Invasive 'giant lizard' discovered by children in Georgia neighborhood under woman's porch

In an unexpected discovery, neighborhood children stumbled upon a one-meter (more than 3 feet) long lizard lurking under a woman’s porch in Athens, Georgia.

The uninvited reptile turned out to be a black and white Argentine tegu, a species native to South America, according to the Division of Wildlife Resources.

However, as it posed a threat to protected species in Georgia, authorities decided to intervene, according to a statement from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

After no one claimed ownership of the tegu, the agency captured and relocated the creature, in an unusual encounter that has raised concerns about the presence of invasive reptiles in the region and regulation of pets.

Invasive species such as the Argentine black and white tegu can have a detrimental impact on local ecosystems. The Georgia government agency’s Wildlife Resources Division expressed concern that tegu spread exotic parasites to native wildlife and cause bacterial contamination of crops.

Additionally, research indicates that these reptiles, like many others, carry salmonella, which poses health risks to humans.

The aspect of this encounter is that the homeowner was not aware of the tegu’s presence under her porch until the neighborhood children alerted her to the “giant lizard” in her yard. It is still unclear whether the reptile escaped or was released illegally.

To address the problem of invasive reptiles, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources has taken a proactive step. Pet owners are now required to tag and register six newly regulated reptile species, including Nile monitors, African helmeted tortoises, Chinese softshell turtles, black and white Argentine tegus, and Indian and Burmese pythons.

The grace period for pet owners to comply with these regulations ends at midnight on December 3, 2023. Pet owners must tag their animals with an integrated passive transponder tag and complete the registration process with the Department of Transportation. Georgia Natural Resources.

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