Ringing process of the new generation of Bonelli’s Eagles in Attica

For the fourth consecutive year, a team consisting of LIFE Bonelli eastMed ornithologists and volunteer climbers, visited the only nest of Bonelli’s eagle in Attica, in order to collect valuable information concerning the ecology and the biology of the species. The couple of Bonelli’s managed to raise two healthy and strong chicks, as they did in the previous two years.

After they were ringed with yellow rings and tagged with a satellite transmitter, the young Bonelli’s Eaglets returned safely to their nest. From now on, we will be able to monitor their movements daily, via telemetry, in the hope that they will manage to avoid all the dangers they will inevitably face.

The first year is always the most crucial in the life of a Bonelli’s eagle, considering that 1 out of 2 juveniles do not manage to survive within this period. The causes of death are mostly human-related (electrocution, shooting, drowning), while the risk of their exposure to threats is increased, due to their “exploring nature”, which drives them to constantly travel, covering thousands of kilometers until they become adults.

The previous generations of Bonelli’s eagles in Attica, revealed us that the main dispersal area, during their non-adult life, is concentrated in Argolis, on the islands of Argosaronic gulf, in Boeotia and in Evia. Of course, this does not mean that longer journeys do not occur, like the one made by Nausicaä (generation of 2022), who spent her whole winter in the riverside forests of the Danube, on the border between Bulgaria and Romania!

All the bird watchers and bird photographers, are kindly requested to keep their eyes open for Bonellis’ with rings (yellow with black letters).In the meantime, everyone can follow their journeys – as well as of the rest of the Bonelli’s Eagles that have beentagged in the framework of LIFE Bonelli eastMed Program –simply by visiting the telemetry section on the Program’s website.