Home Police and Fire Breaking News Police: 4-foot-long iguana found in Greenport Sunday

Police: 4-foot-long iguana found in Greenport Sunday

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A  4-foot-long iguana was discovered in a wooded area on Sound Drive in Greenport yesterday.

Southold Town Police said Stephen Husak of Cutchogue called police to report the discovery . The responding officer found the reptile had climbed partly up a tree.

Police Officer Frank Rogers secured the reptile and called the North Fork Animal Welfare League, according to a police press release issued this afternoon. NFAWL personnel put the iguana in a crate and took it to the shelter for safekeeping until an owner could be identified, police said.

Iguanas are legal to possess in New York, Suffolk County SPCA Chief Roy Gross said. Indigenous to tropical regions of Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, they can’t survive prolonged exposure to cold temperatures, Gross said.

While it is legal to possess an iguana, it’s not legal to abandon it, Gross said. “It’s illegal to abandon any animal — even animals that are illegal to possess. It’s  misdemeanor,” Gross said.

Anyone with information about the iguana can call the town animal shelter at 631-765-1811 or police at 631-765-2600.

 

Editor’s note: This story has been revised since its original publication to correct a misstatement due about abandoning an animal in N.Y.

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Denise Civiletti
Denise is a veteran local reporter and editor, an attorney and former Riverhead Town councilwoman. Her work has been recognized with numerous awards, including a “writer of the year” award from the N.Y. Press Association in 2015. She is a founder, owner and co-publisher of this website.