Northern Bahamian rock iguanas (Cyclura cychlura), already listed as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List, face a grave new threat: adoring tourists who regularly offer them grapes as if they’re paying tribute to Dionysus, the Greek god of wine.
Research published today (April 21) in the Journal of Experimental Biology shows that iguanas that live on islands frequented by grape-slinging tourists are unable to regulate their blood glucose levels as well as those that live on more remote islands to which humans rarely venture. The study focused on two subspecies of the rock iguana—the Allen Cays rock iguana (ssp. inornata) and the Exuma rock iguana (ssp. figginsi)—both of which are critically endangered.
“I think this is an important model that allows us to test for these effects because this is going on for wildlife across the planet. . . in other tourist settings,” lead study ...
