Out of control iguanas infesting South Florida

[greentrout]

Out of control iguanas infesting South Florida

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/features/fl-reg-south-florida-iguana-invasive-damage-20180618-story.html

 

[Bluebasser86]

One of them went flying across the top of some bushes right by us like a Jesus lizard on the water when my wife and I were walking into the BPS in Ft. Lauderdale. My poor wife screamed and ran, I laughed, one of us barely escaped with our lives and it wasn't my wife. 

[Angry John]

They could have fixed this problem earlier this year durine the cold snap when they were part frozen and falling out of trees.  Easy day, guess it's someone else's problem to fix.

[jbsoonerfan]

Florida has a lot of problems these days. A local sports radio station does a Florida segment everyday and I am amazed at the stories that come from there.

 

BTW, not saying OK is any better, but we don't have the reptile problems yet.

[N Florida Mike]

At least they'll be plenty for the PYTHONS to eat down there.

 

 

 

[Gundog]

I wonder how many iguanas it takes to make a pair of boots. I mean the good kind of boots, not some cheap junk but a nice pair of cowboy boots. And don't forget the belt too. Probably take a couple dozen or so. Might be a business in that. They are free roaming so anybody could trap them, skin them, stretch the hides and make them into some footwear. 

[Fishing_FF]

13 hours ago, Angry John said:

They could have fixed this problem earlier this year durine the cold snap when they were part frozen and falling out of trees.  Easy day, guess it's someone else's problem to fix.

 

There were actually warning on the radio and TV against picking up frozen iguanas this past winter. It even made it on the news all the way up here in the Orlando area, even though we don't have any iguana populations up here. 

 

The warning came after a guy picked up a bunch of frozen iguanas and threw them in the backseat of his seat. What do people do in their car when the weather is cold outside? The iguanas eventually thawed out while he was driving. Not too happy with their new environment, they tried to escape their new car enclosure. The driver lost control and crashed. 3, 2, 1....commence laughter! 

[Angry John]

Well if he would have put them on the bbq that would have not been an issue.  Nothing moves after the grill!!!

[Gundog]

10 minutes ago, Angry John said:

Well if he would have put them on the bbq that would have not been an issue.  Nothing moves after the grill!!!

Wish I was in Tijuana

Eating barbequed iguana

Wall of Voodoo 1982

 

[soflabasser]

I am glad we have iguanas in South Florida since they are a beautiful animal and are interesting to look at while I am fishing. Also enjoy the variety of fish we have and its something that brings millions of dollars of tourism to Florida since many people want to catch peacock bass, clown knifefish, bullseye snakehead, etc. The ocean is less than 60 minutes from my house in case I get bored of freshwater fishing.Weather is quite nice and we don't have to worry about snow and miserably cold winters.Beats being in a flyover state at least for me!

[N Florida Mike]

On 6/23/2018 at 6:53 AM, Gundog said:

I wonder how many iguanas it takes to make a pair of boots. I mean the good kind of boots, not some cheap junk but a nice pair of cowboy boots. And don't forget the belt too. Probably take a couple dozen or so. Might be a business in that. They are free roaming so anybody could trap them, skin them, stretch the hides and make them into some footwear. 

Hmmmm ?

[Darren.]

Eradicating invasive species in FL is a nearly impossible task.

It's too bad these cool creatures are affecting so many things

like electrical power, etc. Just keep 'em away from nuclear

power...

 

FL is the saltwater fishing capital of the world with so many 

varieties of fish coming thru via currents. Now FL is gunning

for supremacy over Madagascar, Australia, Congo, Brazil, 

for animal capital of the world!

[soflabasser]

11 hours ago, Darren. said:

Eradicating invasive species in FL is a nearly impossible task.

It's too bad these cool creatures are affecting so many things

like electrical power, etc. Just keep 'em away from nuclear

power...

 

FL is the saltwater fishing capital of the world with so many 

varieties of fish coming thru via currents. Now FL is gunning

for supremacy over Madagascar, Australia, Congo, Brazil, 

for animal capital of the world!

I agree that it is almost impossible to get rid of all the exotics we have, so its best to learn how to live with them and keep the population down of the ones that are actually dangerous ( pythons, nile monitors, nile crocodiles, lionfish,etc). Iguanas are herbivores and don't eat meat so you don't have to worry about them unless your a plant. A couple very strong cold fronts can help lower the population of exotics but it doesn't look like we are going to have any real cold weather in South Florida anytime soon. Florida is the fishing capital of the World and I won't be surprised if we are in the top 10 of most different species of animals in the world!

[greentrout]

CBS NEWS >>

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dueling-iguanas-hold-up-traffic-in-florida-starbucks-parking-lot/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab7e&linkId=53462628

[soflabasser]

It must be terrible to be a snowbird that hates iguanas yet they still move to South Florida knowing very well that we have iguanas and other exotic animals. Screaming "get off my lawn" won't work much on iguanas, they will keep eating your lawns. Iguanas are here to stay and you might as well learn to live with them and enjoy the South Florida version of Jurassic park.

