Conservation Status: Least Concern. The bald eagle's recovery journey is a wonderful success story. The species became rare in the mid-to-late 1900s—the victim of trapping, shooting, and poisoning as well as pesticide-caused reproductive failures. In 1978 the bird was listed for protection under the Endangered Species Act. Since 1980, gentler treatment by humans along with the banning of DDT (the bird's main pesticide threat) has led to a dramatic resurgence. By the late 1990s, breeding populations of bald eagles could be found throughout most of North America. The bald eagle's natural range covers most of North America, including most of Canada, all of the continental United States, and northern Mexico. It is the only sea eagle endemic to North America. The scientific name (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) means "a white-headed sea eagle".