Lesser Spotted Eagle (Aquila pomarina), new breeder species in Catalonia?
Lesser Spotted Eagle (Aquila pomarina) is a medium-size eagle living in wood lands. There are two main populations, a resident population living in India and countries around and another one nesting in Eastern Europe and wintering in tropical Easter Africa. Their populations have kept a steadily increase in most of ots nesting grounds due to the increase of wood lands through Europe.
In 2010 a pair of LS Eagles (Aquila pomarina) made a first trial of nesting in Central Catalonia, an area with extensive pine wood lands where a similar species (Booted Eagle) have had an important increase in early XXI century. Closer important populations are to be found in Central Croatia (about 1.600 kilometers East from Catalonia) as well as Eastern Germany (about 2.000 kilometers).
Here you will find the complete article about the Greater Spotted Eagle in Catalonia:
http://www.raptor-research.de/pdfs/a_sp100p/a_sp157_Bosch_Meyburg_2012_vogelwelt.pdf
If confirmed, the LS Eagle will join other raptors that recently have colonized Catalonia such as Cinereous Vulture (Aegypius monachus) and Black-shouldered Kite (Elanus caeruleus) being GS Eagle considered a rarity for Catalan birders with almost no records of this species in the country.