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| SEPTEMBER 2007 4 k • -rn „ *VbYv -* - illtlil - * - *- 1 h<. » -&;- i-* 4 ' " ■•*-■' n‘'<' i ./|v'aft m jg, JSm t ■ ■ .„ A^, /■"T-V m rl\ y^gfe. Wt « : $ <*»&,; P 1 ~ \j|sf *\- JL» %s£Jfc , 3SL. :1 .. JHnjp * s Je|% * ~s£j..?-' flMJ®® !^'j.; k 'v ,v -' ''' « #‘ \ ' y >" "' '*' ' ’'.' .' - : <f Wzm sfiSPSI Photo by Cary Maures [ATTENTION OUTDOOIISMM _. unit w Bums of 0 ' • *mu4WH{m& % golf am •m 211 MAIN ST • BYRON • WWW.BIGBOYZ.US IVs SERVICE WHAT WE SELL M) (478) 987-7740 • (478) 988-1419 QjM: EVANS NEWSPAPERS, INC. HI Pick Up & Delivery Available By Ed Carswell Special to the Tribune It was great being at the 2007 Buckarama and we appreciated the invitation to come and represent the Georgia Falconry Association (GFA). I enjoy being around others who share a passion for wildlife and nature. We love to bring our birds so that others can have a chance to see them up close and appreciate their beauty and understand the importance of their role in the environment. GFA is a group of individuals who are trained and licensed in the ancient art of falconry with many years of experience. Our group welcomes families and friends to come out and participate. We have a great time together! Falconry dates back at least to 4000 BC, making it the oldest sport in the world today. It was originally used to help supplement food for the table. It has a long tradition in the Middle and Far East. Today, it is mainly used as a sport. Birds are trained entirely with reward; their natural response to food is the key. The bird accepts us as a partner (food source). Its like we are the hunting dogs, they are the hunters. Its similar to watching National Geographic, we get a front row seat to the action and the bird lets us be part of that. It takes a person with lots of patience 52230 HUNTING, FISHING G CAMPING and time to build a relationship. I like to describe it as an athlete in training. If the athlete is fat he’s lazy and does not want to perform. If their weight is too low, he can get sick and die. So we find the healthiest responsive weight level and maintain that while hunting. All training is done with rewards. We can also train a bird and dog to work together as the dog will lead them to find prey. Each day in the wild you see their natural skills and see something different. We can hunt with several species of falcons, hawks, owls and eagles. I heard 500 times this weekend of the golden eagle taking a small deer. The first thing I did when I got home was to watch the video. Seemed I was the only one who hadn’t seen it yet. We love to use the red-tail hawk on a squirrel and rabbit because the game is so plentiful and we have continuous action. We usually begin hunting in the fall and continue into March) We can use other Birds of Prey (falcons, harris hawks, coopers hawk, kestrels, goshawks and others on a variety of game birds and other prey). We are state and federally permitted and we take seriously our role in maintaining a healthy relationship with these birds and consider it a privilege. I like to use this quote: “The reward is the emotional satisfaction of being close to a wild creature as its successfully follows its instincts. The falcon or hawk allows the falconer to be close the flight, the chase, and the capture of the prey. They can leave when they choose, but they choose to stay. Walking the edge of freedom and flight can be a beautiful experience.” If you want to know more about falconry or coming out to some of our events look us up at www.GeorgiaFalconryAssociation.com.