Caribbean Herpetology Note

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caribbean herpetology note Ameiva polops (Saint Croix Ameiva). in 2007 removed 100 individuals, but more than 70 rats were removed on Ruth Island in 2013. No sustained rat manage- Conservation. ment occurs on Protestant Cay. Rattus rattus likely threatens Date of observation: 13 May 2013. Location: Protestant the Protestant Cay population of this critically endangered Cay- U.S. Virgin Islands. Coordinates: 17.749293, -64.703005. species, and possibly affects the Ruth Island population. Voucher: image. Predation pressure from introduced mam- Nicole F. Angeli, Texas A&M University, 221 Old Heep mals (e.g., Rattus rattus) threatens Ameiva polops popula- Building, College Station, Texas 77843, USA, nangeli@ tamu. tions on three of four off-shore islets where it occurs (St. edu. Croix Ground Lizard 5-Year Review, 2013, USFWS). During the Citation: Angeli NF. 2013. Ameiva polops (Saint Croix course of routine lizard monitoring on Protestant Cay during Ameiva). Conservation. Caribbean Herpetology 45:1. May 2013, I observed and examined one adult Ameiva polops (52.5 mm SVL) with a bifurcated tail. I observed four addition- al adult lizards, or 12.8% of 39 lizards observed on Protestant Cay, with bifurcated tails. During the same month, I observed 46 individuals on Buck Island Reef National Monument (BUIS) and 41 individuals on Green Cay National Wildlife Refuge (GCNWR) with intact tails or tail-loss resulting in a single re- generated tail. During one visit to Ruth Island, I observed six individuals throughout the entire island which is perceived as fewer than during similar days in previous years although tail status was not noted (J. Valiulis, pers. comm). Work on insular reptiles suggests that tail furcations may result from Rattus rattus redation (Hayes et al., 2012, Biodivers Conserv 21: 1893-1899). Protestant Cay, Ruth Island, and GCNWR have populations of Rattus rattus of unknown population density. Photograph by R Gomès and B Ibéné Rattus rattus are eradicated from BUIS and there is a sustained monitoring program. Rodent management is on-going for GCNWR and Ruth Island; rats are only sporadically found during periodic trapping on GCNWR since a trapping project Photograph by K Auer Published online 27 September 2013 1 Caribbean Herpetology 45:1 ISSN 2333-2468 www.caribbeanherpetology.org.

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