 species and subspecies of endemic vertebrates. non-native mammals have been introduced to at least 44 islands and are responsible for the probable extinction of 21 endemic vertebrate species and subspecies. island conservation, the universidad nacional autónoma de méxico, centro de investigaciones biologicas del noroeste, and the mexican national protected areas department collaborated with local people and ngo’s to remove one or more introduced mammals from 25 islands. this integrated model for the conservation of island species is exportable to other parts of the world. given that cyclura iguanas are especially susceptible to introduced mammals, the development of a program to remove introduced mammals from cyclura range islands in the caribbean is an important part of their conservation. 252 iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2006 isg meeting reports introduced mammals are one of the greatest threats to island ecosystems because most island ecosystems historically lacked mammalian predators and herbivores and therefore many islands’ flora and fauna lack defenses necessary to compete against these invaders. illustrated is the isabela project (galapagos national park service/charles darwin foundation). habitat recovery on santiago island, galapagos: before goat and pig eradication, fenced area is goat and pig free (left), after goat and pig eradication (right). galapagos land iguanas (conolophus subcristatus) were extirpated by introduced mammals after darwin’s voyage. iguana reintroduction is now an option given the removal of these threats. is a b el a p r o je c t (g a la pa g o s n a ti o n a l pa r k s er v ic e/ c h a r le s d a r w in f o u n d a ti o n ) iguana • volume 14, number 4 • december 2007 2532006 isg meeting reports does education really help conservation? lessons from two cyclura conservation programs lee pagni zoological society of san diego the question of whether education should play a role in conservation seems rhetorical. in general, conservationists feel that education is a key component of conservation activities. this is fortunate, because obtaining evidence that education programs directly result in conservation action is difficult, time-consuming, and filled with uncertainties. this is not to say that evaluation of programs is unwarranted. in fact, only through evaluation of education programs can we hope to improve their effectiveness. since 2000, the zoological society of san diego (zssd) has supported outreach activities related to the conservation of and research on the turks and caicos iguana (cyclura carinata). these activities have taken many forms in order to reach numerous members of several audience categories. in descending order of priority, these audience categories are: locals (adults and children), visitors to the turks and caicos islands (tci), and other adults and children, including conservation colleagues and zssd members and visitors. outreach activities have included writing articles for local and in-flight magazines, developing education kits for local 5–8 grade students, posting project information on zssd and other websites, holding capacity building workshops for tci colleagues, giving presentations to local and international colleagues, creating a series of posters regarding the project, and producing informational signs to be posted on offshore islands. several types of evaluational tools have been used to help design and measure the effectiveness of these programs. one tool, a simple matrix, allows us to see which audiences we are reaching with which messages using which media. other evaluation tools have included needs assessments, pre/post testing to measure changes in knowledge and attitude from programs, and formative evaluations to help improve materials such as the education kits. although no overall program evaluation has been conducted, anecdotal evidence has elucidated a couple important points: (1) education programs take time to become effective. we began to notice a greater awareness of our conservation, research, and outreach efforts after two to three years. (2) utilizing a variety of media helps reach more audience members. this is not a unique finding. however, this confirms the importance of promoting a consistent message across various media to reach the most people. significant outreach programs for the anegada iguana (cyclura pinguis) restoration program began in 2003, concurrent with the first releases of headstarted iguanas. since then, the number of people who know about and are interested in the program has increased each year. a highly successful example of the outreach program is the local involvement in the annual release of headstarted iguanas. in 2003, approximately four people from the bvi were involved in the releases. in 2006, this number grew to over 40 individuals. although the releases are an obvious opportunity for holding a public event, the interest in participation indicates that creating public events around conservation activities can help increase awareness and support among the local community. because of the small size of the local population (estimated between 100–200 people), outreach activities have been less intense on anegada than those in the turks and caicos islands. instead, activities have focused on collaborating with local partners at the bvi national parks trust to involve the next generation of anegadians (students) and keeping community members informed of research activities and conservation goals. the next stage of outreach activities will attempt to raise countrywide awareness of the iguanas’ conservation status and situation. as with the tci project, no over-arching evaluation of the outcomes of our education evidence has been conducted. anecdotal evidence suggests a greater awareness of the intricacies of the restoration project and support for conservation and research activities. i thank all my collaborators at the following institutions whose efforts continue to improve our outreach activities for the anegada iguana: bvi national parks trust, dallas zoo, fort worth zoo, international reptile conservation foundation, international iguana foundation, virgin island network of environmental educators (vine), and the zoological society of san diego’s conservation and research for endangered species (cres) and education department. indianapolis zoo reports first jamaican iguana breeding in the united states richard reams and jan ramer indianapolis zoological society the indianapolis zoo is pleased to report the hatching of several jamaican iguanas (cyclura collei) in late august and early september 2006. two separate females produced 35 eggs, of which 22 hatched. the eggs hatched after approximately 80 days and were incubated at 86–88 °f. the 22 neonates are currently doing great and are growing fast. starting at just 22 g, many now weigh over 200 g. prior to this successful reproduction, only 18 animals were in north american zoos. this breeding more than doubles the north american population to 40 iguanas. most of these genetically valuable animals will be sent to other north american zoos in the near future. this breeding represents the first captive breeding of c. collei outside jamaica. twenty-two neonate jamaican iguanas (cyclura collei) hatched at the indianapolis zoo in late august and early september 2006, more than doubling the north american population to 40 iguanas. r ic h a r d r ea m s iguana b&w text lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima), such as this male, often assume what appear to be extremely awkward positions for access to prized morsels. the letter on the side of this individual facilitated individual recognition during a study on home ranges and activity periods. see article on p. 130. r o b er t po w el l south leeward dwarf geckos (sphaerodactylus fantasticus) are lesser antillean endemics, but the subspecies s. f. fuga is endemic to dominica. these small diurnal geckos are sexually dimorphic. males have a dark head with light spots, whereas heads of females have two light stripes that extend onto 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/leaveuntagged /untaggedrgbhandling /usedocumentprofile /usedocumentbleed false >> ] >> setdistillerparams << /hwresolution [2400 2400] /pagesize [612.000 792.000] >> setpagedevice iguana b&w text 130 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 daniells et al. populations of lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima) have declined or disappeared on many islands. those on dominica are doing well and may serve as a model for developing management strategies for other islands (see iguana 14(4), p. 222). n a ta li e n . w y sz y n sk i iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 130 travel writers have suggested that if christopher columbus were to take a caribbean cruise today, dominica might be the only west indian island he would recognize. in an age when an ideal tropical paradise must include golf courses, five-star restaurants, towering hotels, cruise-ship berths, manicured white beaches, and swimming pools adjacent to the ocean, the drastic changes to which other destination islands have been subjected are understandable. however, an accident of geology spared dominica from that fate. the island is a complex of volcanic peaks, the highest of which (morne diablotin) reaches 1,446 m above sea level, resulting in an intimidating terrain that has slowed the seemingly inevitable march of “progress.” because level lowlands suitable for sugarcane plantations during the colonial era do not exist and tourism-oriented development is minimal, the inevitable consequences of deforestation and declining biodiversity are largely absent. in sharp contrast, the potential for effective conservation is considerable, and dominican authorities have taken steps to preserve two unique natural treasures: the forests, which still cover more than 60% of the island, and the animals that live in the largely natural habitats that remain. the amphibians and reptiles in particular comprise what may well be the most “natural” herpetofaunal community in the entire lesser antillean archipelago. although conserving forests and their inhabitants might not be a selling point for the vacationers to whose interests developers cater, dominica benefits by promoting ecotourism, and markets itself as the “nature island.” by not competing for visitors whose sole interest is reclining in the lap of luxury, dominica provides the chance to experience natural habitats, increasingly rare commodities that more intensely developed islands are about to lose entirely. however, in order to place a value on natural resources such as the herpetofauna, authorities must have access to reliable information about its distribution, natural history, and conservation status. herein we present a summary of our observations on dominica’s diverse herpetofaunal communities with the hope that it will remain relevant to coming generations. an annotated checklist of the amphibians and reptiles of dominica, west indies esther a. daniells1, jeffrey w. ackley2, ruth e. carter3, peter j. muelleman4, seth m. rudman5, patrick a. turk6, nelson j. vélez espinet7, lauren a. white8, and natalie n. wyszynski9 1department of biology, colorado state university, fort collins, co 80523 (edan@holly.colostate.edu) 2department of biology, eckerd college, st. petersburg, fl 33711 (ackleyjw@eckerd.edu) 3department of biology, earlham college, richmond, in 47374 (recarter07@earlham.edu) 4department of biology, truman state university, kirksville, mo 63501 (pjm563@truman.edu) 5department of biology, university of rochester, rochester, ny 14627 (srudman@mail.rochester.edu) 6department of biology, avila university, kansas city, mo 64145 (turk95917@avila.edu) 7department of biology, university of puerto rico, río piedras, pr 00931 (b19velez2007@yahoo.com) 8environmental science program, oklahoma state university, stillwater, ok 74078 lauren.a.white@okstate.edu) 9department of psychology, university of tennessee, knoxville, tn 37996 (nwyszyns@utk.edu) iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 131amphibians and reptiles of dominica � dominica (754 km2) is one of the volcanic windward islands in the lesser antilles. the rugged topography and lack of flat lowlands spared the island from the alterations (typically associated with sugar plantations) to which most other west indian islands were subjected during the colonial period. