Yesterday morning I did an interview (just before 9 o'clock) on the proposed white-tailed eagle reintroduction to Suffolk. It wasn’t my best interview ever, I thought, but I managed to get a few points across.
There’s no doubt that some of the opposition to the proposed white-tailed eagle reintroduction is orchestrated by those who dislike all raptors. And I fear that some of it is orchestrated by those who dislike the RSPB and/or Natural England.
Here are some white-tailed eagle myths:
Myth 1: white-tailed eagles were never present in lowland England or were only present in small numbers thousands of years ago. Neither is true. The eminent academic Derek Yalden looked at the evidence (archeological, place names and written accounts) of sea eagles living in lowland England and concluded ‘In combination, there is no doubt that White-tailed Eagles frequented lowland, southern Britain through Roman and Anglo-Saxon times. Historically, there is no reason to question the propriety of attempting to reintroduce the species to southern England.’. And we believe that the last English breeding record was on the Isle of Wight in the 1780s.
Myth 2: although white-tailed eagles were present, East Anglia is so different now, with so many more people, that the eagles would not be able to cope these days. I am convinced that this is a myth because white-tailed eagles already live, further east on continental Europe, in many areas with much higher human population densities. I’m grateful to a Facebook friend for pointing out that these birds can be seen on the outskirts of Hamburg. And the closely related American bald eagle is a common sight above New England towns and cities.
Myth 3: East Anglia is the wrong type of habitat completely – these birds belong in places like Mull and Norway. Although Norway has a large white-tailed eagle population (about a third of the European total) much of the geographic range of the species is in low-lying flat areas with good fish and wetland bird populations. In Poland, Germany, Romania and Denmark (and elsewhere too) white-tailed eagles are at home in low-lying areas – and in historic times they would have been even more widespread and common. It's a bit like the red kite - they were, in the UK, restricted to upland Wales after persecution wiped them out in the lowlands but a look across the Channel to Europe showed that they also thrive in lowland areas.
Myth 4: white-tailed eagles would cause problems for other wildlife. Natural England and the RSPB have considered this! Where is the evidence that elsewhere in the current range any such problems occur? Experts elsewhere in Europe are very reassuring on this count. And is there evidence that the closely-related bald eagle causes wildlife problems? Please let me know.
Myth 5: white-tailed eagles would cause problems for livestock. I can imagine that the odd chicken, goose or piglet might be taken but I don't know of such cases. Is there evidence that such problems occur elsewhere in the range of the species? I’d be genuinely keen to hear more about this. But without evidence let's class this as a myth for now. And I’d like to know how any such losses would compare with the extra tourist income that would accrue to local businesses through eco-tourism?
There are probably more myths – point them out to me and I’ll keep de-mything on this subject! Or tell me where the analysis is wrong, with any evidence that exists, and I’ll be happy to correct it.
But there are also some concerns that I feel are much closer to judgement calls:
Judgement call 1: this is a very expensive project. Well it is true that I couldn’t afford to fund it out of my own pocket. Let’s say that it might cost a total of £500,000 over a five year period (roughly – it could be more or less in my opinion). This is a lot of money, but there are plenty of people out there who have homes worth around that amount (not me!). If that were the cost of re-establishing white-tailed eagles in lowland England after an absence of a few centuries then some would call it cheap. And compared with the cost of buying or managing nature reserves (both of which are great things to do of course!), giving advice to farmers, doing research on seabird movements and a whole long list of other projects, then it isn’t remotely in the top league of charitable expenditure. In any case, there may be donors prepared to cover the project’s costs if it goes ahead.
Judgement call 2: white-tailed eagles will get to East Anglia under their own steam, why meddle? It is true that the European population is currently expanding slowly, and there is one (I think still one) pair nesting in the Netherlands now. So, yes, the white-tailed eagle probably will get here and start breeding under its own steam eventually – maybe from Scotland. But when? I can't see it happening in my lifetime even though I hope to have a much longer innings than my present 51 years. Why not give them a helping hand? We intervene in many ways in nature conservation – habitat restoration is intervention, agri-environment schemes are intervention, tackling pollution is intervention, reintroduction is intervention too! We could always wait and hope, but giving a helping hand seems to me to be what nature conservationists should do.
Let’s keep talking about this project, whose demise has been incorrectly reported today (more misinformation!), but let those discussions be of the tenor of those on my previous blog on this subject (29 December) which are well worth reading again.
I’d have to say that unless there is some real evidence why we should fear the impacts of white-tailed eagles on livestock and/or wildlife then it still looks to me, on balance, like a great and positive conservation initiative. But I’m open to other views – on any basis, but particularly backed up with facts.
