Man Arrested For Stealing Sea Turtle Eggs In Florida
Police have arrested a man they say poached 119 sea turtle eggs from local beaches.
This is the first such case in two or three years that authorities believe they'll be able to take to court, said Capt. Jeff Ardelean of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Bruce Bivins, 42, is at the county jail awaiting a preliminary hearing.
Stealing turtle eggs is a third-degree felony. Local sea turtles are considered by federal law to be endangered or threatened species that struggle to perpetuate their numbers.
Bivins, believed to be homeless, has been caught in the act before, most recently in 1997, Ardelean said.
As Bivins headed to jail Friday morning, wildlife officials and a biologist headed to the island's beaches where 104 of the eggs were re-buried at sunrise.
The remaining 15 will be kept for evidence and DNA testing, Ardelean said. The prosecutors will be required to prove the eggs come from a protected sea turtle species.
