Hunters for Eagle Conservation
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Hunters for Eagle Conservation
@hfec.bsky.social
*Voluntarily* choosing lead-free ammo is yet another way hunters can promote wildlife conservation. Our programs help hunters reduce one risk faced by bald & golden eagles: ingesting fragments of lead ammo as they scavenge game carcasses in the landscape
Seven bald eagles admitted to one Pennsylvania rehab center. Most poisoned by lead. This isn’t random. Hunters for Eagle Conservation and Conservation Science Global focus on real-world actions that keep eagles out of rehab and in the sky where they belong.
#Leadfree #Hunting #EagleConservation
January 6, 2026 at 7:26 PM
Research from Cornell and NYDEC shows bald eagles face the highest lead risk among deer scavengers. This is why CSG is continuing our New York Hunters for Eagle Conservation program, supporting voluntary, hunter-led solutions.
news.cornell.edu/stories/2024...
#Leadfree #EagleConservation
Bald eagles face highest lead risk of NYS deer scavengers | Cornell Chronicle
Bald eagles are the most vulnerable to lead poisoning from hunters' ammunition of more than 30 species known to scavenge deer carcasses in New York state, Cornell research finds.
news.cornell.edu
January 6, 2026 at 7:23 PM
Athena, a GPS-tracked golden eagle in KY, is revealing how far these birds travel and how many risks they face along the way. Migration research like this helps guide smarter conservation across the landscapes eagles depend on.
www.whas11.com/article/news...
#GoldenEagle #EagleConservation
Golden eagle Athena returns to Kentucky, providing valuable research in 2025
Researchers at Bernheim Forest collected more than 21,000 data points from Athena during her 6,455-mile roundtrip journey.
www.whas11.com
January 6, 2026 at 7:21 PM
A bald eagle found dead in the Black Hills was confirmed to have died from lead poisoning. To reduce this preventable loss, we're launching Hunt Lead-Free South Dakota, supporting hunters with practical, voluntary solutions!
www.sdpb.org/2025-12-16/t...
#LeadFree #Eagles
Test confirms bald eagle found dead in the Black Hills had lead poisoning
A distressed bald eagle reported by two hikers in the Black Hills National Forest in late November suffered from toxic levels of lead in its system.
www.sdpb.org
January 6, 2026 at 7:20 PM
Copper kills cleanly and gets the job done while protecting scavenging eagles. Photo by Will Zuschlag with a hard-earned Texas white-tail, and some solid management of feral hogs to boot.

#eagleconservation #hunting #leadfree #deerhunting #hoghunting
December 10, 2025 at 7:47 PM
At Avian Haven, most eagles admitted show some level of lead exposure linked to fragments from lead ammo. Sadly, Avian Haven recently lost a golden eagle to extreme lead levels, underscoring the ongoing risk. Officials in Maine are urging a shift to lead-free ammo.

#eagleconservation #hunting
December 10, 2025 at 7:24 PM
Reposted by Hunters for Eagle Conservation
We love the new US Forever stamps illustrated by David Sibley! They depict the life stages of Bald Eagles from hatchling to nestling, juvenile, subadult, and adult. It takes about 5 years for them to molt into their iconic white heads and start to claim breeding territories.

#eagleconservation
November 20, 2025 at 5:42 PM
One of our tracked bald eagles, hatched in east-central IL, became our first tagged nestling in the project to breed at just 5 years old. Sadly, she was found grounded in IN last week. A necropsy will tell us more. Choosing lead-free ammo is one way hunters can help eagles!
#BaldEagle #Conservation
November 13, 2025 at 9:27 PM
Good news - USFWS expanded its Voluntary Lead-Free Ammunition Program to 13 national wildlife refuges in 12 states (OR, WI, NC, NJ, MD, WV, ID, MD, NH, NY, VT, and MA), up from 7 last year. Partnered with Conservation Science Global, it helps to further protect eagles from lead poisoning.
October 14, 2025 at 9:17 PM
A bald eagle in Virginia was recently found with 3,000 µg/dL of lead in its blood — it died within a day. Lead fragments from ammo in carcasses poison eagles every deer season. Hunters can help by choosing copper rounds. www.foxweather.com/earth-space/...
#LeadFreeHunting #BaldEagles #Conservation
Bald eagle’s deadly lead poisoning from spent ammo renews concerns ahead of deer hunting season
When a bald eagle was brought into the Blue Ridge Wildlife Center this month, teams recognized the signs of lead poisoning and ran a blood sample through the clinic’s machine. The levels were too high...
www.foxweather.com
October 7, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Last weekend, NY Hunters for Eagle Conservation attended the NY State Conservation Council Meeting! We discussed our lead-free program and the North American Lead-Free Partnership led a ballistics demonstration showing superior performance by copper ammo vs lead.

