White-tailed Eagle travels to France

Continental travels for one of the Isle of Wight’s White-tailed Eagles

The Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation have provided the latest update on the White-tailed Eagles released on the Isle of Wight in the summer of 2020. Ed


As we have come to expect, the 2020 cohort of young White-tailed Eagles from the Isle of Wight are all ranging widely across England at present, as they learn the landscape for the first time.

We wondered how long it would be before one of the young birds crossed the English Channel into France, and it finally happened on Tuesday (6th April).

G463 made a 47 km (29 mile) crossing between Dungeness and Boulogne-sur-Mer between 13:05 and 13:45, aided by a strong north-westerly tailwind.

The young male then continued south-east through France and flew a further 169 km (105 miles) during the afternoon.

White-tailed Eagle travels to France

Linking with our European partners
It will be fascinating to follow his explorations on the continent. A long-term aim of the project is to help link White-tailed Eagles in the UK with those in continental Europe, and this is the first sign that it is beginning to happen.

We’ll have an update on G463’s travels and those of the other Isle of Wight birds on the website soon – so watch this space.