Luscian The Harris Hawk: September 2010

Sunday, September 26, 2010

Rest In Peace Luscian

Thank You to everyone that Followed Luscians Blog. Sadly He gave his life for the hunt today. Ill get a new Blog started up soon for My new Female Harris hawk at www.GhostHawking.Blogspot.com Ill miss ya Luscian. You where amazing.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Friday, September 17, 2010

624 Grams

Today we found lots of rabbits to chase but the downside was that they where near a prairie dog town and we lost most of them. We hunted for almost an hour and a half. Towards the end we had a couple young prairie falcons following us around and I thought that was just way too cool but Luscian didnt like it at all. Finally Luscian made it to a power pole and I kept on walking I got about 60 yards away and saw a bunny in a bush. Instead of busting it and teaching luscian a lesson I decided to Call him in. I waited for that perfect moment as he was sailing in to come to me and I busted the bunny out. It ran hard accross a hill and Lucsian changed directions on a dime closing in with his speed from the power pole. I really love to watch these kinds of flights as Luscian overtook the rabbit as it passed a bush, spinning both himself and the rabbit. I made in real quick and dispatched with the idea in mind that I was going to let him crop up real good for this hunt. I want to reward him well for this hunt as he really gave me his 100%. This also affords me to spend a day or two with Sonya, my new female Harris hawk as I want to hopefully get her outside on the creance soon.

I cant wait till it cools off. It is so hot by 10 am and no fun at all in pants and snake guards.

Monday, September 6, 2010

623 Grams

Luscian and I went out today to my Percell field. Its about 40 acres and deffinatly a bird of the fist field with little as far as poles for perching. Luscian and I where out for 30 minutes and only saw one rabbit before the kill shot. Coarse Luscian was dinking around a bit and i didnt really go crazy flushing bushes if he wasnt going to be around. I know that beating the bush even when he is not on the fist is important but I am trying to teach him that flushes happen when he is with me and rarely not when he is off screwing around. He is still 2/3oz over last years hunting weight but I think that this year that this may be his weight escicially when the colder weather comes. Coarse I could be wrong but he is doing so good now.

Our kill of the day was a CottonTail Rabbit that didnt make it but 20 yards as it worked a small circle and cut with the wind giving Luscian a great chance to get to him before he made it to the hole. I am so impressed with that Last Second Commitment that I have been seeing out of him and in videos of other harris hawks. It seems that, this last second or milisecond the bird really turnes it on hard for a good 5 feet and the Nitrous launches them foreward and the landing gear come out. I really do love seeing this from a side profile as you get to see the catch from another light as most of the catches are from behind. Today as I may not get to hunt tomorrow for the first time of the season, I let Luscian crop up nicely on the rabbit before I hooded him up and walked to the truck. Quiet as a lamb all the way back home and on the perch for the photo of the day. Thats when he started making a little noise.

Sunday, September 5, 2010

627 Grams

Luscian was on fire today. Though he only caught things that I didnt want him to catch or things that I couldnt have imagined him catching. The wind was light but just enough to keep my bird wanting to keep his wings out on the T-Perch. We chased a few cotton tail and one jack with no luck. Luscian then turned his attention to a couple unmentionable birds. Caught one in the air and another in a cactus as he slammed the cactus to catch it. I did not reward him for either catch. Shortly after his second bird he caught a Baby Prairie Dog. WHAT? Yep, I said it. A baby prairie dog. Weird. Anyhow, all went well and I traded him off to the lure for the prairie dog as I thought I may be able to save it but Luscian did just the right amount of dammage. What the world was a baby like that away from the nest. It was a good 7 inches long. Anyhow, we got some excersize and it was a pretty day. Who could ask for more?

Friday, September 3, 2010

636 Grams

Luscian 636 Grams

Todays weather is much better especially as far as the wind goes. I got up around 7 and was out of the house with Luscian by 745 am. We got out to the field and started walking around. I have used the T Perch more so far this year and it seems to really be a nice addition to the arsenol. Luscian takes off after a flush before I get a chance to see it and todays flights where really great. Luscian is starting to show me some of his moves from last year and he is getting great excersize out of it. We chased a few jacks but I think his weight is still a bit high as he didnt really give them the good job that he did with the cottontails. Cover is really thick and the rabbits have got themselves lots of holes to escape into this year.

The populations seem to look good though as we got to chase a good 6-7 cottontail and a good dozen jacks in the area we used last year. We did manage to hunt around an area that I havent played in too much and i find that it is ok but not as good as the other. Luscians kill today was a good flush from right at my feet. The rabbit took off for the left with Luscian coming in HOT behind him. They both went behind some large cactus and I couldnt see the connect but I heard the tell tale sound of a cottontail getting grabbed and when I got there I see Luscian in one side of the cactus and the cottontail coming out the other side. Surly Luscian had a great grip as I reached in to help and get them both out of the Cholla Cactus. Trade off to the front leg while I went and cleaned the rabbit. The walk to the truck was a long one today but we got there happy and ready to kick back and rest for the both of us.

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

First Day of the 2010 Season!

Luscian 624grams

Todays first day of the season ended off with a BANG!

Ive been working Luscain for a couple weeks getting his weight down and excersizing him in the back yard and it all payed off. Luscian played the game like he never went through the moult and showed me that he was well worth his salt as a falconry bird. We flew for just about an hour and grabbed 2 jacks and ended the day with a cotton tail. The cottontails that he chased early on in the hunt where really not that lucky as Luscian seemed to have forgotten a few of his moves and didnt really turn it on till the end when all the sudden it seemed that he remembered a trademark tactic and excecuted a perfect wingover with a slide under a bush to grab his bunny just as it was hitting its Hole in the ground. Luscian was rewarded with a front leg and a nice walk back to the truck.

Awesome first day of the season!

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.