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U.S. Proposes Adding Western Marsh Harrier to Migratory Bird Treaty Act List

Conservation: Management, Population & status

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposes adding the Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus) to the list of birds protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The agency cites accepted records showing that the species has occurred naturally in Maine and New Jersey.

The proposal is part of a wider revision of the federal list. The proposed changes reflect taxonomic updates as well as accepted records showing natural occurrence in the United States.

The list identifies birds covered by federal rules that regulate activities such as taking, possessing, transporting and trading them. The proposal is based on accepted records of natural occurrence; it does not establish that the Western Marsh Harrier is resident or has an established population in the United States.

This is not yet a final rule. The Service set 30 November 2026 as the deadline for public comments.

Sources and image credit

  1. General Provisions; Revised List of Birds Protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty ActOfficial proposed rule; includes the proposed addition of the Western Marsh Harrier and the public-comment deadline.

Image: A male Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus) flies above wetland vegetation in the Danube Delta. Photo: Charles J. Sharp / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Representative photograph. · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

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Western Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus Explore species

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