The Lizard King: The True Crimes and Passions of the World's Greatest Reptile Smugglers

The Lizard King: The True Crimes and Passions of the World's Greatest Reptile Smugglers | Bryan Christy | Lizard King is a great read for anyone

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The Lizard King: T...

	The Lizard King: The True Crimes and Passions of the World's Greatest Reptile Smugglers Bryan Christy Twelve, 2008 - 256 pages average customer review:based on 5 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Imagine The Sopranos, with snakes! The Lizard King is a fascinating account of a father and son family business suspected of smuggling reptiles, and the federal agent who tried to take them down. When Bryan Christy began to investigate the world of reptile smuggling, he had no idea what he would be in for. In the course of his research, he was bitten between the eyes by a blood python, chased by a mother alligator, and sprayed by a bird-eating tarantula. But perhaps more dangerous was coming face to face with Michael J. Van Nostrand, owner of Strictly Reptiles, a thriving family business in Hollywood, Florida. Van Nostrand imports as many as 300,000 iguanas each year (over half the total of America's most popular imported reptile), as well as hundreds of thousands of snakes, lizards, frogs, spiders, and scorpions.

Van Nostrand was suspected of being a reptile smuggler by Special Agent Chip Bepler of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, who devoted years of his life in an obsessive quest to expose The Lizard King's cold-blooded crimes. How this cat-and-mouse game ended is engrossing and surprising.

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The Lizard King Rocks!

As founder of Big Cat Rescue I know a lot about the criminal underworld as it pertains to big cats and I know that the "snake people" are some of the slipperiest in the business, but Bryan Christy's book was a mind-blowing revelation. I was riveted to the book. I just couldn't put it down as he traced the histories of some of the worst raiders of our national treasures. If you care about the plight of exotic animals this book will only strengthen your resolve to end the trafficking in them as pets and ego props. This is an excellent book and is presented in a surprising way that I believe will be a huge asset to those who seek to protect our planet and all of its inhabitants. Carole Baskin, Founder of Big Cat Rescue 12802 Easy St Tampa, FL 33625 813.920.4130 Info@BigCatRescue.org

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Lizard King is a great read for anyone

Whether you are into reptiles or not, this is a great book! Written in the style of a novel, it is part crime drama, part expose and part documentary.

This is a book that pulls the reader in quickly: the characters have colorful histories and unique personas. Their ambitions and frailties keep things interesting all the way through.

The exotic reptile business provides a vivid backdrop for the characters and story line. No doubt the hobbyist (the herps) will find it a well researched account of the origin of the animals that are bought, sold and traded. Lots of detail on their sourcing, selective breeding and the passions of collectors. I am not a "herp" but I learned a lot from the book.

Great reading for anyone who likes drama and adventure!

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Awesome Read

The "Lizard King" is awesome. After each chapter, you look forward to the next.

It's a real life thriller which takes you into a world of reptile smuggling from all angles: the business, people, law enforcement, custom officials, legal and the criminal element. This world is revealed in masterfully told story which brings to life the people, their motives and passions, and a great conflict of personalities, their egos and gamesmanship. Further, it draws you into the fight between "good and evil" within this world and among themselves.

If you liked "Into the Wild", you'll love the "The Lizard King". It's better.

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The Lizard King

What a well written book. One of those books i just could not put down. One of the best book that i have read in a LONG time.

A great insider-style peek at the U.S. commercial herp trade.

The author did his homework on this one! As someone who's been around the business and many of its key players from the 1970s through the present, I marveled at the accuracy of most statements in this account. The numbers regarding quantities of animals and amounts of money seemed well-researched, realistic and largely believable, unlike the trumped-up crap that groups like the HSUS and PETA push to increase sympathy donations. The author's whole approach seemed out to record the real personalities, not mass media baloney exaggerated to make news and sell books. I particularly liked his 'as it was' style and non-demonization of the principles.

This book will be enjoyed by those involved in the herp trade in any way. Devout conservationists will probably applaud it as an exposé, but its strength lies in its honesty and facts. I hope everyone notes the sentence credited to U.S. Fish & Wildlife agent Chip Bepler on page 79:

"He (Bepler) could not do much against habitat destruction, pollution, or any of the other amorphous problems facing wildlife, but he could do something about commercial profiteers." ----- That statement summarizes the major mentality in the U.S. on dealing with the issue of helping / protecting wildlife. The prevailing attitude is to do what makes headlines, ensures budgets and justifies your job, even if it's a drop in the bucket toward solving the real problem. With government money wasted by the millions on such a sham, it's no wonder that a few people will be disgusted and continue smuggling while feeling that they too deserve to profit from wildlife.

The funny thing is, most of the species discussed in this book were smuggled in low numbers -- sometimes just a few pairs -- that did nothing to hurt wild populations. In fact, those `losses' may have actually helped those species in the long run. Some of those same originally smuggled animals became founder breeding stock in zoos and private breeders' hands. That led to those types' wider availability today via captive bred offspring, resulting in them becoming relatively safe from smugglers' future predations (but NOT the perils of habitat destruction, pollution, etc.).

The market in most captive-bred herps (that have been around in herpetoculture long enough to be bred in numbers) has dropped the price below what's worth the smuggling risk. I'd like to think that a few higher-ups in the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service -- who truly want to save wildlife and aren't just in it for the paycheck -- secretly smile when they realize that the pressure has been taken off many species. In the meantime, they still get to chase the 'bad guys' and pay their mortgages, just like the wildlife smugglers they battle.

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