This post will be dedicated to just one day of our Scottish holiday, and even then it won't be the full day. The main reason being that not a single bird that features in this post is a wild one. The blog header is, for the same reason, only there for the duration of this post (so if you read this after this post has ceased to be current, you'll wonder what the heck I'm talking about!).
Tuesday 28th May
My wife had been wanting to visit Dunrobin Castle since we stopped outside it late one day last year. This day, therefore, was set aside for 'tourism' now that the Bank Holiday weekend was over.
We arrived at the castle, to be told that the falconry demonstration was starting in the gardens in five minutes time! Well, perhaps this did help in my decision to concede to my wife's wish to visit here!
This falconry display has the reputation of being one of the finest in the country, and after seeing it I wouldn't argue, although I'm not really a connoisseur of such things. The falconer here has an amazing rapport with his birds, and clearly loves them. He is also fascinating to listen to, and I was torn between listening, watching, and trying to take the photos!
The session started with him introducing a Harris Hawk - possibly the most common species in falconry, but none the less a magnificent bird. He seemed to control the bird just by using his eyes and a few words.
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| Harris Hawk - Dunrobin Castle falconry display |
One of the things that set aside this display from other falconry displays was that, instead of exclusively using artificial stands for the birds to perch on, the display made full use of the surrounding trees and walls.
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| Harris Hawk - Dunrobin Castle falconry display |
The next bird to appear was a magnificent Gyrfalcon, although it looked more like a Saker to my uneducated eye (thank you Doug for putting me straight!). This was in training, and he was constantly telling it that its approach was too high, although this did give me some flight photo opportunities! Trailing jesses have been 'removed surgically' from the next two images for aesthetic reasons!
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| Gyrfalcon - Dunrobin Castle falconry display |
Whilst the Gyr was displaying, a Peregrine Falcon appeared (presumably as a result of some unseen signal), and put on its own display, swooping from walls to high up in the trees and to various other parts of the castle grounds. The flight was too fast and too low for me to get any good flight images, the one below being the best I could manage.
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| Peregrine Falcon (male) - Dunrobin Castle falconry display |
The birds were, of course, rewarded by food for their performances. I'll spare you the gory images, but I was surprised to find that the Peregrine's reward was a rabbit that it tucked into with relish! I didn't see what sort of relish it was though! The feeding allowed some close-up images.
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| Gyrfalcon - Dunrobin Castle falconry display |
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| Peregrine Falcon (male) - Dunrobin Castle falconry display |
After the display, I went up to the area where some of the other birds that hadn't been involved in the morning display were on show. In talking to the falconer he informed me that he'd be flying owls in the afternoon. Sadly, I'd promised my wife that, after going round the castle, we'd go to the Falls of Shin, so had to pass on that experience! Here are some of the other birds on show. The first was described as a Bengal Eagle Owl. This is almost certainly what is usually named Rock Eagle Owl, or Indian Eagle Owl, with the Latin name of Bubo bengalensis.
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| Rock Eagle Owl - Dunrobin Castle falconry display |
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| Golden Eagle - Dunrobin Castle falconry display |
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| Goshawk - Dunrobin Castle falconry display |
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| Eurasian Eagle Owl - Dunrobin Castle falconry display |
I do believe that falconry displays have a useful place in today's society. They enable youngsters, and even adults, to relate to the fabulous world of birds of prey and are, therefore, likely to help the cause of protection of such creatures in the wild. From a bird watcher's point of view they enable close-up views of birds that would probably only ever otherwise be seen at great distance through a 'scope. From a photographer's point of view they provide fascinating subjects and an opportunity to practise a wide range of one's skills in a short period of time - I've never done so much quick twiddling of settings in an hour!!
On the downside is that these birds are, I believe, all bred from generations of 'domestic' stock which are traded around the world. There is always the possibility that some are hybrids. Indeed, the falconer told me that one of the birds I asked about was 50% Lanner, 25% Saker, and 25% Peregrine (or something similar - I didn't take a note). This last shot of a falconry bird, taken as we left the area, may be of the bird in question.
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| hybrid? - Dunrobin Castle falconry display |
I then did my husbandly duty and accompanied my wife round the gardens and castle - I must admit that they were well worth the visit. Here's a photo, taken on my phone.
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| Dunrobin Castle - from the gardens |
We'd also missed going to the Falls of Shin last year, and planned to do it in conjunction with a visit to Dunrobin. However, we were reminded by our friends that the visitor centre at the falls, including the branch of Harrods, had recently burned down. A phone call to the estate office resulted in a statement that the car park and centre were closed and they did not know whether the falls were accessible. We decided to risk it, and found that the car park WAS open, and that there were no problems accessing the falls. However, we didn't witness any Salmon leaping and the falls, although scenically very pleasant, were far from spectacular! Judge for yourself!
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| Falls of Shin |
We had some amusement as we returned to our car from the falls. A typical extended Indian family were sat having a picnic at a couple of surviving picnic tables in the middle of the burned out ruins. I wish I'd had the presence of mind to take a photo!
I started this post by saying not a single bird in the post would be a wild one. The day is not yet ended, but I must finish this post as the rest of the day does feature wild birds! The third and final instalment will come soon!
I started this post by saying not a single bird in the post would be a wild one. The day is not yet ended, but I must finish this post as the rest of the day does feature wild birds! The third and final instalment will come soon!
