Jonathan Kemp; A naturalist in the south of France

 Across the valley there appeared a huge, dark, shape, hanging  over the top of the peak in front of us. What we were watching was so still, so motionless, that at first I could hardly believe it was a real bird; no movement of a wing to keep itself poised in the air, neither advancing or being blown back, a demonstration of absolute control. We peered through our telescopes, and knew that it was an golden eagle. Then, just above, was a second silhouette, even larger, so the female eagle, likewise poised above her partner, both so still that we didn’t need to move our telescopes. Were they hunting, scanning the slopes below them for a late catch as the sun was setting? Well, it is a possibility, but what followed next convinces me that more was going on.  We’re at the time of year when the largest birds on the European continent are preparing for next year’s nesting season, amazing as that might seem as winter is only just taking hold. However these birds have mo...