FAQ's & Facts Page

Here is a page dedicated to Facts and FAQ's about our birds, and Birds of Prey in general.

Frequently Asked Questions...

Q) Why are the birds tied up?

A) Our birds are tethered to their perches to prevent them from fighting with eachother. Remember, they are Birds of Prey, and are very territorial. When they are sitting in the Weathering Ground, they each own a small amount of room around their perch, but when they fly free in the Flying Ground, they own that huge area and most of the birds drift further afield. The leash is a specific length, it's long enough to give the bird a little freedom around it's perch, but it's short enough to ensure that if the bird jumps off, it can't build up too much in the way of speed, which when the bird reaches the end of the leash could result in the bird dislocating it's leg.

Q) Why does the Weathering Ground have a net over it?

A) The net is there to make sure that all of the birds sitting on their perches are safe when one of the other birds are flying free in the Flying Ground. The last thing we want is one of our birds flying down into the Weathering Ground to have a go at one of the other birds sitting on it's perch. If that were to happen, chances are we would never make it into the Weathering Ground to separate the birds in time. The net and large netted door are also there to prevent the Peacocks from coming in. Peacocks are very aggressive birds and will attack our birds. Back in 2008 - before the net, 3 Peacocks came into the Weathering Ground and killed 2 of our birds and injured a 3rd one.

 

Q) Do the birds always come back?

A) Most of the time! It is uncommon for a bird to fly away and never come back, although it does happen from time to time. I have been working with the birds since 2002, and since then we have only ever lost 2 birds. Both birds were Falcons, one was a Lanner Falcon called Sandy, it was a clear blue sky and he went up and up and up and never came back down! The other bird was a Kestrel called Scruff, he too gained a lot of height and never came back down. All of our birds have a ring around their leg with our telephone number on it. Since we never received a phone call, we can only assume that the birds started a new life in the wild.

Q) What do you do when a bird flies away?

A) We wish it the best of luck. We don't own the birds, that would be wrong. We work with the them, and as is life, should the bird decide it wants to go 'self employed' and hunt for itself, there is nothing we, or anyone can do about it. It's why we fly the birds free - we give them a choice every day.

 

Q) Do you stroke the birds?

A) Definitely NOT! We are very proud to have a working relationship with our birds. We never touch or stroke them, this would turn them into 'overgrown pets'. By not degrading the birds in this way, they remain wild birds. When I see birds that are touched, they seem to have lost their 'spirit', their 'spark'. I'm pleased to say that we would never take that amazing part of the bird away. We pay the birds to do a job. Each time the birds land on our glove or a nearby perch, there is always some wages waiting for them - a piece of food. When the birds have finished their 'little bit', they go back to the van and jump into their traveling box because they know that we will give them an extra piece of food - their bonus! We treat our birds as we would all like to be treated - with dignity and respect. If your boss started touching and stroking you, I bet you would have a lot to say about it, maybe through solicitors, although I'm sure there are a good few of you out there that would just give your boss a good slap and tell them where to get off!!! The birds act in exactly the same way, if we, or anybody, reaches to touch one of our birds, they won't hesitate to bite you! They are not being aggressive or nasty, they are just telling you to 'back off'. You can look, but you can't touch! Our birds trust us to look after them and keep them safe, they also know that we offer short working hours, good pay, a safe place to sleep at night and a bonus after every exercise period! What more could they want from us - their employers?!

Q) Why do Owls fly silently?

A) Most people will tell you that Owls fly silently so their prey can't hear them coming - WRONG!!! The majority of Owls hunt in the dead of night, they can't see in complete darkness, but as long as the moon or a few stars brighten up the night sky, they can. However, there probably won't be enough light to spot their prey sneaking about in the grass, so it's a good job they have fantastic hearing! They need to fly silently so that they can hear their prey scurrying about it, if their prey stops moving they usually make a vocal noise, that scares the prey in to making a run for it, meanwhile the Owl follows the noise and hopefully catches it's dinner. If the Owl were making too much noise with it's own wings as it was flying, it wouldn't have been able to hear it's prey moving and catch it. The Owl wants it's prey to hear it, because that is what makes it's prey move, and of course while it's moving, it's making a noise!

Facts...

Fact: The most common Bird of Prey in this Country is the Common Buzzard.

Fact: The Kestrel is a true Falcon and not a Hawk, despite the fact that it hunts like a Hawk and it's nickname is the Hover Hawk.

Fact: Female Birds of Prey are always about 25% larger than males.

Fact: Most of the time, male Birds of Prey are prettier than the females!

Fact: There are 59 species of Eagle in the world. They are found everywhere except the Polar Regions of Antarctica.

Fact: The Merlin (Falcon) is this country's smallest diurnal (day time) Bird of Prey. Females weigh around 8oz (230g), the males only weigh around a tiny 5oz (165g)!

Fact: Birds of Prey have eyesight that is between 8 and 10 times more powerful than ours!

Fact: The Little Owl is the smallest nocturnal (night time) bird. They weigh in at around 4oz (113g). Unlike most other Owls, the Little Owl spends a lot of the time hunting during the day rather than at night! They prefer the two D's - Dusk and Dawn!

Fact: The Eagles are put into categories, they are - Snake or Serpent Eagles, Booted Eagles, Sea or Fish Eagles,

Fact: The largest Bird of Prey that can be found in this Country is the White Tailed Sea Eagle. The males can weigh up to 8lbs (5kg) and the females are quite capable of weighing around 15lbs (6.9kg)!

Fact: The Hen Harrier is our rarest Bird of Prey, and sadly is only hanging on by a thread in this country.

Fact: Feathers belonging to Owls have a 'feathered edge'.

Fact: All Birds of Prey can turn their heads about 183 degrees in both directions.

Fact: The Peregrine Falcon is the fastest creature that has ever existed on Planet Earth. It has been reliably timed at 243mph in a vertical dive. Obviously when the bird reached it's top speed, it was many thousands of feet above sea level!