The discovery of a new species of land iguana during a field trip was a surprise. Genetic studies will increase the knowledge needed to determine the conservation requirements.

	One of the Park Rangers who participated in the original expedition that located the new species.

In 1986 during a field visit to the Wolf Volcano, officers of the Directorate of the Galapagos National Park and the Charles Darwin Foundation observed five pink iguanas with black spots as they climbed to the summit.

Initially it was thought that they were individuals that had been stained by something.

Later, during a new field trip, four individuals were captured. Blood samples were taken to perform studies to discover whether it was an adaptation of land iguanas (Conolophus subcristatus) due to an environmental reason or some particular type of food, or whether it was a new species.

"	The pink iguana found on Wolf Volcano, Isabela Island, is a new species unlike those previously known."

In 2003 in close collaboration with Tor Vergata University in Rome, a research project was begun in which blood samples from 32 individuals were initially obtained. These samples were added to the four previous samples and, according to the results, we are totally confident that this is a new species never before described.

Current knowledge

The newly discovered species lives exclusively on the Wolf Volcano, the highest on the Islands and does so in an altitudinal range extending from approximately 800 meters above sea level to the summit..

"	Their distribution, population size, ecology, food and reproductive habits, etc. "

Genetic analyses show that the difference between the other two known Galapagos land iguanas, Conolophus subcristatus and C. pallidus is much smaller than the difference between these two species and the pink iguana.

Their distribution, population size, ecology, food and reproductive habits, etc. are still not known with complete certainty. Neither have juveniles been found, reason for which the results of the research will determine whether a management program needs to be established to ensure their survival.

Being a new species, it is necessary to continue with the studies to determine its actual population status and to know whether or not any management action is required to preserve them. Therefore, between late April and mid-May, a new population monitoring trip was carried out in which 101 individuals were located and tagged, and blood samples were taken. All the individuals were adults (males and females), which suggests that the population status is not as critical as it was previously thought, but evidently more studies are needed to clear all the doubts that still exist regarding the actual status of this new species. However, a major constraint is the shortage of financial resources to perform these studies, therefore additional resources are being sought.  

This program has counted on the support of:

The University Tor Vergata on Roma.