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19 February 2021
Encounter with Edward (C09) - 12/02/2021
Eagle Officer John Wright caught up with Edward (C09) earlier this month and enjoyed some great views of the young male who looked to be in fantastic condition.
Despite a hard trek through deep snow, John was delighted to see Edward looking so well and shares his experience below.
With the forecast of a sunny day I decided to spend the day in an area which male C09 frequently visits.
The depth of snow was insane as I walked up towards the area and I began to regret taking a slight shortcut up a steep forested slope as this took me into snow four feet deep. On reaching the high ground, I paused to take a breather and was treated to a very close encounter of a 2CY (2nd calendar year) Goshawk chasing a Raven.
A little further on, the behaviour of a few Ravens and a Buzzard possibly indicated that an eagle was in the vicinity so I began to tread more carefully.
As I clumsily made my way through a minefield of snow hidden tree stumps and brash a Golden Eagle casually landed on a stump 150m ahead of me. It clearly hadn’t been aware of me as it alighted on the stump but it didn’t take it too long to spot me standing out in the open like a deer in the headlights. It calmly lifted off and flew right past me – it was male C09. He had a full crop having clearly just eaten and looked in great condition. The trailing edge to his left wing was untidy due partly to moult but I also wondered if he hadn’t yet had time to tidy up some of the secondaries after an earlier hunt? John Wright.
John managed to capture some stunning photos of the encounter with Edward as well as the Goshawk and Raven (right).
John's sketches below show the progress of Edwards' current moult and details of his maturing plumage.
The other three young Eagles, Beaky (C11), Emily (121) and Skan (C17) are all spending some time to the west and are faring well as they approach the end of their third winter.
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Thank You all for your continued support and stay safe and well, wherever you may be,
The Eagle Team
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