Screaming goshawk??

[Jack Merlin]

I recently got a female goshawk. As soon as my tiercel gos saw her, he started screaming. He has behaved like an eyas when she is in sight ever since. Both goshawks are parent reared. The female doesn't show any reaction. The male will call when he is fit to fly but is silent at other times and when hunting.

What is going on? Is this mating behaviour or does the tiercel think he has found his long lost mum?

you had better ask the experts lol jmo i would go with the long lost mother theary ....................

[Chris S]

i will say mother as well, my mhh will do the same if i fly him with any female harris hawks he will beg for food as well but as soon as they put him in his place hes fine.

[Varmint]

I thought you said that your Male was hand fed for 10 days before going back in with the parents Jack? or am i mixing you up with someone else?

It really depends on what call he's making? is it a food call? alarm call?

Looks like a food call.

Which would suggest Mummy.

I'd feed him up to moult and keep em tethered in sight of each other.

When the daylight exstends and the birds and bee's are buzzing he should start to make more sexual noises.

It's not normal in an intermewed bird tho, esp one at end of season weight?

I know your quite remote Jack, maybe it's just a novelty for him?

How long has this been going on?

[Jack Merlin]

Hi Varmint,

Yes, you got it right. Hand reared to 10 days, then reared by an imprint. I assumed from that he was considred parent reared. The only indication that he's an eyas is calling when he is hungry and at weather.

He is pig fat now. A few pieces of down being shed so I'm hoping that might indicate he is starting to moult.

He started screaming and displaying as soon as he saw her. She was on my fist as I came round the corner to the weathering ground. He has been calling a lot this morning and was a bit hungrier because of the cold. He is sitting out there with meat in his talons calling like mad! (Thank God I don't have close neighbours). As you say, it must be "Mummy".

Yesterday, he would have attacked her as I walked past with her on my fist.

I am quite surprised by the difference in attitude between the male and female. He is very excitable and active. Always has been. She is very laid back in comparison although she is still nervous and chirping as they do when upset. But she is still very fat and not much interested in feeding. Small crop on the fist last night and some tiring, not interested this morning.

Jack

[Varmint]

Whats the plan with her Jack?

Was the intention to form a breeding project with him?

Or just another flying bird?

Adrian

[Jack Merlin]

Well, they will go into adjoining aviaries and we will see what happens.

But I'm told she has taken a goose and a lot of hares. We don't have so many hares, but they did a count of the geese on a loch up the road one year and there were 35,000 greylags!! In the hard weather, I get them on my own land. At the moment, they are grazing my neighbour's fields, maybe 1/4 mile from my back door. The farmers are not too keen on them because they eat a lot of grass.

Next season, next season....!!<vbg>

Jack

[ColdZero]

i can't help with the screaming, just wanted to say good luck on the geese. I would love to see a gos take down a goose.

[Jack Merlin]

Well, they are goosehawks!<g>

Jack

[Gaz]

:mrgreen: ...Usually see this whan a brown bird sees a adult,i think mummy thing as well

[Jack Merlin]

Both gosses are over three years old (maybe four, can't be bothered to look it up!<g>) but now I agree, it is "mummy". A bit like the child crying syndrome.

Child starts crying which makes it feel miserable which makes it cry some more, etc. The tiercel screams when he sees someone who reminds him of mum but doesn't know why. No sign of it diminishing yet, but he stops when he can't see the female.

Damn! And I thought it was sex!<vbg>

Jack

[Varmint]

Back to the Goose thing Jack,

Ever read a book called "Guns and Goswhawks?" (cant rem the author or pub) some fantasy league stuff in it, but the guy seemd obsessed with Canada's, apparently caught a few too!

Several years ago i had a couple of pink foots with a Bonelli's, god are they strong??

Another goose incident involved my f HH taking a domestic which knocked her clean out cold! :shock:

Thought she was dead? she came around in my arms, jumped up and tried to have another go? ( i thought they were smart?LOL)

[Gaz]

Pic looks like a brown bird

[Jack Merlin]

Ever read a book called "Guns and Goswhawks?" (cant rem the author or pub) some fantasy league stuff in it, but the guy seemd obsessed with Canada's, apparently caught a few too!

Several years ago i had a couple of pink foots with a Bonelli's, god are they strong??

The name of that book rings a bell. If I read it, it was a very long time ago.

Bonelli's? Wow! I used to dream about flying one of those!

I am currently transcribing Turbervile (17th century book on falconry) and there is a bit about goose hawking with a gos in that. The usual stuff about goose baggies, then moving on to stalking the wild birds feeding in fields behind a horse. The mode of attack seemed to be to get reasonably close, then slip the gos while the geese are still on the ground. Then, as the gos nears the geese, to leap out and flush them. Easier to take on the wing I suppose. Anyway, he says two or three geese in a morning ought to be possible!! These would have been the smaller German gosses, I think, flying at just over 2lbs! I suspect it is one of those flights that would be nice to try and achieve a few times, then the novelty would wane. Did the other geese gang up when one was taken? The old book says once your gos has caught a goose, to jump on your horse and ride like....well, fast...to get up to assist her!!<g> I would imagine so!

[Martin]

guns and goshawks , richard brigham, 1988,

[Varmint]

Thanks for that Martin!

With reagrd to my domestic goose accident Jack, they were pretty ****ed but she was laying spark out on the floor so i dont suppose they registered her as a threat at that time?

A little male HH got a bit big for his boots and grabbed a neighbours Turkey just before Christmas, hung on like Franki dettori :lol: and the rest of the flock really had a go at him with a stag trying to kick him off the back of the Turkey he was bound to??

I think the mobb defensive thing would be the main problem with your intended flight and can see the wisdom in getting a bird on the wing rather than one on the ground surrounded by friends.

I have no doubt what so ever that you will achive your goal, but the safety of your bird and the calmness of your nerves will prob dictate how many you eventually catch, :shock: :lol:

Get your running shoes on and keep us posted?

[Jack Merlin]

Tiercel gos has now stopped screaming at the new female so it looks like it was "Mummy! Mummy!"

He occasionally gives the alarm call (rapid kek--kek--kek--kek) when I call him to the fist so presumably she is now considered a threat!

[Hawkmaster]

(rapid kek--kek--kek--kek)

That sounds more fruity and like he is calling her to me?

POSTING MOVED TO THE CORRECT SECTION :lol:

[Jack Merlin]

Here is a photo taken this morning. The tiercel started dispalying, bowing, picking at objects on the ground, kecking, and showing his coverts as soon as I appeared with the female today.

The picture shows him displaying on the bow perch. He had cooled down a bit by the time I had got the camera set up!

[Falconry Equipment International]

Jack looking good
regards
J

[Jack Merlin]

Sexy little ******, isn't he?<g>

[Hawkmaster]

Female looks good too.

[Bird_Dog]

Hey Varmit,

Speaking of hawking geese... here's a pic you might find interesting. It's not my bird, tho. Snow geese are so numerous that they extend the hunting season way into the spring migration. Not sure how to get a slip when they mainly feed on winter wheat out in the open. A couple of years ago I did get a flight on a speckled-belly. It was kind of comical, tho. I was flying a female St. Charlette peales out of Gieger's breeding project at the time. After the intial hit, she scatched and tried to foot the goose, but couldn't get a grip. They flew circles for about 10 mins... the goose wasn't fast enough on the level to escape. Finally my bird gave up and came back to the pond. Probably a bad idea to fly the thing in the first place, but what the hey.

http://www.hollisterlongwings.com/images/Web%20Quality/Tiercel%20on%20snow%20goose%20he%20killed.jpg

-- BIRD_DOG