The Bonelli’s Eagle (Aquila fasciata) is a critically endangered species in Israel, with electrocution on power lines posing a serious threat on its population. Since insulation of electricity pylons is a slow and costly process, it is important to prioritize the insulation of the pylons in the network for quick and efficient mitigation of eagle mortality. To determine which pylons need to be retrofitted, we applied a three-stage Maximum Entropy Modeling process for identifying the risk factors among different environmental variables. The results show that the environmental feature with the highest correlation to electrocution events is the distance to water reservoirs, which are foraging hotspots of the eagles in Israel’s arid environment. Unfortunately, the only tall perch available for eagles in the vicinity of many of the reservoirs are the electricity pylons that power the reservoirs’ pumping facilities. This combination of anthropogenic alterations has apparently created a detrimental ecological trap. The strong attractiveness of water reservoirs for the eagles may explain the high level of selectivity that was calculated by the model, suggesting that retrofitting only 3.6% of the pylons in the network would achieve 77% reduction in eagles’ electrocution probability. Moreover, insulating pylons according to the model is expected to achieve a significant remedy for other avian species, among them the Eastern Imperial Eagles (Aquila heliaca) and White-Tailed Eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla). Synthesis and applications: The modeling process presented here yielded two electrocution risk maps, one of which is expected to facilitate properly prioritized mitigation of eagle electrocution in the existing power network of Israel, while the second map is designed to support an informed planning of new infrastructures. Applying this approach is expected to substantially aid the conservation of the population and allow it to recover to its initial size, which was three times its current size, about 70 years ago. The work presented here aims to prioritize the mitigation of raptor electrocution in arid and semi-arid areas, geographic zones that are largely under-studied in relation to this mortality factor. Electrocution in arid areas is of a particular concern in many developing countries, where networks of distribution lines are rapidly growing and raptor electrocution rate is high. The modeling approach presented in this study can be applied in these arid developing countries to mitigate raptor electrocution, aiding their conservation.

Delivering information on bird movement is the main reason for utilization of dataloggers in research. It was, however, very soon discovered, that information regarding mortality factors can sometimes be of higher conservation value. Since 2011, the “Aquila” company is offering GPS/GSM dataloggers. Today an attempt is made to measure the efficiency of Aquila dataloggers in delivering solid data regarding bird mortality rate. Analysed were 111 devices used in Eastern Europe and Asia within 7 scientific projects from 2017 to 2021. The results show that over 67% of the devices are either still operational or were collected providing evidence of the bird mortality problems. Of the remaining 33%, further probable mortality issues could be withdrawn from the delivered data, despite lacking clear evidence, for half of the cases. In total, fate of 18% of the tagged birds remains unknown.

The cult of eagle in the beliefs of the Yakutian (Sakha) people was described in detail in the beginning of the 20th century in the articles of V.M. Ionov (1913) and L.J. Shtenberg (1925). In recent years, the question of the semantics of the image of an eagle in the traditional culture of the Yakuts was addressed by U.P. Suzdalova (2020), the meanings of this bird of prey in mythological representations of the Sakha and Buryats by V.V. Ushnitsky (2021). Besides that, in a number of works related to the mythology of the Yakutian people, there is a mention of the eagle cult for Sakha (Kulakovsky, 1923; Alekseev, 1984; Gogolev, 2002, etc). Each clan of the Sakha people considered some animal as their sacred patron. Among birds such animals were, first of all, birds of prey such as eagle, falcon, hawk, owl, and osprey. Of all totemic animals, the Yakut cult of the eagle was especially developed. Thus, in Yakut mythology this bird is often a link with the creator or a deity itself, belonging to the category of ayyl – resident of the Upper World (Sternberg, 1925; Alekseev, 1969; Utkin, 1994; Gogolev, 2002; Ushnitsky, 2021). The Yakutian people consider Yuryung ayi toyon, a white lord of light, to be the head of the ayy. He does not interfere in people's affairs. "His verbs are thunder and lightning, his bird is an eagle dozing at his feet, and his emblem is the sun" (Seroshevsky, 1896). According to some concepts, this predator is considered a heavenly deity Homporuun Hotoi being an elder son of Uluuu toyon – a great lord of the Upper World, or a formidable spirit of the Upper World, called Hunchbacked Hotoi Ayyy. In addition to all this, the canonization of the image of the eagle is connected with the notions: 1) this raptor is a solar symbol associated not only with the sun, but also with the cyclical change of seasons; 2) the eagle is the ancestor and patroness of Yakut shamans; 3) the bird that gave fire to people (Ionov, 1913; Kulakovsky, 1923; Utkin, 1994; Suzdalova, 2020). An example of the Yakuts' special attitude to the eagle is shown in