Arkansas Game and Fish Commission enforcement officials cited a Sheridan man Monday with shooting and wounding a bald eagle in the Bayou Meto Wildlife Management Area in January.
According to the Game and Fish Commission newsletter, Garrett Davis admitted to shooting the eagle. Davis was cited for the illegal taking of raptors and agreed to pay a fine of $2,500.
The juvenile eagle was shot in the right wing, and a pair of duck hunters fished the eagle out of the water, said Karen Rowe, nongame migratory bird coordinator with the Game and Fish Commission, in the newsletter.
"They wrapped the eagle in a hunting coat, put the eagle in their boat and called the wildlife officers to meet them at the boat ramp," she said.
The newsletter said the gunshot fractured the right ulna of the eagle, but the steel pellet was not removed from the wing as it didn't affect the healing process.
The eagle has recovered, according to the newsletter. The eagle is scheduled to be released at 11 a.m. Saturday at the Wrape Plantation in the Bayou Meto Wildlife Management Area.
Metro on 03/05/2015