RULE NO: RULE TITLE
68A-25.002: General Provisions for Taking, Possession and Sale of Reptiles

Notice is hereby given that the following changes have been made to the proposed rule in accordance with subparagraph 120.54(3)(d)1., F.S., published in Vol. 34 No. 33, August 15, 2008 issue of the Florida Administrative Weekly.

Subsection (6) of the proposed rule has been amended to read:

(6) No person shall take more than a total of five (5) native Florida freshwater turtles each day unless authorized by permit from the Executive Director as provided in Rules 68A-5.004, 68A-9.002, and 68A-27.002, F.A.C., except that holders of commercial freshwater fishing licenses as provided in Section 379.363, F.S., may take an additional fifteen (15) Florida softshell turtles (Apolone ferox) for a total of 20 turtles in the aggregate per day. Freshwater turtles may be taken as prescribed in Rules 68A-23.012 and 68A-23.003, F.A.C., and manually or by baited hooks, bow, dip nets, traps so designed that any freshwater fish taken therein may escape, or by spearing only during daylight hours. The taking of turtles by bucket traps, snares, or shooting with firearms is prohibited. No person shall buy, sell, or possess for sale any alligator snapping turtle (Macroclemys temminckii), box turtle (Terrapene carolina), Barbour’s map turtle (Graptemys barbouri), Escambia River map turtle (Graptemys ernsti), diamondback terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin), river cooter (Pseudemys concinna), or loggerhead musk turtle (Sternotherus minor), or parts thereof. No person shall possess more than two (2) Barbour’s map turtles, two (2) Escambia River map turtles, two (2) diamondback terrapins, two (2) river cooters, two (2) box turtles, two (2) loggerhead musk turtles, or one (1) alligator snapping turtle unless authorized by permit from the Executive Director as provided in Rule Rules 68A-5.004, 68A-9.002 and Chapter 68A-27 68A-27.002, F.A.C. River cooters may not be taken from 15 April to 31 July.

Subsection (8) of the proposed rule has been amended to read:

(8) No person shall possess more than 50 eggs taken from the wild in the aggregate of species of freshwater turtle native to Florida except as authorized by permit from the executive director as provided in Rule Rules 68A-5.004, 68A-9.002 and Chapter 68A-27 68A-27.002, F.A.C. Eggs of those turtle species enumerated in subsection 68A-25.002(6), F.A.C., are subject to the same possession limits as apply for those turtles. The purchase or sale of turtle eggs taken from the wild is prohibited.

Subsection (9) of the proposed rule has been amended to read:

(9) No person shall buy, sell, take or possess any gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus), or any part thereof, unless authorized by permit from the executive director as provided in Rule Rules 68A-5.004, 68A-9.002, and Chapter 68A-27 68A-27.002, F.A.C.