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The galapagos pink land iguana — usually just called the pink iguana — is the rarest iguana on Earth. With only around 200 left, living on the slopes of a single volcano, this pale-pink reptile was not even recognised as its own species until 2009. Here is its remarkable story, why it is pink, and why it matters so much.
Galapagos pink land iguana at a glance
- Scientific name: Conolophus marthae
- Population: only around 200 — the rarest iguana in the world
- Where: the slopes of Wolf Volcano, northern Isabela, only
- Colour: pale pink from a lack of skin pigment; hatchlings born green
- Status: Critically Endangered
- Described: noticed 1986, named a new species in 2009
What is it?
The galapagos pink land iguana (Conolophus marthae) is a large land iguana with pale pink, rosy skin and dark stripes. Park rangers first noticed it in 1986, but it was only formally described as a brand-new species in 2009. As a pink iguana, it is closely related to the yellow land iguanas, yet genetically it is the oldest lineage of them all, having split off some 5.7 million years ago. The Charles Darwin Foundation tracks the population as part of its ongoing Galápagos reptile monitoring. We can build a trip around this. Share your dates and we’ll send a free quote within 24 hours.
Why is it pink?
The colour is not a trick of the light. The pink comes from a lack of pigment in the skin, which lets the blood vessels show through — the same reason pale human skin can look rosy. One of the most charming pink iguana facts is that hatchlings are actually born green and only turn pink as they grow.
The rarest iguana in the world
With roughly 200 individuals on one volcano, it is the rarest iguana in the world and is listed as Critically Endangered. Introduced cats and rats prey on its eggs and young, and its tiny range makes it terribly vulnerable. There was real hope in 2022, though, when scientists photographed the first-ever pink iguana hatchling in the wild — proof that the species is still breeding.
Can you see it?
Honestly, almost no visitor ever does. The galapagos pink land iguana lives high on Wolf Volcano, in remote terrain that is off-limits to tourism and reachable only by researchers. What you can do on an Isabela trip is meet its famous cousins:
The pink iguana itself stays out of reach, but you can meet its more accessible cousins — the yellow land iguanas — on our 6-day Santa Cruz and Isabela land tour.
- Land iguanas — the yellow relatives, seen on several islands.
- Marine iguanas — the sea-swimming iguanas all along Isabela’s coast.
- Sierra Negra and Isabela’s volcanoes — the same volcanic landscape the pink iguana calls home.
Quick facts
A few more pink iguana facts:
- Its scientific name is Conolophus marthae, found only on Wolf Volcano.
- It was described as a new species only in 2009.
- Around 200 remain, making it critically endangered.
- Its pink colour comes from a lack of skin pigment.
- Hatchlings are born green and turn pink with age.
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Conolophus marthae, the oldest iguana lineage
The scientific name conolophus marthae belongs to a reptile that rewrote the family tree of Galapagos iguanas. Genetic work shows it split from the other land iguanas around 5.7 million years ago, making it the oldest surviving lineage of them all — older than the islands many of its relatives now live on. Park rangers first noticed it in 1986, but it was only formally described as a new species in 2009, an astonishingly recent debut for so distinctive an animal. If you want to see it yourself, start with our 4-day Isabela tour.
That deep ancestry gives it a significance well beyond its rosy looks. It is a living relic of an early chapter in the islands’ story, surviving in one tiny corner while the world changed around it, and its very existence reshaped how scientists understand the evolution of all the archipelago’s iguanas.
Rarest iguana in the world: life on one volcano
It is widely regarded as the rarest iguana in the world, with only around 200 individuals, all on the upper slopes of Wolf Volcano in northern Isabela. No other population exists anywhere; the entire species lives on one mountain. That makes it terribly vulnerable — introduced cats and rats prey on its eggs and young, and any disease or disaster on Wolf Volcano could threaten the whole species at once.
There was real cause for hope in 2022, when scientists photographed the first wild pink iguana hatchling ever recorded, proof that the species is still breeding in its remote home. Protecting that single volcano, and clearing it of introduced predators, is now the central task in keeping the animal alive.