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 131 frogs (amphibia: anura) eleutherodactylus amplinympha (kaiser, green, and schmid 1994). anura: eleutherodactylidae. local name: dominican gounouj. english common names: dominican frog, dominican rain frog, dominican whistling frog. endemic. these relatively small frogs (maximum male svl 26 mm, maximum female svl 50 mm) occur at elevations >300 m in montane rain forest, where they perch on trees, palm brakes, moss mats, epiphytes, and ferns. this species has a pointed snout and relatively large toepads. males have bi-lobed glandular vocal sacs and produce a three-note call. dorsal color varies from brownish to greenish to reddish, and, as in other frogs in the genus, pattern elements are highly variable. these largely nocturnal frogs are known to call by day in wet forests during or after heavy rains. the species is included on the iucn red list as “endangered,” primarily due to its restricted range, high likelihood of habitat loss attributable to human expansion, volcanism, or hurricanes, and the potential threat posed by chytridiomycosis, a fungal infection to which upland amphibians in the tropics appear to be particularly vulnerable. eleutherodactylus johnstonei (barbour 1914). anura: eleutherodactylidae. no local name. english common names: lesser antillean frog, johnstone’s whistling frog, johnstone’s robber frog. lesser antillean endemic, introduced on dominica, other west indian islands, and the south american mainland. these frogs are thought to have been introduced on dominica after hurricane david in 1979, probably with relief supplies from neighboring islands. throughout their extended range, these small frogs (maximum male svl 25 mm, maximum female svl 35 mm) thrive in artificial sites such as residential gardens, agricultural areas, roadsides, and buildings from sea level to elevations of ~1300 m. this species has a rounded snout and relatively small toepads. males have a single-lobed glandular vocal sac and produce a two-note call. dorsal ground color usually is some shade of brown; other markings are highly variable. where the two species occur together, e. johnstonei often is confused with closely related e. martinicensis. eleutherodactylus johnstonei is a nocturnally active sit-and-wait predator with a diet composed primarily of small arthropods. documented predators include turnip-tailed geckos (thecadactylus rapicauda) and snakes. recent surveys have failed to document the presence of this species on dominica and it is no longer included in the list of dominican amphibians. this species is included on the iucn red list as being of “least concern,” largely attributable to its colonizing ability, which is unusual among amphibians, which generally have little tolerance for exposure to saltwater. introduced populations on some islands compete successfully with native species, and often displace them, especially from altered habitats. eleutherodactylus martinicensis (tschudi 1838). anura: eleutherodactylidae. local name: tink frog. english common names: martinique frog, martinique robber frog. this lesser antillean endemic is presumably native on dominica, although it may have been imported inadvertently by early european settlers. these small frogs (maximum male svl 32 mm, maximum female svl 47 mm) occur from sea level to at least 1,250 m in varied natural and altered habitats that include rain forests, dry woodlands, banana and coconut plantations, and gardens. this species has a pointed snout and relatively small toepads. males have a bi-lobed glandular vocal sac and produce a two-note call. dorsal color is brownish to reddish; other markings are highly variable. these nocturnal frogs may call by day during or after 132 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 daniells et al. the endangered dominican frog (eleutherodactylus amplinympha) is restricted to moist forests at higher elevations. r o b er t po w el l the lesser antillean frog (eleutherodactylus johnstonei) has been recorded from dominica. although it has successfully colonized other islands, where it has displaced native species, it has not been found during recent surveys, suggesting that the colonization of dominica has failed. this frog was photographed on st. vincent. r o b er t po w el l like many relatives, patterns of martinique frogs (eleutherodactylus martinincensis) are highly variable. this individual has a faint middorsal line, but others may be unicolored, blotched, or have very distinct dorsal “racing” stripes. r o b er t po w el l iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 132 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 133amphibians and reptiles of dominica heavy rains. they feed on a variety of small arthropods, and have been observed foraging at night for insects attracted to lights. predators include snakes and larger frogs. fungal infections (chytridiomycosis) have been documented. this species is included on the iucn red list as “near threatened,” due to a known range of less than 5000 km2 and potential habitat loss due to human expansion, volcanism, and hurricanes. leptodactylus fallax (müller 1926). anura: leptodactylidae. local names: crapaud, kwapo, mountain chicken. english common name: giant ditch frog. native. this species currently is restricted to dominica and montserrat, although it may once have occurred on neighboring islands. these large frogs (maximum male svl 159 mm, maximum female svl 200 mm) are found in association with streams from sea level to elevations of ~400 m. in addition to natural habitats, they can be found in deforested areas, gardens, and plantations. dorsal ground color is olive-brown, with highly variable pattern elements. they are sit-and-wait predators, feeding primarily on small arthropods, but they occasionally take vertebrates such as small rodents, bats, frogs, lizards, and even snakes (one attempt on a small boa nebulosa has been documented). activity is almost exclusively nocturnal, although some foraging and calling may occur on rainy days. the species is included on the iucn red list as “critically endangered,” largely due to excessive exploitation as a delicacy. other factors that have contributed to population declines are invasive predators (pigs, cats, rats, and dogs), habitat loss by human expansion, volcanism, hurricanes, and fungal infections. chytridiomycosis was first recognized as a threat in december 2002; between 2002 and 2004, the disease is thought to have reduced populations on dominica by 70%. lizards (reptilia: squamata) ameiva fuscata (garman 1887). squamata: teiidae. local name: abòlò. english common name: dominican ground lizard. endemic. these large ground lizards (maximum male svl 200 mm, maximum female svl 154 mm) occur in lowland habitats such as coastal scrub, plantations, and open forests, but also may range to moderate elevations along road edges and in artificial clearings. lizards have elongated pointed snouts and long, stocky tails. smaller individuals are a mottled brown with light blue spots dorsally; large males have a black, slate-gray, to dark blue ground color with light blue spots. these lizards may run on their hindlimbs (bipedal) when engaged in chases or when frightened. ameiva fuscata is a dietary generalist that feeds opportunistically, usually employing an active-foraging strategy, often in groups. it typically consumes arthropods, but will eat fallen fruit and small vertebrates, and is known to prey on iguana delicatissima eggs and hatchlings. lizards are most active at high temperatures and under direct sunlight, although they avoid the extreme mid-day heat. the conservation status of the species has not been assessed, but it is locally abundant and one of the most frequently seen lizards on dominica. mountain chickens (leptodactylus fallax) are large frogs that have been extensively exploited as a delicacy. other factors that have contributed to population declines are predation by invasive mammals (pigs, cats, rats, and dogs), habitat loss attributable to human development, volcanism, hurricanes, and fungal infections. a r li n g to n j a m es dominican populations of the critically endangered mountain chicken (leptodactylus fallax) have declined by 70% since 2002 as a consequence of the chytrid fungus. a r li n g to n j a m es male dominican ground lizards (ameiva fuscata) often are strikingly blue (top), whereas females (bottom) retain the juvenile brown color well beyond maturity. r o b er t po w el l jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 133 anolis cristatellus (duméril and bibron 1837). squamata: polychrotidae. no local name. english common name: puerto rican crested anole. endemic to the puerto rico bank; introduced on dominica (where first discovered in 2000) and in the 134 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 daniells et al. puerto rican crested anoles (anolis cristatellus) were first discovered on dominica in 2000. they are displacing native a. oculatus along much of the dry leeward (western) coast of the island. r o b er t po w el l because dominica was historically forested, sun-loving dominican ground lizards (ameiva fuscata) had to take advantage of very small patches of sunlight. this juvenile had been actively foraging in the leaf litter before pausing in a patch where a bit of light penetrated the canopy. r o b er t po w el l in areas where they occur together, males of native anolis oculatus (bottom in top photograph, top in bottom photograph) and recently introduced a. cristatellus are strongly antagonistic toward one another. r o b er t po w el l r o b er t po w el l iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 134 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 135amphibians and reptiles of dominica dominican republic, southern florida, and costa rica. these moderately sized anoles (male svl to 77 mm, female svl to 73 mm) typically exploit edge habitats in heavily disturbed areas along roadsides and in open fields and woodlands from sea level to elevations of ~980 m on the puerto rico bank. females