Chris Packham hits out over 'truly shocking' golden eagle killers
A YOUNG golden eagle tagged in Scotland last summer is thought to have been killed just seven miles from the Scottish Parliament, and its body dumped in the North Sea.
The eagle, named Fred, hatched at a nest site in the Borders in 2017, and was the offspring of the only breeding pair in the region.
Named after the landowner’s grandson, Fred was satellite-tagged in June in a project involving TV presenter and naturalist Chris Packham and Dr Ruth Tingay of Raptor Persecution UK.
It was hoped that the protected raptor would go on to increase the vulnerable breeding population in the Borders, but it disappeared last month in highly suspicious circumstances in the Pentland Hills, just seven miles from the Scottish Parliament building in Edinburgh.
Its tag “suddenly and inexplicably stopped” on January 21, only to resume transmissions three days later in the North Sea, ten miles offshore from St Andrews in Fife.
What’s truly shocking about this case is that it didn’t take place in a remote Highland glen miles from anywhere, but it happened within a stone’s throw of Edinburgh, right under the noses of the Scottish Government.
Campaigner Packham yesterday described the loss as “shocking”.
He said: “Once again, we have the suspicious disappearance of a satellite-tagged golden eagle in an area managed for driven grouse shooting.
"What’s truly shocking about this case is that it didn’t take place in a remote Highland glen miles from anywhere, but it happened within a stone’s throw of Edinburgh, right under the noses of the Scottish Government.
“What must the good people of Edinburgh think, to learn that golden eagles aren’t even safe on their doorstep? That they’ve been denied the opportunity to see this iconic, magnificent bird in their local hills?
"This doesn’t bode well for the planned reintroduction of golden eagles to south Scotland, due to begin later this year. How many of these magnificent birds have to die before golden eagles are safe in Scotland?
“Fred was very special. It hatched from the only breeding nest in the Borders. That was last summer and it grew well on the nest. In June, the landowner and his gamekeeper were really pleased to join us and our team when we were fitting satellite tags to this bird.
"The landowner has protected that eagle nest for decades, and he loved the bird so much that Fred was named after his grandson. Fred was the only chick that year and his parents were the only breeding pair in the Borders.”
Data from Fred’s tag showed it had stayed close to its nest for several months after fledging before making its first exploratory flight outwith within its parents’ territory in mid-January.
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On January 20, Fred roosted overnight in trees overlooking a grouse moor near Balerno. His tag continued to record his position there until just before 10am on January 21 but three days later it showed it was in the North Sea.
Dr Tingay said: “It is beyond doubt that Fred’s disappearance is highly suspicious. Golden eagles don’t generally fly out for miles over large bodies of sea water but even if Fred had done so, apart from defying everything we’ve learned about Scottish golden eagle behaviour, we would have seen excellent tracking data plotting his route given the reliability of his tag.
“It seems likely that Fred was killed soon after 10am on 21 January, his tag was hidden to suppress the signal and then he and the tag were dumped in the North Sea.
“If this is indeed the case, it’s just the latest example of when those who have killed a protected bird of prey have tried to cover up evidence of their crime”.