Report from Mongabey by Shreya Dasgupta
Small lizards found only on one small Caribbean island have seen a dramatic 1,500% increase in population a few years after the island’s restoration efforts.
In 2018, researchers estimated that there were less than 100 endangered sombrelog round lizards (Pholidoscelis corvinus) on the small cap-shaped sombrero island, part of Anguilla in the Caribbean. Just six years later, there are over 1,600 of them, a recent study found.
“I’m excited to see a ground lizard looking at the path to recovery. This is a great reward for everyone who worked so hard to restore the sombrero,” he told Mongabey. “Too many island species are already lost and we need to prevent extinction at any time.”
Today, Sombrero Island hosts large seabird colonies and several unique and rare species. However, the invading mice were brought to the island by ship or other means by people, and the impact on climate change has wreaked havoc for the island’s residents.
When the mouse takes over the island, it eats up almost everything from seeds to seabirds, Dallie said.
“By preventing plants from regenerating, mice have taken away important shelters and food lizards, including fruits and insects. They have undoubtedly preyed on lizard eggs and young people.”
Due to the indigenous vegetation in unstable conditions, rainfall rapids and hurricanes that hit the island have further devastated the island’s lizard population.
To turn things around, Fauna & Flora, Anguilla National Trust and Re: Wild began restoration efforts in 2018. They trapped and removed all mice by placing baits from June to August 2021. Check the islands regularly to make sure there are no mice yet.
Given the remote location of Sombrero, the likelihood of reinvasion by mice is considered low, Daltry said. She added that the team has developed “remote surveillance cameras with AI capabilities” to automatically detect and alert you to invading species.
The mice may be gone, but the threat from climate-fueled hurricanes remains close. Researchers are working to restore the island’s native vegetation, but the island has lost much of its original soil cover. With no tree covering yet, serious future hurricanes and storm surges could “reduce the rate of recovery of soil layers and vegetation,” she added.
But Daltry hopes that even in current sparse vegetation, Sombrero’s ground lizards will “have important food and shelter, and there is a much better chance of survival when the next storm strikes.” He said.
“This could make the difference between survival and extinction,” she said. “The big question is whether Sombrero Island and its wildlife recovery can accommodate the rate of climate collapse.”
