There is no telling how many feathers I collected a kid. I did that without ever killing a single bird for in the woods, I found feathers everywhere. I had feathers from blue jays, crows, cardinals, doves, sparrows, mockingbirds, ducks, owls, hawks and dozens of other types of birds. I had a very nice collection that I took to school and showed everyone. Back then, no one thought anything about it. Now, possession of those feathers would be a major problem. Fines in the thousands would be coming and maybe jail time. Today, it is a big deal.
Most birds are protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) which makes possession of feathers or other parts of the bird to be illegal. The idea of this is to protect wild birds from being killed for their feathers and in some cases, their claws or beaks. There has always been a market for these items by collectors and for commercial trade. It does not matter how the feathers were obtained. You can't pick them up off the ground, pluck them from a dead bird on the road or get them from a dead bird your cat left on your step. This is absolute.
For more information about the MBTA included a list of which species are included (almost all birds) visit the FWS website at http://www.fws.gov/migratorybirds/regulationspolicies/mbta/mbtintro.html.
There are a few exception for legally hunted waterfowl and some gamebirds and for the use of feathers by Native Americans. Visit the FAQ page at http://www.fws.gov/lab/featheratlas/faq.php for more information.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and their state agencies may allow the use of bird feathers, other parts and entire specimen for educational and research purposes, but you must have a permit. For more information go to http://www.fws.gov/migratorybirds/mbpermits.htm.
That means that picking up a feather to stick in your hat band while you are out hiking can make you subject to a fine. Feather collections as the one I had a kid could generate fines in the thousands of dollars. It really is a big deal.
If you find a feather while you are outside. You can pick it up, examine it and even photograph it if you wish, but when you are done, put it back on the ground.
Michael is a former biologist and Texas Master Naturalist. Originally from Newsome, Texas (Between Pittsburg and Winnsboro), educated in Dallas & Garland schools, then off to the University of Texas system where he received a degree in biology and worked as a biologist with the University of Texas system. After many years away from nature and biology, he relocated to the banks of Lake O' the Pines where he has been rediscovering the joys of nature. He is somewhat surprised that he has become a birder. Most of his interest in nature was centered around reptiles. Perhaps just like birds evolved from reptiles starting in the late Jurassic, he has begun his own evolution. During his formal education, his interests in biology/nature grew to include community ecology and population studies, all with a binding of evolutionary processes. He liked birds, but they were secondary at best. All at once he finds them fascinating.
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