A female iguana was found in a water slide at a Florida resort after laying more than 20 eggs that ended up at the bottom of a pool.
On Friday, Michael Ronquillo, the owner of Humane Iguana Control, arrived at an undisclosed Miami resort after being contacted about the mother and her babies.
‘Upon our arrival the iguana escaped and left 30 eggs in the pool. We have received calls about iguanas nesting in unusual places such as pools, under artificial grass and cars,” Ronquillo said Fox news.
Ronquillo said his team has “no idea” how the iguana and her eggs got stuck in the slide and pool.
Humane Iguana Control told DailyMail.com that the mother escaped the plane while the eggs “had to be shipped because iguanas are an invasive species.”
A female iguana is seen trapped in a water slide at a local resort in Miami, Florida. Her legs and claws can be seen through the holes
Michael Roquillo, the owner of Human Iguana Control, said his team has “no idea” how the iguana and its eggs got stuck in the slide and pool.
Commenters flocked to social media to react to the strange discovery, as one said: ‘I needed a place to lay her eggs. We have a lot of iguanas in Florida, but it would scare me.”
Another jokingly said: ‘Even iguanas need to go on holiday…’
Photos showed the eggs scattered across the bottom of the pool, close to the drain, while another shot showed the large female iguana trapped in the water slide.
Her legs were hanging out of holes in the plane, with Ronquillo saying his team believes the mother was “trying to lay eggs there.”
“Female iguanas are very active during the breeding season and can be found in random places,” he said in a post about the bizarre find on Instagram.
In another clip, the experts looked into the pool pipe with an endoscopy camera to ‘make sure’ that the iguana was not stuck there.
Towards the end of the video, Ronquillo showed off the collection of eggs his crew rescued from the bottom of the pool.
“We’re not really sure how the iguana put them on the slide, or in that area, and how they got into the pool,” Ronquillo said.
The mating season for the reptiles typically runs from February to March, and Ronquillo said females are known to “lay as many as 70 eggs annually.”
Iguanas are among the largest lizards found in the U.S. because their tails span about half their length. Zoo Alliance of San Diego.
Roquillo discovered thirty iguana eggs at the bottom of the pool, near where the female lizard was found
Another video showed the experts looking into the swimming pool pipe with an endoscopy camera because they wanted to ‘make sure’ that the iguana was not stuck there.
The reptiles are native to Central America and some islands in the eastern Caribbean, first arriving in Florida in the 1960s.
Since then, their population has steadily increased. Iguanas are known to get into sewers and are strong swimmers.
In recent years, the invasive reptiles have made their way to the Sunshine State and have been blamed for causing building damage and power outages.
It is also extremely dangerous to approach iguanas in the wild.
“Tackling iguanas directly can pose physical harm and health risks because their sharp nails, teeth and tail whips reach speeds of 30 miles per hour,” Ronquillo said.
Ronquillo also stressed that if an iguana or iguana eggs are spotted in a body of water, such as a swimming pool, experts should be contacted as swimming pools can pose “health risks” to the babies.
He added that iguanas are known to carry serious diseases and bugs, such as salmonella, ticks and mites.
Wildlife experts have warned that iguanas can transmit salmonella to pets and cause erosion near lakes and canals, and when temperatures drop, the National Weather Service in Miami has been known to issue falling iguana advisories.
In recent years, the invasive reptiles have made their way to the Sunshine State and have been blamed for causing building damage and power outages. (photo: a green iguana dangling in the air in cold weather)
In May 2023, a Florida man, John Ride, 58, got the surprise of his life when he found his toilet occupied by an angry iguana.
When it gets cold, below 40 degrees, the creatures go into a kind of suspended animation mode and fall to the ground. They usually wake up in the warmth of the sun.
In May 2023, a Florida man, John Ride, 58, got the surprise of his life when he found his toilet occupied by an angry iguana.
The scaly intruder seemed as stunned as Riddle as he began angrily hissing at him and turned his head to his camera for a menacing photo.
“I walked into my bathroom and found Godzilla in my toilet,” Riddle said.
‘He didn’t seem happy at all and started splashing and hissing at me.’
Before Riddle could finally use the bathroom, he grabbed a net he uses to clean his pool and removed the unwanted visitor.
“I guess I won’t leave the door open for the dogs anymore,” he added.