Giant Green Iguana Fact Sheet

Name: Iguana, Common Green Iguana, Iguana Iguana or the Giant Green Iguana.

Origin: Central and South America.

Adult Size: Up to 6 foot from head to tail tip, weighing up to 20lbs.

Longevity: +20 yrs is not uncommon.

Habitat: Open margins of rainforests or slightly drier areas, along rivers and streams.

Diet: Exclusively Herbivorous. No meat or animal protein, it will kill them!!! The following diet is my variation of an Internationally recognised staple diet known as ‘Melissa Kaplans’ or ‘MK’ Salad.

• 1 Part of Raw Green Beans.
• 1 Part of Summer Squash - Butternut, Spaghetti, Pumpkin.
• 1 Part of Parsnips or Asparagus.
• 1 Part of Alfalfa Pellets (Rabbit Pellets) or Alfalfa Hay.
• 1/2 part fruit - dried figs are best.

Shred this and add a pinch of vitamin and calcium supplements each time you feed such as Nutrobal (Calcium + Multivit), Centrum (Multivit) and Calcium Carbonate (Pure Calcium). Diet should have twice as much calcium as phosphorus or a 2:1 Ratio.

Fresh greens should also make up approx. 40% of total diet, these include - Watercress, Dandelion Leaves, Salad Cress, Mustard Greens. Add variety occasionally by using strawberries, cooked rice, lima beans, tomato, raisins, pear, apple. etc. Avoid feeding - All cabbage type foods including brussel sprouts, all lettuce type foods, banana, grapes, celery, turnip, carrot, beetroot, parsley, spinach, rhubarb. If in doubt - leave it out!

Water - Provide fresh water daily in a large dish, possibly with an aquarium airstone and pump to circulate the water and help maintain humidity. Feed in the morning - Develop a regular feeding routine.

Enclosure: Wooden vivariums with a sliding glass front are best. Approx. size (min): length - 1.5 times length of iguana. depth - length of iguana. height - 1-1.5 times length of iguana. Consider the size your iguana is going to grow to when choosing your enclosure, remember they grow quickly. If you have space and money, start with an enclosure 6’-8’ tall, 6’-8’ wide and 4’ deep. This means you won’t have to upgrade as your iguana grows.

Set up enclosure and check temperatures & humidity before buying your iguana. A horizontal basking area must be provided near the top of the enclosure where the iguana can ‘sunbathe’ under his spot lamp or IR lamp. Branches or steep ramps must be included to allow the iguana to climb, knotted sheets or rope make good iguana ladders. The enclosure must have adequate ventilation at top and bottom yet not be draughty. Do not use particulate substrate such as corn cob, wood chips or gravel as the Iguana will eat these and they may cause intestinal blockages and death. Plastic Grass (Astroturf) is the best substrate.

Heating: Provided by spot lamps, typically 60-100 watts and heat mats placed under the substrate. Specialised Infra Red ceramic heaters can also be used. Both spot lamp and IR heater produce intense local heat, care most be taken to shield heat source from iguana to prevent burns. The following temperature gradients should be maintained constantly: ‘Daytime’ ambient temps of 75-85 F, 24-29 C Additional ‘Daytime’ Basking area of 88-95 F, 31-35 C ‘Night time’ ambient temp gradient of 73-85 F, 23-28 C Invest in good thermometers and thermostat to accurately control the temperatures.

Lighting

Dark Incandescent spot lamp - deep red lamps are best as they produce light which does not upset the iguanas sleep cycle therefore it can be left on all the time to help heat the enclosure.

A Bright white spot lamp - will encourage the iguana to bask under it and use it to gain most of its body heat essential for digestion and survival.

Fluorescent UV tube lamp - There are several UVB producing lamps on the market often marked ‘Full Spectrum’ the best is ZooMed’s Iguana 5.0. These however are hard to obtain, I use a Hagen ‘Life Glow’ lamp.

Black Lights (BL) can be used but only in addition to a full spectrum lamp designed for reptiles. Black Lights can cause eye damage in humans and reptiles if exposed to it for prolonged periods of time.

The tube should be placed above the basking area (no more than 12” away). The iguana needs UVB light to survive as it uses it to produce vitamin D3 in the skin which is needed to extract calcium from its food. With out UVB the iguana can develop MBD (Metabolic Bone Disease) where it can no longer get the calcium from its food so it begins to take it from its bones, this causes the bones to go weak and sponge like and if not treated will lead to a slow and painful death for the iguana.

Incandescent (normal) bulbs DO NOT produce UVB!! even though some are marked as full, broad or wide spectrum. You should consider setting your fluorescent lamp and spot lamp (if you use a white one, or if you don’t need the red lamp to maintain night time temps), with a timer. This should be set to the iguanas normal ‘photoperiod’ (amount of exposure to light) to provide ‘days’ of 10-12 hours light and darkness overnight. Ensure that the UV light you use is not filtered by glass or plastic as this stops the UVB light from penetrating it.. Provide as much unfiltered natural sunlight as possible. Replace UV tubes at least every 6 months.

More Info:

Video - Captive Care of the Green Iguana (Mellisa Kaplan, Adam Britton) published by scimitar films Internet - Melissa Kaplan:- http://www.sonic..net/melissk/ig_care.html

Catherine Rigby:- http://www.oocities.org/RainForest/9008/ crigby@oocities.com

Adam Britton:- http://www.bio.bris.ac.uk/research/crocs/wongs.htm

This guide was published with all iguana owners in mind, please feel free to copy and distribute it as required. I only ask that you do not change or remove any information or that you charge people for this guide. The publisher accepts no responsibility for any accidents, injuries or deaths to iguanas.