Wild Lizard living in my garage

[JAG]

Just saw one today and it freaked me out a little. It was a small native lizard. I'm sort of glad it (probably THEY) is in there because they eat bugs in my garage.

I'm NOT going to try to eradicate it (them). Would you? If yes, why? Germ concerns, maybe? Please do not post sick animal cruelty jokes since I don't appreciate them.

 

[moribundman]

Identify the species and find out what their food source is (probably any critter smaller than them). Then decide if you prefer having the lizard around, or if you prefer their food source to thrive unimpeded. A larger lizard will eat mice. Do you see any lizard droppings? Ideally, you'd get rid of the lizards food source and the lizard will move on.

 

[JHZR2]

lizard or salamander? Maybe they are the same.

My wife is from the USVI - small iguanas and baby lizzards come into the house through small cracks - never cause issues. They dont seem to go into stuff the way that cockroaches or ants seem to.

JMH

 

[kballowe]

I hear they taste just like chicken.

 

[dlafoy]

here leezer, leezer.

 

[monte]

Probably a fence lizard of sorts. Dose it have a way to get out? It could be a salamander but you would be able to tell b/c it would move more slowly and have moist smooth skin/no scales. If it is a lizard and seems to have no way to get out, I would shoe it out, less it will not survive w/out sunlight.
Mori, what kind of native U.S. lizard eats mice, just curious?

 

[Barkleymut]

You are 70 miles up the road from me, I know exactly what lizard it is because we have them to. I'm guessing they eat the camel crickets that are always in my garage. The only problem is the lizard poop can get kinda big (like bird poop). FYI if you ever do want to get rid of them the sticky traps work well, you can usually get 2 or 3 per trap as I'm guessing they try to mate with the one thats stuck.

 

[dlafoy]

you are about 1500 miles up the road from me and i can tell u right now that is a horned toad, poke'em with a stick and blood'll shoot out his eye.

 

[widman]

I got used to lizards a long time ago. They eat spiders, mosquitoes, etc. I like them. Much better than chemicals and other stuff.

 

[Shannow]

I'd feel good having lizards in the yard. We've got some small skinks, but no decent lizards.

 

[Steve S]

Lizards are great there are tons around my house ,they eat bugs etc..

 

[ekpolk]

We have all sorts of mini-gators around here. Nothing to be concerned with at all. I routinely see the geckos consuming various bugs, including those disgusting mega-roaches that appear around the house in abundance.

Long live the lizards.

 

[Fester]

Lizards liv well with people, unlike mice. I have two Lizards in the house as I type, love em they it other undesirables.

As a kid I would do all sorts of things to them, mainly use them as bait for catching Tarantulas.

Fishing for Tarantulas.
Tie a string around their neck, and push them down a spider hole with a stick, then after a few minutes, slowly pull the string, the spiders will be lured out of the hole while feasting on the poor lizard, quickly cover the hole up and scoop up the Tarantula, when you have enough spiders then build a rink and have a battle royal.

 

[moribundman]

Originally Posted By: Shannow
I'd feel good having lizards in the yard. We've got some small skinks, but no decent lizards.


You got not parenti sneaking around your yard? What about cockies and budgies?

 

[Shannow]

Nope, no perenti, up to 20 cockies, no budgies, a couple of rosellas.

We've tiger snakes, copper heads, and eastern browns at work...inside the station. They keep the rats down.

 

[JAG]

Originally Posted By: Barkleymut
You are 70 miles up the road from me, I know exactly what lizard it is because we have them to. I'm guessing they eat the camel crickets that are always in my garage. The only problem is the lizard poop can get kinda big (like bird poop). FYI if you ever do want to get rid of them the sticky traps work well, you can usually get 2 or 3 per trap as I'm guessing they try to mate with the one thats stuck.
Yeah I think we may have the same lizard in mind. I have seen the poop that looks like bird poop and thought it must have been from a bird. I now guess it's from the lizards. After reading all the posts, I'll definitely let the lizards alone.

I don't think they are salamanders as one or more people mentioned. It was too big for that, it was scaly and it
is not wet enough in the garage for salamanders. When I watched him today it went to the sunlight and chilled out there. That's lizard behavior rather than salamander behavior, I think. Where I lived a few years ago 20 miles from here, there were the same lizards outside. Their tails will easily fall off if you try to grab them. Some of the lizards had cool colors like blue in them.

Our house and garage is not filthy. But in this part of Virginia, cockroaches are common even in clean places. I have seen dying roaches in the garage and I hate them! I now hope that the lizards will eat them. Crickets are often in my garage too in the fall. Good lizard food I hope.

I think this is the species.

 

[moribundman]

Nice color scheme.

 

[Shannow]

Pretty little thing.

Looks similarly "designed" to serve the same purpose as our skinks (see the small backyard skink on the wiki article)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skink

edit :doh: after I got to the bottom of the wiki page.

 

[Jett Rink]

Does he speak with a British accent and give you a funny justification to insure your cars with GEICO?

If so, he's just doing what comes natural. Tolerate him. He's got a job to do and just trying to earn a living.

 

[pbm]

Anything that gets rid of mosquitos is OK in my book. I wish I had them here. Bats eat mosquitos so they're good to have around.
My wife gets annoyed when I spray myself with OFF but I'd rather the chemicals than the itch that accompanies a mosquito bite.