{"id":2489,"date":"2026-02-24T23:53:33","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T23:53:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/?p=2489"},"modified":"2026-02-24T23:53:33","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T23:53:33","slug":"why-floridians-are-cooking-eating-green-iguanas-this-winter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/?p=2489","title":{"rendered":"Why Floridians Are Cooking &#038; Eating Green Iguanas This Winter"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-journey-body=\"standard-article\">\n<div class=\"css-hl6xtf e1wzc3k51\"><img src=\"https:\/\/www.delish.com\/_assets\/design-tokens\/fre\/static\/icons\/clock-regular.4ddebeb.svg\" alt=\"Estimated read time\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><span class=\"css-p1hv13 e1wzc3k50\">3 min read<\/span><\/div>\n<ul data-node-id=\"0\" class=\"css-kw9lqy emevuu60\">\n<li data-node-id=\"0.0\">Floridians are capturing and cooking green iguanas, an invasive species known to damage infrastructure, landscaping, and vegetation.<\/li>\n<li data-node-id=\"0.1\">During cold snaps in the winter, iguanas become stunned and fall out of trees, making them easy prey.<\/li>\n<li data-node-id=\"0.2\">The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says green iguanas can be captured and humanely killed on private property.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr data-node-id=\"1\" class=\"css-18pb4rg emevuu60\"\/>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"2\" class=\"css-6wxqfj emevuu60\">Carnivores have existed for hundreds of millions of years\u2014yet, some animal meat is less commonly consumed than others. Sure, you\u2019ve likely tried chicken and beef and turkey, but fewer have ventured into delicacies like kangaroo and venison. It might even depend on where you live. Alligator, for example, is much more popular in the southern United States, while pheasant is quite common in Europe. What may seem odd to some is par for the course for others. We\u2019d never yuck someone else\u2019s yum. <\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"3\" class=\"css-6wxqfj emevuu60\">So try not to judge when I tell you that people down in Florida have turned to making tacos and pizzas using green iguana meat. These iguanas are an invasive species in some places, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/culture\/article\/what-to-do-with-puerto-ricos-invasive-iguanas-eat-them\" target=\"_blank\" data-vars-ga-outbound-link=\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/culture\/article\/what-to-do-with-puerto-ricos-invasive-iguanas-eat-them\" data-vars-ga-ux-element=\"Hyperlink\" data-vars-ga-call-to-action=\"like Puerto Rico\" data-vars-ga-product-id=\"33ff4cea-c29f-431d-8604-5ac9426a13d0\" rel=\"nofollow\" data-node-id=\"3.1\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/culture\/article\/what-to-do-with-puerto-ricos-invasive-iguanas-eat-them\" data-product-url=\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/culture\/article\/what-to-do-with-puerto-ricos-invasive-iguanas-eat-them\" data-affiliate=\"false\" data-affiliate-network=\"\" data-vars-ga-product-brand=\"Rico\" data-vars-ga-product-price=\"$0.00\" data-vars-ga-product-retailer-id=\"ef3269ff-cc68-4392-8022-a97623000f19\" data-vars-ga-product-sem3-brand=\"Rico\" data-vars-ga-link-treatment=\"(not set) | (not set)\" class=\"body-link product-links css-8bav6j e1aq0z090\">like Puerto Rico<\/a>, where they have been a delicacy for a long time. However, in areas where the animal is native, like South and Central America, people have been hunting and eating iguana\u2014also dubbed the \u201cchicken of the trees\u201d\u2014for so long that they\u2019ve become endangered.  <\/p>\n<section data-embed=\"instagram\" data-lazy-id=\"P0-17\" data-node-id=\"4\" class=\"embed\"\/>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"5\" class=\"css-6wxqfj emevuu60\">That\u2019s not the case in Florida, however. The pesky reptile damages infrastructure, landscaping, and vegetation, and is a threat to native wildlife. But Floridians don\u2019t always have to work hard to catch them. Sometimes, the iguanas literally fall out of trees. When temperatures drop, they become cold-stunned, lose muscle control, and appear dead. So each winter, it\u2019s not unusual to see iguanas tumbling from branches\u2014an opportunity some locals take advantage of by cooking them up.