Eagle found near James River dies
The bald eagle picked up near the Monacan Bridge recently died this weekend in a Waynesboro animal clinic.
The eagle, located by a paddler in Campbell County last week, was not able to stand upon its arrival at the Wildlife Center of Virginia. It had been transferred from the river’s bank Friday by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.
Center veterinarians found the bird dead Sunday morning after performing a patient check, according to Amanda Nicholson, the center’s director of outreach.
Veterinarians suspect some sort of organophosphate, found in many pesticides, killed the eagle, she said. But those toxins can be difficult and expensive to test. An infectious disease could also be the culprit.
“It’s hard to say exactly. I think it could be direct exposure. It could be something he ate. It’s tough to tell when you get into different types of toxicity because eagles are a scavenger species because they do eat a variety of dead stuff that they find,” Nicholson said.
The bird, believed to be a male, was treated with anti-seizure medication and fluids upon arrival, but was not stable enough for anesthesia, Nichols said.
Preliminary tests showed a “high normal” amount of lead in the bird’s system, although the centers veterinarians don’t believe it was enough to cause the seizures and rapid eye movement the bird exhibited.
Radiology tests revealed no fractures, no internal bleeding and no recently consumed lead.
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will never be forgotten! I know moving to this forum hindered a bunch from coming over but it's fine and we are doing OK with it. Change happens and will probably happen again but we adjust to these changes. 
