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September 25, 1997 - Falconry: The Ancient Art of Royalty6A • The Suffolk Times • September 25, 1997 Falconry: The Ancient Art of Royalty Interesting things always seem to pop up in our lives. Last week, when I was working with Nature Conservancy, Mike Scheibel told me about a falcon they had seen over on Shelter Island. That in itself would have been exciting for it's about the time we begin to see hawks of all kinds heading south on their fall migra- tion. What made the falcon sighting on so special was that the hawk had Nature "jesses" (leather straps) attached to by Paul its legs, telling all Stoutenburgh he was someone's trained falcon that somehow had escaped. The art of falconry, the sport of kings, goes back over 4,000 years when frescoes and sculptures from early Egypt and Persia attest to the sport that was later picked up by the English, Dutch, French, Italians and Spanish along with the people of China, Japan and Russia. It takes a great deal of time and skill to train a hawk for falconry and in those early days spe- cial trainers were engaged to perfect the best falcons for this noble sport. As new freedoms were gained through the early rebellion in England and the French Revolution, much of the nobility of the past came tumbling down and with it the royal sport of falconry. Still, through the ages there were always some who held on to the sport. Books have been written on falconry and handed down so that today there's a renewed interest and falcon clubs are starting up all over the world. Long, Tedious Work Falconry is no fly -by -night undertak- ing. It's a cherished sport that takes much time and devotion and is not something to take lightly. To become a falconer today one must be committed to long hours of training and study, for nothing comes easy in this regal sport. Then one must be licensed by the State of New York Department of Environmental Conser- vation and pass a rigorous test before being permitted to practice falconry. Even then you are spot- checked to make sure you are handling the birds correctly and keeping them in proper facilities. The art of falconry is something I've always admired principally because it has to do with birds and secondly because it's a sport of single commitment. By that I mean a person usually works alone, train- ing and developing his birds. He must first gain the falcon's confidence and then, by laborious steps, start training his bird with the ultimate goal of free flight and hunt- ing. This is no easy task and few people are willing to undertake it. To get back to my story about sighting a falcon on Shelter Island, I contacted Gene Butta, a licensed falconer here on the East End and left the information about the sighting for him to follow up. Then the sur- prise happened. A week later my son, Roger, called to say that while working in his yard he heard the tin- kling of bells and when he looked in the tree above him there was a hawk with leather straps on its legs. What he was concerned about was that his fancy bantam chickens had probably lured the hawk in. I immediately got in the car and went up to see for myself; not that I didn't believe him, but the sighting of a hawk with jesses would be something new to me. Though it was early in the morning we called Gene to tell him of our find. He was excited, for he had recently lost one of his birds while cleaning its cage, and would come right over. When he arrived he was delighted to see his lost hawk, but the problem was it didn't respond to his call or lure because it had been free flying for a white and was very skittish and flew away. However, Gene now had high hopes of capturing it, and as a matter of fact said he would bring over a bow trap (a device that would capture the hawk without harming it) to Roger's place and set it up with a live decoy. The effort would be well worth it for he had put months and months of rearing and training into this hawk. Once the hawk was gone, things settled back into a normal pattern. The bantam cage was opened to let the chickens out and Roger went back to work around his tinkling every time he moved. And what a hawk it was, particularly when you saw it up close. I never realized how big a Cooper's hawk really is. It had the noble hawk look with its piercing eyes and hooked bill that makes it so easy for hawks to tear into food, and then there were those powerful talons. This bird epitomized everything a hawk should be. We quickly called Gene, but he was out so we left a message and waited. In the meantime the hawk sat high on his perch with the bantam chickens shivering in fear under the protection of a cover below. It wasn't long before Gene arrived to claim his hawk. There was a grand reunion, with the hawk perched on his gloved hand once again. We here on Long Island are on the fly- way of birds' spring and fall migrations. The spring migra- tion in May of small woodland birds like warblers is probably the most well - known of all our migrations. Then there are the spring and fall migrations of shore birds out on the flats along the South Shore worthy of one's attention. Less known are our hawk migrations, most notably the ones