White-tailed eagle

The RSPB's work has helped the white-tailed eagle, the UK's largest bird of prey, to return to the stunning landscapes of western Scotland.

Species status

Phase of recovery: Recovery
Red list Bird of Conservation Concern

Lost from the UK

White-tailed eagles became extinct in the UK as a result of extensive habitat change combined, particularly in the 19th century, with persecution. Before their recent re-introduction, the birds last bred in England and Wales in the 1830s, in Ireland in 1898 and in Scotland in 1916.

The last UK-bred bird was shot in Shetland in 1918. European populations of this bird also suffered from heavy persecution, which led to significant declines and extinction in several countries.

Re-introduction

In 1959 small-scale attempts were made to introduce these birds in Argyll and Fair Isle. The government’s Nature Conservancy Council initiated a full-scale programme of releases, bringing 82 young birds from Norwegian nests to Rum between 1975 and 1985.

The RSPB became involved in the re-introduction of white-tailed eagles in the late 1970s. As birds released on Rum started to wander around the western seaboard of Scotland, the RSPB had responsibility for finding, monitoring and protecting newly occupied territories.

The first re-introduced white-tailed eagles bred in 1983, and the first chick fledged in 1985. However, because white-tailed eagles do not start breeding until they are five or six years old, and even then a pair may only fledge one young every two years, the increase in the population was slow. With the numbers so low, there was a real risk that chance deaths could lead to the re-introduced population becoming extinct.

To reduce the risk of the eagles becoming extinct once more, between 1993 and 1998, a further 58 young eagles that hatched in nests in Norway were released by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) in Wester Ross.

There are now 32 territorial pairs in Scotland. The recovery in Britain is reflected across many other parts of Europe, particularly around the Baltic. While the population remains small, the potential impacts of persecution and egg collecting remain high.

At least seven white-tailed eagles have been killed illegally since the start of the project and at least four clutches of eggs have been stolen. Nevertheless, the population continues to grow and is calculated to be self-sustaining.

Graph showing increase in numbers of white-tailed eagles, 1982-2004

Working together

Increasingly close partnership working between the RSPB, police and local communities – combined with the introduction of custodial sentences for convictions of wildlife crime – appears to have neutralised the impact of egg collectors during a critical stage of population growth. There have been no nest robberies since 2000.

The concerns of sheep farmers have been addressed by maintaining close liaison with farmers and crofters and by encouraging SNH to implement research and management schemes. Projects on Skye and Mull have raised the profile of white-tailed eagles by encouraging the public to see the birds safely.

The high level of interest shown by visitors has encouraged the community to value white-tailed eagles more highly and the public sites may well have taken the pressure off nests otherwise vulnerable to disturbance.

Where once the re-introduction of white-tailed eagles had to be shrouded in secrecy, their success can now be celebrated more widely, with birds starring in an award-winning RSPB film, The Eagle Odyssey, and the BBC’s popular Springwatch series in 2005. Thousands more people visit the Hebrides to see the birds over the sea or at their nests on CCTV.

Continuing efforts

The re-established population on the west coast of Scotland is growing at up to 12% per year. There is plenty of apparently suitable habitat still unoccupied by white-tailed eagles, giving considerable scope for continued population growth.

Much potentially suitable habitat exists beyond the west of Scotland and further re-introduction is one way that the potential of white-tailed eagles in the UK could be reached more quickly.

Acknowledgements

The re-introduction of white-tailed eagles to Scotland was pioneered by Roy Dennis and is now overseen by the Sea Eagle Project Team, jointly chaired by the RSPB and Scottish Natural Heritage, also benefiting from expertise from the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee and the National Trust for Scotland.

The project could not have succeeded without support in Norway from Harald Misund, the Directorate for Nature Management, the County Governor, Department of the Environment in Salten District and the Havern Club, Bode. The Royal Air Force and the Royal Norwegian Air Force transported the young eagles between Norway and Scotland.

In Scotland, we gratefully acknowledge support over the years of, among others, Forestry Commission Scotland, Strathclyde Police and Northern Constabulary, as well as landowners, crofters, farmers, fishermen, wildlife tour operators, volunteers and others in rural communities in the west of Scotland.