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PENSACOLA NEWS JOURNAL (Florida) 05 August 08 100-pound turtle's fate in limbo - Jay family debating whether to kill or keep their controversial catch (Carmen Paige)
Some people are outraged by a Jay family's capture of an estimated 100-pound alligator snapping turtle last weekend on the Escambia River and a comment that they might eventually kill it.
Richard Mast of Pensacola said he and friends believe its treatment is "totally outrageous."
"The turtle needs to be released into its natural habitat," he said.
The Wildlife Sanctuary of Northwest Florida received 10 to 15 calls Monday morning, director Dorothy Kaufmann said.
"Wildlife should not be pets," she said. "If someone is going to kill something, it's best if it's a game animal. We are not into trophy situations."
Karen Brewton of Milton offered to buy the turtle.
"I would like to set it free," she said. "It's beautiful."
Jerry Phillips, 53, and his son, Glen, 15, caught the turtle and are debating what to do with it.
"We've got him pinned up in the water in a johnboat," Jerry Phillips said. "I plan to keep this turtle alive."
Glen said he wants to build a sanctuary for the turtle but doesn't have enough money.
"I do want to keep him alive, and if I get some help, I will," he said. "But I am not going to release him or (donate) him."
Glen said he will probably end up destroying the turtle for which they have had offers to trade or sell.
"I'll kill him and eat him and take him to the taxidermy and have his whole body mounted," he said.
Glen said the turtle, which he named Goliath, is OK for now.
"He's not suffering," he said. "We're taking good care of him."
Under Florida law, residents are allowed to have one alligator snapping turtle, said Lt. Stan Kirkland, regional public information coordinator for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
It is not endangered or threatened but is on the state's Species of Special Concern list.
"It is not illegal under Florida law to possess one at a time, and you can reduce it to a food item," he said. "We are not going to criticize the family for doing that."
Kirkland said the turtles cannot be sold. A fishing license is needed to capture the turtles but is not required for people under age 16, said Paul Moler, a retired biologist with the commission.
Moler said the turtles are not often seen.
"I don't consider them rare necessarily, just secretive," he said.
100-pound turtle's fate in limbo

PENSACOLA NEWS JOURNAL (Florida) 08 August 08 Snapping turtle sent to be stuffed (Sean Dugas)
A 100-pound alligator snapping turtle whose fate stirred controversy among area residents has been sent to a taxidermist in Milton.
Gary Phillips, 30, whose younger brother Glen Phillips caught the animal he named "Goliath," confirmed Thursday that the alligator snapping turtle was delivered earlier this week.
Phillips said the taxidermist will save the meat for the Jay family. He defended his family's right to use the animal for food.
"We're from the woods, and we live off the land. A lot of people are making a big deal about this, but you've got to eat," Phillips said. "I wish people could understand how it is to live out here.
"There's not a Circle K or a McDonald's you can run to."
The turtle's capture sparked debate over whether the Jay family should free the turtle, keep it as a pet or consume it.
The uproar over Goliath's fate began after the News Journal published a story and photos of the turtle in Sunday's newspaper. In the following days, forums at pnj.com were inundated with comments, and the paper fielded a number of phone calls from residents concerned about Goliath.
Stan Kirkland, spokesman with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, said his office received dozens of calls about Goliath.
"One caller offered to pay the family to release the turtle," he said. "The offer was $500, if they released it back into the river. No questions asked."
Florida law allows a family to keep one alligator snapping turtle. There is no state law that prevents the family from killing and eating the turtle.
"We had very passionate people call who felt sorry for the turtle and wanted it saved," Kirkland said. "We don't have authority to take the turtle because they took it legally. We did issue (the family) a warning (Tuesday) because they kept the turtle alive in an aluminum johnboat."
State law says the turtle's enclosure must be at least five times the length of the shell and two times the width of the shell to meet state requirements. The animal also must have a pool large enough to allow it to submerge.
Alligator snapping turtles became a federally listed species in 1978, but the animal is not endangered or threatened and their numbers are not declining, Kirkland said.
The species was put on the list to denote that there is not much known about the animal, he said.
Gary Phillips, who lives in Brewton, Ala., said it's no different from hunting deer or catching catfish. He also said that there isn't much wasted when a turtle is used for food. The only unused parts are the head and claws.
"A turtle that size would probably feed them a good while," Phillips said, speaking of his father, Jerry, and two younger brothers, who live at the family's Jay home. "You could eat on a turtle half that size all week and have some left."
Catching and eating turtles has been a Phillips family tradition for generations, he said.
"My granny used to catch and eat gopher tortoises to survive, but it's illegal now," Phillips said. "We usually just fry it up with flour, salt and pepper. And you can make gravy from the shell."
Melissa Harrill, 35, has lived in Milton for 30 years and said her husband also grew up eating turtle soup with his grandmother. But Harrill doubts that the Phillips needed to kill "Goliath" for food.
"If they were hungry, you'd think they could have found something else to eat," she said. "You can buy chicken that tastes better than turtle."
www.pnj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080808/NEWS01/808080348/1006/NEWS01

