 The Blue Iguana Recovery Programme grew from a small project started in 1990 within the National Trust for the Cayman Islands . It is now a partnership , linking the Trust with the Cayman Islands Department of Environment , National Trust Cayman Islands , Queen Elizabeth II Botanic Park , Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust , International Reptile Conservation Foundation , IRCF , and the European Commission . This program operates under a special exemption from provisions in the Animals Law of the Cayman Islands , which normally would make it illegal for anyone to kill , capture , or keep iguanas . BIRP 's conservation strategy involves generating large numbers of genetically diverse hatchlings , head @-@ starting them for two years so that their chance of survival in the wild is high , and using these animals to rebuild a series of wild sub @-@ populations in protected , managed natural areas . This is accompanied by field research , nest site protection , and monitoring of the released animals . A rapid numerical increase from a maximum possible number of founding stock is sought to minimize loss of genetic diversity caused by the " population bottleneck " . 
