V olume 10, Number 1 M a r c h 2003 US$6.00 JournalI ofG the InternationalUA Iguana Society NA www.iguanasociety.org Cyclura ricordii, Ricord’s Iguana. Photographed in the Dominican Republic by John Binns. Iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:10 AM Page 2 Statement of Purpose The International Iguana Society, Inc. is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated I.I.S. 2002 I.I.S. 2002 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 Board of Directors Editorial Board habitats and to encourage development of sustainable economies compatible Joseph Wasilewski Allison C. Alberts, PhD with the maintenance of biodiversity. To this end, we will: (1) engage in active President Zoological Society of San Diego conservation, initiating, assisting, and funding conservation efforts in Homestead, FL San Diego, CA cooperation with U.S. and international governmental and private agencies; Robert W. Ehrig Gordon M. Burghardt, PhD (2) promote educational efforts related to the preservation of biodiversity; (3) Founder and Vice President University of Tennessee build connections between individuals and the academic, zoo, and conserva- Big Pine Key, FL Knoxville, TN tion communities, providing conduits for education and for involving the general public in efforts to preserve endangered species; and (4) encourage A. C. Echternacht, PhD Keith Christian, PhD Treasurer the dissemination and exchange of information on the ecology, population Northern Territory University Knoxville, TN Darwin, NT, Australia biology, behavior, captive husbandry, taxonomy, and evolution of iguanas. AJ Gutman John B. Iverson, PhD Secretary and Earlham College Membership Information Membership Coordinator Richmond, IN Iguana, the Journal of The International Iguana Society, is distributed quarterly West Hartford, CT to members and member organizations. Annual dues: Gordon H. Rodda, PhD Robert Powell, PhD US Fish and Wildlife Service Individual U.S. and Canadian Membership . $25.00 Director Ft. Collins, CO Individual Foreign Membership . $35.00 Kansas City, MO U.S. and Canadian Organizational Membership* . $35.00 John Binns I.I.S. 2002 Foreign Organizational Membership* . $45.00 Director (*receives double copies of Iguana) San Jose, CA Advisory Board Additional copies are available at a cost of $6.00 including postage. John Bendon Liason Write to: Iguana and Bath, England The International Iguana Society, Inc. I.I.S. Website Staff Gordon M. Burghardt, PhD 133 Steele Road Robert Powell, PhD University of Tennessee West Hartford, CT 06119 Editor Knoxville, TN Department of Biology Membership questions? Call AJ at 860-236-8203. Avila University Chuck Knapp Kansas City, MO Gainesville, FL OR VISIT OUR WEB SITE AT: www.iguanasociety.org AJ Gutman Richard Montanucci, PhD Editorial and Fulfillment Clemson University Clemson, SC Solicitations Coordinator West Hartford, CT Richard Moyroud Members of the I.I.S. are encouraged to contribute articles, letters to the Editor, Michael Ripca Mesozoic Landscapes news items, and announcements for publication in Iguana. General articles Production Manager West Palm Beach, FL can deal with any aspect of iguana biology, including conservation, behavior, and Design Coordinator ecology, physiology, systematics, or husbandry. Submission of photographs to Michael E. Ripca Leaping Lizards Graphic Design Atco, NJ accompany articles is encouraged. Atco, NJ Manuscripts based on original research are solicited to communicate recent John Binns findings not only to other scientists but to the general. We wish to instill Internet Administrator in our readers a greater appreciation for scientific research and a better San Jose, CA understanding of how it can contribute to the conservation of threatened iguana populations or the well-being of captive specimens. Research Articles John Bendon will be subjected to peer review, and should be fairly general in scope (i.e., Illustrator / Photographer Bath, England manuscripts having extremely detailed theoretical or statistical bases should be submitted to more appropriate journals). Manuscripts of any length will Pirolli Printing be considered, and must be accompanied by an abstract of corresponding Printer length. Authors can expect rapid turnaround time for the reviews and quick Bellmawr, NJ 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. Editors’ Remarks Manuscripts may be submitted via e-mail (send to [email protected]). As you may have noticed, the title of the Journal of the International Iguana For any contribution, please include your name, address, phone number, and Society has changed from the Iguana Times to Iguana. The editorial staff and e-mail address. 