<\/p>\n<section data-embed=\"watch-next\" data-lazy-id=\"P0-18\" data-node-id=\"6\" class=\"embed\"\/>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"7\" class=\"css-6wxqfj emevuu60\">And that\u2019s actually not a bad thing. According to the <a href=\"https:\/\/myfwc.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-vars-ga-outbound-link=\"https:\/\/myfwc.com\/\" data-vars-ga-ux-element=\"Hyperlink\" data-vars-ga-call-to-action=\"Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission\" data-node-id=\"7.1\" class=\"body-link css-8bav6j emevuu60\">Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission<\/a>, green iguanas can be captured and humanely killed on private property with the landowner\u2019s permission at any time. As long as the iguanas are killed in a humane manner, the general public is free to hunt. Since iguanas become stunned in winter, it\u2019s a popular time to take advantage of their temporary slumber. This time of year, people are getting creative with the chicken of the trees.<br data-node-id=\"7.3\"\/><\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"8\" class=\"css-6wxqfj emevuu60\">Bucks Coal Fired Pizza, a North Palm Beach restaurant, is making \u201cEverglades Pizzas\u201d topped with venison, bacon, and iguana. Influencer Gray Davis showcased his homemade iguana tacos in an Instagram post. <\/p>\n<section data-embed=\"instagram\" data-lazy-id=\"P0-19\" data-node-id=\"9\" class=\"embed\"\/>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"10\" class=\"css-6wxqfj emevuu60\">People\u2019s emotions run the gamut\u2014some are flabbergasted or even downright disgusted, while others are more intrigued and supportive.<\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"11\" class=\"css-6wxqfj emevuu60\">\u201cAs someone who had a pet iguana I\u2019m in disbelief \ud83d\ude2d\ud83d\ude2d,\u201d commented one Instagram user. \u201cThis man will survive the apocalypse,\u201d another wrote of Davis. <\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"12\" class=\"css-6wxqfj emevuu60\">\u201cWe eat Iguana in Trinidad and Tobago and it\u2019s delicious,\u201d one person commented. \u201cThat\u2019s the most Florida s**t I\u2019ve ever seen,\u201d another wrote.<\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"13\" class=\"css-6wxqfj emevuu60\">\u201cI don\u2019t know how i feel about this but i decided that there\u2019s no reason why i should be against eating lizards but not chicken or cows or something,\u201d one person reasoned.<\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"14\" class=\"css-6wxqfj emevuu60\">Similarly, another person commented, \u201cI mean \u2026. People eat Gator meat and Rattlesnakes, why not Iguana lol\u2026. I know a lot of cultures eat iguanas\u2026 that\u2019s a no thank you for me lmao but that pizza still looks delicious!!\u201d<\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"15\" class=\"css-6wxqfj emevuu60\">Still, cooking iguanas at home should be done with caution. \u201cThe FWC reminds the public not to bring live iguanas inside your homes or vehicles without a permit, as they can recover quickly and act defensively, using their sharp teeth and claws and their long tails that whip,\u201d says a spokesperson from the FWC. Green iguanas are also a prohibited species, so it is illegal to have live iguanas in your home without a permit, and releasing or relocating them is illegal. The FWC also maintains that \u201cCaution would be advised if lead shot is present in the meat.\u201d <\/p>\n<p data-journey-content=\"true\" data-node-id=\"16\" class=\"css-6wxqfj emevuu60\">All that said, would you eat iguana??<br data-node-id=\"16.1\"\/><\/p>\n<section data-embed=\"editorial-link\" data-lazy-id=\"P0-20\" data-node-id=\"17\" class=\"embed\">\n<aside class=\"css-fcvumo e94w1mj1\"\/><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>3 min read Floridians are capturing and cooking green iguanas, an invasive species known to damage infrastructure, landscaping, and vegetation. During cold snaps in the winter, iguanas become stunned and fall out of trees, making them easy prey. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says green iguanas can be [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2490,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2489","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2489","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2489"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2489\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2490"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cupcake.website\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}