Florida state law issues

Originally Posted by WebSlave

So, where is the SPCA (or all the other animal hugging associations) when it comes to issues related to reptiles? Can you imagine the uproar if this was some jack booted thugs killing cats or dogs and obviously enjoying their handiwork?

Honestly had that been my facility with those goons killing my animals, there might not have been just reptile blood on that floor. Just looking at that SOB smiling while standing over his handiwork makes my blood boil. I would NOT and WILL not recognize anyone's authority, no matter who it is granted by, to kill my animals or damage my property in any way. Destruction of private property does not become permissible just because someone is wearing a tin badge while engaging in that activity.

What the hell has gone bat sh!t crazy mentally defective in LEO agents these days? People think that just because they get a badge pinned to their chest that they have become some kind of godlings able to just trample over people's rights at will?

BTW, I remember when I retired my SerpenCo business. FWC came swooping in here, I guess thinking the reason I was getting out of the business was because I had some banned species and they wanted to catch me with them before I could get rid of them. Sure was a disappointing day for them when all they found were my corn snakes. I am surprised some idiot didn't try to claim they were pygmy versions of pythons or some such nonsense they can dream up just to be able to write up a factless citation.

And all the above is IMHO.

These are not wildlife agents or game wardens anymore just bad cops. And these scumbags want to come into peoples homes and inspect their childrens pet cornsnake enclosure. THAT IS THE PLAN AS OF KNOW. However this media attention might make them change their plans

FWC listing the FL reef gecko.

https://myfwc.com/media/40djhgfu/5b-...areefgecko.pdf

https://myfwc.com/media/1f0dssnz/5b-...areefgecko.pdf

From USARK FL:
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid...25880469688073

FWC Commissioners have voted to make the Reef Gecko (Sphaerodactylus notatus notatus) a Candidate Species for state listing. This was a final rule vote that was not preceeded by a draft rule vote and period for public input. As of the May 1 vote, legal wild collection was immediately ended with no due process or assessment of economic impact by FWC. FWC did not reach out to USARK FL to assess the impact that listing or making this a candidate species for listing would have on industry.

In 2019, Stephanie Clements and Christopher Searcy of University of Miami requested a biological status review by FWC to consider the Reef gecko for state listing. "New scientific evidence indicates that this species may in fact be declining across South Florida, and faces threats from habitat loss and climate change," said Clement and Searcy.

Unfortunately, no protection of habitat is inherent to protections for state listed species, as evidenced by the rampant destruction of State Threatened Florida pine snake habitat. As with most state listed species, there is no prescribed survey requirement or relocation procedure.

Based on previous precedent, state listing would likely result in banning keeping and breeding of this species. As with other listed herp species, state listing of the Reef Gecko is unlikely to lead to significant habitat protections.

The account on the Reef Gecko in the book "Amphibians and Reptiles of Florida," co-authored by Dr. Kenney Krysko, retired FWC herp biologist Paul Moler, and current FWC herp biologist Kevin Enge, considers this species to be nonnative in Florida. State listing of a nonnative species as "Threatened" would be an unprecedented step for FWC.

Here's probably the paper that underpins this move:

Clements, Stephanie & Powell, Emily & Mothes, Caitlin & Searcy, Christopher. (2021). Assessing the conservation risk of Sphaerodactylus notatus, the U.S. herpetofaunal species most vulnerable to sea level rise. Biodiversity and Conservation. 30. 10.1007/s10531-020-02080-9.

Meshaka et al, in "Exotic Amphibians and Reptiles of the United States" (2022), consider Sphaerodactylus notatus to be native to Florida.

Apparently there is genetic data to suggest that the invasive hypothesis (that the species entered the US through shipping to Key West around the early-middle 19th century) is not correct: " The U.S. reptile most at risk from rising seas is one you likely haven’t heard of.

The book "Amphibians and Reptiles of Florida" was published in 2019, and should not be expected to take precedence over newer data. The implication (by USARK; not the report of this implication in this thread) that this text would be authoritative seems disingenuous.

None of what I point out here is supposed to mean that I think listing it would be a net benefit, of course.