Maybe it's an unexpected guest in your home or maybe you just want to have a new "friend" for the day… or maybe you just want to see if there are any lizards in your garden. Whatever the reason, there are quick ways to catch one of these reptiles without having to touch it directly.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Catch the Lizard in the House
Step 1. Find the room it is in
If the little reptile has entered your home, knowing the room you saw it in often helps in catching it. Since these are creatures of habit, you may be lucky enough to see the lizard always in the same part of the room.
Inspect the room for crevices or openings that could be access and exit routes. To be able to catch it, you need to seal the room while the reptile is inside
Step 2. Restrict or block all escape routes
Get a bucket (or box) and a stick at least 90cm long. Make sure it's not pointed.
- Use numerous buckets or containers. Arrange one or more blankets to block the exits between the buckets to increase the chances of success.
- Place the bucket in the area you want to take the animal to. The best thing to do is to place it at the escape route the lizard used earlier.
- Draw or paint a slit in the bottom of the bowl. Since these creatures love to hide in small openings, if your specimen thinks he has seen one he will be tempted to reach it. Use a marker or paint if you want to draw or paint one.
- Make sure the ink or color is dry. You need to make sure that the smell of the chemicals has dissipated as much as possible. You can also gently wash the bucket, which makes it safer for the lizard and less likely the animal to escape from the fake crevice.
Step 3. Approach the reptile slowly and quietly
If you scare him, you will make it more difficult.
Wear only socks. This way, there is no risk of the shoes squeaking or the heels making noise
Step 4. Spray the animal with cold water mist to slow its movement
At this point, you can use the stick to gently guide it into the bucket.
- Don't touch the lizard with the stick. Not only would you hurt her, but you would also make her run.
- Adjust to his behavior. If it doesn't move after you wet it with cold water, you can cover it with the bucket upside down. Slide a cardboard envelope under the container opening to lock it inside. Slowly rotate the bucket without detaching the card from the opening.
- Use the stick to straighten the bucket. If the animal quickly rushes into the container, don't waste time trying to fix it with your hands. This detail could make the difference between a successful catch and a lizard that is still free.
Method 2 of 3: Construct a Trap
Step 1. Find the cleanest, odor-free box you have available
Bad smells drive away the lizard who will not enter the trap. Cover the entire opening of the container with cellophane, securing it to the sides with odorless adhesive tape.
Step 2. Drill a hole in the plastic film
Make sure it is well centered and that it is no larger than the reptile's size. If it is too large, it may allow access to other larger unwanted creatures (e.g. snakes).
You can also use a glass terrarium if you have one and if you don't mind drilling a hole in the top lid. This container allows you to have a 360 ° view of its interior even from a distance
Step 3. Research the lizards living in your area
By doing this, you can know what they love to eat. Place a few insects from a pet store in the container.
Choose your bait with great care. For example, Urosaurus graciosus, which lives in the North American deserts, eats insects and spiders. The specific type of spider may not be available in your pet shop, so it's worth getting one from the lizard's natural habitat and placing it in the trap. You can also try using fruit to attract flies and midges, which can also be tempting to the reptile
Step 4. Place the container in an area of the garden frequented by lizards
If there's a shelf nearby, use it to your advantage. These animals love to climb walls and the presence of a surface could make the trap even more attractive.
Step 5. Place a plastic sheet under the trap
This way you keep the box dry even if the soil is damp.
Step 6. Check the trap periodically to see if you have caught any lizards
If there is no animal, check that the bait is still there. If you've caught a reptile, enjoy watching it for a while!
Method 3 of 3: Lure the Lizard into the Trap
Step 1. Observe the garden
If you notice a small reptile, you should observe it closely, personally staying outdoors, keeping track of the places and times when you spot it. This study phase is very important during the actual hunt. You need to know the habits of your prey.
Step 2. Harness the power of the internet and research the lizard species living in your region
This way, you can undoubtedly get information about their preferred habitat, places where they hide and other details. You will then be able to identify the spot that is most likely to attract a specimen.
- For example, Tarentola mauritanica, or common gecko, is found in almost all Mediterranean countries. A quick online search gives you plenty of useful and important information.
- These lizards have crepuscular habits, so it will be easier to find them in the evening or at night, near light sources.
