The following is an article which appears in the summer edition of "Scotland Outdoors". Here is the link to their website. http://www.scotoutdoors.com/
Dave Sexton, RSPB Scotland, Mull Officer
"I have lived and worked on the Isle of Mull with my family for six years now, but I first came here more than 30 years ago. I was on a school geography field trip exploring glaciated glens, ring dykes and sea arches. In many ways, it was a trip that changed my life. There was something about the magnetism in the volcanic rocks which brought me back year after year on holidays and eventually to work in 1985 on my first RSPB contract to protect the recently reintroduced white-tailed sea eagles. It was to be a momentous year for that project and me personally as we witnessed the first wild fledged sea eagle in the UK for 70 years.
After 15 years in RSPB nature reserve management in Edinburgh, the chance of a lifetime to return to this special place presented itself. I applied for the post of ‘Mull Officer’, got the job and moved here with my wife and two daughters. We haven’t regretted it for a moment.
At this time of year, dawn comes early – very early. On a calm, bright sunny day, (they do happen), my first task is to check as many of the active sea eagle nests as I can. By now the chicks are well grown and feathered and will fly the nest shortly. The magnificent adult birds have done well getting them this far, through nest building in winter storms, 38 worrying days of incubation and another 12 weeks for the chicks to grow from tiny balls of down which could sit in the palm of your hand to fully grown young eagles with a 2.5 metre wingspan.
Some nests I can view from the Land Rover after a bumpy ride up a farm or forestry track. Others need a long slog out to a remote stretch of coast, then a precarious balancing act, peering with telescope and binoculars over a cliff edge to get a view of the nest. Sometimes I can’t immediately see a chick and the adults may be away hunting. My heart sinks. Has it all gone wrong and failed? Then, as I stay glued to the eyepiece, a rich, dark brown head with piercing eyes raises itself from the depths of the nest and peers out to sea in search of a parent returning with food. I retreat by crawling slowly and carefully through tick infested moor grass and bracken to somewhere safe where I can stand and stretch, pick off the ticks, pour a coffee and feel the late morning sun.
By mid-afternoon, I’ve also checked two golden eagle sites. Mull and its rugged, farmed landscape is home to an internationally important population of golden eagles. There is something deeply satisfying about confirming an active goldie nest with a well-grown chick. They are the more secretive, sleek, agile masters of the air in these parts and to see them on a daily basis is a rare privilege.
By late afternoon, it’s time to head home, pick up the family, pack up the Land Rover and head for the last Friday ferry to Iona. It is corncrake survey time and Iona is an island where farmers and crofters have done much to save this bird. After local fish and chips and a short nap, it’s onto the bike at midnight to weave through lonely, deserted lanes and along farm tracks. I avoid mad, snarling sheep dogs and snoozing cattle as I listen for the distinctive, rasping, summer call of the corncrake. By 2 am, I’ve heard 25 calling birds and managed not to crash into late-night revellers emerging from a ceilidh in the village hall. Some are startled by the barmy bird man as I emerge out of the mid-summer half-darkness and then watch bemused as I disappear again, heading for the B&B.
Sometimes the first skylarks are already singing as I crawl into a nicely warmed bed, the corncrakes have gone quiet and one very long, exhausting day is finally over. I wouldn’t swap it for anything."
Keep up with the Estonian sea eagles live sea eagle webcam - the chicks are the same age as Skye and Frisa's.
Please encourage your family and friends to sign our Birds of Prey Pledge http://www.rspb.org.uk/supporting/campaigns/birdsofprey/
Dont forget you can join the RSPB and support our work with the eagles - just click the 'Join now' button
Debby Thorne - White Tailed Eagle Information Officer, Isle of Mull
Thanks (if that is an appropriate word!), Hilsons. Self-interest and self-aggrandizement yet again. Am I right in thinking that egg thieves can be and are jailed in the UK these days, but nobody has been jailed for killing (wild!!) birds? Dave will know - are jail sentences not allowed for poisoning, etc, or has it been impossible to prove individual culpability?
Reply
yes it is possible to be jailed for egg collecting and poisoning but you're right these cases are difficult to prove sometimes
I have just read with absolute horror about the recent raid on a house containing thousands of bird eggs http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/8118728.stm
the thought of this happening just minutes away from my home has shocked me to the core - I'm staggered that anyone should consider this acceptable, and I would urge anyone reading this who has yet to either sign the bird of prey pledge or indeed join the RSPB to do so immediately. Without the RSPB who knows how long this dispicable act would have continued, and how many more fantastic birds of prey we would be deprived of. I couldn't begin to say what I feel an appropriate punishment would be, but I know you will all have similar thoughts.
Diane & Steven xx
Hi Debbie & Dave (and all bloggers!)
I have been reading your blogs for a while now but have been unable to log in to comment until now. I would just like to say thanks for keeping us all informed of all the goings on at the nest we all appreciate it.
I also wanted to tell you about a pair of Sea Eagles that spent the morning hunting on the River Add estuary at Bellanoch about 2 weeks ago. They were hunting well all morning with everyone getting great views - except me I was at work - they flew off in the direction of Jura 5 minutes before I arrived! Typical. As a consolation I got to see one of our regular Osprey visitors instead, which was nice but just not the same as 2 of these magnificent Eagles. Best wishes
I have a question if you don't mind please.
How much food are the chicks eating at the moment? Watching the ospreys I am obsessed with the fish count coming in and was wondering what comes in for the chicks?
Thank you in advance:)
Reply: Hi Gary - sea eagles have quite a varied diet - they feed on carrion, stuff that has died out on the hills such as deer or sheep, sea birds - Skye and Frisa seem to have a soft spot for Fulmar, grey lag geese, gulls, we even saw Skye bringing in a heron, also rabbit and hare, and of course, fish - Loch Frisa is full of brown trout - so a really varied diet! There will also be a supply of food on the nest like a little pantry, so if the weather is bad and the parents haven't been able to hunt as much, there is always some food available for them!
Hope you didn't just receive multiple copies of my question, as something strange just happened in the middle of self-editing. Perhaps I self-edited myself out into cyber-space....
Reply: Hi Mex. Sorry no ID on the extra eagles which showed up. Just too far away. D