Wildlife conservation issues

[Stefan-A]

You know Charles, I see where you are coming from now, unfortunately habitat distruction is the biggest threat to populations of wildlife.

As a side note, harvesting/gathering is the second biggest threat to reptiles and amphibians here in Europe. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if the same was true over there.

[Jeff B]

It may be true that collecting is the second biggest threat, but making laws to stop collecting but none to curb developement of habitat, is kind of like saying that if I live in a neighborhood where bullets are the biggest threat to my life, arrows are the second biggest threat, as long as I have a wooden shield that deflects arrows I will be safe.
Sorry for the analogy its the best I could come up with, but you get my point.
Furthermore when laws are made that prevent captive breeding, then it's like there is no escape "plan B" either.

[Stefan-A]

It may be true that collecting is the second biggest threat, but making laws to stop collecting but none to curb developement of habitat, is kind of like saying that if I live in a neighborhood where bullets are the biggest threat to my life, arrows are the second biggest threat, as long as I have a wooden shield that deflects arrows I will be safe.
Sorry for the analogy its the best I could come up with, but you get my point.
Furthermore when laws are made that prevent captive breeding, then it's like there is no escape "plan B" either.

I get your point, but the inability to eliminate one threat, doesn't diminish the importance of countering others. Quite the opposite.

[charles parenteau]

I agree Stephan!!! That why I keep protecting species ,Im maybe look like the guy who pick up many garter from the wild and sell on the market ,but I don't .In fact I know what Im doing and from my part I cant see what ive done is not so bad..I will see in the futur .

I read in the Journal or Montreal about the decline of reptiles and Amphibien in all Europe continent and its said that 55/100 of all species was gone and the last 45/100 is on jeopardy.Its hard to beleive ,this is the truth!

My passion for garter snake is one thing,I m doing inventory of reptiles and amphibiens of Quebec province on my spare time,Im completing my data by now.I spend so much time in the field that make me more protective,I teach people to respect wildlife and habitat.
IM doing the opposite while taking garter snake from the wild I know but the existence of garter snake population dont lie only on few adults snake but on many little things!I ensure thoses littles things ,I do wrong but all the rest ensure the survival of the species!!!my english this morning???hard.

[Stefan-A]

I read in the Journal or Montreal about the decline of reptiles and Amphibien in all Europe continent and its said that 55/100 of all species was gone and the last 45/100 is on jeopardy.Its hard to beleive ,this is the truth!

Sounds suspicious.

These are from the recently published IUCN Red Lists for amphibians and reptiles:

[charles parenteau]

TAnks for the In fo Stefan-A ,I went on IUCN web site very clear lot of infortmations.

[Jeff B]

Stephen, don't get me wrong, I agree with you that both are important, and that overcollection of reptiles and amphibians needs to stop, period, and overcollection for food, profit, or otherwise, is just raping the land resources and I do not condone that behaviour. That is why it is best not to buy wild caught animals and support captive breeders, if there is no money in overcollecting, most of those people don't do it just for fun they do it for the money.
However taking in a few animals to captive breed and try to boost a local population, might be the only hope to maintain it? if its' habitat is being destroyed and it is a very small localized population? Even professional and governmental biologists do this.
The thing is, we can easily minimize the biggest treat. We can make a collective and conscious effort as an intelligent species to stop overpopulating the planet, however this is a heated topic that most would rather ignore . But even if we can't seem to accomplish that, we can also make an effort to stop detroying ecosystems by how, where, and when we devolope and how we dispose of our waste, and decrease our waste. If you have ever taken a microbiology class you are probably familiar with events that occur within a petri dish. The planet isn't infinate, it's just a great big petri dish and overpopulation of our species will cause the same end result.
The data charts really get the point accross the issues that we face as reptile and amphibian lovers, because most people really don't care if all reptiles and amphibians, especially snakes would all just simply disappear unfortunately. Thanks for sharing.

[Stefan-A]

However taking in a few animals to captive breed and try to boost a local population, might be the only hope to maintain it? if its' habitat is being destroyed and it is a very small localized population? Even professional and governmental biologists do this.

If it's habitat destruction, then there is no point in trying to boost the population, as the population is already presumably as large as the habitat is able to support. However, if gathering, killing or a similar activity is threatening to reduce the density of the population to the point where animals are having trouble finding mates, then it may well be a way to counter the effects. In any other case, increasing the population does nothing at all to help. Quite the opposite, a sudden influx of individuals would reduce the available prey (which is presumably also dependent on the habitat that's being destroyed), for example, which would be disastrous for both the species you are trying to protect and the prey species. I couldn't even endorse boosting the prey populations alone for the exact same reason. If habitat destruction continues, then the population would be doomed no matter how many are bred and released. If it's a combination, like in the case where habitat destruction is the biggest threat and gathering the second biggest, then prohibiting or limiting gathering is a way to buy time until proper measures can be taken to protect and restore the habitat. Yeah, they do head-starting projects when it's an appropriate solution, but I'm very skeptical about doing it privately, especially without guidance from professionals. If you know of such a project, by all means, support it. That's something I can endorse.

The thing is, we can easily minimize the biggest treat. We can make a collective and conscious effort as an intelligent species to stop overpopulating the planet, however this is a heated topic that most would rather ignore . But even if we can't seem to accomplish that, we can also make an effort to stop detroying ecosystems by how, where, and when we devolope and how we dispose of our waste, and decrease our waste. If you have ever taken a microbiology class you are probably familiar with events that occur within a petri dish. The planet isn't infinate, it's just a great big petri dish and overpopulation of our species will cause the same end result.
The data charts really get the point accross the issues that we face as reptile and amphibian lovers, because most people really don't care if all reptiles and amphibians, especially snakes would all just simply disappear unfortunately. Thanks for sharing.

I agree (I have in fact taken microbiology courses, although the emphasis was on public health), but with all the people involved and all the different interests, it does seem futile.

[Stefan-A]

I think it's time this subject got a thread of its own.

[Jeff B]

Yes, this is not flame genetics.
I agree that if the habitat is destroyed no amount of animals put back in it will help. But I think what Charles is doing is relocating from habitat that is being destroyed to very nearby habitat that is not, closely relocating and keeping an unusual isolated population going? Similar to what they are doing with diamondback terrapins and sea turtles?