Is my iguana sexually mature?

[Gigi]

Hallo all. I made a post the day I joined but I've been having some internet issues so I don't think it got sent =/

Anyway: I found a small, curled reddish-brown lump of...well, something. Is it possible that it's a seminal plug or exudate?

I've been taking care of my brother's iguana for about half a year now. S/he has been severely stunted and though s/he is about 4-5 years old s/he is only slightly above 7 inches SVL and almost 27 inches STL. S/he is only slightly developed around his/her jaw, and only the first 4 femoral pores are open. I'm unable to determine if there is a hemipenal bulge or no. There is a small V shape there right before the tail starts to thicken [which might mean it's developing?]. I couldn't get a pic because I only have my phone camera which is always blurry.

Thanks in advance,

-Gigi

[marc]

Im not a expert on this but Could be a guy because of the the v shape can indicate the bulges and the "plugs" you said.But culd be a girl because of the pores.Are the pores white and waxy?Try and get a photo of it the best you can even if the images is blurry we will probably get an idea of what were looking at........

[prism_wolf]

Even as stunted as this ig is there should be good signs of maturity. There should still be jowl development and femoral pores larger if a male...along with the hemipenal bulges. There's no way we can help in any way without some kind of a picture though. Do you know anyone who has a better camera phone or a digi camera?

[Gigi]

Leggy was very patient and allowed me to take some photos [Click to enlarge]:

Jowl:


Sub-Tympanic Scale:


Pores/Tail:

[note: they look a lot bigger here =o]

[prism_wolf]

Your ig has a very female look to the head. This can happen in males, but it's not that common unless their in multiple ig groups where other males are living (which is a bad idea). Even though the tail base and pores have a bit of a male look to them...I'm going with female.

[Jen]

That is a tough one, female head, but looks male down below. Its a he/she LOL!

[Gigi]

Another reason why you should feed your iguanas...stunted igs become hermaphrodites!
[note: that isn't true O.o please feed your iguana even if you want a he/she!]

Well then I'll just have to wait I guess...s/he's probably just developing out of order

[Jen]

Sometimes Igs will fool you about their sex. The woman that origionally started this site had a female Ig, however to look at her you would have sworn she was male. Sometimes a dominant female will develope male characteristics, as well as a male can take on female characteristics if he is not the dominant one. But this is usually only common if you have more than one Ig in your home.

[Gigi]

Well we have no other igs in the house...but Leggy has always been rather shy