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LOCAL Thursday 26 OcTOber 2023

Unique fauna of Aruba

For a small island, Aruba sure cars. Humans are the biggest the main threats to their sur- Conew (cottontail rabbit, young reach independence
has a lot of unique treasures. enemy of the cascabel, as vival are boas – an invasive Sylvilagus floridanus nigro- at 4 to 5 weeks.
Among these, we have some they kill them and destroy species introduced by hu- nuchalis)
subspecies of animals that are their habitat for urbanization. mans as pets – and humans The Eastern Cottontail rab- The Aruban Conew is an en-
unique to our island. These through destruction of their bit (Sylvilagus floridanus) was dangered species and pro-
have evolved to perfectly Shoco (burrowing owl, Athene habitat. probably brought over to tected by Aruban law. The
adapt to our desert climate cunicularia arubensis) the island by Indian settlers Conew is thought to have
and make Aruba their home. The shoco is a small bird which Prikichi (parakeet, Aratinga thousands of years ago as a drastically declined due to
At the same time, they are is seldom seen. They are ac- pertinax) source of food. This rabbit, an increase in human ac-
part of what makes Aruba tive during the day but are The Prikichi is the national bird locally known as Conew, has tivities, habitat fragmenta-
truly one of a kind. more active later in the day of Aruba. On Aruba, Bonaire, spread all over the island and tion and predation by the
and at night for hunting. These and Curaçao, parakeets can has become part of our eco- invasive Boa constrictor as
Cascabel (rattlesnake, Cro- owls have very good night be found, but each of the system. The very adaptable well as feral cats and dogs.
talus durissus unicolor) vision and very good hearing. three islands has a different Conew can live in a wide However, recently there seem
According to the Arikok Na- The shoco is the national breed. The Yellow-shouldered variety of habitats, includ- to be more rabbit sightings
tional Park, Aruba knows two symbol of Aruba. Amazon parakeet that we ing Aruba’s xeric scrublands, in rural and wilderness areas
kinds of snakes, the Santanero have on Aruba is also found where it typically grazes on and also in the National Park.
and the Cascabel. The cas- The shoco has about 20cm along the coast of Venezuela. weeds and grasses. This could be linked to a re-
cabel belongs to the rattle- of length, and the females Unfortunately, there is inter- cent decline of the invasive
snake family. The cascabel are slightly heavier than the breeding between the breeds The Aruban Conew has a Boa population after the
is the only venomous snake males. They are light brown in due to cage birds from, for brownish grey color and a dis- long period of drought. As
from Aruba. It has a length of color, with many white spots. example, Curaçao being re- tinctive white belly. This white the Conew can reproduce
65cm to 100cm, and is about The belly of the Shoco is ei- leased on Aruba. The para- fur extends to the bottom of very quickly, a short break in
4 to 5cm wide. Its color var- ther white or light brown, and keet population on Aruba is the tail which becomes vis- predation pressure can lead
ies from light brown to grey- the shoco has striking yellow in danger due to extensive ible as the rabbit runs. These to a fast increase of rabbits.
brown, and its underbelly is eyes. Its beak is yellow/green. deforestation occurring on rabbits can grow up to ap- Sadly, the Boas are back on
white. On its back there are Young owls do not have white the island because of the proximately 40 centimeters in the rise again with the truly
marks that are a little darker, spots and are lighter in color. growing population. length over their short lifespan wet rainy seasons we have
in the shape of diamonds. of 3 years. Cottontail rabbits recently experienced. This
The nest of the shoco is a The prikichi weighs between reach reproductive maturi- could cause a new decline
Its reproduction is oviparous, burrow in the ground. If the 90 to 100 grams. It has a ty when they are just 2 to 3 in the Conew population that
meaning the offspring can shoco cannot find a burrow, greenish-brown head with months old. A female rabbit, was just starting to recover.
hatch from their eggs just be- it will dig one in soft soil. The some yellow around the eye. called a doe, finds a suitable
fore, during or immediately shoco lays one or two eggs The back and wings of the nest spot under a shrub or These are but a few of Aru-
after laying. every other day until all the parakeet are dark green, and rocks and lines it with fur. She ba’s beautiful inhabitant,
eggs are laid – a shoco can the underside of the body can have an average of 3 to which we must all contrib-
The cascabel lives mainly in lay up to four eggs. The first is a lighter shade of green. 4 litters per year averaging ute to protect. For more in-
the Arikok National Park. It owlets hatch after three to There is also a bit of blue in the 5 young each. The doe only formation, visit https://www.
likes to live in dark places, and four weeks. The shoco owl wings. The parakeet's beak visits her young once or twice arubanationalpark.org/main/
is thus found hidden among takes care of the owlets for is gray/black. a day to nurse her babies for flora-fauna/
the limestone rocks and under three months until they leave Parakeets often use termite a period of 2 to 3 weeks. The
stones. As a defense mecha- the nest. Only a few owlets nests as breeding sites. Para-
nism, the cascabel uses its survive. keets are found in all natu-
rattle as a warning, and it is ral environments (mondi) of
not an aggressive animal. The owlrs dig burrows in the the island. It defends itself by
ground with low grass veg- flying away and loud cries.
The cascabel feeds on lizards, etation. An owl can live up Parakeets eat seeds from the
small mammals such as rats to nine years. pods of the Kwihi tree, Divi
and mice. It paralyzes or kills Divi, and columnar cactus.
its prey with its venom, which Its defense mechanism is sim- They also consume natural
is injected through a bite. The ply to fly away or retreat to fruits. Its main predators are
enemies of the cascabel are its burrows. They eat mostly boa constrictors, humans.
donkeys, goats, humans and insects, mice and lizards, and