Two men have been charged with animal cruelty for their role in cutting down a tree in May where migratory birds were nesting in Newport Beach.

Stephen John Esser, 47, of Dana Point and David Roger Stanley, 40, of Downey have each been charged with misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty, unlawful possession and destruction of bird nests or eggs, unlawful taking of migratory nongame birds and harassing a bird or mammal, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s office.

Esser and Stanley were employees of Tim Greenleaf Engineering, who were contracted to remove a tree as part of a home demolition. But neighbors said the ficus tree they were tasked with removing was well-known in the Newport Beach neighborhood for housing nests of migratory birds.

When the tree was chopped down, it housed about eight or nine birds nests of snowy egrets and black-crowned night herons with nestlings and fledglings.

Neighbors approached the two men to tell them not to cut down the tree because of the nests, but they continued to cut it down. About 12 nestlings fell from the tree, and five did not survive.

Days later, about 75 people attended a curbside memorial service for the birds that died or were displaced by the removal of the tree. People brought flowers and candles and listened to “Amazing Grace,” performed by a local guitarist and saxophone player.

“This was a brutal and willful crime against wildlife,” Shelley Ervin, one of the neighbors who organized the vigil, said. “We hope that the men who committed this terrible crime are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law and made an example of.”

The two could face a maximum sentence of one year and six months in jail if convicted on all charges.

Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Malone, part of the Environmental Protection Unit, said animal cruelty cases involving migratory birds don’t come up frequently.

“Hopefully this will raise awareness that these types of acts are illegal,” Malone said.

Both men are out of custody and are scheduled to be arraigned Aug. 28 in Newport Beach.

While no charges have been filed against the employer, that “doesn’t preclude a civil prosecution for illegal business practices,” Malone said.

Five baby snowy egrets and two black-crowned night herons were saved from the rubble by neighbors and brought to the Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center in Huntington Beach. They were released back to the wild July 8 at a park in Newport Beach.

Malone said Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center estimated they spent about $20,000 for the birds’ board, care and veterinary bills.

Ervin said Advocates for Coastal Wildlife, a group of citizens that formed after the tree was torn down, is working with Newport Beach and other environmental organizations to protect birds in the city.

Contact the writer: 714-796-7990 or mnicolai@ocregister.com