The Birds used in Hawking
Of the numerous birds of prey which are found in various parts of the
globe, a good many have been employed in the service of man as agents
in the pursuit of other birds and of four-footed animals, partly for
purposes of supplying him with food, and partly for sport. It is
more than probable that others might be similarly trained and flown,
especially some of the American and Australian hawks, which seem
suitable for the purpose, but which have never yet, as far as we know,
been thus taken in hand. It is not, however, proposed to describe at
length any members of the large family of Raptores, except such as are
known to have been used in hawking; and with regard to those which have
been flown only in remote parts of the world, considerations of space
necessitate a very brief reference.
It has usually been said that the list of birds used in hawking
includes only two main divisions--the long-winged hawks, as falconers
call them, known to naturalists under the name of "falcons"; and the
short-winged hawks, to which the men of science apply specially the
name of hawks. This ornithological classification of falcons on the
one hand and hawks on the other, is not a very happy one; for in the
general public estimation, as well as in falconers' phraseology, every
falcon is a hawk, although every hawk may not be properly called a
falcon. The one term is of classic, and the other of Teutonic origin;
and it was too late, when books about birds first began to be written
scientifically, to attempt to establish a hard-and-fast difference
between words which had already passed current for centuries as
meaning pretty much the same thing. Moreover, hawking, which, if the
naturalists' view of the matter were accepted, ought to be concerned,
like the French _autourserie_, with the short-winged hawks only, has
long been considered in England a mere synonym for falconry, which
also, if interpreted strictly according to the ornithological theory,
ought to be regarded as dealing with the long-winged species.
The two-fold division, however, no matter whether it is into falcons
and hawks, or into short-winged and long-winged hawks, seems to be
insufficient and unsatisfactory. For eagles, which have been, and still
are, extensively used in a sport for which the only English names are
hawking and falconry, remain unincluded in the two usually accepted
classes. No eagle can properly be called either a hawk or a falcon;
and in order to find a place for them amongst the birds trained and
flown at quarry, it seems necessary to institute a third class. What
order of precedence should be taken by such new class is a matter of
small consequence. In symmetry of shape, in its mode of flying, its
character, and its tastes, the eagle is as inferior to the true hawk as
the latter has always been deemed to be to the true falcon; and in this
work, as in others on falconry, the first place has been retained for
the long-winged hawks, and the second for the short-winged, leaving a
third place for what little it seems necessary to say about such eagles
as we know to have been flown at game.
The long-winged hawk is known by the following characteristics:--The
second primary feather in the wing, reckoning from the outside, is the
longest, or at least equal in length to any other, as in the merlin,
which has the second and third feathers very nearly or quite of the
same length. The upper mandible has on each of its sides, about a third
part of the distance from the point to the cere, a projection somewhat
resembling a very blunt tooth. The eye is dark brown. The wing is long
enough in the outer joint to come down, when closed, considerably more
than half-way between the end of the tail coverts and the end of the
tail itself, and in some cases, as in the hobby, as far as the tail, or
even farther.
In the short-winged hawks the wing is comparatively short in the outer
joint, and, when expanded, presents a rounded appearance at the end,
the fourth primary being the longest, and the first very short. That
emargination, or narrowing in, of the feather near its end, which is
observable in the first two primaries of the long-winged hawk, is still
more pronounced in the short-winged, and is conspicuous in the third
and fourth primaries also. The tail is long, and large when expanded.
The iris is of some shade of yellow, light or dark. The upper mandible
curves in a smooth line, without any projecting tooth.
[Illustration: WING of LONG-WINGED HAWK
WING of SHORT-WINGED HAWK
WING of EAGLE
SHAPE OF WINGS]
In the eagles the tail is shorter and stouter. The outer joint of the
wing is shorter than in the falcons, the wing deriving its power from
the feathers near the body rather than from the outer ones. The beak
is longer in shape than that of the other two sorts, and the legs are
proportionately stouter. The size of the smallest eagle is very much
greater than that of the largest falcon or hawk.
The differences which exist in the shape of the wing between the
three classes will perhaps be best appreciated by a glance at the
accompanying illustration, in which a characteristic wing of each kind
is figured.
The French have convenient terms (see Belvallette, _Traité
d'Autourserie_, Paris, 1887) which express in themselves, with great
perspicuity, though perhaps a little exaggeration, the different
methods of flying employed by the short- and the long-winged hawks.
The latter they describe as _ramiers_, or rowers, because their mode
of progression through the air resembles that of an oarsman, or
rather sculler, striking with repeated beats of his sculls; whilst
they describe the short-winged hawks (with eagles and all birds that
have rounded wings) as _voiliers_, or sailers, maintaining that their
impulse is gained by the pressure of the air against the wing, upon
which it acts as upon a sail. Many people may be inclined to call such
a distinction rather fanciful, and even question its truth; but the
mere fact that the two words have been accepted as correctly denoting
the two separate styles of flying, shows what a marked difference
between them has been generally admitted to exist. It will be seen that
the mode of flying the "rowers" and the "sailers" at quarry is also
very distinct.
In accordance with the three-fold classification above suggested, I
now proceed to mention the various birds used in hawking under the
successive headings of--(1) Long-winged hawks; (2) Short-winged hawks;
and (3) Eagles.
I. THE LONG-WINGED HAWKS (Falcons)[1]
[1] It should be observed that although the term falcon has an
established meaning among ornithologists as a name for the long-winged
hawks, it is used by falconers in quite a different acceptation. In
hawking phraseology it is applied, in contradistinction to the term
tiercel, to the female of the larger sorts of long-winged hawks, and
especially to the female peregrine. Thus when a falconer is described
as being possessed of "two falcons," or a hare is mentioned as having
been taken by a "falcon," the reader is expected to know that the
female peregrine is referred to, and not a male peregrine, or a saker,
lanner, or any other kind of hawk.
Perhaps the leading characteristic in the flying of this kind of
hawk is that it habitually captures its prey, or, as falconers term
it, "quarry," by making a dash or shot at it, technically called a
stoop, from some position where it can command an advantage in speed
and force. In many cases the bird is itself so conscious of this
natural aptitude for stooping in preference to mere following, that
it habitually places itself, when on the look-out for food, at a
considerable height, from which it can descend with great ease and
velocity upon any victim which may happen to be passing beneath,
using the principle of gravity to increase the force of its downward
flight; and in several departments of the falconer's art the trainer
endeavours to encourage the tendency of his hawk to mount and make the
most of the advantage so gained. The long-winged hawks are as a rule
trained to come to the lure, and not to the fist, although for the sake
of convenience it is sometimes found advisable to make them to both
practices.
Greenland Falcon (_Falco candicans_)
Female--Length, about 23 inches; wing, 16.5; tail, 9. Male--Length,
about 20 inches; wing, 14.5; tail, 8.
The general colour in the adult of both sexes is white, with more
or less faint bars of light brownish grey on the upper plumage, and
spots of the same colour underneath. The young birds of both sexes are
considerably darker than their elders, with a much larger allowance
of darker grey brown on the plumage both above and below. These dark
patches and markings become fainter and less abundant at each moult,
until in very old birds they almost vanish, leaving the hawk to appear
at a distance merely white. The bars on the back, shoulders, and wings
are often shaped like the two arms of an anchor; and the spots on the
breast are mostly tear-shaped, especially after the first moult. The
legs, feet, cere, and eyelids are bluish grey in the young birds, but
after the first moult become yellow, strengthening in colour at each
moult.
It will be seen by reference to the remarks on comparative merits of
falcons (Chap. XVIII.), that in proportions this species excels all
the other gers. It is also the most majestic in its appearance and
attitudes, and the most noble in the expression of its eyes and, if
the term may be permitted, of its countenance. It was not so much used
in the Middle Ages as the other gers, by reason of the difficulty of
obtaining it, but was probably the most highly valued of all. The late
Lord Lilford, who in quite modern times had a good deal of experience
with this species, opined that it was an excellent flier and stooper,
but a poor "footer," that it was the reverse of hardy, and difficult
to keep in condition. When observed in the wild state in Scotland
it was found to kill a great many rooks, and to be dreaded by the
wild-fowl, but not to be partial to game, though it was seen to make an
ineffectual stoop at a blackcock.
