NEWS-JOURNAL (Daytona Beach, Florida) Loophole closed to protect gopher tort...

NEWS-JOURNAL (Daytona Beach, Florida) 06 April 06 Loophole closed to protect gopher tortoises (Virginia Smith)
Messing with a gopher tortoise burrow has long been against the law, but a legal loophole made it hard for wildlife officials to prosecute.
On Wednesday, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission closed that loophole, spelling out in plain terms what a gopher tortoise burrow is (a hole in the ground, shaped like a half-moon and roughly the size of a gopher tortoise) and that it's illegal to destroy one without a permit.
It was a small change, but the first in what could prove to be a dramatic tightening of restrictions regarding gopher tortoises over the next several months. And it could result in a lot more prosecutions for illegal tortoise-burying, a second-degree misdemeanor that carries a $500 penalty per burrow.
In recent years, it has been commonplace for developers to destroy burrows and seek after-the-fact permits -- a practice state wildlife officials want to stop.
"If they got caught, they'd just get an incidental take permit and pay the same" as if they sought it beforehand, said Monty Hinkle, a commission law enforcement officer in Ocala.
The new wording could mean more fines for violators.
Before, "there was nothing in the rules that had the word 'burrow' in it -- it was 'home' and 'den,' " Hinkle said. "The officer would have to convince the state attorney that the burrow was the den."
And the state attorney wasn't always convinced.
"Under the old language, you had to go to three different rules to prove a violation," said Lt. Col. Michael Wiwi, a commission administrator. "It created obstacles for the division in prosecuting cases."
Gopher tortoises, a state-protected Species of Special Concern, have been declining rapidly throughout Florida, down to 30 percent or less of their historic numbers, according to state estimates. Many scientists believe they qualify for increased protection under state law.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has been studying the issue and may recommend the species be re-listed as "threatened" at its June meeting, providing it more protections.
Until then, though, the gopher tortoise has a new bit of wording in its favor.
"It's important because there are gopher tortoises being killed every day," said Laurie MacDonald, director of Florida Defenders of Wildlife in St. Petersburg. "This would aid in the prosecution of those killed illegally."
What It Means
It's now easier to prosecute people who kill gopher tortoises by destroying their burrows. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission vote is part of a series of changes that may result in more protections for the tortoises.
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