Hybrid Theory

Choosing today's picture wasn't difficult, actually I had already decided yesterday to share this portrait of a beautiful hybrid falcon. It is a cross between a Gyr Falcon and a Saker Falcon (you will have seen a shot of it in flight in yesterday's post) and it is super sleek and elegant. It is also very fast and supremely agile and it was a real treat to watch it flying to a lure.

Did you know that the art of falconry has been practiced for over 4,000 years with evidence from Mesopotamia (The Epic of Gilgamesh) providing accounts as far back as 2,000 B.C. (That makes me think of the song "The Mesopotamians" by They Might Be Giants but that really has nothing to do with falconry). 

I remember a presentation by a falconer at Beaulieu Abbey a few years ago, he described how falcons were prized possessions and extremely valuable. A good bird was seen as a status symbol. Falconry remains a niche sport especially in Gulf States like Qatar and good birds fetch ridiculous prices. In 2015 it was reported that a Gyr Falcon was sold for a whopping $250,000 (£180,000) that's just a little bit out of my league so I will just have to get my fix visiting places like the sanctuary where this little beauty was on display.

Falcon

If you have seen previous posts you will know that I like birds of prey and today I decided to share a couple of pictures that I took this summer while on holiday with my youngest son down in the New Forest. For most of the time we were cycling or walking but one day we decided to go to the motor museum at Beaulieu.  Within the grounds of Beaulieu abbey there was a falconer with a variety of birds on display.  

I particularly liked the two falcons a Peregrine Falcon and a Gyr Falcon and I have chosen one picture of each of them for today's blog.  The Peregrine is sat in a position called "mantling" and held the pose long enough to get a couple of good shots.  The Gyr also held a similar pose but  I have chosen more of a close up shot.

These are really splendid birds, when Falconry was at the height of its popularity these birds cost the equivalent of £250,000  which is quite staggering.