Lizards on a Plane: Transporting Anoles the Old-Fashioned Way

In the good old days, back when grad students weren’t afraid to push the boundaries and TSA didn’t exist, we used to transport lizards in the passenger cabin of airplanes.  We’d simply put them, one to a plastic bag, in a backpack or duffle bag and bring them onboard as carry-on luggage.  Rarely was this a problem.

Lizard guys weren’t the only ones to do this.  I remember a frog biologist telling me of the time he brought a bunch of coquis back to his lab from Puerto Rico.  They were snuggled into their individual little containers, dark and moist, and apparently quite content, because midflight they started calling as only a coqui can.  Of course, this attracted the attention of other passengers.  As they looked around, up and down and sideways, speculating about what was causing the ruckus, my colleague simply buried his nose in his book and kept quiet.

I only twice had trouble carrying anoles onboard.  The first time was in Gainesville, Florida, in 1987.  I was just starting out on my anole research and had flown to Miami to collect a sample of the superbly diverse, if non-native, anole fauna of that fine city.  I collected five species, including A. carolinensis (the only native species of the lot), A. sagrei, A. distichus, A. cristatellus, and several magnificent knight anoles, A. equestris, the largest anole species.  I then flew to Gainesville to meet with anole expert Alan Pounds, anoles in tow.  No problem.  However, on the way back, things did not go smoothly.  The Gainesville Airport, at that time, was a small, rinky-dink affair.  When I got to security, I put my duffle bag full of lizards onto the conveyor belt and through the x-ray machine it went (as an aside, as far as I could tell, no lizard suffered any harm from being x-rayed).  The inspector, a small, round, white-haired and cranky woman, took one look at her monitor and barked, “You’ve got an alligator in there.”  I pulled out a small A. carolinensis and tried to convince her otherwise, but to no avail.  It was the only time I had to check my bag o’ anoles.

The second problem trip was a year later in Jamaica.  In our travels, we would put the lizards in gallon-sized plastic bags, inflated with air (this was pre-Ziploc days—such bags are hard to find now).  Every two days, we would change the bags, and this worked fine.  Except on this particular trip, I failed to bring enough Baggies® with me, so we had to scour local shops for Jamaican made bags, which we eventually found.  However, unbeknownst to us, these bags were not well made.  On the day we were to fly out of Montego Bay en route back to California, we checked in and passed through security without incident.  I thought the coast was clear.  But then, as they called the flight, I realized that the security staff—all female, all dressed in elaborate red uniforms, including ornate hats—were hand-searching each piece of carry-on luggage.  My heart sank.  When I got to the front of the line, the woman unzipped my duffel bag, reached in, and started rummaging around with her hands, but without looking down.  Saved!  Or so I thought.  Unfortunately, several plastic bags had split open at the seams, freeing their captives, and a beautiful male Anolis grahami jumped out of the duffel and onto the table.  This the inspector did see.  She immediately let out a scream and—I kid not—stood on a chair.  I thought all was lost, but from her lofty perch, she yelled at me to catch the lizard and get on the plane, which I quickly did, returning to the lab without further trouble.

So,  in talking to fellow from Transport Executive’s man and a van Plymouth , reminisced on how we used to do it in the old days.  No packaging lizards in coolers for transport in air cargo or checked luggage, no elaborate containers, no fuss, no muss.  It was a simpler, easier time, and usually it worked quite well.  I always suggest to travelers these days that they consider taking a duffel bag and try hand carrying their lizards, but then again, we can only guess how TSA would react (and the x-rays are probably now a lot stronger).

Note added June 2, 2013: Since this post was published in December 2010, a number of commenters have asked about the consequences of transporting lizards on airplanes. There are two issues for doing so. First, capturing a lizard and taking it somewhere else almost always requires a collecting and/or export permit from the state or country of origin. Failing to do so is breaking the law. Moreover, the United States’ Lacey Act makes it a felony to import into the United States any animal illegally (i.e., without permission) collected in or exported from another country. Let me reiterate: this is a felony. If you get caught doing this, you are in big trouble. If you are transporting animals legally into t

Second, can one bring lizards onto airplanes. As far as I am aware–though I may be wrong, so you should check yourself–there are no laws against doing so. However, airlines have regulations about what you can bring onto their airplanes and how you can do so, so you’ll need to check with the airline. In addition, there is the question about how to get the animals through security if you are transporting them with you. As always, the internet is a good place to start in trying to figure out what is allowed and how to proceed. Here’s one article I found in a quick Google.

Jonathan Losos

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24 Comments

  1. chipojolab

    nothing has changed, at both Miami Airport and San Juan Airport TSA has not given me a hard time for having anoles nicely packed inside my backpack.

  2. Yoel Stuart

    Similar story to Jonathan’s.

    I was traveling out of Jamaica with live lizards in plastic bags in an action packer that was to be checked. One of the inspectors asked me to open the box so she could check it. Immediately after I opened it, she dove in to get to the things packed on the bottom (not sure why), without looking at all the lizards. Then the smell hit her and she freaked out. The ticket agent was really confused too. She had to talk to her supervisors. I had to get all my paperwork out. It was a show. In the end, I was allowed to check the lizards but I wan’t able to convince the ticket agent that I wasn’t crazy.

  3. rglor

    Excellent stories! I used to take lizards and snakes in my carry-on baggage as well, but assumed that this was now verboten…

  4. Yoel Stuart

    Jan. 19, 2011
    We successfully took live lizards as carry-on during our return from the Cayman Islands, entering the US through Miami. We had 45 lizards individually packed in cloth bags. We packed three to four lizard bags into small tupperware which were then all packed into a collapsible cooler. The lizards went through the x-ray machine and we were not asked to open the cooler.

