Luscian The Harris Hawk: Lucsian : 601 Grams

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Lucsian : 601 Grams

9/10/09 : 601 Grams

Activity :
6:47 AM 601 Grams
1:12 PM 591 Grams
8:13 PM 650.Grams fed 59 grams

Luscians Second Hunt was really a bit of fun. Unfortunatly unlike yesterday we didnt get a chance at birds but we did chase a rabbit though we lost it to a hole. Luscian doesnt have that sence of urgency yet with them but after today he might just change his tune. I had a friend from work come out. He is a Photographer too and Ill work on getting some photos from the hunt to put up on the blog. I also had another falconer friend and His girlfriend with for the hunt. Luscian was a bit vocal and that may have been due to other people out in the field too or it may just be that he was hungry and giving me the Feed me call. Towards the end of the hunt we decided to start hitting some rat nests and found one that I knew we would get something out of. It just looked right as my sponsor would tell me. Well we worked the nest and luscian payed mostly attention but would look around from time to time as to almost be bored. Once we got the rat out the first time though He took off after it right away. He missed it as it ran to another bush but was in hot persuit hitting the bush to get the furry guy. Luscian scared the rat back to its nest so back to the fist we went but now he was paying full attention to the work being done. It ended up taking 4 flushes but on the last one Luscian took off from the fist and made a laser line to the rat grabbing it by the head right away! I took my Ski pole and pinned the rat down so that it couldnt bite and also to dispatch. Luscian didnt show any attempts to carry at first but I think all the comotion with the talking hunters Luscian took the rat from me and the pole and moved a couple feet over. I repined the rat down and let him foot and pluck for a minute till I came in and started touching and cut the rats chest open so that Luscian could start eating and get a real good association with hunting and eating. I let him feed up on the heart and lungs and liver before I did the trade off which came perfectly. I had a 4 day old quail on the lure. With the rat pinned down I threw the lure out 3 feet with a perfect hop from the rat to the lure for our first real tradeoff! Bagged up the rat before he was done and called to the fist. We went to the truck and shot some trophy photos after I hooded and jessed up my hawk. When I got home I weighed the rat at 367grams minus the guts. WOW what a stout rat! All photos with exception to the one in this post will be credited to Shayne. I also have a little video of Luscian eating his first kill. Too much fun!

No comments:

Post a Comment

Lee Slikkers

Breeder Bio

Luscian is the first Harris Hawk produced out of my breeding project…
I am fairly new to the Raptor Propagation arena having just secured a Federal Permit in the Spring of 2008. Currently my focus is on 3 breeding pair of HH’s. I am working towards putting together a pair of North American Goshawks and currently have one mature female imprint NA Goshawk who will stand for AI but am still growing and developing a tiercel for donation purposes. I am also just putting together my first pair of Peregrine Falcons and these will be setup as a natural pair with no current AI intentions with the Falcon side of the Project at this time. My love for the Falconry Sport inspired a natural transition into the desire to produce my own raptors and hopefully produce quality raptors for others to fly as well. I currently have no designs on becoming a large or full time Raptor Breeder, just one that enjoys working closely with my birds and gaining an added bit of pleasure and knowledge from doing so…

I am pleased and honored in having Chuck become the first recipient of my breeding project efforts. I look forward to seeing this tiercel develop into a terrific game hawk under Chuck’s guidance. Lee Slikkers 616.318.7366

