President Joe Biden signed some official bills on Christmas Eve, but a special one made the Bald Eagle the official national bird.
The Bald Eagle has been on the U.S. Great Seal since 1782, a mark used by the State Department. It has also been printed on the dollar bill since 1899, but it has never been officially the national bird.
The Bald Eagle is the only eagle indigenous to North America and is considered sacred by many Native American tribes. Due to this sacred consideration, members of federally recognized Native tribes can apply to receive eagle feathers for religious use.
There were fewer than 500 nesting pairs of eagles in 1963 due to hunting but conservation efforts have restored their numbers to nearly 75,000.
