New song: Return of the White-Tailed Eagle • RSPB

A new single by Alice Boyd, created in collaboration with the RSPB

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To mark the 50th anniversary of the successful reintroduction of the white-tailed eagle to the UK, musician and sound artist Alice Boyd has released a new single in collaboration with the RSPB. Return of the White-Tailed Eagle blends ambient field recordings captured at RSPB Pulborough Brooks with layered vocal harmonies and textured instrumentation, evoking the quiet anticipation and awe that surrounds an encounter with these majestic birds.

The white-tailed eagle - once driven to extinction in the UK due to persecution and habitat loss - has made a remarkable comeback over the last five decades, thanks to the long-term efforts of conservationists, volunteers and communities. During the creation of the track, Alice spent a day recording at RSPB Pulborough Brooks in hopes of capturing the eagle’s call. While the bird remained silent, the experience itself - hours spent listening, waiting and attuning to the landscape - became central to the piece’s atmosphere and emotional tone.

The single accompanies Return (out 29 August), a short film by the RSPB celebrating this conservation milestone. The film features voices including RSPB Scotland’s Dave Sexton and Flock Together’s Nadeem Perera, and combines archival footage with striking present-day scenes from the eagles’ Scottish strongholds.

The project continues Alice’s exploration of our changing soundscapes, following her Radio 4 documentary Shifting Soundscapes, which retraced audio recordings made by naturalist Martyn Stewart 50 years ago. While that work often revealed loss - quieter dawn choruses, increased noise pollution - the story of the white-tailed eagle offers something rarer: hope. A reminder that with care and collaboration, lost voices can return.