Life in the Nest.

Once upon a time, there were two royal children who were brought up by two Bonelli’s eagles. On 15th and 18th March 2013, they slipped out of their two eggs that had been laid, carefully hidden away in a safe nest made of twigs and leaves high up in a pine tree deep in the forest.

The queen had sat on the eggs for 42 days until they hatched. Meanwhile, the king of all the birds flew in circles, slowly using the good thermals to work his way upwards with his 175 cm wide wings to lofty heights to get a better view of his hunting territory. He didn’t miss a thing. His favourite things for feeding his family and himself were wild hares and pigeons. When he saw an animal from up there, he dived down on to it from a great height to grasp it with his amber-coloured talons. Then he took it back to the nest as food. I have often encountered the king while hiking in the forests. On days both sunny and stormy, mostly around noon, I have accompanied him up into the hills. There are now only four remaining pairs of Bonelli’s eagles (Hieraaetus fasciatus or Aquila fasciata) still living in the sparsely populated area in the south of Portugal.

José Carlos Lopes (see notes on authors on page 4) is a painstaking amateur photographer from Monchique. Since he was a child, he has been interested in how the kings of the sky live in the hills. And so, for 20 days last year between January and April, silently and patiently, he observed the pair of eagles building their nests and mating. Shortly before the first egg was laid, he built a hide some distance away so that the kings of the skies wouldn’t notice him, because he didn’t want to disturb them. When he wasn’t taking photographs, he kept a diary. There was a wonderful atmosphere of peace.

The two little ones came into the world nobly attired in white fur. Slowly the royal children grew under the watchful eye of the queen. The king brought fleshy food to the nest, which the queen prepared for the little ones and poked into their beaks. When the rains began, she seated herself protectively over her youngsters. But soon, the sun began to shine again. Then she did some housework and tidied up the nest. She was always very watchful and on the lookout for possible predators.

It was quiet in the wood and in the nest, but there was a sense of excitement too. The two royal offspring got bigger with every day. Just nearby, there were two pairs of partridges. The kings of the sky put up with them. Slowly, the two little ones became fully-fledged. They stretched out their arms and they grew into wings. Day by day, their colours matched those of the forest more and more. By the time they are two, after moulting twice, they will no longer be distinguishable from adult Bonelli’s eagles. It would be nice to come across them again soon…

Todos os direitos dos fotografias © José Carlos Lopes

About the author

Born and resident in Monchique, a waiter and self-taught photographer. In the course of 20 photographic sessions in the Serra de Monchique, he carefully documented “the life in the nest” of Bonelli’s eagle. A unique project in Portugal.