Temperatures are expected to drop even further in South Florida on Saturday – so low, in fact, that the National Weather Service is warning that iguanas can fall of the trees. Iguanas, which are cold-blooded, cannot handle cold weather and when the temperatures drop below 50, they become sluggish and appear to be dead.
The The National Weather Service in Miami tweeted on Friday that “some of our Iguana friends can sleep in the morning, whether they planned to or not.” It was followed with “don’t be surprised if you see them falling from trees when lows fall in the 1930’s and 1940’s.”
Christmas night will be the coldest night of the season in South Florida with temperatures in the 1940s and some 30s, according to CBS Miami.
Zoo Miami Communications Director Ron Magill told CBS Miami that the danger to iguanas depends on the size of the iguana. He said the bigger the iguana, the more cold it can tolerate for a longer period of time.
He said many iguanas in South Florida have adapted to dig deep burrows so they are insulated from the cold. Iguanas also tend to live close to large bodies of water, which can be warmer than air temperatures, so it can help them survive short cold snaps.
According to National Geographic, adult iguanas have an average size of 2 feet and weigh 11 pounds. According to National Geographic, they are also strong enough to land on solid ground from a height of 12 meters and survive.