Brookhaven, GA Animal Ordinances: Bird Protection (2026)
Key Facts
- Where it applies
- City parks
- Creatures covered
- Mammals, birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles, living or dead
- Also covered
- Parts or progeny, such as nests, eggs or antlers
- Prohibited acts
- Removing or disturbing
- Fishing
- Only where a city sign allows it
- Penalty
- Under § 1-11: fine up to $1,000.00 or six months in jail
Summary
In the City of Brookhaven, Georgia, Brookhaven Code § 19-35(a) makes it unlawful to remove or disturb any living or dead native creatures in city parks, birds included, along with their parts or progeny such as nests and eggs. The prohibition is written for city parks and is punished through the Code's general penalty in § 1-11.
(a)It shall be unlawful to remove or disturb any living or dead native creatures in city parks, including mammals, birds, fish, amphibians, and reptiles, or the parts or progeny thereof, such as nests, eggs, or antlers.
Full Breakdown
Section 19-35 of the Brookhaven Code, headed Native wildlife, sits in the parks and recreation chapter. Subsection (a) covers living or dead native creatures in city parks and lists mammals, birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles. It reaches the parts or progeny of those creatures, and it names nests, eggs and antlers as examples. The text covers dead creatures as well as living ones and uses both the word remove and the word disturb. The section prints no permit or exception for individual visitors. The prohibition is written for city parks.
Several neighboring rules back it up. Section 19-28(b) makes it unlawful for anyone other than law enforcement officers to shoot, use or employ any weapon or similar device for hunting or similar purposes in a city park, and subsection (a) of that section lists air guns, slingshots, archery equipment and bows among the weapons. Section 19-28(c) bars anyone other than law enforcement officers from discharging any firearm in a park. Section 16-36(c)(8) makes it unlawful to bring, allow or otherwise accompany any horse or undomesticated animal into any park of the city. Section 19-32 prohibits digging up, cutting, damaging or removing any tree, tree limb, shrubbery, flowers, rock, mulch or other vegetation or natural fixture in a park, and § 19-33(c) prohibits digging in or otherwise disturbing the ground.
Fishing is the one wildlife activity the same section addresses. Under § 19-35(b), fishing in city park lakes or streams is allowed from the shore or from watercraft where a city sign designates that location as allowing fishing. Section 16-36(c)(11) adds catch-and-release rules: monofilament or similar line of no more than five pounds breaking strength, a single barbless artificial lure, immediate release of the fish, and removal of fishing line fragments and hooks.
A violation of § 19-35 is a violation of the Code and is punished under § 1-11.
Violations & Fines
Section 19-35 prints no penalty of its own, so a violation is punished under § 1-11: on conviction, a fine not exceeding $1,000.00 or imprisonment in jail not to exceed six months, or both, unless the Code or state law provides otherwise. The municipal court judge can also impose compulsory work, probation or a deferred sentence, and can probate or suspend any part of a fine or jail time or approve a payment plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it illegal to take a bird's nest or eggs from a Brookhaven park?
Does the Brookhaven rule cover dead birds?
Can I hunt birds in a Brookhaven park?
What is the penalty for disturbing wildlife in a Brookhaven park?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Brookhaven
Compare Brookhaven to another location·View the Georgia animal ordinances overview
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