A great afternoon out is to visit the Burren Birds of Prey Centre. The Birds of Prey Centre has Buzzards, Falcons, Eagles, Owls and Hawks. We were lucky enough to spend some time viewing these birds and seeing how they were fed and handled.
Some tips from Jemma Parry- Jones, Director of the National Birds of Prey Centre in England if you will be considering falconry after your visit!! "A buzzard is the ideal beginner's bird for anyone who wants to fly diurnal birds of prey. Some species are extremely good hunting birds, others tend to be a little lazy, but most of them will give a good grounding to the beginner. For people who want to start in falconry, they should forget the Common Buzzard and go straight to a Red-tail or a Harris Hawk. It is wise to spend time on a bird that will last fifteen to twenty years.
It can be a little confusing to a beginner in falconry as to which are the 'hawks'. The term is used in falconry to cover all hunting birds, including falcons. It is also used to mean the true hawks, but some people call Red-tailed Buzzards, Red-tailed Hawks and also Ferruginous Buzzards, hawks. The true hawks or accipiter are the most nervous and temperamental of the birds of prey to train. Even when they are tame they can throw a wobbler!
In England Goshawks and Sparrowhawks are the only readily available hawks. Although there are Black Sparrowhawks, Cooper's Hawks and Gabar Goshawks in the UK, they are not being bred in enough numbers to satisfy the demand. The Sparrowhawk and Goshawk are very different birds (apart from the obvious difference in size). Very few people would want an imprinted Goshawk but many people, myself included, have flown and liked imprinted Sparrowhawks.
There is not really anything difficult in training falcons; in fact, the larger ones often train a lot easier than other family groups. One of the most difficult things to learn to do well is swing a lure making sure you don't damage a bird.
What Sort of Falcon?
As a beginner, you must avoid any of the small falcons such as Kestrels, Merlins, Hobbies and others that might become available later like Redheaded Merlins or Aplomado Falcons. All make dreadful beginner's birds because of their size and weight, too easy to kill.
Kestrels don't make good hunting birds or good lure birds but they make quite fun birds to take for a walk or to have as a pet. Generally they are first class at coming to the fist and sitting in trees.
Owls are not related to the diurnal (active in daytime) birds of prey, which is why you rarely see owls and other birds of prey written about in the same book. Owls fill the same niche as the day flying birds of prey only they do it at night. Like the diurnal birds of prey they catch their food with their feet, they are carnivorous, they have powerful beaks and feet.
