Two guilty of killing & selling eagles

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service reports that two men pled guilty to killing Bald Eagles and conspiring to kill and sell Bald Eagle and Golden Eagle parts -- a federal offense.

The two Yakama tribal members -- Alfred L. Hawk Jr., 23, and William R. Wahsise, 23 -- hunted and killed eagles by baiting them with wild horses that were killed to attract the eagles. In March of last year, wildlife agents seized 21 Golden Eagle tails, 30 Golden Eagle wings, 31 Bald Eagle tails and two Bald Eagle wings from Hawk’s home and approximately five Golden Eagle tails, 22 Golden Eagle wings and assorted feathers from Golden Eagles and Bald Eagles from Wahsise’s home.

James A. McDevitt, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, said, “The indiscriminate slaughter of these protected birds is alarming. The black market sale of eagle parts must be stopped at its source.”

“The criminal actions of these defendants defile respectful Native American religious and cultural observances and I hope the community will come together in condemning their behavior,” said Paul Chang, Special Agent in Charge of Law Enforcement for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Pacific Region. “There are legal ways to obtain eagle feathers and parts, and we are committed to helping tribal members acquire them through these methods.”

Eagles and other protected migratory birds are viewed as sacred in many Native American cultures, and the feathers of the birds are central to religious and spiritual Native American customs. By law, enrolled members of federally recognized Native American tribes are entitled to obtain permits to possess eagle parts for religious purposes, but federal law strictly prohibits selling eagle parts under any circumstances.

The Fish and Wildlife Service operates the National Eagle Repository, which collects eagles that die naturally or by accident, to supply enrolled members of federally recognized tribes with eagle parts for religious use. The Service has worked to increase the number of salvaged eagles sent to the Repository and make it easier to send birds to the facility by providing shipping materials at no charge. The Repository obtains eagles from state and federal agencies as well as zoos.

The penalty for a first-time violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act is up to one year in prison and a $250,000 fine, and the second or subsequent conviction is up to two years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The penalty for conspiring to take and sell Bald Eagle and Golden Eagle parts is up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Photo courtesy of USFWS/Phil Coleman

June 20: American Eagle Day

Every year on June 20, American Eagle Foundation and thousands of Americans celebrate Bald Eagles. American Eagle Day reminds U.S. residents that Bald Eagles still need help.

Al Cecere, the foundation's founder and president, says:

"The bald eagle has been taken off the ESA's threatened species list, but that doesn't mean it has fully recovered and won't continue an up-hill fight for survival. In an era of government budget cutting, it will cost millions of dollars to monitor and protect eagle nests and adjacent ecosystems on private lands nationally for the remainder of this decade and beyond."

Learn more about Bald Eagles, and listen to its calls. What can you do this weekend to teach others about our national symbol?

Miss.: Reward for details about Bald Eagle shooting

From the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service:

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has posted a reward for information leading to the conviction of those responsible for shooting a bald eagle during the last week of March (possibly March 25, 26 or 27) in Pearlington, Mississippi, about 40 miles northeast of New Orleans.


The shooting may have occurred while the eagle was perched in a tree. Passersby found the wounded eagle and took it to the Pet Haven Veterinary Hospital [in Bay St. Louis] for surgery. If the eagle recovers, it will be released back into the wild.


Shooting an eagle is a violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act allows for a reward of up to $2,500 for information that leads to a conviction.

Any information on this incident should be provided to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Special Agent Ben Bryant at 985-882-3756 or the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks at 800-Be-Smart (237-6278).

Bald Eagle release today in Texas

In Texas' Shelby County, a Bald Eagle will regain its freedom today near Lake Timpson. After nearly six months of recovery and rehabilitation, the raptor will leave Last Chance Forever Bird Conservancy in San Antonio, where it regained its health after being shot in September 2009.


Authorities continue to offer a $2,500 reward for information that will lead to an arrest in the shooting. Although no longer on the federal Endangered Species List, Bald Eagles remain federally protected. Texas Parks & Wildlife Department game wardens are working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the criminal investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call USFW: 281-876-1520.

Channel Islands' Bald Eagles tend an egg

West of Los Angeles, another success story unfolds. Although largely gone from the Channel Islands for decades, Bald Eagles have rebounded, including K10 and K26 on Santa Cruz Island.


View Larger Map

The pair recently returned to their nest in Pelican Harbor, and K26 laid an egg last week. You can watch a 7-minute video of her laying the egg.

