Lizards stow away from Florida to England in family's suitcase

April 1 (UPI) -- A British family contacted animal rescuers after returning from a trip to Florida and discovering a pair of lizards had stowed away in their luggage.

Mark Goodlad of Kirton in Lindsay, Lincolnshire, England, said his family had just returned home from a trip to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., when he opened a suitcase and discovered a pair of anole lizards, one green and one brown, had hitched a ride for the 4,300-mile trip.

Goodlad, a veterinarian, said he was able to catch one of the lizards right away, but he had to chase the other into his dining room before it was safely contained.

RSPCA animal rescue officer Dave Holgate was summoned to Goodlad's home and took the lizards to a reptile specialist for care.

"We are grateful to Mark and his family for keeping the pair safe until we were able to collect them. They were lucky they managed to survive such a long journey and then to have chosen a suitcase belonging to a vet who fortunately knew exactly what to do to keep them safe in the meantime," Holgate said.