Eagles in winter

Photos Arne Ader
Translation Liis
Golden eagle
 
Golden eagle   Kaljukotkas or maakotkas    Aquila chrysaėtos
A large part of the adult white-tailed eagles and golden eagles that breed in Estonia spend the winter “at home”. A small number arrive in addition from the north and east, sometimes also roaming individuals from the south – the greater part are young birds, they have a greater appetite for roaming about: the world waits to be discovered. The winter number of golden eagles is estimated at up to a few hundred individuals; around 60 golden eagle pairs breed in Estonia in summer.
 
In Arne’s photo we see a young bird, with the characteristic white patches on the wing undersides and the tail base.
 
The plumage of breeding adult birds finally evolves in their 6th year and sometimes even a year later. By that time the white spots on the wing undersides have disappeared and the tail base too is uniformly brown. The head and neck plumage is golden brown and clearly lighter than the back and wings. The tip of the beak is black, the cere yellow.
 
The wing span of the powerful birds reaches 2 meters. While the weight of the male can reach up to 3 ½ kilos the female may even weigh up to a couple of kilos more. In practice the sexes cannot be differentiated in nature.
 
Habitats are bog landscapes and their peripheral areas – always where human activity is small. The adult birds, shy of humans, can be encountered near the nesting territory. Juveniles sometimes stray to the seashores.
 
In winter they hunt for mountain hares, capercaillies, grouse, hazel grouse and also ravens; often they feed on cadavers found nature or wild boar dead from the African Swine Fever.
 
We can meet golden eagles and white-tailed eagles in winter, our other eagles spend the winter southwards.
 
White-tailed eagle 


 

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