A wildlife trapper in Cocoa Beach caught a female iguana a couple of days ago and is now after its male companion on the loose.
Trapper James Dean says waterfront residents were worried the two would mate and create a population problem similar to the one in south Florida.
“They can lay up to twenty eggs at one time and then they just didn’t want to have another Miami or Key West incident, with the situation going on down there right now,” said Dean.
Iguanas have been breeding in the wild there for more than two decades. Florida Fish and Wildlife says iguanas cause significant economic damage to landscape plants.
“They don’t actually make an iguana trap so what I did was I used a raccoon trap and that was able to capture the female,” said Dean.
He lured it with fruits and vegetables.
Dean said he can tell the three and-a-half foot female iguana used to be someone’s pet because of its docile demeanor.
He’s found a foster home here in central Florida for the female iguana-- and the male if its caught.
Last week Dean says Melbourne PD called him about a different iguana in a palm tree. He says that one was aggressive and bit his arm.