Help Texas Turtles Reach The Finish Line By August 22

Texas Spiny Softshell Turtle (Apalone spinifera emoryi). Photo Courtesy Gary M. Stolz, USFWS

 

Back in 2007, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission took the important and necessary step to prohibit the commercial collection of all freshwater turtles in Texas EXCEPT for four species.  Unfortunately, the red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta elegans), common snapping turtle (Chelydra serpentina), Florida softshell (Apalone ferox), and spiny softshell (A. spinifera) were left behind in the race to protection. That allowed for the unlimited commercial collection of these four species on private lands. At the time, the Commission left the door open for additional rulemaking to protect those species if warranted. With your help, we can now protect these four species of native Texas turtles. 

 

On August 23, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission will vote on a revision to its rules that will extend protection to the remaining four species of freshwater turtles that are currently unprotected. The Sierra Club’s Lone Star Chapter was a co-petitioner with the Center for Biological Diversity in requesting the additional protective action by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Although the Sierra Club will be present at the Commission meeting and speak in favor of the new rulemaking, we need online comments in favor of the new rule at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department website. The website is open for comments now and will close at 7:00am on Wednesday, August 22. Click here to see the proposed rule and scroll to the bottom to check off that you AGREE with the new rule and submit your comments. (IMPORTANT: when you click on the link, you will enter your name, county of residence, and check whether you hold a fishing or hunting license, but you will have to scroll a long way down, to get to the field where you actually enter your comment!)

 

Here are some points that you could paraphrase in your personal comments:

• North Carolina, Alabama, Florida, and Mississippi have prohibited the commercial collection of freshwater turtles and other states have added restrictions. This has had the effect of increased exploitation pressure of wild turtle populations in Texas that are unprotected, which validates the need for new rulemaking by Texas to close the loophole. 
• Unlimited commercial collection, which is now in effect for the four unprotected species, leads to unsustainable populations. Targeted collection of larger, older turtles, which are more desirable for commercial collection, lead to declines in the breeding population.
• The four currently unprotected species can be confused with species that are protected under existing rules. This leads to the unintentional – and intentional - confusion of commercial collectors and the taking of protected species.  

Commercial collection poses the greatest risk to the wild populations of native turtles. Please add your voice online to encourage the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission to extend prohibition against commercial collection to the red-eared slider, common snapping turtle, Florida softshell, and spiny softshell turtles. For additional information, contact Evelyn Merz at elmerz@hal-pc.org.