Bald Eagle: Our Nations Bird
Since 1782, the Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus Leucocephalus) has been America’s national bird. This beautiful bird of prey was chosen as the symbol of our nation because of its majesty, great strength, and long life. It has, since ancient times, been heralded as a symbol of strength and was used by Roman legions as their symbol of power. The American bald eagle now graces our official documents, currency, flags, public buildings, and political statements. It is truly the symbol for patriotism and American glory.
Our country’s majestic bird is also the star of one of the most powerful conservation stories throughout history. In the late 1800’s, the United States was home to some 10,000 nesting bald eagles. But, in the next few years their population plummeted due to the industrial revolution eating up their habitat and hunting. Rich American citizens were paying for taxidermy eagles to put in their parlors and display in their sitting rooms. The fame and symbolic nature of the bald eagle was leading in part to its destruction.
By 1940, the population of bald eagles had dwindled to around 600 nesting pairs. As much as its fame was hurting it, the reverence this country felt for our nation’s bird surely helped its recovery. In 1940, Congress passed The Bald Eagle Protection Act which prohibited the possession, killing, or selling of the birds. This helped curb the trend of taxidermy, but a new threat came around with the widespread use of DDT. This extremely toxic pesticide was contaminating the eagles’ food sources and, in turn, killing them. In 1960, the population had decreased to nearly 400 nesting pairs. In 1978, the bald eagle was finally placed on the endangered species.
American citizens were devastated by their bird’s decline; it felt like their country was dying out with the bird. Extreme pressure was put on Congress to regulate the use of DDT and our government readily agreed. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife services were put on the task of carefully watching and documenting the nesting and hunting areas of the eagle. This way, it could be certain that their necessary habitats weren’t being destroyed or contaminated.
America’s combined efforts worked. Only 17 years after the bald eagle had been put on the endangered species, in 1995 it was moved to the threatened species list. The population had increased from 400 pairs in ’63 to 5,000 in ’95. And it only continued to grow. Our entire country was rallying behind this classic underdog wins the day story. By 2007, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife services declared the bald eagle species was no longer threatened.
We celebrated by creating the Washington, DC Bald Eagle Nest Cam. Here the nation can watch our county’s bird raise two babies nested high in the U.S. National Aboretum. The eagles have been nesting their for three years and have been name “Mr. President” and “The First Lady.” Enjoy the sweetness of the baby eagles’ new life; a new, protected, revered life.
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One Response to “Bald Eagle: Our Nations Bird”
Another great and unique post! I love that we switch blog groups mid-semester, its so cool to see what some other people have been working on. I learned a lot in this post- and I had no idea about this wonderful recovery story. I knew about the endangerment, but not much else. Thank you for sharing and teaching me about this topic!