'Soul destroying': Farmers speak of sea eagles feasting on lambs as nests closing in

Farmers who have been grappling with sea eagle predation for the past 20 years have said the bird of prey’s behaviour is changing as they find nests within metres of their farms.

It has been widely reported the raptors, which were reintroduced to Scotland in the 1970s after going extinct, have been feasting on lambs, particularly on the west coast of the country.

Some conservationists had previously disputed this, claiming sea eagles predominantly ate fish, and lamb was minimal in their diet, if any at all.

Jamie MacLean's quadbike and dog within metres of a sea eagle perched on a rock | Jamie MacLean

The Scottish Government added £534,000 to the Sea Eagle Management Fund earlier this year, which has been supporting farmers with the cost of livestock losses, bringing it to almost £1 million (£970,000) because of the damage caused.

One farmer, who wished to remain anonymous after claiming he received death threats for speaking out about sea eagles before, said he had lost not far off 60 lambs this season alone.

He said while the eagles had been an issue for him for the past two decades, this year the birds had really closed in on the farm.

“We’ve been taking the sheep in off the hill since 2009 to lamb because normally the eagles are out on the hill, about half a mile away,” the farmer told The Scotsman.

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“But this year they are nesting right on top of us. I put the ewes and lambs in a field not far as they needed to get stronger and needed fresh grass, but it turned out the nest was 20m away from the field.

“I’d put them right on the dinner plate for the white tail. We had no idea the nest was that close.”

The farmer said his 16-year-old daughter witnessed a lamb attacked by a sea eagle.

“It’s soul destroying,” he said. “These birds are more protected than we are. We are really struggling. All you can do is just take a photo of them.

“In the first week of lambing, the first two or three days we had 12 pairs of twins running all healthy. By the end of that week, we only had two pairs of twins. They were all eagle predation.”

A white-tailed eagle, also known as sea eagle, in flight. Picture: Odd Andersen/AFP via Getty Images | AFP via Getty Images

The farmer said he can identify when a sea eagle has preyed on a lamb by puncture marks or a hole in its head from a beak strike. Otherwise, a lamb disappearing altogether is evidence of it being carried off by the large bird of prey.

“We’ve done everything we can to limit the damage over the years, but the sea eagle has moved and it’s learning,” he said.

Jamie MacLean, a farmer on Mull, said no matter what he does in attempts to scare the birds, they adapt and continue to prey on lambs.

“We’ve tried all the scaring techniques,” he said. “We’ve used sirens, blow up men that are 12ft tall and flap. After a few days, the birds were just landing beside them. They didn’t make any difference.

“I have one of the birds flying over my head with a lamb with it still bleating. The birds were nesting a few miles away before, but now it’s metres.”

Mr MacLean said he tried diversionary feeding - a tactic that has been advised by conservationists to try and reduce the number of lambs being taken by putting out fish. But he said this just attracted more birds to the area.

“In some ways you’re just making the situation worse,” he said.

A NatureScot spokesperson said: “NatureScot and the Scottish Government recognise that white-tailed eagles can cause economic impacts to farms and crofts in some locations.

“We provide support to farmers and crofters through the Sea Eagle Management Scheme, especially for those suffering the greatest impacts. The scheme provides bespoke support for farmers, including farm visits to investigate sea eagle activity, advice on mitigation measures, including the loan of equipment where appropriate, and recommendations for longer-term support.”