‘Jamaican me intrigued’ - new iguanas at Jersey Zoo
Friday 7 August 2026
Last week, after months of planning, we welcomed two Critically Endangered Jamaican iguanas to Jersey Zoo.
This fascinating species is one of the rarest lizards in the world, and the largest land animal native to Jamaica. After disappearing in the 1940s, it was believed to be extinct for over four decades until a small, isolated population was discovered in 1990.
Male Jamaican iguanas can grow up to 1.5m long, with strong limbs and long, ring banded tails used for balance and defence. Their colour can range from grey to greenish blue, often with darker triangular or chevron markings, and a low spiny crest along the back. Males are larger, more colourful and have a higher crest while females are smaller with less markings. This should make it easier for our visitors to tell them apart!
In the wild, Jamaican iguanas are mostly herbivores, eating leaves, flowers, and fruits from over 100 plant species, though they will occasionally eat snails or insects when available. Their strong claws help them to climb low trees and navigate uneven limestone, and females dig nest chambers in sun warmed soil where they lay their eggs.
Since the Jamaican iguana was rediscovered in 1990, conservation teams in Jamaica have used headstarting to increase their population. This means looking after the eggs after they were laid until they have hatched and grown big enough. Then they are returned to the wild, where they are strong enough to avoid predators.
Islands, like Jamaica represent 5% of the earth’s land but are home to more than 40% of the world’s threatened animal species. Sadly, a lot of their decline is due to human impact, where invasive species have been brought ashore, which then prey on native animals for food. This includes introduced hunters such as dogs, rats, mongooses and livestock. Establishing a global safety net population of Jamaican iguanas at zoos around the world therefore is essential and is where Jersey Zoo now comes into play.
Only a very small number of zoos worldwide keep the Jamaican iguana, so our iguanas form part of an important international breeding programme. We now look after two of the seven iguanas of this kind in Europe and have one of the only two females. It is a real honour to be trusted to support this vital breeding programme. We very much hope our two iguanas will welcome some offspring soon and are already seeing some promising activity.
If you want to come and see them in their fabulous new home, which was made possible by three very generous Durrell donors, then pop by and see them in our Butterfly House.