Yikes! Carnival worker passes out carnivorous baby monitor lizards as prizes

The Washington County Fair in Fayetteville included some exotic wildlife this year in addition to its typical farmyard friends.

Laura Undem took to Facebook Thursday to warn others after her reptile-aware child noticed something amiss. The mom said Eren Undem was at the fair Wednesday night and noticed the sign: “Win an iguana.” The sign corresponded with a carnival game challenging players to throw balls into glass jars. Eren Undem was watching as a family won the game.

The vendor then stood on a five-gallon bucket to disconnect a hanging cage with two dehydrated reptiles inside, Laura Undem said. The creatures were not green like the typical iguana, but sandy and speckled.

Having picked up an interest in reptile breeding during the pandemic, 21-year-old Eren Undem recognized the two reptiles as savannah monitor lizards.

The Undem family knows what they’re talking about here. Their household includes a collection of pets that currently includes eight reptiles. One of them is Zephyr, a 3 1/2-year-old savannah monitor.

Worried the baby monitor lizard might not survive without the right care and diet, Eren Undem bought it from the family for $40.

Afterward, Laura Undem said she contacted the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. She was told staff visited the fair, but she said she worried the vendor might still be out there passing off carnivorous baby monitors as mainly herbivorous iguanas.

She then reached out to fair organizers, who told her the issue was resolved, Laura Undem said.

Keith Stephens with Arkansas Game and Fish confirmed Friday that staff are monitoring the lizard situation at the Washington County Fair, but didn’t go into detail. An investigation is ongoing, Stephens said.

How many people left the fair thinking they’d won a baby iguana, when in fact they had a baby monitor lizard? Who knows? But the animals require different diets and different care.

“This is not a species we want loose in Arkansas,” Laura Undem said. “I also don’t want someone’s child losing a finger.”

The Washington County Fair did not immediately reply to questions about the vendor’s identity or whether they screen prizes for safety.

The fair started Tuesday and goes through Saturday evening.

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The Savannah monitor lizard is a medium-sized reptile native to Africa. The monitor lizard family includes the Komodo dragon, the world’s largest lizard, though the savannah type weighs in at about 13 pounds.

(If you’re into animal attacks, check out the Tooth and Claw podcast episode “Monitor Lizard Attack – The Monitor Murder Mystery.” It dives into the story of Ron Huff, a Delaware man who was eaten by his reptile pets in 2002.)

The animals aren’t native to the United States, but the species has invaded Florida and created issues. Savannah monitor lizards are carnivores, and they often feast on small mammals, eggs, insects and fish. Their bites aren’t venomous, but they can carry bacteria. They also have a strong chomp and long claws.

Arkansas has about a dozen native lizard species, according to the Arkansas Herpetological Society, none of which even comes close to the size of a savannah monitor. The Arkansas Herpetology Society said it’s unlikely any monitor lizards could survive an Arkansas winter.

“While nothing in nature is absolute, the chances of us having a similar problem [to Florida] are slim to none,” a society spokesperson said. “Damage would be limited to individual animals or maybe public panic.”

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission also said the species would not pose a threat due to the animal’s cold intolerance.

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