Falconry morning

The photographer on duty for my morning of falconry was Him Behind the Wheel, so thanks to him for the following.

Edinburgh, in contrast to the west of the country, was overcast and a bit chilly. I was having my lesson with an Italian couple; they claimed to prefer Scottish weather to theirs. Anyway, there was more than enough excitement to keep me happy. Just like this little chap……..a Mexican striped owl who is nineteen years old and cheeky with it.

He was pressed into duty when the Snowy owl claimed the rights of all birds not to co-operate. The owls and falcons are reared to a life of captivity and are well used to humans, nonetheless it is stunning when they fly and land on your arm to retrieve the piece of game offered. My first successful landing was with a Turkmanian owl. He was huge, called The Duke, after John Wayne, because he had a funny walk as a chick. (The owl, not the actor!)

It was a great joy to see the birds as close up. Surprisingly, I was not at all nervous, even with the Harris’s Hawk. However, one had the feeling not to mess with the hawks in comparison to the owls. The latter could be stroked and chatted up, the former were definitely not to be stroked and had an aristocratic air. Quite rightly as is their due, after all they are the acrobatic masters of the sky.

We had the pleasure of watching a kestrel dive to a lure at close quarters, then the “biggie” – some time handling an eagle. He was a Russian Steppe Eagle, so only half the size of our native golden eagle. A rather large armful and requiring an extra hand’s support. No chance of flying him……he would have knocked me over. So there we are…..a brilliant day’s activity. I guess there are some ethical questions about birds being brought up to such a life, but they seemed pretty content to me. Our instructor told us that birds are basically only interested in three things: feeding, mating and migrating. And once feeding has taken place for the day, (all according to the birds’ weights and needs) then they are happy to perch, doze and watch the world go by. Not such a bad life, especially when you consider that such birds in the wild may have a life expectancy of five or six years, whereas in captivity they live for twenty years or so.