Ruffled feathers

Sale of eagle feathers is against the law

By ELOISE OGDEN, Regional Editor, This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it

POSTED: July 26, 2008

When an e-mail recently circulated advertising a genuine eagle feather warbonnet for sale, the notice instantly signaled a red flag to officials from the Three Affiliated Tribes' Game and Fish.

They checked it out and contacted the party, letting them know what they were doing is illegal.

"The most important thing is that whether it is an eagle feather plume or any type of eagle feather, it is against the law to sell them," said Vonnie Alberts, New Town, press secretary for the Three Affiliated Tribes on the Fort Berthold Reservation.

"Game and Fish has done a good job of intervening and letting people locally know they can't buy or sell eagle feathers," she said.

She said Game and Fish does have an obligation to report such incidents.

Rich Grosz, Bismarck, special agent with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in North Dakota since 1998, said from time to time he hears about incidents like the recent one on Fort Berthold. He expects there are more incidents that are not told.

"Eagles are protected by several different wildlife laws The two pertaining the most are the Migratory Bird Treaty Act enacted back in 1916. It prohibits the sale or barter of migratory birds of which the bald and golden eagle are defined as migratory birds," Grosz said.

He said that law does not make reference to native or non-native but refers to any person, and that a sale is a felony.

He said the other act that applies to the eagle is the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. "This act initially protected the bald eagle," he said. That act was passed in 1940, primarily because of shooting and trapping, and the persecution of the bald eagle, he said. Primarily because of its similarity of appearance, the golden eagle was included for protection in the act in 1962, he said.

"Both eagles through the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act are covered and it strictly prohibits the sale, barter and transfer of all those things dealing with bald and golden eagles," Grosz said. The law includes dead eagles as well as the eggs and nests of eagles, he said.

Because American Indians have used eagle feathers for religious and cultural purposes for hundreds of years, including healing, marriage and naming ceremonies, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service established the National Eagle Repository in Colorado in the early 1970s.

The repository is a collection point for dead eagles and provides American Indians with the feathers of golden and bald eagles needed for religious purposes. Powwows are included in the purposes, Grosz said.

Most of the dead golden and bald eagles the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service receives at the repository have been salvaged by state and federal wildlife personnel, according to repository information. The birds have died of natural causes such as electrocution or vehicle collisions, but also unlawful shooting and trapping.

However, only enrolled members of a federally recognized Indian tribe can obtain a permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to receive and possess eagle feathers from the repository.

All the tribes on North Dakota's reservations are federally recognized Indian tribes, Grosz said.

Large demand

The Fish and Wildlife Service's permit system was established because of the large demand and the limited supply of eagles. Each applicant can apply for only one whole eagle or specific parts equivalent to one bird (i.e. two wings, one tail, two talons) at a time. Once an applicant's request has been filled, then that person can reapply to receive another eagle, according to repository information.

When applying for an eagle possession permit, the enrolled member of a federally recognized tribe must present a completed application from a Fish and Wildlife Service Regional Migratory Bird Permit Office and also a certification of his or her tribal enrollment from the Bureau of Indian Affairs or Tribal Enrollment Office.

People affiliated with institutions who are doing scientific research with eagles can apply for a special permit to handle eagles or eagle parts, or the eggs or nests.

Requests to the repository for eagles are filled on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Applicants can expect to wait about 3 1/2 years for a whole bird order to be filled. About 95 percent of the orders are for whole eagles, repository information said.

"Supply will never equal demand," Grosz said.

Currently, there are more than 5,000 people on the waiting list for about 1,000 eagles the repository receives each year, according to the repository.

When eagles die in the state's zoos, Grosz said they are shipped to him and then sent to the repository.

The items are allowed to be handed down to American Indian family members from generation to generation or from one American Indian to another for religious purposes. However, American Indians cannot give eagle feathers or parts to non-natives as a gift.

"Eagles are still actively being poisoned, trapped and shot in North Dakota, and not just in North Dakota," Grosz said. He said Canada has had a rash of eagle killings. Besides the federal laws, he said eagles are also covered by international laws.

For more information about eagles and the laws that protect them, call Grosz at 255-0593 or visit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Web site at (www.fws.gov ).

People who find dead eagles, which typically occurs in the migratory seasons of spring and fall, also should call Grosz or their state game warden.

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