As part of our Tools and Tech to Save Iguanas year-end fundraising campaign, we asked some iguana conservation researchers to share their experiences in the field—and how important their equipment is to what they do. They had some great stories to relate!
If you’d like to donate to our Tools and Tech to Save Iguanas campaign to help fund field conservationists please click here. Thank you!
By Jeff Lemm, Conservation Program Specialist
As a herpetologist and fisherman, the number of times I’ve needed a good net is absurd. Since an early age I can remember thinking “I wish I had a net.” I passed on dozens of frogs, tadpoles, turtles, fish, and other critters down in the canyon behind my house knowing that without a net, I would be wasting my time. I tried to make several nets out of old house screens, but they failed miserably. I was constantly in trouble with my father for ruining our pool nets while trying to catch bullfrogs. Through the years, I lost several good-sized fish due to the inabilities of friends who actually had nets or because I failed to have a net with me.
In 1992, Dr. Allison Alberts, Dr. John Phillips, and I started our field research program at the U.S. Naval Station at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba on Cuban iguanas (Cyclura n. nubila). These large, robust iguanas were fairly used to humans at our study site, so we figured they would be quite easy to catch by hand to weigh, measure, and take the samples we needed for our work. We were dead wrong. The speed at which these iguanas moved was staggering, even when we were within a couple of feet of them. We tried a wide array of methods to capture the animals, and none of them were effective.
While shopping for some supplies at the Navy Exchange on the base, I ran over to the fishing section to see what I might need for some much-anticipated Caribbean angling, and that’s when I saw it: the net of my dreams. It was six feet of aluminum magic, with a net head two feet in diameter made of thick nylon mesh. Like a child shopping at Christmas, I grabbed the net and excitedly ran back to Allison. “Can I get it?” Obviously, I was thinking it would be good for iguanas, but there was also the distinct possibility of landing some large fish with my new-found toy. “Yes! That’s perfect!” Allison exclaimed. And it was. We were able to easily capture iguanas (and land some nice fish) with the net. However, we went through about one net per month (did I mention the strength of a large Cuban iguana?).
As we continued iguana work throughout the islands of the West Indies, we never forgot to include the nets. However, on one particular day, while working with Dr. Glenn Gerber on Turks and Caicos iguanas (Cyclura c. carinata), we left the net on the boat. I circled around one side of the island on my own and spied a nice adult male iguana we had failed to capture previously. The animal saw me and ran straight under a large piece of limestone. “No net, but no problem!” I thought. As I lifted the rock with my left hand, I grabbed for the iguana with my right hand. I latched him around the neck and began to remove him from his hiding place. Then he quickly turned and bit forcefully down on three of my fingers. I yelped in pain, and as I dropped the animal, he released his grip and ran off. I had always prided myself on never being bitten by an iguana, and at that moment as I bled and became nauseous from the crushing pain, I thought, “At least I picked the smallest species for my first bite!”
I walked back toward the dinghy shouting for Glenn. The wounds were pretty deep, and I was bleeding profusely, but Glenn was nowhere in sight….and neither was the dinghy! As I rounded the corner of the island, I could see that the dinghy was attached to our main vessel, anchored about a quarter mile from shore. It seemed Glenn had decided to take a nap while I was out working. I screamed at the boat for an eternity, when Glenn finally appeared on the deck, and realized he needed to come get me. A good wash and some super glue held the wounds in place for a few days until we got back to land. If I only had a net!!!
Thirty years later, I still carry a net as part of my field (and fishing) gear. However, nets are a minor and inexpensive part of a field biologist’s field kit. With advances in technology in the last few decades, field biologists now use very high-tech equipment to help them save threatened species. But it comes with a large price tag. In a single field season, the majority of the limited funding we acquire goes toward much-needed equipment. So, if you are able, please consider assisting in the equipment needs of a biologist. You may just help save some fingers!
