19
May
Take Action: Legislation Introduced To Protect Migratory Birds
(Beyond Pesticides, May 19, 2025) The Trump administration has removed crucial protections established under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), including those that protect birds from pesticide poisoning. The Migratory Bird Protection Act (MBPA), introduced in May by Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), will restore protections against an “incidental take.” Beyond Pesticides is calling for the protection of migratory bird and the restitution of funds to implement the law. This is not the first time that President Trump as reduced protection for migratory birds. In his first time (2017), the Department of the Interior issued a policy that relieved industries of the requirement to protect birds, and they will no longer be held accountable for bird deaths. In addition, the agency is expected to propose rules to make this policy change permanent.
Tell your U.S. Representative to cosponsor the Migratory Bird Protection Act (H.R. 3188).
MBTA was passed in 1918 to protect migratory birds soon after the last Passenger Pigeon died in captivity, followed by the last Carolina Parakeet. MBTA originally resulted from the loss of birds due to a number of threats—notably at the time, the collection of bird feathers. It prohibits the take (including killing, capturing, selling, trading, and transport) of protected migratory bird species without prior authorization by the U.S. Department of the Interior’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). “Take” has been understood to include not only purposeful killing of birds or stealing their eggs, but also an “incidental take,” which occurs as a result of activities not intended to kill birds. Incidental take is controlled by FWS regulations and memoranda of understanding with regulatory agencies like the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). MBTA protects these native birds.
Until 2017, MBTA protected migratory birds from such incidental taking as oil and gas operations, which account for 90% of migratory bird deaths, industrialization, and pesticide use. In that year, the Trump administration’s interpretation removed protection from unintentional killing. A lawsuit by environmental groups resulted in rulemaking by the Biden administration in 2021 reestablishing the protections taken away by the 2017 action. Now the Trump administration is withdrawing that rule. According to Bloomberg Law, “The withdrawal follows Interior solicitor’s April 11 reinstatement of a 2017 legal opinion from the first Trump administration that said MBTA prohibits only intentional migratory bird killings. The reinstatement defies a 2020 federal court ruling that vacated the 2017 solicitor’s opinion because it failed to align with the MBTA’s intent to protect migratory birds from accidental killings.”
According to the American Bird Conservancy, “Each year, around one billion birds are lost to industrial activity. Over its century-long history, the MBTA has protected millions, if not billions, of birds by prohibiting the sale, possession, and killing of migratory birds without a permit—including through incidental take, defined as the foreseeable and predictable killing of birds from industrial sources.”
Many scientific studies tie impacts on bird species to the interconnected issues of pesticide exposure, habitat loss, and climate change. From higher insecticide levels in pesticide-laden nests linked to increased offspring mortality to the threats to seed-eating birds from neonicotinoid-treated seeds, agricultural intensification harms bird species within the U.S. and throughout the world. The decline in bird populations reflects overall ecosystem health, which is directly impacted by harmful agricultural practices. These issues have been of concern for decades, back to when Rachel Carson warned in Silent Spring how insidious pesticide use can be. The State of the Birds 2025 report finds, “Despite ample evidence that conservation can work, the status quo approach to conservation is not turning bird populations around.” Thus, it is time to strengthen, not weaken, the protection for birds.
MBPA will restore protection against incidental take, but alone, it only returns to a status quo approach. Additional measures are needed, including a wholescale conversion to organic agriculture and land care, as well as reducing dependence on petrochemicals in other ways.
Tell your U.S. Representative to cosponsor the Migratory Bird Protection Act (H.R. 3188).
Letter to U.S. Representative
I am very concerned about the current administration’s removal of protections for migratory birds. I urge you to cosponsor the Migratory Bird Protection Act (H.R. 3188) and support a wholescale conversion to organic agriculture and land care.
The Trump administration has removed crucial protections of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), including those that protect birds from pesticide poisoning. The Migratory Bird Protection Act (MBPA), introduced in May by Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), will restore protections against an “incidental take.”
MBTA was passed in 1918 to protect migratory birds soon after the last Passenger Pigeon died in captivity, followed by the last Carolina Parakeet. MBTA originally resulted from the loss of birds due to several threats—notably at the time, the collection of bird feathers. It prohibits the take (including killing, capturing, selling, trading, and transporting) of protected migratory bird species without prior authorization by the Department of the Interior’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). “Take” has been understood to include not only purposeful killing of birds or stealing their eggs, but also “incidental take,” which occurs as a result of activities not intended to kill birds. Incidental take is controlled by FWS regulations and memoranda of understanding with regulatory agencies like the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Until 2017, MBTA protected migratory birds from such incidental take as oil and gas operations, which account for 90% of migratory bird deaths, industrialization, and pesticide use. In that year, the Trump administration removed protection from unintentional killing. A lawsuit by environmental groups resulted in rulemaking by the Biden administration in 2021 reestablishing the protections taken away by the 2017 action. Now the Trump administration is withdrawing that rule. According to Bloomberg Law, “The withdrawal follows Interior Solicitor’s April 11 reinstatement of a 2017 legal opinion from the first Trump administration that said the MBTA prohibits only intentional migratory bird killings. The reinstatement defies a 2020 federal court ruling that vacated the 2017 solicitor’s opinion because it failed to align with the MBTA’s intent to protect migratory birds from accidental killings.”
According to the American Bird Conservancy, “Each year, around one billion birds are lost to industrial activity. Over its century-long history, the MBTA has protected millions, if not billions, of birds by prohibiting the sale, possession, and killing of migratory birds without a permit—including through incidental take.”
Many scientific studies tie impacts on bird species to the interconnected issues of pesticide exposure, habitat loss, and climate change. From higher insecticide levels in pesticide-laden nests linked to increased offspring mortality to the threats to seed-eating birds from neonicotinoid-treated seeds, agricultural intensification harms bird species within the U.S. and throughout the world. The decline in bird populations reflects overall ecosystem health, which is directly impacted by harmful agricultural practices. Concern about these issues dates back to Rachel Carson’s warning in Silent Spring about the dangers of pesticide use. The State of the Birds 2025 report finds, “Despite ample evidence that conservation can work, the status quo approach to conservation is not turning bird populations around.” Thus, it is time to strengthen, not weaken, protection for birds.
I urge you to cosponsor MBPA to restore protection against an incidental take and seek additional measures, including a wholescale conversion to organic agriculture and land care, as well as reducing dependence on petrochemicals in other ways.
Thank you.
