And our policy is, we don't amputate. So we put down a majestic bald eagle, the symbol of our nation. The shotgun blast that killed this bald eagle is a criminal act. Bald eagles and other raptors are protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, the Bald Eagle Protection Act of 1940 and the EndangeredSpecies Act of 1972. There are good reasons for these laws.
Raptors play important roles in the environment.
Bald eagles, like Franklin, eat almost exclusively fish. And typically they dine on dead, dying and weak fish. That television footage of the eagle swooping down to take a healthy fish out of a river or lake is the rare exception. Humans benefit from raptors' eating habits. As eagles eat fish, they also eat whatever the fish has eaten.