In the heart of San Pedro Town, an Iguana sanctuary is blossoming. With over 200 of it’s kind, the Green Iguana, an endangered reptile species in Belize, have found a haven amongst the mangroves in the western part of the town. Mr. Calvin has been kind and caring for these beautiful creatures and has registered the area to be a reserve called The Iguana Eco Corner.

He has created a trail in between the Mangroves where you can see the Iguanas resting in the trees. You can see different types of birds and if you get lucky, maybe even the two resident crocs that live in the area. There is even an osprey nest in which BEL kindly provided the pole and lumber to recreate a nest box after they brought down the tower that the Ospreys used for nesting. Mr. Calvin has been cleaning and maintaining the area day by day but people still keep polluting.

You can visit these majestic animals and if you are willing to donate food for the Iguanas, or lend a hand in cleaning, that would be highly appreciated. It would be great if different organizations can get together and have a clean up campaign to make the area clean and beautiful for tourists and locals to visit and enjoy. The sanctuary is located by the lagoon side, north of the gas station, in San Pedro Town, on Ambergris Caye. Please share!!

Photos and text by Marlena Gomez

Iguana Eco Corner Sanctuary protecting island iguanas

Located on the lagoon sideof the heart of San Pedro Town, the Iguana Eco Corner has been fostering and protecting these endangered reptiles for the past decade. The mangrove area is home to more than 200 hundred green and Black Spiny-Tailed iguanas.

Founder of Iguana Eco Corner Calvin Young shared with The San Pedro Sun that he started with two iguanas, and now there are over 200 hundred in the area. “Ten years ago, I saw two iguanas that were in the mangrove area here beside my house. I decided to take care of them and protect them from poachers, the years, more and more started to come and live here since they felt safe. Now we have over 200 hundred iguanas living at the sanctuary,” he said. Young recently registered the sanctuary as a business and is currently working on a tour of the mangroves. “We are currently remodeling and adding new things as to accommodate both island residents and visitors for tours.” He plans to start offering tours in January of 2020; however, currently, anyone who wants to see the iguanas is welcomed.

Young further stated that the reason he decided to protect the iguanas is, he wants to teach his sons to be compassionate, to love and protect the environment and animals. “As a single father of two boys I always try my best to teach my sons to be good persons. So, when I saw the iguanas around my area, I decided to start protecting them,” he said. In addition, the sanctuary is a haven for spotting beautiful birds and even a few crocodiles come by sometimes.

Click here to read the rest of the article in the San Pedro Sun

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A Visit to Our Island’s Green Iguana Sanctuary

An Easy Way To See Some BIG Green Iguanas right in San Pedro Town and…A House Straight out of Swiss Family Robinson!
Here on Ambergris Caye, people see the green iguanas sunning in the mangroves when they are on a boat stopping at the gas station at the back side of town. It’s a frequent tour stop in the San Pedro lagoon.

But now you can drive up in a golf cart or bike or even on foot. Head north on Back Street – until you get to the stop sign. (Hol Chan Marine Reserve Office will be on your right.) Go straight, thru the stop sign – the road is now a dirt road. Just around the bend and…

Look for this gate…

There were piles of fruit and even habaneros. Crazy to imagine…but iguanas LOVE hot peppers.

Click here to read the rest of the article in the San Pedro Scoop

What a heartwarming story. And those iguanas are a sight to see. I love when they swim across the San Pedro river - amazing.