A face only a Governor could love

By Brendan McLaughlin

The idea of making a living from harvesting the bounty of field and stream has powerful appeal. Who wouldn't want to make a living gathering exotic mushrooms or fiddlehead ferns  from the  primordial forest? But when I heard the reports of  thousands of fresh-water turtles being scooped out of Florida ponds and taken by the truckload to TIA for shipment overseas, I knew the gig was up.

Environmentalists testified this week that the harvest is harmful while the trappers argued that they're not even putting a dent in the population.  The problem is that there are no studies to indicate how many turtles can be taken from the wild  without endangering the species or other species dependent on the turtles.With that uncertainty, our Governor decided to err on the side of the amphibians and urge a total ban on turtle collection.

Freshwater turtles are found around the world, so the fact that the Chinese are willing to pay a premium for imported Florida varieties suggest they've decimated their own turtle populations.  Texas has already banned turtle hunting which is one reason so many people are now doing it in Florida.

Governor Crist seemed to realize that there's a intrinsic unfairness in taking wild plants or animals from public land and waterways for profit.  All those fish and ferns belong to me too.   If you want to grow soft-shelled turtles or even manatees in your own backyard pond, that's your business. But I want my critters to stay right where they are.