Operation Eider, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service investigation into the illegal taking and commercialization of Alaskan sea ducks by waterfowl collectors and taxidermists, is drawing to a close. The multi-year investigation has resulted in the sentencing of over a dozen subjects from around the country for Lacey Act and Migratory Bird Treaty Act violations, and the forfeiture of hundreds of illegally-taken sea ducks. One species, the spectacled eider duck, was listed in 1993 as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. The strikingly colored male is easily identified by facial feathers that look like eyeglasses.
One of the most significant cases resulting from Operation Eider involved two waterfowl collectors from Wisconsin, Garrett G. Senk (Mukwanago) and Clifford D. Johnson (Menomonee Falls). Senk is a well-known waterfowl taxidermist. Johnson, a retired insurance agent, is a prominent Safari Club International member and former Club vice-president. Johnson has traveled and hunted extensively around the world.
In November of 1990, Senk and Johnson traveled to the remote of Gambell in western Alaska, seeking to collect the spectacled eider, a rare and elusive sea duck. With the assistance of their Native guide, the collectors greatly exceeded their bag limit, killing 67 spectacled eider in one day and recording their illegal hunt on video. The daily limit of spectacled eiders, at the time, was 15. The pair then returned to Wisconsin with over 100 spectacled eider skins and distributed the skins, along with a copy of an edited version of the illegal hunt, to various waterfowl collectors and taxidermists around the country.
Law enforcement agents of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service obtained an unedited copy of the tape and charged the pair with violations of the Lacey Act, Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act. A five-day trial in U.S. District Court in Anchorage, Alaska resulted in a mistrial. Senk and Johnson subsequently pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count each of violating the Lacey Act and forfeited all spectacled eiders taken during the hunt. Senk was sentenced to four months home confinement, two years probation, two years loss of hunting privileges and a $500 fine (based on his inability to pay). Johnson received two years probation, two years loss of hunting privileges, and a $5,000 fine, the maximum fine permitted under federal sentencing guidelines. Under the same guidelines, Senk received a 2-point sentencing enhancement for obstruction of justice, based on his attempt to have evidence destroyed and based upon a false version of the spectacled eider hunt he provided to a Milwaukee Federal Court during an unrelated Lacey Act prosecution against him in 1993.
The Lacey Act prohibits the transportation, in interstate or foreign commerce, of wildlife taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of federal, state, foreign, or tribal law. A misdemeanor conviction carries a maximum penalty of one year and/ or a $100,000 fine. Felony provisions of the Lacey Act carry maximum penalties of 5 years and/or a $250,000 fine.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses more than 530 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies. For further information about the programs and activities of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region, please visit our home page at: http://midwest.fws.gov
