The historical abundance and majesty of bald and golden eagles in North America elevated these species to high positions of importance for many Native Americans, First Nations, and some Mesoamerican cultures.  Bald and golden eagles are sacred birds, believed by some cultures to be the only species to look the "Maker" in the eyes. Eagle feathers are central to many religious and spiritual customs to honor noteworthy achievements and qualities.  Similarly, the founding fathers of the U.S. chose the bald eagle to be the national symbol of this country.

 

Despite their cultural importance, these species have faced direct and indirect anthropogenic pressures.  The first came from the massive overharvesting of big game and fishes, which served as food sources, and this was followed by habitat destruction and fragmentation.  More recently, direct persecution and environmental pollutants (organochlorides and heavy metal pollution) led to dramatic declines of North American populations of eagles.  By the 1970s, many local populations of eagles throughout the contiguous 48 states had either gone extinct of had declined to seriously low numbers. 

 

Fortunately, within the U.S., bald and golden eagles are legally protetected by the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Act.  This protection, coupled with other conservation measures has allowed bald and golden eagles to escape the brink of extinction.  In fact, the bald eagle is used as a Flagship and Umbrella species for consevation throughout North America.  Although bald and golden eagles appear to be surviving, and even thriving in some areas of their historic range, given their cultural and ecological importance, there has been surprisingly litte genetic research conducted on these species. 

 

Our laboratory is taking a "Conservation Genomics" approach to begin to provide important base line data necessary for the developoment of realistic, data-driven management/conservation plans for these two species. 

​

​

Click on the links below for updates regarding these two projects.