Poachers get thiers

[ConcinusMan]

Yeah. I'm sure. At least I was pretty darn sure when the law came calling when I lived in San Diego. The county rules are much more strict than state. County: no native herps. Period. And they're a-holes about it too. I had to go to court and prove my CA king was acquired out of state, in WA, legally, and that it was CB. (That didn't keep me from keeping WC kings and gophers after I was off the radar though)

But yeah, zonatas are off limits for obvious reasons. Many native CA garters are in peril. the only one that can be found in SD county is checkered garters. Again, very limited and imperiled east county population. Pet stores there had eastern ribbon snakes though!. I know. not the same.

San Diego wildlife guys were very clear and forthcoming with the laws. Since I had just moved to san diego, I was naive. they made darn sure I understood. NO native herps. I explained that the kingsnake I had was purchased CB in WA state and that I was only in SD temporarily. (4 years. it's a navy thing). They weren't very sympathetic. I think it's 'cause they didn't believe me, since kings just like mine could be found right outside my door, in the wild. Anyway, like I said, I had to go to court. After that, I was allowed ONE black and white banded CA king, legally. It didn't matter to them, that CA kings were as common as garters are in WA.

No collecting at all was allowed without a special educational/whatever permit. This is the home of the famous San Diego zoo, ya know. Also, no keeping native herps without a permit, no matter where they came from. I had to fight for my permit to keep ONE CA king. Private citizens generally don't get a permit. In reality, I learned from the experience and ended up keeping numerous wild-caught kings, gophers, and even a rosey boa. I just had to be extra careful so that nobody knew! I always returned my WC snakes to the wild eventually. Funny though. The San Diego Zoo, and the law, didn't mind at all when my brother produced a two headed kingsnake, WC in San Diego, got pictures in the newspaper, and even sold the snake to the zoo.

Anyway... flash forward. Now I'm back in WA, and for most of the years since I've been back, I had that one encounter with the law. they let me keep my garters in spite of it technically being against the law. Took my rubber boa, but that is understandable. WA wildlife law enforcement were not near as forthcoming, and it's very difficult to find the right laws if you look it up on your own. Their focus is on game animals and fish.