Preparing for the black stuff!

[Varmint]

Well guys, here in bonny Scotland the Rooks and Crows are not a million miles away from fledging, and the time will soon be upon us to enter our young Falcons for the first time.

Maybe your bird is well made and coming out later?

Maybe your about to start your first season?

How about we share a few tips on preparing for the black stuff?

Firstly, mental prep of the bird, how do you take your bird up from moult and what is your daily regime for excersise?

[Hawkmaster]

Out of MOULT, I just put them down!

[Varmint]

Well i put my old game hawk down months ago, but my rook hawk went away in November.

She gets a good moult voluntarily thru the winter and then i pull her late June to start on youngsters gradually building her fitness for the October fliers!

[Shaun Byrne]

Slightly off thread Varmint but thought I'd let you know, Greenpeace took a jackdaw from about 100ft last Sunday, right in the middle of a display.

[Afshimo]

Hiya,

How do you hawk rooks? Just need some info still!

How do you get your birds fit? Any info is appreciated! I'm keeping my eye on this thread thanks!

What birds do you fly at rook?

[Ben C]

was that a display or was that falconry???

[Shaun Byrne]

was that a display or was that falconry???

Maybe, dare I say it, a "Falconry Display"

[OhMyGod]

I have found some birds can stay fitter than others during the moult even in the same pen, and others may get fitter quicker than others so I'll say fitness levels will have to be judged from day to day but it may take her a couple of weeks to get muscled up with a couple flights a day one long lure in the morning and a couple passes to start then bit tighter in the afternoon. (I will feed a few rooks for a week before taking out of the moult) put rook wings and maybe some rook on my lure

After I am satisfied with the fitness levell I will slip her from a good height advantage for a week in a quarry near my house or a landfill. For people who don't have access to landfills you can still use this technique of dominating the rooks before you've even started by finding a suitable quarry or borrow somones landfill after hours if you live in a flat area.

These flight are really just to enhance confidence and help a little with fitness and blow the cobwebs out (not that you really need to blow any cobwebs)

Then I quickly get her back onto flying out the car, then I'm only slipping at gulls.

As far as making contact for the first time I will go into her pen in the middle of the night when it's pitch black and pick her up without a fuss. Hood her up and there she will stay for 30 hrs ( no food for 24 hrs before) and little less food for few days previously. I don't really bother finding out her fully fat weight as I don't really rely on it for anything.

I will check the anklets while hooded but I know they usually are fine if only 12 months old, new jesses and loop leash and onto the block un hooded in the shade untill dark. then a few bits of food on the fist, If she's jumpy then lights off hood on. plentl of mannning and tid bits if still not settled, but to be honest I'm sure this greedy bith will feed off the fist fine at fat weight and I may not need to do any of this nonsnse but I'll be prepared for her tantrums and will not let them erupt.

I will weigh ever day to check on fat but this amount of time usually is about right with my bird I reckon.

[BFC 007]

I will weigh ever day to check on fat but this amount of time usually is about right with my bird I reckon
what bird you flying OMG?

[OhMyGod]

pere/saker fem

[Varmint]

Nice one H4wka, so he wasnt so Chicken sht after all?

[Shaun Byrne]

Nice one H4wka, so he wasnt so Chicken sht after all?

One Jackdaw in 6 years? Maybe he's just a late developer :D

The same jackdaw has been attacking the falcons on their blocks, so he was probably just ****ed off with it. He was 1/2 oz low as well.

[RabbitHawker]

my gyr/pere's only got 2 primaries to drop now, so out on the black stuff in a month or so.

[OhMyGod]

RABBIT HAWKER

"How about we share a few tips on preparing for the black stuff?

Firstly, mental prep of the bird, how do you take your bird up from moult and what is your daily regime for excersise?"

[Varmint]

Oh sorry OMG! i thought my comments would have bored you, maybe you should start your own thread mate!

[OhMyGod]

No preparing for the black stuff exites me varmint, as I've said many times this style of hawking is why I am into falconry at this time.

Arris Awking in unfair numbers and displays are what bores me.

[OhMyGod]

you asked a question and as far as I can see I am the only one who has answer it. Now I get derided for thinking you are boring?

What about all the other 500 - 600 members of this forum who have not answered your question or have any information of any use to input. If I had not put anything down your thread would be empy of any usefull information, yet it's not appreciated?

[Varmint]

OMG i have no wish to correspond with you mate!

