The green water dragon, an alien species that has invaded Taiwan's ecological environment, has appeared in a stream in Beipu Township, Hsinchu County.

(Provided by Liu Chuangsheng)

[Reporter Huang Meizhu/Hsinchu Report] Asian water dragons (also known as green water dragons) from Southeast Asia were discovered last year in Beipu Township, Hsinchu County, and there are a lot of them!

The County Agriculture Department tried to get the central funding committee to remove a total of 528 animals. However, due to their ferocious temperament, some of the removers were bitten and had several stitches. Even the handle of the carbon fiber fishing net used for catching was bitten off.

The county government appeals to the folks to be careful, report it immediately if you find it, don't try to catch it yourself, let alone keep it as a pet for novelty, so as not to impact Taiwan's native ecology, and also pose a potential crisis to the human living environment.

Fan Wanzhao, Director of Agriculture of the County Government, said that invasive alien species are a major threat to biodiversity. As soon as they were notified by the central government that there were green water dragons in Beipu, they immediately commissioned the Hsinchu County Ecological Leisure Development Association to investigate specific streams in Beipu Township Along the coast, it turned out that there were indeed green water dragons invading, and they were of various sizes. It is suspected that they have "taken root" in Beipu for several generations.

From July to December last year, a total of 21 investigations and removals were carried out, and 39 working teams removed all 528 animals.

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Fan Wanzhao said that according to the data, the green water dragon is an omnivorous animal. It looks like a green iguana. It will prey on Taiwan's native climbing lizards, tree frogs, snakes, and even small mammals. It has a strong predatory ability and is the most native species in Taiwan. Those affected are whip scorpions, centipedes, and even river crabs cannot escape their poisonous "mouths"!

Liu Chuangsheng, the director-general of the Hsinchu County Ecological Leisure Development Association, which carried out the removal work, said that a member surnamed Peng was bitten when removing the green water dragon. The handle was bitten off!

Fan Wanzhao said that the green water dragon is native to Southeast Asia and is a large green lizard with a total length of about 60 to 100 cm and a tail that is 2 to 3 times the length of the body.

It usually occurs in the semi-aquatic environment of low-altitude forest streams and waterfall areas with low human disturbance. During the day, it often moves within a distance of 90 to 300 meters near the stream, and gathers to rest in the vegetation around the stream at night.

The main breeding and spawning seasons of green water dragons are in May and June each year. When investigators from the Ecological Development Association dissected the adults captured in August last year, they found dozens of eggs inside, showing amazing fecundity.

There were also two groups of people who caught 48 in one day.

He said that although it is not certain whether the above-mentioned invading green water dragon was caused by human abandonment, but judging from its strong reproductive ability and fierce attack power, if it is not removed as soon as possible, it will not only cause ecological damage to Taiwan's native species. The catastrophe will also pose a hidden danger to people's outdoor mountain forest activities.

Members of the Hsinchu County Ecological Leisure Development Association ventured to investigate a certain stream in Beipu Township that was invaded, and captured and removed the green water dragon.

(Provided by Liu Chuangsheng)

Members of the Hsinchu County Ecological Leisure Development Association captured the green water dragon on a certain stream in Beipu Township.

(Provided by Liu Chuangsheng)

Members of the Hsinchu County Ecological Leisure Development Association investigated and removed 528 green water dragons that invaded Taiwan's ecological environment last year.

(Provided by Liu Chuangsheng)

The 528 green water dragons removed by the Hsinchu County Ecological Leisure Development Association for Hsinchu County last year were of various sizes, and it is suspected that they have begun to "take root".

(Provided by Liu Chuangsheng)