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Volunteers clean up eagle habitat after baby eagles found with hooks in mouths

Eagles in Sevier County are threatened by trash left by fisherman on the Little Pigeon River.

SEVIERVILLE — The search for something nearly invisible can be difficult.

"It’s really hard to see fishing line, especially with the water and the sun," said Connor O'Brien with the American Eagle Foundation. "We’re looking for those long pieces with hooks, lines, and lures."

O'Brien and more than 50 volunteers waded through the Little Pigeon River Friday searching for trash, fishing line, and fish hooks that can pose threats to eagles.

Eagles are eating fishing hooks which can get stuck and kill them. Earlier this year, teams had to rescue baby eagles from a nearby nest that ate trash.

"They’re going to come down here and they’re going to pick that up and take it up to the nest," said O'Brien. "One of the eaglets actually swallowed a hook. We got X-rays on it and we took it to UT where they were able to extract it."

With Challenger, the famous eagle that flies in during sporting events, watching on from the river bank, volunteers brought out toys, hooks, and everything in between.

"We collected some fish hooks and some wire that could have killed a bird," said Laura Albert, a volunteer. "If nobody ever did anything, what would this planet look like in 10 years, in 15 years, there would be nothing left of it."

The team says they collected more than 150 pounds of trash.

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