>>Whether it's been done doesn't matter when it hasn't even been attempted.

It's not even a question of whether it will ever be attempted; hobbyist breeders first of all, aren't in the business of conserving species. Second of all, they don't use and are not trained to use multi-million dollar gene sequencing machines, which are employed in most sophisticated population genetics studies re conservation.

>>Hobbyists have been successful in all other areas pertaining to the science of herps. Hobbyists have achieved notable, often exceptional success in everything from captive maintainance and breeding, natural history studies, taxonomic studies and have been allowed to assist on many levels in other conservation projects.

Keyword there is "assist". They're not doing science. And without the help from professional and academic scientists, I would argue that assisting is all they could do in a reintroduction program. They wouldn't be heading up the effort; they wouldn't have the training. Also, I think I would define "all other areas pertaining to the science of herps" differently. Captive maintenance and breeding isn't science. That's in the pet books section of a library; not the science part. Evolution, phylogeography, molecular biology, and ecology is science.

>>There is no reason whatsoever to think hobbyists could not be an assest to a successful reintroduction program. The simple fact is we are not allowed to be involved.

I agree that hobbyists can be assets in MANY ways to science. There is indeed MUCH that they can and could do. See how hobbyists submitted shed skins to participate in this recent conservation genetics study on Boelen's Pythons (see link below). I know of no ban that would keep hobbyists out of assisting in similar studies where they would use this type of information in a reintroduction program.
Conservation genetics of Boelen’s python (Morelia

[ Show Entire Thread ]