PENSACOLA NEWS JOURNAL (Florida) 07 August 08 Turtle's captors told to build cage - Family can't keep 'Goliath' in boat, state says (Adam Ziglar)
Photo at URL below: Glen Phillips, 15, shows off Goliath the alligator snapping turtle, which Glen and his family have kept in a boat filled with water in the yard of their Jay home. (Emily Garber)
The family who caught a 100-pound alligator snapping turtle and named it Goliath is in violation of state turtle caging requirements.
Last weekend, Jay residents Jerry Phillips and his son, Glen, caught a large turtle on the Escambia River. It has been kept in a shallow pool of water in a johnboat, which is a violation of the state's turtle caging requirement, officials say.
Officers with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission visited the family on Tuesday and served a written warning about the caging requirement. They told the family they have two to three days to comply or they must release the turtle.
"Keeping a turtle in a boat is not adequate," said FWC spokesman Lt. Stan Kirkland. "That clearly didn't meet the rule for caging requirements."
According to state law, turtle enclosures must include a pool of water large enough to allow the turtle to submerge. The caged area must also be at least five times the length of the shell and two times the width of the shell. The pool can't be less than two times the width of the shell and two times the length.
Glen Phillips estimated that Goliath weighs about 100 pounds. Its body is 22 inches wide and 23 inches long. The turtle's head measures 8½ inches long and it has a 22-inch tail, Glen said.
Kirkland said officers would return to the Phillips' residence, but he couldn't confirm when. If the caging requirements still haven't been met, officers could seize the turtle or choose to give them more time to comply, Kirkland said.
"In an officer's estimation, if they're making progress in meeting the caging requirements, the officer could certainly give them more latitude," he said.
Jerry Phillips could not be reached Wednesday.
Phillips, 53, told a reporter Monday that he planned to keep the turtle. Phillips' son, Glen, said the family may eat it.
Under Florida law, residents are allowed to have one alligator snapping turtle, Kirkland said. Kirkland also spoke to the family on Tuesday.
"They didn't indicate what they were going to do with the turtle," he said.
The catch has upset many who say the turtle should be set free.
The FWC received nearly two dozen calls from area residents at its offices in Panama City and Pensacola, Kirkland said.
Someone even complained about the turtle's capture on Craigslist, a online community with job listings, want ads and message boards.
Navarre resident and nature photographer Kenny Wilder said the turtle, because of its size, should be released.
"It would be nice for the father and son to let this one go back," he said. "Since it's so big, just give it some freedom."
Phillips' plans are not clear.
"They said they had seen some of the nasty things on the Internet about the turtle's treatment, and their family," said FWC biologist John Himes. "They had made a decision about what to do but wouldn't tell the officers."
www.pnj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080807/NEWS01/808070323/1006

SANTA ROSA PRESS GAZETTE (Milton, Florida) 09 August 08 Editorial: Larger than life
There is no joy in Mudville today.
Why?
We have learned of the demise of a life which has seen a lot of history.
The turtle caught by a family in Berrydale is gone. Family members decided the attention they were getting was just too much and ended it all.
“Goliath,” as he came to be known, was a 101-pound turtle that got a lot of attention. Unfortunately, not all of it was good.
Here at the paper, some staff members are avid hunters and fishermen, but they agree there is a base line that everyone must draw.
It is understood that some people will hunt and fish for food.
Thus comes the adage, "give a man a fish you feed him for a day, teach him to fish and you feed him for a lifetime."
This is where the rub develops.
The family had stated it would eat the turtle for food due to limited income.
Granted, that’s the good part, the turtle didn’t go to waste, but it is time we ask ourselves a question.
This alligator snapping turtle had lived a long existence.
At 100 years of age, Goliath lived through William H. Taft being elected President of the United States, following Teddy Roosevelt.
Some other things which took place during his life:
The first ‘ball drop” occurred in Times Square to signify the beginning of a New Year.
The Grand Canyon National Monument was designated.
The Boy Scout movement started.
The first long-distance radio message was sent from the Eiffel Tower.
Mothers Day was observed for the very first time.
The first Model-T Ford was produced.
The first airplane was flown.
The Chicago Cubs won the World Series.
The Bureau of Investigations, which later became the FBI, was founded.
Buddy Ebsen and Bette Davis were born.
The NAACP was founded.
The Hudson Motor Company was founded.
And, when Goliath first chipped out of his egg, there were only 46 states in the Union.
This is just scratching the surface off all the history represented by this turtle’s life.
When someone gets old, we honor him or her, but this animal was not honored.
The only ceremony that will be held in Goliath’s honor is when he returns from the taxidermist and is hung upon the wall, or placed somewhere to collect dust.
Events like this give those who hunt and fish a bad name.
Avid outdoors people realize the older an animal gets, the tougher the meat.
It would be hard to see any animal older than 100 as something delectable.
So, if not for food, was the animal to be sold? Or returned to his freedom if the right price was paid?
That almost reminds us of the days when terrorists would hijack an aircraft and demand to be flown to Beirut, Damascus, or even Cuba.
Indeed, demanding money for Goliath’s freedom would have been akin to holding its life hostage.
Goliath earned the right to live by making it through everything the world could throw at it.
The turtle deserved something it didn’t get: respect.
Goliath lived a long life and should have been allowed to live it out as long as he could.
We understand there are hunters and those who enjoy the sport and use the meat.
But some things in the outdoors should be respected.
“Goliath”, you deserved much better than the fate life handed you.
Editorial: Larger than life

Lets stuff their grandfather and hang him on the wall. I bet he's old too!!!! I cant believe someone, somewhere, wasnt able to stop that from happening. I say we nueter and spay the whole family so they cant reproduce anymore runts.

with the $500 offered to realease the turtle they could have bought more than enough food than the turtles could have provided in meat. to kill somthing that old is just wrong, who ever took it to the taxidermist to be killed is a complete asshole. just my thoughts
Bob

ABSOLUTELY SICKENING!!!

So did these dirty inbreds had Goliath stuffed??????!!!!!!!!!!!
If so, this is horrible!!!!!!!