R is for Raptor

I am a second-generation daughter of European and Russian peasants.    I am not the bastard great-great granddaughter of French or English kings.  There is no rational explanation for my love of falconry.  When my Burgundy group (Les Chevaliers du Tastevin) had a weekend event planned in Vermont, I flew into a tizzy at the opportunity. 

The Equinox Inn hosts the United States branch of the British School of Falconry.   I knocked Mr. Etherknitter to the floor in my rush for the phone.  "Me me me me!!" I shouted into the receiver.  "Of course, Ma'am.  May I also take your name?" 

It was early on a damp, chilly spring morning.  A young man gave me a pair of Wellies, a Scottish coat, and a leather glove.  We trekked out to an apple orchard, past sleepy cows, through misty meadows, Harris hawk on left wrist.  It is always the left wrist. 

She weighs virtually nothing.  It's all feathers and hollow bones. 

Hawks do not develop relationships with humans the way cats and dogs do.  All behavior is driven by hunger and hunting.  The hawk is not flown unless she is hungry, as the lure to bring her back to the hand is food.  If the hawk isn't hungry, she doesn't come back.  Period.  Her weight is tracked carefully.  She is taken out to fly only when she is several grams below her fed weight. 

The lure is a tiny piece of raw chicken meat.  Harris hawks have quarter-mile vision, so a square centimeter of lunch works.  Mr. E was a great photographer, and caught Miss Piggy responding to the lure. 

Knitting?  Oh, that.  Next post, I promise.

Comments

[Scout]

Wow. That is WAY cool.

[caroline]

migod! what have you done??? now I want to try it, too...it must be a 'daughter of russian peasant' thing. my mother's Ukrainian. close enough, eh? I seriously want to try this. do you suppose we can justify it by knitting a hood for the hawk?

[Sharon]

Perhaps in a past life you were one of King Arthur's pals.

[LaurieM]

That's very informative. Now I want to know, how does falconry speak to your soul? I sense some magic or poetry behind those hard facts you listed.

[Marcy, Not Blogless]

Woh. Falconry?? This is THE coolest thing.

But shouldn't you be dressed in a little high-waisted flowey something with a princess cone hat on your head? :D

[janine]

Oh wow! I would love to try that. Where we windsurf we have a couple of Kestrels that hunt mice and rats in the undergrowth at the top of the beach. Sometimes when we are rigging up they are hovering so close, they are at eye level and nearly close enough to touch. They are such regal birds :-)

[Manise]

Laurie- you sure live life to the fullest! Awesme post!

My maternal great-grandfather was a Roumanian peasant with a great handle-bar mustache.

[Cara]

You are nuts. And I say that in the most loving, respectful, awe-inspired way. I too am from a long line of Russian peasant stock. All it got me was big boobs. ;-)

[Maryann]

Beautiful! Thanks for sharing.

[Carole]

What a fantastic experience! I would have been scared but the thrill must have been fabulous.

[maryse]

ok, you know i've got a bazillion questions now. that is very cool. she's such a pretty birdie.

[Chris]

Ooo, ooo, ooo!! I think you just handed me a great anniversary present for DH. Now if I can manage to collude with his secretary to schedule time off without him knowing...

[Norma]

Oh, very, very, very, very COOL. And isn't the Equinox fabulous???

[Marcia]

Now, that is something I NEVER would have guessed! What great photos!

[Cordelia]

EXCellent.

[margene]

My eyes are always on the sky, watching for raptors of any sort. The inspire and awe me always. How wonderful to have one on the arm and feel the wind the wings create on your face. It must have been an incredible experience.

[Kris]

How cool - I have always wanted to try something like that! Does holding a giant macaw count? Those suckers weigh a ton.

[mamacate]

Wow. What an experience. And thanks, Mr. E. for the great pictures!

[Kat]

Very cool. I'd love to try that.

[Teresa C]

Wow! Pete and I are always bird hunting. Actually just last week our neighborhood falcon (yes, we have one!) made a swoop at Pete's head. Must have come between the bird and prey of some sort. We are forever looking to the heavens, which may explain all of the cuts and bruises on our legs. Those trips are harder to take as we age. :)

Thanks for the email! I have been an absent blogger, blog reader, internet surfer and computer user altogether. Oh! But the other things I have been busy (very busy) with! It has been a hectic and wonderful spring and summer. Hope to see you soon, and maybe this week you should check out what is happening at the Blues. There may just be a resurfacing of the absent blogger.