So mental preporation! without a doubt, the black stuff is one of the hardest quarries to prepare your bird for requiring not only physical skill but a great deal of bottle.

Many is the time that a young bird has been mobbed and on one occasion nearly killed by these black devils.

So mentally your bird neeeds to be undefeatable.

How can you achieve this?

well several steps can be taken in the early stages to ensure total commitment.

I start by flying my young falcon to the lure, stooping hard twice a day until a tollerable level of fitness is achieved and at this stage i start to guauge the falcons agression toward other living things.

Rarely(unless a Peregrine) will they take the initiative to go off and cahse Rooks and Crows, indeed this si something that i dont want to happen outside of a perfect success environment, so i avoid any potential defeats or problems by avoiding them until i am completly ready.

Sorry i have to head off to England just now but ill pick this back up tomorrow.

[Moritz]

I have never flow falcon for the black stuff but I read a german book just about rook and crow hawking it was very good and I think you guys would like to read it. The guy expalins very well how to get a bird going for crows and rooks. I try to tell you what he states is the best for him.
The falcon needs to be more then 750grams but less then 1000g to make sure that it has the speed and the weight to get them down.
the young birds get feed as much crow as possible befor starting the training so that they are already bonded to them. When training he uses a plain black lure no wings. He uses no baggies but ones the bird is fit he goes to an open field a fried of his hides with a daed crow behind some bushes and weights for a signel. He then throws the crow in a high curve in the air the falcon is of the fist and "kills its first crow". Befor that the bird has to be able to do 100 stoops to the lure in one go. He uses something really good, befor unhodding the bird and slipping it on the crows he clicks with his tongue, after sometime the falcon assosiats this clicking with a slip and therefore is switched on straied away.
He studdied the rooks/crows behavior very well and therefor can see if the crow is worth a slip or not. He never slips his young birds on experienced crows. He explains their behavior and social structur very well, so that even beginners can pick the best birds for entering their birds. He also slips his birds on crows/rooks sitting in trees. But only trees that stand alow in a big field. The falcons then weight on above the trees. He uses a rattle or something like that to lift the crows so that they try to brake out and fly to cower. The flacon then stoops down. The older of his two falcons was six at that time and killed nearly 1000 crows in her live, so his method must be quite good.

Moritz

[OhMyGod]

I am thinking that 1000 crows in 6 years is possibly just slightly overworking your rook hawk. 165 crows a season is totally unforgivable, in my opinion. Most people are taking 40 to 75 and a begginner should be pleased at 30 kills by an eyas.

I have had rooks in trees with longwings above (for pest controll purposes) and been shooting a blanks gun off with the rooks staying put. Not sure a rattle will really work effectivly for you all the time if your bird is still above them. Also this is not a good idea for many other reasons, I think the falcon should be made to persuit from the outset until it reaches it's goal or fails, not waiting on above trees for a human to flush a nice easy slip that would be far far far less energy consuming and an easy option and an easy way to stop your rook hawk rook hawking.

This idea of 100 stoops to the lure in one go is total rubbish and should be disregarded by anyone who is attempting to achieve this before slipping at rooks.
You should fly your falcon extremely hard but not until it is exausted as it will then take a couple of days to replace glycogen and you will be shooting yourself in the foot, if you push it too hard. You should learn to understand your bird by it's flying ability chasing the lure VERY VERY hard (not just flying past it all day increasing only the slow twitch muscle fibres) and stopping the session just before the bird reaches the time when it's muscles can not gain enough oxygen to work correctly.

Long luring is how most people start an eyas off. You can long lure your rook hawk easily by borrowing a friends fist, getting them to unhood the bird with you about 50 metres away already swinging the lure. Then 100 metre then 200 and up to 1000 if you have the land. This will teach the young falcon to look outward away from the falconer when he or she slips her. It will also build up the slow twitch muscle fibres (not used in high powered flight) which is all an eyas will be using to start until she is confident to push her speed up to her max power output, and row her wings correctly. Once she is doing this you will need to consentrate on the power muscles, we need to get the bird chasing the lure with all her might. To achieve this the bird must not think it can just float by at 80% of it's speed until you throw the lure up. The lure needs to be passed out a good distance aimed directly at the beak of the oncoming falcon, she will reach out with her feet and try to take it. At which point you pull the lure along at the SAME speed and SAME direction she is flying so that she and the lure are moving through the air together just a couple of inches from her grasp, not 2 foot away. You can let her grasp the lure slightly and if she has not got a firm hold it will come away loosly, without robbing her improving her footing, imperative for a good rook hawk. If she has a firm grip she Must be allowed her dinner. When letting her have the lure useing the same concept you allow her to grasp the lure without her realising you have given it to her, always reward her in a good powerful attach preferably downwind attack. Never fly her until she is tyred and not able to fly at 100% as she will be catching it when she isn't at full potential and she should be rewarded when she passes with the highest speed and BRAVERY she has, encouraging her to become faster and more importantly BRAVER and with more confidence. If she catches you out in a few passes she should be rewarded teaching her that if she catches the lure after 3 or 4 passes she has won.

