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When a state sees headlines like 'Reptiles: A Holiday Gift You Should Avoid,' it's clear there's an issue. Florida holds the notorious title of the leading state in the US for invasive species. In the last decade, over 260 exotic creatures (at least those we know about) have escaped their enclosures and ventured into the wilds of Florida. We're talking not just about lions, tigers, and bears (oh my), but also rhinos, jaguars, wolves, orangutans, and nearly every other exotic animal imaginable. While many of these escapees are still on the loose, this list focuses on the species that, once released into the wild, have managed to survive and thrive. As Jeff Goldblum wisely stated in Jurassic Park, life will always find a way.
Many of us fantasize about owning an exotic pet, just like Frida Kahlo with her monkeys or Tippi Hedren’s pet lion. But in Florida, you don't need special permits or certificates to keep a wide range of exotic animals. According to researchers at the University of Florida, the pet trade plays a key role in the introduction of invasive species. Exotic pets often start out as harmless companions but are either released or escape into Florida's wilds, where they can cause serious ecological damage. Kenneth Krysko, manager of the Florida Museum of Natural History, compares it to a mad scientist mixing species from around the globe, asking, 'Let's see what happens when we put them all together.' He warns that if trends continue, Florida could end up with more invasive species than native ones. A wildlife ecology professor at the University of Florida describes this situation as 'a slow-burning fuse lit to an ecological bomb.' Meanwhile, the US exotic pet industry generates $15 billion annually, and people continue to purchase these captivating yet highly dangerous creatures.
10. Burmese Python
The largest Burmese python found in Florida's wilderness measured an impressive 5.4 meters (18 ft) in length and weighed 58 kilograms (128 lb). The man who discovered it, an ordinary Floridian, grabbed the snake by the neck and proudly displayed it to his friends. However, the python quickly coiled its muscular body twice around the man’s legs, reaching up to his waist. Thinking quickly, his friend handed him a 23-centimeter (9 in) blade, which the soon-to-be victim used to sever the python's head.
Currently, it's illegal to buy a Burmese python in Florida, and rightly so. These once-small snakes, which could grow to 1.8 meters (6 ft) in just one year, were commonly purchased by people. But the responsibility soon became too much to handle, so the owners would release their pet snakes into the Everglades. This happened often enough that the pythons started breeding and thriving in the area's wet, subtropical climate. In no time, these snakes, capable of laying up to 100 eggs at a time, became the dominant predator in the region.
There was a brief hope that native alligators might help control the exploding population of Burmese pythons, but instead, the gators themselves became prey. In a notorious incident in 2005, a python attempted to swallow a 1.8-meter (6 ft) alligator whole, but the snake exploded in the process. These kinds of encounters are becoming increasingly frequent. With the pythons wiping out marsh rabbits, bobcats, and other small mammals, the Everglades now rely on hunters to reduce their numbers. These hunters are paid minimum wage, plus $50 for each 1.2-meter (4 ft) python and $25 for every additional foot. Over the course of a year, hunters managed to capture 1,000 pythons.
9. Rhesus Macaque
Few know that if you float down the Silver River in Ocala, Florida, on an inner tube, you might just spot wild monkeys swinging through the trees. In the 1930s, the owner of a private park decided to release a colony of rhesus macaques as a tourist attraction. To keep them safe, the park staff placed the monkeys on an island in the Silver River. But, surprise! These monkeys could swim. Now, there are hundreds of them, spreading rapidly across Central Florida.
These wild troublemakers roam in large groups and can become aggressive when they feel threatened. They've been causing chaos in people's backyards, but that's not even the worst part. It was recently discovered that these macaques carry a herpes virus that can be transmitted to humans through their feces and other bodily fluids. Having feces thrown at you by a primate is disturbing enough, but the added fear of contracting herpes is a whole new level of unpleasant.
On a lighter note, here's a hilarious video of the rhesus macaques chasing down a frightened family. Enjoy the chaos!
8. Green Iguana
Iguanas are the most invasive species in Florida. This green menace causes mayhem in suburban areas, from leaving surprises in swimming pools and devouring gardens to messing with electrical grids and triggering power outages. People often abandon them as pets because they grow up to 1.8 meters (6 ft) long and demand a lot of food. During mating season, they get more aggressive, sometimes biting their owners. To top it off, they might even try to make an escape through the doggie door.
Unfortunately, Floridians have resorted to using blunt-force trauma to handle this pest problem they helped create. Essentially, people are paid to sneak up on the iguanas while they sleep and their skulls in. Jenny Ketterlin, a wildlife biologist involved in this $63,000 project funded by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, reassures the public that swiftly smashing their skulls is actually the most humane method. Well, it’s good practice for the zombie apocalypse, I suppose.
7. Nile Monitor: The Largest Lizard in Africa
The Nile monitor, another escapee from the pet trade, has made Florida its home. These lizards, instead of lounging under the sun along the Nile Delta, have found their way into the Cape Coral canal system since the 1990s. These proficient swimmers can grow up to a staggering 2.1 meters (7 feet) in length. They consume just about anything they can get their jaws around, whether it’s a wasp nest, a poisonous cane toad, or a venomous rattlesnake. Like wolves, they hunt in packs. Occasionally, they emerge from the canals and surprise unsuspecting homeowners in their backyards. Just hope they’re not hungry, as they’ve been known to feast on cats and dogs.
