It’s been confirmed that a pair of white-tailed eagles, regularly spotted flying over Wareham Channel, Arne, Purbeck heathland, and Poole Harbour, have successfully produced a chick and it’s the first to have fledged in the wild in Dorset since the 18th Century.
The record breaking male chick, identified as G834, is the offspring of white-tailed eagles G463 and G466, who were released on the Isle of Wight in 2020 as part of a conservation project by Forestry England and the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation.
Dorset’s first white-tailed eagle chick for more than 240 years
“First glimpse of that tiny fluffy chick”
G463 and G466 paired up in 2023 but this is their first successful breeding attempt, made more remarkable by the fact that the male adult bird has only one leg, which he lost in 2021.
White-tailed eagles are Britain’s largest birds of prey with a wingspan of up to 2.5 metres and were once widespread across England. Human persecution caused their extinction, with the last pair breeding in southern England in 1780.
This successful breeding in Dorset brings the number of these rare birds born in the wild through the project to six. All of the chicks are fitted with satellite tags so that the project team can track their progress.
The first chick to be born in England since 1780 was in Sussex in 2023, produced by white-tailed eagles G405 and G471. The pair have gone on to produce two chicks in 2024 and two in 2025.
The Dorset chick has now successfully fledged and it’s hoped will return to breed in about five to six years
“Starting his own journey”
Steve Egerton-Read, White-Tailed Eagle Project Officer for Forestry England, said:
“We have been patiently monitoring these nests for many months and hoping they would be successful. It is always such an exciting time but also incredibly nerve wracking!
“This was especially the case for the pair of eagles in Dorset who were first time parents. It was an incredible moment when we caught our first glimpse of that tiny fluffy chick in the nest, but equally, it is an anxious time as the parents get to grips with what they need to do.
“Ultimately, it has been so rewarding to see this pair of eagles, often spotted in and around Dorset, care for the chick all the way through to it fledging the nest. Now it won’t be long until he is starting his own journey and hopefully one day, he will breed somewhere in southern England.
“Returning lost species like the white-tailed eagle is a key part of Forestry England’s approach to restoring biodiversity and helping nature to recover. We hope that in years to come these iconic birds will become a much more common sight, inspiring future generations and deepening their connection with nature.”
The chick was fed well by its parents
More commonly spotted
The plan is to establish a population of between six and 10 breeding pairs within 40 miles of the release site on the Isle of Wight.
These protected birds typically choose areas close to freshwater wetlands or the coast, where they can catch fish, which is their preferred food.
It is an increasingly realistic prospect that the white-tailed eagle will become commonly spotted over Purbeck.
To date, 45 young white-tailed eagles have been released. This includes eight birds released in summer 2025 from the team’s base on the Isle of Wight.
Two female chicks – G841 and G842 – fledged in 2025 from a nest in Sussex, the third year of successful breeding for parents G405 and G471
Long-term project
Founder of the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation, Roy Dennis said:
“This is a long-term project, and it will take some years before the population is fully restored but the progress made over the last year has been incredibly encouraging.
“We have some well-established pairs and two that are actively breeding. We hope to build on this progress, and I’m really pleased that we have been able to release an additional eight birds this year to further boost the population.”
Watch Forestry England film
Further information
- More about the project by Forestry England and the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation to restore a population of white-tailed eagles to the South Coast