Entering your falcon on rooks can be achieved easier with a good height advantage as they can hardly help themselves from chasing them, if they are way above. You can do this at most quarrys or landfills if you have got the falcon feeding on dead rooks first.

Once they are catching them with utter determination and fitness they should be weened off onto proper slips, usually say 7 to 15 birds. the sooner the better really, but aiming for 10 kills without a single miss will make your bird chase with everything it's got when you start slipping proper.

I am not saying it is impossible but far easier with an eyas than an intermewed or an eyas left until october, as they have such a nieve and overflowing energy supply you can channel directly at the rook population of you grounds. You ideally want to pick your bird up at 80 days, and not before!



P.S.
Varmint

You said you have no desire to correspond with me!

but you started it be asking me this question........

"Oh sorry OMG! i thought my comments would have bored you, maybe you should start your own thread mate!"

You say this then wonder why I respond? strange

and I still havn't seen much hear I would think usefull to anyone starting off on rooks apart from your post.

where are they all? A good topic and nothing? even when people have said they are watching this thread as they need information.

[OutFlying]

OMG,
Sounds like good advice to me.
OF.

[Moritz]

Hi OMG,
I just wrote what he writes in his book if you want to discus it with him you can met him at some hunts in Austria. I think he flys his birds in this styl coz it is the best for his area. He flys them 6 days a week and mostly stops after one kill for each hawk a day.

Moritz

[Varmint]

So back to preporation!

In this day and age there are several species and their hybrids which are considered by many to be suitable for catching crows.

Wrong!

Variouse hybrids are totally unsuitable especially when flown in unsuitable country.

For example, wide open classic flights are best achived with birds that evenly balance out agression with brains, because the best Rook hawks are always super smart!

Straight Peregrines i personally feel are better suited to mad dash slips in tight area's as their aggresion level is high, and far overwhelm's any feelings for personal safety.

Their hybrids on the other hand i have found to be many and varied in attitude and response toward rooks and crows.
Pere/Lanners lack the basic earthyness to really wed to Crows for long and usually start to refuse slips.
Pere's and Gyr Pere's are the opposite and take on every slip with great gusto which usually leads to the unbreakable habit of self hunting after one or two seasons.
Pere/Sakers, esp females tend to balance perfectly the essential balance of aggression and brains.

Having said all of this it has to be said that with enough work and effort any falcon can be encouraged eventaully to take black stuff, most just lack the confidence.

It's easy to say wack out a "Baggie" for your bird, jobs a good un! but we live under a politically correct spot light and the laws says that this activity is criminal in the UK.
What would you do if you did, and your bird completly ignored it?

Most eyass falcons will, if not prepared properly, flatly refuse to chase Corvids of any kind (with the poss exception of the straight peregrine!).

The only real benefit of captive breeding is that we can produce birds in a controled environment which means that we are able to expose them toward natural food sources from an early age, for example feeding them on the freshly prepared carcass of Rooks and Crows thru out their latter stages of fledging.

Training begins as normal for the eyass, some folk like to Kite train, which i think is a great idea with any eyass, to build intial fitness and stamina but i also feel that prolonged use of it with an entered bird is courting disaster and more good birds have been spoilt thru this badly thought thru training strategy than any other, by virtue that an enetered bird see's far more temptations from a good altitude?

Once this self hunting habit is formed, it hard broken and every flight ends on a mammoth track down to find a gorged up bird on checked quarry, full, content and very sure that she could go out tomorrow and do that again!

Once i deam my bird to be fit, then and only then do i start to stirr up any agression my falcon might posses toward living quarry.
I start by throwing my bird a freshly killed Corvid whilst she is sat on the block, allowing her to take a full crop on it.

