Report Bald Eagle Sightings to Division of Fish and Wildlife

Vol. 31, No. 1
Jan. 2, 2001

For more information, call Division of Fish and Wildlife nongame and endangered species biologist Alice Doolittle at 302-653-2882.

Report Bald Eagle Sightings to Division of Fish and Wildlife

If you see a bald eagle in Delaware between Jan. 3 and Jan. 17, the Division of Fish and Wildlife wants to know. These dates mark the annual Midwinter Bald Eagle Survey, a nationwide count to assess the status of our national bird.

In Delaware, the midwinter survey is coordinated by the Division's Nongame and Endangered Species Program, which has done a statewide aerial survey for many years as part of the national eagle count. For the past several years, sightings from the public have been requested to supplement the aerial count. In 2000, ten bald eagles were seen during the aerial survey and 19 were observed and reported by Delaware residents.

Sightings reported by the public will be particularly important this year, according to Alice Doolittle, biologist with the Nongame and Endangered Species Program. "We will not be conducting the aerial count this year due to funding shortages. Reported sightings from Delaware citizens will be our only source of information for the midwinter survey." The Nongame Program receives some federal funding each year for bald eagle monitoring and protection, but also relies on contributions to the Nongame Wildlife tax checkoff.

Data from the midwinter surveys and from breeding season surveys around the country indicate that the bald eagle population is on the rise. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the agency that compiles and analyzes eagle counts from each state, the number seen in Delaware during the midwinter survey has increased by more than 30 percent since 1989.

Bald eagle numbers nationwide were drastically reduced earlier this century from the effects of pesticides such as DDT. A ban on the use of such pesticides and the protection of the bald eagle under the federal Endangered Species Act have contributed to its comeback, but the bald eagle today is still faced with threats. One of the most serious threats along the densely populated East Coast is destruction of eagle habitat by development.

If you see an eagle from now through Jan. 17, please report it to the Division of Fish and Wildlife at 302- 653-2882. Be prepared to provide the date and specific location of the sighting, number of eagles seen, age (adult or immature), and your name and telephone number.

For more information, contact nongame and endangered species biologist Alice Doolittle at 302-653-2882.

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Document number 40-01/01/01/01

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