The eagle has landed – after three days of menacing pets!

Lock up your pets... a giant eagle is loose!

A GIANT eagle that went missing from a bird of prey centre finally returned home yesterday after a frantic search to find him before he got too hungry.

His return came as a relief to local pet owners, who had been warned that the Steller’s sea eagle called Rex was capable of carrying off a fully grown dog in his talons. His keeper James Dennis, pictured above with the predator, was also delighted to see him back.

Rex flew off during a demonstration in Eynsford, Kent, on Sunday. Members of the public joined in the hunt for him, fearful that he might make off with one of their pets. His owners had tried to track him using a transmitter attached to his body, but the device failed, prompting them to issue a public appeal for his whereabouts – and a warning to keep animals indoors. Steller’s sea eagles can carry off prey weighing up to 13lb – the weight of a greyhound.

Sightings came in from all over Kent and it is thought that Rex – who has a 9ft wingspan – covered around 50 square miles during his adventure. At around midday yesterday he was spotted in Tonbridge, 20 miles from his home, the Eagle Heights Wildlife Foundation in Eynsford. But just an hour later he landed in the foundation’s arena, oblivious to the fuss he had caused.

Centre director Jonathan Ames said: ‘There was not a hair out of place on his head. He just came back of his own accord.’ Mr Ames believes strong winds on Sunday meant that 18-month-old Rex became stuck at his usual flying height of 1,000ft. ‘I think the wind pushed him away and he couldn’t get back,’ he said.