Iguanas can damage your garden and vegetation near your home if you live in the southern states. Reptiles eat flowers, plants, and fruits. They can completely destroy the ornamental plants near your home. So, it’s important to know how to get rid of iguanas.
These reptiles are very fast and tricky, so you cannot catch them by hand. Using simple chemicals is also dangerous, as it can have a negative effect on garden plants or pets. I have been looking for better ways to get rid of iguanas in the yard for a long time, and I have succeeded.
- Protect your site from iguanas.
- Install an electric net or mechanical trap for small reptiles.
- Use special liquids or repellents to repel iguanas.
- Check the facade of your house for holes in the ground. If you notice a large hole, fill it with fine gravel. Remove eggs before filling holes.
More Information on Iguanas and Controlling Them
Iguanas are plant-eating reptiles that live mainly in South America and the southern states of North America. They prefer a humid tropical climate. In the United States, they are most commonly encountered in Texas, Florida, and Hawaii.
On the face of it, they look like ordinary green lizards up to 1.5 meters long (including the tail). The body length of an adult is usually 11-13 inches, weighing up to 8-9 lbs. On the upper body part along the ridge, reptiles have a scaly ridge.
What attracts iguanas to your property
To practice iguana control, you must know more about the way they live and eat. I have repeatedly come across a question from neighbors and friends about what do iguanas eat. These reptiles do not eat insects and do not cause any harm to pets or humans.
They don’t bite people even if they feel aggressive. Their diet consists of leaves from trees, bushes, as well as flowers and some fruits. So your garden near your home can be destroyed if these reptiles get there. They are attracted by figs, strawberries, hibiscus, tomato fruits, plums, apricots, peaches, incense leaves, and all kinds of flowering shrubs.
There may be many details in yours that attract these herbivorous reptiles from the nearest rainforest or park. They prefer overgrown areas in the shade with high humidity levels. If there are such unruly areas near your house with bushes and trees, the iguana will lure you in.
They can smell the scent of ripe fruits from a long distance. You can’t keep iguanas away from plants without using special products. I used to think that it is possible to get rid of them with simple chemicals or by cleaning the area, but it turned out you need to work harder for the result.
How to prevent iguanas in the future
I know a few proven methods of how to keep iguanas from eating plants:
- Install a wire around the perimeter of the garden that reptiles can’t get through;
- Clear the garden of dense shrubs and trees that are not exposed to the sun (this will also help get rid of snakes during the rainy season);
- Vegetable plantations should be planted in a closed greenhouse to avoid attracting reptiles;
- Get rid of old canoes, logs, boats, cars, stones and other large objects in the area under which iguanas and snakes can hide.
Even though you may think that iguanas leave no trace, they tend to eat fruits and plants, which is key in identifying them. Sooner or later, when walking around the garden, you will notice a large iguana under your feet!
Do you want to keep iguanas away from plants and home? Make sure there are no fallen rotten fruits in your garden. Collect plums, apricots and peaches from the trees at the right time. Do not wait until tomatoes and other vegetables begin to rot and fall to the ground.
This is a favorite dainty of iguanas, which they feel a few kilometers away. Some reptiles can climb directly into the trash can if it is not tightly closed. Close the lid of the trash can or put something heavy on top of it, so that the reptiles won’t get in and eat waste.
With the constant invasion of the iguana, you can transplant plants in your garden. For this, use iguana proof plants: crotons, Ixora, oleander, milkweed, and citrus.
How to get rid of iguanas
The iguanas deterrent is the cleanliness of the area, the presence of mesh or other contamination with small cells, and the control of norms. But this is not always enough to keep iguanas away from plants. Sometimes you may need a “heavy weapon.”
For a long time, I had no clue how to repel iguanas. Then I tried to use an electrical grid around the perimeter of my garden. It is specially designed for small reptiles and various mammals that harm the fruit on the property. As an alternative, you can use mechanical traps (they look like huge mousetraps). I can also recommend special liquids to scare away iguanas.
Do you notice a reptile in the yard and do not know how to keep the iguana away from the pool and garden? One of the most effective ways to get rid of the iguana invasion in your yard is to use repellents. A special liquid does not kill or harm the health of reptiles. As soon as they smell this liquid, they run away and never come back.
This is convenient because you do not have to dispose of iguanas’ dead bodies or take the caged reptiles somewhere in the forest.
Iguanas do not mind digging holes and staying there for a long time. Check the facade of your house for holes in the ground. The caves of snakes and reptiles are very similar, so be careful. If you notice a large hole, fill it with fine gravel.
