A massive bird of prey thought to be "locally extinct" has been sighted in northern England for the first time since 2015, to the delighted surprise of conservationists.
According to Mongabay, the golden eagle — a more common sight in the Scottish highlands — has been spotted in England "multiple times since April 2025." Precise details about where the sightings occurred were not provided "to avoid disrupting eagles and other wildlife."
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, a charitable group in the United Kingdom, has a fact sheet about golden eagles. The RSPB said the species "used to be quite widespread in the UK," until their numbers fell due to "persecution" — which the group describes as acts of human sabotage, like poisoning.
Conservationist Ian Glendinning sighted a golden eagle in Northumberland in March, and he discussed the encounter in an email to Mongabay.
"I immediately stopped, and it just spread its wings and lifted off into the wind and soared off behind the rocks. There was no doubt at all that it was a Golden Eagle," Glendinning explained. He also spoke with the BBC about the incident.
"Before I could get my phone out for a photo, it glided away, but it was absolutely colossal, there was just no doubting what it was. I would defy anyone not to be impressed seeing such a huge bird at close range," Glendinning recalled.
The BBC credited the efforts of the South of Scotland Golden Eagle Project — an organization that stepped in when population numbers began dwindling severely — for the eagles' return.
"Since 2018, SSGEP has successfully translocated 28 juveniles, collected at six to eight weeks of age, and 15 sub-adult golden eagles between four months and three years from the Scottish Highlands," the BBC reported.
The golden eagle Glendinning saw has been identified by the group Restoring Upland Nature as a "young male" named Talla. The group's chief executive, Catherine Barlow, spoke with Mongabay via email about the sighting, and she indicated she was cautiously optimistic.
"Young eagles explore far and wide in the first few years of life," she wrote. "… It is too early to say [whether Talla] will settle in the area … but hopefully in the future." Barlow was equally enthusiastic about what the return of golden eagles meant for the local ecosystem.
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"It is exciting to see young eagles exploring northern England, where this vitally important species has been missing for generations," she said. "Returning this apex predator to the skies of northern England is important in reinstating and maintaining healthy ecosystems."
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