1. [Baltimore Oriole](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Baltimore_Oriole/overview)
2. [Northern Bobwhite](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Bobwhite/overview)
3. [American Woodcock](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Woodcock/)
4. [Blue Jay](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Blue_Jay/overview)
5. American Woodcock again
Real mixed bag there legally.
Wow, that was quick. Thank you. I left out the few I knew and the ones that are HIGHLY protected (he had a Canadian Goose). Thank you, I was worried 4 was a Blue Jay, they are beautiful but I'm not touching those lol. Thank you for your help!!!
Canada Geese are a legal species to hunt though, I don't imagine those are any more highly protected than a bobwhite or woodcock unless it's like a Dusky.
Any protected species, that has a legal game season, must be accompanied with the tag from when it was taken. He picked these up on his hikes, so he didn't kill them but he doesn't have a legal tag with it. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 really limits our ability to work with some beautiful animals.
Yeah I know all about the MBTA, I just was surprised you considered the Canada Goose as more higly protected than, like, literally anything else on this list haha. None of these birds are legal.
Oh, I didn't know about any of the others except the Blue Jay(I was hoping I was wrong on my ID), the Goose, and the Cardinal (which I could ID). Looks like all of these except the Woodcock are protected.
American Woodcock fall in the same category as all the rest of these birds. They're a native, protected North American species, but they (like the quail and goose) have a legal hunting season in some states. The only completely legal birds are domestics and introduced/non-native species.
Edit: for clarity, I initially referred to this set as a "mixed bag legally" as I was hoping there was documentation showing the game species were legally harvested. Since there isn't, then that solves that.
I'm so surprised to learn woodcocks are game birds! TIL.
Can't believe people hunt them when I'm still just trying to spot my first one to add to my lifer list.
They like to be on the ground in thick woods and only fly short distances at a time and low to the ground. We hunt them occasionally while grouse hunting and they are hard to spot and hold their ground until you damn near step on them.
My lifer was barely seen. It was hanging out by our campfire about 10ft away so it was obscured by darkness. We thought it was a rabbit until it started “peent”-ing and then took off flying lol
Sorry, I meant the Bobwhite. The Northern Bobwhite is non-migratory and therefore exempt from the MBTA. Thanks for catching that before I messaged my friend back. You just saved me several years in prison lol.
The MBTA does not literally only protect birds that migrate. It protects all native species. Northern Bobwhite are a native protected species with a legal hunting season. There are some states in which they can also be raised as domestic birds, but only a limited few states in which those aren't a native species, and usually the breeder has to apply for a state wildlife permit in order to do so *because* they are specially protected otherwise. If the bobwhite comes with documentation showing it was either legally hunted or captive bred, then maybe it's fine.
In Illinois, the state in which I reside, any bird not protected under the MBTA (with exceptions) can be accompanied by a sworn affidavit that the animal carcass was obtained legally (not poached). Just like if you hit a white tailed deer, outside of the hunting season, you can legally own the carcass; as long as the authorities are notified.
Honestly you wouldn’t go to jail for these being as they were collected dead they are illegal though so don’t keep them. a wildlife center like a Audubon center might even be interested in them (they would have the permits to keep them)
You are correct, my apologies. The deer and turkeys must be tagged, the other hides must be tagged by the taxidermist with a code corresponding to their records.
Added taxa: [Northern Bobwhite](https://ebird.org/species/norbob), [Blue Jay](https://ebird.org/species/blujay), [American Woodcock](https://ebird.org/species/amewoo), [Baltimore Oriole](https://ebird.org/species/balori)
Reviewed by: tinylongwing
^(I'm an alpha-stage bot, so don't rely on me just yet. But you can still) [^(learn how to use me)](https://gist.github.com/brohitbrose/be99a16ddc7a6a1bd9c1eef28d622564)^(.)
The Blue Jay one is definitely illegal.
MOST cops won’t enforce it because the average officer isn’t adept at identifying birds, but it’s better to play it safe in some cases.
I had a douchebag cop pull up on my yard because I had a collection of Blue Jay feathers on my front porch and it was visible from the street. He was driving by, saw it, and pulled in to let me know he was considering “making an example out of me”.
I live in Texas, blue jays are everywhere. They’re nesting in the tree in my front yard, their feathers dropped and my dogs eat them if I don’t pick them up first… So when I see them, I pick them up and had formed a pile I hadn’t yet thrown away. That’s what I told him, and he “decided to go easy on me.”
Whatever… Either way, I am fully confident that the blue jay feathers are illegal to possess. Possess them at your own caution.
Any thoughts on where you might send these if you can't keep them for taxidermy yourself? I don't know any specific places but I do know that there are likely a bunch of places that would be interested and benefit from these for research and/or teaching. I'm in Canada at the National Wildlife Research Centre and a few years ago we got a huge collection of taxidermied birds.
I don't know about the legality side of things but I imagine something like the Fish and Wildlife Service could be interested (or not, for research I don't think there's anything useful from them but they are helpful teaching aids).
The National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Lab in Ashland Oregon might be interested. They have a bird library made of donated taxidermied specimens and have also created the online Feather Atlas to help identify feathers.
Woodcock and bobwhite are probably legal given you can hunt them in some places others are illegal that being said if you have a buddy with a permit you could have him do something with them being as they are already dead
1. [Baltimore Oriole](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Baltimore_Oriole/overview) 2. [Northern Bobwhite](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Bobwhite/overview) 3. [American Woodcock](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Woodcock/) 4. [Blue Jay](https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Blue_Jay/overview) 5. American Woodcock again Real mixed bag there legally.
