WASHINGTON — As the state of Virginia prepared for a major bridge and tunnel expansion in the tidewaters of the Chesapeake Bay last year, engineers understood that the nesting grounds of 25,000 gulls, black skimmers, royal terns and other seabirds were about to be plowed under. To compensate, they considered developing an artificial island as […]
Tag: Migratory Bird Treaty Act
A Whooping Crane’s Killer Got Off Easy, Frustrating Conservationists
Last month, a Louisiana man was sentenced in a federal district court to 120 hours of community service and two years on probation for shooting and killing a Whooping Crane, one of the most endangered birds in the world. The decision was far lighter than conservationists had hoped and advocated for. According to court documents […]
Petition: Uphold the Migratory Bird Treaty Act!
Least Tern birds are on the Federal Register for the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. This act is intended to protect migratory birds, making it “illegal to take, possess, import, export, transport, sell, purchase, barter, or offer for sale, purchase, or barter, any migratory bird, or the parts, nests, or eggs of such a bird except […]
Alabama Beachgoers May Have Killed Hundreds of Protected Birds
Beachgoers in Alabama who descended on the breeding ground of a threatened seabird species this summer scared adults away from their nests and used the eggs to decorate the sand, most likely killing hundreds of chicks, wildlife experts say. The exact number of least tern birds that died in Mobile Bay is unknown, but it […]
POLL: Should cormorants be culled to protect local fisheries?
The House Natural Resources Committee met in Alpena, Michigan for a field hearing on double-crested cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus) management. Cormorants are migratory birds and are therefore regulated under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. However, recreational and commercial fishermen around the Great Lakes say growing populations have negatively impacted local fisheries. Previously, managers were allowed to […]
POLL: Should the Migratory Bird Treaty Act remain in place and be enforced?
This is for the birds. One of America’s oldest conservation laws and wildlife successes is under attack. Passed during the Woodrow Wilson administration in 1918, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act was passed as a result of dramatic declines in American bird populations. Realizing the need for broad protection, Congress made it: “unlawful at any time, […]