Guadarrama Booted Eagle Nest Cam

A Long-Studied Nesting Site

This nest sits atop a mature Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) deep within the Sierra de Guadarrama National Park, on its Madrid-facing slope near the headwaters of the Lozoya Valley. Known and monitored continuously since 2002, it is one of the longest-studied Booted Eagle territories in the region, set among dense pine forest at roughly 1,400 metres of altitude.

The Booted Eagle

The Booted Eagle (Hieraaetus pennatus) is, together with the black vulture, one of the most common forest raptors of this valley, with an estimated 20-30 breeding pairs nesting along the Lozoya headwaters. The species shows striking reverse sexual dimorphism: females are noticeably larger than males, and plumage can range from pale to dark morphs.

Raising the Brood

Incubation lasts 37 to 40 days, carried out mainly by the female while the male hunts and supplies prey to the nest. Two eggs are typically laid, though usually only a single chick fledges from this territory; the young eagle grows steadily on camera before taking its first flights around midsummer.

A Trans-Saharan Migrant

After the breeding season, this Booted Eagle pair embarks on a migration of roughly 3,000 kilometres each way to wintering grounds in the open savannas of the African Sahel, spending about four months there before returning to the same pine each spring — a journey this live camera, hosted by SEO/BirdLife and the national park, helps bring to a global audience.