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 The sea eagle is Britain's largest bird of prey and the fourth largest
eagle in the world. To see these magnificent birds soaring over their natural inhabitat in the Western Isles is an unforgettable experience. Unfortunately for the sea eagle, its large size has made it an easy
target for the keeper's or the collectors gun. By the early 1900s only a few breeding pairs remained and by 1918 the sea eagle had joined the great auk, the wild boar and the wolf as one of Scotland's lost
species. The sea eagles demise was entirely due to human intervention, since their habitat in the western Highlands and Islands remained unaltered. Natural recolonisation from the self thriving
Norwegian eagle population seemed very unlikely because of the birds sedentary habits. With the advent of legal protection for the British birds of prey in the
1950, the Nature Conservancy decided that the time was ripe to try and reintroduce the eagle to Scotland.
The first two release failed, but in 1975 a more ambitious programme began. Between four
and 10 young Norwegian eagles were released annually. By 1984, 72 sea eagles had been released on the Isle of Rhum and had dispersed over an area within a 50 mile radius. Sea
eagles take about five years to reach sexual maturity, and expectations were high for successful breeding attempts in the early 1980s. Sure enough, at least two pairs began to
build nests in 1982 and in the following year eggs were laid but failed to hatch. In 1984 the first hatchling and fledging of a sea eaglet for 70 years took place in Scotland. Other pairs
have been bred successfully since then. So long as they are left in peace, the prospects of this glorious bird becoming reestablished around the shores of Scotland are good. |