and juveniles often forage on the ground. lizards usually are light to dark brown and even greenish gray, often changing color depending on mood. pattern elements include small dark spots, saddle-shaped markings, or distinct cross-bands. a light longitudinal middorsal stripe bordered by narrow dark lines is common in females but can be found on some, especially smaller males. although primarily diurnal, they are known to extend activity to after dark, exploiting insects attracted to artificial lights. these sit-and-wait foragers eat mainly small arthropods, but may consume fruits, flowers, or nectar. on dominica, they have been observed eating fruit flies on fallen mangos as well as ingesting the mango pulp. the conservation status of the species has not been formally assessed. as an invasive species on dominica, the principal concern is its potential effect on endemic a. oculatus, which apparently is being displaced in dry lowland coastal habitats along the western (leeward) coast. one possible means of displacement might be intraguild predation, in which one related species exploits another as food, with large adults eating young a. oculatus. at one coastal site where both species occurred, juvenile a. cristatellus were abundant, but no juvenile a. oculatus were observed. anolis oculatus (cope 1879). squamata: polychrotidae. local name: zanndoli. english common name: dominica anole. endemic. these anoles (maximum male svl 96 mm, maximum female svl 64 mm, although sizes vary considerably in different areas of the island) are essentially ubiquitous on dominica, occurring in natural to extensively altered habitats that include roadside vegetation, dry forest, banana, mango, and coconut groves and plantations, artificial sites along walls, fences, and paved areas, and essentially all vegetation types except elfin like many relatives, dominican anoles (anolis oculatus) exhibit sexual size dimorphism, with males much larger than females. this is generally seen in species in which males compete with one another for mates. pe te r j . m u el le m a n dominican anoles (anolis oculatus) vary considerably in color and pattern in different parts of the island. for many years, biologists treated these populations as separate species or subspecies, but today they usually are considered to be ecotypes (populations with habitat-specific color and pattern adaptations). however, males (top) all have bright yellow dewlaps, which are used to deter other males and advertise for females. anoles that live in cool, moist uplands, such as this female (bottom) often are distinctly green, whereas lowland anoles have a tan to brown ground color. r u th e . c a r te r je ff r ey w . a c k le y iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 135 woodland from sea level to elevations of ~900 m. populations are quite variable on different parts of the island. once considered to be subspecies, these color variants now usually are treated as ecotypes (populations with habitat-specific color and pattern adaptations). ground color may range from light to dark brown, although individuals in upland forests may be dark green. females usually are unicolored or have a few black and beige spots. males are more distinctive, ranging from largely unicolored animals with a few light specks to those having prominent black and beige spots. these sit-and-wait foragers eat small arthropods, and may in some instances “specialize” in concentrated resources such as social insects (e.g., ants and termites). they may occasionally consume plant material, including the pulp of fallen mangos. although primarily diurnal, like many other west indian anoles, a. oculatus readily exploits insects attracted to lights at night. the conservation status of these lizards has not been assessed, but at least some populations are vulnerable to displacement by a. cristatellus. mabuya mabouya (lacépède 1788). squamata: scincidae. local names: kléwant, zanndoli kléwant, soud. english common name: lesser antillean skink. native; however, the taxonomic status of west indian populations currently assigned to the genus mabuya is poorly resolved, and populations on each island bank should be considered endemic to that bank until detailed studies have been conducted. these diurnally active lizards (maximum male svl 87 mm, maximum female svl 93 mm) occur in dry coastal woodlands, littoral woodland, dry shrubs, and coconut plantations, where they occupy leaf litter and take refuge in holes in trees and stumps or in and under boulders. skinks are shiny, with very smooth scales. ground color is bronze or coppery, with a cream-bordered darker brown band on each side and very dark brown or black specks on the back. these lizards bear live young that are very large compared to maternal size. the conservation status of this species has not been assessed. gymnophthalmus pleii (bocourt 1881). squamata: gymnophthalmidae. no local name. english common names: rough-scaled worm lizard, keeled-scaled worm lizard. lesser antillean endemic; the subspecies g. p. pleii occurs on martinique, dominica, and guadeloupe, other subspecies occur 136 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 daniells et al. the taxonomic status of west indian populations currently assigned to the lesser antillean skink (mabuya mabouya) is poorly resolved, and populations on each island bank should be considered endemic to that bank until detailed studies have been conducted. r o b er t po w el l like their relatives, rough-scaled worm lizards (gymnophthalmus pleii) occur primarily in leaf litter, where they are adept at “swimming” through the leaves, making them difficult to find and study. r o b er t po w el l iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 136 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 137amphibians and reptiles of dominica on st. lucia and the maria islands. these small lizards (maximum svl 48 mm) inhabit dry leaf litter with relatively high amounts of sunlight along the leeward (western) coast, and are particularly abundant in cabrits national park. ground color is golden with darker lateral bands and golden-yellow canthal stripes that continue over the eyes and fade near the hindlimbs. worm lizards often are thought to be juvenile skinks. unlike some other species in the genus, g. pleii is bisexual. lizards presumably feed on small arthropods. the species’ conservation status has not been assessed. gymnophthalmus underwoodi (grant 1958). squamata: gymnophthalmidae. no local name. english common name: smooth-scaled worm lizard. neotropical endemic, with populations on the south american mainland and a number of lesser antillean islands; the population on dominica presumably is native (established by natural means), but the introduction may have been human-mediated. these small, diurnally active, ground-dwelling lizards (maximum svl 43 mm) are associated with leaf litter in dry forests, beachside vegetation, and mixed agriculture with introduced orchard trees, usually at sites where sunlight penetrates for at least part of each day. populations are known only from the leeward (western) side of the island from sea level to elevations of ~300 m. body scales are smooth. the metallic brown back and silvery-white belly are separated by a dark brown lateral stripe. these lizards forage for small invertebrates in the leaf litter. predators include cats, wild birds and chickens, and presumably snakes and larger lizards. this species is entirely female, reproducing by means of parthenogenesis (eggs developing without fertilization), enhancing the species’ ability to colonize new areas, as only one individual is necessary to found a population. gymnophthalmus underwoodi and g. pleii appear to be allopatric (do not occur together). the conservation status of the species has not been assessed. iguana delicatissima (laurenti 1768). squamata: iguanidae. local name: lèza. english common name: lesser antillean iguana. lesser antillean endemic. these large lizards (male svl to 434 mm, female svl to 401 mm) occur in natural and altered habitats along cliff faces, in lowland forests, and often close to streams. although the distribution is largely coastal, iguanas may be found at elevations to ~300 m. concentrations may occur in the vicinity of communal nesting beaches to which females migrate from considerable distances. these lizards are largely arboreal but regularly venture onto the ground. color varies greatly. hatchlings are bright green, but this fades with age to dark gray with hints of green, blue, brown, and occasionally pink around the snout and facial features. males tend to be darker than females, which frequently retain a primarily green coloration into maturity. males have larger heads, prominent dewlaps, and conspicuous femoral pores on the undersides of their thighs. individuals spend much of their time adjusting body positions and perch heights to regulate body temperatures. the diet includes flowers, fruits, and leaves of many plants. iguanas are quick to exploit introduced ornamentals and appear to have a particular fondness for hibiscus. juveniles are known to eat bird eggs, and iguanas of all ages may scavenge. adults have few predators except humans and the occasional boa, but major predators on eggs and hatchlings include crabs, rats, and ameiva fuscata. the species is included lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima) are phenomenally abundant on the grounds of the sunset bay club on dominica’s leeward (western) coast. the proximity of the batali river and a communal nesting site, an abundance of forage, and the tolerance of the resort’s owners account for population densities seen nowhere else in the world. jo h n s . p a r m er le e, j r . smooth-scaled worm lizards (gymnophthalmus underwoodi) are all females, reproducing by means of parthenogenesis (eggs developing without fertilization), enhancing the species’ ability to colonize new areas, as only one individual is necessary to found a population. r o b er t po w el l male lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima) are very territorial. the proximity of adult males on the ground of the sunset bay club resulted in overlapping home ranges and frequent agonistic interactions. r o b er t po w el l iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 137 on the iucn red list as “vulnerable,” but some populations are “critically endangered.” the population on dominica is faring much better than those on many other islands, where exploitation by humans, habitat destruction, or competition and even hybridization with introduced common iguanas (iguana iguana) have resulted in extirpations and dramatic declines. hunting iguanas is illegal on dominica, although it still occurs. many individuals, especially females migrating to coastal nesting sites, are killed on the roads. hemidactylus mabouia (moreau de jonnès 1818). squamata: gekkonidae. local name: mabouya kai. english common names: common house gecko, cosmopolitan house gecko. these geckos, with populations in africa and throughout the neotropics, are human commensals. whether the population on dominica arrived by natural or human-mediated means is unknown. the nocturnal lizards (maximum male svl 68 mm, maximum female svl 61 mm) occur on