The nation's most important bird protection law is under attack and we need to act now to help save it. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act, or MBTA, safeguards more than 1,000 bird species, and has saved millions--if not billions--of birds over the past 100 years.

Last week, the National Audubon Society and other conservation organizations filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of the Interior to defend the law against the administration's assault on bird protection.

The MBTA was passed to prohibit killing birds for their feathers--a practice which was decimating bird populations at the time. Nowadays the law holds corporations accountable for "incidental" bird deaths. Without the MBTA, BP would not have been held responsible for killing almost a million birds during the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. This critical law ensured that BP was held liable and thus was compelled to earmark billions of dollars to help restore bird habitat.

Legislation in Congress (an amendment to H.R. 4239) and a new, perilous interpretation of the law by the administration would end the ability to hold industries accountable for bird deaths.

Now is the time for us to speak up against dismantling this critical bird protection law.

Elisha Mitchell Audubon Society stands behind Audubon's fight to safeguard this law and save the birds we love. Please join with us in sending a message to Congress and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke. Audubon makes it easy! You can submit the pre-written message with a simple click or you can tailor it with your own words.