White-tailed eagle chicks fledge for fourth year
The Forestry England and the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation reintroduction project began in 2019.
For the fourth year in a row, white-tailed eagle chicks have successfully fledged from wild nests in England. Two out of five pairs of eagles from a reintroduction project bred and raised young, with one chick fledging in Dorset and two more in Sussex. Forestry England and the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation manage the project, which aims to reintroduce the species to England.
Nine eagles have hatched in the wild since the program began in 2019. Roy Dennis, from the foundation, praised the breeding success, calling it "remarkable" and praising the skilled wildlife managers. The foundation noted that one of the male adults lost a leg five years ago. Human persecution drove the species to extinction, with the last breeding pair in southern England in 1780.
Dennis emphasized that restoring a species takes time and requires community and organizational support, particularly from landowners and farmers. Steve Egerton-Read, project officer for Forestry England, expressed delight at the three chicks' survival. So far, 56 young white-tailed eagles have been released, including six at Exmoor National Park this year in partnership with the Exmoor National Park Authority.
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