This is another thread that isn't exiting.

[the Scarf]

I have a somewhat strange hobby. I collect crow feathers. I started doing this earlier in the year, because I thought I could use them for something. I will be incorporating them into part of my 'crow' costume.
Usually, I see them on the ground when I'm on my bike. If they're in reasonable condition, I pick them up. I sterilize them by freezing them.
Now, for my crow costume, I need one more pinion feather of a slightly smaller size. Unfortunately, the only feathers I've been seeing recently are tail feathers, which have a completely different shape. This is a bit frustrating, as in the days preceding me actually picking them up, I started seeing them everywhere. I wish that I had started earlier.

And we get to the reason I made this thread.
This is the time of year when crows start dying. I don't know why, I've just been seeing more crow bodies around. I usually just leave them alone, but recently I've been thinking about getting a few feathers from them. If I followed through, I'd make sure to wear gloves and sterilize the feathers, but my question for all of you is weather or not this is wrong.
Crows are scavengers. They eat roadkill and garbage, and in doing so, they help keep things clean. I've heard this idea of scavenging from already dead things, I know of one person who skinned a deer they found by the side of the road. I would only be taking a few feathers, but I'm very apprehensive. at first I thought that it just seems wrong to mess with dead animals, but after thinking about it, I'm pretty sure that this is a society inflicted view. We use animal byproducts all the time, we just don't actively think of where it comes from. I'm not killing the crow, I'm only using it's feathers. It's basically the same thing as picking up stray feathers, but in this case, they're still attached to the bird.

The more I think about it, the more I realize that there's really no reason NOT too, except the idea of contamination, and I know how to deal with that. However, it's still a social taboo, and I'm having trouble getting around it.

Why is it considered to be wrong to do? Why shouldn't I? Why should I?
Post your opinions here.

[Poltaap]

you shuld do it, the birds wont need them anyway 

I don't know why but after reading this did the question "hmm, I wonder what is  the fastes way to remove the tissue from a bird skull?" pop up in my mind 

[the Scarf]

I don't want the skin, just the feathers...

[Poltaap]

I don't want the skin, just the feathers...

  I didin't say anything about the skin, just that I "wonder whats the fastes way to remove the tissue from a bird skull"

[the Scarf]

Probably acid.

There's these types of flesh eater beetles that some places use to clean bones for museum exhibits.

[Orangey]

You're right; there's no reason not to take the feathers except for the fear of contamination.

On that subject, freezing is basically THE most ineffective sterilization method you could have come up with. Lots of bacteria and viruses merely go dormant at low temperatures. You would be better served boiling your feathers; if you're worried that that will ruin them, at least douse them in rubbing alcohol.

[the Scarf]

I thought of the boiling thing, but it really does ruin the feathers. I cleaned the ones I already have with dish soap and hot water, and it really messed some of them up.

The freezing thing really only kills mites, but you gotta freeze them twice; once for the adults, then let it sit out, then once more for any eggs that may have hatched.

Actually, the ones that are in the best condition are the ones I haven't done anything too...

[Torg]

The more I think about it, the more I realize that there's really no reason NOT too, except the idea of contamination, and I know how to deal with that. However, it's still a social taboo, and I'm having trouble getting around it.

It's a social taboo to take a feather from a dead bird? Didn't know that.
Crows are exempt from taboos anyway. If it was an eagle or something people will probably care, but crows aren't that high in most people's opinions.

[Chris Hallbeck]

Where do you live again? I think it's illegal to own crow feathers in the United States.

[Orangey]

Are you being serious, Chris? I'd never heard anything to that effect...

She lives in Portland, Oregon.

[the Scarf]

No, I did hear about that, but it's actually Raven feathers, not Crow.
Ravens are an endangered species (I think.)  Crows are most certainly not.
Hence, the feather law.

[MagicParakeet]

In the US, it is illegal to collect bird feathers. All native migratory bird species are protected by federal law (Migratory Bird Treaty Act) and it is illegal to have in your possession any protected bird, its nest, its eggs, or even its feathers, without the required federal and state permits.

"A type of question that we commonly get involves well meaning people who want to rescue young or injured birds, secure feathers for artwork, or salvage eggs or nests for various purposes.

Anyone desiring to possess migratory birds or their parts or products should be aware that all of these are covered under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (16U.S.C. 703-712), which implements a series of international treaties designed to protect migratory birds.