Iceland Falcon (_Falco islandus_)
Female--Length, about 24 inches; wing, about 17; tail, 9-1/4.
Male--Length, about 21 inches; wing, 15; tail, 8-1/4.
In young birds the upper parts are dark greyish brown or brownish grey,
each feather barred and tipped with a much lighter grey. The under
plumage is dusky white, splashed more or less profusely, especially
on the breast and flanks, with streaky spots and splashes of greyish
brown. At the first moult the brown tinge begins to disappear, and
the spots on the breast and flanks become more heart-shaped than
longitudinal, and less profuse. In subsequent moults the spots
become smaller and smaller, and the whole plumage fades to a lighter
grey, the bars on the upper plumage often softening gradually to a
greyish white. The sides of the head and lower nape are white, with
brownish lead-coloured shaft marks in the immature plumage, fading and
diminishing as the hawk moults. The moustachial streak is wanting in
this variety.
This species of ger was very highly esteemed in antiquity; and
individual falcons were occasionally presented by the kings of Denmark
to foreign potentates as a high compliment. In modern times it has been
found delicate, and difficult to keep in health. Mr. Newcome had some
which flew well at herons, but did not find them so generally effective
as peregrines. The late Maharajah Dhuleep Singh flew them with success
at hares. Lord Lilford, however, was unable to get them to fly rabbits
or hares, and found them liable to a troublesome affection of the feet.
Norway Falcon (_Falco gyrfalco_)
Female--Length, about 22 inches; wing, 16; tail, 9. Male--Length,
19-1/2 inches; wing, 14; tail, 8-1/4.
In the young the general colour of the upper plumage is a lead-coloured
brown, each feather tipped and margined with a somewhat lighter
brown or buff. The flight feathers are also similarly margined. The
lower back is sometimes tinged with grey. The tail is tipped with
white, and barred rather closely with a speckly buff. The breast is
profusely streaked with longitudinal blotches on a white ground, as
in the peregrine; but these markings are of a rather duller brown.
At the moult the markings on the under plumage diminish greatly in
size and number, especially on and near the chin, and become more or
less tear-shaped--this tendency to decrease continuing in subsequent
moults. In the upper plumage the brown is replaced by slatey grey,
barred with a lighter blue-grey, which in patches, especially upon
parts of the feathers which are habitually hidden, are nearly white.
The tail becomes slatey brown, with narrow bars of brownish grey. This
species has a broad well-marked moustachial streak, which is dark brown
in the immature and dark grey in the adult. The cere and eyelids are
blue-grey, and the legs and feet bluish lead colour; but all become
yellow in the adult.
This species is found not only in Norway, but also along the whole
expanse of Northern Europe and Asia. It is the nearest in colouring and
disposition to the peregrine, and the most remote from the Greenlander.
Lord Lilford considered that it was not so fast as the Greenlander,
and its shape is certainly not so indicative either of speed or of
strength. John Barr was sent over by Captain Dugmore some few years
ago to Norway, and brought back sixteen of these hawks. They flew
beautifully to the lure, turning more quickly than a peregrine, and
stooping with greater dash, but were of little use in the field, and
mostly fell speedy victims to the croaks or other maladies.
Labrador Falcon (_Falco labradorus_)
This is another species of the ger family, found, as its name imports,
in Labrador. It is of a much darker coloration than even the Norway
falcon, but not very different in measurements. It has not, as far as I
can learn, been trained for sporting purposes, though no doubt it very
well might be.[2]
[2] Although the name gyrfalco--the gyrating or circling falcon--is
now appropriated by most ornithologists to the Norway birds, all the
foregoing were included by the old falconers under the name ger, gyr,
or jer. They are all so styled, and very properly, by modern usage.
They are indeed little, if anything, more than climatic varieties of
the same bird, and although it has not been ascertained beyond a doubt
that they interbreed, this is highly probable. The lightest variety
of each one species is almost, if not quite, undistinguishable from
the darkest of the next; and the character of all is similar enough
to admit of their being trained and treated in the same way. From the
falconer's point of view, there will certainly be less difference
between one Iceland falcon and one of either of the two nearest allied
species than there may be between two individual specimens of _F.
islandus_. They will all therefore be dealt with in the remaining
chapters under the same general name of gers, unless when any special
consideration involves a more specific indication.
The difference of size between the two sexes in the case of these
splendid birds is, as it will be seen, considerable. But both are so
superior in speed and strength to any creatures at which they are at
all likely to be flown in England, that the list of quarry suitable
for the gerfalcon will, with a very few exceptions, serve for the ger
tiercel also. This list includes gulls of all kinds, herons, rooks and
crows, wood-pigeon, black-game, grouse, partridges, hares and rabbits,
wild-duck of all descriptions, Norfolk plover, and all the sea-fowls
found on the coasts of Great Britain and Ireland, except swans, and
perhaps wild geese. The gerfalcon will also take these latter, as well
as kites and cranes, peacocks, ptarmigan, and bustards, at which the
best of them may be flown in countries where such birds are to be found
in sufficiently open places. It is recorded of Henry, king of Navarre,
that he had a gerfalcon which Scaliger declares to have struck down
in his sight a buzzard, two wild geese, divers kites, a crane, and a
swan (Sir Thomas Browne, cited by Harting, _Bibliotheca Accipitraria_,
xxvii.). The flight of the ger is marked by an appearance of power
suitable to its size and shape, and combines in an extraordinary degree
swiftness and the power of turning readily. When taught to wait on, it
does so in majestic style, often at a stupendous height; and its stoop
from that direction is so "hard," as the old falconers termed it, or
in other words so swift and impetuous, that the quarry is less often
clutched and held than struck down with a blow as the hawk passes, and
is often found either killed or altogether disabled by the violence of
the shock. So great, indeed, is the vehemence with which the ger flies
and stoops, that the old masters warned their pupils not to work them
long on any occasion, for fear of tiring them, and thus lowering their
"pitch," or impairing their powers of mounting.
Gers have not had a very fair trial in the hands of modern falconers.
They have seldom come into their possession under favourable
conditions. Greenlanders, especially, have for the most part been
brought to European shores by ships, upon which they were caught at
sea by men quite unacquainted with the proper mode of treating a
wild-caught hawk. Almost always their plumage has suffered badly; and
they themselves, having been kept alive on unsuitable or scanty food,
have been reduced so low as to permanently lose some of their natural
strength and vitality. The same thing may be said of several Icelanders
and Norwegians which have reached the hands of the falconer in pitiable
plight. Gers are very seldom taken on the passage in Holland, although
one tiercel, captured by Adrian Möllen in 1878, was acquired and
trained by the Old Hawking Club, and proved a fine performer at rooks.
Reference has already been made to the gers brought by John Barr from
Norway. Mr. Newcome, who in the treatment of peregrines was excelled by
no falconer of modern times, was dissatisfied with the gers which he
trained, and found them difficult to keep in condition.
D'Arcussia, who, of course, had many gers under his charge, declares
that their principal excellence was in mounting, whereas in the
downward stoop the peregrine might be awarded the palm. This opinion,
however, can hardly be reconciled with the more forcible and striking
words which he uses in another passage, where he tells us that having
trained some gers for partridges he took them out before a company of
experts, who, after seeing these hawks fly, were "disgusted with all
other hawks."
Peregrine (_Falco peregrinus_)
Female--Length, about 18 inches; wing, 14; tail, 7; tarsus, 2-1/4.
Male--Length, about 16 inches; wing, 12; tail, 6; tarsus, 2.
In young birds of both sexes the upper plumage is a more or less dark
brown, inclining in some individuals to chocolate colour, and in others
to black, each feather of the back, wing, and tail coverts tipped
with a lighter and more rufous brown. The chin, neck, breast, thighs,
and whole under plumage is more or less dull creamy white, streaked
plentifully with longitudinal blotches of dark brown, which are thin
and small at the neck, but become broader and bigger as they approach
the lower part of the breast, dying away again towards the vent. The
tail is greyish brown on the upper surface, tipped with more or less
rufous white, and barred with five or six rather irregular and rather
faint bands of darker brown. The under part of the tail is very faint
brownish grey, barred with a somewhat darker hue of the same colour.
