L O C A L  B E A T

  This young white-tailed eagle (Haliaetus albicilla), weighing five kilograms with a wing span of 2.5 meters, is the largest eagle in all of Europe. The behaviour of the specimen on my hand as it observes me is not typical, but it was stolen as a chick from its nest in the spring of 1996 - one of many victims of recent human encroachment in Serbia.

  From 1991 to 1998, a total of 19 white-tailed eagles were removed from their natural habitat in Vojvodina in northern Serbia, a country estimated to have a total of 25 to 28 breeding couples. Of the 19, six were shot, including one adult, three juveniles and two others with ages unknown, probably to be stuffed and mounted as wall or mantle pieces. Four were poisoned, probably undeliberately as a result of carelessly place pesticides and rat poisons - two of which died and two which ended up in Serbia'a zoos. Six were stolen from the same nest over three years, including two eggs, probably by egg collectors, and four chicks - one of which died, two were lost, and one, the hero of this story, which ended up in a zoo. And one chick and one adult were killed during the destruction of a nest, the adult most likely having been stuffed. The last eagle, a juvenile, was found stuffed and on display at a local restaurant, its cause of death unknown.

  Any form of disturbance to this species, either in the form of killing, stealing chicks or eggs from nests, destroying nests, trade in live or stuffed eagles, or mounting or owning such a specimen is considered to be a severe legal offence in Serbia. "Killing is the main reason for endangering the survival of white-tailed eagles in Europe, whether it is from the use of firearms or from poisoning," said Bratislav Grubac, an expert on birds of prey for the Republic Institute for the Natural Protection of Serbia. "In our country, this eagle is protected under the Natural Rarities Protection Law and the penalty for killing a single bird is up to DEM 5,000." Legal sanctions may also be imposed for using firearms or vehicles during the act, and Serbian Criminal Law imposes a penalty of up to one year of imprisonment for such an offence, added Grubac.

  Of the 19 specimens removed from their natural habitat above, 14 were killed which led the courts to call for up to DEM 70,000 in penalties and approximately 14 years of imprisonment. The devastating fact is that not one single legal action was undertaken and all offenders remain unknown. All 19 birds were victims of illegal actions, although this number is not final in any way because it is very possible that other eagles were also killed and never found. All of these actions prove that highly negative pressures are being experienced by populations of this species in Serbia.

  In response, the Society for the Study and Protection of the Birds of Vojvodina, a local NGO, decided to organise monitoring patrols during the eagle's nesting periods. As a result of long term observations, it was discovered that the birds are strongly bound to their nesting territory despite all the disturbances and obstacles which they have been facing in recent years. Concrete evidence was a nest that was robbed three times, situated near a busy highway in the region of Kanjiza in north-western Vojvodina.

  At the same time, and despite all of the pressures, experts say that new nesting couples have recently appeared in Vojvodina, some possibly originating from well-populated eagle areas in neighbouring eastern Croatia which emigrate to Vojvodina's expanding fish ponds.

  At the end, we again face the eagle resting on my hand and we ask ourselves about its future. Separation from its parents caused it to form a strong attachment to humans, according to the theory of imprinting, and debilitated the bird's ability to survive on its own in the wild. If released, it would probably have ended up as a victim of poachers. The Institute for Nature Protection in Serbia took this bird from a juvenile offender and transferred it to the Belgrade Zoo. What are the prospects for this eagle now? The answer depends on the country's future approach to this great endangered species which somehow manages to survive.

  Perhaps the bird on my hand can serve to support the creation of a new breeding centre for its brothers in Yugoslavia.