E.A. Novikov's feature film "Tsar Bird" filmed in 2018 based on a story by V.V. Yakovlev's story "A larch tree that grew old with me". This film won the Grand Prize at the 2019 Moscow International Film Festival. The film tells the story of an old man and an old woman who lived in the outback of Yakutia in the 1930s. At the beginning of winter, an eagle arrives in their yard and does not fly away. The old folks start feeding the hungry bird and, thinking it is a curse of the higher deities, invite a shaman. During the ritual it transpires that the old man has ruined the eagle's nest in the past, and the family takes the appearance of the bird as retribution from Hotoi Ayyy. Then, with the onset of severe cold, the bird flies into the old men's tent and settles in the corner. After a while, the owners get used to the neighborhood of the eagle and even begin to treat it as their own, believing that the bird has flown in to replace their dead son. At the end of winter, the eagle brings a fox as a thank-you before abandoning old men. In general, the film shows the Sakha people's adoration of the eagle, their attitude to it as a son of the formidable god Hotoi Ayyy, who can punish a man who has wronged him, and the belief that the soul of a dead man flies upwards and turns into an eagle. The eagle is a sacred bird for people from Khangalassky District of Republic Sakha (Yakutia). According to legend, the bird helped the founder of their family, who was seriously wounded on the battlefield, to survive. When he was about to die, geese were flying over, and an eagle suddenly appeared from somewhere killed one of them with a blow of the leg and brought the dying man with the meat of the goose and thus a man survived. Subsequently, he became an ancestor of the Khangalas (Kulakovskii, 1923). Another explanation of the choice of the eagle as a totem bird is that the Khangalas considered themselves "Toyon uus", which literally translates as "Kin lord", and worship the deity "Toyon kyil" – "Lord of the animals", which they equate with an eagle (Nogovitsyn, 2008). Thus, the bird of prey is a patron of family, and a clan totem. It should be noted that except Khangalas the eagle is a totem of some clans of Khorin, which are spread almost all over Yakutia, and of the clans Botulu of the Verkhnevilyuisky and Chordu of the Olenek Ulus (Alekseev, 1969). The image of the eagle was rooted in the world outlook of the inhabitants of Khangalassky district, revealing its manifestation at the present stage of history as well. Firstly, the heraldry in the district' coat of arms is indicative – a golden eagle with outstretched wings sitting on top of the tree of life Aal Luuk mas. In a major event held in the district’s administrative centre (Pokrovsk), the totem bird of Khangalasses decorated the emblem of Ysyakh Olonkho – 2014. In addition, many souvenirs, clothing items, etc., have the symbolism of this totem bird. It should also be noted that in 2014 a stele of a bronze eagle was erected in Kullaty, Khangalassky District, and in recent years, Yakutian people have developed a tradition of stopping at this monument and asking for the blessing of Khotoy Ayyy himself. On the initiative of Khangalassky District administration and regional ethnographers, searches for golden eagle nests have been carried out during the last decade. Totally, 15 golden eagle nests have been found up to now on the District territory and 7 of them have been occupied. As a result of these works a project of ecological and biological justification to establish Maltaany Reserve has been prepared, the territory of which, in fact, is the breeding ground for the golden eagle’s whole Central Yakutian population.

In the breeding seasons of 2013–2023, monitoring of the permanent breeding territory of a pair of Short-Toed Eagles (Circaetus gallicus) was conducted in the southern shore of Lake Balkhash, in the transition landscape of wetland to desert biome, in a wooded area dominated by Turanga Poplar (Populus diversifolia). It was found that, at least during the 2017, 2021, and 2022 breeding seasons, nearly fully feathered nestlings were eaten by an Asiatic Wildcat (Felis lybica ornata) shortly before they fledged from their nests. All nests observed during the monitoring periods were located in the uppermost center of a poplar tree crown. Starting in 2021, a DJI Mavic 2 PRO quadrocopter was used for monitoring. Using a Bushnell Nature View 12MP camera trap in 2017, an Asiatic wildcat was found to have repeatedly visited the nest at the top of a tall poplar tree during the breeding season, but did not eat neither the egg nor the nestling at various stages of its development. A pair of Short-Toed Eagles from this nest was tolerant of a pair of Shikras, or little banded Goshawkes (Accipiter badius), nesting 5 m away in a neighboring poplar. Adult Shikras, on the contrary, showed aggressive behavior toward Short-Toed Eagles approaching their nest, especially after their nestlings had hatched. Notably, in 2022 and 2023 the Short-Toed Eagles reused the same nest. Moreover, despite a negative breeding outcome in 2022, the pair successfully raised a nestling in 2023 until it fledged from the nest. The nestling, sometimes accompanied by one of the parents, was still in this poplar grove in late August and early September of 2023, often resting in a large poplar 70 m from the nest. The nest itself also continued to be used as a roost and foraging area, where prey, mainly Long-Eared Hedgehogs (Hemiechinus auritus), were brought and eaten.

