By Bryan Christy.
From his website:
Undercover Agents.
Criminal Masterminds.
Turtles.
"On the surface, Strictly Reptiles of Hollywood, Florida is the world's largest reptile import-export company, legally selling millions of reptiles, spiders, and other creepy crawlies each year, and the likely source behind the green iguana or baby turtle in your local pet store.
But to Special Agent Chip Bepler of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, owner Mike Van Nostrand and his father are the brains and bank behind a vast global wildlife smuggling network.
Bryan Christy takes readers on a wild ride into a criminal jungle extending from South Florida through Europe, terminating in a Southeast Asian mastermind, "the Pablo Escobar of wildlife trafficking," who uses cheap reptiles as a front to smuggle the world's most precious reptiles, birds, and mammals......."
Not nearly enough non-fiction has been written about conservation law enforcement, and "The Lizard King" is a great addition. Highly recommended, but not a summer back-country read - I finished it in a day and a half.
Christy, and James in "The Snake Charmer," allude to the rather "unique" personalities drawn to herps. I'll admit, I sort of poked around looking for Alligator Snappers afterwards, and a Gharial would be pretty cool to have in the summer garden pond, plus it would guarantee that the Herb Guild or Master Gardeners Club would never meet at Rancho DeWeese.
Christy's Blog
