EDMONTON JOURNAL (Alberta) 07 September 03 Mystery of the wandering iguana - Possible hitchhiker from Thailand, lizard ready to fight (Jodie Sinnema)
Edmonton: It was like a scene out the 1960s B-rated movie Night of the Iguana.
Mike Gee was unloading a container from Thailand at a southside company Saturday afternoon when a puffed-up green iguana squared off with him, strutting its stuff and preparing to defend itself.
"All of a sudden, it was sitting on the tarmac," said Gee, who works at CCTF, an oilfield distribution company at 5407 53rd Ave. "It was awesome. It was beautiful. It was all puffed up. The skin under its mouth was all flared out because it was scared. It was really amazing."
The green lizard was about 1.35 metres long, with orange-brown eyes and jaws of steel.
It probably hitched a ride to Canada after slipping into the shipment in southeast Asia. The other possibility is that it is a pet who got free and wandered away from home, although its aggressive nature Saturday indicates it hasn't been around humans much. If the iguana did come out of the shipment, it likely spent between 19 and 24 days in the container without food and water.
"They are quite a resilient animal," said Heather Peters, special constable with the city's animal department who arrived at the scene shortly after 2 p.m. to find the iguana hiding among some steel piping, snapping its head back and swinging its tail at anyone who got too close.
Peters managed to snare the iguana with help from company employees and members of the fire department, throwing a blanket over it to calm it down after a 45-minute chase.
"He was not very happy with us," she said, noting that older iguanas tend to become more aggressive. The iguana took the blanket between his teeth and didn't let go.
Peters said the iguana has to be held at the city pound for four days, just in case it belongs to someone who needs time to claim it. The bylaw officer said she rescues local iguanas several times a year, though turtles and snakes are the more common escapees.
The Reptile Rescue Association will be contacted to make sure that wherever the iguana ends up, it will be well taken care of.
Gee and his fellow employees at CCTF hope to adopt the green reptile and make it the company mascot. "He would be a very cool showpiece for our warehouse," Gee said.
CALGARY HERALD (Alberta) 08 September 03 Lizard startles warehouse worker
Edmonton: Oilfield worker Mike Gee thought he was witnessing a scene out of the 1960s B-movie Night of the Iguana when a giant lizard crawled out of a container he was unloading.
"It was awesome," said Gee, who works at CCTF, an oil field distribution company in Edmonton. "It was beautiful. It was all puffed up. The skin under its mouth was all flared out because it was scared."
The 1.35-metre green lizard either hitched a ride to Canada from southeast Asia or wandered away from a pet owner.
But it was in a surly mood Saturday when it squared off against Gee.
With the help of company employees and city firefighters, an animal control officer snared the reptile. It was taken to the city pound, but if it isn't claimed, it will be turned over to the Reptile Rescue Association to find it a good home.
Gee hopes to adopt it as the company mascot. "He would be a very cool show piece for our warehouse," he said.
Mystery of the wandering iguana
