FOOD 



Information on the food of the 

 bald eagle as revealed by stomach 

 examinations and data assembled 

 from Held sources has been pre- 

 sented separately for Alaska, the 

 United States, and Canada. There 

 are several reasons for this. The 

 bald eagle is much more abiuidant 

 in Alaska than in other parts of its 

 range in North America with a re- 

 sultant increase in its economic in- 

 fluence in that area. In Alaska, it 

 is also thrown into direct contact 

 with commercial fisheries and fox- 

 farming — activities that are less ex- 

 tensive or even nonexistent else- 

 where in its range. In addition, in 

 Alaska the bald eagle has had a 

 background of bount}' history sup- 

 ported to a large extent by popular 

 opinion, which is markedly at vari- 

 ance with the public attitude 

 throughout the United States, 

 where it has had legislative protec- 

 tion since 1940. Such varied condi- 

 tions and attitudes have compelled 

 the writers frequently to discuss the 

 status of the eagle against the en- 

 vironmental background where it 

 arose, and have led to the inevitable 

 overall conclusion that, in several 

 respects, the economic role of the 

 bald eagle in Alaska may be quite 

 different from that in the States. 



SOURCES OF 

 INFORMATION 



ALASKA 



Southeastern Alaska. — The col- 

 lectinsf of bald eaole stomachs in 



Alaska for this study began early 

 in 1940 when Hosea R. Sarber gath- 

 ered material on Prince of Wales 

 Island, the Stikine Kiver Flats, and 

 elsewhere in the southeastern part 

 of the Territory. In the following 

 year Sarber continued his collecting 

 and was joined, early in May, by the 

 senior author and together they col- 

 lected on the islands and mainland 

 of Southeastern Alaska until late in 

 August. For the remainder of 1941 

 and during the following 2 years 

 Sarber gathered additional stomach 

 nniterial. In 1945, the senioi' author 

 collected eagle stomachs not only in 

 Southeastern Alaska but also at 

 points to the northwest. In 1946, 

 he collected additional eagle stom- 

 achs on the Copper River Flats and 

 also in Southeastern Alaska. As a 

 result of tliis intensified effort, ap- 

 proxinuitely 500 stomachs were col- 

 lected during the period 1940-40, 

 of wliicli Sarber, working alone, 

 took about 130 during the fall and 

 winter months. 



Xot withstanding the fact that 

 Alaska is much better represented 

 than the States, the eagle stomachs 

 collected in the Territory were ob- 

 tained largely in the coastal area 

 south and southeast of Juneau (fig. 

 2). Only 20 were obtained else- 

 where, mainly near the mouth of the 

 Copper River, the shores of Cook 

 Inlet, and on Kodiak Island to the 

 west. Consequently, analysis of 

 bald eagle stomachs fi'oni Alaska 

 nnist be construed as an appraisal 

 of the bii-d ]n-iniarily in the area of 



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