Will fishing in Texas be soon limited to catch and release?
As an out of stater, I have followed this thread, and it appears to me that for all practical purposes, your legislator is intent in shutting down snake collecting. This looks like an over-reaction to turtle collection issues, and a legislative "broad brush" will effectively slam the recreational herper. Is there any real scientific study behind this proposed action? Most states have bag limits to control the taking of a natural resource. I seem to recall that my non-resident hunting license limited me to less than 25 snakes. Otherwise, I had to have that commercial permit. Correct me if I'm wrong. Has anyone demanded some sort of scientific rationale to justify this radical change in Texas non-game hunting law? I find all this puzzling, as most state governments are always looking to maintain revenue streams. Has anyone tried to find out how much money the state gets from the current license/permit system that is currently in place?
Keep in mind, snake hunters are regarded as a "lunatic fringe" by most folks, but I'm surprised that the state of Texas would so quickly give up any source of revenue.
