West Coast Falconry!
... Did Robb and I have a great time at our much-anticipated falconry class? Oh yes we did! I had some trepidation that the place was going to be a dismal set-up with defeated-looking animals in miserably small cages. I had fairly low expectations, and was very pleasantly surprised by the whole experience. The birds were housed in large immaculate aviaries, and seemed healthy, alert and relaxed. The bird we worked with was a Harris Hawk , a large bird of the American Southwest. They are unique among raptors, in that they are social animals, hunting and raising their young in family groups. Their social tendencies make them excellent "working" birds. Mariposa, the eleven year old bird we worked with was quite a character. Very intelligent, often anticipating the commands she would be given. Having worked with wild birds, it was very odd to look a bird directly in the eyes. In pretty much every photo of me, I'm retracting my head as far away from the b