Family of golden eagles found dead in Xanthi mountains

Wildlife officials became concerned when they noticed that the satellite transmitters on the birds were located at a fixed location for a long period.

According to Kathimerini after a search with tracker dogs, officials from special poisoned bait detection units, the Rhodopi National Parks service, the Natural Environment and Climate Change Organization, Thrace Biodiversity Protection Society and the forestry service, located the dead birds, which showed obvious signs of poisoning.

Nearby, the remains of a medium-sized carnivorous mammal were also found, which the birds had probably carried from afar to feed on.

The experts suspect that the mammal had previously consumed poisoned bait and that its subsequent consumption by the golden eagles resulted in their secondary poisoning.

The forestry service has sent the dead birds and the mammal for an autopsy and toxicological tests.

The female eagle was born in 2020 in the Evros. In 2022, she settled in the Kompsatou area and in 2024 she successfully reproduced for the first time, raising the chick that was also found dead.

The golden eagle is an endangered species protected by European and national legislation. Its population in Greece has been declining at an alarming rate in recent years and it was assessed as “endangered” in the most recent Greek “Red List.”

The illegal use of poisoned bait remains a common practice in Greece, even though it has been prohibited by law since 1993.