Rare Eagle’s Stunning Appearance Draws Hundreds of Enthusiasts Together

Sighting an eagle in flight is always an impressive sight, but the experience takes on an incredible dimension when it comes to a rare species. This is what happened in Marazion, a town in Cornwall in the south-east of England.

The majestic raptor had already been seen last year

For the south-east of England, the booted eagle is “extremely rare”, explains John Chapple, a nature and bird lover. Sightings of this bird can be counted on the fingers of one hand at the BBC.

So far, “there have probably been four recordings in the county before,” he adds for our British colleagues. Of these four observations, two were made last year in October.

The booted eagle that enthusiasts came to admire at the start of the year is one of the two birds seen in October. They had been seen in west Cornwall in the Kenidjack Valley. Its return therefore confirms that it is indeed a wild bird.

The booted eagle doesn't like to fly over water, but it still crossed the English Channel

He probably wouldn't have survived this long in the wild if he had escaped from an aviary. This species is even rarer in Great Britain as it does not like to fly over water.

“In general, raptors don't like to fly over water. It is therefore quite unusual for a large raptor to fly over the Channel,” explains John Chapple.

Discreet in nature, the booted eagle is more of a forest bird. It builds its nest in the tops of trees and feeds on small prey. The distribution of the booted eagle is uneven in Europe.

Although it retains its rare bird status, it is more common in some countries than others. Its breeding area extends from southeastern Europe to the Middle East.

Thus, there is a greater chance of coming across a booted eagle in the south or east of Europe. British ornithologists also believe that the observed specimen comes from these regions, but they do not know exactly where.

The booted eagle should spend the winter in Africa instead of flying over England

Additionally, the Booted Eagle seen in Cornwall is thought to be migrating in the other direction. These birds tend to head towards Africa at this time of year. They cross the Strait of Gibraltar to spend the winter warm.

Migrant raptors then return to Europe for the breeding season. However, this is not the first time that booted eagles have been observed migrating in the “wrong” direction.

Among the different hypotheses to explain this unusual behavior, the most likely is that the eagle is surely disturbed by the weather conditions. In any case, the magnificent raptor appeared to be “in very good health”, according to John Chapple.

“I managed to capture him fighting with buzzards in the pines quite quickly and he looked very agile and healthy,” he adds. Even amateurs can enjoy the appearance of the booted eagle.

In fact, the bird is quite easily distinguished from other species. Seen from below, the booted eagle has a particularly light body. This contrasts with the black edge of its wings. As the bird specialist says, it is a very pretty raptor to observe in the wild.

Source: BBC