walls and roofs of buildings and under loose concrete, logs, and rocks. they are pale but often change color in response to their habitat. individuals found on the ground under loose bark and logs may be whitish gray to light brown, with bands on their backs. these lizards are frequently observed eating insects around lights at night. their conservation status has not been assessed. sphaerodactylus fantasticus (duméril and bibron 1836). squamata: sphaerodactylidae. no local name. english common name: south leeward sphaero (dwarf gecko). lesser antillean endemic, the subspecies s. f. fuga is endemic to dominica. these small diurnal geckos (female svl to 29 mm, male svl to 28 mm) occur in leaf litter of dry forests and beachside vegetation along the northern leeward (western) coast. population densities may be very high in some areas. sphaerodactylus fantasticus is sexually dimorphic. males have a dark blue head with light-blue and white spots, whereas those of females have two light stripes that begin as an inverted v and extend onto the body. body ground color is usually brownish, dark orange, or maroon. light blue rings often surround the eyes of both sexes. these geckos feed on a variety of small invertebrates. the conservation status of this species has not been assessed. sphaerodactylus vincenti (boulenger 1891). squamata: sphaerodactylidae. no local name. english common name: windward sphaero (dwarf gecko). lesser antillean endemic, the subspecies s. v. monilifer is endemic to dominica. these small lizards (both male and female svl to 40 mm, although the largest dominican geckos reach only 32 mm svl) occur in leaf litter of upland rain forests and habitats modified for agriculture to elevations as high as 900 m. these geckos are much less frequently encountered than s. fantasticus. sphaerodactylus vincenti is sexually dimorphic. dorsal ground color of both sexes is brown, but males have two black “eye-spots” (ocelli) on the shoulders, with the rest of the back variously marbled with dark brown. two light lines outlined with black extend to between the ocelli. females lack ocelli, but have spots on the shoulders lateral to the lines. the conservation status of this species has not been assessed. thecadactylus rapicauda (houttuyn 1782). squamata: phyllodactylidae. local names: mabouya hazyé, mabouya ban138 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 daniells et al. south leeward dwarf geckos (sphaerodactylus fantasticus) are sexually dimorphic. males (top) have very dark heads with light spots, whereas females (bottom) are more distinctly patterned, but have striped heads. n el so n j . v él ez e sp in et r o b er t po w el l common house geckos (hemidactylus mabouia) are frequently observed eating insects around lights at night. je ff r ey w . a c k le y iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 138 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 139amphibians and reptiles of dominica nann, mabouya hòtè. english common names: thick-tailed gecko, turnip-tailed gecko. neotropical endemic; presumably native on dominica. these geckos (male svl to 125 mm, female svl to 126 mm) occur in dry forests and are arboreal. they often exploit the night-light niche and can be common in artificial habitats, although they are less likely to function as human commensals than hemidactylus mabouia. they are known to be nocturnal but have been found basking during the day. ground color and pattern elements are highly variable, ranging from unicolored pale to dark gray, brown, or even deep orange to having variable dark brown to slate gray or black markings. color can change dramatically from day to night. like many geckos, t. rapicauda is vocal, often producing a series of chirps decreasing sequentially in volume. the diet consists of insects, other small arthropods, and occasionally smaller lizards. the disproportionately swollen tail, especially when regenerated, is used to store fat. the conservation status of these widely distributed geckos has not been assessed. snakes (reptilia: squamata) boa nebulosa (lazell 1964). squamata: boidae. local names: tête-chien, tèt-chyen. english common name: clouded boa. dominican endemic. these large nocturnal snakes (maximum svl ~3 m) occur in woodland and montane forests, scrub, and on vegetated cliff faces. they can sometimes be found in more disturbed areas, such as along the edges of banana fields. they seek shelter by day in hollow logs, rock piles, tree roots, and under natural and human debris. ground color ranges from tan windward dwarf geckos (sphaerodactylus vincenti monilifer) occur in leaf litter of upland rain forests and habitats modified for agriculture to elevations as high as 900 m. these geckos are much less frequently encountered on dominica than s. fantasticus. sphaerodactylus vincenti is sexually dimorphic. males have two black “eye-spots” (ocelli) on the shoulders, whereas females lack ocelli, but have light spots on the shoulders. r o b er t po w el l throughout much of the species’ range, turnip-tailed geckos (thecadactylus rapicauda) are less likely to associate with humans than “house” geckos in the genus hemidactylus. on dominica, however, these large geckos frequently exploit insects attracted to lights at night and take advantage of the many cracks and crevices in buildings to seek refuge by day. r o b er t po w el l je ff r ey w . a c k le y clouded boas (boa nebulosa) are the largest snakes on dominica. until recently, they were considered a subspecies of the wide-ranging b. constrictor. pe te r j . m u el le m a n r o b er t po w el l iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 139 to grayish-brown to dark brown with 23–35 rectangular or irregular dark dorsal saddles. the pattern appears to be washed-out on much of the body, but becomes increasingly distinct near the tail. like other members of the family boidae, b. nebulosa gives birth to live young. the diet consists of small vertebrates such as agoutis, iguanas, and chickens. adults have few natural predators, but humans hunt them for medicinal oil. the conservation status of the species is unknown, but all boids are included in cites appendix ii. alsophis antillensis (schlegel 1837). squamata: colubridae. local names: kouwès nwè, koulèv. english common name: dominican racer. lesser antillean endemic; the subspecies a. a. sibonius is a dominican endemic (other subspecies occur on neighboring islands). these diurnal snakes (maximum female and male svl 905 mm) occur in rain forest, rain forest edges, coastal scrub, mountain pastures, mangrove edges, deciduous forests, and orchards/plantations. adult coloration is dark taupe through milk chocolate to very dark brown, dark slate gray, and jet black with white, cream, or light brown blotches. juveniles have a distinct pattern that becomes obscured with age as a result of increased pigment deposition. these snakes are predominantly diurnal, with activity peaks at mid-morning and late afternoon. species of alsophis feed primarily on lizards (especially anoles), but may consume a variety of terrestrial vertebrates such as frogs, birds, rodents, and sometimes other snakes. they use a combination of active foraging and ambush foraging strategies, and may extend activity into the night to hunt anoles eating insects attracted to artificial lights. their conservation status has not been assessed. liophis juliae (cope 1879). squamata: colubridae. local names: kouwès jenga, kouwès zenga, grove snake. english common names: dominican ground snake, leeward ground snake. lesser antillean endemic; the subspecies l. j. juliae is a dominican endemic (other subspecies occur on guadeloupe and marie-galante). these diurnally active, ground-dwelling snakes (svl to 458 mm) occur in rain forest, cut-over hardwoods, and dry forest. ground color is typically black with a “salt and pepper” pattern of white to yellow spots. communal nests have been found. these active foragers feed primarily on small vertebrates, including frogs, lizards (especially anoles), and lizard eggs. less frequently encountered and presumably less abundant on dominica than alsophis antillensis, the conservation status of the species is unknown. typhlops dominicanus (stejneger 1904). squamata: typhlopidae. local names: kouwès dé-tèt, koulèv, coffin borer. english common name: dominican blindsnake. endemic. these burrowing snakes (maximum svl 385 mm) occur in well-shaded areas under rocks and logs, but may be encountered on the surface after heavy rains. they have a small, blunt head with scales covering the rudimentary eyes and a short tail equipped with a ter140 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 daniells et al. diurnally active, ground-dwelling dominican ground snakes (liophis juliae juliae) occur in rain forest, cut-over hardwoods, and dry forest. je ff r ey w . a c k le y dominican blindsnakes (typhlops dominicanus) are larger than most of their relatives. all blindsnakes are burrowers and are rarely encountered except when heavy rains bring them to the surface (much like earthworms). this individual was found on a trail in cabrits national park in northwestern dominica. je ff r ey w . a c k le y dominican racers (alsophis antillensis sibonius) are predominantly diurnal, with activity peaks at mid-morning and late afternoon, but they may extend activity through midday on cloudy or rainy days. la u r en a . w h it e iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 140 minal spine that serves as an anchor when burrowing. ground color is pale to very dark gray or dark brown. little is known about these snakes, which, although rarely seen, are believed to be a numerically important component of the dominican herpetofauna. the conservation status of this species is unknown. turtle (reptilia: chelonia) chelonoidis carbonaria (spix 1824). chelonia: testudinidae. local name: mòròkòy. english common name: red-footed tortoise. neotropical endemic; whether turtles on dominica arrived naturally via over-water dispersal or were introduced by humans is unknown. many west indian populations may include descendants of naturally occurring ancestors or of tortoises introduced by native american or colonial-era europeans for food or as pets by more recent island residents. these turtles (shell length in males to 60 cm, in females to ~40 cm) occur in forests as well as more open habitats. despite their size, they are rarely encountered even where abundant. almost never found on dominica, the very existence of a wild population is questionable. the top of the shell is black with yellow markings; the underside of the shell is yellow with black markings. some scales on the legs and tail are reddish orange. the diet consists primarily of plant material, but small arthropods and other invertebrates may be consumed. in many parts of their range, these tortoises are captured for food or for the pet trade. although listed in cites appendix ii, no formal assessment of conservation status has been completed. acknowledgements we thank our mentors robert powell (avila university), robert w. henderson (milwaukee public museum), and john s. parmerlee, jr. (johnson county community college), for their guidance. mr. arlington james, forest officer, forestry, wildlife, and parks division, ministry of agriculture & the environment, commonwealth of dominica, was instrumental in issuing permits to conduct research in dominica and facilitated our efforts in myriad ways. fieldwork was funded by a grant from the national science foundation (usa) to robert powell (dbi-0242589). references breuil, m. and m. day. 1996. iguana delicatissima. in: iucn 2007. 