Hola, 
The following is an excerpt from a long Audubon Advisory  dated 3 December 
2004.  I've forwarded this chunk as I've heard this topic  discussed around the 
campfire quite a bit since the original decision was  made.  Thought a few 
folks would like to know that it has been further  defined.   
Much of the rest of the advisory was about funding that  was past by the 
108th congress as they closed the door, and how that funding  relates to wildlife 
initiatives.  I suspect the advisory can be found at  audubon.org.   
MIGRATORY BIRD TREATY ACT CLARIFICATION  VICTORY 
The brightest spot in the FY05 Omnibus bill is the inclusion  of an Audubon 
top-priority measure that restores Migratory Bird Treaty Act  protection to the 
law's intended beneficiaries, America's native migratory  birds. The 
provision, known as the "Migratory Bird Treaty Reform Act of 2004"  was designed to 
strengthen the existing law by ensuring that invasive species  causing harm to 
native migratory birds could not be extended legal protection  under the Act. A 
court ruling earlier this year put America's migratory birds at  risk from 
the very law designed to protect them. That decision, Hill v.  Norton, turned 
the Migratory Bird Treaty Act on its end by extending the  law's protection to 
destructive invasive species such as the European Starling,  English Sparrow, 
and Mute Swan, which cause significant ecological damage and  out-compete 
America's native birds for precious remaining habitat. The provision  included in 
the Omnibus Bill closes the loophole created by this decision,  ensuring that 
legal protection is not extended to the human-introduced and  invasive species 
that are decimating some of America's most endangered bird  populations. 
"Invasive species are a key factor in the decline of migratory  birds," said 
Audubon's Assistant Director of Government Relations Mike Daulton.  "To extend legal 
protection to invasive species under a key bird conservation  law is a 
terrible idea. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act is meant to protect  migratory birds, 
not protect the very species causing their destruction." The  spread of the 
territorial Mute Swan, for example, has caused significant damage  to many 
important ecosystems, including Chesapeake Bay. Mute Swans displace  native birds 
including Tundra Swans, Least Terns, Black Skimmers, Common Terns,  and 
Forster's Terns, and affect many species of waterfowl such as the American  Black 
Duck, an Audubon WatchList species. Many thanks for your phone calls  and letters 
to your lawmakers on this issue - your efforts helped make this  victory 
possible!