The sides of the head and neck are dull creamy white, streaked with
very small dashes and markings of dark brown. On the under side of the
eyebrow, passing round the eyelids, is a patch or streak of very dark
brown, and a broad streak of the same colour or of black reaches like
a moustache from near the back of the upper mandible backwards for an
inch.
The legs, feet, cere, and eyelids vary from light blue-grey to greenish
yellow and pale ochre; beak, light bluish grey, darkening to black at
the tip; claws--called always by falconers "talons"--black, as in other
hawks of all kinds. In the first moult the brown of the whole upper
plumage is replaced by a slatey blue, each feather from the shoulders
to the end of the tail barred transversely and tipped more or less
distinctly with a lighter shade of blue-grey. The slate colour on the
crown and side of the head, including the moustache, is of a dark hue.
The under plumage, instead of being streaked longitudinally with brown,
becomes at the first moult spotted and splashed with markings of dark
grey, which are partly transverse and partly shaped like an arrow-head
or tear-drop, especially on the throat and gorge. At each successive
moult these spots and markings become more transverse and bar-like, and
also narrower and more sparse on the parts nearest the chin, until in
very old birds they disappear on the chin and throat, leaving a blank
surface of pure creamy white. Even before the first moult the feet and
legs begin to assume a yellow colour; and by the time the first moult
is over, they and the cere and eyelids have changed to a more or less
decided yellow, which as the bird grows old develops into a rich gold.
Both sexes undergo the same changes in plumage, but it should be said
that these hawks at all ages vary considerably in size and shape,
and still more in their colouring. It is not unusual to see an eyess
which has the head and parts of the upper plumage nearly black, while
the brown of others at the same age is as light as cocoa, with buff
edgings. Some detailed remarks as to the size and shape of peregrines
and other hawks will be found in Chapter XVIII., where it will be seen
that some are of much more prepossessing appearance than others.
Speaking generally, the peregrine may be regarded as the most perfect
type of combined strength, speed, and destructive power in birds. The
proportions are such as could not be altered with any advantage, and
adapt the hawk to a greater variety of flight than any other. This
reason, and the fact that it is to be found in almost all parts of the
habitable world, have always made it a favourite with falconers; and at
the present day it is more highly esteemed in Europe than any other,
even including the nobler gers.
The female--to which sex alone falconers allow the application
of the name of falcon--may be flown with success in this country
at herons, gulls of all kinds, ducks of all kinds, crows, rooks,
grouse, black-game, partridge, pheasant, woodcock, landrail, Norfolk
plover, curlew, and other sea birds of about the same size, magpies,
wood-pigeons, and doves. She may also generally, if desired, be taught
to fly at hares, and no doubt at rabbits. Occasionally she may take
plovers and snipe, jackdaws, kestrels, and smaller birds. In India her
list includes wild geese, cranes, bitterns, ibis, and bustard.
The male peregrine--always called a tiercel (tassel, or tiercelet),
because he is about a third smaller in size than his sister--may
be flown at gulls, teal, widgeon, partridges, woodcock, landrail,
starling, and the smaller sea birds, magpies, and doves; and when
exceptionally strong and courageous, will succeed to a greater or less
extent with rooks, crows, jackdaws, grouse, wood-pigeons, and kestrels.
In India and Eastern countries the francolin and the florican, and
several sorts of duck and plovers, may be added to the list.
The peregrine at different ages was described in old times by a
great variety of names, some of which are now little used, or even
understood. Thus, in the eyrie or nest, from the time when she was
"disclosed," or hatched, for a fortnight or three weeks she was called
an eyess (or nyas, from the French _niais_). When able to move about
on her legs she became a ramage hawk; and when she could jump or
flit from branch to branch, a brancher. After leaving the nest and
becoming fledged, as the term is for other birds, she was described
as a soar-hawk or sore-hawk (French, _sor_, from the Latin _saurus_,
reddish brown); and when her feathers were all fully grown down she was
said to be summed, whereas before this time she remained unsummed. The
period during which she could properly be called a soar-hawk lasted,
according to some eminent writers, from June 15 to September 15, when
the migrating time begins, and she came to be more properly spoken of
as a passage-hawk (or true _pélérin_). This designation carried her
down to the end of the year, when she assumed, according to the French
falconers, the title of _antennaire_; that is to say, a hawk whose
feathers, or whose whole self, belong to last year (_antan_). Many
of the English falconers, however, gave her no new title until at or
near the arrival of Lent, when they called her a Lantiner, Lentener,
or Lent-hawk, for as long as Lent lasted, that is to say, till near
moulting-time. The great similarity of the two names Lantiner and
Antennaire, given as they were to the same hawk at the same time of her
life in the two countries, suggests a strong doubt whether the former
was not a mere corruption of the latter. During the whole of this time
the unmoulted peregrine was known, from the colour of her plumage, as a
red hawk; and this term is still constantly employed. Many writers also
called her during the same period merely a soar-hawk, neglecting the
finer distinctions. It seems also that for a hawk which had been taken
in August or thereabouts, and kept in captivity, it was quite correct
to continue the name soar until her first moult was over. Passage-hawks
and lantiners were those only which had been caught in late autumn or
late winter; and these words could never be used for such as had been
caught before. As for the terms "gentle" and "slight," they seem most
properly to belong to peregrines which had been caught after they left
the nest, but before they began to migrate.
In spring or early summer the young peregrine naturally begins to
moult; and as soon as this tedious operation is concluded she becomes,
if wild, a "haggard," and if tame, an "intermewed" hawk. In any case
she is described as "blue," and not "red." There is some doubt as
to the meaning of the term haggard, many authorities, including the
lexicographers, deriving it from the Saxon _hag_, meaning hedge. A
more rational explanation seems to be that which traces it to the
Hebrew word _agar_ or _hagar_, meaning wild, as it is used in the Old
Testament. Wildness, indeed, is always regarded by Shakespeare and
other writers as the characteristic of the adult wild hawk, and not any
liking for hedges, to which no peregrine is very partial.
The language, or jargon, of falconry appropriated to the falcon, and,
by analogy, to other hawks, especially of the long-winged species,
special terms for various parts of her body and various movements and
conditions; much in the same way as several of the Oriental languages
describe the actions of royalty by special names. Thus her wings are
sails: the long feathers of them are flight feathers; and of these the
outer are principals; and next to them are the flags. Her tail is her
train; and the two central feathers of it are deck feathers. Her lower
leg is an arm, and her foot a hand, with petty singles instead of toes,
and talons instead of vulgar claws. Her nostrils are nares; her breast
feathers are mails; her lower intestine is her pannel; and her crop her
gorge.
A host of the commonest actions are dignified by more or less quaint
appellations. When a hawk sleeps she "jowks"; when she sips water she
"bowses." When she seizes her quarry in the air she "binds" to it; and
when her companion in the flight comes up and also takes hold, she or
he is said to "join." When she strips the feathers of the "pelt," or
dead body, of the quarry, she "deplumes"; and as she passes the food
from her crop downwards she "puts over." To "endue" is to digest;
to "feak" is to wipe her beak after eating; to "rouse" is to shake
herself; to "mantle" is to stretch out the leg in a sideways and
backward direction, and afterwards stretch the wing over it; to "mute"
is to evacuate; and to "cast" is to throw up the refuse feathers,
bones, and other indigestible matter which remains in her crop after a
meal has been digested. When a hawk is pushed or forcibly held down by
the hands she is said to be "cast" (French, _abattue_); and when she is
bound up in a wrapping, so as not to be able to move, she is "mailed."
When a silk thread is passed by means of a needle through the upper
eyelids and made fast under the chin she is said to be "seeled," and
the process of undoing these fastenings is called "unseeling." When she
stretches her wings upwards over her head she "warbles." When quarry is
put up for her, she is "served" with it. When she drives a quarry to
take refuge in covert she is said to "put in"; and when she rises in
the air over the place where the quarry has gone into hiding she "makes
her point." If instead of doing this she goes and takes perch on a tree
or other place of vantage, she "blocks." When her digestive organs are
brought into good condition she is said to be "enseamed."
Most of these words can be used indifferently for both long-winged and
short-winged hawks; but others are inappropriate for the latter. Thus
it is wrong to call the claws of a short-winged hawk talons; and a
goshawk or sparrow-hawk does not "mute," but "slice."
