MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. — A hike through Shark Valley took an unexpected turn for Yatir Nitzany when he spotted something he knew didn’t belong in the Everglades.
“I saw one crawling across the trail. There were children around,” Nitzany said.
The animal was a python.
Knowing the invasive snakes can harm native wildlife, Nitzany decided to capture it and call a park ranger.
“It had a bulge in its belly. The upper part of its body indicating it just killed something and I couldn’t have it on my conscious just to leave it there and just let it go,” he said.
Nitzany said he waited about 30 minutes for a ranger to arrive.
After turning over the python, he said the ranger handed him a $180 ticket for illegally handling wildlife inside the park.
“I regret asking for help,” Nitzany added. “If I would have done things over again, I would have thrown it in the bushes.”
While pythons are an invasive species, federal rules generally prohibit visitors from capturing or handling wildlife inside Everglades National Park without authorization.
The case quickly caught the attention of Ron Magill, an ambassador/conservation liaison at Zoo Miami.
Magill said he understands the importance of following rules inside national parks but believes this case called for discretion.
“At the end of the day for me it’s common sense. Unfortunately, it’s not too common anymore,” Magill said.
But before the case could go before a judge, it was dismissed.
“My goal now is to do whatever I can to change this law,” Magill added. “To make sure there is a caveat in this law so that people like Nitzany are not punished for doing the right thing in the environment.”
For Nitzany, the dismissal brings relief.
For Magill, it is just the beginning of a push to clarify the rules surrounding invasive species inside national parks.
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