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Because they are an apex preditor which means that they are at the top of the food chain, so if anything happens on a lower level with any of the prey it feeds on then they may be in danger of starvation. Also, if there are toxic chemicals in their environment, they get a higher concentration in their bodies than their prey. If they get too much in their systems, then they can have reproductive problems, or even die from the effests of the toxins.
it is also due to the hunting and fising.
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JordanThe bald eagle used to be endangered but it is not anymore.
The Bald Eagle was endangered because of pesticides, that are no longer used today in the U.S., such as DDT. These made the eagle eggs very fragile, and weak causing them to break when the eagles attempted to sit the nest. Some survived but were unhealthy, and had problems reproducing. They also caused mutations to the chicks, if they did hatch, and many didn't survive long after hatching. The pesticides were not only ingested directly, but the amounts were compounded through the food chain of the Bald Eagle as well. Even once the use of it was stopped, the eagles continued to be exposed to it through their diet and water supply. The food source and water supply for most Bald Eagles is generally clear of any pesticides in the U.S. today since the use of it has been strictly regulated. The pesticides were the major factor in the decline of this species, but human disturbances, including habitat lose, competition for food, hunting, and poisoning eagles are all factors that had an impact on the populations. The problems were so serious that protection for the species was enacted in 1940. The populations were showing good signs of improvement with the new protection provided in 1940, when DDT, and other such pesticides first came on the scene. The Bald Eagle is now listed with a status of "threatened" by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Endangered Species List, in the Southwest region, including Texas, Arizona, Oklahoma, and New Mexico only. The other populations of the Bald Eagle in the US have been posted with a status of "delisted due to recovery" by the US FWS, Endangered Species List. All Bald Eagles are still protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. For more details, please see sites listed below.
They are not going extinct today at all. But they were nearly hunted to extinction in the lower 48 by people, as they were previously considered to simply be pests, though in Alaska their population was always healthy.
The previous answer, regarding DDT, is only a small aspect of the greater picture. DDT had a massive impact on the egg shells of Peregrine falcons, making them intolerably soft, nearly causing their extinction. But the Bald Eagle eggs were much less susceptible to DDT.
The bald eagle was once endangered, mainly due to the poison DDT, which made its way into waters where the eagles preyed on fish. The poison made the eagle's eggshells so thin they would be easily crushed, and few young were being raised to replace the normal mortality of the birds. The peregrine falcon was reduced in numbers due to the same circumstances. Both birds have made very nice recoveries, especially the bald eagle, so much so it has been delisted, and is no longered considered an endangered species.
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