SmartBirds
Photo: © Anton Stamenov/BSPB
On Tuesday, an expert from the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) discovered the body of an electrocuted Imperial Eagle on the outskirts of Stara Zagora. After receiving alarming data from the transmitter affixed to the bird, our colleague Anton Stamenov went to the location and found the eagle under an electricity pylon, close to cultivated land.
© Антон Стаменов
The bird was immediately transported to the Green Balkans Wildlife Rescue Centre in Stara Zagora, where an autopsy was conducted. Results indicated no shot wounds or fractures; however, signs of electrocution were observed on one leg and both wings.
The deceased Imperial Eagle was a young bird, tagged with a satellite transmitter this summer by BSPB’s team. Uninsulated pylons from the power grid are the most common cause of fatalities among Imperial Eagles. They frequently succumb to electrocution by touching a live wire and a grounded part of the installation. In Bulgaria, a large percentage of medium-voltage power lines (20 kV) pose a significant threat, especially to large raptors and storks, as well as to smaller species like crows and falcons. Some of these power lines serve as deadly traps, killing dozens of birds each year.
© Антон Стаменов
That’s precisely why BSPB actively collaborates with power distribution companies in the country to mitigate this threat. In cooperation with EVN TSEE, the company responsible for electricity distribution in Southeast Bulgaria, over 6,000 pylons have been insulated thus far, and the efforts continue. By the end of November, the safety measures will have covered an additional 848 electric poles in the most critical areas for the Imperial Eagles in Southeast Bulgaria.
