Arkansas Game & Fish Commission

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Wildlife & Conservation

Eagle, Bald

                                                     
Eagle, Bald
            

Species: Haliaeetus Leucocephalus

            

Federal Listing:  Upgraded from endangered to threatened
throughout most of the lower 48 states; 1994

            

Status:Improving

        		Eagle, bald


In 1994, America's efforts to save endangered species reached a milestone with the announcement by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service that the bald eagle had recovered sufficiently to change its status from endangered to threatened in most of the nation. Bald eagle numbers in the lower 48 states climbed from 417 nesting pairs in 1963 to more than 4,400 pairs in 1994. In addition, 5,000 to 6,000 juvenile bald eagles live in the lower 48. Federal protection and tremendous public support led to this recovery -- through stricter law enforcement, protection of important habitat, reintroduction, a strong public education program and banning of DDT, a pesticide that interfered with normal eggshell production.

The first successful bald eagle nesting since 1930 was reported in Arkansas in 1982. In 1995, 18 pairs of Arkansas eagles successfully fledged young from the nest. An eagle hacking program started by the Game and Fish Commission in 1982 contributed to this resurgence. Young eagles from Minnesota and Wisconsin are brought to the state, raised in "hacking" facilities and released in hopes they will return to raise their young in Arkansas.

Arkansas ranks in the top 10 states in the number of winter bald eagle sightings. Over 1,000 bald eagles are counted each winter, nearly triple the 368 recorded in 1979.

If you find a bald eagle nest in use in the state, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission wants to know.

Anyone finding an eagle nest should not approach it but should carefully note the exact location. Then phone Karen Rowe at (877)873-4651 or contact her by e-mail at krowe@agfc.state.ar.us, and a bald eagle site report form will be mailed, or you can download the Bald Eagle Nest Data Form. The form includes space for notes on nest activities and site location information. Completed forms should be emailed or mailed to Rowe at AGFC Hampton Wildlife Research Center, 31 Halowell Lane, Humphrey, AR 72073.