Relief after 'shy' bald eagle Aspen is found

A "shy" eagle that went missing from a birds of prey centre after being mobbed by crows has been found.

Aspen, an American bald eagle, was chased from Herrings Green Activity Farm in Wilstead, near Bedford, just before a flying display on Monday.

A BBC Three Counties Radio listener named Dot told presenter Andy Collins she thought she had seen the eagle after "a really big bird flew across my car". He was found near Cardington, south of Bedford, on Tuesday after another sighting by a member of the public.

Sarah Hesford, from the centre, said he "literally saw me and the second I put my glove up he was right there".

Aspen has now been reunited with the other bald eagles at the centre.

Hesford said he was a shy bird, who was now "back to his old self".

The bald eagle is not the first bird of prey to go missing from the centre.

Last year Tango, a black kite, was found in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, by his trainer more than 100 miles (161km) away from his home, only to go missing again.

He has not been found.

• The National Audubon Society said the bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is a bird of prey found in North America
• They can have a wingspan of up to 2m (6ft 8in)
• They mainly eat fish, and can survive fasting for many days, even weeks
• Bald eagles are powerful fliers
• Their breeding season generally lasts from late winter through summer
• In 2007, the bird of prey was removed from the US's Endangered Species Protection list after 10 years of successful recovery and increased populations

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