Just need to keep watching the weekend newspapers for the typical reaction and scare mongering from certain journalists, irrespective of it being a hoax/fake. Sadly there will be some who think it is genuine even though now a proven fake.

All the best to everyone for the festive season and great birding in 2013.

Phil

It's completely fake, The wingbeats are to shallow, the wing shape as it 'attacks' is all wrong for a Golden eagle, and would a wild eagle really try and hunt that close to that many people? I think not. An eagle would also never attempt to fly off with such a large item. all wrong. bad C.G.I. Fake.

I normally refuse to watch all these viral videos - eventually, after closer-collective scrutiny via other people (plus intuition) they are just pathetic wastes of 3 minutes - I enjoy watching the proper birding videos, though :)

We all know this is a hoax but I wouldn't mind betting that there are many out there who accept this as genuine. This sort of stuff can easily fuel raptor persecution if people believe that their kids could get snatched.

I'm probably taking this a little too seriously but it was a thought that crossed my mind.

According to Granada reports some Canadian students have claimed they are responsible for the HOAX video.

Surely that must be one of the child-eating Red Kites from Oxfordshire previously reported in a highly reliable Red Top newspaper

If you look carefully, when the man is running to the scene, his shadow looks all wrong (pointing in the wrong direction). Or is that an effect of the camera?
Anyway, it looks fake to me.

Fake, if its caught a child then its not using much effort to fly off with it. The wing strokes are very shallow... If you watch it in slow motion is obvious its not real as child just free falls like a dummy.

Regards Oli

Just watched it on YouTube and it looks pretty genuine, but you never know.

It's in the Daily Mail so it must be true

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2250416/Terrifying-moment-golden-eagle-swooped-snatched-toddler-played-park.html

Just watched it. Totally fake. The whole sequence of the bird taking the child just doesn't look right.

What do you think - fake or not?

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/golden-eagle-snatches-toddler-canada-video-075738205.html

It's not even a Golden Eagle, nevermind a real child!

-- Edited by Henry Cook on Wednesday 19th of December 2012 06:24:48 PM