© 2024 WFSU Public Media
WFSU News · Tallahassee · Panama City · Thomasville
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Wildlife Officials Discuss ‘Injurious Species’

Photo of a water passage cutting through green brush in the Everglades
Erich Martin
/
WFSU News

Florida Wildlife Officials are considering an executive order to keep so called “Injurious wildlife species” from being brought into the state. Paul Grey works with Audubon Florida. He says the order is important since Florida is especially susceptible to the negative impact of invasive species.“As an ecologist who works on these ecosystems, the impact of exotic species in Florida is just staggering—both plants and animals. We are a poster child nationally in Florida for the impacts we’ve had,” Grey says.

The discussion comes after a D.C. circuit court held last April that a previous rule used to address the issue, the federal Lacey Act, does not prohibit transporting wildlife between states. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commissioners heard from stakeholders during their meeting Wednesday.

Follow @Regan_McCarthy

Regan McCarthy is the Assistant News Director for WFSU Public Media. Before coming to Tallahassee, Regan graduated with honors from Indiana University’s Ernie Pyle School of Journalism. She worked for several years for NPR member station WFIU in Bloomington, Ind., where she covered local and state government and produced feature and community stories.

Phone: (850) 645-6090 | rmccarthy@fsu.edu

Find complete bio, contact info, and more stories here.