Damage To Wild Populations

[guidofatherof5]

It has been awhile since I've looked through the classified section of kingsnake.com
Since I linked it for a forum member I decided to check it out.
I found an ad titled "Plains Garter Snake wild caught juveniles and adults"
Here's the pricing:
$12.00 each 3/$11.00 each 6/$10.00 each 12/$9.00 each

$9.00 for 12 snakes. Not much value there.

I don't know but I can imagine how he obtains these snakes. He probably buys them by the bucket full from kids in the neighborhood.
I didn't post this to trash the person selling the snakes but to draw attention to the possible damage being done to wild populations.
If he's selling snakes this cheap the only way he's going to make any money is to sell large numbers. This in turn hurt those wild populations even more.
I personally feel this is terrible.
Sorry, I just had to vent.

[RedSidedSPR]

I've seen stuff like that. Especially with green snakes, and garters. It sucks

[Didymus20X6]

Maybe he lives close to that garter snake house that was on the news.

[RedSidedSPR]

Funny. (except those were wanderings)

[drache]

I didn't post this to trash the person selling the snakes but to draw attention to the possible damage being done to wild populations.
If he's selling snakes this cheap the only way he's going to make any money is to sell large numbers. This in turn hurt those wild populations even more.
I personally feel this is terrible.
Sorry, I just had to vent.

what's worse is that at that price they probably end up as king snake feeders
at the thought of that I feel so deflated that there's not much venting left in me

[guidofatherof5]

what's worse is that at that price they probably end up as king snake feeders
at the thought of that I feel so deflated that there's not much venting left in me

I never thought that they might be sold as food. Now I'm at another level of angry.
I can't imagine some poor T. radix being used as food or any snake for that matter.
I know it's done. I just don't like it.

[d_virginiana]

They do it with water snakes as well. I've seen several ads for wc water snakes under $5 a piece specifically being sold as feeders!
I really have a problem with ppl selling wc animals... I mean, I know some people find really great specimens in the wild and want to breed them, and I don't really mind that but I don't like it when the primary animals sold are wc and not cb.

[guidofatherof5]

Doing a little more investigation(force of habit). I've found out that the seller(she) is out of Florida.
T. radix doesn't range into Florida.
So she's got contacts in their natural range who are raiding populations.
I'm not sure how else to word it. I know she has a business but once again it looks like money is the only driving force.

[snakehill]

I've seen that ad on kingsnake.com Is there anything we can do about this?

[RedSidedSPR]

I never thought that they might be sold as food. Now I'm at another level of angry.
I can't imagine some poor T. radix being used as food or any snake for that matter.
I know it's done. I just don't like it.

Doing a little more investigation(force of habit). I've found out that the seller(she) is out of Florida.
T. radix doesn't range into Florida.
So she's got contacts in their natural range who are raiding populations.
I'm not sure how else to word it. I know she has a business but once again it looks like money is the only driving force.

What i was gonna say, i can't say. 'Cause there are mods on this forum.

But yes. They sell snakes as food all the time. Banded water snakes, green snakes, I've seen LOTS of "food".