As someone who would love to see White-tailed Eagles over East Anglia I guess I am biased, but I am really pleased that the consultation process is now engaging in some of the real issues and concerns, rather than the all-too-often CLA vs RSPB slagging match, just because 'that's what you do' when the word 'raptor' is mentioned. Having watched White-tailed Eagles nesting in Europe through to Turkey, I have not seen or heard any evidence that makes me concerned about the prey they might take in England. It will be as varied as you would expect of a large predator. But I am mindful that the areas I've seen them nesting have also been great for, especially, breeding wetland birds such as herons, waders and terns. However the concerns of farmers could easily be met with a compensation scheme if that proves to be a sticking point.
Interestingly one of my initial concerns was the disturbance they might cause to the coastal tern colonies when birds were starting to settle and nest in April. However whilst this must be a small possibility I suspect that if eagles are re-introduced they will be spending much of their time away from the coast (as has been the case with migrant White-tailed Eagles visiting Britain in winter). They will feed items that are easy to find (bitterns aren't!) and my hunch is that the following will form their staple: carrion, especially in winter, rabbits, hares, a piglet or two (easy to compensate for those), coots, moorhens, ducks and geese.
I don't think because Imade a couple of negative comments means I dislike raptors and I certainly have no rservation of any kind of reintoriductions of animals and birds(Bring back the WOLF , while we're at it. Now that would be wonderful). I would watch raptors all day long. I love to see these magnificent birds in flight and in hunting mode. I like nature natural and not sanitised.
My point about meddling was just that I don;t think having them (Red Kites) flocking to a feeding station at 2pm daily constitutes natural behavior, or a successful project. There is no CARRION, like there was in days when they were prolific - before we shot, trapped and poisoned them. Surely this has to be addressed.
Laura - thanks very much! I'd like to be in London one day and see a white-tailed eagle overhead!
Sooty - thaks as always (but always worth saying!)
Fact 1 (You wrote - some scheme of compensation is surely fair if other parts of schemes get them and if this is successful could end up all over the country.) My reply - I think some compensation would be fair if problems arise. But it is a bit tricky to prove, and a farmer losing a chicken may be earning lots more money from B&B from new eagle-seeking tourists! But compensation is being talked about - as some of those objecting to the scheme know perfectly well.
Fact 2 (You wrote - almost certain that they do take small and I do emphasise small numbers of livestock.) This wouldn't surprise me - but where's the evidence from eastern Europe? And in Scotland a lot of fuss has been made of lamb losses which are actually really tiny in number.
Fact 3(ou wrote - it is very costly however you put it.). I don't agree here - unless it fails in which case it is a costly failure. If successful then it is a cheap bit of conservation work.
Fact 4 (You wrote - it is a worry whatever other countries say that for instance RSPB trying to reintroduce Cranes and we are so low in numbers in Bitterns that we are in a different position.Both may suffer.) With all those canad geese to eat I doubt whether white-tailed agles will be looking for bitterns. Experts in eastern Europe almost laugh when we raise this as a worry - they say that we shouldn't be so nervous! As Laura said above - the fear of the unknown is a strong one.
Fact 5 (You wrote - believe they must be fed first winter) I'm not sure that this would be necessary in Suffolk but if it were it would mean they weren't eating many chickens, piglets, cats or dogs! Suffolk would surely have more winter food than Mull. I've seen eagles chasing herring gulls in the Baltic, there are lots of wintering wildfowwl and waders, rabbits and carrion and fish.
Fact 6 (You wrote - serious problems when they start breeding as they will need lots of protection first half of each year.). Good point - but it does depend where they nest. I can think of plenty of places where this would not be too much of an issue - and some where it would.
Fact 7 (You wrote - I think it is important for more information especially to take the people along with the scheme if possible who may otherwise persecute them.) I agree - and this blog is a contribution, I hope. But you'd probably be surprised at how much there has been. The fact that some people are against the plan might not be becasue they don't know enough about it - it might be because they just don't like it. And the general public seem very keen on the idea anyway!
Yes Mark quite a lot of mis-information obviously some put out on purpose mostly against the Sea Eagle unfortunately some I think just by people who are not very well informed and that is why as there are not that many problems that couldn't be given assurances RSPB and N E would be better giving widespread facts in media and Internet and anywhere to get people better informed.Lets face it the one that frightens most people I think is that they take livestock or even pets and that seems to have no evidence at all except in very small numbers.
What a magnificent bird and a fantastic project! There's always going to be opposition to radical exciting new projects, just through fear of the unknown (has there ever been any reintroduction prject no-one has objected to?). But in this case the only people who can claim not to know the facts are those who are willfully trying to ignore them.
I can't wait to see them floating about the East Anglian coast. I'm sure this will all be forgotten once they've been released and don't cause any problem. The you can say I told you so, Mark!