White-tailed Eagle, once extinct in the UK, visits Cornwall

Some good news about White-tailed Eagles

White-tailed Eagle, once extinct in the UK, visits Cornwall - Cornwall Wildlife Trust

White-tailed Eagle flying high, credit Cat Lake Photography

One of Britain’s largest and rarest birds, which disappeared from the UK during the early 20th century, has been spotted in Cornwall.

The sighting gives conservationists from Cornwall Wildlife Trust and Cornwall Bird Watching and Preservation Society hope that the species could breed in Cornwall within the next 20 years.

The White-tailed Eagle was captured in a series of spectacular photographs by amateur photographer Cat Lake on Bodmin Moor. The juvenile is one of six released on the Isle of Wight as part of a reintroduction programme run by the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation and Forestry England.

Other former breeding birds like Chough and Cirl Bunting have become re-established in Cornwall, showing the potential for previously-lost species to make a comeback.

Almost half of breeding birds have declined in Cornwall, as revealed in our State of Nature Cornwall 2020 Report released in partnership with Cornwall Council and the University of Exeter.