Feather

I went for our walk yesterday afternoon because I had a vet appointment for Mike in the morning and I promised him that he could go swimming if he was a good boy.  Well, when the vet went to check his teeth, he growled at the Vet and the assistant didn't think that Mike liked them very much but overall he was a good boy.  So I went out the 100 degree heat and we walked down to the river.

On the way down there I found this feather on the road.  I picked it up because it was such a large feather and I wondered what kind of bird it came from.

I came home and did some research and found out that it came from the tail of a wild Turkey.  I knew that we had wild Turkeys down here but I haven't seen any for a while.  While I was researching I also found out that:

"The possession of feathers and other parts from MBTA-protected birds without a permission is prohibited. The only exceptions are the feathers of legally-hunted waterfowl or other migratory game birds, which may be possessed by hunters. This prohibition extends to molted feathers and to feathers taken from road- or window-killed birds. Individuals or institutions wishing to use bird feathers, bones, or whole specimens for educational or research purposes must apply for permits from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and their state wildlife or natural resource agency."

I had no idea that it was against the law to have a feather of a bird in your possession.  I mean the bird didn't want it anymore and the bird was certainly not going to be able to stick it back in.  So why should the bird care.  The bird would probably be happy that someone thought it's feather was special enough to pick up and save.  So if the bird doesn't care, then why is the government getting involved and making it against the law.  By the way, this feather is not part of that law so I can keep it.  Which brings up another point, why is the government discriminating against certain species of birds and not protecting the feathers of others.  Can anyone explain this to me?