why are cormorants a protected bird
APPLICABLE INTERNATIONAL LAW The Cormorant is protected under the 1916 Migratory Bird Treaty with Canada, indirectly under the Ramsar Convention, and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 (MBTA). The cormorant receives no protection from the Convention of Migratory Species or CITES.hile the Ramsar Convention and the Migratory Bird Treaty with Canada remain possible avenues for international protection of the cormorant (see infra), it is the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 (MBTA) that is the primary instrument of international law concerning the migratory birds in North America.