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By Connie Toops
It's a dark night on a lonely road in a well-known Southwestern park. From afar, an observer watches a pickup truck travel slowly, back up, then return to the same spot several times. A passenger shines a flashlight along the edge of the pavement. The onlooker speaks into a cell phone, and a few minutes later blue lights signal the pickup to pull over.
"What's the problem?" the driver asks as a park ranger checks his license. "I just brought my nephew to see some snakes." In the past decade, reptile watching has rapidly increased in popularity in Southwestern parks - these may be legitimate park visitors. Or not.
The answer comes soon enough. The ranger spots snake tongs protruding from behind the seat, then notices pillowcases and coolers in the pickup bed. It's not the first time he's encountered sophisticated poachers who prey upon reptiles soaking up the heat from paved roads on cool desert nights. By monitoring air temperature and calculating the time of night and elevation, "herpers" can determine where and when to find specific reptiles, and can make off with their loot in no time. They stash the creatures in camping gear, empty gas cans, even hubcaps; one park ranger discovered 25 ill-gotten lizards in a cereal box. Many sell their booty through legitimate businesses, others prefer the black market, and most network with other collectors via the Internet.
"Reptiles are being hit especially hard by everything from individual collectors to those who buy, sell, or trade with pet shops and online. Some are legitimate, some are not," says one officer who can't be identified because of ongoing undercover work. "People collect rattlesnake gallbladders, which are made into a Chinese remedy to treat lung disease; folks make tortoise soup for Asian weddings; and some cults use poisonous snakes in their activities."
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