At the end of the summer, juveniles abandon their area of birth and undertake an independent life for a period of 2 or 3 years, until they settle in an own territory and mate. This initial period in the life of the eagles is called “dispersal”.

Some juveniles make long movements of thousands of km. In other cases, the movements are quite shorter, of just some hundreds km, and the eagles eventually settle in dispersal areas relatively close to the areas of birth.

The current data show that females undertake usually longer trips than males.

The dispersal areas

The dispersal areas are usually soft relief territories, mainly dry farming regions where food abounds (rabbits, partridges…) and located outside the nesting areas of the adult pairs.

The dispersal areas are essential for the survival of the young and inexpert eagles, for there it is easier for the eagles to obtain food as they learn and improve their hunting skills. If the young eagles lived in the areas where adults live, they would have to compete against each other.

Dispersal areas in Catalonia

 In Catalonia several areas have been found where the young Bonelli´s Eagles may be seen all the year, both coming from the Catalan population or from the rest of Spain or France.

They correspond principally to the most extensive areas of dry farming land of Catalonia, placed in the regions of the Garrigues, the Segarra, the Urgell and the Noguera. In these areas the cereal crops, the traditional pastoral farming activities and the maintenance of dry grasslands, they provide a diverse habitat and make the plenty of rabbit and partridge be potentially high.

Also it is habitual to observe young Bonelli's Eagles in the humid areas placed in the Catalan littoral (Aiguamolls de l’Empordà, Delta del Ebre and, occasionally, in the Delta del Llobregat), since they are points with a great plenty of potential preys.

In addition to his importance for the period of dispersion of the juvenile specimen of Bonelli's Eagle, these areas receive a great diversity of others raptors and species of birds; hence their great importance from the point of view of conservation.