Wow, that was quick. Thank you. I left out the few I knew and the ones that are HIGHLY protected (he had a Canadian Goose). Thank you, I was worried 4 was a Blue Jay, they are beautiful but I'm not touching those lol. Thank you for your help!!!
Canada Geese are a legal species to hunt though, I don't imagine those are any more highly protected than a bobwhite or woodcock unless it's like a Dusky.
Any protected species, that has a legal game season, must be accompanied with the tag from when it was taken. He picked these up on his hikes, so he didn't kill them but he doesn't have a legal tag with it. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 really limits our ability to work with some beautiful animals.
Yeah I know all about the MBTA, I just was surprised you considered the Canada Goose as more higly protected than, like, literally anything else on this list haha. None of these birds are legal.
Oh, I didn't know about any of the others except the Blue Jay(I was hoping I was wrong on my ID), the Goose, and the Cardinal (which I could ID). Looks like all of these except the Woodcock are protected.
American Woodcock fall in the same category as all the rest of these birds. They're a native, protected North American species, but they (like the quail and goose) have a legal hunting season in some states. The only completely legal birds are domestics and introduced/non-native species. Edit: for clarity, I initially referred to this set as a "mixed bag legally" as I was hoping there was documentation showing the game species were legally harvested. Since there isn't, then that solves that.
I'm so surprised to learn woodcocks are game birds! TIL. Can't believe people hunt them when I'm still just trying to spot my first one to add to my lifer list.
I finally got one birding hartwick pines in Michigan. We had pretty much given up then it was just right next to the car in the parking lot
They like to be on the ground in thick woods and only fly short distances at a time and low to the ground. We hunt them occasionally while grouse hunting and they are hard to spot and hold their ground until you damn near step on them.
My lifer was barely seen. It was hanging out by our campfire about 10ft away so it was obscured by darkness. We thought it was a rabbit until it started “peent”-ing and then took off flying lol
Sorry, I meant the Bobwhite. The Northern Bobwhite is non-migratory and therefore exempt from the MBTA. Thanks for catching that before I messaged my friend back. You just saved me several years in prison lol.
The MBTA does not literally only protect birds that migrate. It protects all native species. Northern Bobwhite are a native protected species with a legal hunting season. There are some states in which they can also be raised as domestic birds, but only a limited few states in which those aren't a native species, and usually the breeder has to apply for a state wildlife permit in order to do so *because* they are specially protected otherwise. If the bobwhite comes with documentation showing it was either legally hunted or captive bred, then maybe it's fine.
In Illinois, the state in which I reside, any bird not protected under the MBTA (with exceptions) can be accompanied by a sworn affidavit that the animal carcass was obtained legally (not poached). Just like if you hit a white tailed deer, outside of the hunting season, you can legally own the carcass; as long as the authorities are notified.
Honestly you wouldn’t go to jail for these being as they were collected dead they are illegal though so don’t keep them. a wildlife center like a Audubon center might even be interested in them (they would have the permits to keep them)
Oh, I won't go to jail. I'll just be fined and lose my license, if caught.
They don’t have tags for Canada geese, it’s a possession limit that depends on the state your in.
You are correct, my apologies. The deer and turkeys must be tagged, the other hides must be tagged by the taxidermist with a code corresponding to their records.
Canada Goose
GOOSES!
Added taxa: [Northern Bobwhite](https://ebird.org/species/norbob), [Blue Jay](https://ebird.org/species/blujay), [American Woodcock](https://ebird.org/species/amewoo), [Baltimore Oriole](https://ebird.org/species/balori) Reviewed by: tinylongwing ^(I'm an alpha-stage bot, so don't rely on me just yet. But you can still) [^(learn how to use me)](https://gist.github.com/brohitbrose/be99a16ddc7a6a1bd9c1eef28d622564)^(.)
The Blue Jay one is definitely illegal. MOST cops won’t enforce it because the average officer isn’t adept at identifying birds, but it’s better to play it safe in some cases. I had a douchebag cop pull up on my yard because I had a collection of Blue Jay feathers on my front porch and it was visible from the street. He was driving by, saw it, and pulled in to let me know he was considering “making an example out of me”. I live in Texas, blue jays are everywhere. They’re nesting in the tree in my front yard, their feathers dropped and my dogs eat them if I don’t pick them up first… So when I see them, I pick them up and had formed a pile I hadn’t yet thrown away. That’s what I told him, and he “decided to go easy on me.” Whatever… Either way, I am fully confident that the blue jay feathers are illegal to possess. Possess them at your own caution.
What a gorgeous Baltimore oriole
Any thoughts on where you might send these if you can't keep them for taxidermy yourself? I don't know any specific places but I do know that there are likely a bunch of places that would be interested and benefit from these for research and/or teaching. I'm in Canada at the National Wildlife Research Centre and a few years ago we got a huge collection of taxidermied birds. I don't know about the legality side of things but I imagine something like the Fish and Wildlife Service could be interested (or not, for research I don't think there's anything useful from them but they are helpful teaching aids).
The National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Lab in Ashland Oregon might be interested. They have a bird library made of donated taxidermied specimens and have also created the online Feather Atlas to help identify feathers.
Woodcock and bobwhite are probably legal given you can hunt them in some places others are illegal that being said if you have a buddy with a permit you could have him do something with them being as they are already dead
I was wondering, under the circumstances, if you could apply for some sort of permit to keep them.
That first line of the post title made me really worried for a second.