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Protecting
the Bald Eagle
Current
status
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 described the bald eagle as
in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant part of
its range. (Species defined as only “threatened” are those
likely to become endangered.)
In 1967 the U.S. government classified the bald eagle as
endangered in the lower 48 states - a dubious distinction
they retained until 1978.
In 1978 eagles
were “downlisted” from endangered to threatened in Wisconsin,
Minnesota, Michigan, Oregon and Washington. Bald eagles retained
the endangered listing for the remainder of the bald eagles’
U.S. range - but bald eagles have never been considered endangered
or threatened in Alaska.
Populations continued to grow, prompting the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (USFWS) in 1989 to down-list bald eagles to
threatened status throughout their range.
In 2006 the
USFWS worked to completely de-list the bald eagle, and President
George W. Bush signed this de-listing into law.
Legal
Protection
Each state can still classify bald eagles within its borders
as endangered, threatened, or some other special designation, so
even though the Federal government has de-listed the bald eagle,
individual states can implement their own legal protections. For
instance Minnesota recently de-listed bald eagles, re-classifying
them as a species of special concern.
Protective Zoning
While there are instances of eagles becoming habituated to
presence of humans near the nest, the presence of humans and their
activities mostly have detrimental effects upon reproduction.
John Matthisen,
a biologist with the Chippewa National Forest in Minnesota began
an innovative program to identify and protect critical nesting
trees from disturbance. He identified each nest tree, its species,
described surrounding habitat and identified human activities,
such as logging or recreational activities that might affect the
reproduction of the resident pairs of eagles. All human activities
were prohibited within 100 meters of nest trees. This zone is
enlarged during the nesting season to 400 meters. In some
instances, all activities may be banned within 800 meters.
Winter conditions are probably the most important limiting factors
on eagle populations. Undisturbed and protected winter
feeding, roosting and loafing sites, such as those in the Wabasha
and Reads Landing area, are critical for eagles.
Disturbances
during the winter months are a double threat for eagles; not only
do they expend energy fleeing during a time of the year when cold
temperatures already place a tremendous caloric demand on the
birds, but they also have shorter days in which to find those
calories. Expending energy fleeing from humans may reduce the
prospect of winter survival, especially for younger birds, and the
successful reproduction the following spring.
Rehabilitation
Every individual eagle has inherent value and is an important
influence on the environment that surrounds it. Conversely, others
say it is a waste of time, effort, and money that could be better
spent on saving habitat, as well as law enforcement and research.
Since eagles generally nest in areas where they are less likely to
be disturbed, some isolation is probably essential for most pairs.
There are exceptions in any population however, such as the two
active nests found on Florida golf courses, but it would be
dangerous to assume based on these few highly-publicized examples,
that eagles could successfully continue to exist as a viable
population without a wilderness refuge.
Public Education
Education is an important component of saving an endangered
species. William A. Burnham and Tom Cade, writing in the Proceedings
of the 61st North American Wildlife and Nature Reserve
Conference stated “More and more people…are separated from
their natural environment. Knowledge about nature assists humans
to understand their complete dependence on the environment”.
A recent survey showed that about 80% of rehabilitation centers
have some form of education program using raptors (though not
necessarily eagles). As many as seven million people have attended
these programs a year. Seeing any raptor closely is a powerful
tool to teach natural history and the human impacts on these
predatory birds. Of all local programs at bird clubs and in
schools, programs that include birds of prey are among the most
popular.
Research
Research provides a basis for all management decisions and
recovery efforts. Without a sound scientific background, the
management plans will not serve the needs of the eagle. To date,
research activities have had few adverse effects on bald eagles,
but the benefits have been great. Unfortunately, many times the
recommended course of action will take years to determine and many
more years to implement. |
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