Golden eagle threat

[Tracey.A]

Read an article this morning on the RSPB website that was quite worrying, it stated that there are now only 440 breeding pairs in the UK and all of these are in Scotland. There have been no Golden eagles breeding in England since 1996. There is only one Golden eagle in England, a male in the Lake District. It seems that they are still being persecuted. I didn't realize quite how bad this was, it's very worrying!

[ron1863]

Egg collectors and ignorant farmers and landowners poisoning them are the main culprits. How anyone could kill these magnificent birds is beyond me. I have been lucky enough to see them in the wild and the are a beautiful sight.

[Tracey.A]

Hi Ron,

It was discovered that where the eagles numbers had declined, seemed to coincide where there were driven grouse moors. It's a disgrace!

[Jonathan]

Originally Posted by Tracey.A

Hi Ron,

It was discovered that where the eagles numbers had declined, seemed to coincide where there were driven grouse moors. It's a disgrace!

Pretty sure golden eagle numbers have remained stable for some years in Scotland. A survey carried out in 2003 found 442 pairs, which was a slight increase from similar surveys in 1982-83 and 1992. One has to go back to pre-1800 before numbers were significantly higher in Scotland (500 pairs), and they have recovered a great deal from 1870, when there were as few as 80 pairs.

Not supporting the killing of eagles in any way, just pointing out that the population doesn't appear to be on the decline as a whole.

Jonathan

[ChrisJB]

Yep, recent articles on this matter I have read, talk of declining golden eagles in Scotland too.

Regards, Chris

[Jonathan]

Originally Posted by ChrisJB

Yep, recent articles on this matter I have read, talk of declining golden eagles in Scotland too.

Regards, Chris

RSPB 2008 - "Currently there are 440 breeding pairs of golden eagle in the UK, all in Scotland".

RSPB, SNH, SRSG - 2003 - "Status of Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos in Britain in 2003

In total, 442 pairs were located, a slight increase on the numbers in 1982-83 and 1992. There was considerable variation in population trends at a regional level, with decreases since 1992 in the eastern and south-central Highlands but an increase in the Hebrides. The mean productivity in 2003 was 0.36 fledged birds/pair. There was significant variation in breeding success between regions with, as in previous surveys, productivity being highest in the eastern Highlands.

The British Golden Eagle population remains stable. There remain concerns regarding the future of this population, particularly due to the threat posed by illegal persecution, and these results provide some supporting evidence for concerns raised by previous analyses. Persecution related to grouse moor management could be depressing the population in the eastern Highlands, preventing expansion into suitable habitat still unoccupied, and may be reducing the pool of non-breeding adult `floaters' which act as a buffer against adverse population impacts. However, the survey did detect increases in the Hebridean islands since 1992, which may be because of a reduction in persecution.

Not sure if the loss of two pairs could be put down to a decline, or the natural variations in population that occur from year to year?

Jonathan

[Tracey.A]

Hi Johnathan,

The extract from "Status of Golden eagle Aquila chrysaetos in Britain in 2003" was very interesting and informative. I am concerened about the persecution of these birds and the effects this will have on them in the long term, especially in the eastern Highlands. However the increase in the Hebridean islands is good to know.

Thank you for giving me a clearer picture regarding the status of the Golden eagle.

All the best

Tracey

[larachmor]

This new 2008 report, commissioned by Scottish Natural Heritage, ("A conservation framework for golden eagles - implications for their conservation and management in Scotland") is an extremely comprehensive study of the plight of the golden eagle, running to 140+ pages. Whilst the population of golden eagles has remained fairly steady for a number of years, they feel that there are, effectively, 65 "vacancies" in areas that could be expected to accommodate nesting birds. There are a multitude of potential factors that are discussed at length - poisoning, shooting, over-grazing, recreational disturbance, wind farms, lack of suitable prey, displacement by white-tailed eagles etc. However persecution, particularly in their eastern and southern ranges is felt to be the primary cause in their failure to expand: there are not enough young birds, and many of those available, will naturally migrate into areas that represent ideal habitat - but these are "ecological black holes" - the very areas where eagles, now absent, have previously been subjected to persecution. The finger will always point at "sporting estates" reliant on the income their grouse moors generate, and areas where an eagle will simply not be tolerated. The number of grouse that fall prey to eagles must pale into insignificance alongside the huge numbers that are shot, but the bottom line suggest that persecution continues still.

[Tracey.A]

Hi Bill,

I've had a look at this report and have been reading through some of it today, long way to go yet, as it has a 163 pages It's a very interesting report! Your summary of it is a great way to understand the gist of it.

Thanks Bill and all the best.

Tracey