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State wildlife authorities battle caviar black market
OKLAHOMA CITY – While Oklahoma soldiers are among those fighting battles overseas, Oklahoma wildlife officials are engaged in battles of their own within the borders of the state.
Instead of planes and guns, however, officials with the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation Commission are keeping their eyes out for boats and fishing rods. They insist the enemy is real and is part of a growing black market developing around Oklahoma for caviar.
Larry Manering, law enforcement chief for the Wildlife Department, told members of the state Senate Tourism and Wildlife Committee on Thursday that the agency is pursuing stronger penalties and more stringent limits on the fishing practices involving the paddlefish. Manering represented the department on behalf of House Bill 3365, which passed the committee.
Manering said the paddlefish – which is found in Oklahoma along the Neosho River as well as in Fort Gibson Lake and Oologah Lake – is sought for its ability to produce eggs for caviar. The paddlefish is considered to be very similar to the sturgeon, the fish most known for producing caviar.
A ban was imposed on the international sale of sturgeon eggs due to poaching issues on the Caspian Sea, which has made the paddlefish more of a focal point for the caviar market. Manering said Russian poachers from New York and New Jersey have been in Oklahoma the past three years taking advantage of the increased paddlefish population to make a profit.
“It’s a multibillion-dollar business, and we’ve got the fish and they know it,” Manering said.
The bill would limit the amount of eggs held by each person to three pounds per day. The penalty for the first offense would be a $1,000 fine with a second offense having a penalty as high as $25,000 in fines and one year in prison.
“If you come and we catch you, we are going to try to respond so that you don’t come back,” Manering said of the proposed language.
Manering admitted the stricter penalties may not be enough to catch the poachers who have moved into Oklahoma to gather the paddlefish eggs. He said he expected it to help a little but said it was just as likely that the agency will come back to the Capitol seeking additional penalties in the very near future.
The penalties come at a time when the Wildlife Department is getting into the business of commercial caviar sales. A paddlefish research and processing center was set up at Twin Bridges State Park to serve as a site to clean and package eggs for the commercial sale on the open market. The program was approved last year by the Wildlife Commission and is in its initial stages.
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