Amblyrhynchus cristatus ssp. mertensi. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020

Abstract

The San Cristóbal Marine Iguana is found only on the southern and western part of San Cristóbal Island and very likely the satellite islets in this region in the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador. The estimated extent of occurrence is 398 km2 by minimum convex polygon and the area of occupancy is estimated at 240 km2 . The population size is poorly known and was crudely estimated at 50–400 total iguanas on San Cristóbal in 2004, although this is under-estimated as a more recent mark-resight study calculated 300 mature adults at the largest subpopulation. Genetic data indicate a critically low effective population size. Overall population trend is unknown, but is subject to extreme reductions and fluctuations during El Niño events, which are predicted to intensify in the future with ongoing climate change. This iguana is threatened by invasive alien Black Rats, Norway Rats, feral cats, and free-roaming pigs and dogs. San Cristóbal Marine Iguanas are threatened by a region-wide increase in human population and visitation that has multiplied the impacts from stress, marine pollution, habitat degradation, and chance of further invasive species introductions and emergent diseases. Land-based tourist presence and intensity has been shown to have a significant overall negative effect on iguana health.