2020 Is The Year Of The Eagle

2020 has been a very difficult year for people all over the world. But it has been a brilliant year for the Icelandic Sea Eagle, RUV reports.

Since monitoring of the Icelandic Sea Eagle population began in 1959, only once have more young hatched than this year. Last year’s record stands at 56 young with 51 being born this year across 60 nests.

There are currently around 85 breeding pairs of Icelandic Sea Eagles across the country, up massively from the 48 breeding pairs in 2015. Most of them can be found at Breiðafjörður, but they also nest in Faxafloí and Húnaflói.

The Icelandic Sea Eagle, also known as the White Tailed Eagle, is one of the world’s largest birds of prey and was feared to be on the brink of extinction just four decades ago. The population plummeted since the late 19th century when farmers began killing the birds and destroying nests to protect their livestock. But thanks to strict protection laws, it seems the birds are flourishing, and will, perhaps, become a more common site in the near future.

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