I then miss a day of training and allow her/his weight to drop by 1/4 oz in the process before day three when i try to guage my birds reaction to a moving target, by either the use of a lure winder which can drag the dead body of a crow or by a new method i have using a battery operated wood pigeon flapper to which i attach my dead corvid.

I sit it out in an open field, flapping like mad, then strike the braces and see what the bird thinks?

Flap and whack, gets a full crop again, hesitancy gets another 1/4 oz weight drop and a try again tomorrow.

One thing that will become apparent very quickly is just how un aggressive the eyass starts life, but how quickly they learn!

[OutFlying]

Also sounds like good advice. There are many ways to achieve the same results using different methods and what works for someone might not work for someone else and vice versa.

[Ben C]

If you get a Peregrine to 'wed' to rook etc, is it feasable to hunt only them for the remainder of its life and keep it happy?

All interesting stuff this!!

[Falcons7]

I am thinking that 1000 crows in 6 years is possibly just slightly overworking your rook hawk. 165 crows a season is totally unforgivable, in my opinion. Most people are taking 40 to 75 and a begginner should be pleased at 30 kills by an eyas.


Whats wrong with killing 165 crows?









I have had rooks in trees with longwings above (for pest controll purposes) and been shooting a blanks gun off with the rooks staying put. Not sure a rattle will really work effectivly for you all the time if your bird is still above them. Also this is not a good idea for many other reasons, I think the falcon should be made to persuit from the outset until it reaches it's goal or fails, not waiting on above trees for a human to flush a nice easy slip that would be far far far less energy consuming and an easy option and an easy way to stop your rook hawk rook hawking.

This idea of 100 stoops to the lure in one go is total rubbish and should be disregarded by anyone who is attempting to achieve this before slipping at rooks.
You should fly your falcon extremely hard but not until it is exausted as it will then take a couple of days to replace glycogen and you will be shooting yourself in the foot, if you push it too hard. You should learn to understand your bird by it's flying ability chasing the lure VERY VERY hard (not just flying past it all day increasing only the slow twitch muscle fibres) and stopping the session just before the bird reaches the time when it's muscles can not gain enough oxygen to work correctly.

Long luring is how most people start an eyas off. You can long lure your rook hawk easily by borrowing a friends fist, getting them to unhood the bird with you about 50 metres away already swinging the lure. Then 100 metre then 200 and up to 1000 if you have the land. This will teach the young falcon to look outward away from the falconer when he or she slips her. It will also build up the slow twitch muscle fibres (not used in high powered flight) which is all an eyas will be using to start until she is confident to push her speed up to her max power output, and row her wings correctly. Once she is doing this you will need to consentrate on the power muscles, we need to get the bird chasing the lure with all her might. To achieve this the bird must not think it can just float by at 80% of it's speed until you throw the lure up. The lure needs to be passed out a good distance aimed directly at the beak of the oncoming falcon, she will reach out with her feet and try to take it. At which point you pull the lure along at the SAME speed and SAME direction she is flying so that she and the lure are moving through the air together just a couple of inches from her grasp, not 2 foot away. You can let her grasp the lure slightly and if she has not got a firm hold it will come away loosly, without robbing her improving her footing, imperative for a good rook hawk. If she has a firm grip she Must be allowed her dinner. When letting her have the lure useing the same concept you allow her to grasp the lure without her realising you have given it to her, always reward her in a good powerful attach preferably downwind attack. Never fly her until she is tyred and not able to fly at 100% as she will be catching it when she isn't at full potential and she should be rewarded when she passes with the highest speed and BRAVERY she has, encouraging her to become faster and more importantly BRAVER and with more confidence. If she catches you out in a few passes she should be rewarded teaching her that if she catches the lure after 3 or 4 passes she has won.

Entering your falcon on rooks can be achieved easier with a good height advantage as they can hardly help themselves from chasing them, if they are way above. You can do this at most quarrys or landfills if you have got the falcon feeding on dead rooks first.

Once they are catching them with utter determination and fitness they should be weened off onto proper slips, usually say 7 to 15 birds. the sooner the better really, but aiming for 10 kills without a single miss will make your bird chase with everything it's got when you start slipping proper.

I am not saying it is impossible but far easier with an eyas than an intermewed or an eyas left until october, as they have such a nieve and overflowing energy supply you can channel directly at the rook population of you grounds. You ideally want to pick your bird up at 80 days, and not before!



P.S.
Varmint

You said you have no desire to correspond with me!

but you started it be asking me this question........

