Bald eagle’s deadly lead poisoning from spent ammo renews concerns ahead of deer hunting season
Scavengers like Bald Eagles and vultures ingest lead slugs used for hunting or lead sinkers for fishing when they mistakenly eat them hidden in meat. A bald eagle brought into the Blue Ridge Wildlife Center had a blood level of nearly 3,000 micrograms per deciliter, 65 can be deadly.
Video from April shows bald eagles feeding baby eaglets
FILE: The three eaglets were killed over the weekend when a sudden windstorm knocked the 22-year-old nest out of its tree. The National Conservation Training Center in West Virginia said winds reached 75 mph that night.
When an ill bald eagle was brought into the Blue Ridge Wildlife Center in Virginia this month, teams recognized the signs of lead poisoning and ran a blood sample through the clinic’s machine. The levels were too high for the machine’s maximum measurements.
The machine only reads up to 65 micrograms per deciliter. Blue Ridge Wildlife Center (BRWC) Hospital Director Dr. Jen Riley told FOX Weather birds typically don’t survive when it's that high. After diluting the sample twice and multiplying the result, the team determined this eagle had a blood level of nearly 3,000 micrograms per deciliter.
Less than 24 hours later, despite all the efforts of the veterinary care staff, the bald eagle died of lead poisoning, which had caused its organs to fail. Radiographs confirmed a large amount of lead in the bird’s stomach being broken down, which leeched into the bloodstream, doing irreversible damage.
A photo showing the lead shot in the bald eagle's stomach. (Blue Ridge Wildlife Center)
"We've certainly never had a level that high here. Our second-highest level ever was about 1,800," Riley said. "This was an incredibly high level. We didn’t expect this bird to survive. But it is a bald eagle. You know, we gave it every possible chance."
Riley said that of the two dozen bald eagles BRWC treats per year, about 90% have some level of lead poisoning. But like the recent victim, that’s not what brings them in for treatment. It was found on the roadside, unable to fly.
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"Most of those animals do come in as hit by cars or with other trauma, but it's trauma secondary to being poisoned," she said. "Lead poisoning basically makes you super uncoordinated. And unable to maneuver properly. So it makes sense that those animals would be much more likely to get hit by a car, you know, run into a wall, whatever else happens to them."
Scavengers like bald eagles and vultures ingest lead slugs used for hunting, or lead sinkers for fishing when they mistakenly eat them hidden in meat. Riley said what killed this bald eagle looked like birdshot, which is less common because it’s for smaller game.
BRWC sees its wildlife lead poisoning cases rise when deer hunting season begins in Virginia in October. They also treat a lot of snapping turtles for lead poisoning.
A Bald Eagle undergoing treatment at the Blue Ridge Wildlife Center. (Blue Ridge Wildlife Center / FOX Weather)
These cases are avoidable, and the BRWC is trying to get the word out, asking hunters this season to use copper-based ammunition.
"These bullets don't fragment the way that lead does," Riley said. "Birds are able to swallow the whole and cast them up whole. They don't get the same absorption that they get from lead."
Lead poisoning concerns stretch beyond wildlife to those who eat game meat.
"There are studies that show 40 to 60% of the ground venison that humans are eating for human consumption are also contaminated with lead in this way," Riley said. "And we know that lead poisoning is an issue for hunters and their families, especially, you know, pregnant women or unborn children, are very high at risk as well."
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According to the Congressional Sportsmen Foundation, lead is a "contentious issue" among the hunting community. Hunters argue bans can cause a decrease in conservation revenue for fish and wildlife agencies and decrease hunting participation.
In 1991, lead shot was banned in waterfowl hunting. This applies only to waterfowl such as ducks, geese, swans and coots, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Riley said beyond the waterfowl ban, about 90 percent of hunting ammunition used today still contains lead.
California banned lead across all hunting purposes in 2019, but is the only state with an overall ban.
"Ultimately, it's a major health issue for scavenging wildlife and for humans eating meat. So it's safest for everybody involved if we just take that out and don't use the lead ammunition," Riley said.
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As fall bird migration begins, the center will also start seeing a spike in bird injuries.
A bird-friendly window treatment example from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services. (Allison Stewart/USFWS)
"During migration, we see huge peaks in window strike cases," Riley said.
Riley said the public can help by using decals or tape, as well as other available window treatments. The BWRC highlights some of these options on its outdoor windows to show people what is available.
These decals or tape need to break up the window every 2 inches to work effectively.