Charlie Kaiser Note

While many claim the HH is "too easy" as a falconry bird, that's not reallythe case. While it is probably the easiest NA raptor to take game with,realizing the full potential of the HH requires discipline and attention todetail just as with any raptor.Weight control is critical for top performance, although many will ridiculethat statement. A tame HH will indeed hunt at a wide range of weights, butonce the true hunting weight is found, you begin to see the capabilities ofthis magnificent hawk.Jennifer Coulsen has written, IIRC, that many HHs are regularly flown at asmuch as 100 g above their true hunting weight, and the owners complain thatthe bird is lackadaisical. "Oh, it's at weight alright; it follows closely,begs for food, and chases "hard", but doesn't seem to catch anything."That's a typical fat HH. They learn the feeding game quickly. Cowboy, our 22year old, will still come instantly to the fist and beg for food at 780g,and his hunting weight is 610g. They learn the drill.Once the true hunting weight is found (or should I say hunting hungermanagement), the bird's hunting will become much different. Slips thatpreviously resulted in a chase but missed catch will result in a catch muchmore often than not. More challenging quarry can be taken. Longer slips willresult. The difference is stunning... Weight control cannot beoveremphasized with the HH. While it's definitely not the only factor, it'sa huge one...
As with any hawk, putting them over lots of game while at a good huntingweight breeds success. Nothing like early successes in the field to buildconfidence and ability. Especially if you can fly the young hawks with otherexperienced birds from the beginning, they will learn very fast. Earlysocialization with other hawks is important for long-term behaviorfoundations, too. Once properly socialized, they will retain it for a longtime, but a young hawk flown without others for the first season or two willhave trouble adjusting later on. It's worth the time to find other HHers tofly with for that first season. The cooperative behavior and hunting successisn't as important at that time as the socialization, IMO. The cooperativebehavior will come with time and experience; the socialization happens fromthe start. And the hunting party socialization is different from theparent/siblings socialization, IMO. Actual hunting seems to build differentsocial skills than the hawk learns at "home".
Over the years, I've practiced taking multiple kills as well as single killsper hunt. While I think that the choice is a personal issue, ifcircumstances allow for single kill hunts that provide adequate fun for thefalconer and exercise for the hawk, then the single kill style should bepracticed. I didn't always feel this way, but came around to this thinking afew years back. I spent a bunch of time with Jim Dawson and we talked aboutthe issue at length. We used to take 2-5 jacks per hunt with the two boys,and had a lot of fun doing it. Jim kept telling me that it wasn't the HH'snatural hunting style; that they eventually resent it and stop working sohard. Letting them feed on every kill was more natural and the birds wouldwork harder for the kills. At the time, I was driving >100 miles each way togo hawking and I wasn't about to get out of the truck, catch a jack in 2minutes, and go home. But I kept thinking about it. When we moved to AZ andthe first year was a down game year, we started the single kill hunts. Longstory short, I was stunned at how much harder the boys pursued game. Therewas no letting up on any slip. Previously, if a rabbit made a good move, thebirds just kinda went "Oh well, there'll be another one". But now they wentafter every rabbit like it was the only one in the field. The 500+ yardslips are normal now. If it moves in their vision, it gets pursuedrelentlessly. I've seen them reflush a bunny by themselves as many as 8times before we could get to them to help.We still go after multiples at times, but the birds always get to eat a biton the kill. My recommendation to people now is go for single hunts untilthe bird has solidified the whole experience and understands what is goingto happen. Then, if multiples are appropriate, have fun with them, but ifsingle kill hunts work for you, you'll see more relentless pursuit than youwill on multiples.
Operant conditioning works wonders, too. HHs think a bit more than manyraptors, so you really have to be on your toes in regards to timing and whatbehavior you are trying to reinforce. If you're off a little bit, it can beconfusing to them. Also, every interaction with the hawk is a trainingsession, no matter how short it is. HHs are not as reactive as accips tooperant conditioning, but with proper thought and awareness, the methodworks just as well.
I've learned over the years to read my hawk and others. HHs can get just asinsulted as an accipiter about things, but they don't show it the same way.They will internalize rather than display, and the result can be loweredperformance without an obvious resentment. But if you learn to read them,you will be able to tell when they've been insulted and what bugs them, andavoid it at all costs (or train them out of the resentment).
Create a strong family group. You and the hawks are the pack. For Pam and I,it's the two of us and the two birds (adding the third one this year). Keepthings consistent and become a hunting pack. The birds love having thatsense of place. While you will be able to fly them with other HHs, you'llsee that their peak performance is when flown as "the group". Make sure theyrealize that you (and any other humans with you) are the biggest, baddestHHs in the group. You are the alpha female and they have to defer to you.This allows you to jump in on a kill and take it away without excessiveresentment. They're used to that in the pack. As long as they get some of it(an adequate amount), they're usually OK with getting "robbed" if necessaryand if done right.

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Lucsian : 601 Grams

No comments:

Post a Comment

Luscians Links

Kill Count 2010-2011

Kill Count 2009-2010

Luscian's Groupies

Blog Archive

Lee Slikkers

Charlie Kaiser Note