Scotland’s nature watchdog has launched an investigation following concerns that white-tailed sea eagles may be responsible for the disappearance of five Shetland pony foals.
Crofter Donald John Cameron reported that his young ponies vanished during a nine-week period earlier this year, prompting him to alert authorities about the potential predation.
“They’re not dissolving into thin air,” Mr Cameron said, expressing his conviction that the massive raptors, which possess wingspans reaching eight feet, are the most probable cause behind the disappearances.
The veteran farmer from Loch Skipport in the outer Hebrides, insists he cannot identify any alternative explanation for the loss of the foals, which are typically just weeks old and stand no higher than three and a half feet when mature.
The eagles were reintroduced into Scotland as part of rewilding efforts in the 1970s after being driven to near-extinction in 1918.
There are now estimated to be more than 150 breeding pairs of the birds in Scotland.
Farmers have been calling for a cull of the species as the birds attack livestock.
NatureScot said it had been contacted about missing Shetland pony foals and that they may have been “predated by sea eagles.”
The farmer said a white-tailed sea eagle was to blame (file pic)
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Mr Cameron told the Sunday Post: “I can’t see any other explanation…We have had Shetland ponies for 60 years-plus, and nothing like this has happened before.
“The only difference in the last few years is that we have a bigger presence of white-tailed eagles.”
Former MP for the Western Isles Angus MacNeil said in 2022 that two of his neighbour’s four-day-old lambs had been “ripped apart” by eagles
Proposals to reintroduce golden eagles into England have been heavily criticised by farmers after they were successfully returned to southern Scotland from the Highlands.
Golden eagles could be reintroduced to England
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“While there is currently no direct evidence to support this view, we will be analysing prey remains from sea eagle nests across North and South Uist this year to help inform our wider work with farmers and crofters on the issue of predation,” a NatureScot spokesman told The Telegraph.
“This will include visits to nest sites near the person’s holding.
“We provided advice on issues of lamb predation reported by this individual at a site visit in 2023, including a wide range of support options available through the Sea Eagle Management Scheme.
“Some of these options may be helpful in protecting both sheep and ponies.”
Crofter Donald John Cameron reported that his young ponies vanished during a nine-week period earlier this year, prompting him to alert authorities about the potential predation (stock image)
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Trials were launched back in 2019 to see how the birds can be distracted from killing lambs
Describing an incident – a farmer in Loch Linnhe, Argyll and Bute – David Colthart described the gruesome way in which the birds of prey attack livestock,
“This is a typical example of a plucking,” he told the BBC.
“It’s basically where the bird has lifted one of the lambs and it’s taken it to a certain point and it’s plucked some of the wool and skin off, eaten some of it, and maybe taken the rest back to its nest.”
He added: “It’s very frustrating when you see that, and some members of the public aren’t taking it seriously, they think we’re just making it up.
“It’s not sustainable for any kind of farm business here in the west.
“We’re in a very marginal farming area.
“its difficult enough to raise the lambs you’ve got and the sea eagle is the one that starts unpicking the ability for that flock to sustain itself.”