Sir David Attenborough helps mark south of Scotland conservation milestone
Sir David Attenborough has helped mark a conservation milestone in the south of Scotland.
The legendary nature broadcaster has named the first eaglet to fledge from the nest of a golden eagle translocated to the region by Restoring Upland Nature (RUN), the new home of the South of Scotland Golden Eagle Project.
Sir David, the UN Champion of the Earth, christened the fledgling Princeling, which means 'young prince' to show the new hope for the restoration of the golden eagle population.
The development comes as preparations are made for Europe's only annual golden eagle festival in Moffat next month.
Sir David described the moment as a 'wonderful achievement' and added: 'Many congratulations to all those in Restoring Upland Nature who have brought about the fledging of a young golden eagle.'
Through the South of Scotland Golden Eagle Project, the team from RUN worked to restore the low population of golden eagles through translocations from the highlands and islands.
However, this is the first successful fledgling of an eaglet reared locally by a translocated bird with a native eagle, taking the project's achievements to a new level.
CEO of RUN, Dr Cat Barlow, said: 'What an honour it is for Restoring Upland Nature to receive such warm recognition from Sir David Attenborough for this game-changing moment in UK conservation.
'Seeing Princeling thrive in the south of Scotland highlights that, where there are healthy ecosystems and a low risk of persecution, translocated eagles can integrate well into native populations to breed successfully. This brings renewed hope to our ambition to reverse biodiversity decline and ensure current and future generations across the UK, including Scotland, England and Wales, can experience that incredible sense of awe on seeing golden eagles soar.
'It is important to highlight that this success is testament to the support we have received from of community, partners, funders, raptor workers, gamekeepers, estate managers and more. We know they will all share in our excitement at today's news and look forward to continuing to work with them, and many new partners, as we build on our success, and extend our reach into northern England.'
The project has involved a number of organisations, including the RSPB, NatureScot and Scottish Land and Estates.
RSPB Scotland head of species and land management, Duncan Orr-Ewing, said: 'This project has represented genuine partnership working between conservationists, private landowners and their employees, as well as The Scottish Government, pulling in the same direction to restore the golden eagle population in the South of Scotland. We have also been supported by an amazing project team on the ground, underpinned by resource from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
'This exciting milestone of first successful breeding of translocated golden eagles is the news we have all been impatiently waiting for, and we fully expect that this will be only the start of a more resilient and flourishing golden eagle population in the South of Scotland in the future. We are very optimistic that it will also lead to re-colonisation of former golden eagle haunts in the north of England over time.
'This project has captured the public imagination, and many people have now shared the thrill of seeing one of the UK's most spectacular bird species in their local area, also benefitting these economies through wildlife tourism.'
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