There is a reason some states are apprehensive of the trade and possesion of native species in their state.
A) The laws are made to protect the species from illegal collection of the state's population. The population can be significantly impacted through private collection. Collection from the native populations for commercial trade is even worse on the native population.
B) Diseases that may not be present in the wild can be present in captivity. If the captive species are introduced into the wild population then these captive diseases can be transferred into said wild population.
An off-hand example;
Alternia can be a plague to those that commercial raise American Ginseng/ Goldenseal. When someone is legally collecting roots from the wild he is urged to bleach the tools he takes into the wild. This is because Alternia can be introduced to the wild American Ginseng/Goldenseal populations from those tools the person brought with him into the wild that he uses on his captive plants.
If Alternia became widespread in the already perhaps crippled wild American Ginseng and Goldenseal populations it may indeed push those wild populations into even worse trouble than they already are in.

That is why those laws are in place. In my State if you have the proper licence that also entitles the DNR to make checks of the animals in your possesion. This is to ensure that there is no chance of illegal trade or escape of captive native species into the wild populations.

[ Hide Replies ]

• illegal pet! - Cyn79, Thu Feb 21 15:49:18 2008
• RE: illegal pet! - choppergreg74, Thu Feb 21 18:38:16 2008
• RE: illegal pet! - transpecos, Thu Feb 21 20:25:57 2008
• I agree with a lot of that! - DMong, Thu Feb 21 22:18:23 2008
• RE: illegal pet! - billysbrown, Fri Feb 22 13:25:09 2008
• RE: illegal pet! - ratsnakehaven, Sun Feb 24 08:37:19 2008