Florida agrees to protect freshwater turtles

Florida will soon end the commercial harvest of wild freshwater turtles. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission approved a rule prohibiting the commercial taking of turtles from the wild that are listed on Florida's imperiled species list. That even includes species that look similar to the imperiled species, which include common snapping turtles and cooters. Individuals will still be allowed to take one freshwater turtle per day per person from for noncommercial use. The rule also bars people from taking freshwater turtle eggs though there is an allowance for some turtle farms to collect turtles to establish reproduction in captivity. The state felt the new rules were needed because of an increased demand for freshwater turtles nationally and internationally in recent years. FWC Commissioner Brian Yablonski call the decision “one of Florida's greatest conservation stories."