‘Is an example of the serious threat posed by the wildlife trade’

An 81-year-old man in Montana has been sentenced to six months in prison for illegally cloning and creating a giant hybrid sheep. the Guardian.

Arthur “Jack” Schubarth was arrested for conspiring with five other people to use tissue and testicles from Marco Polo sheep. brought illegally to the US to create a larger hybrid sheep.

The hybrid sheep were intended for captive trophy hunting in Texas and Minnesota. Marco Polo sheep are the largest in the world, weighing up to 300 pounds, and the cloning process created an even larger hybrid animal.

U.S. District Court Judge Brian Morris said he had difficulty coming up with an appropriate sentence for Schubarth. Morris took into account Schubarth’s age and lack of criminal record, combined with the need to impose a sentence that would deter others from trying to change “the genetic makeup of the creatures” on Earth.

Hybrid animals can often suffer from a variety of health problems, including rapid growth and heart problems National Geographic. Another consequence of creating hybrid animals is the risk it entails endangered species.

Marco Polo sheep are already endangered extinction. Its hybridization could further endanger the animal genetic swamping — an event in which the normal genetic makeup is replaced by the hybrid.

Schubarth, who pleaded guilty in March, was fined $20,000, and Morris ordered him to pay $4,000 to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Foundation. The hybrid sheep has been seized by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and will be held until it can be transported to a zoo.

Jason Holden, Schubarth’s attorney, said he committed this clones This act ruined his client’s ‘life, reputation and family’. Holden only sought a probation sentence because Schubarth was a hardworking man who had cared for animals in the past.

Sarah Brown, an attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice, asked for prison time. Brown cited that Schubarth’s illegal breeding was widespread, prescient and included many illegal acts.

Should the government pay people to hunt invasive species?

Certainly

Depending on the animal

No way

Just let people do it for free

Click on your choice to see the results and give your opinion

Brown also noted that Schubarth’s crime endangered the well-being of other wildlife.

“This case is an example of the serious threat that wildlife trafficking poses to our native species and ecosystems,” said Deputy Director Edward Grace of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Office of Law Enforcement. US Department of Justice. “Mr. Schubarth’s actions not only violated multiple laws designed to protect wildlife, but also risked introducing disease and endangering the genetic integrity of our wild sheep populations.”

Join our free newsletter for good news And useful tipsand don’t miss it this nice list of simple ways to help yourself and help the planet at the same time.