NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Once on the brink of extinction, bald eagles are increasing their numbers in Tennessee.
According to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, 130 pairs were documented in 2009.
The national symbol had nearly disappeared 30 years ago, but the species was taken off the federal list of endangered species in 2007. Now state biologists are considering removing them from the Tennessee list as well.
The agency credited the banning of DDT for saving the eagles.
New nest sites are still being discovered each year, with more than 15 previously undocumented bald eagle breeding locations reported by TWRA personnel and volunteers last year alone.