الصقور ‏Falcons‏ .. كتاب في سبيل موسوعة علمية .. الدكتور أحمد ذكي

Falcons

It is a large family of birds, including what are known as true hawks, including the small ones, which do not exceed about 7 inches in length, and the large ones, which reach 24 inches in length. Among them is the active, fast-flying, struggling predator known as the Peregrine Falcon, and among them is the slow, inactive one that descends to
Eating sand.

This species differs from other species of raptors by characteristics revealed by its internal anatomy. It is also distinguished outwardly by relatively long, pointed wings. With toes and toes bare of feathers, and thighs covered with non-clustered feathers, it appears as if she were wearing feather pants. There is usually a tooth-like notch on its upper jaw.

True hawks do not build nests for themselves. Some make nests on the ground, but most of them live at the edge of rocks, where they lay their eggs in the open. Some of them make nests of other bird species as their nests.

The larger falcons lay 2 to 4 eggs, while the smaller ones lay 3 to 5 eggs, and they lay on them for about 4 weeks. The female does most of the resting, unless she goes out hunting, in which case the male lies on the eggs until she returns.

Falcon chicks need 4 to 6 weeks to hatch
Its feathers, yet it cannot feed itself because it must then learn how to hunt.

Scientists count about 58 species of this family. This family contains some falcons that falconers use in their falconry, which is the use of the falcon in hunting, whether for hunting or for pleasure.

- Falconry and falconers

Falconry, which is the use of falcons after training them to hunt birds and animals among people, is ancient. It was common in Asia, Europe, and North Africa, and it was known that it was practiced in China two thousand years ago.

In Europe, in the Middle Ages, it was a hobby of kings and nobles. Gunpowder and hunting birds with bullets came and eliminated it, but it returned to Europe in the eighteenth century, and it continued to be practiced in England and the United States after that, and a group of Arab tribal sheikhs and the Arabian Gulf still practice it today.

As for the falcons that are used in falconry, there are many types, including the true falcon, which is long-winged, such as the Peregrine, the Hobby, the Kestrel, and the Merlin, as well as the short-winged falcons such as the Buzzard, the Kite, the Sparrow-Hawk, and the Harriers.

Let us not forget that we previously mentioned that among the kings there were people who were human
The eagle was used for falconry.

- Sources

Our sources are Frankish sources. As for Arabic, there are two sources: the first is Al-Hayyum by Al-Jahiz, in which we clarified the truth between the eagle and the eagle, and that the eagle is the Mighty Master, the Al-Jasser Al-Kassir. The living creature eats from its prey with its claws and beak. It is worthy of symbolizing power, and nations have taken it, both modern and ancient, as a symbol of pride and superiority, with the strength of the claw, without which there is no other symbol in this world, to this day, as superiority. As for the eagle, even if it is a little larger than the eagle, it is not nearly as tall as it. He eats carrion.

As for the second Arab source, it is the book: Iraqi Birds by Professor Bashir Al-Loos at the University of Baghdad. We benefited from it in obtaining some Arabic names for the Western names, and it is a book worthy of acquisition for the student of birds.

- Breeding falcons for hunting

It is an education that only its people can do. The breeder begins with the young falcon by seizing it from its nest before it knows how to fly, or he takes it after it has reached adulthood, then socializes it. In order to tame him, he puts a blindfold on him that covers his head and eyes so that he does not see the light, and a strip of skin is placed over the wings so that he does not flap them, and two other light strips of skin, each end of which he ties with a foot, and he leaves the other end for the falconer to hold in his hands, thus preventing the falcon from flying. If he wanted to. Since this tape was attached to the foot, it was associated with a jingle that sounded whenever the falcon moved, indicating its location. This is when hunting in fields and open areas.

The falcon is placed in a dark place for about 72 hours, and is never left alone. There must be a person with him during those hours who senses his movement and feels comfortable with him, or someone who smokes and smells his smoke and calms down in this neighborhood.

Then the educator takes the light into the falcon's room.
But little by little, until the falcon gets used to its place. This is what he is in and this new environment and he does not flinch and this happens but very slowly. Shortly after this, the falcon begins to get used to eating food from the hand of its owner, the falconer, and his fear of this new master disappears from him.

It is training that requires skill and a lot of patience. This is what the Western people from whom we quote describe this training say.