The world of the falconer is a time-honored tradition that stretches thousands of years into our human past. To be a falconer isn’t a hobby, but a dedicated lifestyle. The benefits received are symbiotic, which is the only way a wild animal will put up with you.
A wild animal you might ask? Yes, Lamoka is a wild bird. Why would a wild bird want to stay with a human? Don’t they avoid people? How is the animal better off with a human host than going at it alone out there? What purpose does being a falconer, provide to the conservation end of the spectrum? How would you train a wild bird? All relevant questions, that most outdoorsmen would ask if they were fortunate enough to meet a falconer.
Lamoka was captured in the wild by Dave Larnerd last September. This was done by using snares and nets specifically designed to catch the birds without harming them. A little known fact is that only first-year birds called passage birds are allowed to be kept and trained. The reason is that birds of prey have around a 70 percent mortality rate in their first year of life. By having a human host for the first couple years, that rate increases to nearly 100 percent. So here’s the silver lining to being a falconer: By helping the juvenile bird out, you are able to help the species as a whole.
The Red Tail, being an extremely intelligent animal, learns quickly that life with a human host is much easier than going it alone. As soon as the animal learns that you provide for it, it recognizes that life as it had known, has become much easier. It chooses to stay with the trainer, because they are like humans and will take free food, water, and shelter, rather than working for it.
You must first get the bird to trust you. This is done through hours of close contact in the first few days, which is called manning. You don’t want to touch the bird and frighten it, rather you want it to touch or climb onto your glove. A food reward is given and the bird learns to step off of the roosting platform on to the gloved hand of the trainer. You then increase the distance until the bird jumps to your hand. The final step is to create enough distance that the bird has to fly to the reward. By this point, you have gained the bird’s trust, and its on to flying outside on a creance line. This is done for a couple weeks until the bird learns the commands given by the handler’s whistle. He uses a leather lure attached to a six-foot string, which is always garnished with some form of food reward. He swings it over head like a helicopter prop, and the bird flies in with an aggressive attack.
Once the bird is wed to the lure and instantly obeying commands, it’s time for free flight. The handler must be in tune with the bird’s weight. If full and too heavy, the bird may not return. If too light, the bird won’t have the energy to hunt. The trick is to find the bird’s optimum performance weight, much like a prize fighter. This takes skill because the variance in weight may only differ 20 to 50 grams. The birds are surprisingly light considering their size, and little changes in weight must be accounted for.
Then it’s time to hunt.
Dave was able to harvest the first rabbit using Lamoka after only a month of training. Dave beat the brush with a large staff to flush the rabbits. Once the bird catches on that you are pushing prey to them, it’s game on. They will then follow you like a puppy dog through the hunting fields. Lamoka has also been trained to hunt with a beagle, which greatly increases her odds of success. She has learned to fly in front of where the dog is barking to intercept the flushed cottontail.
Dave is on his third bird, after releasing the others back into the wild. He waits until things start to green up before releasing them. This way, it will be warm and there will be plenty of prey around for them to catch. Dave is obviously a dedicated falconer, and has the skills and patience needed to work with such amazing animals. There are tons of hoops to jump through to become a licensed falconer, along with a two-year apprenticeship. You must be sponsored by an experienced and licensed handler to even consider taking on the lifestyle. This is not for everyone, so if you don’t have the time and funds, don’t even think about it. The state DEC will be checking up to approve and monitor your aviary.
Thank you Dave for the experience. We didn’t get to hunt much at all because he feared the winds were too heavy. Good handlers always side in the direction of their animal’s safety. The hunting experience will have to wait until a future column.
Good wishes and happy hawk hunting.
Note: If you would like to see more pictures of Dave and Lamoka, visit his web page at yellowdogdave@frontiernet.net.