LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — A newly named golden eagle at Bernheim Forest is turning heads for more than its name.
After a public vote, the bird was named Gwaihir, inspired by a character in The Lord of the Rings.
Researchers tagged the eagle earlier this year before it took off last month for migration. What followed surprised even experts.
Instead of heading north, the eagle moved through Kentucky and Indiana before making a sharp turn southwest, traveling across Illinois, Missouri, Kansas and Nebraska before its last recorded location in Montana.
Researchers said they have never tracked a golden eagle taking a route like this, and they will keep monitoring Gwaihir’s journey as it continues to unfold.
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