Two bald eagles were shot to death in Montgomery County last week, according to Maryland Natural Resources Police.
An eagle feeding on a deer carcass in a field at Georgia Avenue and Bordley Road in Brookville was shot and killed with a rifle about 3 p.m. Christmas Day, police said. The other was found wounded by bird shot Saturday morning on Deakins Lane in Darnestown and later died.
Police do not believe the shootings are related.
Anyone with information about the shooting should call the Department of Natural Resources Communications Center at 410-260-8888 or the Catch-A-Poacher hotline at 800-635-6124, where a reward is possible.
The bald eagle was removed from the U.S. protected list in 2007 and Maryland’s protected list in 2010, but a permit from the U.S. Department of the Interior is required to shoot eagles.
Maryland has more than 500 nesting pairs of bald eagles, including at least one pair in each county.
