SCOTT SHALAWAY Enthusiasts take note: Wild birds are off-limits

It's the law!
For the second time in two weeks, a hummingbird nest has been listed for sale on eBay. The news came from HUMNET, an electronic bulletin board devoted to hummingbirds and hummingbird gardening. (Google "humnet" for more information.) The sale of wild birds and related artifacts is illegal and punishable by hefty fines and/or jail time, so it seems a lesson in wildlife law is in order.
In the United States, wildlife is owned by the people. Because birds are highly mobile and easily cross state lines, birds are protected by federal law. Most other wildlife enjoys state protection.
In the early 1900s, many species of birds were being wantonly exploited. Passenger pigeons and Carolina parakeets vanished from the planet in 1914 and 1918, respectively. Women wore hats decorated with the breeding plumes of egrets. Pelican-quill pens were the rage. Amateur "naturalists" took great pride in outrageous collections of stuffed birds, nests and eggs. Market hunters killed incalculable numbers of everything edible to satisfy the demand of big city restaurants. (That's what did in the passenger pigeon.)
Enough is enough
Eventually, public outrage boiled over; animal lovers, naturalists, conservationists and sport hunters demanded action. Congress decreed that the states were incapable of protecting wild birds, and in 1918 it passed the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). It implemented an earlier treaty between the United States and Great Britain protecting birds migrating between the United States and Canada. Similar treaties with Mexico (1936), Japan (1972) and the U.S.S.R. (1976) expanded the scope of international protection for migratory birds. The MBTA's name may imply that it covers only migratory birds, but a migratory bird is defined as, "... any species or family of birds that lives, reproduces or migrates within or across international borders at some point during its annual life cycle." That definition includes all native North American birds.
Here's the part every citizen must understand. Under the MBTA, it is illegal to "pursue, hunt, take, capture, kill, attempt to take, capture or kill, possess, offer for sale, sell, offer to purchase, purchase, deliver for shipment, ship, cause to be shipped, deliver for transportation, transport, cause to be transported, carry or cause to be carried by any means whatever, receive for shipment, transportation or carriage, or export, at any time, or in any manner, any migratory bird, included in the terms of this Convention ... for the protection of migratory birds ... or any part, nest, or egg of any such bird."
Guilty parties
It seems pretty clear. If you buy or sell, or attempt to buy or sell a bird, feather, nest, or an egg on eBay or anywhere else, you're guilty. EBay is guilty for offering the sale. If FedEx, UPS or the post office delivers the package, they're guilty, too. Violators can be fined up to $15,000, jailed for up to two years, or both.
Does this mean that federal wildlife law enforcement agents arrest children and teachers who bring feathers and bird nests to school? Of course not. I might be technically guilty of violating the MBTA if I pick up a cardinal feather to show a group while birding, but I'll take my chances. The law is intended to protect birds from those trying to profit from them and those who might possess illegal private collections. But if you use wild bird feathers in craft projects and you sell them in a store, at a flea market, or even a yard sale, you're guilty. Hope there's not an off-duty wildlife agent in the crowd.
Obviously, there are exceptions to the MBTA. States are permitted to impose stricter protections on migratory birds. Game birds may be hunted and possessed, permits are granted to destroy destructive pests and museums and scientists can apply for collecting permits.
The bottom line is this: If you don't have a federal permit, you may not possess live or dead wild birds, feathers, body parts, nests or eggs. You've been warned. And if you ever see such items for sale on eBay or elsewhere, contact a conservation officer or the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (www.fws.gov).
sshalaway@aol.com