[fishwizzard]

 I do a couple of weeks of work in Miami every spring and the company I work for always sends a new person down to do the job with me. My favorite thing to do once we've  got a handle on the project is to hop in a golf cart with my new coworker and take them on "lizard quest".  There's a spot near our worksite where, if you're a little sneaky, you can see dozens and dozens of them out sunning themselves on the bank of a lagoon. 

 

No one ever believes me when I tell them how many lizards we are going to see, but everyone is absolutely delighted when we pull up, hook the horn, and they all freak out at the same time and run around like lunatics. 

[Slade House]

What florida needs to do is bring another animal in to eat all the iguanas, that always solves the problem.

 

Just thank god iguanas = zebra and quagga mussels

 

[YoTone]

I hear they make fantastic taco meat.

[J Francho]

Lizards?  Phht!  Big deal.  We have Giant Hogweed.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/02/us/giant-hogweed-nyt.html

[Gundog]

10 hours ago, Slade House said:

What florida needs to do is bring another animal in to eat all the iguanas, that always solves the problem.

 

Hmmm....how about a reintroduction of the Florida panther. At least you wouldn't be too concerned with all the iguanas while you are running from the panthers. ?

[12poundbass]

2 hours ago, J Francho said:

Lizards?  Phht!  Big deal.  We have Giant Hogweed.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/02/us/giant-hogweed-nyt.html

We were made aware of this plant at my work a couple years ago. I work along the road right of way all day every day and poisonous plants are a safety hazard for us. Before switching companies and only locating gas I used to do phone, electric, cable, and gas. The first three tend to be further off the road than gas and I used to get poison ivy at least once a year usually twice. That stuff if horrible! Knock on wood I haven't gotten it since switching companies and only locating gas.

 

I couldn't imaging get mixed up with giant hogweed. I like how your article says it was brought over in 1917 as an ornamental plant. Oops! 

[Further North]

As some guy said in a book once (that got made into a movie): "Life will find a way."

 

One species or another has been intruding on other species' territory since the 2nd microbe...and it ain't gonna stop any time soon.

[soflabasser]

42 minutes ago, Further North said:

As some guy said in a book once (that got made into a movie): "Life will find a way."

 

One species or another has been intruding on other species' territory since the 2nd microbe...and it ain't gonna stop any time soon.

I still have the original VHS version of Jurassic Park that I got as a kid along with a couple other VHS movies and a VHS player. The newest movie called Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom was very good as well and in the end of the movie several dinosaur species escape into a city. Hope the next movie comes out soon since I will be seeing it for sure.

[Gundog]

Here in PA we have our invasive species drama. Its called the Spotted Lantern Fly. This evil little bugger will bore into your head and rewire your brain synapses to fire on the same sequences as the spark plug firing order on a 1975 Ford Pinto. And if that ain't enough, it will dial up your friends and family impersonating you and tell them that you won the lottery and ain't sharing any of it. Insidious little devil. Hide the children if you see this monster anywhere near you.

 

 

[BASS302]

33 minutes ago, Gundog said:

Here in PA we have our invasive species drama. Its called the Spotted Lantern Fly.

From the Entomology Today website:

Spotted Lanternfly: A Threat Poised to Broadly Impact the U.S.

The spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) can deposit up to almost 200 egg masses on a single host, but the host need not be a plant: lanternflies are happy to place egg masses on stones, fences, and other construction material, which makes them a great hitchhiking species. (Photo credit: Lawrence Barringer, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, Bugwood.org)

Spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula, or SLF) is another stowaway from Asia on commercial products. This species is native to northern China and was first detected in Pennsylvania in 2014. It was immediately quarantined by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, and vigorous eradication efforts were deployed. However, it has since spread to neighboring states in the Mid-Atlantic region, which elicits a feeling of déjà vu with BMSB, which was first detected in Allentown, Pennsylvania, but quickly spread to neighboring states.

In the quarantine zone in Pennsylvania, SLF has been reported to be so numerous that a literal rain of honeydew (a sugary secretion produced by true bugs) falls on observers and nearby vegetation wherever aggregations are present. Preferred SLF host plants are tree of heaven (abundant in the eastern U.S.), grapes, and tree fruit.

So far, SLF has a host range that incorporates over 70 host plant species. SLF can deposit up to almost 200 egg masses on a single host, but it need not be a plant: the lanternflies are happy to place egg masses on stones, fences, and other construction material, which makes them a great hitchhiking species.

The sheer density of SLF on hosts can be overwhelming, and, with its recent expansion into neighboring states, this may be the beginning of another disruption to integrated pest management programs for specialty crop producers in the U.S.