I coined the phrase "CONSERVATION THROUGH COMMERCIALIZATION" by listening to Dr. Perron Ross and Dr. Wayne King of the IUCN Crocodile Specialist Group of which I was a member. They advocated Crocodile Conservation by captive breeding and sales of skin and meat to pay for it all. Crocodile Farmers world wide have single-handedly pulled crocs back from the brink of extinction in this way. If endangered reptiles were given to the private sector and allowed to be openly traded in a very short time they wouldn't be rare at all. I could single handedly produce hundreds of any species of Cyclura here of which many types are found on a single small cay or cayes. There are NONE in captivity of many races and they wait their lives out waiting for a storm to extinguish their existance forever. All were extirpated from the mainland areas because they were killed and eaten by natives. The cayes are at a lower elevation and could easily be detroyed by the right storm surge. I would do this for nothing and just provide the species a stronghold and save them. Alas, it would be a definitely NO-NO because I'm not a Phd nor a Zoo but I've bred more Cyclura than anybody or any Zoo. They should give Geochelone ynifera to private breeders and shortly they would become common. ALL OF THIS COULD BE ACCOMPLISHED BY US WITHOUT PUBLIC FUNDING...I guarantee you this would be frowned at by the powers that be but in particularly the AZA because people like me make them look bad.....
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Tom Crutchfield

www.tomcrutchfield.com

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