Some key provisions of the Act are worth keeping in mind:

Wording of the Act makes it very clear that most actions that result in "taking" or possession of a protected species or its parts or products is a violation of the Act. Specifically, the Act states:
"Unless and except as permitted by regulations, …it shall be unlawful at any time, by any means, or in any manner…to pursue, hunt, take, capture, kill, …possess, offer for sale, sell, …purchase, import…any migratory bird, any part, nest, or eggs of any such bird…"
It is a "strict-liability" law, meaning that there is no requirement for law enforcement agencies to prove "intent" to violate the law. That is, if you are found in possession of a protected species or its parts or products, you are automatically in violation of the law.
The provisions of the Act are nearly absolute; "...except as permitted by regulations ..." is the only exception. Some examples of permitted activities that do not violate the law are legal hunting of specific game birds, legitimate research activities, display in licensed zoological gardens, and bird banding under an appropriate permit.
The Act covers the great majority (83%) of all native birds found in the U.S. Many of the species not covered by the Act are covered by the Endangered Species Act , other Federal laws, or state laws, many of which are as stringent as the Migratory Bird Treaty Act . In the lower 48 states, all species except the house sparrow, feral pigeon, common starling, and non-migratory game birds like pheasants, gray partridge, and sage grouse, are protected.
Penalties upon conviction can be severe. Even if a sympathetic jury finds that you meant no harm in trying to rear an abandoned nestling or in picking a hawk feather, legal defense costs are clearly not worth the risk.
In summary: your best approach is to take a hands off approach...look but don't collect"
http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/about/faqs/bir...

Thank you Yahoo! Answers yet again.

[the Scarf]

In the US, it is illegal to collect bird feathers. All native migratory bird species are protected by federal law (Migratory Bird Treaty Act) and it is illegal to have in your possession any protected bird, its nest, its eggs, or even its feathers, without the required federal and state permits.

Crows are not migratory, and are not protected. I don't think this applies to them.

[Chris Hallbeck]

Yeah here's the bit I found:

Very Important: The 1918 Migratory Bird Treaty Act protects all native birds, including crows. It is illegal for any person to possess birds, dead or alive, nesting material, eggs, feathers and bones of a bird, without the proper permits from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the State of Illinois. It is illegal to harm or kill a protected bird species. It is also illegal to remove or destroy nesting material from a nest once an egg has been laid. Contact the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service for additional information on the 1918 Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

www.fws.gov

[the Scarf]

Damn....

[MagicParakeet]

Appropriate music cue.

[Orangey]

without the proper permits from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the State of Illinois.

So, does the legislation apply only to Illinois, or is there a federal statute pertinent to the situation?

[the Scarf]

Yay! Possible loophole!

[MagicParakeet]

As a general rule of thumb, no feathers at all. Unless you own the bird I guess.

[Chris Hallbeck]

http://www.fws.gov/laws/lawsdigest/migtrea.html

This prohibition applies to birds included in the respective international conventions between the U.S. and Great Britain, the U.S. and Mexico, the U.S. and Japan, and the U.S. and the Russia.

[the Scarf]

Sooo.....no scavenging feathers.
What should I do with the ones I already have? (Once I'm done with them, of course. I'm not letting my costume idea die!)

[Torg]

What should I do with the ones I already have? (Once I'm done with them, of course.)

Think of someone you really hate, go to their house, and leave a federal crime in their mailbox.

[Orangey]

Well, I doubt the department of fish and wildlife is going to bust down your door (unless someone on the forum reports you; on a side note, is there some kind of reward?); I can't foresee any kind of problem. Just throw them in the trash or some wildernessy area near your house.

[MagicParakeet]

Sooo.....no scavenging feathers.
What should I do with the ones I already have? (Once I'm done with them, of course. I'm not letting my costume idea die!)

Um, I don't know, mabey get legal ones at a craft store. Just putting it out there.

[Chris Hallbeck]

Buy some black costume feathers?

[MagicParakeet]

Bingo bango Chris. Ba-da-bing.

[Torg]

I doubt anyone's going to arrest her/press charges/whatevertheydo if she only wears it on Halloween. As long as she destroys the evidence afterwards, and as long as no one from the EPA sees this thread, she should be fine.
But for the feathers you don't have, you probably should just buy them.

[the Scarf]

Buy some black costume feathers?

I've already ordered some nice-ish ones.
They wont do for the mohawk, though. They're the wrong shape.

[SpriteMeister]

I don't particularly see what the problem is. Since she's not hunting the birds for their feathers, or even plucking them off of live birds, for that matter, she should [morally] be allowed to take them. It's not like she is harming a protected species by plucking a few already dead feathers.

This is why I'm chaotic good.

[Drakey]

I don't particularly see what the problem is. Since she's not hunting the birds for their feathers, or even plucking them off of live birds, for that matter, she should [morally] be allowed to take them. It's not like she is harming a protected species by plucking a few already dead feathers.

This is why I'm chaotic good.

Yeah. I'm chaotic nifty.