LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT IMPORTANT TO LIVES OF BALD EAGLES

To the Editor:

Due to the open water below Cape Rock, many local people have been able to observe large numbers of Bald Eagles. All to whom I spoke at Cape Rock felt lucky to be able to see so many of our national bird. However, many of the younger people seemed unaware that eagle numbers were formerly dangerously low in the Midwest and nationwide. In this year, when the Endangered Species Act is up for renewal in Congress, it seems appropriate to review the history of the most famous species affected by that act.

The biggest threats to the North American Bald Eagle have been destruction of habitat and the use of DDT and related pesticides. The first warnings that pesticides might be preventing eagles from reproducing came from Florida in 1947, followed by studies in Illinois in the early 1950s. Rachel Carson's book, Silent Spring, brought the issue to national attention in 1962. As Carson reported, the 1958 winter eagle count along the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers had yielded only 58 adults and 1 immature eagle. This was especially worrisome because a stable eagle population should have at least one immature bird for each two adults.

Use of DDT in the United States was prohibited in 1972, and the Endangered Species Act was first passed in 1973. In 1979, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service set up the Northern Bald Eagle Recovery Region, which includes most of the Midwestern states. These measures have had a dramatic impact on the survival of Bald Eagles in the Mississippi Valley. For example, in 1979 there were only 460 nesting pairs of Bald Eagles in the Recvovery Region. By 1990, the pupulation had increased to 1,169 nesting pairs. Similarly, the number of nesting eagles in Illinois rose from no nests in 1973 to 16 nests in 1991.

As remarkable as their recovery has been, the status of the Bald Eagle is by no means certain. Now that DDT use has been eliminated in this country, the biggest remaining threat to eagles is continuing habitat loss.

Most of the eagles which we see in Illinois and Missouri during the winter are those which nest in Wisconsin and Minnesota in the summer months. Because it is obvious that nesting habitat is vital, the people of our northern states have made good progress in protecting nesting areas for eagles.

However, habitat loss in the wintering areas continues. Yet, if eagles cannot find adequate food and a sheltered place to sleep, they will either die or will return north too weakened to nest successfully. Thus, protection of remaining eagle habitat is vital to the continued survival of our national symbol and is especially critical in our region.

Renewal of the Endangered Species Act will help guarantee that wild creatures like the Bald Eagle will still be around for our grandchildren to enjoy as we in Cape have this week. Those who would like to see that happen would do well to alert their congressmen that renewal of the E.S.A. is a high priority to them.

A widely-supported House amendement, H.R. 2043, which has 105 cosponsors, is a sensible addition to the act because it organizes protection based on the habitat of threatened species.

The Bald Eagle survived because the people of this country agreed that its survival was a priority and passed laws to make that happen. No one would argue that the laws are perfect, but it clear that without them, we would not be enjoying the eight of 50 Bald Eagles at Cape Rock in 1994.

Sincerely,

IDA DOMAZLICKY

President, Four Seasons Chapter of National Audubon Society

Cape Girardeau