While I agree keeping Aussie natives would be much better than exotic animals, you still have to keep in mind that an introduced animal is one that is introduced into an area where it does not naturally occur. So, say you kept a kangaroo as a pet and lived in an area in Australia where kangaroos do not naturally occur, you have still just introduced an animal which does not belong in that area and may still cause significant ecological harm... I do agree the harm would be significantly less though because the majority of furry Australian animals are herbivorous.
But thats a whole other topic....
cheers
Being herbivorous hardly means the animal won't cause damage. Herbivores can be every bit as harmful as predators. Native animals are less likely to cause harm because they or their close relatives are likely to have had access to most areas on the mainland at some point in the past few thousand years, so if they aren't there now it's probably because they can't live there, rather than that they couldn't get there. Yes, there are exceptions and many of the best examples are probably reptiles, because of their (relatively) low dispersal capabilities.
I hate to agree with Brodie, but he has a very valid point with the tortoises. Everyone seems so sure that they couldn't possibly survive because they are slow and inoffensive, but keep in mind that they manage to make a good living in their natural homes.
The argument of "they can have cats, why can't we have boas" is a lot like saying "They can commit rape, why can't I commit murder?". One wrong doesn't justify another. If we want to complain about the hideous irresponsibility of cat laws, be become hypocrites if we use them as justification of legalising exotic herps.
There is no doubt that legalising exotics would lead to far more being kept. Has anyone noticed how many legally held reptiles escape? Go to a reptile meeting and talk to people or look through the archives on this site and see how many anectodes you get. I really don't see any benefit from legalising exotics. Yes they're here, but what would legalising it acheive? There are many illegally held exotic venomous snakes around, many species of cobras, vipers etc. Are we to legalise them? Everyone seems to say no... why the double standard? If 'getting your head out of the sand' is important, wouldn't it be most important of all for the highly venomous species?
Anyway, the point is moot. The authorities aren't budging and our squabling is falling on deaf ears.