2007 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. ernst, c.h. and t.e.j. leuteritz. 1999. geochelone carbonaria. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (690):1–7. fa, j., b. hedges, b. ibéné, m. breuil, r. powell, and c. magin. 2004. leptodactylus fallax. in: iucn 2007. 2007 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. hedges, b., b. ibéné, m. breuil, and r. powell. 2004. eleutherodactylus martinicensis. in: iucn 2007. 2007 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. hedges, b., b. ibéné, s. koenig, e. la marca, r. ibáñez, and j. hardy. 2004. eleutherodactylus johnstonei. in: iucn 2007. 2007 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. hedges, b. and r. powell. 2004. eleutherodactylus amplinympha. in: iucn 2007. 2007 iucn red list of threatened species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. henderson, r.w. and r. powell. 2001. responses by the west indian herpetofauna to human-influenced resources. caribbean journal of science 37:41–54. henderson, r.w. and r. powell. 2009. natural history of west indian amphibians and reptiles. university press of florida, gainesville. kaiser, h. 1994. leptodactylus fallax. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (583):1–3. kaiser, h. 1997. origins and introductions of the caribbean frog, eleutherodactylus johnstonei (leptodactylidae): management and conservation concerns. biodiversity and conservation 6:1391–1407. kaiser, h. and j.d. hardy, jr. 1994. eleutherodactylus johnstonei. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (581):1–5. kaiser, h. and j.d. hardy, jr. 1994. eleutherodactylus martinicensis. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (582):1–4. kaiser, h. and r.w. henderson. 1994. the conservation status of lesser antillean frogs. herptological natural history 2(2):41–56. malhotra, a. and r.s. thorpe. 1992. anolis oculatus. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (540):1–4. malhotra, a. and r.s. thorpe. 1995. ameiva fuscata. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (606):1–3. malhotra, a. and r.s. thorpe. 1999. reptiles and amphibians of the eastern caribbean. macmillan education ltd., london, united kingdom. malhotra, a., r.s. thorpe, e. hypolite, and a. james. 2007. a report on the status of the herpetofauna of the commonwealth of dominica, west indies. applied herpetology 4:177–194. pasachnik, s.a., m. breuil, and r. powell. 2006. iguana delicatissima. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (811):1–14. powell, r. 2003. exploitation of reptiles in the west indies: a long history. iguana 10:67–70. powell, r. 2004. conservation of iguanas (iguana delicatissima and i. iguana) in the lesser antilles. iguana 11:238–246. powell, r., r.i. crombie, and h.e.a. boos. 1998. hemidactylus mabouia. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (674):1–11. powell, r. and r.w. henderson. 2005. conservation status of lesser antillean reptiles. iguana 12:62–77. russell, a.p. and a.m. bauer. 2002. thecadactylus rapicauda. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (753):1–16. schwartz, a. and r.w. henderson. 1991. amphibians and reptiles of the west indies: descriptions, distributions, and natural history. university of florida press, gainesville. steinberg, d.s., j.l. hite, r. powell, and r.w. henderson. 2008. sphaerodactylus vincenti. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (853):1–6. williamson, k.e. and r. powell. 2004. gymnophthalmus underwoodi. catalogue of american amphibians and reptiles (793):1–5. zoological society of london. 2008. chytridiomycosis and the caribbean. <www.zsl.org/field-conservation/island-ecosystems/chytridiomycosis-anddominica,228,ar.html>. iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 141amphibians and reptiles of dominica red-footed tortoises (chelonoidis carbonaria) are rarely encountered on dominica and whether a wild population exists is questionable. a r li n g to n j a m es iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:43 am page 141 iguana b&w text iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 245conservation research reports new pacific iguana the pacific iguanas of the fijian and tongan archipelagos are a biogeographic enigma in that their closest relatives are found only in the western hemisphere. these iguanas were thought to comprise two genera and four species of extinct and extant taxa. the two currently recognized extant species, brachylophus fasciatus, from fiji, tonga, and vanuatu, and brachylophus vitiensis, from western fiji, are of considerable conservation concern, with b. vitiensis listed as critically endangered. in a recent molecular study, keogh et al. (2008. philosophical transactions of the royal society b (biological sciences) 363:3413–3426) showed that brachylophus comprised three evolutionarily significant units. to test these conclusions and to reevaluate the phylogenetic and biogeographic relationships within brachylophus, the authors generated a mitochondrial dna dataset for 61 individuals from 13 islands, representing both currently recognized species of brachylophus. the data rejected the monophyly of specimens previously believed to comprise b. fasciatus, instead demonstrating that brachylophus includes three distinct species: b. fasciatus from the lau group of fiji and tonga, a new species, b. bulabula, from the central regions of fiji, populations which until now were considered to be b. fasciatus or b. vitiensis. these molecular and taxonomic results have important implications for future conservation initiatives for pacific iguanas. emerging threats to long-lived vertebrates persistent contaminants are ubiquitous in the environment, often present at concentrations that may jeopardize reproductive fitness only after long periods of exposure. as the duration of exposure is largely regulated by life span, long-lived species of high trophic status, such as many reptiles, birds, and mammals, may be at risk of reduced fitness and population decline. rowe (2008. bioscience 58:623–631) suggested that delayed maturation and iteroparity (repeated production of offspring at intervals throughout the life cycle) confer the potential for cumulative effects to be expressed prior to reproduction, and large parental investments in yolk and milk may threaten offspring because of exposure during critical developmental periods. long generation times may delay emergence of obvious effects on populations, perhaps eluding early intervention, while constraining rates at which populations may recover if conditions subsequently improve. life history theory thus suggests that the suite of traits that optimized reproductive fitness throughout long-lived species’ evolutionary histories may ultimately put them in peril in the modern anthropogenically altered environment. frogs with disease-resistance genes may escape extinction as frog populations die off around the world, researchers have identified certain genes that can help the amphibians develop resistance to harmful bacteria and disease. the discovery may provide new strategies to protect frog populations in the wild. new research examines how genes encoding the major histocompatibility (mhc) complex affect the ability of frogs to resist infection by a bacterium that is commonly associated with frog population declines. “in the short term, captive management of frogs with complementary diseaseresistance genes may offer the best hope for saving species from extinction,” says bruce waldman, a biologist at lincoln university in new zealand and one of the paper’s authors. “management practices that maintain or enhance diversity in mhc genes may prove the key to safeguarding frog populations in the wild.” “massive die-offs of frogs may indicate environmental problems that ultimately will affect other species, including humans,” waldman says. “but, despite the concern, little is known about factors that make individuals susceptible to disease.” c o n s e r v a t i o n r e s e a r c h r e p o r t s populations from central regions of fiji, formerly assigned to brachylophus fasciatus, were shown to represent a new species, b. bulabula. pe te r h a r lo w top predators such as nile monitors (varanus niloticus) may be at risk of reduced fitness and population declines due to cumulative effects of persistent environmental contaminants to which they are exposed over long life spans. b r u c e b lo c k 246 iguana • volume 15, number 4 • december 2008 conservation research reports barribeau et al. (plos one 3: e2692, <www.plosone.org/article/info: doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0002692>) exposed african clawed frog tadpoles to several doses of the bacterium aeromonas hydrophila and examined the number of tadpoles that survived and measured how fast they grew. certain genes allowed tadpoles to survive bacterial infection but at a cost, as these tadpoles sometimes grew more slowly. among siblings, patterns of disease resistance corresponded to tadpoles’ mhc genes rather than other genes that they shared, demonstrating that the mhc genes conferred immunity. programs currently are underway to rescue frogs from declining wild populations and breed them in captivity to ensure that species are not lost to extinction. this study suggests that selective breeding of individuals with known disease-resistance genes might produce frogs that can survive infection by pathogens, even after the frogs are reintroduced into the wild. the research team studied the african clawed frog because its immune system already had been well characterized, but as most frogs and toads have similar immune systems, they believe that their results will be generally applicable to all threatened and endangered amphibians. new approach to conserving amphibians the global extinction crisis demands immediate action to conserve species at risk. however, if entire groups such as superfamilies are at risk due to shared evolutionary history, a shift towards conserving such groups rather than individual species may be needed. using phylogenetic autocorrelation analysis, corey and waite (2008. diversity and distributions 14:614–629) demonstrated that multiple kinds of extinction threat clump within the amphibian tree of life. their study provided insight into how these threats might collectively influence the extinction risk of whole groups, consistent with the supposition that related species, with similar traits, share an intrinsic vulnerability to common kinds of threat. most strikingly, they found a significant concentration of ‘enigmatic’ decline and critically endangered status within families of the hyloid frogs. this phylogenetic clumping of risk is also geographically concentrated, with most threats found in central and south america, and australia, coinciding with reported outbreaks of chytridiomycosis. they speculated that the phylogenetic clumping of threat represents, in part, shared