Senate seeks to overturn special protection for garter snakes

The Iowa Senate has voted to toss a rule which would make Iowans who kill garter snakes lawbreakers. The proposed Department of Natural Resources rule puts garter snakes on the list of protected species, and those guilty of killing ’em could face a 145-dollar fine. Senator Mike Sexton of Rockwell City says that’s ridiculous. He says the DNR could not furnish scientific evidence that warranted putting the garter snake on the protected list.Senator Dennis Black of Newton says the proposed rule seeks to crackdown on “poachers” who collect snakes, not at Iowans who kill a garter snake with their lawn mower.Sexton agrees with Black, but says that’s not the point. He says it’s not right to put people in the position of breaking the law by killing a garter snake.Black calls himself a “friend” of the snake.He says snakes are thought to be slimy creatures, but snakes are really very dry and very, very clean, according to Black.