An invasive lizard species has been spotted in Georgia. Residents are being asked to report and kill it

Orianne Society
Orianne Society

REIDSVILLE, Ga. — An intrusive South American reptile Georgia authorities are endeavoring to destroy was located for the third year straight, a reptile preservation bunch said. The lizard — known as tegus — was as of late found in Tattnall County, Georgia, the Orianne Society said Monday in a Facebook post.

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources stated that the Argentine lizards, which have built up themselves in both Tattnall and Toombs areas, likely started in the state as got away from pets or were discharged into nature.

“Many of the public that encounters these often report them, thinking that they look like a baby alligator well away from the water,” stated John Jensen, an official with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, in a YouTube video shared on the 8th of May.

 “They eat just about anything they want, plant and animal matter,” Jensen included.

The tegus, which can grow up to 4 feet in length, represents a danger to secured local natural life, including American gators and gopher tortoises. The black and white tegus have been recorded using gopher tortoise tunnels and eating tortoise and crocodile eggs, just as the tortoise.

While they have not been a danger to people and regular family pets, including felines and canines, Georgia authorities are exhorting individuals against leaving pet food outside as it can pull in the reptile to humans’ homes.

The tegus, which have been found in parts of Florida, can satisfy 20 years and lay up to 35 eggs each year, as indicated by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The Orianne Society said it is basic to evacuate them ahead of schedule before they get an opportunity to spread quickly.

Jensen stated that people should report sights of the lizard to the state’s normal assets division and kill them if they can ready to do so “safely and humanely.”