Wind energy is one of the most affordable energy sources worldwide and represents one of the most climate and environmentally friendly options for energy production. However, wind power plants (WPP) can have negative impacts on biodiversity, especially on flying animals (birds and bats), through direct mortality due to collisions and indirectly due to habitat degradation and loss of food resources. Wind Power Plants also create barrier effects for migratory birds. One study showed that the representatives of Accipitriformes (57% of species in this order) were the most vulnerable to death in WPP and had the highest predicted collision rate of all taxonomic orders (0.001–0.288, averaging 0.073±0.064 collisions per turbine per year (Thaxter et al., 2017). Kazakhstan is still quite densely populated by birds of prey of the Accipitriformes, including eagles. Such large species as Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca), Steppe Eagle (Aquila nipalensis) nest here, and for the last two species Kazakhstan is the country where more than 50% of the world population is concentrated. More than 50% of the world population of the Greater Spotted Eagle (Aquila clanga), which breeds in Siberia, also migrates through Kazakhstan. All of these species are extremely vulnerable to collisions with WPP blades, and excess mortality of even a few percent can cause serious damage to their populations, especially the Steppe Eagle, which has been declining rapidly in recent decades for a variety of reasons. So far, Kazakhstan does not have an acute problem of eagle deaths at WPP, as wind energy occupies only 2% of the country's energy balance (2.28 TWhr vs. 112.78 TWhr), but things can change quite quickly. In the last 8 years alone, wind energy production in Kazakhstan has rapidly increased by more than 200 times – from 0.01 TWhr in 2014 to 2.28 TWhr in 2022. And the country has the capacity to continue to increase wind power generation on the same scale for the next 10 years without any difficulty. And that could spell disaster for the eagle population. That is why the most interesting areas for wind power generation, the most profitable in terms of return on investment and profit, coincide with the densest eagle breeding grounds and/or migration corridors. The legislation of Kazakhstan does not restrict economic activities in the habitats of rare species, there are no regulations on buffer zones around the nests of species listed in the Red Data Book of Kazakhstan, in which the construction of facilities dangerous for birds is prohibited, there is no prohibition on the construction of wind power plants in migration corridors, there are no requirements for bird protection measures at wind power plants. Thus, with the intensive development of wind energy in Kazakhstan, eagles and many other species of birds of Already now, the Zhanatas WPP has been built on the Karatau Ridge, through which about one million birds of prey and 32.3 to 40.6 thousand eagles of three species (Steppe Eagle, Imperial Eagle, Greater Spotted Eagle) fly on their autumn migration. In the same migration corridor in the Chu-Ili Mountains near Mirny settlement of Zhambyl Region, it is planned to construct a new WPP with a capacity of 1GW. An agreement of principles for the implementation of this project was signed by the head of the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan, the chairmen of Samruk-Kazyna and KazMunaiGas, the vice president for business development in Asia of Total Еren S.A. and the CEO of TotalEnergies on June 9, 2022. There are plans to construct a WPP between the Chokpak Pass and the Aschibulak Reservoir. These three WPPs could already cause serious damage to eagles migrating in the Western Circum-Himalayan Migration Corridor (WCHMC). In addition, the development of WPP is planned in Ustyurt, which may cause serious damage to the populations of eagles breeding in the Aral-Caspian region, as well as migrating from the steppes of Western Kazakhstan and the Volga-Ural region – which is more than half of the world population of the Steppe Eagle and a third of the world population of the Imperial Eagle. While WPPs in Kazakhstan have been actively constructed and commissioned since 2015, there are no studies that preceded the construction of WPPs and there are no studies on the impact of already constructed WPPs on flying animals. Most of the operating WPPs are built without taking into account information on rare species both breeding in the project plots and migrating through them. In fact, an imitation EIA has been written for them. A survey of the Zhanatas WPP in 2022 showed that during construction and after commissioning, breeding territories of Golden Eagle, Short-Toed Eagle (Circaetus gallicus), Egyptian Vulture (Neophron percnopterus) and Black Stork (Ciconia nigra) were destroyed, and several territories of these species are threatened as the birds regularly move through the WPP in search of prey during the breeding season. Also, as a result of the construction of the Zhanatas WPP, the area has completely lost its importance for migrating Great Bustards (Otis tarda) as a