Golden eagles return to breed at site run by Moray-based Trees for Life
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A FINDHORN conservation charity is behind a project which has seen golden eagles breed at a Highlands rewilding estate for first time in 40 years.
A pair of golden eagles has successfully reared a chick in an artificial nest at Trees for Life’s Dundreggan rewilding estate in Glenmoriston.
The eagle chick flew from the nest for the first time last week – some five years after a Trees for Life team and renowned conservationist Roy Dennis MBE, of the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation, set up an eyrie at a prime location to entice the birds of prey back.
Golden eagles build their own nests in remote and inaccessible places and are highly sensitive to disturbance – so there was no certainty the project would work.
Doug Gilbert, Trees for Life’s Dundreggan manager, said: "This is a rewilding success story beyond our wildest dreams.
"I’ve been checking the eyrie regularly since we built it in 2015, hoping to see evidence that the eagles had returned – and now they have.
"As golden eagles may use their nesting sites for generations, we’re hoping they are back for the long-term.
"When we built the artificial nest, we knew it was in a good location for eagles because we found the remains of an old nest at the site. We’ve been keeping our fingers crossed for the past five years, and it’s wonderful that our efforts have paid off like this."
Golden eagles are regularly seen over Dundreggan, but until now there has been no sign of them nesting or setting up a territory.
Highland Raptor Study Group member and golden eagle expert Stuart Benn said: "This is terrific news. Eagles are undergoing a marked expansion in the Highlands just now, recolonising ground they haven’t been on for many years and even colonising some completely new areas."
The golden eagle is the UK’s second-largest bird of prey, after the white-tailed eagle. It is native to Britain, but centuries of persecution saw it driven into extinction in England and Wales by the mid-1800s.
The bird has been making a slow recovery in Scotland – though continues to be threatened by illegal persecution, with annual reports of golden eagles being shot, poisoned or having their nests robbed.
Trees for Life has been rewilding Dundreggan – including expanding fragments of the Caledonian Forest – since its 2008 purchase of the 10,000-acre former deer-stalking estate.
A marked rise in black grouse numbers as habitats have recovered is likely to have helped the eagles in their breeding attempt, as these are favourite prey for eagles.
