Photo by Karine Aigner kaigner / Florida is home to more non-native species of reptiles and amphibians than anywhere else in the world. The Argentine black and white tegu (Salvator merianae) is another invasive escapee from the pet trade. This fantastic lizard has established breeding populations in Hillsborough County (central Florida) and Miami-Dade County (southern Florida), and all the way up to Georgia. The species is an omnivore, consuming a variety of plants and small animals, but is especially known for eating the buried eggs of native reptiles. Tegus can grow up to four feet long, survive below-freezing temperatures by burrowing into the ground, and lay an average of 35 eggs a year—they are a potential ecological hazard. University of Florida biologists are working toward the removal and management of the species in the Everglades ecosystem. An extensive trap line is baited with eggs and checked daily. Some of the trapped animals get re-released with radio telemetry transmi...