Photographing protected birds - regulations (1 Viewer)

[locustella]

It is not allowed to photograph some of bird species protected by law in Poland. Here is the newest list of protected animals:

http://dziennikustaw.gov.pl/DU/2016/2183/1
http://isip.sejm.gov.pl/DetailsServlet?id=WDU20160002183

Those ones which can't be photographed are marked with "(3)". 26 bat and 75 bird species, altogether 101 species.
This prohibition has started in 1984 or sometime around 1984. Photographing was banned initially only during the period of breeding and rearing. But all protected bird species were included - swan, stork etc. And almost all bird species are protected, except i. e. capercaillie and black grouse that time, even sparrow got protection from a certain date (during breeding period only at the beginning as I remember). That was very hypocritical regulation, because was issued by counterpart of the current ministry of environment, dominated by State Forestry Enterprise, cutting timber with bird nests and using very noisy chain chainsaws. Most of them were also hunters shooting such birds like dying off capercaillie and black grouse while tooting (today protected). Moreover perhaps capercaillie and black grouse were dying off mostly because of converting natural forests into managed forests by the government. And the same people banned naturalists from taking images of all protected bird species during mentioned period. Again - in practice almost all birds because almost all are protected (mostly except hunted ones). So the large destroyers of nature showed themselves as its defenders. Also they showed this way who's boss. That was also apparent mobbing and bullying of naturalists as well.
Since 2001 protected animal species had been not allowed to be photographed at all, not only during the period of breeding and rearing. All means also protected clams etc.
Since 2004 protected species have been differentiated - individually marked.

Probably in all cases the ban was accompanied by a commentary that relates to the shooting images that might frighten the animal.

Applying for permit was very hindered. I applied once many years ago. That was December or around December. The agreed, what was good, but during next summer (about six months later), after breeding period and span of dates requested in the application or at it's very end (they issued permission to photograph IN THE PAST). Moreover an application for a permit must include the bird species, dates, location. In other words the photographer must be a clairvoyant able to predict where and when bird would nest and which species.
And the photographer was required to send a detailed report of the photographing birds before the end of the year to the province governor, at least that time.

How this is solved in UK and other countries ?

Edited later:
Probably first regulation from this series:
http://isap.sejm.gov.pl/DetailsServlet?id=WDU19840020011
Issued 1983-12-30, Effective Date 84-02-01.
§2.1.4, about permit for photographing for educational purposes: §5.4
They don't write about scaring, but only about the period of breeding and rearing. So that was total ban on photographing in any circumstances during this period. And period of breeding and rearing was not defined anywhere for any protected animal species.
Capercaillie and black grouse were hunted until 1995, when they became protected (far too late).

I don't photograph too much, especially in about 10 recent years, but many years ago sent questions regarding this issue to the NANPA (North American Nature Photography Association). They answered, attached word documents about ethics, available now here:
http://www.nanpa.org/advocacy/ethics/
http://www.nanpa.org/wp-content/uploads/NANPA-Ethical-Practices.pdf
http://www.nanpa.org/wp-content/uploads/NANPA-Truth-Captioning.pdf
and said i. e. that Migratory Bird Treaty Act doesn't specifically cover harassment at nests sites, unless the birds are harmed. And that some areas like national wildlife refuges, national parks, national forests and maybe even states have own regulations regarding disturbance of birds. And they said something unclear about species of birds listed under the Endangered Species Act, like they would be protected somehow from disturbance (?). But at least in general, that was only about ethics, not the law.

International Federation of Wildlife Photography (IFWP) - i.e. The moral rules
http://www.ascpf.com/Activites2.asp?Article=11

There was something in UK about photographing birds on nest, including list of species, maybe even law regulation, but can't find it.

 

[Telephoto Paul]

You're after our Schedule 1 protected birds. The very short version is that it is a crime to "Intentionally or recklessly disturb these birds at or near their nest.", and there is a list of the species that are covered.

You can apply for an annual licence. Like yours they're tied to specific species at specific locations, so either you need to apply after finding a nest or get it for a locaton where you know they are each year. There is a level of competency that needs to be proven before you get one (eg. references from existing licence holders helps) but I've never applied for one so I don't know how difficult it is in practice.

The law is not specific to photography; it's indifferent to what activity may have been taking place while the bird was disturbed. This is often misunderstood and people think that the mere act of photography is illegal but it's not. So for example, if an avocet (on the list) are nesting in front of a busy viewing hide on a nature reserve, you won't be breaking the law photographing it from the hide as it's clearly not being disturbed by people's presence. (On the other hand, if you walk to the hide and shout "OMG, it's avocet" at the top of your lungs and it flies off, then you have just broken the law). The word 'photography' only appears once in the legislation, in the list of valid reasons to grant licences.

There is intentionally no definition of "near"; even birds of the same species vary in how tolerant they are of human activity.

The second link below has the species covered. It's not specified in the legislation but can be changed at any time by the relevant government body.

http://birdersagainst.org/photographing-schedule-1-birds/
https://www.rspb.org.uk/our-work/ou...s/wildbirdslaw/birdsandlaw/wca/schedules.aspx
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/protect...r-a-licence-to-survey-film-or-photograph-them

Birds not on the list still have a basic level of protection, detailed at the following link.
https://www.rspb.org.uk/our-work/our-positions-and-campaigns/positions/wildbirdslaw/birdsandlaw/wca/

 

[locustella]

Yes, schedule, I remember this word.
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1981/69/schedule/1
http://birdersagainst.org/schedule-1/
This is only about nests or disturbing at all ?

you need to apply after finding a nest

It will be too late unless such permit would be issued in 1-24 hours. I was awaiting about half of year. But at least clams and other mollusks can be photographed, because species are listed individually for this purpose, unlike in Poland in years 1984-2004 (1984-2001 ALL protected animals during the period of breeding and rearing, even not disturbing them, in years 2001-2004 still all protected species, at any time, not only during the period of breeding and rearing, at a distance causing disturbance). Now this ban concerns only individually checked 101 species and the possibility of disturbance, what is undefined term. I don't know at this point, how this restriction to disturbance was exactly formulated in years 2004-2016 (and if, but most likely it was included).

I think that much more severe crime is hunting and cutting trees with nests.
However timber cut during nesting period is somehow restricted in the European Union.