  5. G

    In all of these instances, did you guys do all the paperwork (veterinarian, etc)? What is the worse thing that could happen? They take the lizzard? You get a fine?

  6. G

    And also, how safe would it be to take the lizzard in the checked baggage without the airline permission? Will they find it? Will the lizzard survive?

  7. Jessica

    Hello, I will be going to Hawaii in February and to Aruba next year and was wondering if these techniques were still viable? I love to gather reptiles on my vacations, it’s all I do and I would love to maybe bring some home if I have the courage. What is the worst that could happen if I get caught? How could I hide it from my dad? And how would I hide them on carry ons?

    Please reply thanks!!

    • Jonathan Losos

      Jessica, you should know that in Aruba, you need a permit to capture and export wildlife; importing wildlife into the United States without the necessary permits from the country of export violates the Lacey Act and is a felony. Hawaii also requires permits to collect and export species, even non-native ones like anoles.

      • Jessica

        hmmm….but isn’t it also breaking the law taking them on the plane without the proper procedures? To be truthful if it gets me an animal I really will take good care of I don’t mind breaking the “law” as long as the consequences of me getting caught aren’t unreasonable. If not Hawaii or Aruba then how about Florida? There are a ton of native and invasive species there that I would love to take home with me, only problem being its not a drive my dad is willing to take. I’m pretty sure bringing your reptiles with you in your carry-on bag without permission is illegal in any state so why does it matter?

        • Martha Munoz

          Bringing lizards on a plane falls under the airline’s regulations and procedures, not any law. Bringing lizards on a plane is at the airline’s discretion. Importing animals into the US, however, is tightly restricted by many laws, the violation of which is a felony. I don’t know about Florida, but you should check with their Fish and Wildlife offices. Point is — this is a big deal that shouldn’t be taken lightly.

          • Jessica

            So how would I go about doing these things legally?

  8. Martha Munoz

    Jessica – You need to consider a few things.
    1. Contact the wildlife and agriculture departments in the country of origin about necessary permits. Collection and exportation permits are usually separate from each other, and to remove animals, you would need both.
    2. You’ll have to declare your cargo in your custom’s declaration.
    3. Contact Fish and Wildlife in your port of entry. That would be the first American city you land in upon return. They will tell you what documentation you need and what you need to do upon landing. This might range from a telephone call to an in-person interview with a FWS officer.

    In order to do things legally, you’ll need to do all of the above. For example, FWS will not allow you to bring animals into this country without appropriate permits in the country of origin.

  9. Ben

    I am planning on going to Puerto Rico. If I try to bring back lizards in a cooler through security, might I be stopped? If I told them I had lizards, it seems like I couldn’t get in trouble. Is having the lizards taken the worst that could happen?

    • Jonathan Losos

      Permits are required to capture and transport lizards in Puerto Rico, so you could get in trouble for that if you don’t have the permits. Airlines vary in their regulations on transporting live animals. I don’t know what, if anything, TSA would do at security.

      • Ben

        I took a lizard on a Delta flight from Las Vegas to Atlanta last summer. The TSA didn’t seem to have a problem with it. I had it in a container and they let me walk through with the lizard without putting it through the X-ray. Puerto Rico might differ from this, because it isn’t a domestic flight. I was not thinking about permits being required, I wonder how much of an issue that would be.

        • Ben

          Coming to the states from Puerto Rico, the USDA regulates most wildlife, and even dead stuff, like coconut husk. However, lizards are one of the few things USDA does not regulate entrance of from Puerto Rico (I personally verified this with a USDA worker in the San Juan airport.) This is the case because Puerto Rico is part of the U.S. This is clearly not the same as importing wildlife from any foreign country, when which you must have a permit from the FWS and notify them in advance of a shipment to have it approved.

  10. Sebastián

    Hi ! I’m looking forward to get some lizards united states and bring them to my country. I plan to buy them with breeders in the area and happened to bring a few crickets and worms to feed them while my farm starts producing. If it passes through the x ray, the guards observed something moving (lizards or crickets), can they confiscate? It is illegal to have exotic animals bred in captivity in a travel bag on a plane, for a foreigner?

    Thnks !

  11. Ariel

    Is it illegal to import a brown anole from Tampa, FL to Boston, MA? Just wondering.

  12. Becky Mott

    I was just told by American Airlines that only cats and dogs are allowed. They will not transport a lizard. So much for my son’s dream of a Chinese Water Dragon.

  13. bay

    I went to the US on vacation in 2012,I bought 2 dwarf caiman as pets since my cousin will keep them when I leave. after 3 months I have to go back home to Asia. But,my cousin did not want them anymore. I put them in a sock,then in a shoe and put them in my check in baggage. We arrived 18 hours later without incident,they are still with me and growing.

  14. sierra

    Can I bring a bearded dragon from Denver Colorado to Los Angeles CA in my carry on? Would tsa freak out and take it from me? I hate having lizards fed exed

    • Hannah

      What happened with this? I may need to relocate my pet beardie.

  15. Sue

    I have a Chinese water dragon. He is my pet. I would like to take him with me back to Africa. Pet relocation services are charging between 2000 and 10000 USD ???? Is it possible to rather take him on the flight with me instead of paying such a large amount? Would the long flight be detrimental to his health?

  16. Hi, I am on a vacation in Houston Texas. I have caught 3 anole lizards and was wondering what the best way is to sneak them on my flight back to my home in Idaho, if anyone has any ideas please reply. Thank you.

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