permanent stopover location, and the operation of the WPP poses a threat of death to migrating great bustards as a result of collision with the blades. During the analysis of migration data of Siberian eagles flying through Karatau, it was found out that the Zhanatasskaya WPP was built outside the eagle stopping zone, however 8.7% of eagles passed through the WPP. When extrapolating the data to the entire population of migrating eagles, we get an average of 5 thousand WPP near Zhangiztobe, also constructed in the WCHMC, through which Eastern Kazakhstani and Siberian eagles migrate, showed a complete loss of the Steppe Eagle from the list of the breeding species in the 7 km zone around the plant. Although before the construction of the WPP, the area provided habitat for at least 6 pairs of steppe eagles. The impact of WPP on birds varies significantly by region, season and species. Therefore, it is unclear to what extent bird mortality assessments and mitigation proposals developed in other countries can be applied to the conditions of Kazakhstan. It is urgent to develop Kazakhstan's practice of assessing the impact of WPP on biodiversity and to use the best practices developed by the world community for mitigation. It is urgently necessary to amend the legislation of Kazakhstan in terms of limiting the construction of WPP in migration corridors, as it is done in the EU. We need for clear regulations to ensure bird safety at WPPs and the development of turbine shutdown schedules for WPPs built in migration corridors. To understand the specifics and modelling of the migration of birds of prey through the territories of East Kazakhstan Region, promising for wind energy development, within the framework of the project “Endangered Raptors Conservation on the Indo-Palearctic Migration Flyway”, implemented with the support of The Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF), work has begun to create a map of raptor migration, highlighting areas at risk from energy infrastructure.

There are over 500 million livestock in India, and without infrastructure to dispose of dead livestock animals, pastoralism has historically depended on vultures (Gyps sp.) as environmental sanitizers. In their absence, carcasses of dead animals spend time out in the open or are disposed by farmers in water, both of which create an increased risk of disease and water pollution. This carrion also creates a new source of food for dogs and rats, increasing their population. Feral dogs and rats are a major source of rabies infections, a known public health issue in India. Rabies infection is lethal unless vaccination immediately after exposure. The collapse in India’s vulture population occurred because of unintended poisoning following the availability of cheap generic versions of diclofenac for human use till 2008. Diclofenac was introduced in 1973 as a painkiller for humans, but in the mid-90s, along with approval for a generic version in 1993, the pharmaceutical industry in India started producing large quantities of the drug. This lowered the price to a point that made diclofenac use in livestock economically viable and by 1994, diclofenac was widely available across veterinary clinics. Diclofenac was the first NSAID shown to be toxic to scavenging birds and has been banned for veterinary use in much of Asia vultures’ range. Currently, there are fully gazetted bans on the manufacture, sale, and use of veterinary diclofenac in Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Iran, Nepal, Oman, and Pakistan, and other countries are considering a similar ban. With the intervention of Human right commission in India, generic versions of multi dose packs of diclofenac for human use was banned in 2015 to stop misuse in animals treatments. In 2023, Ketoprofen, Aceclofenac more fully gazetted bans on the manufacture, sale and use of veterinary for vulture protection. Other then Diclofenac, Ketoprofen, Aceclofenac, two more agents including Nimesulide and their composition, and Flunixin are toxic to vultures. As per scientific reports and analysis in safety testing experiments have established that meloxicam and tolfenamic acid are safe. Use of medicines for One Health issue, and the use of veterinary medicines can have consequences affecting animal health, welfare, and ecosystems. According to Nambirajan, 2018 range of diclofenac 62.28 to 272.20 ng/g in 32 dead White-Backed Vultures (Gyps africanus). In another similar incidence, 14 White-Backed Vultures had diclofenac in kidneys in toxic range (70–908 ng/g), and in 12 Himalayan Griffons (Gyps himalayensis), diclofenac was in the range of 139.69 to 411.73 ng/g. In 2021, a new drug has caused four White-Rumped Vulture (Gyps bengalensis) deaths as nimesulide was detected in all the tissues (17–1395 ng/g). As veterinary aspects are critical to stakeholders of pharmaceutical industry, and we can leverage our multiple spheres of influence to help mitigate the animal and public health, as well as reduce the ecological footprints of medicine use. In addition, there is also a need to analyze the drug influence on vulture reproductive health in Central Asia.

