British Columbia, Canada

California, USA

British Columbia, Canada

Thank you to Donna Hill (member #5, Canada) for providing information regarding some of our British Columbia, Canada, regulations. Donna is an Environmental Coordinator at this time, and "in the know". It is likely that some of the B.C. policies will be similar to those in other areas. Some of these regulations may come as a surprise to you (they did to me!).

BC Ministry of Agriculture requires a permit to import/keep/propogate waxworms (a serious beehive pest) and walking sticks-yes, the very kind that the Vancouver Aquarium has been giving out free! The same kind that feeds on blackberry leaves which also grow so well here and are an introduced species themselves.

In BC, it is illegal to release any non-native species (with or without backbones) in the native environment: means no releasing red-eared sliders, frogs and salamanders that have transformed from aquarium tadpoles, walking sticks, preying mantids, even bullfrogs that you caught locally and raised to adulthood etc. Why? Because of the risk of introducing disease, altering the genetic make-up of a population, competition of native species, risk to the animal being released etc. etc.

The Fish (Habitat) Protection Act prohibits collection, keeping, transportation of (etc.) any part of salmon habitat including but not limited to salmon eggs, fry, smolts, clams, crayfish, aquatic invertebrates eaten by fish etc.

The BC Wildlife Act prohibits collection, keeping, removal, transportation on both native and non-native vertebrates at any stage of life (includes all reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish, mammals) without a proper permit from the Ministry of the Environment.

Some invertebrates are currently under consideration for protection (such as our own banana slug).

California, USA

Thanks to Eric Watanabe, (member #19 USA) for this one.

Stick insects require a permit in California.