Iguanas likely crossed the Pacific millions of years ago on a record-setting rafting trip

Iguanas whitethorn person pulled disconnected a 5000 mile voyage connected a raft of floating vegetation to get to Fiji

NEW YORK -- Researchers person agelong wondered however iguanas got to Fiji, a postulation of distant islands successful the South Pacific. Most modern-day iguanas unrecorded successful the Americas — thousands of miles and 1 elephantine water away.

They thought possibly they scurried determination done Asia oregon Australia earlier volcanic enactment pushed Fiji truthful acold away.

But caller probe suggests that millions of years ago, iguanas pulled disconnected the 5,000 mile (8,000 kilometer) odyssey connected a raft of floating vegetation — masses of uprooted trees and tiny plants. That travel is thought to beryllium a grounds — further than immoderate different land-dwelling vertebrate has ever traveled connected the ocean.

Scientists deliberation that's however iguanas got to the Galapagos Islands disconnected of Ecuador and betwixt islands successful the Caribbean. Initially they thought Fiji mightiness beryllium a spot excessively acold for specified a trip, but successful a caller study, researchers inspected the genes of 14 iguana taxon spanning the Americas, the Caribbean and Fiji. They discovered that Fijian iguanas were astir intimately related to godforsaken iguanas from North America, and that the 2 groups divided disconnected astir 31 cardinal years ago.

The researchers created a statistical exemplary utilizing that accusation and different tidbits astir wherever iguanas unrecorded contiguous and however they whitethorn spread. It suggested that the iguanas astir apt floated to Fiji from North America.

“Given what we cognize now, their effect is by acold the astir powerfully supported,” said Kevin de Queiroz, an evolutionary biologist astatine the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, who was not progressive with the caller study.

The probe was published Monday successful the diary Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The travel from North America to Fiji could person taken a fewer months, but these godforsaken iguanas would person been perfect passengers due to the fact that they were adept astatine resisting dehydration and could person snacked connected the plants underfoot.

“If you had to prime a vertebrate to past a agelong travel connected a raft crossed an ocean, iguanas would beryllium the one,” said survey writer Simon Scarpetta from the University of San Francisco, successful an email.

Many Fijian iguana taxon are endangered, and an invasive greenish iguana roams the islands today, said survey writer Robert Fisher of the United States Geological Survey. Figuring retired wherever these creatures came from tin equip scientists with the tools to amended support them successful the future.

—-

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives enactment from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely liable for each content.