DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - Stacked between sparklers and wide-brimmed hats, the green, inch-long turtle with the pointy head scrabbled about its plastic aquarium, just another item for sale at the compact shop in Chinatown.
It was hardly a lone sight. The turtles, known as red-eared sliders, are pervasive along Broadway. On an early afternoon last week, at least five stores between Alpine and Ord streets featured the reptiles out front, along with their sidewalk inventory of golden Buddha statues and parasols.
Many shoppers or tourists might think the turtles are a nice impulse buy for kids. That’s a problem, according to state officials, as the young animals are susceptible to carrying salmonella, and could endanger public health.
“It’s illegal for these stores to be selling these turtles,” said Andrew Hughan, a spokesman for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Hughan said that when the animals are smaller than four inches, the likelihood that they carry salmonella increases. The bacterium can easily spread to humans whose skin comes in contact with them, even if the animal is healthy.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a series of eight multi-state outbreaks of salmonella related to turtles sickened 391 people, including cases in California, from mid-2011 to this past May. Symptoms include diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps and the illness usually lasts four to seven days. Most people recover without treatment.
The CDC website points out that the Food and Drug Administration banned the sale and distribution of turtles with shells less than four inches long in 1975.
The DFW stages intermittent inspections in Chinatown and other neighborhoods. If Fish and Wildlife wardens find that the stores are not licensed to sell animals, they will cite the owner, Hughan said. Turtles and other illegally sold animals can be seized and euthanized.
Last week, red-eared sliders were for sale at stores including Hing Fat Co., The Great Wall Co., and a kiosk inside the Far East Plaza. The turtles sell for $5-$9, depending on the aquarium’s size.
At Rosa Toys and Accessories, three aquariums were stacked on the floor in front of parasols for sale. They lacked price tags, and a saleswoman said that the animals were not for sale, but instead were good luck charms for the store. In Chinese culture, she explained, it is believed that the turtles will help attract more business.
A few storefronts to the north, at The Great Wall Co., orange price tags were affixed to all the aquariums. When asked about the turtles, a clerk who declined to give her name or identify the owner pointed out that numerous stores in Chinatown sell them.
When called by a reporter, George Yu, president of the Chinatown Business Improvement District, said that he has “dusted off an old notice and updated it with current CDC warnings,” and that notices were being hand delivered to area stores.
“We continue to try to educate our merchants,” he said.
The education effort had little impact on Zan Dubin Scott. Although the Los Angeles resident understands that the turtles are “profoundly symbolic” to certain cultures, she said she was shocked and disgusted last month when she walked along Broadway and saw the animals being sold at multiple businesses.
“This is chronic and blatant animal cruelty, continuing to occur within blocks of Downtown’s LAPD hub and L.A. City Hall,” she said.
Hughan echoed Scott’s concern, and said that, in the effort to prevent people from buying potential salmonella-carrying turtles, the Department of Fish and Wildlife encourages people to call a tip line if they spot what they believe to be animal cruelty (the number is 888-334-2258). From there, a warden is dispatched, he said.
The issue of illegal animal sales has arisen in Downtown before, and it is not only a problem in Chinatown. The sales have been observed in the Fashion District, and in a 2010 raid, police officers in that area seized more than 120 animals. The rabbits, birds and other creatures were turned over to the city’s Department of Animal Services. Some were found to be malnourished. That led to a felony charge of animal cruelty, according to the LAPD.
Last month, the DFW wrote six tickets for wildlife violations for illegal animals sales in the Fashion District.
Animal rights activist Alexandra Paul has seen the turtles being sold in Chinatown, and believes a lack of rigorous enforcement allows the practice to continue.
“When they are busted… the same dealers are back out on the same corner the next day with more animals,” she said.
The reality, Hughan said, is that other than a handful of surprise inspections a year, Fish and Wildlife lacks the resources to stay on top of the turtle vendors. However, should a violation be determined, Hughan said a fine of up to $1,000 can be levied on the seller. The amount, he said, is up to the district attorney.
© Los Angeles Downtown News 2013