The Pennsylvania Game Commission is investigating after a bald eagle was shot and killed Thursday night not far from the the state border with Ohio.
The "mature" eagle was found dead in Elk Creek Township, about 28 miles from Ashtabula. The state game warden determined the bird had been shot.
Except for extreme circumstances, it is illegal to kill a bald eagle in the United States, with the crime punishable by up to a year in prison for a first offense. Efforts were made to preserve the species after it landed on the endangered list decades ago, and it has since made a comeback.
Anyone with information regarding who may have killed the eagle is asked to immediately call the Pennsylvania Game Commission's Northwest Region Office at (814) 432-3187 or the Operation Game Thief Hotline at (888) 742-8001.
