Since ancient times, human beings have had a mixture of admiration and hatred towards eagles. Admiration for their beauty, strength, and vitality, and hatred that sees them as fierce competitors in hunting and enemies of domestic animals. They have been considered for more than two thousand years. symbol of majesty, power and victory. Military banners became prominent heroes of heraldry and were used by many people as national—and especially imperial—symbols. golden eagle (aquila chrysaetos) largest, most powerful of all Iberian eagles: Spanish ‘queen of the skies’. Between 1,500 and 1,800 couples remain on the peninsula. Although its population remains stable, Ornithologists fear that the number of species on the peninsula will decrease by 10% in the next 30 years.
The golden eagle is only missing in Spain, the Canary Islands, which apparently never lived, and the Balearic Islands, where everything has shown it to have gone extinct a few centuries ago. Although it occupied the entire peninsula for a thousand years, today it occupies most of the mountainous areasmainly due to habitat loss due to human pressure.
Females are much larger than males, with some reaching a length of about one meter and a wingspan of 2.30 metres. The highly diverse diet includes mammals (especially rabbits and hares), birds (especially pigeons and partridges), and reptiles (lizards and snakes). It also consumes carrion.
It is primarily a bird of prey and seeks uneven reliefs and rocky cuts for nesting. Although it avoids large forest masses, it can occupy a wide variety of habitats as long as there are rough terrain and quiet areas to breed.
The longest-lived specimen lived to age 46
Golden eagles are monogamous and keep the same mate throughout their lives. And this is not short: The longest-lived golden eagle known survived to 46 years old in captivity in Europe.. The tallest known wild specimen lived in North America and was 23 years and 10 months old.
It is estimated that there are between 6,600 and 12,000 breeding pairs in Europe.. The last estimate made in Spain in 2008, The peninsula is home to one of the largest populations on the continent, with 1,553 to 1,769 pairs..
Although the golden eagle has always been persecuted by humans, in the 17th century systematic destructionparallels other iconic species such as the brown bear, wolf, lynx, bearded vulture, and other predators.
for thirty years, Between 1960 and 1990, the period of maximum persecution of raptors in Spain was recorded with heavy use of poison., which resulted in a 30% reduction in the number of soldiers. It has since recovered and currently its population has remained stable.
Golden eagles count best flyers of all raptors. A typical ‘unhurried’ flight speed for golden eagles is between 45 and 52 kilometers per hour. But they can reach speeds of up to 190 kilometers per hour while hunting or displaying..
It is even faster when diving after prey, because in this case golden eagle can dive and reach up to 320 kilometers per hour. It’s probably faster than the falcon’s descent speed, making the golden eagle one of the fastest flying animals in the world.
Nests at altitudes of up to 2,200 meters
Each pair usually has several nests on its territory, which they periodically reuse. As SEO/BirdLife states in its species file, the golden eagle’s breeding cycle begins with a matrimonial stop at the end of January. Spawning takes place from the end of February to the end of March.and consists of one to four eggs, dull white in color with reddish-brown mottling.
Incubation, which includes only the female, lasts between 41 and 45 days. In 90% of cases, they make their nests in rocks 200 to 2,200 meters above sea level. The remaining 10% (and up to 40% in areas with cliff scarcity and food abundance such as the Ebro valley) is installed on different tree species, particularly pines, clove oaks and cork oaks.
The nest can reach 2 meters in height and up to 1.5 meters in diameter.. It consists of a solid structure of branches covered with grass and even wool. The largest are usually those found in trees. Although the female does most of the work, the two parents are responsible for making it for about four to eight weeks.
The chicks are cared for by both parents and are constantly monitored by the female with the help of the male until they are 14 days old. Two adults make them fat until they are 30 days old.and from then on they feed themselves.
Their feathers are fully developed in about 67-80 days. After leaving the nest, the young remain attached to the adults for about three months, after which they disperse and seek their own territory. They do not reach sexual maturity until the age of six..
An “almost endangered” species
Each pair occupies a territory with extensions generally ranging from 20 to 200 square kilometers. And they tend to be aggressive towards their ‘invading’ brethren.
Habitat loss due to infrastructure construction, public works or urbanization is one of the most important threats. However, many eagles are also shot, poisoned, or fail to breed due to the looting or destruction of their nests.
this exposure to electricity It also causes some loss of life of both breeding adults and dispersed offspring on power lines. Finally, discomfort caused by certain human activitiesJobs such as climbing, hiking, sport fishing or forestry cause reductions in reproductive success.
One of the most recent reports on golden eagle deaths in Spain revealed that only 6% were due to unknown causes that could not be directly attributed to human activities.
Includes golden eagle Red Book of Birds in Spain as “Near Threatened” and also List of Wild Species in Special Conservation Regime (Lesper).
Reference website: https://blogdeaves.com/accipitridae/aguila-real/
Golden eagle info page from SEO/BirdLife: https://seo.org/ave/aguila-real/
Contact address of the environment department: [email protected]