I got a 7/8 Gyrfalcon, 1/8 Saker male falcon from a commercial breeder in Wyoming. He became He became, as most birds raised this way do, a quiet social imprint who loved dogs, and flying on the Henderson ranch. He was doing fine when a rich young ornithologist of my acquaintance insisted on “starting” him …
Month: March 2019
Once and Future Hawk
I had a couple of these. One of them was afraid of hats. In New Mexico. I fed her off one all summer and she still leaped off the perch every time she saw it. I’m getting one of these. He caught 70 small birds last month (legal, House sparrows). …And one of these I …
Another View of Marccus
This tribute to my late brother Mark was written by my younger sister Anita, who runs an autoimmune disease clinic with a doctor partner (who is also a snake fanatic — but that’s a matter for another time.) While it is frankly sentimental, it is a worthy addition to my bitter portrait — I was …
The Houndsman
If anyone could understand why I missed his memorial yesterday, it would be Dutch Salmon. He led me into many places, most of them good, but he also was a pioneer in dealing as gracefully as anyone can with Parkinson’s disease and its sometimes impossible symptoms and restrictions. I first encountered Dutch Salmon in an …
Charlin
I achieved an unusual coup the other day; I paid off my gun dealer’s bill with an expensive gun, and got a better one for less money. It is a Charlin, not a Darne. While they look superficially alike, the Charlin’s breech rolls on ball bearings and can be moved by two arthritic fingers, while …
Stephen Collector
Boulder Photographer Stephen Collector, the Boulder photographer, visited this week to hunt quail and take pictures. The quail hunt, in East Red Canyon, was unsuccessful. I was glad to go out even with the .410. The photographs were more successful. Best of me in a long time Most realistic Tiger Country – Polvadera Mountain
Dangerous Birds
A lot of people seem to forget that, though Deinonychus and even New Zealand’s Moa and Maori- eating Haast’s eagle are gone, we still have some dangerous modern dinosaurs. This thought was prompted by an e-mail discussion among well- informed friends last week. My money for real danger is on Stephanoaetus coronatus, which always seems …
Eagle Women
–Two of the better known eagle falconers are coming to visit Casa Q next month. Lauren McGough, newly minted PHD anthropologist, is a long time protegee who first came here and on to Mongolia when she was sixteen. Novelist Rebecca O’Connor, who hails from California is also a longtime honorary Magdalenean. I’m trying to get …