It's Raining Iguanas! Christmas Artic Chill Brings Hard Freeze to Florida, Invasive Reptile Expected to Fall with Temperatures

As an Arctic chill sweeps the US, meteorologists in Florida are alerting residents of falling iguanas as the Sunshine State is likely to experience a "hard freeze" over the Christmas holiday.

Northeast Florida could experience lows in the 20s inland and near 30 along the coast on Monday, according to the National Weather Service in Jacksonville.

In the days leading up to Christmas, the incoming arctic air mass is anticipated to blow the coldest air of the year across much of the US, bringing dangerously low temperatures.

Temperatures and Iguanas Fall

The cold-blooded lizards start to become sluggish when the outside temperature falls below 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

Iguanas stiffen as the temperature drops, and those perched in trees frequently fall to the ground.

Although the invasive reptiles are stunned by the low temperatures, the iguanas won't necessarily perish.

That implies that as temperatures rise, many people will awaken.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission claims that green iguanas are an invasive species that are not native to the Sunshine State, FOX News reported.

According to USA Today, unofficial "falling iguana" advisories have previously been issued by National Weather Service stations in Florida to inform locals of the possibility of extreme cold and to inform them that any lizards they may find on the ground are typically only temporarily immobilized and not dead.

Prior to the holiday weekend, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission issued a warning about "icy, invasive iguanas," and on Wednesday, Orlando-based Spectrum News 13 meteorologist Zach Covey posted an "Iguana Watch" alert on social media for central and south Florida.

Covey clarified that his message was not a government warning but rather a "light-hearted weather alert."

Read also: Experts Foster Anegada Rock Iguanas Until Ready for Defense Against Cats 

Damages from the Invasive Species

Iguanas aren't aggressive or dangerous to people, but they can dig long tunnels, and destroy seawalls, sidewalks, and landscape vegetation.

Still, the invasive lizards are protected by anti-cruelty laws, which ensure that they are killed humanely.

According to NBC2, Mathew Metcalf, a Florida Gulf Coast University reptile expert, advises people that any frozen iguanas found in a person's yard should be tied up, placed in a pet carrier, and taken to the closest wildlife rehab facility or veterinarian, where it will be put down by trained experts.

In an interview with NPR as documented by Time a few years back, Ron Magill of Zoo Miami urged people not to handle frozen iguanas, cautioning that even those that seem dead could thaw out and become harmful to people.

Magill told NPR that Despite their appearance of incapacitation, iguanas are capable of giving a painful bite, scratch, or tail whip.

They can cause people handling them that kind of physical harm.

With iguanas being an invasive species in Florida, Magill said that the best thing for people to do is to let nature take its course.

He went on to say that perhaps iguanas falling from trees is Mother Nature's strategy for assisting the environment in healing, Time reported.

Related article: Invasive Iguana Species Might be Up for Hunting Soon in Miami Beach, Florida