Pet Lizard Gone for a Month

[Debp]

A Massachusetts woman's three and a half foot lizard was finally found after a month in a neighbor's shed.   It somehow escaped from its outdoor enclosure.  It was a little skinnier but ok.

Can you imagine the neighbor going to the shed and seeing that?   The lizard is a native of South America.

 

[RockyMidnight]

40 minutes ago, Debp said:

A Massachusetts woman's three and a half foot lizard was finally found after a month in a neighbor's shed.   It somehow escaped from its outdoor enclosure.  It was a little skinnier but ok.

Can you imagine the neighbor going to the shed and seeing that?   The lizard is a native of South America.

 

I used to live in Boca raton, Florida, where people would have Iguana's for pets. These creatures can grow to 5-6 feet nose to tip of tail, and when they get too big, people would just let them go. Now they are all over the place there, having adapted and are breeding. I could drive down US 41 and literally count scores of them eating plants on the road side. That was over 10 years ago, and now it's even worse! And they can give you a nasty bite! 

 https://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/boca-raton-struggles-with-exploding-iguana-population-they-never-get-rid-them-expert-says/l5OBYaLkLdKjlA91IrQk7N/

Cheers!!! 

[Debp]

9 hours ago, RockyMidnight said:

I used to live in Boca raton, Florida, where people would have Iguana's for pets. These creatures can grow to 5-6 feet nose to tip of tail, and when they get too big, people would just let them go. Now they are all over the place there, having adapted and are breeding. I could drive down US 41 and literally count scores of them eating plants on the road side. That was over 10 years ago, and now it's even worse! And they can give you a nasty bite! 

 https://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/boca-raton-struggles-with-exploding-iguana-population-they-never-get-rid-them-expert-says/l5OBYaLkLdKjlA91IrQk7N/

Cheers!!! 

Wow, I knew about people in FL releasing their Pythons and Boa Constrictors...creating a huge problem in the Everglades...but no idea about the Iguanas.   That's a big lizard!  

[RockyMidnight]

1 minute ago, Debp said:

Wow, I knew about people in FL releasing their Pythons and Boa Constrictors...creating a huge problem in the Everglades...but no idea about the Iguanas.   That's a big lizard!  

Hi Debp! Yes, lot's of non native stuff here in Florida from other parts of the world. In Miami they have a problem with snails from Africa. They are as big as soft balls, and eat concrete, or actually the calcium in concrete. We used to have a little lizard called the Green Anole. Really cute and a native species. They are all but gone, having been out competed for food by the Brown Anole from the Caribbean Islands, introduced here back in the 70's. The Brown's will eat the young of the Greens as well. One could write a book about all the invasive species in this State. Probably someone already has!

Then there's the Love Bug. A genetically created insect by a Florida University that were supposed to pray on mosquitoes. They never ate a single mosquito, and now they come in big swarms in spring and fall, and their body acid content takes paint off cars when you run into their swarms on the roads. There are so many that at times you have to stop driving to clear your windshield as they will cover it so you can't see out! It's happened to me. They can clog up a radiator so bad it stops working and your engine will overheat. Welcome to Paradise!

Cheers Debp!!! 

[Debp]

11 hours ago, RockyMidnight said:

Hi Debp! Yes, lot's of non native stuff here in Florida from other parts of the world. In Miami they have a problem with snails from Africa. They are as big as soft balls, and eat concrete, or actually the calcium in concrete. We used to have a little lizard called the Green Anole. Really cute and a native species. They are all but gone, having been out competed for food by the Brown Anole from the Caribbean Islands, introduced here back in the 70's. The Brown's will eat the young of the Greens as well. One could write a book about all the invasive species in this State. Probably someone already has!

Then there's the Love Bug. A genetically created insect by a Florida University that were supposed to pray on mosquitoes. They never ate a single mosquito, and now they come in big swarms in spring and fall, and their body acid content takes paint off cars when you run into their swarms on the roads. There are so many that at times you have to stop driving to clear your windshield as they will cover it so you can't see out! It's happened to me. They can clog up a radiator so bad it stops working and your engine will overheat. Welcome to Paradise!

Cheers Debp!!! 

Sorry about the little green lizard.  Oh no, a snail as big as a softball?!!  Eating concrete, too! And those Love Bugs are something, too.  Leave it to the scientists! lol

It's like when I was a child I read about the Africanized Bees in South America.   Some scientist had crossbred the aggressive African bees with the regular bees.....then the Africanized Bees escaped!   The National Geographic article had said the bees would slowly make their way Northward....at the time of the article, it sounded like an unbelievable horror movie.    Now we have Africanized Bees in Los Angeles!

[RockyMidnight]

11 hours ago, Sojourner414 said:

The only way I'm ever eating a lizard sandwich is if we end up getting Brontoburgers from the Flintstones! ?

Actually Sojourner414, Iguana's are on the Menu in Mexico and Central America. You'll never guess what they say they taste like. Yep, Chicken!

http://blogs.worldwatch.org/nourishingtheplanet/iguana-meat-is-on-the-table/

Cheers!!! 

Edited August 30, 2018 by RockyMidnight

[Willa]

If they are parasite free we could make dog food from them.  

[Debp]

RockyMidnight, why did you let your six foot Monitor Lizard loose in Florida? ? Just heard on the news trappers are looking for it.  It was seen looking through some lady's glass door in her back yard.

Seriously, it is dangerous to children and pets.   Years ago I read in a travel industry magazine about a tourist viewing the Komodo Dragons in Indonesia.   Apparently, he had stepped out from behind the protective cement barriers....all they found of him was his hat and camera!

[RockyMidnight]

2 hours ago, Debp said:

RockyMidnight, why did you let your six foot Monitor Lizard loose in Florida? ? Just heard on the news trappers are looking for it.  It was seen looking through some lady's glass door in her back yard.

Seriously, it is dangerous to children and pets.   Years ago I read in a travel industry magazine about a tourist viewing the Komodo Dragons in Indonesia.   Apparently, he had stepped out from behind the protective cement barriers....all they found of him was his hat and camera!

Komodo Dragons don't eat live prey. First they attack it. Their saliva is loaded with infectious bacteria, and all they do is wait until that prey dies of sepsis, then they devour it. No risk of injury to themselves, so that tourist lasted a day or two before getting consumed! I hope he was saved!

Cheers Debp!!! 

[Willa]

We used to have an iguana when our kids were in grade school.  They can't survive outside in the northern tier states.  I couldn't get anyone to feed our lizard collection while we were on vacation so had to return them to the pet store.  We also had a Jackson's 3 horned chameleon that was about 10 inches, and a crested chameleon that was about 12 inches as well as a flying gecko named gator jaws.  I enjoyed our lizards.