The bold and the beautiful

I'm relieved to report that the chick (whichever one it was) was seen back feeding on the red deer carcase after the clash with the golden eagle and the golden eagle flew off unharmed. So 1:0 to Mara/Breagha!  We still have no new satellite data so the ID remains unsolved at this time. It's not that unusual for there to be brief battles between eagles of the same or different species at something as prized as a carcase. Usually the golden eagle is the more nimble and aggressive of the two eagles and the sea eagles patiently wait their turn. It's an ancient relationship dating back tens of thousands of years when sea eagles and golden eagles shared this land, long before early man got too involved with upsetting the natural balance of things. For 70 years or so after sea eagles vanished from Scotland, the golden eagles had it pretty much their own way - if they managed to avoid the ceaseless persecution in certain areas aimed at them. When the sea eagles reappeared in the mid 1970s after the reintroduction to the Isle of Rum, some people had unfounded fears that the bigger sea eagles would somehow force out the resident goldies. Needless to say this hasn't happened. The two species have re-established their in-built, healthy respect for one another and tend to give each other a wide berth. If anything, the goldies still give the sea eagles a hard time if they're in that sort of mood and the sea eagles generally move out of the way - rapidly. That said, both are capable of inflicting injury on each other if they get too close and there have been a few serious encounters. Hence my worry last night. But, like most big predators, if given the choice they'll avoid each other as they simply can't risk an injury. We still have as many pairs of golden eagles here on Mull as we did before sea eagles reappeared in their ancestral homeland and in some cases they both nest successfully within 2km of each other. So there's another myth about sea eagles on the heap. On Ardnamurchan, I suspect the goldie had already fed very well off the carcase before our sea eagle chick arrived. It put up a brief, strong defense against the young upstart but eventually decided to call it a day and let the sea eagle feed. I'm glad it did. Mara and Breagha need all the help they can get at this time of year. But perhaps next time the young sea eagle will be even more patient before moving in on the King of Birds - the golden eagle. Time will tell.

Dave Sexton RSPB Scotland Mull Officer

Autumnwatch and the Mull Eagle Diary begins Monday 3 November BBC Two 8pm