Both adults will incubate it for about 35 days. You can read weekly updates and watch the Eagle Cam, located close enough to see the raptors blink.

To learn more about the Bald Eagle's history on the islands and their reintroduction, visit The Nature Conservancy.

Rehabilitated Bald Eagle to be released Sat in MN

Harley, now a healthy Bald Eagle, will regain his freedom this Saturday at Carpenter St. Croix Valley Nature Center in Hastings, Minn. When he flies away at noon, he'll sport a satellite transmitter that will let University of Minnesota's The Raptor Center track his movements.

Six months ago, Harley arrived at Lake Superior Zoo in Duluth via motorcycle. A motorcyclist found the injured raptor near Wascott, Wis.; wrapped the big bird in his leather jacket; and strapped him to the back of the motorcycle. From the zoo, the eagle went to The Raptor Center at the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine on the St. Paul campus. Center staff diagnosed a fractured wing and lead poisoning, likely caused by eating prey shot with lead ammunition.

The public is invited to the free event, located at 12805 St. Croix Trail in Hastings -- on County Road 21 (St. Croix Trail) north of Highway 10. For more details, call The Raptor Center at 612-624-4745.

Reward for details about Bald Eagle death in Tenn.

From an e-mail sent this afternoon by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service:

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency are investigating the death of a bald eagle. The eagle was discovered along the shore of Lake Norris near Point 16 at the end of February, its carcass mutilated and parts removed. A reward of up to $2,500.00 is being offered for information which leads to a conviction of the person or persons responsible for the death of this eagle.


View Larger Map

Bald eagles are protected by the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, both federal wildlife statutes. Violations of these statutes carry maximum criminal penalties of up to $100,000 and/or one year in federal prison.

Anyone with information concerning this eagle is asked to call Special Agent Ryan Noel with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement in Knoxville, Tennessee at (865) 692-4024.

Jean Keene, 'Eagle Lady,' fed eagles for ~30 years

Los Angeles Times carries the obituary today of Jean Keene, known widely as the "Eagle Lady" for her habit of feeding Bald Eagles in Homer, Alaska. She died Jan. 13 at the age of 85.

She started feeding the eagles in the late 1970s, when she was working at a fish-processing plant called Icicle Seafoods, located on the narrow spit of land that juts into the Kachemak Bay. Every day she would chop hundreds of pounds of salmon heads and tails, as well as cod and herring, most of it spoiled or freezer-burned, and toss it to the predatory birds.

The eagles' wintertime arrival and the woman feeding them on the pebbly beach outside her tiny trailer attracted photographers to Homer from throughout the country. As a Washington Post reporter put it in 2005, "If you have seen stunning close-up photographs of bald eagles with fish in their beaks in glossy magazines . . . chances are good that they were shot outside Keene's trailer."

Some residents in Homer saw the daily barrage of the birds seeking Keene's handouts as a nuisance, and a town law was passed in 2006 to prevent people from feeding certain species.

After a public outcry, however, Keene received a special reprieve and was allowed to continue feeding the eagles until 2010.

Click on the link above to see Keene's image.

Did you know...

that President Bush pardoned Leslie Owen Collier, convicted of killing Bald Eagles when the raptors died after consuming pesticide-laced coyote carcasses?

The 1995 incident that changed the life of the farmer from the Charleston area of southeastern Missouri began when he noticed an increasing number of wild turkeys, which were believed to have died away. "I got it in my head that if I eliminated some of the coyotes it would give the turkeys a jump-start," on their comeback, Collier said.

So he put out hamburger meat laced with the pesticide Furadan in an effort to kill the coyotes. It worked; seven coyotes died.

The problem occurred when the eagles fed on the coyotes' carcasses. They died, too. So did a red-tailed hawk and a great horned owl, among other animals.

The birds are federally protected and killing them is illegal. Collier said the crime became a felony when the second eagle died. He pleaded guilty in late 1995 and received two years of probation.

While he didn't go to jail, the conviction was hard on Collier. He was ordered to pay $10,000 in restitution. As a convicted felon, the longtime hunter had to give up his guns. ...

So Black and other supporters began writing letters seeking a pardon. Several months ago, U.S. Attorney Catherine Hanaway contacted Black and requested the full story. Hanaway had been asked by a pardon attorney for the Department of Justice for input about the possibility of a pardon.

Hanaway said she spoke with federal prosecutors familiar with the case, with the judge, even with people in the Charleston area who know Collier. "By all accounts ... he is a pillar of the community down there," she said.

