Six wedge-tailed eagles found shot dead on Junee property

SIX protected wedge-tailed eagles have been found shot dead and a seventh wounded on a rural property in the Junee Shire, sparking a police investigation and widespread outrage.

The shocking discovery was made on a property on Dollar Value Road at Eurongilly, 22km south-east of the Junee township.

The alarm was first raised on Saturday night, April 5, when a local landholder found a severely injured juvenile eagle with a broken wing and damaged foot.

WIRES volunteers attended the property the following morning and were devastated to find six more juvenile wedge-tailed eagles, all dead from apparent gunshot wounds.

Six wedge-tailed eagles were found shot dead on a property at Eurongilly | Image: WIRES

Tragically, the injured bird also had to be euthanised due to the severity of its injuries.

In a statement, NSW Police said the deceased eagles appeared to have been killed at different times before being dumped in the same paddock, under or near a single tree.

The incident was reported to police on Tuesday, April 8.

The eagle carcasses were found dumped under or near a single tree | Image: WIRES

WIRES raptor coordinator and wildlife carer Shelly Rozsa described the scene as the most distressing of her 10-year career.

“It was just really horrific,” she told the ABC. “This [injured] bird was left alive, just wandering around.”

Ms Rozsa said the landholder was “very angry, very distraught” by the discovery.

With a wingspan in excess of two metres, wedge-tailed eagles are Australia’s largest bird of prey | Image: Ed Dunens/Wikimedia (CC BY 2.0)

With wingspans exceeding two metres and bodies stretching up to a metre long, wedge-tailed eagles are the largest bird of prey in Australia and among the most powerful avian predators in the world.

In fact, the species holds the record for the widest confirmed wingspan of any eagle globally, with a female killed in Tasmania in 1931 measuring an extraordinary 2.84 metres.

The apex predators are a protected species under the Birds and Animals Protection Act, with penalties for harming them including fines of up to $50,000 and up to two years’ imprisonment.

Wedge-tailed eagles are among the most powerful avian predators on earth | Image: JJ Harrison/Wikimedia (CC BY-SA 3.0)

While wedge-tailed eagles are sometimes blamed for preying on young lambs — often putting them in conflict with farmers — their ecological role is critical for keeping pest populations in check.

The raptors primarily prey on rabbits, foxes, feral cats, and other pests, and also feed on reptiles, other birds, and roadkill.

They have also been seen taking wallabies, and lifting kangaroos off the ground.

The raptors primarily prey on rabbits, foxes, feral cats, and other pests, and also feed on reptiles, other birds, and roadkill | Image: Flickr/Annathaema

NSW Police, in conjunction with the National Parks and Wildlife Service, is investigating the mass killing and is urging anyone with information to come forward.

Anyone who may have seen or heard anything suspicious in the area is urged to contact Junee Police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.