Black Shaheen (_Falco peregrinator_, or _Falco atriceps_)
This hawk is decidedly smaller than the true peregrine, the female
hardly exceeding a big tiercel in length or weight. It is distinguished
by the darker colour of its head, and especially of the sides and
moustachial streak, which may be called black. The under parts of the
body have a more or less pronounced rufous tinge; and the ends of the
wings, when closed, approach more nearly to the end of the tail.
The black shaheen is docile, and more easily reclaimed than the
peregrine; and is a great favourite with some of the Indian falconers,
although the many distinguished Europeans who have flown hawks in
that country express themselves less satisfied, and rather doubt the
courage of peregrinator in the field. The quarry is the same as that
of the peregrine, but it is only the strongest individuals which can
be expected to cope with such heavy birds as the latter can tackle. Of
the rapidity of its flight there can be no doubt; but Colonel Delmé
Radcliffe says that it is inferior to the peregrine in "ringing"
flights.
Red-naped Shaheen (_Falco babylonicus_)
Female--Length, about 17-1/4 inches; wing, 13; tail, 7-1/4.
Male--Length, 15-1/2 inches; wing, about 11-3/4; tail, 6-1/4.
This is another very near relation of the peregrine, also a favourite
with the Indian falconers, both native and European. It is slightly
smaller than the black shaheen, from which, as well as from _F.
peregrinus_, it is readily distinguished by the reddish chestnut colour
of the back of the head. The foot is smaller proportionately than
that of the peregrine, and shaped rather more like that of the desert
falcons. It is easily caught and reclaimed, and is said to develop a
sort of affection for its trainer. When trained it is a most useful
servant, and will fly with readiness and success at almost any of the
innumerable Indian birds which are anywhere nearly of its own size.
It excels particularly in the flight at wild ducks; and a specimen
which was brought to England not many years ago proved a first-rate
game-hawk. Latham asserts that it can be flown successfully at wild
geese, but should be followed closely by well-mounted men, who should
dismount quickly and secure the quarry, which may otherwise severely
damage the hawk with its long and strong wings. He appears to have
known a tiercel which flew rooks, and seldom missed as much as one
in ten flights. It is a better moulter than the peregrine, and can
sometimes be fully moulted by August.
Barbary Falcon (_Falco barbarus_)
Female--Length, about 13-1/2 inches; wing, 11-1/2; tail, 5-1/2.
Male--Length, about 12-3/4 inches; wing, 10-3/4; tail, 5.3.
This beautifully-shaped hawk is the smallest of those which have been
commonly called miniature peregrines; and the resemblance is hardly
so marked in either of the last-mentioned varieties. For the barbary
is even more powerfully armed and feathered than her bigger cousins,
having not only the wings conspicuously longer and more pointed than
_F. peregrinus_, but also distinctly larger feet and talons, and a
larger beak proportionately to her size. The colouring is the same
as that of the peregrine, except that the young birds are generally
lighter, especially about the head, which has a slightly ruddy tint;
and the feet are more usually yellow than grey-blue. In adults the
thighs are strongly marked with arrow-headed streaks. This hawk is
sometimes called the Tartaret. It is found in the southern portion of
the temperate zone, especially on the African and other shores of the
Mediterranean.
The falcons and strong tiercels will fly well at partridges, pigeons,
and doves. Quails, of course, are easily taken by them, as they are
exceedingly fast on the wing. If a cast of haggards could be trained
for peewit or snipe, and well entered, they would probably have as
good a chance as any hawk which could be selected for these difficult
flights.
Lesser Falcon (_Falco minor_)
This hawk very much resembles the last, but has longer legs, and a
slight rufous tinge on the plumage. It is found chiefly in South Africa.
* * * * *
The Punic Falcon (_F. punicus_), the Javanese Falcon (_F.
melanogenys_), and the Chilian Falcon (_F. cassini_), all more or
less resemble the peregrine, but with variations in the colour of the
plumage, and of smaller dimensions.
Saker (_Falco sacer_)
The measurements of this hawk, as of a great many others, are given in
the so-called scientific books, even of highest repute, with hopeless
inaccuracy. One of the authorities which is most often referred to
gives the length of the female saker as 18-1/2 inches, or the same as
the peregrine, whereas every naturalist ought to know that the saker is
a very much larger bird. On the other hand, the _Royal Natural History_
(1895), coming much nearer the truth, says that "the female falls but
little short of 25 inches, and the male measures more than 18-1/2." The
proportions of this hawk, excepting the feet, do not differ greatly
from those of the ger, although the colourings and general appearance
are completely dissimilar. The weak point, from the falconer's point of
view, is the smallness of the feet and shortness of the middle toe, as
well as the poor quality of the feathers, which have about them none of
the glossy smartness so noticeable in the ger and the peregrine.
Young birds have the crown and nape buffy white, lighter on the
forehead and over the eyebrows, and in other parts profusely streaked
with dark brown. The upper plumage is a rather dull dark brown, with
fulvous and rufous buff edgings. The tail, excepting the deck feathers,
is marked with irregular oval spots, which range themselves into a
sort of band. There is a distinct moustachial stripe. The under parts
are buff-coloured, liberally streaked with splashes of dark brown,
especially on the flanks; but the buff colour grows lighter on the
upper parts, and at the chin becomes nearly white. The cere, legs, and
feet are pale bluish or greenish grey.
In adults the head becomes much lighter, and sometimes dull white, but
with a more or less rufous brown tint and streaks of darker colour. The
upper parts are dull and rather pale brown, the feathers margined, and
in some parts barred, with light fulvous buff. The flight feathers are
faintly barred with a lighter brown, and all the tail feathers barred
with light buff. The sides of the face, chin, throat, and breast are
nearly white, the latter being spotted rather than streaked with brown,
but not transversely barred. The moustachial streak fades away. The
cere, feet, and legs assume a more or less pronounced yellow colour.
The saker is a tolerably common bird throughout almost the whole
of Central and Southern Asia, and is there very highly valued for
practical purposes. It was also largely imported into Western Europe in
the Middle Ages, and later it was used even in France and England for
the flight at kites. It is for this fine sport that it is now chiefly
prized in India. The list of quarry taken by this very serviceable hawk
is extremely large, and includes, besides the various kinds of tropical
kites, hubara, or bustard, herons, black ibis, ducks, and a whole host
of smaller birds. The flight at the short-eared owl is especially fine,
and the quarry often rings, and attains to a very great height before
the saker can get up. The female saker will take hares well, and also
ravine deer.
The tiercel of the saker is more properly called a sakret, sakeret,
or sackeret. This hawk is the largest of those called desert-hawks or
desert-falcons.
Lanner (_Falco lanarius_)
Female--Length, 18 inches; wing, 13.3; tail, 7.2. Male or
"Lanneret"--Length, 16-1/2 inches; wing, 12; tail, 6-1/2.
The dimensions of this desert-hawk do not differ widely from those of
the peregrine, but the feet are much smaller, and the tail longer.
The feathers are of an inferior quality, and the light colour of the
head prevents all risk of confusion. The wings are slightly longer and
heavier. Young birds have the whole back up to the nape of the neck
and down to the tail coverts dark brown, each feather tipped with a
lighter and more rufous brown. Wing and tail feathers darker brown,
narrowly tipped with rufous buff. The deck feathers are plain, but the
others are barred with lighter brown on the upper surface, and with
dull brownish grey bands of two shades underneath. The crown of the
head is light greyish buff, with narrow streaks of light brown. The
lower plumage is more or less dull white, very variously marked in
different individuals, but generally with longitudinal splashes of more
or less dark brown. The change to the adult plumage is not very marked.
The breast markings do not change to transverse bars; but some old
birds have the brown markings so arranged as to appear like irregular
bars. These markings, however, generally become very sparse, and often
disappear entirely on the throat and upper breast. The upper plumage
alters to a slatey brownish grey, most of the feathers being barred
with a darker brown, and still tipped with a rufous line. The cere and
feet change from a bluish to a yellowish grey.