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that Connie Kogler, a WildBird Birder of the Year candidate, appeared in a "New York Times" article on Nov. 27? The article focuses on Project FeederWatch, which began Nov. 8 and will continue into April. It's not too late to sign up for the citizen-science project.

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that the Nov. 15 fire in Corona, Calif. -- known as the Freeway Complex fire -- burned more than 95 percent of Chino Hills State Park? The park's 14,100 acres used to provide habitat for 200 bird species, including the endangered Bell's Vireo subspecies (Vireo bellii pusillus). A photo gallery from the article appears here.

Commemorative Bald Eagle Coins

This week, the United States Mint released three commemorative coins featuring the Bald Eagle. The limited-edition coins mark the 35th anniversary of the Endangered Species Act.

the $5 gold coin, proof version

the silver dollar, proof version

the half-dollar, proof version

Portions from the coins' sales will go to American Eagle Foundation to fund its work. You can buy them individually as proof coins or circulated coins. Sets also are available.

Orders can be made via phone from 8 a.m. to midnight (ET), seven days a week, at 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468). The mail-order option involves downloading the order form and mailing it to

United States Mint
PO Box 71188
Philadelphia PA 19176-6188

Happy Fourth of July!

Happy birthday, America!

Many thanks to everyone who worked to remove our national symbol
from the Endangered Species List!

Bald Eagle no longer endangered

WASHINGTON, D.C – Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne today announced the removal of the bald eagle from the list of threatened and endangered species at a ceremony at the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C. After nearly disappearing from most of the United States decades ago, the bald eagle is now flourishing across the nation and no longer needs the protection of the Endangered Species Act.

“Today I am proud to announce: the eagle has returned,” said Secretary Kempthorne. “In 1963, the lower 48 states were home to barely 400 nesting pairs of bald eagles. Today, after decades of conservation effort, they are home to some 10,000 nesting pairs, a 25-fold increase in the last 40 years. Based on its dramatic recovery, it is my honor to announce the Department of the Interior’s decision to remove the American Bald Eagle from the Endangered Species List.”

Kempthorne emphasized the ongoing commitment of the Interior Department and the entire federal government to the eagle’s continued success, noting that bald eagles will continue to be protected by the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Both federal laws prohibit “taking” – killing, selling or otherwise harming eagles, their nests or eggs.

For details about the species' recovery, the post-delisting monitoring plan and children's activities to celebrate the eagle's recovery, click here.

How will you celebrate the national symbol's recovery? I'll raise a toast at next Wednesday's Fourth of July festivities!

UPDATE: According to Google News, more than 500 articles about the delisting have appeared online at 9:35 a.m. PST. Granted, most of them are regurgitations of the Associated Press wire story, but still -- that's a lot of coverage, all over the world. Very nice to see the topic receive so many press.

Photo courtesy of Donna Dewhurst/USFWS

Bald Eagle habitat at risk?

Do you think the concerns are warranted? If so, what facts lead you to that conclusion?

(CNN) -- The bald eagle is officially about to become a "conservation success story" for the U.S. government, which has worked for more than three decades to help the national symbol recover from habitat destruction, illegal shooting and contamination of its food source.

By June 29, the government is expected to take bald eagles off the Endangered Species Act's "threatened" list. The birds then would be protected under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.

But Kieran Suckling of the Center for Biological Diversity conservation group said this victory comes at a price -- loss of eagle habitat protection.

The bird's nesting grounds were protected as long as the bald eagle was considered a "threatened" species. But the less restrictive eagle protection act does not put eagle habitats off-limits.

Suckling said he worries that without habitat protection, developers will move into critical bald eagle areas, push the birds out and reduce their numbers.

Nesting Bald Eagles in Philly

For the first time in 200 years, Bald Eagles built a nest in the City of Brotherly Love.

"They have eggs in the nest and you can tell they are incubating by their behavior," said Doug Gross, an endangered bird specialist for the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

The raptors laid eggs in a former Navy yard. City and state officials worry that the species' endangered status and nest fidelity will conflict with plans for a $150 million produce market and a new marine terminal. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service might remove Bald Eagle from the federal endangered species list in June.

If all goes well, Philadelphia might host chicks like these (click on the image for a larger version):

Photo courtesy of U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

First eaglet hatches at Norfolk garden

On Saturday, the live video camera at Virginia's Norfolk Botanical Garden revealed the first eaglet to hatch from the three eggs in the Bald Eagle nest.


The two remaining eggs are expected hatch before Thursday the 15th. Keep tabs by clicking on the "live" link above!