Iguana Control: How to Get Rid of Iguanas (2024)

This article contains information and suggestions to help decrease the presence of iguanas on your property. By following these methods and using the recommended products, you can get control of your iguana problem. While following this DIY guide, Local and State Laws are still present and must be followed. It is recommended that the homeowner visit their local animal control office or state website to visit the proper rules and regulations associated with the control of iguanas.

One of the most invasive species in Florida to be encountered is the iguana. Despite its ability to adapt to this region's warm climate, the iguana is not a natural resident of the Sunshine State. Instead, it is a native of Central and South America and has arrived in Florida by shipment of goods overseas since the 1960s. Iguanas are thriving throughout Florida because of the subtropical climate and increased human population, which provides this pest with shelter and an abundance of food.

This reptilian that is seemingly everywhere becomes a problem when they show up unannounced in homes combined with their ability to eat and dig up landscapes. While they are not known to be aggressive, these pests can come into contact with people by swimming in homeowners' pools or sunbathing on concrete surfaces. Iguanas also pose the threat of transferring salmonella since these in-your-face pests can bite if they feel threatened or territorial.

From rapidly increasing populations to leaving paths of destruction in ornamental landscapes, iguanas are non-ideal pests that should be taken seriously. Refer to our easy-to-use DIY guide, which can help to quickly control iguanas infesting your home yard with the recommended products and tips.

Identification

Before you can proceed with iguana control, you must ensure the pest infesting your yard is an iguana. Careless identification can lead you to use the wrong control methods and products, wasting time and money. Three species of iguanas considered the most invasive in Florida are the black-tailed iguana, the Mexican spiny-tailed iguana, and the green iguana. Listed below are some identifying features that each iguana species shares.

• As a hatchling, iguanas range from 2 to 4 inches long and weigh between 0.2 to 0.3 lbs. Compared to the black-tailed iguana and Mexican-tailed iguana, the green iguana is the largest species, with measurements ranging around 6 feet long from head to tail and weighing 6 to 12 pounds. When fully grown, the black-tailed iguana can grow from 10 inches to 4 feet, whereas Mexican-spiny-tailed iguanas range from 1.4 meters to 4 feet.
• A crest of spines forms along the spine, back, and tail, and a large dewlap under the chin. Male iguanas have more of a developed dewlap than females to aid in displays of dominance.
• Colors will range from brown, black, gray, or dark green, with leathery scales covering their entire body. An iguana's colors also depend on the weather, mood, health, or body temperature. In the morning, iguanas' coloring will appear darker to help absorb heat from the sunlight. In contrast, their colors will become lighter towards midday to deflect sunlight and avoid absorbing too much heat. Coloration is also subject to dominance or mating periods for male iguanas when they will become darker in coloration or appear to have a gold and or orange hue. Juvenile iguanas are bright green.
• Iguanas have short legs with long toes connected to sharp claws to aid digging and climbing. This reptile will also have long tails for balance when in high tree canopies or to aid in defense by whipping it against people or other animals.

Use the image and description above to confirm that you are dealing with a species of iguana on your property. If unsure, contact us with a photo of your pest through email, phone, or in person at one of our store locations.

Inspection

Once you have confirmed you are dealing with an iguana, you can proceed with inspection. During the inspection, you will focus on finding areas where iguanas are most active to determine where to apply your products and avoid waste of material and time. Carry your inspection during the day, as this will be when iguanas are most active.

Where to Inspect

As cold-blooded pests, iguanas are commonly found outdoors to regulate their heat since they cannot do this on their own. These reptiles can be spotted sunbathing on docks, decks, porches, roofs, and tree branches. Though mostly found in elevated heights like tree canopies, they can be seen on the ground near landscaped areas, pools, dense shrubs, and rock piles. No matter their location, these areas are commonly found near water sources, as iguanas are excellent swimmers who use water to escape their predators.

What to Look For

Iguanas are herbivores that feed on fruits, leaves, shoots, and flowers. Occasionally, they can also eat bird eggs, insects, and snails. To reach these food sources, the iguana causes cosmetic damage to the limbs and tree trunks as they climb up and down. From February to March, these animals can also damage ornamental landscapes by digging burrows for their eggs.

Besides missing or jagged foliage, iguanas secrete brown or black colored pellets that resemble rabbit droppings while young and as a twisted cylinder shape when older. Iguanas may leave droppings on tree branches or along tree trunks, against exterior foundation walls, around or in pools, or across concrete surfaces like sidewalks or driveways.

Treatment

Once you have confirmed iguana activity, it is time to begin treatment. Before beginning any pesticide or pest control treatment, you must wear the proper personal protective equipment like gloves or closed-toe shoes.

For nuisance iguanas, we recommend controlling their food sources using Ficam Insect Bait to eliminate snails, then Supreme IT for all other insects, and finally, Iguana Scram Professional.

Step 1: Broadcast Ficam Insect Bait

Ficam Insect Bait is a moisture-resistant insecticide bait granule with 5% Orthoboric acid. This ready-to-use product can be used for exterior baiting to control and kill snails in commercial nurseries, flower gardens, and around ornamentals, groundcovers, and shrubs. Once snails and other labeled pests ingest this granule material, they will perish within several days of consumption.

