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LAKELAND - A new kind of undercover officer in Florida is cruising the internet. They are looking for "eco-criminals" who sell animals or their meat illegally.

"So when you catch them, why do they say they do it?" we asked the man who heads up a new cyber unit at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. We are keeping his identity secret at the agency's request.

"For the money," he said.

"Is there big money in this?"

"There is very large money in this," he remarked.

The unit has six undercover officers stationed around the state. The man who runs it works in Lakeland. It's first year anniversary is right about now.

So far, team members have arrested almost 180 people. Several people have been nabbed for taking gators out of season. A Lutz man was arrested for selling blue gill, a protected species, to collectors.

If you know where to look , you can find just about any animal you want on the net. You can even buy a piranha.

Wildlife experts worry if something like that got loose here, it would upset our state's delicate ecosystem. It would also be a nightmare for tourism officials.

"But the real problem is that the piranha would establish themselves in the environment and would out compete the bass," said FWC spokesman Gary Morse. That, he said, could lead to a decline in sports fishing, one of Florida's cash cows.
www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/news/local/polk/policing-the-exotic-animal-trade-11292010

A Lutz man was arrested for selling blue gill, a protected species, to collectors.

Surely this is just sloppy journalism and not indeed fact...bluegill, one of the most widely-stocked fish in the US, being a protected species? Controlled, perhaps, to manage where it's established...but protected?
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Chris McMartin
www.mcmartinville.com
I'm Not a Herpetologist, but I Play One on the Internet

I'll bet it was in violation of fishing regulations on limits.
There are some states that also regulate whether or not a person can sell fish caught/collected with a recreational license. The latter is normally aimed at preventing sale of fish from restricted waters (like those with consumption adivisories) or to prevent overfishing.

Ed

I'll bet it was in violation of fishing regulations on limits.

That may be the case; and if so, it's a problem with lazy/sloppy journalism.

Sorta like pythons in the Everglades: "they grow to [maximum documented length] and lay [most reported number of annual clutches] of [largest reported clutch size] eggs," implying every single python can do that.
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Chris McMartin
www.mcmartinville.com
I'm Not a Herpetologist, but I Play One on the Internet

Same with the turtle banning agenda: longest known time until sexual maturity, least reported number of clutches per year, smallest reported clutch size, low juvenile survival (just because they can’t find them during there one trip into the field that year during less than optimal conditions) and using data from extent of range to describe the entire US population, implying that this is the case all the time. Academic banning agenda and grant money acquisition in action.

Welkerii

>>A Lutz man was arrested for selling blue gill, a protected species, to collectors.
>>
>>Surely this is just sloppy journalism and not indeed fact...bluegill, one of the most widely-stocked fish in the US, being a protected species? Controlled, perhaps, to manage where it's established...but protected?

Not only that, but who "collects" blue gill???? My guess is that the "journalist" who wrote this silly article mis-heard or mis-quoted what the interviewee said.

It is possible "Bluegill" are considered a "game" fish and therefore not commercially available as a food source. Selling game fish at a grocery store/fish market is prohibited where I come from.
jsc
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer

In any case, it should be glaringly obvious to the reader, the author is wholly incompetent to speak to such issues and the article does in no way qualify as journalism.
More accurately should be deemed as folklore, fantasy, and/or fiction.
jsc
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer

You can't sell them here in the Northeast either unless it comes from a hatchery or a fish farm with a permit.

Ed

>>It is possible "Bluegill" are considered a "game" fish and therefore not commercially available as a food source. Selling game fish at a grocery store/fish market is prohibited where I come from.
>>jsc

Sure, but those who consume animals as food (or those who sell animals to people who consume them as food) aren't usually called "collectors." If that's the case, I guess I am a "chicken collector", since I like the grilled chicken sandwich at Wendy's. I like a burger once in a while, so I guess I'm a casual "cow collector" as well!

I guess I'll turn myself in for Pig collecting. Love them BBQ ribbs. Possably a Cow milk hussler, but I leave the Goat alone. VM

Actually there is a huge native fish fanciers club in the US and they catch, breed, trade, ship and sell fish all the time.

See http://www.nanfa.org/

Ed

>>Actually there is a huge native fish fanciers club in the US and they catch, breed, trade, ship and sell fish all the time.
>>
>>See http://www.nanfa.org/
>>
>>Ed

Interesting, but the issue is specific to bluegill. Are there really bluegill breeders??? I'm certainly no fish expert, but I've been going to pet shops all my life, and my dad was a fish breeder. Never once have I seen or heard of anyone owning a bluegill as a pet. Given almost anyone living in the United States can go to their neighborhood pond and catch a bluegill, I'd be surprised if there is a "huge" market for bluegill in which there is "big money." I could be wrong, though, maybe there are millionaires who made their fortune in bluegill.