Bald eagle survives lead poisoning; many others don’t

Hunters could be accidentally killing more than just big game. It turns out the lead in their bullets could be killing scavenger birds as well. The most recent victim in Central Oregon is a 1-year-old bald eagle.

“I guess a human would see it as a drunk pilot,” Gary Landers of Wild Wings Raptor Rehabilitation said Wednesday.

That’s what lead poisoning looks like in large fowl.

“You’re talking about a bird that isn’t flying right, isn’t able to hunt well and isn’t able to take care of itself,” Landers said.

Landers tested the animal at his rehabilitation center in Sisters. The bird was found dazed near a road in Redmond.

After a blood test, he found the eagle had high levels of lead in the blood. He said it’s secondary poisoning, meaning it is unintentional. He believes the animal ate animal remains that had bullet fragments in them.

“The lead shaves off and in really microfine particles. It can’t be seen with the human eye,” Landers said.

Raptors’ eyes don’t miss an opportunity for food. The smallest amount of ingested lead gets into their blood and sets into organs. Only with treatment and medication can the birds get better.

“The size of probably a quarter of my little fingernail,” Landers said.

The accidental deaths are avoidable with non-toxic bullets

“It’s a choice that hunters make,” Landers said.

There are more than 570 nesting pairs of bald eagles in Oregon. Lead poisoning is a common problem.

“Fourteen over the last couple years, nine of them eagles,” Landers said.

Most of the birds die. Landers said only three of them could be released into the wild.

This young bald eagle is one of the lucky ones. He will be released, as he is almost fully recovered.