The juvenile eagle, Lambi, has gone on quite the journey since he left home in November of 2022.
Since juvenile eagles have been tagged beginning in 2019, new data is allowing Icelandic researchers better insights into the behaviour of these birds, especially in the first year of their life.
The eagle in question, Lambi, was tagged in July of 2022. He stayed around his parental nest until November, when he began to range far and wide. Now, extensive data is giving Icelandic biologists new insight into the behaviour of these young birds.
Read more: Bad Year for Eagle Nesting
At the end of November, Lambi left his home near Breiðafjörður to cross the Snæfellsnes peninsula. From there, he explored much of West and North Iceland, including the Westfjords.
The above video shows his travels.
In the summer of 2022, a total of 14 young eagles were tagged with transmitters. Of these original 14, three were confirmed as dying when they were still at their home nest. Of these three dead juveniles, two are confirmed to have died from bird flu (HPAI H5N1).
A further seven juvenile eagles left the nest: three in November, two in December, and two in January. Notably, three eagles are still at their home nest as of March 13. This is considered to be unusually late for eagles to leave the nest. In previous years, most juveniles have left the nest by February.
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This is significant, as it leaves the parents relatively little breathing room for the next breeding season. Eagles in Iceland generally begin nesting in March and April, and if last year’s young are still in the nest, it can negatively impact the next generation.
