I try hard to kill a few of our state birds each year. The state bird of PA is the Ruffed Grouse! It is interesting the arbitrary distinction between game and nongame. I remember when turkeys were small game in PA. They are now big game. Hawks and owls used to be varmints or predators and legal game with bounties.
Some of the old English shooters shot a lot of what we consider song birds as part of their bags. I would think the distinction came into being at the end of market hunting, when the conservation movement really got going.
Bfly
