ILLEGAL SHOOTING
Shooting is an important cause of unnatural death for this species, particularly in places and periods of high cinegetic pressure, but also in situations of direct and intentional persecution. This threat comes from the still existing notion that the species can be a harmful predator, leading to the illegal control of predators and bespeaking a lack of respect for natural values.
Given the small population of this species in Portugal, shooting of even one individual is a significant loss to the population. In 2009, a subadult Iberian Imperial Eagle was shot in the Special Protection Zone (SPZ) of Castro Verde. In this case, the death of the breeding male led its mate to abandon the territory, which remained empty afterwards.
