(Molly Bruns, Headline USA) In what may be a fitting symbol of the excesses and overindulgence of the United States under the Biden–Harris admininstration, the National Park Service announced that even America’s most majestic national symbol, the bald eagle, has fallen victim to the obesity epidemic, Fox News reported.
Park officials at Missouri’s Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield believed they were rescuing a wounded eagle. However, X-ray testing later revealed that the bird had simply eaten too much roadkill.
“The bird, originally reported to be injured, was found to be healthy but engorged with raccoon—in other words, too fat to fly,” the park said in a Facebook post last week.
The X-rays, taken at Dickerson Park Zoo, revealed that the eagle had consumed what appeared to be the paw of a “roadkill raccoon.”
Park officials, along with the Missouri Department of Conservation and zoo professionals, suspected that the eagle had eaten a dead raccoon off the side of the road.
Bald eagles usually eat fish, but according to the American Bald Eagle Foundation, the birds will “feed on what is most available, and requiring the least amount of energy to acquire it.”
Officials with the Missouri Department of Conservation released the eagle where they found it in the park.
After the story broke, though, the irony surrounding the rotund raptor was noted by pundits and social-media users alike, making it one of the few things Americans could agree on.
“Wildlife officials in Missouri are taking care of a bald eagle that’s too fat to fly because it ate too much roadkill,” talk show host Jack Pattie said. “Ladies and gentleman: America in one sentence.”
Wildlife officials in Missouri are taking care of a bald eagle that's too fat to fly because it ate too much roadkill. Ladies and gentlemen: America in one sentence.
— Jack Pattie (@JackPattietalks) August 27, 2024
“They named him ‘Boeing,’” another user, Viktor, commented, in reference to the embattled aviation company that recently stranded two astronauts in space.
They named him 'Boeing'
— Viktor 🦿🦾🧪🧬💊🔬⚗️⚙️🔧🆚♿ (@strigeus) August 27, 2024
“I hope Robert Kennedy Jr. has got the time in his schedule to make all the animals in the US healthy too. #MAHA,” wrote user @EnforceTheTruth in another topical nod to the recent Donald Trump endorser. “This is where America is at, even the birds need help.”
I hope @RobertKennedyJr has got the time in his schedule to make all the animals in the US healthy too. #MAHA
This is where America is at, even the birds need help.
— EnforceTheTruth (@EnforceTheTruth) August 27, 2024
According to NPS, Wilson’s Creek Battlefield was the site of the second battle of the American Civil War. The confrontation was the first significant battle to the west of the Mississippi River.
The Confederates won the battle, drawing national attention to the state of Missouri and the western side of the river.
