October 21, 2015

"Well, I tell you, I'm the biggest defender of lizard life in all of south Florida... I love those little lizards."

"They're anoles, actually.  I love 'em.  They're our buddies. They eat insects and all that, and whenever I see Allie with one I dart in there and I grab the little thing and I take it outside.  The cat gets mad at me, but I'm sorry, that's the way it is.  I still run the house."

Things you might not have noticed Rush Limbaugh would say. From a monologue yesterday called "Trump’s 9/11 Play Beats the Political Insiders at Their Own Game -- Brilliantly."

26 comments:

Michael K said...

I feel the same way about bats and no one cares about the millions of bats being destroyed by wind turbines.

Bob Ellison said...

I have a pet named Allie, but she's a dog, and she doesn't catch lizards.

That's probably not relevant to your post. Let's see: does Rush defend Charlie Crist? That guy's a lizard.

Michael K, we're doing our part by keeping a high attic in the barn open to bats. Not really trying there, but still. Lots of bats to be seen, and they're beautiful in twilight.

halojones-fan said...

Well there it is, Rush Limbaugh is confirmed as one of David Icke's Lizard People.

Chris N said...

Lizards seem as ubiquitous as squirrels in Florida.

cubanbob said...

These little guys are fine, they do eat bugs. It's their big cousins the Iguanas that are a are pain. Iguanas are nasty, they crap around the backyard and eat bougainvillea and other bushes and flowers and will attack small dogs and cats and are full of bad bacteria. They burrow and cause structural damage. I have an annual defense budget in keeping them down and out. Such is life in paradise.

rhhardin said...

Florida has tailless lizards, where there are cats.

Todd said...

Yep, we try to save as many of the little things as we can. They eat a TON of bugs and anyone living in Florida should be in full support of that.

I have noticed a lot more of the green ones these last few years. Nice to see the native lizards surging...

rhhardin said...

The Time to Tickle a Lizard,
Is Before, or Right After, a Blizzard.
Now the place to begin
Is just under his Chin,
—And here’s more Advice:
Don’t Poke more than Twice
At an Intimate Place like his Gizzard.

- Roethke

tim in vermont said...

He also get fresh flowers delivered every day.

tim in vermont said...

I never cared about the lizards one way or another, but I will save them when in distress. Stuck in the pool or whatever.

Clyde said...

Any critter that eats mosquitos is alright in my book. Although all of the anoles we have around here aren't anywhere near that colorful.

tim in vermont said...

The really colorful ones are recent. I think escaped pets. Twenty years ago, you only saw the little brown ones.

Todd said...

tim in vermont said...
The really colorful ones are recent. I think escaped pets. Twenty years ago, you only saw the little brown ones.

10/21/15, 10:49 AM


I was always told that the green ones are locals and the browns came over from Cuba (THAT is NOT racist).

CWJ said...

I like them too, but I'm surprised by the specific color comments since I believe they can change color. Aren't these the same as the pet and dime store "chameleons" I bought as a kid?

tim in vermont said...

@CWJ, No, there are all kinds, including huge iguanas. The iguanas have a tendency to fall from the trees on cold mornings. So Flo is about the northern limit of their range.

Michael K said...

Anyone who appreciates bats can get bat houses and hang them on walls like bird houses except bat houses have no floor and no doors. The bats fly in the bottom and hang upside down during the day. I had several them in Arizona. I don't see bats in California for some reason.

Freeman Hunt said...

"They eat insects and all that"

That's why I like wolf spiders. My favorite thing about them is that they eat brown recluses.

Tyrone Slothrop said...

Who you callin an anole?

Lauderdale Vet said...

As a gardener in South Florida, I also raise butterflies. They pollinate nearly as well as bees. Did you know that our Monarchs don't participate in the "Great Monarch Migration"?

I have a small butterfly nursery just to keep the caterpillars safe from birds and lizards.

CWJ said...

Ok, now I see that the "green" and "brown" anoles are separate species and the "green" ones are the dime store pets of my youth. But both can change color and I swear that my green pets turned brown as well if they wanted to.

Tim, I don't understand your reply. Where do huge iguanas fit into my question?

traditionalguy said...

This explains why TCU gets no respect, and the Big Twelve Conference is suddenly invisible, so that Ohio State can be worshipped at the playoff selection time.

Horned Frogs are actually small desert lizards.

Wilbur said...

We occasionally get one in the house. You'll look up and see one high up on the wall, and wonder how he got in.

But never fear, he'll find his way out soon enough.

Todd said...

Wilbur said...
We occasionally get one in the house. You'll look up and see one high up on the wall, and wonder how he got in.

But never fear, he'll find his way out soon enough.

10/21/15, 12:30 PM


or it will be a dry, little crunchy behind the couch, to be discovered at a future date...

Unknown said...

We have one under the stove right now.

Unknown said...

Pretty sure thats a Cuban anole, not the FL kind. Maybe they do have them in S Florida though, I dont know. Most of the state has the kinds that vary from brown to green, with reddish coloration of the pouch on ventral neck.

mikee said...

Since our last cat passed away, our lizard population here in central Texas has soared. And our bunny rabbit population. And our toad population. And our nesting songbird population. Voles and field mice no longer turn up dead on our front door mat.

That bastard cat was killing everything, more than we knew the area supported.

Cats are killing machines. Keep them indoors.