A manual laborer named Jos Olimpio had a frightening encounter when a black-and-white tegu lizard bit his finger while he was trying to offer it water. His colleagues struggled to pry open the lizard’s jaws before he was rushed to a local clinic. Emergency surgery was performed on the same day, resulting in the amputation of one of his fingers.
The black-and-white tegu lizard, also known as Salvator merianae, is the largest of its kind in Brazil. These reptiles, native to Central and South America, can grow up to two meters in length. Tegus typically consume a diet of insects, birds, rodents, amphibians, other lizards, eggs, fruit, and leaves. They usually only become aggressive towards humans when they feel threatened.
According to Jefferson Marcelo from the Federal University of Mato Grosso, the lizard’s behavior was a defensive response to feeling cornered and threatened. Marcelo emphasized the importance of not touching these animals with bare hands and advised against approaching them closely to prevent such incidents.
In a separate incident in late 2023 in Jaraguá do Sul, Santa Catarina, a video captured a wild tegu lizard aggressively reacting to a man’s attempt to feed it an egg. This incident led local wildlife experts to warn against feeding wild reptiles. Biologist Christian Raboch Lempek explained that the lizard’s aggressive behavior was due to its habit of being fed by humans, mistaking them for a food source.
Experts recommend avoiding direct contact with tegu lizards and refraining from feeding them to prevent potential attacks.