13 Bald Eagles Found Dead on Maryland Farm; $10K Reward Offered for Information

FEDERALSBURG, MD — Thirteen bald eagles died over the weekend on Maryland’s Eastern Shore – the state’s largest die-off of the protected birds in 30 years – and authorities are searching for answers.

Maryland Natural Resources Police said there was no visible sign of wounds to the birds, so X-rays will be done at a lab in Oregon to help determine what killed the eagles.

The birds were found Saturday on a farm and in a woods in Federalsburg in Caroline County.

Candy Thomson, spokeswoman for the Maryland Natural Resources Police, told WTOP that officers returned Monday to the area near the intersection of Laurel Grove Road and Richardson Road where the dead eagles were found. No other bird or animal carcasses were found.

Three adult eagles, two adolescents and eight young eagles were found deceased.

In August 2007, the bald eagle was removed from the federal endangered species list, says the Maryland DNR, and in April 2010, it was removed from Maryland’s list of threatened and endangered species. But federal law still prohibits hunting or possessing bald eagles, either alive or dead, punishable by a $5,000 fine and a year in prison.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has joined the investigation into the birds’ deaths.

A $10,000 reward is being offered for information in the incident. Call 410-260-8888 or 800-635-6124 to share tips.

»Photo of dead bald eagle courtesy of Maryland Department of Natural Resources