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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 opportu-

nity 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 maxi-
mum total length of no more than 700 mm. Two other sub-
species (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 indi-
viduals.

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 pro-
posed a headstart facility. Headstarting has proven to be a rela-
tively 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 pro-
posed 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

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