Terraforming habitats: Anaconda to Old Iguana

Hello! My name is Logan, and I am a member of the Herpetology Team here at Zoo Atlanta. This means that I work with turtles, snakes, frogs, and other reptiles and amphibians. This wide diversity is actually a key point to what I will be discussing today, and that is: What happens when one animal takes over the habitat of a COMPLETELY different animal? 

For a long while, one of the first large animal spaces that you would encounter in Scaly Slimy Spectacular was that of the green anaconda. A large pond sat in the middle of her wide habitat, and you could often find her soaking there. A long concrete log spanned over the pond, and that served as a stable climbing surface for a snake of her size. When it came time to say goodbye to the anaconda when she passed away earlier this year, we wondered how we could best utilize this space next. Jamaican iguanas was an idea that was floated. 

Enter Grandma the Jamaican iguana. Affectionally named due to her age, she currently sits at 33 years old, while wild Jamaican iguanas have estimated lifespans of about 20 years. She moves slower than the other iguanas in our department, is not adept at climbing, and requires more assistance than usual with shedding her skin. She also has not been in a public habitat for a while. With her limitations in mind, we set out to transform the anaconda space into something suitable for an elderly iguana. 

The first step was completely filling in the pool with substrate, as Grandma would not need a huge body of water like the anaconda did. This gave much more land area for her to traverse safely. Next was adding heating and lighting into spots accessible to her. With the anaconda, the land area was mostly uniform heat while the water was the cooling spot. With the iguana, however, we were more interested in creating specific concentrated spots of heat where she could bask. This involved wiring up and installing brand new lights closer to the ground so she would not need to climb to access them. The final big consideration was setting up places for Grandma to hide. The anaconda, while being too big to completely conceal herself, used the pond and provided palms to stay hidden. Grandma needed something else, and we decided to use the afore-mentioned concrete log, new dried palms, and branches to create some obstructions. 

In addition to specific changes considering Grandma’s age, we changed the overall setting of the habitat from wet biomes of South America to the drier, rockier areas of Jamaica. This included adding a greater ratio of sand, dead shrubbery, and rocks in some areas. 

Today, Grandma seems content in her new home that was specifically tailored to her needs. While you won’t be able to see her always, if you do find one of her many hiding spots, please take a second and admire this beautiful animal and the work it took to transform this large habitat. 

Logan S.
Herpetology Team