Hello -
I'm new to this particular forum, thanks for reading..!
I'm usually hanging out on a couple other forums here, but someone suggested I post a message here that I put on the boa forum, since a good deal of the message had to do with iguanas. So, here it is - shortened (believ it or not!) - I normally wouldn't crash the party as a newcomer with such a long post at first, but this is pretty important...
*********************************
This is definitely a controversial topic, and I'm wondering where the average pet owner, and breeder, stands on the subject.
I'm not timid about my opinion; I firmly believe taking, supporting the trade, and/or buying species taken from the wild is a terrible idea, and a bad precedent. It has been made illegal with exotic birds, because the bird trade created such a massive decline in species populations, with many species now endangered. Now worldwide herp populations are on the decline, and the U.S. is the no.1 importer of them. And, the number ONE imported herp species is the green iguanas: 3.5 MILLION imported way back in '96, that's just for LEGAL shipments.
Having lived & worked in many countries in South America, I have seen first hand the effect that the import/export market has on species. For example, in Venezuela, in the area we lived (where hunting was prohibited) green iguanas were like squirrels - abundant, large, fat, and if I amy anthropomorphize, appearing content. (The one that ate my entire garden was very content).
In contrast, when I was in Costa Rica, and parts of Ecuador, and especially Belize, I noticed that in places where green iguanas should have been very abundant, it was difficult, and rare, to see even one. The occasional adult I did see was small and pathetic looking, i.e. probably not the best harbinger of great genes for the species. This was due in part to hunting, but to a much greater extent - now - due to the pet export trade. Even the "breeders" who are natives and that sell iguanas "bred in captivity" in their native countries are usually not forthcomingal; they are typically "bred" from eggs, or offspring, taken from the wild. One would think that iguanas being so abundant, they would do OK with some hunting/export pressures. But the pressure is too high. So what happens to populations of species already less extensive than, say, green iguanas? The sights I have witnessed at black markets - and even legal ones - are enough to make you really angry.
Herps are particularly easy to export illegally, because their the feeding/water requirements allow them to be easily hidden. Still, when I researched this issue, TRAFFIC reports and others mentioned staggering numbers of mortalities of lizards, snakes, and torts from exportation. Often only 10% of the baby green iguanas survive the trip, many die in transit or within a week of arriving. Most people who buy iguanas probably don't know that baby greens need to eat the poop of their parents - they do this for at least a week after hatching - to get the necessary bacteria they need to digest their food; no wonder so many pet babies get sick. I got to observe a lot of wild green iguana behavior where I lived, and I saw firsthand the difference in health of wild baby greenies left alone to grow, and others raised (from stolen eggs) in captivity without their parents - a huge difference, many babies died even before they were exported.
I have tried to find a pet store in my area that only sells animals bred in captivity, and I have discovered that this is impossible to find. This is one big reason why I support buying from breeders, instead of pet stores, whenever possible. I couldn't believe that I was seeing shops where the employees BRAGGED that their chameleons were "straight from Madagascar", or how recently their greenies arrived from Columbia, etc.!
- In Columbia, they have one of the worst practices - b/ it can be tedious to dig out iguana eggs, they catch the females when they're diging and soon to lay, cut them open, take out the eggs - to incubate or eat, depending - and then just let the iguana loose, to die slowly. GRRRR.
So, all this is basically a reminder to be very discerning about who you pay for your pets. Besides, a lot of animals that have made the trip, as imports, are not healthy by the time they are sold. Please, buy ONLY animals bred in captivity, no matter what the species, no matter how much you may want that animal as a pet - no pet is worth endangering the population of the species, and goodness knows in today's world there are ALREADY enough pressures already on wildlife: development, poaching, pollution, etc...Even if you can't resist a pet store that offers wild caught animals, at least do not purchase those animals, since doing so would promote the decline of their populations in the wild.
thanks for letting me rant - especially as a newcomer!
I'll shut up now.
Renee