extinction proneness due to shared evolutionary history. however, even if the phylogenetic clumping of threat were simply a by-product of shared geography, this concordance between phylogenetic and geographical patterns represents a prime opportunity. where practical, conservation plans should focus on biogeographical regions where threatened groups occur, thereby improving the capacity for conserving species. this approach could outperform the usual triage approach of saving individual species after they have become critically endangered. surveying herpetofaunal mortality on rural highways road mortality can contribute to local and regional declines in amphibian and reptilian populations. consequently, accurately and efficiently identifying hotspots of road-mortality is necessary for hazard assessment and mitigation. in 2002, langen et al. (2007. journal of wildlife management 71:1361–1368) conducted walking and driving surveys throughout an extensive rural highway network in northern new york to evaluate survey methods and to quantify spatial and temporal patterns of herpetofaunal road-mortality. in 2004, they repeated the surveys at a subset of locations to quantify interannual repeatability. reptilian and amphibian species had different peak periods of road-mortality because they differed in the causes of movements that resulted in crossings. spatial locations of herpetofaunal roadmortality were concentrated at a limited number of hotspots. hotspots overlapped across species and were located at consistent locations across years. results of walking and driving surveys were highly repeatable among survey teams, but driving surveys underestimated the density of road-mortality because many animals were missed. detection failure was higher in some taxa (e.g., frogs) than others (e.g., turtles). their results indicated that designing a valid, efficient methodology for locating hotspots of reptilian and amphibian road-mortality along a road network is possible, thus pinpointing priority sites for mitigation. a study of tadpoles of african clawed frogs (xenopus laevis) indicated that some individuals with disease resistant genes grew more slowly. er ic is se lé e a clumping of threats to groups of frogs, especially the hyloid frogs such as this redeyed treefrog (agalychnis callidryas), might represent, at least in part, a shared extinction proneness due to shared evolutionary history. reptilian and amphibian species had different peak periods of road-mortality because they differed in the causes of movements that resulted in crossings. spatial locations of herpetofaunal road-mortality were concentrated at a limited number of hotspots, such as those used by female turtles moving to nesting areas. c h u c k s c h a ff er iguana b&w text lesser antillean iguanas on st. eustatius f o c u s o n c o n s e r v a t i o n a l l p h o t o g r a p h s b y r o b e r t ja n v a n o o st e n beautiful color artwork of iguana delicatissima by joel friesch get the t-shirt! color ircf logo labeled contributor st. eustatius, lesser antilles lesser antillean iguanas (iguana delicatissima) are endemic to the lesser antilles. extant populations occur on only a few islands, and few of these populations are thriving. most are affected by habitat loss and, to a lesser extent, exploitation (mostly for food). hybridization with introduced green iguanas (iguana iguana) is threatening the integrity of the gene pool on some islands. in 2004, the population on st. eustatius (= statia) was estimated at 425 individuals. however, st. eustatius national parks protect substantial tracts of suitable habitat and many landowners with adjacent properties maintain gardens that are extensively exploited by iguanas. prospects for conserving a viable and stable population are quite good. however, roadkills occur and, although statians rarely kill and eat iguanas, guest workers often fail to distinguish lesser antillean iguanas from the green iguanas routinely consumed on their home islands. consequently, ongoing educational efforts are necessary, if only to reinforce the pride statians should take in their endemic population. in 2004, the international iguana society donated signs that were placed in prominent locations throughout the island. unfortunately, they have not held up well to the tropical sun. the ircf is spearheading an effort to replace them with new color signs that carry a 20-year guarantee. if you are interested in making a donation to support that effort or want more detailed information, please visit: www.ircf.org/eustatius (or accessible from the ircf home page) donors who contribute $50 will have their names listed on the signs and those who donate $100 or more also will receive a special t-shirt featuring the artwork of joel friesch. please support this campaign www.statiapark.org www.ircf.org there is a restriction on characters due to space limitations. see website. corporate sponsors. corporate logo added below the bottom of the back artwork & name added to the sign: $1,000. contact the ircf for more information. your name here iguana b&w text 172 iguana • volume 15, number 3 • september 2008 historical perspectives while studying the geology of buck peak, twelve miles west of riddle, douglas co., oregon, last september, i saw a mortal combat that interested me very much because so anomalous. james storrs, a mountaineer and trapper of california, well acquainted with the habits of wild animals, was with me at the time and remarked that it was “the first ring engagement he had ever seen in which the salamander showed any sand.” in these strenuous days of nature faking it is after all not surprising that even the salamanders are beginning to take an active part in affairs. we watched the progress of the fight for a few moments each time at intervals of about forty-five minutes for three hours. thinking that the occurrence might be familiar to herpetologists, i sent a brief account of it to my friend dr. c. hart merriam for information. in his reply he regarded the observation as important and expressed a request that the account be published in science as a matter of permanent record. the combatants were a salamander and a garter snake. the salamander was about eight inches in length, of a rather dark brown color above and lighter below. on the back and sides including the tail were irregularly elongated roundish darker spots. his smooth skin was naturally moist and being plump and chunky he seemed to be a bull-dog of his kind. judging from the specimens kindly shown me by dr. stejneger in the national museum the salamander was probably an amblystoma [= ambystoma]. the garter snake was of good size, about two feet in length, and with other stripes had reddish-brown markings on the sides. both animals seemed to be in perfect condition for a hard fight. when first seen in a narrow dry water course i supposed that the snake was swallowing the salamander, but the squirming of the snake attracted closer attention and the salamander was found to have a firm grip on the snake at the base of the right jaw and neck. the snake could not bite the salamander but writhed so as to turn him over and over and drag him along on his side or back without affecting the grip of the salamander. his whole attention seemed to be given to holding on without caring whether he was right side up or not. this moderately active writhing in which the snake furnished all the energy continued for over two hours with gradually waning strength on the part of the snake. in the course of the struggle they passed beneath a bank and out of sight, but when last seen, half an hour later they were out again at the old place. this time all was quiet. the salamander was now in control. he had changed his grip. he was directly in front of the snake and had a deep hold on its upper jaw covering its nostrils. the lower jaw of the snake was hanging limp. the salamander seemed fresh in the enjoyment of his victory, while the snake was nearly dead. a salamander-snake fight3 j.s. diller u.s. geological survey washington, d.c. 3 originally published in science, new series, vol. 26, no. 678 (27 december 1907), pp. 907–908. exo terra is a global leader in innovative naturalistic terrarium products and a proud supporter of many reptile-related conservation endeavors, including those of the ircf (www.eco-terra.com/en/explore/conservation.php). iguana 15.3 b&w text 9/10/08 5:44 am page 172 iguana, june 2008 78 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 schaffer, wood, norton, and schaffer diamondback terrapins (malaclemys terrapin) in a crab trap. sh a n n o n t o m pk in s, h o u st o n c h r o n ic le imagine for a moment an animal species whose very existence threatened our survival. what would we be willing to do? one consideration would certainly be to control its numbers, possibly even to ponder its extermination. perhaps we would embark upon a crusade to eliminate every last individual, conceivably starting with females so no more would be created. what kind of animal might fall into this category? something big and scary with large teeth or claws and a ravenous hunger would do. a creature with a propensity for insensate carnage and destruction might also fit the bill. perhaps at times in the dim past such creatures may have existed, or at least creatures that were thus perceived. however, humans now determine the destiny of the world, and this niche is rarely occupied. tigers, sharks, crocodiles, and the like might have fallen into this category, but only rarely and in very specific times and places. one animal that would definitely not be considered threatening is a turtle. unlike the rest of the reptilian clan, people are almost universally fond of turtles. yet a campaign is afoot to eliminate the inoffensive diamondback terrapin (malaclemys terrapin). sure, you wouldn’t want to intentionally place a finger in a terrapin’s mouth as it could give a nasty bite, but this would be the same with almost any animal. nevertheless, the terrapin is being subjected to a campaign of systematic extermination. traps take terrapins along with crabs. the same traps, when lost or discarded, continue to remove adults indiscriminately. roadways built along or through marshes unequally target reproductive females by mimicking nesting grounds. unsustainable take for markets and by-catch severely decimate numbers. hits by boat propellers, habitat loss, shoreline and coastal development, pollution, and predation also take their toll. in order to address these concerns, we need to answer two simple questions: (1) is present legislation for the protection of these turtles based on an adequate knowledge of terrapins’ biological needs? (2) can anything be done by either state or national governments to check the extermination of terrapins? these questions were posed, not in a magazine article, but in a government publication, “the natural history and cultivation of the diamond-back terrapin” by coker in 1906. we haven’t progressed very far since then. carl hiaasen (2006; reprinted in iguana 13(2): 154–155) eloquently framed the problem regarding gopher tortoises and developers permitted to bury them if willing to pay a price, “if your kids asked to bury a small animal alive, you’d be horrified. you’d tell them