Photos: Rare Bucket Head Eagle Spotted In Massachusetts

ASHLAND, MA — It's not a new species of eagle, but perhaps evidence of the reemergence of a species that was — and still is — under threat.

Ashland resident and wildlife photographer Brad Dinerman recently captured a juvenile bald eagle playing in a local cemetery — at one point getting his head stuck in a bucket used for planting flowers.

"The whole scene lasted about thirty seconds," Dinerman said in a local Facebook group Thursday. "I was going to get out of my car to help him when he shook it loose on his own."

Bald eagles were abundant in Massachusetts and across the nascent U.S. when the raptor was named the national symbol in 1782, according to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS). But the population began to decline in the 20th century due to habitat loss and because eagles were often shot to protect small livestock. Then came chemicals like DDT, which infiltrated waterways and food sources.

"The chemical interfered with the ability of the birds to produce strong eggshells. As a result, their eggs had shells so thin that they often broke during incubation or otherwise failed to hatch," FWS said in a history of bald eagle conservation.

The population hit a low in the 1960s of just under 500 nesting pairs, although the birds have rebounded with close to 10,000 nesting pairs at last check a decade ago.

But in 2021 bald eagles — and other birds-of-prey like hawks, falcons and owls — are facing a new threat in the form of second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides. That rat poison, used by pest control companies and sold online in large quantities, has killed at least two Massachusetts bald eagles so far this year along the Charles River — including a juvenile death confirmed this month. Those are the first two bald eagles to die from rat poison ever recorded in the state.

The solution? Use other methods to control rodents, says Dr. Maureen Murray, director of the Tufts Wildlife Clinic at Cummings Veterinary Medical Center. Murray told Patch in May local residents and businesses should find alternative ways to control rodents, like better waste management, closing off entry points and better storage of pet food and animal feed.