The lanner is common in North Africa, as well as in Central and
Southern Asia, and is very frequently trained and flown in all these
parts of the world. It was also formerly very largely imported into
England, and used chiefly for game-hawking. It enjoys, nevertheless,
anything but a good character. The old English writers describe it
as "slothful and hard mettled," and of an "ungrateful disposition,"
while the French characterise it as _vilain_ and _rebelle_. The Indian
and Afghan falconers get it, as well as the saker, into condition by
frequent physicking; and the list of drugs formerly used for it in
England is of portentous length. In modern times the dosing of this as
well as other hawks is imperfectly understood by European falconers;
and the lanner is consequently in most cases a disappointing bird. When
thrown off, she flies in a heavy style, and only after considerable
delay will begin to mount. Very often, too, she will not mount at all,
but go to perch on a tree, or even on the ground. She is apt to rake
away and check at pigeons, plovers, and what not, and to be dull and
obstinately slow at coming to the lure. To ensure obedience she must
be fed a good deal upon washed meat, and that in moderate quantities,
her appetite, like that of all the desert-falcons, being apt to grow
slack on the least overfeeding. The lanner is very partial to mice, and
in the wild state appears to devour lizards and other reptiles. She is
not, therefore, at all particular as to diet, and may be regaled with
coarser food than the nobler falcons.
Once properly conditioned, however, and "on her day," the lanner--or
for that matter the lanneret, as the male is called--is a useful and
deadly hawk. Both sexes will kill partridges freely, not waiting on
so often when the quarry has put in as taking perch on a neighbouring
tree, and waiting, like a sparrow-hawk, to start from there. The female
has also been known to take wild-duck well, and will wait on, when she
likes, at a stupendous height. For magpies the lanner would hardly be
quick enough. Pheasants can usually be taken by the females at the
first stoop. It is said that the Arabs fly the lanner at small gazelles
and a kind of bustard, which it stoops at whenever it takes wing, and
without actually striking it, frightens it on to its legs, so that it
can be run down with hounds. This bird has the faculty of ejecting a
slimy matter from its mouth and vent, which, if it reached the hawk,
would incapacitate her from flying. Ringing flights are flown at a bird
called the chakhah, resembling a golden plover; and the lanners which
excel at this fetch a price equivalent to £50 or £60. The Arabs also
fly the lanner at sand-grouse and francolin.
D'Arcussia declares that the sakers and lanners do better in stormy
weather and high winds than the peregrine. Neither of them bear the
heat well in temperate climates.
* * * * *
The South African Lanner (_F. biarmicus_) and the Tunisian Lanner, or
Alphanet, are local species, having a more strongly rufous coloration
than _F. lanarius_.
Lugger (_Falco jugger_)
Female--Length, 17 inches; wing, 13.6; tail, 8. Male--Length, 15
inches; wing, 12; tail, 7.
An Indian hawk, rarely found out of the peninsula. It is much used by
the natives for a variety of quarry, and does a lot of useful work.
Eleonora Falcon (_Falco eleonoræ_)
Female--Length, about 15-1/2 inches; wing, 13.3; tail, 7.5.
Male--Length, about 13-1/2 inches; wing, 11.8; tail, 6.5.
This is a hawk of the hobby type, much darker on the under parts, and
with a good deal of black and rufous on the under surface of the wings.
The feet are at first pale yellow, developing later into orange. The
wings are long, but do not project, like the hobby's, beyond the tail.
This hawk is common on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean. It was
observed and reported upon by Brooke in Sardinia, and Kruper in Greece,
which latter observes that it is "a noble falcon, and was in early ages
used for falconry." I have not discovered the chapter or verse in which
this use is mentioned; but the hawk is obviously quite big enough to be
flown at partridges, if willing to go. Both the above-named naturalists
maintain that its food consists principally of birds, and Dr. Kruper
declares that he found in its nests the remains of six different kinds
of bird, including quail and hoopoe. A specimen was trained by Lord
Lilford in 1868, who found it very obedient to the lure, but of no use
in the field.
Hobby (_Falco sabbuteo_)
Female--Length, 13 to 13-1/2 inches; wing, 11-1/4; tail, 6-1/4.
Male--Length, 11 to 12 inches; wing, about 10-1/2; tail, 5-1/2.
This very beautiful and graceful little hawk may at once be identified
by the exceeding length of its wings, which, when closed, extend a
full half-inch beyond the end of the tail. It is conspicuous also by
its very marked colouring, which is in young birds almost black on the
upper parts, each feather, however, being tipped with fulvous brown.
The lower plumage is creamy white, streaked profusely with dark brown
splashes, and tinted on the throat and sides of the head with a warm
buff. There is a broad black patch below the eye, and a black eyebrow,
with a small streak of buff above it. The moustache is broad and
strongly marked. The cere is greenish grey; and the feet, originally
of the same hue, develop gradually into light yellow, and later into
gamboge and bright orange. The deck feathers are plain, but all the
others are barred both above and below by about ten cross-bands of
lighter brown.
In adults the upper plumage changes to a uniform dark slate colour,
nearly black towards the head. The flanks and thighs, especially in
the male, assume a more and more distinct rufous colour. The feet are
proportionately small, and the legs decidedly weak.
There are strong evidences that the hobby, when commonly bred in
Western Europe, was used with success for taking larks, not only
by the process of "daring" referred to later on in the chapter on
lark-hawking, but in actual flight, and that the female was used for
taking partridges in the same way. The failure of modern falconers
to make any practical use of this elegant and prepossessing hawk, is
noticed in detail in the same chapter. Owing to its natural tameness,
the hobby is especially liable to fall a victim to persecution
by gamekeepers and naturalists, and has as a result been nearly
exterminated in England.
A wild hobby has been seen by credible witnesses to take a swift on the
wing in Bulgaria. A trained female has been known in England to take
house-pigeons.
Merlin (_Falco æsalon_)
Female--Length, 11-1/2 to 12 inches; wing, 8-1/2 to 9; tail, 5-1/4 to
5-3/4; weight, about 8 oz. Male--Length, 10-1/2 to 11 inches; wing, 8
to 8-1/4; tail, 4-3/4 to 5; weight, 6-1/4 to 6-3/4 oz.
Females and young males have the whole upper plumage a rich chocolate
brown, with reflections of purplish grey, each feather on the back and
upper wing coverts tipped with a somewhat lighter brown, and crossed
by a buff bar, which is usually not to be seen except when the plumage
is disarranged or ruffled. Each feather also has a black shaft, which
is conspicuous in strong lights on a close view. The primaries and all
the principal feathers of the wing are very dark brown on the upper
surface, barred with several patches of light brown or buff. The under
surface of the wing is very light silvery grey, with numerous bars and
spots of brownish grey, each feather having a dark grey shaft, which
is white underneath. The tail feathers on the upper surface are of a
slightly lighter brown than the back, and light grey underneath, barred
with more or less oblique bands, which are buff-coloured above, and
light grey-brown underneath, and are all tipped with white. The under
plumage of the body is creamy white, more or less tinged with light
buff, especially on the sides of the head and throat. It is liberally
streaked with longitudinal splashes of dark brown, which on the upper
throat are very small, but on the lower flanks are broad and large.
There is a facial patch and a moustache of dark brown, but these are
not so strongly marked as in the peregrine and hobby. The beak is
light blue, darkening to indigo, and at the tip to black. The cere and
eyelids, light bluish grey. The legs and feet vary from light greenish
or blueish grey to light yellow. The toes are long, thin, and flexible.
Adult females do not change, except that they lose much or all of the
purplish sheen of nestlings, and that the edging of the feathers is
less marked. Adult males undergo a very striking transformation. The
whole upper plumage changes from brown to a rich bluish slate colour,
deepening in the long wing feathers to greyish black. Instead of the
light bars on the tail, there is a single broad grey-black band nearly
at the extreme end. The breast at the same time assumes a warmer tint,
deepening from cream colour at the chin to a rich buff lower down, and
deep russet at the flanks. The cere, eyelids, legs, and feet assume a
deep golden or light orange colour. The wing and tail feathers have
a stronger and stiffer appearance than before the moult, and those
of the tail are generally somewhat shorter as well as stouter than
they were. Very old females occasionally, but not often, put on the
livery of the adult male; and this is the case sometimes also with old
female kestrels. In merlins of both sexes the third feather of the
wing is usually exactly equal in length to the second, and it is only
exceptionally that it is even fractionally shorter.
