Love this dave ive always said u need to love and respect your quarry,how can u truly love hunting with out that respect and love,i never take more than we need and everything is used ,in the summer i still go out even with out the birds to watch my quarry just because i love them as much as my falconry 100% part and parcel of life,❤
Very wise words Dave. As Falconers, hunters, whatever , we owe it to our quarry and indeed ourselves and our sport to have an ethical and sensible attitude towards our treatment and attitude towards those animals we hunt.
Once again fantastic video, Dave. For years I hunted crows, with longwings and goshawks, whilst also training crows & ravens for TV and film work. I get totally where you are coming from with this video. I once slipped a young gyrxperegrine at a local crow, one that I saw daily, the gyrxperegrine was at the very start of his career, and it was an easy slip, and defo not sporting. For years after that crows partner gave me grief every time she saw me, and didn't take another mate for 3 springs. It took a few months to click why this random crow was giving me shit every time I appeared, but once it did, I never slipped another falcon on that bit of land, the guilt at her/his grief or anger made me realise that they weren't just crows, but they had a life outside of the scope of requirements that I'd imposed upon them.
I'm not hunting yet, but I was into parrots and corvids before I got into falconry and realised that what I wanted was to hunt and form a hunting partnership with a bird of prey. I like to befriend wild corvids and I do worry about what will change when I get a raptor eventually. They're the one prey species I really don't want to hunt, but I might one day - love and respect for the quarry is everything, and the flights corvids can give are just as incredible as any raptor's! We are apex predators and part of the ecosystem too, and we are also the only apex predators who are aware of that balance. Hunting is in our blood! I also feel as if falconry allows us to bring kindness to a natural hunt, dispatching the prey fast and painlessly so it doesn't have to experience the agony of being eaten alive. Of course, I'm still a novice, but I've had about a year of research and listening and observation and I'm trying to go into my first hunt with the right attitude and ethics. I think I probably will hunt corvids one day, because I love them, and because raptors hunt and eat crows even with no humans present. But that's a long way off!
@@falconry.davesharpenatureboyI'm aware falconry is a lifestyle, and I'm glad I'm getting into it young! I have no desire to rush into it and ruin a bird for no good reason other than my impatience! I'd love to fly a crow falcon off the fist one day but thinking about it still makes me grimace slightly... I'll never say never though!
One of the hardest parts of falconry for me, but life needs life to survive. Most peaple who see their food in supermarkets have disconnected from an ancient sense, to be a falconer should wake you up to these deep hunter gatherer ways that have been mechanised by modern farming. It also give us a respect for just how nature works, a balance that evolution has weighed up, something that we cant see in the moment. I love nature and I try to reason as my hawks feeds, as you say the hawks or predators have no such thoughts. Lovely food for thought in this video.
I REALLY resonate with this...
Kind regards from Mexico!
Love this dave ive always said u need to love and respect your quarry,how can u truly love hunting with out that respect and love,i never take more than we need and everything is used ,in the summer i still go out even with out the birds to watch my quarry just because i love them as much as my falconry 100% part and parcel of life,❤
Very wise words Dave. As Falconers, hunters, whatever , we owe it to our quarry and indeed ourselves and our sport to have an ethical and sensible attitude towards our treatment and attitude towards those animals we hunt.
I feel it’s important and without them we’d have no falconry …
Once again fantastic video, Dave. For years I hunted crows, with longwings and goshawks, whilst also training crows & ravens for TV and film work. I get totally where you are coming from with this video.
I once slipped a young gyrxperegrine at a local crow, one that I saw daily, the gyrxperegrine was at the very start of his career, and it was an easy slip, and defo not sporting. For years after that crows partner gave me grief every time she saw me, and didn't take another mate for 3 springs. It took a few months to click why this random crow was giving me shit every time I appeared, but once it did, I never slipped another falcon on that bit of land, the guilt at her/his grief or anger made me realise that they weren't just crows, but they had a life outside of the scope of requirements that I'd imposed upon them.
It’s true once you learn about them there’s way more to them ( likely why most of us here don’t keep pet pics etc hehe)
I agree with everything your saying a love of one’s quarry is essential, from rabbit to crow I admire them all.
Same for sure
I'm not hunting yet, but I was into parrots and corvids before I got into falconry and realised that what I wanted was to hunt and form a hunting partnership with a bird of prey. I like to befriend wild corvids and I do worry about what will change when I get a raptor eventually. They're the one prey species I really don't want to hunt, but I might one day - love and respect for the quarry is everything, and the flights corvids can give are just as incredible as any raptor's! We are apex predators and part of the ecosystem too, and we are also the only apex predators who are aware of that balance. Hunting is in our blood! I also feel as if falconry allows us to bring kindness to a natural hunt, dispatching the prey fast and painlessly so it doesn't have to experience the agony of being eaten alive. Of course, I'm still a novice, but I've had about a year of research and listening and observation and I'm trying to go into my first hunt with the right attitude and ethics. I think I probably will hunt corvids one day, because I love them, and because raptors hunt and eat crows even with no humans present. But that's a long way off!
Well done for planning first . Yes i sometimes hunted crows with my last gos, wouldn’t target them as main quarry now maybe ; going soft
@@falconry.davesharpenatureboyI'm aware falconry is a lifestyle, and I'm glad I'm getting into it young! I have no desire to rush into it and ruin a bird for no good reason other than my impatience!
I'd love to fly a crow falcon off the fist one day but thinking about it still makes me grimace slightly... I'll never say never though!
One of the hardest parts of falconry for me, but life needs life to survive.
Most peaple who see their food in supermarkets have disconnected from an ancient sense, to be a falconer should wake you up to these deep hunter gatherer ways that have been mechanised by modern farming.
It also give us a respect for just how nature works, a balance that evolution has weighed up, something that we cant see in the moment.
I love nature and I try to reason as my hawks feeds, as you say the hawks or predators have no such thoughts.
Lovely food for thought in this video.
Cheers pete and we just got home! Four hours!
I know each individual bird is different, but In your experience how long did it take your sparrow hawk from hatching to hard penned?
It’s been way too long to remember , I think musket’s about four or five weeks and another week or so for females but don’t quote me