Inside the lofty realm of the regal sea-eagles

From the wintery depths of bleakest Siberia, to the secluded seaside coves of north-west Scotland, an iconic bird of prey has been making an incredible comeback.

For the two centuries preceding the 1970s, white-tailed eagles had been undergoing dramatic decline and local extinctions across many regions of western, central and southern Europe.

But come the 1980s, the plight of these incredible sea eagles began, ever so slowly, to recover—the birds today having recolonised several traditional breeding areas in Europe. But it’s not all clear flying for the sea eagles just yet, and many threats still remain for this regal lord of the skies, notably illegal persecution by gamebird shooting and egg thieves, as well as a deadly new threat from ever-growing wind turbine farms.

The documentary Sea Eagle: Bird with the Golden Eye examines this still dangerous future for the birds through the lives of two young eagles, who both come up against the harsh reality of being an apex predator living in the most industrialised continent on Earth.


2354735-1Sea Eagle: Bird with the Golden Eye

Amidst the bleak and unwelcoming wintry landscapes of Central Europe remains one of Europe’s last surviving birds of prey… the White-Tailed Sea Eagle. Despite their legendary strength, the future of the Sea Eagle remains uncertain as they come face-to-face with the harsh realties of nature and the threat of human activity. We follow the stories of two young eagles as they struggle through a world of many dangers, on a journey that only the fittest will survive.