However, the golden eagles also ate native island foxes.
Then they feasted on the island fox, a cat-size animal listed as a threatened species.
The small size of the island fox is an adaptation to the limited resources available in the island environment.
The female island fox gives birth in a den, a typical litter having one to five pups, with an average of two or three.
The island fox is not intimidated by humans, although at first may show aggression.
The island fox communicates using auditory, olfactory and visual signals.
In this process, a predator, like the golden eagle, feeds on at least two prey, for example, the island fox and feral pigs.
To ensure survival of the island fox, golden eagles are being moved from the northern islands to the mainland.
Declining too is the island fox, which inhabits six islands off Southern California.