Reptile & Amphibian Forums

The following was forwarded to me by Fred Bruckman and Lisa McCune. Please read and do what you can to show your support of nonagreement/disaproval to these proposals. The proposal affects EVERY Pa native species and their SUBSPECIES.

We need everyone’s help!

The PA Fish and Boat Commission will be presented with a proposed
rulemaking at their meeting on Tues April 26^th . The meeting starts at
8AM at the Pa Fish and Boat headquarters building in Harrisburg. It will
be held in the Susquehanna Room. Please try to attend.

This proposal will:

-Ban the importation and sale of every color morph and every subspecies
of native PA species! There is no question about the inclusion of
subspecies in the prohibition.

No Lampropeltis getula - Eastern, California, & Florida kings, etc.
No Lampropeltis triangulum - Eastern, Sinaloan, & Honduran milksnakes, etc.
No Elaphe obsoleta (Pantherophis alleganiensis) - black, yellow, &
everglades ratsnakes, etc.
No Thamnophis sirtalis - Eastern, redsided, redspotted, flame, &
melanistic garter snakes, etc.
No Terrapene carolina - eastern, Gulf, three-toed, or Florida, etc.
No common snappers - Chelydra serpentina
No painted turtles - Chrysemys picta
No Apalone spinifera - Eastern spiny softshell turtle and other
species/subspecies etc. etc.

They set a limit of one per species, but they don't make provisions for
what will happen to the snakes that are "over limit" - confiscated,
euthanized - don't know! Or what will happen to the owner, for that
matter - fines?

-Make you guilty of a crime until you prove your innocence if you carry
tongs or a hook in the woods outside the six weeks of rattlesnake
season. Ridiculous.

-Lower the native reptile possession limit from 2 to 1 with NO
scientific support for this action.

-Require a $50 /year permit to capture a Northern Copperhead though they
admit there is no scientific evidence that collecting is affecting the
population. This proposal appears to me to be prompted by the desire to
prevent us from carrying hooks and tongs in the woods outside of the
rattlesnake season. I am in favor of the other conservation measures for
timbers, but think law enforcement ought to be able to catch illegal
hunters with snakes in the bag not assume that I am guilty of hunting
timbers because I’m carrying a snakehook or tongs for use in positioning
non-venomous snakes for photographs.

-There is more some very GOOD, some very bad.
If we as citizens let this kind of regulation take effect eventually it
will result in these folks making a regs that ban the keeping of
reptiles completely because that's the way they THINK it should be. We
must insist on scientific accountability or we are surrendering!

If you think this proposal is ok because it doesn’t affect what you do,
think again! It is a huge step in the direction of a total ban. If
allowed to stand it will empower government agencies and step by step
they will impose their beliefs on us without the necessity of backing
them up with scientific evidence.

With the exception of the timber rattlesnake changes, there is no
science behind any of this.

Captive breeding protects wild populations by fulfilling demand for
desirable species. Do you really think that there are still folks out
commercially collecting corn snakes or pine snakes, or cal kings? Of
course not. It is more profitable to call a large breeder and buy them
wholesale for resale than it is to collect them.

An analysis of the reptile market through the internet, shows that the
VAST majority (90+ %) of domestic reptiles for sale in the US are
CAPTIVE produced. Pa Fish and Boat does not refute this FACT. The choose
to ignore it.

This whole thing is based on a tradition in conservation agencies of
preventing commercialization. It originated early in the century when
bird feathers were in great demand for ladies hats. Feathers don't
reproduce in captivity. Reptiles do. It is apples and oranges.

For the text of the proposed reg, go to http://www.fish.state.pa.us/
then click on the Agendas/Minutes menu on the left, then below "April
25-26" click on agenda. It's a .pdf file.

PLEASE CALL:
(email if you can)

PA. Fish and Boat Executive Director Douglas Austin 717-705-7801
Go here to email -
https://www.state.pa.us/papower/cwp/view.asp?a=1093&q=438119

PA. Senate Game and Fisheries Com. Chair. Joe Conti 717-787-7305
email - jconti@pasenate.gov

PA. House Game and Fisheries Com. Chair Bruce Smith 717-783-8783
As far as I can tell Rep. Smith has no email.

If you are a PA resident please call your own state senator and
representative. You can find who they are at:

http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/find.cfm

There's a new yahoo group - PA Animal Law (PAL) - please consider
joining for updates as we get them in, posts may be a bit sparse at
first, but it's still early in the game.......

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PAAnimalLaw/

Thanks to all in advance for your help!!!

Fred Bruckman
-----
Joe Yakelis
HellFire Reptiles

I have alerted the Toledo Herp Society of the impending regualtions. Years ago we fought this issue in Ohio and won, although local and state regulations have deminished our effect(i.e. pit tags for all Ohio species). While I deplore the exploitation of native species, I more greatly deplore the "Nuclear Options" that the DNR presents us. I admonish all responsible herpers not to exploit our native fauna, but I also admonish them not to co-operate with Draconian state regulations on reptile ownership.