Distinctly Montana Magazine

D I S T I N C T L Y M O N T A N A M A G A Z I N E • F A L L 2 0 1 9 16 others migrate.) Golden eagles seldom steal prey from other birds, but carrion provides many a winter calorie. On occasion, both bald eagles and golden gather round a road-killed deer at once. To go along with its flexible food choices, golden eagles use as- sorted hunting techniques. To list three of the most common, they sometimes fly high in the sky (on a windy or sunny day), sometimes hunt from a high perch (on a cloudy day, when flying takes more effort), and sometimes fly low over the contours of the land, to surprise a mammal that's prone to dive for a burrow. e golden eagle has a longer tail than the bald, useful for last-minute changes in direction as it closes in on a jackrabbit. Unfortunately, the population trends for bald and golden eagles also differ. Raptor authority Steve Hoffman of Bozeman, the founder of Hawk Watch International, enthusiastically reports that bald eagles continue to do well. Once listed as an endangered species, it became a poster child for the program when it came off the federal list in 2007. e pesticide DDT in the environ- ment was but one of the issues the corrective actions tackled. But the bald eagle numbers didn't stop climbing in 2007. "It's still increasing 5 to 7 percent a year!" says Hoffman. Improving water quality is part of that continued growth, he says. e golden eagle has a differ- ent story. Never an endangered species (nor as hard-hit by DDT since it eats lower on the food chain), the hundreds migrating past a hawk watch atop Bridger Bowl since 1991 sustained a drop of 35 to 40 percent between 2000 and 2010. "It's leveled off since, and last year there was a slight increase," Hoffman says. But he can't rest easy when no cause for the drop has been pinpointed. "ere's not enough information. Both the feds and the state are working on it," he says. And plans to combat climate change and its effects are in the works, too. e long-term future of both of Montana's immense and immensely popular eagles may be clouded, but at least the remarkable return of the bald eagle may inspire whatever efforts the circumstances demand. IN-ROOM FITTING SLOPE-SIDE SERVICE COMPLIMENTARY RETURN www.blacktieskis.com | 406-995-3372 | bigsky@blacktieskis.com Aspen/Snowmass, Banff, BIG SKY/MOONLIGHT, Breckenridge/Keystone, Crested Butte, JACKSON HOLE, Mammoth, North Lake Tahoe, Park City/Deer Valley, South Lake Tahoe, Steamboat, Telluride, Vail, Whistler, and Winter Park USE COUPON CODE DISTMT19 AND RECEIVE 20% ALL SEASON LONG! NORTH AMERICA'S LARGEST SKI AND SNOWBOARD RENTAL DELIVERY SERVICE N E W B R A N D S T H I S S E A S O N ! Volkl, Fischer, and Giro MIPS hel mets...

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