Saturday, May 22, 2010

American Bald Eagle in the backyard


Local artist Bob Frost submitted these shots of the American Bald Eagle who nests in Springfield Township on Lippely Road, off Route 7. She nests in the tallest tree on the west side of the Firestone Farms house. It's imposing size is staggering.

According to http://www.baldeagleinfo.com/, Congress officially adopted the bird as the symbol of the United States in 1787, after Revolutionary War noise disturbed a nest. Eagles circled above the battle and complained shrilly. Patriot soldiers, sentimentally inspired, felt that the eagles were "cheerleading" them and championing liberty.

Benjamin Franklin did not agree that the eagle was a good choice because the birds' living habits are "dishonest." Franklin's observations found the Bald Eagle to be a lazy thief who is so cowardly that even little birds can drive him out of an area.

Apparently, aesthetics prevailed over Franklin's suggestion, Wild Turkey. America, in its infancy, chose a symbol reputed to have what Franklin called "a bad moral character," but one could argue that the Bald Eagle gives the U.S. a more daunting look for its seal and coin. Selecting facade over substance has become an American way.

Although the yellow-eyed Bald Eagle was endangered in previous decades, it has now been officially removed from the U.S. List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife.

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