The Conservation Project Utila Iguana (CPUI) was initiated in 1994 in cooperation with the Honduran Nature Conservation Office (AFE-COHDEFOR). And in 1998, in collaboration with the Zoological Society of Frankfurt and the Senckenberg Nature Research Society, the Iguana Research and Breeding Station was built on the island. Ongoing conservation efforts are based on an extensive plan of environmental awareness for the local community, research into the natural history and reproductive ecology of C. bakeri, and a captive-breeding plan. Gravid females are brought to the breeding station to lay their eggs, which are artificially incubated to ensure maximum hatch rate. The young are raised in captivity on a natural diet for up to two years before being released into the swamps.

The best chance for long term protection of the species is habitat protection; mangrove habitat and beach habitat need to be set aside as part of a protected area, which can be managed for the benefit of Utila’s wildlife and its citizens.