This isn't good news, but it isn't as bad as it may seem. Note that this ruling only applies if you need a depradation permit. There is a fairly long hunting season on crows most places, so it does not apply when hunting crows during the open season. And if you read your state regs, you may find that some of these "nuisance birds" are unprotected species--which means you would not need a depradation permit, and you could shoot them any time you want, with any kind of ammo you choose. In Wisconsin, for example, starlings and sparrows are unprotected species. No closed season, no depradation permit required.
And in the real world, most of the enforcement of this rule is going to fall back on the states. Most places, assuming you're talking rural areas, I think you'd look long and hard before you'd ever find a state game warden who'd bust you for shooting a few crows out of season if they were nuisances. Or critters like coons causing problems around your place. Always a good idea to get to know the game warden in your part of the country, but I'm pretty sure that's what you'd find in most cases. If you have a particularly "by the book" federal FWS warden in your area, that would be a different story.
