As our national emblem the bald eagle is the most iconic
bird in the United States, symbolizing a strong and free America. In the past,
the bald eagle was on the brink of extinction; however, recently the bald eagle
has become more and more common. Don’t misunderstand though, the bald eagle is
still a very rare sight but currently its population is holding strong and
expanding.
In my home town of Richmond, Virginia, along the James River,
there’s a pair of eagles nesting “in a solid top crotch, approximately 90 feet
up in an isolated loblolly pine.” Researchers discovered this pair’s breeding
territory in the spring of 1995. According to CCB Richmond Eagles on Ustream, one
chick was produced in 1996 and the territory has been occupied ever since. The
original nest was abandoned and the pair built their current nest in 2001. The pair
has used this same nest for over 10 years and has produced 18 chicks since
2001, including 2 last year.
The Center for Conservation Biology explains on Ustream how “the bald
eagle population along the historic James River has increased from zero pairs
in the 1970s to 174 pairs in 2001 and is one of the best examples of how this
species has made a dramatic recovery within the Chesapeake Bay.”
An article in The Daily Record describes how bald eagles
reached such a desperate time and how they made their amazing comeback: “Residues
of the pesticide DDT from the 1950s and 1960s were still causing thin, fragile
eggshells that crushed under the weight of the adult eagles.” It was only with
the help of conservation biologists, such as those of Endangered and Nongame
Species, and the ban of DDT and other pesticides that bald eagles were given
the opportunity to survive. And survival is definitely a challenge they’ve
begun to overcome. According to a New Jersey bird count, “2011 was a banner
year for reproduction, with 113 nesting pairs and 119 fledged chicks.” The January
bird count “found well over 300 eagles making their homes in New Jersey.”
Back in Richmond, Virginia, CCB participates in an EagleMonitoring Program which has monitored the bald eagle breeding population in
the lower Chesapeake Bay from the air for 50 years. As a result, CCB has
produced one of the most significant conservation datasets in the world. Each
year CCB biologist fly a nest survey in February and March to map eagle nests
and to determine their activity status (CCB). CCB is also currently conducting
an Eagle Tracking Project: “the largest eagle tracking study in the world
focused on understanding eagle spatial ecology and how eagles interact with
human-made hazards.”
To show your support for America’s bald eagles, donate to
eagle research or share the live streaming eagle cam on Ustream.
Learn more about Virginia’s Eagles here.
View the Virginia Eagles Photo Gallery here.