- These specimens feed on insects and spiders, so you can put a fake spider on a wall or have some fruit to attract flies and gnats.
- The green lizard is widespread throughout Italy and does not like to climb; you should therefore place the trap on the ground, among the grass. It feeds on insects and other small arthropods, but also on small vertebrates (snakes, other reptiles, etc.) and bird eggs. Its nutrition is supplemented by berries and other plant products.
- The wall lizard prefers to hide in holes and crevices between walls. So setting up a trap with stones, bricks and providing lots of food is a perfect technique for capturing one of these specimens.
Step 3. Create a realistic habitat
Your goal is to attract a lizard to your chosen spot in the garden. Suppose your research has found that the species found in your area like to hide in crevices. You can then get some scraps of wood and build a miniature wall with several cracks, for the lizards to pass through. You can also use concrete and a mold if you have this material available.
At this stage, you must respect the results of your searches to the letter. Build the right kind of trap and you'll likely catch the lizard
Step 4. Get a container the size of the wall or structure
Place the lid on the ground, with the inner side up (and the outer side on the ground), to put the structure on top of it, which you need to attach to the lid. Nails and screws are the best choice, because they contain no chemicals and you can rid them of odors by boiling them in water.
This part of the project could be complex if you built a pile of wood or rocks to create hiding places. You will have to improvise using glue, nails and other similar material. Lizards love cracks as wide as their body; if you build a habitat with several such hiding places, then, you are more likely to catch reptiles
Step 5. Operate the trap
When you notice that a lizard appreciates your construction, wait until it enters a crevice and place the container upside down over the entire construction, securing it to the lid. At this point, you have captured the reptile.
Transparent containers are perfect for this trap model. You can buy a matte one at an affordable price at any home improvement store and then cut out the bottom. Be careful: if the wall is high enough to get close to the rim of the vessel, cutting the bottom allows the lizard to jump out and escape
Advice
- After taking some time to observe the lizard (for example a couple of hours), free it again outside. Remember that it's never a good thing to lock up wild creatures.
- The stick can hurt the animal, so you have to be very, very careful when using it to bring your prey into the trap.
- Keeping the wild lizard as a pet is not a good idea. It can transmit diseases, parasites, mites and so on. This warning is especially important if you already own other pets. If you want to keep a lizard, buy it from a reputable and reputable pet shop.
- If you have decided to hold the animal, do not grab it by the hips with your fingers; you could crush it and hurt it by causing it to bite you.
- You can sprinkle ice water on the lizard to slow its movement.
- By placing a container of water in the habitat you have created, you give the lizard a chance to drink and cool down.
- Research lizards in your region and make sure they are not dangerous to catch and that they are not an endangered or endangered species.
- If you don't have a bucket, you should maybe buy a couple. If not, you can use a hat, but make sure it doesn't have holes in it.
Warnings
- Little lizards have teeth. Although they are really small and cannot tear the skin, they can still hurt. Also, the stress caused by the bite is not good for you or the lizard.
- Respect her as you would any other animal. If you are not careful and gentle, it may attack or bite you.
- Make sure the species you want to catch is not dangerous before proceeding. Some lizards have very strong jaws, while others can be poisonous.
- Turtles, lizards and other reptiles are known vectors of salmonella. Be aware of the risk.
- Although many lizards eat crickets, many others do not. Do your research before catching your new friend. For example, the horny toad (which is not a toad, but a type of horned lizard found in the southern and western United States) feeds primarily on ants. He could even die if he were forced to eat only crickets or worms, because he is not attracted to either of them.
- There are only two poisonous lizards: the Gila monster, found in the southern and western stages of the USA and its "cousin" the horrid eloderma, which lives further south, in Mexico (both belong to the Heloderma family). The only other dangerous bite is that of monitor lizards, because they have large and strong jaws. The largest species, the Komodo dragon, feeds on carrion; its bite causes severe infections, as well as a lot of damage. Hopefully you don't choose to keep one of these animals in the guest room!
- If for some reason you touch the lizard or decide to pick it up with your hands, remember to wash them thoroughly, both before and after contact.
- Remember that in many cases it is illegal to take reptiles out of their habitat and keep them as pets.
