I agree, Ray, but that's not what we're talking about. Politicians should stay
out of it, but politicians ultimately run USFWS and NMFS because they are
government agencies that receive tax dollars. I think it was Rep. Sonny Callahan
(R-AL) who threatened to cut USFWS funding because USFWS' biologists want to
list the Alabama sturgeon as endangered. So what does USFWS director Jamie
Rappaport Clark do? She caves in a little and sucks up to save what precious few
dollars USFWS gets for OTHER endangered species.
> But then you turn
>around and read that a { fish} has been listed since 1979 and nothing has
>been done to see if it even has made a come back other than " dont touch, or
>your in trouble".
Ray, they're just covering their ass. And yours. If you intentionally seek and
catch an endangered fish, even just to look at it, without the proper permit,
then you are guilty of "take" -- which includeshandling the fish in any way.
And, unfortunately, it's easier for them and less paperwork to say "No" rather
than "Yes, help yourself."
> I am sure most NANFA and other collectors would be happy
>to report species sightings. Here is a untapped volunteer unit doing feild
>surveys all the time.
You bet! And one of the requirements of my SCP in MD is that I do just that.
> But when ( I have) someone contacts these people they
>here, " you don't know what you saw", or " so , we dont have time for
>that".
>Why not grant a collector " immunity" to bring
>some of these fish ( or whatever) to a local office so they can be verified
>by a biologists.
If a fish is collected legally, then just about any natural history collection
would love to receive it as a voucher specimen. Remeber, conservation and
DNR-types are not always the ones doing the biodivesity surveys. Universities
and natural history museums are. Have you tried contacting any of them? In fact,
a major ichthyological curation center is in WS at the Milwaukee Public Museum.
Contact them. Volunteer.
>Instead priveleges are eroded along with rights to suit politically correct
>agendas , and those that get politicians votes.
What privileges? What rights? The "right" to collect any fish you want? Please
explain.
Chris Scharpf
Baltimore
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