Eagle Flight Footage Highlights Impact Of Climate Change In The Alps

Footage taken from an eagle-mounted camera has been shared in a bid to raise awareness of the impact of climate change in the Alps. Watch in the player below:

The video comes courtesy of Victor, a white-tailed eagle - while the footage is undeniably stunning, it is intended to highlight how climate change has melted alpine glaciers.

In doing so, it also puts forward a pretty good argument for 'eagle' being your answer next time someone asks you what animal you would like to be.

The video sees Victor gliding through the snowy mountain peaks before eventually swooping down and landing on the arm of an expectant falconer.

Jacques-Olivier Travers is the eagle's handler and also the founder of Freedom Conservation - described as 'a game-changing conservation movement that seeks to reintroduce endangered birds of prey through creative conservation methods'.

Mr Travers hopes the video will inspire people to help protect birds and their environment.

According to the Washington Post, he said: "Humanity has two dreams: to swim with dolphins and fly with eagles. How can you convince people to protect the birds and their environment if you never show them what the birds see?

"I was stunned, the difference over a year was incredible."

Eagle Wings Foundation

The video is just one of many Victor is shooting across Marmolada glacier in Italy, Zugspitze glacier in Germany, Corvatsch glacier in Switzerland, Dachstein glacier in Austria and Aiguille du Midi glacier in France. However, it is never guaranteed that Victor will return with the footage.

"I don't have a remote control. So if he doesn't see me and decides not to come to me, he could go anywhere," Mr Travers continued.

The feathered fella is putting in a fair amount of graft for the greater good when he takes to the skies with the camera.

Victor's handler said: "It's a bit like putting a washing machine on the roof of your car. You don't go as fast and you use more energy. It's the same for him. He doesn't fly as fast with that on his back and it demands a greater effort from him."

Freedom Conservation managing director, Ronald Menzel, said he hoped the video will offer people a different perspective - in more ways than one.

He said: "We hope that once more, people are going to see nature from a totally different perspective and just reconnect to it and realise that wow, it's actually something that is amazing and that we want to do something to preserve."

Topics: World News, climate change, Animals

Jake Massey

Jake Massey is a journalist at LADbible. He graduated from Newcastle University, where he learnt a bit about media and a lot about living without heating. After spending a few years in Australia and New Zealand, Jake secured a role at an obscure radio station in Norwich, inadvertently becoming a real-life Alan Partridge in the process. From there, Jake became a reporter at the Eastern Daily Press. Jake enjoys playing football, listening to music and writing about himself in the third person.

@jakesmassey