The name merlin is in orthodox phraseology reserved to the female
merlin only, the male being more properly spoken of as a jack. The
former, when exceptionally strong and courageous, may be flown with
some success at partridges, and will also take house-pigeons and
probably doves. They have been known to capture and kill wood-pigeons.
Both sexes may be flown at quails, and are more deadly at this business
than sparrow-hawks. In the wild state they kill blackbirds, thrushes,
starlings, and almost all kinds of small birds, and the trained birds
may be kept with more or less success to any one of these birds of
quarry. It has been thought that a good cast of merlins might take
snipe, and it is said that such a feat has been in former times
achieved. With tropical snipe in an overfed or moulting condition, it
is possible that this might still be done; but it is to be greatly
doubted whether any trained merlin or merlins could take fully-moulted
English snipe. The flight, however, for which merlins are usually
reserved, and for which they are renowned, is that at moulting
skylarks, and in this sport the jacks are very nearly as successful
as their sisters, as will be seen in the chapter on lark-hawking. The
merlin will follow her quarry when she can into covert; and when her
victim is larger than herself, kills it by strangulation, gripping it
tightly round the neck.
Indian Merlin (_Falco chicquera_)
This hawk, a little larger than the European merlin, is flown at much
the same quarry, but also at rollers and hoopoes, which latter afford a
fine ringing flight.
* * * * *
The African Merlin (_F. ruficollis_) has the markings on the breast
closer together.
Kestrel (_Falco tinnunculus_)
Female--Length, about 13 inches; wing, 9; tail, 7. Male--Length, about
12 inches; wing, 8-1/4; tail, 6-1/2.
Females and young males have the upper plumage reddish brown,
transversely barred on the shoulders, wing coverts, and tail with
black; the flight feathers, blackish brown; the under plumage, very
pale fawn colour, streaked on the breast, and splashed on the lower
part with brown. Adult males have the head, lower part of the back,
and upper surface of tail, light slatey grey. The tail with a broad
black band near the end, and tipped with white; and the head with dark
shaft-streaks; the shoulders, upper back, and upper wing coverts, pale
chestnut, with small black spots of a triangular shape. The wings, dark
horn colour, with lighter edging. The under plumage, pale fawn colour,
becoming more rufous at the lower part and on the thighs; streaked with
dark brown splashes on the breast, and spots on the abdomen. The cere,
feet, and legs are pale greyish yellow in the young, and brighter in
the adult.
This little hawk has, structurally, all the characteristics of what
the naturalists call a true falcon--more so, in fact, than the more
highly reputed merlin. Its shape, indeed, but for a want of size in the
feet and a somewhat exaggerated length of tail, is very symmetrical,
and indicative of fine flying powers. It is the least shy and most
familiar of all European hawks, and survives in tolerably large numbers
throughout England, where, together with the owls, it is a chief agent
in keeping down the inordinate increase of mice. Its powers of flight
are very considerable; and it remains on the wing generally for a
considerable part of the day, not soaring so much as beating the ground
at a height of two or three score feet, and hovering from time to time
with its eye on any small creature that may be moving about or hiding
in the grass below. But notwithstanding its fine proportions, its
muscular power is not great, and its extreme pace is not to be compared
with that of the merlin. If pursued by a fairly good peregrine in a
pretty open place, it frequently succumbs.
In the field a kestrel is of no practical use. It will indeed generally
take sparrows and other small birds thrown up from the hand when it is
waiting on. And instances have been known where it has flown and taken
a few wild birds. There is even a story extant of an eyess kestrel
which was flown at a young partridge and took it. But these facts,
if true, must have been entirely exceptional. As a rule the trained
kestrel refuses all wild quarry, and it has never been known to
persevere in killing any. I am not sure whether a fair attempt has been
made to fly her at rats, which would probably afford the best chance.
But kestrels can be reclaimed and taught to fly to the lure in exactly
the same way as the proudest peregrine or the most majestic ger. They
will wait on beautifully, and stoop very prettily at the lure. And
while at hack their movements are exceedingly lively and graceful. Thus
for a beginner the kestrel is, in my opinion, undoubtedly the most
suitable hawk upon which he can try his hand. In the breeding season
eyesses may be procured pretty easily, and at an insignificant cost;
and throughout the year many of both sexes are captured in the nets of
bird-catchers, who would part with them readily for a few shillings if
they were notified beforehand that any amateur would give a fair price
for the captives. In reclaiming and manning a kestrel, in learning
how to keep her feathers unbroken and clean, how to hood her, bathe
her, house her, and weather her, and how to diet her, the tyro can
very easily and cheaply acquire all that elementary knowledge of the
difficult art of falconry which it is advisable that he should possess
before he attempts to succeed in training and flying a valuable hawk.
Whereas if, without any preliminary experience, he begins, as so many
writers advise him, with an eyess merlin, he is almost certain to
meet with a more or less discouraging failure. Far better to observe
the old maxim, "_Fiat experimentum in corpore vili_." Let the young
falconer not attempt to run before he can walk fairly well. When he has
taught his kestrel to wait on and stoop to the lure, and has either by
preventive care or by successful imping got her in perfect plumage, let
him feed her up and "whistle her down the wind" to shift for herself,
and then consider himself qualified to make a more serious attempt with
a sparrow-hawk, merlin, or peregrine.
[Illustration: TRAINED KESTREL "THUNDERBOLT"
OWNED BY MR. R. GARDNER]
II. THE SHORT-WINGED HAWKS
Regarded from the falconer's point of view, the short-winged hawk
differs essentially from her more honourable cousin of the long wings
in the following particulars. She cannot be taught to "wait on" in the
air. Although she will on occasions stoop from above at her quarry,
she does not habitually capture it by a downward stroke or blow, but
by following it from behind and "trussing" or "binding" to it. She
manifests her readiness to fly by a condition of body which is called
by the quaint, and apparently Oriental, name of "yarak," in which she
shows evident signs of eagerness and excitement, and is obviously
on the _qui vive_--attentive to every sight and sound which she may
suppose to indicate the presence of quarry or the hope of a flight.
She kills her quarry, when taken, by crushing it in her strong foot
and piercing it with her long and sharp claws, or pounces. She follows
her quarry, when it is possible, into covert; and when this is not
possible she takes stand readily on some convenient resting-place, such
as the branch of a tree, the top of a wall, or on her trainer's fist.
As a general rule she does not need to be kept to any one particular
quarry, or flown at any particular time of day, but may be thrown off
at anything, whether fur or feather, which she thinks she can take, and
will do almost any amount of work at almost any hour.
It will thus be seen that though, from the purely artistic and sporting
standpoint, the long-winged hawk deserves the more honourable place
which has always been accorded to her in the most civilised countries,
yet, taking the more material and matter-of-fact view of the matter,
and regarded as a "pot-hunter," the short-winged is at least equal
to her in merit. There is, it is true, in the flight of the latter
little of the grandeur and dramatic excitement which so often attend
the efforts of the former. No silent pause while the pointer stands
and the hawk mounts steadily to her lofty pride of place above him.
No spiral climbing of quarry and hawk into the distant blue sky. No
lightning descent, which in a second or two brings down the hawk from
hundreds of yards high to within a few feet of her trainer's head. But
there is plenty of excitement of a different and not less healthy kind.
The wary stalking of a shy quarry while the well-trained hawk on the
fist trembles with eagerness for the chase. The rush and bustle of the
start; the quick burst of riding or running to keep the chase in view;
the hurry and scurry when the quarry has to be routed out from his
place of refuge; the tussle for mastery when he has once been seized;
and, last but not least, the abundance and variety of the bag which on
a successful day is carried home.
One very great advantage attached to the short-winged hawk is that she
can be flown in an enclosed country, or at least in places which are
only very moderately open. Woods and forests are of course tabooed;
and any land which is very undulating or very steep should be avoided.
