>Looks like Fish & Wildlife folks are like policemen - you can never find
>one when you need them. Come on Scott and Jon you know far more about this
>than I do.

Not to pass the buck, but I usually think of this feather-possession stuff
as more of a Federal Fish and Wildlife folk issue, under the Migratory Bird
Treaty Act. And personally, I have never worried that Federal agents would
track me down to ask about the feathers I've gathered from the ground over
the years, or even about the single downy feather that came off a struggling
Middendorff's Grasshopper-Warbler one Aleutian afternoon and ended up
following me back to Washington.

Still, possession of dead birds (or their parts) can be a very touchy
subject. Those among Tweeters who also read ornithological journals must
know well the trials (literally) and tribulations of Dr. Nathaniel
Wheelwright, whose handful of specimens cost him dearly. My _Condor_ back
issues are in Olympia, but I'd be happy to post citations later if anyone's
interested.

& BTW, as much as I enjoy contributing to Tweeters when a subject line
enters my area of professional expertise (or gets close), I don't have all
of the "Fish & Wildlife" answers simply because of my alternate dfw.wa.gov
address. This is _part_ of what was behind Jon's departure from Tweeters --
he was uncomfortable being labeled as "Our man in Government".

------------------------
Scott Richardson
NE Seattle
salix at isomedia.com