To commemorate Pennsylvania's 100-nest milestone in bald eagle conservation, the Game Commission is offering for sale a special-edition embroidered wildlife patch which depicts a bald eagle with two eaglets and designed by award-winning wildlife artist Bob Sopchick.

The patch is six inches in diameter and sells for $20. There has been a one-time production run of 3,000 patches.

Those interested can purchase a patch at any of the agency's six region offices, Harrisburg headquarters or through "The Outdoor Shop" on the agency's website.

The Game Commission started Pennsylvania's seven-year bald eagle reintroduction program in 1983, when just three nesting pairs remained in the Commonwealth. The agency sent employees to Saskatchewan to obtain 12 eaglets from wilderness nests in the first year.

With financial assistance from the Richard King Mellon Foundation of Pittsburgh and the federal Endangered Species Fund, the project spurred the release of 88 Canadian bald eagles into the wilds of Pennsylvania at Haldeman Island in Dauphin County and Shohola Falls in Pike County.

Link: Bald Eagle Nests Top 100 For First Time

8/25/2006