Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Sadly, I saw one of the Long Beach, CA "grease king" fields plowed to all hell and a "For Sale" sign on the lot as I drove by this morning. It was a small field and not the best one of that area but still home to some kings.

I hope the locals scoured that field and took whatever could be found prior to this.

Normal people do not understand this feeling, but we herpers do.
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Mark

That is very sad. Yes, good ol' human "progress" usually means the death of any animals associated with it....*sigh*

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -Serpentine Specialties

is the fact you Californians can only legally collect so many under special permit, correct? Wouldnt it be illegal for you to try and capture as many as possible even if only from the area going to be plowed? Yeah, it floors me that its OK for the developers to kill hundreds, but YOU better not violate your state wildlife laws!!! Also, it may be a federal violation to even capture and relocate. I know its illegal to catch and release elsewhere here in Lousy-anna. My herp society just got an email from a nuisance animal remover looking for interested person to take snakes and other reptiles removed from homes and businesses. If not mistaken, the letter of the law makes releasing these animals, even in suitable habitat near where captured, illegal!!

Is it still legal to collect Speckled Kings?
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King Snakes! Who can make a better mouse trap?
J Sierra

Jorge, as far as I know, yes. As long as you possess a valid LA fishing license, you can collect them to the best of my knowledge. At least thats the "law", but I seriously doubt LA wildlife and fisheries is out and about looking for the random person who collects one every know and again. I think the confusion comes with the need to have a LA Reptile and Amphibian Wholesale/Retail Permit to sell or trade native LA species. Most pet shops dont and wont sell native snakes, even corns. I think a few actually go outlaw on a few species like corns for some reason but not specks. Probably because specks are soooo noticeable to any agent as a native snake while an amel striped corn may not LOL!! But, to the best of my knowledge they are not TandE species, or have any special consideration applied to them.

Thanks man. I've been wondering what the deal was, cause they are so hard to finsd anywhere in New Orleans anymore, unless you catch it yourself.

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King Snakes! Who can make a better mouse trap?
J Sierra

" it floors me that its OK for the developers to kill hundreds"

Yeah, the hypocrisy and BS "red tape" with many of the wildlife laws are just mind-boggling to say the very least Kevin.

I live in Florida, but I know for a fact that Brian Hubbs had to jump through many hoops with special permits to salvage the lives of countless kingsnakes in areas of California just before they were to be bulldozed over for developing human "progress". It's pretty sad and grizzly to think of all the many animals that get buried alive with machinery. Most people think of "animals" only having four legs and living on the surface of the land. Hell, even if some DO manage to evade being buried alive, they are displaced from the only habitat that can best support them, so many would go on to die slow agonizing deaths from starvation, predation, etc...

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -Serpentine Specialties

The intent of the law is to save the species, but not individuals persay. Lawmakers worry that the species/subspecies will be threatened by 100s and 100s of collectors running amuck over years, vs some habitat being developed.

What is aggravating is that the loss of habitat in So Cal outweighs the threat of collectors. Reasonable bag limits make the most sense here, and Calif is not too bad when it comes to bag limits. Could be better, but I know it could be far worse. Way easier to have a law forbidding any wildcaughts in the minds of many opponents of our hobby.

Years ago just before a big wonderful field in Palos Verdes was to be plowed for Trump National Golf Course, I happened to find a really nice, light-colored (for the area) San Diego gophersnake right out on the roadside. I picked it up with full intent to take it, since the field was doomed.

I swear, 2 Animal Control folks drove over to me and told me I could not take it. They had been there for something else and saw me. I didn't have my fishing license with me. I implored them, I mean the snake's field was to be destroyed within days or weeks. They said no. I put the snake down, the officers drove off.

Suffice to say the snake was saved shortly thereafter by someone who looked like me. But yeah, this is when laws contradict the intent.
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Mark

Yes, some things are just too ridiculous in this world!!

Glad the snake was saved by your "imposter" look-alike..LOL!

great story!.....well, part of it anyway..

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -Serpentine Specialties

Man that sucks big time.

Long Beach grease kings:

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www.Bluerosy.com

Things like that do suck big time. As an avid amateur botanist here in Maine I've time and time again seen sites for rare plants, not only in the state but globally, plowed under for such things as foot paths for other nature lovers to new office locations for local utility companies... all gone for good... or worse. No matter what your passions are... all such things hit home.

I try not to wonder if the "average Joe" knew what was being lost would it matter in the end.

Gerry

I am sorry to hear this. The Grease kings ae prob my favorite "locale" of californaie

Wasn't it a good thing they were protected from the horrible old pet trade so they could be plowed under like God intended?
Freaking hell I hate that crap
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We wouldn't have 6 and a half billion people if you had to be beautiful to get laid.
6.6 African House snakes
3.2 reticulated pythons
.1 corn snake
4.2 Florida Kings
1.2 speckled kings
1.2 ball pythons
0.0.1 Argentine boa

"Wasn't it a good thing they were protected from the horrible old pet trade so they could be plowed under like God intended?

Oh man, don't get me started. So, SO true on so many levels on whats wrong with this country and this generation.

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www.Bluerosy.com

>>Oh man, don't get me started. So, SO true on so many levels on whats wrong with this country and this generation.

It all boils down to Liberals making rules for all the wrong reasons........
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John Lassiter
Poor planning and procrastination on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part...

It all boils down to Liberals making rules for all the wrong reasons........

For the most part yes it does. It is the liberals who spout education and speculations.

But not everybody who claims NOT to be a liberal doesn't they don't have the mindset of a liberal.
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www.Bluerosy.com

don't forget the repubs refusing to do jack for conservation--including habitat protection!

Granted neither party wants to really do that; it goes against too many corporate interest...and money talks. That stretch of land that got bulldozed here was worth millions of dollars to some developer (and given current vacancy rates will probably have some homes or a business park slapped down only to remain vacant).
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We wouldn't have 6 and a half billion people if you had to be beautiful to get laid.
6.6 African House snakes
3.2 reticulated pythons
.1 corn snake
4.2 Florida Kings
1.2 speckled kings
1.2 ball pythons
0.0.1 Argentine boa

C'mon...I didn't say democrats......I just said Liberals.....LMAO!
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John Lassiter
Poor planning and procrastination on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part...

>>>>Oh man, don't get me started. So, SO true on so many levels on whats wrong with this country and this generation.
>>
>>It all boils down to Liberals making rules for all the wrong reasons........
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The sky is falling! The sky is falling!

Damn liberals. Put the de-regulation conservatives in control. Enjoy a rattlesnake roundup tomorrow, and maybe eventually kingsnake roundups, too. Be free!

Yeah, it's true irony in it's purest form alright.

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -Serpentine Specialties

Sad to hear that. That part of LB is a special place because of the high percentage of hypermelanistic kings. I've hunted other areas of LB just a couple of miles away that turned up all normal kings, but even those are really cool to find because of the limited amount of habitat left in that part of LA County.

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