Snail Mail

Dear Bean,

I have an important postal question, and after receiving conflicting information from various devisions of the post office, I decided I would ask the one person who is sure to know, and will also care.  Let me give you a brief history of my situation: 

During filming of UA Films' recent feature, Ray Bradbury’s Chrysalis, in the El Yunque rainforest in Puerto Rico, three *huge* snails climbed into the Panasonic camera bag and managed to live for TWO weeks in our edit bay until we discovered them.   We nursed them back to health with lettuce, mushrooms, and bottled water, and now they are living in a miserable plastic storage container.  I feel bad for these little guys and I desperately want to send them home. However, I do not feel comfortable smuggling them back and do not have the resources to send them via a private flight.  I would like to get them back to the El Yunque rainforest before they become too dependent on me and forget how to forage and ooze on their own.   I do not know if it is a relief, in their estimation, to have the safety and convenience of the entrapment with an endless supply of food, but I can only imagine the beautiful and refreshing rainforest is a preference for any creature, which is why we are desperately trying to avoid a sanctuary. 

Over the past week, I've managed to pull together a campaign to get them back to Puerto Rican rainforest safely, and enlisted the help of PETA activists, The US Department of Forestry and Fish and Wildlife, El Yunque Biologists and Puerto Rican local government involvement.  I am told it is imperative that the snails are returned the general location they originated from, and we definitely have the connections on the receiving end to ensure they are placed properly.  Everyone has been extremely helpful and willing to assist in every way, but no party has the ability to ensure a safe arrival of the snails to Puerto Rico.  The main concern we face now is that simply mailing the snails via USPS, UPS, or Fed-Ex would subject them to the transportation process (which can be freezing temperatures in the airmail cargo) and the same Customs regulations as any other mail item.

Bean, you are the only existing expert on animals, the US Post Office, *and* National Parks and Forests.  I am sure if there is a resolution to be found, you can help us discover it.  We welcome any suggestions or information regarding animal shipment and transportation that could be a feasible solution to this problem. 

Also, since the story has become somewhat of an interest in local and national press, we will be posting updates in the Discussion forum of the new website for Ray Bradbury's Chrysalis, starting with this one.  Please refer your readers to www.chrysalismovie.net  to see updates on the gastropods as the process unfolds.  I would love to be able to write how Bean's Blog was the turning point for the plight of the snails, and will include a link to your blog as well.   Thank you again, Bean, for your compassion and assistance. 


Kindest regards,
Cana

(end of letter, edited for length)

Okay, team, what advice to you have for Cana? How can she get these snails home? Please discuss.

Comments

[Paul Lee]

http://www.courier.org/

Hire an international courier. There are organizations that let you ship things that are carried in person. I don't know how expensive it is, but they off set the cost by finding someone who is already traveling that way and discounting that person's airfare. As long as you can have someone meet the courier at the destination airport, this or a service similar to this might be your best bet.

[Raul]

a)Find someone traveling to Puerto Rico

b)Place the snails in a carry on little aquarium

c)Have them drop it off in one of Puerto Rico's many forest...

Being Puerto Rican myself, i would take them but don't see me going anytime soon.

[Jerkface]

Or get them to Florida and take a private plane from there.

And...are we still talking about snails?

[LP]

Not too sure on how to get the creatures back, but godspeed and I hope you do.

[Raul]

If you can't get the back, perhaps donate them to the San Diego Wildanimal Park. I think they have a tropical area for bugs and plants

[brother john]

From the website: "After our world suffers severe ravages brought on by humankind..."
Without have read the story, I don't know for sure if the author is speaking of man-made global warming, but what irony it would be if he were. Not only sending an entire film crew to the rain forest to tell the story but making a return trip to deliver snails? The mind boggles.

[LiLa & Pookie]

I'm not sure on how to get them back home, but after seeing their pics, it has made me hungry for escargot in garlic butter served with french bread & grapes.

[Liz Griffis]

Road trip it to Miami?! Perhaps then take a cruise around the area...possibly one to puerto rico, or a short plane ride over from Nassau?

Good Luck!

[jesus]

plenty of salt

[Cana]

Those are some great suggestions. I will definitely look into the courier service, thank you Paul. Suggestions such as finding a traveler to transport and other direct mail methods are great, except for the permit issue. Anyone carrying them would have to declare them (or smuggle) and I don't want to do anything illegal.

Recently, the USDA/APHIS got in touch with me and told me in no uncertain terms that they do not offer a "regular individual" a permit to transport mollusks under any conditions.

They are requiring that I surrender the snails, or they will come and seize them. They say they will likely just dissolve the snails in alcohol, and if I want, I can "keep the shells." I was speechless...

The Puerto Rican Department of Forestry and other PR writers and activists are pleading with the USDA to reconsider, and grant a special pardon for these snails so they can return home. I will know more on Monday, but the US government workers do not seem to be compassionate towards the gastropods.

Please feel free to post a letter on the discussion board on http://www.chrysalismovie.net , which I will forward to the entomologist I am dealing with at USDA/APHIS. I don't want to post his email because I would like to try not to irritate him while there is still a chance to change his mind.

Thank you everyone for your interest and support, and thank you Bean, for this opportunity to tell the Snail's story.

PS - The "entire crew" of the shoot in the rainforest consisted of three eco-conscious individuals (one Puerto Rican native) and a hand-held Panasonic HVX200. More damage is done to the planet driving one's car to work. This is an environmental film about the metamorphosis of life after an unspecified apocalyptic event. And yes, it is ironic that a story written by Ray Bradbury in the early 1950s would be so relevant today.

[CSL]

Puerto Rico has representation in the US Congress due to its US Commonwealth status. Resident Commissioner Luis G. Fortuno might be of some help here. He sits on the House Committee on Natural Resources, so this is right up his alley for two reasons. Contact him with the plight of these native Puerto Rican snails at either his Washington office or his local district office:
The Honorable Luis G. Fortuno
United States House of Representatives
126 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515-5401
DC Phone: 202-225-2615
DC Fax: 202-225-2154

Electronic Correspondence: http://www.house.gov/writerep/
WWW Homepage: http://www.house.gov/fortuno/

District Office:
250 Calle Fortaleza
Old San Juan, PR 00901
Voice: 787-723-6333
FAX: 787-729-7738

[Vic Rattler]

For the love of GOD!
Are you kidding me?

[who cares?]

You are kidding me right?

[Matt]

I've got 3 words. Es Car Got!

[Grey]

Wow. That's a LOT of work for a few snails.

I can only hope this person spends just as much time helping causes that are WAY more important. I mean, if you've got the determination to get any government involved in whatever it is you're doing, imagine what you can do if you're trying to help abused children, awareness for a disease, finding homes for abandoned animals, or raising money for any of those groups.

Volunteer. We have more power than most people realize, and helping 3 small snails "return home" seems like an awfully insignificant drop in the bucket.