Two beauty spots east of Petersfield are at the centre of an investigation into the “devastating” disappearance of an extremely rare white-tailed eagle born in a pioneering conservation programme.

A satellite tracker that was used to monitor and locate an eagle was found on September 26 after being reportedly cut off and dumped close to its last recorded location.

Forestry England said the tag belonging to the G842 chick, which was born in the wild in Sussex early this year, was recovered from the River Rother east of Petersfield.

The chick was one of the two first white-tailed eagles to fledge in England for more than 240 years as the birds had been extinct nationally for two centuries.

A spokesperson for Forestry England said the pair, the offspring of eagles released in 2020, spent the first few months of their lives exploring the West Sussex area.

A sharp instrument had been used to move the tracker from the bird with searches around the Rother Valley to locate its body proving unsuccessful.

An investigation is underway with Sussex Police keen to hear from anyone who saw the bird or any suspicious behaviour in the Harting Down and Rotherlands area of Petersfield on the evening of September 20.

White-tailed eagles were reintroduced in 2019 with 37 being released on the Isle of Wight in a project led by Forestry England and the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation.

The project has been a success with several breeding pairs forming and six chicks being born in the wild for the first time since late 18th century.

Another tracker was found on moorland in Mid-Wales on September 13, while a third stopped transmitting on November 8 south of Edinburgh, with Police Scotland treating the disappearance as suspicious.

“We monitor the satellite data, showing the bird’s minute-by-minute movements, on a daily basis and always investigate any suspicious or unusual data,” said Tim Mackrill from the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation.

“It was devastating to find the stolen and dumped tags, particularly for the chick in Sussex who fledged this summer and had only just begun its life.”

Steve Egerton-Read, White-Tailed Eagle Project Officer for Forestry England, has pleaded for the public’s help given their original support to return the lost species to the English language.

He said: “These special birds are helping people connect with natural world and showing how with a little bit of help nature can thrive.

“We are asking the public to show this support again by encouraging anyone who has information that may help the police investigation to come forward.”

Any targeting of the birds will potentially impact the long-term success of the project, while disturbing, destroying or interfering with them and their nests are criminal offences.

Anyone who may have seen the bird or any suspicious behaviour in the Rother Valley and Harting area at the time of the tracker’s removal should contact Sussex Police on 101 quoting incident number 769.

Alternatively, contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.