that take place in the fall along our South Shore barrier beaches. The best place to see them is at Smith Point at the south end of the William Floyd Parkway and also at the Jones Beach area. The secret to a good hawking day is to keep an eye on the weather. When a cold front moves in with a strong northwest wind, that's the time to drop everything and go. I've been over on the beach when over 500 kestrels (small falcons) have passed by within a few hours along with varying numbers of sharp- shinned hawks, merlins, ospreys, etc. Many come very low over the dunes as they wing westward. One last bit of information about fal- conry. In an article in last Monday's New York Times there was a story about fal- cons being used to scare off the gulls at airports. This is particularly true where airports are near the water such as JFK and LaGuardia. Here the mere sight of one of these trained hawks puts all the gulls in flight. The idea is to scare them away so they don't become a menace to planes coming in and out. A truly modern twist to falconry. Suffolk Times photo by Paul Stoutenburgh COOPER'S HAWK WITH JESSES —This trained hawk slipped out of its cage recently but was recaptured in Cutchogue. Hawks of various kinds are used to legally hunt rabbits, pheasants, quail and other game. Let's Look Back 75 Years Ago Sept. 22, 1922 Old House Sold: The Col. John Young's house at Southold, owned by Frank and Arthur Downs, and a lot have been bought by Miss Emma Rutzler of Brooklyn. The house is the oldest one in Southold, and was built in 1647. Mattituck Leads in East End League: By defeating Southold Saturday by a score of 7 to 2, Mattituck advanced to first place in the East End Baseball League. Just before the last half of the ninth inning, "AI" Salmon, Southold's star pitcher, was called to the plate and presented with a purse said to contain $200, the gift of friends. The president of the East End Baseball League, William Dodge, has received notice of a protest from the Southold team in the game which they lost to Mattituck last Saturday. Southold claims that Mattituck had on its team in violation of the rules a man named Heaney of Greenport. Heaney made five hits and won the game for Mattituck. We understand the game was played under protest. 50 Years Ago Sept. 19, 1947 Heavy Rains Benefit Farmers: The heavy rain which fell Sunday in the agricultural region here was worth about $1,000,000 to cauliflower growers and other farmers, it was estimated. The cauliflower, as a result of the prolonged dry spell for the ast few weeks have develo ed too ra idl 4%h 1 p f P P y place and I went home, a bit disappointed in not seeing a true falconer with his hawk. A short time later I got a telephone call from my son: "You won't believe it, Dad, but I've just caught the falcon!" "How ?" I belted out, knowing you just don't catch a hawk that easily, particular- ly one that has been on the loose for over a week. He told me he had it in the chick- en pen. He had left the door open for the chickens to go out and, to and behold, the hawk flew in, evidently lured in by the few bantams that stayed inside feeding. Needless to say, it didn't take me long to verify the fact that he literally had caught the hawk. It sat on the bantam's high perch looking as if it owned the place, his bells and become discolored, materially reducing the market value of the plants. Prior to the rain Sunday, nearly 400 acres of the 6,000 acres of cauliflower had been plowed under from lack of rain, but farmers said that the rain would make it possible to save nearly all of the remaining yield. 25 Years Ago Sept. 21, 1972 It Was a Turkey Shoot: The Mattituck Gun Club Inc. held its annual Turkey Shoot at the range on Cox Lane, Cutchogue, on Sunday. The pleasant weather was a con- tributing factor to a highly successful day. A record 79 turkeys were given to the various competitors. In the high - power event Fred Fickeissen won three turkeys. Bill Beebe Sr. took two birds in dead mark and one in the trap competi- tion, winning three birds in a row. Family Vanishes Without a Trace: Shelter Island police are trying to solve the mystery of a family on the island which has vanished without a trace. The family have not been seen at their home on Osprey Road or in the village since Aug. 30, according to police. None of the three youngest children has reported to Shelter Island Schools, where they have attended during the eight years they have lived on the island and the oldest has not reported to Clarkson College for his second year. The house was locked but not closed down for the winter and police had not been notified that the family would be vacationing. Neuter Clinic Open GREENPORT —A one -day neuter clinic for male cats will be offered by SAVES (Spay, Alter, Vaccinate Every Stray) on Saturday, Sept. 27, in the Greenport United Methodist Church parking lot on First Street. Free immu- nizations also will be available. Dropoff time is between 8 and 10 a.m.; pickup is from 4 to 6 p.m. Cats must be at least 3 months old, be in a carrier or trap, and be accompanied by an adult with proper identification. Participants must sign a release. Reservations and information: 477- 1426 or 477 -2720.