Abstract
The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act of 1940 bestows legal protection on two North American eagle species in the United States of America. The Act was originally aimed at the legal protection of only one species: the Bald Eagle Haliaeetus leucocephalus, the national symbol of the USA. Later the Act was amended to extend protection also to the Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos. The Bald Eagle was an Endangered Species, but the Golden Eagle was not formally listed as Endangered nationwide in the USA. One of the reasons for extending legal protection to the Golden Eagle under the Act was to strengthen the legal protection of the Bald Eagle, because immature Bald Eagles were being misidentified as Golden Eagles and shot. Additional factors relating to Golden Eagle mortality also made legal protection of the Golden Eagle desirable. The danger that a rare and legally protected species can be misidentified and mistaken for a more common and unprotected species can therefore serve as a reason for bestowing legal protection on the more common species as well. Other factors may also indicate that legal protection of the more common species is desirable, making the case more compelling. If this line of reasoning is applied in respect of South African birds of prey, a strong case can be made in favour of extending legal protection under the national biodiversity legislation to more species than the small number of species currently enjoying such protection. Species that are listed as Vulnerable under South African national biodiversity legislation may be misidentified as species that are not subject to such protection. Additional factors are also present that make such an extension of legal protection desirable. 
Highlights
For the purpose of this contribution, the question is whether the American solution is suitable for application in South African environmental law to enhance the legal protection of South African birds of prey
3.2 Suitability of application in South African law. If this line of reasoning is applied in respect of South African birds of prey, it is submitted that a strong case can be made in favour of extending protection under the national biodiversity legislation to more species than the small number of species currently enjoying such protection
It is submitted that the time has come to treat the rich but potentially fragile raptor heritage of South Africa with the respect and care that it deserves, by proclaiming all South African bird of prey species to be fully protected under national legislation
Summary
The Bald Eagle[19] is a big raptor species that is indigenous to the North American continent. The provisions of the Act did not apply in Alaska, where the state still paid bounties for the destruction of the Bald Eagle to protect salmon stocks. Bean and Rowland Evolution of National Wildlife Law 93-102; Doub Endangered Species Act 88-. On the impact of DDT and other organochlorines on raptors in North America and elsewhere, see Bildstein ꞌꞌHistory of Raptor Conservationꞌꞌ 22-24; Newton Population Ecology 229-253; Tucker Return of the Bald Eagle 70-71. See further Breining Return of the Eagle 50-60 on the Bald Eagle in particular and EPA 2014 http://www2.epa.gov/aboutepa/ddt-regulatory-history-brief-survey-. See in general Bean and Rowland Evolution of National Wildlife Law 63-93, 97; Doub Endangered Species Act 91-94. US Fish and Wildlife Service 2013 http://www.fws.gov/midwest/eagle/recovery/qandas.html
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