Savana Island, United States Virgin Islands
A restored habitat for the endangered Virgin Islands Tree Boa
THE PROJECT:Savana Island Restoration Project; Creating a safe habitat to save rare species in the Puerto Rico Geographic Bank
LOCATION: Savana Island, United States Virgin Islands
THE WORK:To make Savana Island a haven for the Virgin Islands Tree Boa once again, a plan to remove invasive rats has been undertaken by Island Conservation and the Division of Fish and Wildlife in the Department of Planning and Natural Resources from the US Virgin Islands. With recent developments in aerial conservation, Savana will be restored from the air!
SPECIES:Virgin Islands Tree Boa
COMMUNITY:To ensure sustainability, the project will build regional capacity for invasive species removal, species restoration, and monitoring.
TIMELINE: Savana Island is advancing toward its 2030 global challenge goals by completing the first phase of an aerial rat eradication project to secure the ecosystem. This critical step enables the safe reintroduction of the endangered Virgin Islands Tree Boa and protects the surrounding marine habitat from destructive soil runoff.
About Savana Island
Savana Island is a beautiful ecological haven approximately 2 to 3 miles west of St. Thomas Island in the US Virgin Islands. Savana is a treasured part of the Puerto Rico Geographic Bank, supporting a subtropical dry forest biome. However, one of its key species—the endangered Virgin Islands Tree Boa—has been extirpated from it for many years.
This beautiful snake is just one of many species that once called the Virgin Islands home, but its range is now fragmented due to vegetation clearing and threats from introduced invasive mammals. To reintroduce the VI Tree Boa to the island, it must be free from invasive predators, such as rats, which predate on Boa juveniles and adults.
Efforts to reintroduce the Virgin Islands Tree Boa on islands within its historic range have been extremely successful, and Savana promises to be another such case!
Voices from the field
“Creating an island refuge to the Virgin Islands Tree Boa after the removal of invasive rats is a remarkable action for the recovery of this endangered snake. Restoring Savana Island represent a significant commitment of all the project partners involved and will enhance the terrestrial and marine habitats for seabirds, native reptiles, plants, land crabs, and nearshore reefs.”
— José Luis Herrera-Giraldo, Project Manager, Island Conservation
Project Partners & Funders
• Island Conservation
• Division of Fish and Wildlife in the Department of Planning and Natural Resources from the US Virgin Islands (DPNR-DFW)
• US Fish and Wildlife Services (USFWS)
• Greensboro Science Center