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Originally Posted by Jason Green  I wonder what on Earth the Crofters were doing in the nest of a WTSE?  |
Let's put this into context - firstly neither the crofters' spokesman nor the article actually says that it was the
Crofters who were at the nest, merely that non-tagged lambs (or more likely their remains) had been found in a nest.
Secondly, I understand it's standard practice for the RSPB to inspect a number of Sea Eagle's nests after the young have fledged to try to identify their main prey from bones and any other remains. For instance, on inspecting a nest on Skye a couple of years ago the remains of more than 100 Fulmars were found.
It's also worth pointing out that as a result of the study undertaken on Mull a few years ago an RSPB spokesman said: ".... a recent study conducted on the island of Mull - the most densely populated area of Scotland for breeding sea eagles with eight pairs - concluded that between only 33 and 37 lambs
were killed by the birds on the whole island each year". So it definitely does happen to some extent.
Please let's try to avoid inflaming an already difficult situation
Jeff
(Schedule 1 Licence holder for Kingfishers, Avocets and Barn Owls)
Jeff Harrison - Wildlife, Nature and Landscape Photography