fb-pixelN.H. tops one-day record for bald eagle sightings - The Boston Globe Skip to main content

N.H. tops one-day record for bald eagle sightings

CONCORD, N.H. — New Hampshire’s bald eagle population has almost recovered from the lows of the 1970s, state wildlife specialists say.

The Concord Monitor reported that volunteers with New Hampshire Audubon counted 67 eagles in one day during a January count, the highest one-day total in the event’s 30-year history. Between Jan. 1 and Jan. 15, volunteers counted 83 birds, one shy of the state record for the annual two-week watch.

Bald eagles were removed from the federal list of threatened and endangered species in 2007, thanks mostly to a ban on the pesticide DDT, blamed for their decline nationwide. In 2008, New Hampshire Fish and Game upgraded the bird’s status from endangered to threatened.

Advertisement



Geoffrey Niswander of Warner has seen the birds in unlikely places around Concord. ‘‘I have literally seen adult bald eagles 50 feet above the light posts at Shaw’s on Fort Eddy Road,’’ he Niswander told the newspaper. ‘‘They were soaring around the parking lot for 10 minutes.’’

Based on the annual mid-winter counts, scientists estimate the number of bald eagles in the state has doubled every decade since 1983, when seven birds were counted. By 2003, 40 birds were spotted. The count does not reflect the exact number of eagles that call New Hampshire home but give scientists an idea of how and where the bird is recovering.

‘‘The bird is finally almost fully recovered from a real depressed population back in the 1970s,’’ said Chris Martin, a senior biologist and predatory bird specialist with New Hampshire Audubon.