Iguana Invasion! 2007

http://www.LaptopNoise.com/iguana.htm


Florida is home to many introduced reptile species. In this video, I bring you the black spiny-tailed iguana. A native of Mexico, this iguana now lives on Gasparilla Island, Florida as well as the nearby mainland. Iguanas number around 10,000 on the island and though they used to be welcomed by the residents, they are now considered a serious problem.

I first visited Gasparilla Island in April of 2006 and was amazed by how common this large lizard was. I came back a year later to see how the lizards were coping with being the focus of trappers, pellet guns, and freezers. I still saw plenty of iguanas.

I shot this video on a Canon Elura 100 MiniDV camcorder.

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• Iguana
• Florida
• Gasparilla
• Island
• black
• spiny-tailed
• lizard
• reptile
• introduced
• species
• beach
• herp
• tags

[monkeyboyee1]

cool igs... and ppl say there endangered

[F7sound]

Not these particular ones. There are plenty of them.

[forzamilan71]

What's the big deal? Just consume them. They are delicious. They are cleaner than chickens and pigs, and their diets consist of veggies. Get a grip people!!!

[F7sound]

I'd eat one....

[imanolanfan]

@1992pattrow I lived in Sarasota from 1982 until 1985 and never saw any iguanas running wild. I don't think they are native to Florida. Is there a state law banning hunting and killing iguanas? With the price of beef chicken and pork in the groceries we may have to eat iguanas! I ate some rattlesnake several years ago and it was good. Iguana meat would probable taste like deep fried gator tail!

[toad773]

@F7sound That is disgusting.

[rossothecrimson7]

Florida is one of those places that show you why idiots shouldn't own exotic animals!! It pisses me off! Not really counting the iguana TOO much because of hurricanes relocating them too, but man is surely to blame for other shit you see creeping around Florida.

[PeePulz]

green iguanas have resided in Florida since the 1960's, but their population has increased greatly since Hurricane Andrew. Although green iguanas have not had ecological impacts, this Central and South American lizard causes significant economic damage to landscape plants, primarily in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties.

[1992pattrow]

I think that Iguanas are native to Florida. I remember seeing tons of then back in 1999 and 2001(vacation)

[thatonekidumet]

Actually there is no definite evidence that the iguana population in Florida was introduced by man. There is some evidence that they are native to the area but have greatly increased in numbers recently due to changes in habitat by man.

[a8anasios666]

ahahahahahahhaa

[carlosjavierPR]

not these iguanas . in PR there are alot of them where i use to live . i use to chase them but never cought one

[UncleDeluxe]

How about you bend over and I'll shoot you in the brain.

[stopfederalism08]

mexican spiney tail iguanas are most definatly not, they are the most adapable species by far. but many unique subspecies that develouped on the carribean islands and galapagos are critically endangered ironically due to the same problem we see here. non indigenous species introduced by man