Apply Ficam Insect Bait with a glove-covered hand, from the container, or with a handheld spreader. Broadcast 6 oz. of Ficam Insect Bait per 100 sq. ft. in areas likely infested with snails and labeled pests. For maximum product performance, it would be best to apply this product early in the morning or evening when snails are most likely present. Reapply this product after 4 weeks if snails are still present.

Keep children and pets out of the treatment area until the application has been completed, and avoid over-application around ornamental plants. Do not apply this product with fertilizers, pesticides, or biologically active materials.

Step 2: Outdoor Treat with Supreme IT

Once snails have been fully controlled, you can proceed with applying Supreme IT. Supreme IT is a 7.9% bifenthrin insecticide concentrate that will treat over 70 types of insects on contact and up to 90 days after application. This suspended concentrate product must be mixed with water in a hose-end sprayer, backpack sprayer, or handheld pump sprayer.

We recommend using a hose-end sprayer for your application to treat elevated tree surfaces and large areas effectively.

Determine how much Supreme IT you will need by calculating the square footage of the treatment area. To do this, measure the treatment areas' length and width in feet, then multiply them together (length X width = square footage).

Supreme IT can be used from 0.125 to 1.0 fl. oz. of product per gallon of water per 1,000 sq. ft. or 5.4 to 43.5 fl. oz. of product per 100 gallons of water for ornamental applications.

Ensure the sprayer control valve and water pump are turned off, and then attach the hose-end sprayer nozzle to the hose. Remove the reservoir and then add the measured amount of Supreme IT and the required water. Reattach the reservoir to the nozzle and turn the water onto the hose.

Before treating the entire ornamental plant, test a small portion of the plant and watch for signs of sensitivity for at least 7 days. Some plant species may be sensitive to the final spray solution. If no effects are seen, treat it as a full-coverage foliar spray using the stated application rates. Repeat treatments can be made if insect activity continues, but only once per 7 days.

Step 3:Barrier Treatment with Iguana Scram Professional

Once all food sources have been removed around your ornamentals and trees, you can fully utilize a repellent like Iguana Scram Professional. Iguana Scram Professional is a dual-action repellent that repels the iguana's sense of smell and taste through natural active ingredients formulated with various oils and other ingredients like peanut hulls 89.954% and sodium chloride 2.000%.

Apply Iguana Scram Professional inside and around landscaped areas, trees, and shrubs directly from the product container or with the included scoop. Make sure to wear gloves when handling and applying this product.

Iguana Scram must be applied as an 18-inch barrier outside the landscaped area. For trees and shrubs, you will sprinkle the product around tree and shrub bases as a 24-inch barrier starting from the drip line. If applied with the scoop, it should be noted that one scoop covers 10 feet.

Once iguana infestation has been controlled, this product may be reapplied as needed or when there is excessive rainfall. For excessive iguana infestation in the area, apply a second band 15 inches from the first strip around the bed and lightly sprinkle the product throughout the inside.

Prevention

You do not want these invasive animals to return once you have removed the iguanas on your property. Here are some preventative measures we suggest following to keep iguanas and ornamentals away from your yard.

• Iguanas eat many types of plants, fruits, and leaves. Prevent iguanas from being attracted to your home's yard by picking up any fallen fruit or other plant materials by raking.
• Cover up ornamental plants with screens, mesh, or cage enclosures to deter iguanas from eating the plant material.
• Trim overhanging tree branches, shrub or flower limbs, or over-lapping branches to remove hiding places and methods of travel for iguanas. Move rock piles indoors to deter iguanas from hiding or sunbathing within them.
• Remove vegetation constantly visited by iguanas or replace it with another type of foliage.
• Fertilize ornamental landscape areas to replenish plant and soil materials and to find any potential eggs laid by iguanas.
• Mow your turf when it reaches a height of 3 inches to deter insects and snails from infesting your yard and potentially remove any fallen plant debris. Removing these food sources will make iguanas less likely to visit your property.
• Set humane traps from February to March to capture female iguanas laying eggs in dense vegetation areas with loose soil. Spray Supreme IT every quarter to control insects and reapply Iguana Scram Professional at the beginning of each season or as needed to lessen iguana activities.

Key Takeaways

What are Iguanas?

• Iguanas are large tree-climbing lizards that mainly infest tree canopies to consume flowers, leaves, and fruits. However, they often travel on the ground to burrow into loose soils to lay their eggs or feed rarely on insects or snails.

How to Get Rid of Iguanas

• To remove iguanas from your home's property and ornamental landscape, we recommend eliminating their food sources with Ficam Insect Bait and then using Supreme IT. Once all food sources are removed, move on to a barrier treatment with Iguana Scram Professional.

Preventing Iguanas Reinfestation

• It would be best to regularly prune overhanging or overlapping foliage branches as mainly plant eaters. Maintain regular lawn care practices by mowing and raking fallen plant debris from branches, leaves, and fruits to remove food attractants. Apply Ficam Insect Bait at the beginning of each spring season, then Supreme IT and Iguana Scram Professional as needed until iguana activity has ceased.