[Sarah HB]

VERY cool!

[Barbp]

So wonderful you had the expierence. I love the large species - eagles, hawks, canadian geese, owls and heron to name a few. I spot hawks on my daily commute, but I think the heron is my favorite.

The small birds not so much, probably because of that Hitchcock movie The Birds. EWWWW

[Lee Ann]

I had no idea they didn't develop relationships with their humans. Must have been pretty amazing, then, to look into the bird's eyes, knowing there's only one thing that holds her there.

[Cheryl]

I had no idea that they weighed so little! And that they were totally driven by hunger. Fascinating, thanks for sharing.

[--Deb]

VERY nifty! You've obviously been waiting for months to share this!

[PumpkinMama]

Wow - what a cool thing to experience. Why must they always be on the left wrist?

[julia fc]

You look like a natural. How very fun.

[Liz]

Wow... that is so cool. We have wild hawks around here, but have never seen pictures of a hawk lading on someone's arm... and now the dumb question... how come the left wrist always?

[jess]

holy crap! that is so cool!

[Bookish Wendy]

I'll have to tell Rob about this place. He holds a deep respect and love for hawks. He believes them to be symbols from our universe. We have a pair in Longwood. They fly over my building and children's. I love to hear them crying out to one another. It also amazes me how many people are oblivious to them. They are such amazing animals.

[Diane E.]

That's the coolest blog entry I've seen this year. Great photos! We have an amazing variety of birds on our property as it backs up to a marsh. Green herons, scarlet tanagers, indigo buntings, and 3 kinds of owls to name a few, but haven't seen a falcon.

[JessaLu]

SO cool.

[Caroline M]

That hawk has a wicked beak, there's no doubt about what it calls dinner.

I held a tawny owl last week (they were displayed next to a male and female Harris hawk). It too was lighter than I expected it to be, they're all fluff and feather.

[Chris]

What an amazing opportunity and experience - I'm in awe.

[Wendy]

Wow. Just . . . wow.

Your photos say it all. :-)

[Martha]

Cool! She is a beautiful bird. Prettier than I expected hawks to be (esp. lady hawks).

[Beth S.]

That is simply amazing. I know you'll treasure those photos. I would!

Someday I want to knit (St*rm*re's) Anne Boleyn just for the hawk motif.

BTW, why does the hawk return, exactly? It can catch anything it would want to eat, and probably get a bigger, tastier meal that way. Is it a certainty vs. probability thing? (i.e. easier to come back for the little bite of chicken than to spend the day looking for a mouse?)

[Cathy]

Twin souls by different mothers. :-)

[Sonia]

Cathy send me to you!
What an amazing bird!

[Chris]

That is SO cool.

[elisa]

OMG. The first picture? Of you and the falcon? Possibly the coolest picture I've ever seen. It's actually so cool that it makes me a little weepy.

[Rachel H]

Knitter, spinner, enophile, falconer, and doctor. You are quite the impressive renaissance woman, my friend.

[Judy]

I am not going to forget this for a long time. WOW! She is amazing, umm.. you both are amazing. How beautiful. Wonderful, holy smokes!! That must have been amazing.

[claudia]

Despite your protestations, it looks like there is hawk-human communication going on in that first photo.

Igor is looking suspiciously at the hawk. Perhaps he knows that he qualifies as hawk-lunch?

[Cindy D]

How fascinating to be so close to a bird of prey!!! It's coloring is inspiring. You must have been thrilled.

[June]

How awesome!!!

[lisa Co. Springs]

What an incredible opportunity! Great pics, Mr. E.

[Melissa G]

That is so cool. Having had a chance to handle the creatures professionally I am in awe of them. Few others understand my fascination. Congratulations!

[Dorothy B]

That is awesome! I love those pictures. Mr. E did a great job and the bird is gorgeous.

[Juno]

My UPS driver hawks. He's a bird guy and he brought his young hawk Zoe to visit us once - she's remarkable. (Also the albino python - but that was a different day)

And yes, never mistake that attention for affection - unless you fancy the nickname nine-fingered lefty?

What a wonderful day.