But the grass land and arable land which is commonly found in some
four-fifths of the area of England, and especially that part of it
which is not cut up into too small fields, is available, as well as
the downs and commons, even though an occasional spinny or small
plantation intrudes itself into the campaigning ground. Another merit
of the short-winged hawk is that she is less likely to be lost. Trained
as she is, or should be, upon missing her quarry, to come back to
the falconer himself, and remain with him until her quarry is again
actually on the wing, or, in the case of ground-game, on its legs,
there is little temptation either to "rake away" or to "check." Again,
the length of the flights, counting each separate bout in the pursuit
as a flight, is very much less; so that the falconer--or ostringer,
to give him his correct name--has a far better chance of keeping in
sight when the quarry is either taken or put in. Finally, neither of
the species of short-winged hawks usually trained and flown is much
addicted to the vice of "carrying"; and thus the risk of losing a hawk
or wasting valuable time by reason of this vexatious habit is much less
to be feared. It should perhaps be added that constant exercise is less
necessary for a short-winged than for a long-winged hawk, as the former
may be left idle for considerable periods, and when brought into yarak
again seems to have lost little if any of her speed or her merits.
At the same time, the temper and disposition of the short-winged hawks
are undeniably worse at the first than those of the long-winged.
Both goshawks and sparrow-hawks, whether eyesses or wild caught, are
naturally suspicious and mistrustful of mankind. They are easily
alarmed, and very ready to take offence, and, once alienated or
frightened, can with difficulty be conciliated. Savage and vindictive
by nature and habit, they are subject to almost ungovernable fits of
rage and sulkiness, which can only be subdued and guarded against
by the exercise of much patience and good temper on the part of the
trainer. They are jealous and cruel, and cannot, as a rule, be flown in
company with other hawks, even of their own species and sex. Once lost
for any considerable time they resort to their wild habits, and are
difficult to recapture. Unless carefully dieted they are very subject
to apoplectic fits. Their long tails, although flexible and elastic
under moderate pressure, will not always stand a very severe strain,
and are likely, in a serious struggle either with any big quarry or
with an awkward trainer, to be broken. The short-winged hawks should
generally be belled on the tail. They are apt sometimes to crouch down
on their quarry when taken, in which case a bell on the leg is hardly
sounded. Besides this, if flown when snow is on the ground, the snow
will choke the bell and make it useless.
Taking the whole world over, the families of the goshawks and
sparrow-hawks, which practically merge into one another, are very
extensive, comprising more than thirty species, many of which could
without doubt be pressed into the service of man. Only three of these
have, however, commonly been trained.
Goshawk (_Astur palumbarius_)
Female--Length, 22 to 24 inches; wing, 12-1/2 to 13-1/2; tail, 10 to
12; tarsus, about 3.5. Male--Length, 19-1/2 to 21-1/2 inches; wing,
10-1/4 to 12-1/2; tail, 9 to 10; tarsus, about 3.
Females and young males have the upper plumage a dull liver brown,
broadly margined and barred with much lighter brown; the tail, barred
with five broad bands, dark brown. The under surface of the tail is
pale whitish grey, with five bands of dark brownish grey. The rest
of the under plumage is pale or rusty cream colour, tinted more or
less faintly with salmon pink, and streaked irregularly on the breast
and flanks with longitudinal patches or splashes of dark brown. The
cere and legs are greenish yellow. The eyes are very light, and clear
yellowish grey, and so bright that the Greeks gave to this hawk the
name of [Greek: asterias ierax], the star-eyed hawk. Adult males have
a decided grey tint on the upper and under plumage. At the first moult
both sexes change the longitudinal streaks on the breast, thighs, and
flanks into more or less irregular bars of dark greyish brown; and as
they grow older the bars usually become narrower and more regular. The
tail is now barred on both surfaces with four broad bands of dark brown
or grey. The cere, legs, and feet become yellow; and the eyes change to
a deeper yellow, and ultimately to deeper and darker orange.
Goshawks vary greatly in size and strength. Those which are imported
from Norway are often exceptionally big and strong, while the specimens
from Germany and Central Europe have a reputation for weakness.
Although this hawk formerly bred commonly in England, it is now
practically extinct; but some nests are still annually found in France.
The list of quarry at which the goshawk may be flown is very
large, including, for the British islands, hares, rabbits, stoats,
weasels, squirrels, and rats; herons and wild ducks--flown as they
rise--pheasants, partridges, landrails, water-hens, jays, and an
occasional magpie or wood-pigeon. In fact, any moderate-sized bird
which gets up close in front of a goshawk must bustle himself if he
intends to escape the first quick dash of this impetuous and greedy
pursuer.
In India and other tropical countries the female "goss" will fly,
with a good start, at crows, neophrons, minas, florikin, francolin,
jungle-fowl, and even such big birds as kites, geese, cranes, and
pea-fowl. Even in England she was formerly flown with success at
cranes, wild geese, and other large water-fowl; and the old books
contain elaborate directions as to stalking these birds "with grey
goshawk on hand." In some parts of Asia goshawks are said to have been
flown at ravine deer and bustard; but this would probably be with some
assistance from dogs.
The male goshawk, much smaller in size than his sisters, is less
valuable to the sportsman, but is usually accounted rather swifter on
the wing. The best specimens will catch a partridge in fair flight; and
most of them, with a tolerably good start, will overtake a pheasant. A
very strong male will sometimes catch and hold a full-grown rabbit, and
the others may be expected to kill half-grown rabbits and leverets, if
kept to such quarry. Landrails and water-hens make a more or less easy
flight. Jays and magpies may sometimes be taken, as well as blackbirds.
Rats, weasels, squirrels, and "such small deer" are, of course,
available. Occasional specimens of the male goshawk are extraordinarily
fast and strong. Colonel Delmé Radcliffe had one which actually killed
grouse in Scotland, and another which took storks and geese in India,
as well as partridges.
Sparrow-Hawk (_Accipiter nisus_)
Female--Length, 14 to 16 inches; wing, 8-1/2 to 9-1/2; tail, 7-1/2 to
7-3/4; tarsus, 2.4. Male--Length, 11-1/2 to 12-1/2 inches; wing, 7-1/2
to 8-1/4; tail, 6 to 6-1/2; tarsus, 2.1.
The sparrow-hawk is remarkable for its very long and slender legs
and middle toe, and its small head. Young females have the beak and
upper plumage sepia brown, each feather edged with rufous brown; the
nape varied with white or rufous white. The wing feathers are dark
brown, with five bars of still darker brown on the outer primaries.
The tail rather lighter brown, with five dark brown bars. The under
plumage is dull white, more or less tinged with rufous, spotted with
irregular patches, streaks, or bars of greyish brown. In the adult the
brown of the upper plumage assumes a slatey grey hue, and the edgings
of lighter colour vanish. The breast and under parts are barred with
transverse markings of mixed fulvous and brown, and develop a rusty
red colouring on the abdomen and inner thighs. The legs and feet become
more distinctly yellow or gold colour, and the eye deepens in colour
to light and ultimately to dark orange. Males in the immature plumage
differ from females only in having a somewhat more rufous hue on the
lighter part. But after the moult this rufous colouring becomes still
more conspicuous, and spreads to the flanks and under surface of the
wings, as well as to the upper throat. In both sexes the bars on the
breast and thighs become narrower and of a fainter grey as the birds
grow older; and the eyes deepen in colour.
Female sparrow-hawks--very much bigger and stronger than their
brothers--may be flown at any bird of the size of a partridge, or
smaller, which is not very swift or quick in shifting. In the wild
state they undoubtedly kill a certain number of wood-pigeons, taking
them at some disadvantage, as, for instance, when they pass under a
tree in which the hawk is at perch. Probably the wild sparrow-hawk
also picks up an occasional peewit, snipe, or woodcock. She is fond
of young pheasants, which she will pick up from the ground when
insufficiently guarded by the mother or foster-mother. Young chickens
sometimes undergo the same fate under similar circumstances. The uses
of the trained sparrow-hawk, both male and female, are described in the
chapter devoted to this hawk.
Besra Sparrow-Hawk (_Accipiter virgatus_)
This species, considerably smaller than _A. nisus_, is very common in
the tropics, both in the wild and in the trained state, and is thought
by many to be quite equal, if not superior, to it in courage and
ability.
Other sparrow-hawks which may be trained include the large species
called the Levant sparrow-hawk (_A. brevipes_), _A. minullus_ and _A.
tinus_, from South America, _A. cirrocephalus_, from Australia, _A.
badius_, and the miniature _A. polyzonoides_.