Eradicating them is a difficult task because no one has ever found a single monitor lizard nest. It’s believed that at least 1,000 of these giant creatures are currently roaming Florida’s canals, tidal creeks, and mangroves. These massive lizards may even be spotted above ground, as they are expert tree climbers—so stay alert.
6. Capybara
Have you ever thought about keeping the world’s largest rodent as a pet? A capybara, essentially a 45-kilogram (100 lb) guinea pig that’s semi-aquatic, doesn’t quite live up to the cuteness expectations some pet owners had in mind. In 2016, there were around 50 capybaras running wild in Florida. In their native South America, they have natural predators like pumas and jaguars, but in Florida, no coyotes or dogs are big enough to challenge them.
It certainly doesn’t make things easier that these creatures are social, moving in packs through dense forests. As if Florida hunters didn’t have enough wildlife to manage, now they must deal with a giant guinea pig.
5. ‘Testicle-Eating’ Pacu Fish
The South American pacu fish possesses a rather unsettling bite, thanks to its human-like teeth. A relative of the notorious flesh-eating piranha, the pacu’s teeth are blunt, much like human molars. Additionally, it grows significantly larger, typically reaching 22.7 kilograms (50 lbs) in South-Central Florida.
While the pacu isn’t generally considered a direct threat to men’s genitalia, it earned the nickname “testicle-eating” fish for a reason. Fish expert Henrik Carl from the National History Museum of Denmark explains, “There have been incidents in places like Papua New Guinea, where men have had their testicles bitten off. They bite because they’re hungry, and testicles fit perfectly in their mouth.” It’s easy to see why some owners might have released these strange creatures—suddenly, the sight of a fish with a human-like smile isn’t so charming.
4. Giant African Land Snails
The giant African land snail isn’t your average, puny snail. This is the world’s largest terrestrial mollusk, measuring 20 centimeters (8 inches) in length and 10 centimeters (4 inches) in diameter. Aside from its massive size, this little creature harbors a parasitic worm that burrows into humans and can spread meningitis. It feeds on at least 500 types of plants and causes severe damage to plaster and stucco buildings. An adult can lay up to 1,200 eggs annually, and with no natural predators in Florida, it’s likely to keep spreading.
It’s still unclear how giant African land snails ended up in South Florida. Importing them into the United States without a permit is illegal, and no permits have been granted. The prevailing theory points to the pet trade being the culprit behind the giant snail invasion. The last documented incident dates back to 1966 when a young boy smuggled three snails into the country as pets. When his grandmother found out, she insisted that he release them in the garden. The result? A costly $1 million effort to eradicate the 18,000 snails that were spawned from this mistake.
Another theory suggests that the current giant African land snail infestation in South Florida might be linked to religious practices. Santeria, an Afro-Caribbean religion that has its roots in the Cuban slave trade, places importance on snail juice in some of its rituals. It’s believed that the snails were smuggled into the country for use in these ceremonies.
3. ‘Man-Eater’ Nile Crocodile
The Nile crocodile can grow up to 6 meters (20 feet) in length and weigh as much as a small car. These reptiles consume just about anything they can catch, including the rare human (hence the term 'man-eater'). Native to sub-Saharan Africa, they were brought to South Florida, likely through the pet trade, though it’s hard to believe someone thought a crocodile would make a good pet without a permit.
Nile crocodiles are far more dangerous than Florida’s native alligators. In a six-year span, both American alligators and crocodiles were responsible for 33 human deaths, but the Nile crocodile alone accounted for 268 fatalities. These beasts have been surviving and breeding in the Florida swamps for at least six years, adding yet another predator to the state’s waters.
2. African Clawed Frog
Before the invention of modern pregnancy tests, doctors would use African clawed frogs to confirm a pregnancy. The frog was injected with the woman’s urine, and if the frog laid eggs, the woman was confirmed pregnant. This practice was used until the 1970s when home pregnancy kits became available.
The demand for African clawed frogs was immense during this time, with thousands being shipped from South Africa to laboratories and hospitals worldwide. To meet the demand, these frogs were bred in captivity, and by the 1950s and 1960s, they became common pets. As unwanted pets, escapees, and frogs released from labs, their numbers grew rapidly. These frogs, with their distinctive clawed toes, can live for up to 15 years in the wild, and females produce up to 27,000 eggs per breeding cycle. Their increasing numbers have become quite concerning.
1. Wild Boars
Wild boars have been roaming freely throughout Florida since the 1500s, when Hernando de Soto introduced them as a food source rather than a companion animal. Over 500 years later, these wild pigs are far from domesticated. While four million wild boars now roam the United States, Florida alone is home to half a million of these feral creatures.
These aggressive, tusked Old World pigs weigh around 91 kilograms (200 pounds) and are carriers of up to 24 diseases, including tuberculosis and cholera. They cause havoc by raiding farmers’ feed stores and even preying on livestock. As if that wasn’t enough, they wreak havoc on native plants and compete with indigenous species, disrupting the balance of local ecosystems.
With their population continuing to grow, Florida hunters have enlisted bloodhounds to track these boars at night. There are no restrictions on hunting season, bag limits, or gender, making wild boar hunting an unrestricted practice. After white-tailed deer, the wild boar is the second most popular animal hunted in Florida. Some entrepreneurs are even turning this problem into profit by serving boar meat as a delicacy, branding it as prime pork. Bacon, anyone?
