Guess its not such a serious problem not being allowed to keep spiders then?
All I'm saying is, its in your hands to get them legalized. Nat con is not going to come to you and its definitely not gonna happen by itself.

Clearly this site is about looking after myself and provided i am ok "it doesnt bug me".
Thats really sad! Surely a hobby such as this should be enjoyed by all regardless of where you fortunate or unfortunate enough to live?
Anyway i see the attitude is clear from the senior members so anyone interested in doing something about it please let me know by private message and i will work with you.
I think i will stick to reading posts in future!

Greg Nel wrote: Clearly this site is about looking after myself and provided i am ok "it doesnt bug me".
Thats really sad! Surely a hobby such as this should be enjoyed by all regardless of where you fortunate or unfortunate enough to live?
Anyway i see the attitude is clear from the senior members so anyone interested in doing something about it please let me know by private message and i will work with you.
I think i will stick to reading posts in future!

I am sure as hell not going to drive to Cape Town to fight with nature conservation.
We are working hard up here in Gauteng to get breeding permits for baboon spiders. Unfortunately, the permit system works by provinces, so it is up to WC to fight for permits down there. There is honestly nothing I can do up here about it.
I do not see anyone from WC scheduling meeting with nature conservation, so why should I drive down there and fight if it has nothing to do with me and there is no interest from people down there anyway?

Hopefully people contact you and arrange something, but either there is only one member from WC (snakekid) on the forum or else no one else seems too bothered. Maybe snakekid has other contact details of members down there?

Good luck and hopefully you make some headway down there when people decide to contact you.

Greg Nel wrote: Why should it be legal for my mate in KZN to enjoy and breed at profit every conceivable species except indigenous ones while my mate in the Western Cape and my area risks confiscation and prosecution? Our Constitution guarantees equality under our law.

Kzn makes things easy but they are the assholes of the nature conservation world. We all want to have things without permits but Kzn ends up being the "black hole" where illegal import/export is practised. We have Sites species being openly sold in Kzn and they use the lax laws to put any wildcaught animal on permit. I think Cape Natcon is the furthest ahead in my point of view.

Should permits be easy , I don't know , not everyone should be able to keep anything they like. As harsh as it sounds some people shouldn't even be allowed near a dog without a permit. Monkeys need more protection than they are getting now.

Just a piece from an email that I received today regarding invasive species. Makes you think.

Hi Ruan

Comment by Alan Urban of PPRI on LinkedIn Insects and Entomology group re strict new pet-keeping laws about to be promulgated in West Virginia US. I like the Russian Roulette comment! But anyway this is why I am so very anxious about the general public and exotic pets, which I know you know. So few people understand this point of view.



The broad view is that, second only to habitat destruction, invasive alien species, be they plants, invertebrates or vertebrates, are the most important factor reducing aquatic and terrestrial biodiversity and ecosystem stability and services worldwide. Some individuals in these non-native plant and animal populations always escape, or are abandoned, or are transported and released into the wild, where a small percentage of alien species become naturalized and invasive and wreak enormous damage to indigenous ecosystems. Numerous invasive alien species such as yellow starthistle, kudzu vine, green tree snake and Burmese python have damaged various parts of American ecosystems very seriously.

We're not against them because they're alien, but because they're potentially invasive, and therefore potentially ecologically damaging. Exotics may be attractive and interesting to possess, but one is playing Russian roulette with whole, invaluable, indigenous ecosystems. And most invasive alien species are impossible to eradicate, so the damage is cumulative and permanent. The ecologically responsible thing to do, is to prohibit/refrain from the importation/aquisition, propagation/breeding, transport and release of all non-native species that have the potential to become invasive, and to harm indigenous species, somewhere on one's land-mass or territorial waters.

Tsk, I also know you know that I know you are a responsible pet keeper, but what if you fell under a bus? What would happen to you ornamentals?

Cheers