FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has authorized the Hopi Tribe to collect 40 nesting golden eagles this year for religious use, but the number that can be taken from the neighboring Navajo Nation will be limited for the first time under the federal permit.

Hopi religious practitioners have been gathering the eagles for centuries each spring and raising them in villages that rise above the surrounding desert. Once they’ve matured, the eagles are offered as a sacrifice and the birds’ feathers are given to certain tribal members to be used in other ceremonies and rituals.