Libby With a "Y": One Iguana, Two Iguana, Three Iguana, Four

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

One Iguana, Two Iguana, Three Iguana, Four

The Cayman Islands sure do have their share of iguanas. We saw our first few green ones before even leaving the airport. They are everywhere, even more common than squirrels, at least on Grand Cayman. One day while sitting outside at breakfast, Sam noticed one high up on the wall. Thinking it was fake, we commented to each other on what a good decoration it made. Lo and behold, a few minutes later, the waiter came along and shooed it off with a broom.

It's amazing - the green iguanas blend in with the grass and leaves flawlessly, and they are rarely alone. I was surprised to learn that green iguanas are not indigenous to Cayman; they are originally from Honduras. Well, they sure have made themselves at home since they are everywhere. In the photo below, there are four of them. Can you find them?

Blue iguanas like the one directly above are at the other extreme entirely. They do originate in Cayman, but they have been critically endangered for years. They are solitary animals, rarely seen with more than one other companion. At one point in 2002 there were only 12 left in the wild and were the most endangered type of iguana in the world. However, thanks to the Blue Iguana Recovery Program, that has all changed, saving ti from extinction. The program has managed to produce 700 of these precious iguanas with plans for more! And that is a very good thing, especially since blue iguanas do not exist anywhere else in the world and are Cayman's largest natural land animal. This year was the first year that they released some back into the wild.