Pylons around the world are being retrofitted with Bird Protection Devices (BPDs) to reduce the risk of avian electrocutions. When installed correctly, BPDs can be highly effective. When installed incorrectly, however, BPDs may allow electrocutions to continue on retrofitted pylons. This presentation will provide examples of correctly and incorrectly installed BPDs to help audience members identify four categories of retrofitting errors: product design errors, mitigation plan errors, improvisation errors, and application errors. Product design errors occur when products do not sufficiently cover energized equipment. Mitigation plan errors occur when retrofitting plans do not consider all potentially dangerous locations on a pylon. Improvisation errors occur when home-made covers do not meet requirements for coverage, electrical resistance, environmental conditions, or durability. Application errors occur when appropriate materials or techniques are installed or applied incorrectly. After providing and explaining examples of each type of error, the audience will participate in identifying errors in photos of additional pylons.

White-Tailed Sea Eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) re-settled the area of South Moravia (the south-eastern region of Czech Republic) in 1984. It became a regular breeding species in 2004 and since then, the population rose up to present ca 30 breeding pairs. Its diet was studied by identification of food remains on nests, mainly during ringing of nestlings (i.e. usually late April / first half of May). 605 food items were identified during 97 nest checks within the period of 1999–2023. Fish composed 47%, birds 28% and mammals 25% of the identified items. The most numerous taxa were European Hare (Lepus europaeus) – 151 inds, Carp (Cyprinus carpio) – 87, Silver Crucian Carp (Carassius auratus) – 61, Common Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) – 54, Northern Pike (Esox lucius) – 50, and Eurasian Coot (Fulica atra) – 33. The number of food items per nest varied between 1 and 28. The interesting findings included e.g. Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna), Stock Dove (Columba oenas), Tawny Owl (Strix aluco), or Long-Eared Owl (Asio otus).

Habitat transformation is identified as a global threat to biodiversity, affecting threatened raptors. In our study area, habitat change dramatically affected permanent grasslands, shrinking their availability. As we expected, the decrease in share of grasslands in eagles’ territories significantly affected occupancy rate, but not productivity: we found that occupancy rate decreased significantly, while productivity showed no trend. Understanding the adaptive capacity of top predators and how they respond to shifts in prey abundance and availability is crucial for their conservation. We investigated the diet pattern of the endangered Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca) facing long-term and large-scale changes. We studied the abundance variation of its profitable prey, European Souslik (Spermophilus citellus), and how it reflected on eagle population trajectories in a regional and temporal context. We found a significant diet alteration expressed in large decrease of brown hare (β2=-0.83), poultry (β2=-0.81), gulls (β2=-0.71), and water birds (β2=-0.57) and an obvious increase of northern white-breasted hedgehog (β2=0.61) and doves (β2=0.60). Raptors, including owls, raised their share among the prey (β2=0.44), but white stork and different reptiles supplied more biomass. Abundance of European souslik decreased through the studied periods (adjusted R2=0.25, p<0.001), which accounted for the lower proportion of this prey in the eagle’s diet. Nevertheless, the eagle population successfully adapted and significantly increased (β2=0.97) in most of its distribution area. The trophic strategy used by this top predator related to opportunistic foraging represents an ecological advantage that allows the species to adapt to different habitats and guarantees its future. In addition, we assessed whether human-driven habitat alterations mediated dietary shifts of the Eastern imperial eagle. Following a bottom-up conception (before–after), we evaluated the effect of grassland change on the eagle’s dietary shift and breeding success. Land use patterns underwent a significant transformation over the study period, creating a large decrease in grasslands (on average, 25.79% loss in grasslands on eagle territories). Habitat alteration mediated dietary shifts, but had no reproductive consequences for eagles. Eagles became 1.90 times more likely to predate on northern white-breasted hedgehog and 1.62 times more likely to forage on white stork in the period after grassland alteration. The share of land tortoises as eagle’s prey also increased, and they were 4.04 times more likely to be predated on in the years after transformation. Conversely, brown hare was 0.51 times less likely to be consumed in the grassland loss period, while this likelihood was 0.54 times lower for rodents and 0.64 times lower for the European souslik. Doves, meanwhile, were 2.73 times more likely to be predated on in the years following grassland destruction. We found that the presence and biomass of songbirds and European Souslik correlated negatively with the breeding success of eagles, while the White Stork’s (Ciconia ciconia) presence and biomass resulted in more progeny. Diet diversity did not have an effect on the eagle’s reproductive success. The responses of the eagles may vary across territories, depending on how they rank their prey, as the territory effect was a powerful factor shaping dietary shifts for this top predator. Our results offer new evidence of the link between habitat alteration, dietary shifts, and reproductive success, contributing to our understanding of the enigmatic mechanism, through which an apex predator successfully adapts to large-scale land use pattern transformation by increasing dietary specialization. We recommend restoration of habitat complexity, including preservation of field margins, grassland patches with scattered small shrub formations, and grassland margins between medium-sized arable lands, promotion of measures for traditional grassland management through gradual grazing, and a ban on the use of shredders.

