SOLON, Iowa (KCRG) – Bald eagles, once nearly gone from Iowa, are now a common sight across the state.
Dave Conrads with the Iowa Raptor Project said he never saw a bald eagle growing up in Iowa until he was 21 years old at Lake Red Rock in 1986. He said the pesticide DDT, once used on farmers’ crops, was the culprit.
“With the onset of DDT after World War II, that got into the fish and that got into the eagles,” Conrads said.
The Iowa DNR says that in 1978, under the Endangered Species Act, the bald eagle was listed as endangered in 43 states — including Iowa — and threatened in five others.
The comeback began before that listing.
“In 1972, they banned DDT. And so the environment began to clean itself out,” Conrads said.
In 1977, Conrads said the first bald eagle nest in Iowa was recorded. Populations began to grow from there.
“So it didn’t take long for bald eagles to begin repopulating some of their former haunts, especially along the Mississippi River. And then there was the introduction of the Endangered Species Act in the late 70s, which then also protected their habitats,” Conrads said.
The Iowa Raptor Project has cared for a bald eagle named Spirit since the 1980s, after the bird collided with a telephone pole. Assistant Director Katie Ibsen said Spirit had to have part of her wing amputated.
“She was rehabbed and she ended up having to have her wing amputated a bit to save that wing. But Spirit arrived to our raptor center when bald eagles were still starting to get their populations back up,” Ibsen said.
Ibsen said Spirit represents the broader conservation story.
“I hope when people see Spirit, they can understand the importance of conservation and our conservation laws and why they’re in place to save these species,” Ibsen said.
Conrads noted the eagle’s significance to both the nation and the state.
“It is pretty amazing to see, not just our nation’s symbol, but on the flag of Iowa, is the bald eagle, carrying our state motto. Our liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain,” Conrads said.
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