National American Eagle Day

Written By: Aimee Turcotte
Zoo Educator
Did you know that Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo has a Bald Eagle? Kodiak is a 17-year-old male Bald Eagle from the Alaska Raptor Center, AK. He arrived at the zoo in 2010 due to an injury in his wing. Unfortunately, Kodiak most likely would not survive in the wild because he cannot fly. As a result, he cannot be released back into the wild. Kodiak is currently living in a temporary home between the tiger and leopard habitats. His habitat will be renovated to have more perches, an enhanced pond, and a protective cover.

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The Bald Eagle is the national bird of the United States because it is only found in North America, mainly in Canada and Alaska. This bird symbolizes freedom for the American people because of how its characteristics relate to what the founding fathers believed would be the qualities of America in the future. Bald Eagles are independent because they can fly anywhere at high heights using their powerful wingspan. As soon as young learn how to fly, they are left to go wherever they would like without adult supervision. Additionally, Bald Eagles are strong, catching their prey with their powerful beaks and talons. These birds are also leaders, with the strategic advantage of controlling their territory from high elevations when searching for prey and at lower altitudes when catching their target. When waterfowl or small mammals are not available to eat, Bald Eagles will take the opportunity to scavenge on carrion or take prey from other animals. Bald Eagles are not afraid to do whatever it takes to survive, even if they need to compete against other species. These birds always have a sense of direction of where they need to go to complete their daily tasks.

Bald Eagles were once endangered, but because of conservation efforts, they are now a species of least-concern. These birds were threatened by habitat loss due to deforestation. People would cut down trees in a Bald Eagles’ habitat to create land for constructing buildings. Furthermore, Bald Eagles were hunted by humans for entertainment purposes. Hunters wanted to test their shooting skills by seeing if they could kill a Bald Eagle. The remains of the Bald Eagle would occasionally be taken by hunters to make mounted trophies. Lastly, Bald Eagles were in danger from the use of pesticides. In the 1940s to the 1970s, people would spray a synthetic insecticide called DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane) on farms to kill bugs. This insecticide made Bald Eagle eggs very weak, to the point in which many did not hatch.

Conservationists helped Bald Eagles in a variety of ways. For instance, laws were created to protect Bald Eagles. One law states that it is illegal to cut down trees with eagle nests. Furthermore, hunting Bald Eagles and using pesticides that harm Bald Eagle eggs is against the law. Individuals that find injured or sick Bald Eagles will report the location of these animals to wildlife rehabilitators, who will care for these birds until they can be released back into the wild. The Bald Eagle is protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), which is a document upkeeping the survival of species that have been traded internationally.