that’s an awful thing and that they ought to be ashamed. most children wouldn’t dream of doing it, of course, because they know what’s wrong and what’s right. unfortunately, they don’t make the rules.” although we don’t bury terrapins, we might as well. diamondback terrapins are unique. the word terrapin often is used to refer to a variety of north american aquatic turtles, but especially the genus malaclemys — the diamondback terrapin. diamondback refers to the conspicuous ridges on the scutes of the carapace. the etymology of malaclemys has been lost over the years, with possible translations of “mala” range from bad, to soft, to soft heads, to soft prey, none of which are convincing. the greek word for chelonian gives rise to “clemmys,” and “terrapin” is a derivation of torope, from the virginia algonquian tongue. john white first illustrated this turtle in watercolor around 1585 (lorant 1946). a terrapin also was pictured in “their manner of fishing in virginia” (plate xiii, incolarum virginiae piscandiratio) in de bry’s india occidentalis (1590). the diamondback terrapin was formally described for science by schoepff (1792–1801) as testudo terrapin (in “tab. xv”). diamondback terrapins tolerate a wide range of salinity, although they are most commonly found in brackish environments. oddly enough, unlike sea turtles, which also are found in saltwater, terrapins are thought to drink only fresh water. found from massachusetts to texas, seven subspecies are currently recognized. nesting takes place multiple times a year in warmer portions of their range and only once annually near the northern limits. some variation occurs, with some georgia terrapins nesting less frequently than their new jersey brethren. terrapins in the stew chuck schaffer1, roger wood2, terry m. norton3, and rick schaffer4 1turtle and tortoise newsletter, 13811 tortuga point drive, jacksonville, fl, 32225, usa (chelonian1@aol.com) 2the richard stockton college of new jersey, pomona, nj, 08240, usa (roger.wood@stockton.edu) 3director of veterinary services, georgia sea turtle center, jekyll island, ga 31527 and st. catherine’s island center, midway, ga 31320 usa (tnmynahvet@aol.com) 4stanton college preparatory school, 13811 tortuga point drive, jacksonville, fl, 32225, usa (accipender@aol.com) iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 79terrapins � diamondback terrapins (malaclemys terrapin) are suffering from overharvesting and inadvertent mortality. b r ia n k . m ea le y , i n st it u te o f w il d li fe s c ie n c es female malaclemys are larger than males. the species exhibits temperature dependent sex determination (tsd). the origin of this species is uncertain, but most authorities believe that it evolved from map turtles (graptemys) or from a common ancestor shared with graptemys (dobie 1981, lamb and ostentoski 1997, wood 1977). terrapins appear in myriad folktales (usually as a trickster) from pre-contact native american legends to uncle remus’s brer terrapin (brer tarrypin), who beats brer bear in a tug of war by diving underwater with the rope and tying it to a branch (chandler 1881). much more recently, in “time of the turtle,” jack rudloe (1979) experiences a run of bad luck after capturing a batch of diamondback terrapins. he related a myth prevalent among the local fisherman that terrapins, locally known as “wind turtles,” bring ill fortune. he traced the story back to local native american tribes that regarded terrapins as sacred animals. tales tell of terrapins in the chesapeake being so great in number that slaves and indentured servants complained about the frequency of turtles in their diets. a corollary rumor tells of a law passed by the state of maryland prohibiting excessive meals of terrapin to said complainants. i have never been able to find evidence other than old news stories (anonymous 1892), one of which stated, “in some of the old records of the state 80 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 schaffer, wood, norton, and schaffer schoepff ’s testudo terrapin tab. xv (1792–1801; above); white’s terrapin (~1585; above right), and de bry’s “their manner of fishing in virginia” (1590; right). note the terrapin in the water below the canoe in the latter image. iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 81terrapins (maryland) there were clauses that the slaves should not be fed on terrapin more than three times a week.” gourmet delicacy undeniably the terrapin was sufficiently tasty that many never complained about eating too much terrapin. true (1884) wrote, “philadelphia furnishes the best market for this species, but it is also sold in large numbers in baltimore, washington, new york, boston, chicago, pittsburg, cincinnati, saint louis, and many other cities.” he went on to quote a price of up to fifty cents each, quite expensive for the time. the price and harvest continued to rise and, within a few years, approximately 400,000 pounds a year were harvested, representing a value of about $44,000 (true 1887). cookbooks from the mid-1800s to the early 1900s confirm the popularity of terrapins. the first of these recipes is from the white house cookbook ... (gillette et al. 1887). stewed water turtles, or terrapins select the largest, thickest and fattest, the females being the best; they should be alive when brought from market. wash and put them alive into boiling water, add a little salt, and boil them until thoroughly done, or from ten to fifteen minutes, after which take off the shell, extract the meat, and remove carefully the sand-bag and gall; also all the entrails; they are unfit to eat, and are no longer used in cooking terrapins for the best tables. cut the meat into pieces, and put it into a stewpan with its eggs, and sufficient fresh butter to stew it well. let it stew till quite hot throughout, keeping the pan carefully covered, that none of the flavor may escape, but shake it over the fire while stewing. in another pan make a sauce of beaten yolk of egg, highly flavored with madeira or sherry, and powdered nutmeg and mace, a gill of currant jelly, a pinch of cayenne pepper, and salt to taste, enriched with a large lump of fresh butter. stir this sauce well over the fire, and when it has almost come to a boil take it off. send the terrapins to the table hot in a covered dish, and the sauce separately in a sauce tureen, to be used by those who like it, and omitted by those who prefer the genuine flavor of the terrapins when simply stewed with butter. this is now the usual mode of dressing terrapins in maryland, virginia, and many other parts of the south, and will be found superior to any other. if there are no eggs in the terrapin, “egg balls” may be substituted. female terrapins, such as this individual, are larger than males; like many turtles, sex is determined by temperature during incubation. ph il a ll m a n diamondback terrapins tolerate a wide range of salinity, although they are most commonly found in brackish water. ji m h a r d in g brer tarrypin (chandler, 1881), “terrafin fishing” (leslie, 1888). stewed terrapin plunge the terrapins alive into boiling water, and let them remain until the sides and lower shell begin to crack — this will take less than an hour; then remove them and let them get cold; take off the shell and outer skin, being careful to save all the blood possible in opening them. if there are eggs in them put them aside in a dish; take all the inside out, and be very careful not to break the gall, which must be immediately removed or it will make the rest bitter. it lies within the liver. then cut up the liver and all the rest of the terrapin into small pieces, adding the blood and juice that have flowed out in cutting up; add half a pint of water; sprinkle a little flour over them as you place them in the stewpan; let them stew slowly ten minutes, adding salt, black and cayenne pepper, and a very small blade of mace; then add a gill of the best brandy and half a pint of the very best sherry wine; let it simmer over a slow fire very gently. about ten minutes or so, before you are ready to dish them, add half a pint of rich cream, and half a pound of sweet butter, with flour, to prevent boiling; two or three minutes before taking them off the fire peel the eggs carefully and throw them in whole. if there should be no eggs use the yolks of hens’ eggs, hard boiled. this recipe is for four terrapins. the new york times (anonymous 1891) even recommended terrapins as lenten fare. for some unfathomable reason, terrapins and turtles to this day are considered “fish” by the roman catholic church — but that really isn’t all that surprising. in maryland statutes, the terrapin also was defined as a “fish” and remains classified as such (whilden, 2007). diamondback terrapins were so popular as gourmet food from the mid-1800s through the 1920s that wild stocks began to diminish early in the 1900s (babcock 1926, finneran 1948, mccauley 1945). the terrapin fishery was able to supply markets initially, but the increasing demand and decreasing numbers of wild terrapins necessitated another solution. terrapins were popular, not only in the united states, but many were exported to locales including london, paris, berlin, guam, and cuba. a number even found their way to rubber-rich manaus in brazil. the new idea was to establish experimental terrapin “pounds,” primarily in georgia and north carolina (barney 1922; coker 1906, 1920; gadow 1901; hatsel and hildebrand 1926; hay 1904; hildebrand 1929, 1932, 1933). ironically, most of our early knowledge about the biology of malaclemys came from these farms. terrapin probably would have been driven to extinction if not for the one-two punch of the great depression and prohibition. the latter rendered access to sherry (a key ingredient in terrapin stew) almost impossible. two eminent herpetologists, archie carr and roger conant, suggested that consumers discovering that the diamondback terrapin wasn’t orders of magnitude tastier than less expensive turtles and the decreasing availability and increasing cost of household help contributed to the survival of the species (pritchard 1979). gone fishing some (coker 1951, hurd et al. 1979) suggested that populations gradually recovered after the heavy exploitation of the terrapin stew boom, and that terrapins were out of the woods — but the reprieve, if indeed it existed, seems to have been fleeting. once again, wild populations are under intense pressure, this time due to demand from asian communities in the united states and abroad. this threat is every bit as real as it was around the turn of the 20th century. as demand continues to increase, commercial harvesters are increasing efforts to supply the market. recent years have seen harvests increase five-fold, while wild populations have dropped to as little as a quarter of their former size. the total take in maryland for 2006 was reportedly over 10,000 terrapins — a twenty-fold increase over the previous year (whilden 2007). one maryland waterman has turned himself into the “terrapin king.” he converted his property into a turtle farm, “breeding tens of thousands of hatchlings for sale as food or pets. we are sending the babies to china — thousands and thousands and thousands,” lewis said (pelton 2006). the u.s. census bureau