Photo by Barbara Houston
For those who grew up long after the 1972 federal ban of the pesticide DDT, it may seem strange to imagine that America’s national emblem was once in danger of extinction. But at their nadir, there were only 417 nesting pairs of bald eagles left in the world, including 70 around the Chesapeake Bay and zero on the James River.
Today, there are an estimated 400 nesting pairs on the James, over 3,000 on the Chesapeake Bay and over 70,000 worldwide.
“For those of us who have seen their population at its lowest, it’s just mind-blowing how many eagles are around at this point,” says Bryan Watts, director of the Center for Conservation Biology at the College of William & Mary. “Nobody could have predicted just how densely they’re breeding and just how many pairs have come back into some of these areas.”
The viability of the eagle population is usually measured by counting nesting pairs who make their homes near their favorite food source: fish. Watts notes that the recovery goal for the entire Chesapeake Bay set during the late 1970s was 300 pairs. “Now, the James River alone is far in excess of that,” he says.
For many years, Watts led a team that conducted an annual aerial survey of nesting pairs of bald eagles along the James River. The 2021 report was its last, as the CCB and its partners concluded that that the population had fully recovered.
Cyrus Brame, a wildlife refuge specialist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at the James River National Wildlife Refuge, continues to conduct biweekly eagle surveys from early spring until late fall in a johnboat launched from the refuge on Powell’s Creek. Brame conducts the surveys, which last between two and three hours, at high tide.
“At the beginning of the season, we see about 25 to 35 pairs,” Brame says. “In the summertime, we can see up to 60.”
Both Brame and Watts say banning DDT significantly benefited the eagle’s recovery. “Eagles and other species that are exposed to DDT produce fragile eggs,” Watts explains. “DDT inhibits an enzyme for calcium deposition. When birds try to incubate, the eggs aren’t strong enough and they collapse.”
Another concern is avian flu. Earlier this year, the CCB worked with the University of Maryland to collect blood samples from eagles, which are now being tested.
“The last couple years, we’ve had some dead chicks in the nest,” Watts says, “but in the long run, I don’t think we’re going to see a downward trend just due to these types of short-term impacts.”
In addition to the ban on toxic chemicals, eagles have benefited from the restoration and protection of shoreline habitat.
“In the 1970s, individuals and organizations started setting aside shoreline areas,” Brame says. “It’s the place people want to be, and it’s the place eagles want to be. The United States hasn’t gotten any less developed since then. We’ve almost reached our max capacity threshold because most of the shorelines are either built up or protected.”
The James River National Wildlife Refuge, established in 1991 on the site of a 4,700-acre former timber farm, boasts an old-growth forest of oaks, hickories, tulip poplars, beeches, loblolly pines, longleaf pines and holly trees. Recently, Brame planted 18 longleaf pines, an ideal tree for eagle habitation, in the new-growth forest once dominated by the farm.
“Eagles like to nest in the tallest trees,” Brame says. “They like pine trees because they get up so high, and there’s places for them to perch. They like bald cypress. Really, they’re not too particular, so long as they’ve got a line of sight to see other eagles near them and down to the water.”
Bald eagles have also adapted over the last 50 years to live alongside humans. Once skittish and easily disturbed, many nesting pairs now live comfortably within Richmond’s city limits. “The fastest-growing sector of the population is in residential areas,” Watts says. “When you look at reproduction rates, there’s really no difference between pairs in urban areas versus pairs in remote areas, suggesting they truly have adapted to us.”
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