Monday, August 23, 2010

He has a Head Under his Hood

And now must learn how to use it. Pix by Daniela-- in the first, he is taking a tidbit.



13 comments:

dr. hypercube said...

Drop-dead gorgeous!

Anna Lear said...

Wow, what a beautiful bird!! And great pictures, too!

Helen said...

Oh what a sweetheart. Predatory and pretty is such a good combination...

Anonymous said...

"Shotgun range falcon huh? I don't think so."

JT said...

Hi, Steve! Hope he gives you as much pleasure there at home as I got from seeing them in the wild and bringing his parents back. I think you'll be quite pleasantly impressed by just how clever they are.... but I'll also warn that one of them figured out how to undo 5 falconer's knots made of lightweight bungie within a matter of hours. There's a downside to a bird that smart, too:)

Mark Churchill said...

Sswweeeett! Love the big bird-catching feet; almost look they've been grafted on from another (bigger) hawk.

Steve Bodio said...

The feet AND parrot strength beak are decidedly unlike a kestrel's!

Stephen Olner said...

simply gorgeous

Neutrino Cannon said...

Alulae seem really big.

Steve Bodio said...

They do-- maybe some maneuverability thing?

Karen Carroll said...

What a looker!!! I have a 12 year old imprint male barbary (400 gm flying weight). That is an absolute love. I use him as a demo bird. But he is sooo smart and loving, Good luck with your new bird. He looks cute. I don't use a traditional leash. I use a Sampo Coastlock #8 swivel, with a trigger snap to clip to the jesses which are pulled para cord jesses with a small (1/4") loop at the end. I also re-enforce the trigger snap with an elastic hair tie to make sure it is more secure. For fastening to the leash to the ring on the perch. I replace both annually as a precaution. If you have a bird that chews equipment. I use NOBITE nail polish on the equipment. Works to reduce that picking problem. I can send you photos if you wish (or look at my blog www.internationalfalconryacademy.blogspot.com) to see the kestrel version of the equipment.

Steve Bodio said...

I'd love to see more pix-- send to ebodio-at-gilanet-dot-com.

Your little bird weighs more than twice as much as mine!

JT said...

I see some of you calling the RNF "cute". Guarantee you won't be calling it anything diminutive if you see it on a kill. They're awesome hawks!