Santa Fe, NM Animal Ordinances: Bird Protection (2026)
Key Facts
- Prohibited act
- willfully killing any bird
- Also banned
- molesting or robbing a bird's nest
- Exceptions listed
- none in the text
- Governing code
- SFCC 1987 § 5-8.12
- Enforcing agency
- Animal Services administrator
- Penalty basis
- Table 5-12.1 / Section 1-3 SFCC
Summary
Willfully killing a bird, or molesting or robbing its nest, is an outright misdemeanor in Santa Fe under Section 5-8.12 SFCC 1987. The rule sits in the animal cruelty article of Chapter V, carries no permit exception, no size threshold and no species list, and is enforced by Animal Services under the rest of the chapter's cruelty provisions.
5-8.12 - Birds. It is unlawful to willfully kill any bird, or to molest or rob the nest of a bird.
Full Breakdown
12 SFCC 1987, part of the "Cruelty to Animals Prohibited" article of Chapter V, states plainly: it is unlawful to willfully kill any bird, or to molest or rob the nest of a bird. The provision traces to Code 1973 § 4-43, was carried forward through Ordinance #1980-39 and the 1981 and 1987 code recodifications, and has stood in essentially the same one-sentence form for decades. 11, all enforced by the city's animal services administrator. 12 creates no permit process and lists no exception for pest control, agricultural use or licensed hunting, so the administrator can act on a nest-robbing or bird-killing complaint the same way as any other Chapter V cruelty violation.
2, which govern how a bird already in someone's possession must be housed and sold rather than whether it may be killed or its nest disturbed.
Violations & Fines
A violation of Section 5-8.12 is punished as provided in Table 5-12.1 or Section 1-3 SFCC 1987, the general penalty section for Chapter V. The administrator can remove a bird from an owner's custody when a person is cited for or convicted of cruelty or mistreatment under Section 5-12, and repeat cruelty violations can factor into a permit or license hearing before the administrator or governing body.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it illegal to kill a wild bird in Santa Fe?
Can I remove a bird's nest from my property?
What happens if someone reports me for killing a bird?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Santa Fe
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