Arkansas Game and Fish say a bald eagle shot in Jefferson County will survive with help for an animal rehab facility. Raptor Rehab of Central Arkansas in El Paso took in the bird to find out an x-ray determined the animal had been shot.
Officials at Raptor Rehab say that six pellets were discovered to have entered the eagle’s body. Shooting an eagle is a federal offense. Rodney Paul from Raptor Rehab says the eagle got two pellets in the left wing, one in the right wing, two in the right leg and one in the left side of the skull.
Paul said none of the eagle’s bones were broken. Paul said it is his opinion that the eagle was shot on purpose because it can’t be mistaken for something else. Deltaplex News reached out to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and Arkansas Game and Fish to inquire about where an investigation will go from here.
According to an interview Deltaplex News obtained from Rodney Paul, an officer with the Arkansas Game and Fish commission contacted him about the eagle on May 8th.
The eagle will be in the care of Raptor Rehab until the bird’s wounds are healed in which the eagle will be returned to where he was initially located, as there was an active nest there with a mate and possibly some babies. Paul was also able to provide Deltaplex News with pictures of the x-rays, as well as a photo of the eagle itself.
