LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — Earlier this week, an injured eagle was found in the wild.
It was taken in by Raven Ridge Wildlife Center in Lancaster County, which tested it for lead.
“The level was so high in this eagle that it didn’t register," explained Tracie Young, director and lead rehabilitator at Raven Ridge. "So we were able to start fluids, start therapy, oxygen, I was personally out here with this eagle all night."
Unfortunately, the bird didn’t make it.
“It’s a very painful death," said Young. "When we do get eagles in here it’s a very long rehab. It’s very painful. But it’s also heartbreaking to watch too.”
Young said it’s something she sees all too often.
“It affects their breathing. They show a lot of neurologic symptoms like head ticks," she said. "They can’t stand. They can’t fly.”
Young explained it’s not just eagles suffering.
“It’s other birds of prey that are scavengers," she said. "It’s the foxes, any scavenging animal looking for an easy meal.”
What's happening is eagles and other animals are consuming pieces of game that have lead ammunition in them from hunters.
“The lead ammunition is getting into the gut piles, the loss of game and the birds are eating it," Young explained.
Fishing equipment is also playing a role.
“It’s also in lead sinkers, in lead jigs, lead is not good for anybody at any level," Young said.
Now Raven Ridge, and other groups across the country, are making a push for hunters and anglers to make the switch to non-lead ammunition.
“If you’re talking about rifle ammunition for big game hunting, for a lot of folks is what we’re talking about, you’re generally looking at copper, copper alloys," said Leland Brown, co-founder of the North American Non-lead Partnership and a non-lead hunting education program manager at the Oregon Zoo.
Brown said some hunters could be hesitant to make the change.
“No one wants to wound an animal," he explained. "No one wants to make an animal suffer while hunting and asking them to try something new is asking them to risk that potential. What we’ve found though is these non-lead bullets do work well, they’re efficient, they do kill cleanly and don’t make animals suffer.”
Both Brown and Young believe it’s a transition that could end up saving many animal lives.
“We’re not trying to stop hunters, we’re just trying to get them to be aware and change your ammunition. That’s it," said Young.
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