Bald Eagles Soar Once More In San Francisco Bay Area

(AP) - Long endangered bald eagles are making a comeback in the San Francisco Bay Area.

The Mercury News in San Jose reports that there are 19 reported nests in eight counties.

Nests have been spotted at Stanford University, a mall, and even at water park.

The local and national eagle boom is the pay-off for decades of environmental investment. Fifty years ago, the bird seemed destined to become a memory until official protection and pesticide restrictions were issued.

Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society Executive Director Ralph Schardt says in choosing a home, eagles look for plentiful food, a nice home and a little space.

Records are sparse about bald eagles' early populations in the Bay Area. An atlas shows a nest in 1915 south of San Francisco was the last evidence of local nesting until the current recovery.