Hooray For Giant Garter Snakes

A biologist has discovered several populations of threatened giant garter snakes in California (Associated Press). This is good news not just for weirdo snake fans (cough) but for anyone who values wildlife and nature in all its richness and diversity (wasps excluded, they are bastards). For decades, California's runaway development has devoured pristine wilderness and excreted ugly, stupid, sprawled, unneccesary exurbs (like a suburb, but not attached to anything). And that's a threat to many of the state's native animals, including condors, bald eagles, multiple species of foxes, fish, frogs and our pretty, slithery pals, the snakes. So it's a treat that a fresh batch of un-paved serpents has been found.

I must digress for a moment. Ironically, the giant garter snake and a very endangered fellow-traveller, the spectacular-looking California red-sided garter snake, are unintended victims of laws protecting endangered species. Both species are hardy in captivity* and are very amenable to breeding programs, however, the laws that protect these critters make it illegal to keep and breed them. This is supposed to protect wild populations from poaching--which no one would argue isn't critically important--but the result is that two species that can be captive bred (and therefore preserved) by snake hobbyists (the fancy word is herpetoculturalists) are left to slowly go extinct as California land is cleared for stupid, ugly suburbs in the middle of nowhere.

If you want to protect endangered species the most important thing you have to do is protect their habitat. Protecting the animals themselves is critical too, obviously, but sometimes you have to be flexible--and maybe even do something that on the surface seems counterintuitive if not insane, like letting an endangered species enter the pet/hobby trade (in a controlled, regulated way of course).

That's my little rant. Anyway, good news. Yay! Yay snakes!

*There's a rumour that one unnamed dog blogger has an undying, 12-year-old pet checkered garter snake named Willie. Now, that's just a rumour, remember.