The Law That Saved the Bald Eagle

In 1963, scientists counted only about 417 nesting pairs of bald eagles left in the entire lower 48 states. America's own national symbol was disappearing. Today, there are more than 300,000 bald eagles flying across the country. What changed? People made new rules to protect them.

Why bald eagle eggs were breaking before hatching What rule stopped the harmful chemical that was hurting eagles What the Endangered Species Act does to protect animals How many bald eagles live in the United States today

For years, farmers sprayed a chemical called DDT on crops to kill insects. Rain washed DDT into rivers and lakes, where fish absorbed it. Bald eagles ate those fish, and the chemical made their eggshells so thin that many eggs cracked before the baby eagles could hatch.

In 1972, the United States banned DDT completely. Then in 1973, a new law called the Endangered Species Act was signed, which made it illegal to harm animals that were at risk of disappearing forever, or to destroy the places where they live and raise their young.

With DDT banned and their nests protected by law, bald eagles slowly recovered. By 2007, there were enough eagles that the government removed them from the endangered species list — one of the biggest comeback stories in American history.