Spatial and temporal variation in breeding performance in the increasing White-tailed Eagle Haliaeetus albicilla population to the east of the Baltic Sea

Abstract

ABSTRACT Capsule: We found no evidence of decreased reproductive performance of the White-tailed Eagle Haliaeetus albicilla, despite ongoing population increases in an environment characterized by different types of utilized habitats. Aim: To characterize temporal and spatial variations in several components of breeding performance in an increasing White-tailed Eagle population. Methods: The breeding performance and number of pairs located in the region east of the Baltic Sea was monitored between 2005 and 2020. We analysed the trends in the numbers of pairs and several reproduction parameters for 16 years, and compared variation in breeding performance in four different habitats through application of generalized linear (mixed) models. Results: The number of White-tailed Eagle pairs increased three-fold locally between 2005 and 2020, but we found no evidence for a deterioration in breeding performance parameters (nesting success, brood size, proportion of females among nestlings, body condition of nestlings). The probability of successful nesting, nestling sex and number of nestlings in a brood were found to be similar between pairs associated with different habitats, ranging from coastal lagoons to natural waterbodies within an inland landscape. The body condition of the nestlings, however, was habitat-dependent, with the best body condition evident in nestlings reared near the Curonian Lagoon. Conclusion: Results indicate that the abundance of this predator population will continue to grow in the region east of the Baltic Sea.