A sea eagle with a badly broken wing has been seen flying again over Scotland's west coast. The bird was nicknamed the Isle of Mull's "miracle eagle" by the RSPB charity. It fell from its nest as a chick during a storm in 2023.
Experts who watch the island's sea eagle population did not expect the male chick to live. However, it has now been spotted three years later. It was seen soaring above the island, with the clear kink in its wing still visible.
Dave Sexton, a retired RSPB officer, called the sighting "incredible." He has worked with the island's sea eagles for over 20 years.
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Start Your News DetoxThe bird, called Kinky because of its wing, was cared for by its two parents. They were unusually caring. The parents skipped a year of breeding to keep looking after their year-old offspring. This was an unprecedented act of extended parenting.
This latest sighting shows that Kinky survived his first winter alone. The bird was photographed flying over Loch Spelve, a sea loch on the south-east coast of Mull.
Dave Sexton said he is "in awe of this bird!"
The next stage of Kinky's life, as a "sub-adult," could be dangerous. Sexton explained that established adult pairs might not tolerate him. They might show "you're not welcome here" behavior, which can be severe.
"But Kinky's a born survivor; I'm keeping everything crossed for him," Sexton added.
Sea eagles, also known as white-tailed eagles, were once hunted to extinction in the UK. The last native white-tailed eagle in the UK was shot in Shetland in 1918. A reintroduction project began in Scotland in 1975. The birds have now become a self-sustaining population. They returned to the Isle of Mull in the 1980s.
