Dylan, a 2-and-a-half-year-old white tailed sea eagle, from Fife in Scotland, has been brought to the Isle of Wight’s Haven Falconry.
Charlotte Gladdis, from Haven Falconry, has spent 2 periods in Scotland getting to know Dylan and other eagles there. When a situation suddenly occurred at the Scottish Elite Falconry that meant some extra space was needed, a plan was put together for Dylan to come under Charlotte’s care and continue his career flying beside his new wild cousins on the Island.
Dylan was brought to Elite Falconry as a captive-bred eagle in 2020.
Barry Blyther, from Elite Falconry in Fife, says:
“His training and flying went exceptionally well, and he is an excellent flying bird, hard to distinguish from a wild bird. He has flown as far north as Unst on the Shetland Islands, where the last wild white tail was killed in 1918. He made a film there using his onboard video camera with which he excels. He’s now going to continue his career about as far south as he can get, but White Tails like to wander, so it fits well for the species.
“As a pandemic baby, lockdowns mean Dylan remains shy of strangers. Earlier this year, he spent 2 ½ months with Charlie Heap at the National Centre for Birds of Prey in Yorkshire. He saw lots of people there but needs a lot more time in public view. Charlotte has been having a great time with us in Scotland and has all the skills and ability to move Dylan to the next level. Under her continued training, he’ll soon be flying over the Needles and the Solent with his camera and doing some fishing for private guests as well as being around at Haven Falconry at the IoW Steam Railway. Anything he does and achieves here really will be because of Charlotte’s hard work and dedication to this iconic species. If nothing else, we hope to raise the profile of the species and gather support for the reintroduction programme3 on the Island”.
Charlotte, from Haven Falconry, has said:
“Haven Falconry was in much need of some uplift and improvement when we took over. and that work is well underway. The arrival of Dylan is the next step in our program of expanding the range of magnificent birds here and will help us amaze and educate the visiting public. We really hope that people are interested in White Tails and will come and meet Dylan. They are the UK’s largest bird of prey, and their reintroduction is important and the right thing for the species and the UK.”
Article continues below this advertisement
Where the heck is IOW Haven Falconry and why have I never heard of it? Might want to increase your advertising budget
It’s at the iow steam railway at havenstreet
It is at the IOW Steam Railway site in Havenstreet.