General Falconry Information
So, you want to know more about Falconry? You came
to the right place!
Falconry is defined as hunting for game with a trained falcon.
Another definition is the art of training a falcon or hawk to hunt
for wild game. Falconry is a very demanding and tedious
sport. Below is more information on falconry and how to get
involved.
Want to get
involved?
There is some information everyone should know before getting
involved in falconry. First, falconry is a very time
consuming sport. There are three levels in
falconry:
- Apprentice falconer: Requires you to work with a master falconer for at least two years.
- General falconer: Requires experience with raptors and hunting.
- Master falconer: Requires a minimum of eight years of experience.
Training and working with the bird is very demanding. As mentioned above, becoming an apprentice falconer takes a minimum of two years, and to become a master falconer it can take over eight years. Now do not let this scare you away, but taking care of a raptor is not like taking care of a pet dog. However, the sacrifice is very rewarding to see your bird take down a rabbit or a duck!
An ethical sport
In falconry there is a very strong ethical core. Falconers
are very dedicated in training and protecting their raptors.
All raptors used in falconry including hawks, eagles, falcons, and
owls are integral parts of the ecosystem. It is important for
a person interested in falconry to understand that the sport
requires dedication. A person who is simply acting on an
impulse can demonstrate careless handling of a bird and can create
a negative effect on this bird and other birds if it is ever
released. People like this can shed an untruthful, harmful
light on the sport to the public. For this reason, most falconers
want to see a high level of dedication from any new
falconer.
Money and permits
When getting started in falconry, most people believe that the
bird is the largest expense, but it is only the
beginning. It is necessary to provide shelter, food,
perches, and a variety of other equipment to get started in
falconry. Not only do you have to purchase or build your own
equipment, but you have to acquire permits. The permitting
process is studying, studying, and MORE studying for the test
you have to take. After you take the test the permit is
100 dollars. It can be purchased from the MDWFP main
office in Jackon. This permit must be renewed every 5
year. After that you can find a master or
general falconer that will sponsor you and then go trap your
bird. Trapping your first bird is a requirement in
falconry. Falconers have trapped their first birds for
hundreds and hundreds of years.
Access to land
Another important part of falconry is having access to
land. You have to have a place to fly your bird and your bird
will need exercise as well as plenty of land to hunt on.
Locations have to be picked carefully because of the variety of
dangers to the bird. Power lines, and roads can be
especially dangerous for your bird. Different birds require
different types of land. A falcon such as the Peregrine is a
long wing bird that requires a wide open field setting where it can
fly high over the falconers head and circle for prey. Hawks
such as the Red-tail are short wing birds that require smaller
fields or farms.
(content from NAFA website)
