Blog#4

Endangered Species: Bald Eagle

I chose the Bald Eagle as my endangered species. It is known as a symbol of our nation and the national bird of the United States.  The bald eagle is considered one of, if not the biggest success of the endangered species act. One of the main reasons it became an endangered species was due to an agriculture pesticide that got into the aquatic ecosystems and poisoned all the fish, which the bald eagles ate. In 1940 it became illegal to possess a bald eagle, their feathers, eggs, or nests. Being a national treasure, people rushed to figure out how to save the bird and bring back the nation’s bird to full a population. Fish and wildlife proposed the bald eagle to be removed from the list in 1999 and thankfully in 2007, the bald eagles breeding was so successful that they were taken off the endangered species list, and not even considered a threat to becoming an endangered species anymore. After the success of the bald eagle, it gave hope to animal rights activists and people who could actually do something about the matter, making their voices heard. Bald eagles are still rebounding from their population loss, and although it is better, it is not close to what it was back in their prime. Bald eagle population are presumed around 72,000 in the lower 48 states, and around 143,000 in Alaska. The population is so strong there because of the special pesticide never being used in Alaska. The bald eagle will hopefully continue to flourish and remain the powerful symbol it is today, for years to come. (270)