America’s national bird is more beleaguered than previously believed, with nearly half of bald eagles tested across the U.S. showing signs of chronic lead exposure, according to a study published Thursday
This undated photo provided by The Raptor Center, University of Minnesota, shows a lead-poisoned bald eagle in St. Paul, Minn. Victoria Hall, veterinarian and executive director of the center, said that “85 to 90% of the eagles that come into our hospital have some level of lead in their blood," and we know that no level is safe.” X-rays often show fragments of lead bullets in their birds' stomachs.
“This is the first time for any wildlife species that we’ve been able to evaluate lead exposure and population level consequences at a continental scale,” said study co-author Todd Katzner, a wildlife biologist at U.S. Geological Survey in Boise, Idaho. “It’s sort of stunning that nearly 50% of them are getting repeatedly exposed to lead.”
Bald eagles are one of America’s most celebrated conservation success stories, and the birds were removed from the U.S. Endangered Species List in 2007. This Sept. 19, 2021 X-ray image provided by the Tri-State Bird Rescue & Research shows metallic particles in the gastrointestinal tract of a bald eagle in Newark, Del. Because eagles are very sensitive to lead, and because they are so well-studied and attract so much public interest, “bald eagles are like the canary in the coal mine," says Jennifer Cedarleaf, the avian director at Alaska Raptor Center, a nonprofit wildlife rescue in Sitka, Alaska.
Slabe said the upshot of the research was not to disparage hunters. “Hunters are one of the best conservation groups in this country,” he said, noting that fees and taxes paid by hunters help fund state wildlife agencies, and that he also hunted deer and elk in Montana.
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