Dear Residents of Ironwedge/ Glendale Drive,

I hope this message finds you well. Tonight, we sit on the eve of a large election. A tumultuous year is not yet behind us, and the waters of discord brew beyond us. Despite any party affiliation, I think we can all agree- here we have a big one. However, this open letter is not directed towards politics, social discord, civil rights, or anything so incredibly daunting. This message is simple. This message Is asking for a kindness, and it comes from the children.

It has been made clear by our HOA Board, iguana trapping will be taking place in our beloved community. As a northerner, I know very little about this tropical species, having moved to Florida with my family just a year ago. As I understand it, they can be a menace- eating our flowers and dropping their feces etc. What I have also learned in my short time here in southern Florida is this, they are not going anywhere.

While iguanas are not native to our area, they have certainly made themselves right at home, and have no natural predator. With that being said, various tactics to eliminate them as a whole, or deplete the population have been underway for some time now. None of which have had a truly remarkable effect on their numbers. Below is a direct quote from the humane society. I will include the article as a whole here as well.

“Even if the animals were humanely captured and killed, there is no science-backed evidence to show that such an approach will effectively reduce the state’s population of iguanas in the long term”.

What this scientific research tells me, or lack there of- is this. Trapping (which can often be inhumane, and illegal if so) will not rectify the situation.

In a more personal approach to the issue at hand, I would like to speak for the children of this community. Please do not inhumanley trap and kill these animals. While you see them as an inconvenience to be dealt with, they see them as the beautiful and unique creatures that they are. Magicians of the trees, chameleons in the leaves, friends of their small “forest”. How incredible it is to be a child? Often they will have them share their fresh fruit snack, offer hours of warm afternoon entertainment, and allow them to rejoice in the splendor of our wild. To be mystified by these creatures is to know them, and to learn how to handle them- correctly.

I ask you from the bottom of my heart, as a mother, neighbor, and your friend- let us not immediately resort to violence. Our children are watching. Their souls, and hearts filled with empathy need not endure the death of these magnificent creatures in traps surrounding us. With all the pain in this world, must we walk by the pond, waterfall, or tree line, only to see their friends entrapped and suffering? They will look at us, and at you, and they will ask, “why”? I won’t have an answer, and it is clear you will not either. These are formidable moments of their life, and I request your grace. I ask that we think of a different way. These long tailed, green, leather skinned elf’s of the trees matter to them, and so they do for me as well. Let us rise up in this occasion, and be able to answer our children’s questions. Let us know why, and let us have the best answers possible. Right now, we simply do not. I ask that we come together as a whole and find the best solution for all neighbors, iguanas, and opinions alike. For now, stop the trapping. Please.

From your neighbor, friend, fellow mother and newly inogurated animal curuley (not quite) expert,

Iris - 6042 Glendale Drive (Melissa, Frankie & Parker’s mom) 

https://blog.humanesociety.org/2019/07/floridas-inhumane-solution-to-its-iguana-problem-is-doomed-to-failure.html