Acklins Iguana

(Cyclura rileyi nuchalis)

IUCN Red List ranking: Endangered

These strikingly handsome iguanas are found only on Fish Cay and North Cay in the Acklins Bight, Bahamas. Unfortunately both of these islands are privately owned and are not legally protected, and development could devastate these populations.   The two natural populations of Acklins iguanas are robust and healthy with all age and size classes observed.  This species appears to be an excellent candidate for establishing new populations using translocations, and an introduced population has grown from five founding individuals in the early 1970s to 300 in 1997.  The total population is currently estimated at 13,000 or more iguanas.  Fortunately, no feral mammal predator populations have established on the two main islands.

For more detailed species information, please refer to the IUCN-ISG Taxonomic Account for Acklins Iguana, Cyclura rileyi nuchalis