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The bald eagles were once considered endangered, but they are now on the rise.
The bald eagle population has been increasing. In 2007, the endangered species list removed from it the bald eagles and since then their number has been increasing continuously.
The bald eagle is a prey bird usually found in the North of America. This species is usually found near large areas of water, where there are also trees and food supplies. The bald eagles mainly eat fish, with they snatch from the water, with the help of their talons. They can build the largest tree nests, that are 13 feet deep, 8.2 feet wide, which can weigh up to 1.1 short tons. The females are 25% larger than the males, their beak is hooked and large and they are brown with white head and tail.
A new report from the Conserve Wildlife Foundation in New Jersey showed that they have been closely monitoring the species, although it has not been considered endangered in the last 8 years. The report contains the number of nesting pairs, nesting productivity and the active nests in the state. For the report, the organization collaborated with biologists from CWF and with members of Fish and Wildlife from New Jersey. Some volunteers also helped with the report.
191 nests were monitored by CWF in the nesting season. Of these nests, 11 nests contained territorial pairs or were housekeeping and 150 had eggs. From the monitored nests, 199 eagles were born. Also, 13 new pairs of bald eagles were discovered. Two pairs came from the north of New Jersey, two pairs from the center of New Jersey and nine pairs came from the south. The population of the bald eagles is predominant in Delaware Bay.
Larissa Smith, who is an eagle biologist at CWF, thanked the volunteers who helped them keep track of the nests, and she said that the bald eagle population is increasing due to the efforts of the volunteers who not only observe them, but they also try to protect their natural habitat.
Before the 1970s, 20 pairs of bald eagles could be found in New Jersey, but after the 1970s, only one pair of eagles remained because of the dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane pesticide. The eagles were then considered endangered and the use of that pesticide was banned by the authorities. At the beginning of the 1980s, the number of bald eagles started to increase. In 2000, reports registered 23 pairs, in 2005 48 pairs and by 2010 there were 82 pairs of bald eagles in New Jersey. As shown by the reports, the bald eagle population has been increasing and that gives us hope that other species that are now endangered will be on the rise again in the future.
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