Scotland's Birds of Prey: the white-tailed (sea) eagle

Scotland's enormous white-tailed eagle is reminiscent of a winged dinosaur and it belongs to the most prehistoric of all groups of birds - the sea eagles. This group includes America's bald eagle and the largest bird of prey in the world, the Steller's sea eagle. In ancient times, white-tailed sea eagles were carved in stone by Picts (8th century) and their bones have been found in Scottish burial mounds dating back 4,000 years but the species was persecuted to extinction in the 20th century. Britain's last breeding pair of sea eagles lived on the Isle of Skye in 1916 but the last surviving bird was shot there in 1918.

A coastal bird most associated with the Highlands and Island of the UK, the sea eagle was reintroduced with stock brought from Norway to the island of Rhum in 1975. Although slow to gain traction and prone to set backs, this reintroduction programme proved controversial but successful: an established breeding population is now found on Scotland's north-west and east coasts and the UK is once again home to this impressive raptor.

Impressive in size, scale and flight, the sea eagle is one of Scotland's 'Big 5' - a tourist's must-see list of our most-prized wildlife. With a wingspan of almost 2.5 metres (8'), a fearsome, yellow-curved beak that can crush skull bone and huge yellow feet, bigger and stronger than a man's hand, the white-tailed eagle is certainly a sight worth seeing! As with all raptors, the female is larger than the male and she can weigh 25% more than her mate - as much as 15lbs (almost 7kg).

Hunting technique

The white-tailed eagle is an opportunistic hunter so carrion forms a key part of its diet but it's main quarry is fish and rabbit or hare. Surprisingly manoeuvrable in flight, these huge birds can roll and tumble in flight so they can hunt other birds as well. Some of the controversy about their reintroduction was caused by concern that sea eagles would take farm stock and lambs are certainly a good prey option but there are monitoring programmes to assess their impact and recompense farmers as required.

Sea eagle numbers

There are now thought to be more than 100 breeding pairs in Scotland and numbers are increasing, albeit slowly. This is because sea eagles only become sexually mature in their 4th or 5th season and a pair will only lay 2, perhaps 3, eggs at a time. Pairs are monogamous and probably life-long and they use the same nest site in successive years, as long as food is readily available in the locale.

When, where and how to see white-tailed eagles in Scotland

all year round but breeding pairs will have eggs from February to April or May so take care not to disturb their nests in late winter / early spring
on Scotland's west and east coasts, especially the Isle of Mull on the West and around the mouth of the River Tay on the East
with wildlife tour operators, who know where and how best to see these birds and also how not to disturb them (Morvern Wildlife Tours, for example). OR go go to a Ben Potter display. Ben is often booked for events like the Royal Highland Show or the Scone Game Fair and his eagle sessions are excellent - informative and entertaining.

Have you seen (or even heard) a sea eagle in Scotland? Or do you have a story to share about a bird of prey? Please leave a comment in the space below - we'd love to hear from you about this.

Scotland's Birds of Prey - the sources:

https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/white-tailed-eagle/breeding/
Unusual carved Pictish stone displayed at Elgin museum https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-35862682
Thompson, D., Riley, H., and Ethelridge, B. Scotland's Birds of Prey (2010) Lomond Books, Broxburn, Scotland
Martin, Brian P. Birds of Prey of the British Isles (1993) David & Charles plc pp111-117