Although cold temperatures might be an expected thing in Erie, the beginning of January saw widespread freezing temperatures thanks largely to the “bomb cyclone.” People all over the country were affected by this, especially in southern states where they aren’t equipped to deal with these low temperatures. As schools were cancelled, cars wouldn’t start, and roads were icy, the world seemed to come to a stand still for a few days. However, humans were not the only things affected.

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Floridians and other southerners observed many interesting things happening to their cold blooded reptiles. Cold blooded organisms do not produce their own body heat, which therefore fluctuates according to the surrounding environment. This means that when usually warm and sunny Florida begins to freeze over, these organisms are heavily affected.

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One such organism affected are iguanas. Floridians reported seeing these reptiles falling from trees and appearing to be frozen. As the temperature surrounding the iguanas dropped, their internal temperatures fell as well, causing their metabolic processes to slow and them to “freeze.”

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This is just one example of reptiles falling into torpor, a state of lowered body temperature and metabolic processes, used as a response to survive the low temperatures.

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Citizens were confused and didn’t know what to do, but wildlife experts across the board largely instructed people to leave these animals alone. Once the temperature rose, the animals “thawed out” and moving or touching them was more likely to cause the animals stress and endanger human safety.

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A similar freeze occurred in 2010 and killed many iguanas and pythons. This actually helped control the growing populations which were beginning to get out of control.

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Another interesting example is alligators. There are pictures and videos circulating social media of frozen over bodies of water with alligator noses sticking out of them.

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When the temperature in southern states dropped, alligators reacted by lowering their metabolic processes. Then, right before the water fully froze over, they’d stick their noses into the air to allow them to breathe. Alligators have been around for millions of years and this is an incredible example of this organism's ability to survive.

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Other than iguanas and alligators, many other animals have been affected by the cold temperatures. Sea turtles can fall into a similar state and may be seen floating on surfaces of water. These “cold stunned” turtles have flooded wildlife centers to undergo rehabilitation, warming them up before releasing them once the water temperature rises again.

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Manatees need to be in warm water in order to survive and can’t handle temperatures dropping lower than the high 60s for long. This causes them to congregate in warm-water areas, such as water discharge locations of power plants. This means that the cold weather made it the perfect time to observe manatees, with people flocking to manatee viewing centers. It also meant that boaters had to be extra careful to avoid these groups of endangered animals.

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Some are concerned that these low temperatures are allowing the animals to get used to the cold, giving them the ability to migrate northward. This is especially of concern when discussing invasive species such as the green iguana and burmese python. These species have begun to run rampant throughout Florida and if they are able to migrate north, the problem will only get worse.