Bald eagle ensnared by trap in ‘rare poaching’ case, Washington wildlife officials say

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife turned in a suspected poacher who illegally trapped a bald eagle in Clallam County, according to a news release from the agency.

A dog’s owners reported their dog was caught in a steel-jawed leghold trap in November 2020, the release said. While they were able to free the dog, the owners also said they spotted a bald eagle in another trap a few feet away, according to the release posted Tuesday on Facebook.

An officer with the department’s police responded and found the eagle “struggling to free its talon from one of the traps,” the release said. The officer “immobilized” the bird, released it from the trap and assessed its injuries, according to the release.

“Thankfully the bald eagle didn’t have any injuries or broken bones,” Sgt. Kit Rosenberger, with the department of wildlife, said in the release. “This was a rare poaching incident where the poached animal was still alive and able to be released back into the wild immediately on site.”

Officers monitored the site, seized more illegal traps and traced them to a Clallam County resident, the release said.

“The suspect admitted to WDFW officers during an interview to setting several unpadded steel jawed leghold traps and wire snares, which were used to capture and kill two coyotes,” according to the release.

The department last week referred 16 criminal charges against the poacher to the Clallam County prosecutor’s office, the release said.

This story was originally published February 2, 2021 at 5:43 PM.