March 29, 2017

On The Road: Miami Open

Miami Open: Iguana
Those who've followed SDP for awhile know that every March I head down to Miami to watch a  professional tennis tournament on Key Biscayne.  This was the 11th straight year I made the trip -- so much fun!  The tournament has gone through some name changes over the past few years and now it's called the Miami Open.  Whatever it's been called, every year, I've seen lots of great tennis and experienced close encounters with top tennis players.  One thing I've never seen is this:  an iguana clinging to a practice court fence!  (Yes, it's real!) Look at the length of that tail!  Lots of us were keeping a watchful eye on this unexpected spectator.  Even Roger Federer posted on social media about encountering it! Iguanas are not indigenous to the South Florida area, but they've become increasingly prevalent over the years.  Now, somewhat surprisingly, they've made their way to the tennis park on Key Biscayne.  Welcome to Miami!

11 comments:

Andy said...

The iguana stole the show. :(

Nancy J said...

And did he get a slot in the Miami Open? What a treat to see that.

Kate said...

Unlikely fans are clamouring to get in to see the tournament! I hope that someone eventually rescued this animal because from my México experience, it probably is pretty stressed.

Lowell said...

I've been to Key Biscayne many times but not to the tournament and I've never seen an iguana there. I've seen them on Ft. Lauderdale golf courses - some were 5-6' long. They usually won't bother humans (in fact they're terrified of us), but they will bite if cornered! Our daughter lives in Davie and she had to chase people off of her "farm" because they were shooting these things for meat!

William Kendall said...

Hello there, little critter!

PerthDailyPhoto said...

Oh my gosh, I bet he's wondering how the heck he ended up in such a tricky spot with so many people watching him. Do you know what happened to it?

Stefan Jansson said...

Federer and Nadal are back to their best form. And one of the Zverev brothers knocked out the Birthday Boy Wavrinka. Would be fun to watch Hingis in the doubles. Kerber will beat Venus later today.

Bill said...

Hope the iguana enjoyed the match. What an interesting find and photo!

Kay said...

An iguana! That's unexpected. And it makes for a really unique and interesting shot.

Stefan Jansson said...

I was wrong about Kerber, great match by Venus.

JC said...

Nice pictures! Great moment with the iguana :) I went down to Miami open a few years ago...so humid! - finally went back to IW this year* Some of my tennis pictures on tour: https://www.flickr.com/photos/demiace/albums