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The recovery of the bald eagle is a major success story for our state and the entire nation. After 30 years of steady population growth, the iconic bird was removed from the federal endangered species list in 2007, then from the state’s list in 2017. Scientists attribute the species’ dramatic recovery to a variety of conservation measures, notably the federal ban on DDT.

Now that bald eagle populations have rebounded, many of the special safeguards designed to protect them are no longer necessary. Since 2011, when the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission changed the species’ status from “threatened” to “sensitive,” many of the state’s special protective measures for bald eagles have been eliminated. (Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife)