At the end of last year, two bald eagles were shot and killed in Montgomery County despite the fact that the bald eagle is a protected species and cannot be hunted or otherwise injured or disturbed without a permit.

Bald eagles were removed from the endangered species list in 2007 but continue to be protected by the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. Although they may no longer be considered “threatened,” it is still important to make sure that this recovery is a permanent one.

Bald eagles have come close to extermination several times and now that their population is growing, some hunters choose to view that growth as an opportunity to pursue the birds again. Rather than promoting the killing of more wildlife, the disruption of natural habitats and the possible endangerment of this species all over again, we should be trying to protect this species from future troubles and encouraging their growth as a population.

The news of the two eagle shootings came just weeks after President Barack Obama decided to permit wind farms to injure or kill bald eagles for up to thirty years as long as those companies prove that they are trying to minimize or prevent the deaths from occurring. This is part of a movement for conservation and green energy use, but surely there must be a way to promote eco-friendliness without harming an ecosystem itself?

For a nation that touts the bald eagle as a symbol of national pride and freedom, we do not really seem to care about the actual livelihood of our supposedly precious symbol. Furthermore, even regardless of the eagle’s symbolism, it is still a major part of the ecosystem that should be kept safe. Human interference for the sole purpose of a sporting challengea��the implied reason, since the eagles were found and one was wounded for a while before being taken in and later dyinga��is not acceptable.