Overview

• As of Aug. 25, the privately owned tegu remains at large in Old Town after an initial sighting the day before.
• A resident reported the lizard under a porch on Hillside Avenue around 4 p.m. Sunday, and it was identified as an Argentine tegu named Blue after an initial misidentification as a monitor.
• The owner contacted police to confirm it belongs to him, and officers say the plan is to return the animal once it is safely recovered.
• Old Town police are coordinating with the Maine Warden Service and animal control and plan to guide the lizard into a large crate using a catch pole when it emerges to bask.
• Residents are urged not to approach the non-native reptile, which can lash out if threatened, and police say the legality of owning an Argentine tegu in Maine remains unclear.