With a cold front coming over the U.S., South Florida has recorded low temperatures not seen since 2010. As chills hit the low 40s, the invasive, cold-blooded iguana species lose the ability to move their muscles.
There are hundreds of thousands of iguanas in Florida, with the highest concentration in South Florida, according to Trophy Gator Hunts. The University of Miami has a large population of these iguanas and more than32 of the reptiles were found paralyzed on campus on the morning of Sunday, Feb. 1.
Ryan Chaffee, a senior studying marine science was surprised by how many animals were impacted by the cold.
“I was surprised by the sheer number of lizards that were cold-shocked,” he said. “Not just iguanas, but a few species of anoles as well, including green anoles, which are the only native lizard species on campus.”
When the iguanas can not move they often fall from trees and appear dead. They are instead in a state of paralysis, known as torpor.
On Friday, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission issued an executive order giving residents and visitors permission “to remove live, cold-stunned iguanas from the wild without a permit,” according to Fox News.
This order allows anyone to bring the paralyzed iguanas to a designated FWC office on Sunday or Monday. Some University of Miami students have started to collect these reptiles right here on campus.
During her beach volleyball tournament on Sunday, junior Sierra Stiff encountered a small, frozen lizard. Stiff had assumed it was dead, but when her match partner picked it up she could tell that wasn’t the case.
“[Its] small body tried to twitch a little and was unsuccessful, but its eyes were wide open staring at us,” Stiff said.
Her group decided to set the lizard on a ledge to let it warm up. When they came back, it was gone.
According to the FWC, iguanas can recover from a cold-stun faster than one might expect, which is why people collecting them are urged to work as fast as possible.
Residents attempting this are advised to use gloves and heavy clothing to protect themselves from potential bites and scratches, and the iguanas should be kept in a secure, breathable bag, and then placed in a second secure container.
The same executive order states that the iguanas can be humanely killed or transferred to people with permits for live animal sales without a permit. This is likely due to the nature of these reptiles, being that they are invasive, fast breeders and cause damage to residential and commercial landscapes.
The iguanas left behind are likely to warm up as the temperatures rise later this week, and should recover.