The iguanas will not be able to dig it because of the hard rock. The burrows may contain eggs of iguanas, as these reptiles can lay up to 76 eggs. Remove eggs before filling holes with gravel or crushed stone.
You can also use traps for iguanas. Metal cages are not only suitable for reptiles, but also for other animals that get into your garden. Special traps can catch several reptiles at once. Arrange them around the perimeter of the garden and periodically check them for iguanas inside. Remember that the traps do not harm the animals, but you have to let them go into the forest.
Top 2 Best Iguana Treatments
I have been testing different methods for a long time, determining how to keep iguanas away from my garden. Below, I have chosen the most effective product categories to help with this.
1. IGUANA GONE – Safe Way to Get Rid of Iguanas in Yard
Specifications:
- Pesticide Free
- Safe For Pets and The Environment
- All-Natural Specially-Formulated Scent
- Item Form: Spray
- Item Volume: 16 fl. oz.
One of the safest means to scare away iguanas from the adjacent territory is the repellent IGUANA GONE. It is a liquid to be sprayed in the yard and around the perimeter.
The special composition does not contain poisonous chemicals, which could harm pets and people. This is a distinctive quality of IGUANA GONE. In this way, you can safely engage in the garden, grow their fruits and vegetables without the negative effects of repellent treatment against iguanas.
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2. Havahart – Effective Trap to Get Rid of Iguanas in Yard
Specifications:
- Material: Alloy Steel
- Special Features: Maximum resistance to rust and corrosion
- Item Weight: 12.8 Pounds
- Item Dimensions LxWxH: 36 x 10 x 12 inches
- Target Species: Groundhog, Armadillo, Cat, Raccoon, Opossum
I was looking for the answer to the question of how to catch the iguana when I came around this product. The Havahart live trap is a reliable way to catch iguanas, beavers, and other pests in your garden. A large cage of galvanized steel protects the body from rust.
The construction is designed so that reptiles, mammals, and small predators can not get out. You will have to let them go outside of your yard. This is absolutely safe and effective. Just put a fruit trap inside to attract reptiles, predators, and other small animals.
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FAQ
Answers to the most common questions about iguanas will help you learn more about them. It is important to know this before you start the process of getting rid of reptiles.
Are iguanas protected in Florida?
No, since early 2019, state police have allowed for the humane neutralization of iguanas found in a private home. According to environmentalists, these reptiles threaten the state’s natural biological diversity.
Can iguanas eat tomatoes?
Iguanas can treat themselves with tomatoes if there is no other more delicious food nearby: ripe fruits or shoots of flowers.
Do iguanas carry diseases?
Yes, iguanas can be dangerous carriers of Salmonella bacteria. These bacteria can cause serious illness in humans and even death. Therefore, the humane killing of iguanas in your own backyard is not a crime.
Are iguanas poisonous?
Yes, iguanas are poisonous, but in most cases, they are calm and peaceful. They can attack a person or another animal only in case of a direct threat to their life. Before the bite, they make a frightening look and make warning sounds. An iguana bite is not fatal for a person. Wash the wound after the bite with warm water with disinfectant and see a doctor.
Are iguanas friendly?
Iguanas are friendly if they do not feel threatened. They have sharp teeth with which they tear off fruits and plants. These reptiles can bite a person only if there is a direct threat. But it is unlikely that you can take an iguana in your hands because wild reptiles are afraid of humans.
Conclusion
Do you already know how to catch the iguana? I described effective ways to fight reptiles in the yard. When I faced the problem of the iguanas invasion, I moistened the liquid wooden sticks and laid them on the perimeter of the yard.
I also used a mechanical trap near the pool to prevent the reptiles from entering my family’s rest area and frightening the children. Before that, I had cleaned the yard from garbage to make sure that trash would not attract iguanas to my place.
Use the methods described here and share what helped you. Have you tried to fight iguanas before? What is your result? Feel free to leave a comment below!
References:
- Iguana Information & Control (Key Biscayne):
https://keybiscayne.fl.gov/index.php?submenu=_building&src=gendocs&ref=Iguana_Info%26Control_BZP&category=BZP - Green Iguana (Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Biosecurity Queensland):
https://www.daf.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/61467/IPA-Green-Iguana-Risk-Assessment.pdf - Iguanas in the Landscape (University of Florida):
https://sfyl.ifas.ufl.edu/archive/hot_topics/lawn_and_garden/iguanas_landscape.shtml
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