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W.2

It’s Raining Iguanas!

Here’s a mystery for you: Why were lizards falling from the sky in Florida last winter?  

Illustration of person holding umbrella as sleeping iguanas rain from the sky

Art by Carolyn Ridsdale

    For most people, winter weather means ice storms and falling snow. But in Florida last winter, locals spotted something else dropping from the sky

    They were a lot bigger than a snowflake

    They were bright green.

    They had eyes and claws

    They were . . . iguanas?

Frozen in Time

    It may have looked like it was raining reptiles. But iguanas weren’t actually falling from the clouds. They were, however, tumbling out of trees. Why? This can happen when it gets too cold, says Ron Magill. He’s an animal expert at the Miami zoo

    Last winter, temperatures dropped to as low as 25 degrees Fahrenheit in some parts of South and Central Florida. Normally, the average low temperatures there are in the 50s and 60s. “When you have temperatures going that low, an iguana’s body shuts down,” says Magill. Once the reptile’s muscles stop working, it can’t move. The result is a frozen iguana

    Suddenly, these lizards fall off branches and lie still on the ground. This can shock the animals. In rare cases, it can kill them. But most of the frozen iguanas will be fine. In fact, experts say their bodies will begin to warm back up in just a few hours.

Let Them Be!

via Twitter (Tweet)

Look Out! 
The National Weather Service sent out this alert on Twitter.

    Are you wondering why other reptiles don’t freeze the same way? Chances are, it’s because they’re native toor naturally fromthe area. As a result, their bodies are used to temperature changes

    On the other hand, iguanas haven’t always lived in Florida. They come from Central and South America and the Caribbean. In the 1960s, hundreds of iguanas were brought to the state as pets. Nearly all of them were later set free to live in the wild

    So what should you do if you come across one of these frozen critters? You may want to bring it home to warm it up. But experts warn against this. Doing so could scare iguanas once they’re awake. (How would you feel if you woke up somewhere strange?) To protect themselves, they may try to bite you

    Instead, leave the iguanas as they are

    They’ll surely thank you later

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Weird But True

Higher Level: It's Raining Iguanas!

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Weird But True

Lower Level: It's Raining Iguanas!

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