The Falcon

Those who train falcons are known as falconers.  I live near the Air Force Academy where they use the falcon as their mascot and have a specific group of falconers.  Falcons have historically been associated with war.  The Arabs and Iranians have a word for the peregrine which is Shaheen which is the Farsi word for emperor.  These aerial predators are military favorites and mascots.

Some people say that Falconry is not a sport - it's a virus or an addiction.  Falconry is using trained birds of prey to catch wild game.  It is frowned on unless you eat the game.  Who wants to try it?

The Merlin Falcon is the smallest of the falcons.  They are also known as the pigeon hawk and they hunt small song birds, duck, pheasant, and prairie chickens and quail. They bite the neck of their victims with their "toenail teeth" on their talons and that kills them. Ladies used to hunt with them and therefore their nickname "lady hawk".  Their chest is usually heavily streaked and the underwings are dark.

I bet you didn't know that the Gyr falcon is faster that the Peregrin.  They can fly at 353 miles per hour!  and 87 mph in level flight.  It's true and that is why falconers absolutely love Gyrs.  They are native to the Arctic Circle, Canada and Alaska.

They usually eat cats, ptarmagin and geese.

The Peregrin has learned to live in cities and to breed in captivity.  At one time they were very endangered by the pesticile DDT, because their eggs would get so thin if the mom tried to roost the eggs would break.  But this bird is a wanderer and now they are found on every continent because they are so adaptable. 

This is a fast falcon who has baffles in their nose (similar to a jet) to help them to breath in a dive.  Their feathers are thick and stiff. They can dive at 240 mph (pretty fast but slower than the gyr falcon) and their impact is what kills their prey.

Find this book Falcon and read it or gift it.  Helen Macdonald is also the author of H is for Hawk. I recommend both books. Helen is British.