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By Rep. Mark Bryant
May 29, 2009
Last week, I met a resident from Gray at the State House during a bill signing with the Governor. This isn’t unheard of – I enjoy having constituents visit with me in Augusta, especially to mark significant occasions such as the passage of new laws that will make a difference to our communities. The bill signed into law last week was of particular importance, because it takes the bald eagle off the endangered species list. And the Gray resident was named Lawrence, a bald eagle who was been nursed back to health at the Maine Wildlife Park.
His companion handler told me that Lawrence came to live at the park after an accident that damaged one of his wings, making it difficult for him to fly. Volunteers helped amputate the damaged part of his wing, and he now visits with students and groups to help people learn about conservation.
I’m a sportsman with a great respect for nature, but I’ll admit, I was pretty timid standing next to a bald eagle. Lawrence was incredible. I’ve never seen anything like him up close before. It made the work I had done, sponsoring the legislation to remove the bald eagle from the endangered species list – the first time that any species in Maine has been entirely removed from the list – so much more meaningful.
In Maine, we have a special obligation to the bald eagle and conservation. It was here that Rachel Carson, author of “Silent Spring,” made some of her most significant research advancements on the issue of DDT, which was a primary factor in the decline of the bald eagle population. When DDT was banned in 1972, Maine only had 29 pairs and eight eaglets statewide. Only two other nesting pairs could be found in the entire northeast region and were heavily protected in upstate New York.
At that same time, a young graduate student at the University of Maine began studying the bald eagle. When he finished his academic courses, Charlie Todd started working full time for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife as a wildlife biologist. For the next 35 years, Todd worked hard creating and implementing a wildlife management plan for the bald eagle.
This was an entirely new concept for the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, which focused heavily on supporting hunters and fishermen back then. But Todd’s work began filtering into other parts of the department, and conservation management plans for many species really took off.
You might ask why, after all this time, we would take the bald eagle off the endangered and threatened species list. It’s one of our national symbols, and with all the work that’s been put into conserving the species, they should, of course, remain protected. The answer is that we are already obligated under other provisions of state and federal law to maintain conservation and monitoring techniques, but we don’t need to be so aggressive, and can dedicate those precious resources to other species in need of attention.
The success of the bald eagle conservation program has been truly remarkable. After more than three decades of painstaking management, there are now almost 500 nesting pairs of bald eagles producing another 300 fledglings each year. Bald eagles live in all 16 counties, and right nearby in Gray, you can visit Lawrence and other rehabilitated bald eagles at the Maine Wildlife Park.
I was very proud to sponsor the legislation that removed bald eagles from the endangered species list, and even more pleased that it marks the beginning of a new era of conservation in Maine. If I can provide any more information about this bill, or any other issue that’s pending in the final weeks of the legislative session, please feel free to call me at home at 892-6591, or e-mail me at Rep. Bryant.