The Migratory Bird Treaty Act is among the oldest wildlife protection laws on the books, and over the last 100 years it has saved countless numbers of birds in peril. However, many birds protected under MBTA are facing serious threats and many are in rapid decline.
The world has changed since the MBTA was enacted in 1918, yet it still brings together industry, government, and conservationists to collaborate for a common cause. The Act is credited with saving many species from extinction including the Snowy Egret, Wood Duck, and Sandhill Crane. Trumpeter Swans, which had dwindled to a population of about 70 birds in the mid-1930s, recovered enough to be taken off Canada’s endangered list in 1996.
Learn more with these resources:
The Migratory Bird Treaty Act, Explained
Five Things to Know About the Recently Changed Migratory Bird Act
See a 2016 article about subsistence harvest and the MBTA in Alaska.
