The Jamaican iguana (Cyclura collei), also known commonly as Colley's iguana, is a large species of lizard in the family Iguanidae. The species is endemic to Jamaica. It is critically endangered, even considered extinct between 1948 and 1990. Once found throughout Jamaica and on the offshore islets Great Goat Island and Little Goat Island, it is now confined to the forests of the Hellshire Hills. Etymology The specific name, collei, is in honor of someone named Colley. John Edward Gray, who originally described this species in 1845, referred to it as "Colley's Iguana". Unfortunately, Gray did not further specify who Colley was. Anatomy and morphology The Jamaican iguana is a large, heavy-bodied lizard, primarily green to salty blue in color with darker olive-green coloration on the shoulders. Three dark broad chevrons extend from the base of the neck to the tail on the animal's back, with dark olive-brown zigzag spots. The dorsal crest scales are somewhat brighter bluish-green than the body. The body surfaces are blotched with a yellowish blotched color breaking up into small groups of spots. Wild individuals, particularly nesting females, often appear deep reddish-brown in color after digging in the coarse ferralic soils of the Hellshire Hills region. The Jamaican iguana is the second-largest land animal native to Jamaica, with only the Jamaican boa weighing more. Males can grow to over and in length whereas females are slightly smaller, growing to in length. Males also possess large femoral pores on the undersides of their thighs, which are used to release pheromones. The pores of the female are smaller and they do not have a dorsal crest as high as the male's, making the animal somewhat sexually dimorphic. Distribution According to Sir Hans Sloane, a physician and botanist who visited Jamaica in 1688, iguanas were once common throughout Jamaica. The Jamaican iguana declined dramatically during the second half of the 19th century, after the introduction of the small Asian mongoose as a form of rat and snake control, until it was believed to exist only on the Goat islands near the Hellshire hills. The Jamaican iguana was believed to be extinct in 1948. A dead adult specimen was found in 1970. The species was rediscovered in August 1990 when a live adult male iguana was chased into a hollow log by a dog of Edwin Duffus, a hog hunter in the Hellshire Hills. By the time he got