Indicators:  Rivers + Reservoirs

Bald Eagles

Bald eagles have come back to Connecticut. The chemical pollutants that interfered with their reproduction have been controlled.

Bald eagles stopped breeding in Connecticut in the 1950s. The species declined throughout the lower 48 states and was declared endangered in 1967. A variety of environmental conditions harmed the eagle, including the widespread use of certain chemicals (chlorinated hydrocarbons) that accumulated in its prey (mostly fish). When those chemicals were banned and polluted waterways were improved, the bald eagle was able to reproduce again. Young eagles were reintroduced into nearby states in the 1980s, and a pair found their way to Connecticut in 1991 and successfully raised a family in 1992. Many more pairs have since found acceptable nesting habitat on land protected by government and private landowners including utility companies. The DEP monitors the eagles with the assistance of the Bald Eagle Study Group and other volunteers.

The bald eagle is listed as endangered in Connecticut. The federal government removed the bald eagle from its list of threatened and endangered species in August 2007. The Northern States Bald Eagle Recovery Plan established a goal for Connecticut of 20 breeding birds (10 nests), which was reached for the first time in 2005. The population of bald eagles is included as an indicator because the eagle is representative of species, especially predators, that share similar habitat requirements: large areas of relatively undisturbed land near rivers or lakes where the birds can find adequate supplies of prey that are – very importantly – only minimally contaminated.