By Karin Brulliard
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, April 30, 2006; LZ23
The year was 1985. Two centuries had passed since the bald eagle was named America's national symbol, and the birds were endangered. Years of poaching, habitat loss and the pesticide DDT had caused their numbers to dwindle.
In a Florida trailer park, a 3-year-old bald eagle slogged aimlessly, his right wing useless after he crashed into a power line.
That bird, which was rescued and later named Skyler, became a well-traveled ambassador for the Wildlife Center of Virginia in Waynesboro. Over a lifetime of appearances, the snowy-capped raptor wowed crowds during sessions about the plight of bald eagles. Three weeks ago, Skyler collapsed and died in his cage. He was 25 -- "quite elderly" for a bald eagle, according the wildlife center's president, Edward Clark.
In those years, Clark said, the bird accomplished his mission and then some.
At about seven pounds and with a six-foot wingspan, Skyler was fairly small for his species, such that Clark dubbed him the "Danny DeVito of bald eagles." But Clark said the eagle had the presence of a giant, with a piercing gaze that made audiences care about bald eagles and other endangered animals.
Take, for example, Wayne D. Clark, who helped launch a Virginia eagle-conservation campaign as a leader of the state chapter of the Fraternal Order of Eagles International. He was a Skyler fan from the first time Edward Clark (no relation) took the eagle to one of the organization's state conventions.
"Ed started out with his brilliant monologue and he had the delegates on the end of their seats," Wayne Clark wrote in an e-mail. "But when he finished and brought Skyler out . . . what can I say . . . if you were ever in Vegas when Elvis took to the stage . . . you have a sense of the ripple effect I saw come thru our crowd. . . . I cried uncontrollably in front of all my brothers . . . but you know what . . . I wasn't the only one that day."
Skyler deserves his own monument, Wayne Clark said.
In the decades since Skyler started touring, bald eagles have become a conservation success story, rebounding to about 6,000 nesting pairs nationally from a low point of about 420. Virginia is home to about 500 nesting pairs, Edward Clark said.
In 1995, the birds were upgraded from "endangered" to "threatened" on the Endangered Species List, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is moving toward removing them from the list.
Edward Clark said he believes Skyler's public appearances played a part, however small. Since announcing the eagle's death last week, he said, he has been flooded with e-mails and phone calls expressing sympathy and sharing memories.
"To engage people in conservation is to give them a reason to care about wildlife," he said. "One of the best ways is to give them a chance to meet it."
Though trained to stand proud, or at least to cooperate, Skyler was ornery to the end. Though other birds of prey can be relatively calm, bald eagles jump even at eye contact, Edward Clark said. Skyler often struggled when handled, leaving Clark with a strong left arm and, frequently, a sweat-soaked shirt.
"Honestly, Skyler was a pain in the neck," Clark said.
Still, the eagle was a skilled ambassador. Clark was looking for a bald eagle to use in education programs when Skyler's rescuers contacted the wildlife center. The injured eagle fit the part: He was small enough to handle relatively easily, and because Clark would hold him with his left arm, the wing that had been broken would not be on display during shows. After the two began traversing Virginia for education sessions, word spread, and requests followed. Eventually, Clark said, Skyler became the "passkey to the halls of power." Few bigwigs were interested in just hearing a spiel about endangered animals. But they could rarely resist seeing a bald eagle.
In his years of service, Skyler appeared on the Virginia Senate floor, at Earth Day celebrations on the Mall and at the White House Easter Egg Roll -- where, Clark said, the bird so terrified first feline Socks Clinton that the cat scratched the face of the White House staff member charged with holding him. Eagle and handler traveled to New York for several appearances on the "Today" show, becoming so familiar with the city that they were mentioned in a 1999 New York Times article about hotels that accept exotic and wild animals (Clark told the paper that he found "eagle-friendly" lodgings at the Mayflower).
Skyler met dozens of national politicians and several members of President Bill Clinton's Cabinet.
"No matter how great they were or thought they were, they were absolutely awestruck by the eagle," Clark said.
Wildlife ambassadors are typically buried in a graveyard at the center. But under federal law, eagle carcasses go to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which gives their feathers and other body parts to Native Americans for ceremonial use.
The years of travel were exhausting, and dealing with a stubborn bald eagle was often frustrating, said Clark, who was Skyler's only handler. Even so, Clark is searching for another bald eagle.
"My first inclination was, he's gone and I'm not signing up for another 25 years of that," he said. "On the other hand, the outpouring of sincere sentiment that has come after his death has just reinforced to us . . . how much people feel connected."