III. THE EAGLES
In Western Europe no great use seems to have been made by the old
falconers of any kind of eagle. D'Arcussia in the early editions of his
book makes no reference to them as objects of the trainer's care, and
some of the early English authors expressly speak of them as useless
to the falconer by reason of their great weight, making it impossible,
as they believed, to carry them on the fist, and also their powers of
fasting, which, they supposed, precluded all chance of reducing them to
proper obedience. In the East, however, they have from time immemorial
been trained with success, and flown at a great variety of quarry
suitable to their size and strength. For the far greater part of the
knowledge which we now have about flights with eagles, we are indebted
to Mr. J. E. Harting, who obtained much valuable information on this
subject from the late Mr. Constantine Haller, an enthusiastic falconer,
and president of a Russian falconry club which had its headquarters at
St. Petersburg in 1884-85. Notwithstanding the efforts of these two
very competent authorities, it is still exceedingly difficult to say
with any certainty what sorts of eagles are now employed by the Kirghis
and Turcomans and other Asiatic peoples, and what other sorts are
regarded as unserviceable. As to the golden eagle and Bonelli's eagle
there is no doubt; but the evidence as to the others below-mentioned
cannot be said to be at all conclusive.
The speed of the eagles in ordinary flying is inferior to that of the
hawks, though superior to that of any quadruped at his best pace.
Their usual mode of capturing their prey when in the wild state, is
by soaring and scanning the ground below, and, when they see a good
chance, dropping with a powerful stoop on to the back or head of the
victim. In training they cannot be made to wait on, and must therefore
be flown from the fist, so that winged game of all kinds is usually
able to show them, if not "a clean pair of heels," at least a clean set
of tail feathers. Consequently their quarry consists almost entirely
of four-legged creatures. Large birds of various descriptions might
be flown at when they are on the ground, and might be taken before
they had time to get fairly on the wing; but such masquerades of real
hawking can hardly be called flights.
The golden eagle, and most other eagles, are naturally more or less
ill-tempered, and require the exercise of considerable patience on the
part of the man who undertakes to reclaim them; but the method employed
differs in no material respect from that applied to the short-winged
hawk. Only, when a goshawk or sparrow-hawk is once properly reclaimed
and manned, she generally says good-bye to her bad temper. The eagle
is said to be sometimes apt, even when fully trained, to become so
enraged, either at missing her quarry or by some other _contretemps_,
that she will attack the men of the party, and perhaps have a flight at
a native just by way of a relief to her outraged feelings.
Eagles are carried to and in the field on a crutch, which is formed
of an upright pole with a cross-bar at the top, the lower end of the
apparatus being fitted into the saddle, and the staff of it attached by
a strap to the rider's girdle. The lure, to which they are called when
they do not come back to the crutch, consists of the stuffed skin of an
animal made to resemble the quarry at which they are meant to fly.
* * * * *
The following are the eagles best fitted for training:--
Golden Eagle (_Aquila chrysaetus_)
Female--Length, about 35 inches; wing, about 27-1/2; tail, about 14;
tarsus, 3.8. Male--Length, about 32 inches; wing, 24-1/2; tail, 13;
tarsus, 3.7.
The plumage is generally of a ruddy brown or fawn, inclining in parts
to dark brown, and in others to dull brownish gold. Adult females
become very dark, and males also assume a more dusky hue as they grow
older.
Of the fact that the golden eagle is now and has been for centuries
commonly trained and flown in Central Asia there is no manner of doubt.
Many excellent authorities maintain that it is the species used by the
Kirghis and other tribes subject or tributary to Russia under the name
of Kholsan. This was also the opinion of M. Paul Gervais, who became
the owner of a veritable Kholsan, imported into France by M. Maichin,
who purchased it from the Kirghis for £40 and a gun. This trained
eagle, which was a female, would take foxes well, and after binding to
them was accustomed to grip them by the fore part of the mask, thus
obviating the chance of a dangerous bite. In Central Asia the Kholsan
is flown at bustard, hare, fox, and antelope; and the females will
tackle such heavy quarry as wild goat, wolf, and even wild boar.
Berkute (_Aquila nobilis_)
About the identity of this species there is even more doubt than about
the Kholsan. Mr. Harting inclines to the view that it is no more than a
golden eagle in a different phase of its plumage. Others suppose that
it is the imperial eagle, and others again regard it as Bonelli's
eagle. It appears that in the Russian provinces of Asia it is still
more commonly used than the Kholsan, and at much the same quarry, which
would suggest the conclusion that it is not at any rate a larger bird
than _A. Bonellii_.
White-Crowned Eagle (_Haliætus leucoryphus_)
A specimen was owned by a Russian falconer, who found it worth while to
keep it over two moults, and must have taken a favourable view of its
merits.
Spotted Eagle (_Aquila clanga_ or _nævia_)
This large eagle is trained by the Kirghis, under the name of Kara
Gush, _i.e._ black eagle.
Imperial Eagle (_Aquila imperialis_)
This is a smaller eagle than _A. chrysaetus_, the female measuring
about 32 inches and the male about 31. It appears to be susceptible of
training, and is thought by many to be included in the list of eagles
commonly used in Turkestan. It is found throughout the greater part of
Asia, and occasionally in South-Eastern Europe.
Steppe Eagle (_Aquila nipalensis_)
This bird is described by some naturalists as a hawk-eagle. It is of a
taking and sportsmanlike appearance, the eyes of old specimens being
of a fiery yellow, though in young birds they are dull grey. Colonel
D. Radcliffe obtained several specimens in India, both eyess and wild
caught. He says that in the wild state it takes pine martens and also
the musk deer.
Bonelli's Eagle (_Aquila Bonellii_)
Female--Length, 26-1/2 inches; wing, 18-1/4; tail, 11-1/2; tarsus, 4.
Male--Length, 24-1/2 inches; wing, 17-1/2; tail, 11-1/4; tarsus, 3.9.
This small and rather long-legged eagle is probably the easiest to
train, and the best for purposes of falconry in Europe, as it is of
a more handy size than the bigger species, and strong enough for
all practical purposes. A trained specimen was kept and flown by M.
Barachin in France at hares and rabbits. It is described by Canon
Tristram as a more dainty feeder than most of the eagles; and Mr. Hume
says that in the wild state it kills many water-fowl. The tail is
barred. The weight of the male hardly exceeds 4 lbs.
In concluding the list it must be observed that several birds which
might have been comprised in it are omitted. The Chinese and Japanese
falconers of bygone times undoubtedly trained hawks which are figured
in their books, but cannot now be identified. Falconry is extinct
in Japan, and nearly so in China. The hawks themselves, which were
once highly honoured in their country, will probably before long be
exterminated by the ever-increasing horde of skin-collectors.
Some readers may be surprised at the exclusion from this list of some
such birds as vultures, buzzards, and even some owls. These I have
designedly omitted. I find in a work called the _Natural History
Picture-Book_ a statement by Mr. Wood, that the kite (_Milvus regalis_)
"has even been trained for purposes of falconry, and found to perform
its task to the satisfaction of its owner." Either the owner must have
been very easily pleased, or the kite must have changed very greatly
in disposition and habits within the last few centuries! With shrikes
the case is different, for it appears that they were actually trained
to fly at small birds. D'Arcussia tells us plainly that amongst the
numerous hawking establishments kept up by Louis XIII. was one of
shrikes, and relates a very quaint story of one of these little birds
owned by the king, which would fly up to a heron on the wing and
whisper in his ear!
Several of the falconets might certainly be utilised in the field, and
amongst them especially Feilden's falcon, which is very common, very
bold, and very tame. Indeed, some of the Malays are said to train these
little hawks. Davison says that he has seen the black-legged falconet
(_Hierax fringillarius_) stoop at a rock-thrush, and killed one on a
partly-plucked swallow. Other likely varieties are the white-legged and
red-legged falconets (_H. melanoleucus_ and _H. coerulescens_).
There can be little doubt that such birds as fly-catchers could be
trained and flown at butterflies; and possibly, when the naturalists
and Cockney sportsmen and egg-collectors have succeeded by their united
efforts in exterminating all hawks, our descendants may resort to this
form of sport as their best substitute for falconry as we now know it.