even has an industry title for “terrapin catching” (naics code 114119; census industry code 0280). an order of crab with a side of terrapin many of us enjoy a dinner of crabs, but most of us don’t realize the price for that meal is paid in terrapins. the primary cause of terrapin mortality throughout a large portion of the species’ range is incidental capture and drowning in commercial crab traps, with deaths estimated in the tens of thousands (seigel and gibbons 1995). an early estimate in south carolina alone was 2,835 terrapin captures per day in april and may (bishop 1983). a single trap in maryland was found with 49 entire and 82 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 schaffer, wood, norton, and schaffer ghost traps continue to kill terrapins. r o g er w o o d advice for the preparation of lenten dinners (new york times 1891). iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 83terrapins many partial turtle shells (roosenberg 1991). up to 78% of a population could be captured in a single year (roosenberg 1997). since the distribution of the blue crab (callinectes sapidus), for which the two million commercial crab traps annually deployed were designed, coincides closely with that of the terrapin, diamondbacks are especially at risk (watters and wood 2003). although these traps were never intended to capture terrapins, they do. these figures do not take into account recreational traps. in one small maryland community, over half of the waterfront properties are weekend homes, and most of the docks have traps in the water all week long. while many full-time residents check their traps often enough to preclude terrapin drowning, that would be impossible for the weekenders. ghost story “ghost traps” are abandoned or lost crab traps that continue to execute their function. they not only continue to deplete the downward spiraling population of crabs, but also take many terrapins. ghost traps have been found with over 50 dead terrapins (roosenberg 1991). of the two million commercial crab traps placed in u.s. waters each year, as many as 25% become ghost traps, and these devices take a long time to rust away. consequently, tens (or even hundreds) of thousands of traps work tirelessly to catch terrapins and other creatures — without any purpose. the results can be staggering (watters and wood 2003). our fish dinners also are paid for in terrapins. by-catch in several fisheries can be substantive. one that is getting considerable attention is the eel-pot fishery, which has great potential for harm and has been relatively understudied (radzio and roosenburg 2005). why did the terrapin cross the road? the same roads we take to reach vacation destinations on barrier islands or the beach kill turtles. road mortality inadvertently targets reproductively mature females because the roads mimic the high ground that female terrapins use for nesting. each year, thousands of gravid terrapins are killed by vehicular traffic. in a six-year period, a single seven-mile stretch of road accounted for over 4,000 terrapin deaths (wood and herlands 1997). habitat loss continues to be a problem for terrapins. the two main culprits are waterfront development (roosenberg 1991) and pollution (ford et al. 2008). many waterfront properties are bulk-headed or rip-rapped, denying access to terrapins. several spill incidents in the last few years have affected prime terrapin habitat. without access to nesting sites or unpolluted water, diamondbacks cannot survive. due to the elimination of their natural predators, raccoons (procyon lotor) have increased in number and densities and are considered the major nest predators of terrapins (butler 2000, burger 1977, seigel 1980). they are, after all, a human-subsidized predator, with great fondness for handouts from our trashcans. in some areas, the problem is so great that they destroy 100% of terrapin nests (feinberg 2004). consequently, many previously thriving populations have become sinks (ner 2003). thousands of gravid terrapins are killed each year by vehicular traffic. r o g er w o o d to m a s d ie g n e roads are sought by migrating turtles because they mimic the high ground that females use for nesting, r o g er w o o d even boat traffic takes a toll, with 20% of turtles in some populations, predominantly females, showing propeller scars (roosenberg 1991). jay leno, in a potato chip advertisement, said, “eat ’em, we’ll make more.” unfortunately that doesn’t apply to diamondback terrapins. literature cited anonymous. 1891. feasts in days of fasts. hints for the preparation of lenten dinners. the new york times, 15 march 1891. anonymous. 1892. crabs in the chesapeake. the new york times, 12 july 1892. anonymous. 1902. scarcity of terrapin. hints for the preparation of lenten dinners. the new york times, 28 september 1902. babcock, h.l. 1926. the diamond-back terrapin in massachusetts. copeia 1926:742–748. barney, r.l. 1922. further notes on the natural history and artificial propagation of the diamond-back terrapin. bulletin of the united states bureau of fisheries 38:91–111. bry, t. de. 1590. india occidentalis. volume one. de bry, francoforti [their manner of fishing in virginia (plate xiii, incolarum virginiae piscandiratio)]. burger, j. 1977. determinants of hatching success in the diamondback terrapin, malaclemys terrapin. american midland naturalist 97:444–464. butler, j.a. 2000. status and distribution of the carolina diamondback terrapin, malaclemys terrapin centrata, in duval county. florida fish and wildlife conservation commission final report. tallahassee, florida. coker, r.e. 1906. the cultivation of the diamondback terrapin. north carolina geological survey bulletin 14:1–69. coker, r.e. 1920. the diamond-back terrapin: past, present and future. science monthly i 1:171–186. coker, r.e. 1951. the diamond-back terrapin in north carolina, pp. 219–230. in: h.f. taylor (ed.), survey of marine fisheries in north carolina. university of north carolina press, chapel hill. finneran, l.c. 1926. diamond-back terrapin in connecticut. copeia 1948:138. gadow, h. 1901. amphibia and reptiles. macmillan and co. ltd., london. gillette, f.l. and h. ziegmann. 1887. the white house cook book: cooking, toilet, and household recipes… r.s. peale & co., chicago. harris, j.c. 1881. uncle remus, his songs and his sayings: the folk-lore of the old plantation. d. appleton, new york. hatsel, c. and s.f. hildebrand. 1926. diamondback terrapin culture at beaufort, n.c. department of commerce (bureau of fisheries) circular no. 60. washington, d.c. hiaasen, c. 2006. killing animals for profit. miami herald sun, may 2007. <www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/columnists/14511394.htm>. hay, w.p. 1904. a revision of malaclemys, a genus of turtles. bulletin of the united states bureau of fisheries 24:1–19. hildebrand, s.f. 1929. review of experiments on artificial culture of diamondback terrapin. bulletin of the united states bureau of fisheries 45:25–70. hildebrand, s.f. 1932. growth of diamond-back terrapins, size attained, sex ratio and longevity. zoologica 9:551–563. hildebrand, s.f. 1933. hybridizing diamond-back terrapins. journal of heredity 24:231–238. hurd, l.e., g.w. smedes, and t.a. dean. 1979. an ecological study of a natural population of diamondback terrapins (malaclemys t. terrapin) in a delaware salt marsh. estuaries 2:28–33. lorant, s. 1946. the new world: the first pictures of america. duell, sloan, & pearce, new york. 84 iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 schaffer, wood, norton, and schaffer mortality attributable directly or indirectly to human activities appears to be exceeding the species’ reproductive capacity. pe te r k in g iguana • volume 15, number 2 • june 2008 85terrapins mccauley r.h. 1945. the reptiles of maryland and the district of columbia. published by the author, hagerstown, maryland. ner, s.e. 2003. distribution and predation of diamondback terrapin nests at six upland islands of jamaica bay and sandy hook unit, gateway national area. unpublished m.s. thesis, hofstra university, hemstead, new york. pelton, t. 2006. farm points way out of turtle trap. baltimore sun, 1 november 2006. pritchard, p.c.h. 1979. encyclopedia of turtles. tfh publications inc., neptune, new jersey. radzio, t.a. and w.m. roosenburg. 2005. diamondback terrapin mortality in the american eel pot fishery and evaluation of a bycatch reduction device. estuaries 28:620–626. roosenberg, w.m. 1991. the diamondback terrapin: habitat requirements, population dynamics and opportunities for conservation, pp. 227–234. in: a. chaney and j.a. mihursky (eds.), new perspectives in the chesapeake system: a research and management partnership. proceedings of a conference. chesapeake research consortium publication no. 137, maryland. roosenberg, w.m., w. cresko, m. modesitte, and m.b. robbins. 1997. diamondback terrapin (malaclemys terrapin) mortality in crab pots. conservation biology 2:1166–1172. rudloe, j. 1979. time of the turtle. alfred a. knopf, new york. schoepff, j.d. 1792–1801. historia testudinum iconibus illustrata. j.j. palm, erlangae. schoepff, j.d. 1792–1801. naturgeschichte der schildkröten mit abbildungen erläutert. j.j. palm, erlangae. seigel, r.a. 1980. predation by raccoons on diamondback terrapins, malaclemys terrapin tequesta. journal of herpetology 14:87–89. seigel, r.a. and j.w. gibbons. 1995. workshop on the ecology, status, and management of the diamondback terrapin (malaclemys terrapin), savannah river ecology laboratory, 2 august 1994: final results and recommendations. chelonian conservation and biology 1:240–243. true, f.w. 1884. useful aquatic reptiles and batrachians of the united states, pp. 137–162. in: g.b. goode et al. (eds.), the fisheries and fishery industries of the united states. section 1, part 2. u.s. commission on fisheries, government printing office, washington, d.c. true, f. w. 1887. the turtle and terrapin fisheries, pp. 493–503. in: g.b. goode et al. (eds.), the fisheries and fishery industries of the united states. section 5, volume 2, part xix. u.s. commission on fisheries, government printing office, washington, d.c. watters, c. and r.c. wood. 2003. large scale mortality of diamondback terrapins (malaclemys terrapin terrapin) as the result of drowning in commercial crab traps. abstract, second international congress on chelonian conservation. 18–22 june 2003, dakar, sénégal. whilden, m. 2007. always look a gift terrapin on the plastron. turtle and tortoise newsletter 11:23–25. wood, r.c. and r. herlands. 1997. turtles and tires: the impact of roadkills on northern diamondback terrapin, malaclemys terrapin terrapin, populations on the cape may peninsula, southern new jersey, usa, pp. 46–53. in: j. van abbema (ed.), proceedings: conservation, restoration, and management of tortoises and turtles – an international conference. new york turtle and tortoise society, new york. exo terra is a global leader in innovative naturalistic terrarium products and a proud supporter of many reptile-related conservation endeavors, including those of the ircf (www.eco-terra.com/en/explore/conservation.php). notice! 2008 guatemalan fieldtrip and excursion 10–17 october visit the ircf website for details: www.ircf.org/projectheloderma/fieldtrip2008.php 