Active nest halt

Definition

The federal rule that stops a removal the moment a nest in the tree is occupied.

Why It Matters

Federal law makes it unlawful at any time to take the nest of a migratory bird, and it is a strict-liability offense, so intent is not a defense and there is no season to wait out. The trap is the calendar everybody quotes: no statute names months, and the risk attaches whenever a nest holds eggs or dependent young, which in practice means the spring and summer removals a crew most wants. A company that runs a written pre-removal nest survey has turned that exposure into a scheduling problem. One that does not has a liability nobody has priced. Ask to see the survey protocol and who signs it before a saw starts.