We need to take a lesson from history in looking at the situation the herp industry is in. The Roman’s devised a successful strategy to defeat powerful forces. The strategy, “divide et impera” or divide and conquer, is a combination of political, military and economic strategy of gaining and maintaining power by breaking up larger concentrations of power into chunks that individually have less power.



The herp industry is currently succumbing to this strategy. Academia, agency biologists and animal rights groups have unknowingly joined forces to push their mutually agreeable agenda. I do not believe it is a conscious or organized effort but none-the-less it is happening.



Here is a list of some of the battle fronts we face:



1. Commerce in boas and pythons

2. The keeping of venomous animals

3. The commercial sale of wild caught animals

4. The keeping of the “giant” snake species

5. The collection, keeping, breeding and selling of turtles

6. The keeping of large lizards

7. The collection of herps from the wild

8. The possession of herps

9. The shipping of herps

10. Herps and salmonella



These battle fronts are being waged at the federal, state and local levels which further divide us. It appears as if many recreational folks are being “fished into” this strategy if you will. They are allowing the divide and conquer strategy to work. They appear to believe the propaganda and agenda pushing from academia, agency biologist and AR groups in many cases. Take the box turtle situation Joe Forks is so fond of. In a post below this one, Joe explains how box turtles are in deep trouble and that his recreational group supports the TPWD actions of the past year. What is this based on Joe? Did you read through the box turtle papers yourself? Or did you just get someone’s opinion on the situation? I have a good friend, who has been keeping and breeding box turtles for over 25 years, who has reviwed all of the popular box turtle papers used to push the box turtle agenda. There are all kinds of opinion, data skewing and other false assumptions in these papers. Now, I am not saying that box turtles are not being affected by anything but that the agenda pushers are exaggerating and inflating the situation. They are using scare tactics and over-use of the precautionary principal to push their agenda. Box turtles maybe declining but the main cause is habitat destruction and roads. Collecting is minimal at best.



This is just one example of how we are being divided and conquered. The sale of wild caught herps is another. The recreational groups are with academia on turtles and the collection of wild caught for the purpose of sale. We are being divided. This post is NOT an attack on recreational folks. This is a history lesson. The academics, agency biologist and AR groups will continue until their agenda is complete. If the recreational folks think that they will not come after recreational collecting they are sadly mistaken. As soon as they use you guys to get rid of your fellow herpers you will see that you are next.



Remember they have agendas. They believe certain things. I believe with reasonable certainty that they want to stop all collection. I can’t be anymore plain then that. We have to all come together or we will be toast. We are being divided and conquered.



Mike Welker

El Paso, TX

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