jeffreyjward
05-02-2010, 9:08 PM
I have just joined because I have a very specific interest: Garden ponds and in particular garden ponds that are engineered to be part of a self-sustaining ecosystem. I am not completely wedded to the idea of a totally "native" ecosystem but I would like to use native species whenever possible.
I live in San Francisco, and I have a huge frustration with the unintended side effect of California laws regarding native species. Under the law, most aquatic species (including fish, invertebrates, reptiles, and amphibians) cannot be sold to the public. The orginal intent of the law was to discourage poaching of native species.
Unfortunately the law means that if I want to put fish or frogs or water snakes or mussels or snails or even aquatic plants into my pond, I can only obtain exotic species. Of course, there is probably a law that prohibits putting these species into my pond as well. This means that the only pond that can legally be built in California is a swimming pool!
There are ways to overcome these obstacles. One can obtain fishing permits to go out and remove native species of fish, frogs, snakes, etc., from the wild. But my understanding is that these laws are just for people who want to eat these critters and that it is actually illegal to re-release them. Plus, of course, I would rather release farmed critters into my pond and thereby increase their total number, rather than simply relocating animals from natural environments to my own artificially-created one.
So I'm looking for any help in my quest. There must be biological supply houses, folks who understand permitting, and so forth. My immediate problem is that I would like to find a native species of mussel that I can put into my pond. Or even an exotic species that can withstand the range of water temperatures in San Francisco (36=80 degrees F at most).
Cheers,
JW
I live in San Francisco, and I have a huge frustration with the unintended side effect of California laws regarding native species. Under the law, most aquatic species (including fish, invertebrates, reptiles, and amphibians) cannot be sold to the public. The orginal intent of the law was to discourage poaching of native species.
Unfortunately the law means that if I want to put fish or frogs or water snakes or mussels or snails or even aquatic plants into my pond, I can only obtain exotic species. Of course, there is probably a law that prohibits putting these species into my pond as well. This means that the only pond that can legally be built in California is a swimming pool!
There are ways to overcome these obstacles. One can obtain fishing permits to go out and remove native species of fish, frogs, snakes, etc., from the wild. But my understanding is that these laws are just for people who want to eat these critters and that it is actually illegal to re-release them. Plus, of course, I would rather release farmed critters into my pond and thereby increase their total number, rather than simply relocating animals from natural environments to my own artificially-created one.
So I'm looking for any help in my quest. There must be biological supply houses, folks who understand permitting, and so forth. My immediate problem is that I would like to find a native species of mussel that I can put into my pond. Or even an exotic species that can withstand the range of water temperatures in San Francisco (36=80 degrees F at most).
Cheers,
JW