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Ctenosaura bakeri
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Ctenosaura bakeri
Ctenosaura bakeri, also known as the Utila spiny-tailed iguana, Baker's spinytail iguana, swamper or wishiwilly del suampo, is a critically endangered species of spinytail iguana endemic to the island of Utila, one of the Islas de la Bahía off the coast of Honduras in the Caribbean.
The Utila iguana is the only species of iguana and one of only two species of lizard to exclusively inhabit brackish mangrove swamps, forced there due to competition from larger species. It is the smallest of the three species of iguana found on Utila, and unique among spiny-tailed iguanas as it is born a dark color as opposed to bright green or yellow. It is arboreal and primarily herbivorous, although it can be an opportunistic carnivore. Males may grow up to 76 centimeters (30 in) in length, while females are smaller, with a length of up to 56 centimeters (22 in). Eggs are laid in sandy beaches and hatch about 60–76 days later, with the hatchlings returning to live in the mangrove forests.
Brought to the brink of extinction by the 1990s due to hunting, it was brought back to international attention by German herpetologist Dr. Gunther Köhler and his book Reptiles of Central America. Although several zoos and wildlife associations have instituted programs for the iguanas on Utila, the species still finds itself threatened due to overhunting and may face more of a threat in the form of habitat loss. Extreme conservation efforts are in place to try to prevent this species from going extinct.
Ctenosaura bakeri was first described by Norwegian-born American zoologist Leonhard Stejneger in 1901, while working for the Smithsonian Institution. The generic name, Ctenosaura, is derived from two Greek words: ctenos (Κτενός), meaning "comb" (referring to the comblike spines on the lizard's back and tail), and saura (σαύρα), meaning "lizard".[citation needed] Its specific name, bakeri, is the Latinized form of Stejneger's friend and colleague Frank Baker, who was a former director of the National Zoo in Washington, D.C.
The species is believed to have evolved from mainland-based ancestors, and may share ancestors with C. melanosterna and C. palearis, as it is phylogenetically closer to these two than it is to C. similis. Access to Utila may have involved over-water dispersal during hurricanes, as is known for Iguana iguana in the Lesser Antilles or a land bridge to the mainland lost during the close of the last ice age.
Endemic to Utila, an island off the northern Honduras coast, Ctenosaura bakeri is an inhabitant of 8 square kilometres (3.1 sq mi) of mangrove forests. Unique among iguanids and rare among reptiles, it is believed that C. bakeri was pushed into the mangrove swamps due to competition from the larger, more aggressive C. similis, which typically inhabits the drier habitats on Utila. It has interbred with this very species and produced viable offspring. From evolutionary and ecological perspectives, inhabiting brackish mangrove forests entails very specific adaptations of diet, behavior, and resource utilization. It is one of only two known species of lizard, the other being a species of anole, Anolis utilensis, that lives solely in mangrove forests.
The Utila iguana has a grey-brown to black coloring when young, the only species of spiny-tail iguana with such a dark color when young. Other members of the genus have a green or yellow coloring when young and turn darker with age. As this animal matures it can be a blue or light gray in color, depending on heat conditions or even the animal's temper.
Males achieve a maximum total length (including tail) of 76 centimeters (30 in), while females are typically 30% smaller at 56 centimeters (22 in) total length. Males have a small dewlap and a dorsal crest made up of 56 large dorsal spines, making the animal sexually dimorphic. This dorsal crest consists of white and black spines arranged in alternating groups of two or three of the same color.
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Ctenosaura bakeri
Ctenosaura bakeri, also known as the Utila spiny-tailed iguana, Baker's spinytail iguana, swamper or wishiwilly del suampo, is a critically endangered species of spinytail iguana endemic to the island of Utila, one of the Islas de la Bahía off the coast of Honduras in the Caribbean.
The Utila iguana is the only species of iguana and one of only two species of lizard to exclusively inhabit brackish mangrove swamps, forced there due to competition from larger species. It is the smallest of the three species of iguana found on Utila, and unique among spiny-tailed iguanas as it is born a dark color as opposed to bright green or yellow. It is arboreal and primarily herbivorous, although it can be an opportunistic carnivore. Males may grow up to 76 centimeters (30 in) in length, while females are smaller, with a length of up to 56 centimeters (22 in). Eggs are laid in sandy beaches and hatch about 60–76 days later, with the hatchlings returning to live in the mangrove forests.
Brought to the brink of extinction by the 1990s due to hunting, it was brought back to international attention by German herpetologist Dr. Gunther Köhler and his book Reptiles of Central America. Although several zoos and wildlife associations have instituted programs for the iguanas on Utila, the species still finds itself threatened due to overhunting and may face more of a threat in the form of habitat loss. Extreme conservation efforts are in place to try to prevent this species from going extinct.
Ctenosaura bakeri was first described by Norwegian-born American zoologist Leonhard Stejneger in 1901, while working for the Smithsonian Institution. The generic name, Ctenosaura, is derived from two Greek words: ctenos (Κτενός), meaning "comb" (referring to the comblike spines on the lizard's back and tail), and saura (σαύρα), meaning "lizard".[citation needed] Its specific name, bakeri, is the Latinized form of Stejneger's friend and colleague Frank Baker, who was a former director of the National Zoo in Washington, D.C.
The species is believed to have evolved from mainland-based ancestors, and may share ancestors with C. melanosterna and C. palearis, as it is phylogenetically closer to these two than it is to C. similis. Access to Utila may have involved over-water dispersal during hurricanes, as is known for Iguana iguana in the Lesser Antilles or a land bridge to the mainland lost during the close of the last ice age.
Endemic to Utila, an island off the northern Honduras coast, Ctenosaura bakeri is an inhabitant of 8 square kilometres (3.1 sq mi) of mangrove forests. Unique among iguanids and rare among reptiles, it is believed that C. bakeri was pushed into the mangrove swamps due to competition from the larger, more aggressive C. similis, which typically inhabits the drier habitats on Utila. It has interbred with this very species and produced viable offspring. From evolutionary and ecological perspectives, inhabiting brackish mangrove forests entails very specific adaptations of diet, behavior, and resource utilization. It is one of only two known species of lizard, the other being a species of anole, Anolis utilensis, that lives solely in mangrove forests.
The Utila iguana has a grey-brown to black coloring when young, the only species of spiny-tail iguana with such a dark color when young. Other members of the genus have a green or yellow coloring when young and turn darker with age. As this animal matures it can be a blue or light gray in color, depending on heat conditions or even the animal's temper.
Males achieve a maximum total length (including tail) of 76 centimeters (30 in), while females are typically 30% smaller at 56 centimeters (22 in) total length. Males have a small dewlap and a dorsal crest made up of 56 large dorsal spines, making the animal sexually dimorphic. This dorsal crest consists of white and black spines arranged in alternating groups of two or three of the same color.
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