A sea eagle tagged with a tracking device has gone missing.
Gamekeepers and landmanagers on the Invercauld Estate, near Braemar, are appealing for help to find the bird, whose satellite tag was last picked up in woodland near the River Dee on Saturday.
Since the alarm was raised on Tuesday, gamekeepers and other birdwatchers have been out searching for clues and carrying out dusk observations to see if they could see the bird coming in to roost.
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Pellets have been found near the area of the search, suggesting a sea eagle has been roosting there but so far there has been no sign of it – or its tag – there or on the rest of the estate.
Efforts continued yesterday, with one other sea eagle and two golden eagles spotted flying over Invercauld but as yet, there have been no known sightings of the absent sea eagle.
Estate manager Angus McNicol said: “We have spent the last two days trying to locate any trace of the missing sea eagle and we will be continuing our efforts to watch the area in case there has been a technical malfunction of the tag and the sea eagle returns to roost again.
“For several months our ranger has been working with the RSPB’s sea eagle project officer to track the movements of the sea eagles in our area and if the tag is no longer transmitting then it is a concern to us. Invercauld hosts a vast range of bird species and other types of wildlife and we want to learn if any harm has come to the bird.”
Invercauld Estate is part of the East Cairngorms Moorland Partnership with the Cairngorms National Park Authority, and an array of bird species are regularly spotted – including golden eagles, buzzards, kestrels, golden plover and black grouse.
Mr McNicol added: “Sea eagles are a familiar presence over Invercauld and we want to know as quickly as possible what has happened.
“We realise that such cases where a tag stops transmitting will invariably attract comments about persecution but it is clear that gamekeepers, conservationists, and the Cairngorms National Park Authority all want to see this bird alive and well.
“We would ask anyone with information that could aid the search to speak to the RSPB or ourselves immediately.”
