I have just been given several bird mounts (Mallard drake, teal,Canadian goose with wings set) and really have no use for them. Is it legal to sell such birds on E-bay etc.? I am a licensed taxidermist but have nothing to do with birds. I do know that migratory birds are big trouble without a license but what about old mounts? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
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This has been covered a lot of times. You cannot sell them on Ebay or anywhere else, unless they were tame birds(pen raised) and you have the proper papers from the breeder.
It's even coverred right on ebays website - they expressly forbid the sale of them without the proper paperwork proving they are captive raised. In addition - if you are licensed but have nothing to do with birds.. does that mean you lack the federal migratory license? If so - you can't have those birds either. There are rumours running rampant that you can receive birds that are given to you - but by going to the USWFS site and checking it out - you'll find this is not true. Good luck =)
You can give them to whom ever you want, and if it is an education facility or museum you may be able to write it off.
Tony
Rod,
As long as the birds were given to you, you have every legal right to them. You can in turn give them to who ever you want, as long as you receive no money for them. I'm not sure what law Raven is referring to. You can even gift migratory birds that you have legally taken in the field to somone else as long as you receive no money for them. Hope that helps.
John
Frequently folks conclude that the limitation of selling migratory birds is "money", and it is. However, the issue is a little more than dollars changing hands - you may not trade or accept any form of compensation in return for a migratory bird. For example you can not give the birds to a museun in turn for free passes of a monitary value. You can not give the birds to a college biology department in turn for free tickets to the seasons football games. You can not give the birds to a Doctor in trade for free medical care and so forth. As long as there is no form of remuneration in return, you can give (gift) them to whom ever for what ever you choose.
I want to thank those who have taken their time to help me out. I am not a bird hunter nor do I care to have these in my home but they were given to me by someone that intended good by them. I will probably play it safe and destroy them. It is a real shame though since they really do not look to bad for the age they are.
Again, thanks a million!
I dont understand the mentality to destroy them?
Is just as easy to drive to the local hig school and give them to the bioloigy class.
Its a hell of a lot easier and better to conserve this wildlife. than destrying them.
We just coverred this a week or so ago about the owl and I posted a tonne of info directly from the USWFS site. All the stuff listed above is illegal unless you have the proper paperwork BEFORE hand. There is no such thing as gifting them etc - and the law clearly states that even stuff as simple as transporting, causing them to be transported etc is illegal as well. I'll try to find that info and post it again. The only people entitled to posess those ducks are the hunter that took them and the taxidermist who mounted them. If they were willed to you you may be allowed to have them but Im not sure. As for having them given to you - it's not permitted without proper paperwork which must be completed before you transfer them. Off to look for some of those laws now.. wish me luck...
This is from the USFWS. Please note things such as the parts where it says you cannot even CARRY parts of the birds.. this gifting thing is a theory started by someone who wanted to believe they could have them and couldn't accept that it was illegal. There is no legal basis for giving birds away - it is ALL illegal - gifting or giving is urban myth. K - enough rambling - heres the facts...
'Establishment of a Federal prohibition, unless permitted by regulations, 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." (16 U.S.C. 703) '
Again - this is not my theory - this is cut and pasted from the USWFS site regarding the handling of migratory birds. As Stephen Rogers has pointed out before, educational facilities may be able to obtain a salvage permit which allows them to collect a certain number of birds within the year. If you however find something on the side of the road - the second you pick it up you are in violation of the law (refer to 'carrying by any means' 'shipping' 'transporting' etc above). The BEST you can do is to tell someone with valid paperwork where to go find it and hope that they get it before the scavengers do. Yes this sucks - but it is US law. Yes it seems like a waste of a bird, but again - it's US law. There are transfer papers of some sort to have birds given away but I dont recall the form number - sorry. Contact the USFWS and they will help you out. Of course you have to prove that you are the rightful owner of the mount in the first place which generally requires that you present the number of the hunting license that the birds were harvested under and that number must belong to you. A lot of red tape and paperwork for sure. Gets even worse when sending across the border here to Canada too! Hrmm - I wonder if all the red tape I have laying around here I could use to seal my windows ;)
The birds in this instance are considered game birds, and are already mounted specimens. The Owl situation was a fresh specimen and also a totally protected species.
Presumably the Canada Goose, Mallard, etc. were legal when taken to the taxidermist shop. When John Smith (or whoever it was) gave them to Rod - I said GAVE THEM to Rod - it was perfectly legal to do so. Likewise Rod can give them to a school or a nature center or another individual as long as no money or trade favors are obtained in exchange.
The situation would be MUCH different with a mounted owl. Special permits can be obtined for grandfathered specimens for possession, only if the Owl was collected long long ago. However, you can not give the owl to someone, or even to a school unless a permit is either in hand or transfer is approved with a new permit. Protected species like owls, crows, robins, blackbirds, etc. have a different set of circumstances than Ducks and Geese.
Birds not regulated by the U.S. Fish and wildlife Service CAN actually be sold. For instance, a purchased parrot from a pet store can be bought, mounted when it dies, and sold on Ebay without a special permit. A duck needs a special permit to be sold on Ebay. A North American species of Owl can never legally be sold on Ebay at all.
It takes years of observation, interpretation, and experience to even begin to understand the variances and legalities of dealing with multitude of laws out there. I certainly do not have all the answers, but chime in with my interpretation of them. In this case Tony, John and Clewis are correct.
taxidermologist,,,,,, you win with the right answer,Period. The key word you used there is game bird! they are legally harvested GAMEBIRDS. If any of ya have received the information booklet that came with your federal permit, and read it all(instead of using it for kindling} you would see exactly what Tax. is saying. And friends to stay away from trouble, don't fool with the owls,eagles,hawks,etc.unless you know exactly what your doing!
Don't ya have to have the permit number that the animal was harvested under however? I knew that ya could get migratory gamebirds easier than songbirds and raptors - but I thought ya still had to have the permit number it was harvested under? Otherwise theres nothing preventing mounts from popping up all over the place with no information as to how they were harvested. EVERY regulated bird has SOME paperwork... the quesitons here is.. what specific paperwork is required? It may be permitted to give it away but surely there must be some kind of documentation? Again - I believe it is the permit number the birds were taken under... I'll try to find out soon unless someone else beats me to it =)
To John C: My mentality is one that errs on the side of caution, besides, the Bio teachers around here are all anti's.
To everyone else that answered I sincerely thank you for your time and effort. Yes,I reviewed what had been said before in this category and others but did not see a clear answer, just as this time. I thank you all and have nothing but praise for this forum.
that are mounted there is no requirement for a permit. While it would be nice to record the hunting licence number as well as hunter and date collected, this is not required. Nor is there required, a record of the taxidermist preparing the specimen.
The only provision that I can think of where one might get in trouble is when you come across on over-eager game and fish officer. If they wanted to be a complete stickler, for example a person had been given many specimens of Canvasback ducks by many different people. In much of the United States the limit is at most, in good years, only one Canvasback. If a person were given 20 male Canvasbacks in one year and had an entire den filled with fresh newly-mounted specimens, then I wouldn't invite the local Game and Fish Officer over for Sunday Tea unless I had a record of who gave the mounts to you. These records are not mandatory though - the burden of proof should be placed on the Officer to prove laws had been broken.
Sale of captive bred waterfowl must always have a permit travel with them. They can be GIVEN away with no permit but then they can no longer be sold.