Iguanas dislike the cold, often seek shelter in boats and other warm places

Reporter: Gina Tomlinson
Published:
Iguana on boat (Kyle Hodges)

You’ve heard about frozen iguanas falling from the trees. They don’t like the cold. Local trappers say a hot spot for these lizards to escape the chillier weather is in boats.

You can see a scaly green hitchhiker on a boat in Cape Coral in the photo above.

A local trapper says he’s gotten more calls from boat-owners finding iguanas.

He says a boat’s interior makes a nice, warm hideout for an iguana, but the invasive species can damage your watercraft quickly.

Iguana on boat (Kyle Hodges)

“They’ll start chewing on wires…that’s what I get a lot of calls for because of the boats, because they start tearing up the boats and the sides of them, trying to get out so they’re chewing on everything,” said Kyle Hodges, iguana trapper.

Hodges says he also finds iguanas hiding in other warm places this time of the year like attics and garages.

He says if you can’t remove the iguana on your own, call a licensed professional.

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