Earlier this week, two men were formally indicted for allegedly shooting and killing a golden eagle in Idaho.
According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), many Native American tribes consider the golden eagle to be sacred, and it is protected by three federal laws: the Bald Head and Golden Eagle Protection Act, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and the Lacey Act). Since 1962, the Bald Heads and Golden Eagle Protection Act prohibits “take away” by the public without a permit, which is defined as hunting, shooting, shooting, poisoning, wounding, killing, capturing, trapping, collecting, destroying, harassing or Disturb raptors or their nests.
According to KTVB, on Thursday, federal prosecutors formally charged Wyatt Noe and Colten Ferdinand with killing a golden eagle without permission and killing a migratory bird without permission. According to reports, if convicted of a misdemeanor, Noy and Ferdinand may each pay a fine of up to $20,000 and spend up to 18 months in prison.
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According to KTVB, prosecutors claimed that Noy and Ferdinand shot and killed an eagle on April 10 in the Molly Nelson Snake River Raptor National Reserve (NCA). NCA is located south of the town of Kuna and receives approximately 800 mating pairs of eagles, owls, eagles and falcons each spring, making it “the home of the most concentrated nesting bird of prey in North America.” According to its website.
The prosecutor said that the shooting was not accidental. On the contrary, Noy and Ferdinand “intentionally or recklessly ignored the consequences of their actions” opened fire on the Eagles, KTVB reported. According to reports, they did not disclose the fate of the bird’s body.
Noy and Ferdinand are scheduled to be subpoenaed on August 13.
According to reports, apart from the bald eagle, the golden eagle is the only eagle native to North America. National GeographicAlthough eagles prefer the colder regions of the mainland in spring and summer, they often migrate south in winter to escape the cold. According to the USFWS, the number of eagles in the United States was recently estimated to be about 30,000, most of which live in the west.
Weekly newspaper Contacted the Pacific Regional Office of the USWFS, the Idaho Fish and Wildlife Office, and the Bureau of Land Management of the U.S. Department of the Interior for comments, but did not receive an immediate response from any agency.
