THE EAGLES have flown—which means the closure of one of Mull’s most popular destinations.

Oatie and Haggis, the young sea eagles hatched in their nest in Mull earlier this summer, have taken to the wing.

The eagles have once again dazzled thousands of visitors to the island this breeding season, including First Minister Jack McConnell, before finally leaving the nest last week.

On a visit to the sea eagle viewing hide with his family in June, Mr McConnell described the eagles as “fantastic” and “a real asset to Mull” after a recent report by the RSPB revealed the birds contribute up to £1.7 million annually to the island economy.

After featuring in television, award-winning films and now DVDs, the sea eagles of Loch Frisa were never far from the camera lens again this year, with a string of high-profile visitors heading to the joint RSPB Scotland/Forestry Commission Scotland hide.

With unseasonal summer storms leading to the dramatic rescue of two other young sea eagles on the island, staff and volunteers were relieved to see Oatie and Haggis weather the storm, along with parents Skye and Frisa atop their home on the banks of the loch.

After the huge success of BBC Springwatch in 2005, and the release of Gordon Buchanan’s film Eagle Island on DVD, visitor trips were boosted by over a third this year with more people than ever catching a glimpse Scotland’s largest bird of prey.

Along with Springwatch visitors Kate Humble and Simon King, broadcaster John Craven visited the hide in June and enjoyed his first views of a sea eagle as part of the current series of Countryfile.

The project, which brings together island volunteers, the police, Mull and Iona Community Trust and funding support from the Heritage Lottery Fund (via the Nadair Trust) is now celebrating its 21st anniversary since the first sea eagle chick fledged in 1985, following the Scottish Natural Heritage supported reintroduction began just a few years before.

As the young eagles will now venture further away from the nest, the viewing hide welcomed its last visitors on Sunday, although people may be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of Oatie and Haggis.