YES they are doing it!! (the FL laws for large snakes)

[ADEE]

Reptiles of Concern
Reptiles of Concern (ROCs) are nonnative reptile species that have the potential to become established in Florida and can threaten native wildlife, cause economic damage or pose a threat to human safety. Rules for Reptiles of Concern (ROCs) go into effect on January 1, 2008. ROCs require a $100 annual permit for personal possession, and any ROC that is 2 inches or greater in diameter must be permanently identified by a microchip (also called a PIT tag). Microchips can be implanted by local veterinarians who work with nonnative species. Any person who possesses an ROC that is 2 inches or greater in diameter before January 1, 2008 will have until July 1, 2008 to get their animal microchipped. Any ROC greater than 2 inches in diameter purchased after January 1, 2008 will need to be microchipped immediately. The following are the Reptiles of Concern:

Burmese python (Python molurus)
African rock python (Python sebae)
Amethystine python (Morelia amethystinus)
Reticulated python (Python reticulatus)
Green anaconda (Eunectes murinus)
Nile monitor (Varanus niloticus)

http://myfwc.com/nonnatives/RuleRegs.html
awesome!! im in such support of this law, i have always thought "how can they enforce the law if theres no way to know where the animal came from" woo hoo... while it is annoying to have to obtain a permit im glad they are doing something!

[jdmls88]

this is for fl only??

[ADEE]

this is for fl only??

im not sure.. i just know its found on the myflorida website. i would imagine there are other states that have similar laws but florida takes alot of heat for irrisponsible reptile owners letting their snakes go in the everglades.

Venomous reptiles require a permit for personal possession. Cost of the permit is $100 per year. Owners of venomous reptiles must be at least 18 years of age, must not have been convicted of violating venomous reptile regulations for 3 years prior to their permit application and demonstrate no less than 1 year of experience (no less than 1000 hours) in the husbandry of the species they plan to own or similar species within the same biological family. Documented experience in zoology or other relevant biological sciences at the college or technical school level or above may substitute for 6 months (or 500 hours) of the required experience. Exhibitors of venomous reptiles must also post a $10,000 bond, effective July 1, 2007.

holy smokes.. did you read that! Im just glad there are strict rules in place even if it is annoying.

[LadyOhh]

this is for fl only??

For now, yes.

[Brimstone111888]

FL is one of the only places where those species can live. I agree with the legislation on this. It will lower the number of idiots buying big snakes.

[elevatethis]

I think that some amount of regulation is appropriate in areas like South Florida where these species can affect native ecosystems.

However, I don't know how they are going to enforce this.

If Joe Blow is the kind of guy who would dump a snake in the Everglades, why then would he comply with this law, microchip the animal, and then release it into the Everglades for it to be possibly caught by a USFW official, and tracked back to him?

You are basically setting up a scenario where officials will need to be paid to collect invasive animals, scam them to see if they are chipped, and then go after the owners that dumped them, assuming that owner even microchipped it to begin with or sold it to someone else who them dumped the animal.

IMHO, I think that the regulation shouldn't only take place on the consumer level, but also on the people who SELL them. I'll go back to the exotic cat analogy...there are people that breed exotic cats like servals, bobcats, etc, and can not legally sell them to someone who doesn't also have a permit. It varies from state to state but most require you to gain some practical experience with a licensed keeper, and demonstrate you have adequate facilities to house the animals, before you yourself can obtain one of those species. This process alone weeds out a TON of idiots who probably would have obtained these animals if there wasn't any red tape.

I don't think it should be any different with the species on the ROC list. Logistically, local governments could integrate these species in the processes they already have in place for other regulated wild animals. It would be much easier and cost-effective to enforce.

[Argentra]

Ah wonderful! Now I just hope this trumps the proposed ban on ALL python species.

[LadyOhh]

FL is one of the only places where those species can live.

That's not true. There is a USA Today article out now that is discussing that.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/...-pythons_N.htm

It may not be completely true to fact, but Florida is not the really the only place where they can live. I know you said ONE of the only places, but any state that has no extreme low temps can harbor the ROC list.

[GirDance]

For the most part I agree with the first the part of elevatethis's post, that the permits are going to do pretty much nothing for the people who caused the invasion issue in the first place. However, personally, I think it's a load of *&%$ and that alot of the 'cheers' for this are just stages of initial relief that all species haven't been banned completely. 1, 2 or even 5 years down the road they are going to look at this, realize that it's done nothing to solve the underlying issue and then use that to justify stricter and broader laws regarding the issue. This all under the process of law making and is a political trick on the public used to gain acceptance. They pass a small statute and if that works, they use it to justify passing a more official law, if it doesn't work they use it to justify passing an even stricter law because obviously in the statute phase the problem wasn't affected.

Frankly the 10,000$ bond for exhibition of venemous animals is absolute garbage. It's going to prevent responsible keepers from promoting education and awareness about these species to the general public - who on earth can afford to raise and then toss away that much money for a little while (even if they do get it back) just to educate the public? Not many people, and certainly (I'd like to venture) most of the people in the hobby don't have that much money to just toss around. The fact someone does have that much money to post the bond says nothing for their keeping abilities, understanding of the animal or educational facilities either.

[MarkS]

I would think that any state where the temp can drop down below freezing, even for only short periods of time, would kill off any feral burms. Even Florida can have cold snaps where the temps drop below freezing.