Bridging The Distance - Indianapolis Zoo

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21 BABIES THAT REALLY MAKE A DIFFERENCE
There are estimated to be less than 100 surviving
Jamaican iguanas in the wild, and in 2006, there
were about a quarter of that number in zoos and
sanctuaries. When the numbers get this few, every
addition matters and that’s what happened when
the Indianapolis Zoo staff managed to double the
population of Jamaican iguanas in human care
with the birth of 21 of these rare lizards, a feat
never before achieved at any zoo. At its national
conference in Philadelphia in September 2007,
the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA)
honored us with its Edward H. Bean Award for
the Zoo’s long-term propagation and management
program for endangered Jamaican iguanas, the
second rarest lizards in the world. Jamaican iguanas
are just slightly less endangered than their cousin,
the Grand Cayman blue iguana, another species
that the Indianapolis Zoo has bred successfully.
“AZA-accredited zoos and aquariums are critical
to the survival of many species, and this award
recognizes the leadership of the Indianapolis Zoo
in that effort,” said AZA President and CEO Jim
Maddy. “The Indianapolis Zoo demonstrates a
significant commitment and passion for wildlife
conservation every day, and the Jamaican iguana
conservation program is a great example of this
important work.”
In 1994, the Indianapolis Zoo was one of only three
zoos in North America to receive juvenile Jamaican
iguanas as part of an overall conservation program
that included establishing a breeding population in
the U.S. Since then three additional zoos have been
added to the program. Before these 21 hatchlings,
there were only 18 Jamaican iguanas at six zoos in
North America. Each year, the Indianapolis Zoo
staff has made strides in developing an
JAMAICA
in-house captive breeding program. Even before the
successful hatchlings, the Zoo had been the only
institution outside Jamaica to have fertile eggs or a
developed embryo.
AZA presents the Edward H. Bean Award annually
in recognition of efforts by its member institutions
in the long-term management and husbandry
of various animal species in accredited zoos and
aquariums. The Edward H. Bean Award was
established in 1956, honoring Edward H. Bean,
the first director of the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago.
The Indianapolis Zoo also received the Edward
H. Bean Award in 2001 in honor of its long-term
research program into elephant reproduction that
produced the first and second African elephants
to be conceived and born through artificial
insemination.
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