Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 3, 1991                   TAG: 9104030602
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B-4   EDITION: EVENING 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: SPERRYVILLE                                LENGTH: Short

KILLING OF TWO EAGLES BEING INVESTIGATED

"It was a real coldhearted thing, an absolute outrage," said Ed Clark, head of the Wildlife Center of Virginia.

Bald eagles are an endangered species. The dead birds were a mated pair, Clark said.

Killing or harming a bald eagle is prohibited under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, the Endangered Species Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Conviction under these laws can bring jail terms of up to one year and fines of $25,000.

The birds were found a week ago in a field, where they were apparently dumped. They were mature, standing 24-30 inches tall and with six-foot wingspans. The male weighed 8 pounds, the female 10.

"I don't know if it was a thrill killing or something else," Clark said.

The non-profit Weyers Cave wildlife center performed necropsies on the birds at the request of the state Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, Clark said.

Results of the examinations were not released because of the ongoing investigation, Clark said.

Col. Gerald Simmons, head of law enforcement for the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, would not comment beyond confirming his department is investigating the killings. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is also investigating.