American Bald Eagle

American Bald Eagle

News: The successful conservation story of American Bald Eagle was in news recently.

Background:
• The American bald eagle was removed from the endangered species list in 2007, marking a significant milestone in its conservation.
• The bird’s population has steadily increased since then, with a 2021 report stating that the number of bald eagles in the wild has quadrupled since 2009.

About:
• The bald eagle, once abundant across the United States with an estimated 100,000 nesting birds in the country, faced a severe decline in population due to hunting, habitat destruction, and the pesticide (DDT)
• The bald eagle’s natural range covers most of North America, including most of Canada, all of the continental US, and northern Mexico.
• The average life span of bald eagles is 20 to 30 years.
• Bald eagles build their nests at the very top of tall trees so the eggs will be safe and female bald eagles are a bit bigger than the males.
• Bald eagles can actually swim and will do so when they’ve caught a fish that’s too large to pluck out of the water. Instead, they’re known to drag their kills to shore first.
• It is also the National symbol of the USA.

About its conservation efforts:
• Protecting against hunting, banning of DDT, breeding programs, and habitat protection around nesting sites, led to a steady growth in bald eagle populations.
• In 1995, the bald eagle was moved from “endangered” to “threatened” status and in 2007, it was delisted completely.