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| Booted Eagle |
It was thought to be roosting in a small clump of pines just outside of Crowlas which can be viewed from two different locations. A layby on the A30 where I dipped the eagle the previous week, offers the best all round unobstructed views. The other viewing point is a railway bridge on the A394. The latter offers much closer views of the pines but the wider view is much more restricted. The railway bridge is accessed by parking in one of two laybys which are some ten minutes life threatening walk from the bridge along the very busy road.
I decided to set up camp on the railway bridge where a few birders were already in place in the gloomy pre-dawn light. One had a thermal camera with him and had seen what was assumed to be the Eagle roosting in the right hand pine before it hopped back and was lost to view. As the sky lightened more and more birders arrived until there were perhaps 20 spread-out along the bridge. On most previous mornings the Eagle had left the roost as late as 09:30 so we waited patiently but with no sign. It was then possibly seen in an adjacent pine clump but had disappeared again before most of us could get optics on it. After a couple of hours or so a report appeared on the bird services of the Eagle over a nearby farm which we could not view from the bridge – dam!!!! It had seemly snuck out , unknow to those on the bridge, from the back of the pines. I quickly shot up to be A30 layby where I found and chatted to the birder who had made the report but it was currently not in view again. It was starting to look as though I’d got my plan totally wrong again.
"Call it not patience, Jim; it is despair!!" - with apologies to Shakespeare!
And then at last my luck changed – we spotted the Eagle far over towards Long Rock where quite a commotion was occurring as just about every other resident of the air was taking exception to the Spanish interloper! The Eagle was much too distant for photography but I had very good scope views of a truly stunning raptor– phew what a relief to put it mildly!
The Booted Eagle has a wide breeding range encompassing both the northern and southern hemispheres including southern Europe, North Africa, Asia south to South Africa and Gambia The northern populations are migratory overwintering in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. It is a comparatively small eagle being roughly Buzzard sized. It comes in two plumage morphs, light and dark. The Cornwall bird is a light morph being mainly light grey with a darker head and flight feathers. It also has very distinctive pale "landing lights" on the shoulders when viewed head-on. It is assumed to be the same bird as the pale-morph immature Eagle that toured west Cornwall in mid-October 2024 although if that is the case where it has been in the intervening period is a real mystery.
The status of the Booted Eagle in the UK is highly controversial . There have been a number of reported sightings in Britain over the years, including a widely seen bird that roamed Britain and Ireland in 1999 and 2000. The BOU in their infinite wisdom assigned all previous records to their category D - species that would otherwise appear in Category A, except that there is reasonable doubt that they have occurred in Britain in a natural state. This seems to be based on a mixture of good and bad factors. Firstly, the 1999/2000 bird’s plumage was abnormally abraded, particularly for a juvenile, when such birds are usually in good condition, suggesting a captive origin. Secondly, and much more controversially, was the surely debunked belief that large raptors will avoid sea crossings at all costs. So the juvenile Lammergeier that spent an extended period in England in 2020 must have flown through the channel tunnel as it was ringed in the nest in the Alps! The current Cornwall bird shows no abnormal plumage wear and as such must surely be accepted into category A by the BOU. I’m ticking it anyway!
After another brief siting I decided to move onto Sennen cove to have my sandwich lunch overlooking the sea. I planned to then look for the resident flock of Choughs, a scarce Black Redstart and a much rarer American Bonaparte’s gull. My plan was to go back to the roost site later to see if I could get a better view of the Eagle settling back in for the night.
The Chough flock around Sennen was immediately obvious, calling loudly as they flew around the village. Adults make a two-syllabled “Chee-ow” sound, juveniles tend to make a hoarser “chuff” sound giving the bird its name. It was thought that the local flock was at least 35 strong. The Chough, which prominently features on the Cornwall coat of arms, is a red-beaked, red-legged member of the crow family. It also features prominently in Cornwall folk law, king Arthur himself was said to have become a Chough upon his death. It was once common in the county but became extinct in the mid 20th century. The Chough’s sad demise was mainly attributed to the loss of feeding habitat as many of the well-grazed pastures once common along the coast were ploughed for arable crops or became overgrown with scrub. Concerted conservation efforts by, among others, the Cornish Chough Conservation Network, who monitor Chough nests and encourage farmers to develop Chough-friendly habitats, has led to a steady recovery in numbers such that there are now some 300 birds in Cornwall.
The Chough is arguably the most charismatic and attractive member of the UK covid family although for shear intelligence the Raven would certainly give them a run for their money. Their jet black silky plumage contrast strongly with their bright red feet and bill and gives the impression to me, at least, of a gentleman off to a formal dress dinner.
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| Chough On the rocky shore beneath the village a very handsome Black Redstart was jumping around the rocks and I managed to get a few photos that I was quite pleased with. The Black Redstart is a widespread breeder in south and central Europe through to Asia and north-west Africa. In the UK it is most commonly seen as a passage and winter visitor with only 20 or so birds breeding here. It was originally a bird of mountains and cliffs but after the second world war it spread to bomb sites and is now often seen in industrial areas such as power stations and water works. |
I had a quick look for the Bonaparte’s Gull but most of the gulls were sat up very distantly on a rock out at sea so I made my way back to the railway bridge near Crowlas. Around 15:30 we saw the Eagle fly by and I had much better views although photography was a complete failure, oh well at least I had seen the bird well. Shortly after in looped around again and flew past, landed in and presumably went to roost in one of the pines. This time I did manage a few record shots that I was happy with.
I said my goodbyes to other birders I had passed the time pleasantly chatting to and made my way back to the car while it was still light – walking back to the car in the dark along the busy road really would have been asking for trouble! Thank you Cornwall for another brilliant days birding!
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