England's last remaining nesting golden eagles have failed to breed this year prompting fears the birds could be getting too old to reproduce.

The five-month breeding season for the golden eagles came to an end at the start of September.

A breeding pair have been nesting at the remote Haweswater Reserve in the Lake District since 1969.

Things were looking good for the most famous of the eagle family with the arrival of a new male this year to join the female who has been in the valley since 1982.

Breeding successfully

But Bill Kenmir, of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), said: "The birds did not breed successfully this year and we're not quite sure why.

"It may be because of the age of the female or the food supply."

Although the last recorded egg to hatch from the nest was in 1996, the golden eagles had been breeding successfully since they first came to Lakeland in the last sixties.

Mr Kenmir added: "When they first nested there was a wave of optimism among bird lovers that it would be the catalyst for the re-colonisation of the area.

"However, each year the young golden eagles left the Lakes and we presume they flew back to join the Scottish population."