It's just a way to make money and present the idea that they are doing an important job by stopping "illegal wildlife trade."

We had a "bust" several years ago in Columbus, OH. It costs a lot of money to pay authorities to set up a "sting" operation and then make a public "bust."

So to justify the waste of taxpayer's money, they need to expand what is considered "native." In Ohio, Italian Wall Lizards are considered native and albino as well as hybrid forms of reptiles are treated as native animals. This greatly expands the number of people who can be fined, while the people the laws are intended to stop (those catching wild herps and then selling them) go on with their regularly scheduled routine.

Afterwards the Division of Wildlife sends out a misleading press release about the criminals they caught who are dealing in "rare" and "expensive" snakes, when they're really just hobbyist breeders of Honduran morphs or Black Rat Snake morphs. But the slant that is presented is that these hobbyists are "stealing" snakes from the wild and making a lot of money doing it.

I get that turtle populations are declining in a lot of places and some reptiles do need protection. But as far as I can see, most of these state-run regulations are a scam to make money and promote themselves - not protect wildlife.

Tim

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