The National Trust of the Cayman Islands’ Blue Iguana Conservation programme has launched a new free ‘E-guana’ app, with the aim of gathering data on all kinds of iguanas found across Cayman’s three islands.
The Trust is calling on residents and visitors to download the app and use it to submit pictures of any iguanas, whether alive or dead, so that it can monitor populations of endemic Sister Islands rock iguanas and blue iguanas, as well as manage, in real time, responses to reports of invasive green iguanas.
Blue Iguana Conservation Programme Manager Luke Harding said in a press release, “We are delighted to be able to launch this exciting app and encourage everyone who is either residing on, or visiting, these incredible Cayman Islands to do their bit to help us manage our endangered iguana species.
“The data submitted will be vital to increase our knowledge and understanding of where the iguanas are or prefer to be. The more information that we can gather from our general public, the better informed we will be to help protect Grand Cayman’s Blue Iguanas and the Sister Islands’ Rock Iguana species, and deal with threats such as invasive species, development and road infrastructure.”
The mobile app was developed in partnership with Jay Mehta of Netclues and funded via private donations and a Darwin Plus grant.
National Trust Chairperson Melanie Carmichael said in the release, “It is wonderful to see technology and science working together to help educate and monitor these rare and endangered species. Such small actions can manifest big impacts and each person gets the opportunity to be involved. The National Trust are very grateful for the institutions and donors sponsoring this work and I can’t wait to see what will be discovered.”
The National Trust said collected data will only be used for scientific purposes. It is encouraging users to submit sightings, with photographs of the iguana wherever possible, so that more information can be gleaned about the location of iguanas and their threats – in particularly to Cayman’s endemic species – which will be highly valuable to the research.
“We encourage everyone across all three islands to download this app and join us in building a picture of what is out there,” Harding said. “Whether you see iguanas on your land, on the road or when you are roaming around the islands, please do submit sightings through E-guana and that important data will be added to our system.
“We live in a world where many people are connected to their phones, giving us a unique opportunity to utilize social trends to help further science and conservation efforts. Please do download ‘E-guana’ and encourage everyone you know to use it as well.”
The easy-to-use app is free to download from the App Store (IoS) or Google Play (Android).
For more information of the E-guana mobile application, visit @blueiguanaconservation on Facebook and Instagram. For the E-guana How-To Guide, visit www.nationaltrust.org.ky or contact [email protected].
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