fowl play

The article's photo caption reads: "This talon helped convict Rayvon Hall of Rialto, California, of violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. He claimed to have cut if off a Copper's hawk he'd trapped in October 2006 and then killed with a mixture of bleach and ammonia."

From Audubonmagazine.org, May-June 2008:

"Federal wildlife officers are cracking down on hobbyists who kill raptors that prey on the pigeons they raise. But criminals rarely get more than a slap on the wrist because the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, an effective and versatile tool for 90 years, has lost its edge and needs sharpening." ...By Ted Williams

"Raptors are being slaughtered by the thousands all across our nation by people who, for one reason or another, don’t like them. This is, of course, criminal activity—specifically a Class B misdemeanor under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 (MBTA)."

and:

"If we conservatively say that 50% of the 250 roller members in L.A. are killing 10 hawks a year, you're talking 1,250 hawks in L.A. alone.")."

and:

"These criminals killed peregrines, redtails, Cooper's hawks, even kestrels. Kestrels don't eat pigeons, buth they didn't know what."

One guy bragged he'd killed 30 hawks in 45 days...and they are gruesome in their methods: shooting, suffocating, spraying with bleach, spreading Draino on their bodies! It's just sick!

WHAT YOU CAN DO
Urge your legislators to support and cosponsor DeFazio’s Migratory Bird Treaty Act Penalty and Enforcement Act—H.R. 4093. And tell them to insist that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service receive funds to fully staff its law-enforcement division. For more information on Operation High Roller, visit Audubon Portland and the Fish and Wildlife Service. To receive e-mail updates from Audubon’s policy office on this and other issues, go to Audubon.org, and click on “Issues & Action” and then “Take Action Now.”

Read the entire article here: "fowl play" by Ted Williams. Audubon Magazine May-June 2008

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