"Oh sorry OMG! i thought my comments would have bored you, maybe you should start your own thread mate!"

You say this then wonder why I respond? strange

and I still havn't seen much hear I would think usefull to anyone starting off on rooks apart from your post.

where are they all? A good topic and nothing? even when people have said they are watching this thread as they need information.

[North East Harris Hawker]

I am thinking that 1000 crows in 6 years is possibly just slightly overworking your rook hawk. 165 crows a season is totally unforgivable, in my opinion. Most people are taking 40 to 75 and a begginner should be pleased at 30 kills by an eyas.


Im inclined to agree with this one but then it would depend upon if the falconer had a full time job to hold down or if they were just out flying their bird everyday :? difficult

[Falcons7]

I'll try again,please explain why 165 crows per season is to many

[Varmint]

If you get a Peregrine to 'wed' to rook etc, is it feasable to hunt only them for the remainder of its life and keep it happy?

Generally i find that Rook Hawks entered well as eyass's and flown in fairly tight country have to learn a few tactics.
many of the land fill boys reading this may bear me out that after two or three seasons of strategy usually produces a natural mounting bird, that's totally confident and uses it's brain.

This can sometimes be very detrimental to the hard core rook hawker.

I have a beautifull 1/2 Peales/Per belonging to a friend, moulting out here at the moment, that just got too smart for landfill work, but would prob make a demon game hawk.

Looking back at old journals, and referances it appears that many of the birds belonging to the old hawking clod and federation of hawks hunted Rook on the plains in the spring and moved over to the partridge in the Autumn.

Rodger uptons "oh for a falconers voice" is an excellent read and many parralels in training and sport can be drawn thru this day and age by the modern longwinger.

[Ben C]

OK, if I said I wanted to fly only at rook, crows, jackdoor and Magpie specifically. And only from the fist, and from the hood. What are the possibilities? Oh and using only a Peregrine.

[Varmint]

Prob a snowballs in hell, certainly over progressive seasons?

Pere's are a bit aggresive and a bit too capable realising their full potentail quaickly and this leads to self hunting esp when the symptoms arent spotted by the beginner soon enough?

The Peregrine is the God of all birds in my eye's and whilst i love several species for diff reasons, i really truly find the Pere awsome.

Horses for Courses?

[Ben C]

:)

[KevGem1]

i wonder whether anyone could give me some advice?i am getting a pere/saker in a few weeks, for first time slips would i be better sliping on moor land thats got lots of hills and valleys,i was hoping to get her slips while on top of the hills on corvids down in the valleys,i was hoping to get her chasing in the early stages for her to gain confidence and aggression from a height advantage,and once i get her flying confidently than take her to my usual hunting ground. my usual land is more confined with a few tree lines and woodland areas,ps is there anything i need to be aware of flying a young eyess in such a vast hilly area?thanks in advance for any replys cheers kev

[BlueHawk]

i wonder whether anyone could give me some advice?i am getting a pere/saker in a few weeks, for first time slips would i be better sliping on moor land thats got lots of hills and valleys,i was hoping to get her slips while on top of the hills on corvids down in the valleys,i was hoping to get her chasing in the early stages for her to gain confidence and aggression from a height advantage,and once i get her flying confidently than take her to my usual hunting ground. my usual land is more confined with a few tree lines and woodland areas,ps is there anything i need to be aware of flying a young eyess in such a vast hilly area?thanks in advance for any replys cheers kev

Kev,

I'm also taking a pere/saker. Would have thought the slip was more important than the height. Might be difficult to get her to slip into the wind or check off at something you have'nt seen if you're on top of a hill. Plus I would have thought this won't encourage her to mount (which is what she'll eventually do anyway). Sure there's far more experienced guys out there that can give you better info..

I was told not to be too hasty and slip at any corvid you see, in fact you might go the whole day waiting for the right one (distance from cover, wind, no. in group etc etc), but until the bird gets more experience, be patient,when they have experience then you can let them go at more difficult slips.

[OhMyGod]

surely it's best to wait and get it right for the first 6 - 10 slips or so.

I always start an eyas off from a good height advantage, like a landfill or a quarry, if you have lots of hills where you live then I would try this as long as there is no cover to be found. I would slip directly into the wind as well.

It's good to get the bird flying HARD to the lure with lots of fitness so she knows about height advantages and is confident about chasing the rook hard if it escapes down wind.

