I can't believe there protected in some areas. This is no joke when I say it aint nothing to see 20 or 30 in a summer without even looking for them. Thats just whats crossing the road or spotted in the woods. About 2 years ago my dad called me to come up from my granny's (next door) because there were to 5 to 6 footers mating in the yard. We got them and decided to go through some tin I had stacked up and sure enough the first piece we flipped over had another one under it.