Grand Canyon Golden Eagles On The Wane, Study Shows Tied To Fewer Rabbits Due To Of Depletion Of Native Grasses

Fewer golden eagles flew across the Grand Canyon this fall than any year on record, a trend that is linked to the disappearance of native grasses across the West and that could spell trouble for the livestock industry.

Only 26 golden eagles were counted among the nearly 7,000 birds of prey counted this year by HawkWatch International, a nonprofit Salt Lake City research group that counts raptors across the West.

The problem with golden eagles, said Steve Hoffman, HawkWatch science director, is simple cause and effect. Golden eagles feed on blacktail rabbits, which - like cattle and sheep - feed on a dwindling supply of native grasses.

Across most of the West, native grasses are being replaced by cheatgrass, a Russian plant imported to the U.S. last century in an effort to stop erosion, Hoffman said. And cheatgrass is spreading across the West because it is the first plant to establish itself after fires.

It’s a self-perpetuating and expanding problem, Hoffman said.

While cheatgrass grows quickly in the spring, he said, it quickly dies out in warmer months, providing no nutrition to wildlife or livestock and building up a fuel-load that leads to more fires.

“What’s bad for the golden eagle is also bad for livestock. The livestock industry is being compromised by the same problem,” Hoffman said.

In these new findings, Hoffman sees the opportunity for environmentalists and ranchers, who often are at odds with each other over the use of public lands, to work together and find solutions.

“This is where the environmental community and the livestock community could come together to solve this problem. It’s going to take a major infusion of resources,” he said.

Earlier this year, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management announced a new effort to get rid of non-native weeds throughout the nation. But Hoffman said that program is hampered by a lack of funds.

The drop in rabbit populations has been documented by state, federal and university studies conducted since the 1960s.

The drop in golden eagle numbers was seen not only at the Grand Canyon but also at several of the 17 “flyways” in 10 Western states established by HawkWatch International. Over the past two decades, the nonprofit research group has counted raptors in an attempt to gauge the health of birds of prey and in turn the health of Western ecosystems.

This was the seventh year for the flyway study over the Grand Canyon, which is partially funded by the Arizona Game and Fish Department and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.