Surfbirds News

Imagine a great bird the size of a tall bookcase casting shadows as it soars over the marshes. Better still, think of it following your boat, like a gannet, its long, banana-yellow bill casting this way and that as it scans the ocean for fishy titbits. Or perhaps you see it perched on a rock by the harbour with outstretched wings, rather like one of the copper liver birds overlooking Liverpool's waterfront. Could this be the highlight of a wildlife tour of tropical Africa or the Amazon? No, it is a possible glimpse of East Anglia a few years from now. It could even be a scene from the Thames Gateway.

The bird is the sea eagle, the fourth-largest eagle in the world and the biggest bird of prey in northern Europe. Its story has been one of the unlikeliest conservation successes of recent times. Pushed to extinction in Britain by sheep farmers and sporting interests in the early years of the 20th century, the return of the sea eagle became a conservation sensation three generations later.

Young birds taken from their nests in Norway were reared and then released into the wild. There are now some 33 breeding pairs of the great bird, all of them in Scotland. And their number is steadily increasing at 12 per cent a year, a sign that the population is already "self-sustaining". In other words, barring some unforeseen catastrophe, the sea eagle is back and here to stay.

Here to stay but, for most of us, a long distance away. In much of the country, it is quicker and cheaper to fly to Majorca than make the journey to sea eagle country on Scotland's remote north-west coast. But there are plans to reintroduce the eagle to more populous parts of Britain. Last December, English Nature even approved a scheme to release them in East Anglia, where the Suffolk coast has been earmarked as the most eagle-friendly area. There are similar plans to rear and release sea eagles in lowland Scotland and in north Wales. The East Anglian project may begin as early as next year.

Has the conservation world gone eagle-crazy? Can you imagine the world's fourth-largest eagle making a living over the rooftops of Ipswich? Or gliding along the Menai Straits, fixing Brunel's railway bridge with its glassy yellow stare? Well, yes, say the eagle's human promoters; believe it or not, they can.

This is not the shy, aloof golden eagle, forever destined to flee from ever-encroaching human habitation. The sea eagle gets on with people quite well - that is, as long as we are not persecuting them. In other parts of the world, they hang around fishing harbours and nest close to villages.

In behaviour, sea eagles are more like their close relative, the American bald eagle (the world's third-largest eagle). This American icon routinely nests on the outskirts of major cities, like Vancouver, even, on occasion, in big trees in parks and gardens.

Professor Ian Newton, a world authority on birds of prey, points out that sea eagles could once be found all around the British coast. "Many parts of the coast still present suitable habitats for these magnificent birds, and, if undisturbed, they could nest in fairly close proximity to people. We can expect them to build their nests in trees and cliffs and to hunt mainly over the shallower estuaries and inland reservoirs."

Often thought of as the most sterile agricultural plain in Britain, East Anglia in fact holds a plentiful year-round food supply for sea eagles.

The marshes and muddy estuaries of Suffolk and Essex are well-stocked with waterfowl and fish, while rabbits are frequent along the drier parts of the coast.

Moreover, the eagle can take its pick of inland lakes, from the Broads to the big reservoirs of the East Midlands; a hundred-mile round flight is nothing to a sea eagle. In Scotland they regularly visit the headwaters of highland rivers to feast on dead and dying salmon. They also appear from nowhere like vultures after a ghillie has "gralloched" (that is, disembowelled) a deer, before carrying it off the hill.

But how will the good folk of East Anglia take to the idea of an eight-foot, flesh-eating bird swooping over their neighbourhood? If Scotland is any guide, they will love it. The B&B establishments of Mull have never had it so good. Eagle watching has become a thriving business in the isles, generating around £1.5m a year. In England, the reintroduction project is estimated to cost between £120,000 and £150,000 a year. So, in business terms, this project could quickly turn a profit.

Sea eagle enthusiasts also point to the popularity of reintroduced red kites and ospreys. And if you think ospreys are impressive, just wait until you spot a sea eagle out on a fishing trip.

In truth, it's all about spectacle and spin. Sea eagles are among the world's least-threatened large birds of prey. Their numbers have quadrupled in Sweden, and they have recolonised Denmark. They are pleased with Poland and having fun in Finland. Introducing them to Suffolk isn't going to make much difference to sea eagle conservation. It is doing very nicely on its own, thank you very much.

But, as English Nature recognises, there's more to this than meets the eye. Messing around with sea eagles, says English Nature, "represents a major opportunity to lead a high profile 'flagship species' project that will highlight the organisation at the forefront of a major biodiversity delivery initiative." In other words, sea eagles get the column inches denied to smaller fry. They star in Springwatch and attract crowds of admirers. They "deliver benefits to people and nature", say English Nature.

And that is what 21st-century style, ultra-democratic nature conservation has to be about. Government-funded heritage bodies are terrified at being seen to be elitist and remote from popular expectations. There's nothing that links people and nature better than a big fierce bird, especially one that is unlikely to cause much serious concern to farmers and game interests.

And there's nothing like an eagle to sum up what it means to be wild and free. Perhaps people will feel soon be feeling a little wilder and freer themselves as they wander the muddy banks of Essex and a vast bird floats by with a flicker of its barn-door wings. Modern Britain may sometimes feel like a land of suburbs and grain prairies. But if the world's fourth-largest eagle can make itself at home here, then may be our environment can't be all that bad.

Numbers:

The European population is about 6,000 pairs, mostly in Scandinavia and Russia. Norway has the most with about 2,000 pairs. In the remote past, Britain may have had almost as many.

Where to see them now:

Sea-eagle spotting is a major attraction for visitors to the isle of Mull. Mid-morning is a good time to catch a glimpse. A customised hide run by the RSPB (bookings can be made by calling 01688 302 038) and three wildlife tour operators on the island improve your chance of a good view.