Eagles shifting flight paths to avoid Ukraine conflict, scientists find

Full Video>>

Eagles that have migratory routes through Ukraine have shifted their flight paths to avoid areas affected by the conflict, researchers have found.

GPS data has revealed that greater spotted eagles not only made large detours after the invasion began, but also curtailed pitstops to rest and refuel, or avoided making them altogether.

The upshot, the team say, is that the vulnerable raptors took longer to reach their breeding grounds, and probably expended more energy to get there.“It’s kind of like if you were to run a marathon but you had no water breaks. And at the end, someone asks you to run an extra seven or eight miles,” said Charlie Russell of the University of East Anglia, a co-author of the study.

The researchers warned the situation could delay breeding, as the eagles could need longer to recuperate, and affect the survival chances of any young, as prey may be less available when the eggs hatch.

Russell and colleagues reported how they analysed migration routes taken by 19 greater spotted eagles as they flew through Ukraine to breeding grounds in southern Belarus in March and April 2022 – just weeks after the Russian invasion of Ukraine began. While females travel from overwintering grounds in Greece, males travel from sites in east Africa.