The Audubon Societies 



387 



MIGRATORY BIRD TREATY ACT 



[Approved July 3, 1918. Public, No. 186, 6Sth Congress — S. 1553] 



AN ACT To give effect to the conven- 

 tion between the United States and 

 Great Britain for the protection of 

 migratory birds concluded at Wash- 

 ington, August sixteenth, nineteen 

 hundred and sixteen, and for other 

 purposes. 

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of 

 Representatives of the United States of 

 America in Congress assembled, That this 

 Act shall be known by the short title of the 

 "Migratory Bird Treaty Act." 



Sec. 2. That unless and except as 

 permitted by regulations made as herein- 

 after provided, it shall be unlawful to 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 the convention between the United 

 States and Great Britain for the protection 

 of migratory birds concluded August 

 sixteenth, nineteen hundred and sixteen, 

 or any part, nest, or egg of any such birds. 

 Sec. 3. That subject to the provisions 

 and in order to carry out the purposes of 

 the convention, the Secretary of Agricul- 

 ture is authorized and directed, from time 

 to time, having due regard to the zones of 

 temperature and to the distribution, 

 abundance, economic value, breeding 

 habits, and times and lines of migratory 

 flight of such birds, to determine when, to 

 what extent, if at all, and by what means 

 it is compatible with the terms of the con- 

 vention to allow hunting, taking, capture, 

 killing, possession, sale, purchase, ship- 

 ment, transportation, carriage, or export 

 of any such bird, or any part, nest or egg 

 thereof, and to adopt suitable regulations 

 permitting and governing the same, in 

 accordance with such determinations, 

 which regulations shall become effective 

 when approved by the President. 



Sec. 4. That it shall be unlawful to 

 ship, transport, or carry, by any means 

 whatever, from one State, Territory, or 

 District to or through another State, 

 Territory, or District, or to or through a 

 foreign country, any bird, or any part, 

 nest, or egg thereof, captured, killed, 

 taken, shipped, transported, or carried at 

 any time contrary to the laws of the State, 

 Territory, or District in which it was 



captured, killed, or taken, or from which 

 it was shipped, transported, or carried. It 

 shall be unlawful to import any bird, or 

 any part, nest, or egg thereof, captured 

 killed, taken, shipped, transported, or 

 carried contrary to the laws of any 

 Province of the Dominion of Canada in 

 which the same was captured, killed, or 

 taken, or from which it was shipped, trans- 

 ported, or carried. 



Sec. 5. That any employee of the De- 

 partment of Agriculture authorized by 

 the Secretary of Agriculture to enforce the 

 provisions of this Act shall have power, 

 without warrant, to arrest any person 

 committing a violation of this Act in 

 his presence or view and to take such 

 person immediately for examination or 

 trial before an officer or court of competent 

 jurisdiction; shall have power to execute 

 any warrant or other process issued by an 

 officer or court of competent jurisdiction 

 for the enforcement of the provisions of 

 this Act; and shall have authority, with a 

 search warrant, to search any place. 

 The several judges of the courts established 

 under the laws of the United States, and 

 United States commissioners may, within 

 their respective jurisdictions, upon proper 

 oath or affirmation showing probable 

 cause, issue warrants in all such cases. 

 All birds, or parts, nests, or eggs thereof, 

 captured, killed, taken, shipped, trans- 

 ported, carried, or possessed contrary to 

 the provisions of this Act or of any regula- 

 tions made pursuant thereto shall, when 

 found, be seized by any such employee, or 

 by any marshal or deputy marshal, and 

 upon conviction of the offender or upon 

 judgment of a court of the United States 

 that the same were captured, killed, 

 taken, shipped, transported, carried, or 

 possessed contrary to the provisions of 

 this Act or of any regulation made pursu- 

 ant thereto, shall be forfeited to the 

 United States and disposed of as directed 

 by the court having jurisdiction. 



Sec. 6. That any person, association, 

 partnership, or corporation who shall 

 violate any of the provisions of said con- 

 vention or of this Act, or who shall 

 violate or fail to comply with any regula- 

 tion made pursuant to this Act, shall 

 be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and 

 upon conviction thereof shall be fined 

 not more than $500 or be imprisoned not 

 more than six months, or both. 



Sec. 7. That nothing in this Act shall 

 be construed to prevent the several States 

 and Territories from making or enforcing 



