Minnesota-led bill to make bald eagle national bird heads to President Biden's desk
SOUTH ST. PAUL, Minn. — Despite popular belief, the bald eagle is not the official national bird. It may soon become official, however, thanks to a Minnesota-led bill making its way to President Biden's desk for his signature.
At Kaposia Landing Park in South St. Paul, eagle-eyed bird watchers are treated to a symphony of sounds and sights.
"They are just majestic, and I love the calls they make," said Ryan Sanford.
Sanford remembers when it was rare to spot a bald eagle. At the South St. Paul park, however, the population is flourishing, drawing people out to see and capture photos of the birds.
"The most I ever counted, and I just stopped counting, was 200," Sanford said.
Sanford has been capturing and counting the eagles and posting his findings in a growing Facebook group called "Kaposia Landing Park."
"I'm usually out here three to four times a week, usually on my morning dog walk," he said.
Down the Mississippi River in Wabasha, the National Eagle Center helped lead the movement to make the bald eagle the official national bird.
"It goes back to the fact that it was chosen as the national symbol back in 1782," said Ed Hahn with the National Eagle Center.
Having helped repopulate the once-endangered species, they organized the push in Congress to officially designate the bald eagle as America's bird.
"We came very close to losing our national symbol forever," Hahn said. "This was one of the last places in the continental United States where you could reliably come in the winter months and see a bald eagle. And that was a period of time where it was a big deal to see a bald eagle."
Despite the more frequent sightings, birdwatchers like Dena Thorson from Cottage Grove said it's still special to see a bald eagle in the wild.
"It's really a story of comeback and perseverance and I think that's a perfect symbol for the United States. I think wildlife can really connect people who are really different in a lot of ways, and they can come together around something like that, and we certainly need more of that these days," Thorson said.
