IN FEBRUARY the Raptor Protection of Slovakia (RPS) association (Ochrana dravcov na Slovensku) made its annual winter “eagle census” in cooperation with participating organisations from several countries.
“More than 30 census-takers working in Slovakia spotted a total of 52 individual Eastern imperial eagles (Aquila heliaca), seven Golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) and six White-tailed eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla),” Jozef Chavko of RPS told the SITA newswire.
The Eastern imperial eagle has about 47 couples nesting in Slovakia and the Golden eagle has about 90 couples. In winter both species use lowlands close to their nesting territories.
The White-tailed eagle is the biggest nesting raptor in Slovakia and there are only about seven couples nesting here even though in winter months their number increases to several dozen.
RPS said that the census of eagles is very important as it is essential to monitor the number of birds and their development trends.
“We believe that for next year’s census we will manage to electrify even more people to get involved and with their help we will record even more interesting results,” Chavko told the TASR newswire.