#leadfree #hunting #conservation
September 10, 2025 at 8:52 PM
Since 2012, we've tracked 250+ bald eagles (146 as nestlings)! One female, originally caught in OK and now grown up and nesting in KS, is now heading north. In winter, eagles feed on gut piles, risking lead poisoning from ammo. Hunters can help by switching to lead-free.

#BaldEagle #Conservation
August 15, 2025 at 6:00 PM
🦆 Waterfowl hunters: bird banding needs your voice. Proposed USGS budget cuts could end the Bird Banding Lab—critical for setting seasons, bag limits, and flyway data. Hunters helped build this science. Let’s protect it. Share & speak up! #WaterfowlHeritage #SaveBirdBanding #HuntersForConservation
July 11, 2025 at 5:17 PM
Juvenile bald or golden eagle? 🦅 Look for:
🟤 Feathered legs = golden
🟤 Proportionally large bill = bald
🟤 Dihedral glide = golden | Flat wings = bald
🟤 Color: goldens = clean white wing patches, white tail base, dark breast | balds = messy mottling
#Ornithology #EagleConservation
July 3, 2025 at 9:44 PM
Our Wyoming lead-free ammo program is back for the 2025–26 season! 🦅 If you drew a limited quota deer, elk, or pronghorn tag in a target unit, you qualify for a free box. Watch your mailbox for a postcard + code to claim it! 💥 #LeadFree #Hunting #EagleConservation
July 3, 2025 at 9:43 PM
We’re launching a brand new, voluntary lead-free ammo program in Georgia! 🦅 Deer hunters in select WMA's and counties can get a free box of lead-free ammo this season. These are eagle hotspots — let’s help protect them!
#LeadFree #Hunting #EagleConservation
July 3, 2025 at 9:42 PM
🦅 Happy Independence Day! Bald eagles have symbolized the U.S. since 1782. While no longer federally endangered, they’re still threatened by lead poisoning and other human activities. Go lead-free to help protect them! Learn more facts about eagles: www.nationaleaglecenter.org/learn/faq/ #BaldEagle
Fascinating Eagle FAQ | National Eagle Center
Learn about Bald and Golden Eagles—and how they compare to one another. Click the category you want to explore, and feel your knowledge soar.
www.nationaleaglecenter.org
July 3, 2025 at 9:41 PM
Two more bald eagles are now being tracked in Missouri! 🦅 In partnership with the Missouri Department of Conservation, CSG is studying territorial eagle movement near a wind facility using satellite telemetry—vital data for conservation.

#BaldEagles #Telemetry #WildlifeResearch #Conservation
May 14, 2025 at 10:26 PM
While avian flu continues to receive nationwide attention, lead poisoning in eagles remains a significant challenge that also deserves coverage. 2 of the 3 bald eagles admitted to this center in just a few weeks had toxic lead levels from scavenging carcasses from animals shot with lead bullets.
Increase In Bald Eagles Along The Oregon Coast Needing Treatment, But Not From The Bird Flu
With the avian flu affecting birds, another issue has popped up in Oregon
www.thetravel.com
May 1, 2025 at 12:41 AM
This past weekend, the Alaska Copper Ammo Challenge exhibited at the Fairbanks Outdoor Show! We introduced over 1,000 hunters to the benefits of copper ammo, from its superior performance to how lead-free ammo helps protect eagles that scavenge on gut piles.

#leadfree #hunting #eagleconservation
May 1, 2025 at 12:33 AM
In 2016, we tagged a golden eagle with the goal of learning more about their movements and distribution. In 2022, we found the eagle dead from lead poisoning. This is the sad reality of eagles exposed to lead ammo in gut piles, but hunters can help by switching to free or reduced cost copper ammo!
March 19, 2025 at 10:21 PM
Copper will get it done - make sure you're ready for next season!

Check out huntersforeagleconservation.org/new-york/ to sign up and learn how to get YOUR rebate for lead-free ammo.

#leadfree #hunting #eagleconservation
March 19, 2025 at 10:15 PM
The CSG team lucked out last week - we successfully trapped and tagged another beautiful golden eagle in Maine! These birds are opportunistic scavengers and frequently take advantage of free meals like deer carcasses and gut piles, underscoring the importance of hunting with lead-free ammo.
March 13, 2025 at 10:02 PM
Nearly 9 years ago, CSG trapped and tagged 31 Bald Eagles. One of them, a nestling named Doc, covered over 680,000 GPS locations in North America. On Feb 17, he was spotted fishing close to his nest site! Doc’s journey is far from over, and we can’t wait to see where his adventures take him next!
March 13, 2025 at 10:01 PM
Attention hunters in southeast WY - Good news! We'll be continuing our lead-free ammo incentive program to hunters that are awarded specific limited quota tags this upcoming season in southeast WY. More info coming soon!

#leadfree #hunting #eagleconservation
March 13, 2025 at 10:00 PM