[KevGem1]

thanks for the input (d.h) and (o.m.g) how long would you lure train it before trying to get slips for it. i fully understand that each bird is individual and some birds will pick up the lure and get fitter much quicker than others. I am just after a rough idea of how long before it starts getting lure bound or any other problems that would come from leaving a bird on the lure to long.cheers KEV.

[KevGem1]

thanks for the input (d.h) and (o.m.g) how long would you lure train it before trying to get slips for it. i fully understand that each bird is individual and some birds will pick up the lure and get fitter much quicker than others. I am just after a rough idea of how long before it starts getting lure bound or any other problems that would come from leaving a bird on the lure to long.cheers KEV.

[OhMyGod]

I would long lure for whole dinner on the lure for 2 - 3 days depending on the falcons "off the fist reactions". just one flight per day getting her catching the lure whilst STILL on the creance at 10 - 20 metres so you can get her back better if she ******s off. A bird not catching the lure will not be able to see her dinner if it's burried in growing crops.

when you are confident she is off the fist instantly coming 200 - 300 metres and doing a pass or two (probably 3 - 4 days free) I would stop long luring and just concentrate on the passes and how the bird reacts to wind and how she is improving day by day. I would also fly twice a day with at least 4.5 hours between each flight.

after a couple of days on the lure you will see a dramatic improvement to her flying ability as she changes from a bird that is scared to fly hard to a bird that tries to fly hard. When she is flying at top speed she will probably need 2 weeks or less to get fit for a F P/S (that is about 18 days from free). You ideally want to get her entered as quickly as possible. All birds differ though, some may be better off getting entered quicker as some can start to imprint onto you depending on how the breeder has reared them, or more to the point how much you trust your breeder is competent and honest. If your bird is showing signs of imprinting or treating you as parent you want to start slipping imedeately getting really easy slips to start ideally with good height advantage and preferably a young rook. For a good quality parent reared bird it can be kept on the lure a while longer, say 2 weeks of flying hard at the lure twice a day, then only slips.

make sure she passes the lure properly and never let het start yo yoing in the wind, you can try getting her passing cross wind if she does. If it is possible I would have a friend strike the braces and unhood her for the whole time on the lure, just like when you were long luring instead of putting her down and letting her fly about a bit first. she really needs to be flying at top speed in 'hot persuit' from the time she comes off the fist till the time she catches the lure.

[OhMyGod]

If this helps kev, if it were me I would NOT take the bird out the pen before 80 days, I would then leave it hooded for 48 hours in the garden (putting her in at night of course). When undooded I would expect her to be coming to the lure on the ground a week later and catching the lure (whilst on the creance) at about ten days.B

y 14 days after first unhooded you should be finishing the long luring and at 3 - 4 weeks after first unhooding you should be getting muscled up. You really want to get her entered straight after this so you should be aiming to have her doing 30 stoops in 3 - 4 weeks from taken out the pen and catching dead crows ready to slip.

If you are slipping in 3 - 4 weeks from out the pen good on you but if you find you are being more cautious as a begginner and not slipping till 5 weeks out the pen I wouldn't worry too much but you don't want to have her unentered any longer than this. I would say 5 weeks from picking her up is about the limit a beginner should be aiming for, better if it's 4 though.

[KevGem1]

thanks very much for taking the time to reply, i understand everything you are saying and when it is put to you like that in stages is it alot easier to understand and follow, and it will certainly give me mile stones to achieve through her training. cheers KEV :wink:

[HawkNorth]

got my first of the black stuff today or should i say the bird got it pere/lanner a nice young rook there was a couple of pigeons in the field
but worked out all right

she chased a pigeon yesterday my son fetched the telemetry from the car
we went a couple of fields no problems she was making her way back

[Shaun Byrne]

got my first of the black stuff today or should i say the bird got it pere/lanner a nice young rook there was a couple of pigeons in the field
but worked out all right

she chased a pigeon yesterday my son fetched the telemetry from the car
we went a couple of fields no problems she was making her way back

Nice one HN, what was the flight like.

[HawkNorth]

unfortunately h4wka didnt see much of the flight while i was concealing myself i watched into the field 2 see the reaction of the crows . lost sight of the bird but the commotion the rooks were making helped me find her in long grass gasping for air she was on a rook quickly despatching and let her feed up on it .i was well
pleased shes had afew good flights sence no kills one of the flights she missed , on her way back crashed into a tree after a pigeon it came out the other side with her hot on its tail . dont no if thats the norm anyway cheers