The bald eagle population is indeed rising, as it is still recovering from the DDT era, during which they and many other birds high on the food chain virtually disappeared from the Lower 48. Purely from an ethical standpoint, however, I would argue that dying of ingested lead poisoning is a crappy way for any creature to die, and that alone is enough to inform my choice of ammo.

Further, lead vapor travels well beyond the wound channel in a game animal, and well into the meat we eat. As a Californian affected by all our absurd new gun laws, I hate to abandon all my older rifle ammo, but in this case I think it is the right thing to do, for the people who eat my venison, and for the condors and eagles which may eat the gut pile.