Breeding the Fiji Banded Iguana...

[zoolfoos]

It's official. Reptiles magazine mentions in one article that the Fiji Banded Iguana is now being bred legally in Europe (with legitimate paperwork, of course) and sold to reptile keepers. It has been on the endangered list for some time. If breeding this reptile to be kept as pets is the only way to save it from complete extinction, it is quite a sad world we live in, indeed.

The Fiji Banded Iguana is one of the most beautiful reptiles I have ever seen! I have posted a picture below. Credit for said picture goes to Bill Beckon (ice.ucdavis.edu/ ~beckon/reptiles.htm)

[zoolfoos]

Not that breeding them for pets is a bad thing... I have to admit that I'd love to have one someday!

I'm not sure if they are legal in the U.S. yet, and even if they are, I imagine they would be rather pricey.

If you have any more information, please post.

[EFExotics]

I'd be curious about a pricetag on those, they're gorgeous.

I read an article involving australian mammals a long time ago. In most aussie provinces it is not legal to keep native wildlife (or atleast mammals) as pets. However, one individual thought this was a bad idea. Some of the mammals do fine as household companions, and keeping them would increase the publics interest in the animal in all regards, including conversvation efforts.

Something similar has happened with Black Tailed Prairie Dogs in the US, atleast until the CDC banned keeping them.

[Lizgirl]

That is a beautiful iguana. I hope that breeding them in captivity is successful. I wouldn't want to lose them.

[Ravnos]

The problem is, many otherwise protected animals are coming in from Europe with fake paperwork saying they are captive bred - when really they were smuggled out of their native country to Europe and passed around to hide the trail, and long enough to make up some paper work, and then sold into the US market. It is being done with numerous endangered animals that would otherwise not be allowed to be imported into the US. When buying an animal imported from Europe, especially one this rare, it is wise to be very careful who you are buying from.

They are very pretty animals though, San Antonio zoo has a couple on display.

Rav

[zoolfoos]

I found the website for a breeding program based in Bali (Indonesia) that is apparently breeding these animals legally. They are not with any particular zoo. They claim that they will only sell their reptiles to zoos and very qualified and approved reptile handlers. For more information on this group you can check out: http://www.herpafauna.com/pics/agamids/fiji-ig.html

I definitley agree with Rav. Animal smuggling is a problem. If anyone is actually offered one of these amazing reptiles, chances are it isn't legal. Most of the legit programs won't sell to the average herp keeper, from what I can tell.

[zoolfoos]

Quote: Originally Posted by zoolfoos The Fiji Banded Iguana is one of the most beautiful reptiles I have ever seen! I have posted a picture below. Credit for said picture goes to Bill Beckon (ice.ucdavis.edu/ ~beckon/reptiles.htm)

I'm having some trouble with that image...

Here it is for now... (still to be credited to Bill Beckon)

[EFExotics]

That is a very good point. I wouldn't be able to afford one anytime soon, anyways. But one step closer to being kept by private individuals is exciting. I wonder if some of the larger, experienced "name brand" herp breeders in the states count as qualified keepers? It would be nice to imagine a few of those type of people working with them, and in 5 or 10 years seeing them trickle down into hands of more average keepers.

One problem with private individuals breeding endangered species is, they don't do as much planning as zoos to keep genetics diversified. It would be nice to see a studbook or registry to ensure that lineage can be tracked.