- Lizard-sicles don't sound very tasty to me…
Photo by Cindy Williams Moore on Unsplash
Florida people everywhere, you are warned: Beware of falling iguanas! And no, they are not dead…
Falling Iguanas
The National Weather Service issued a warning across all of Florida, saying that they need to beware of falling iguanas. As the temperatures in Florida get lower, the cold-blooded lizards slow down or become motionless and can drop from the trees on to your head. “This isn’t something we usually forecast, but don’t be surprised if you see Iguanas falling for trees tonight as lows drop into the 30s and 40s. Brrrr!” wrote The National Weather Service of Miami-South Florida. They also posted an infographic explaining the strange (but very real) phenomenon. It indicated that temperatures on 21st night in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach, and Interior and Gulf Coast region put the iguanas at risk of falling.
Iguana Facts
Iguanas are an invasive species, native to Central and South America. They begin to get sluggish when temperatures drop to below 50 degrees, according to Kristin Sommers of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). If the temperature drops, they freeze up.
That Doesn’t Mean They’re Dead
They aren’t dead and many residents try to help them. However, those residents that find stiffened iguanas, you are advised to leave them alone, as the iguanas may feel that you are threatening and bite when they get warmed up. After iguanas began to drop, a gentleman from Central America, now a Floridian, gathered them up to take home and eat. The iguanas warmed up in the car ride over and came back with a vengeance, causing him to wreck his car.
Last year, The FWC garnered outrage from citizens and animals activists groups after releasing a statement for residents to kill the state’s invasive green iguana population ‘whenever possible,’ according to CBS News. The FWC eventually updated its approach with a new plea that urges public to ‘seek assistance from professionals who do this for a living’ if they cannot remove the animal safely from their property.