Chester Falconry

I took my partner who is a keen bird watcher here for his birthday present and suffice to say we both enjoyed it immensely. I would like to think that I know a fair bit about animals but I was very impressed with Kieran's knowledge, who was our falconer. Whilst flying the birds he was constantly telling us facts about the birds, their behaviour, habitat and conservation status. I could not recommend this place more. For the flying experience I (with my parents contribution) paid £85 which gave Ellis the chance to fly 5 birds so well worth the money! You can also visit the falconry to watch flying displays and have a general look around for £4 Adults and £3 Kids so its a very cheap day out. I will definitely be visiting again and who knows maybe I'll get a flying experience for my birthday......

1) The first bird that we got to meet was Tinks the Vulture.

I definitely thought Tinks was going to be my favourite bird of the day. When she wasn't flying between Ellis and Kieran's gloves and the post she followed around on the ground. She was like a very happy dog, who if you stopped looking at her for a second would try and go into the food bag. We were told that due to her high intelligence in the past she has managed to sneak into the food pouch and eat 3 days worth of food! Her bald face helps her to stay clean when she eats. She also has a very unique way of staying cool. Vultures cannot sweat instead they defecate on themselves to cool down. The ammonia from this gross behaviour will also kill off any diseases and parasite in the wild when they are feeding off of dead animals. This and the fact that they feed off the dead has earned these birds a very bad reputation. A lot of vulture species are declining and they need our help. Look out for my next blog which will explain more about the problems that some vultures are facing.

2) Peanut - Red Footed Falcon

Now you shouldn't have favourites but this bird is mine. The fact that my head became a suitable perch may have had something to do with this favouritism but its also a very sweet looking bird. Peanut is a girl as male red footed falcons are black in colouration. She is still fairly young and her chest will soon all turn the same colour as the few feathers by her neck. Although very cute looking she still tore this mouse apart. She starts at the head which has lots of nutritional value because of the brain and then makes her way down. This is because often other birds will steal prey so by eating from the head down they can get more nutrients if it is stolen before she finishes it. We let her keep this one though.

3) Boj the Barn Owl

Boj was Ellis' favourite and its easy to see why. The round face helps sound travel to the owls ears which are not where you would expect. The left ear is high up on the left side and the right ear is very low down which allows sound to reach them at different times. Barn owls have superb hearing skills and rely on this to hunt their prey. Which unlike the falcon they swallow down whole to avoid it being stolen. They are known as silent flyers. It is thought this had evolved to help them hunt as if they made lots of noise when flying they wouldn't be able to detect their prey.

4) Chile the Harris Hawk

Harris Hawks are a very common bird to have as a falconer as they are very easy to fly and train. These birds can hunt in family groups so Chester falconry will be trying to get their hawks to fly together in the near future. These birds are often used for pest control or to hunt game due to the fact that they are easily trained. Cooperative hunting also allows these birds to catch prey they otherwise would not be able to. Once caught these birds carry out mantling which a behaviour where they wrap their wings around the prey so it cannot be stolen.

5) Munch the Indian Eagle Owl

This was the only bird that seemed very conscious of my camera, maybe it was camera shy? By the time we flew this bird I was absolutely freezing (wrap up warm for this experience) so wasn't listening as intensely to Kieran. Therefore my knowledge on this bird is less then the others. It is often referred to as the rock Eagle Owl and was thought to be a subspecies of the Eurasian Eagle due to similarities in appearance. However, slight differences in colouration led these birds to be categorised as their own distinct species.

As well as flying these five amazing birds we were also given the opportunity to try and hold the golden eagle. I say try as my noodle arms were not up for the job but Ellis managed it briefly. Your see why.....

It's absolutely huge!! Photo taken by Ellis Shepherd

To see more photos of these birds head to my Facebook page

https://www.facebook.com/animillsphotos