LUZERNE COUNTY, Pa. — The Pennsylvania Game Commission is looking for the person who illegally shot a peregrine falcon.
Information shared by the Pennsylvania Game Commission on Wednesday said the bird was shot on the evening of Sunday, June 14, along Chase Road in the Jackson Township/Shaverstorn area in Luzerne County.
The bird was later found at an asphalt and paving company in Shaverstown and a state game warden was called to help on Monday. They noticed the bird had an injury to its wing and took it to the Carbon County Environmental Center, where wildlife rehab experts confirmed a firearm caused the injury.
Officials said the falcon had to be euthanized.
The Game Commission said peregrine falcons were listed as endangered in Pennsylvania from 1970 to 2021. They are now considered “threatened.”
The birds were no longer nesting in Pennsylvania in 1961. Their drop in population was mostly because of a drop in population caused by pesticides.
While there has been improvement in recent years, the Game Commission said new threats are popping up, particularly because the birds are now nesting in man-made structures. Building collisions are one of the biggest bird killers happening now. The birds are also drowning when they nest on bridges. Officials also named airplane strikes among the other man-made hazards the birds are facing.
Anyone who has information on the incident or who knows who is responsible is asked to contact the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s Northeast Region at 1-833-PGC-HUNT or the Operation Game Thief Hotline at 1-888-PGC-8001.
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