Lost contact – probably transmitter problems

106 flew south from the Fannichs to the south side of Glen Orrin on 27th June and transmissions in July suggested the transmitter might have fallen off.  I am very grateful to Warwick Lister Kaye for making the long walk to the GPS locations. He did not find the transmitter (a bit like looking for a needle in a haystack – especially as the weather was so bad that he was in cloud) but more importantly there was no sign of a dead eagle or its remains. 106 was four years old, and the transmitter harness is sewn with a pure cotton weak point so that it falls off at the end of its useful life (5 years or so) but this one seems to have fallen off at four years. Sadly we did not follow her until she found a breeding site. In fact at four years of age she was still ranging widely – just indicates how difficult it is for the sub-adults to find a nest in areas where eagle home ranges are full. So they have to delay age of first breeding until they replace an old bird.