The California state Senate Natural Resources & Water Committee held a public hearing on Tuesday, March 25, to discuss legislation that would add to the banned species list.
The bill would repeal and amend the current list of species the state’s Fish and Game Commission uses to determine which types of animals might pose a threat to the state’s native wildlife or that raise an animal welfare concern.
If implemented, residents would be prohibited from possessing, transporting, releasing and importing a number of fish, including pike killifish and banded tetras. Jamie Reaser, PIJAC’s senior science and policy advisor, said the species on the list appear to have been chosen due to invasive species risks.
“They are not species common in the pet trade, and permits could be obtained for some species. They are more common in the biological supply and bait trades,” she said.
Under the proposal, animals on the list could be imported, transported, possessed or released only under a revocable, nontransferable permit.
Please click here to view a complete list of animals covered by the proposal.
Pay attention to the way the list is organized. For example, when looking at fish banned from the family Cichlidae, note that the ones banned are different types of tilapia.