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 Authors of one page or more of print are entitled to five copies of the issue Iguana would be a more fitting title for the journal that represents the diverse in which their article appears. interests of the IIS membership. You also will see in this issue the second “Species Profile” (the first appeared Advertising Policy of Iguana 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 We advertise only non-living products (except feeder insects). All products have featured in one of the articles. We hope that you will enjoy these little forays been examined and been found to be high quality and fairly priced. Contact into the broader world of herpetology. I.I.S., 133 Steele Road, West Hartford, CT 06119, for more information. 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 3 March 2003 Iguana 3 Iguana Specialist Group 2002 Annual Meeting, Santo Domingo, Dominican Repiblic November 14-18 2002 Iguana Specialist Group The International Union for the Conservation Conference of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) has established the Species Survival Commission (SSC), John Bendon and John Binns within which about 70 Specialist Groups (includ- International Iguana Society and ing the ISG) address threats to the continuing exis- Iguana Specialist Group tence of particular plants and animals. Information from each group is used to classify threatened The IUCN/SSC Iguana Specialist Group species by categories ranging from “vulnerable” to (ISG) held its annual meeting in November 2002 “critically endangered.” In all, about 7000 people in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (DR). work directly to enhance the chances for the sur- The DR occupies about two-thirds of the island of vival of plants and animals. Zoologists, many of Hispaniola whereas the Republic of Haïti occupies whom are zoo curators or university lecturers, gov- the remainder. Hispaniola is the only island on ernment officials, representative of NGOs, or indi- which two species of Rock Iguanas (Cyclura) are viduals from the private sector all give freely of their sympatric: C. cornuta, the Rhinoceros Iguana, and time. C. ricordii, Ricord’s Iguana. Following the opening welcome message, the The conference was hosted jointly by the meeting agenda continued with presentations by Parque Zoológico Nacional (ZooDom) in Santo each of the endangered or threatened species pro- Domingo, Grupo Jaragua, a non-governmental ject representatives. Each of their reports high- organization (NGO) devoted to the conservation lighted project successes and disappointments, and of Dominican natural resources, and the Coral all contained a common thread of deep concern Resorts. Although the agenda was typically broad, for the species’ recovery. This year’s bittersweet the focus of the meeting and a subsequent work- presentations included a report on the successful shop was the status of Cyclura ricordii (p. 4). implementation of the Blue Iguana Species Allison Alberts, José Ottenwalder, Quentin Bloxam, Sixto Incháustegui, and Fred Burton (from left to right) at the ISG Cyclura ricordii at ZooDom. Photograph by John Bendon. meeting. Photograph by John Bendon. Iguana 10.1 3/2/03 11:10 AM Page 4 4 Iguana Volume 10, Number 1 Current Status of Cyclura ricordii Adapted from a Report by Sixto Incháustegui, Grupo Jaragua Cyclura ricordii, classified as critically endangered However, in light of the 2000 survey work, those esti- on the IUCN Red List, is known only from the mates may have to be reduced to fewer than 1500 Dominican Republic. Populations occur on Isla Cabritos animals. in Lago Enriquillo, two sites near Lago Enriquillo, two Past efforts at captive breeding have met with lit- locations at Loma del Guano near the southern tip of tle success. However, in 2002, ZooDom (Parque the Barahona Peninsula in Jaragua National Park in Zoológico Nacional in Santo Domingo) successfully Pedernales Province, and another near Cabo Rojo on produced a clutch of C. ricordii from their very small the western side of the Peninsula. The total area of all captive population. sites combined is less than 100 km2. All populations appear to be declining. For exam- ple, a 1985 survey on Isla Cabritos resulted in an estimated iguana density of 8/ha, but the popula- tion had dropped to an estimated 1.33/ha by 2000. Recent total popu- lation estimates range from 2–4000 individuals at the six locations.