Pet stores sell adorable pets such as dogs and cats that can brighten the life of a family, but also species that do not inhabit the country and that can be a real attack on the environment. In Spain, for many years, Florida turtles have been sold . They were cheap, easy to maintain, harmless for children, they did not bother … But it was a serious mistake. To the point that it is going to be banned from marketing.
Index
Prohibited in Spain
The Ministry of the Environment of Spain prepares a new Catalog and List of Invasive Exotic Species that constitute a serious risk for native species, habitats, ecosystems and, in general, for the environment. And these, initially small, turtles, can be a big problem, they can destroy parks and make other species disappear.
Florida turtle is included in the list of 100 species alien invasive most harmful of the world dictated by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. It can reach a large size and that is the reason that leads many of its owners to release them in the wild, believing that they are doing a good deed to save their life.
Being larger, more voracious and more aggressive than the Galapagos that have always inhabited the Iberian Peninsula, they are leading this last species to a critical situation, in danger of extinction.
The Catalog includes other species, such as the parrot or bamboo. Since the enactment of the standard, pet stores will have one year to adapt to the standard. During that year, the owners of the stores that sell these copies will be responsible for what happens. Are they going to be watching the children to whom they sell the turtle?
Conclusions
As for the animals that have been purchased before the approval of the new Catalog, they may be kept by their owners, provided that they inform, within a maximum period of one year, about said possession to the competent authorities.
Environmental organizations have applauded the measure and the new Catalog, except in one point: the situation of the mink, which is classified as an invasive exotic species, but establishes an exception in such a way that its breeding and exploitation is authorized. In clearer words, it is still allowed to make coats made with your skin.
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