Presented data on the Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) diet is based on the analysis of 291 pellets and 233 food remains found in or under nests and perches. Data was also obtained based on visual information. Small rodents were identified by teeth structure, birds – by femur and humerus sizes. If possible, species was determined by mammal hairs and bird feathers found in pellets or food remains. Information on the Golden Eagle diet was obtained between 2006 and 2023 in three administrative areas of Yakutia (Khangalassky and Namsky districts, administrative area of the city of Yakutsk) located in the basin of the middle reaches of Lena (Middle Lena). The study area has a wide and complexly terraced valley, 70% of which is covered by taiga with combination of coniferous (larch, spruce, pine) and small-leaved (willow, birch) forests, meadows, and agricultural land. The Middle Lena is characterized by an extremely continental climate and a short summer: average temperature in January is -43.2°, in June – +18,0°, frostfree period lasts 95 days. Previously Golden Eagle nested throughout the taiga of Yakutia, and until the early 1960s was a common species in the Middle Lena (Vorobiev, 1963). Since the 1970s–1980s a sharp decrease in its abundance was recorded, and since the 1990s it has become extremely rare (Solomonov, Larionov, 1976; Borisov, 1987; Isaev et al., 2020). According to our observations, since the beginning of the 2000s there was a gradual increase in the number of Golden Eagle and the emergence of breeding territories in areas where Golden Eagles were absent for a long-time during breeding period. Today, 33 Golden Eagle nests are known in the Middle Lena, breeding occurred in 11 of them. The Golden Eagle arrival is usually observed from the second decade of March to the first decade of April. Golden Eagle lays eggs in April, nestlings hatch in May and depart from nests in September–October. Research by Yu.V. Labutin (1992) shows that in the 1970s–1980s, the main food source for Golden Eagle in Central Yakutia was Mountain Hare (89%); according to G.P. Larionov et al., 1991, in the 1980s–1990s this species accounted for 37.7% of prey. It should be noted that in the beginning-middle of the 20th century, Mountain Hare was one of the most common species in Central Yakutia, and in years of its peak abundance – massive commercial species, as almost 850,000 hare skins were harvested then. A steady downward trend in the number of species has begun from the 1970s, the population size has decreased, mainly due to the anthropogenic factor (Solomonov, 1975). Since 2000s, hare hunting has ceased due to its low numbers in the region. Accounting that has been carried out in Central Yakutia in 2008–2018 showed that the number of species is very low – 0.2–0.3 individuals/10 km of the route (Sedalishchev, Odnokurtsev, 2022). As shown by the recent data, 11 mammal and 29 bird species are found in the Golden Eagle diet in Central Yakutia, and Long-Tailed Ground Squirrel has become its main prey. The predominance of Ground Squirrels in the diet suggests that, due to an increase in hare abundance, Golden Eagle switched to species with higher population density. The diet of Golden Eagle changes depending on the season. The greatest prey variety is observed in spring; eagles feed on young Roe Deer, Ground Squirrels, less often – hare, sable, etc. There are also reports of Golden Eagles attacking exhausted adult Roe Deer in early spring. It is worth noting that, judging by the survey data, Golden Eagles were often observed near fallen horses. While horse hairs were found in only one of the examined pellets, it confirmed Golden Eagle feeding on horse meat. From the beginning of June, Golden Eagle switch to its main prey, the Long-Tailed Ground Squirrel, occasionally feeding on small mammals and passerine birds. Interestingly, insects are sometimes found in pellets collected in Golden Eagle nests.