Associated Press - November 18, 2009 12:25 PM ET
JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) - Biologists have captured three bald eagles and fitted them with transmitters in hopes of seeing if lead bullet fragments found in Jackson-area gut piles are poisoning eagles from other regions.
The researchers plan to attach seven more transmitters to eagles in the coming weeks. The devices transmit the movements of the birds. The study comes in the wake of research that showed ravens and eagles have higher concentrations of lead in their blood during hunting season compared to other times of the year.
Bryan Bedrosian is the avian program manager for the Kelly-based research group, Craighead Beringia South. He says that if there's a migratory component to the birds, the gut piles left behind by hunters in Wyoming could potentially be poisoning birds from across the western U.S. and Canada.
Information from: Jackson Hole News And Guide, http://www.jhnewsandguide.com
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