Protecting Bald Eagles: A Call for Responsible Fishing Practices
As the Fourth of July holiday approaches, officials in Arizona are urging anglers to be mindful of their fishing practices to help safeguard an iconic species. This plea comes after a recent incident involving a young bald eagle injured by a fishing hook.
Biologists from the Arizona Game and Fish Department discovered the eaglet with a fish hook lodged in its throat at Willow Springs Lake, located near Payson. Although a surgery performed at Liberty Wildlife was unable to fully extract the hook, experts are optimistic about the bird’s ability to survive in the wild.
By the time the eaglet was ready to be released back into the wild, its biological parents had already left the nest. However, the department successfully placed the bird with a foster eagle family. John Kelton Leos, a representative from the department, explained, “The adult eagles will feed, will care for, and will protect the new kind of member of the family as one of their own.” The eaglet is anticipated to embark on its maiden flight this weekend.
Arizona supports a small yet flourishing population of bald eagles, though their habitats are limited to areas frequently visited by humans, such as lakes. This overlap often results in biologists finding fishing debris in eagle nests.
Kelton Leos noted, “In Arizona, bald eagles’ dependence on water kind of restricts them to areas that are also favored by people, like lakes.” To ensure the safety of the state’s wildlife and visitors, the department recommends that all fishing lines and other waste be disposed of in trash and recycling containers rather than being left in the water. For those engaging in catch-and-release fishing, using lures or flies without hooks is advised.
