Love Island for Lizards project helps save critically endangered iguanas

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A special conservation effort, playfully called “Love Island for lizards,” has successfully saved the critically endangered Lesser Antillean iguana. A healthy new population is now flourishing on a small island near Anguilla.

As a big wildlife fan, it really worries me how endangered the Lesser Antillean iguana is. There are fewer than 20,000 of these amazing creatures left in the wild, which is a tiny number! They used to be all over the Caribbean islands, but now they’ve disappeared from so many places. It’s heartbreaking to think about – they’re losing their homes, being hunted by animals that don’t belong there, and even having to compete with other iguanas that were brought in from elsewhere.

So, back in 2016, things were getting pretty bad in Anguilla with these green iguanas taking over. The local conservationists at the Anguilla National Trust had to step in. They were worried about the native iguanas, and there weren’t many left – only about 23! To save them, they actually moved all of them to this little, empty island called Prickly Pear East, which thankfully didn’t have any of the invasive iguanas already. It was a pretty cool rescue mission, honestly.

‘Coupling Up’ for survival in the Carribean

To help increase the variety of genes within the iguana population, the trust worked with Dominica’s government to get permission to move more iguanas. In early 2021, ten young Lesser Antillean iguanas were flown from Dominica to Anguilla and released on Prickly Pear East.

So, I’ve been following this iguana recovery project, and the latest numbers are awesome! It turns out all the hard work is really paying off. They’ve counted over 300 iguanas – both adults and babies – on Prickly Pear East. That makes it one of just five places in the world where these guys are actually doing well without being bothered by invasive species. It’s seriously cool to see a conservation effort actually work!

I’m really excited about this project – it’s been getting support from some awesome conservation groups like Fauna & Flora and Re:wild. But honestly, the coolest part is how much the local community in Anguilla has chipped in. People there were key – they helped spot the animals, even assisted with things like genetic testing, and were a huge help getting them relocated. It wouldn’t have happened without them!

Building on the positive results from the island reintroduction, a new location at Fountain National Park on mainland Anguilla is ready for a second phase. The area is now protected by special fencing to keep out harmful invasive animals, and plans are in place to release Lesser Antillean iguanas there in 2026.

Experts in conservation believe this project demonstrates that working together across borders and with local communities can help bring back species that are close to extinction.

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2025-12-20 18:19