
Restoring and Hacking Bald Eagles in NY
Clip: Episode 6 | 3m 52sVideo has Closed Captions
David talks to Peter Nye, the biologist who saved the bald eagle population in New York.
David Rubenstein talks to Peter Nye, an esteemed eagle biologist, retired from the Department of Environmental Conservation in New York. Nye gained national recognition for his expertise in eagle research, and he developed a technique called hacking which played a pivotal role in reviving the bald eagle population following a drastic decline caused by the pesticide DDT.
Iconic America: Our Symbols and Stories with David Rubenstein is a production of Show of Force, DMR Productions, and WETA Washington, D.C. David M. Rubenstein is the host and executive...

Restoring and Hacking Bald Eagles in NY
Clip: Episode 6 | 3m 52sVideo has Closed Captions
David Rubenstein talks to Peter Nye, an esteemed eagle biologist, retired from the Department of Environmental Conservation in New York. Nye gained national recognition for his expertise in eagle research, and he developed a technique called hacking which played a pivotal role in reviving the bald eagle population following a drastic decline caused by the pesticide DDT.
How to Watch Iconic America
Iconic America is available to stream on pbs.org and the free PBS App, available on iPhone, Apple TV, Android TV, Android smartphones, Amazon Fire TV, Amazon Fire Tablet, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, and Vizio.
Buy Now

Our Symbols and Stories
David Rubenstein examines the history of America through some of its most iconic symbols, objects and places, in conversation with historical thinkers, community members and other experts. Together, they dive deep into each symbol’s history, using them as a gateway to understanding America’s past and present.Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship(gentle music) - This is from the Audubon Society of New York State.
Recognition of conservation efforts, protection and conservation of the bald eagle.
I was always very interested in nature ever since I was a little boy.
One time I thought I wanted to be a butterfly doctor.
Finding out there wasn't such a thing.
Those are all real license plates.
That's from my motorcycle.
Those are all from vehicles, yeah.
I always knew I wanted to go into conservation and even in my high school yearbook said headed for a career in conservation, and sure enough was lucky enough to get hired by the state of New York.
This is from the National Park Service Upper Delaware Council Distinguished Service Award for work on the upper Delaware River and bald eagle work.
And around 1974 when the endangered species money came through my boss came to me and said, we got an opening in the big game project dealing with bears.
Or we have an opening in the brand new endangered species program dealing with bald eagles.
And what do you think I chose?
Somewhere around 2015 an eagle I banded as a nestling in 1977, was recovered dead at 38 years old, which is a longevity record, known longevity for a bald eagle.
A lot of this, you know, eagles create their own good vibes.
You know, like I said, I was just lucky to be part of it.
Well, before I retired in 2010, I was in charge of New York State's endangered species program, a large portion of which was spent on bald eagle restoration in New York State beginning back in the early 1970s.
You can just see the edge of the nest just to the left of this big stem of this tree.
Tough to see if there's anything going on right under the nest here.
But these cases, we usually just have to climb and find out what's up there.
(birds chirping) - We're gonna be banding eagles, the eaglets today.
The purpose of that is so we can track where they go.
We know that these birds can live for decades and travel, you know, huge distances so this is really helpful.
- You are on belay.
- Ready, alright.
Headed up.
- Good climb.
(birds chirping) When we got going in in the early 1970s, we knew that bald eagles were in a critical state.
(gentle music) Eagles were never listed as endangered or threatened in Alaska because the habitat remained so they had plenty of eagles to go around.
So they graciously agreed, yes, you could come up and take some of our eagles.
(gentle music) Then it would be a matter of actually getting young eaglets to use in this hacking process, which literally means hand rearing to independence.
(gentle music)
The American Bald Eagle Preview
Video has Closed Captions
The story of how the Bald Eagle soared to its vaunted perch in American iconography. (31s)
The Bald Eagle Appears in the First Great Seal of the U.S.
Video has Closed Captions
Why did the Founding Fathers decide to use the bald eagle in the Great Seal of the U.S.? (1m 49s)
Bald Eagles Gather in the Pristine Alaskan Ecosystem
Video has Closed Captions
The greatest bald eagle migration on Earth happens in the Alaskan village of Haines. (4m 55s)
Video has Closed Captions
The effect of DDT on the Bald Eagle population in the northeastern U.S. was devastating. (31s)
The Infamous Bird's 1000 Pound Nest
Video has Closed Captions
This clip features a Bald Eagle's nest that is estimated to weigh around 1000 pounds. (45s)
Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorshipIconic America: Our Symbols and Stories with David Rubenstein is a production of Show of Force, DMR Productions, and WETA Washington, D.C. David M. Rubenstein is the host and executive...