Pink iguana facts and the galapagos pink land iguana’s colour
A few pink iguana facts explain its unmistakable look. The rosy colour is not pigment but its absence: a lack of skin pigment lets the blood vessels show through, much as pale human skin can appear flushed. Curiously, the hatchlings are born green and only turn pink as they grow, so a young animal looks nothing like the adult it will become.
Few visitors will ever see the galapagos pink land iguana in the flesh, because its home high on Wolf Volcano is off-limits and reachable only by researchers. What you can do on an Isabela trip is meet its relatives — the yellow land iguanas and the sea-swimming marine iguanas — and explore the same volcanic landscape that hides one of the rarest reptiles on Earth.
For a creature so striking, it stayed hidden in plain sight for an astonishingly long time. Park rangers first noted a strange rose-coloured reptile on the slopes of Wolf Volcano back in 1986, but it was not formally described as a species until 2009 — making it one of the most recently discovered large animals on the islands. Its entire world is the rim and upper flanks of that single northern volcano on Isabela, and nowhere else on Earth.
Genetics revealed the real surprise: its lineage split from other land iguanas millions of years ago, making it not just a colour variant but an ancient, separate branch of the family tree — a living relic that predates many of the islands themselves. The rosy hue comes from skin that lacks dark pigment, so the blood shows through, crossed by faint dark stripes. Fewer than a few hundred adults are thought to survive, which places it among the rarest reptiles in the world.
That tiny, single-mountain population is exactly what makes its future so fragile. Introduced rats and feral cats prey on eggs and hatchlings, and for years researchers struggled to find any young at all, hinting that almost none were surviving to adulthood. Today a dedicated monitoring and predator-control programme on Wolf Volcano is racing to protect nests and give the next generation a chance — a quiet, high-altitude rescue mission far from the usual tourist trails.
Reaching its remote home means a demanding trek to the rim of a northern volcano, which is partly why so few travellers ever lay eyes on one — and why every sighting feels like a genuine privilege earned the hard way.
Questions I get all the time
How many Galapagos pink iguanas are left?
Only around 200, all on the slopes of one volcano — which is what makes it the rarest iguana on Earth.
What is its scientific name?
Conolophus marthae. It was not recognised as its own species until 2009, and its lineage is the oldest of the Galápagos land iguanas.
Why is the Galapagos pink iguana pink?
Its skin is only lightly pigmented, so the blood vessels beneath show through as a rosy pink, crossed with dark stripes. It is natural colouring, not a trick of the light.
Where does it live?
Only on Wolf Volcano at the northern tip of Isabela Island — nowhere else on Earth. The terrain is remote and hard to reach.
How big is it?
A large land iguana, up to about 1.5 m (5 ft) nose to tail, feeding mainly on prickly-pear cactus and other plants.
Why is it endangered?
With roughly 200 individuals in one tiny range, it is listed as Critically Endangered. Introduced rats and cats prey on its eggs and young.
Are pink iguanas rare?
Extremely. With around 200 left it is the rarest of all iguanas and one of the rarest reptiles anywhere on Earth.
What is the rarest animal in the Galápagos?
The pink iguana is a strong contender — about 200 survive on a single volcano, fewer than almost any other Galápagos vertebrate.
Can tourists see it?
Realistically, no. Wolf Volcano is remote, hard to climb and off the normal tour routes, so almost no visitors see one in the wild — most encounters are through research footage like the video above.
A pink survivor on one volcano
The galapagos pink land iguana is a reminder of how much the islands still have to teach us — a species hidden in plain sight until recently, now clinging on against the odds. You may never see one, but knowing it is up there makes Isabela’s volcanoes even more extraordinary.
Read more at the Galapagos Conservation Trust, or meet its relatives in my guide to Galapagos iguanas — including the Galapagos land iguana, its cousin the Santa Fe land iguana, and the marine iguana.
