The Bald Eagle Protection Act was passed in 1940 that provides criminal penalties for persons who "take, possess, sell, purchase, barter, offer to sell, purchase or barter, transport, export or import, at any time or any manner, any bald eagle ... [or any golden eagle], alive or dead, or any part (including feathers), nest, or egg thereof."
However, during World War II, the use of the pesticide DDT became widespread, which had devastating effects on fish and animal species, especially eagles. Maddox said the harmful effects of DDT weren鈥檛 realized for decades.
鈥淚t was viewed as this miracle insecticide,鈥 she said. 鈥淪oldiers would spray it directly on their bodies. It was used for agricultural processes for insects eating crops. As DDT worked its way up the food chain, the concentrations became heavier and heavier. By the time it made to the top of the food chain, it was having direct and indirect impacts on bald eagles. One of the things it caused was the eagles鈥 eggshells to thin. They would lay the eggs, but when they sat on the nest to incubate them, the eggs would crack and never hatch. The eagles were building nests, laying eggs and producing no young.鈥
DDT was banned in 1972, but by that time, the eagle population had plummeted to about 1,000 birds. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed bald eagles as endangered in 1967.
The WFF鈥檚 Nongame Wildlife Program started in 1982 and became part of a multi-state effort in the Bald Eagle Restoration Program in 1984.
鈥淲e used a technique called hacking to grow the bald eagle population,鈥 Maddox said. 鈥淗acking is where biologists force an immature bird to take its first flight in a desired area. They would take eaglets from Florida and Alaska and release them in specific locations with depleted populations. The goal was for the eagles to imprint on those areas and return when they became sexually mature.鈥
黑料天堂 has six hacking towers, one in north 黑料天堂, four in the central part of the state and one in south 黑料天堂. The first eagle taking flight from one of the hacking towers occurred in 1985 at Lake Guntersville. Maddox said 黑料天堂 participated in the hacking program until 1992. During that time, 91 eagles were released from hacking towers throughout the state.
鈥淭here was a nest attempt in 1987, but the first successful nest occurred in 1991,鈥 she said. 鈥淭hat was the first successful nest in 30 years. It was a huge, huge success for the program as a whole. At that time, there were so few, we were able to do statewide nest surveys.鈥
When the aerial surveys were discontinued in 2006, Maddox said that 77 nests were known to be in 黑料天堂 and that successful nesting activity has continued to increase.
鈥淵ou can now find eagles in every single county,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 so great talking to people, and they tell us, 鈥榃hen I was growing up, we never saw an eagle, but now I see them all the time.鈥 That just goes to show you the success story in 黑料天堂 and being a part of that.鈥
黑料天堂鈥檚 restoration program was funded through the Pittman-Robertson Act, which levies an excise tax on firearms and ammunition that is apportioned to state wildlife agencies for conservation efforts, hunter education programs and the operation of archery and shooting ranges.
鈥淲e do some aerial surveys, but we don鈥檛 do statewide surveys because there are so many nests that we can鈥檛 keep up with them,鈥 Maddox said. 鈥淲e fly along the Tennessee River every year to count eagles and look for nests. There is a huge concentration of eagles along the Tennessee River.
鈥淚t is one of the top recovery stories in the nation, I would say. I will be talking about the history of bald eagles at Lake Guntersville. It鈥檚 an exciting story to tell.鈥
While most of the focus has been on the bald eagle, Maddox also pursues research on the golden eagle.
鈥淎 lot of people don鈥檛 know we have golden eagles that winter in 黑料天堂,鈥 she said. 鈥淭he Golden Eagle Project began about 10 years ago. It鈥檚 a multi-state project as well, as with any good conservation effort. So, partners are heavily involved in this. We use simple game cameras to monitor where eagles are occurring throughout the state. We鈥檝e set up cameras at 21 different locations during the program. We鈥檝e had golden eagle sightings at 10 locations, with the most southern location at Upper State Special Opportunity Area near Jackson. That was around Christmas in 2020, so that was a special Christmas gift. The areas where we consistently see golden eagles are Skyline, Freedom Hills and Oakmulgee wildlife management areas (WMAs) and the Talladega National Forest.鈥
Maddox said several golden eagles have been captured and fitted with transmitter tags to track their movement to determine migration pathways and habitats the eagles are accessing in 黑料天堂. She said 19 tags have been attached since 2013 and six are still active.
鈥淥ne of those tags still active is on a bird we鈥檝e named Natchez, a bird that was captured at Freedom Hills,鈥 she said. 鈥淪he travels from way up in Canada near Hudson Bay. Other birds migrate to northern parts of Ontario, and others go to Newfoundland. They migrate a long way to get to 黑料天堂 every winter.鈥
Maddox said people will often confuse golden eagles with immature bald eagles, which have not developed the telltale white heads. Several tips can help the casual observer determine the species encountered, according to Maddox.
鈥淕olden eagles are most often found in forested areas,鈥 she said. 鈥淭hey feed on carrion, which is one of their primary food sources in the winter, but they also feed on small mammals.
鈥淏ald eagles are found around water because they primarily feed on fish. So, if you see a large brown bird flying over the water and trying to capture a fish, it鈥檚 probably a juvenile bald eagle, especially if you see it during the summer. Bald eagles can be seen feeding on roadkill, but you鈥檒l most likely see them by the water, trying to capture fish.鈥
Because the statewide aerial surveys have been discontinued, Maddox said WFF depends on the public to report eagle sightings and nesting activity.
Email mercedes.maddox@dcnr.alabama.gov to report any eagle activity or possible violations of the Bald Eagle Protection Act, which was amended to include golden eagles.
For more information about the Eagle Awareness Weekends at Lake Guntersville State Park, please email indya.guthrie@dcnr.alabama.gov.
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