Good article. In it, Marcia states "A TWRA employee once explained to me that the state of Tennessee legally owns the wildlife." The traditions of who owns wildlife has a long and interesting history. Michael Bean's "Evolution of National Wildlife Law" is one of many publications that describes this history. Unlike under British common law which is the basis for many of our legal traditions, most wildlife is considered to be owned by the "state." In the case of non-migratory wildlife, the individual states have the primary authority to establish hunting seasons and bag limits. Migratory birds are an exception, as the Migratory Bird Treaty Act gives the Federal government the primary authority to establish hunting seasons and bag limits, as stated in the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and other authorities. Any hunting season on migratory birds must comply with the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the hunting season framework established by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. A hunting season set by a state can be more restrictive than the federal framework. It cannot, however be less restrictive. Regardless of state versus Federal ownership, state wildlife agencies are entrusted with the responsible management of all wildlife and for migratory wildlife, this responsibility is shared with the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Chuck Nicholson Norris, TN ________________________________ From: "Viclcsw@xxxxxxx" <Viclcsw@xxxxxxx> To: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Cc: knoxvilletos@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Sun, January 30, 2011 7:49:22 PM Subject: [TN-Bird] Marcia Davis in News Sentinel--"Thank you, TN Wildlife Commissioners" Today's Knoxville News Sentinel's Birdlife column by Marcia Davis expresses "Thank you" to the TN Wildlife Commissioners for their decision to defer sandhill crane hunting and gives a great summary of the the key reasons why a hunt is inadvisable. Thank you, Marcia! _http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2011/jan/30/thank-you-tennessee-wildlife-commi ssioners/_ (http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2011/jan/30/thank-you-tennessee-wildlife-commissioners/) Vickie Henderson Knoxville, TN Knox County =================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER===================== The TN-Bird Net requires you to SIGN YOUR MESSAGE with first and last name, CITY (TOWN) and state abbreviation. You are also required to list the COUNTY in which the birds you report were seen. The actual DATE OF OBSERVATION should appear in the first paragraph. _____________________________________________________________ To post to this mailing list, simply send email to: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx _____________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, send email to: tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field. ______________________________________________________________ TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s) endorse the views or opinions expressed by the members of this discussion group. Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ------------------------------ Assistant Moderator Andy Jones Cleveland, OH ------------------------------- Assistant Moderator Dave Worley Rosedale, VA -------------------------------- Assistant Moderator Chris O'Bryan Clarksville, TN __________________________________________________________ Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society web site at http://www.tnbirds.org * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ARCHIVES TN-Bird Net Archives at //www.freelists.org/archives/tn-bird/ MAP RESOURCES Tenn.Counties Map at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/tennessee3.gif Aerial photos to complement google maps http://local.live.com _____________________________________________________________ =================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER===================== The TN-Bird Net requires you to SIGN YOUR MESSAGE with first and last name, CITY (TOWN) and state abbreviation. You are also required to list the COUNTY in which the birds you report were seen. The actual DATE OF OBSERVATION should appear in the first paragraph. _____________________________________________________________ To post to this mailing list, simply send email to: tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx _____________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, send email to: tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field. ______________________________________________________________ TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s) endorse the views or opinions expressed by the members of this discussion group. Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ------------------------------ Assistant Moderator Andy Jones Cleveland, OH ------------------------------- Assistant Moderator Dave Worley Rosedale, VA -------------------------------- Assistant Moderator Chris O'Bryan Clarksville, TN __________________________________________________________ Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society web site at http://www.tnbirds.org * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ARCHIVES TN-Bird Net Archives at //www.freelists.org/archives/tn-bird/ MAP RESOURCES Tenn.Counties Map at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/tennessee3.gif Aerial photos to complement google maps http://local.live.com _____________________________________________________________